Charles Auckland, older Immortal using his students as headhunters Lisa Weiss friend of Adam Wolfe (another of Methos' identities)
Methos the 5,000-year-old Immortal had been in Vancouver a week before he got a worried phone call from Joe Dawson his friend and unofficial Watcher. "Methos where have you been?"
Methos chuckled, "I told Amy I was headed to Vancouver with Cliff to work on the Editing of the movie. (See my story Death goes to the Movies) I didn't expect her to keep you in the dark too."
"Amy knew?" Joe asked irritated.
Methos hummed an affirmative. "I'll be back in a few months. It's nice and quiet up here, let's keep it out of the chronicles huh?"
Joe agreed promising to make Amy his next phone call. He'd been afraid that Methos had disappeared again because of Amy. Mac had let slip that Methos was concerned about Amy's feelings for him. Amy Thomas was Joe daughter. To keep Methos identity of Adam Pierson a secret, Amy had been assigned as Watcher for him. During her assignment, she had fallen in love with him. Methos didn't feel the same way about her and it had caused some hurt feelings on Amy's part. She had told Methos that she would keep her feelings in check. Amy had been the last one to see Methos. He'd come to the bar, had a beer and spoken to Amy. He'd been gone before Joe returned to the table. Giving Amy her privacy, he'd not asked what they'd talked about. He was relieved that Methos and Amy were still okay. He didn't want to jeopardize the relationship he had with either one of them.
Four months later Joe was waiting at the airport to pick up Methos. He'd been watching the incoming flight manifests so that he would know when Methos would be flying back from Vancouver. When Methos' plane landed, Joe had showed up at the airport without being asked. He wanted to show Methos that he was still a Watcher and able to follow an Immortal if he wanted. Methos had smiled. He was glad that Joe had felt his Watcher skills challenged, he didn't want to pay for a taxi home! As they left the airport it occurred to Joe that Methos had manipulated him, he'd been flying under the name of Adam Pierson. Joe couldn't help but smile. That was part of Methos' charm. He always seemed to be a step or two ahead of everyone else!
"How did the movie turn out?" Joe asked.
"Cliff turned in two versions. One rated R and one PG-13. Cliff was hoping to get the PG-13 approved so he could try for a larger audience."
"What next? Back to the University?" Joe asked fishing for information.
"Maybe. I have until midway through this quarter to let them know for sure. For now I think I'll just hang out."
Remembering how worried he'd been when he hadn't known where Methos was for a week, Joe decided to just ask. "So how are you and Amy doing"
Sprawled comfortably in the passenger seat, Methos glanced over at Joe. "Why don't you ask Amy"
"I did, now I'm asking you." When Methos didn't respond Joe continued, "Look, I know how Amy feels about you. It was pretty obvious five years ago. I also know that if you felt the same way, nothing in this world would keep you apart. I saw what happened with Alexa." Methos looked over at Joe to see where he was going with this." I don't want Amy to be the reason you disappear on me. She says she's working it out but I want to know if that's enough."
Methos could see that Joe was concerned. Not wanting to alarm him further he said, "I care for Amy as a friend. As long as it stays that way I'm okay." To himself he thought, 'if she starts to use the Watchers as way to keep track of me, I'll be gone before the ink fades, and this time I'll change my cell phone number!'
Joe nodded. "By the way, Paul Holt tells me that Broots and Mel have been seeing a lot of each other. He thinks something nice might come of that."
Methos smiled knowing that Joe was fishing to see how he felt about Mel. "That's great. Remind them to invited me to the wedding, I did introduce them."
Joe looked at Methos to see if there was any sign of jealousy. Shaking his head he thought, 'as if I could ever read anything on that poker face!'
Methos laughed again as he saw the obvious thoughts cross Joe's face. Joe glared at him. "Shut up!" This made Methos laugh harder.
Joe was looking forward to more stories about the making of the movie. He'd been to the movie set several times and had seen the good it had done the very bored Immortal. Methos was animated and lively again, something that Joe hadn't seen since Methos had been masquerading as graduate student Adam Pierson. Methos had confided to Duncan that he'd lost the passion he'd once had, even offered his head to the Highlander. Thankfully, Duncan had refused!
When Joe dropped Methos off at his house, he asked, "See you at the bar later?" Now that the movie was finished, he wanted to know what the ancient Immortal was planning next. Methos declined the invitation to the bar saying he had a date that night.
