Service Unit

Chapter Forty One – Request

Spike rose to his feet, popping open the buttons of his jeans as he did. He slid them down far enough to free his erection then pressed in close, sliding easily into her as she wrapped her legs around his waist and lay back on the island.

Buffy gasped, "Now? We're doing it now?"

Spike shook his head as he thrust. "No. This'll take the edge off a mite so we can take our time later." He slid his hands under her hips, gripping hard, then leaned forward and growled, "Hang on to something, Slayer, this is gonna be hard and fast."

Buffy gripped the edge of the counter and held on tight as Spike slammed into her, grunting with each thrust. When she was close, he leaned down and sank the tips of his fangs into her breast, flicking the nipple with his tongue. The bite sent her sailing over the edge and her pulsing walls pulled Spike over with her. He released her breast and arched back, frozen in ecstasy as Buffy's walls continued to contract in rhythmic waves around him.

He shuddered then thrust gently one more time before he collapsed onto her, breathing fast. Buffy was breathing just as fast underneath him and she panted, "That was just an edge? Wow."

Spike chuckled as he lifted himself off her and disengaged. "Wait 'till I bite you for the blood bond." He leaned down and licked the few drops of blood from the bite, sealing the small wounds, then he pulled her up and helped her down to the floor, holding her until she was steady enough to stand on her own. He tucked himself in then buttoned his jeans and took her hand. "You should get cleaned up and then eat something. You'll need your strength if I'm gonna feed from you."

They stepped into the living room and stopped short, both blinking in surprise at Blazczak. Spike recovered first and stepped in front of Buffy as she hurriedly tugged at her still open shirt. Blazczak grinned knowingly and said, "I apologize." He smirked over Spike's shoulder at Buffy. "I did not mean to interrupt you while you were being serv…" Spike's sudden growl brought him up short and he transferred the smirk to Spike. "While you were taking advantage of Spike's… skills."

Spike checked to see if Buffy had gotten herself covered then he stepped forward. "You'll shut your gob if you know what's good for you. What're you doin' here?"

Blazczak took several steps sideways then motioned to something lying on the floor at his feet. "I am returning Angelus to you. His service is complete."

Spike looked down at the vampire and gasped, his eyes widening in horror, then he quickly turned around, blocking Buffy's view. She leaned over, trying to peek around him, and Spike grasped her shoulders. "Don't look at him, Buffy."

Buffy frowned up at Spike. "Why not? It's not like I don't have an idea of what to expect. I've already seen the pictures in your binder."

Spike grimaced and closed his eyes. "I know, but you don't want to see this. I don't want you to live with the sight of him burned into your brain for the rest of your life. Please. His condition is my burden, not yours."

Buffy lifted her hands to his forearms and squeezed. "I'll be fine, Spike, and I'm just as responsible for his condition as you are." She lifted his hands off her shoulders then stepped around him and looked at the vampire on the floor.

Liam's hair was gone and he was terribly thin, almost skeletal. The too-pale skin of his torso was stretched tightly over his ribs and there were two raw and abraded strips of skin about an inch wide – one across his upper chest and the other just below his belly button. And he had no legs. Or arms. His legs had been cut off at mid-thigh and his arms just above the elbow; the stumps covered with what looked like custom made leather caps.

"Oh my God. What happened to his arms and le…" Buffy's hand came up to cover her mouth and she turned around, squeezing her eyes shut.

Spike wrapped his arm over her shoulders and turned her, nudging her toward the bedroom. "I'll handle this, pet."

She nodded at him then walked quickly down the hallway, not looking back. Spike waited until the bedroom door had closed behind her then he turned back to Blazczak, swallowing hard to keep down the blood he'd drunk. Thankfully, Buffy hadn't seen the worst of it. Her viewing angle had been slightly different and the stump of Liam's right leg had blocked his burned and mutilated genitals and his torn and gaping hole that was leaking blood and demon spunk onto Buffy's floor. Spike motioned toward what was left of Liam's genitals and whispered, "What happened to his…"

Blazczak glanced at the vampire on the floor then looked over at Spike with a satisfied smile. "Holy water injected into his penis and testicles with syringes. His second client paid extra for that and it became the unit's specialty. The client was from a rather large clan, you see, and they all seemed to share the same… proclivities. I was forced to buy holy water in bulk to satisfy their requests. Angelus has repaid his debt to me, and then some, and he has made a small church near the Cleveland Hellmouth very rich."

Spike knew firsthand what it felt like to mix holy water with dangly bits and he unconsciously covered himself with his hands as he swallowed several times to avoid decorating the living room with his lunch. He shuddered then moved his hands back to his sides and straightened his spine. "What 'bout his arms and legs?"

Blazczak shrugged. "They served no purpose and were in the way, so they were removed."

"And they didn't grow back? My feet and fingers grew back after one of my renters chewed them off."

