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Author's Chapter Notes:
Thank you for the reads and reviews. This fiction got away from me and has gone on a little too long.
I will be finishing it, soon.
spufette
Chapter 22: ‘Something Is Off’

A/N: Sadly, I think the ‘something off’ is with me. I’m losing interest in writing again; maybe it’s writers block? I’m going to go ahead and finish this fiction first, before my others, and go on with my new fic ‘To Know The Human Heart.’

Thanks for keeping with this story, it is winding down, promise.


Summary: Riley ‘tricks’ Buffy into coming to the mansion. Buffy realizes, too late, that both she and Spike are in great danger.


Buffy answered her cell phone, after checking the caller ID. ‘Crap,’ she sighed in frustration, ‘Riley.’

“Baby,” Riley’s tone seemed somewhat colder then usual, Buffy noted. “I’ve got some bad news,” he continued evenly.

“What is it?” Buffy asked with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. “What is it, Riley?” She inquired again, trying to keep the panic out of her voice.

“Your dad, Hank, he called me, just a minute ago. Buffy I don’t know how to tell you this but your mother is extremely ill. She’s in a hospital, in Tuscany and…..”

“Oh God, Riley!” Buffy gasped in shock. “Why? What, how? I mean what is it? What happened to my mother? Why didn’t dad call me?”

“I guess he tried but he couldn’t get you,” Riley muttered. “He says he tried and tried all night, but…..”

Buffy felt like she was going to be sick. Indeed, she had turned off her cell phone, all night. Just so William and she could be alone, completely, undisturbed. Will had left his cell phone on, just in case his mother might call regarding Dawn.

“You’d better get over here, Babe,” Riley sighed heavily. “Your dad is kind of using the mansion as a central call station. I’m thinking that if you’re here, then there won’t be lost time playing phone tag. You can make arrangements, to get to Italy that is, from here. It’s serious, baby, and I’ll send Graham over to drive you home.”

“No,” Buffy cried in response. “I’ll grab a quick shower and drive myself over there. I can’t imagine why Daddy called and bothered you,” she continued, perplexed. “I’ve had the cell on; can’t imagine why…..” her voice trailed off, meekly, at her easy lie.

‘Lying bitch,’ Riley roared inside his own head. ‘You fucking little whore! I’ll rip you apart myself, with my bare hands for this betrayal!’


Buffy rushed into the mansion after parking her car in the huge, circular driveway. She swept past Graham who was looking at her, rather oddly, really.

“Has Dad called again?” Buffy exclaimed excitedly after she sought out Riley and found him in his study. “I’ve called and called him, for an hour since you called, but…..”

Buffy froze; stalk still, in her tracks when she saw the cold, murderous look in Riley’s dark eyes. Suddenly, she was not so sure why she was here, now. Or, why that sinking feeling in her tummy suddenly seemed like an abyss of terror. Fear seeped up from Buffy’s stomach and seemed to clutch at her throat with its cold icy tendrils.

“What is it?” Buffy rasped, ashamed of the insecurity in her voice. “Is it mom? Is she worse,” she inquired, trying to keep her panic under control.

“As far as I know,” Riley began coolly, “your mother is fine as wine. Since your father called me ‘last night’ and told me they were having the time of their lives in Tuscany? I’m assuming that’s exactly what it is. Oh, except Hank was a little confused as to where Dawn is now.”

Buffy felt her stomach drop, immediately, as her mind scrambled to digest this bit of information. ‘Game over,’ her brain registered automatically.

‘He lied,’ she thought, almost shocked, though why she should be? ‘Riley lied about Mom. Oh shit! He knows Summers. He knows about Dawn; my motives and probably even about William and me.’ Buffy felt like someone had kicked her in the head because she couldn’t quite put more then two thoughts together at present.

“I’m leaving,” Buffy suddenly blurted bravely as she turned to flee Riley’s study. When she turned the door handle, however, she found the door locked from the outside.

