Chapter Sixty Eight
Aralyn’s comment about her parents not being happy with the trip was an understatement. She hadn’t told Cam just how badly it had gone with them a couple of days before.
“You just got home!” Trixie exclaimed. “We haven’t seen you in months, and you’ve only been home for a week!”
“I know, Mom, but this is important. I need to finish what I started.”
“You need to spend time with us,” Trixie said sharply.
“Mom, I promise, it’s only for a couple of weeks. Tiffany and Nat will be with me. I swear, I’ll be back soon,” Aralyn said patiently. She was going with or without their blessing, but she was fairly certain expressing that attitude wouldn't win any support.
Tiffany sat in the armchair that Natala was perched on the arm of. The trio had called Honey and Luke over, as well as Brian to announce their plans.
“We’ll be back in time for Thanksgiving.”
“What if the roads are bad, or close down because of weather?” Honey asked.
“We’ll be in the 4-Runner. We can push through the drive in one day, if there’s no trouble. If there is, we’ll find a hotel and hole up.”
“I’d rather we go with you, and meet this Duncan fella,” Bo said.
Aralyn shook her head. “Dad, I’m not a kid. I know you think my judgment is crap, and well, I can’t say as I blame you, but Duncan is a good guy. You’d probably like him. You can run a background check on him if you want, but that’s it. I’m an adult now, and I won’t have my parents approving of my friends before I can visit them. Please.”
“It’s a little hard for us to trust you, Aralyn,” Trixie said testily.
“Look,” Aralyn said, an edge to her voice, “this is important to me. Duncan has done more to help me in the months I worked with him than Dr. Wilman could have ever hoped to. Duncan isn’t some sexual perv; he has no interest in me in that way. But he understands what it’s like to be lost, and need something to help find your way back to yourself. Duncan was able to do that for me.”
“And when you’re done with this, what do you plan to do?” Trixie asked. “We had an agreement, and you broke it.”
“I plan to go to school, Mom. I do. I’ve applied to a couple places for winter admission in January already.”
This was news to everyone in the room.
“When?” Bo asked, surprised.
“Duncan made me,” Aralyn said dryly. “It was a condition of taking me on as a student. My stay there was never to be permanent, Dad. He wanted me back home by Christmas.”
She had told them the tale of how she met Duncan as she had told her cousins, leaving out the parts about the sweat lodge rituals and how incredibly hot Duncan was.
“What sort of trainin’ is it you were doin’?” Luke finally asked.
Aralyn chose her words carefully. “Mostly hand to hand. Martial arts.”
Bo stood, irate with the conversation, and suspicious. “All right, then. Let’s go.”
Aralyn’s eyes widened. “Dad, you’re not serious!”
“Sure I am. If this guy is training you better than the Marshals Service could, I want to see it.”
“Still a beginner, Dad.”
“Let’s go. Outside. I saw you street fighting with McQuaid, not judo, or whatever it is you say he's been teaching you.”
Aralyn groaned. “Dad, I’m not going to take you on. I’m still a beginner and you can take me down!”
“You should be able to hold me off for a few minutes at least.”
“Dad, I’m not going to spar with you.”
Bo crossed his arms over his chest. His daughter did the same.
“Mule versus mule,” Nat muttered. Tiffany snorted.
“This is ridiculous,” Trixie snapped. “Both of you stop pissing on each's feet. I’m not going to have you two throw each other around in the snow to settle a wounded ego!”
“I’m going,” Aralyn said coolly. “I’m not leaving town without letting you know, but I’m not asking your permission either.”
“For someone who wants to be treated as an adult, you ain’t givin’ us a lot of reason to do so!” Bo snapped. “You’ve got no job, no source of income, and you can’t just blow in and out of town at whim!”
“It’s not at whim!” Aralyn shouted. “I left town because I needed to get away! I came back because Tiffany needed me! And I’m going because I made a promise to someone who helped me! Dad, I am going to finish what I started!”
Startled, Bo opened his mouth to answer but he didn’t have one.
“I just don’t like this idea,” he said finally. “I don’t like you bein’ gone again, in the dead of winter.”
“We were gone all last winter too,” she pointed out.
