He Had Some Spare Time
Title: He Had Some Spare Time
Fandom: Angel
Author: Dralf
Wordcount: 792
Setting: Shortly after season 3 ends
Characters/Pairings: Wesley, Lilah, Justine
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: These are Joss Whedon's toys. I'm just playing with them.
Summary: He wasn't going to get involved, he wasn't going to get involved, he wasn't going to - Oh screw it, he was getting involved.
Notes: I was watching "Deep Down" and this bunny popped into my head. It refused to let me continue watching the episode until I wrote it down.
They lay together in bed, chests rising and falling with each heavy breath. This had become a more common occurrence between the pair though Lilah never stuck around long after and Wesley never wanted her to anyway. Usually conversation was sparse and when it did come around, it was always business. Tonight was no exception.
"Where'd Angel go?"
Angel. The one topic Wesley least wished to discuss these days.
His eyes closed and he murmured, "I don't know and frankly I don't care."
"Oh…" Lilah frowned and pulled herself out of bed.
Wesley's eyes shot open and he glared at her. "I thought Wolfram and Hart made a habit of keeping a tab on him." That she was asking him of all people meant that she really didn't know and that was a bad sign.
"We do, but he disappeared. I thought you might have had something to do with it, but I guess not." She pulled her shirt back on. "Do you know where he might've gone?"
"If I did, I certainly wouldn't tell you."
Wesley's mind was spinning, thinking through the long list of Angel's enemies. There were so many options, so many different motivations for wanting the vampire to disappear. Well, he reasoned, there was no reason for him to get involved. It wasn't his problem that the vampire had disappeared.
"Do you even care?" Lilah asked, finishing up the buttons on her jacket.
He didn't reply and she left with a smirk. No, that chapter of his life was over and he wouldn't be getting involved. This was something Fred, Gunn, and Cordelia would have to work out on their own. He was done.
(-+-+-)
Despite his previous convictions that he was through with Angel and all business related to the vampire, Wesley's feet took him to the hotel. He stared at the exterior, recalling when they'd first decided the place would be their new headquarters. Back when things had been simpler and he'd been happier.
Wesley shook the thoughts from his head. He could see Fred and Gunn through the window. They were talking; both anxious. His lips tightened as Fred began to sob and Gunn pulled her into an embrace.
They're not my responsibility anymore. And although he made himself turn away from the hotel, he couldn't get Angel and the rest of the crew out of his mind.
(-+-+-)
As hard as he tried to forget about them, he couldn't. In his spare time, which was most of his time now that he was out of a job, he caught himself contemplating what could've happened to the vampire and what would happen to L.A. now that its champion was missing.
Always his mind came back to Justine. She had the motivation; she had the fire. Would it be enough? Wesley didn't know, but he would ask her.
It was impossible not to get involved. Of course, he couldn't go to the hotel and ask to join in with Fred and Gunn. He'd do things on his own. He told himself it was because he owed so much to Angel. Because it was for the good of mankind, for the jolly good fight.
Whatever his reasoning, he confronted Justine.
"What did you to Angel?" While he still wasn't sure that she was responsible, he found an outright accusation yielded better results.
"I didn't do anything." She spat. However, there was a wariness in her eyes that told Wesley she was lying.
Wesley backhanded her, sending her crashing into the wall. "What did you do?"
When she didn't answer, he lashed out again and again until she finally choked out the story. It had been Connor's idea. Lock Angel up in a metal box and drop him into the ocean. Some more beating got the rest of the story out of her. Holtz had ordered her to kill him. She had done it and then she'd told Connor that Angel had killed the man. From there, everything had tumbled into place.
At the end, she grinned at him, "You'll never find him."
"Maybe." Wesley admitted. "But you'll be helping me until we do."
"You think I'd actually help you?" Justine laughed.
"Not out of your own free will. But you've always been a slave, so it's nothing new." That quieted Justine down.
She lunged at him, but Wesley was too quick and managed to land a heavy blow to her head. She fell to the ground, out cold.
Wesley sighed. When he had come here, he had been looking for information alone. He hadn't meant to get involved, but now it was too late to back down and he really didn't feel like giving up anyway. He'd find Angel and then he'd leave Angel Investigations behind him forever.