CHAPTER 76
When Duncan returned to the sound of steel against steel, he was immediately concerned.
"What's going on? Are you mad?"
"Take it easy Highlander, we're just warming up." Methos replied as he put down his sword and
wiped his face on a towel.
Duncan looked over at Ellen, still finding it hard not to be too overprotective of her because of her
almost childlike appearance.
"It's like he said." She replied as she laid her sword on the bed. "We were getting ready for this
afternoon."
Duncan let it go and laid the copies of the layout of the Palace of Justice on the table, placing an
ash tray and a couple of beer bottles on the corners.
"The Palace is under restoration, but there was some sort of mix up with the company that got the
bid. The place has been empty and awaiting completion for two weeks. That is how Shafer could
pull this off without being discovered." He explained. Then looking down at the papers he began
to go over the layout. "The yard where the executions took place is here, and the main gate is
here. No one can see anything from the outside because of the high walls."
"What is this?" Methos asked as he traced a red line on the grid.
"That is the stairway to the basement. There are cells down there. The doorway opens up into
the plaza." Duncan replied.
"That's probably where they are holding the others." Methos commented and Duncan nodded in
agreement.
"They could have been there this entire time without anyone noticing. A security company is
licensed to watch over the place during the restoration. They are the only ones on the premises
until the problems with the contract are settled." Duncan continued.
"And likely owned by Rick Shafer." Ellen added.
"The last time I was there, they had a platform set up here." Duncan drew a long rectangle on the
area of the plaza outside the palace. "The guillotine was here." He added as he drew an "x" on
the middle of the platform.
"That was fifty years ago." Ellen argued. "What makes you think it will be the same?"
"Because Shafer will make sure it is the same." Methos answered. "This is all about what he
believes MacLeod did, or more specifically, didn't do that day. He will make it as authentic as
possible. The man pays a keen interest to detail."
Duncan agreed.
"I am going to enter here." He pointed to the main gate. "But there is a gate on the side that is
hidden by foliage that is overgrown. No one has been taking care of the gardens because of the
renovations."
"How do you propose we get in?" Methos asked, but his words were cut off by MacLeod holding
up a silver skeleton key. "Where did you get that?"
"I found out the name of the caretaker who was in charge of the gardens. He wasn't happy about
losing his job, and for a 'fee', he handed it over. He said the lock sticks a little, so I bought this
just in case." Duncan pulled a small can of something akin to WD-40 from his pocket.
"Clever Highlander." Methos replied as he tucked the key and the can in the pocket of his own
coat that laid across a chair. "What else do you have there?"
Duncan opened up the duffel bag he'd brought in and handed both of them a side arm with
holster and several clips.
"What is this?" Methos eyebrows raised. "Surely you aren't taking a lesson from my handbook?"
"No, this is not for Shafer. This is in case he has more forces on the grounds than we can handle
with swords. Whatever we have to do to anyone who gets in our way, we do. The bottom line is
that we don't leave there without the others, and if possible without the location of where Garrett
is holding Beth."
Methos nodded in agreement and checked the firearm and safety, pointing out the features to
Ellen who wasn't as familiar.
"You pop the empty clip out like this and then jam the fresh one in like that." He said, watching as
she performed the task a few times.
"Are we ready then?" Duncan asked. Ellen and Methos exchanged a glance and then nodded.
The Palace wasn't far away, but not knowing what condition they would find the others in, he'd
rented a black van with tinted windows. He was going to take the subway while Ellen and Methos
drove the van and parked it outside the side gate. It was the closest to the building and the
easiest way out of there.
"I've got my phone set to vibrate." He told Methos. "Ring twice when you are in position and I'll
ring you back once."
Methos fixed his phone and then grabbed the Highlander by the arm, gripping his forearm and
elbow with his hand. "Forget the boy scout handbook MacLeod. Today all that matters is getting
all of them out of there, no matter what we have to do. There will be time for penance later."
Duncan gripped Methos arm in kind and for a long few seconds they exchanged a look of
understanding and determination.
"Hate to break this up, but it's 1:15." Ellen reminded them.
