Blood Money

Written by Shawn Ryan and Mere Smith
Directed by R.D. Price

Dianne's Synopsis | Lizbet's Review | SunSpeak

We open on close-ups of Wesley and Gunn -- they're facing off with each other, tensions high. With the next move... Gunn wins South America! They're playing Risk in Cordelia's apartment, which has naturally become "We-Need-A-New-Name Investigations" HQ (again).

Cordelia's had enough of them camping out day and night, and they have to admit as a group that Angel's not going to call them back. So they'll start fresh. In fact, Wesley and Gunn get so caught up in planning new business cards, they don't notice Cordelia's having a vision until she's flat on the floor. The vision: "It has two heads, it breathes fire, it's gigantic, and it's rising up in the sewers under Kenyard School for Girls." Despite Cordelia's protests that they need backup, Gunn and Wesley are out the door after it.

Meanwhile Angel is walking along the street when he runs into Anne (nee "Lily" [see the Buffy ep Anne], nee "Chantarelle" [see the Buffy ep Lie To Me]). He runs into her literally, that is, knocking over the box of donated clothing she's carrying for the East Hills Teen Center -- where she now works. 

Returning to his place, Angel walks in... and drop's Anne's wallet -- open to her driver's license -- on the table. By the surveillance photos taped all over the wall, he's been following her for some time. In a candid of her walking down the street with Lindsey, we start to suspect why....

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[credits]
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Wesley and Gunn are creeping down a random sewer tunnel, weapons in hand, wishing they had some dynamite, when they catch sight of the critter they're after. It's Big. (Gunn: "The tunnel's twenty feet high. It was *crouching*!") They wait until it's back is turned to make their move... and are driven back by a wall of flame. (Gunn: "I thought you said it *breathed* fire!") Then, with kamakazi cries, and axes flailing, they rush it....

Angel is visiting his old "pal" Merle The Demon Snitch. Merle has run Anne's records and the end result: a few name changes, but no record. The shelter was bailed out by W&H pro bono when they almost lost their lease last year, but is by all accounts perfectly legit itself. Angel's unconvinced: if W&H are involved, there has to be an angle.

So he shows up at the shelter with a donation box of his own -- some of Cordelia's clothes that she left at his place. [Ed.'s Continuity Note: The top we see pulled out is a horrible one I actually remember Cordy wearing a few eps back. ;] [Ed's Later Continuity Note: I'm synopsizing "Reunion" right now... and I found it! <g>] Anne asks if they're from an old girlfriend and the look of shock and horror on Angel's face as he says "_God, no_!" is priceless.

Anne gives him the shelter tour and they end up in her office -- a little room packed with file cabinets, clutter, and a cot for her to crash out on when she's there so late she might as well stay. Angel asks about the shelter's finances and Anne readily volunteers that they have "a guardian angel" -- in the form of a law firm called Wolfram and Hart. W&H saved them from the eviction, has represented some of the kids that needed it, and is organizing (and funding) a big charity ball to raise funds for the shelter. 

At the same time, Merle is taking out is trash, only to be knocked down as someone else comes crashing through his door uninvited. It's a blue-faced demon who claims to "go way back" with Angel. He wants to know what Merle does for Angel (surveillance photos and record checks), and more importantly, what Angel "cares about". Merle tips the guy to Angel's obsession with taking down W&H in general, and Lindsey and Lilah specifically.

Speaking of Lilah, she's in the underground garage, walking to her car. She gets in, checks the mirrors... then jumps three feet when she looks back to go into reverse and sees Angel in the back seat. He congratulates her on her promotion, and stops her cold when she reaches for the door. She assures him that, since she and Lindsey can now affect policy, "things will change". As he moves in to seriously invade her personal space, he assures her that things already have: they keep screwing with him, now it's his turn to screw with them. Then in a blink he's gone.

The next day Lilah is recounting this to Lindsey, who tells her to calm down-- Angel's just trying to spook them. She is afraid he's not playing by the old "not killing humans" rules anymore. Then Lindsey's secretary buzzes him -- their surprise visitor for the day is "Boone", the blue demon we last saw with Merle. And Boone has a grudge against "a fellow named Angel".

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Boone claims to have known Angel from "Juarez in the twenties", where they had "a dispute over a senorita". They fought for three and a half hours until the sun came up and Boone "let Angel go" as a matter of honor. Now he wants a rematch "to see who's better". Lilah starts to object that they can't let him kill Angel... when Lindsey pulls her out in the hall. If Angel isn't playing by the old rules, why should they? She objects, but when he points out that Angel could wind up in her backseat again, she relents.

Westley and Gunn have survived and are regaling Cordelia with tales of their bold (and successful!) adventure. (Although they're not above admitting they were scared to death at the time.) It's a great bonding moment for the crew. Cordelia tells them she's found a little office for their new agency, and the guys are thrilled. They go to check it out while happily arguing new agency names (i.e. whose name should go before "Investigations" now) round and round.

Angel is pondering his wall of surveillance photos and Anne's wallet... then starts pulling them down.

Meanwhile, Merle is returning to his lair with Chinese take-out when he's jumped again. This time it's Lilah (one of her thugs does the actually jumping). She's heard from Boone that Merle "does favors" for Angel, and she wants to know what they are. A few strategic punches, and Merle admits that he has been following this girl...

Anne is alone in the office at night when she hears a noise. She follows it out into the main room, and is startled to find Angel looming there in the dark. he admits to stalking her, gives her the photos, and returns her wallet. She's ready to call the police when he tries to convince her that W&H are not the saviors she thinks they are. He maintains that, once they're done counting the proceeds from the ball and throwing in all their "miscellaneous fees", the shelter will be lucky to see 5%. 

