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Illyria watched as Spike threw a few clothes into a bag, before following him downstairs to the lobby, where he grabbed a box of cash that Angel had saved up over the year at Wolfram and Hart and kept at the hotel, as well as emptying out the fridge into a small cooler bag he had nicked from the mall
“Where is it we shall go?” Illyria asked
“Anywhere. It doesn’t really matter,” Spike answered
He then threw a couple of stakes into the bag, before grabbing a small battleaxe and a broadsword, before grabbing the car keys and heading towards the door
“If you’re coming along, grab those pillows and blanket with you”
Illyria looked over at the items, before scooping them up and following Spike out of the hotel and to Angel’s Plymouth. He had driven the car to the Hyperion just for the big battle in the alley. Spike threw the bag and weapons into the back of the car, before getting into the driver’s seat and starting the car up
“What about the helpless we should be helping?” Illyria asked as she got into the passenger seat
“If they’re smart, they would have gotten out of the city,” Spike said, reversing the car onto the street, “Besides, we’ll worry about that once we’ve dealt with Wolfram and bloody Hart”
“And by running away, this is how we’ll deal with the Wolf, Ram and Hart?”
“We’re not running away. We’re simply moving our location. Do I really have to tell you again?”
“No, you do not”
“Good then. Let’s go”
Spike threw the car into drive and tore down the street
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“Our mission to the hotel was a failure,” said the deep voice, “The team was wiped out completely”
“Those two are stronger together than I thought,” said the CEO, “Well, I guess we’ll just have to send around a bigger team, one not so easily destroyed”
“The military trained vampires should do the trick”
“Of course, but daybreak is approaching. Send along an undercover team through the sewers to the hotel and scope out the area”
“But then they can kill the pair while they sleep”
“As far as I know, Illyria doesn’t need to sleep and despite her power loss, she can easily dispatch an undercover team. She destroyed Izziel and Cyvus Vail with ease”
“Okay, I understand. Sending a team over right now”
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Spike kept driving until the sun started to rise. As it did, he quickly showed Illyria how to drive, before wrapping himself in a blanket and hiding from the sun, praying that Illyria wouldn’t crash the car. After all, if Angel found out, he would kill them both. Then Spike decided it didn’t matter if Angel found out, as long as Illyria didn’t crash the car. After an hour of smooth driving, Spike allowed himself to fall asleep
Illyria was slowly starting to enjoy the notion of driving. She enjoyed the sound of the engine as she roared along the road. She looked over at Spike and noted that despite being wrapped up completely in a blanket, he had fallen asleep. Not wanting him to wake up and start cursing and possibly burning, Illyria settled for a reasonable speed and continued driving along the open road, leaving Los Angeles behind
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“Sir, we checked out the Hyperion and you won’t believe this”
“What’s that?”
“There was no sign of them anywhere in the hotel. Not even blood in the fridge. It’s like they’ve cleared out and gone somewhere”
“Well, where could they have gone?”
“Beats me. All I know is that they’re gone”
“Okay, think, think, think, where would they go? Not Sunnydale, simply because it doesn’t exist anymore. What about Las Vegas?”
“Las Vegas. Why would they go there?”
“It’s only several hours drive from here and they can rest there during the day. They can pretty much hide out at Vegas”
“So, Vegas then. Alright. I haven’t been there in over a year”
“Well, now’s your chance. Go now, Gunn. Oh and take your gang. Let them have a little bit of fun there”
Gunn nodded and left the room, as the CEO turned to the window
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“What is this strange place made up of bright lights and flashing signs?” Illyria asked
Spike risked a peek out of his blanket and saw the sun was setting, as they drove through the streets of Las Vegas. Discarding the blanket once the sun was gone completely, he lowered the roof and leaned back, taking in the sights of Vegas
“This is Las Vegas, love, the Entertainment Capital of the World”
“Entertainment Capital?”
“Yeah, see all these casinos and resorts. People come from all over the world to enjoy the high life here”
“And what do they do here?”
“Gamble, mostly, aiming to win big money. But also to enjoy the sights”
“Have you done some of this gambling?”
“Sure have, not usually with money though. Used to play for kittens”
“I have memories of Fred playing with a kitten when she was young”
“Riveting. And speaking of Fred, we need you to blend in”
“You wish for me to become Fred?”
“Got no choice. Gonna have to. Oh and get you some clothes”
Spike directed Illyria to a clothing store and got out of the car, as she changed her form, becoming Fred before following Spike into the store. They spent about an hour in the store trying and buying clothes for Illyria. Spike did his best to keep his mind off Fred, which was hard as she moved about in front of him, smiling and acting like Fred. Once the shopping was done, Spike and Illyria headed back to their car, as Spike drove around, before pulling in at a casino
“Why are we here?” Illyria asked, still in Fred’s form
“Need a place to stay. Plus, I need my money back from buying you clothes”
Illyria followed Spike into the casino. The bouncer didn’t stop them, as the pair headed towards a poker table. Spike threw some money down, buying into the game, as Illyria stood back and watched with interest…for the next five minutes
“This is quite uninteresting,” she said
“Shh, I need to concentrate,” Spike said, “Grab a drink and hang around”
“I refuse to ingest intoxications”
“That’s nice, don’t care”
He ordered himself a drink, as Illyria sat down, crossing her arms over and huffing at having to wait around for Spike to play his game. Half an hour later, Spike grinned as he walked away from the table, holding his prize money
“Now shall we go?”
“Go? We’re staying here the night, pet. Gonna go order a room right now”
Illyria followed Spike to the counter as he booked a two-bedroom room. He smiled as he faced Illyria, holding up the keys to their room
“That wasn’t so bad. Now we can hang out, play a few games, win some money, have a few drinks, really enjoy ourselves”
“I wish to play this poker game you were playing earlier”
“Oookay, this should be interesting. Come on, Blue”
Just then, two bouncers came flying into the casino, knocked out cold, as Charles Gunn and a group of men walked into the casino. Spike froze when he saw Gunn, who locked eyes with him and grinned
“There they are. Kill them both”
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