End of the Road
Methos stepped out of the gas station door, surprised that Amy wasn't impatiently waiting for him. He stretched his arms overhead and arched his back, glad he wouldn't be bothered by his tight muscles for more than a few moments.
At the apex of his stretch, he felt hands on his trench coat, pulling him off balance. Spinning around to stay on his feet, he drew up short as he discovered Amy pulling him behind a dilapidated ice box.
"Amy, what the bloody he-"
"Shush! Apparently we took a little longer than our three minutes." She indicated a Mercedes sedan pulling up to the gas pumps.
"Damn." Methos muttered. A dagger found its way into his hand. An old, familiar twitch rippled along the muscles of his forearm as he gripped the cold handle.
Amy looked from the blade to his face a couple times before he took the hint. "What?"
"Adam, we've been extremely lucky to go this long without seeing a cop..."
He held his fingers up in a salute. "No blood, scout's honor!"
"I find it hard to believe you were ever a Boy Scout." Amy muttered while ducking underneath Methos to peek around the ice chest, carefully studying the three burly goons that exited the car and entered the gas station. "I'll be right back."
Methos swore again at the brashness of the girl as she slipped back into the station, following the three men. His eyes darted around as the strategist took over and began to calculate his plan of attack, fervently wishing Amy had stayed outside.
Three strides to the back of the Mercedes, duck and hide. His body a well oiled machine, adrenaline coursing through his veins, Methos slid into motion with an experienced warrior's ease. On the pretense of checking the tires, his dagger flashed and air began a slow hiss out of confinement. Repeat for the other tire as well. A Mercedes was hardly in the same class as a human as far as opponents went, but it certainly was quieter and more easily overcome.
Light footsteps approached the rear of the sedan. Methos' calves and thighs coiled, ready to launch his body into that of the coming assailant. The footfalls ceased, and Methos tensed further, dagger ready for blood.
When Amy's face appeared around the corner of the car, at the same level as his own. Methos forced his face to relax, followed by hands, then legs.
Burying the flash of unease she felt at the sight of his face, Amy smiled crookedly at Methos' handiwork on the tires. "Are you done playing Hot Wheels? Let's go before Goon One and Goon Two figure out how to get Goon Three out of the broom closet."
Shaking his head Methos re-hid his dagger and curled back into the Fiat, calculating their arrival time in Zurich.
oh now feel it comin' back again
like a rollin' thunder chasing the wind
forces pullin' from the center of the earth again
I can feel it (1)
The music played on, but conversation waned. Verbal silence ruled for nearly an hour after they pulled away from the gas station. Amy kept her focus on the road speeding past her tires. As the scenery rushed by, she recalled how stunned she had been by Adam's first appearance at her door. After invading his apartment, she and her brothers never expected to see him again. When Adam seemed more accepting and less suspicious than MacLeod, she had been further surprised, making her wonder if he was that good at hiding his true thoughts, or if he really was less suspicious.
Suspicion of someone who could wield energy the way she could was to be expected. What had caught her unprepared was the fact that an Immortal had had the most direct knowledge of Elves outside of her own family - even if he was five thousand years old.
What was it about the oldest Immortal that she found so fascinating? Three days of mulling over that question and his knowledge of Elves had given her no clear answer. She hadn't revisited the idea while in the States but it was impossible not to think about it with them both confined in the tiny car.
How can you be so warm?
How can you know what I feel?
Well, it's the way you move your hands,
And it's the way you understand.
And that's the reason that i'm asking.
That's the reason that I want to know. (2)
The only thing she did know was what she had come to believe in the few days she had taken over his apartment. Amy was certain she and Methos were similar on some level, and it was a level neither of them would be able to share with many others. She hoped that would mean they would understand each other on a level none other would be able to match.
Methos paused in his own ruminations, feeling Amy's focus on him instead of the road.
"Do you need me to drive?"
"No, I'm fine."
"Okay, is there food on my face or did I miss a spot shaving?"
"No... -"
"Then will you keep your eyes on the road? Car wrecks are not on my list of desired ways to die!"
Amy refused to be deterred from finishing her point and asking a question to which she desperately wanted an answer. "Just couldn't keep from thinking about how similar we are again."
