CHAPTER 70
Joe had been at the house for only a few minutes, checking Amanda and Duncan for signs that
they were recovering when he found Barkley lying unconscious under the fallen tree. Lifting the
branches off, he realized the dog was still breathing. There was no blood, so thankfully he had
not been shot.
"Come on … wake up big guy." Joe coaxed the dog who slowly began to whimper and show
signs of reviving.
"One down, three to go." Joe muttered under his breath as he worried about what was happening
to Beth and Adam.
The sound of a cell phone startled he and Claudia. Carefully stepping over to Duncan, he pulled
the phone from the man's pocket and answered.
"I need to speak to MacLeod." The woman's voice demanded.
"I'm afraid this isn't a good time."
"Dawson is that you?"
"Cassandra?" Joe recognized the voice.
"Has Duncan revived yet?" she demanded again. "I'm following this bloody van for God only
knows what reason."
"What van? And how did you know …"
"I was there Joe. I saw what happened from outside and I'm following the van they threw Beth
and that worthless excuse for a human being into." She replied.
Joe didn't care how or why right now. He was just glad they had some hope of finding them.
He saw Claudia move and realized Richie was beginning to come around. "It shouldn't be much
longer … is there anything I can do to speed up the process?"
"Unfortunately no." Cassandra told him. "I'll call back as soon as we arrive at a destination." She
said before the line went dead.
"God what happened?" Richie asked before his eyes could focus and he remembered the
gunmen bursting through the door, taking two bullets to the gut and tumbling from the ladder. He
let Claudia help him sit up, and groaned when he saw Mac and Amanda on the ground and no
sign of Beth.
Joe stood over them, waiting …
It was almost five minutes later before the two woke with a start.
Duncan took one look around the room, not having to wait for Joe to tell him Beth and Methos
had been taken.
"Cassandra's following them." Joe said
"She's what? Why? How?" Duncan replied, sure that he must have heard wrong.
"I don't know why she was here, but she must have seen everything and she's following the van
they put Methos and Beth into. Said she'd call back."
"Do you think she's in with Devan?" Richie asked.
"Cassandra?" Mac replied. "No … but she's the most unlikely source of help I can think of. "
Amanda pulled herself up into the chair, still a bit woozy from the experience. It was then she
noticed the 2nd gunman's body and the blade lying beside him.
"He was going to take our heads?" Amanda asked.
"Claudia shot him." Joe replied, and all eyes turned to the young woman who knelt beside Richie.
"You shot him?" Duncan asked.
"I was such a coward. I hid upstairs and let them just drag Beth and Adam out of here." Claudia
said, but Richie wouldn't let her brush it off. Taking both her shoulders in his hands he looked
into her face and repeated Mac's question.
"I shot him in the back first … and then somehow got close enough to …" she didn't have to
finish they knew what she meant. "He was going to kill you." She said to Richie. "I couldn't let
that happen."
"You did good Claudia." Duncan said and Amanda murmured her thanks as she rubbed her neck
nervously.
"You saved our lives." Richie said, still staring into her face.
"I was so scared." She began to shake as she remembered what it was like to see the blade
prepared to come down on Richie's neck.
Richie framed her face in his hands and shook his head in amazement. There was so much
more to Claudia than any of them expected. He didn't give a second thought to anyone else in
the room as he leaned in to kiss her.
Claudia wrapped her arms around him, ignoring the blood that covered them both as she
returned his kiss.
Duncan and the others didn't have time to wonder about what they were seeing because
Cassandra chose that moment to return the call.
"There's an old textile factory just north of town. Right off the interstate. Do you know where that
is?" She asked Duncan.
"Yes … about ten miles from here, with a blue tin roof."
"That's the one. I'm going to try and get close enough to see what is going on." She told him.
"Not too close … " Duncan warned, knowing Devan would sense her presence.
Cassandra wrapped her hand around her sword and slipped the gun from the glove box into her
waistband as she got out of the car.
"Damn it Methos. Why did you have to fall in love with someone so hard to dislike?" she said to
herself as she inched slowly toward the back of the building.
"Let's go." Duncan called to Richie and Amanda as he picked up both his sword and Methos
Ivanhoe from the closet. Claudia wanted to go with them, but Joe knew neither of them would be
of any real help.
"Why don't we see if we can get some of this mess cleaned up?" he suggested, and although
she hated watching Richie disappear into the back seat of the car and drive away, she knew that
they had been right to leave her there. She'd done all she could do. She only hoped they would
be in time to help Adam and Beth.