Joe drove off thinking about that one. Methos hadn't had a date since Alexa! The ancient Immortal had been an observer of life for so long, Joe was excited to hear that he was becoming a member of the human race again. When Alexa had come into the Immortal's life he had been animated and enthusiastic. Joe had seen what kind of person the Immortal could be when he wasn't hiding and observing the world. That had all disappeared when Alexa had died of cancer a short time after he had found her.
Methos pulled up in front of Lisa's Everett home. It was a nice Rambler in a quiet neighborhood. Walking to the front door he was stared at by a very fat cat sitting on a large planter. When he knocked on the door, the cat jumped down and sat at his feet looking up at him. When Lisa opened the door she laughed and gestured him in. "I see you've met Doc."
"Doc?" Methos asked.
"Yeah, doesn't he look like Doc, one of the seven dwarfs?" Methos nodded glad it was nothing more than that.
Lisa looked lovely in the white skirt and royal blue blouse she was wearing. He'd planned a dinner at a waterside restaurant, had even reserved a window side table. He wanted to watch the sunset over dinner. Dinner was enjoyable and they lingered over coffee. Seeing the restaurant had people waiting for tables, Lisa suggested they go for a walk on the promenade. Methos agreed, a little snuggling in the evening air sounded good to him.
He paid the bill and putting his arm around her waist, he headed them towards the water. They stood at the end of the dock like that, just watching the boats heading for the Marina. Hearing music playing on one of the boats, Methos drew Lisa into his arms and they slow danced. Lisa laughed remembering their evening on the dinner cruise in Hawaii. He could so easily sweep her off her feet! As the song wrapped up, he sang the last verse in a surprisingly pleasant tenor.
Lisa leaned back and looked at him.
"What?" Methos asked embarrassed. He'd just done that without thinking. Must be time to head back to the car!
"You sing too?" Lisa said with a chuckle.
"If you could call it that, we'd better go before I make a bigger fool of myself!" He laughed as he started them in the direction of the car.
When they returned to the restaurant parking lot, Methos felt the buzz of another Immortal. He looked around for the source of the buzz and saw a woman looking around nervously. He recognized her from the Watcher database, a Russian woman nearly a hundred years old. Eager to avoid trouble if he could, he spoke to her in Russian when he got close enough. "We're just enjoying an evening out, I don't want any trouble."
She replied in Russian, "I don't want any trouble either."
Switching to English Methos continued, "The lobster is excellent, enjoy your evening." Steering Lisa away he kept an eye on the Immortal. She nodded and seeing that he was leaving, turned back towards the restaurant. Lisa looked at him questioningly. "Russian, we have a mutual friend." He explained.
"You speak Russian?"
"And a few other languages, I have a lot of time on my hands." He said off handedly.
"You must! What don't you do?" She asked amazed.
Smiling he flippantly answered, "Tan."
Confused she said, "Tan?"
"Yeah, you know, Tan. As in, bronzed from the sun..."
Lisa laughed. "Whew, I was beginning to think you were perfect."
"You only have to ask my friends, they'll overwhelm you with my shortcomings."
Distracted by Lisa, Methos missed seeing the Russian Immortal's Watcher standing nearby. The Watcher didn't miss seeing Methos though. He stood clearly in the parking lights as he opened the door for Lisa. The Watcher had a good look at him to confirm the sighting. As he drove off, the Watcher ran to her car and jumped in, following Methos' car. Getting on the cell phone, she called in to her supervisor.
"I've seen Adam Pierson, I mean Methos!"
"Are you sure?" Came the surprised voice on the line.
"Positive! I'm following him now. He and Ivanna spoke briefly then Methos left with a woman he was with. Can you have Doug take over Watching Ivanna; she's still at the restaurant. I'll stay on Methos!"
"Don't lose him. I'll put this on the Bulletin Board."
The supervisor had immediately gone up on the Watcher Bulletin Board and broadcast the news that Methos had been found.
A year before, Joe and the Watcher council had negotiated with the ancient Immortal. Methos was able to lose any Watcher assigned to him and disappear whenever he wanted. In their negotiations, the Watcher Council had agreed to keep Methos' return to the Seacouver area a secret from the other Watchers. Joe had been keeping Methos' chronicle the old fashioned way, in a book that was locked away rather than being in the Watcher database and available to all Watchers. They had agreed to this obvious conflict of interest because Methos had been the target of several headhunters. This was the result of Watchers telling their Immortal assignments that 'Adam Pierson' was really the legendary Methos. The ancient Immortal had rapidly become a target. Angry with Joe and MacLeod, Methos had disappeared. He spent several years in hiding but each time he returned to Seacouver he was hunted again. This time the Watcher council had promised it would be different. A year later and it was still a secret that he was in town. Within minutes of spotting him, the Watcher network knew where he was and the excited Watcher was on his tail.
