Disclaimer: The Highlander concept, as well as the characters of Duncan MacLeod, Joe Dawson, Richie Ryan, Mike Barrett, James Horton, Robert, Ian Bancroft, Don Salzar, Adam Pierson/Methos, Tessa Noel, Slan Quince, Connor MacLeod, Grayson, Hugh Fitzcairne, Xavier St. Cloud, Kalas, Darius, Jeremy and Donna, Amanda, Dr. Anne Lindsey Mako and Lauren Gale belong solely to Davis/Panzer. They are used without permission and not for monetary gain. I just borrowed them. The characters, Sara, Corey and Amy Saunders, and Richard Collins (Dickon) are mine. I would like to thank Lisa
Hughes for her help and constant rereads, even when her deadlines were getting close. Also, Russet McMillan for drumming into my head that while linearity is fine, sometimes the flash back mode is a necessity, and for her other helpful suggestions. The story starts in the beginning of season three. Enjoy. Comment to: lwright3@rochester.rr.com
Dawson's Daughter
By Lori Wright
Part One
Fall 1994
Amy sat in her rented car trying to gather the courage to go into the bookstore. With her binoculars, she could just make out the figure of a man sitting at a table on the second level. She had been observing him now for three days and he yet to do anything but work in the bookstore and supervise the reconstruction of what appeared to be a bar. The man was not quite what she had imagined him to be, softer somehow. After having him under her surveillance for the past three days, she now wanted to face him. She recalled all the horror stories that she had heard as a child from her father about this man. According to him, Dawson was the devil incarnate. If this Dawson ever saw her, she would be dead. So he insisted that she promise to never, ever see him. By chance if they came in contact, she was to run the opposite direction as fast as her legs would carry her. She tried. She really tried to do as he asked. But now, it was no longer possible.
Drawing a deep breath, she opened the car door and got out. She smoothed the lines on her slacks, unknowingly drying her sweaty palms. She looked both ways and crossed the street. With her head held stiffly and her back rigidly straight, she walked into the store. She knew he wouldn't recognize her as anyone familiar. All she wanted to do was to look into his eyes and determine if he was capable of cold-blooded murder. From a distance she was unable to tell. Her father had certainly implied that he was capable of anything.
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The man looked up from his papers and followed the woman as she entered the store. She was dressed very casually but held herself like a society matron who had wandered by mistake to the wrong part of town. He found his cane and slowly walked the few stairs down to the bottom floor. He turned the corner and came face to face with her. Her eyes locked with his; neither could look away.
With his sincerest smile, he asked, "Can I help you with anything?"
Her brain wouldn't work. "I-I think I'm in th-the wrong place. Excuse me."
She ran out of the store. She gasped in some air. Had she breathed at all in that stupid place? She quickly got into her car and drove directly to the hotel. She packed her bags and went to the airport. She never stopped running until she returned home.
Joe watched her flee. The depth of her terror surprised him. He had always believed that he was an easy going, likable sort of guy. What could he have done to instill such fear? He couldn't quite remember what she looked like. But he would never forget her eyes.
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Amy recovered slowly from her ordeal in Seacouver. Dickon had witnessed her return with raised eyebrows.
"Did you see Richie while you were there?" he asked.
"No, he's not back from his travels with MacLeod."
How she missed Richie.
Winter 1993
She got into her 4X4 truck and drove down to the Sheriffs office. They were having a mid-January thaw. The whole town was flooded with melted snow, which had run down from the mountains. She worked at the town hall as a deputy. She had been training as a Wyoming State trooper just before her parents had been murdered. She had resigned from the academy afterwards, but the town still considered her an 'educated' police officer and insisted that she utilize her training for the good of the town. They also hoped that the activity would help ease her pain. They were a tight-knit town, which did not take to strangers. They tended to be suspicious of new comers, more so now since the murder of her parents.
She pulled her truck into a parking place and walked inside. The town was very small. Dickon and Corey had bought a track of land there over 100 years ago, and the population hadn't increased by much since the time of the purchase. She opened the door and walked in. Greg, Sheriff Tim Maitland's brother, rose to intercept her. Greg, at only sixteen, manned the front desk as a part time job.
"Boy am I glad you're here." His face was flushed with nervous excitement.
"Where's Tim?"
"Home. He had a run in with some cows, which had escaped Patterson's, and he helped round them up. Then he went home to change. He said he'd be right back. But he's not here yet," he whined.
"So what else happened?" she asked knowing that the escaped cows were not enough to rile the teen.
"Right after school let out, this guy came roaring into town on a motorcycle. He was wearing only a leather coat," Greg said with amazement in his expression.
"He didn't have on any other clothes?"
"No, I mean yes, you know, but he didn't have on a warm coat or anything like that. Well Tim pulled him over. And you know what? He had a sword!" Clearly he thought that this would get a rise out of her. Every one knew that her parents had had their heads chopped off by strangers who carried swords.
"He resisted arrest, so Tim had to get a little rough. He's still wearing the cuffs, Tim was afraid to take them off of him. Then we got the call about the cows and Tim took off. The prisoner is making all kinds of noises now. I'm afraid to go in there."
The chance that this stranger was a Hunter was pretty slim, she thought. It was more likely that he was an immortal who had gotten lost. Armed with this bit of information, Amy walked the few steps down the hall to where the jails were located. This room consisted of a desk and two cells. Never in her life had both cells been occupied at the same time. As she walked down the hall, she could hear the cussing and complaining of their new guest.
She got her first look and said out loud, "Why he's just a baby."
This further enraged the inmate. She ignored him, and turned to Greg.
"So what did this guy do except speed and wear a leather coat?"
"He was doing thirty five down Market Street."
Then the prisoner interrupted him. "How in the hell can you call thirty-five speeding? I didn't break any laws."
"You be nice to the lady. She eats little boys like you for breakfast." Greg, who didn't look any older than the inmate, turned his attention back to Amy.
"Tim pulled him over and asked for his driver's license. That's when he noticed the sword in some kind of sheath attached to the side of his cycle.
"Carrying a sword is against the law too?" asked the prisoner belligerently.
Greg glared at the guy again and continued. "Tim hauled him off the bike and then threw him into his car." Greg walked over to the desk and pulled out a rapier, which had been concealed behind it.
"This is it. What are we going to do about him?"
"Let me have the sword. I'll take it from here. You go back to the desk and tell Tim that I'll take care of everything. He can forget this guy was ever in here."
Grateful to have the responsibility lifted from him, he did as she suggested. After he left, Amy perched herself on the edge of the desk and swung her legs in front. Then she looked up to appraise the prisoner. He seemed to be about eighteen or twenty, but how old was he really? He had curly reddish blond hair with an attitude a mile long. Dealing with him would not be easy.
"You have no reason to keep me here."
"You were carrying a sword, and in this town, it *is* against the law. So what's your name, I assume you've got one?"
"Richard Ryan."
"So where are you from?"
"All over."
"Sounds like the stock immortal answer. How about most recently?"
He felt his heart plummet. Shit, she knew he was immortal. He felt very vulnerable.
"Seacouver, Washington," he answered truthfully.
He watched her hold his sword as if she knew exactly how to use it. She made no threatening actions, and shielded her thoughts well. He was positive that her every word, her every action was done to intimidate him. It was working.
"Do you intend to return there? Or are you touring the world?"
"I'm just traveling around, I haven't seen much of this country?" He said trying to sound sophisticated.
"Really? What countries have you been to?"
A woman came in through the door, which interrupted them.
Amy turned to her and asked, "Could you call Dickon and tell him that I want him to pick up the prisoner's motorcycle, put it in our truck and then come in and get me."
"Sure thing." And she walked out the door again.
"Where were we? Ah yes, tell me what countries you've lived in?"
"France."
"Really? Did you ever live in Paris? There was a priest there who was a very good friend of mine."
"Yes, I lived there. The only priest I knew was Darius." He saw her eyes light up.
"Yes, Darius was a very special immortal. He was a compatriot with Dickon and my Dad."
Richard Ryan didn't know what to think. That she was friends with Darius boded well, but that also implied that this Dickon was immortal too. Was this Dickon looking for an easy Quickening? He banged the bars in frustration.
She sat looking at him as if she were reading his mind. "If I tell you that we mean you no harm, that we have no intention of hurting you, can I have your word that you won't try anything?"
"What do you plan on doing with me?"
"I thought I'd take you home, and maybe we can compare notes. If you knew Darius then you must know that he's dead. I want any information you can give me about his killer. Do you know who the killer was?" Her eyes darkened with anger.
"Yes, I know who it was."
"Good, then you know it was a Watcher. I heard that an immortal named Duncan MacLeod killed this Watcher. Can you verify this?"
"Mac didn't kill him, Joe did."
Just then Richie's eyes lost focus. He felt the buzz of another immortal's presence. It was a very old immortal.
"I guess Dickon's here. Give me your word."
"You have my word I won't do anything stupid."
"I'll take the cuffs off, but first I'm going to give your sword to Dickon. He won't hurt you unless you do something to me. I can't say that I trust you, yet. But we'll see."
There was a knock at the door. "Come in Dickon."
A man walked in. He looked about thirty, with brown hair, but was relatively short. While Richie couldn't gage his real age, the strength of his quickening announced that he was pretty old.
Amy tossed him the sword. Dickon caught it with ease. "I'm going to let him out, then take his cuffs off. We're taking him home."
"He's not a stray puppy, Little Bit."
"He's a friend of Darius's."
