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Shadows Still Remain	By : addielogan Category: Angel the Series > Het - Male/Female > Angel(us)/Cordelia > Angel(us)/Cordelia Views: 3578 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Angel: The Series, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 10
- 11
Angel stared at Lilah, dumbfounded, for
several moments before he came to his senses enough to respond. �What did you
just say?
�I said the Senior Partners have your son,
Angel,� Lilah replied matter-of-factly. �What, don�t tell me you thought things
would go well for him after you broke your contract.� When Angel said nothing
else, Lilah let out a sharp bark of laughter. �You did, didn�t you? Wow, and
you�d think by now you would have gotten over all that annoying, yet easily
manipulated naivet�.� She took several steps forward, Angel�s defensive posture
not putting her off in the least. After all, what could he do to her now that
she was dead?
�Here�s the abridged version so you can play
a little catch up,� Lilah said, only a few feet away from Angel now. �When you
made your deal with the Senior Partners, they gave you something in return�that
something was Connor, healthy and normal. But you turned around, stabbed them
in the back, and waged war on your benefactors, Angel. Did you honestly think
they were going to keep their end of the bargain if you couldn�t keep yours?�
For once, Angel was at a loss for a comeback.
He hated to admit it, but Lilah made a good point�one he should�ve realized
before. It shamed him now to realize he hadn�t even considered what would
happen to Connor if he took on Wolfram and Hart after their deal. He�d just
blindly accepted his son would be fine.
Over two hundred and fifty years of
existence should�ve taught him things never worked out that neatly.
�I won�t let them keep my son,� Angel
snapped.
�No, of course you won�t. They were banking
on that as a matter of fact,� Lilah replied with a cold smile, reveling in the
fact that finally, she had the upper hand over Angel.
Lilah stepped back, walking back and forth
in front of Angel as she began talking again. �Now, the child of two vampires,
that�s a nice little collector�s piece, you have to admit, and one the Senior
Partners wouldn�t mind keeping. Maybe they could have him stuffed and mounted.�
Angel started forward, anger flaring in his
dark eyes, but stopped short when Lilah turned towards him again, the smile on
her face making him uneasy in a way she�d never been able to manage before.
�But you, Angel. Having your dust in a
jar�nothing could make the Senior Partners happier.�
Angel crossed his arms over his chest and
met Lilah�s gaze, refusing to be intimidated. �So they�re using him as a
bargaining chip. Me for him. That�s why you�re here.�
�That�s pretty much the drill,� Lilah
replied with a look that told Angel she was enjoying this more than he could
ever be comfortable with. �Your son can live as long as you agree to hand
yourself over to the mercy of the Senior Partners.� Lilah shivered. �This is
just making me all tingly.�
Angel felt resignation hanging over him.
He�d known things would ultimately end like this. Cordelia coming back hadn�t
meant he would get to have her�nothing ever worked out that way for him.
Instead, he�d made a foolish decision, and the price of that mistake wasn�t
paid in full.� He knew there was no real
choice here for him to make anyway. Despite anything that had happened in their
past, Connor was his son, and Angel didn�t hesitate over the thought of trading
himself for him.
He opened his mouth to respond, but before
he could say anything, Cordelia had stepped forward, coming between Lilah and
Angel. �No, that�s not how it�s going to work. It�s going to go like this�your
bosses are going to give me a challenge. If I complete it, then Angel and
Connor�s lives are mine. If I lose, then they can have us both.� Cordelia
gestured between herself and Angel.
Lilah frowned, Cordelia�s move taking her by
surprise. �I really don�t think�� She began even though her words were drowned
out by Angel�s reply.
�Cordy, no. No. You�re staying out of this.�
Cordelia turned towards him, her expression
set firmly in determination. �No, I�m not staying out of this. I�m not about to
let you go, not again. This is the only way, Angel.�
Angel shook his head. �I can�t let you do
this.�
�Oh, but it�s too late. She�s made a
bargain. And I can never refuse a bargain.�
Angel turned sharply, taking a step
backwards from the man now standing with them in the lobby. He was tall and
breathtakingly beautiful, with clear
blue eyes and long, blond hair. �Who are you?�
The man laughed in response, a sound Angel
found altogether unsettling. �I suppose you of all people wouldn�t know what
the true face of an angel looks like,
now would you?�
Angel�s brow furrowed and again he asked,
�Who are you?�
This time, the man responded with a sweeping
gesture with his arm. �Let�s just say, I�m a man of wealth and taste. But I�m
not here right now for you, Angel�though I�m sure I will be soon.� He pointed
to Cordelia. �She�s the one who wants to play a game of Let�s Make a Deal.�
Angel started to protest again, but Cordelia
stepped forward, pushing him aside. She knew they didn�t have time to weigh the
options, and she would be damned before she�d let herself lose Angel again
after all they�d been through to get to this point. She�d do whatever it took
to preserve the one real thing she had left.
�I do want to play,� Cordelia replied, her
hands crossing over her chest. �But first, you have to agree to one more term.�
�And that would be?� the man asked.
�When I win, not only do I get Angel and
Connor back, but Angel�s soul stays�permanently. No more of that �pure
happiness� clause, nothing. Angelus is gone. Forever.�
Cordelia had been afraid that trying to tack
on this extra bit would anger the man, but instead, his lips spread in a slow,
wide grin. �So this will be a quest for love then? Oh, those are the most
interesting to watch. I accept your terms.�
�Then give me yours,� Cordelia replied, her
gaze steely.
