A story in the Grains of Time Saga. For an introduction to this saga, I recommend reading my mini-guide
(continued from part one)
******
Pausing by the door to the Sanctuary, Amanda took a deep breath. She felt much calmer now, having walked off most of her anger. She hadn’t really been mad at Nick, it was the damn memories. There were times she cursed her good memory.
She remembered it all.
The thick, black smoke from Auschwitz. The walking dead, only skin and bones with eyes as black as the smoke. The blood in the snow. The angry barks of dogs. The laughter, oh God, the laughter. All the evil in the world gathered in one place. A nightmare even awake
Auschwitz. The name still sent a shiver down her back.
Pushing the images firmly away, she entered the bar. Nick’s Presence slammed into her almost at once, and she found him in the office upstairs, bent over a computer
“Hey,” she greeted him with, keeping her tone casual. He seemed to take the hint, and didn’t press the subject of their earlier conversation.
“Hey.”
“What are you doing?”
“Henry’s files. Joe handed a copy over after much discussion.”
“Yeah? Anything interesting?” She walked up to him, glancing over his shoulder at the screen
“I don’t know. It seems to be rather incomplete.”
“Maybe he was in a hurry.”
“Maybe,” Nick said distantly, “Or maybe he kept parts of it elsewhere.” With a few keystrokes, he brought up a file.
“He brought Lauren to see a specialist friend of his. Mark Jones. It doesn’t say here, but I managed to dig up his speciality.”
“Which is..?”
“It appears he is into more.. Shall we say, unusual treatments. I called a friend at the FBI who’s into rather unusual stuff and she had a file on this Jones character.”
“I didn’t know you had friends in the FBI. Close?”
“We dated.”
“Aha.” Amanda resisted the urge to pry further, keeping her eyes on the computer screen.
“Anyway, she told me Mark Jones seemed to have this *crazy* idea that there is such a thing as living forever.”
“What a nutcase.”
******
“This just keeps on getting better and better,” Frank exclaimed, dropping down on the couch beside Rachel. His head was pounding, probably due to the explanations he’d tried to give Helen. He wasn’t even sure he knew himself. Immortals seemed to be tripping over each other wherever they went.
“How many Immortals are there out there anyway? I mean..”
“Shut up, Frank.”
He rolled his eyes, but did shut up. Rachel was sitting quietly, David sleeping in her lap. She was stroking his hair, but her mind was elsewhere. She felt cold, still remembering the eyes of Henrik on her.
He knew she was Jewish. How, she didn’t know. But the look he had given her as he had left.. He would come after her. Deep down in her gut she knew he would. After he had killed Margot.
“He’s not getting away with it,” she muttered to herself.
“Rachel, it’s not your problem.”
She shot a glance at him. “It’s not that simple.”
He shook his head in frustration.
“I never asked you to join my world,” she reminded him.
“Damnit Rach! Don’t give me that shit. You didn’t inform me until *after* I thought you’d died, remember?”
“You could have left it alone.”
“Yeah, right. When are you going to get it through your thick head that I don’t really have a choice!” His voice rose. “I bloody well love you, Rachel Goldstein, so don’t give me that shit about having a choice and leaving.”
“It’s not as if I have a choice either!” she shot back, ignore the warm feeling spreading through her body. “I have to do this!”
David stirred slightly, turning in Rachel’s lap. She lifted his head gently, leaving him on the couch as she got up.
“He’s going to kill her, but I’m not going to let him.” Looking down at the couch, she patted David gently on the head. Reaching for something below him she pulled out the sword.
A long sword, the blade thin, but sharp. A gift from Amanda. Kira was whispering in her head again, whispering about how to use it. She felt as if she could use it.
“Rachel..”
“I’m tired of death,” she simply told him. Jack’s face flashed before her eyes, smiling at her. She was not going to sit idly by while murder was committed. She owed him this. He’d given his life for hers. She’d better make something of it.
******
“This is it,” Nick indicated, “This is where our good doctor Jones lives.” Turning off the car engine, he stepped out, glancing at the building.
“Not the best part of town,” Amanda remarked, exiting as well.
“No kidding. Who’d thought he just happened to be in town?”
“Awfully convenient.”