Dickon raised an eyebrow but said nothing.
"Tim got rambunctious and arrested him for basically carrying a sword and speeding. He's just a bit spooked."
She unlocked the cell and came in. She took off the cuffs and grabbed his arm. He decided that it was in his own best interests to cooperate. He didn't sense any hostility from the older immortal, only indulgence.
"By the way, I'm Amy Saunders and this is Dickon, my best friend. He lives with me. Dickon, his name is Richard Ryan."
"Most people call me Richie."
They led him to a truck and Dickon got behind the wheel. Richie sat in the middle and Amy took the window. Richie's sword got thrown in the back. He needed it in his hand, in his possession. He felt naked without it.
The ride back to the farm was uneventful. Richie's curiosity had replaced his initial fear. Amy conversed naturally. Dickon just sat back and smiled. He would occasionally glance Richie's way, and seemed to commiserate with his predicament. Music had always been a side passion with her, so she turned the radio on and they spent the short trip discussing current rock groups and individual favorite songs. As they pulled into the long driveway, Richie gazed in rapt wonder at the acres of meadows that contained some of the most awesome horses he had ever seen. The farm was obviously prosperous, and these two had to be incredibly rich. Dickon pulled the truck up front and turned off the engine, and turned to their young prisoner.
"Richie, I'll give your sword back, but if you hurt Amy in any way, your head will be mine. Is that understood?"
"Yes, sir." Dickon had been very laid back up to that point, but the menace was clearly visible as he made his threat.
The three made their way to the kitchen. Dickon wanted to get a quick drink, then head back out to work. Amy got one for her and Richie, and then sat down at the table to start interrogating him again.
"So Richie, tell me how you died the first time. I just love these stories."
"Mac and I had gone to rescue Tessa from this Hunter who's M.O. was to kidnap mortals who were close to immortals, draw them in, and then behead them. He was trying for Mac, but we stopped him and Mac killed him. Then Mac decided to stay and see if he could get some information from the guy's computer. Tessa and I were going to leave, but both of us were shot and killed by this drug addict." Richie shook his head, trying to dispel the melancholy threatening the conversation.
"How about if I make lunch. You hungry?" Amy asked Richie.
"Yeah."
Amy got up to make him a sandwich. "Continue the story."
"Mac fell apart. I suppose you could say I fell apart too. I was dead, then I was alive. I had been living with Tessa and MacLeod for over a year at that point, so I knew about immortals and all, but I never suspected I was one. Hey, you okay? You look funny."
"MacLeod?"
"Yea, Duncan MacLeod. He's my teacher and my best friend. I thought you said that you knew him?"
"So how did you meet him?" She asked avoiding a direct answer.
"I tried to steal from him."
"What! Are you insane?"
So Richie went into the long story of how he had jumped from foster home to foster home and gotten mixed up with the wrong crowd. He described breaking in Mac's antique store and trying to loot the place.
"You should have seen Mac, still in his underwear, waving his katana around, ready to take my head. Of course just my luck, as he entered the room, I had just pulled out a sword from one of the cases. When he came in, I almost shit my pants. He can be real scary when he's looking at you with his cold warrior eyes. Then another immortal dropped from the ceiling. Mac turned his attention from me to him. This guy was even worse. Then a third immortal showed up, and they were all waving their swords around. I took that as my cue to leave."
He had her in stitches, describing that night.
"Anyway, I kept following them and then I saw Mac take the evil immortal's head and the Quickening. Then I saw the other MacLeod, Connor, come back from the dead. To make a long story short, Mac took me in and sort of adopted me. I've been with him ever since."
Amy handed him a plate with a couple of sandwiches and some potato chips. "So tell me some of your story," he asked between bites.
"Well, my mother was a trained Watcher. She had this relationship with another Watcher during her training and unknowingly became pregnant. Her first assignment was Corey Saunders and she became very sick following him around. My dad said it was very strange having this beautiful woman following him everywhere, throwing up at every corner. Finally he couldn't take it any more and turned around to face her. The shock made her pass right out. From then on he took care of her. Eventually she told him about being his Watcher and stuff."
"So where does Dickon fit into this?"
"Well during the dark ages there was this band of gothic warriors who terrorized Europe. Darius was the leader, and Grayson was his second in command. During one of their raids they came across my dad, Corey, and Dickon, although that wasn't their names back then. Well the four immortals joined together. Eventually they came across Methos, and he too joined their band."
"I don't know about this Methos but I do know Grayson. He was trying to kill Darius, but Mac got to him first and defeated him."
"I never met Grayson. Dickon and my Dad didn't keep in touch with him so maybe they had some kind of falling out."
"You seem to accept that Dickon and your Dad were pretty bad back then. How do you do it?"
"Because they aren't bad now. The times were different then, at least that's what Methos always tells me. You had to do what you could to survive. Well you know that Darius took that Quickening that changed him. He retired to the church, but dad and Dickon kept fighting. Methos stayed with them for awhile then he too eventually left. Gradually they got bored and starting raising horses. My Dad worked for awhile making swords."
"So Dickon and Corey stayed together all these years?"
"Yep. Dickon bought this land and started raising his horses here. Dad moved in too. They've never moved back to Europe. When my dad met my mom it was only natural they move here. So here I was raised."
"Did you do much other traveling?"
"Only to France. When I turned twelve, my parents decided to leave me in Paris with Darius for summer vacations. I went there every year until I turned sixteen."
"Wow, living with Darius, must have been pretty boring."
"Not really, well maybe in the beginning. Anyway that's how I met your MacLeod. I had run away from Darius and he called MacLeod to help find me." She paused. "Tell me about how Darius died. I assume Mac must have told you."
"We were in Paris at the time. Fitzcairne had come to see Mac and said that a few of his friends had gone missing. Then they went to talk to Darius, and found him beheaded in the church. Right on holy ground. Mac found a chronicle hidden and it led him to Dawson."
"That chronicle was ours. A friend of ours had stolen it from the Watchers a long time ago. It was about campaign that Darius and Corey, my dad, had been on and it had some missing pages. They loaned it to Darius, They were hoping that between Darius's and my Dad's memory they could rewrite those lost pages."
She paused, "So MacLeod knows Dawson?"
"Yea, he still gives me the creeps, but Mac is starting to trust him. In fact it was Dawson who shot and killed Horton. He said something about taking care of their own. He apologized to Mac for Horton hunting him."
"Wait, I thought it was MacLeod who killed Horton. At least that's what I heard. He ran Horton through with his sword."
"That's what we all thought. Turns out that Horton had shot Mac so they died together. When Mac woke up the place was empty. Dawson had taken Horton to the hospital and saved him. Next thing we know, Horton's teamed up with this other immortal, Xavier St. Cloud and they're taking lots of heads. Then they went after Mac. So Mac, chop-chop, St. Cloud, and Dawson shoots Horton. Joe admits that he made a mistake by trusting Horton, but they were related. Now we're all best buddies." He commented a bit sarcastically.
She missed the reference about the fact that Horton and Dawson being related. "Was there a body?"
"What do you mean?"
"Did they recover Horton's body and verify that he was dead. Maybe he was wearing a bulletproof vest or something. This all could be a Watcher plot to cover up Horton's activities, so he can come back again. I wouldn't trust Dawson, and what he tells you."
"I could ask Joe about the body. He might tell me."
"You know him well enough to talk to him?"
"Yeah, not that I really want to. There's just something about people skulking around in shadows spying on every move I make."
"My Mom was a Watcher and she trained me to be Dickon's, from the time I was eight. Usually I just write down what we do. He hasn't taken a head that I've ever seen, but I've seen my Dad take lots of heads. Every immortal that came to town, never left. But Dickon is really good with the sword. He beat my Dad all the time. He said that Dad needed the practice, and made him handle all the challenges. I think if a tough immortal had ever come, Dickon would have been the one to fight. Anyway, my Mom and I would watch the fights, take notes and pictures, then we all would review them afterwards. Dickon always wanted a play by play. It's what we did on Saturday nights. So have you ever seen your Watcher?"
"I don't think I'm important enough to have one. I know that Joe would never tell me. He's very loyal to that group, but I think he really likes and respects Mac."
"Don't get too complacent. He could just be waiting for the right time and place to strike."
"But he did have the perfect opportunity. Mac was dead, all he had to do was swing the sword."
"But you said Horton's daughter was there. He might not have wanted to commit murder in front of her."
"You sound determined not to trust him, why?"
"James Horton was the SOB who killed my parents. He came to visit with three other Watchers. Dickon just took off, so they never saw him. They said they came to touch base with my Mom, but that was a lie. I just happened to come home that week on a vacation. I used to be part of the Wyoming State Police Department. Anyway, I came home and met these four. My Dad, Corey, had somehow made it seem to the world that he and my mother were dead. So Horton's story, the reason he came to visit Mom, was fishy to begin with. So my Dad made himself scarce, and let my Mom do her Watcher business. What it actually was, was a trial. My father was guilty of being immortal, and my Mom was guilty of betrayal. While they were having this big discussion, one of the Watchers, a boy really, made me give him a tour of the town. While Robert and I were gone, Horton tied both of my parents to chairs. He placed them side by side, and swung my dad's sword and beheaded them both. Then they jumped into their car and drove into town. They practically dragged the kid into the car; he looked a bit green. I could tell that he was not happy to be included in what was going on. Little did I know that my parents were dead. I thought Robert just didn't like me. Then again, maybe he didn't. But right before they took off, Horton looked me in the eyes and said he was sorry, but he had to follow orders from his boss, Joe Dawson. Joe told him to come visit them and handle the situation. He made it a point to tell me that. Then they drove away. I ran all the way home. Dickon was kneeling sobbing his eyes out. My Dad's Quickening was lost forever."