Methos snorted, hoping a poor response would encourage her to drop the topic. I couldn't be so lucky.
"Your refusal to say anything won't make it go away."
"Oh, we're back to this whatever you think you see in my eyes."
"I see it, you can't deny that it's there."
Of course not. "You and I have nothing in common."
"It's in your eyes, it's in mine, it was even in Darius'. For all he's had to kill to survive, it's not in Mac's eyes. Not even my Sensei, the Navy Seal, has it. It's only found in those of us who've found pleasure in killing."
"Darius was a man of peace, and I am a scholar."
"And before a monk, he was a warlord. You have not been a scholar exclusively for five thousand years. No." Amy gave him one of her more piercing looks that said she knew he was lying.
"And your point is?" This was still as uncomfortable as when she first brought it up. How could she know killing can bring pleasure? How can she know I found pleasure in being death?"
"As you change and grow, do you still have to battle the older part of yourself? The part you thought you left behind?"
"What makes you ask?"
"When I was forced out of my place and into yours, it started and today seems to have strengthened it. I find myself constantly thinking about how fun it would be to repay them all. I can see their faces when they realize their prey is their hunter. I can smell the fear dripping off of them as I - " She shivered and sank into her seat. "I thought I had left that part of myself behind, but here it is beside me, as strong as ever."
Methos exhaled in a puff, running his hand through his hair, making it stand up even more. Staring out his window, he carefully considered his response.
Well, she believes that time can make things right
And I want to believe that there's been a change in me
And I hope that she believes
Yes, I wonder if she sees the killer inside me (3)
For a moment Methos almost laughed at the irony of the song playing in the background. Surely the child didn't plan that coincidence?
Well, Amy wasn't asking for details. It seemed she wanted reassurance about something in her own past. If that were the case, he could answer without having to reveal too much about himself.
Staring out the windshield, his hands frozen on his knees, he answered.
"I hated for a long time and I took that hate out on the world around me. I reveled in the fear I brought to their eyes and I found joy in the destruction and the power it brought."
Reaching a straight stretch of road, Amy took a moment to carefully study his face with its sudden hardness and his eyes glittering gold at her from shadowed eye sockets. Was she imagining the glint of - something - that sent small shivers of unease up and down her spine? She doubted Methos realized his eyes were letting anything escape, but what it meant when that golden gaze flashed still puzzled her.
"Do you still?"
"What?"
"Revel? Do you still revel in the fear?"
"No." His voice muffled slightly as he looked out his own window once more. "It only brings emptiness and regrets."
Trying to swallow his tension away, Methos nearly missed Amy's soft confession that followed.
"To see the fear dawn in their eyes as they recognized they wouldn't see sunrise. To know that I was the source of their fear. The power - " Her fingers flexed against the wheel, phantom feelings of her tools crossing her palms. She shrank away from herself again as the car continued propelling down the pavement.
Methos turned in time to see the the twitch of her fingers and knew her muscles were remembering. His own fingers had done the same, though with less frequency in the last couple thousand years. But in the beginning…
"It gets easier." He decided to answer her first question. The one with which he now understood she struggled. "Do you have time?"
"Depends," she answered flatly. "Are we talking a few hundred years, or a couple thousand?"
"You'll have to find something to take the place of the satisfaction the power gave you, and the sooner you do that, the fewer years you're likely to need."
"Like breaking and entering corporations for pay and stealing things from mob bosses for jollies?" Amy smiled crookedly.
Methos barked a small laugh. "Everyone needs a hobby."
Give me a moment
Got to get this weight up off my chest
Don't feed me sorrow
Pain is a poison I digest
I'll give you answers
To the questions you have yet to ask
Silence is beauty
Words they only complicate the task (4)
Three songs later, Methos found himself staring at Amy's hand, once again resting casually on the gear shift. If they were going to be at least brushing at the edges of deep, dark secrets he may as well ask. He quickly reached out and pulled her arm over. Before she could reclaim her arm, he pushed her sleeve up, revealing thin lines, pale against her tanned skin.
"What about these scars? Did you convince yourself you were such a monster, you decided it was better to leave the world?"