“Exactly.”
“So this friend at FBI..”
“Dana Scully,” Nick broke in, “She’s a doctor, actually.”
“And you played the patient?” Amanda gave him one of her smiles as he rang the bell. There was a loud bang from inside just a second later. It sounded as if someone accidentally tripped over a very large chair.
Without hesitation, Nick kicked the door open. Twelve years of being a cop didn’t exactly go away. Pulling out his gun, he called out.
“Doctor Jones?”
Another bang answered him, and he turned the corner. The man in the living room threw one look at him and jumped through the window.
“Hey!” Nick called out, chasing after within seconds. The guy had a bit of a head start, but had obviously cut himself on the glass as he left a trail of blood. Nick caught up with him in a matter of seconds, forcing him to the ground.
Unfortunately, the guy seemed to have been waiting for it, suddenly bringing up a bat. ‘Where the hell did that come from?’ Nick managed to think before his vision was filled with stars. Groaning, he clutched his head.
“Shit!”
Footsteps told him his target was getting away. It took him a few seconds to get his vision straight enough to stand. Cursing, he made his way back.
“Don’t say a word,” he warned Amanda as he stepped into the house. She wasn’t looking at him, though.
“I found our doctor Jones. I don’t think he’ll be helping us,” Amanda lifted her hand and Nick looked in the direction she was indicating. What had been Mark Jones were lying face down on the floor, his neck twisted indicated it had been broken.
“Just great.”
******
“Rachel? You’re scaring me,” Frank muttered, regarding her as she pulled up her sword. He knew she had it, he’d seen Amanda give it, but.. Somehow he had never envisioned Rachel would use it. It didn’t belong in their world.
She put it back, and without a word she pulled a blanket over David. Muttering something Frank couldn’t hear, she kissed her son on the forehead. There was an air of determination around her, as if she’d made a decision.
Turning, she walked up to Frank and kissed him without warning. It took him a few seconds to gather himself and respond. She had rejected any intimate contact lately, he’d figured it was the memory of Jack. Now, suddenly, she couldn’t seem to keep her hands off him.
Without breaking the kiss, she pulled him in the direction of the bedroom. He was too aroused to make any protests, not that he would have anyway. His hands went to her hair, he had always liked her hair. Blonde wasn’t really her, but the feeling of it under his hands were definitely her. Feasting on her neck, he nearly caused them to fell over as he tripped on a chair.
He ignored the pain the impact caused in his leg. It would probably bruise, but he really couldn’t have cared less.
They made it as far as the kitchen table. She was like fire in his arms, like he had always envisioned she would be. He had his Rachel back. Finally. She had been dead long, but she was back.
And all the waiting had been worth it.
******
Night fell in Sydney. The sky slowly turned from dark blue to greyish, and the stars claimed the sky. The moon was but a thin line on the sky.
Margot waited, every sense she had staying alert. She knew he would come. It was here she had taken Johan’s head. He hadn’t put up much of a fight, she hadn’t wondered why then, but now.. There had been something in his eyes. Relief, regret.. She hadn’t allowed herself to envision them as humans. They were monsters, killers. And now a small part of her wondered if Johan Herman hadn’t had a bit of humanity in him after all. It was a discomforting thought.
A strong Presence entered her mind, and she lifted her sword without thinking. Henrik stepped out from the darkness, but it seemed as if he took some of it with him. She had to fight to keep a shiver from her body, steeling herself.
She was steel. She was Death.
He was Death. In his eyes she saw the deaths of millions. All screaming at her, a survivor. She had lived when they had died. The biggest crime of all.
“I always finish what I start,” Henrik told her. There was no smile on his face now, just focus. He lifted his sword, holding it out. She mimicked the move.
“But..” he threw his arms out, “You have no honour. You are below me. You are not worthy to fight.”
A shot slammed into her, ripping through her abdomen. She groaned in pain, dropping the sword. It fell with a loud clink on the pavement. Panting, she stared at him in hatred before a wail passed before her eyes and she fell dead to the ground.
Henrik shook his head, giving his follower a signal to leave. As if he would berate himself fighting her. Rules be damned, they were for those worthy of them.