The man then sighed, as if this part of the
conversation was making him incredibly bored. �Fine, a challenge. How about I
send you on a quest. For something, oh, I don�t know, I�ll call it�the Cup of
Perpetual Torment.� He paused there, smirking, and Cordelia didn�t miss the way
Angel began to squirm. She got the feeling she was missing out on some inside
joke.
�So this Cup, I get it and what?�
�You manage to find the Cup and drink from it,
and you get your boys back�and Angel�s soul is from here on out a permanent
fixture. So are these terms to your liking? This is normally the part where
people start making sure to ask for wealth, fame, and fortune.�
Cordelia shook her head. �I�ve already been
offered that before, and I don�t want it. I want this.�
�Seems like very little to risk your life
for. Are you sure you don�t want me to throw in something else? A car�maybe a
plasma screen television? Those are quite nice.�
�I told you what I wanted, now get on with
it already,� Cordelia snapped.
�Fine.� He snapped his fingers and a table
appeared in front of him. On top of it was a piece of parchment and two pens.
�Sign this and the deal is sealed.�
Cordelia took a step towards the table, but
Angel reached out and grabbed her arm. �Cordy, don�t do this, please. I�m not
worth this.�
She turned, smiling softly at Angel as she
reached up to rest her hand on his cheek. �Yes, you are. We are. I�ve
waited a long time for us to get our chance, and I�m not going to pass it up
now.�
�But this is insane. Whatever he�s going to
do to you, it isn�t going to be easy. He�s toying with us, Cordy. I can�t let
you��
�And you�re not letting me. I�m doing this
on my own.�
�Cordy, please. This is crazy.�
�Love makes you do the wacky,� Cordelia
replied with an almost sad smile. She slipped her arm out of Angel�s grip
before kissing him softly. �I�ll see you soon, Champ.�
When she began to walk towards to the table,
Angel tried to follow her again, only to be suddenly stopped by an invisible
barrier. He snarled, beating against it in desperation and anger.
�And there you go with the futile bouts of
rage again,� Lilah said, reminding Angel of her presence.
Angel turned on Lilah, his eyes flashing
yellow. �I�m not going to let her do this. I�ll�I�ll make some sort of deal of
my own, keep her from having to make one.�
Lilah shook her head. �No can do, Angel. You
already made your deal. And didn�t even bother to peruse the contract, if I
remember correctly�which I do. At least she�s not making that mistake.�
Angel turned back towards the table,
watching as Cordelia read over the parchment. �Don�t sign it, Cordy,� Angel
called out to her. �Please, don�t do this.�
He didn�t know whether she couldn�t hear him
or if she was simply ignoring him, but Cordelia didn�t turn towards him as she
picked up a pen. She touched it to the parchment, and the faint smell of
Cordelia�s blood wafted to Angel, letting him know she was signing her name
with something other than standard ink. He called out to her again, though this
time it came out as nothing more than a frustrated growl. Angel watched as the
man added his own signature to the parchment, then picked it up with a grin.
In a flash of light, they both disappeared.
Angel roared, slamming his fists against the
invisible barrier. Suddenly, it gave way, and he stumbled forward, hitting the
floor of the lobby face-first.
�And you�re supposed to be a Champion,�
Lilah said, smirking.
Angel got to his feet, his eyes narrowing on
Lilah. �Where the hell did he just take Cordelia?�
�You saw as much as I did, Angel,� Lilah
replied. �I�� She stopped when a faint ringing sounded from inside her suit
jacket, then reached inside to retrieve a cell phone. Angel couldn�t tell what
was going on from Lilah�s side of the conversation, but when she snapped the
phone shut and turned to him again, he quickly found out.
�A waiting room has been arranged for you. A
limo will be out front to take us.�
Angel stiffened. �A what? I want you to
bring Cordelia back here. Call whoever that was and make them get her back.�
�I can�t do that, Angel. But if you come
with me, I can assure you that you�ll be able to see her.�
�And I�m suppose to what, trust you?� Angel
asked. �The last time I got into one your evil limos, Lilah, absolutely nothing
good came of it.�
�And yet, you made the choice to get in,�
Lilah pointed out. �No one forced you to make any of the choices you made this
past year, Angel�and you didn�t have a lack of soul to pin it on either. You
did what you wanted to do, and now your friends are dead and your son is in the
hands of the Senior Partners. That�s all on your head. So cut the high and
mighty crap.�
Angel found himself at a loss for a
response. She was right. He knew it, and she knew it.
Lilah started walking towards the front door
before she turned around to face Angel again. �So are you coming or not?�
With a sigh and more than a little
reluctance, Angel followed Lilah out of the hotel.

***
*** ***
Cordelia groaned, the headache she was
currently nursing reminiscent of the old days of painful visions. Not sure of
her surroundings other than the fact she was face down on a hard surface, she
opened her eyes and pulled herself up to her feet.
Immediately, she wished she hadn�t. The
world she found herself in now was desolate and dark, and the promise of what
it held in its shadows was more terrifying than anything she�d ever faced
before.
In a whisper, she gave voice to what she
saw.
�I�m in hell.�

***
*** ***
I�m sorry it�s taken me so long to update
this story. Life has been pretty big on the busy and hectic lately, and I haven�t
had time to write very much. However, I don�t have any intentions of abandoning
this story. What I would like to know, however, is if the majority of you want
me to post updates as I get them (even if there maybe time between new chapters)
or if you�d rather me wait to post anymore until the story is finished (which
may be a while from now). Let me know, and I�ll make a decision from there.
- 10
- 11
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Shadows Still Remain