Pulling into the driveway at Lisa's house, Methos accepted her offer to come in for a drink. He sat on the couch while she stepped towards the kitchen. "What can I get you?"
"Whatever you're having." He said looking at the cat that was staring at him from the back of the couch.
Lisa looked back at him and decided not to be shy. "I'm having a fine liqueur wantonly trickled on your chest, you?"
Methos jerked his head in her direction. Seeing her wicked smile he answered, "I'll have the same but how about if I do the pouring?"
She quickly took him up on his offer. Methos spent the night with Lisa not knowing that his chronicles were suddenly active again. He left in the morning after a big breakfast made by Lisa. He gave her a passionate kiss goodbye and waved as he drove off. A nondescript sedan pulled out and followed.
Methos checked his phone mail as he drove. There were several messages from Joe. They just said, 'Call me!' He was only a few blocks from Joes' bar, so he drove there instead. Methos walked into the bar and saw Joe and MacLeod at the bar.
"Hey Joe." Methos said in an outwardly good mood.
"I've got some bad news." Joe had said solemnly.
"Oh?" Joe's tone of voice had set off alarms in Methos' head and he stood rather than sitting.
"The Watcher of that Immortal you saw last night called you in. Since we kept it quiet that we knew where you were, the rest of the Watcher network went wild when they found you."
"How many know?" Methos said all business.
"There were a lot of hits, it was pretty big news." Joe mumbled.
"How many?" Methos insisted his voice getting louder.
"I don't know. I got it off the Bulletin Board as fast as I could. Broots is checking the hits now"
Broots was a new Watcher and a computer expert. Methos had helped Broots hide from a secret organization and helped recruit him into the Watchers. Broots could do just about anything with a computer.
(See my story The Chosen Shall be Found)
"Is someone watching Lisa?" Methos demanded.
"Who?" MacLeod asked trying to follow the conversation.
"The woman I was with." Methos snarled. Joe nodded looking uncomfortable.
"Call them off." Methos demanded. "She doesn't know what I am. I don't want her involved. If the Watchers put her in danger..."
Seeing the anger in the older Immortal, Duncan stood up and put a hand on Methos' arm. Not wanting to be pacified, Methos shook it off. To give Mac a chance to calm Methos down, Joe stepped into his office mumbling something about calling Broots.
Duncan tried to calm Methos down. "It's not his fault. He was following your instructions to keep your presence a secret."
Methos nodded. "This is not what the Watchers were created for. Lisa has nothing to do with the Game. I don't want her followed and harassed because she was with me."
"I'll talk to Joe. You just take it easy. If you let them follow you, they won't bother her."
Methos nodded a little more calm. Encouraged, Duncan said, "Why don't you come with me to the Dojo. They're sure to be watching there."
When Methos agreed, Duncan popped his head into Joe's office and told him where they were going.
At Duncan MacLeod's Dojo, they sparred and worked out for the next several hours. Methos hadn't released his Quickening (see Silent Footsteps) and was fighting more aggressively than normal. Duncan had to work harder to stay a step ahead of him. Methos picked the fighting up a notch and was fighting on instincts, his mind a million miles away. His mind came abruptly back when he saw blood. Without realizing it, he had slashed Duncan's chest. Horrified, Methos dropped his sword and profusely apologized to MacLeod. Stunned, MacLeod knew this was showing how irritated the older Immortal really was.
"Methos?" MacLeod asked when the horrified look didn't leave Methos' face.
Methos grabbed up his sword where it had fallen and quickly left for home. Quick to side with the Ancient Immortal, Duncan promptly called Joe and told him what had happened. Angry with the Watchers, Duncan warned Joe that they'd better back off or the ancient Immortal would disappear on them.
Using his influence in The Watchers, Joe forced them to back off. For the next few days, Joe kept trying to reassure Methos that he had been given a "hands off" order from the Tribunal. Still wary, Methos kept him self in view so if anyone were watching there would be no doubt of where he was. It was only a couple of weeks after that when Methos found an Immortal watching Lisa's house. Feeling the Immortal first, Methos backed off and called Lisa to cancel their date. Telling her he'd had an emergency come up and that he'd have to call her later, he moved into the other Immortal's 'buzz' zone. Using himself as bait, he decoyed the Immortal to a business park under construction.