She purposely didn't tell Richie that during their entire stay, Horton kept insisting she call him Uncle Jim. Just the thought, made here shiver. She wouldn't do it.
Richie was appalled. "No wonder you want to know if Horton's really dead. But I don't think Dawson had anything to do with it, like Horton said. He's just not like that. Horton, however, was really evil. He may have blamed Dawson just to pass the buck. You know, in case you're bent on revenge, you'd go after Joe first. I wouldn't convict Joe on what Horton says. But why did Horton let you go?" he mused. "He must have had a reason. Maybe he *wanted* you to go after Joe. Maybe he had an aversion to murdering someone from his own family. After all Joe is his wife's brother.
"His wife's brother? Horton was married to Dawson's sister?" She couldn't believe it. This *would* make him her Uncle. Just like he said. The ramifications hit her like a ton of bricks. Did her Mother know that Dawson and Horton were related? Could this be why she trusted him enough to let him in the house in the first place? Was it possible that Dawson really was her father? Horton alluded to it during his stay, but her Mom wouldn't talk about it. Did they not tell her that Dawson was her biological Father because he too was evil? Richie didn't seem to think that he was. She was so confused.
"Yea, at first Joe was loyal to Horton because of being family and because of the Watcher organization. But when it became apparent that Horton was a Hunter, then Joe changed his allegiance."
"So in your opinion, Joe is not a Hunter?"
"I'll stake my life on it."
Fall 1994
Amy had listened to Richie. She listened to Dickon. But for some reason she couldn't get past the thought that Dawson could be responsible for her parent's death. It was an instinctive fear. This was why she decided to go to Seacouver, meet him and get it all done with before Richie returned. But she couldn't do it. Her fear clouded her brain and she ran. Dawson probably thought she was a nut case. She certainly thought she was.
Dickon interrupted her thoughts.
"So what happened there, if you didn't see Richie?"
"I spied on Dawson."
Dickon started laughing. "Watching the Watcher. Did he ever discover you?"
"I walked into his bookstore and when we were standing in front of each other, I panicked and ran away."
"You didn't?"
"I couldn't control it. When his eyes looked into mine, all I could think about were the stories Daddy used to tell about him."
"Stories? About Joe Dawson? What stories?" He was dumbfounded. He had never heard any of these stories. How could Corey do this? His jealousy was as ridiculous as Amy's fear.
"When ever he would tell me stories, and there was a bogeyman, his name was always Dawson. When I wouldn't eat my peas, Dawson was always going to come and take me away. He was this shadowy figure that was always there ready to hurt me."
"And your Mom never put a stop to this?"
"Not exactly. She would look funny and tell Daddy to stop scaring me, but that was all. When I got older, Dad made me promise never to go near this Joe Dawson, so I promised. I feel bad, because now I'm going to have to break it. Horton implicated him in the deaths of my parents. Yet you and Richie are positive that he didn't. So I'll have to make sure for myself that he didn't have anything to do with it. To do this I have to get past the conditioning that Daddy put me through, and get to know him. But if he did…"
Dickon ignored the threat. "I think that's an excellent idea. I really believe that Dawson would never deliberately hurt your Mom. He loved her, more than anything, and she loved him too, which is why Corey was so insanely jealous of him"
"Was he my Father?"
"Yes, Joe Dawson *is* your father."
Dickon walked away and left her with her thoughts. She tried to remember the times as a child when Dawson had been mentioned. The memories were faint, only the echoes of fear were vivid. She had a vague memory of her mother talking with Methos about Joe. She was supposed to be asleep and they were whispering. She just couldn't remember what they were saying. If this was true then why hadn't Methos told her the truth when she went to Paris last year?
Summer 1993
Amy got off the plane in Paris, and immediately took a taxi to St Julien le Pauvre, Darius's church. She went in and lit a candle. She sat in a pew and stared at the altar. So many memories rushed at her. Tears spilled from her eyes. She remembered dusting that altar, during which, Darius would regale her with stories. He was especially fond of the tale concerning the candlesticks and the gold cross sitting on a table off to the side of the choir pews.
They had been obtained during one of the many wars that Corey and Dickon had fought in after they had parted company with Darius. They had looted a church and stolen them specifically for their friend. The irony of this never failed to elicit a chuckle from Darius. Together they brought it back to France and had given it to Darius. It actually had belonged to Henry VIII, but when he gave the order to disband the Catholic monasteries and churches, the king's soldiers had looted and burned for weeks. Dickon and Corey, who had enlisted as weapon makers, had joined in and subsequently ended up with many valuable relics. Most they gave to Darius, who kept them safe throughout the centuries. Some they kept for themselves. But the gold cross had special memories attached. The fact was, the cross had originally belonged the priest who's Quickening Darius had taken which had changed his life. The cross had been stolen a century later by the French King and he used it to bribe the new Tudor King. Somehow Henry must have lost it or given it away. When Dickon and Corey brought it back it back to him, he said he felt such a sense of homecoming, it brought tears to his eyes.
Amy left the church and made her way to the private cemetery in the back. Only a few venerated religious figures were buried there, and Methos had told her that MacLeod had moved Heaven and Earth to get a memorial to Darius erected there. Having met him that one time, she could picture him doing this. She knelt and leaned her head against the marble. The dampness from the ground seeped into her knees, but she was totally oblivious to it. Fresh tears fell from her eyes.
"Oh God, why you? Of all the immortals alive, you were the one who deserved to be last. You were good beyond anything us stupid mortals could imagine. I loved you so much, and everything you were is lost. Lost forever. Dickon can't even avenge your senseless death. Horton is dead, my Dad is dead, and you are dead. I feel so rootless."
She choked on her emotions. "I had childish dreams of you giving up the priesthood for me when I was only sixteen. I had dreams of us married and living a normal life. How naive I was. Then when I got older, I had dreams of falling in love with some nice guy and having you marry us. Now that will never happen. I just can't imagine Paris without you in it."
A body joining her at the memorial, interrupted her soliloquy. She turned her head, and looked up into the compassionate eyes of Methos.
"I went to the airport to pick you up, but you had already left."
"I'm sorry, I just had to come here first. I miss him so much."
"We all do. I used to go over there every Tuesday and Thursday night for a game of chess. We'd reminisce, or discuss current affairs. He'd talk about parishioners who were troubled. I'd talk about the silly things the Watchers were doing. A week never went by that I didn't see him. Dickon had Corey, and I had Darius."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply that I was the only one terribly hurt by all this."
"Yes, I know. MacLeod was hurt just as bad. It has hurt even the Watchers."
"How can you defend them. If it weren't for Watchers, Darius would still be alive. I hate them. I wish they were all dead." She was hysterical in her grief.
Methos talked to her sternly. "Young lady, your mother was one of us too. She spent a lot of time training you to be one also. What they do is of great importance. Don't belittle the group because of a few very scared individuals."
"You're defending what they did?" she asked incredulously?
"Never! But I understand how it evolved. Come let's leave here now. You're getting cold." He bent down and grasped her luggage, and led her to his car parked around the corner.
"Did Dickon call you and tell you to meet me?"
"Yes. He's very worried about you. He said you're more upset over Darius's death than Corey's."
"Tell me something. What are the Watchers doing about this whole Hunter situation?"
"They are doing their best to find and expel all offenders."
"That's it?"
"Horton is dead. MacLeod killed him in Seacouver. Joe Dawson gave a full report to the tribunal and they are satisfied."
"What do you know about this Dawson?"
Methos gave her a quick look. "Nothing. Never met the man."
"Horton told me that Dawson was the one who gave him the order to kill my parents."
"Do you believe him?"
"Would you?"
"I wouldn't believe James Horton if he told me the sky was blue."
Then he abruptly changed the subject. They spent a lot of time at the Shakespeare and Company bookstore. Amy met Don Salzar, who was the only Watcher who knew that Adam Pierson, grad student, Watcher historian/researcher, was really Methos. Don made a serious effort to get to know her and prove that all Watchers were not bad. She talked about her parents but did not like to talk about Dickon. His life was private. It was not up to her to inform the Watchers, of another immortal's whereabouts. As nice as Don seemed to be, he was still a Watcher, and she just didn't trust them, no matter what Methos thought.
She spent a month with them and then she headed back to Wyoming. She revisited the church and marble statue four more times. Then on her last day she made one last trip. She brought a teapot and two cups. She had brewed some moss tea, one of Darius's favorites. She drank hers and poured his cup onto the grave. She left a bouquet of flowers and cried once more. She would miss him forever.
Fall 1994
After talking with Dickon, she decided to go to Seacouver once more. She'd faced him once; she'd do it again. This man was her biological father. No matter what Corey had said about him, this was a fact. Dickon had confirmed it. Everyone seemed convinced that Dawson was innocent of the crime that Horton had implicated him in. She just needed to get past her illogical fear.
She boarded a plane and flew there. She stayed in the same hotel as before. It had only been a week since her last visit here, and she knew that Dawson would recognize her. Who could forget someone fleeing in fear? She went first to the bookstore, but he didn't seem to be there. It took her an hour to screw her courage up enough to go in. She found only one person there. He was a Watcher, but not the one she was looking for.
