THE ELIZABETH SERIES
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
COVERING ALL TRACKS
By JoLayne
EnyaJo@aol.com
RATING: PG
CHARACTERS: M, Amy, J, Elizabeth, Claire, A Blast From The Past
SUMMARY: Methos has to tell Elizabeth his situation and hope that she
understands...
~~~~~
WEDNESDAY MAY 5, 2004
ST. REGIS
As soon as Methos opened the door to Elizabeth's suite, he got a face full
of Rocky Road ice cream, splat!, right in the face. He looked in and Claire
was sitting with a big smile on her face with a spoon in her hand. "Nice
shot!" Elizabeth exulted. "Her aim is really good, did you know that?"
Methos noted the condition of the room of the main room and wondered
what war had taken place in there. Food was splattered all over the walls,
carpet, and them. A picnic had been set up atop a sheet spread out in the
middle of the floor. Cartoons were on TV, but it was muted, as Elizabeth
had a Frank Sinatra CD on the stereo.
Claire flung a piece of cake at Elizabeth. In return, she picked up some
potato chips and smashed them over Claire's head. Claire giggled so hard,
she started hiccuping. Elizabeth noticed and quickly put her face to
Claire's and yelled, "Boo!" Claire shook, surprised, then burst out with a
laugh, then hiccupped. "Oh, it didn't work."
Methos wiped the ice cream from his face with his handkerchief and
walked to study Claire's reactions to everything, the food, the hiccups, her
mother. "What have you done to my daughter? She's never been like this!"
"She picked it up pretty fast," Elizabeth proudly said. It had been years
since she had a 'slumber party' and figured girls were never too young to
enjoy one.
Methos knelt down to them. "She did, huh?"
Claire hiccuped again, so Elizabeth gave her the glass of orange juice and
said, "Drink a mouthful and hold it in your mouth, then swallow fast."
Claire filled her mouth, then did a spit take all over Elizabeth, laughed.
Methos sat up, out of the way. "They're never going to get this place
clean."
"Sure they will. We'll just leave some money in case they have to replace
the wallpaper."
"Spending more of my money."
"I'll leave them my money. This was too much fun." Claire crawled into
Elizabeth's lap and even though there was food all over each of them,
Elizabeth hugged her hard. She asked Methos, "What did Joe want?"
Methos only shook his head and Elizabeth took it to mean it was about
Amy and didn't want to talk about it in front of Claire. That was fine,
Elizabeth didn't want to talk about it either. Claire turned in Elizabeth's
lap and actually crunched. Their hair was sticky, their clothes had started
to harden. "Come one, little girl. Let's go get cleaned off."
Methos stood, "I'll help."
"I'll take care of it." She tickled Claire as she brought her into the
bathroom. Methos sang along with Sinatra for a moment, but not even the
Chairman of the Board could clear his head or prepare him for what he had
to do. For lack of anything better to do until they got out the bath, he tried
to clean up the mess but knew it was a lost cause without serious cleansing
products. Giggling emanated from the bathroom in stereo, so he went over
and opened the door. Elizabeth and Claire were in the tub with bubble
bath. Shampoo suds dripped down both of their heads. "Can I wash
anyone's back?"
Claire stood up and yelled, "Papa, me!"
He gauged Elizabeth's reaction as he walked closer to the tub; she didn't
flinch or cover herself. Memories of living with and loving Elizabeth came
back to him with melancholy overtones, as he knew he had to tell her what
he had decided while walking through the city that had too many
immortals, and could feel all the eyes watching him, and he knew it wasn't
just paranoia. Elizabeth reached up to wipe the suds off and pull her hair
back; Gods, she still looked great wet, and probably always would. Claire
pointed to her head as it was taking him so long to rinse her, so he laid her
back onto the surface of the water and holding her up with one hand,
poured water over her hair with the other. "Hey, you're hiccups are gone."
"She pulled on her earlobes," Elizabeth said, holding Claire's body. "That
was the last remedy I could think of."
Methos' arm brushed Elizabeth's chest and she sat back. "I can do the
rest."
Methos didn't want to make her uncomfortable at all, so he quickly said,
"Okay," as he made sure that Claire was standing up and wouldn't fall. He
got back up on his feet and left them alone.
They at least spread out a sheet under all the food in the main room, so he
piled everything up on it and folded it up. He fell back onto the sofa and
grabbed the remote and flipped through the channels. He noticed the
crumbs and brushed them onto the sheet. He concentrated on the rapid fire
changing of channels as he kept pressing the remote. Once again he
lamented the fact that there were over a hundred channels, and nothing to
watch.
Claire bounded out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her hair
and a towel wrapped around her body. Elizabeth, wearing the white hotel
terry robe said, "PJ's, Claire."
She went to her backpack by the door and the towel that was too long for
her body fell off. Methos got up to help her. Claire stopped him with her
hands out in a pushing motion. "I do it."
