Since the highlander was otherwise engaged for the evening, the oldest immortal decided to use it to his full advantage. He was going to hear a local band at a bar near his apartment. Adam arrived shortly after ten, just as Gwen was climbing onto the stage. As if she knew he was there, her eyes immediately met his. She smiled and winked before they started the first song.
Apparently, Peter was taking full advantage of having a woman in the band. It allowed them to add many more songs to their repertoire. At first he had been reduced to begging to get Gwen to do more than back up vocals. As much as she loved performing, she didn't have much confidence in her voice. However, once she sang a few songs that were well received, she was much less self-conscious.
The applause she received after Tracy Chapman's "Give Me One Reason" was almost deafening. Gwen's face shown and she was even blushing. As Adam watched her he thought, 'She's almost embarrassed by the attention! She doesn't even realize how talented she is.'
At the end of the first set, Gwen tried to make her way to the bar for some water, but she was stopped every few feet by people requesting songs and expressing their admiration. As flattered as she was, she was very thirsty. By the time she got to the bar, Adam was waiting for her with a bottle of water.
"Thanks," she said over the noise of the crowd. "Are you having fun?"
"Not as much fun as you, apparently," he replied with a laugh. "You seemed to have gathered some fans. How does it feel to be famous?"
"Please!!" she exclaimed. "I'm hardly famous, at least, not outside this room. The extra attention is kind of nice, though."
"It's well deserved from what I can see," he smiled at her. "Can't you work some Queen into one of these sets?"
"You might be surprised what turns up in one of our sets," she said grinning up at him.
The tall man leaned against the bar and scanned the crowd. He saw Peter frantically looking around for Gwen and waved at him that she was at he bar. "I believe that you are needed at the stage," he told her.
"I guess I better get back, then," she said as she moved back through the crowd, waving over her head at her friend.
Adam stood at the bar nursing his beer. The bartender had announced last call fifteen minutes ago, but he was trying to wait around until Gwen was ready to leave. They had finished playing about forty-five minutes ago and had been loading up the van parked out back. He was hoping to convince her to go out for another drink or maybe something to eat.
He had indeed been surprised to hear "We Are the Champions" in the final set even thought it wasn't specifically for him. It seemed that the women's volleyball team was in attendance and had won a tournament.
He looked up when Gwen came back into the main room for another load of equipment. She noticed him at the bar and walked over. "What are still doing here?" she asked.
Adam shrugged. "Finishing my beer," he said innocently. "Are you almost done loading up?"
"God, I hope so!" she cried, "I'm wiped out. I can't wait to go home and go to bed."
"Oh… well… in that case, I'll… talk to you tomorrow." Draining the bottle, he pulled on his coat. "I had a lot of fun."
Gwen reached up to hug him, "Thank you so much for coming. We may have a bunch of 'fans,' but it's nice to see a… friend in the audience."
He closed his eyes and held on to her for an extra moment. When he let her go, he gazed at her face. She looked back at him and had just started to say something when Peter yelled that he needed her.
Gwen dropped her gaze and turned around. She glanced back at Adam and said, "I have to go. Call me tomorrow."
Adam wrapped his coat around him in the cold wind. He passed Gwen's jeep on the way to his own car, which was parked several blocks away. He saw Jack's van with the band's equipment in it pull out of the side street that ran behind the building. Seeing that the other band members were leaving, he knew that Gwen would be out soon and he decided to wait at for her.
When she had not come out several minutes later, he started to worry. Walking back to the front door of the bar, he saw that the lights were out and no one was in sight. He hoped that someone would walk around the corner with her, but the longer he waited the more concerned he became. Finally, Adam went to look for her.
Rounding the corner, he heard a man shout and the footsteps of several people running. With his hand on the hilt of his sword, the immortal sprinted in the direction of the noises. Just as he reached the entrance to the alley, three young men ran out and knocked him over. Barely glancing at him, took off down the street.
Cautiously, Adam crept into the dimly lit alley. He had only gone a few yards when he heard her moan. Moving as quickly as he could in the dark, he went around a dumpster and almost stepped on Gwen's prone body.
She was on her side and had ceased making any noise. Adam eased her over on to her back and felt her body for injuries. His hand found more than wounds – it found a knife, still embedded in her chest.
Cursing under his breath, he scooped her up and head for his car. There was no point in removing the knife until he could get her some place safe and much more comfortable than this cold street.
Adam managed to get her to his building and up to his apartment without being seen. Luckily for him it was three in the morning and there weren't and others on the elevator. He wasn't sure how he would explain a dead girl with a knife in her chest to his neighbors.
As soon as he had placed Gwen on the sofa, he carefully removed the knife. Adam knew from much experience that reviving was never a pleasant experience, but he wanted hers to be as easy as possible. Brushing a strand of hair form her face, he stared at the young woman for a moment. 'Nothing about this is ever easy,' he thought.
With a sigh, he reached for the phone and dialed the Duncan's number. 'If I don't call him right away…' he didn't even want to finish that thought.
The phone rang four times before it was picked up. "MacLeod, you need to come over here now… It's Gwen… She was stabbed and…" The line went dead as the highlander slammed the phone down. "That went well," Adam said to the dial tone. "Nothing to do now, but wait."