Next she went to the bar. The pink neon sign was lit, but it didn't look open yet. She opened the door and walked in. There were several people working, but no customers. The place was really shaping up. There was a stage with some brackets, which she assumed would hold a lighting system. Tables were scattered around the room, but no chairs. The bar was finished, but only half the shelves were stocked. She saw some stairs and followed them up with her eyes. Joe Dawson was standing on a middle step looking at her.
He called out, "Are you going to run away again?"
"No."
"Can I help you with anything?"
This man is my father. He did not kill my Mom. He did not kill Corey. He is innocent. She kept repeating this to herself.
"I'm looking for Richie. I understand he's off with MacLeod on their father/son world tour or something. I figured you'd probably know when they're supposed to return."
"He hasn't given me a date."
She looked puzzled. "But you're his Watcher? Aren't you supposed to know these things?"
Joe couldn't believe it. Richie told a girlfriend about his immortality and about the Watchers? He needed to have a long talk with that boy.
"They're do back any day, but I don't know exactly when."
She seemed to think about this. "Okay. I guess I'll see you later." She very carefully walked slowly out.
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Joe was even more puzzled than before. She was still afraid of him; she just hid it better this time. But she said she was a friend of Richie's, was that a lie? He forgot to ask her name. The fact that she knew about immortals and Watchers troubled him the most. Supposedly MacLeod and Richie were the only immortals who knew about them.
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
She went back to her hotel room. She did it. She talked to him. He didn't seem so scary. Somewhere along the line she stopped wanting to kill him and started believing more in his innocence.
Late Winter 1993
"Come on Richie, time to get out of bed." She ripped off his covers letting all his warmth escape.
He groaned and opened one eye. "It's too early."
"Come on lazy bones. You promised to ride with me the next time we got a fresh snowfall. Well, we did last night. It's beautiful out there. Come on, we're wasting time."
He rolled out of bed and put on his clothes as she handed them to him. For the last few months he had been living with them. Since Mac didn't want him, it felt good to be a part of this family. He was afraid of what Dickon would say or do when he started sharing a bed with Amy, but he had accepted it without comment.
He got off the bed and followed her into the kitchen. The clock read seven-thirty, which his body said was too early to function. She poured him his coffee and then cooked him a big breakfast. This was the part he loved. He watched her, in her jeans and sweater, her hair unbrushed, laughing at him, as she fixed him a meal. It was so much like the home he had always imagined. He wasn't sure if he ever wanted to leave.
She saddled up their mounts. He had become quite adept at riding since arriving there. Mac would sure be impressed with his newfound skills. Along with learning to ride a horse, Dickon had been sparing with him. While jogging along the side of the back pasture, he thought back to his first time sparing with Dickon. They had gone a few rounds with Dickon breaking through his defenses with ease, when Amy grabbed a sword and challenged Dickon. Richie sat with his mouth open at her skill. They went for over ten minutes, with her parrying Dickon's every move. Then with a fake twist she flung his blade out of his hands.
"How did you do that?"
She started laughing. "It's choreographed. I can repeat what I just did, move for move. We do this to show off. It also allows me to practice with Dickon without getting hurt. That was very important to my mother."
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
A branch hit Richie in the face, which brought him back to the present. Amy was right. It was fun to ride on new fallen snow. The horse's hooves made a unique muffled sound as they hit the ground, which was rather soothing. He didn't want to talk and interrupt the silence. Amy seemed to understand, for she would only look back and smile at him, sharing with him the splendor of the beautiful morning. It was totally worth getting out of bed for.
When they got back, Dickon was in the house reading his newspaper. Richie joined him. They sat in companionable silence for over an hour before Dickon destroyed it.
"As much as we like having you here, the time has come for you to leave and make your peace with MacLeod. You do realize that you are only hiding here."
"Mac doesn't want me back." Why was Dickon saying this to him now?
"It's up to you, to make him forgive you, or at least accept what you did. Would you do things differently now? Knowing that MacLeod would not approve, would you have spared Mako's life?"
"No, I wouldn't change anything."
"Good. Remember, MacLeod is not God. He is not both judge and jury. He is just a man with strong moral beliefs. Don't let him make you feel guilty for following your own ideals. Just because they are not his, does not make them wrong."
Richie thought hard on what he was saying. It made a lot of sense.
"You expect me to just go up to Mac and say, what?"
"How about, I forgive you for judging me."
Richie was aghast. "I can't say that!"
"You need to stop thinking of him as being above you. You are equals. Amy also needs some time to reconstruct her thinking."
Amy looked up from the crossword puzzle. "What do you mean?"
"I know that since Richie's been here, you've been thinking in the back of your mind that you intend to kill Joe Dawson."
"I have not."
"Yes, Little Bit, you have. You have pumped Richie for every bit of knowledge as to where Joe lives, where he works, and things like that. You are going to take what Horton said and act on it." Then Dickon sat back and watched how Richie was going to handle this.
"You can't kill Dawson. He's not one of the bad guys."
"You don't know that for sure. Do you really want to take that chance? You have only hearsay and what MacLeod believes."
They argued back and forth, but Dickon didn't say anything more. He had every confidence that Richie could handle it. Richie thought about what Dickon said all night. He didn't want to leave. Did he need to make peace with Mac before he could move on with the next phase of his life?
He left three days later. Amy cried for a week.
Fall 1994
She returned home after just that one day. She was pleased with herself. She had over come a major hurdle. A few days later Richie called, they were home. He had only called her twice while in Paris, once to tell her he made it there safely and that Mac had forgiven him. Dickon hated those words. He called a second time to inform them of Horton's reemergence and subsequent death. Richie was now positive that James Horton was dead and buried. He had seen the body and the grave. During his description of the incident he happened to mention how he took three rounds that Horton had meant for Dawson. Amy couldn't believe that Horton had really wanted to kill his wife's brother. He was truly an evil man.
He didn't invite her to Seacouver. She was hurt, but rationalized that he needed to get settled. Had Dawson said anything to him about her being there? She promised herself that the next time he called she'd ask him.
It took another two weeks before he called again. This time he confessed what had been happening with him. A woman he had known in his past had told him that he was the father of her baby. While not believing her, he had become enchanted with the idea of being a father. Mac had tried to tell him that it was a mistake, but it took the arrival of a nasty immortal at their house before he understood what Mac was trying to say. He was still grieving for the loss of Jeremy. She commiserated with him, and tried to make him feel like he had done the right thing. She was torn. She didn't think he had done the right thing. Her father had raised her without incident. But, she wanted Richie for herself, so she was glad that Donna was gone.
At the end of the conversation, he did ask her to visit him. She said she's come. Then she mentioned offhandedly that she had come to Seacouver before, to look up Joe.
"I know. Joe mentioned both times. In fact he gave me a dressing down about telling an outsider all about both immortals and Watchers. It took all my self-control not say, hey it's not my fault, she knew already. You don't still want to kill him, do you?"
"I don't think so. I can see now that Horton was just trying to use me to do his dirty work."
"That's cool then. I can't wait to introduce you to Mac. He's impressed with my new fighting skills. But I've done as you asked and not said a word about who you are and who Dickon is."
"Thanks, Richie."
She was very glad that she hadn't mentioned the fact that she believed that Joe Dawson was her father. She wasn't even sure if she should tell Dawson at all.
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Richie met her at the airport. She had packed enough for a week, but didn't make any return reservations. She'd play it by ear. Dickon's parting words to her were that when she came home she should bring Dawson with her. That seemed beyond what she was capable of.
They spent the week doing all the things that kids like to do. They went to a lot of clubs. He preferred some strange kind of rock, where she preferred the more top forty-style music. She even went up on stage and played with some of the local bands. Richie didn't know she was so musically inclined.
"I've played guitar and piano from the time I could walk. Music is in my blood. When I'm troubled and I can't take my horse for a fast gallop, I get my guitar and jam away. Speed, the wind in my hair, and loud music, are the two things I love the best."
He took her to a Seattle Supersonic's basketball game. She thought it was a lot of fun. Then he took her to a Seahawk's game. This she found a bit boring. They did some fall apple festivals. These she loved. She bought a few souvenirs, and an apple pie. They gorged on warm apple pie and ice cream that night.
The next morning, MacLeod called him. Joe's girlfriend Lauren Gale had been murdered a few days ago. Could he come to the bar that night? Joe needed his friends around him, and he had to discuss some stuff with him. Richie had to agree.
Amy said she was up to this. If Mac and Richie needed to talk privately, maybe she could play the guitar with one of the bands or something.
After dinner they headed towards Joe's. Amy was nervous. Richie kept his arm around her, trying to give her some moral support. They went into the bar and Joe was on stage playing some very sad bluesy number. Richie headed them towards MacLeod, who was sitting with a lady.
"That's Amanda. She's also immortal."
Amy nodded.
"Hi Mac. Hi Amanda. This is my very close friend Amy. I've already told her that we're all, you know."
Mac's eyes narrowed. This must be the girl that Joe had been talking about. He'd best keep an eye on her. "Hello Amy, nice to meet you." Amanda stood up to shake her hand. MacLeod noticed that she didn't seem nervous of them at all.
Richie ordered them a drink. Amy sat back and looked at the stage. Joe was playing a solo. There weren't any other band members around. Richie was staring at Joe also. There was something in the way that he was holding his head that reminded him of the way that Amy played. He squeezed her hand. She looked over at him and gave him a smile.
MacLeod saw their shared look. He then realized that this friendship was not new. "So when did you two meet?"
