Chapter 85

Northern Mexico

Upon blasting out of the California Watcher ranch, the group had changed from the SUV into a small Camry and had hidden the SUV under a bed of brush before driving leisurely along the main highway into Southern California.

Matt had noticed the helicopter evidently seeking them and had made certain that their vehicle did not stand out and was lost in traffic. It worked. Without the backup of law enforcement… the Watchers were attempting to discover the immortals on their own. Matt's FBI scanner kept him abreast of the situation. He'd managed to tune into the Watcher frequency, and had used the gleaned knowledge to the best of his ability. He'd kept up on surveillance technology in recent years… and there was little that he didn't know how to use.

Rolling the window down, Matt breathed in the warm California air. He put his arm on the door and found himself beating the tempo of some innocuous music Amber had located on the radio. So far so good.

By nightfall they'd rolled into L.A., refueled and then they'd continued their journey south. All the while the five immortals exchanged information and brought Jade and Jeremy up to speed on the entire situation. By midnight… Matt had turned off the road and headed into the desert. They'd left the car near the border. Matt checked out the schedules of the border patrols via his scanner while the others packed everything up. When he gave the word… they'd crossed on foot into Mexico.

After all… it was easier to cross into Mexico than into the U.S. Matt wasn't certain how they'd get back into the states… but he'd worry about that after they'd checked out the next facility… providing they survived. The element of surprise had been with the last time… he sincerely doubted surprise would work again. At any rate… they'd have to find a place to hole up before dawn… and catch some shut-eye.

Immortals might have great constitutions… but they still needed sleep. And with sleep… came clarity. Matt wasn't certain what they'd find or what else they might have to do… but he was finding this walk on the wild side… exhilarating!

Katya blinked her Maglite on the compass and led the way through the cactus and rock escarpments that made up this area of Mexico. Here was only darkness… and the clear light of the stars… shining down like diamonds on inky velvet.

Matt shifted his backpack and his weapons' strap… and followed. Katya knew this area of the world better… she'd lived for centuries in Mexico and Latin America… and had some ideas about where they were headed. Time would tell how right she was. This was where she'd wanted to come first… after all.

Glancing at Jade and Jeremy… clad in Matt's and Katya's spare set of clothes… Matt knew they'd made the right decision. He smiled to himself in the darkness. They'd have to contact the others in Europe once they stopped for the night. Until then… it was best to keep moving… and best to use lights only sparingly.

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Geneva

Computer techs had been working on the Internet Cafe computer they'd confiscated … but so far… they'd had no luck breaking the strange code Reagan Cole had been using. Nor did the email addresses she'd sent to make any sense. So far… that was a dead end. All they knew for certain… was that she'd had messages from four addresses… and had sent messages to about a dozen.

Had they been aware of the California raid… they might have realized that immortals evidently knew more about Watchers than they realized.

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Rome

Warren Green was getting restless. He'd promised to wait… but surely it wouldn't matter if he got out for a bit. After all… he had no idea where Reagan and Keith had gone. Without his transponder… the Watcher contingent would have no knowledge of where he was.

Staring out the window at the glorious sun rising over the skyline of Rome… Warren was eager to see the city. He'd been practicing Italian for several days. Surely with a phrasebook in hand he could get by. He'd order breakfast first, though. He was in no hurry… nor did he have a death wish. If he were found… he knew there would be a price to pay for his betrayal of his oath.

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London, England

Melanie Pryor hadn't been able to sleep all night. Having returned to London at Dawson's request, she was still keyed up and worried about Delano, about what Dawson had told her was evidently going on inside the organization, and about Cassandra. Despite having had no contact with Cass since 2003, when the psychic had suddenly left New York City, Melanie was still fond of her former assignment.

Huddled in her bed and watching the dawn outside her window, Melanie wondered if Cassandra could see the light… or if she were lost or dead. There was nothing she could do here, except wait… and Melanie had never been good at just waiting.

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Washington, DC

Roberta Collins shivered in the night. She thought she heard something and rose… leaving her husband sleeping in his bed. She checked her sleeping children and… satisfied that she was imagining things… headed down to the kitchen for some warm milk.

Halfway down the stairs… she saw a dark figure detach from the shadows. Roberta opened her mouth to scream… and crumpled to the stairs as something slammed into her side.

Lying there… Roberta was painfully aware of the loud pounding of her heart as it beat slower and slower… and slower. She was unconscious from loss of blood before it finally stopped.

The figure stepped over her body and headed up the stairs to complete the job. The word had been given. She'd betrayed her oath… and had assisted Matt McCormick in vanishing. That also made her guilty by association with what had happened in California. The North American Coordinator had been more persistent about getting the word out to groups in the U.S. and Canada.

