"You may kiss the bride," the minister finished the ceremony.

Dalton turned toward me with an evil look on his face. My eyes widened as I realized what was about to happen. I tried to turn away, but Dalton gripped me by the back of the neck and forced me to submit to the kiss. Vomit rose in my throat as I felt his cold lips press against mine. He released me after only a few moments and I started to pull away only to be grabbed again. For a moment I thought he was going to kiss me a second time, but instead, he moved to whisper into my ear. "Now you're mine," he hissed in a voice that chilled me to the bone. He backed away, his eyes staring deep into mine. I was too scared to even blink. His hand flicked out and wiped the blood from my chin, laughing as I flinched away from him. "Don't fight me," he warned, amused by my terror, "I own you."

Not yet, you don't. And you never will! My mind raged against the fear. Yet, the way things were going, there wasn't much I was going to be able to do to stop it. He had control of the entire situation, and I was powerless against him. Thinking back to what I’d read in Giles’ book, all that stood between my freedom and spending the rest of eternity as Dalton’s...wife...was his demonic binding ritual and…consummating the marriage. How could he possibly...I stopped the thought--I didn't even want to think about how it would happen. It won’t happen! There had to be a way to stop it--I couldn't just let him…I wrapped my arms around myself, already feeling the humiliation and the horror of the violation that was pending against me. I had to find a way to escape…but I couldn't. Not while he still had...Willow! I glanced up to the balcony and was relieved to see that she was no longer teetering on the edge of the railing.

"Come, Love, time to go," Dalton indicated, once again taking me by the arm. He began prodding me to accompany him up the aisle. I obeyed, still unable to think of any way to regain any sense of control in the matter.

I could see Willow and Martel waiting at the front of the chapel for us. I couldn't face her. Not after she'd witnessed my complete failure to protect myself. I could only imagine the things she must be thinking about me. Wuss, coward…many other similar words came to mind, each one making me feel more and more ashamed. I stared down at my feet as I was led toward the chapel exit. I didn't want to see the look of disapproval and disgust that must be on her face. Yet, I couldn’t help turning to look at her one last time as Dalton led me past her. She looked completely distraught, tears dribbling down her face. I had to go to her! I tried to pull away from Dalton, but the grip on my arm was iron and I was being pulled farther from her. I glared helplessly back at Asa. You promised she’d be okay!

"Sir?" Asa called out, giving me a reassuring look. Dalton stopped and turned back toward him, not even lessening the hold on my arm. "I think you should give them a moment to...to say goodbye." I hadn’t thought it possible, but the grip on my arm tightened for an instant—to the point where I felt as though the bones would snap under the pressure—then all at once I was released.

What was I going to say to her? How could I possibly even begin to tell her how much she meant to me, how much I...loved her. I blinked. It was true. Sure pick the best times to figure these things out...I smiled slightly at the irony. But I just couldn’t tell her—it would only make things worse for her. The best thing I could do for her was put up a brave front and make sure that as soon as they released her that she would leave and not look back. I had to know that no matter what happened to me, she would be okay.

I crossed to her, mentally prepping myself to feign strength I didn’t have. The more I was able to convince her that I would be okay, the more likely she would be to flee to safety at the first chance she was given. She gazed up at me, the expression on her face echoing my feeling of distress. I forced myself to smile as I reached forward, gently wiping the tears from her face. I still didn’t trust myself to speak, but I needed to comfort her. I put my arms around her and pulled her to me. I heard her make a soft whimpering noise and for a moment, I thought she was going to pull away, but then, her arms were around me and I felt her pressed tightly against me. I burrowed my face in her hair, filling every sense with her; if things...didn’t go well, I wanted to be able to look back at the memories years later and still be able to see her, to feel her heart beating against my chest. I heard Dalton moving up behind me, a small growl escaping from him. Asa blocked his approach, but I knew our time together was limited. If I was going to say anything, it was going to have to be soon. "It’ll be okay," I murmured, hoping that my voice wasn’t shaking as pathetically as I thought it was. "I’ll be okay..." I ran my fingers through her hair, lightly letting them graze the soft skin of her face. She looked up at me with anguished eyes.