At the business park, Methos tried to talk the Immortal out of a challenge. When the Immortal wouldn't back down from the challenge, Methos had taken his Quickening. While Methos was recovering from the Quickening, the Immortal's Watcher called Joe Dawson to report the challenge and Quickening. Knowing that hell was going to break out, Joe rushed to the site. He arrived too late. The dead Immortals' Watcher had been given an earful by a very angry Methos who blamed the Watchers for endangering his friend. Scared, the Watcher had opted to wait for Joe and not to follow the angry Immortal.
Still very angry, Methos drove around town to make sure he lost anyone that was following him. As he drove he reviewed his options. He didn't like the only option left open to him, it was going to cost him the only real friends he had.
Without returning home, he'd gone directly to his private plane (a well kept secret from his friends and the Watchers, they had no idea he could fly a plane much less owned one!). He flew to the east coast and boarded a commercial plane to Europe. Once in Europe, he bought a laptop and went to one of his secret hideouts. Methos accessed the Watcher database and found the location of Charles Auckland. Auckland was the older Immortal that had been sending students after Methos. The last Immortal he had killed had confirmed this. It seemed that despite the precautions the Watchers had taken, Auckland's Watcher was still keeping Auckland informed of his whereabouts.
Duncan left Joe's Place worried. It had been several months since Methos had disappeared. Duncan had spent the last few hours keeping Joe company and trying to lift his spirits. Joe blamed himself for Methos' disappearance. Joe felt that if he'd gotten the news of Methos' sighting off the Watcher database faster, Methos wouldn't have had to leave. Despite their efforts, the Watchers were putting him in danger, again.
The shadow separated itself from the trees lining the estate driveway. Quickly and secretly the shadow reached the cold stone of the manor and working it's way to the back, approached the kitchen. Methos had spent months planning and preparing. He had spent long hours fine-tuning his sword fighting skills and getting in top shape for this. The hardest thing had been to mentally prepare for what he was about to do. He'd made a promise to himself when he'd left the Horsemen; He would only kill in self-defense, of himself or the people he cared about. He was about to break that promise and it was eating him up inside.
He'd been watching this manor for several weeks. He knew the coming and goings of the household staff. He knew that once the lights went off downstairs, Charles Auckland would be alone in the west wing. Picking the kitchen door lock, Methos slipped in and pulled a gun out of the dark recesses of his trench coat. He carefully moved through the house, watching for anyone varying from the nightly routine.
Before entering the west wing and before he entered Auckland's Immortal buzz range, Methos slipped the gun into his pocket and pulled out a cell phone. He dialed a number and waited for the call to be picked up.
"Charles Auckland." Said a stiff, cold voice in a British accent.
"I hear you've been looking for me." Methos said softly.
"Now that would depend on who you were my friend." Auckland said sarcastically.
Methos laughed softly. "I'm insulted. Friends don't send their students after my head."
After a second of silence Auckland said, "Ah, the legendary Methos. How interesting to finally hear your voice. I hear you met Jon Philips. I was devastated to hear that he's finding himself a little short these days."
"Only by a head. I thought I'd save you the trouble of sending another one after me. Let's meet in person. I know you've been dying to meet me, and I'd like to help you with the dying part."
Auckland laughed arrogantly. "It won't be me that'll be doing the dying. You have a history of running my friend. I'm surprised you even worked up the nerve to call. Feeling pretty brave there in America are you?"
Methos opened the door to the study and Auckland spun around when he finally felt the older Immortal's Quickening buzz.
Hanging up the phone, Methos pulled out his sword.
"I thought I'd stop by, didn't want to inconvenience you."
Auckland quickly stepped to the back wall and pulled his sword from a display stand. Auckland smiled and opened the French doors leading to a private courtyard. He flicked on outside lights and gestured for Methos to join him outside. Auckland led the way to the center of the courtyard. He sized up his opponent. Tall, thin, dressed in jeans, an oversized sweater, and wearing a ghastly trench coat, he didn't appear heavily muscled. Everything he'd heard about this Immortal had led him to believe that the older Immortal was soft; too many years of running and hiding and not enough in the Game. His student Jon had been good with the sword but rash, and tended to let his anger get the best of him. Jon was forever making senseless mistakes. Auckland remembered that he had scolded his student and told him his anger would be the death of him. He laughed that it had indeed been the death of Jon.
With a vicious smile, Auckland assumed a ready stance.
Methos slid his coat off and dropped it out of his way. He twirled his blade in his hands to loosen up his wrists. Stepping forward he began to stalk Charles Auckland.
