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As she ran from the cemetery, Buffy kept throwing glances behind her, either to make sure Tessa wasn't following or hoping that Angel was. She had just reached the street, checking once more, when she barreled into someone.
Buffy cried out in shock as she and Venus tumbled to the ground. Upon seeing who it was, Buffy began talking to her in a rush. "Thank God it's you," she exclaimed, thinking that even a singer on drugs was better than no one. "Venus, you have to help me! My boyfriend's back there. He's in trouble."
Venus looked up with an odd smile. "No," she said slowly. "I would say you're the one who's in trouble." With that, Venus grabbed her by the collar, hoisting her to her feet.
Buffy fought her in an effort to get away, but found that Venus was surprisingly strong. In fact, she was too strong by human standards. "What are you?" Buffy asked shakily, too shocked to fight even though her arms were free.
Venus spun Buffy around, pinning her hands behind her back. With her free hand, the singer reached into her jacket pocket for a syringe. Buffy whimpered slightly upon seeing it, expecting it to be some kind of sedative. But then, she saw it was filled with a dark liquid instead.
Venus smiled. "Vampire blood," she explained. "Your boyfriend was right when he said I was an addict... But these doses provide more than your usual high."
Buffy was at a loss for words, and her attention was caught when she saw Tessa approaching. "My master, Lorenzo, found Venus back in the early eighties," Tessa explained, dragging an unconscious Angel behind her. "And found her to be a valuable asset to the family."
"He made a deal with me," Venus picked up. "I would act as an agent and spy for him, and in return, he would give me the ability to live for a few centuries. Call me an artificial member of the undead if you will. I can walk where they can't, in the sunlight, into people's homes of my own free will... And it had the added benefit of no slayer alive sensing what I was until it was too late."
Then, Venus looked at Tessa. "Believe me. I learned some interesting things about our two slayers," she told her elder. "The other, Stefanie, seems to have something wrong with her, some sort of sickness." Nodding towards Buffy and Angel respectively, she added, "And it would appear that these two have had a child together."
Tessa looked back and forth between the renegade vampire at her feet and the frightened slayer. Then, she rushed forward, grabbing Buffy away from Venus and hoisting her off the ground. "I would kill you right now," Tessa said, "but that's not what Lorenzo wishes. For the moment, I guess we'll just have to settle for seeing you put out of commission."
With that, Tessa threw Buffy towards the nearest tree hard. The young blonde slayer let out a yelp as she slammed into it, landing on the ground in a massive amount of pain.
Buffy weakly raised her head to look at Angel, whispering his name in the hopes he might come to, but no such luck. Tessa rolled her over onto her back with one foot, and Buffy closed her eyes when a wave of dizziness and nausea hit her.
Tessa laughed, looking at Venus. "One slayer down, one to go... Let's get out of here," she told the singer, stopping only briefly to pick Angel up and carry him on her shoulders as if he were weightless.
Buffy watched them go, wanting desperately to get up and run after them, but something was preventing her from doing so. All she do now was shed tears, and she eventually felt her world go black...
When Stefanie felt the planks of wood behind her giving way, she knew she had to find another way out. She glanced around the nursery for a weapon of some kind, her gaze finally coming to rest on the crucifix on one wall.
Building up her courage, Stefanie dove for it, holding it tightly in one hand and ignoring how it seared into her flesh. Cordelia had a similiar reaction, only she knew to keep her distance.
Cordelia hissed, a contemptuous look on her face, but she knew that Stefanie couldn't hold her at bay forever. The slayer's face was already contorted in pain. "We have hours until sunrise," Cordy said slowly. "I can wait."
Perhaps it was the noise during the battle with the door that had covered the sound of the one downstairs being broken open. Either way, Jenny considered herself lucky that thus far, Cordelia was unaware that she was present until the last second. "You can, but you won't," Jenny said as she entered the room. And as Cordelia turned, the technopagan threw an open jar of holy water at her.
Cordelia howled, clutching at her smoking wounds. Furious and hurt, she rushed for the open window and dove outside, all the fight gone out of her.
Stefanie dropped the cross with a sob, nursing her burned fingers for a few seconds. Then, she looked up at Jenny. "Thank you," she murmured. "If you hadn't come when you did..." She paused, looking around with wide eyes. "Buffy?!? You didn't find her?!?"
Jenny shook her head. "I was rather hoping that you could," she replied. "If you feel up to it, I need you to help me track her and Angel down."
"Of course. I need to," Stefanie said. She got Ivory from her crib and soothed the bawling infant a moment before handing her to Jenny. "But it's not safe here anymore. What I need you to do is take Ivory to your place, and I'll locate her mom."
Jenny grabbed a flip phone from her purse, handing it to Stefanie. "Call me there as soon as you find out something. In the meantime... Good luck, Steffi."
Although time was fleeting, Stefanie couldn't stop herself from hugging the other woman tightly, seeking a small amount of comfort after her ordeal. Seconds later, she was on her way, praying she wasn't too late to save her dearest friends.
Stefanie arrived at the cemetery shortly after Tessa and Venus had left the scene, using her vampire senses to tell her where Buffy was. Panicked, she kneeled by her friend, calling her name.
Buffy opened her eyes at the sound, appearing weak and disoriented. "Steffi?" she asked.
"I'm here," Stefanie assured her, stroking her forehead. "You're going to be okay... Can you get up?"
Buffy moaned, shutting her eyes briefly as a fresh wave of pain washed over her. "Can't," she whispered. "I can't move." She paused, now looking sad. "Angel..."
At this, Stefanie looked around for the other vampire, but didn't see him. "Where is he, Buffy?"
Buffy had to struggle to get her words out, tears escaping her eyes. "They... They took him!"
"Who's 'they'?" Stefanie pressed, trying to make sense out of this, but Buffy had already passed out again. Stefanie swore in frustration, getting the phone from her purse and dialing 9-1-1. After ordering an ambulance to come for her, she placed calls to Jenny and Giles respectively, telling the latter to meet her at the hospital. Following that, all she could do was sit and wait, and wonder why Angel had been abducted...