CHAPTER 49
Claudia tired of pacing her hotel room, staring out the window and searching all the faces for the one she most wanted to see. "Where are you Richie?" she whispered, her hand tangled in the fabric of the drape. She knew where Duncan thought he had gone, but it didn't make any sense that he didn't at least call to let her know he was all right. Didn't he know how much this would scare her?
"If I stay in this room another minute I'll lose my mind." Claudia raged, picking up the phone to call the concierge. "Is the rehearsal room still set up for me?"
"Why Ms. Jardine of course." He replied.
"Fine. See to it I'm not disturbed." She said before picking up her cell phone and a valise of sheet music and striding purposefully to the elevator. Realizing as the doors closed in front of her that she didn't have her coat or the weapon concealed inside it, she hit the button for them to open but it was too late. "Whatever." She said to herself. "Like I'll run into someone who wants to take my head while I'm in the middle of Chopin."
For the next half hour she tried to struggle through some pieces, but her mind couldn't focus. "God if Richie were here I'd make him take me riding and I'd lose myself in the sound of the wind rushing past us." Then again, if Richie were there she wouldn't be having such a problem concentrating on her music . not like this anyway.
She had almost decided to call it quits when two men entered the side door of the small auditorium. They were wearing maintenance uniforms and she almost dismissed their presence until they walked directly toward the stage. "Was it that bad?" she said sarcastically. "They sent you to haul off the piano so this god awful noise would stop?"
The men didn't reply but came closer.
"Hey . what are you doing? Claudia managed to hit one button on her speed dial before one of the men grabbed her arm. "Let go of me!" she started kicking and screaming.
On the other end Duncan could hear Claudia's screams. "Claudia? Claudia what's happening?" he shouted into the phone as Ellen rushed to see what had him so upset.
"Duncan!" he heard her scream one last time before realizing the sound he was hearing was of her muffled struggle to escape, but escape from who?
The line was still connected so although Duncan knew he should do something, he kept listening until he couldn't hear her anymore as a door slammed shut in the distance. He was about to hang up the phone when he could swear he heard someone pick it up.
"Hello? Hello?" Duncan asked the silence on the other end. "My friend needs help. Please . answer me. I need to know where she is."
The only response was the sound of the line being cut off.
"Damn!" Duncan began to frantically redial the number, but to no avail. No one answered.
"What's going on?" Ellen asked, putting her hand on his shoulder.
"My friend Claudia . something just happened to her." He replied quickly as he dialed Joe's number in Seacouver.
"Joe's Place." The familiar voice of Tom the bartender answered.
"Tom, it's Duncan .. I need to speak to Joe."
"I'm sorry Duncan, but Joe's not here." Tom responded. "In fact . I was getting a little worried. The last time I saw him was when we were closing last night, and this morning I got to the bar to find the door unlocked and the receipts still on the bar where he'd been working on the deposit."
"Have you tried his cell?" Duncan asked.
"Of course I tried his cell." Tom replied. "I was about to call the police when you called. It's not like him to leave money laying around and the door open like that. Something's not right."
"You have my cell number. Call me as soon as you hear anything Tom . anything." Duncan repeated.
He set the phone down on the table and then leaned his weight on his hands, hanging his head. First he hears Claudia being attacked, and now Joe has disappeared and Duncan was more than a thousand miles away from either of them.
"What is going on?" Ellen asked him again.
"Hell if I know." Duncan replied, picking up his phone and going to get his coat.
"Where are you going?" Ellen asked, grabbing her own coat and following him out of the flat.
"I'm going to New York." Duncan replied simply.
"Then I'm coming with you." She told him as she turned to grab the bag she always kept packed for quick getaways and rushed to catch up with his long strides.
Back in New York, Methos turned off Claudia's cell phone and put it in his pocket. From his hiding place behind the curtains he'd seen the two men grab Claudia and haul her out of the auditorium. He probably could have stopped them, but he didn't. Yes he'd come there to challenge his former student, but when he realized the men abducting her were not immortal that thought vanished only to be replaced with a flood of possibilities. Seeing them take her like that, Methos' mind immediately wondered if another band of renegade Watchers was up to old tricks. He couldn't take the chance that they were armed and could take him out if that were the case.