"Oh, I forgot you're a big girl." Methos sat back down and concentrated on
the TV, not wanting to look at Elizabeth only wearing a robe. This was
going to be harder than he thought, and he knew it would be tough.
Elizabeth giggled as she sat on the end of the couch, her feet tucked up
underneath her, looking at Claire. Methos looked back at her by the door.
Claire, butt to the wind, tugged at her nightgown over her head. Methos
instructed, "Take the towel off your head first."
Claire did and her long wet hair fell down her back. She got the nightgown
tangled on her hair. Elizabeth asked, "Can I brush it for you?"
"No. Hurts."
"There's 'No More Tangles' in her bag," Methos said as he looked back at
the TV, wondering how well Elizabeth would tend to Claire. He already
saw that she could play with the two year old like another two year old and
smiled. But, could she take care of her?
Elizabeth went help her, but Claire cried, "No."
"I promise I'll be gentle."
Claire covered her head with her hands, "Papa hurt me when comb."
"Look at Papa's hair. See how short it is?"
Claire looked at him. Elizabeth said, "I used to have long hair and know
how to comb it so it doesn't hurt. Trust me?" Since she had used a calm,
friendly voice, Claire let her spray the stuff on as she clamped her hands
over her eyes. Elizabeth started combing from the bottom and Claire didn't
feel it.
When she was finished, Methos picked up Claire, wanting to get what he
had to do out of the way, this was killing him. "Kiss papa." Claire did and
her eyes were drooping. "It's been a big day for you. I'll get you to bed.
Kiss mama."
Claire looked at Elizabeth as said, "Lizbet?"
Elizabeth smiled. "She still doesn't think of me as her mother."
Methos said, "She will."
Claire kissed Elizabeth goodnight and put her arms around Methos' neck
as he carried her to her bedroom. Elizabeth turned the channel to VH1
when Methos came back in and shuffled through Claire's bag. He took a
small stuffed elephant from her backpack. "She insists she can't sleep
without this."
Methos knew that this would be the last time for a very long time that he
would be tucking in Claire for the night, so he savored every minute of it.
He had a hard time putting her down on the bed as she was hugging him,
starting to fall asleep. He sat on the bed sideways and leaned back against
the wall and just held her. He could feel her heartbeat against his. He
brushed the hair off her face when she turned to her side and he remember
little Meletta, who's ring was once again safe in a bank deposit box. He
made a mental note that he would have to retrieve that also. Turning back
to the little girl that he was so proud of, who was almost asleep, he kissed
her and told her, "I love you with all my heart and soul, Claire. This is for
the best. I hope you know that."
After Claire was tucked in and sleeping, Methos came back out, sat beside
Elizabeth. There was a moment of silence, neither knowing what to say or
even how to say it. Elizabeth wanted him like she never had before, but
was still angry and worried about what would happen if she made the
move to be with him. Would she break down? Would he reject her? Could
she get the mental picture of Methos and Amy together out of her head?
Methos didn't know how to brooch the subject at hand, just liked being
there with Elizabeth for the little time they had left together. They were
both focused on the TV. A commercial came on for a Nikon camera; a guy
was taking pictures of people in the distance. See how clear they come
out? He grabbed the remote to turn the station. There was a commercial
for a cell phone. Next channel. A palm pilot. Next channel, a black
minivan. Methos didn't like the cosmic irony of it all. They were all
resources used by watchers.
Elizabeth broke the silence with, "All the stations go to commercial at the
same time. Was there something you wanted to watch?"
Watching TV was better than telling Elizabeth what he needed to tell her,
and knew that the timing couldn't have been worse. He flipped the channel
again and saw a sex scene. He turned off the TV and cleared his throat,
then turned to look at her. "Nope."
"What did Joe want?"
He sat back and rubbed his face. Then told her, "The watchers know I'm
Methos."
"You? You mean, David Sommers?" He nodded, confusing her. They had
figured that no one knew that 'David' was even an immortal. "How did
that happen?"
"It was bound to eventually."
She was stunned, "What do you need to do?"
"Disappear. Change my name. I'm going to sell everything in the name of
David Sommers, Adam Pierson, Matthew Benjamin, all my alias'. I'm
going to make a clean break, the first time in ... almost a hundred years."
"Sell? The house in Sintra?"
"That's the first thing to go."
"Sell it to me."
"No. They know about you, too. At least they don't know about Claire."
"And I have a watcher... is that what you're trying to say? So, you're
leaving."
"Yes."
His 'yes' came so fast that she wasn't prepared for it. There was a time
that they could face anything, together. "Was it anything about me? Did I
let it out somehow?"
"I don't know how it happened. It could have been anything. I'm around
too many immortals with watchers. The watchers act like a bunch of
women with dryers on their heads when big news comes around and I'm
sure all of them know David Sommers, a.k.a. Adam Pierson, is the
mythical Methos by now."
