Chapter 3
After a day of sightseeing Duncan took Sandi to his favourite restaurant. They were given a quiet table overlooking the small garden. They had talked training programmes until the conversation finally turned to Charlie.
Sandi laughed as Duncan told her his side of when he met Charlie. "That's not exactly how Charlie told it"
"I bet," said Duncan as he poured them another glass of wine. "I was wondering how did you get into fencing? I mean it's not exactly a popular sport these days".
Sandi picked up her glass "It was in my house. You see my parents met at a fencing tournament. My mother was an instructor for one club and my father was competing for another. There was a dispute about a point my father had got against one of my mother's pupils. My mother tried to argue with the judge but it didn't get her anywhere, except barred from the floor for the rest of the tournament. My father always said that he lost that match because all he could think of was my mother."
"So it was your parents that got you started?" Duncan said as he watched her eyes shine with the happy memories.
"Not if my mother had her way" Sandi laughed "she was against me getting involved but I had other ideas. My father always loved to tell the story of the first time I got my hands on one of his foils. I'd just seen the 3 musketeers I must have been 6 I think, I had sneaked into my fathers training room. If I'd stayed in there I wouldn't have caused so much damage."
Duncan placed his elbow on the table and rested his chin on his hand "Go on what happened?"
Sandi couldn't stop herself from smiling at the memory "Well, I decided the best place to go not to be discovered was one of the Staterooms"
"What in the Embassy?" Duncan smirked as he could see where this was leading.
"We lived in an apartment in the Embassy and as it was closed I decided no one would find me there. I used the chairs as my targets. You can imagine the state they were in when my father finally found me." Sandi said as she placed her glass back on the table. Duncan thought of the many Embassy balls he had attended over the years. The Staterooms were normally lavishly furnished with gold trimmed chairs with very expensive upholstery. "So how long were you there before you were found?"
"Nearly 2 hours." Sandi replied as her face lit up as she remembered her father's face. "After that he would let me play with them but only in his training room. The rest is history. How about you? When did you start?"
Duncan took a drink of his wine as he thought how to answer her question. "Much like you I started young, my father was my first teacher and then a cousin of mine".
Duncan hoped that she wouldn't ask for any more details and was glad of the distraction as the waiter brought the bill. After a quick check Duncan took out his wallet and placed his credit card in the folder. The waiter smiled and retreated to settle the account.
"So your mother didn't teach you at all?" Duncan was a little curious as to why someone who was an instructor wouldn't have wanted to teach their own child. Sandi thought for a moment "No, but she did come to competitions with me. She never told me why and I never asked. I did ask my father once but all he would say was that there are things in life that couldn't explain and left it at that."
Duncan signed the bill when the waiter returned with his card and as he put his credit card in his wallet he noticed Sandi try to stifle a yawn. "I think I should get you home."
"I am a little tired. It must be the jet lag," Sandi said as she got to her feet and followed Duncan towards the door.
"Oh but you wanted us to go to that bar your friend owns" Sandi said as Duncan held her coat for her to slip into. "It's not a problem we can go there another night".
As they collected their coats neither of them had noticed the man slip from the barstool. He followed them outside and stood in the doorway while he lit a cigarette. He watched Duncan hold the car door for Sandi before getting into the drivers side. A small wave of his hand brought a car to him. They waited for a few moments before following Duncan's car out of the parking lot.
It only took a few turns for Duncan to get the feeling he was being followed. Not wanting to alarm Sandi he turned into streets he didn't want just to test them and when the car followed his every move he knew he wasn't wrong. Duncan decided it wouldn't be wise to take her back to The Chester just yet. He had no idea as to who they could be but he was sure they weren't Watchers.
Duncan headed the car into the city centre hoping it would be easier to lose them in the evening traffic "Where are we going?"
Sandi had just realised that they had been travelling for quite a while and she didn't know where they where "I thought you might like to see the city by night".
Duncan was relieved when his explanation was not challenged and Sandi settled back and seemed to be enjoying the tour. As soon as he was sure that he had managed to loose the other car, he quickly headed towards The Chester. If there was trouble around he didn't want Sandi with him.
Duncan got out of the car and followed Sandi into the hotel. As they got to her room Duncan asked if he could see the view.
"You want to see the view?" Sandi asked the confusion obvious in her voice.
"Err yes I had a bet with a friend of mine...Joe, that you could see the bar he owns from this side of the hotel." Duncan replied as he watched her jiggle the key in the lock to open it. "Ok I don't think you can see much at all from the windows except the hotel sign."
As Duncan entered his eyes scanned the room for any intruders, there was a double bed against the far wall, the bedcover had seen a lot of visitors from the look of the stains.