“Let’s get back to this school topic,” Honey said, leaning forward and trying to reduce the tension. “What are you planning to study?”
Aralyn shrugged. “Right now, just general core.”
“Do you have any idea what you want to major in?” Trixie asked.
Aralyn glanced at Tiffany, who nodded encouragingly.
“Tim and I were joking about opening our own detective agency when we’re twenty five,” she said with a half-smile. “Duke-Mangan Investigations.”
The room went silent. Trixie remembered a long ago summer’s day, when Jim had teased her and Honey about their detective skills.
“I have so got ambition,” Trixie told him, with a toss of her head. “It’s all settled. Honey and I are going to be private detectives, aren’t we, Honey?”
Jim hooted with laughter. “And call your agency Moll Dicks, Incorporated, I suppose. I can just see your business cards,” he went on gaily. “’When the FBI gives up, we take over,’ printed in red.”
A glance at Honey, and Trixie knew her best friend was remembering that same moment.
“Tiffany’s future is with Daisy’s company, we all know it. She’s found her niche there, and she’s really good with at it. Nat has her art. I’ve always been the restless one, without any real focus or a path. But Tim and I have talked about this a lot, and we’re only half kidding about the detective agency. He’s Navy of course, but considering the NCIS. We’re both looking at going into law enforcement, and I’m thinking about trying to get into the Marshals Service. Make it a family thing, you know? Second generation and all.”
Bo was suddenly very interested in his shoes as Trixie’s eyes filled with tears. Honey and Luke smiled.
“Tracking down Tiffany was well, exciting. I enjoyed it, for a bunch of reasons, other than just finding her, but I can see why you guys love it so much.”
“It takes a lot of schoolin’,” Luke said softly. “It ain’t like when me and Bo joined, and skipped that part.”
“You’d have to buckle down, sweetheart. Stick it out with school, get a degree, go through the whole process. And it ain’t all action, and runnin’ down criminals and findin’ people. There’s a lot of paperwork, a lot of desk work.”
She nodded. “I know. And while I don’t look forward to that part, necessarily, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about it the last few months, and that’s what feels right. I really do feel my future is in law enforcement.”
The room was silent for a moment as they all digested her announcement.
Brian studied his daughter, who had remained quiet through this. “Nat?”
Natala leaned forward. “I want to go,” she said clearly. “I feel very strongly this is something we need to do, the three of us. I think it’s important, and frankly, we’re going, with or without your guys’ blessing.”
The unusually sharp words from Natala startled the parents, who exchanged glances, holding their own private, silent conversations. The three girls were united, there was no budging them. The stubborn gene ran deep in this family.
“Well, I guess that settles it, then,” Bo said with a sigh.
“I want to get down there as soon as possible. The sooner we get there, the sooner we get back,” Aralyn pointed out.
“Tiff?” Luke asked. “You’re okay with this?”
Tiffany nodded, steadfastly loyal to her cousin, despite her wariness of another road trip.
“Dad, there’s one more thing,” Aralyn braced herself. “When you run the background on Duncan, and I know you’re going to…well, Duncan is something of amateur detective, and his name is going to show up in connection with a lot of crimes, mostly murders.”
The room exploded. Aralyn waited until they quieted down some. She fudged a few facts, pointing out Trixie’s past of “meddling” with Sergeant Molinson’s cases as a teenager and his and Luke’s own exploits.
“He even helped solve a few of them, Dad.” No need to mention he had been a suspect more than once. “He’s really intelligent and often finds small clues the police don’t.” No need to mention he knew a fair number of victims. Google was so helpful these days, but when asked, Duncan had told her flat out there were dangerous people from his past that occaionally surfaced. Instead of scaring her, it intrigued Aralyn.
It was another half hour before the parents were ready to accept their girls were taking this trip.
***
Early the designated morning, Natala fastened her seatbelt in the back seat of the 4-Runner. Aralyn had promised to teach her to drive but she was thinking she’d rather have Tiffany’s calm self teaching her. Aralyn could get a little…irritable behind the wheel, and riding behind her on the motorcycle could as terrifyng as it was exhilirating.
“We’re off to see the wizard,” Natala muttered. “If you’re hauling my ass out of bed this early, you better be stopping for coffee!”
