TEASER:An abusive boyfriend turns out to be more than what meets the eye when Doyle and Angel meet a girl with first hand experience.
DISCLAIMER: All the characters in the following story belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and co. I only own, Erin, Ross, Kevin, Julie, the story idea and the story itself.
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Cordelia Chase sat at a computer and stared blankly at the screen. Angle and Doyle stood behind her, waiting for her to begin typing.
"Okay, business cards are easy to order but now I have to write up flyers? What do you think I am?" She asked, turning around and looked at the two men behind her.
Doyle flashed her a lopsided grin. "If you're going to be an actress, you have to learn how to write too. People love multi-talented . . . women. Just type."
Cordelia sighed and turned back around to look at the computer. She placed her fingers on the keys and slowly began to type, "It was a dark night in Los Angeles,"
Angel began to laugh. "Usually it's dark at night Cor." He said, trying to hide his smile.
She rolled her eyes and deleted that sentence, then typed, "Night had fallen over the city of Angels. Sirens blared in the deepest shadows and people shuffled in all corners. Most of them needed help."
"Don't write that." Doyle said. "I mean the last line. The rest is good."
Cordelia sighed and deleted, "Most of them needed help." Then began to type once more, "Someone watched them from the shadows, kept his eye on them, making sure they were okay. They could go to him if they needed help, they knew it but he was always there anyway. Los Angeles finally had a real Angel."
She turned around and smiled. "Well? Is that good or not?"
Angel and Doyle exchanged a glance then they both nodded.
"Yeah, it's really good." Doyle began. "Now all you have to do is put our phone number on it and the picture of the owl."
"It's an angel." She muttered, exasperated with the demon.
"I know. But whatever it is, put it on there."
Cordelia nodded and quickly typed their agency's name and phone number then added the graphic of the angel to their flyers.
"Now what?" She asked.
"Print that out and I'll take it to get copied." Angel said. "Then I can send you and Doyle out tomorrow night delivering straight to the mailboxes."
Both Doyle and Cordelia groaned, thinking about the task they had the next night.
"Gee, it sounds like an awful lot of fun but I have an elsewhere to be." Cordelia said, trying to look upset.
"No can do peaches." Doyle looked unimpressed. "You're coming with me whether you like it or not."
She slumped back into the chair. "Fine. It's not like I have anything else planned. You would think in a city with so much going on that there would be something other to do than to deliver flyers on a Friday night. But no, I'm sitting in the hugest city in the country and I have to sell girl guide cookies."
Doyle looked momentarily confused. "We're not selling cookies, oh! You mean going door to door."
She nodded. "Yes, brain dead. Or is it just a little musty from sitting up there so long without use?"
"Ouch." Doyle commented, then plunked himself on the sofa. "I really think we ought to start giving her more days off. She's starting to not like me."
"Starting?" Angel asked, smiling at them both.
The flyer finished printing off the computer and Cordelia handed it to Angel over the desk.
"Now, if you two don't mind, I'm going home to get some sleep. One whole night's worth of sleep. Now there's something to write home about." She laughed to herself as she picked up her coat. "It's really the most exciting thing that's happened since I got here." She grinned at Doyle and Angel. "See you tomorrow."
Then she was gone.
"Gotta love her." Angel said, before walking out the door and leaving Doyle sitting alone.
* * *
Angel walked briskly down the street toward the copying store and his eyes wandered to the women standing along the street corners.
*That's sad.* He thought, watching as a young girl, far too young a girl, got into a car. His brown eyes roamed over the older women propositioning men and the girls he could easily call babies flashing smiles at men across the street.
*Out of all the things I can stop, this couldn't be one?* He shook his head. *I wish I could do something.*
"Hey." A woman approached him and began to say something but Angel shook his head furiously before continuing on his way.
* * *
Doyle stood outside Cordelia's apartment the next night and banged on the door.
"I don't care if you look like a princess, just come out." He yelled.
A door opened down the hall way and an elderly man stuck his head out. "Shut the hell up!" He screamed at Doyle.
"Let me take a moment to think about that. No!" Doyle yelled back.
Cordelia opened the door at the moment and came out carrying a pile of flyers.
"Angel dropped these off at my place last night." She said, dumping them into Doyle's arms. "I don't want to carry them."
The demon struggled under the pile of papers before he got them into some kind of an order and split the stack.
"You can carry half." He said, flashing Cordelia an annoyed look.
"Can we just get this over with?" She asked. "It's really not that appealing to be walking around L.A. in the middle of the night."
"It's only nine." Doyle pointed out.
She nodded. "Whatever. Let's go." She nudged him with her shoulder and they left her apartment building for the night air.
"It's cold." Cordelia muttered, tightening her jacket around her neck.