"Xander, I’m so sor—"

"Shhh...Don’t. Don’t you think that for one second. This is in no way your fault." I could see she wasn’t buying it. I sensed that she wasn’t going to leave peacefully, that she was going to try and rescue me. I had to do something to make her go--I couldn’t risk getting her killed. But there was little chance that I would be able to convince her unless..."Wills, I need you to promise me something." How could she refuse my final request?

"Anything," she responded in a terse whisper, tightening her embrace, as if she sensed that I was leaving her.

"Promise me that you’ll get out of here, that you won’t try to come after me again."

The pain in her eyes deepened, breaking my heart. "Xander, no. I—"

"Promise," I insisted, silently begging her to agree to it. Maybe if I could appeal to her sense of obligation. "I need you to..." To what? What would convince her? "...to tell my mother that I love her." Oh, that’s pathetic she’s not gonna buy that...how about something..."And I need you to watch out for Buffy for me..." And I need to know that you’ll be safe, that you’ll grow old, that you’ll—

"Xan—" She wasn’t buying it. Knowing that she would fight me on the issue, I realized that the only way that would work would be if I got in the last word.

"Please, Will. Promise me." Not giving her a chance to speak, I leaned down to kiss her goodbye. I wanted so badly to feel the electric touch of her lips against mine, but realized that making such a move would likely only infuriate Dalton and would quite possibly get her killed, so I redirected the kiss to neutral territory—her forehead. I love you, Willow.

Hearing a low growl from Dalton, I quickly pulled away and turned back to him. He immediately seized me, pulling me close to him. I cringed as I saw the caustic look in his eyes. He looked past me for a moment, nodding to Willow’s captor before returning his attention to me. "Come, My Love," he prodded, starting to turn back toward his house.

Instinct told me to obey, but my heart wouldn’t allow it. I had to know that Willow would be safe. "No," I refused, bracing myself for the assault that would likely ensue. "Not until she’s released." He didn’t answer, but his grin widened. I glanced at Asa. "You said if I obeyed she’d go free..." I lost my nerve as Dalton swung back toward me, a murderous look in his eyes. My legs threatened to turn to liquid, but I somehow managed to hold my ground.

Dalton began to laugh, a low sinister chuckle. He leaned in close, and I felt the sting of his breath against my neck. "Not a chance," he hissed. "But since you love her, I’ll be sure to save her heart for you..." I felt his clawed finger tap against my chest and my world began to spin as I realized what was to happen to her. He needed at least one body for his ritual. I stared past him at her, not even hearing whatever more he was saying. It wasn’t fair! I had done what they’d asked! She was supposed to be released!

I watched as Martel and Kaelan closed in on her. No! Without even considering the consequences, I yanked my arm away from my captor and launched myself at Martel, who already had a hold on my best friend. The smaller demon, not expecting opposition, momentarily lost his grasp on Willow, who quickly squirmed away, ducking as Kaelan lunged for her. Dodging out of Martel’s reach, I dove at Kaelan’s legs, knocking him off balance so that he wouldn’t catch her.

Kaelan, his features instantly morphing into his demon form, growled and whirled on me, slamming me the rest of the way to the ground with one blow. Then he turned back toward Willow, who was coming back to help me. No, Willow, just get out of here! I saw him rise up, towering over her, his claw poised to strike. No!! I propelled myself at her, knocking her to the gravel and quickly moving to cover her with my body, shielding her from the attack the best I could. I bit down on my lip to keep from screaming as his claw raked across my back, shredding the scant protection of the wedding gown’s material and gouging deep into my flesh. I drew my arms in tighter around Willow, trying to make us as small a target as possible.

