Title: Fear (2/?): Story 11 in the "Who I Am, What I'll
Become" Series
Author: X_tremeroswellian
Email: X_tremeroswellian@yahoo.com
Disclaimer: The Angel Investigations gang belongs to Joss
Whedon. Clayton Gilman, Trudi, and Dan Wakefield belong to me.
Rating: PG-13 bordering on R for violence, adult language and
sexual content.
Spoilers: Up through "Are You Now or Have You Ever
Been" for Angel, the entire fourth season of Buffy the
Vampire Slayer, and the first 10 stories in this series,
especially the first one, "Illusions" and the tenth
one, "Descension."
Timeline: Takes place immediately following
"Descension."
Summary: An old friend unexpectedly shows up in L.A. in time to
rescue Cordelia; Kate and Wesley realize they are searching for a
serial killer.
Distribution: Anyone with previous permission to archive the
series may take it without asking. Anyone else, just ask and let
me know the link. Otherwise, the entire series thus far is being
archived at www.geocities.com/angel_roswell/whoiam.html.
Category: Story
Subcategories: Suspense/horror/angst/friendship
Feedback: Motivates me to write more.
Dedication: For Andrew. Thanks for the feedback.
Author's Note I: Okay. People have been asking about what
happened to the Roswellians. Since I've written so many Roswell
fics in the past, this series is mainly focused on the Angel
Investigations crew. There will be more Roswell stories coming,
but they won't be as predominate as the Angel ones. I do have
about 8 more crossovers planned. I have the entire series planned
out (though things can change--this story, for example, wasn't in
the original outline for the series), but there will be roughly
38 or so fics in this series as long as I continue to go by the
original plans.
Author's Note II: Some people also asked whether I was going for
a Kate/Wesley pairing. To be honest, I hadn't planned one. This
serial killer arc wasn't originally part of the series at all so
there was no intent for them to wind up together. In fact, I'd
sort of planned a different route for both of them, though now
I'm not certain what's going to happen. I am open to
opinions/suggestions, if anyone feels like writing and letting me
know what you think.
Fear (Part Two)
"I can't believe I fainted," Cordelia muttered as
she sat in the waiting room at the hospital. Oz sat in the chair
next to her, holding a cup of coffee he'd gotten out of a
machine.
"You were freaked out. Understandable," he said.
"How's your hand?"
She grimaced and held it up. It was already turning a nasty shade
of yellowish-green from where her attacker had stepped on it, not
to mention the jagged cut that went from her wrist to her pinky
finger that was caked with dried blood.
"Should I call someone? Angel or--?"
"No," she said immediately. "Not Angel.
Wesley."
He raised an eyebrow. "Wesley? He's here in L.A.?"
Cordelia nodded. She read his pager number aloud and Oz scribbled
it down on his hand. "Oz!" she said as he stood up and
headed for the pay phone.
"Yeah?"
"Don't tell him what happened, okay? Can you just have him
come down here?"
"Sure."
She watched as he turned and headed down the corridor. She leaned
back in the uncomfortable plastic chair and closed her eyes. She
wondered how long it was going to be before the police showed up
so she could make a report. She had asked specifically for Kate
Lockley, but the man she spoke to said that Kate had gone on
break.
Cordelia opened her eyes again and looked around the crowded
room. She had a feeling it was going to be a long wait.
How could I have been so stupid? she wondered.
She should have accepted Trudi's offer to call her a cab. This
never would have happened if she had. Never mind. It's over.
You're safe now, she thought. A wave of relief washed over her
and her eyes drifted shut again.
//"I've been watching you, Cordelia."//
The voice echoed in her mind and she sat up straight, her eyes
wide and alert. Whoever it was that had attacked her knew her
name. Which probably meant he knew where she shopped, where she
worked, where she lived. And he had escaped. Which meant he was
still out there somewhere. Watching, waiting. For her.
Cordelia gripped onto the arm of the chair with her uninjured
hand and repressed the urge to cry out. She watched the end of
the corridor and prayed that Oz would return soon, and that
Wesley would answer his pager.
