Chapter 11 <\/b><\/p>\n
Angel was on his feet instantly as he heard someone outside.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhoa, hey.\u201d The startled boy jumped back as the door swung open. \u201cYo, you Angel?\u201d The kid held out an envelope.<\/p>\n
Angel snatched the envelope and dragged the boy inside.<\/p>\n
\u201cHey, let go. Don\u2019t worry about the tip.\u201d The boy tried to wiggle out of Angel\u2019s grasp.<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel what is it?\u201d Angel pushed the struggling boy towards Wesley as he approached. Wesley grabbed the young man. \u201cPlease, we may have some questions.\u201d Wesley turned back to Angel. \u201cAngel?\u201d<\/p>\n
Angel ripped open the envelope. Inside was a store bought hallmark card. A large bright red heart graced the cover. Tentatively Angel opened it. A clump of dark hair was securely fitted in the crease. The word \u2018soon\u2019 was scrawled on the blank side.<\/p>\n
Wesley picked up the card as it fluttered to the ground. He read the word. \u201cAngel. This is good.\u201d<\/p>\n
Angel glanced at up at Wesley, his expression unreadable. The dark hair remained pressed between his fingers. He closed his eyes as he brought the cut strands to his nose, breathing in the lingering scent of Cordelia\u2019s shampoo.<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel, he is taunting you, dragging this out. He isn\u2019t ready to just kill her. He wants you to suffer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s good?\u201d Fred had gotten up to stand next to Wesley. Her fearful expression went from Wesley and Angel.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt gives us more time to find her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd if he starts sending her body parts.\u201d Angel growled, putting the strands of hair safely in his pocket.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will find her before that.\u201d Wesley said with confidence.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d Angel said. He would. There was really no other option. \u201cWho hired you?\u201d Angel stalked to the nervous delivery boy.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know just some guy. He gave me a fifty to deliver this. I should have asked for more. You guys are nuts.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGet out.\u201d Angel growled.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t have to tell me twice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Beverly Hilton.\u201d<\/p>\n
They had momentarily forgotten about the young man at the computer. \u201cHe checked out a week ago.\u201d Albert\u2019s smile died at Angel\u2019s stare.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m going.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley nodded. He knew that Angel had to do something. \u201cI\u2019ll page Gunn tell him to meet you there. I want to read some more. I\u2019ve discovered several passages on spells and possession that maybe relevant.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chapter 12 <\/b><\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you?\u201d Cordelia struggled up in the bed.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere.\u201d Randall handed Cordelia a glass of water.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t want it. I asked you a question. What?\u201d Cordelia pulled at her arm. \u201cWhat are you doing to me?\u201d Her question changed as she looked at the IV attached to her arm.<\/p>\n
\u201cCounter acting the drug, I originally gave you that\u2019s all. I though you would appreciate being conscious.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAppreciate? Appreciate? I WOULD appreciate knowing what the hell you are and why you\u2019ve kidnapped me. That\u2019s what I would appreciate.\u201d Cordelia glared and struggled to sit up at the same time.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I am, is just a man who for two centuries has waited for this moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTwo centuries? You\u2019ve waited two hundred years to kidnap, drug and tie me to a bed. That\u2019s insane. And you still haven\u2019t answered my question- what are you? You aren\u2019t a vampire, so what are you?\u201d<\/p>\n
Randall got up from the side of the bed. \u201cI was a husband and a father. My family was my everything. My Becca was my life, my heart.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSweet. This has to do with me being taken to dinner, drugged and trussed up, how?\u201d<\/p>\n