***
After a brief stop at Annapolis to visit with Tim, the girls hit the road again. Tim had taken exceptional delight in strolling around with his three beautiful cousins and watching his friends’ tongues roll out at the sight of them.
They reached Franklin, North Carolina late, had a quick dinner at a Friendly’s diner, buying ice cream pints to go.
Settled into their hotel room, watching Sex & The City and eating ice cream, Aralyn started snickering.
“Nat, I have to ask,” she finally said.
“Ask what?” her cousin answered, digging into the rocky road ice cream in her hand.
“About Dean. ‘Fess up. Does he live up to his nickname from high school?”
Nat looked at her cousin, puzzled, as Tiffany’s eyes widened. She realized what Aralyn was about to ask and tried to get Aralyn’s attention to stop her. Aralyn though, didn’t notice Tiffany waving at her to shut up.
“Nickname?” Nat asked blankly.
“Yeah, the girls used to call him Dean the Machine because of his stamina. He could go all night and his recovery time was legendary.” Aralyn finally fished the chunk of chocolate out of her ice cream and looked up.
Tiffany winced as Natala raised one eyebrow and stopped eating her ice cream.
“I didn’t know that was his nickname.” She reminded herself that with her past, she had no right to judge Dean’s promiscuity. He had been honest with it about her, and a lot more careful than she had.
“Oh, yeah, the girls in the locker room—” Aralyn stopped abruptly as she saw Tiffany drawing a slashing line across her throat. “You know, it’s not important,” she said hastily. “And it's not my business, forget I asked.”
Natala looked down at her ice cream. “I can’t answer that, Ari,” she said softly. ‘We haven’t had sex.”
Aralyn’s eyes popped open. “What? You’ve been going out with Dean Acklen for how long and there’s no sex?”
Tiffany shook her head. Aralyn could be really obtuse at times, and insensitive without meaning too.
“I love him,” Natala said simply. “And with my past, being able to let sex happen so that it means something, isn’t easy.”
Aralyn bit her lip and shook her head. “I’m sorry, Nat, I didn’t think about it that way. I just…never mind what I thought. I’m really sorry.” She scooted over next to her cousin and hugged her tightly.
“It’s all right,” Natala smiled at her. “You couldn’t have known.”
“If I had been around the last few months, I might have.” She shook her head. “There I go again, sticking my foot in my mouth.”
“Family trait,” Tiffany said dryly. “Especially with the blonde branch.”
Nat laughed. “But you know, turnabout is fair play. Now I have to ask about Cam and his prowess.”
Aralyn grinned from ear to ear. “Whatcha wanna know?”
***
“You’re right, it does look like a dive,” Tiffany commented as they pulled up to the dojo the following day.
After a good night’s sleep, and breakfast at the nearby diner, Aralyn drove them over to the dojo.
As they walked up to the door, Natala suddenly grabbed Tiffany.
The world around her spun, there was an echo in her ears and she felt like throwing up.
“Nat? What’s wrong?” Tiffany asked, alarmed.
Aralyn whirled around. “What is it? You look like you’re going to be sick!”
“I…I don’t know. I just feel really funny. Like I wanna puke but I know I won’t.”
“She’s kind of green. Come on, let’s get her inside, I’ll get you a soda.”
Natala leaned on Tiffany as they entered the dojo. It was quiet this time of day, with only a couple of men working out.
Tiffany’s eyes scanned the room, taking in the various swords on one wall, the hardwood floor, the large empty space, and the machines one side, only two currently occupied.
A young man drenched in sweat stood with a towel in his hand, eyes on the doors, body tense. He was nice looking, tall with blond hair shaved down, blue eyes, and classic all-American look, with a muscular frame all of the girls could appreciate. In one hand, he gripped a long sword.
“Richie!" Aralyn called, beaming as she waved to him.
He grinned suddenly and set the sword down on a bench, his eyes straying to her cousins.
“I knew you’d be back!”
He dashed over and grabbed her into a big hug.
“Ew! Put me down! You’re all sweaty!” She smacked his arm and he laughed.
Richie set her down, smiling. “The hair looks good. Pretty sexy,” he grinned. “And better than the blue.”
