MacLeod was sat at the kitchen counter of his barge when he felt the presence of another of his kind. Knowing it was more then likely Adam as they had arranged to meet he relax slightly but never let his guard down. His katana with the handle of ivory carved in the shape of a dragon was propped up at his side in case it was not his friend but someone looking for an easy head.
The front door opened and Saxton and Adam stepped in. Adam looking his usual calm and collected self and Saxton still look slightly uneasy to be around MacLeod.
"So glad you decided to show up this time," MacLeod said as he got off his stool and walked towards the refrigerator getting Adam a beer. "Do you want anything Saxton?" MacLeod asked before he closed the door.
"If you've got some juice that would be nice," Saxton replied taking in every detail of the inside of the barge noticing that from Richie's memories it looked exactly the same.
MacLeod noticed Saxton's interest in the barge but didn't mention anything about it. He handed Adam the beer who promptly twisted of the lid and then walked over to Saxton who had walked over to the chessboard and picked up the white queen.
Handing her the glass of juice and motioning for both Adam and Saxton to sit down on the sofa. While they took the seat Duncan walked back to the kitchen counter and picked up his own glass of juice then walked back and sat in the chair opposite.
"So is someone going to tell me what happened last night? Why was an immortal after you Saxton?" MacLeod asked watching Saxton for any sign that she may be lying about anything.
"Can we please wait till Sam gets here it'll save me from repeating myself." Saxton hesitated to tell the true so tried to buy herself some time to think of a explanation that wouldn't sound to obvious.
"Well she'll be out in a bit!"
Saxton looked puzzled towards MacLeod. "What do you mean be out in a bit?"
"He means when I finish getting changed I'd be out." Samantha smiled over to Saxton as she exited the bathroom.
"What are you doing here?" Saxton couldn't believe her friend had just come out of Mac's bathroom, after getting changed no less.
"I checked us out of the hotel, Mac offered me the couch for the night, I guessed you'd be spending most your time with Adam."
"You checked us out of the hotel?"
"Yeah. I've got some friends I'd like to visit for a few days. Mac said Adam wouldn't mind you stopping at his place for the duration of your stay, so I didn't see the point of you spending the money on a hotel when you didn't need it."
Saxton could not believe what her friend was implying by checking her out of her hotel. "You checked me out of the hotel?"
"I think we established that point. So you going to tell us what went on last night, and I think more importantly why were you in a cemetery?" Samantha asked then stuck a peace of toast in her mouth, which she had picked up off the kitchen side on the way to where the group were sat.
"Oh that, well I had to see someone."
"In a cemetery?"
"Yeah well that's generally where you find people that's been buried. I went to see Richie."
MacLeod they had said she went there when they had spoken over the phone last night but hearing it person made it all the more real. He could not believe would Saxton want to go visit Richie grave.
She didn't even know him. The only reason she knows he ever existed was the fact that she had been dreaming about his death for the past three week.
"Why?"
"I don't know. I just had to see his grave with my own eyes to prove the fact that he was real I guess. Other then that, I don't know why."
"But why go at night? That was just stupid!" Samantha could not help the mothering instincts that kicked in after hearing that Saxton had put herself in that much danger.
"I'd have thought you would understand Sam. I had to see it for my own eyes. See that he was real."
"Have you any idea how dangerous that was?" Samantha voice portrayed her anxiousness as she rose from her seat and started to pace the length of the living area not bothering that she was replacing herself.
"Sam, I'm sorry ok. I didn't realise it at the time, my mind was on other things. It was just something I had to do to clear my head. I had to talk to him, even if it was just to a headstone I was talking to. I had to ask why he put himself in danger to help a friend. I had to know. Can't you understand that?"
"But you could have been hurt or worse killed."
"I got away."
"But how? What happened exactly?"
"Come sit back down and I'll tell you." Saxton waited for Samantha to retake her seat then continued with her story. "I was stood at Richie's grave talking to him when he up behind me and grabbed me putting a blade to my throat. To be honest I thought I was going to die right there and then. Next thing I know he had pushed me to the ground and I guess I must have remembered some of those moves from the self defence class I took while I was at school because I just kicked out I guess and he dropped his defences for a second giving me enough time to get away."
