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NA GRACH CROI


Chapter 14: ‘A Millionem Cladh Smuais’
(A Million Broken Pieces)


A/N: Short chapter. This is the catalyst that brings the truth to the surface.


By the time Ethan Finn-Rayne and his entourage had reached the front porch of the O’Hara farmhouse, Spike, Xander and Angel were there, waiting for them. All three men held rifles, but only Spike had a regular gun, also.

“Afternoon, Spike,” Ethan Rayne greeted the eldest man, amicably. “Thought I’d stop by, have a talk with you, boy.”

“I’m not a boy, Ethan,” Spike responded through his gritted teeth. I am older then your own son and frankly, we’ve nothing to talk to each other about.”

“Come on, Spike,” Ethan chuckled, ignoring the cold tone in young O'Hara’s voice. “Your folks and me, we were good friends, you and me should be too. Invite me into your home, son, have a talk with me. I promise, I’ll offer you a deal of the cards that you’ll find tempting?”

“Our folks,” Spike hissed as he nodded at his younger brother, Angel, “were never friends of yours. And, I would not ask you into my home, where my wife lives with me, if God himself ordered me to. So, take your dog and pony show and get the fuck off my land.”

Ethan Rayne looked past pissed by this point and Spike made sure that none of his men were carrying guns. They didn’t seem to be, which struck Spike as a little odd. Riley, alone, was never anywhere without a gun on him somewhere. Why not now?

“Well at least let young Parker here say hello to your wife, Spike,” Ethan purred, but through gritted teeth. “He’s quite sure he met her in London, in fact, he’s more then sure.”

“Mr. O’Hara,” a tall, dark haired stranger called out, amicably, “I’ve come to pay my respects to your lovely wife. We ‘socialized’ in London at Miss Anya’s ‘home’ there. Old friends we are, Lizzy and I.”

Spike bristled at this man’s looks and the smug tone in his voice. He took an instant hate to the good looking young man and wondered how he knew Buffy or her cousin.

‘He’s lying,’ he tried to convince himself, ‘but he said Anya’s home. Buffy’s cousin?’

“My wife doesn’t wish to speak to any of you, mate,” he growled back at the man. “I’m sure you’re mistaken about knowing her. She’s never been to London.”

‘At least, that’s what she told me,’ Spike reassured himself that this fool was sadly mistaken about Buffy. ‘Why did he call her Lizzy? Wasn’t that a nickname for Elizabeth?’

Finally, Angel spoke up, “my brother’s wife wouldn’t give any of you a second glance. Get off our farm, Rayne,” the dark haired O’Hara shot Ethan a murderous look, then glanced back at his friend Xander Harris, nervously.

Spike began to feel more ‘uneasy’ by the minute. As much as he was convinced that this fuck, Parker was it? As much as he was sure the man was lying, how the hell did the this arse know Buffy’s given name and the name of her cousin?

“I know her,” Parker piped up, his voice was firm and rang with conviction. “Elizabeth, or Lizzy, as she went by in London, was the favorite ‘girl’ at Miss Anya’s ‘home’ and I’m standing by that. Only the best class of ‘males’ were allowed to fraternize with Lizzy. Only British officers, sons of the upper class and I was one of them.”

Spike was beginning to see red, especially when he heard the crude, raucous laughter of Ethan Rayne and his companions. Without giving it any thought, Spike lifted his rifle and pointed it right at Parker, cocking back the safety and glaring at the liar with narrowed eyes.

“You are a fucking liar,” Spike roared at Parker, “and for that, I’m going to blow your worthless head off. No one talks about my wife like that.”

A sense of doubt began to overwhelm Spike. He felt the doubt, followed by a wave of panic that ultimately began a spiral into anger.

Old Ethan Finn-Rayne must have sensed a ‘change’ in Spike’s attitude, or his demeanor, because the old sot shot him a smug grin.

“Surely, Spike, my boy,” Ethan mumbled, loudly enough, “you knew your bride had a giving, loving nature when you wed her?”

Again, Ethan, Riley, Graham, Doyle and even Parker chuckled amongst themselves. Spike felt his trigger finger itch, the sense of impending doom began to overtake him once more.