* * * * *
Wesley sat across the booth table from Kate, staring down at the
black substance in his mug. Kate was staring out the window, a
distant look in her eyes. They had both been silent since they'd
gotten there a half-hour ago, both lost in their own thoughts.
He nearly jumped out of his seat when his beeper went off. He
quickly reached down and unhooked it from his belt, frowning at
the unfamiliar number.
"Everything okay?" Kate asked.
"Well, I'm not sure. The only ones who have my pager number
are Cordelia and Angel and Gunn, and an old acquaintance from
Sunnydale, but...I don't recognize this number." He looked
up at her. "I hate to ask this, but--"
Without a word, she handed him her cellular phone.
He smiled. "Thank you." Wesley quickly dialed the
number and waited.
"Hello?"
"Hello? This is Wesley Wyndam-Pryce. I had a page from this
number."
"Yeah...this is Oz."
Wesley's eyes widened. "Oz?" he repeated.
"Yeah. I'm here at Los Angeles County General Hospital.
Cordelia asked me to call you."
"Cordelia? Is she all right?"
There was a moment of silence. Then, "Could you just come
down here?"
"Yes, of course," he answered immediately. "I'll
be there." He hung up the phone and handed it back to Kate.
Then he stood up and tossed some money on the tabletop.
"Something happened. Cordelia's at the hospital. I have to
go."
"I'm coming with you," the blond detective responded.
Wesley nodded and led the way.
* * * * *
When Oz returned, he found Cordelia sitting rigid in the same
chair, her face pale. "Cordelia? Are you okay?"
When she swallowed hard and looked at him, her eyes were glassy.
"Is Wesley coming?"
"Yeah." He sat down next to her. "Should I get a
doctor? You're really pale."
Cordelia shook her head but remained quiet. This was weird. He
had known Cordelia for years. Granted, they had never been the
best of friends or anything, but they had gone to school together
for as long as he could remember, and she was *never* this quiet.
Or this scared.
The realization made him a little nervous.
Oz realized she was shivering and he quickly took off his coat
and wrapped it around her shoulders.
"Thanks," she whispered.
"Sure." He didn't know what else to say so he sat
quietly and waited.
* * * * *
Wesley raced through the emergency room doors and into the
waiting area, Kate right behind him. He spotted them right away:
Cordelia sitting in a plastic chair, Oz's coat wrapped around her
shoulders as he stood by the window staring out.
When she saw him, she rose to her feet, and he was surprised to
realize she was wearing a fancy red dress. It had been torn in
the area around her knees, and had dirt stains, as well.
"Wesley!" Her voice was fearful and he rushed to her.
"Cordelia! What happened? Are you all right?" He looked
her over carefully, and quickly saw her hand was badly bruised
and cut. "Good Lord. What happened?"
"I was attacked," she told him shakily.
Wesley's eyes widened and he reached out and pulled her to him,
hugging her tightly. "Are you all right?" All kinds of
horrible thoughts began racing through his mind.
She nodded against his shoulder but didn't make an effort to pull
away. "Oz showed up. He saved my life."
He looked over Cordelia's head and mouthed a silent thanks to the
young man/werewolf, who nodded in return.
"Who attacked you?"
Cordelia pulled away from Wesley and faced Kate. "I--I don't
know. He was wearing a ski mask. I didn't recognize the
voice."
Wesley kept one hand on her shoulder for support. "Did you
call the police?"
She nodded. "They haven't showed up yet." She looked at
Kate again. "Are you on duty?"
"I'm always on duty," Kate replied grimly. She glanced
around the crowded waiting area. "Let me talk to the
hospital staff, see if we can go somewhere more private."
Wesley nodded in agreement and guided Cordelia back to a chair.
He sat down next to her. "Have you called Angel?"
"For what? So he can blame me for getting attacked because I
was stupid enough to walk alone after dark in L.A.?"
