SUMMARY: Things don't go exactly as planned for Duncan or for Amber. Sequel to History Lessons.
There are references to events that occurred in HL: TS episodes THE DARKNESS, STAR-CROSSED, LEADER OF THE PACK, THE METHUSELAH STONE and ARCHANGEL. Knowledge of these episodes isn't necessary to be able to follow the story.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story was originally posted on the Seventh Dimension Highlander fanfiction website in 1999 or 2000. I don't plan on making any major changes to the story. Rather, I will be editing it for grammar and consistency.
The University of Chicago and Morehead State University are Actual institutions of higher learning. I know next to nothing about the University of Chicago. it just seemed appropriate for the purposes of my story. However, I graduated with a bachelor of arts degree from Morehead State University in 1994. (Speaking of Morehead – I want to send a shout out to all of my Tri-Sigma Sisters, both new and old – SLAM!)
All of the place names in and around the area of the city of Morehead and the University actually exist. However, all characters appearing in the story, with the exception of those belonging to HL:TS, and Rysher are figments of my imagination and any resemblance to any actual person, living or dead, is purely coincidence.
HISTORY LESSIONS II
Chicago, Illinois
Amber was exhausted. She was in a junior at the University of Chicago, majoring in biology. Finals for the fall quarter had just ended, and she felt like she could sleep for a week. Still, fall break started on Monday, and she really didn't want to hang around the apartment she had just off campus.
The more she thought about it, the better the idea of visiting Duncan sounded. Maybe escaping the big city for a more rural setting was exactly what she needed to get her out of her funk. Deciding to surprise Duncan with her visit, she planned to leave the next morning.
Morehead, Kentucky
Duncan sat on a concrete bench in front of Rader Hall. It was late afternoon, and his last class of the day, Early American History, was due to begin in half an hour. He was relaxing, sipping from a bottle of water and watching the students hurrying along the sidewalk below. It was unseasonably warm for mid-November. Occasional bits of music drifting up from the open
rehearsal room windows in Baird Music Hall and from nearby dorm rooms mixed with the sounds of birds and conversing students.
The tree-lined campus and the small town in which it was located sat on the western edge of the Appalachian Mountains in the midst of the Daniel Boone National Forest. In just about any direction he looked he could see forest and hills in the distance. He'd even purchased a cabin on nearby Cave Run Lake. Although it wasn't on holy ground, his new home reminded him greatly
of his cabin in the Pacific Northwest. Of course, this cabin had all the modern conveniences, which the other one lacked. More importantly, there didn't seem to be any other Immortals in the area. He was at peace for the first time in recent memory.
Not for the first time he was glad he'd made the decision to leave the art gallery behind. Duncan shook his head and smiled to himself as he remembered how he'd ended up as an associate professor of history at Morehead State University. After getting onto Fitzcairn all those years ago for doctoring his resume to get a teaching position at the Cordon Bleu and to impress a
woman, Duncan had done much the same thing. A friend had mentioned the teaching position, and he had jumped at the opportunity to do something different. He'd enjoyed teaching the classes at the college in Seacouver, so Duncan made some changes to his resume to show that he was qualified, applied, and was hired for the position.
At the end of the hour long class, Duncan collected the term papers that were due and reminded his students of the test that was coming up the following week, stressing that this was the last test before the final exam in three weeks. On his way to his office to drop off the stack of papers,
Nancy, the department secretary, stopped him as he passed by her desk.
"Mr. MacLeod, a sheriff's deputy arrived a few minutes ago to see you. Since you were in class, I showed him to your office." Despite his frequent requests for her to call him Duncan, she continued to call him "Mr. MacLeod."
After thanking Nancy for the information, Duncan hurried to the cubbyhole that served as his office. He couldn't think of any reason why a Rowan County Sheriff's Deputy would be paying him a visit. When he arrived at his office, Duncan found the deputy standing in the middle of the room, looking totally ill at ease.
As Duncan entered the room, the deputy turned in his direction. "Are you Duncan MacLeod?" At Duncan's affirmative answer, the deputy identified himself as Deputy Michael Haber. "Do you know a young woman named Amber Miller?"
"Yes, I do. Is there a problem?" MacLeod was becoming worried. Amber was supposed to be at school in Chicago. Why would a sheriff's deputy from eastern Kentucky be asking about her?
"Mr. MacLeod, I'm sorry. There's no easy way to say this, but there was an automobile accident on U. S. 62 about 10 miles from Morehead about an hour and a half ago. It appears that a cattle truck struck the car being driven by Ms. Miller. Apparently the truck ran a stop side and hit Ms. Miller's car on the driver's side. She's been taken to the St. Clair Medical Center. Last word I received was that she was in critical condition."
As Duncan absorbed the words being spoken by the deputy he sank down into his desk chair and sat there in shock. He had secretly hoped that this day would never come, but chances were Amber was about to become immortal. He had to get to the hospital. If she was going to die, he didn't want her to be alone. Besides, he would need to sneak her out of the morgue before
anyone had the chance to see her revive.
"Is there anything I can do, anyone I can contact for you?" Duncan looked up as Haber's question finally penetrated his thoughts.
Duncan started to say no, but he realized that his car was parked on the far end of campus. He wanted to get to the hospital, which was in the opposite direction from where his car was parked, as soon as possible. And he would need his car if the worst happened and he had to sneak Amber out of the hospital. \
His co-workers often joked about his penchant for parking in the faculty lot as far from Rader Hall as he could get. They tried to get to campus early enough to get one of the coveted parking spaces along University Boulevard or in one of the nearby faculty parking lots..