"After Mako. I rode into her town and got arrested for carrying a sword. She um, paid my bail and sprung me. Then I moved in with her for a few months."
"Really?" was all he said. He looked at Amy. "You didn't feel nervous about asking a stranger to stay with you?"
Richie and Amy exchanged glances. Richie shrugged his shoulders.
"Well, I don't live alone. I live with another immortal, Dickon."
Mac saw Richie give her an encouraging squeeze. "And this Dickon didn't mind having Richie move in with you?"
"He didn't say anything, so I guess he didn't mind."
Richie had to laugh. They all looked at him. "Dickon would give her the sky and the moon if she asked for them."
Amy blushed. This puzzled Mac even more.
Joe stopped playing and came over to sit with them. He took one look at Richie and Amy and stopped in his tracks. "Do I get an introduction now?"
Mac saw her entire body grow rigid. The hand that Richie held had grown white. Dawson definitely made her nervous. Maybe Joe hadn't exaggerated her fear at all. Richie and Amy exchanged looks again. They did a lot of non-verbal communication.
"I'm Amy Saunders. I've been hearing a lot about you from several sources."
"Well, I don't know what you've heard, but I'm not as bad as you seem to think. In fact, I'm rather inept," he said with a self-pitying slant.
He motioned to a waitress and she brought him over another bottle of whiskey.
"We have to celebrate folks. Lauren's killer is dead, thanks to Mac, and now maybe I can set her memory to rest." He poured himself a liberal amount and downed it in one swallow. He poured himself another and drank that too.
He continued in his self-pity. "It's always hard to lose someone you love to murder. This is the second woman I've loved, that was killed by an immortal. The first was my beautiful Sara."
Mac saw how Amy's eyes dilated with shock and her whole body started to shake. Richie looked a bit confused but put his arm around her and was caressing her back.
Joe was oblivious to his table companions; the alcohol had brought his deepest sorrows to the forefront.
"Sara was a Watcher too. But I guess she didn't understand fully about Quickenings and got too close. When her assignment was beheaded, she was standing too close and got struck by his Quickening. They said she died instantly. At the time I thought I had died with her. It's taken me a long time to get over it and fall in love with someone else. Now she's dead too."
Joe drank another double shot of his whiskey. Amy was starting to lose control. Tears gathered in her eyes. She couldn't stand the man's pain any longer. She stood up and started out the door. Richie said some hurried good-byes and ran out after her.
"You see Mac, she runs away all the time," was Joe's only comment.
The wheels were turning inside MacLeod's head. There was something that kept nagging in the back of his mind. He didn't have all the facts, but it looked like Richie did. Somehow this Amy was connected to this Sara. Amanda and Mac made sure that Joe made it home safely.
After Amy fell asleep, Richie called Dickon and told him what happened. He asked point blank if Joe was Amy's father. He reasoned that Corey couldn't have been her father because he was immortal. Amy did say that her mother had gotten pregnant by another Watcher. All the clues pointed to Joe being that Watcher. Dickon confirmed Richie's guess.
"Tomorrow Mac is going to want answers. What am I supposed to tell him?"
"Tell him nothing. Amy has to confess everything to Joe first. It's not fair to tell MacLeod before Joe knows himself. Don't let her run away again. And for God's sake, don't let her fly home. Do you need me there to help?"
"I wouldn't say no to that. But it's entirely up to you. She might like it for support. Hell I could use it to."
Dickon laughed. All right. I'll fly out as soon as I can."
Richie felt tons better. He crawled into bed and hugged her to him. She seemed so fragile; so much grief to be carrying around. He had seen evidence of her temper. It was reminiscent of Joe's. So many things started to add up. Her love and talent in music most especially. Then there was the way Horton tried to use her. The ultimate irony, inducing the daughter to kill the father. How Horton would have loved to tell Joe as he lay dying, that the bullet had come from his own daughter. Thank god it never came to that.
Much to Richie's surprise Dickon arrived the next morning. He must have left right after their phone call. As he walked in the front door, Richie could see that his apartment did not make a favorable impression. Amy heard them talking and rushed out to see him.
"Hey, Little Bit, no need to cry."
They had breakfast and Amy talked to Dickon telling him everything that had happened. Neither of the men mentioned the call the night before. At around ten, the two immortals felt the arrival of another immortal. A knock sounded at the door. Richie went to open it.
"Hey Mac, come on in."
"I see you have another visitor."
"Mac this is Dickon. Dickon, this is Duncan MacLeod."
Dickon stood up and stretched out his hand. "Hello Highlander. We meet at last."
Mac took the offered hand and gave it a healthy shake. "My reputation seems to have spread far and wide. I've never heard of you."
"We shared a mutual friend. Darius. He talked of you often."
"Darius?" he said with surprise.
"Yes Darius. We go way back."
"I see."
"So Little Bit, have you told the Highlander that the two of you have met before?"
MacLeod stiffened at that. He had met this girl before? That little voice that had been nagging him, became louder.
Summer 1985
Amy sat in the chair eating her breakfast. Darius was standing at the counter buttering his croissant, and waiting for his tea to finish brewing. Her plate was piled with scrambled eggs and toast. Darius would always shiver when she fixed this for herself. It was not a proper French breakfast.
This was the forth summer she had spent in Paris with Darius. The first summer was when she was only twelve. Her Dad felt that she needed some time away from the ranch in a stricter environment. At home she ran wild, most of the time without even shoes on her feet. Paris would give her a chance to experience the city life, and maybe gain a bit of sophistication, and Darius would give her a new way of looking at life. Her mother agreed and thought it would be a wonderful educational experience for her.
The first summer did not go well. She rebelled against everything Darius tried to teach her. The second summer went much better. She knew what to expect, and didn't fight quite so hard. It helped that Darius had an endless amount of patience with her. The third summer was bliss. They meshed emotionally so well that she felt she could read his mind at times. She soaked up all his stories, which contained morals, not just historical facts.
That fall she did not want to go home. She spent the winter planning and fantasizing about the next summer. She just knew that Darius was falling in love with her, just as she was with him. When she arrived that spring, she was sixteen years old, but felt like an adult. This was going to be the best summer of her life. The first week was spent with her telling him all about her past year in school. He wanted to know what she learned. He wanted to know about her friends. She thought that this was a clever way of discovering if she had any boyfriends. He was such a dear to be concerned about that. How could he think she'd be interested in someone from home when she loved him above all others?
The only impediment she could see was that he was a priest. He seemed to take his religion very seriously. But she was mortal, so she figured he could give up the priesthood for the next fifty or so years and rejoin after she died. It all made perfect sense to her. Now she just had to convince him of this.
She sat at the table toying with her food. She'd been there a month already; she needed to speak her mind soon. She just couldn't figure a way of introducing the subject. Darius brought over his teacup and plate and sat beside her at the small breakfast table.
"What are your plans for today, Amy?"
"I don't know. We could work a bit on that chronicle Methos gave us. Or I could go over to the library and look up…"
His eyes lost their focus. Another immortal was approaching.
"Quick Amy into your room. Your father would have my head if anything happened to you, or if you were seen by another immortal."
As this was common place to her, she went to her room to hide. Whenever another immortal came within buzzing distance, she was required to hide. This rule was made by her Dad, and strictly enforced by Darius. The stranger stayed only a few minutes and then quickly left. Darius excused himself and told her to remain in the cottage, he would return when he could. She was not to leave the place until he returned.
Amy spent the next few hours reading one of the many books that Darius had selected for her. It was a novel but was written with many facts, which made it easy for her to understand. When Darius returned, he looked very tired. He sat down in his chair and stretched his feet out in front of him. Amy came up behind him and started to give his back a message. Her breathing started to quicken as she kneaded his muscles, and slowly Darius realized what was going on. He jerked out of the chair and turned around to face her.
"What are you thinking?" he asked her.
"That I want to help. You were hurting and that made me hurt too. I was only easing it the best I could." She told him in complete innocence.
He looked shocked.
She became scared. "Was I wrong? I love you, I, I…"
Darius found it hard to swallow. Why hadn't he seen this coming?
"Don't you love me too?" When he didn't say anything, she continued. "I know that you do, but I also know that you think I'm too young right now. I'll get older and then we can be together. I understand that it may take you some time to quit being a priest, but that's why we should clear everything up now. That way when I turn eighteen, we can be married." Her words rushed out in her nervous excitement.
"Married?" he choked.
"Don't you want to marry me?"
Amy looked deeply into his eyes and saw the horror reflected there. It then occurred to her that he did not feel the same. She stepped back as if he had stabbed her. Her face became ashen as the enormity of his rejection hit her. She gave a wounded cry and fled out the door. It took several precious seconds before Darius was able to overcome his own shock and rush out after her.
He looked up and down the street, but couldn't see anything of her. Without a sword, he left holy ground in his search for her. He went up and down streets, asking people as he passed if they had seen a young girl matching Amy's description. After an hour, he wound up at the Shakespeare and Company bookstore. He went inside and asked Don Salzar if Methos was around. Methos was in the basement floor and Don was shocked enough at Darius's presence that he went right away to find his friend. Methos immediately joined in the search. However Methos insisted that Darius return to the church in case she came back. Don saw the shadow of Ian Bancroft as he followed the other two. What would this day yield, he wondered.
Methos checked in two hours later to say that he still hadn't found any trace of her. Darius paced up and down the aisle of the church and then into his office. He walked to the cottage hoping to find her there. He returned to the church and lit a candle and said a prayer for her. As he stood up, he felt the buzz of another immortal entering the sanctuary.