He was taken aback by her bitter tone. "I don't think that
Angel would--"
"Wesley, I'm not calling Angel." Her tone left no room
for argument.
He frowned. He knew that Cordelia and Angel hadn't been getting
along well lately, but it felt wrong to not tell him about what
happened. For now, though, he decided not to push the issue.
"Okay." He glanced over at Oz, who looked a bit
puzzled. He shook his head slightly and Oz nodded. Wesley rested
his hand on Cordelia's back and she leaned her head on his
shoulder.
Kate returned a few moments later, followed by a nurse who looked
a bit upset. "Cordelia Chase? We'll show you to a
room," the nurse said.
Wesley glanced at Kate, then put his arm around Cordelia as they
walked down the hallway. Oz walked behind them.
The nurse opened a door and motioned for everyone to go inside.
Cordelia stepped up and sat down on the examining table. Kate
pulled out her notepad as Oz took a seat in one of the two
plastic chairs by the table, and Wesley remained standing. The
nurse did the standard exam: blood pressure, respiration, weight
and height. "The doctor will be in shortly," she
promised. Then she disappeared down the hallway again, pulling
the door shut behind her.
"Okay, Cordelia. Start at the beginning," Kate said,
her voice more gentle than Wesley remembered ever hearing her
speak.
"I was at a party with my boyfriend, Clayton Gilman. We were
at this club--the Jaded Mirror." She hesitated for a second.
"I had a bit of a headache, so I decided to go home. I told
Clayton's assistant I was leaving and I walked out. I was over
halfway home when someone shoved me to the ground. My purse was
open because I wanted to be ready if there were any vampires. My
stake rolled away and when I reached for it, the guy stepped on
my hand." She held up her injured hand to illustrate.
"Did you notice what kind of shoes he was wearing?"
Cordelia shook her head. "I was in too much pain. I yanked
my hand away and before I could do anything, he grabbed me from
behind and made me stand up."
At that moment, the door opened and a doctor walked in.
"Cordelia Chase?" He didn't even look up to start with.
He was studying her chart.
"That's me."
He glanced at her, and then around at the others. "There are
way too many people in here. You'll have to leave."
"I'm not going anywhere," Wesley answered immediately.
Oz stood up. "I'll step out for a minute."
"Me too," Kate agreed. "We'll continue as soon as
the doctor's through."
Cordelia nodded and they left the room.
The doctor walked over to her and picked up her injured arm.
"I'm Doctor Warner. How long ago did this happen?"
"About two hours."
"You need stitches." He pressed down on the bone and
Cordelia winced. "Make a fist."
She did so, wincing again.
"It's not broken. How did this happen?"
Cordelia glanced at Wesley and he answered for her. "She was
attacked."
"Were you sexually assaulted?" he asked, scribbling
something down on her chart.
"No," she answered with a shudder, and Wesley felt
immense relief wash over him.
"Any other injuries?"
"No."
"Has the incident been reported to the police?"
"The woman who was in here a moment ago is a detective with
the L.A.P.D.," Wesley supplied.
Doctor Warner nodded. "I'm going to write you a prescription
for some painkillers. You can have it filled in the drug store
down the street. It's open 24 hours. I'll send the nurse back to
do the stitches. You'll have those for seven days, and then I
want you back here to have them removed. Any questions?"
Wesley wanted to ask him if he was so impersonal with all his
patients, but he kept his mouth shut.
Cordelia shook her head. "No."
"All right." Doctor Warner left the room.
Wesley sat down next to Cordelia on the examining table. Kate and
Oz came back in a moment later.
Kate glanced at them. "Are you ready to continue?"
"Yeah, I think so."
"Okay, you said you were grabbed from behind and he forced
you to stand up. What happened next?"
Cordelia swallowed hard and Wesley squeezed her uninjured hand
reassuringly. "He covered my mouth with his hand. He was
wearing black gloves."
"Did he say anything to you?"
She nodded and he could tell she was struggling to say whatever
it was she was about to say. "He said...he said he'd been
watching me. He knew my name. And then he said that--it was time
for my descension and that we were going to go for a little
ride."