"It's Los Angeles." Doyle said. "As in the middle of California, it's never cold."
A gust of wind rustled the papers he held and Cordelia shot him a knowing look.
"Should we give some flyers to them?" She asked, pointing to a group of girls huddled on a street corner.
"Cordelia, those are prostitutes." Doyle hissed, looking uncomfortable.
"So? They might need help too." She stalked off in the direction of the girls and began talking to them. Each girl took a flyer and Doyle watched with a pained expression on his face. Angel had said something about this yesterday and he could now see what the vampire meant. It was so hard to see people throwing their lives away like this and not being able to do a thing about it.
He sighed and began to walk in Cordelia's direction as she continued talking with the girls.
*They're so young.* He thought as he got closer. *It's so sad.*
One of the girls saw Doyle coming and split off from the group. "Looking for some fun?" She asked him.
Doyle shook his head. "No, really. I'm okay."
"You sure?" The girl flashed him a bright smile. "You're kind of cute."
"I'm just getting my friend." He said, smiling back. He grabbed Cordelia's arm and began to pull her away from the group of girls when he caught a glimpse of a girl sitting against the building. She had short brown hair and clear blue eyes but her physical appearance wasn't what caught Doyle's eye.
The sadness that shone through was what he saw. Her mouth was pulled up into a fake smile even though her eyes were shining with tears.
Cordelia yanked her arm from Doyle's grasp and continued talking with the girls.
Suddenly the blue eyed girl noticed Doyle staring at her and he saw her blush under the bright street lamp.
"What?" She asked dully, as he walked to her side.
He smiled. "I'm Doyle."
The girl frowned at him, then shrugged. "Erin."
"Are you all right?" He asked. "You look so sad."
She flashed him her fake smile and shrugged again. "Who can be happy living like this?"
"They don't seem too upset." He said and gestured to the other girls.
"Well, I'm not one of them." Erin answered.
"You're not?" He looked surprised. "But I thought,"
"No, I work at a real job. When I can find one."
"Oh, I'm sorry. Why are you out here? You don't look like you belong here."
"You're scaring me." She said quietly.
"I don't mean to."
"I know."
Doyle cocked his head. "Are you sure you're okay? It doesn't seem like you're used to this."
"Not really. I'll never get used to living like this."
"Then why are you?"
She laughed bitterly. "There aren't many other places I can be living without any money."
"Doyle." Cordelia grabbed his arm. "Let's go. I want to finish this before the sun comes up."
He nodded. "In a second." He turned back to Erin. "Will you be here? When we come back this way?"
She nodded. "Probably. I'm here all night." She paused. "Why?"
"I don't know. I-I just want to ask you something."
Erin frowned, then shrugged. "Okay sure. I'll still be here."
"Doyle." Cordelia began to pull him away from the group of girls and down the street. "I thought you didn't want to go near them." She said.
"Originally I didn't, but after seeing her," he gestured toward Erin, "I had to."
"Why? What was it about her?"
He shook his head. "I-I don't know. But there's something. It's more than just the fact of what she does. She needs our help."
"Okay, so what are you going to ask her? Hey, been chased by any demons lately?"
Doyle shook his head. "She doesn't need saving from demons. It's something much more human than that."
* * *
"Who? A girl who picked up off the street?" Angel asked, his voice raising. "You told her she could stay here?"
"Keep your voice down." Doyle warned. "She'll hear you."
Angel glanced toward the door before lowering his voice. "What's gotten into you Doyle? This isn't like you."
"We're supposed to be saving people right? Well, I think she needs saving and the only way to know for sure is to get her to trust us. And the only way to get her to trust us is to . . . well let her stay with us and take care of her and stuff like that."
Angel shook his head. "Or maybe you could just ask the 'powers that be' to send you another vision."
Doyle opened his mouth to say something but his breath caught in his throat and his head began to pound.
"Good timing." He croaked to Angel before collapsing on the ground.
The vampire rushed to his side while watching to make sure Erin didn't come into the room.
Doyle's writhed on the floor for a moment before he stopped moving and slowly sat up.
"I was right about her." He said. "She needs our help."
"From what?" Angel asked.
Doyle shook his head. "I don't know. But she needs us Angel. We need her to stay here, it's just right. I know it is."
Angel sighed. "Fine, let her in."
Doyle stood up and held onto Cordelia's desk when he swayed for a moment. Once he had regained his balance he returned to the door and opened it for Erin to come into the room.
She smiled as she walked in, then turned her blue eyes to the floor.
"Erin this is Angel," Doyle said, "Angel, Erin."
Angel stuck out his hand. "It's nice to meet you."
She smiled. "You too. And I just wanted to thank you for letting me stay here. Not that many people are very nice in L.A."