He remained hidden, watching as Claudia scratched, kicked and clawed her attackers. And when they had overpowered her, he saw her eyes searching the room and landing on the curtain that only partially concealed the immortal whose presence she sensed. She could only see part of his face . one eye . but there was no mistaking that she recognized her teacher. For an instant her eyes registered the shock and then as they dragged her further and further up the aisle, he saw her silent plea for help.
Only after the doors slammed, did he emerge from the curtain. Hearing the faint, familiar voice coming from the discarded phone, Methos stooped and picked it up, listening for a few seconds and then cutting the line before he was tempted to respond.
Carefully he made his way to the door the men had carried Claudia out of, opening it slightly until he was sure they were gone. He walked out into the alley, at first intending to disappear, but then moved quickly to the street. When the sensation of Claudia's presence hit him for a second time, he looked up in time to see a white van with darkly tinted windows screeching off from the curb.
"What am I doing?" he asked himself as he used his knife to jimmy open the door of the car that had been parked behind the van. "Why do I care?" he continued to question himself as he reached beneath the steering wheel and fiddled with the wires, starting the engine. He told himself that he was simply trying to find out if these were Watchers, so he would know if something was amiss with the organization again, but somewhere in his gut he knew that wasn't why he was following them.
"Damn!" he pounded his fists against the steering wheel as he followed the van through traffic. His mind was at war with itself. For weeks all he'd felt was the anger and rage of betrayal, and then Claudia had to look at him like that, all trusting, and then he hears McLeod's blasted voice on the phone, and now he's about to get himself sucked into who knows what.
"I'll find out what I need to know and then I'll either leave her to get out of this on her own, or if the opportunity arises I'll do what I came here to do in the first place . take her head." Methos told himself as he continued to follow the van, which appeared to be headed out of town.
Claudia tired of pacing her hotel room, staring out the window and searching all the faces for the one she most wanted to see. "Where are you Richie?" she whispered, her hand tangled in the fabric of the drape. She knew where Duncan thought he had gone, but it didn't make any sense that he didn't at least call to let her know he was all right. Didn't he know how much this would scare her?
"If I stay in this room another minute I'll lose my mind." Claudia raged, picking up the phone to call the concierge. "Is the rehearsal room still set up for me?"
"Why Ms. Jardine of course." He replied.
"Fine. See to it I'm not disturbed." She said before picking up her cell phone and a valise of sheet music and striding purposefully to the elevator. Realizing as the doors closed in front of her that she didn't have her coat or the weapon concealed inside it, she hit the button for them to open but it was too late. "Whatever." She said to herself. "Like I'll run into someone who wants to take my head while I'm in the middle of Chopin."
For the next half hour she tried to struggle through some pieces, but her mind couldn't focus. "God if Richie were here I'd make him take me riding and I'd lose myself in the sound of the wind rushing past us." Then again, if Richie were there she wouldn't be having such a problem concentrating on her music . not like this anyway.
She had almost decided to call it quits when two men entered the side door of the small auditorium. They were wearing maintenance uniforms and she almost dismissed their presence until they walked directly toward the stage. "Was it that bad?" she said sarcastically. "They sent you to haul off the piano so this god awful noise would stop?"
The men didn't reply but came closer.
"Hey . what are you doing? Claudia managed to hit one button on her speed dial before one of the men grabbed her arm. "Let go of me!" she started kicking and screaming.
On the other end Duncan could hear Claudia's screams. "Claudia? Claudia what's happening?" he shouted into the phone as Ellen rushed to see what had him so upset.
"Duncan!" he heard her scream one last time before realizing the sound he was hearing was of her muffled struggle to escape, but escape from who?
The line was still connected so although Duncan knew he should do something, he kept listening until he couldn't hear her anymore as a door slammed shut in the distance. He was about to hang up the phone when he could swear he heard someone pick it up.