Wesley's eyes widened and he and Kate looked at one another.
Dread clenched at his stomach.
Cordelia noticed the exchange. "What?"
"Nothing. Go on, Cordelia," Kate encouraged.
She took a deep breath. "He pulled out a knife. And he held
it to my throat and he said..." Cordelia suddenly looked
like she was going to throw up. She stared down at the ground,
her face drained of all color.
Wesley wrapped his arm around her.
"Do you want them to leave the room?" Kate asked
softly.
Cordelia shook her head.
"You're sure? If it would make it easier--" Oz spoke
up.
"No. I don't want you to go. Either of you," she
answered, leaning in to Wesley slightly. A moment later she
looked up, her face determined. "He said he would slit my
throat and make me drink my own blood while he was--while he
was...raping me. That's not the word he said, but..."
Kate nodded. "Got it."
Wesley's stomach churned and he held onto her a little more
tightly. If he got his hands on the sick bastard that had tried
to hurt Cordelia...the guy wouldn't have the option of a life
sentence in prison. He glanced at Oz, who looked just as
disgusted as Wesley felt.
"He started dragging me down an alley towards a dark blue
van. He opened the back doors to it, and there were all
these...knives and ropes and axes in there. He was trying to get
me inside when Oz shouted from across the street. He picked me up
and shoved me into the van. Oz hit him or something, I don't
know, but I got out and I ran."
"And he didn't come after you?"
"No. Oz must have scared him off. He ran in the other
direction."
"You said before that he wore a ski mask." Kate looked
up from her notes.
Cordelia nodded. "It was dark blue or black. And there were
only eye holes in it."
"Did you happen to notice anything unusual about him? What
was he wearing?"
"He was dressed in all black. Long-sleeved shirt, black
jeans, black gloves. He was tall. Oh, and his eyes were this
really weird shade of blue. Kind of like an ice blue."
"Is there anything else that you can remember?"
Cordelia thought for a moment. "Yeah. Yeah, the van...he had
this makeshift bed made up in the back. There was a pillow and a
blanket, and they both had blood stains on them."
"When he spoke to you...did he have any kind of an
accent?"
"No...I don't think so. I mean, I'm not sure. He was
whispering."
"What happened after you ran away from him?" Kate
asked.
"I ran back to the alley and I tried to catch my breath. Oz
followed me...I didn't realize who he was until then. Then
I...fainted." She said the last part with disgust in her
voice.
"You were in shock. It's okay," Wesley said gently.
"How long were you unconscious?"
"She was only out for a couple of minutes," Oz spoke
up.
"Did you hit your head when you fainted?"
Cordelia glanced at Oz. "No."
"I caught her before she fell," he added.
"You said that you dropped your purse during the initial
attack. Did you go back and get it?"
"Yeah. It was still there."
"And nothing was missing?" she questioned. Wesley
frowned when he realized why Kate was asking that question.
//"Sometimes to remember the murders, a killer will take
something belonging to his victims as a souvenir or a
trophy."//
"No..." Cordelia looked confused. "I don't think
he intended to mug me."
"Then what did you do?"
"We used my cell phone to call a cab. Oz insisted on
bringing me to the hospital to have my hand checked out. Then we
called the police from the cab. I asked for you, but they said
you were on a break. They said they'd meet us at County General
but they never showed up."
It was Kate's turn to look disgusted. The disgust quickly turned
apologetic. "Don't worry. I'll deal with them," she
promised.
The door swung open and the nurse returned, wielding the supplies
for stitches.
"Oz, I'll need a statement from you, too," Kate
informed him, and he nodded in agreement. She met Wesley's eyes.
"We'll wait outside."
"Kate," Cordelia said suddenly, her voice sounding very
distant.
"Yeah?"
"This guy...knew who I was. He's going to come after me
again, isn't he?" Cordelia looked at Kate.
Kate's face was grim. "I don't know," she answered
honestly.