Chapter 11

Richie stopped on the side of the road when he felt his cell phone vibrate. He took off his helmet and looked at the familiar number identifying who was calling. It was Mac, calling from his cell phone.

Richie was not looking forward to telling Duncan about what he had found, but he was hoping that maybe he was calling to let him know that Dawson had come through. Maybe he found out something

"Yeah Mac, what's up?"

"I can't talk long so listen good. Celeste is with me. She is scared. There are some people after her. I don't have the details yet, but when I do I will let you know. She needs to disappear for a while and I am going with her to get her situated for a bit. As soon as I get her to a safe place, I will call you and we will figure out our next step."

"Oh, man. Thank God she's ok."

"What made you think she wasn't ?"

Richie told MacLeod the details of what he had found at her address. "I thought for sure that someone had taken her, or worse."

"Did you find anything that may help us figure out who is after her?"

"No. But I'll check it out again now that I know she's ok. Is she ready to spill about what's going on?"

"Yeah, as soon as we get to a safe place, we'll talk. I am convinced that she didn't know she was immortal or anything about the game. She knows that I am like her now. I'll break the rest of it to her slowly."

"Ok Mac. Whatever you think is best. Just be careful. We still don't really know much about her, and we have no information on who is after her. And like you said, it may be all an act."

A little chuckle came from the other end of the phone. "Any more advice big guy?"

Richie realized he was making a point that he and MacLeod had fought about the night before and he laughed at himself a little. "Yeah, be nice to her and try to have a little fun in the process."

"I'll take care of her for you Richie. Don't worry."

For the first time, the young man considered the situation a little differently. Mac and Celeste were going to be spending some time alone together. If she was as wonderful as he thought she was, if her personality wasn't a mask and she was who she appeared to be, this could be the perfect opportunity for something to spark between the two of them. But Duncan said he would take care of her for him. He thinks that I really care about her, even though I told him I didn't love her. Would this prevent him from developing feelings for her? How could he tell his friend that it was ok if he made a move? Simple, he couldn't. He'd have to come up with another brilliant idea to keep progress moving in the right direction. He could pull it off, no problem. Knowing Mac, he knew where they were going to hide out for a while and for two people who needed each other, it wouldn't take much for them to click.

"Thanks Mac, but do it for her not me. Sounds like she needs someone to show her the ropes, and teach her the ups and downs of immortality. I'm not qualified to do that, so do what you need to do to get through to her." Was that too much. Damn, I wish I hadn't said that. Richie regretted it as soon as the words came out. Luckily, Duncan didn't seem to find the comment unusual.

"Alright Rich. I'll be in touch. Let me know if you find out anything."

"You got it." Richie flipped the phone closed and headed back in the direction of her house.

Meanwhile…

Very little was said during the drive to the safe location Duncan had promised her. Without knowing exactly who was after her, he didn't think crossing any borders or boarding a plane was a good idea. He convinced her to trust him to take her to a safe place until they put together more pieces of the puzzle. Now that she knew he had the same healing powers as her, she had a new feeling of peace settle over her. She suddenly wasn't alone in the universe. He promised to answer all her questions as long as she agreed to the same thing. And the way he spoke, there were others. He seemed surprised that she had never met another like her.

Was it real? Was she finally going to learn who she was and why she was different? The thought of getting the answers to questions she had had for so long was the most exciting thing she could imagine. She couldn't wait to ask him a dozen questions and then a dozen more. But with those answers would be questions that she had to answer. That meant reliving her past, something she had been avoiding for longer than she could remember. She knew that someday, she would have to face her past. At least she would be with someone like her when she did it. And what she would get back, finding out after all this time the who, how and why of her existence would be worth the pain of her past.

After what seemed like hours of driving through forests and dirt roads, their car pulled into a hidden driveway that lead to a log cabin by a lake. "You'll be safe here." Only very good friends of mine know about this place and only half of them would ever be able to find this place even with a map."

Celeste smiled at the idea of feeling safe. How long had it been since she had a good night sleep. How long since she had been able to reach under her pillow without feeling the cold metal of the gun she kept as her only constant companion.

When the car stopped, she was out before Duncan had turned off the engine. She walked in circles taking in the whole scene. The cozy cottage, the shimmering lake behind it. The smell of the fresh air blowing through the pine trees. It made her feel like she was on a different planet.

MacLeod unlocked the cabin door, and she followed him in. There were candles everywhere and a big fireplace in all three rooms. The first room was set up as a comfortable living room. It didn't take long to realize that there was no electricity here. But a television set or cd player would have seemed out of place anyway. The second room was a little kitchen area and the third had been set up as a bedroom.

MacLeod put a bag down next to the bed. "I brought you a few things, so you'd be more comfortable."

"Thank you. That's was very thoughtful since I have nothing with me."

"Why don't you freshen up a bit. I'll start a fire, and then we can talk a bit." He turned and headed back toward the living room, taking his shirt off over his head as he walked.

She nodded in agreement, suddenly aware of a flutter in her chest that she had never felt before. She watched the muscles of his back until he was out of site. He made her feel safe. Just knowing that he was in the next room was calming and a feeling of exhaustion washed over her. She sat on the bed and let herself fall backwards into the pile of fluffy pillows. It took her only moments to drift off into a deep sleep.