Kaelan gripped me around the waist and tried to pull me away from Willow, but I clung to her determined to keep her from harm. When he realized that I was not going to relinquish my hold on his "prize" his anger intensified and he slammed us to the ground again, his full weight pinning us down. I felt Willow struggling beneath me, being crushed by the combined pressure of the demon and myself. Bracing my legs and my good arm, I pushed against the ground with as much strength as I could muster, taking most of the demon’s weight upon myself so that she could breathe. While this solved one problem, it immediately caused another; sensing my change in tactics, Kaelan changed his. Pulling me with him, he rolled over leaving Willow open for attack. Fortunately, Kaelan’s attention now seemed focused on me. But what about Martel? Even as I felt the blows raining down on me, I looked for the second demon, relaxing slightly as I spotted Asa pulling him aside. For the moment, Willow was safe. I, on the other hand, was acquiring a lot of damage as Kaelan’s balled fists smashed into me again and again.

"That one’s mine!" Dalton’s fierce snarl filled the air as he seized Kaelan, pulling him off of me and ending the vicious assault. For a moment I was transfixed, watching the pair of demons tearing into each other. They toppled to the ground, Kaelan quickly being subdued by the greater demon. It wasn’t until I felt Willow grabbing my arm that I snapped back into focus. This could be our chance to escape!

I ignored the pain that ravished my battered body and scrambled to my feet. As I started to move away, I felt a hand grasp my ankle and started to fall, only to be caught by Willow. She swiftly wrapped her arms around my waist to steady me and stomped down on Dalton’s wrist, forcing him to release me.

For a moment I thought we actually had a chance of making a break for it, but then Asa reached out and snagged me by the upper arm. Immediately, I felt the wounds near his fingers closing over, at once bringing relief and restoring strength. Even if I’d wanted to take advantage of his healing, though, there was no way I was going to hang around until Dalton and Kaelan were finished fighting; this would be our only chance to run. Asa shook his head and gripped me tighter. I immediately realized that he was right—running would only cause one of them to use that horrible energy blast power they had, and Willow would likely be the one to pay for it. But they were going to kill her anyway! There had to be a way to...

"Trust me," Asa whispered. Trust him? There was no way that I would ever put my faith in...I realized he wasn’t asking me. He was staring at Willow. I glanced at her, but her full attention was on Asa. After a moment, she nodded. He released me, then reached forward and grabbed her, pulling her to him. He spun her around and placed his arm across her neck, choking her. I knew we couldn’t trust you, you bastard! I could see his lips moving and knew he was whispering something to her, but I couldn’t hear what he was saying. Her eyes grew wider, her fear obvious. Let her go! I started toward him, but was snared from behind. Dalton.

I struggled to no avail as I was lifted off the ground and I felt Dalton’s hand clamping over my mouth to keep me from yelling out. No! Willow!! I thrashed my body, trying to wrestle free, but it was no use. I could only watch uselessly as Martel took Willow from Asa’s hold and started carrying her toward the side entrance of the house. Asa would pay for this.

"Xander!" I heard her screaming for my intercession, but I was powerless to protect her. I closed my eyes, trying unsuccessfully to force back the tears that were forming. I couldn’t lose her...yet there wasn’t a damn thing I could do to stop it from happening. And there was no telling what they would...do...to her before they finally...Don’t go there. It won’t happen...Still, it was all I could think of as Dalton dragged me back up to the bedroom that was to once more be my prison.

When we reached the room, he swept me up and carried me across the threshold, reiterating my position as his bride. He deposited me on the bed and immediately reached up for the manacle that had held me before. No! I couldn’t let him put that back on me! There was no way that I’d be able to free myself again; not like I’d done before—my hand was far too swollen to even consider trying to fit it through that small cuff. While my mind was screaming for escape my body was frozen with terror. I could only watch as he removed the shackle from the bedpost. As he reached for me, however, I flew into motion. I rolled away from him, off the other side of the bed. Ignoring the little voice warning me that running from Dalton was futile and dangerous, I made a mad dash for the door.

Whether it was because my escape attempt caught Dalton by surprise or more likely that he was toying with me, I actually made it halfway down the hall before he tackled me, pinning me to the floor. He seized my left arm roughly and slapped the manacle to my wrist. Without a word, he rose and started back to the bed nearly pulling my arm out of its socket as he towed me by the chain as if it were a leash. I tried to get to my feet to walk along with him, but the chain was so short that each time I tried, it would go taut and I would be yanked off my feet. After a couple unsuccessful attempts to rise, I gave up and allowed myself to be dragged along the floor. The already tattered cloth of the wedding gown tore under the strain and I had to grab it to keep it from being ripped away entirely. At this point, it was hardly even covering me, but...I still felt slightly more secure with it on.