Wanting to end this quickly before his staff was alerted, Auckland swung his sword at Methos neck. Expecting and seeing that Methos would block that swing, he let the sword bounce off the other and quickly turned his wrist, dropping his blade to try and slash across Methos' abdomen area. Methos twisted his wrist and blocked that move. Stepping forward he spun his body around and letting the momentum of his sword increase its speed, he countered with a swing of his own, slicing across Auckland's chest. Auckland stepped back in pain. He frantically lifted his sword in a defensive position until his body could begin the healing process.
This went on for several minutes. Auckland was an experienced and clever swordsman. He had taken his share of heads in challenges before he thought up this idea of training students to do it for him. He physically kept in shape and practiced routinely with his sword. He'd never had any trouble defeating any of his former students when he called them back. This Immortal was proving to be more than he had expected. He was stronger than he appeared and certainly not lax in his sword skills. Auckland was bleeding from several wounds and could feel himself weakening from his injuries and loss of blood. He was being wounded faster than his body could heal itself! How could this have happened? His informant had sworn that Methos would run before fighting!
Getting angry, Auckland became more aggressive in his strikes. Methos had determined Auckland's fighting style and seen the flaws in his attack and defense. Rather than drag this out, Methos swung his sword and set Auckland into the position he wanted and quickly impaled him. Auckland opened his mouth in shock and dropped to his knees. Methos pulled his sword out of the other Immortal's body slowly, making sure that he increased the pain that Auckland was feeling.
Bending over slightly, Methos snarled softly, "What a pity your Watcher forgot to mention that I was the Fourth Horseman. You should feel privileged to be sent to the afterlife by Death himself." Pulling back his arm, Methos let gravity and the weight of his sword separate Auckland's horrified head from the rest of his body.
Methos stepped back to receive Auckland's Quickening. Staggering to his feet when it was over, Methos saw that the Quickening had set the house on fire. Hearing alarmed voices from the manor, Methos grabbed his coat and slipped out the back gate. He stopped in the shadows of the trees and leaned against one to recover. He continued to hear excited shouts from the burning house. Pushing himself away from the tree, he headed into the woods and towards his hidden car. After reaching it, he disappeared into the maze that was the city of London.
Joe Dawson was sitting at a table drinking a scotch when Duncan walked into the bar. Duncan knew something was bothering his Watcher as soon as he saw the expression on his face.
"What's up Joe?"
"I don't know exactly. I just got a closing report on an Immortal in England. But there's something not right about it."
Duncan sat next to Joe and poured himself a glass of scotch from the bottle that was sitting there. He looked at Joe to continue.
Joe shoved the papers he had been looking at in Mac's direction. Duncan picked them up and quickly scanned them. "So? He lost a challenge. It's not that unusual for the Watcher to miss the actual fight."
"The dead Immortal was Charles Auckland. Judging by the amount of blood in the area his body was found in, he'd been cut up pretty good before he died."
"And?" Duncan asked irritated that Joe wasn't getting to the point.
"Auckland was the Immortal that was sending his students after Methos." Joe finally said.
Duncan looked at the papers in his hand. "That doesn't mean Methos did this. It was probably one of his students. It sounds like the Bastard got what he deserved." Duncan said tossing the papers on the table.
"I've got Broots checking into it but, I don't know Mac, something about this just doesn't sound right."
Methos climbed out of the cold, dark water and looked around; making sure that no one had seen him. He had just taken the head of another one of Auckland's students, and thrown himself into the Seine to avoid the Police that had arrived shortly after the Quickening had ended. Three of Auckland's former students were now just wraiths in the nightmare that haunted his nights. Two more to go Methos thought. Hunching his shoulders against the rain, Methos assumed a rushed but innocent posture. He headed into the congested areas of the city and in no time at all, he'd disappeared into the masses of people moving about their business. No one would have noticed the soaking wet man in the pouring rain, even if they had looked up from under their umbrellas.
This time when Duncan entered the bar, Joe was agitatedly pacing.
"I knew something stunk about this. We just got another closing report from Europe. That's three of Auckland's students that have come up dead in two weeks. This isn't a coincidence Mac," stopping and staring at MacLeod in anguish. "I think Methos is hunting them down!"
Duncan sat down heavily and poured himself a drink. "Why would he do that? He's been hiding for the last few hundred years. He's taken what? Maybe six or seven heads in that time, and they were all hunting him!"
"I think its him Mac. None of the Watchers have gotten a good look at the Immortal, but he wouldn't have any trouble avoiding them. He was one of us for too many years to count!"
