He'd allowed himself to hope for a few minutes that something good might come of this, that maybe there'd been more than mere coincidence involved in the two of them finding each other where neither had expected the other to be. If it was more than coincidence, then it was a cruel joke by the Powers That Screwed With You, a false promise to be quickly jerked away.

Or maybe that damn Mountain Dew really had been mystical and this was part of the perpetual torment. Either way, once Buffy was safely away with the crystal, he was going to go back to his original plan of finding somewhere far away from Los Angeles and getting royally drunk. Common sense told him he couldn't crawl into a bottle forever, but at least it'd dull the pain for a little while.

It hadn't been his original intention to leave Buffy sitting by herself in the hotel lobby, but Wymere didn't know her, so she'd be less noticeable and she'd gotten a good enough look at the man and his thugs to recognize them when they reappeared. That Wymere had told one of his lackeys he wanted the car at ten was a good indication when the next move would be.

So here he sat, waiting for Buffy to call him on the cell and let him know things were starting to happen. In the meantime, he was far away enough that he could get himself back to a point where he'd be able to go after this damn thing without doing anything too stupid. Get the crystal, get Buffy on the plane and get back to his life. He wasn't going to mention this to Angel because he didn't want to see the look of triumph on the other vampire's face at the realization that Buffy had once again kicked Spike to the curb. Worse, there was always the possibility Angel might feel pity for him...and that would hurt more than any triumph.

Just. Get. It. Done. If he kept saying those words long enough, maybe he'd believe it.

His cell phone trilled and he opened it. "Yeah?"

"The thug's just come down," Buffy said over the line. "He's headed for the garage."

"Then I'm going to give him five and move myself," Spike replied. "You be ready. Call me if Wymere shows early."

"Will do."

The hunt was on; professionalism from here on out. Take his rage and annoyance out on Wymere and the Youngar if he possibly could. He waited out the five minutes impatiently, then started the car up and headed down the ramp.

His timing was perfect because the limousine had pulled up in the driveway in front of the hotel and a small car had pulled in right behind busily unloading baggage, which put a slight bit of distance between and his quarry, just enough to not be noticed. Problem was, they'd be far more noticeable when they started tailing them and Wymere would be a fool if he didn't notice them pulling out at the exact same time.

Buffy solved that, sailing out the door seconds before Wymere made his appearance and waving casually at the people unloading as if they were friends. The people waved back, looking a bit puzzled as Buffy slipped into the passenger seat. "He didn't even notice me," Buffy said as the limo pulled out and Spike moved the car to follow. "If they did see me, it should look like I was simply getting picked up."

"Smart girl," Spike said, and he meant it.

After a few minutes, it was fairly clear to Spike that they were heading to St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, home to the tourist attraction that was the tomb of Marie Laveau. He'd traveled this route often enough to recognize it. Officially closed at this hour, the place was relatively easy to break into and often served as a demon meeting place. A number of vampires hunted there as well, preying on idiots both foreign and domestic who thought breaking in to see the Voodoo Queen's tomb in the dark "cool."

"Got stakes on you?" he asked as he let himself drop back a little more; no sense in alerting the man that they were here. "Wymere and his minions are human, but there may be vamps about."

"Have you ever known me to go out without Mr. Pointy?"

"You didn't take them with you to the Doublemeat."

"Yes, I did. I just kept them in my locker during my shift."

He didn't have an answer to that and while he was certain he could have pointed out at least one occasion during all their acquaintance, he really didn't feel like another argument. He was tired of arguments. Get. It. Done.

The ride to the cemetery wasn't a long one and Spike stopped the car far enough away that he was reasonably certain they wouldn't be spotted. The neighborhood wasn't the best, though, and whether or not the car would still be there when they got back...well, that was a risk he'd have to take.

Wymere wasn't making any effort to hide his trail and Buffy and Spike followed him easily, despite having to stop and stake a couple of over-eager vampires along the way. The Laveau tomb wasn't his destination, but a large and impressive monument built by the Italian Mutual Benevolent Society that was far less likely to attract late-night tourists.