A small wooden table stood to one side and a metal folding chair next to a closed door on the other. A wardrobe and chest of drawers were on the wall opposite the bed and Duncan wondered if they were the only things holding the wall paper to the wall as the top had flopped down and was resting on the wardrobe. As he walked over to the window he couldn't help noticing the tears in the curtains and how thin they were, even with them drawn they wouldn't stop the light of the hotel sign.
As he peered out of the window Duncan could see the drunks in the alley opposite and on the corner the working girls were out. He raised his eyebrows "Nope, Joe was right you can't see his bar from here".
"I know it's not much but it quite clean and it's best quality is it's cheap" Sandi said as she picked up a towel that was on the floor next to the closed bathroom door. Duncan realised that if there was someone here that could be their only hiding place. "Do you mind if I use the bathroom before I leave?"
"Yeah, sure but use the blue towels I can't vouch for the brown one" Sandi said as her hand went to the door handle. Duncan moved quickly across the room getting to the door before Sandi could open it "Thanks".
Slipping inside he flicked on the light; the shower curtain was all the way around the bath. Duncan sighed surely no one actually hides in a bathtub he thought as his hand slowly went to the curtain. He pulled the curtain and took a defensive stance all in one fluid movement. The only thing he found was a small spider trying desperately to escape from the other side of brown stained tub.
"Sorry didn't mean to scare you" Duncan said quietly to the spider. He could see a small window above the washbasin, it was stiff but he managed to open it slightly just enough to allow him to place the spider on the ledge outside. He then closed the window, flushed the toilet and went to wash his hands. The white porcelain basin had a crack that had been poorly repair on one side and the same brown water stains the bathtub had. Duncan had at first tried to dry his hands on the brown towel but when it seemed to lift as one he moved to the blue towel.
As he came back into the room Sandi was stood looking out of the window at the working girls on the corner. "Right, I'll pick you up tomorrow. Is 7 ok?"
Sandi turned to look at him "Yeah, I'll be waiting"
As Duncan walked towards the door Sandi moved to meet him.
"Thanks for today it was really great," she said before kissing him lightly on the cheek. Their eyes met as Sandi stepped back. Suddenly, she felt very self-conscious of what she had just done and she quickly moved her eyes to the floor. "I enjoyed it too. Maybe we could do it again soon"
Duncan didn't want to cause her any more anxiety so he opened the door "Sleep well"
He then closed the door, breathing heavily as he remembered when her lips had touched his skin, he had felt his heart start to race and when he looked into those eyes, he was nearly lost but he had heard Methos voice "I'd be very, very careful if I was you".
As he walked back to his car he smiled to himself, if Sandi thought of Charlie as her brother did he think of her as his little sister? What would Charlie have thought if he knew what had gone through his mind as her lips touched his skin. Duncan checked the street before he got into his car; he could still hear the drunks arguing in the alley and as he drove past the corner the working girls were on, the 2 that were left called out to him, he flashed them a smile before driving past towards Joes.
Joe's Bar
As Duncan entered the dimly lit bar he could see Methos in his usual place at the bar, a bottle of beer in his hand. "So no lady friend tonight Mac?"
Duncan raised his hand to get the barman's attention "No, she's a little tired"
"Couldn't wait to get rid of you, you mean?" Methos said smirking but his eyes narrowed as he could see that Duncan had something on his mind "What's up?"
"A single malt on his tab" Duncan said pointing to Methos who shrugged; he didn't mind, Joe had never taken any money before so he could be generous. Duncan waited until he had his drink and the barman had moved away to serve one of the waitresses. "I was followed"
"By who?" Methos said as he leaned closer "That's it I don't know. I didn't feel one of us but then they weren't that close"
"I take it you lost them?" Methos said taking a sip of his beer. "Yes, I lost them but I had to take a very long way getting Sandi to her hotel to do it"
"Did she notice?"
"I don't think so, I told her that I thought she might like to see the city at night" Duncan looked over at the stage where Joe was playing with his new guy Robert and the rest of the band. "Or is it that she knew they were there?"
Duncan sighed as he turned back to Methos "I know what you're thinking but no I don't think that she knew they were there". Methos put his bottle onto the bar, he knew what he was about to say Duncan wasn't going to like "I know you're not going to like this but I'm going to tell you anyway. I did some checking there isn't a S. Knight listed with immigration entering the country in the last 6 months"
Duncan just stood drinking his single malt as he thought over what Methos had just said, "There could be a simple answer to that"
"I know her first name might be different but Mac you now have people following you. Can't you at least admit that something isn't right?"
Duncan ran his hand over his face "Ok you win. I'll ask her some questions. Now, will that make you happy?"
"Yes" Methos said as he picked up his beer bottle again. The two Immortals both let the subject drop as they turned to watch Joe and his band.