Lifting his sword, he felt no regret. In five hundred years, he had never felt regret. Never.
I am become Death, the Destroyer of Worlds
Never.
******
“At least tell me you got a look at him,” Amanda complained as they entered the bar. Nick seemed almost to sulk, she noted.
“Dark hair. Foreign, I think.”
“Oh, that’s *really* helpful.”
Nick resisted the urge to throw a reply back at her, knowing he was frustrated with the situation, not her. The bartender gave them as nod as they entered, being busy serving a customer. Had to be a new one and not a regular customer, Nick noted, he had never seen the guy before. There was something familiar about him though.
“So we got nothing,” Nick sighed as they entered his office.
“Not quite.” Amanda smiled as she pulled up a small disc. “I found the safe while you went chasing after the guy.”
“You work fast.”
“Darling, I’m *good*.” She held out the disc, but pulled it back when Nick reached for it. “Please.”
“Please?” he asked sweetly.
She chuckled as she handed it over. He turned the computer on, and was just about to put the disc in, when there was a knock on the door.
Before either could speak, the door opened to reveal the man Nick had noticed in the bar.
“Miss Montrose. Mr Wolfe. I see you found what I wanted.” Pulling out a gun, the guy pointed it straight at Amanda.
“And don’t think I don’t know how to kill you, because I do.”
******
Sword raised, Henrik readied his swing. He looked down at Margot one last time. It was almost too bad he had to take the Quickening. But it had to be done. Exhaling, he was about to bring the sword down when he felt something cold against his neck.
“No so fast,” Rachel said, breathing heavily.
Henrik cursed silently. So focused on his task, he hadn’t sensed her approach. Turning around, he pushed the sword away. She didn’t flinch as her eyes met his.
She saw a movement in the corner of her eyes, and managed to lift her sword in time to block the thrust. He didn’t even pause, going at her again and again and again. She managed to keep the grip on her sword, but pretty soon her arms were filled with scrapes and cuts.
He wasn’t even breathing hard, his sword dancing in his hands. With a sickening feeling, she realised she could never win.
She felt a stab of pain in her heart. She didn’t want to die. David deserved a parent. And Frank.. God, Frank. He would take care of David for her, she knew that, and Nick and Amanda would protect them, but.. She wanted to be there. Damnit, she wanted to be there.
The sword flew from her hands, and she looked up at Henrik. His eyes were so cold it froze her spine. Willing her eyes not to close she waited for the swing. It came, but not at her.
A small hiss of air made Henrik instinctively turn his sword to his left and met Margot’s thrust. She healed fast, the little rat. But in racing to attack him, she was off balance, and he easily twisted the sword from her.
He had to laugh at her. The urge was too compelling. He had won. He would always win. They never learned.
He didn’t hear the swing in his fit of laughter. Rachel brought her sword around, slicing through flesh as it were paper. Her eyes locked with Margot’s, a silent understanding as the clouds darkened.
The Quickening came at them both. Focusing on her own, Rachel felt what had been Henrik Stromgard try to take her over, but she refused him. Amanda had warned her about the dangers of Quickenings. But it would not affect her. She was herself. No one could change that.
She was Rachel.
This is the hardest of all
To be yourself – and think it good enough
~~~~~~
Nick exchanged a glance with Amanda, who have him a small shrug. They should have known it was too easy.
“I am Ukoad,” the man introduced himself. “I will take that disc.” He had a foreign accent, maybe Greek or Turkish or something, Nick noted.
“What do you want with it?”
“It contains the secret of Immortality, what do you think I want with it?” Ukoad waved his gun slightly, “Now hand it over.”
“You’re a Hunter, aren’t you?” Amanda asked, waving her right hand slightly. Nick stared, trying to comprehend what she was communicating.
“You are smart, Miss Montrose. I always enjoyed watching you in the past. I might come back later to show you what a real man is like,” he winked, and gave Amanda the most sleazy smile she had ever seen. Amanda just rolled her eyes at Nick, then gave him the hand signal again. He gave her a confused look in return.
“Now the disc, mister Wolfe.”
Taking his eyes of Amanda for a brief second, Ukoad more heard than saw the kick. The gun flew from his hands as Amanda’s foot came in contact with his hand. Cursing, he reached for his knife.