Since the Youngar hadn't shown yet, Spike and Buffy hung back, concealed behind a midnight monument. "I've got a plan," he whispered. "You let me go first and I'll do my best to get Wymere and his boys. Once I've got them busy, you go after the Youngar."

"You're not going to kill them," she whispered fiercely in return.

"No intention of it, but I am going to knock them out, then help you with the demon. I just want him to avoid seeing you if at all possible; he knows who I am and maybe if he sees me and then wakes up to find the crystal gone, he'll think I've taken it back to Los Angeles while you make good your getaway."

He waited for her to disagree, to insist she dive into the fight at the same time he did, but she surprisingly agreed. Maybe she didn't want to argue either.

The Youngar was a bit late, apparently, and Wymere somewhat annoyed when he showed. "I generally expect promptness from the people I meet with."

"Sssso ssssorry," the Youngar said with either a hiss or a lisp. "I made a wrong turn. Did you bring the money?"

Wymere nodded to one of the minions, who produced a briefcase. "May I see the goods?"

All Spike had to do was see a flash of moonlight on crystal and he was moving. Fast and furious, that was the way to do it. If the minions were ready for vampires, they'd most likely be expecting ones who were trying to bite, not one who wanted to knock them out. Okay, the crunch of one minion's skull against a tomb wasn't what he'd been intending, but the man slumped to the ground as Spike knocked the other one down, hand tightening around the man's throat just long enough to render him unconscious.

All this had taken mere moments and Wymere had thankfully distracted himself by grabbing the briefcase that presumably held the cash when the fighting started, so Buffy had been able to go after the Youngar. Spike knew he had to move quickly, though, because it was not likely something she -- or he -- would be able to handle on her own.

First there was Wymere, though, glaring at him like he was something that crawled out from under a rock. "You. What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Stopping you from doing something evil," Spike said, knocking the man's legs out from under him with a single sweep. Another chokehold and Wymere was out, leaving Spike free to run to Buffy's aid. He wished he'd brought the sword from the trunk, but he hadn't thought of it at the time and it would have only been a hindrance in the fight with Wymere.

The Youngar was difficult, but he was hampered with trying to keep the crystal safe while they had no such concern. Even so, both of them were bruised when the beast went down, several stakes applied to his gut. That didn't kill him, though, only left him gasping in pain. Grimfaced, Buffy pulled a stake out and moved gingerly up to where his head lay. "This is for David Starkey and his slayers," she said and drove the stake into the demon's brain.

It died with a scream and Buffy stood back, at that moment showing the aspect of a Fury having delivered vengeance upon the wicked. She picked up the Greivas Crystal from where it had fallen, carefully making certain the fabric the Youngar had wrapped it in was in place. Only then did the hardness leave her face and she dropped to her knees looking for all the world as if all her energy had vanished. Remembering what she'd said about being on the trail for two weeks, Spike wouldn't be surprised if it had.

Realizing they had a limited time before Wymere and his men awoke, Spike retrieved all of Buffy's stakes, slipping them into various pockets before scooping her up. When she protested, he shushed her, saying, "We've got to move, Buffy, and you're in no state to do so. Let me carry you."

She didn't protest further and he moved as swiftly as he could through the cemetery. No vampires or tourists stopped them and he was never so glad to see his car in once piece. He dumped her less than gently into the passenger seat, climbed behind the wheel and sped off, making certain he did not immediately head in the direction of the French Quarter. In fact, he headed north, out of the Garden District for some ways before turning east once more. He was keeping a careful watch, but no one seemed to be following them. It looked like his plan might have worked.

They got back to the hotel and up to the room. Buffy was moving under her own power then, though she still looked shaky. Spike ordered up something from room service, a nice bowl of corn chowder and some ice tea. As an after thought, he added a salad and some fudge cake, figuring if one didn't tempt her, the other would.