----------------
Across town at the Old Palace of Justice, the guards were taking out the trays that had contained
what they had called "the prisoner's last meals."
Amanda was sitting on the edge of the bunk closest to the door when the men turned their backs
on her. Hidden in the folds of the blanket beside her was the metal leg to the other bunk. Richie
had managed to get it to balance on the three by keeping his weight on the edge. As soon as he
saw Amanda move, he sprung forward.
Amanda clubbed one of the guards on the back of the head with the metal leg, while Richie
wrestled the other to the ground and Claudia hit him with a chair. Joe felt more than useless, but
at least he was mobile. He'd loosened the bolts on one of the chairs and managed to remove the
seat from the single piece that made up the back and back legs. It wasn't perfect, but it was a
crutch of sorts.
Moving toward the doorway as soon as the two guards were down, Amanda came up behind him
and supported his other arm so they could move more quickly. Richie grabbed Claudia's hand
and the gun from one of the guard's belts and they followed.
Stumbling up the stairs, Joe somehow managed to make it to the top with Amanda's help. "I'm
holding you all up. You need to get out of here and I'll either make it out or make whoever tries to
stop me wish they had stayed in bed this morning." He complained.
"Don't waste energy arguing, let's keep moving. We're all getting out of here." Amanda replied.
They had just pushed the door open at the top of the stairs, their eyes squinting in the sun, when
the sound of a voice sounded from above them.
"Good! I won't have to bother with your resisting the walk to your execution." Rick Shafer called
from the stairwell above.
Amanda pushed Joe out of the way when she realized guards were just outside the door and
moving to try and overtake them, but a shot directly into her heart stopped her cold. Richie heard
the gun go off, but still had to try. "Run for it!" he yelled to Claudia, but a net fell from above,
trapping both of them as they struggled.
"Drag them outside!" Shafer called to his guards. One guard threw Amanda's body over his
shoulder while two others took Joe by either arm and carried him toward the platform outside.
Richie tried to resist, and received a blow to the head for his trouble. Claudia caught him before
he could hit the ground, but her legs were tangled in the net and she only managed to cushion
the fall.
She held him for the brief moment, but as soon as the netting was removed from over their
heads, guards pulled them apart. She clutched his arm desperately as the guards dragged him
away.
Once they were at the platform, Claudia swallowed hard. There were three guillotines lined up in
a row, and a gallows at the end.
"Tie them up." Shafer ordered.
"But this one's dead." A guard argued.
"Do as I say and get her in position." He barked.
Joe exchanged a worried and sympathetic look toward Claudia. He'd lived a full life, but her's
was just beginning.
Still dazed, Richie found himself on his knees with his arms bound to his sides and his hands tied
behind his back. Blinking a few times to clear the cobwebs, he realized his head was caught in
some kind of vise. Turning his head as far as he could to the left where he could hear Claudia's
soft crying, he realized that she was in a similar position. Looking to his right he saw Amanda's
still lifeless body tied the same as well. There hadn't been one guillotine, there were three.
"Oh God" he moaned as he realized how impossible this situation had turned. He wished he'd
had one moment before they'd been bound to hold Claudia once again and to tell her how he felt.
"Claudia" he called her name. "I love you Claudia."
Claudia heard his voice and realized he'd come to. "Richie? God Richie I'm so scared." She
whimpered.
"Shhh sweetheart. Don't give them the satisfaction." He said as he looked to see Rick Shafer
gloating from the yard in front of them. "Just focus on me. Keep your eyes on mine, for as long
as we can, and when they go to end this, close them tight and know that in my heart I am holding
you."
"I love you so much Richie" her voice broke and she began to cry uncontrollably.
On the other side of the platform, Joe had been placed in a chair on the top of a gallows. The
chair sat on the trap door. His head was in the noose. "You're a sick son of a bitch you know
that don't you Shafer?" he couldn't help but rage.
Shafer nodded to the man standing behind Joe and he was rewarded by a gag in his mouth.
"Is everything set?" Shafer asked one of the executioners.
"Yes sir. They are all set to go 20 seconds apart."
"Good … good." Checking his watch he saw it was 1:55. "Any moment now … I will have
vengeance for my fallen friends."