Sitting down next to Mac, Joe poured a drink and tossed it down in one gulp. "Broots can't find anything."
Duncan just drank his scotch and thought about what Joe had said.
Closing the laptop, Methos put his head in his hands and sighed. He'd found all of Auckland's headhunter students in Europe. He shook his head at the waste. He would have to keep a better watch on the Chronicles to prevent this from happening again. There were only two students left and they were both in the United States. Two hunters left then he could rest, if his conscience let him.
Mac was sitting at the bar when Joe got the phone call. One more of Auckland's students had just been killed.
"Tell me where the last student is Joe." Duncan said voice full of commitment.
"You can't go after him Mac!" Joe said worried. If Methos had gone off the deep end he didn't want to lose two friends. "He could be dangerous."
"If Methos is the one hunting, he'll be going for the last student. If he isn't, then I'll know who is." Shaking his head in concern he continued. "I don't want to challenge him, I just want to talk to him. I don't think I could beat him anyway. He knows my weaknesses better than I do. Hell, all he has to do is release his Quickening! I have to do this, I have to try and help him if I can. I owe him several times over."
Within a few hours MacLeod was on his way to Florida where the last of Auckland's student was living. As the sun was setting he pulled up to the trailer park where the student had last been seen. Duncan arrived too late. He saw the flashes of a Quickening on the other side of a baseball field across the street from the trailer park. Duncan jumped out of the rental car and ran in that direction.
As he got closer, Duncan could see the unrecognizable shape of a man kneeling on the ground.
Methos collapsed to his knees after he had taken the youngling's Quickening. Filled with grief over the death of the student, he sobbed in anguish. All of the students had been too angry to save. The Ivanhoe rested across his knees and he stared at the blood on the blade. Very faintly he felt the buzz of another Immortal. He quickly identified it as Mac's. Not wanting to confront the Highlander right now, Methos staggered up and wiped the blade on the coat of the youngling. While he cleaned the blade he looked for the source of the buzz.
Far across the field he saw the shape of Highlander running in his direction. Taking off running, Methos quickly reached his nearby car. He leaned against it and stretched out his Quickening. He brushed Mac's Quickening and pulled back. As he drove off he asked himself why the hell he'd done that. Mac had probably been running after him to take his head, not to talk. His Quickening brush would probably be taken as a taunt rather than, 'I know it's you but I can't talk now'.
Duncan reached the body of the dead student just as he felt the buzz. Along with the buzz, he felt grief and sorrow wash over him like a wave. His heart ached for Methos, for he had recognized the buzz. He saw the taillights of a car as it raced away. Not wanting to be found at the scene of the crime, he stayed only long enough to determine that the Immortal had been killed quickly and cleanly.
As he drove away he called Joe. "I was too late. The last one's dead."
"Was it Methos?" Joe asked quietly.
Mac hesitated a moment. "It was him."
"Well? Did you talk to him? Did he see you? Is he okay?" Joe rushed out his questions.
"He saw me but he left before I got close. He brushed me with his Quickening. At first I thought he was warning me off but...there was so much sadness. This is killing him. We have to find him. If we don't, he'll disappear into one of his hideaways and we'll never see him again." Duncan said sadly.
"I'll see what Broots can do, maybe Jarod knows where he is."
"Who's Jarod? And why would he know how to find Methos?"
"Yeah right, you were in London. Come by the bar when you get back and I'll fill you in."
Methos drove quickly to the local landing strip where he'd parked his plane. He did his pre-flight check and took off. He hoped Jarod was still at his last hideout.
Jarod was finishing up a Pretend in Sonoma Arizona. Jarod was a Pretender, a genius that could become anything he wanted to be just by 'absorbing' the information he needed. He'd been stolen from his parents as a child when he'd been identified as being special. He was taken to a private and secretive corporation in Delaware. He was trained to solve complex problems using Pretends or Simulations. When he became an adult and discovered what his simulations were being used for, he had escaped. He had been on the run for five years before meeting Methos. Methos had befriended him and helped him finally escape Centre. Jarod had not been bothered or harassed by them since then. Jarod and Methos had stayed in touch and occasionally worked together to help people. Jarod made up for the guilt he felt by anonymously helping people in trouble using his Pretender skills.
Jarod was preparing to leave his most recent Pretend when he heard a knock at the door. Cautiously he looked out the peephole in the door and saw Methos. He quickly opened the door and was surprised at Methos' appearance. Methos looked like Hell. He had circles under his haunted eyes. Jarod thought he'd lost weight and his clothes looked like he hadn't changed them in days.