Buffy was seated in a chair, staring at the crystal. Spike knelt before her and gently wrapped his hands around her. "Maybe you should take a shower, luv, wash the dirt away. Room service will be here soon and we'll get something in you."

"I can't believe it's over," she said, her voice dull. "Two weeks...and it's done."

"I know. You can rest now. Just let it be." He took hold of the crystal and placed it on the table. "Go shower. You'll feel better for it."

She nodded dumbly and headed for the bathroom. He'd check on her in a few minutes to make sure she was okay, but the sound of the shower running meant she was at least trying to take his advice.

It also meant he could make the call without her hearing. "Angel, it's Spike. We got it."

"Good. So you'll be hitting the road...what do you mean 'we'?"

Spike sighed, deciding plain truth was best. "We meaning Buffy and me. We ran into each other in Atlanta; seems she was on the same trail."

"Spike..."

"S'okay. I'll tell you more when I get back. I'm sending the crystal with her. She says Giles has a spell to destroy it and since we took it out from under Wymere's very nose, I figured bringing it back to Los Angeles was probably not the smartest idea, especially since he knows I'm involved. What I don't want to do is let Wymere know we're here, so I'm going to lay low for twenty-four hours, hope he heads back home with his tail between his legs."

"Hopping mad is more like it. I'll have Lorne keep an ear cocked for his flight." A pause. "How are you and she..."

"It's no picnic," Spike admitted. "I'm going to take a break after I get back; I think I need it. Look, I've got to go. We just got back, so things are still a little unsettled."

Angel didn't argue and Spike was able to turn his attention to more important things. The shower was still running and he tapped gently at the door. "Buffy?"

There was a bit of a muffled reply and since he didn't hear a distinct 'no', he took that as an invitation to enter. The bathroom was equipped with both tub and a shower stall with no less than three shower heads, the frosted door panel allowing him to make out Buffy's form if not any details. "You alright?"

"I...I'll be out in a minute."

She sounded shaky and he wasn't going to push, so he retreated, busying himself with stuffing the crystal into Buffy's bag and hiding the stakes so they weren't obvious when Room Service arrived. Buffy emerged just before the knock came at the door, hair wet and robe pulled tight around her. She looked numb, as if the weight of what had just happened hadn't sunk in.

Spike signed for the food and put it before her. With a little coaxing, she managed to eat the soup, pick at the salad and take several bites of cake before putting her fork down. "It's just..." she managed at last, "It's over. Two weeks of one thing on my mind and now it's done."

"So you need to rest. I've called Angel; they're going to keep me posted if they hear word that Wymere's flying back to Los Angeles. I expect we'll have to lay low at least a day before you can head out. That should give you some time to recoup."

She looked at him curiously. "Did you tell him I was here?"

"Had to, didn't I, since I was telling him the crystal's going with you."

"How did he react?"

Spike shrugged. "He sounded a bit annoyed. But it's Angel; he's always annoyed at me."

She was looking at him quite seriously, her eyes skimming over his face as if she were memorizing every inch. "I'm glad we ran into each other. I'm glad you're here."

He took one of her hands and kissed it. "If you need me, you know I'll be there."

Not wanting to give her the wrong impression, he released her hand. To his surprised, she grabbed his. "Come to Rome, Spike. Come to Rome and let's try to figure us out."

Spike so wanted to believe her, but she was tired and he was pretty certain she didn't know what she was saying. "Buffy...luv..."

"Spike, I mean it. Come to Rome. Be with me. I love you."

He felt a thrill of joy, but still couldn't let himself believe. "Ask me in the morning. Get some sleep and ask me then."

Buffy looked recalcitrant. "I'm not joking."

"I'm not either. I want you to get some sleep and ask me in the morning. Please?"

She agreed, but he could tell she wasn't happy about it. Almost the moment her head touched the pillow, though, she was out, exhaustion finally catching up with her.

Watching her sleep, Spike hoped against hope that this wasn't another cruel trick of fate.

On to Part V

Back to Part III