"Damn," she muttered, tinged with sadness. Methos looked at her to know
the reason for the curious reaction. "I was just getting Claire to like me. I
assume you're taking her with you."
He slowly shook his head as he took her hand, finding himself rubbing her
ring-free ring finger. "I want Claire to stay with you while I'm gone."
Once again, Elizabeth was stunned. "You want me to raise her?"
"For a short time. He who travels alone, travels faster. I can't move
incognito with her around. I don't want them to know about her. Joe said
they don't yet. You haven't been around us for a long time, so if you've
got a watcher that took over for Maxwell, they could still be out of the
loop. It's the only chance I have, and I'm going to take it. I need to know
that..." He stopped to clear his throat. It was hard to think about all of this,
and worse for it to all be verbal. "She will be taken care of by someone
who loves her."
"How long will you be gone?"
"I have a lot of property around the world. I'm going to dump it all. Make
a clean sweep, that's something I haven't done for a very long time. I need
to disappear first, and shake whoever's tailing me. Then, I'll start selling.
I'll get a new identity. Then start over again, without so much baggage. In
the meantime, you have to do something for me."
"I'll take good care of her."
"I know." He smiled and kissed her cheek. It felt so good to have an
immortal he trusted be able to take care of the other thing in his life that
was so important, who didn't go looking for trouble, had a history of
staying away from other immortals. He hoped that she would remember
how she did it and not screw up again. "I've been thinking about this on
the way back over here. Here's what you do. Check out of this hotel in the
morning and register at the Salisbury. You know where that is?"
"No."
"West Side."
"What's so special about the Salisbury?"
"Nothing. That's why it's perfect. It's a nice place, but unassuming. Stay
away from other immortals, all of them, every single one of them. Duncan,
Amanda, Warren, Brynn and Antonio, and for Gods' sake, Cassandra and
Liam. Don't have any watchers make connections that you are with a little
girl."
"What's the end purpose of this? You call me and there's some drop off
point for Claire?"
"If you want," Methos said tightly, not knowing how she couldn't know
that she was an important part of his future plans. "Or, I will know where
you are so I can keep in touch with you, and when I feel it's safe, I'll tell
you where to meet me when I'm set up and we can move on together."
"So, I'm in your future?"
He chuckled and gently shook her shoulders, to wake her up! "As much as
you want or need to deny it, you and Claire are my life. If this done right,
we can all get away clean. Don't get followed by anyone and check into
the Salisbury, and don't leave it. Register under an assumed name to be on
the safe side. And then, wait for me to call. Don't leave that hotel. I know
it's going to be hard. I know Claire is going be difficult because she likes
the outdoors, but there's a glass enclosed pool there and a kids' playroom,
not much for you, but if Claire is happy, you won't go insane. They have
room service, or order take out, but don't leave that hotel. I don't want you
getting a watcher while I'm gone or it will destroy my plan. I need to come
back to you both."
"You're going to sell everything?"
"Everything."
"I've dreamt of going back to Casa Segura as a family."
"We'll have another house. Just as nice. Just as safe."
He had sounded so sure... she believed him. He continued, "I'll send all
our personal stuff in the house to a storage locker. We can retrieve it in a
decade or so. After there wouldn't be anyone watching it anymore, in case
they follow that lead. Everything else, I'll sell with the house and my
apartments."
She took his hand and kissed his wedding ring that he still wore. Tears
started to flow down her cheeks. He brushed them off and said, "There's
no need for that."
"I don't like to see you cornered. This isn't danger, is it?"
He smiled, knowing that she was truly back and loved him. "Not if it's
done right. That's precisely why I'm going to make Methos a myth again,
something I'm more comfortable with, because it will divert danger in the
future."
"I want to come with you."
"I don't want you or Claire to be seen with me while I do this. We'll make
them think you and I have broken up for good. Then, with a new identity, a
new place, a fresh start, we can live together in peace. You've just taken
up with another guy, me. They hopefully won't even know I'm immortal.
I'm not going to play the game anymore. At least, not until Claire's 100...
200 years old and can take care of herself. Sound good?"
She crawled on top of his lap and folded herself around him. "I'm still
mad as hell at you."
"You'll get over it."
"I know." She chuckled, holding him tighter, feeling and smelling him
made her stronger.
"I belong to you." Methos smiled as she seemed to hold onto him for dear
life. "Hm, there has to be a hint of danger for you to come back to me?"
She let go of him and ran her hands over his face, as if memorizing it. She
fearfully said, "I have a terrible feeling I'm not going to see you again."
"You'll have my daughter," he stated. "You will see me again."
"You haven't been dreaming lately, have you?"