Joe had been at the house for only a few minutes, checking Amanda and Duncan for signs that
they were recovering when he found Barkley lying unconscious under the fallen tree. Lifting the
branches off, he realized the dog was still breathing. There was no blood, so thankfully he had
not been shot.
"Come on … wake up big guy." Joe coaxed the dog who slowly began to whimper and show
signs of reviving.
"One down, three to go." Joe muttered under his breath as he worried about what was happening
to Beth and Adam.
The sound of a cell phone startled he and Claudia. Carefully stepping over to Duncan, he pulled
the phone from the man's pocket and answered.
"I need to speak to MacLeod." The woman's voice demanded.
"I'm afraid this isn't a good time."
"Dawson is that you?"
"Cassandra?" Joe recognized the voice.
"Has Duncan revived yet?" she demanded again. "I'm following this bloody van for God only
knows what reason."
"What van? And how did you know …"
"I was there Joe. I saw what happened from outside and I'm following the van they threw Beth
and that worthless excuse for a human being into." She replied.
Joe didn't care how or why right now. He was just glad they had some hope of finding them.
He saw Claudia move and realized Richie was beginning to come around. "It shouldn't be much
longer … is there anything I can do to speed up the process?"
"Unfortunately no." Cassandra told him. "I'll call back as soon as we arrive at a destination." She
said before the line went dead.
"God what happened?" Richie asked before his eyes could focus and he remembered the
gunmen bursting through the door, taking two bullets to the gut and tumbling from the ladder. He
let Claudia help him sit up, and groaned when he saw Mac and Amanda on the ground and no
sign of Beth.
Joe stood over them, waiting …
It was almost five minutes later before the two woke with a start.
Duncan took one look around the room, not having to wait for Joe to tell him Beth and Methos
had been taken.
"Cassandra's following them." Joe said
"She's what? Why? How?" Duncan replied, sure that he must have heard wrong.
"I don't know why she was here, but she must have seen everything and she's following the van
they put Methos and Beth into. Said she'd call back."
"Do you think she's in with Devan?" Richie asked.
"Cassandra?" Mac replied. "No … but she's the most unlikely source of help I can think of. "
Amanda pulled herself up into the chair, still a bit woozy from the experience. It was then she
noticed the 2nd gunman's body and the blade lying beside him.
"He was going to take our heads?" Amanda asked.
"Claudia shot him." Joe replied, and all eyes turned to the young woman who knelt beside Richie.
"You shot him?" Duncan asked.
"I was such a coward. I hid upstairs and let them just drag Beth and Adam out of here." Claudia
said, but Richie wouldn't let her brush it off. Taking both her shoulders in his hands he looked
into her face and repeated Mac's question.
"I shot him in the back first … and then somehow got close enough to …" she didn't have to
finish they knew what she meant. "He was going to kill you." She said to Richie. "I couldn't let
that happen."
"You did good Claudia." Duncan said and Amanda murmured her thanks as she rubbed her neck
nervously.
"You saved our lives." Richie said, still staring into her face.
"I was so scared." She began to shake as she remembered what it was like to see the blade
prepared to come down on Richie's neck.
Richie framed her face in his hands and shook his head in amazement. There was so much
more to Claudia than any of them expected. He didn't give a second thought to anyone else in
the room as he leaned in to kiss her.
Claudia wrapped her arms around him, ignoring the blood that covered them both as she
returned his kiss.
Duncan and the others didn't have time to wonder about what they were seeing because
Cassandra chose that moment to return the call.
"There's an old textile factory just north of town. Right off the interstate. Do you know where that
is?" She asked Duncan.
"Yes … about ten miles from here, with a blue tin roof."
"That's the one. I'm going to try and get close enough to see what is going on." She told him.
"Not too close … " Duncan warned, knowing Devan would sense her presence.
Cassandra wrapped her hand around her sword and slipped the gun from the glove box into her
waistband as she got out of the car.
"Damn it Methos. Why did you have to fall in love with someone so hard to dislike?" she said to
herself as she inched slowly toward the back of the building.
"Let's go." Duncan called to Richie and Amanda as he picked up both his sword and Methos
Ivanhoe from the closet. Claudia wanted to go with them, but Joe knew neither of them would be
of any real help.
"Why don't we see if we can get some of this mess cleaned up?" he suggested, and although
she hated watching Richie disappear into the back seat of the car and drive away, she knew that
they had been right to leave her there. She'd done all she could do. She only hoped they would
be in time to help Adam and Beth.