A Loss of Pride by Mabel Marsters

1 :: 2 :: 3 :: 4 :: 5 :: 6 :: 7 :: 8 :: 9 :: 10 :: 11 :: 12 :: 13 :: 14 :: 15 :: 16 :: 17 :: 18 :: 19 :: 20 :: 21 :: 22 :: 23 :: 24 :: 25 :: 26 :: 27 :: 28 :: 29 :: 30 :: 31 :: 32 :: 33 :: 34 :: 35 :: 36 :: 37 :: 38 :: 39 :: 40 :: 41 :: 42 ::

Chapter 4: It’ll Soon Be Time…

The next day Spike felt a lot better. His head had finally cleared and he knew what he had to do. He didn’t join Angel on patrol that night or for the next several nights either. He ate well and rested well.

Angel was delighted at the change in Spike’s demeanour.

“Thank God he’s seen sense,” he thought as he saw Spike talking on the phone and scribbling details on a note pad.

By the time he got to him Spike had hung up.

“Got another job for yer, Peaches.” He handed Angel the piece of paper.

“That’s great. Thanks, Spike,” said Angel, “This is working out fine, isn’t it? You doing the research and booking jobs in and me doing the field work.”

“Yeah, seems to be,” agreed Spike with a smile, “There’s some blood in the refrigerator. I’m going out to grab a burger for lunch, okay?”

“Sure, see you later.”

Spike walked out into the sunshine. He looked up, letting its warm rays bathe his face.

“It’ll soon be time,” he murmured.

00000000

It was another eight days before Spike got his chance. Angel was out on patrol when an urgent call came in. A couple of demons were terrorising a movie theatre just a few blocks away.

Spike raced to the weapons room and selected his favourite axe. He pulled on his duster as he ran out of the front door. He didn’t need his vampire senses to find out where the trouble was, the screams carried in the still night air. As he got nearer he was jostled by people running towards him, away from the terrors they’d seen. Spike impatiently pushed his way through.

“Get out of the way,” he snarled.

He slid to a halt when he got to the theatre. The report of two demons hadn’t been accurate; there were five of them.

“Even better,” grinned Spike, “Come on then, yer bastards,” he roared, “Better start picking on someone yer own size.”

All five demons turned to glare at Spike but he never hesitated. Axe raised, he hurtled in to attack the nearest one. A manic cackle erupted from his lips as he deftly lopped off its head.

The other demons paused at the sight of the blond haired human attacking with such wild abandon. The hesitation cost a second demon its life. That galvanised the others into attacking. They were Polgara demons and they activated the bone skewers in their forearms, using them to block Spike’s blows and thrusting at him with them.

One skewer sliced into the fleshy part of Spike’s left arm. His grip on the axe faltered but he grabbed it with his right before it could fall. He grunted with satisfaction as he landed a killing blow on the culprit. Three down, two to go. He hadn’t noticed that one demon had managed to get behind him. It thrust the skewer through Spike’s torso as easily as if through butter. Spike looked down at the point sticking out of his abdomen stupidly, as he felt no pain. When his fingers touched the tip of it, the demon withdrew it and Spike fell to the floor like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

His hands felt desperately for the axe. Just as the fingers of his right hand were wrapping around the shaft, one of the demons stamped on his arm. Spike cried out in pain as the arm broke. He looked up at the demon. It kicked him so hard that he flew twenty feet in the air, bashing his head on the ground as he landed. Everything started to go grey. His vision started to narrow until it was just pinpricks. The creature picked him up by the throat and held him whilst the other ran him through once more with the skewer. Spike coughed, bright frothy blood at his lips, his lung punctured. He felt no fear. The last thing he saw was a huge fist heading towards him. He welcomed the darkness that followed.

00000000

Angel was making his way back to the Hyperion when he heard the commotion coming from the movie theatre. He ran as fast as he could, arriving in time to see the Polgara smash its fist into the limp body of Spike, hanging in its grasp.

“Spike!” he roared.

The Polgara turned around, distracted from its intent of snapping Spike’s neck. He saw Angel approaching with game face on show and he threw Spike to the ground.

All Angel wanted to do was to get to Spike but the demons made it clear that he’d have to deal with them first. As he fought them he kept glancing back at Spike as he lay there unmoving. He dispatched the demons after what seemed to him like an hour, but in reality was little more than five minutes.

He raced to Spike. He could hear his heart beating slowly and erratically, the wounds bleeding profusely. He knew Spike didn’t have much time; his breathing was weak, too. Angel scooped him up into his arms and ran towards the hospital, which wasn’t far. He saw a taxi heading towards him and he stood in the middle of the road, forcing it to stop.

“Please help me. I’ve got to get him to the hospital,” said Angel.

The cab driver took one look at the inert body held in the huge man’s arms.

“Jesus Christ! What happened to him? Get in! Get in!”

Angel climbed in holding Spike as carefully as he could.

“Thank you,” he said sincerely.

“No problem. Is he alive?” asked the cabbie, glancing in his rear view mirror. He was puzzled when he couldn’t see Angel, but figured that he was bent down over the wounded man.

“Only just.”

The cab pulled up at the hospital with a squeal of its tyres. The driver leapt out and opened the door for Angel. He gently lifted Spike from the backseat.

“Wait here,” said Angel, “I’ll be back with your money.”

“No, don’t bother. I just hope your friend makes it.”

Angel hurried through the doors.

“Somebody help me!” yelled Angel.

Nurses and a doctor appeared as if from nowhere. Spike was taken out of Angel’s arms and laid on a gurney.

“What happened?”

“I’m not sure. I found him afterwards - he’s been stabbed,” replied Angel, following the gurney as it went into the ER.

“Sorry sir, you can’t come in here. Please go and give his details at the desk and let us do our job.”

Dazedly Angel stood there as the doors swung shut behind them. He walked back to the front desk. Looking down at the blood on his clothes and on his hands, he could hardly believe there was any left in Spike’s body.

“Sir?”

Angel looked up. He hadn’t realised he’d actually gone to the desk.

“Er…I just brought…” He glanced back to the room Spike had been taken to, “he’s…”

“What’s his name, sir?” asked the woman gently. She’d seen it all before - the poor man was in shock.

Angel turned his attention back to her. “Spike…er…William…” His voice trailed away again.

“Okay, Spike Williams,” said the receptionist, writing it down.

Angel didn’t bother to correct her.

“How old is he?”

“What?”

“His age, sir?”

“Um…about thirty, I guess.”

“Okay, next of kin?”

“Me,” said Angel, giving his name and the address of the Old Hyperion.

“Can I go to see him? I need to see him.”

“Just wait in the chairs, someone will be with you as soon as they can.”

Submit a Review!