Methos laughed, "No. If no one knows you're at the Salisbury and you
wait for me to call, there will be nothing to worry about. The future will be
us together and no one will know where we are or what we're doing or
how old Claire is, or that she even exists." Methos seethed again at Joe's
comment, Claire doesn't make any difference. He was going to miss that
girl and she made a big difference. "It will work. I've done it before, but
only this time I'll have someone waiting for me on the other side. You'll
have to change your name."
"No problem. What about Duncan and Amanda? Joe and Caroline?
Warren and Brynn?" That made Methos smile. "Antonio and Sofia. I told
Sofia and Brynn that we'd be back soon. They're expecting us." Then, she
remembered that she had promised Amy that she'd always watch over
Joey.
"We have to sever the ties."
"We're not even going to tell them what we're doing? Not even Duncan
and Amanda?"
"Joe will let Mac know about our conversation. If they don't hear from
you, they'll assume you went with me. I trust them not to say anything. As
long as we're not around them, no one else can figure it out."
"What will be your new name?"
"I don't know yet. Something simple, common, one so I can blend in."
"John Smith?"
"Not that common." He smiled. Looking into her eyes, he didn't see hurt
or anger, only love, and that thrilled him. He remembered looking into her
eyes for her reaction to things and almost every single time, he had gotten
the look that he wanted, even if it was something he hadn't the right to see.
Methos took the leather strap from around his neck that held Elizabeth's
wedding ring and untied it.
Elizabeth wondered if he would again ask her to wear hers, and this time,
she wouldn't have any regrets or hesitation. She would put it on and not
ever take it off. What he did, though, was take off his ring and he slipped it
on the strap, then tied it loosely around Elizabeth's neck. "You said
jewelry would be expected, here's the first pieces. Hang onto these. Take
care of them and also Claire."
She was disappointed that he didn't want her to wear hers, but only for an
instant. She couldn't be seen wearing a wedding ring, that would give
Watchers something to talk about. At that moment, she truly knew that she
would see him again. Thoughts of Amy were far from her mind when she
lightly asked, "What else is sex used for, when you're from?"
He chuckled, then seriously said, "An apology."
"You have apologized, but... hm... you could again."
"Or, it's a wonderful way to say goodbye and that I'll be back as soon as
immortally possible. Or... to wish us both luck. Whatever you want to call
it, I need you. Make love to me."
She stood, pulled him off the couch, and walked him to the master
bedroom. He laid her on the bed and she pulled herself up straight on the
bed and opened the robe. He rolled his head and said, "You're so
beautiful."
"I'm not too skinny anymore?"
"Nah, you've been eating a lot of cake." He laid down on top of her and
said, "And you're all mine."
"And you're mine. Don't you forget that again."
"I never did."
~~~~~
Methos had fallen into a light sleep, but Elizabeth was too excited to have
him back and too worried about what could happen with the Watchers
knowing about Methos to even think of it. Would they hurt him? She
wondered who her watcher was and if that had anything to do with their
finding out the truth. She would have to pay attention to everyone and do
what Methos did to Foley when they left town the first time together, use
bodily injury if nick came to tuck. A clean slate. She'd have to disappear,
too. With Claire. Wait for Methos. Why did they have to have watchers
when it seemed watchers interfered with immortals? Wasn't that against
the rules? If Methos wasn't so sure they didn't interfere, he wouldn't put
them all through it, would he? Maybe she can talk to Joe about getting her
watcher reassigned. No, she didn't want Joe in it more than he already
was.
Cassandra... Well, she can't get in touch with her anymore. Then a thought
came to her that she didn't think of before. Cassandra and Methos met on
the street. What he must have felt! He didn't let on at all on how it affected
him. What happened with Ludmilla that Methos had to save Cassandra?
She smiled, proud of him and all that he was and that he wanted her to
share his journey through life with him.
Methos was laying with his back to her. Elizabeth laid over his side and
reached over him to get his hand. "Hm," he groaned.
"Methos? Can I ask you a question?"
"Depends on what it is."
"How was it for you when you had contact with Cassandra?"
"No."
"No, what?"
"You can't ask me a question." He knew the conversation could get into
something he didn't want to bring up when he had to leave as soon as he
could peel himself out of that bed. It wouldn't be boasting to tell her he
saved Cassandra's life. It was just something that had to be done.
"I know what you did," she said. "And I know that she wanted to take your
head. You don't have to hide any of that. We're totally past that. It's a
boring subject. I just want to know what happened with Ludmilla. How
did you save her?"
"I'm not talking about it now. Put it on the list of things to discuss when
we're settled." He turned back to look at her and smile.
"Okay. Can I ask you another question?"
"No."
"Did you find out that I worked for Cassandra when you told me about the
horsemen?"
He turned back to stare at the clock on the night stand. He admitted, "Joe
told me. I figured I'd better before you heard her side of the story first."
Elizabeth kissed his cheek. "Thank you for telling me. I don't care what
the reason for it was, I'm thankful you told me."
"I loved you. I still do, even more now." He turned and got on top of her.
"You're not going to let me get a little sleep, are you?"
She kissed him, knowing that he had a long journey ahead of him, but she
couldn't not have him just one more time. It may be a long time before
they could enjoy each other again. Just when Methos was in the swing of
things and they were both rolling with the passion, the bedroom door
opened, "Papa! What doing?"
Methos groaned and stopped, glared at Elizabeth. She said, "Well, you
obviously taught her how to open a door."
"Need wa'er," Claire said as she walked to Methos' side of the bed.
Elizabeth slipped out from under him as he groaned when they parted,
fully erect. "Sorry. I'll take care of her, you take care of that. But try to
wait."
He grimaced at her as she reached to the floor and get her robe and got out
of bed. He turned away from Claire and rubbed himself. "You want some
water?" he heard Elizabeth ask Claire. They left and he took care of
himself while he smelled Elizabeth's perfume on her side of the bed. He'd
have to have a talk with Claire about not going into papa's room at night,
now that papa could enjoy mama. Then he suddenly turned cold. He had to
leave. He couldn't put off the inevitable.
~~~~~
Elizabeth put the water glass on Claire's night stand and check her pull up
for moisture. She pulled the blanket back over her and asked, "Are you all
taken care of now? Need anything else?"
"Night, mama."
Elizabeth wondered if Claire would be so content to say that after Methos
was gone. She hoped that she would be a great mother for Claire, and the
fact that one of her parents had left her at various times wouldn't corrupt
her soul or spirit or mind. Hopefully, this would be the last time it would
happen, but how do you explain that to a child, a baby? Elizabeth felt
Methos' hand on her shoulder and he leaned down to whisper, "I need to
hold her again."
Elizabeth stood and got out of the way while Methos sat on Claire's bed
and stared at her for a short while, then gently pulled her onto his chest,
careful not to wake her. He couldn't say goodbye to her face, and hoped
she wouldn't be too much a handful for Elizabeth while he was gone,
especially when it would dawn on her that he was gone. He whispered to
Elizabeth, "You'll make sure she knows I'm coming back."
"Of course."
She could see his eyes mist as he rocked Claire, and decided to give them
some privacy. She walked back out to the main room and looked out the
window at the city that never sleeps, but was now napping. Nobody was
driving or walking down Park Avenue that time of night, just after 1 am.
The last thing that Elizabeth wanted to do was sleep, as she wanted to
spend every moment she could with Methos before he had to leave. The
reason why he had to leave was still foggy for her, but he seemed scared,
something she hadn't seen him often, but when she did, it almost always
caused her to panic. This time, she was calm. She knew that he would take
care of himself and he trusted her to take care of Claire, and he was
coming back.
After a long while, Methos came out of Claire's room and left the door
ajar. He didn't look at her as he started to pack up his dufflebag, which
was still basically as he had left it. Elizabeth said, "You said you'd put
everything in storage, so don't you dare lose Claire's baby videos. You
bring them back with you. I need to see them."
"Okay." Methos zipped up his bag and inhaled deeply, only then looking
at her. It was time. He was really going. "You remember everything I told
you."
"I don't have to stay in the Salisbury night and day, do I?"
"I'd prefer it, but know it could be impossible. Use your judgement, but be
careful. If you need to go somewhere else and the coast is clear, leave a
message for me where you'll be. But you have to be extremely careful."
"I'm... going to go see Amy before checking into the Salisbury, is that
okay? It won't screw anything up?"
Methos smiled. "She'd like that. You need to see and talk to her."
"She's my best friend. I have to get her side of it." Elizabeth couldn't help
herself, she walked to Methos and gathered him into a hug. "I was afraid
that I wouldn't be able to get the mental picture of you two together out of
my head but all I could think about was how much I love you."
Methos kissed her. "Register under a different name at the Salisbury."
"What name, so you'll know?"
"Trixie?"
She laughed, remembering that suggestion in Sintra, when they were
happy, their relationship was still new, before all the obstacles came that
they had to triumph over. They would triumph over a little separation too,
Elizabeth was sure of it. She thought a second and said, "Mary Anderson. I
can get fake ID to use. I know where to go."
"Mary Anderson, it is. And Claire is..."
"Jane?"
"Okay."
She demanded, "You call me often."
"I will call as often as I can," Methos promised. "I'll be thinking of you
always. Start thinking about where we should settle to."
"Can I go see Duncan and Amanda too? They're still in town, aren't
they?"
"No," he was adamant. "Stay away from all immortals." He quickly kissed
her again and broke it off before it would be impossible for him to leave,
or for her to let him. He said, "I'll be back before you can miss me."
"That's impossible."
He was then gone. It was so fast. The door shut and he was gone.
Elizabeth went to the window to look out onto Park Avenue again and
waited. Then, to her happiness of getting one more glimpse of him, and
figured that he had made it possible, Methos walked out of the building
and stood on the sidewalk for a moment. He didn't look up, but he stayed
still. She smiled. He must have done that because he knew she'd be
watching. Then he walked down the street, two different men from the
other side of the street and block apart made a beeline to follow him. Good
Christ, they were like vultures! Methos had two watchers on him, at least;
those were only the ones she noticed. Were there competing Watchers,
whoever could give the better report would inherit his assignment? Methos
was like a lamb to slaughter. The thought that she wouldn't see him again
crashed over her.
~~~~~
THURSDAY MAY 6, 2004
ST. REGIS
When Claire woke up for the morning, she saw Elizabeth laying in bed
with her and immediately asked where Papa was. Elizabeth decided that
right then and there was the best time to tell her what had happened. She
was quick to say that Methos loved her and would be back, but she was
too young to let it sink in. Elizabeth rocked her as Claire cried and again
worried about her stability for all the leaving that she'd experienced.
Telling her every day that David was her papa and that he loved her and
that he will be back as soon as he could would be the only plan that
Elizabeth had.
~~~~~
It was mid day when Claire finally calmed down and stopped clinging to
Elizabeth. She had started playing with her blocks while Elizabeth
showered and dressed, then packed up their things. Claire was still in her
pajamas when Elizabeth looked in on her and asked to help her get dressed
to which Claire announced, "I can do it."
"That's right," Elizabeth smiled and repeated what Methos said the night
before, "You're a big girl. When you're dressed, we'll go and see Joey.
Would you like that?"
Claire nodded and Elizabeth wiped the rest of her tears off her cheeks.
"It'll be okay." even though she had no idea if it would be, or if Claire
understood a word past 'Papa is gone for a little while'.
Elizabeth went to pack up the rest of her things in the other bedroom and
took a wad of bills out of her wallet to leave for the maids. Claire walked
in wearing a pair of pink flowered pants and a yellow checked shirt. She
sat down on the floor to put on her brown socks. Elizabeth laughed. "We
have to try to be incognito, dear. Can you try again? I'll help you."
~~~~~
After checking out of the St. Regis, Elizabeth wondered what she should
do first. It would probably be the last time she'd feel the sun and wind on
her face for a while so she'd better enjoy it. How long could it take? Was
Methos even still in the city? She kept a lookout for anyone following her
and didn't notice anyone. When she'd stop suddenly to look in a store
window, she didn't see anyone stop short, cover, watch, chronicle. But,
watcher were good, she'd have to be careful. Should they know she was
checking into the Salisbury? Methos wasn't specific on that part. Well,
James had been thorough in teaching her how to be covert, and she could
now put that to good use.
~~~~~
When Amy opened the door of her apartment, she saw something she
didn't think she would ever see again. Elizabeth held Claire in one arm
and had a backpack slipped over the other shoulder. Her suitcase was
placed by her foot. She gasped and clutched her chest. "Lizzie..."
Elizabeth asked, "Do you still have company?" even though she didn't feel
any immortal buzzes, Kevin's parents could still be there.
"It's just Joey and I. We just got back from taking Walter and Helen to the
airport. Duncan and Amanda went--."
Elizabeth interrupted her by grabbing her suitcase and walking into the
apartment and locking the door behind her. "What's going on? Is there still
danger out there?" Amy asked, suddenly scared about more than just
facing life without Kevin.
"No," Elizabeth said, setting her suitcase down and letting Claire down
when Joey walked into the room. Both of the kids ran down the hallway to
his room. "Not for you. There's not going to be danger for you again,
Amy." But there was for Methos, and by extension her, if the watchers
would be able to follow her. Methos would never come back to her and
Claire if there were.
Amy burst into a smile and said, "I'm so glad to see you. Of course, you
and Claire are more than welcome to stay here. Where's David? I'm not
asking because I want to know, for myself, but it's odd that he's not with
you."
When Elizabeth was silent, not knowing what to say to her about him,
Amy said, "I'm so sorry, Liz. It didn't--."
Elizabeth waved her hand. "David already sang that song. If I hadn't
forgiven you for that, I wouldn't be here right now."
Amy sighed with relief and then wondered what the visit was about. "You
forgive me?"
"I haven't forgotten, but I have. That's all I can do for now."
"You haven't broken up, have you?"
"Would you have liked that?"
"Of course not!"
Elizabeth placated her with a soft wave of her hand and nod. "That's not
what I'm here for. I can't stay either."
"What do you need? I'll do anything."
Elizabeth smiled, remembering just how good of a friend Amy had been to
her and now that she was looking at her, she didn't see Methos in Amy, or
them together. She only saw her friend she had loved as a sister. "You
don't have to do anything. In fact, I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone
that I was even here. Especially not Joe or Duncan and Amanda."
"Why?"
"I have to leave for a while. It might be a long while before we can see
each other again. And it's not because of David... well, yes it is, but it's
not why you think. David and aren't together right now." Wondering what
Methos had told Joe at their little meeting floated through her mind, and
knew that Joe and Amy would probably talk, but skirting around the
Methos issue. She told Amy, "David left me."
"What? Why? He left you?"
"It's a long story and I hope to tell you one day, but I can't now. I have to
get Claire away from Joey and that Playstation and then leave for a while.
Maybe a long while. So, I wanted to tell you that if you don't hear
anything from me for a while, maybe a couple of years," Elizabeth said,
starting to choke up just now realizing how much the hope that had made
Methos and her come back to New York, that they would again be best
friends and see each other every day and raise their kids together, had been
shattered. "If you don't hear from me, it's not because I hate you or I don't
want to see you. It's just because I have to."
"That doesn't make any sense."
"Well, chalk it up to me being an immortal. A lot has happened in the past
five years and I need a break. I will get back in touch with you again. I
promise. I feel horrible about what happened to Kevin."
When Amy teared up because she was going to lose her friend for a while,
and still being rattled by Kevin's death, Elizabeth held her. "I know you
loved him. I know your pain." Paulie's and Victor's deaths were still fresh
for her at times. Now that Methos was gone, she felt their losses more as
she may never see Methos again either. There always was that possibility.
"I made a promise to you, remember? I'm going to be a guardian angel for
Joey. I mean it. It will be a while until I can contact you again, but I will. I
promise."
Before Elizabeth could change her mind about it all, she had to be strong
and collect Claire. Claire wasn't too pleased about leaving so soon and
made a fuss, but went with her when Elizabeth promised ice cream. At the
door, Elizabeth hugged Amy again with the promise that she would be in
touch with her when she could.
~~~~~
Outside and down the block, Elizabeth stopped and bounced Claire in her
arms to quiet her down when she started whining again. It also gave
Elizabeth the opportunity to stop and take look around them. Diane
Wentworth! She was standing across the street and just a little ways down
the block. Was that really her? Elizabeth turned quickly so Diane wouldn't
notice that she saw her. Through the reflection on the store window, she
could see her standing there. Elizabeth thought that she had retired. Setting
Claire on her knee after squatting down to reach into Claire's backpack,
she gave Claire an animal cracker and then saw that the light had changed
at the corner where Diane was, but she didn't move with the rest of the
pedestrians.
Diane Wentworth was back! Was that a good thing, or a bad thing? With
the maneuvers of James' that she still had, Elizabeth picked Claire up and
brought her back to Amy's apartment. Methos was right. Who travels
alone, travels faster...
When Amy answered the door, she was again surprised by Elizabeth's
presence. "That was quick."
"Do me a favor? Claire wants to play with Joey. Can you take her for a
little while?"
"Of course."
"Great." She hurried down the hall and down the stairs. When she got to
the lobby door, she asked the doorman if there was another way out.
He pointed to the back hall. She started in that direction. "You can't use it,
it's for deliveries. You could get hurt!"
He ran off after her. She opened the alley door and looked both ways.
There was only a truck lift. She jumped down and went down the opposite
block and around another block and doubled back to come up behind
Diane, who was still watching the front of Amy's building. Elizabeth
grabbed her arm and pulled her to an alcove. "I thought you retired."
Diane was surprised, covered with a smile, "Elizabeth. Nice to see you
again."
"I thought you retired."
"I did."
"What are you doing here?"
"I live in the city now."
"What have you been doing on this block for the last half hour?"
"I'm waiting for someone."
"Cut the crap. Are you my watcher again?"
Diane grimaced and looked at the sidewalk. "I can't interfere. We can't be
talking to each other."
"Why are you back?"
"I'm good at this. They pay well. I hate teaching History. You were an
easy assignment, and you haven't been chronicled for the past year and a
half."
Elizabeth sighed, "Teaching is something that I wish someone would give
me the chance to do again." But then she realized what she had said. She
hadn't been chronicled for a year and a half! Brett must not have submitted
his reports he had taken after he had retired and followed her as Angel.
She wondered if she could ask Diane for a favor, to not record anything on
her again, but it was too much to ask. She decided to feed the fire.
Interfere with her chronicle. "I lost David because of you people. Are you
all happy about that? Do you give even one thought to our lives?"
"He what?" Diane said not too convincingly.
Elizabeth spouted, feeling real anger at the woman. "Don't pretend with
me. He took off, and you know why. I'm never going to see him again.
Are you happy?"
She grabbed Diane's arm and pulled her down the block, into an alley.
Before Diane could ask what she thought she was doing, Elizabeth took
out her sword and made sure that Diane saw it, hoping it would scare her
out of her wits. By their history, Elizabeth knew that Diane was easy to
rattle and hoped this all worked. Diane crumbled against the wall. "No!
Please!"
"No? Why not? You pigs just watch and record? Are you robots?
Mutants? How can you do that? Maybe you should get into the game!"
"Nothing is worth this," Diane loudly said as she tried to get away.
Elizabeth pushed her back against the wall and pulled her sword back, as if
ready to swing. Diane let out a shriek and waited for the inevitable.
Elizabeth belted Diane across the face with the hilt and she fell like a
lump. Quickly putting her sword back in her coat and looking for gawkers,
she didn't see any and felt for Diane's pulse. It was steady. It looked like
her nose was broken, though. Elizabeth didn't feel bad about it. As she
walked out of the alley, she was actually happy Diane was the watcher. At
least she was able to zero in on her. Now, unless the hotel room was
bugged, the watchers wouldn't have a clue as to where she was, and by
extension, broaden that comfort zone of Methos'.
After collecting Claire and being very brief with Amy, Elizabeth got the
hell out of that neighborhood before Diane could wake up. She walked
into a storefront that advertised ID's and passports, along with check
cashing, and went in to make a hefty withdrawal and become Mary
Anderson.
The next stop was a little tourist shop where she bought hats for both her
and Claire and put them on. Claire didn't quite like hers, but after getting
that ice cream cone, Claire put up with it. They walked by a pay phone,
and Elizabeth stopped and stared at it. She had another idea. She called
Joe. As soon as he answered, she demanded, even though she knew the
answer, "Who's my watcher?"
"Liz?" was Joe's stunned reply.
"Who's my watcher?"
After a pause, he said, "Diane Wentworth."
"Can you call her off me?"
"No. Where are you?"
"I'm leaving for the airport. I'll be in Denver this evening." She said
before she actually thought about what city she would mention.
"Denver? Why Denver?"
Diane Wentworth had been Logan's watcher and he had lived in Denver.
Maybe it was karma that she would say the name of that city. That would
really make Joe and the other watchers think... But it wouldn't put her on
some 'Dangerous Immortals' list, would it? Nah, with how inept they were
at catching James before she had been taken, even though they had been
on him for years, they didn't know their ass from a hole in the ground.
That was the danger of too many cooks stirring the pot. No one knew what
the other one did. "Why not Denver?" she said. "David left me, Joe. I hope
you're all very happy," she spouted with all the pain that her voice could
muster and abruptly hung up. She didn't like using Joe as a ruse, and to
make him worry, but it was another way that anyone using her because
they were interested in Methos would lose track of them if Joe's phones
were tapped. She really wanted to talk to Duncan and Amanda, at least to
say goodbye, but didn't. Thinking that she had covered all her bases, she
walked with Claire to the Salisbury. Before entering it, she took one last
look around the side door that she was going to use and enjoyed the fresh
air one more time.
~~~~~
SATURDAY MAY 8, 2004
SALISBURY
Claire was watching PBS as Elizabeth put the breakfast dishes on the tray
for room service to take. They'd been in that room for two days, and had
eaten only two meals from room service and she was already going stir
crazy. Methos obviously hadn't thought about their side of the deal when
he suggested such a weird arrangement. She wondered how he was doing,
where he was, how soon it would be before he would come back, but knew
that was hopeless. It only made her miss him more. Instead, she thought
about where the three of them should end up when this whole mess was
over with. She really wanted to stay in the United States, but would go
anywhere Methos suggested. She chuckled when she realized that.
Her smile faded as soon as she felt a buzz. It *could* be Methos, but that
was awfully quick. That magical number of 630 million US dollars oh
wealth that he had told her made her know that his absence would be at
least a couple of months. Duncan and Amanda couldn't possibly know
where she was, or anyone else for that matter. She quietly opened the door
and looked down the hall. The immortal man stood at the end of the hall,
his back to her, but she knew that he was immortal by the strength of his
sensation and by the way that his back was so rigid. When he slowly
turned to face her, Elizabeth bolted back into the room and shut and
locked the door behind her. Cole Roberts! What the hell was he doing in
anything less than a five star hotel?! "Good Christ," she moaned.
"Mama?" Claire's voice startled her. "Go to park?"
She knelt down against the far wall from the door and motioned for Claire
to come to her, hugged her. "Sh." She could still felt Roberts' buzz. The
words he told her so long ago when she was in her Angel personae drifted
back to mind. 'When you least expect it, Ms. Bancroft, you'll lose more
than your head. I'll start with each and every finger, then, your nose, then
your tits...' he had told her as he has straddled her, as she was tied naked to
a bed, just before they butchered Tony. Did he see her? Was he staying
there? Did he know she was there? Would he slaughter her and Claire in
their sleep? "Shit," she was she could say.
Claire mimicked with a giggle, "Shit."
"Sh, sh," Elizabeth quieted her. She still felt his buzz in the hallway, and
then there was a knock at her door, making Elizabeth jump, then squat
down again, holding onto Claire. She put her hand over Claire's mouth
and kept perfectly still.
CONTINUED in Chapter 37 Plans Gone Awry
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