"Well," Faith said tiredly, "that's the first time I've ever killed a troll." The brown haired woman watched the remains burn from a safe distance, "Tough bastard." "Oww," Jenny Calendar groaned as the others helped her from the wreckage of Giles' car, the older woman still dazed by the impact. "Hospital?" Buffy asked as the tough blonde looked at Tara. Tara nodded as the dark brown woman said seriously, "It should just be a concussion, but it's best to be safe." "Good work, all of you," Giles said, looking at Jenny with gentle concern. He shook himself, "It appears I'll need a lift." "Just a minute," Faith said briskly as she drew out her cellphone and dialed a number. "Hi," she said, waiting a moment then, "Can you do me a favor? Meet us near the old oak outside of town, thanks." "Who you calling?" Buffy wondered. "Devon MacLeish," Faith said as she put the phone away, "he owes Tara for letting his band play at the Bronze. I figure he can drive G-man and Jenny to the hospital." Buffy picked up something in her voice and she looked at Faith curiously, "You're not coming?" Faith shrugged as she said, "Someone sent that troll, maybe we still have a chance of back-tracking it." "Don't let Jenny fall unconscious," Tara advised Giles then nodded to Faith, "She's right. I'll see what I can do about tracking it too." "Just be careful," Willow murmured grimly. Not long afterward Giles and Jenny were loaded up into the band's battered van, Tara and the others promising to follow them as quickly as they could. The young intern at the ward quickly confirmed that it was a concussion and that Jenny needed to stay there under observation for a few hours. "Damn," Buffy frowned as they waited in the ward, "I wish this place was more secure. I keep waiting for a vamp to jump us." "I know," Willow said grimly as they watched Giles sitting by Jenny's side, "the hospital is a public place, so vampires aren't blocked like they are in a home." "Wis we knew if Amy had that troll followed," Buffy murmured grimly as she swept the room with her eyes, looking for anything that might indicate a vampire was there. Willow stood off to one side, her nerves tingling as the scent of blood stirred her vampire instincts. She could fight it, of course, but it still made being here vaguely uncomfortable for the young woman. "Buffy," she said quietly, "do you want us to patrol the area, just in case?" Buffy thought about it but shook her head no. "If something does happen I want us near Jenny," she answered quietly. Willow's eyes narrowed in thought as she asked her, "Do you think the vamps are monitoring the hospital?" "I wouldn't put it past them," Buffy answered honestly. The next few hours were tense, to say the least. Buffy and Willow moved through the larger ward in turns while Jenny lay resting with Giles by her side, covertly readying themselves for whatever might come. The doctors seemed to consider asking them to leave several times, but while the ladies were frightening they weren't actually doing anything wrong. The young doctor gulped as Willow gave him a deadly gaze, then concentrated on finishing the exam. "Well, no signs of more serious injury," he managed with false cheer, "I think you can be released." "Gee, thanks," Jenny smiled wryly as she saw her guardians breath a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness," Giles said as he looked into her eyes, "when you were hurt, I..." Jenny squeezed the hand she was holding gently as she quietly answered, "I know." Checking out they exited the building, thanking the gods that the skies were overcast enough for Willow to be out in the day. "We'd better get you home," Willow said, "I'm sure Jenny needs some rest and relaxation right now." "I phoned the school for you both," Buffy said quietlyas Giles was about to half-heartedly offer to go into work, "they know Jenny's injured and you're taking care of her." "Thank you," Giles pushed his glasses up tiredly, "I should have thought of that." "Hey," Buffy smiled at him comfortingly even as she warily watched their surroundings, "being attacked rattles everyone." "Speaking of attacks," Willow said as they boarded Devon's borrowed van once more, "where are the vamps?" "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth," Jenny said dryly as they set off for Giles' home. "I'd better call Dawn too," Buffy sighed as she dug her own phone out, knowing she was going to get a lecture from her little sister too. "Buffy, where were you!" a rather annoyed Dawn answered her phone after a ring, "I just got home and no one's here." "Sorry," Buffy sighed, "something came up..." "Vampire or monster?" Dawn guessed. "Monster," Buffy said as she informed Dawn of what happened and passed her condolences on to Jenny. "Stay at home and lock up," Buffy ordered, "we might be out for a bit tonight, too." "I'll have the leftovers," Dawn sighed before they signed off. The phone rang again and Buffy answered it with a sigh, "Yeah?" "We found their old hideout, I think," Faith said eagerly, "and it looks like they left in quite a hurry." "Left a trail?" Buffy guessed. "Not a great one," Faith conceded, "but I'm hopeful." "Don't go after them on your own," Giles snatched the phone to say seriously, "we have no idea how many vamps they have made." "Yes, mother," Faith said with a sigh. "All right, perhaps that was a bit much," Giles conceded. "Besides, I'm too busy holding back Tara to do anything stupid," Faith said dryly. Tara's ex-lover Amy had been turned to a vampire several years ago, and her recent rise to prominence in the vampire community was putting quite a strain on Tara. She seemed torn between trying to save Amy and putting her out of her misery... "Ah," Giles conceded as he passed the phone to Buffy. "The trail is heading out of town," Faith said to her briskly, "we'll follow as far as we can then phone in." "Just be careful," Buffy cautioned. "Always," Faith answered before signing off. Tara smiled grimly as they skulked along the forested drive, the light of morning begin ng to touch the summer sky. She could nearly feel the passage of magical forces as they walked, what could be best described as a odd tingle behind her eyes. "Blood on the road," Faith murmured, "they went this way." "The summoner too," Tara agreed as they walked together. She looked about as she said, "At least they're going to ground soon." They came around a bend and saw what resembled a English home, with a tall fence and lavish garden. The building was three stories tall with a pointed roof and balconies on the upper floor, and maybe large enough for two families. The only oddity was how all of the windows had been shuttered with paper and other materials applied to the inside of the window sealing off all daylight from outside. "Vampire central?" Faith guessed as they warily watched from cover. "The windows are a hint," Tara agreed dryly, "and... there's a aura of death here." "Let's take a look around," Faith said as they carefully edged around the building, tooking for points of exit and entrance, "then we'd better get out of here." "We could always just set the building on fire," Tara offered thoughtfully. "Tempting," Faith conceded, "but there could be human captives." She looked over at Tara and took her hand comfortingly, "I understand you're impatient, love, but we need the whole crew for this." Tara sighed softly but nodded, "You're right, of course." Taking some photos with her phone for good measure Faith nodded seriously, "Let's get out of here." In the shadows the magician watched the two women leave, wondering how his vampire mistresses would react to their coming. 'Either way,' Lindsey McDonald thought as he headed back to the house, 'things are going to be interesting.'
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