Saxton looked around casually to see if everyone had bought the reason for knowing some self-defence. Once she was sure they had she continued. "Once I was free of him I ran. I mustn't have been really paying much attention as the next thing I know is I'm rounding a corner and run into someone." Tears were slowly starting to make there way down her face. The realisation of how close she had come to death, or immortality as she had just recently found out was scary.
"Sax?"
Shaking her head Saxton tried to calm herself so she could continue but when Adam noticed it wasn't working he took over the story. "It was me she ran into. She was panicked and I really manage to get much out of her. I was just about to take her to the car when I felt the presence. He came barrelling round the corner with a gun. I shoved Sax behind me and when he shot he got me in the shoulder, I shot back and killed him, albeit temporarily. That's about it."
"That's it?" MacLeod asked having a feeling that there was more going on with Saxton and Adam then what they were saying.
"That's it, I said there wasn't anything to worry about." Adam put his innocent face on and tried to reassure MacLeod that way.
"So why was immortal going after Saxton?" MacLeod asked watching Saxton for any sign that she knew what was going on.
"Mac?" Samantha asked not liking where MacLeod was going with his questioning.
"No Sam, there's more going on here and I want to know."
"You want to know what's going? Well I'll tell you, why the hell do you think he was going after me. Was it my charming personality? No I very much doubt that. What it the fact that he likes attacking people? Could be, but still it doesn't sound right. Maybe, just maybe could it have been the fact that he wanted to kill me drag me off holy ground then take my head for my quickerning? Yeah it would have only been a weak one but still every one counts." Saxton had gone from been upset about been attacked to red faced angry at MacLeod accusations.
Standing up from her seat she stood straight backed and looked MacLeod in the eyes showing that what she was tell was the truth. "What is it with you MacLeod, you seem to think that there's something going on here, more then meets the eye. Well you want to know what that is? Fine I'll tell you, the fact is that I saw you kill the person that was more like a son to you then anyone you've had lately. I've felt the loyalty that Richie felt for you and still you killed him, yeah granted you thought that he was just another mind game thought up by Ahriman but still, YOU KILLED HIM!"
MacLeod rose from his seat and they were now standing about a meter away from one another starring each out in the eyes, anger visible in both there feathers. "How dare you judge me? You don't know me and you didn't know Richie. You turn up in Paris and then have the audacity of accusing me, judging me. Well I'm not standing for it any longer. I loved Richie like a son and I would have died for him. You want to blame somebody. Blame Ahriman! You want to judge someone. Judge Ahriman! Ahriman killed Richie."
A cold laugh left Saxton mouth as she laughed vindictively in MacLeod's face. "Oh so it was Ahriman's Katana that sliced through Richie's neck!"
"Get out!" MacLeod demanded his eyes turning black with anger.
Adam had only seen MacLeod eyes like that once before, the time he encountered MacLeod during his dark quickerning. Saxton also recognised the look and the memory of the time Joe had saved Richie's life by shooting MacLeod before he could make the final swing towards Richie's neck with the Katana, the same Katana that finally did make that fatal swing.
Saxton swayed under the force of the memory and Adam was on his feet in no time what so ever to catch her before she fell to the ground. Adam held her to him and could feel the wetness of tears socking in to his shirt. She shook in his arms and he could not be sure whether she was shaking from crying or from anger.
Samantha looked on at her friend unable to comprehend what she'd just witnessed. Why had Saxton gone up against MacLeod like that for what seems like no reason. MacLeod looked on as unsure about what just happened as Samantha but still slightly annoyed by Saxton's actions.
They watched in silence as Saxton continued to cry into Adam's chest, unable to truly believe what they were seeing. It was a good ten minutes before they all heard Saxton's quite words, even though they were slightly smothered as she had her mouth to Adam's chest. "How can she expect me to forgive him when it wasn't the first time he went after Richie?"
"Sax?" Adam asked lifting her head to face him.
"What she's asking I can't do. I can't forgive him. I've seen another time Adam, and even then that still wasn't the only other time. He's gone after Richie's head more then once it's just that he succeeded at the racetrack that night."
"How the hell? Who are you really?" MacLeod looked shocked at the realisation of what Saxton was saying.
"You want to know something MacLeod? Your not worth any of this, your not worth the effort." Saxton pulled out of Adam's arms and headed for the door.
A/N: - Sorry for the delay but I've just started a new job and I haven't had much time to update lately.