His eyes went to her cousins. “Well, hello, who do we have here? Aralyn, you told me your cousins were pretty, you didn’t tell me they were goddesses walking the earth.”
Nat was looking sicker by the second.
Aralyn snorted as her Tiffany snorted in mild amusement. “That sort of line sounds a lot better coming from Adam.”
“I agree,” came a lightly accented British voice from behind them.
“I think you both sound ridiculous when you say it,” came another voice, deeper, with a Scottish accent.
Aralyn turned and threw her arms around the man behind them. “Duncan! Adam!”
The Scotsman hugged her tightly, and kissed her cheek. “Good to see you, kiddo. I was very pleased when you called.” His eyes strayed to the girls, staying on Natala. “These must be your cousins. Pardon me for saying so but one of them looks a little ill.”
“They are. This is Tiffany Duke, and Natala Belden, the green one there. She said she felt a little queasy right before we came inside. This is Duncan MacLeod, he owns the place, and behind him, pretending to be shy, is Adam Pierson.”
Tiffany shook hands with them first, and then Natala reached for Duncan’s hand. She gasped softly when their hands touched, as images flooded her through her head. She couldn’t grasp them all, warriors, battles, lovers, mountains, deserts, swords, guns. Her head swam around and her knees went weak.
“Nat?” Aralyn slipped one arm around her cousin. “Nat?”
“I’m okay. I think breakfast just isn’t sitting well with me.” Natala wasn’t about to tell her cousin what she had just seen. Just who was this Duncan MacLeod?
“Richie, would you get her something carbonated?” Aralyn asked.
“Sure thing,” Richie hurried down the hall.
“Come sit in my office,” Duncan invited. “Need a hand with her?”
“We’ve got her,” Aralyn smiled at him.
Natala wouldn’t react well to a strange man touching her.
“Thank you. This is kind of embarrassing,” Natala muttered. “I don’t usually do this sort of thing.”
Adam had disappeared and returned with a cool wet cloth that he silently handed to Aralyn.
“Thanks,” she smiled up at him, taking it. She pressed it to the back of Natala’s neck.
“Here,” Richie returned with a cold can of Coke in his hand and popped it open. Natala took a few sips.
“Do you feel hot at all?” Duncan asked.
Natala shook her head. “No, just suddenly nauseated. And no, before anyone asks, I’m not pregnant.” She was pretty sure that wasn’t possible at all any more.
“Where did you eat?” Duncan asked.
“Friendly's, over near the hotel.”
“Reputable enough, if heavy on the grease,” Adam finally spoke.
Natala couldn’t place his accent. British likely, but not Scottish or Irish. Faded, just a very refined lilt left, enough to tell one that he wasn’t American and make him sound very educated and sophisticated.
“I’m feeling better,” Natala said. The nauseous feeling seemed to be passing.
“Good. Not the kind of impression I like to make on people visiting my dojo,” Duncan smiled at her.
He had kind eyes, in a gorgeous face, Natala thought. But they had seen much, much pain and sorrow. And they hid a lot of secrets. Lots of them.
“Allow me to introduce myself properly. Adam Pierson,” he took Tiffany’s hand and kissed it lightly, making her giggle.
But when he took Natala’s, she gasped again, louder, and this time and almost doubled over as even more images flooded through her mind, so fast she couldn’t even see them, so many feelings overwhelmed her and the world swayed around her, despite the fact she was sitting down.
She felt Aralyn’s grip on her shoulders, grounding her. “Nat?”
“I’m okay. I just…have we met before?” Natala asked, staring up at Adam.
He was very good looking, she thought, with angular features, vivid green eyes, a somewhat large nose. Short, spiky brown hair, probably in his mid-to-late forties but those eyes…dear gods, those eyes had seen much and more. Adam Pierson was no ordinary man. He was many men, she thought dazedly. A thousand men and more.
“Not in this lifetime, my lovely. I would never forget a face as beautiful as yours. It would put Helen’s to shame,” he smiled at her.
Natala’s eyes moved from Duncan to Adam. There was something not quite right here with these two.
“Richie Ryan. Not as smooth as Mr. Worldly there.” Richie shook her hand.