"Hello? Hello?" Duncan asked the silence on the other end. "My friend needs help. Please . answer me. I need to know where she is."
The only response was the sound of the line being cut off.
"Damn!" Duncan began to frantically redial the number, but to no avail. No one answered.
"What's going on?" Ellen asked, putting her hand on his shoulder.
"My friend Claudia . something just happened to her." He replied quickly as he dialed Joe's number in Seacouver.
"Joe's Place." The familiar voice of Tom the bartender answered.
"Tom, it's Duncan .. I need to speak to Joe."
"I'm sorry Duncan, but Joe's not here." Tom responded. "In fact . I was getting a little worried. The last time I saw him was when we were closing last night, and this morning I got to the bar to find the door unlocked and the receipts still on the bar where he'd been working on the deposit."
"Have you tried his cell?" Duncan asked.
"Of course I tried his cell." Tom replied. "I was about to call the police when you called. It's not like him to leave money laying around and the door open like that. Something's not right."
"You have my cell number. Call me as soon as you hear anything Tom . anything." Duncan repeated.
He set the phone down on the table and then leaned his weight on his hands, hanging his head. First he hears Claudia being attacked, and now Joe has disappeared and Duncan was more than a thousand miles away from either of them.
"What is going on?" Ellen asked him again.
"Hell if I know." Duncan replied, picking up his phone and going to get his coat.
"Where are you going?" Ellen asked, grabbing her own coat and following him out of the flat.
"I'm going to New York." Duncan replied simply.
"Then I'm coming with you." She told him as she turned to grab the bag she always kept packed for quick getaways and rushed to catch up with his long strides.
Back in New York, Methos turned off Claudia's cell phone and put it in his pocket. From his hiding place behind the curtains he'd seen the two men grab Claudia and haul her out of the auditorium. He probably could have stopped them, but he didn't. Yes he'd come there to challenge his former student, but when he realized the men abducting her were not immortal that thought vanished only to be replaced with a flood of possibilities. Seeing them take her like that, Methos' mind immediately wondered if another band of renegade Watchers was up to old tricks. He couldn't take the chance that they were armed and could take him out if that were the case.
He remained hidden, watching as Claudia scratched, kicked and clawed her attackers. And when they had overpowered her, he saw her eyes searching the room and landing on the curtain that only partially concealed the immortal whose presence she sensed. She could only see part of his face . one eye . but there was no mistaking that she recognized her teacher. For an instant her eyes registered the shock and then as they dragged her further and further up the aisle, he saw her silent plea for help.
Only after the doors slammed, did he emerge from the curtain. Hearing the faint, familiar voice coming from the discarded phone, Methos stooped and picked it up, listening for a few seconds and then cutting the line before he was tempted to respond.
Carefully he made his way to the door the men had carried Claudia out of, opening it slightly until he was sure they were gone. He walked out into the alley, at first intending to disappear, but then moved quickly to the street. When the sensation of Claudia's presence hit him for a second time, he looked up in time to see a white van with darkly tinted windows screeching off from the curb.
"What am I doing?" he asked himself as he used his knife to jimmy open the door of the car that had been parked behind the van. "Why do I care?" he continued to question himself as he reached beneath the steering wheel and fiddled with the wires, starting the engine. He told himself that he was simply trying to find out if these were Watchers, so he would know if something was amiss with the organization again, but somewhere in his gut he knew that wasn't why he was following them.
"Damn!" he pounded his fists against the steering wheel as he followed the van through traffic. His mind was at war with itself. For weeks all he'd felt was the anger and rage of betrayal, and then Claudia had to look at him like that, all trusting, and then he hears McLeod's blasted voice on the phone, and now he's about to get himself sucked into who knows what.
"I'll find out what I need to know and then I'll either leave her to get out of this on her own, or if the opportunity arises I'll do what I came here to do in the first place . take her head." Methos told himself as he continued to follow the van, which appeared to be headed out of town.