Randall glared at her biting tone. \u201cHave I been wrong about you? Do you not know what true love is?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re nuts. Let me go.\u201d Cordelia said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat will not be possible. You may not understand the power of true love, but I\u2019m betting that Angel does.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel? Angel? What have you done?\u201d Cordelia tried to push herself up.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing yet. But soon, soon I will return his true love to him, just like he returned mine to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you talking about? You are nuts. Buffy is in Sunnydale alive and well. And what does Angel have to do with your wife and kids? Why am I here?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe tore my heart out. And now I\u2019ll tear his out.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew it. You went to one of those Sloggy Doctors. That\u2019s how come you\u2019re not normal.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat? No. He killed my family, him and the bitch.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cordelia scrunched up her face. \u201cHe killed? Bitch? OH. You\u2019re talking about Angelus. Angelus and Darla killed your wife and children. Oh. Sorry. Really, I am, but Angel isn\u2019t Angelus. He has a soul now. He\u2019s good. He\u2019s paying for Angelus\u2019 actions. He\u2019s changed. Now, Darla doesn\u2019t have a soul and she isn\u2019t at all sorry or guilty about the stuff she did. So, if you want to kill anyone, kill her.<\/p>\n
\u201cI already have. Her and her ill begotten demon spawn.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, well I can\u2019t say I\u2019m sorry about that. She deserved it. But, Angel has a soul, she didn\u2019t.\u201d Cordelia said. \u201cHow are you still alive?” Cordelia tried to keep a thought in her head. “What demon spawn?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy love has sustained me, my revenge has fueled my actions since the day Angelus tore the still warm heart from my beloved. I have waited 197 years for my revenge.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEww. Sorry, but that didn\u2019t really answer my question. And you can\u2019t kill Angel. Angel has his soul, he\u2019s good.\u201d<\/p>\n
Randall smiled. \u201cHe won\u2019t die, no he will survive to suffer the ultimate loss, the loss of his true love.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBuffy doesn\u2019t do dead real well. So, I wouldn\u2019t count on it. And what demon spawn?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBuffy, who\u2019s Buffy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTrue love, Angel\u2019s true love.\u201d Cordelia tugged at the needle in her arm. Maybe she shouldn\u2019t have told that to Randall. Angel would be mad if Buffy was put in danger. But the slayer was the slayer. Buffy could take this guy. And with Angel\u2019s help Randall would be toast and maybe Cordelia would be saved. \u201cYou got the wrong girl. And you still haven\u2019t answered my questions.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think so. No. You are the one. And you will die. Now, I think it\u2019s time for you to sleep again. You talk too much.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cordelia scooted away from him. She winced as another needle pierced her flesh. \u201cWhat demon spawn?\u201d Cordelia mumbled as she fell into unconsciousness, again.<\/p>\n
Chapter 13 <\/b><\/p>\n
Angel tried to remember where he was. He wasn\u2019t in the sewers or even Wolfram & Hart, places where he could show his demon face and beat the answers he needed out of the uncooperative. Angel was in a swanky hotel where money went further than threats.<\/p>\n
Angel choked on his growl and pushed a wad of money towards the desk clerk.<\/p>\n
\u201cSir, our guest privacy is important here at the Beverly Hilton.\u201d The clerk fingered the money and pushed it back.<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel.\u201d Gunn\u2019s hand shot out bringing Angel\u2019s clenched fingers back from the direction of the clerk\u2019s throat. \u201cMan, this is all you get or I let him loose.\u201d Gunn pulled out a few more bills and shoved them and the pile already on the counter towards the clerk.<\/p>\n
The clerk studied the casually dressed black man. He pursed his lips.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll let him loose and I\u2019ll stay in the lobby greeting all your high rolling guest \u2018saying Whaz up\u2019 over and over again.\u201d Gunn leaned over counter and smiled. \u201cI won\u2019t even tell them that I\u2019m a rap star. I\u2019ll just whaz up \u2018em until they run to the Beverly Hills Hotel, it\u2019s only a half hour away.\u201d<\/p>\n
The clerk\u2019s lips disappeared as he put up his nose. He looked again at the dark man in leather. The clerk stepped back bringing a handkerchief to his face. The dark man was handsome but looked like he would get violent any second. The clerk turned to the sweat shirted black man.<\/p>\n
He rolled his eyes and looked at the computer. \u201cRandall Montgomery stayed for 7 nights. He was a gentleman. He was polite and well dressed. He caused no disturbances, we were sorry to see him leave. But he had found a place to live.\u201d The clerk\u2019s hand discreetly cupped the money bringing it towards him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d Angel\u2019s growl was barely contained.<\/p>\n
\u201cHmm.\u201d The clerk stepped back from Angel the money firmly in his grasp. \u201cThat\u2019s all the information.\u201d The clerk turned to Gunn.<\/p>\n
The black man smiled. \u201cReally.\u201d Gunn turned away from the clerk, leaning his back on the counter. \u201cWhaz up, hot mama.\u201d Gunn waved to a blue haired woman walking through the lobby.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlease.\u201d The clerk squealed as the woman gave a scared gasp.<\/p>\n
Gunn turned back and shrugged. \u201cAnswer the man\u2019s question. He\u2019s the polite one.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMr. Montgomery didn\u2019t leave a forwarding address.\u201d The clerk raised both his hands at Angel\u2019s growl and Gunn\u2019s movement to the middle of the lobby. \u201cHe had been showing some interest in the Bel Air area, which is expected from a man of his obvious taste.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gunn put his arm out to stop Angel from going over the counter. \u201cAre you sure that\u2019s all you know.\u201d<\/p>\n
The clerk stood even further back. \u201cHe did spend some time at the bar. But never did he cause a spectacle. He respected where he was. He was a gentlemen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gunn stepped back his expression of disgust barely disguised. \u201cCome on Angel man, let\u2019s go to the bar. Gentleman, my ass. High flying, but gentleman my ass. \u201c Gunn grumbled.<\/p>\n
Gunn suddenly stopped pulling at Angel. \u201cLook man, whatever stuff may be still between us, believe me I want Cordy back safe and sound. And I\u2019m side by side with you for Cordy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Angel stood. He didn\u2019t have the time or energy to deal with Gunn. He didn\u2019t care to figure out if Gunn was trying to give reassurance or get reassurance. Angel fought the urge just to throw Gunn against the wall.<\/p>\n
Cordelia would be really angry with him if he did that. Angel deflated. He would give anything would do anything to have Cordelia back and yelling at him. And maybe just maybe if he didn\u2019t throw Gunn up against the wall, she would come back.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d Angel went into the bar, may be he could pound the bartender\u2019s head into the floor.<\/p>\n
Gunn watched as Angel\u2019s black coat swirled after the vampire. He shrugged. Gunn wasn\u2019t sure what he was feeling. Gunn started it. He was the one that said out loud that he could never be a friend with the vampire. And the story he had heard just reaffirmed that Angel was a demon and had the capacity to be truly evil.<\/p>\n
But then again the vampire that Gunn had heard about was Angel. The vampire that had made bad choices but had also shown great loyalty and concern for those he called his friends.<\/p>\n
And Angel had called Gunn his friend. Maybe, Gunn could think of Angel has his friend; maybe he had been wrong to think otherwise. Cordelia and Wesley definitely thought so. They hadn\u2019t said much about it to Gunn, but he had felt their disapproval. Gunn followed Angel.<\/p>\n
He would worry about it after the Barbie was back and safe. And the one thing Gunn did know was that Angel would do anything to save the Barbie, and for now that was more than enough for him.<\/p>\n
Chapter 14 <\/b><\/p>\n
\u201cWesley.\u201d Fred fidgeted in the chair next to the former watcher. Wesley looked up from his book.<\/p>\n
\u201cCordelia will be okay won\u2019t she?\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley took his glasses and rubbed them. \u201cYes.\u201d Wesley couldn\u2019t imagine any other outcome.<\/p>\n
Fred nodded her head frantically; her knees were drawn up to her chest. She believed him. Fred could believe him. He wasn\u2019t Angel. Not that she couldn\u2019t believe Angel, but Angel was larger than life, a hero, the hero of fairytales.<\/p>\n
Fairytales weren\u2019t real. Wesley was real. And if he said Cordelia was going to fine than she would be. Because what Wesley said was real.<\/p>\n
\u201cCordy is really the heart isn\u2019t she?\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley put his glasses on. The heart of what? The agency? Yes. The heart of Angel? Yes. Wesley nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel really likes her, doesn\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley stalled. He knew that Fred had a crush on Angel and he didn\u2019t want to hurt her. \u201cAngel and Cordelia have known each other for a long time, they have a connection, she is his seer, they care very much for each other.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey love each other.\u201d Fred said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey care very much for each other, they have been through a lot together.\u201d Wesley pushed nervously at his glasses.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. They really love each other. Angel didn\u2019t go to Plyea to save me. He went to save Cordelia. She was the Princess the hero went to save. Like a fairytale. He’s her knight, not mine.\u201d Fred squirmed in her seat.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2026.yes, well. Angel loves Cordelia. And though, never expressed to me, I imagine she loves him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course, she does. Angel\u2019s her hero and he will save her.\u201d Fred got up.<\/p>\n
\u201cFred are you okay?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFairytales are nice, but when I’m not loopy to loop, I\u2019m a physicist. I\u2019m only a little crazy, not stupid. Reality not fairytales is what I want.\u201d Fred smiled. \u201cAnd though I believe Angel will save her, us realists should help, just to make sure. Because everyone needs a hero and a heart, otherwise, no fairytales.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI agree.\u201d Wesley returned Fred\u2019s smile.<\/p>\n