There was a buzz that went through her, but nothing like the other two. But Richie wasn’t right, either. Who on earth were these men? What had Aralyn gotten herself into?
“Thank you so much for your kindness,” Tiffany said quickly, aware her cousin was processing something mentally.
“Any friends of Aralyn’s,” Duncan smiled. “It’s my pleasure to welcome you. I’d been hoping to meet you two someday so when Aralyn called, I told her to bring you down.”
He was ridiculously good looking, Tiffany thought. Her dad’s age or not, he was the most attractive man she had seen in a long time. The accent didn’t hurt either. Adam was downright sexy too, in a more sophisticated, European way. Duncan was raw, rugged, powerful sexiness. What was it Aralyn had said? That women’s panties just seemed to melt off for him? Yes, Tiffany could understand that sentiment all right.
“Would you rather meet one on one?” Duncan asked. “It might be more comfortable.”
“Eventually, yes,” Tiffany said. “But for now, this is fine.”
Duncan leaned forward. “So how can I help you ladies?”
***
Duncan tensed until the elevator door to the loft raised and Adam came through. Duncan returned to chopping vegetables.
Adam set the bottle of wine down on the counter.
“Natala Belden,” he said.
“Little young for you,” Duncan smirked. “By a few thousand years.”
“Absolutely stunning, yes. But while I wouldn’t mind a tumble with her, I’m more worried about her psyche. How can she know about us? Because it’s quite clear she does.”
“She doesn’t.” Duncan sighed. “But she is a gypsy. Aralyn told me as much, and she’s got a fair talent of being psychic.”
“You know I don’t particularly buy into that sort of thing.”
Duncan nodded. “That still surprises me, given how long you’ve been around.”
“Too many charlatans to bother weeding out the real deal,” Adam said dismissively, reaching for the corkscrew.
“I know enough from Aralyn, and what we saw today, that she’s real enough.”
“And she’s one of us.”
“Unfortunately.”
“What are we supposed to do? I don’t want to drop this on her. She seems like a sweet kid and I remember Aralyn telling us some horror stories about the girl’s childhood. I don’t think Aralyn knows the half of it.” Adam removed the cork from the bottle. “The girl is haunted.”
“As long as she dies a natural death, she’ll be fine.” Duncan piled the vegetables into a bowl.
“And if she doesn’t? Who do we have in New York that can watch her?”
“I’ve got a call into Dawson. I’ll have him put someone on her. I think there are bigger problems though.”
“Such as?”
“She’s running from someone.”
“How do you know that?” Adam waved the bottle under his nose, breathing in the bouquet.
“Aralyn told me bits and pieces over the months she was here. Natala is a true gypsy, and I think she’s worried her old troupe may come after her. You’re right about her being haunted. I think there are things in her past that her cousins are clueless about.”
“That’s clear enough. Plenty of us have ties to the Gypsies, including yourself.” Adam asked, reaching for glasses.
“And there's a particularly nasty troupe that circulates the west coast during winter. But I haven’t heard of any Quickenings out there.”
“Maybe we should ask Dawson.”
Duncan nodded. “I’ll ask him when he calls back.”
“And if one of us is already hunting her?”
Duncan bit down on a piece of carrot. “I haven’t done any traveling in a while.”
“MacLeod, why are you so willing to become protector for a girl you barely know?”
“She carries so much darkness in her, Methos, it’s impossible not to see. If she’s taken before her time, forced into the immortality, she could go bad. Very bad. I won’t let that happen to her. Or Aralyn; it would devastate her to see her cousin go down that path. They’re just girls. They should be worrying about boys and what to wear on dates, not about psychotic Immortals who are trying to take her head.”
“You think you can keep this from them?”
“We have so far.”
“Be careful, old friend. This is a slippery slope you’re on, and I think the Lady Natala will figure it out sooner rather than later.”
***
“Duncan is insanely hot,” Tiffany giggled, as she broke off another piece of chocolate.
“You realize he’s like, our dads’ age,” Aralyn said. “I think he’s closer to your dad’s than mine.”
Tiffany shrugged. “I can see why you said what did about women. Adam is sexy but Duncan is just…wow.”
“Neither is meant for you. Either of you,” Natala said absently, her mind a million miles away as she brushed her hair.