Angel nodded. "If you ever need any help, we'll always be here."
Erin looked around the room. "Yeah, I saw the Angel Agency sign on the door. What kind of agency do you run?"
"We help people that have demon proble-," Doyle began.
"Demons." Angel quickly cut him off. "You know, like inner demons."
Erin nodded slowly. "So, I'm just another case?"
Doyle looked shocked. "No. I mean, most cases come to us with problems."
"Then why did you ask me to come here?"
"I," he paused and drew in a breath, "I don't know. There's just something about you."
She nodded slowly. "All right."
Angel took her by the arm and led her toward the part of the building at served as his house. As they walked by walls filled with weapons, Erin's eyes widened and she tore her arm from Angel's hand.
"What's going on?" She asked. "What are those for?"
Angel turned to look at the crossbow and ax that were hanging on the wall. He laughed, "I collect old weapons. They're really quite fascinating."
Her eyes narrowed, then she relaxed. Doyle wasn't sure why, but he thought she had seen the good in the vampire. The pure good.
"This is the spare bedroom." Angel said, opening a door. "I'll get you some sheets to put on."
She smiled. "Thanks."
Doyle turned to her. "Why don't you go have a nice hot bath? I can make the bed for you."
Erin smiled. "Really? That'd be great."
He nodded. "It's just through there." He pointed her toward the bathroom and smiled as she shut the door.
"Where'd she go?" Angel asked, coming back with blankets and sheets in his arms.
"I told her to go have a bath." Doyle said. "She's in there."
Angel nodded. "Okay, well then you can make the bed." He dropped the sheets into Doyle's arms, then walked away.
* * *
Erin dried her hair with the towels Angel had handed to her through the door. He had also given her some of his clothes to wear and she was now clothed in the too-big black sweats and tee shirt.
She turned toward the mirror and wiped off the steam before attempting to straighten her wet hair.
"You done in there?" She heard Doyle call through the door and she smiled.
He was an awfully nice guy and she was surprised by his offer of a place to stay. It turned out he was temporarily staying with Angel himself, something about being kicked out of his apartment.
"Yeah." She called back, then opened the door. "I'm done."
"Thank God." Doyle said, before running in and slamming the door behind him.
Erin looked at the closed door for a moment before shaking her head and walking to her room. Seconds later she heard the toilet flush and Doyle walked out again, smiling.
She laughed. "I'm sorry. I didn't know you needed the bathroom so badly."
He shrugged. "I lived, didn't I?"
Erin walked over to the bed while Doyle stood in the doorway and watched her.
"Wow." She said quietly.
"What?"
"It's been a long time since I've slept in a bed someone else has made for me." She paused and shook her head. "In fact, it's been a long time I've slept in a bed, period." She turned down the covers and smiled up at Doyle. "Thanks."
He returned the smile, then walked into the room and perched on the edge of the bed.
"What are you running from Erin?" He asked, looking into her blue eyes.
She looked up at him, startled with a blank stare. "What?"
"You said you'd never get used to living this way, so you have to be running from something." He tried to sound a little gentler. "What is it?"
"It's-" She looked at him uncertainly, "It's nothing."
"It's something." He insisted.
"Look, I don't want to talk about it." She looked up at him pleadingly. "Please don't try to make me."
He nodded. "Sure. I'll just leave you alone."
Erin settled herself under the covers and sighed. "Thanks Doyle." She called before he left the room.
He turned in the doorway and turned back to her. He watched as her form slowly relaxed and she moved slightly to get comfortable.
"Good night Erin." He said softly, before switching off the light and leaving the room.
* * *
Angel stretched as he sat in his kitchen and waited for the others to wake up. He never really felt safe going to sleep unless Doyle was already up. It had certainly been an adjustment with the demon living with him, now he had a young girl sleeping in the other room. Things were getting very weird.
"Good morning." Doyle said cheerily as he walked into the kitchen. "You can sleep now. I'm up."
Angel stood up and yawned. "Good, I need some sleep."
"After you're gone, you wouldn't mind if I opened these curtains would you?" Doyle asked, motioning toward the windows.
Angel shook his head. "Just as long as they're closed tomorrow morning."
Doyle nodded. "Will do. Now have a nice sleep."
Angel turned to walk from the room, then stopped and turned back. "What's with you?"
"What do you mean?" The demon asked, rattling under the counters for a pan.
"You're so cheerful."
Doyle turned to look at Angel then shrugged. "I don't know. I'm just happy." He shot Angel a quick grin, then turned back and thumped the pan onto the stove.
"You've never made me breakfast before." The vampire said.
Doyle grinned again. "It's not for you, it's for Erin."
Angel groaned. "Don't tell me Doyle,"
"Well you have to admit she's pretty."
