Disclaimer: I only own non-Highlander characters The rest is as they say all good.
2002, a small two-story house on the outskirts of the city
It was 12:30 a.m. and Luisa was sound asleep. She was dreaming again of running from some faceless horror that was pursuing her relentlessly through a dark forest. No matter how fast she ran, the evil seemed to be looming closer.
A man silently crept down the hall and into Luisa's bedroom. He stared in disgust at the tossing and turning teenager.
"Luisa, wake up. Now!" the man whispered as he reached out and shook her hard.
Luisa's eyes flew open and sitting up quickly, she said groggily, "What? Huh?"
Letting out a curse, the man slapped her hard enough to knock her out of her too small twin bed and to the floor. Cringing, Luisa threw her arms up around her head to protect it. She let out a small whimper.
"Don't you dare cry! Do you hear me?" the man whispered savagely as he brutally grabbed her by the arm and jerked her upright. "Now get dressed. I don't have all night," he added pushing her toward her closet.
Grabbing some clothes, Luisa ran into her bathroom and quickly changed. She spared a quick glance in the mirror and saw his hand print on her face. Fighting tears, she ran back out.
"'Bout time, you ungrateful wretch," he growled at her.
Luisa hung her head. "I'm sorry Roger, sir. I hurried as fast as I...," Luisa began only to be interrupted by Roger raising his fist. She hastily backed up.
"You are a miserable excuse of a stepdaughter. Never obedient, always questioning what I say. I'll teach you to back talk me. But right now, I have bigger fish to fry," Roger finished and grabbed Luisa roughly by the wrist. He forced her out the door and down the hallway.
They were both silent as they left the house. Luisa was curious to see where they were going but she didn't voice it. She didn't want Roger to hit her again.
After several minutes Roger stopped in an alley. He grabbed Luisa by the arm and jerked her over to a drainpipe that ran down the side of the building. He then handcuffed her to it. She tried to protest but Roger cuffed her sharply and hissed at her to be quiet. He blindfolded and gagged her as well. As he glided away into the darkness he whispered, "Be quiet. If you make a sound, you'll suffer for it."
Luisa wanted to cry. Roger had left her with only her hearing and sense of smell. It was frightening for her but she made no sound. Roger always made good on his threats. Ten minutes went by and she was starting to fall asleep when she felt something, something that tugged at all her senses, making her want to turn around and look for-she didn't know what exactly. She heard a man's voice a few seconds later after the feeling had past.
"Ma'am are you all right?" he asked in a soft British accent.
Luisa remained silent, knowing Roger was nearby. She realized with a start that the man was undoing the blindfold and the gag.
"Oh my God. You're not a woman, you're a girl!" he exclaimed in surprise when he got a good look at her.
Luisa's throat was very dry but she tried to warn the kind man of the danger. "You must leave," she croaked.
"What?" he said, frowning as he bent forward to catch what she'd said.
"You have to get out of here," she managed to say even though the pain from talking brought tears to her eyes.
"Now, now, Luisa. That wasn't very sporting of you," cooed Roger from the darkness.
The man whirled around at the sound of Roger's voice and his eyes narrowed. He stared at Luisa another moment before turning and assuming a defensive posture.
She watched in amazement as the man drew a sword. Her jaw fell open when she saw Roger emerge from the darkness with a sword in his right hand. He was shaking his head while smiling malevolently at Luisa as he walked up to her. The stranger circled quickly to keep Roger in his sight.
"You wouldn't dare," the stranger spat at Roger.
"I wouldn't dare what?" Roger asked nonchalantly.
"You wouldn't do this in front of the girl. That's what," he hissed angrily.
"Fine she doesn't have to see, but she'll pay for trying to warn you. Of course I look forward to it," Roger laughed in Luisa's ear. He reached out and caressed her face, enjoying the fright he saw. He kept his back to the stranger. "Now, I suggest we get on with it, but first," were the last words Luisa heard as Roger pulled out a needle and injected it into her. Her eyes rolled instantly up into her head and she went to sleep.
Roger turned and stared at the other Immortal for a moment. "All of you are so easy to fool. Thanks to the girl I'll be number one and the rest of you'll be destroyed," Roger chuckled.
"You are sick. Using a mortal to trap us. You're a coward."
Roger's face hardened and he glared at the man. "I'm not a coward. I just make better plans than you do to get ahead. Besides, I wouldn't be this effective if the girl wasn't able to confuse you," Roger said with glee.
The man stared at the girl. There was something not right about the way she 'felt'. It was almost as if...
The swish of Roger's sword brought the man back to reality. He started a volley of blows at Roger who fought back. They continued exchanging blows until Roger tripped over a box. Thinking that victory was near, the other Immortal charged Roger. Roger jerked his machete out of his pants leg and stabbed the other. A choked gurgle came from the surprised Immortal. He staggered back from Roger in shock.
"Nighty, nighty," Roger said as he swung his sword up and down, chopping off the other's head.
The body pitched forward as the head rolled to a stop against the building. The power started to flow from the body and into Roger.
Luisa slowly opened her eyes, blinking rapidly to dispel the sleepiness from them. She sat up and immediately wished she hadn't. Groaning, she ran to her bathroom and puked into the toilet. She lay there a moment shivering and feeling cold.
Finally she stumbled from the bathroom and over to her closet to get a fresh change of clothes. She shed her ones from last night, keeping her bra and panties on, and hummed as she looked for something to wear. She didn't hear Roger slip into the room nor did she hear him removing his belt.
It wasn't until he brought the belt down hard on her back that she knew he was there. Luisa let out a yelp of pain and tried to move out of his way. Roger reached out to grab her and she dove to side. She scrambled to get up, but Roger grabbed her leg and slammed her to the ground, knocking the breath out of her.
"Let me go! Please let me go, Roger!" she cried once she got air into her lungs.
He brought the belt down again and again, not caring where he hit her. She screamed and kicked him in the chest with her free leg and scrambled to her feet. She tried to run but Roger leaped at her. He forced her into the corner and continued to beat her with the belt and then with his fists. Luisa curled into a ball and took the brunt of the assault on her back, legs, and butt. Finally he grew tired and backed away.
"If you ever warn them again, I'll make sure I hurt your mother too. And when she asks why she's being punished I'll tell her whom to blame. Do you understand, Luisa?"
Luisa whimpered but didn't look up. Roger grabbed her long red hair and jerked her head back to look at him. "Do you understand?" he snarled.
"Yes, sir,"she said through her tears.
"Good. Now get dressed or you'll be late for school," he added calmly with a smile. He got up and left the room.
She lay there shaking for a few moments before dragging her hurting body to the bathroom. She looked in the mirror and choked back a cry. Usually Roger didn't leave marks visible for the teachers to see but this time she wouldn't be able to hide any of them. Luisa was torn. She wanted to go to school but she didn't want to answer the questions they'd ask if they saw her face.
"Oh well, I have no choice. I'm going to school," she mumbled to herself.
It took her several minutes to get dressed and out the door. Roger was waiting in the car. She quietly got in and scrunched herself tight against the door. He said nothing as he drove her to school. He knew she wouldn't say anything because she didn't want her mother hurt. He dropped Luisa off and sped away. He was already planning to catch another new Immortal who'd come to town.