Chapter 18
The
"Now
what?" Buffy asked, from her place in the front seat
between the two men.
"We need to find out
what shipments are coming in and which ones the drugs are hidden in,"
Spike said, almost as if he was thinking aloud.
Gunn watched Spike run his
hand through his hair, making it stand up even more than the way Buffy had
fixed it earlier. He shook his
head. This whole scenario was just way
too weird for him. He figured he never would
have seen Buffy again, much less be hunting down a killer with her and her
avenging angel ex-boyfriend. He probably
should have stayed in
"Are you planning on
just going up there and asking someone?" Gunn asked, letting some of his
frustration come through in his voice.
"Maybe we could even walk into Masters' office and ask him
directly."
"That might work,"
Spike said in that faraway voice again.
"It would save a lot of time if we could."
Buffy giggled. "I think he's got sunstroke or
something."
"Something," Gunn
said. "Yo
man, we're going to start attracting attention even all the way back here if we
don't do something." He reached
behind Buffy to smack Spike on the shoulder.
"Let's just get a lay of the land, split, and come back tonight to
do some investigating."
"No, I've got a better
idea," Spike said. He seemed to
have snapped out of it as he turned to look at the other two. "I'm going to go apply for a job
here. That will get me inside the office
and maybe a chance to find out something."
"I don’t think that's a
good idea," Buffy said, laying a hand on Spike's arm. "There are people looking for us. What if it is Masters? How do we know that those goons don't do
double duty and work here, too? You
could get killed."
"She's right,"
Gunn agreed.
"I'm a cop," Spike
said. "I'm trained to take care of
myself."
"Yeah, but you wouldn't
have back up. The Captain has no idea of
the new developments so no one knows where to even find us if we get into
trouble," Buffy protested, crossing her arms to hold herself. She looked frightened as she stared out the
front window of the car. "Gunn and
I couldn't do anything if you got into trouble.
Please don't do this."
Buffy's panic attack the
other day had shown Gunn how many unresolved issues she still carried from her
kidnapping. It had also revealed how
deep her feelings for Spike ran. He was
awed that one person could have so much need for another. Despite his own attraction for this woman, he
was glad that she had found someone with enough strength to deal with her
past. She shouldn't have to be afraid
she would lose Spike. Gunn sighed,
knowing he was in too deep to back out now.
His ego would just have to deal.
"I'll go apply,"
Gunn said. "They don't know I'm
with you two."
"I can't ask you to do
that," Spike said, reaching for the door handle.
Gunn grinned as he yanked
his door open and jumped out. Before he
left, he leaned into the car to say, "I'll be back. Keep your ears open for a man screaming like
a girl. That would be me and I do expect
the
"You're really
stupid," Gunn mumbled to himself as he looked around half expecting
someone to start chasing him. He didn't
know anything about being on the side of the law, only about running from
it. No one was waving guns at him, but
two men were smoking by the building.
They were eyeing his advance through the parking lot. He wasn't sure if
it was suspiciousness or curiosity and probably couldn't tell the difference
anyway.
There was only way to find
out. Gunn waved at the men and hollered
a hello at them. One of them waved back
after a second of hesitation. Taking it
as a sign Gunn walked over to them.
"Anything we can help
you with?" The shorter of the two
men asked around the cigarette hanging out of his mouth.
"Hey, the name's
Gunn. I'm looking for a job. Do you know if anyone down here is hiring?"
"You got any
experience?"
"A little here and
there," Gunn said. He
shrugged. "Never really worked on
the docks, but I learn fast and am willing to do just about anything."
They looked him up and down
then at each other. The shorter guy
seemed to be the only one of the two capable of speech because after they
checked him out, he said, "There might be an opening. Ask for Lilah when you go inside. She does all the hiring and firing."
"Thanks man," Gunn
said. "I appreciate it."
A pretty blonde was sitting
at the front desk when Gunn walked in.
She was on the phone giving him the opportunity to look around the bare
bones office. There were only a few hard
plastic chairs in the lobby, no pictures on the walls and a small stack of old
magazines on a side table. It didn't
seem like they wanted anyone to hang around.
A murmur of voices could be heard from the back. Nothing Gunn could make out so he waited.
"Welcome to Masters
Shipping," the receptionist said after banging down the phone. "Can I help you?"
"I'd like to see Lilah."
"Do you have an
appointment?"
"No," Gunn said,
shaking his head. "But I heard she
does the hiring and I'm looking for a job."
"Have you filled out an
application?"
"Uh, not yet,"
Gunn said.
She thrust a clipboard and a
pen at him. "Fill this out. I'll let Lilah know you're here."
With that the young woman
dismissed Gunn as she turned back to her computer. Somehow, he was going to have to figure out a
way to get information to take back to Spike and Buffy. The two of them didn't need to be wandering
around this place. Choosing a seat where
he could see the front door and be closer to the hallway where he might be able
to make out some of the conversations coming out of the back offices, Gunn
started filling out the application.