When Duncan returned to the sound of steel against steel, he was immediately concerned.
"What's going on? Are you mad?"
"Take it easy Highlander, we're just warming up." Methos replied as he put down his sword and
wiped his face on a towel.
Duncan looked over at Ellen, still finding it hard not to be too overprotective of her because of her
almost childlike appearance.
"It's like he said." She replied as she laid her sword on the bed. "We were getting ready for this
afternoon."
Duncan let it go and laid the copies of the layout of the Palace of Justice on the table, placing an
ash tray and a couple of beer bottles on the corners.
"The Palace is under restoration, but there was some sort of mix up with the company that got the
bid. The place has been empty and awaiting completion for two weeks. That is how Shafer could
pull this off without being discovered." He explained. Then looking down at the papers he began
to go over the layout. "The yard where the executions took place is here, and the main gate is
here. No one can see anything from the outside because of the high walls."
"What is this?" Methos asked as he traced a red line on the grid.
"That is the stairway to the basement. There are cells down there. The doorway opens up into
the plaza." Duncan replied.
"That's probably where they are holding the others." Methos commented and Duncan nodded in
agreement.
"They could have been there this entire time without anyone noticing. A security company is
licensed to watch over the place during the restoration. They are the only ones on the premises
until the problems with the contract are settled." Duncan continued.
"And likely owned by Rick Shafer." Ellen added.
"The last time I was there, they had a platform set up here." Duncan drew a long rectangle on the
area of the plaza outside the palace. "The guillotine was here." He added as he drew an "x" on
the middle of the platform.
"That was fifty years ago." Ellen argued. "What makes you think it will be the same?"
"Because Shafer will make sure it is the same." Methos answered. "This is all about what he
believes MacLeod did, or more specifically, didn't do that day. He will make it as authentic as
possible. The man pays a keen interest to detail."
Duncan agreed.
"I am going to enter here." He pointed to the main gate. "But there is a gate on the side that is
hidden by foliage that is overgrown. No one has been taking care of the gardens because of the
renovations."
"How do you propose we get in?" Methos asked, but his words were cut off by MacLeod holding
up a silver skeleton key. "Where did you get that?"
"I found out the name of the caretaker who was in charge of the gardens. He wasn't happy about
losing his job, and for a 'fee', he handed it over. He said the lock sticks a little, so I bought this
just in case." Duncan pulled a small can of something akin to WD-40 from his pocket.
"Clever Highlander." Methos replied as he tucked the key and the can in the pocket of his own
coat that laid across a chair. "What else do you have there?"
Duncan opened up the duffel bag he'd brought in and handed both of them a side arm with
holster and several clips.
"What is this?" Methos eyebrows raised. "Surely you aren't taking a lesson from my handbook?"
"No, this is not for Shafer. This is in case he has more forces on the grounds than we can handle
with swords. Whatever we have to do to anyone who gets in our way, we do. The bottom line is
that we don't leave there without the others, and if possible without the location of where Garrett
is holding Beth."
Methos nodded in agreement and checked the firearm and safety, pointing out the features to
Ellen who wasn't as familiar.
"You pop the empty clip out like this and then jam the fresh one in like that." He said, watching as
she performed the task a few times.
"Are we ready then?" Duncan asked. Ellen and Methos exchanged a glance and then nodded.
The Palace wasn't far away, but not knowing what condition they would find the others in, he'd
rented a black van with tinted windows. He was going to take the subway while Ellen and Methos
drove the van and parked it outside the side gate. It was the closest to the building and the
easiest way out of there.
"I've got my phone set to vibrate." He told Methos. "Ring twice when you are in position and I'll
ring you back once."
Methos fixed his phone and then grabbed the Highlander by the arm, gripping his forearm and
elbow with his hand. "Forget the boy scout handbook MacLeod. Today all that matters is getting
all of them out of there, no matter what we have to do. There will be time for penance later."
Duncan gripped Methos arm in kind and for a long few seconds they exchanged a look of
understanding and determination.
"Hate to break this up, but it's 1:15." Ellen reminded them.
