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The next morning, Buffy woke up screaming, covered in sweat. Faith ran into the room, terrified, and saw her friend bolt up in bed, putting her hand over her heart in an attempt to calm herself down.

“Are you okay?” Faith asked, worried. “You were screaming bloody murder.”

“Bad… dream,” Buffy managed to say, taking several deep breaths. “Not even a dream- more like a nightmare. A scary, horrifying nightmare.”

“What happened?” Faith asked, and Buffy looked at her.

“I dreamt that I saw Amy be killed,” Buffy said quietly, her chest heaving for breath. “That she was raped and stabbed to death.”

“It was just a dream, B,” Faith said, and Buffy shook her head.

“No, it wasn’t,” she replied, beginning to tear up. “Because Amy’s really dead and was murdered- all of it happened.”

“I’ll go get you a glass of water,” Faith offered. “Just try to calm down, alright?” Buffy hesitantly nodded and looked down at her sheets, tangled around her legs.

‘Why did I have that dream?’ she asked herself. ‘Is it an omen? Is it supposed to help me find the killer?’ She paused and frowned. ‘You’re not a psychic, Buffy- you had a nightmare about Amy’s death because it’s been on your mind for the last twenty-four hours. Don’t read into it.’

Faith came back, holding a glass of water, and handed it to Buffy, who eagerly took it and began gulping it down. Faith sat beside her on the bed and looked at her.

“You’re really taking this hard, aren’t you?” she asked, and Buffy nodded, putting the empty glass on the table beside her bed. “I’m sorry.”

“Did you hear that Fred and Drusilla left town and went to L.A.?” Buffy asked. “Darla’s still here- she didn’t want to leave- but it could be one of us next, you know.”

“Maybe, maybe not,” Faith said. “But I’m not letting some psycho keep me from making money. We both know how much debt I’m in.”

“You’d rather risk your life over financial problems than stay in and protect yourself?” Buffy asked, and Faith stood up, sighing.

“It’s what I have to do,” she replied. “I’ll be five-by-five, okay?”

“Just please be careful,” Buffy said, watching her friend look away. “I worry enough whenever you go out, but it’s worse now, considering the fact there’s someone out there who obviously has a penchant for killing prostitutes.”

“Then I’ll just have to arm myself with my trusty knife,” Faith said, smirking, and Buffy looked down. “I promise you I’ll be fine, Buffy.” She walked out, and Buffy laid back down, pulling the sheets up around her neck in an attempt to comfort herself.

“I just hope that’s a promise you can keep,” she whispered before shutting her eyes.

* * * * *

That night, Buffy heard the phone ring and got up to get it, remembering that Faith had left a few hours earlier.

“Hello?” she asked, mindlessly flipping through a magazine as she sat on her bed again.

“Hello, this is Officer Brooks,” a man said, and her eyes widened, realizing who it was. She tossed the magazine aside and took a deep breath.

“Hi, Spike,” she said, hoping he couldn’t tell how excited she was to hear from him. “How may I help you?”

“Is this Buffy?” he asked, and she grinned, happy that he could tell her voice apart from Faith’s.

‘Plus, the way he says my name is so sexy,’ she thought, feeling as if she was melting inside.

“Yep, it’s me,” she answered. “Is something wrong?” She paused. “Oh god- something didn’t happen to Faith, right?”

“Not that I know of,” he said, confused. “I was calling to make you aware of some new information we’ve discovered.”

“About the killings?” she asked, almost wishing he would be calling her to set up a date or another meeting.

‘But this is purely about solving a case,’ she reminded herself. ‘He’s a cop- he’s not interested in you.’

“About the murderer,” he said. “We have a witness who saw a brunette man approach Miss Madison only an hour before the time we think she died. This witness told us that she saw both Amy and the man walk away somewhere together, which was in the same direction as the beach.”

“So all we know is that it’s a man who’s brunette?” Buffy asked, and Spike sighed.

“Well, he’s the main suspect right now,” he replied. “He has a lean build, is about six feet tall… and that’s really all we know.”

“Well, I’ll tell Faith when she gets home to be on the lookout, then,” she said.

“She’s out on the streets tonight?” he asked, and she raised an eyebrow when she caught the worry in his tone.

“Yeah,” she answered. “She’s not one to abide by the rules. She needs money, so she went out.”

“And you didn’t go with her?” he asked. “I thought we made it clear that going anywhere alone after dark is a good way to get yourselves killed.”

“I don’t know if you realize this, Spike, but a lot of customers won’t approach more than one girl at a time because they know they’ll have to pay for both of them,” Buffy said, somewhat annoyed at his tone of voice. “That’s why a lot of us walk around alone.”

“We can only do so much to protect you,” he replied sternly. “If you don’t take the proper precautions, don’t be surprised if you wind up like Miss Stevens and Miss Madison.” Her jaw dropped in indignation.

“We’re just trying to do our jobs,” she said, upset.

“So am I,” he said, equally as irritated. “Although, yours isn’t exactly a noble one, is it?”

“Whatever you say, Mr. I’m-Superior-Because-I’m-A-Cop,” she replied sarcastically. “You don’t know me or how I live, so don’t you dare judge me.”

“Didn’t call to quarrel,” he said calmly, and she frowned. “Just make sure Faith knows the details I told you about the suspect, and if you two have anything to report, make sure you call either Lindsey or myself.”

“Ay ay, captain,” she said, retrieving her magazine. “Thanks for the heads-up.”

“You’re welcome,” he replied. “And Buffy?”

“Yes?” she asked, curious to hear what he’d say.

“Be careful,” he said before hanging up. She looked at the phone for a minute before hanging up, too.

She returned to reading the magazine for a while before realizing she should probably call Faith. She dialed Faith’s cell phone number and listened as it continued to ring, no one picking up after at least ten rings. Buffy raised an eyebrow but hung up the phone, figuring Faith was probably in the middle of servicing a customer and wasn’t able to answer it.





When The Spuffy Realm shut down for a while, I continued to update the chapters on my LJ, so instead of continuing to post the fic on here when it went back to normal, I opted to post the finished product at Captive Souls. That site has since shut down, so in the interest of not posting the other chapters here and taking up room, feel free to e-mail me and I'll send you the fic in its entirety - wicked_testy@yahoo.com Sorry for the inconvenience!

~ Allison





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