Any Watcher found to be working with immortals in attacks on facilities would be summarily executed… along with their families. No Tribunal would be necessary.

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Paris

Once the guards had vanished around the side of the building, Duncan inched along the wall of the house. He continued to peer into windows carefully and duck down once he saw people in the rooms. When he reached the corner to the back of the house… he gazed at a wide, flagstone veranda. The entrance to the house from the low-walled porch was a set of glass-paned French doors.

Duncan paused and listened. He heard nothing… no voices… not even a dog's barking. There was nothing to be gained by waiting. He climbed the balustrade of the veranda and flattened himself once more against the wall. Finally he dared look through the doors.

Apparently it was a dining room of some sort. He could see linen covered tables set with chairs. No one was currently about. He reached for the levered handle on the door and smiled grimly as it descended and the door opened. Drawing his katana, Duncan entered the house, closing and locking the door behind him.

From the attached kitchen he could hear voices and the sounds of dishes being washed. Likely just day workers, he thought, and hoped once more that Alisaunne would remain under control. Crossing the dining room swiftly, he arrived at the arched entry to a wide hall. He ducked against the wall of the dining room and listened.

Again he could hear voices in the side offices… laughter… and sounds of computer keyboard keys clicking. Again… low level workers likely… typing up reports of immortal activity. Duncan wondered if they even knew the truth about whatever was going on. He inched into the darkened hallway and immediately felt the nearness of others.

The one behind a door that likely led to a cellar… was probably Alisaunne. The one approaching slowly down the stairs was Amanda. As soon as he saw her… Duncan motioned for her to join him. She did so quietly… snatching looks at the side rooms' inhabitants as she hurried past open doors.

Duncan pulled her into the alcove where he was standing and held her… aware that both their hearts were pounding.

"Miss me?" Amanda whispered, her eyes bright with teasing. Duncan leaned to kiss her lightly and pointed at the closed door.

"Down there," he said.

Amanda nodded. "I feel that, too." She pulled her own sword. Duncan grinned and as always wondered just how it was she seemed to be able to hide a sword on her person… even when it seemed impossible. "Practice," she'd once explained, "Practice and being limber."

The duo crossed the hall… and Duncan inched the heavy wooden door open. From the dimly lit cellar he heard movement… but no voices. He slipped past the door. Amanda followed and closed and locked it behind her, throwing the deadbolt she found on the door. If an outcry were raised… the locked and bolted door would delay reinforcements for a while.

They crept down the stairs. When they heard Alisaunne's voice rise in anger and scream, "Nooo!" Duncan sped up. The time for caution had past.

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When Alisaunne reached the bottom of the stairs she'd noticed the white light gleaming at the far end of the darkened cellar. Beneath the light on a gurney lay a figure covered by a white sheet. One arm lay on the sheet, and inserted into the arm was an IV attached to several bags on a pole.

Fearfully she raced forward. "What have they done to him?" she thought. As soon as she reached the figure… Alisaunne saw to her horror that it wasn't Ian. It was a male immortal she'd never before seen.

Kill him! Take his head! Nestor's voice whispered. Quickly! Before he wakes up!

Alisaunne shook her head with a shudder. Then she heard the footstep on the wooden stairs.

Through narrowed eyes she peered at the tall figure of LeCaron. The man was grinning and raising an arm to shoot.

Alisaunne leaped with all her power to her left, crouched briefly, and then launched herself at LeCaron. Her move surprised him and she grasped the hand with the weapon and twisted it so that the barrel pointed at his temple.

"Where is he?" she hissed while visions of flaying him alive flickered through her mind like some obscene snuff film.

LeCaron's eyes widened in fear. "Who?" he managed to say.

"Ian," the young woman hissed again. "Tell me where he is!"

LeCaron shook his head and strained to move his head away from the barrel of his gun. The two circled about as they struggled. He was surprised at her strength… she was far stronger than she appeared. The Watcher managed to turn the gun briefly so that the barrel was pointed, not at his head… but almost in her face. He redoubled his efforts as his hand shook from the effort.

Alisaunne realized the man was preparing to pull the trigger as soon as it was safe for him to do so. Angrily she shifted her weight to her left and kneed him harshly in the groin with her lifted right knee… again and again.

His face turned purple and his grip on his weapon lessened as he froze and began to bend over.

She re-doubled her efforts to turn the gun-barrel back toward his head even as he managed to squeeze the trigger.

A blinding flash and a whoof from the silencer on the barrel momentarily startled her. Her cheek stung from the graze of the bullet as it had passed her… after passing through one of LeCaron's cheeks.

Blood spattered on them both and he howled… his mouth a ruin… teeth that had been clenched were now shattered from the bullet's impact. But they both still lived.