Duncan MacLeod entered the church and was dumbfounded at finding his good friend so agitated. It took persistent badgering before Darius finally broke down and told him what happened.
Each word that spilled from his mouth brought shame and fear of reprisal to him. Corey was going to kill him for involving Duncan MacLeod, the Highlander, in a situation that might bring Amy in contact with MacLeod's Watcher, Joe Dawson. But Amy's safety, at this stage was more important than anything. He was overwhelmed by guilt.
Armed with a photograph, Duncan took off to search the streets of Paris for the teenager. Several times he felt the buzz of a nearby immortal, but the person never materialized. He searched the tourist places, the historical monuments, the museums, the cemeteries, and the parks. He had been gone for three hours and he needed a drink. So he went to a cafe and ordered a coffee. While sitting there, he saw her.
She was sitting at her own table, with a glass of soda and a sandwich. Her face was streaked with tears and he could see that her hand was shaking. He slowly got up from his table and joined her.
"Hello Amy, may I sit here?"
She looked up at him and she nodded slightly. She didn't seem concerned about who he was.
"You do not look very happy. Something has upset you, no?"
"Something upset me? You've got to be kidding? My whole world has coming crashing down around me. Oh no, I'm not upset."
Her hysterical voice was in keeping with her appearance. What threw Duncan the most was her accent. From what Darius had implied, the Highlander had been sure that she was French. How had Darius become involved with an American?
"Surely it can't be that bad. Why don't you tell me about it and I can give you a stranger's perspective."
"I made a complete fool of myself. I told a man that I loved him, and I was so sure that he loved me back." She gave a depreciating laugh. "Come to find out I was wrong, very wrong."
"Did you ask for something that he couldn't give?"
"What do you mean?"
"He may love you, very much, just not in the way you would like. Could there be something that would make it wrong for him to love you?"
"He's a priest."
"That would do it. How could you ask a priest to give up an essential part of himself for physical pleasure, for emotional satisfaction? That seems very selfish. A priest is a man dedicated to the service of God. If he was to give that up to be with you, then he would lose an essential part of himself. Then he wouldn't be the man you love anymore. You love the goodness inside of him. He would grow to resent you for what you made him do, could you live with that?"
This made her think. "I don't want him to change. I just want to be with him."
Then Duncan stiffened. His eyes lost focus then darted from side to side. Amy couldn't believe it. This man was an immortal. Darius must have sent him to look for her. She was so embarrassed. She too looked around, but didn't see anybody familiar. Soon he returned his attention to her.
"Darius sent you didn't he?"
"Yes, he did. He is very worried. Why don't we go back," he pleaded.
She reluctantly agreed. She dreaded facing him again. What a mess she made of it all. What if she lost her best friend because of this? It just didn't bear thinking about.
Methos watched from the periphery as the two got up from the café and started walking away. He had already called Darius to tell him that MacLeod had found Amy and they would return shortly. As Duncan walked out of sight, the uneven gait of a crippled man using a cane also left the cafe. Methos shook his head, if Joseph only knew what he was looking at.
Darius could not keep this a secret. His innate honesty made him confess to Corey, what had happened. He skirted over the reason for Amy running away, but explained in detail what followed. Just as Darius feared, Corey lost his temper.
"I trusted you with her safety. She is just a young girl; she doesn't know any better. You let her run off into the city and then have the gall to ask the Highlander to find her? You compound one problem by making it ten times worse. Now I'm going to have to spend my time wondering if Dawson is going to show up and disrupt my life. I can never trust you with her again. I won't forbid her to correspond with you, but she is never going to visit you in Paris again."
Without giving Amy any reasons, he came and took her back to the ranch. Corey firmly believed that Darius betrayed him by eliciting MacLeod's help. Amy believed for a long time that Darius just did not want to see her, because she embarrassed him so badly. They wrote letters, but their relationship was never the same. She never laid eyes on him again.
Fall 1994
"That was you?" Mac couldn't believe it.
"Guilty as charged. I admit it was almost ten years ago, but surely immortals have longer memories than that?"
He looked a bit sheepish. "You don't look the same."
"You do," and she laughed, releasing some of the tension.
"So what's going on between you and Joe Dawson?" Mac could feel everyone in the room stiffen. Richie looked at Dickon. Dickon looked at Amy. She looked down at her hands. Nobody would answer him.
"You keep treating him like dirt. He's getting an inferiority complex because you keep meeting him and then running away."
Richie had to speak. "Give us some time Mac. Let Amy work this out on her own. She doesn't want to kill him anymore, so what can a few days hurt?"
"KILL HIM!" he shouted in outrage.
This time Dickon intervened. "Horton killed her parents and then blamed Dawson for it. Give her some time to get used to the idea that Joe was innocent."
Mac looked at Amy, who was wringing her hands but not saying anything. She looked up at him. "I promise I won't hurt him," she said beseechingly.
Mac knew he wouldn't get anymore out of them so he left. He went back to the dojo and lost himself in a work out. He had to trust Richie to know what he was doing.
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
That afternoon, Joe was playing his guitar by himself. Nobody was around and he had the bar to himself. Invoices were waiting for him to file, a shipment of Coors was sitting in the back room waiting to be unpacked, and still he sat up on his stool playing. Most of the lights were off so when the door opened and a girl came in, the light announced her presence immediately. His hand stilled and he watched her approach him. It was Amy, Richie's friend.
"Hello Joe. Do you mind that I come in here?"
"No. Is there something you needed?"
"Nothing in particular. I didn't know you played guitar. You're very good. Sometime we'll have to play together."
"But not today?"
"No, not today. She was very solemn. "I want to tell you a bit about my recent behavior. I am sorry I acted like such a jack-ass, but I did have reason."
Joe put the instrument down and joined her at a table. He asked her if she wanted a drink, but she declined.
"My mother was a Watcher who married the immortal she was assigned to. Last year James Horton came to town and beheaded both of them. He killed my dad," and she choked on the word 'dad'. "He killed my mom because she betrayed the Watchers by being with my, my, him. Right before Horton left, he told me that you were his boss and that he was only following your orders. I believed him. Dickon tried to tell me that Horton was lying that you would never give the order to have my Mom killed. But Horton was dead, so I thought. Who else could I blame? Who else could I exact vengeance from? But since I couldn't find you, I didn't act on anything. Then Richie came to town. Now I had an address. But I also had Richie telling me that you were a good guy, for a Watcher. So I waited. I needed to see you, face to face to determine if you were evil or not. But then I was too scared and I ran."
Joe sat back and stared at her. He didn't know what to say.
"I didn't give any order to Jim. He was my boss, not vice versa. I promise you that I didn't know anything about the immortals he killed or that he was killing Watchers too. I am so sorry."
"I know that now. Well I better go. I'll talk to you later. I'm sure I'll be in here with Richie later." Then she slipped out.
It took another five minutes before he realized that she never told him who her mother had been. He tried to think back on her last name. He was sure that Richie had told him, but he couldn't recall it.
Amy went back to Richie's apartment, only Dickon was there.
"Did you tell him?"
"I told him about Horton killing my parents. I explained why I'm afraid of him."
"But you neglected to tell him who your parents were or that he is your real father, right?"
"Right."
"Sara loved him very much you know."
Amy gazed at him in shock. She had always believed that her mom had loved Corey.
"What do you mean?"
"When Corey first found your Mom she was pregnant, alone and vulnerable. He seized on her weakness and forced her to marry him. He wanted to be a father more than anything. It was the one thing he had never done. Slowly her dependence on him lessened so he used emotional blackmail to keep her tied to him. Corey knew that her one real weakness was her love for Joe Dawson. So he gave her the choice, you or him. She could leave but you would have to stay with him. If she stayed then she would have to die in the eyes of the world. So we made this elaborate plan. Methos planned it and Corey and I executed it. Sara went into hiding and Methos found a young looking immortal to impersonate her. I came out of hiding and I soon obtained a Watcher. Corey followed by the fake Sara, came across me with my new Watcher and I challenged him. We had a great fight and I took the head of the female immortal, but we made it look like it was Corey's head. The Quickening came lose and my Watcher was fooled into seeing me kill Corey and the Quickening hit Sara and kill her. Methos had this planned down to the last detail. The Watcher was pretty shaken. He saw me get up from my weakened state and carry your mom away. The Watchers never obtained the body and had only the word of the Watcher who was present. That is why Joe thinks his Sara died."
She couldn't believe it. "You killed that immortal just to induce a real Quickening?"
"Yes, I did."
"That didn't make you feel bad?"
"No, it didn't. That is what immortals do, kill each other."
She was very disturbed by his revelations.
"Methos joined the Watchers for Sara's sake. He was then able to keep track of Joe's life and report back to her. It was her only consolation. Every time he'd come to the ranch it was to give her some kind of news about Joe. Corey never knew what Methos was doing. It would have made him furious. But I knew and I helped. The reason I'm telling you this is to make you realize just how much she loved Joe and how much I really believe he loved her. Methos said he was destroyed by her death."
"Thank you for telling me, but I think I need to be alone and think about it."
She left the apartment once more. She went to the mall and wandered around the stores. While she was sitting she happened to notice Amanda. As the immortal passed by Amy, she recognized her too.
"Hello friend of Richie's. I'm sorry I don't remember your name."
"Amy Saunders."
"You look like a woman who needs to shop. I've got Mac's credit card, let's go use it." She wouldn't take no for an answer.