"Yes, but have you forgotten what she's like?"
"She's forced to live on the street. Doesn't make her a bad person."
"No, but," Angel paused, "you know what I mean."
"Fortunately, I don't." Doyle retorted. "She's different Angel, I can feel it."
"I hope you don't feel it when she breaks your heart." Angel shot back, then walked out of the kitchen toward his bedroom.
"She won't break my heart." Doyle muttered, cracking eggs against the edge of the pan.
He waited for a few minutes before calling Erin's name, then set the plate out on the table and waited for her.
She stumbled into the room, still half asleep and looked up at him.
"What?"
He laughed. "I made you something to eat."
She glanced at the plate and smiled. "Thanks."
"You look tired." He commented.
"Well, we didn't actually get back here 'till midnight and then I didn't get to sleep until two or so, so I'm still a little tired." She put a piece of the egg into her mouth and swallowed. "But it does feel great to be sleeping in a bed again."
Doyle finished his own breakfast and took a seat beside her at the table. They ate in silence for a few minutes, then Erin pushed back her plate and looked at Doyle.
"Can I tell you something?" She asked.
Doyle took a bite from his toast. "Anything."
"Okay, well I know you guys help people with . . . demons as you like to call them. But I know what you really do. I've seen some really bad stuff happen on the streets."
Doyle nodded, pretending he didn't know what she was talking about.
Erin sighed. "You'll probably think I'm a basket case if I'm wrong about you but I think I know what's going on. I've seen them out there Doyle."
"Who?"
"Vampires."
Doyle's eyes widened.
"Demons."
He choked on the piece of toast in his mouth.
"I know they're out there."
He grabbed his glass of orange juice and began to gulp it down as fast as he could.
"And I know that the three of you help people that have problems with them. The vampires and demons. I think," she paused, "I think I have a problem you might want to solve."
Doyle suddenly looked interested. "Really? What is it?"
"Well, it's the same thing that I'm running from." Erin turned her eyes to the table and sighed. "When I was thirteen, my parents got divorced,"
"How old are you now?" Doyle asked, realizing he had never asked her age.
"Eighteen."
"You look younger." He commented.
"So I've been told." She smiled at him. "Anyway, my mom went from dating sleaze bag to sleaze bag before she finally settled down with this guy sometime last year. He seemed nice enough at first, well dressed, a respectful job. All-around great guy. We all really liked him."
"There's more in your family?"
"I have two younger brothers, Glen and Jason. They'd be sixteen and thirteen now. He treated us all really well. That is, until he moved in a few months later. He got really abusive and violent toward my mother and when we tried to stop him he'd hit us. My brother was only twelve."
Doyle's face softened. "Erin that's horrible. But it doesn't make him a monster."
"Would you just listen?"
He nodded slowly. "I'm sorry."
"About a month after he moved in I was home alone with him and my mother and I heard something coming from their bedroom. I crept down the hall and opened the door just a crack but I could see that something was happening to him. He wasn't even human anymore. His skin was black and shiny and he had more than two arms. A lot more. I couldn't see how many exactly."
"But the worst part was that he had my mother wrapped in all those arms and he was squeezing her. It looked like he was going to kill her." Erin brushed a strand of brown hair out of her eyes and continued. "It took me a while but I finally figured out what he was doing. You've heard the story about how abusive people drain their victim's self esteem right? He was doing this literally. He was draining every ounce of self esteem and every ounce of will power that she had. In the end, it killed her. He fed off her pain and her fear."
Doyle listened in a trance of terror. He had never even heard of a demon like this before but she couldn't be making this up.
"Later that week I noticed my brothers were getting weaker and weaker. He was draining them too. And one night while he was beating my mom, my youngest brother got involved again. I finally did what I thought was the only solution, I called the police. They came, but my mother refused to press charges. She kicked all three of her kids out the next day." A bitter laugh escaped Erin's lips. "I don't even know where my brothers are now."
"That is bad Erin."
"I found out last month that my mother was dead. Apparently it was a heart attack. My mother who had never eaten something bad for her a single day in her life and who had never missed her daily exercise until he had come into our lives. He killed her." Erin raised her watery eyes to Doyle's. "And now I know he's going to move on to someone else. I don't want any other kids to have to go through what I did Doyle. Please help me."
Doyle nodded slowly. "We'll help you. I promise."
She turned away from him, embarrassed by the tears that were now running down her cheeks. "I'm sorry." She apologized quietly.
He was beside her in an instant and Erin found herself wrapped in a hug.
"Don't be sorry." He soothed. "It wasn't your fault. We'll find him and we'll kill him. I swear."
Doyle stroked her hair as she sobbed into his shoulder and his face hardened. *Anyone who does this to kids, has to pay.*
* * *