Angel: Lullaby (2001)

Holtz (Keith Szarabajka) imprisons Angel (David Boreanaz) in the hotel while the gang try to protect Darla (Julie Benz) in the alley out back as she suffers agonizing labor pains. Flashbacks reveal that not only did Darla and Angel kill Holtz's family, they also turned his young daughter into a vampire, whom he was then forced to kill. Back in the present, Lilah Morgan (Stephanie Romanov) arrives at the hotel and informs Holtz that Angel now has a soul, but he remains determined to punish his foe. Angel manages to escape the vampire-hunter's trap and track down Darla, who has fled Holtz's demon minions in Angel's car. Darla reveals that she feels love for her child -- the first love she has felt in her entire life. At Caritas, The Host (Andy Hallett), Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter), Gunn (J. August Richards), and Fred (Amy Acker) fine-tune the club's anti-violence spell. Angel and Darla soon arrive, but Darla's contractions have stopped. Holtz circumvents the enchantment by throwing a bomb into the club from the outside. The gang escapes to an alley, where Darla sacrifices her own life so that her baby can live; she stakes herself, and the unharmed child appears when her ashes disperse. Holtz aims a crossbow squarely at Angel's progeny, but allows it to live. He promises the demon Sahjhan (Jack Conley) that although he has spared the child, he will show no mercy on Angel. Originally broadcast November 19, 2001, on the WB network, "Lullaby" marked season three, episode nine of the supernatural comedy drama. The third installment in a four-part sequence, the story line concludes in "Dad." ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi