"I have a friend like that." Anne took a deep breath remembering how Duncan had 'died' in the theater before he'd gone to Paris. "First, he left me, then he called me and we got back together, then I left him."
"And?"
"And, I don't know. He's...well, he's older than me and has a dark side I don't think I'll ever understand."
Natalie kept the smile from her face as she thought, An older man, huh? Anne, my dear friend, you don't know what older really means. "Isn't the blending of experiences what builds a strong relationship?"
"Yes, but, he has a mysterious past that is so different from anything in my life I don't know how to relate to him."
That sure sounds familiar, Natalie thought. "Does he talk about his past?"
"He does now. At first, we were being kept apart because he wouldn't explain things, and now we're being kept apart because I know what his life is really like." Anne paused, thinking about Duncan's immortality and knowing Natalie could never understand just how different he was. Men who lived forever didn't walk into your life every day. "It's so confusing, I don't know what to do."
"Do you still love him?"
"Yes, absolutely. For four months I've been thinking about him and I'm sure now I made a big mistake when I walked away."
"Do you think there's any chance you'll get together with him again?"
A pang of guilt stuck Anne as she remembered the last time she saw Duncan. He had taken her back to the barge to pack her things, then said good-bye to her as she got into a cab. His face was impassive, but she knew he was hurting. He hadn't even let her kiss him. "It hurt him a lot when I left." Anne looked down at the floor. "I don't know if he'd take me back. I just..."
"Nat, you in there?" Nick called.
"Sure, Nick. Come on back."
Anne noticed the pleased expression on Natalie's face and smiled at her friend. "Your guy?"
As the nice looking blond man walked through the door, Natalie stood and walked over to Nick. "Yeah."
"Yeah what?" Nick asked.
Natalie giggled. "Oh, nothing you need to know. Nick, I'd like you to meet my old medical school friend, Dr. Anne Lindsey."
"Hello." Nick shook Anne's hand.
"Anne, this is Nick Knight."
"Pleased to meet you."
"An old friend, huh?" Nick asked, "Are you in town for long?"
"Just a few days."
"Too bad," Nick chuckled. "I was hoping you'd tell me all Natalie's secrets."
Anne returned Nick's laugh. "Well, I used to know all her secrets, but I think you'd know more about that now."
"Wait a minute you two," Natalie interjected. "I'll keep my secrets to myself, thank-you!" As her two friends laughed at her feigned indignation, she continued, "Nick, did you bring the item I wanted?"
"Yes. I left it with Grace when she said you had company."
"Anne, would you excuse us for a minute. We have a little business we need to complete."
"Business, huh? What kind of work do you do, Mr. Knight, that you come calling on the coroner at almost 9:00pm?"
"I'm a homicide detective, and please, call me Nick."
"Oh. That explains a lot, Nick," Anne said with an enigmatic grin. "Maybe I could tell you some things about Natalie's secrets."
Pushing Nick gently towards the door, Natalie said, "Don't you dare."
A few minutes after Natalie and Nick left, Anne decided to walk around a little to see if she could make her back stop hurting. She went down a hall that had several doors with windows and absent-mindedly looked into each as she passed. In the fourth room there was a body on the table. Anne paused and stared. "No. It can't be," she whispered to herself.
Anne pushed the door open and screamed, "Duncan!" In seconds she was by his side. She rubbed her hand over his hair, down the side of his neck and onto the smooth skin of his chest. "You're supposed to be in Paris." Quickly she felt for a pulse and found none.
"Anne, I heard you scream as I was coming back to the office," Natalie said, entering the autopsy room behind her friend. "Why are you in here?"
Continuing to hold Duncan's hand, Anne turned to her friend. "He can't be dead."
"You knew him?"
"He's the man I told you about," Anne said in a whisper.
Natalie put her arms around Anne's shoulders and gave her a hug. "I'm so sorry, but he's gone." She began to lead Anne towards the door. "Let me take you out of here."
Anne jerked away from Natalie. "No! He's not dead!" Anne's mind started to race. What did Duncan tell me about temporary deaths of Immortals? How long will it be before he revives? I have to start acting rationally and figure out a way to get Natalie out of here before he reawakens. She can't see that happen.
Walking around the table so she could face Anne, Natalie continued to speak softly, "I was told he died a hero. A distraught man was holding several people hostage in a bank. Your friend disarmed the man and sacrificed himself so others wouldn't be hurt."
Anne stroked Duncan's head with her free hand and continued to stare at his still form. "That sounds like Duncan."
"But he's gone now. You have to accept that."
"Yes, I guess you're right." Anne looked up at Natalie. "Let's go." She started to lay Duncan's hand on the table when she felt him grip her strongly. Oh, oh, she thought, it's too late for a graceful exit. She watched the life return to his body. This is amazing, she thought. All of the explanation he gave me didn't prepare me for actually seeing this.
Duncan took a long, deep breath and opened his eyes. He blinked a couple of times to be sure he was seeing clearly. "Hello, Anne. What are you doing in Toronto?"
Natalie stepped back, momentarily startled. "What the...?" She remembered the first time she'd met Nick when he'd revived on her autopsy table, but she knew this guy wasn't a vampire.
Duncan turned towards the sound, then looked back at Anne. "We've got a problem."
"Yes, I think we do," Anne agreed.
"What's going on here?" Natalie questioned.
"Well, you see..., um..., Duncan wasn't really dead," Anne stammered. "He was just stunned."
"Don't try to tell me that. I know a dead body when I see one and this one was dead just a few minutes ago. Now what's going on?"
Duncan sat up and grabbed at the sheet as it started to slide off his naked body. He gave the women a charming grin. "Could I have some clothes, please?"
Anne hugged him around the chest. "Well, it's not like I haven't seen you like this before, now is it?"
"I suppose you have," Duncan admitted, "but it's cold in here."
"Would you two talk to me?" Natalie demanded. "Anne, you knew he was going to revive, didn't you?"
Duncan looked at the woman in the white lab coat standing beside the table. "I take it you're a doctor."
"I'm the coroner, actually, Dr. Natalie Lambert."
"Natalie was my room mate in medical school," Anne explained.
Duncan extended his hand to Natalie. "Pleased to meet you, Dr. Lambert. I'm Duncan MacLeod and I am Immortal."
"Duncan!" Anne exclaimed. "I thought..."
"...thought what? We can't very well hide what just happened."
Natalie shook the man's hand. "You're what?"
Carefully enunciating each word, Duncan said, "I am Immortal."
"Immortal? This doesn't make any sense." Natalie raised her hand in front of Duncan. "May I?"
Duncan nodded.
Gently touching Duncan's chest Natalie said, "The gunshot wounds are gone. How is that possible?"
"Believe me, Nat," Anne said, "it's not something easily explained. I just accept it as truth because I've seen it happen."
Natalie let out a deep sigh. "Boy, has this ever been a night to remember." Something like a night I had a few years ago, she thought. She walked completely around the exam table looking at Duncan. "There's not a scratch on you."
"No, there never is after the healing."
"Do you feel pain?" I know Nick doesn't feel anything when he's injured, Natalie thought.
"Yes. Getting shot, stabbed, or hung hurts me as much as it would you. I can also feel cold."
"I'm sorry, I forgot. My curiosity always gets the better of me and I can't pass up a good mystery. I'll go see if I can find your clothes."
"Thank you." When Natalie had gone, Duncan put his hand on Anne's abdomen. "I see she's still in there. How much longer?"
"Four weeks."
Several seconds of silence passed between them as neither knew what to say. Finally they both spoke at the same instant.
"I..."
"You go ahead, Anne."
"I've been doing a lot of thinking since I left Paris. I told you once that I couldn't live with you and I couldn't live without you."
"I remember."
Anne smiled. "I think I'd like to try being with you again."
"I've been thinking about you, too." Duncan touched Anne's face. "I miss you, and would like to be with you, but nothing in my life has changed."
"I know that, but I'm ready to stay with you, Duncan. I want you to be the father to my child."
"Are you sure, Anne? What I am and what I have to do is a part of me. I can't change it anymore than you can change who you are. What happens the next time I have to kill? Will you leave again?"
"No."
"How can you be so sure?"
Anne was quiet for several seconds. "I've decided that when you...kill...I have to let that stay in your world. I can't want it to happen, or wish it wouldn't happen. It's the one part of your world that must stay separate from our life together."
Duncan sighed. "I think we should take things slowly, Anne. The pain of dying, or burying a friend or even having to kill a friend is nothing compared to the pain of your coming into my life and then leaving and then coming back. I don't want a relationship like that. We..."
Natalie came through the door and placed some clothing on the table. "I found your pants and shoes, but your shirt and coat were full of holes and covered in blood. I didn't think you'd want to wear them so I scrounged around the place until I found a sweatshirt I think will fit."
"Thanks." Duncan looked around the spartan room. Understanding his dilemma, Anne and Natalie turned their backs while he dressed quickly. When he'd finished, he walked over and put his hand on Anne's shoulder. "I suppose we'd better be leaving. We've taken up enough of your friend's time."
"No, don't go yet," Natalie said, "I want to ask you some questions." Natalie knew she needed to ask about the beheadings, since this friend of Anne's had been carrying a sword, but first she wanted to find out more about him. "Schanke, he's the policeman who was in the bank, told Nick and me that he thought you were dead after the first shots. Were you?"
"Yes."
"So you actually died twice this afternoon."
"Yes."
"How many times have you died?"
Duncan laughed. "No one has ever asked me that question."
Joining in the laughter, Natalie said, "Well, believe me, I've never asked anyone that question either."
Anne smiled. "You have to understand that Natalie has had a fascination with dead things as long as I've known her. She knew her specialty would be forensic medicine from the time she first entered medical school."
"So I guess that makes me an interesting subject for you, huh?"
"Yes," Natalie agreed. "I'd love to run some tests on your blood, tissue and your DNA."
"No chance," Anne said. "I asked him about doing that when I first found out about his immortality. It's just something we accept as being the way things are."
"Well, okay." Natalie sighed and thought, I'd sure like to get a sample from him to see if it could be helpful in my vampire research. At least I'll be able to get some from his bloody clothes.
"Now I have a question for you," Duncan said. "What happened in the bank after I died the second time?"
"After you were...killed," Natalie explained, "Schanke shot the gunman. He was the only casualty...after you that is."
"Not the only casualty," Duncan said quietly. "There were at least six others who died."
"Yes," Natalie agreed. "But there were no more after you took the rifle away from the guy. You gave Schanke the opening he needed to draw his weapon and take the guy out. It was a very heroic thing to do."
"Not really." Duncan placed his hand on Anne's abdomen, looked away from both women and blinked quickly.
Anne grasped Duncan's hand in both of hers. "You couldn't save everyone, you're an Immortal, you're not omnipotent."
Remembering when Tessa had told him almost the same thing, he turned back to face Anne. "I know that."
"You did more than anyone else could have," Natalie added. "The man's wife and possibly his children might have been killed if you hadn't intervened when you did."
"The woman he was after, Julie, she's all right then?"
"As far as I know. Why?" Natalie asked.
"Because it means at least one thing did go right." Duncan told Anne and Natalie the events of the evening of June 6, 1889....
....Duncan slowed the horse to a walk. He could hear the woman riding in front of him sobbing quietly. "Sally, you're going to be all right. Tell me how to get to your cabin."
She sniffed a few times and then said, "Take the Green Lake cutoff trail. I'll tell you when we get there." Several minutes of silence passed, then Sally asked, "What's your name?"
Tipping his hat, and twisting slightly so he could see her face, he said, "Duncan MacLeod at your service, ma'am."
"Such kindness from a man out here in the wilderness. You seem out of place, sir."
"I don't think so. Good manners and respect for ladies is something that is always right."
"Maybe so, but some men think of their women as property."
"Joseph?"
"I thank you for helping me back in the store, but my husband won't leave me alone. He'll come for me again and the next time he'll probably kill me."
"Is there someplace you can go, away from Seattle?"
Sally was quiet for a moment. "I guess I could go back to Ohio. I have a brother there and he might take my children and me in, at least for a little while."
They rode in silence for another half hour then Sally pointed, "There it is, the home Joseph and I made together. And those two running towards us are Jonathan and little Ethan."
Duncan stopped the horse and helped Sally to the ground. He dismounted and looped the reigns around the hitching post.
"What's happening in town, Mother?" Jonathan asked.
Sally looked back towards Seattle and saw the huge column of purplish smoke rising into the sky. "There's a fire burning, and from the looks of that smoke it could last for a while. Now, you two go get your chores done so we can have dinner later."
As the boys ran off, Duncan nodded towards the city. "Can you hear it?"
"What?"
"The roar of the fire."
Sally listened. "Yes, and also church bells, and steam whistles from ships along the waterfront."
"I don't think there will be any way for you to get out of town as long as the fire is burning. As soon as I can I'll see about arranging passage for you on an eastbound train."
"I appreciate all you want to do, Mr. MacLeod, but I have no money for train fare."
"Don't worry about the money. I promise you, I'll make sure you get on a train to Ohio and get away from Joseph."
"I can't take your money."
"If it makes you feel better, you can pay me back after you get settled in Ohio, but you are going."
Sally smiled at the kind stranger. "All right. I would like to get my children away from Joseph. Now, the least I can do is offer you a meal and a place to stay tonight."
Duncan removed his hat, and with a sweeping gesture bowed at the waist, kissed Sally's hand, and said, "I'd be much obliged, ma'am."
Sally laughed again and led the way into the small cabin.
It was just before eight when the blood-red sun dropped behind the mountains across the bay and darkness began to fall. Duncan and Sally were sitting on the porch watching the glow of the burning city reflected on the scattered clouds when Duncan tensed.
"What is it?" Sally asked.
"I thought I heard something out near the barn."
"It's probably the boys."
"Yeah, maybe." Duncan relaxed a little, but continued to listen intently.
"What brings you to Seattle, Mr. MacLeod?"
"I...There it is again. Someone is out there and I don't think it's the boys." Duncan started to stand to go get his rifle.
"Don't move, Mister," Joseph shouted. "I told you if I couldn't have Sally, no one would have her."
Duncan heard the shot and felt the first two slugs hit him in the chest almost simultaneously. As the life ebbed from his body, he heard the gun being fired again and again.
It was pitch black when Duncan revived, and felt Sally's cold, stiff body lying against him. Stumbling around in the dark he finally found a lantern and lit it. Inside the cabin the children were lying in their bed, the older boy's arms wrapped around his little brother as he had died trying to protect him.
Duncan went out on the porch and screamed at the night sky. "I will find you, Joseph. You will pay for this." He had seen death in many forms in his almost three-hundred years of life, but the death of the children who had yet to know life caused him great anguish.
At first light, Duncan saddled his horse and headed towards Seattle. He hoped to find some trace of Joseph or at least someone who knew him. Duncan was unprepared for the site that greeted him in the town. The whole business district, twenty-five square blocks, was burned clean. Every wharf and every mill from Union to Jackson streets was gone. There were refugees from the fire camped on lawns, in the streets, and along the shore of Lake Washington.
The militia was patrolling the streets as martial law had been declared by the mayor. Duncan was stopped when he tried to enter the burned out area. "What business have you here, sir?"
"I'm looking for a man named Joseph Campbell."
"Go to the courthouse and ask there. It's easy to spot because it's almost the only building left standing on Third street."
"Thank-you." Duncan turned his horse around and headed to the courthouse. He scanned every face he passed and couldn't believe his good fortune when he found Joseph standing in a line waiting to get food at the McConnell grocery. Dismounting, Duncan pulled his rifle from its holster and marched deliberately towards the man.
Joseph saw Duncan coming and thought he was seeing a ghost. Thinking quickly he pointed and began to shout, "There he is! That man killed my Sally last night. Someone stop him!"
Half a dozen men in the food line advanced on Duncan's position. "Stop right there, mister! Put down that gun!" the lead man shouted.
"I'm no killer," Duncan said. "Joseph Campbell killed his family last night. I saw him do it."
By this time Duncan was completely surrounded and two of the men held his arms out at his sides. A policeman came into the circle. "What's going on here?"
Joseph stood beside the officer and addressed him, "James, er..., Officer Campbell, this is the man I told you about yesterday who kidnapped my Sally. Who knows what he did to her last night before he killed her." Joseph took in a deep breath. "He also killed Jonathan and little Ethan."
"It wasn't me!" Duncan shouted and struggled against the hands that were holding him.
Office Campbell stared straight into Duncan's face. "You're a stranger in this town, mister. I believe my brother, not you. Now, come along peaceably."
Duncan jerked his arms forward and the men holding him lost their grip. He knocked their heads together and they fell to the ground. Using several quick jujitsu moves he had learned in Japan a century earlier he soon had the rest of the men on the ground.
"Stop right there," Officer Campbell shouted as he pointed his gun at Duncan.
With a brief glance at the policeman, Duncan ran to his horse and leaped onto his back. He turned the animal around and shouted, "I'll find you again, Joseph, and you'll pay for what you did." The searing pain of a bullet ripping through his shoulder and another in his leg caused Duncan to spur the horse into a gallop and he rode away in a hail of bullets...
....As his story ended, Anne squeezed Duncan's hand.
"Did you ever find the guy?" Natalie asked.
"No. As far as I know, he got away with three murders. I left the country soon after and went to the Paris Universal Exhibition to see the opening of the Eiffel Tower." Duncan paused. "At least this afternoon I kept another woman from being killed by an abusive husband. Nothing has changed in hundreds of years of so-called civilization."
Everyone was quiet for several seconds then Natalie blew out a big breath. "I'm still having a hard time believing everything that's happened tonight. I'm sitting here talking to a man who doesn't stay dead when he's shot, whose wounds heal right before your eyes, and who's over a hundred years old." And who isn't a vampire, she amended to herself.
Duncan raised one eyebrow, cocked his head to the side slightly, and smiled. "A little over four-hundred, actually."
"Whoa!"
"I told you I'd fallen for an older man," Anne smiled.
Not as old as Nick, but still old enough, Natalie thought. I'd sure like to ask Nick if he knows about these Immortals. "You certainly did."
"Anne!" Duncan said in mock surprise, "You've been talking about me?"
Anne laughed. "Well, I didn't tell Natalie everything. I didn't tell her..."
Duncan smiled as he put his hand across Anne's mouth. "Shhh! You mustn't tell all my secrets." Turning to Natalie, he said, "Seriously, I must ask you not to say anything about what you've seen and heard here tonight. If word about my kind gets out, the mortal population will panic. The witch hunts of the mid-seventeenth century would start over and I don't want to live through that again."
Natalie's mouth curled into a mischievous grin. "Your secret is safe with me. I can keep my mouth shut."
"I believe you can." Duncan tried unsuccessfully to stifle a yawn. "I think it's time for us to leave. I'm really tired. Dying takes a toll on one's energy level and twice in one day is really hard."
Anne wrote the name and phone number of her hotel on a piece of paper. "We'll be staying here for a couple more days."
"We are?" Duncan asked.
"I assumed, since you're dead here, it won't be possible for you to go back to wherever it was you were staying and you'd like to stay with me."
"You're right." Duncan felt his pockets. His wallet was in its proper place. "Thanks for returning this, Natalie. Do you know where the rest of my things would have been taken? Has anyone cleaned out my hotel room yet?"
"I don't know what the police have done about that but I can find out and try to get the stuff back to you."
"Was my sword with my coat?"
Natalie's heart skipped a beat as she remembered the two beheading victims. She'd gotten so involved with Anne and her friend, she'd forgotten this man might have committed a double homicide. What would you do with an Immortal murderer? Natalie thought. Making a quick decision to still run some tests on the sword she decided to pretend ignorance. "Your what?"
"My sword. It was sheathed in my coat."
"There was no sword with your clothes. I'm sure the police probably took it. A concealed weapon like that would cause a lot of questions."
"I suppose it would. If you could ask about it I'd appreciate it. It's like a part of me and I feel naked without it."
"I'll do what I can," Natalie said.
Anne hugged Natalie. "It's been good seeing you tonight. I'll be in touch before we leave town."
"Good-bye, you two," Natalie said as Duncan and Anne walked out of the autopsy room hand-in- hand.
Natalie went to start the tests on Duncan's sword to see if it was used in the beheadings. She wanted some answers before she talked to Anne again.
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