Amy reclaimed her hand and pulled it back to her chest with a glare at Methos. "There are questions I don't ask you. There are questions you have no right to ask!"
Methos accepted her refusal and allowed the music to be the only sound in the car. His fingers played along the edge of the door and he looked around the interior. Like her tiny apartment, the old car was kept neat, not a scrap of paper, nothing personal littered the floors or seats. The gauges in the dash appeared to be standard, although a closer look revealed extra gauges - air fuel mix and nitrous for starters - that certainly hadn't been installed at the factory in 1965.
He suspected the car had been modified far more than appearances let on, but a few gauges and the stereo were the only obvious changes. Methos was wondering what had been done under the hood to make the little car roar when his eyes fell on the small red button down by the gear shift. A small smile played across his lips as favored lines from James Bond flitted through his memory. Sean Connery, of course. He may have been barbaric in his younger years, but he certainly wasn't now!
There must be some mistake
I didn't mean to let them
Take away my soul
Am I too old is it too late (5)
Amy slowed down as they entered the Zurich metropolitan area. They had been beyond fortunate to have no problems with police, but she wasn't going to push her luck moving into the city. She was so close to the end, hopefully she had built up enough of a lead that slowing down for traffic wouldn't cost her much.
At the bank, she pulled the car into the first parking spot she found on the same block, more concerned with getting inside than wasting time trying to get as close as possible. Methos followed her out of the car, surprising Amy.
"Are you sure you want to go up here? You could stay in the car where you won't be seen." She really hadn't meant to drag Methos into her problem, and in the moment making it look as if he had been nearly kidnapped had seemed like a good idea.
"Thanks for the offer, but if I'm going to be at the opening fight, I may as well be at the conclusion."
Amy shrugged, "I highly recommend you stay outside, though, if you ever hope for Paulson to believe you actually aren't involved." She jogged up the stairs to the front doors, ignoring the Immortal behind her.
So needless to say
I'm odds and ends
But that's me stumbling away
Slowly learning that life is OK
Say after me
It's no better to be safe than sorry
Take on me
Take me on
I'll be gone
In a day or two (6)
Methos glared at Amy's back as he took position against a column. He would have preferred to have been carrying on their conversations over a few beers, but he had been given the answers he had hoped for and so much more.
Commotion in the street drew his attention. Two sedans suddenly braking in front of the bank caused other drivers to react in irritation. Six men spilled onto the sidewalk, one clearly in charge, and Methos knew this was the man from whom Amy had stolen.
He slumped further against the granite, a bored student with no purpose, waiting on the bank porch for no good reason. Amy had hoped to be five minutes ahead. Checking his watch, Methos noted she had gone in the door fifteen minutes earlier. Somewhere they had picked up ten minutes. He hoped it was enough time.
Walking at her typical quick pace, her calm face not betraying the adrenaline still pumping through her system, Amy pushed out the door and walked across the broad expanse of concrete. Without so much as a glance in Methos' direction, she approached the mob boss directly, coming face to face with him at the top of the stairs.
Her back already straight, Amy tipped her head to look down her nose at Paulson - as much as she could since they were the same height even with him standing one step beneath her. He had made a mistake in allowing her to get across the porch before he finished climbing the stairs.
With her hands jammed in her pockets and disdain clearly across her face, Amy waited for Paulson to speak.
"Fun little trip you've led us on."
"Yes, it was quite relaxing and enjoyable, wasn't it?"
"Cute. Give it back."
Amy clucked her tongue. "Sorry, don't have it anymore. Feel free to send one of your friends here inside to check."
With a jerk of his head Paulson sent one of the men behind him into the bank to verify what Amy claimed.
She pulled her hands from her pockets to cross across her chest, still staring directly at her adversary. "So, how are your two goons? They have a good morning?"
"Two concussions, a broken jaw, one cracked skull, three shattered ribs, and a stay in Critical Care for brain bleeding. I have quite a debt to collect from you and your friend over there for what you did to two of my best."
"Perhaps you should be glad I left them alive."
Paulson's eyes flicked over to Methos. Amy didn't let her eyes follow.
"You think being together all the time will be enough protection for either of you? I have more than two men. Your life is about to be cut very short."
