“You know, I’m not a bad guy, really. I don’t wanna hurt you.” Warren gave Buffy a warning look. “So don’t make me.”
Buffy scoffed. The fear had passed for the moment, at least for herself. She was still terrified of what Drusilla was planning to do to Billy. And here she was with this stranger, watching her every move, making it impossible for her to get past him, and she had to force herself to think rationally.
The idea of trying to take him off guard, kicking him hard in the groin and then run, hoping to be able to get upstairs before he recovered had occurred to her. But there was always the possibility she would fail, and she figured that pissing the guy off would neither help her situation, nor Billy’s. She would be no help to the boy, whatsoever, if this man would be angry enough to knock her unconscious.
And she didn’t for a moment doubt he had it in him, despite his words about not being a bad guy. No, considering how he had already slapped her, he would most likely not hesitate to use a lot more force the next time. So, she needed to think. Unfortunately, time was not on her side.
She could only pray that Billy had heard her warning and managed to lock the door before Drusilla got to him. Realizing that either way, he had to be absolutely terrified by now, and she held back a sob. However, breaking down now was not an option. Right now, she had to come up with a way to help Billy before it was too late.
Now she glanced at the dark-haired man in front of her, wondering if she would somehow be able to get through to him. Of course, she knew it wasn’t very likely, but she decided to give it a try. After all, she didn’t exactly have anything to lose.
Taking a deep breath, she spoke up quietly, choosing her words carefully; “You haven’t really done anything wrong yet. I mean, sure, barging in here in the middle of the night – kinda bad, but if you leave now, I won’t tell anyone. Kidnapping, on the other hand... You could end up in jail. Is it really worth it?”
Warren looked a little startled. “What are you talking about? Drusilla’s the boy’s mother. She has every right to...” His voice trailed off as Buffy rolled her eyes.
“No, actually, she has no right at all.” Buffy gave him a hard look. “She’s sick. She’ll hurt him.”
For a moment, Warren got an uncertain expression on his face. Then he waved his hand in dismissal. “Kids need to learn how to show some respect. If he does, I bet she won’t lay a hand on him.”
Buffy stared at him in disbelief. “Are you for real? You actually believe in that bullshit?”
He was starting to look angry. “You better watch your mouth, little girl. Don’t wanna see me pissed off, trust me.”
She was about to come up with a sarcastic remark, but managed to stop herself. There was no sound coming from upstairs, and she had to fight back the urge to panic and just lash out at him. So she swallowed hard, deciding to change her tactics. “You know, you can still do the right thing here. Stop Drusilla, and you’ll be a hero. How’s that sound?” Her voice had taken an almost pleading note.
“A hero?” Warren got a thoughtful look on his face, but then he let out a bitter laugh. “Yeah, right!” He was quiet for a moment, and when he finally spoke again, he seemed to be talking almost to himself; “I’m in deep shit, here. Need to get out of here, leave the country.” A pause. “Mexico! We could go to Mexico.” He started pacing the room, and Buffy held her breath.
“I don’t want anyone to get hurt,” Warren went on, stopping to look at her. “Just wanted to help her get her son back, okay? I wanna...” He hesitated. “I need to please her. Make her happy.”
For a brief moment, Buffy felt almost sorry for him. Pathetic as it may be, his adoration for Drusilla was obvious. Then she snapped out of it. “Listen to me. That boy...” She stopped, correcting herself; “Billy. His name is Billy. Did you know that? Did Drusilla even tell you?”
Warren seemed to be thinking, then shook his head. Buffy went on; “Billy’s not even eleven years old. There’s one thing he’s more afraid of than anything else in the whole world. You know what that is?” He remained silent, so she continued; “His mother.”
“I don’t believe that!” Warren let out a snort. “Dru loves him. She just wants them to be together.”
“Did she tell you that, or is it just your wishful thinking?” Buffy had to suppress the urge to scream in frustration. God, if only Spike was there! He would so kick this idiot’s ass. But it didn’t matter now, because Spike wasn’t there. He couldn’t help them. So, it was up to her. Luckily, the guy seemed less eager to hurt her now. Maybe there was still a chance to convince him to give up.