Chapter 15<\/b><\/p>\n
\u201cAngel, Gunn, anything?\u201d Wesley got up as the two men entered the hotel.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe guy likes revenge as well as expensive stuff. It seems he\u2019s been checking out the poshness of Bel Air.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cInteresting, large hidden estates.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPrivacy.\u201d Angel strode to the computer. \u201cWhere\u2019s Albert?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI sent him home.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou what? We haven\u2019t found Cordelia.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel, it\u2019s 3AM. Randall\u2019s credit card trail ended. There was no more that he could do here. Albert went home to sleep, then he is going to start again only on his own computer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wasn\u2019t very impressed with ours.\u201d Fred shrugged. \u201cAlbert wants to start searching some of the government databases to see if he can find more of history on Randall.\u201d<\/p>\n
Angel paced in front of the computer. \u201cFred, you do know how to use it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fred pushed at her glasses. \u201cOur computer isn\u2019t equipped with the proper components to break through\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. I want you check out the real estate listing for Bel Air. Estates that were for sale or for rent last week.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fred smiled happily. \u201cI can do that.\u201d Fred quickly started searching.<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel.\u201d Wesley motioned the vampire to the table. \u201cThere are very few spells that would account for Randall\u2019s longevity. ..\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI say the man made a pact with the devil.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes. That\u2019s a possibility.\u201d Wesley pushed up his glasses.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was joking.\u201d Gunn said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wasn\u2019t. There are spells that could be viewed as a pact with the devil. Sell your soul type incantations for long life, power, etc. For example, I imagine Wolfram & Hart\u2019s senior partners have done a few of those spells. But, those spells are fairly constricted.<\/p>\n
The person gets the power, wealth but in turn he or she is bound to the dark powers, their ultimate purpose, regardless of whatever bonus the spell gives is the fight for evil, the disruption of good. Randall\u2019s purpose is specific in revenge, it\u2019s not his care or intention to harm Cordelia because she is a link to the powers. That\u2019s merely incidental. No. The means he has utilized was something neither good nor evil, just something magic. And I think I may have found it. “<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley held out a book, pointing to the opened page.<\/p>\n
Angel grabbed the book. \u201cAngel, don\u2018t.\u201d Wesley tried to snatch the book back, only to catch it has it was thrown to the ground. Angel\u2019s growl echoed in the lobby.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat the hell? Was that a Bible?\u201d Angel held his burning hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy fault. No, sorry. It is however a religious book.\u201d Wesley showed the cover to Angel. The black leather was emblazoned with a bright gold cross. Wesley opened the book again to the page he had marked. It was a picture of the Last Supper. He pointed to the goblet placed before the figure of Christ.<\/p>\n
\u201cChrist\u2019s cup? The Holy Grail? Wesley, that\u2019s a myth and even if it wasn\u2019t it is considered a \u2018good\u2019 icon, a holy icon, not an ambivalent thing at all.\u201d Angel stood a few feet away and stared at the page.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhoa, back up, the Holy Grail? Now I know you\u2019re joking.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. The Holy Grail is a myth, it\u2019s the myth that is good, not the magic of the goblet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the cup of Christ. Christ drank from it at the last supper. It caught his blood at the Crucifixion. It\u2019s holy. \u201c Wesley raised a brow at Angel.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat? I wasn\u2019t a vampire always. Like I could ever forget being catechized until I was black and blue. Priest, crosses, churches- It\u2019s not just being a vampire that makes me avoid them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley nodded. \u201cI wonder.\u201d Wesley\u2019s expression became contemplative. \u201cA vampire\u2019s reaction to holy water and crosses- You as a human were raised in a Christian household, but what if you had been brought up a Jew or Pagan, those symbols wouldn\u2019t have the same meaning.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cInteresting theory, write a thesis, later, now just get to your point. Finding Cordelia, if you\u2019ve forgotten.\u201d Angel growled, still holding his injured hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cGreat; a search for the Holy Grail, why don\u2019t we just call in Indiana Jones.