"What's wrong?" Jarod asked alarmed.
Methos stepped inside the room and looked around. "Sorry, I guess I caught you getting ready to leave."
"I'm not going anywhere until we talk." Jarod pointed towards the couch.
Methos took a deep breath and rushed an explanation. "I need you to Pretend for me. Become an Immortal named Sean Burns."
"Anything. Can I ask why?" Jarod asked feeling the anguish rolling off Methos.
"Sean was the only real psychiatrist for Immortals. He's dead now but...I'm afraid I need him."
They talked through the night, Jarod getting an idea of what he would need to absorb to help Methos. They parted in the morning. With Methos help, he had created a false ID for himself and put a Watcher tattoo on his wrist. Jarod went to Watcher Headquarters in Europe where most of Sean Burns's original chronicles were still kept. Methos headed for a secluded place on holy ground that he owned and that was unknown to the Watchers.
In Europe, Jarod pretended to be a visiting Watcher and used the extensive Watcher library. He absorbed everything they had on Sean Burns. When he had completed that, he read the chronicles of the Immortals that Sean had helped. Several days later he was ready to review the Methos chronicles in the database. He had kept that for last knowing that Broots would have installed security gates in the database. He knew he would trigger them as soon as he called up Methos' name and chronicles. Jarod and Broots were friends. Broots had been on the team assigned to try and recapture Jarod after his escape. They had developed a mutual respect and a secret friendship. Jarod and Methos had helped Broots escape with his daughter Debbie. Jarod knew that Broots would help him with his silence.
Calling up the Watcher database from his laptop at his hotel, Jarod waited for the security check to alert Broots. When he saw the query, he sent off an email to Broots in the U.S.
Jarod:Broots, I need your silence. I'm trying to help our friend Adam
Broots:Jarod? Is that you? You need to help Adam? Do you know where he is? Everyone is looking for him.
Jarod:I know, that's why I need your silence. I saw him a few days ago
Broots:They are all saying he's dangerous- BE CAREFUL!
Jarod:Not dangerous, hurt. He's gone to holy ground for seclusion
Broots:Joe and MacLeod are worried sick. Can you let them know, something, anything?
Jarod:I'll send e-mail. We need silence and non-interference
Broots:I'll watch and make sure you get it, careful and good luck!
Jarod:Joe and Duncan. Adam is with me. He's asked for my help. I need you to stay away and not interfere
Joe:Jarod! Do you know where he is? Is he okay? PLEASE let him know that we're worried about him. If there's anything I can do, let me know ASAP. Please keep me informed.
Duncan:Jarod, Joe told me who you were (finally!). Please do anything and everything to help Adam. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help. Duncan MacLeod
After Duncan sent off his email to Jarod, he headed to the bar to see how Joe was holding up.
Jarod and Methos spent the next few months talking. About what had happened and why it had happened. It was very slow going. Methos was having a difficult time talking about himself. He'd never been one to share his feelings and secrets. It helped that Methos had been friends with Sean Burns. Jarod had been able to assimilate enough of Sean's personality and mannerisms that after the initial awkwardness, Methos could close his eyes and relax somewhat. They talked about less personal things until he was comfortable. Still, each session ended up with Methos closing up and walking away.
When Jarod had first been told of Methos' Immortality, he had wondered how the ancient Immortal viewed his Immortality. Now he knew without a doubt, all life was precious to Methos. He had seen too much death in his five thousand years. Despite his façade of cynicism and gruffness, he cared about the people around him. Although he kept himself distant from most of them, he watched and cared about them as they passed through their much shorter lives around him. He'd spent his time seeing them, learning their languages and cultures. He wrote his journals so that he could give them some measure of immortality.
Methos' forgiveness of himself was a slow and painful process.
Jarod walked into Joe's Place after checking to see that both Joe and MacLeod would be there. Joe introduced Jarod to MacLeod and took them into his office so they could talk privately.
"How's he doing Jarod?" Joe asked with worry in his voice.
"That's what I came by to talk with you about. He's taking the long way home, he's anxious about seeing you two again. He doesn't know I've come here, but I wanted a word with you before he arrived." Jarod said, carefully observing the two men.
"When will he be here?" Joe asked as he looked at the door, as if he expected Methos to walk in the door behind Jarod.
"The end of this week. I wanted to find out how you're feeling about him."
"We were worried about him. Mac tried to talk to him in Florida but he just missed him. What happened?"
"He'd had enough of being a victim. He'd been running and ignoring challenges for so long, when they started to harass his friends he couldn't look the other way anymore."