Buffy was just about to go on, pleading with him if necessary, when a loud, piercing scream sounded through the house. Reacting out of pure instinct, she made a move towards the stairs, but Warren was faster. Grabbing her by the arm, holding her in an iron grip, he forcefully pulled her with him up the stairs. And she was torn between relief, and horror of what she would find up there.
Billy quickly climbed through the window, only to hesitate on the other side. It sure was a long way down. He immediately realized that he wouldn’t be able to get down from there; his only option would be to get up on the roof and somehow manage to move over to the other side of the house, where he knew there would be a large maple tree, growing close to the facade.
He had climbed that tree many times since they moved here, to the top and down, but then on the other hand, it had all been for fun. Now, it was his only way to freedom. He had played with the idea of climbing up on the roof before, just for the excitement – and maybe because he knew his dad would be furious, should he ever find out, but this was different.
Then he heard the sound of the door knob turn, and his mother calling out for him. ”Billy? My sweet boy? Open the door for Mummy!”
“Crap!” he muttered to himself, knowing perfectly well that if his dad would hear him – or Buffy, for that matter – they would have him wash his mouth with soap. Not that it had bothered him before. For some reason, a part of him enjoyed pulling his father’s strings, curious to see how far he could get before his dad would snap. But deep down, he knew that no matter what he did, it wouldn’t change anything.
His dad might get mad at him from time to time, but he would never hurt him. Not like his mother. Billy could only assume that he would understand better when he got older, because right now, it didn’t make much sense to him. He knew that his mum was sick, his dad had told him as much, but he didn’t really understand the concept of it.
Standing on the window sill, he managed to haul himself up on the huge trellis attached to the facade, and from there, he had no problem getting up on the roof. But then he froze. It had started to rain, and the roofing tiles would without doubt be slippery. One hasty move, and he would most likely fall.
The question was, what would be the worst? Facing his mother, or risk breaking his neck. He wasn’t stupid, nor did he have a death wish. Then again, as most young boys, he fully believed himself to be in complete control. He could do this – get to the other side of the roof and climb down, and then call for help. And his dad and Buffy would be proud of him.
It really was unfair. His dad had promised that things would be different once they had moved here, and Billy had actually started to believe him. Of course, in all fairness to his father, he probably hadn’t seen this coming. Billy took a deep breath, and started crawling across the roof tiles, holding on for dear life.
“Billy? My sweet boy? Open the door for Mummy!” Drusilla tried to move the door handle, only to cry out in fury when she realized the door was locked. She tried the next door, giggling madly to herself as it swung open easily. Stepping inside, her eyes darted around the room.
She immediately realized that it had to be Spike’s bedroom. Her eyes landed on the large, king-size bed, and she felt an almost desperate need to take off her clothes and slip under the covers. Then she remembered that she wasn’t here because of Spike. No, her mission was to find her boy.
Leaving the room, somewhat reluctantly, she tried the locked door again. When she still was unsuccessful to get it to open, she let out a frustrated scream. She was so close now, she could feel it. She would get her baby, and Spike wouldn’t be able to stop her this time. That would teach him not to take what was rightfully hers.
“Drusilla? What’s wrong?!”
She spun around, finding herself staring into Warren’s worried eyes. Ignoring the blonde girl he was still holding tightly, she grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. “Open the door! My baby’s in there! Open the door! Open it now!” She slammed her fists against his chest, her face a mixture of frustration and panic.
“All right, all right!” Warren let go of Buffy and threw himself at the closed door, managing to kick it in after a few attempts. Drusilla pushed her way past him.
Buffy followed the two intruders into Billy’s room, only to stop dead in her tracks when she spotted the open window. Her eyes widened when she realized that Billy was nowhere to be seen. As she heard the rain pouring outside, she swallowed hard. “Oh my God!”
TBC