So Amy and Amanda hit the clothes rack. Much to Amy's surprise, she had a really good time. Amanda was funny and just the tonic she needed. After spending a great deal of Mac's money they went for some coffee. Amanda pumped her for information, so Amy confided in everything that had already been told to MacLeod and Joe Dawson. Amanda commiserated with her, although she sensed there was more to the story. But she didn't probe, having been convinced that Amy was basically good. When they left the mall, Amy was in a lot better mood.
She returned to Richie's apartment carrying several bags of clothes. Dickon and Richie were there, waiting for her, worrying about her state of mind. When they saw her smiling face, they had a great sigh of relief. She explained about Amanda and shopping, and they saw that she was almost back to her old self. Dickon wondered if she had decided on anything else during her day of frivolity.
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
They went to Joe's and he seemed a bit down, but was not drinking heavily anymore. They all sat at a table together and ate dinner there. The place was filling up. Dickon had been introduced to Joe as a friend of Amy's family. Joe kept looking at him as if he recognized him, but couldn't quite remember who he was. The only name he gave was Dickon. His aim that evening was to force Amy into revealing her true parentage, whether by accident or by design. Then Joe could be told what his real name was.
Dickon directed the conversation towards Amy and where they had lived. She talked about her horses and school and even about Darius. MacLeod had to reference his own first meeting with her. Joe said he couldn't remember the incident but he'd look it up when he got home. Dickon also encouraged Joe to talk about himself. So Joe explained how he lost his legs in Vietnam, how he played football in high school, and how music was a huge part of his life.
Mac saw Richie jab her in the ribs. She turned to look at him but said nothing. Mac was aware of Dickon's subtle machinations and was curious to see where it was all going to lead.
It was a very comfortable evening. They all sat together and got to know one another. At two Joe had to get up for last call. He went to the bar and stood behind it, helping Mike serve all the last minute drinks. The band was finishing their last song. Richie saw Amy get up and head for the stage. He exchanged looks with Dickon. Mac watched the by-play with interest. Things were picking up.
Mac watched as Dickon got up from his seat and went over to the bar. He had a worried look on his face. Richie was confused. Amy got up on stage and waited for the band to finish. As the crowd was clapping she walked over to the microphone. She was holding Joe's guitar.
"I want to play one song for you all. This is a love song written by my real father to my mother, before they were tragically separated. My mother spent a lot of time trying to teach me this song and it was my favorite lullaby for years. She told me when I was fifteen that this would be the only link with my father because he would always be lost to me. I know now that she loved him very much and that this was my heritage, the one thing she could give me that was a part of him."
The audience could see tears running down her face as she sat down to play.
"I may have a few of the notes screwed up, since she taught this to me from memory and she was never a musician."
She sat on a stool and the haunting cords came forth.
Mac saw Dickon hurry around the bar so he was standing right beside Joe. He joined them at the bar sensing that something momentous was happening but not sure in what direction it was coming from. He looked back and forth between the two men. Joe's face turned white. Mac could see his hands start to shake. The cane that was forever resting on his arm, fell off from the vibration. Joe started to weave and Dickon was there to grab hold of him. Mac went to his other side and the two immortals led him to a seat. Not once did Joe's eyes leave the stage and Amy.
The song contained no lyrics but the music was clearly an expression of love. Amy had her eyes closed and was lost within the spell. Mac looked at her carefully and could now see the similarity between the way she held her head and the way Joe did while playing the guitar. The clues slid into place and Mac finally understood that Amy was his Watcher's daughter. Dickon obviously knew and so did Richie, which explained why Richie trusted her. Mac looked back at Joe. His face was a caricature of pain.
Joe was lost within himself. The bar was gone. The only thing he was able to focus on, was the song. His mind couldn't deal with the girl. She was secondary to his soul wrenching pain. He didn't think he'd ever hear that song again. He wrote it for Sara and she was dead. He couldn't bear to hear the melody; it brought it all back. He relived the notification of her death. He remembered very little of the following four months. James had tried to help him, but he had fallen into the bottom of a whiskey bottle and refused to come out. His sister had come over to cook meals and do his laundry. He wouldn't eat the food, and there were many days when he never got out of bed. Eventually he did resurface, but he was never the same.
This girl. This girl who had been deathly afraid of him, said that her mother had taught her the song. That meant that Sara was her mother. She also said that the song was the only thing she would ever have of her father. He was that father. This girl, Amy, was his daughter. She didn't look like Sara; did she look like him?
Sara was alive! No wait. Amy had said that Horton had come and killed both of her parents, her immortal father and her Watcher mother. Corey Saunders was her father. Horton killed Sara and Saunders. Fresh pain assailed him. He turned to the immortal sitting next to him, whowas looking at him with a worried frown.
"Richard Collins," he whispered. A piece clicked into place.
Dickon nodded.
Amy had finished the song and carefully set the guitar down. The lights came on and blinded her. The patrons all left in short order. Mac turned the lights off again. Her friends watched as Amy slowly walked off the stage and came over towards them. Richie could see how she was fighting the urge to run. Every instinct in her was telling her to flee, but she withstood the temptation.
Father and daughter looked at each other. Neither knew what to say. Even Richie was subdued. MacLeod was trying very hard to accept this new revelation. He didn't trust her before and he wasn't sure that he trusted her now. It was uncomfortable for everyone.
So Dickon chimed in. "Amy was told from a very early age that the man, Joe Dawson, was someone to be feared. Then her parents are murdered and the murderer informs her that this same man was his superior, and ordered the hit. She had to overcome a lifetime of prejudice in order to reach this point. I wasn't sure if she would tell you at all."
This was all getting very embarrassing for her. "Joe, do you have any questions?" He wasn't able to articulate a thing. His mind just wasn't working.
"Would you prefer to say goodnight, and talk in the morning?"
His voice squeaked. "Yes, I would like to, to I don't know. I'm just not dealing with this." He tried to stand up and couldn't seem to get his balance. Mac was there to help him. "We'll talk to you tomorrow," Mac responded for Joe.
Amy watched his progress as he left the bar with Mac and Amanda.
Dickon and Richie escorted Amy out of Joe's a few minutes later. Mike closed up the place and followed the three out the door. Amy was pretty depressed.
"It didn't go as well as I had hoped."
"It was a shock. You basically told him, without any hints or warnings that you were his daughter. He didn't have time to accept and fully comprehend what you were saying."
Richie added, "Once he gets over the shock, he'll be so happy. You wait and see."
Amy was very tired when she got back to Richie's apartment. Dickon said he'd sleep on the couch, he was too tired to find a hotel room. Amy just fell into bed. She was emotionally exhausted.
The next day, Joe phoned and asked them all to come to his house for lunch. He did not ask Mac, only Richie, Dickon and Amy. He made them all sit in the kitchen while he fixed lunch. When everything was ready, he sat down and wanted all the information about the illusion of Sara's death. The only thing he knew was that Richard Collins took Corey Saunders head, and the Quickening killed Sara. Dickon explained the plan and why it was conceived. He didn't mention Methos and his part in any of it. Dawson knew Methos as Adam Pierson, not as the oldest immortal still living. Dickon ached to tell Joe how Methos had become a Watcher in order to keep Sara informed of how Joe was doing. Joe questioned Dickon all during lunch. He wanted to know everything about Sara. Dickon indulged him and left nothing out.
When lunch was over, Joe politely asked the two immortals to leave. He wanted to have some private time with his new daughter. Amy had kept quiet during the meal. She was beginning to understand the depth of Joe's love for her mother. She had always considered this from her own point of view. As the car drove away and she was left alone with Joe Dawson, her irrational fear started to resurface.
Joe saw how her color slowly drained from her face. Her hands were trembling slightly. He didn't move from his seat. He didn't talk; he just gazed upon her, his daughter. A part of Sara. It was a miracle.
She couldn't take the silence. "I guess I shouldn't have played that song last night. It was a stupid thing to do."
"Why did you do it?"
"You made a point of saying how music was such a big part of who you are. That song meant so much to my mom, that I just wanted to tell you that. I just didn't know how."
"Play the song with me now. I brought my guitar home from the bar and I have my other one here too."
He got up from the table and asked her to come into the living room. He motioned her onto the couch and he went to retrieve one of the guitars. He handed it to her and she immediately stated to tune it. He took the other one from against the wall and sat down on the couch next to her. He counted off then they started together. Most of the song had been memorized correctly but Joe corrected her in a few places. It made the song more beautiful in her eyes. The camaraderie that resulted, helped ease the tension and gave them a common bond to work from. They didn't talk about Corey; they didn't discuss Horton, and he didn't question her about Richie, they just enjoyed being together.
Her fear was forgotten. The music became the focus of the afternoon. When dinnertime came, Joe took her out to a restaurant by the water-front. They finally exchanged some life stories. She had to tell him all about how she met Richie. Then she described her relationship with Darius, and how much she had loved him. Next she informed him about the Watcher room.
"I need to have you come home to Wyoming with me. I don't know the whole story, you'll probably have to ask Dickon, but we have a secret room at our house, which has my mom's desk and all the Watcher chronicles of my dad's life. I was never allowed to go in there without her."
Joe flinched at her choice of words. Corey was not her Father, he was.
"You see, when my mom finally told dad about being his Watcher and what it entailed, he made her break into the place where they store all these old books and steal his. So she did. We have a room that has airtight bookcases filled with all his chronicles, and the ones that we wrote. My mom kept up with Corey's life, and I was responsible for Dickon's. I think we should return them to their proper place."