Once back to the bed, Dalton looped the chain around the wooden beam at the head and unceremoniously tightened the loose manacle on my right wrist, trapping me and rendering me helpless...more helpless...against him.

Once I was secured, Dalton stepped back, appraising me with his stare. The look in his eyes as his gaze traveled the length of me made my skin crawl. I sat up, slid back as far as the chain would allow me to move, and huddled there, drawing my knees to my chest. Dalton sat down at the edge of the bed, still watching me intently. I couldn’t deal with him staring at me...I turned my head away, but I could still feel his eyes boring into me. I felt the mattress shift and knew he was creeping toward me. I could feel my heart pounding harder as he slowly moved closer. My body shrank from what was coming. Leave me alone...please leave me alone...

As if in answer to my silent plea, Dalton stopped coming toward me and instead rose from the bed and left the room. I stared at the vacant doorway for a few moments, not quite sure if I should be relieved or worried about his sudden departure. I didn’t want to waste time dwelling on it, though—I had to find a way to get out of there. Turning toward the headboard and bracing my legs against it, I pulled at the chain that bound my wrists, testing the strength of the wood around which it was looped. Failing to make even a slight budge, I quickly came to the conclusion that breaking it unaided was not going to be a possibility—it was far too sturdy. And, as I had predicted before, getting my hands through the cuffs would be next to impossible this time. Even if I could reach any blunt objects to...distort my hand with, it wouldn’t work. The only choice I had would be to...cut...it off. Not to say I wouldn’t do it if the opportunity presented itself, but at present, there were no sharp objects within my limited reach, either. There would be no escape. This was it. This was my destiny.

But that didn’t mean I had to accept it. I stared at the ring on my finger. That had to go. I tried first to push the metal band off with the other fingers of my left hand, but it was stuck tight. I tried to grasp it with my other hand, but the injuries to it were too severe and I didn’t have the ability to close my grip on the small band. I was getting more and more frustrated. It was one thing not to be able to break a sturdy board, but it was entirely another not being able to remove a stupid little ring! I yanked on the chain with all the strength I could muster, letting out a bellow of anger at my total inadequacy.

"Now, now, Love," I heard Dalton call from the doorway in a mock soothing voice. I swung toward him, my anger instantly replaced with a feeling of apprehension that was akin to that of a child who had just been caught with his hand in the cookie jar...by a 300 pound demon.

Dalton sneered as he crossed toward me, obviously enjoying my fear. "It won’t do to have you looking like that on our first night together." In his hands were a cloth and a basin of water. As he neared, I moved back into my huddle position, making myself as inaccessible as I could. "Is that any way to treat your husband?" Dalton jeered. He rounded the bed to my side and knelt down beside me. He chuckled when I flinched as he reached out with the wet cloth to wipe the dried blood from my face. I tried to turn away, but he gripped my chin firmly, forcing me to face him. I closed my eyes so I wouldn’t have to see the look of triumph he was getting over my humiliation. When he finished cleaning my face, I felt the cloth drop to my shoulder and shuddered. My eyes flew open as I felt him tug at the nearly severed wedding gown and heard the material ripping farther. Don’t touch me! I pulled away from him the best I could, but there was no way to get out of his range while my arms were bound as they were. Dalton’s smirk grew wider as he watched my efforts. I cringed as he reached for me again, pulling me back against him. Hands rubbing the back of my shoulders. No...this can’t possibly happen to me...I’m not here...A wet towel dropping down my back. Material tearing. Rough hands grazing my sides. Breath beating against my neck. I’m not here…I’m not here…Hands creeping over exposed skin. Arms encircling me. Not happening to me...Breath. Hands. Cold lips on the back of my neck. Not lips…not my neck…I’m not here…

Dalton froze as we heard someone bellow his name from the hallway. He pulled away and stared down at me, the grin fading from his face. "We’ll finish later, Love." He rose to his feet and started toward the door. Before he reached it, Martel filled the doorway. At least I thought it was Martel...his demon features seemed to have been melted or...something. Like he’d had acid thrown on him...or perhaps holy water?