“You should him when he’s half naked and working out,” Aralyn giggled. “It was all I could do not to throw myself at him!”
Tiffany made an appreciative noise. “Yeah…yeah, I would have a hard time restraining myself, that’s for sure."
"Richie couldn't tkae his eyes off you, you know,” Aralyn grinned at Tiffany. "You should uh, consider having some fun while we're here."
"Oh, please," Tiffany shooke her head. "I have no intention of hooking up with anyone. But it's nice to meet some men that aren't arranged by Grandpa Matt in hopes of a political marriage."
"What?" Aralyn sat up. "What are you talking about?"
"Grandpa has taken to setting me up with the sons and grandsons of his various business partners. I think he's hoping one of them will be Mr. Right, and he can score a business deal."
Aralyn looked aghast. "He wouldn't!"
"I think it was mainly a distraction," Natala said. "To keep her mind off you being gone."
Aralyn ran her hand through the thick blond curls.
"That's...ick."
Tiffany snorted. "You're not the one who has the dates. If I have to meet one more 'the third' grandson, I'm going to buy the ugliest pair of glasses I can find and dress like a hobo. The last one, I think my eyes had glazed over before the appetizer arrived."
"Have you tried the online thing?" Aralyn said. "You might meet more interesting men."
Tiffany gave an elegant, one shoulder shrug. "I don't really think about it, Ari. It's just not a priority."
Aralyn looked at her cousin shrewdly. "Don't you think it's time to get back on the horse?" she asked softly.
Tiffany shrugged.
"It's been a year and a half, Tiff," Aralyn said gently. "It's a big world. There are some good guys out there."
"It just hasn't been a priority," Tiffany shoved a spoonful of ice cream in her mouth.
Aralyn stretched out her long leg and nudged Tiffany. "Richie will be fun, no strings. And he'll treat you well because he knows what I'll do to him if he doesn't."
Tiffany chuckled and just shook her head.
“Adam's pretty hot, too,” Aralyn said. “They’re really neat guys to watch interact. They're all very different, powerful in their own way. They’re really interesting people.”
That was one word for it, Natala thought.
Meet the cast in full & see the family tree!
***
Author’s Notes
- A huge yeee-haa to Ronda, my lovely editor who helps keep me on track!
- No offense intended to those who do internet dating - I did it for years and that's how I met my hubby!
- For those unfamiliar with the Highlander mythology, a quick guide.
- Duncan MacLeod – a 400 year old (meaning he's been Immortal for 12 years) Immortal born in the Scotland Highlands in 1492. Often considered to the morally best of the Immortals, and hoped by many to be the final one. Appears to be in his 40s.
- Adam Pierson – aka Methos, the world’s oldest living Immortal of over 5000 years. With a dark past, Adam is a complex and layered individual who is a survivor, sometimes showing a very selfish and caustic side, and at other times, a very generous and caring side, and always pragmatic. He and Duncan have become good friends over the years. Appears to be in his 40s.
- Richie Ryan – a 12 year old Immortal who is a former thief and motorcycle racer. Killed by Duncan by accident in season 5, for my stpry purposes, this never happened, nor did season 6-creative license invoked! Brash, flirtatious, but devoted his mentor Duncan, Richie has a good heart, if sometimes impetuous behavior. Appears in his early-mid 20s.
- Joe Dawson – Head of the Watchers Society. “Observe and record, never interfere” was their motto, until Joe and Duncan’s friendship. Watchers still observe and record, but sometimes become friends with their Immortals. This has been mutually beneficial, saving lives of both Watchers and Immortals over the last ten years, since Dawson took over as their leader (in my world).
- Immortals can sense each other, usually not producing the degree of sickness that Natala experienced. Normally, Immortals cannot sense each other until they actually become Immortals, but Natala is a special case given her Gypsy background and high degree of intuition. She can sense something off about the Immortals, but they know she's a pre-Immortal.
- Quickening – when an Immortal takes the head of another Immortal, he takes with it his power, and all knowledge gained over the years. Beheading is the only way to truly kill an Immortal. The older an Immortal, the more power and knowledge.
- Will Natala truly become Immortal? *shrugs*.
- Word Count, 5,177
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