"Did you read any of them?"
"All of them, over and over. Dickon would read them to me before bed. When I was young he'd translate as he read. Then they taught me the ancient languages, so I was able to read them on my own."
"You should join the Watchers and work in research. You could translate all those old books and put them into the computer. I've heard that Adam Pierson has been working towards that goal, you might be able to help him."
Amy smiled inwardly; she'd already been doing just that. But join the Watchers? Her? It seemed ridiculous considering her past experiences with them.
Joe noticed that Amy was mostly recalling things that Dickon had done with her.
"What about Corey? Did you do things with him?"
"Yes. He taught me how to use the sword. He was a hard taskmaster. We did a lot of horseback riding together. I had to watch and photograph his battles with other immortals, although not many came through our small town. He went to all my school functions. We all went on trips so they could show me things they remembered, which was a part of history."
Joe wasn't sure how he felt. He was glad that she had a relatively normal childhood. But he felt cheated that he missed out on so much. She was an adult now and he would never know the child she had been.
After dinner they went back to his club. Everyone was there, waiting anxiously to see how they were getting along. They took a seat. A band was on stage, so Richie asked her to dance. Glad of the chance to escape the scrutiny, she agreed. Mac immediately started cross-examining Joe.
"Did she try anything?"
"No, we played the song together and did some talking. We went out to dinner and did some more talking. She's a wonderful girl, but I don't see anything of Sara in her."
Dickon interrupted. "Sara always said that she was a carbon copy of you. Corey had never met you, so he never saw the similarities. It would have made him crazy with jealousy."
"Sounds like he was already pathological in his jealousy of Joe," Mac commented.
"He was. So did Amy invite you to our home?"
"Yes, she said something about a Watcher room."
Dickon beamed. "Amy doesn't know this, but Sara kept a secret journal. Corey knew of the chronicles, but she also kept a personal journal. She mostly wrote about Amy, but she did include her own thoughts. She has it hidden in the room. I'm supposed to give it to Amy, but I wanted to wait and let you be the first to read it. I think she included a lot of her emotions and thoughts about you. I needed to let Amy know about you and accept you before she could read about her Mother's feelings."
"I want to go right away."
Mac was not happy, but Joe ignored him totally.
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Dickon, Amy, Richie and Joe set off the next morning, in Joe's car, for Wyoming. Mac couldn't come, or wouldn't. The trip was leisurely and they stopped for only one night.
Joe got the grand tour when they arrived. Dickon told Joe he had to wait until the next day to see the Watcher room. He explained that once he got in there, he would probably stay in there for hours. He was impressed with the ranch, which Amy explained belonged to Dickon. Richie had to point out his horse and how Amy had taught him how to ride. They had dinner and Joe wanted an early night so he could get into the room sooner.
At seven, Joe was up and anxiously waiting to get in. He couldn't figure out where the room was. He had covered every inch, and couldn't find a room that he hadn't seen. Dickon led him to the library and showed him how the lever by the side of the bookcase activated the sliding of the wall. The two went in. Joe noticed a blank space on the far wall.
"That contained a painting of someone that you don't need to see now. When the time is right, I'll show it to you. The only thing I will say is that it is not of Sara or Amy. Come here. This is the desk that Sara used. In this drawer, is a hidden panel, and inside is a photo album."
Joe opened it up and found pictures of himself. He couldn't believe it. Some were of him tailing MacLeod. Some were at Watcher meetings. Others were just snapshots of him eating dinner or talking to friends. The only thing they had in common was that they were all taken in Paris.
"She lived for the pictures. I always got the mail so I could remove them before Corey saw them."
"Who was the photographer?"
He glanced at the empty wall. "I can't tell you. Please don't ask."
Next Joe was shown the bookcases of chronicles. Several contained the very old ones. Some were written on scrolls. Then he could see the recent ones. Dickon opened one of the cases and withdrew a book.
"This is one of her journals. There are three, altogether, but this one is the first. It should explain everything, better than I ever could."
Joe thanked him and took the book to the bedroom he was using. He got into bed, took off his legs began to read. It started out at the training school in Geneva. He relived their times together. She had been so happy. She told of how she worried about him and his dependence on the Watchers. She didn't want to be a crutch for him, because he was afraid of living without his legs. She wanted his love because of who she was. That was why she asked to go into the field as soon as she could. She wanted him to find himself, and then they could live happily ever after.
He became lost in her thoughts. Time drifted away. Richie and Amy got out of bed at ten. She had a lot of sleep to make up for. Her bubbly personality was starting to resurface. Dickon was so relieved to see it again. She was finally healing. He really believed that she did not belong in this sleepy town and was going to suggest that she move to Seacouver. Richie beat him to it.
She took Dickon aside and had a talk with him. He agreed that the move would be best. He would miss her, but she should spend time with her new father. This place would always be her home, but she had to leave the nest sometime. He did warn her about getting too close to Richie.
"Remember Little Bit, he's an immortal and will not get any older. Don't rush into anything. If you love him, fine, but don't stay with him out of a sense of the familiar. You should get married and have babies. I think Joe would like to be a Grandfather, since he missed out on your childhood."
"I'll think about what you said. I agree, it's too soon to think about commitment. We have lots of time. I'd like to get an apartment and maybe work part time for Joe."
"Your Father," he corrected.
"Right. Maybe I can do a bit of Watcher stuff. I'll just play it by ear."
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Joe asked for the next journal at noon. They could all see tear-stains on his face, but no one said anything about them. He ate a quick lunch and buried himself in his room again. Richie and Amy did some riding; they took a walk into the town. The sheriff accosted them.
"What's he doing here? I thought all sword carrying foreigners weren't allowed in our town?"
"That's okay Tim, he's a very good friend. He brought the sword to tell me that my parent's murderer had been caught and executed. The sword was a trophy. I'm so glad that no one was hurt, although you did scare him something fierce."
Tim puffed up with pride. "Just doing my job. When are you coming back to work?"
"I'm afraid that I'm leaving town for good. I'm moving to Seacouver Washington."
"What that rainy place? You'd be better off here."
"Thanks Tim, but my mind is made up. Talk to you later."
Then they moved on.
Joe came out briefly for the third journal, then went right back to reading. Amy and Richie were asleep before he finished. He fell asleep with the journal resting on his stomach.
The next morning Amy informed Joe of her decision to move to Seacouver. He was overjoyed. Dickon told him that he could keep the journals. Amy didn't know they existed, and he could decide if or when he would show it to her. Joe was glad she didn't know. Sara had written some nasty things about the way she had been treated by Corey. He didn't want to disillusion her about the man she had grown up with. Dickon rented a moving van and they loaded the chronicles and Amy's stuff on board. Richie was to drive it to Washington. Amy would go with Joe, and he would remain home. It was a tearful goodbye. Dickon promised to come up and visit.
Epilogue-Spring 1995
Amy was sitting at a table at Joe's finishing a drink. Dickon had called her last night to say that Kalas was definitely hunting MacLeod and nothing would deflect him. Methos called Dickon almost every day to give him updates. Amy laughed wryly, for Kalas had already been to Seacouver, killed MacLeod in a mortal death in front of his girl friend Anne. Poor Duncan had to flee to Paris. Dickon and Methos were way too late with their news.
Amy worried all day, wanting to go to Paris, but Joe wouldn't let her. He said she belonged in Seacouver for now. If they all left, Anne might get suspicious. Amy thought that Joe was stretching things a bit, but Anne did come into the bar frequently to talk and be reminded of Mac. When she went home that night the message light was blinking. It was Methos.
"Little Bit. I'm sorry to say that Don Salzar has been killed by Kalas. MacLeod found him just before he died. Don wrote the letters 'M' and 'E' in blood. They are bound to come up with my name. If Joe asks you about this, tell him to send MacLeod to Adam Pierson. I'll take care of it from here."
That was the end of the message. So the time had come. MacLeod was to meet Methos. How she longed to be there. Kalas was a very dangerous immortal. Did he seek Mac's quickening in order to be able to defeat Methos, or was there some personal vengeance involved?
Around four in the morning she got a call from Joe. He had just gotten the news about Don. He was very upset. He knew that she had met Don before, and would want to hear about his death. He told Amy of the letters in blood. Although they had never talked about it, Joe wondered if she knew anything about Methos. It was an off chance, but Mac needed all the help he could get. Trying to keep the laughter out of her voice, she reminded him of Adam Pierson. If anyone knew about Methos, it would be him. It was a good thing they were talking on the phone, because her face would surely have given it away.
Joe thanked her. He was upset that he hadn't thought of it himself. He knew that Adam worked with Don on the Methos chronicles, but Adam was just a student. Oh well, it was worth a shot. Joe called Mac with the address.
She went to the bar early the next day. She started out by cleaning and graduated to waitressing for the lunch crowd. She helped with the bar tending, when the people arrived for happy hour. She just wouldn't leave. Joe was just telling her to go home when the phone rang.
"Hi, Mac."
Amy turned all her attention to Joe and the phone call. She could hardly contain herself. Joe was looking only at the phone, listening to Mac as he was told of what happened. She sat back and saw him exclaim his surprise when Mac told him that his friend Adam, was really the five thousand year old immortal. He was all set to fly immediately to Paris to see him, when Mac informed him that Methos had already vanished. He shook his head in disbelief then said goodbye. He hung up the phone and turned to his daughter. She could not maintain a straight face.
"I should have known." Joe muttered shaking his head once more.
The End