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Spike couldn't sit still any longer. His leg was bouncing up and down from under his desk and within a few minutes of waiting after Fred had disconnected their call he was up and pacing his office. Now he walked back and forth, fingers itching to pull a cigarette from the box that was tucked away in his back pocket. On a white board to his right was the taped up images from the various crime scenes as well as photos of each murdered couple with dot points on their similarities and connections that he had added over the last few hours with Gunn. Having printed pages of information spread across his desk was one thing, but seeing the connections visually often stimulated him into an epiphany.

He placed a photo of Ethan Rayne off to the side of the board and stared at it.

The board also acted as a constant reminder that there were people in his town that deserved justice for their murders.

Gunn wasn't as restless as Spike was. He still sat in impatient silence, but did so while stretched out leaning in his chair, fingers drumming away on the armrests. They both jumped, startled, when Fred rushed through the door.

"You're not going to believe this!" She grinned.

"What did you find?"

"It's a perfect match!"

"Wha'?" Spike's eyes widened.

This case just keeps getting bloody weirder.

"But she's dead." Gunn tipped forward in his chair, mouth hanging open slightly.

"Well someone put her DNA at the crime scene because that right there gentlemen," Fred slammed the paper onto the desk and tapped at the numbers displayed on it. "Is a one-hundred percent positive result."

"Well I'll be." Gunn raised his eyebrows in bewilderment. "Huh."

"She came up in Sunnydale Hospitals Psychiatric database. She was a patient there for two years prior to her death." Fred pointed to the top of the page where Sunnydale Psychiatrist's logo was printed. "She also spent a number of weeks in solitary confinement after lashing out at a few of the orderly's." Fred stepped back and let out a sigh. "There's not really much more information I can access unfortunately, but that's definitely your girl."

"Thanks, luv. This is great."

"A judge still isn't going to sign off on this, man. And you know that."

"It's a bloody start!" Spike picked up the piece of paper, scanning over the image of Drusilla Rayne that was printed on it before sticking it right next to her fathers photo on the white board.

"It sounds crazy-"

"You don' think I don' bloo-"

"Boys!" Fred yelled, freezing when they both swiveled their heads to look at her. She let out a nervous laugh. "It's been a really long day and I think it's best if we all just take a few steps back from this case."

"But-"

"William Giles, you will take a break from this case!" When Spike narrowed his eyes at her Fred shrunk a little. She knew it was best not to tell her boss what to do, especially when he was so overworked and tired. "Um, please?" She blushed.

"Best get on home and recharge mate." Spike winked, showing Fred he took no offence to her shouted command. He tapped his partner's arm in the desk chair and motioned for the two to leave.

"You sure?"

"I promised you could have the afternoon off. Don' make me change my mind."

Gunn stood and walked around the desk to stand next to his wife who was staring at the papers and sandwich crumbs that were scattered across them, quizzically. Spike looked like he was ready to pass out from exhaustion, all but falling into the chair Gunn had just vacated. His stomach rumbled as he smiled a goodbye and wished them a good weekend.

"Have you eaten today?" Spike looked down at the desk and back up at Fred's questioning gaze. He knew better than to lie to her when he saw her brows knit together in a determined line. When Fred switched on her determined face she was quite a scary woman to deal with.

"I had a bite, yeah."

Gunn coughed and started walking towards the door, instantly knowing where the conversation was about to lead and wanting to bolt.

"Charles! How many times have I told you to stop eating his lunch!" Fred swatted at her husbands retreating back.

"I'm sorry!"

"Harmony goes to a lot of effort to make sure he gets food every day and you're always eating it before he gets a chance."

"She never brings me lunch!"

"That's because I cook your lunch at home and bring it to work for you! You're not pregnant, nor eating for two you big glutton!"

"Luv, it's fine." Spike chuckled, as Fred smacked Gunn for good measure one more time.

"It's not fine!"

"I never eat the food that bint brings me. Could be laced with something you know. She's been trying for years to ge' me to take her out again. Not going to bloody happen."

"Come on, we're taking you to lunch." Fred chuckled, and shook her head. Harmony was sweet enough as receptionists go, but was completely hopeless at her tasks. Everyone in the building knew that she had a massive crush on Spike, but they all knew better than to ever bring the subject up in front of him.