He's being persistent, if not very persuasive, when Lindsey comes riding in to Anne's "rescue". Lindsey assures her Angel's unbalanced, but that he's brought protection for her... in the form of Boone. Boone and Angel go at it hammer and tongs in the middle of the shelter's main room. (Presumably the inhabitants either sleep *really* deeply, or know when not to investigate sounds of a fight.) Angel is taking the worst of it, and when the opportunity presents, hightails it out the door. Lindsey stops Boone (aloud: "As long as he's not threatening my client.", sotto voche to Boone: "Soon. After we leave.") Lindsey assures Anne that she's safe now.

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Lindsey is walking Anne back to her office when she confronts him. He starts to explain the whole "demons are real" routine when she interrupts him, saying she's not naive. What she wants to know is whether W&H intend to steal the fundraiser money as Angel said. Lindsey denies it, pushing the "he's a deranged vampire" angle... and still somehow not managing to sound as sincere as he wants to. He then hints that he would hate to see "her kids" miss out because she didn't trust the right people.

Lindsey and Lilah then take a walk outside (somewhere presumably free of surveillance). They're worried because Angel is claiming to have proof... of their plan to steal $2 million from the teen shelter. Instantly they're blaming each other and trying to figure out what Angel plans to do with the tape. Lindsey concludes it would be something where he could watch them squirm... in front of their bosses... and immediately grabs his cell phone to call for doubled security and a vampire detector for the charity ball....

Anne's in her office when Angel, his face quite the worse for wear, shows up again. She's unsurprised, and unphased. As she points out, she's seen worse things in the everyday lives on the street than vampires, demons, or lawyers. He repeats that after W&H are through with it, she'll only get 5% of the two million they raise, but she's done the math: that's $100,000, and more than they could raise in several years. Then Angel wants to know if she's become callous enough not to wonder what will be done with the other 95% -- to accept their money without caring whose blood is on it. He wants her to help him get into the party so that he can play his videotape and show the world what W&H are like. She refuses; her kids need that money, and she can't afford to.

Cut to the charity ball. Twangy country music and silly theme costumes on all the staff, and a crowd watching Holland (on tape) on a huge screen sitting with his dog and talking urgently and oh-so-sincerely about the need to help the runaways that use Anne's shelter. Lilah runs into a Mr. Reed, one of her bosses, and introduces him to Anne. In the balcony above, Lindsey is checking on security.

The tape ends and Lilah speaks movingly about the tragic loss of the philanthropic and visionary Mr. Manners. [Ed.- *gag*] Then they start the cheesy "highway robbery" theme and celebrities start relieving guests of their donations. It's all going well, everyone's happy... when we get another look at the balcony, and see that the hooded vampire detector is now a hooded vampire -- Angel's managed to find his way in after all. He drops the robe and moves forward, but is stopped by Boone.

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The ball is wrapping up, Lilah making closing remarks of thanks to all involved, when everyone's attention turns to a fight that's broken out on the balcony. (When they fall to the floor below, the celebrity guests start critiquing the "stunts" and "makeup".) They end up in front of Lilah and Lindsey, at which point Boone stops pretending. Turns out he's in on this with Angel and actually got Angel into the event. 

As Lindsey realizes this, he also realizes that Anne has the tape, and is clear across the room heading determinedly for the big-screen projector. The many camera crews catch lovely footage of Lindsey and Lilah barreling their way across the floor (and through guests) in a panic to reach the tape player before Anne gets there. But they're too late, the tape begins and reveals...

... Cordelia practicing scenes for commercials... Wesley goofing around for his own amusement in the AI offices...

It was a fake-out. All Angel (now) has is multiple news crews with tape of Lindsey and Lilah acting like they have something terrible to hide. He happily points this out to them, while unconcerned that increasingly embarrassing shorts starring his ex-crew are playing out on the big screen (to the delight of the audience). He's also oblivious to the betrayal on Anne's face. Then L & L realize that, in their mad dash, they left the money behind... with Boone....

They reprise their wild dash across the floor (in reverse), but their guards are unconscious and Boone and the money already long gone.

As Angel is leaving, Anne catches up to him and gives him a good hard slap in the face. She risked everything -- her kids -- and he only used her to "shake them up a little". Not to mention that the money is all gone. Angel is unconcerned and reminds her that it was tainted money anyway. [Ed. - Um, I thought her 5% was going to be tainted by what W&H did with the 95% raised in her name, no? So why not give it all to her? Or at least leave her her cut???]
The difference, he maintains, is that she still cares (while he does not).

Back at W&H the next day, Mr. Reed calls L&L to account for the fiasco. He suggests that Holland was too soft on them, and that he will not make that same mistake. Lindsey, ever the thinly-disguised malcontent, insists on knowing why they can't simply kill Angel. Reed informs him that all prophecies agree: Angel will be a major player in the coming apocalypse. W&H aren't trying to change that, they just want to assure that -- when the time comes -- he is *their* major player. Reed points out that if Angel killed one or both of them, it would actually in the firm's favor -- a sign that Angel was coming around to their side. They, he quite clearly tells them, are expendable; Angel is not.

Mr. Non-Expendable is in his office, taking one last look at his file on Anne and the shelter... and tossing it in the trash. He heads up towards his room when he senses Boone behind him. Boone drops the loot on the floor -- better than $2.5 million by his reckoning -- and says that he just has to know which one of them is better....

Cut to Angel in Anne's office, even more the worse for wear, dropping the bag of loot on her desk. She assures him that she can hide it from W&H. When she asks him what the stain on it is, he tells her "blood" (presumably from the fight). After a moment she responds, "It'll wash," and continues counting it.

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<the end> :)

Yeah, yeah, you know the drill.  Coming soon.  :)