\u201d Gunn sat back down. \u201cOr hell, Monty Python for that matter. AI\u2019s \u2013 In Search of the Holy Grail. Wesley, get real.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho are Indiana Jones and Monty Python?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMovies. Great ones.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI like movies.\u201d Fred smiled, her eyes shining underneath the lenses of her glasses. \u201cBetter than The Princess Bride?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDamn straight.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cReally, Gunn. Monty Python is adolescent.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s damn funny. And you know it, English.\u201d Gunn\u2019s voice rose. \u201cWe are the Knights who say \u2018Ni\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley shook his head in the negative. \u201cWe are now the Knights who say\u2026ekki-ekki-ekki-ekki-ptang-zoom-boing-mrowr!\u201d<\/p>\n
Fred\u2019s eyes widened as she started to giggle at Wesley\u2019s strange words and exaggerated accent. She jumped as Angel\u2019s fist slammed into the counter.<\/p>\n
\u201cCordelia.\u201d Angel growled.<\/p>\n
\u201cRight.\u201d Wesley pushed up his glasses guiltily.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the princess gets back safe and sound. We\u2019ll rent it.\u201d Gunn leaned over to whisper in Fred\u2019s ear.<\/p>\n
\u201cPromise.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel will get her back.\u201d<\/p>\n
Angel stared at Gunn. He forced air through his dead lungs. \u201cWesley, talk.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201c The Holy Grail is a myth, but the goblet- an ancient Celtic cauldron of magic is very real. The Cauldron of Adsagsona. Adsagsona was the Celtic goddess of the underworld and magic. She had the ability to heal and to grant immortality. That\u2019s what I believe Randall must have used to remain alive.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFine. So what\u2019s with the scorching of the vamp?\u201d Gunn rolled his eyes.<\/p>\n
Wesley looked sheepishly at Angel. \u201cI\u2019m sorry. Are you all right?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWes, how does this help Cordelia?\u201d Angel ignored his hand. It would be fine soon enough. His thoughts were on his missing seer. The woman he loved and feared for.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt gives us the means to kill him, if need be.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRandall, will die.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow come you believe the Cauldron of Adsagsona is real but the Holy Grail isn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley pushed his glasses up and looked towards Fred, his expression slightly amused.<\/p>\n
\u201cFred, the Holy Grail is just a myth, one of the many made up by Christianity to explain the mysteries of ancient magic. Christianity took on many of the icons and traditions of \u2018Paganism\u2019 for lack of a better word. The Church just incorporated them and added to the mysticism surrounding them. The Holy Grail was a vessel for immortality, healing, ultimate knowledge and the search for the divine. The Church added the last part on.<\/p>\n
In actual fact it was just a cauldron of magic. One that granted immortality, but as it was Druid in origin, it allows for the immortal to be killed by beheading. The Celts were headhunters; they believed the head to contain the essence of the person to whom they belonged and to be a source of wisdom. Take an enemies head, take their essence.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHoly Grail, cup of magic- both sound myth-like to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. The Cauldron of Adsagsona is real.\u201d Wesley grabbed another book and pointed to an ink drawing of a simple brass goblet.<\/p>\n
Gunn glanced from the drawing to the picture of the Last Supper. \u201cSure I get it. That old picture in that old book is oh so more credible than the other old picture in the other old book.\u201d Gunn shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Cauldron has been consistently described in several ancient manuscripts. The Holy Grail, on the other hand has had many theories and descriptions proscribed to it over the centuries- a chalice, a stone- even the Arc of Covenant or even the Shroud of Turin. Meaning of course, no one knows, but this.\u201d Wesley pointed aggressively at the drawing of the Cauldron. \u201cIs known- it does exist.\u201d<\/p>\n
The growl in Angel\u2019s chest grew in volume and intensity.<\/p>\n
Wesley coughed, once again aware of Angel\u2019s impatience. \u201cYes, well. I believe that beheading will kill him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat option would have been explored.\u201d Angel said lowly. \u201cWhat is important is WHERE IS CORDELIA?\u201d<\/p>\n
The other members of the Angel Investigations winced at Angel\u2019s shout.<\/p>\n
Wesley removed his glasses once more. \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d He slumped into his chair.<\/p>\n
Fred fidgeted. \u201cI\u2019ll go back to the real estate listing.\u201d She scooted hurriedly back to the computer on the desk.<\/p>\n