"But babe, afternoon off." Gunn raised his eyebrows suggestively at his wife who swiveled her gaze between the two boys, torn.

"Go home, pet. I'll be fine." Spike chuckled again as Gunn gave him the thumbs up from behind Fred's back.

"Fine. I'm cooking your lunch every day next week though!"

"Deal." Spike nodded. "You had better be ready for me to crack tha' whip on Monday, Charlie boy! We've got a lot of work to do." Spike grinned at their retreating backs.

"Bright and early, man. I'll bring the coffee."

"Fred?"

"Yes?" She paused at the door and met his gaze.

"Don' wear the poor boy out too much, yeah." Spike winked again, causing another pink flush upon her cheeks.

"We'll see you on Monday. Have a good weekend and please try to get some rest yourself." Her gaze soften as she took in his drained appearance.

"Don' be worrying about me, luv."

"Monday! Double shots! I got your caffeine needs covered brother!" Gunn walk back towards the office.

"Go home!"

"Charles, get in the car!" Fred shouted, pointing down the hallway.

Spike began organizing the papers that were left strewn across his desk after his partner and wife had left, brushing the crumbs from the top pages and clipping them neatly together in a binder. He knew it was highly unlikely a judge was going to sign off on a warrant to search Rayne's premise, but it was worth a shot. This case had little in the way of hard evidence, but plenty in circumstance and they were running on nothing more than bread crumbs. Literally.

With a sigh, he typed up his report on the computer, adding all the information and file attachments he could to get his case seen. With one eye open on the screen in hesitation, Spike pressed send. All that was left to do was wait and see if a warrant was issued and then he and Gunn could really start getting some legwork done.

He glanced at the photo of Ethan Rayne that was stuck on the white board one more time and back to his computer screen. He knew the man was connected, he just had to find out how. Fingers typed away onto a search system, the one in which Fred had pulled Drusilla's information from and within minutes he had set it up on his screen. Flipping open his newly reorganized case folder, he clipped in a fresh piece of paper and grabbed a pen and began writing.

Drusilla Rayne: Sunnydale Psychiatric Hospital

Dead: 2 years

Crime Scene: DNA found... How?

Ghost?

"It's the bloody X-Files in here." Spike mumbled, throwing down his pen and staring at the page where he had circled the word ghost.

"Ghosts? Different planes of existence. This is the kind of stuff you read about in novels and watch on the sci-fi channel, luv. Not real life."

His own words from earlier that morning plagued him. There was no denying the young fiery blonde woman who had come into his office proclaiming to talk to ghosts was lying. Especially not after she had sung the song that only his mother used to sing to him as a child. Yes ghosts were real, but trying to wrap his head around even the idea that one was committing murders seemed near impossible.

"Bloody crazy."

Spike pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling a headache coming on. He pushed the extension on his desk phone and waited for its recipient to answer.

"I'm not quite finished with that profile yet-"

"It's alright. I've actually got a potential lead. It's a bit of a strange one, but I was wondering if you could do some digging on a woman called Drusilla Rayne. She's been dead for two years, but her father is the lead suspect in the case. I need to know all there is abou' her, to help me better understand him."

"Ok, yeah I can do that. Surely her file information is better than what I could bring you?"

"I just need a profile on her. She spent two years in Sunnydale Psychiatric Hospital-"

"Oh this is getting interesting."

"Just find me everything you can and work up a profile of who she was as a person and what she may have been capable of." Spike remarked after Andrew's interest was piqued. "I'll send you the attachments Fred gave me and you can start from there." Spike was typing away on his computer as Andrew spoke.

"How soon do you need it?"

"I'll be back in the office Monday."

"Two days?" Spike hit send and could hear the ding that Andrew's computer made, notifying him of an incoming email through the phone. "I'll get right on it."

Spike disconnected the call and glanced at his open binder one more time before closing it. He'd been awake for more hours then he could count and after reading the same sentence on his computer screen three times in a row, he knew it was time to call it a day. He agreed with Fred and recalled her on many occasions telling to take a break from a case. Sometimes you needed to step away from a situation, in this instance it was a rather peculiar case, to see a different perspective or angle.

He would be recharged and ready to tackle the case full force on Monday.


Chapter End Notes:
Reviews feed my muse!! I've done a very rough outline of the next few chapters and where I want this story to go. Stay tuned for more!



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