ancient_ofdays

“Jo? Got her?” Lucas said, looking at the computer screen in front of him. He and Malcolm were sat in the back of a nondescript white van, parked in a back street of London. Traffic enforcement officers had been chased off twice already. That spooks necessity, coffee, was close at hand. It was likely to be a long day, having Buffy Summers followed through the streets of London.

“Zulu three to Alpha one. Eyes,” came the curt reply from Jo.

“Keep on her, keep contact to an absolute minimum,” Lucas said. “We’ve got people at various places to track her, and Ros is in the bank.”

“How did you get her to do that?” Malcolm asked quietly from beside him.

Lucas turned and looked at the analyst. “My natural charm and boyish good looks?” he said, keeping a completely straight face. “I asked nicely. We’re too short staffed. Those new people need to come in soon.”

“There’s the truth,” Malcolm said, nodding slightly. “I wouldn’t come out of the office for just anyone.”

“And we thank you for it,” Lucas replied. “Seriously. We need everyone we can get.”

“She’s heading into the bank,” Jo’s voice came over the intercom system.

“Ros? You’re up,” Lucas said quietly.

“Copy.”


“Anything?” Lucas asked later, when Buffy Summers was seen walking from the bank, heading off towards Oxford Street, Jo once again tailing her.

“The bank manager’s not exactly happy with her,” Ros said, amusement evident in her voice as she talked to Lucas. “She wants a business loan, but because of the, and I quote, “negative media attention that her organisation has gained recently”, the manager wants ‘assurances’. My bet? She’s getting desperate.”

“She must be if she came down to London to talk to a bank manager rather than do it up in Scotland. What assurances does he want?”

“A completely revised business plan, laying out precisely how her organisation will develop, and how the loan will be paid off. If she misses even one payment, there are large penalties involved,” Ros said.

“Any sign of the other account signatories?” Lucas asked, turning to Malcolm.

“Harris is in California, hasn’t left there for... four weeks,” Malcolm said, pulling up the information. “Rupert Giles is keeping low. No credit card transactions, no mobile phone activity. We’re doing what we can to find him. We think he’s still in Scotland, though. But as far as we can tell, he hasn’t been in contact with Ms Summers for at least two months.”

Lucas nodded, then spoke to Ros again. “So she’s on her own. Do you think she’s desperate enough to use some of the people she has in her group of girls to tap money from, given there are some rather privileged people there? Or desperate enough to resort to what the CIA accused her of?” Lucas asked.

“Theft? Probably not yet, but I wouldn’t rule it out entirely,” Ros said. “More likely to tap into her sources first.”

“She’s entering Russell and Bromley’s on Oxford Street,” Jo said suddenly.

“If she buys anything Lucas, that will answer your question,” Ros said, somewhat amused. “If she can afford to shop there...”

“She’s not desperate enough to turn to theft first,” Lucas finished. “Malcolm, who pays off her credit card each month?”

“Alexander Harris. At first, full payments, now minimum. It’s been refused a couple of times in the past.”

“Really?” Lucas said, raising an eyebrow.

“We can change the rating,” Ros said thoughtfully. “Your operation, Lucas. Your choice.”

He turned to Malcolm. “What’s her credit limit as it stands?” he asked.

Malcolm pressed a few keys. “Seven hundred dollars,” he said. “At current exchange rates... around four hundred and twenty pounds.”

Lucas thought for a moment. “No, leave it as it is. If she’s desperate enough to talk to the bank manager on her own, she’ll know how much she can spend. She’s suspicious enough. Let her buy her shoes if that’s what she wants. We’ll just track her till she goes home.”

“Are you sure about this, Lucas?” Ros asked quietly. “It isn’t just a waste of our stretched resources?”

“If someone was desperate enough to fire a missile at a remote castle once, when lives could have been lost, they will do it again,” he replied after a moment. “I’m sure. Jo. Head back to Grid. Let Zulu six take over.”

“Copy.”

Lucas sat back, taking a sip of the fresh coffee that had been brought to him. It was going to be a long afternoon.


Lucas North
Spooks
Word Count: 754
Set in AU verse with Buffy the Vampire Slayer