"The prisoner is gone," the lesser demon informed Dalton, and I felt my spirits rise slightly. Willow was free? Then perhaps there was hope? Without Willow’s...body, Dalton couldn’t immediately perform his ritual. With any luck, by the time he found another person to sacrifice, Willow would have located Buffy to come back and rescue me. Even if that didn’t work out...Willow was free! But what about me? Please, Wills...get Buffy…get help…please don’t leave me here…stop it, Xander!

Trying not to attract his attention back to me, I shifted to press my exposed back to the headboard. Feeling slightly more secure, I strained to listen but could only hear snippets of the hushed conversation between Dalton and his goon. A word here and there. Water…Torch? Please don’t let that word have been torture…Asa…Bastard…Traitor…Traitor? Who’s a traitor? Asa?…Dead…Dead? Please don’t let that be Willow. "The prisoner is gone." Gone as in escaped? Or gone as in dead? Oh, God…oh, God, ohGodohgodohgod…

My thoughts were disrupted as the sound of breaking glass filled the air. I swung toward it and realized that the sound had been caused by the flower vase that Dalton had just hurled at the wall. He snatched up a second one and with a fierce growl heaved it after the first. He was like a child throwing a temper tantrum when things didn’t go his way. Unfortunately, in his state, he was a very dangerous child. As long as he didn’t turn that anger on me…which was exactly what he was doing. I tensed as I realized that his eyes were once again on me. If I could have made myself any smaller, I would have, but there was nowhere to hide from his gaze. My heart missed a beat as for a moment we just stared at each other. A cat and his mouse. For that moment, time seemed to freeze.

Then Dalton stepped toward me, his eyes ablaze with fury. "She won’t ruin this. You’re mine!" He was coming for me.

I’m not here…I heard a pathetic whimpering sound and, after a moment, I realized it was coming from me. There was nowhere to hide. I’m not—

He was on me in a flash. One strong hand clamped around my throat, the other tore away the last of the gown in one swift motion. I strained against the chain, trying to lower my arms so that I could push him away, but it was no use. While still choking me with one hand, he wiped tears from my face with disproportionate gentleness with the other. I fought unsuccessfully to control my quaking body as his eyes flicked over me luridly. I’m not here...Then his face was lowering toward mine. I tried to scream, but no sound emerged. My effort obviously pleased him, because he let out a soft chuckle. "Go ahead and scream, Love," he hissed into my ear before he shifted his weight off me temporarily, so he could roughly force me onto my stomach. "Makes it more fun...for me." No...no...not happening...The hand that had been around my throat was now at the base of my neck, pinning me face down as he straddled me, pressing me down. His free hand dropped to my back, slowly sliding down, drawing out the movement to maximize my terror. This isn’t happening…I’m not here…Dalton suddenly stopped and let out a curse. I once again found myself on my back, staring up at him as his hand once again tightened on my throat. It took a moment for me to realize what had changed. It would do him no good to r…to hurt me yet. There was still the matter of the binding ritual to complete before he could…finish with me. His rage slowly faded as he stared down at me, his grip on my throat slowly loosened. But his eyes still flashed with dangerous conviction. "Mine," he repeated in a very quiet voice that scared me more than his bellow ever could. With that, he rose and stormed out of the room, Martel trailing behind. Leaving me alone.

I slowly sat up, battling only mildly successfully to regain control of my trembling body. With only my boxers to cover me, I felt horribly exposed. I pressed back against the headboard and drew my knees up to my chest hoping that I’d feel safer. It didn’t work. I didn’t think I’d ever feel safe again; I could still feel the pressure of his grip on my throat…and the feel of his clammy skin against mine…and it was only a matter of time before he came back to continue his assault.

I’m here. Rescue me.

    Part 8 Willow*
    Part 9 Xander Coming Soon
    Part 9 Willow Coming Soon
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