----------------
Across town at the Old Palace of Justice, the guards were taking out the trays that had contained
what they had called "the prisoner's last meals."
Amanda was sitting on the edge of the bunk closest to the door when the men turned their backs
on her. Hidden in the folds of the blanket beside her was the metal leg to the other bunk. Richie
had managed to get it to balance on the three by keeping his weight on the edge. As soon as he
saw Amanda move, he sprung forward.
Amanda clubbed one of the guards on the back of the head with the metal leg, while Richie
wrestled the other to the ground and Claudia hit him with a chair. Joe felt more than useless, but
at least he was mobile. He'd loosened the bolts on one of the chairs and managed to remove the
seat from the single piece that made up the back and back legs. It wasn't perfect, but it was a
crutch of sorts.
Moving toward the doorway as soon as the two guards were down, Amanda came up behind him
and supported his other arm so they could move more quickly. Richie grabbed Claudia's hand
and the gun from one of the guard's belts and they followed.
Stumbling up the stairs, Joe somehow managed to make it to the top with Amanda's help. "I'm
holding you all up. You need to get out of here and I'll either make it out or make whoever tries to
stop me wish they had stayed in bed this morning." He complained.
"Don't waste energy arguing, let's keep moving. We're all getting out of here." Amanda replied.
They had just pushed the door open at the top of the stairs, their eyes squinting in the sun, when
the sound of a voice sounded from above them.
"Good! I won't have to bother with your resisting the walk to your execution." Rick Shafer called
from the stairwell above.
Amanda pushed Joe out of the way when she realized guards were just outside the door and
moving to try and overtake them, but a shot directly into her heart stopped her cold. Richie heard
the gun go off, but still had to try. "Run for it!" he yelled to Claudia, but a net fell from above,
trapping both of them as they struggled.
"Drag them outside!" Shafer called to his guards. One guard threw Amanda's body over his
shoulder while two others took Joe by either arm and carried him toward the platform outside.
Richie tried to resist, and received a blow to the head for his trouble. Claudia caught him before
he could hit the ground, but her legs were tangled in the net and she only managed to cushion
the fall.
She held him for the brief moment, but as soon as the netting was removed from over their
heads, guards pulled them apart. She clutched his arm desperately as the guards dragged him
away.
Once they were at the platform, Claudia swallowed hard. There were three guillotines lined up in
a row, and a gallows at the end.
"Tie them up." Shafer ordered.
"But this one's dead." A guard argued.
"Do as I say and get her in position." He barked.
Joe exchanged a worried and sympathetic look toward Claudia. He'd lived a full life, but her's
was just beginning.
Still dazed, Richie found himself on his knees with his arms bound to his sides and his hands tied
behind his back. Blinking a few times to clear the cobwebs, he realized his head was caught in
some kind of vise. Turning his head as far as he could to the left where he could hear Claudia's
soft crying, he realized that she was in a similar position. Looking to his right he saw Amanda's
still lifeless body tied the same as well. There hadn't been one guillotine, there were three.
"Oh God" he moaned as he realized how impossible this situation had turned. He wished he'd
had one moment before they'd been bound to hold Claudia once again and to tell her how he felt.
"Claudia" he called her name. "I love you Claudia."
Claudia heard his voice and realized he'd come to. "Richie? God Richie I'm so scared." She
whimpered.
"Shhh sweetheart. Don't give them the satisfaction." He said as he looked to see Rick Shafer
gloating from the yard in front of them. "Just focus on me. Keep your eyes on mine, for as long
as we can, and when they go to end this, close them tight and know that in my heart I am holding
you."
"I love you so much Richie" her voice broke and she began to cry uncontrollably.
On the other side of the platform, Joe had been placed in a chair on the top of a gallows. The
chair sat on the trap door. His head was in the noose. "You're a sick son of a bitch you know
that don't you Shafer?" he couldn't help but rage.
Shafer nodded to the man standing behind Joe and he was rewarded by a gag in his mouth.
"Is everything set?" Shafer asked one of the executioners.
"Yes sir. They are all set to go 20 seconds apart."
"Good … good." Checking his watch he saw it was 1:55. "Any moment now … I will have
vengeance for my fallen friends."