After a day of sightseeing Duncan took Sandi to his favourite restaurant. They were given a quiet table overlooking the small garden. They had talked training programmes until the conversation finally turned to Charlie.
Sandi laughed as Duncan told her his side of when he met Charlie. "That's not exactly how Charlie told it"
"I bet," said Duncan as he poured them another glass of wine. "I was wondering how did you get into fencing? I mean it's not exactly a popular sport these days".
Sandi picked up her glass "It was in my house. You see my parents met at a fencing tournament. My mother was an instructor for one club and my father was competing for another. There was a dispute about a point my father had got against one of my mother's pupils. My mother tried to argue with the judge but it didn't get her anywhere, except barred from the floor for the rest of the tournament. My father always said that he lost that match because all he could think of was my mother."
"So it was your parents that got you started?" Duncan said as he watched her eyes shine with the happy memories.
"Not if my mother had her way" Sandi laughed "she was against me getting involved but I had other ideas. My father always loved to tell the story of the first time I got my hands on one of his foils. I'd just seen the 3 musketeers I must have been 6 I think, I had sneaked into my fathers training room. If I'd stayed in there I wouldn't have caused so much damage."
Duncan placed his elbow on the table and rested his chin on his hand "Go on what happened?"
Sandi couldn't stop herself from smiling at the memory "Well, I decided the best place to go not to be discovered was one of the Staterooms"
"What in the Embassy?" Duncan smirked as he could see where this was leading.
"We lived in an apartment in the Embassy and as it was closed I decided no one would find me there. I used the chairs as my targets. You can imagine the state they were in when my father finally found me." Sandi said as she placed her glass back on the table. Duncan thought of the many Embassy balls he had attended over the years. The Staterooms were normally lavishly furnished with gold trimmed chairs with very expensive upholstery. "So how long were you there before you were found?"
"Nearly 2 hours." Sandi replied as her face lit up as she remembered her father's face. "After that he would let me play with them but only in his training room. The rest is history. How about you? When did you start?"
Duncan took a drink of his wine as he thought how to answer her question. "Much like you I started young, my father was my first teacher and then a cousin of mine".
Duncan hoped that she wouldn't ask for any more details and was glad of the distraction as the waiter brought the bill. After a quick check Duncan took out his wallet and placed his credit card in the folder. The waiter smiled and retreated to settle the account.
"So your mother didn't teach you at all?" Duncan was a little curious as to why someone who was an instructor wouldn't have wanted to teach their own child. Sandi thought for a moment "No, but she did come to competitions with me. She never told me why and I never asked. I did ask my father once but all he would say was that there are things in life that couldn't explain and left it at that."
Duncan signed the bill when the waiter returned with his card and as he put his credit card in his wallet he noticed Sandi try to stifle a yawn. "I think I should get you home."
"I am a little tired. It must be the jet lag," Sandi said as she got to her feet and followed Duncan towards the door.
"Oh but you wanted us to go to that bar your friend owns" Sandi said as Duncan held her coat for her to slip into. "It's not a problem we can go there another night".
As they collected their coats neither of them had noticed the man slip from the barstool. He followed them outside and stood in the doorway while he lit a cigarette. He watched Duncan hold the car door for Sandi before getting into the drivers side. A small wave of his hand brought a car to him. They waited for a few moments before following Duncan's car out of the parking lot.
It only took a few turns for Duncan to get the feeling he was being followed. Not wanting to alarm Sandi he turned into streets he didn't want just to test them and when the car followed his every move he knew he wasn't wrong. Duncan decided it wouldn't be wise to take her back to The Chester just yet. He had no idea as to who they could be but he was sure they weren't Watchers.
Duncan headed the car into the city centre hoping it would be easier to lose them in the evening traffic "Where are we going?"
Sandi had just realised that they had been travelling for quite a while and she didn't know where they where "I thought you might like to see the city by night".
Duncan was relieved when his explanation was not challenged and Sandi settled back and seemed to be enjoying the tour. As soon as he was sure that he had managed to loose the other car, he quickly headed towards The Chester. If there was trouble around he didn't want Sandi with him.
Duncan got out of the car and followed Sandi into the hotel. As they got to her room Duncan asked if he could see the view.
"You want to see the view?" Sandi asked the confusion obvious in her voice.
"Err yes I had a bet with a friend of mine...Joe, that you could see the bar he owns from this side of the hotel." Duncan replied as he watched her jiggle the key in the lock to open it. "Ok I don't think you can see much at all from the windows except the hotel sign."
As Duncan entered his eyes scanned the room for any intruders, there was a double bed against the far wall, the bedcover had seen a lot of visitors from the look of the stains.