‘Graham,’ Buffy surmised silently. Turning around to face off with Riley, she was surprised to find that he’d stealthily closed the gap between them. At the moment, Riley Finn was less then a foot away from her; close enough for Buffy to see the pain, and rage in his deep brown eyes.

“How long?” Riley growled as he reached out to grab Buffy’s slim arms with his huge hands.

Buffy raised her fair right brow and asked silently ‘how long what?’

“How long; you and Sinclair, Buffy? How long have you been fucking him? And maybe more importantly, why are you fucking him?” Riley asked the question evenly enough, but Buffy could hear the pain of betrayal in his tone. For some reason, it hurt her.

“Riley,” Buffy began carefully, “let me go,” she ordered quietly. He didn’t.

“Riley,” she began again, trying to keep from angering him even more. “Please, Riley, let me go. Let me leave here. You seem to know about Will, I mean Spike and me, so…..”

“Doubtful,” Riley grunted with a smirk, “about the letting you leave shit.” With that, Finn flung Buffy against a nearby wall, causing her to hit her head. She lost consciousness as she slid to the cold black and white tiled floor of the study.

Buffy woke up, slowly, and found herself lying on the cold black leather couch in Riley’s study. Riley himself was sitting on the matching leather chair, across from her. His dark eyes; calculating and cold were trained on her; causing a chill to run up and down her spine.

“Happy wake up, Sleeping Beauty,” Riley mumbled sarcastically, taking a long drink from a tumbler of some kind of alcohol.

‘God, only morning and he’s already drinking?’ Buffy thought, a little surprised by this. Riley had usually been careful with his drinking habits. Suddenly, a sobering thought hit Buffy and she glanced at the huge clock over the stone fireplace mantel.

“Yeah, it’s nearly noon, sweetheart,” Riley chuckled wickedly. “I guess you know that lover boy is due here any minute, huh?”

“Riley…..” Buffy stammered dryly, her throat and mouth felt like an arid desert.

“Don’t even start, Buffy,” Riley barked abruptly. “No matter how innocent you pretend to be in this? Spike Sinclair knew from the start that you were mine and…..”

“I’ve never been yours,” Buffy retorted with a low, soft growl of her own. “You’ve held me hostage for nearly seven years, Riley. You are an evil, inhuman monster; nothing more. You used my family, my child and even my friends as ransom to keep me with you. That doesn’t make me your lover, Finn,” she spat with disgust. “It makes me your captive. One that detests the sight of you!”

“Pretty fucking brave words, bitch!” Riley grunted, standing up and slamming his tumbler on the end table next to the chair. “Sad part is that you’re in no position for bravery and when your fuck buddy gets here? You’ll both be at my mercy, now won’t you?”

He shot her a sly, drunken grin and Buffy felt a tremor of terror shoot through her sore body. Buffy could see the hurt in his angry dark eyes. Her ugly words had cut him, no matter how much macho bravado he tried to show.

“What the fuck would ‘you’ know about mercy, Finn,” Buffy spat back at him. “You wouldn’t know mercy or compassion if they came up and bit you on your pompous ass!”

Spike followed Graham into Finn’s study, an odd feeling in the pit of his stomach. He had seen Buffy’s car, parked in front of the mansion and thought it weird that she had not called him and told him she’d be there.

‘Something’s off,’ Spike reasoned, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. His sense of eminent danger was on high alert, but he knew he had to go inside; see Riley, and Buffy.

When Spike entered the study, he was met with a horrific scene. Riley hovered over Buffy, who was lying on a black leather couch. From where he stood at the door, Spike could tell something was wrong here, especially with his Buffy.

“Buffy?” Spike gasped in shock, rushing to her side before he could stop himself.

“Will,” Buffy whispered in desperation, “get out of here! He knows, Will,” she rasped, still groggy from being passed out. “Riley knows all about us.”


A/N: I’ll probably update this as soon as possible. It’s gotten too long as it is and I’m trying to concentrate on the fics I have out there.

Thanks for reading and please review, spufette.





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