Adam awoke with a start a little after ten o'clock the next morning. Remembering the events of the night before, he rose from his bed and went to check on Gwen. Expecting her still be asleep on his sofa, he was surprised to find the pillow and blanket tossed aside and no one in the living room. Panic momentarily overtook him until he realized that he could still sense her somewhere in the apartment. Then he heard it, a quiet choked sob coming from the kitchen.
He found her seated on the floor, knees pulled up to her chest, holding the still bloody knife. Hearing him come in, Gwen looked up at him with a tear stained face. Adam silently sat down on the floor beside her and placed his arm around her shoulders. She buried her face in his chest and wept.
After several minutes, her sobs subsided. She relaxed into his embrace and wrapped her arms around him. They sat that way for a while, Adam stroking her hair, neither of them speaking. The ringing of the phone broke the silence.
"That will be MacLeod," Adam sighed. As uncomfortable as the hard kitchen floor was, he had no desire to move from this spot.
"You'd better get it," Gwen said turning her face up to his. "He seems to be a bit over protective of me. He might race over here and break your door down to make sure I'm okay."
The pair reluctantly untangled themselves from each other and Adam rose to reach for the phone. Gwen stood up and stretched as she listened to the one-sided phone conversation.
"Hello… Yes, MacLeod, everything is fine… Actually, I've been up a few minutes and Gwen had just woken up a bit before that… I still need a shower… Okay, we'll be there in about an hour… Just have lots of coffee ready… See you then." He hung up the phone and sighed. The Scot was in full Boy Scout mode. It was going to be a long day.
It occurred to him that Gwen was standing there studying him intently. Guessing what was on her mind, he said, "Go ahead and ask."
A look of slight confusion crossed her face, "Ask what?"
"Whatever it is that you are trying to figure out about me," he replied with a roll of his eyes.
Gwen smiled slightly, "There are a lot of things that I am trying to figure out about you, but I have a feeling that it will take more than the hour that we have for you to enlighten me. I can wait."
Adam looked directly into her eyes, swallowed hard and replied, "You're right. There are many things that I need to tell you… and it will take quite a while."
Gwen searched his face, trying to reconcile this man that she was coming to know with a man that had been on earth for several millennia. She had barely grasped the concept of immortality and now it was beginning to sink in that there were ancients among them.
They remained motionless for several minutes, each lost in their own thoughts. The moment was interrupted by the rumbling of Gwen's stomach.
She broke the gaze and blushed. "Well, go take a shower so I can get some coffee and food," she said giving him a little push.
"Getting bossy with me now are you?" he said with a smile.
"Hey, dying and coming back to life did not change the fact that I get extremely cranky in the morning without coffee and food," she replied, grinning. "Now go!!"
"Yes, ma'am!" Adam said and went into the bedroom. A minute later he came back out with something in his hands.
Gwen started to admonish him for not getting ready, but the object he held stopped her. She looked back and forth from his hands to his face. "I have a gift for you," he said.
In her hands he placed a sword. It was a broadsword, simple in its design and the perfect size for her small frame. It was obviously old, but in perfect condition, its blade very sharp.
She stood there staring at the weapon, stunned. Finally she looked up into Adam's face, asking, "Why?"
"Because I didn't want you to be vulnerable, weaponless," he told her.
"I mean, why do have this? Did you have an extra sword lying around?" She was still in shock about receiving this gift.
"No, I bought it for you," he stated simply.
"But, when?" she asked, "I just… I mean… all this just happened last night… this morning really. You didn't have time to…"
Adam stepped closer to the new immortal and raised his hand to brush a lock of hair out of her face, his thumb caressing her cheek. He smiled gently, "I bought it two days after I met you. I had hoped that you wouldn't need it so soon, but I wasn't going to let you be unprotected."
Still gazing into his face, Gwen was searching to understand what he was telling her. "But you didn't even know me. Why would you do something like this? How did you know?"
"I knew the moment I saw you," he paused for a beat, then continued. "The sensation that you feel when another immortal is nearby… before you become immortal you give off that same buzz, only its very weak," he explained. "Most of us can feel it when we're near a pre-immortal."
"I don't know what to say," she said, her eyes wide. She set the sword aside and reached up to wrap her arms around Adam's neck as his arms encircled her waist. "Thank you," was all she could manage to get out.
She finally released him and pulled back, her face flushed. "I think we'd better get going soon."
He nodded, "I'll go take that shower now." He moved off into the bedroom thinking, 'Maybe a cold shower!'
Gwen picked up the sword again and looked at it in awe. She was still struggling to make sense of all that had happened to her in the past several hours. At the moment, though, Adam's gift and the reason behind it, was foremost in her mind. She had only known him a short time, yet there was an intimacy between them that she had not known with any one before.
By the time Adam emerged from the bedroom, showered and dressed, Gwen had folded the blanket, put on her shoes and was sitting on the sofa. She stood up as he entered the living room.
"I'm going to go wash my face and brush my teeth before we go," she announced. "By the way, where is my jacket?"
"I put it in the closet here, but you might not want to wear it," he said crossing to the small coat closet by the front door. Retrieving the jacket, he turned back to Gwen, "It's kind of… well, torn and bloody."
She took the brown leather bomber jacket from him and inspected it. "Damn, I really loved this jacket. I won it in a poker game."
"Really," Adam said in surprise. "You don't seem the type for gambling."
"Yeah, well… I haven't played in a while, but it's fun," she replied. "I grew up around soldiers. I learned to play cards early. I got this from a young lieutenant who severely underestimated me. Uh… I'm going to go freshen up now."
"Okay," he said as she headed for the bathroom. "I'll find you a coat of mine to wear."
A few minutes later, Gwen returned to find Adam holding a gray duster. He helped her slide the coat on and she notice the extra weight on the left side. She looked at him, brow wrinkled in confusion.
"Your sword," he explained his face deadly serious. "From now on, you don't ever want to be without it."
Biting her lower lip, she nodded. 'I have to carry a sword around with me,' she thought. 'This is insane.' At the thought, she visibly tensed, her fist and jaw both clenched. She followed Adam out of the apartment in a daze. Suddenly she realized that they were on the sidewalk beside his SUV. They climbed in and he pulled out into traffic.
Gwen stared out the window, lost in her own thoughts. Adam glanced down and saw her hand still clenched into a tight ball. He reached over and placed his hand over hers. At the contact, she turned to face him and relaxed the fist. He smiled at her as he caressed the back of her hand with his thumb. Slowly, she turned her hand and laced her fingers though his. They continued the drive, still silent, holding hands.