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Chapter 9


Spike spent the next hour explaining everything that was going to change.
Gunn would watch the house whenever Spike wasn’t around. He was instructed
to take Buffy and Caitlyn anywhere they wanted to go as long as they were
never alone. What Spike didn’t tell her was Charles Gunn would also be
doing some research into Riley Finn and building up a nice solid case for
Spike to hand over to his lawyer.

Spike walked up to his hotel room with a heavy sigh. He bypassed his own
suite to knock on the door next to his and gave the man a nod as it swung
open.

“What’s up, man?”

“I’ve got the information, Gunn.”

“Come on in.”

Spike walked through the hotel room and sat down on the couch, glancing
through the papers Gunn had spread out on the coffee table. He picked up a
black and white surveillance photo of Buffy playing with Caitlyn in their
front yard. Judging from the clothes they were wearing, the picture was
taken just a few hours before Spike arrived.

“Just took a couple of shots, had to get familiar with the area and the
people,” Gunn said, tidying up the space a little bit.

“Yeah, I know…what’d you find out about Finn?”

“Unfortunately, not a lot. The guy isn’t exactly a model citizen from what
I hear, but I never even got close enough to see what he looks like, and in a
small town like this, I begin asking questions, and it will get back to him.”

“There were no pictures of his in the house, and Buffy’s a small woman, so
this guy could be any size.”

“My thoughts exactly, but here’s the kicker of the situation- the guy has
been detained more than once for various reasons- violating the restraining
order, domestic violence, disturbing the peace, and the list keeps going,
but guess where Prince Charming is employed?”

“Do I even want to know?”

“Riley Finn,” Gunn continued, pulling a paper from the stack and reading
from it. “Age 28-graduated top of his class at Sunnydale High-full
scholarship to UC Sunnydale-the average nice guy based on his looks and
sober personality. According to my informant, currently employed as football
coach and part-time Phys. Ed. teacher at Sunnydale High School.”

“You’re kidding me? They let this guy work around kids?”

“According to my informant at the police station, the principal at the
school is a first class Nazi. Finn was his prized student the entire four
years, and he judges his arrest record as trumped up charges created by a
former student who was a bit of a troublemaker…namely Buffy Summers.”

“So this guy ignores everything the police tell him, including physical
evidence that his employee is beating up a woman and continues to let him
work with no reprimand of any kind?”

“Oh, but the plot thickens. Apparently, Finn disappeared a few years ago
and was gone for a year. Nobody has any idea where he was, and he hasn’t
told a soul.”

“So where does this leave us?” Spike asked.

“Well, next week, the coach of the Sunnydale High Razorbacks is going to be
getting a visit from a concerned uncle. Said uncle is expecting his star
quarterback nephew to be moving in with him before the end of the school
year and is concerned that he will be receiving the best coaching possible
if Sunnydale is the place he attends.”

Spike let a slow smile overtake his face as he realized what Gunn was
telling him. “What happens if he wants the fictitious quarterback to start
before the end of the current season?”

“Well, my friend,” Gunn said with a smile. “That would be impossible since
he lives across the country and his parents are going through a messy
divorce, in which case he is needed there for the proceedings.”

“Chucky, you almost have me convinced, and I know there is no nephew,” Spike
said with a smile.

“What can I say? I missed my calling as an actor. And don’t call me Chucky-
makes me sound like some homicidal toy. So what do you have for me?”

“Well, as of right now, Finn seems to be coming after Buffy exclusively.
She did mention he wants Caitlyn to think of him as her father, so eventually,
I think he might try and make that little bit of his imagination a reality.”

“Okay, so what’s the plan? You want me to keep an eye on Buffy for now?”

“No. I don’t think he’ll come after Buffy during the day. Nobody’s ever
witnessed the amount of abuse he’s inflicted on her as he was doing it, so
right now, it’s just town gossip. I don’t think he’d be willing to risk his
reputation just to pick a fight with her. ‘Sides, she seems convinced that
she can take care of herself.”

“And you don’t agree?”

“If it was just her, I’d say she could defend herself, for the most part.
Throw a kid into the mix, and she gets more preoccupied with protecting her
daughter, which any mother would in her right mind. From what I’ve seen,
this guy doesn’t hold back when it comes to claiming what he thinks is
his.”

“Yeah, I noticed evidence of that when I was observing them earlier,” Gunn
said with a grim expression.

“Yeah, I wish I could show him how it feels to be the one terrorized for a
while.”

“Man, you’ve got it bad,” Gunn said with a smile.

“What?”

“Look at you, Spike. How long have you known this girl? A few days? You
follow her to town, find out about a shady past and immediately call me to keep
an eye on her. I’ve never seen you this overprotective of someone who’s not
a family member. Especially not a girl with a kid.”

“She’s special, Gunn.”

“Yeah, I get that.”

“Speaking of which, Caitlyn goes to a daycare center called Once Upon a
Time, it’s over on Elm Street. Buffy drops her off at 7:30 Monday through
Thursday and picks her up at 5:30.”

“From what I hear, Riley’s hours at the school are 10:00 until 6:00 with an
hour off for lunch. You want me to keep an eye on him, or Caitlyn?”

“Caitlyn. I don’t know enough about Riley to trust that he doesn’t have
friends who would help him out. Buffy said you have to be authorized to
sign a child out of the center, but what can a few teachers do if a man
comes in with the intention of taking the child?”

“You’re really worried he’s going to try and take her?”

“Judging from what I’ve heard, I think he would do anything to get control
of Buffy’s life.”

* * * * *

Buffy lay on her couch with a mug of hot chocolate later that night. After
Spike had left with a promise to come back on Saturday and take them out to
a movie, she had changed into a pair of loose cotton shorts. Now, as she was
sitting there, staring at the damage to her legs, she said a silent prayer of
thanks that Spike had forgotten to question her anymore about the events of
the other night. When she agreed to let his friend keep an eye on
them, he seemed so relieved he hadn’t pushed the subject of the latest Riley
thrashing.

She hadn’t been lying when she said she gave as good as she got. Caitlyn
had been spending the night with a friend from daycare, and Buffy hadn’t
hesitated to swing a lamp into Riley’s face to get him away from her.
However, she hadn’t been quick enough to escape without several angry marks
to her upper legs. With a heavy sigh, Buffy stood up to rinse out her mug
and head to bed, her thoughts plagued with the next round of abuse she was
set to endure.





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