Alisaunne drew back one fist and pounded it into LeCaron's bloodied face. Again and again until he lay unconscious on the floor. She knelt to feel his pulse. It still throbbed beneath her bloodied fingers. Slowly she raised one hand and stared at the blood… so enticing… so delicious. She slowly moved her hand toward her mouth as if to taste it… to lick the salty fluid from her fingers. In her mind she could hear Nestor's cackling… she could feel him thrusting into her… she could smell the rot from his mouth as it closed on her. She opened her mouth and screamed, "Nooo!" and buried her face in her hands shuddering.

Moments later Duncan was at her side… his arms around her. "I'm here Ali… it's all right. He can't hurt you. Listen to my voice… he's dead and he can't hurt you." She collapsed against him sobbing.

Amanda stepped to the gurney. "Cory?" she whispered and pulled the IV out. She ran a hand over his cool brow and whispered his name over and over. Finally his eyes fluttered open. As they focused on Amanda's face, he grinned.

"What kept you?"

"Get him up. We have to get out of here," Duncan ordered, still holding his sobbing student. He rose, pulling Alisaunne to her feet.

Upstairs he heard a pounding on the cellar door.

"Hurry up! We've got company!" Duncan barked as Amanda pulled Cory to a sitting position and helped him stand. Raines staggered drunkenly and shook his head. The sheet fell from him and he stared down at.

Amanda swiftly grasped it and draped it over his shoulders. "Adjust this about you… I don't see any clothes."

Cory nodded numbly.

Upstairs the pounding increased and Duncan could hear wood starting to splinter.

"You found a way in," Cory grumbled. "Any idea of how to find a way out?"

Duncan glared and swept his eyes over the darkened cellar. The swinging single light fixture showed only the damp stone walls of the cellar. "You mean you don't know the way?"

"Shut up, both of you!" snapped Amanda as she circled about. Finally she found what she was looking for. "Coal chute!" she said triumphantly and pointed upward.

"Oh that's great," snorted Cory. "Don't you think I'm a little under-dressed for that maneuver?"

Amanda glared at him and gestured impatiently. Grumbling Cory pulled himself up the chute and began to inch his way through the blackened exit.

Duncan shook Alisaunne and peered into her eyes. "Ali… we have to go… Ian's not here… we still have to find him."

The girl's tear-filled eyes suddenly focused. She nodded. Duncan dropped his hands. Alisaunne turned. LeCaron reached out with a weak hand and grasped her ankle… letting out a loud groan. She snarled… pulled her foot away and began to kick him.

Once more Duncan pulled her away… lifting her in his arms. "Leave him!" She struggled in his arms in her attempts to reach the downed Watcher. She wanted to tear him apart! She wanted him dead! She wanted all of them dead!

Duncan slammed her against the wall beneath the chute. "Climb!" he ordered.

She glared at him and tried to reach past him. "Climb, Ali or we'll never find Ian!"

At the mention of Ian's name… Alisaunne paused and stared… meeting Duncan's eyes. Slowly she nodded… turned and pulled herself up into the chute.

Amanda shook her head. "We need to hurry. That door won't hold them much longer."

Duncan nodded and stood guard while Amanda followed Alisaunne and Cory up the shoot. As he heard the door above begin to give way… he pulled into the chute… and vanished. He fervently hoped no Watcher was on the egress of this. If they were… then all of them would likely die… or face the same fate as evidently had claimed Ian.

As he reached the outer door… it swung open and Cory's hands appeared to pull him free. The con man grinned. "We really make a sight now, Mac!" he smiled… his white teeth looking even whiter in his blackened face. He'd dropped the filthy sheet.

Duncan stared around. Below him he heard voices. They'd figure it out soon. "Let's move!" he said as Cory grabbed the sheet once more… tying it more securely about his waist. The four immortals raced toward the high ivy-covered wall. From behind the shrubs… Duncan and Cory lifted Amanda and Alisaunne up the wall and then followed.

They were out! But they were on foot and filthy! And the Watchers were even now organizing a search. The immortals had to get out of sight quickly… before they were seen. Duncan pointed to an alleyway and guarded their rear as the other three beat their retreat. He would protect them all! He had to be certain they were all safe. With that thought firmly in the forefront of his mind… Duncan MacLeod backed after them slowly… watching for signs of pursuit… ready to fend the Watchers off… so that his friends … his people … his clan… could escape. For this his father had raised him! This was his destiny!

At one end of the alley… near the front of the Watcher grounds… Duncan saw movement and heard a cry go up. They'd been seen. They were coming! Duncan MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod crouched in anticipation. He pulled the automatic from its holster… and with it in one hand and his katana in the other… prepared to meet the enemy!