‘How can they laugh?’ he wondered to himself, a little in awe. ‘I’ve got a rifle aimed at this Parker idiot’s head and they still laugh like I’m the fool.’

Spike tried to regain some composure and common sense. He took a deep breath and looked over at his brother, Angel. It shocked the eldest O’Hara to see a look of sympathy in his younger sibling’s dark brown eyes.

Shaking off his sudden horror, Spike set his glare back on the bastard that dared lied about his Buffy. Keeping his gaze on the group of men on horseback, Spike shouted out, loud enough for Buffy to hear him from inside the house.

“Buffy,” Spike yelled evenly, “come out here, please.”

Angel cleared his throat and muttered, “not the best idea, brother.”

Xander was looking very anxious, but the Raynes and their companions looked quite calm, Spike noticed. He called again to his wife, “Buffy, Princess, come out here now.”

The front door of the house opened and Spike expected his beautiful wife to come out to him. Instead, his sister Tara appeared. She was pale as a ghost and looked terrified. Spike realized that Tara must have slipped into the house by the back entrance and joined Buffy inside.

“Buffy’s not feeling well, William,” Tara stammered, keeping her blue eyes on Ethan Rayne. It was a well known fact, locally, that the elder Rayne had set his sights on Tara O’Hara for a second wife, him being a widower and all. Tara, however, detested Ethan, but perhaps she could difuse this awkward situation.

“You are looking lovely, as usual, Miss Tara,” Ethan Rayne purred at the stately woman.

“Thank you, Ethan,” Tara responded coolly, “but I must ask you, why are you doing this? Here, and now? Why are you bringing chaos to this doorstep?”

It was in that instant that Spike realized that if what this stranger, Parker, was saying, if it had any shred of truth to it? Tara knew something, it was obvious. She was just too collected and calm and Spike knew both she and Buffy had heard the loud conversation from inside the house.

“Just wanted young Parker to pay his due to your brother’s wife, Tara,” Ethan sighed. “I guess we figured that Spike there knew of his wife’s ‘past’ so to speak.”


“Buffy!” Spike roared like a lion into the house. “Come here, lass! Now!”


Buffy appeared, timidly from the house, her eyes downcast. She took her place by her husband’s side and finally looked up at him.

Spike saw doubt in his Buffy’s beautiful green eyes. Saw the pain and fear the dwelled deep within those emerald orbs. In that instant, Spike realized the truth, at least most of it. Some of what this fuckhead said, Parker was it? Some of it was the truth. He felt his heart breaking into a million pieces.

“Do you know him,” Spike swallowed hard as he asked his Buffy, his angel, his Goddess, to tell him the truth. “If you do not, then just say it and I’ll blow his worthless head into a thousand pieces. For lying about you, my sweet.”

Buffy flinched and began to rub her hands together, nervously. She looked up, again, at her husband, the man she loved. Then, she met Parker Abrams gaze, saw the smirk her ex-customer wore fade into a sad, sympathetic frown.

“Yes,” Buffy whispered, her voice barely audible to anyone but her and her Will. “I know this man, well,” she finished, her voice racked with pain and shame.

“Oh God,” Spike groaned out his own pained torment as he lowered his gun and then dropped it on the front porch in defeat.

Buffy did not hesitate, she ran into the house, slamming the front door behind her. By the time she made it to the bedroom, she was sobbing wildly. She rushed into the bedroom and closed the door behind her, locking it before it clicked shut.

Without waiting a moment, Buffy dragged her little suitcase out and began to pull her clothing from closets and drawers. She literally threw them into her case, crying like a disappointed child as she did.

“Over,” she sobbed in sorrow, “over in less then a few months. I’m a fool, a fool,” Buffy chanted as she finished her packing. “A foolish whore. How pathetic is that?”


A/N: I had this big, everyone finds out kind of scenario planned, then they freak out, but then I thought that it might be a little ‘too’ soap operish. It was going to be really sappy, with all of the characters present throwing some comment in there. Actually, I was going to write the first ‘gut’ reactions by Spike in this chapter then changed my mind. The next chapter will be dark, ugly and very sad, I think anyway. Sigh…thanks for reading, please review. Luv, Spuf





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