"But that's what he does, he runs at the first sign of trouble." Duncan said without thinking.
"No. That's what he did to avoid trouble. He'd made a promise to himself after he left the Horsemen. He'd seen enough death, caused enough of it personally. He promised to become someone worth living the thousands of years he had, to only kill in defense of himself and the people he cared about. For thousands of years he kept that promise, so much so that it became an integral part of the man he became."
"But he has killed, he's taken heads since he left the Horsemen." Duncan said confused.
"Only in defense."
"But what about Kristen and Keane? He took Kristen's head and would have taken Keane's head if I hadn't stopped him."
"They were both threats to people he cared about. Kristen was after Richie, you, the Mortals close to you. Keane would have been a mistake but you didn't seem to be able to deal with it. He wanted to protect you but he was grateful when you stopped him."
"He didn't seem grateful!" MacLeod grumbled.
Jarod glanced at MacLeod and continued. "What do you think about him now? I want to know if you're going to hold this against him like you did when you found out he was Death."
"That's pretty direct." Joe said shaking his head.
"He hunted the students down and killed them." MacLeod said quietly.
"They were all given the opportunity to stop and leave him alone." Jarod paused to consider his words carefully before continuing. "Let me give you another perspective on this. Auckland was sending his students after Methos. He'd trained them to be vicious headhunters. He'd been doing it for years and would have continued to send them. Auckland had declared war on Methos and his students weren't adverse to using friends and mortals to get to him." Seeing that he had their full attention, Jarod continued. "At first, Methos handled it by running or ignoring them. He only fought when they wouldn't give up. They thought he was an easy target. All of the Watchers thought he was." He gave Joe and Duncan and meaningful look.
They had the grace to look embarrassed. That's exactly what they'd thought.
Jarod continued. "But running and ignoring them wasn't working. He went to his friend's house and found an Immortal watching for him. The Watchers hadn't been able to keep his location private and being passive was only endangering others. His back was up against a wall. The Immortals, the Watchers, his friends, backed him into a corner and he fought back. He's never been a weak man, only a very patient man. Humoring our foolishness until we'd crossed the line."
Joe and Duncan both nodded. Jarod could see understanding dawning in their eyes. He continued, "Methos didn't revert back to being Death. He was tired of looking the other way. He didn't kill anyone that wasn't involved, took no hostages and didn't endanger Mortals. He stopped as soon as the war was over and he will grieve for many lifetimes for his part in ending it."
Joe wiped the tears from his eyes. "We were worried about him. How's he doing now?"
"He grieves, for not noticing what Auckland was doing in time to stop it sooner, and for the Immortal students brought into the Game like this. Most of all he grieves for the friends he thinks he's lost."
"What can we do to convince him otherwise?" Mac and Joe asked at the same time.
Methos drove his SUV up to MacLeod's dojo and parked. He could think of a thousand reasons to drive off again, but only one to knock on Duncan's door. With his stomach in knots, he headed up the back stairs. Feeling Duncan's Quickening he stopped at the top of the stairs, alert in case he had to bolt down the stairs. Shaking his head at his instinct for survival. He'd chosen to see MacLeod first. If the Highlander wanted his head he would disappear in one of his foreign hideouts. There'd be no reason to see Joe then. He knocked.
It only took a few seconds before Duncan threw open the door with a welcoming smile on his face. "I'm fixing dinner, want to join me? I have beer..."
It was uncomfortable for only a short time. Methos was expecting to get a lecture or some condemnation from MacLeod. Mac was feeling guilty about his part in making the Immortal appear helpless. As the evening went on, the bindings of their friendship surfaced and the atmosphere lightened up and returned to a tentative normalcy.
After dinner they were enjoying a drink and listening to music. Swirling his brandy goblet, Duncan looked at Methos sprawled on his couch. Taking a deep breath he blurted out what he had been thinking.
"It just wasn't the same without you sprawling on my couch and drinking my beer. I haven't found a bottle cap on the 'fridge for months."
Methos snorted a laugh and looked uncomfortable. He really didn't want to share his feelings with Mac just yet.
"If anything had happened to you, I'd have spent the rest of my life getting you back." Duncan said tapping his head with his free hand.
Remembering all the times he had told Duncan to do exactly that if he were killed. That meant that Duncan still considered him a friend. Methos smiled, embarrassed and relieved. Looking Duncan in the eye he said, "what more could a friend ask for?"
The end for now, see King's Gift coming next Broken Promise
Fan fiction by wajag7/25/200219 of 19