Amy laughed with a cruel bark. "Pierson? Are you having problems seeing him over there, Paulson? He's nearly worthless in study group and worse in a fight!"
Methos let his face grow more pale and widen his eyes in fear. He could be the grad student, pulled out of his element by a crazy classmate. He was willing to forgive her insults to him in exchange for the way she was carefully deflecting Paulson's attention from him and back to herself. Why she was so willing to do so was beyond him, but he would take it.
Amy narrowed her eyes and warned Paulson, "No, your problem is with me alone. You touch Pierson, and you can be sure I'll be more than happy to sic the police, Interpol, the gendarmes, whatever you like, all over you. Keep this between us, Paulson, and our relationship can remain as it has."
Paulson's attention was drawn over Amy's shoulder as she spoke. She let a cruel smile play across her lips as his reddening face revealed his rage at her confirmed actions.
Anticipating that Paulson would have a mole inside the bank, she had been careful to make her movements obvious to the security cameras. She wanted to be sure it would be reported back to the boss that the necklace had made it into her safe deposit box.
"I've won Paulson -"
"This round," he growled back.
"There are no more rounds. I've proved I can get into your bedroom while you're home. I've proved I can put your men in the hospital, and I've proved I know what you're up to. You come after me, or Pierson over there, or try to pull something like this again... You'll wake up one morning, standing alone in the rubble of your empire, wishing I had been merciful enough to kill you first."
Paulson and Amy glared at each other. She would not be the first to move. She would not let her eyes flick away to his men. If one of them were about to make a move, she was trusting Methos to watch her back.
Paulson blinked first. He turned and spoke to Methos. "You need to reconsider your acquaintances, son. Hanging around this girl is going to get you killed."
Adam Pierson answered in a wavering voice. "I'm seeing that, sir. I think the study group will agree that she's out."
Paulson turned and stomped to his car, entourage trailing just behind him.
Methos remained hunched against the granite column.
Chin still defiant, arms still crossed, Amy watched the cars merge in traffic and continue down the avenue and out of sight. When her chin dropped ever so slightly, Methos stepped forward to join her at the steps.
She carefully spoke without moving her lips. "Don't say anything." Methos' eyebrows drew down. "We're still on camera. Not a word."
She began to walk back to her own car, assuming he would follow, and not looking to verify that he did. Adam Pierson was inconsequential, but she would at least make sure he got back to Paris. Hyper-aware of the cameras, they held tightly to their personas of pride and fear as they climbed into the tiny Fiat and pulled away from the curb.
And with dust in throat I crave
Only knowledge will I save
To the game you stay a slave
Roamer, wanderer
Nomad, vagabond
Call me what you will
But I'll take my time anywhere
Free to speak my mind anywhere
And I'll redefine anywhere
Anywhere I roam
Where I lay my head is home (7)
Less than a mile later, Amy pulled into a parking lot and stopped, leaving the engine running. Without a word, she climbed out and walked around the car to open Methos' door.
The Immortal looked up at her, surprised. "What's going on?"
"Adam, other than getting a small nap on the plane, I've been up for damn near forty-eight hours straight. If you're really as afraid of dying in a car wreck as you claimed earlier, then you'd be jumping up and down to take the driving away from me, not sitting there with that stupid look on your face. Now shove over to the other side because, as it happens, I don't care to die in a wreck, either."
Methos didn't need any further encouragement to hop over the emergency brake and take over the steering wheel.
Heirs of a cold war
That's what we've become
Inheriting troubles I'm mentally numb
Crazy, I just cannot bear
I'm living with something' that just isn't fair
Mental wounds not healing
Who and what's to blame
I'm going off the rails on a crazy train (8)
Next: Sunday, Bloody Sunday
Song Credits (lyrics re-typed from several different online lyric websites):
(1) Live - "Lightening Crashes"
(2) Better Than Ezra - "In the Blood"
(3) Better Than Ezra - "The Killer Inside Me"
(4) Collective Soul - "Where the River Flows"
(5) Pink Floyd - "The Show Must Go On"
(6) Ah Ha - "Take on Me"
(7) Metallica - "Wherever I May Roam"
(8) Ozzy Osbourne - "Crazy Train"