After retrieving the thunderbird, Duncan made it to the hospital in record time. Once there he was directed to the intensive care unit, where he was forced to wait for Amber's attending physician to answer her page. All the nurses would tell him was that Amber was in critical condition and that any further information would have to come from the doctor.
Ten minutes after he arrived, he was approached by a small woman wearing a lap coat and a stethoscope hanging around her neck. "Hello, I'm Dr. Rhea Linn. I understand you're here about Amber Miller."
"Yes, I'm Duncan MacLeod. I was her legal guardian for a while, and I'm still the closest thing she has to family. Can you tell me what's going on with her. I haven't been able to get any answers."
Dr. Linn gestured for Duncan to have a seat on a nearby couch. She sat down next to him. "I'm going to be straight with you, Mr. MacLeod. Amber sustained several severe injuries in the accident. Normally, we would transport someone in her condition to the University of Kentucky Chandler Medical Center in Lexington."
"Normally?"
"Unfortunately, Amber sustained severe brain trauma. She is currently on life support, and in my opinion, it is the only thing keeping her alive. All indications are that she is brain dead. I'm sorry."
Duncan slumped back against the couch and rubbed his hands over his face. After a moment he sat up and turned to Dr. Linn. "There's no hope then?" Dr. Linn shook her head. "I'm afraid not. You are more than welcome to request a second opinion if you would like. Come, I'll take you in to see her. Spend as much time with her as you like. Then I'll discuss our options with you."
He followed the doctor into a curtained-off cubicle only feet from the nurse's station. Only one bed was occupied. For a brief moment he wondered where Amber was, then he realized that she was the sole occupant of the intensive care unit. Nearly every inch of her body was either covered in bandages or bruises. Tubes and wires connected her body to a myriad of
machines. The only sounds in the room were the hiss of the breathing machine forcing oxygen into her battered body and the beeping of the other machines. This was no way for someone to live, even someone who was soon to become immortal.
Dr. Linn touched MacLeod on the arm to indicate that she was leaving him alone with Amber. He sat by her bedside, and took her hand in his own as tears began rolling down his face. Duncan sat at Amber's side for nearly an hour before returning to the nurse's station. Dr. Linn was there to meet him.
She invited him into the doctor's lounge just down the hallway. After pouring cups of coffee for both of them, she outlined his options. Duncan listened politely, but he saw no other choice. He would remove Amber from life support and allow her to die. Although he had hoped she would never have to face life as an Immortal, it was far better than the alternative of having to depend on machines for every breath that entered her body. He signed the orders and returned to hold Amber's hand as she was disconnected from the machines that had been keeping her alive.
Claiming that he needed a moment to get some air, Duncan made his way outside to his car. After moving the car to an alley behind the hospital he retrieved his duffel bag from the trunk. He always kept a pair of sweats, a tee-shirt and a pair of running shoes in his car in case he had the urge to go running. Duncan knew from past experience that Amber would need some
clothes when they made their way out of the morgue.
For the next four hours Duncan sat at Amber's bedside. As hard as it was, even knowing that Amber would be coming back to life, he couldn't image holding this vigil for a mortal. In the back of his mind he was thankful that Tessa had died a quick death. He didn't know if he could have dealt with it if she had lingered.
After the inevitable finally happened and Amber died, Duncan made his way through the quiet corridors to the morgue in the hospital's basement. He couldn't feel the presence of another immortal, so he knew that Amber had not yet revived. He located the refrigerated metal drawer containing her body and slid the shelf out. After digging the clothing out of the bag he quickly dressed her, not pausing to consider how embarrassed the young woman would be if she ever learned about it. Then, wrapping her in his coat, he placed her over his shoulder and slipped from the morgue and made his way to his car.
They were half way to Duncan's cabin when Amber revived. As soon as he heard the gasp of air filling empty lungs he pulled the thunderbird to a stop along the side of the two-lane country road, and waited. In a matter of minutes, Amber had returned fully to the land of the living. As she sat up in the back seat, she cradled her head in her hands.
"Welcome back."
She looked up and saw Duncan sitting at an angle in the front seat, looking at her. "What am I doing here? Last thing I remember I was on my way to Morehead to visit you." She wanted to say something else. But even in her present state, she didn't think Duncan would approve of the expletives that were running through her head.
"You were in a automobile accident. A cattle truck ran a stop sign and plowed into your car."
Amber looked at Duncan like he had lost his mind. "Wait a minute. If I was in an accident, why am I not at the hospital? And don't tell me I was treated and released. Damn, my head is killing me." The truth of situation finally dawned on her. "I died, didn't I? I'm like you." Duncan nodded. "How long have you known?"
Duncan turned around and started the car. He didn't want to draw attention from anyone who might happen to pass by. The general neighborliness of the people who lived in the area would cause a curious passerby to stop and offer to help. "I knew you would one day become Immortal from the minute you bumped into me in front of the gallery."
Amber leaned back in the seat, desperately trying to assimilate the information she had just learned. She knew all about Immortals. Living with Duncan had necessitated that. She even knew a little about the Game. But to find out that she would now be living it, it was just too much to accept.
Duncan made no attempt to breach the silence that reigned during the remainder of the drive to the cabin. He suspected he knew the thoughts that were racing through Amber's mind. She would need time to accept that she was now an Immortal before he began teaching her exactly what that meant. As with Richie, all those many years before, she already knew bits and pieces of what she had to learn. Now Duncan just needed to fill in the gaps and prepare her for the fight of her life.
The Thunderbird rocked slightly as it turned off the paved road onto the gravel drive that led to MacLeod's cabin overlooking Cave Run Lake. They were a hundred feet or so from the cabin itself when Duncan heard Amber gasp in pain nearly at the exact same minute he felt the presence of another Immortal course down his spine.
TBC