"They would partially regenerate during the ten-hour healing period between clients, but would be trimmed down again as part of the preparation for the next client. They will grow back eventually if you feed him enough, but if you'd like them restored sooner, I could have some sustaining fluid delivered to you, and he'll have them back in about three days."

Spike shuddered again as he shook his head then stared down at Liam for several minutes. "So he's spent twenty years strapped to a table havin' his danglies burned off with holy water and his limbs cut off twice a day?"

"We didn't start removing his limbs until the second year, but for the most part, yes, although some clients paid for other services."

Spike looked up at Blazczak. "Such as?"

Blazczak looked at Spike skeptically. "You really want to know?"

Spike backed up and sat down on the love seat. "Not really, but my demon needs to know. He has to make sure there's no more retribution to be had." Spike leaned back and scrubbed his hands over his face then he looked at Blazczak. "I assume there was a fair bit of rape, right? Huge demon cocks splittin' him open?"

Blazczak nodded. "Yes, he serviced approximately 85% of his clients in that fashion, with most also paying for additional services such as the syringes. Some clients preferred to utilize his mouth, and one client had a standing monthly appointment to pull out all his teeth before he..."

Spike held up a hand. "Yeah, I've got it. Was he whipped? Beaten?"

"Quite often with a variety of tools and appendages."

"What else?"

"One client came in every week to harvest his eye balls, nose, ears, tongue, lips, nipples, and genitals."

Spike's eyes widened and he blurted, "Harvest them? For what?"

"To make stew."

"Stew…" Spike gagged, very nearly losing his lunch, then he swallowed hard, clapping his hands down on his thighs as he stood. "And that's enough. My demon's satisfied."

Blazczak nodded. "Then I shall go."

"Take him with you."

"Pardon me?"

"I don't want him. You can keep him."

Blazczak looked down at what was left of the vampire then shook his head. "His performance has been steadily declining these past few weeks and I very nearly had to refund the fees of his last two clients because of it. I have gotten all the use out of him that I can. If I had not promised to return him to you, I would have disowned him when his service time was up."

"What about the stew bloke? Think he'd want him?

"Undoubtedly."

"All right. Give him to that bloke then."

Blazczak smirked over at Spike. "I would, but he died recently. He choked to death on a piece of stew meat." He took a step away from Liam and said, "Our business is concluded. Enjoy your unit," then he disappeared.

Spike blinked at the suddenly empty space then sighed. "Well… bugger."

Buffy's shaky voice came from the hallway. "Spike? Is he gone?"

"Blazczak is. Liam isn't."

Buffy stepped into the living room, carefully keeping her gaze averted from the vampire on the floor. "What are you going to do with him?"

Spike looked at Liam then sighed again. "The only thing I can." He walked over to Buffy and took her gently by the elbow, steering her toward the bedroom. "You probably don't want to be here for this. I need to do it quickly, hopefully before anybody notices he's back in this dimension, or the bloody lawyers will just resurrect him. I'll come to you when it's over."

She stopped and looked up at him. "I'll help if you need me to."

He shook his head. "I'll be fine, kitten, and I don't want you to see any more than you already have. I know we share the burden of what's happened to him, but since he's still technically family, he's my mess to clean up."

"Okay. I'll be waiting for you." She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him tight against her, whispering against his shoulder. "The vacuum is in the hall closet." She squeezed him hard then let him go and turned toward the bedroom.

Spike watched until she'd shut the door then he turned back toward the living room. He walked over to Buffy's weapons chest and took a stake out of it then walked over to Liam and squatted down beside him, reaching out to poke his shoulder with the stake.

Liam slowly opened his eyes and focused on Spike. A flicker of recognition flashed in them and then tears started coursing down his cheeks as he whispered, "Please kill me."

Spike granted his request.

XX

XXXX

XX

Spike stepped into the bathroom, unbuttoning his jeans. "I'm gonna shower again, pet."

Buffy nodded then unwrapped the towel from her damp hair. She walked over to Spike and loosely wrapped her arms around his waist. "Are you okay?"

He shrugged as he pulled her tight against his chest. "Not sure yet. Need to think for a bit."

"Are we still gonna do this? The blood bond?"

"Only if you want to."

Buffy leaned back a little then raised a hand to cup his cheek. "Nothing's changed for me, Spike. I want you. I love you." She moved her hand to her neck, brushing her fingertips across the bite scar. "And I want your mark here."

He pulled her against him again and laid his cheek on her head. "All right, luv. Just give me a bit of time to get my head sorted."

"Okay. If you need me…"

He squeezed her tighter and murmured into her hair. "I'll call out, I promise."

She squeezed him back and said, "I'll be waiting," then she turned and left the bathroom.

Spike watched her go then slid out of his jeans and turned on the water in the shower. He made it as hot as he could stand then stepped under the spray and stood there, letting it wash over him. He stood there for a long time.