A small wooden table stood to one side and a metal folding chair next to a closed door on the other. A wardrobe and chest of drawers were on the wall opposite the bed and Duncan wondered if they were the only things holding the wall paper to the wall as the top had flopped down and was resting on the wardrobe. As he walked over to the window he couldn't help noticing the tears in the curtains and how thin they were, even with them drawn they wouldn't stop the light of the hotel sign.
As he peered out of the window Duncan could see the drunks in the alley opposite and on the corner the working girls were out. He raised his eyebrows "Nope, Joe was right you can't see his bar from here".
"I know it's not much but it quite clean and it's best quality is it's cheap" Sandi said as she picked up a towel that was on the floor next to the closed bathroom door. Duncan realised that if there was someone here that could be their only hiding place. "Do you mind if I use the bathroom before I leave?"
"Yeah, sure but use the blue towels I can't vouch for the brown one" Sandi said as her hand went to the door handle. Duncan moved quickly across the room getting to the door before Sandi could open it "Thanks".
Slipping inside he flicked on the light; the shower curtain was all the way around the bath. Duncan sighed surely no one actually hides in a bathtub he thought as his hand slowly went to the curtain. He pulled the curtain and took a defensive stance all in one fluid movement. The only thing he found was a small spider trying desperately to escape from the other side of brown stained tub.
"Sorry didn't mean to scare you" Duncan said quietly to the spider. He could see a small window above the washbasin, it was stiff but he managed to open it slightly just enough to allow him to place the spider on the ledge outside. He then closed the window, flushed the toilet and went to wash his hands. The white porcelain basin had a crack that had been poorly repair on one side and the same brown water stains the bathtub had. Duncan had at first tried to dry his hands on the brown towel but when it seemed to lift as one he moved to the blue towel.
As he came back into the room Sandi was stood looking out of the window at the working girls on the corner. "Right, I'll pick you up tomorrow. Is 7 ok?"
Sandi turned to look at him "Yeah, I'll be waiting"
As Duncan walked towards the door Sandi moved to meet him.
"Thanks for today it was really great," she said before kissing him lightly on the cheek. Their eyes met as Sandi stepped back. Suddenly, she felt very self-conscious of what she had just done and she quickly moved her eyes to the floor. "I enjoyed it too. Maybe we could do it again soon"
Duncan didn't want to cause her any more anxiety so he opened the door "Sleep well"
He then closed the door, breathing heavily as he remembered when her lips had touched his skin, he had felt his heart start to race and when he looked into those eyes, he was nearly lost but he had heard Methos voice "I'd be very, very careful if I was you".
As he walked back to his car he smiled to himself, if Sandi thought of Charlie as her brother did he think of her as his little sister? What would Charlie have thought if he knew what had gone through his mind as her lips touched his skin. Duncan checked the street before he got into his car; he could still hear the drunks arguing in the alley and as he drove past the corner the working girls were on, the 2 that were left called out to him, he flashed them a smile before driving past towards Joes.
Joe's Bar
As Duncan entered the dimly lit bar he could see Methos in his usual place at the bar, a bottle of beer in his hand. "So no lady friend tonight Mac?"
Duncan raised his hand to get the barman's attention "No, she's a little tired"
"Couldn't wait to get rid of you, you mean?" Methos said smirking but his eyes narrowed as he could see that Duncan had something on his mind "What's up?"
"A single malt on his tab" Duncan said pointing to Methos who shrugged; he didn't mind, Joe had never taken any money before so he could be generous. Duncan waited until he had his drink and the barman had moved away to serve one of the waitresses. "I was followed"
"By who?" Methos said as he leaned closer "That's it I don't know. I didn't feel one of us but then they weren't that close"
"I take it you lost them?" Methos said taking a sip of his beer. "Yes, I lost them but I had to take a very long way getting Sandi to her hotel to do it"
"Did she notice?"
"I don't think so, I told her that I thought she might like to see the city at night" Duncan looked over at the stage where Joe was playing with his new guy Robert and the rest of the band. "Or is it that she knew they were there?"
Duncan sighed as he turned back to Methos "I know what you're thinking but no I don't think that she knew they were there". Methos put his bottle onto the bar, he knew what he was about to say Duncan wasn't going to like "I know you're not going to like this but I'm going to tell you anyway. I did some checking there isn't a S. Knight listed with immigration entering the country in the last 6 months"
Duncan just stood drinking his single malt as he thought over what Methos had just said, "There could be a simple answer to that"
"I know her first name might be different but Mac you now have people following you. Can't you at least admit that something isn't right?"
Duncan ran his hand over his face "Ok you win. I'll ask her some questions. Now, will that make you happy?"
"Yes" Methos said as he picked up his beer bottle again. The two Immortals both let the subject drop as they turned to watch Joe and his band.