~~~
Cassie pulled her legs up,
wrapping her arms around them as she stared blankly at the television. An old detective movie was playing. The hero and heroine were searching for a
killer, but the search was filled with more madcap comedy then with tense
moments. The hero had to keep rescuing his
beautiful blonde partner from the trouble she kept finding. She played the damsel-in-distress to
perfection. And she reminded Cassie of
Buffy.
"What are you
watching?" Kate asked, sitting on
the opposite end of the couch from Cassie.
She cradled a cup of fragrant steaming coffee in her hands.
"Some
old movie." Cassie said, not being able to say what she
really wanted. That since her dream she
was really worried about Buffy and Spike.
It was more than a dream. She
could feel the truth deep down inside of her soul like a ticking time
bomb. If only she could speak with
either of them. If only she knew what
they were doing. If only she could warn
them. But she couldn't. Kate and Lorne watched her every step inside
of this prison meant to keep her safe. Except it was driving her crazy with worry.
"You don't look like
you're enjoying it."
Cassie shrugged. "I'm sick of watching television."
Technically, it wasn't a
lie. She was sick of television, being
enclosed in a space too small for three people, and questioning her own
judgment. How could she have fallen for someone
like Luke? Despite the fact that he
seemed to fulfill her dreams and making her feel precious she knew there was
danger lurking in his blue eyes. Now a
father was dead, and people she already considered friends were in danger.
"It will be over
soon."
"Yes, it will,"
Cassie agreed. "But the price will
be too high."
"We don't know that
yet," Kate put her coffee down.
"Everything will be fine.
Buffy and Spike can take care of themselves."
"I hope so."
~~~~~
"Charles Gunn?"
Looking up from the magazine
he'd been reading, Gunn saw a serious looking woman standing at the entrance of
the hallway. She didn't look very
happy. It was probably the fact that he
practically begged the receptionist to get him an interview on the spot. The blonde certainly hadn't been impressed,
but he didn't care. It had worked. Now he just needed to charm Lilah Morgan.
"Yes," he said,
tossing the magazine onto a table. He
jumped up and crossed the tiny room in only a couple of strides. "I'm Charles," he held his hand
out. "You must be Lilah
Morgan."
"Obviously," Lilah
said, taking his hand for only a second.
"Seems you're desperate for a job?"
Not waiting for an answer,
Lilah headed back down the hallway from which she had appeared. Gunn hurried to keep up with her. He was amazed that someone could move so fast
in three-inch heels. Nothing slowed her
down until she reached a door with a nameplate engraved with not only her name,
but also the title of Personnel Manager.
She sat behind a desk, and with a wave of her manicured hand indicated
for him to take a seat opposite of her in front of the massive oak desk.
"To answer your
question," Gunn said, after sitting.
"I am in need of a job. I've
been attending school in
"A typical hard luck
story," Lilah said, sitting back with her hands
folded on her lap. "What does that
have to do with Masters Shipping?"
Gunn shifted underneath her
cold glare. There wasn't a drop of
sympathy in her eyes. He wondered if she
treated everyone this way or if she was just being hardnosed in a business that
was mostly male oriented.
"Uh," he
chuckled. "I'm a hard worker, learn
fast, and I am willing to do anything.
It doesn't matter to me. If you
need it done then I'm your guy."
"Really." Lilah raised
one eyebrow as she looked him over and then it dropped as she picked up his
application. She looked it over. "You were going to college on an
academic scholarship?"
"Yes,
ma'am."
"Are you going to be
content with doing manual labor? I mean,
wasting your intelligence while you're beating your body to death under the hot
sun?"
"I don't have much of a
choice," Gunn shrugged. "Yeah,
I'll be honest. It pisses me off that I
have to give up everything to take care of them, but what choice do I
have?"
"Everyone has
choices," Lilah said. "You can
forget about them and continue your education."
"I could, but I
won't. Like I said, I'm going to take
care of them. No
matter what I have to do to accomplish it."
"Ever been in trouble
before? Legal
trouble?"
Gunn rubbed his cheek. He could tell she was fishing for information
on his morality. On the outside he
forced himself to stay calm, but on the inside he was jumping with excitement. He leaned forward.
"I won't lie to
you. Got busted
when I was underage for theft and for possession with intent to sell. Went through a program and I've stayed clean
since."
"I like your
honesty." Lilah stood. "I want to bring you back for a second
interview after I check out your references.
Can you come in tomorrow afternoon?"
"Yeah, yeah, that would
be great," Gunn said. He headed for
the office door. "Oh, what
time?"
"Three o'clock would be
great," Lilah said with a smile.
The phone on the desk beeped
and the receptionist's voice came through the speaker. "Lilah, I'm sorry to interrupt but
Wesley is on line three."
"Thank you," Lilah
said. She glanced back at Gunn. "I'll see you tomorrow then."
"I'll be here."
Gunn almost skipped out of
the building. He couldn't wait to tell
Buffy and Spike everything.
to be continued…