Nick just shook his head and raised his own gun.
“I don’t think so.”
Ignoring the warning, Ukoad jumped Nick. The gun went off, there was a groan of pain coming from Nick.
“You bastard!” Amanda muttered, and took the first thing she could find and brought it down on Ukoad’s head. It happened to be an art object of some kind (she hoped it wasn’t valuable) that smashed nicely upon contact with his head. For a second she thought it had no effect, then the guy wobbled slightly and fell over.
Unfortunately he still held his knife. As he hit the floor there was a loud scream, and when he rolled over Amanda could see his knife firmly stuck in his..
“Oy, that gotta hurt,” she muttered. Nick got to his feet, clutching his side. He winced as he saw Ukoad on the ground, practically sobbing in pain and failing miserably at trying to remove the knife from his groin.
Reaching for the phone to call an ambulance, Nick gave Amanda a look.
“Remind me to never mess with you.”
******
The house was silent as Margot and Rachel stepped in. A hint of blue on the horizon promised morning on its way. A small wind rose, bringing the smell of ocean to the city. It was too early to wake up, and too late to stay up, and so the whole city slept.
“Coffee?” Rachel offered, tiptoeing past the living room. David was still asleep, she could see his chest rising and falling.
“Sure,” Margot replied, following her into the kitchen. Neither said anything as the coffee was made, both in their own thoughts.
“You saved my life.” Margot finally remarked, taking the offered mug from Rachel. “Thank you. I.. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“But why? You are a new Immortal, you must have known he was out of your league.”
“Do you believe in forgiveness?” Rachel countered
Margot shook her head. “For some things, there can be no forgiveness. Do you know what they did? Do you know what it feels like to see everyone around you die?”
“I have an idea,” Rachel said silently. “But do you believe in forgiveness for living on?”
Margot grew silent, twisting the mug in her hands. “I’m afraid to,” she finally whispered. Her head seemed to fill with voices and memories she could never shake.
“You think this will be the end of his organization?” Rachel changed the subject, feeling her own thoughts trail towards Jack and forced them firmly away
“No,” Margot let out a sigh, “But I will bring it down. I will not let it happen again, no matter what. Thank you for the coffee. I better go.” Putting the mug down, she gave Rachel a small nod and hurried out.
Rachel put her own mug down, feeling a strange clearness come over her. It occurred to her that no matter how much she cursed it, she had been given a second chance. Not many got that. Not many at all.
“Hey,” Helen said from the doorframe, and Rachel turned in surprise. “I heard you come in. Is everything okay?”
“Don’t worry.”
“You’re still leaving tomorrow?”
“I can’t stay, Helen. My world is not the same anymore.”
“I..” Helen fumbled for words.
“Forget what you’ve seen. Get on with your life. I don’t belong here anymore.”
“But Rach..”
“No. I did die. And I was reborn, but I wasn’t the same. I’m not asking you to understand. Just accept it. Please.”
Embracing her, Rachel tried to smile, but found she couldn’t. “I’ll miss you.”
“I expect to hear from you often,” Helen replied sternly, “Or I will have to chase you down.” Smiling through her tears, she gave Rachel one more hug before walking out.
It was a miracle that Rachel had come back. But you cannot cling onto miracles forever. Life doesn’t let you.
******
Amanda admired the view as Nick pulled off his top. His strong muscular arms and broad chest... A rather nasty bloodstain and a bullet hole decorated the shirt, and he let out a small sigh as he threw it away.
“I liked that shirt.”
“I’ll buy you a new one,” Amanda promised, sitting on the desk and tossing a new shirt at him. “At least Ukoad won’t come knocking again.” He should look forward a long time in jail for murder and attempted murder, she thought with a certain satisfaction. And his manhood would never recover, that was for sure. Real man, indeed! And if the Watchers caught up with him.. He would be lucky is jail was all he got. The Watchers didn’t look lightly on oath breaking.
“Yeah. What did you call him, by the way? A Hunter?”
“Renegade Watcher. They pursue Immortals for their own ends.”
“Oh, now you tell me. Anything else I should know?”
She grinned. “I’ll let you know if I think off something.”
“Let’s find out what he were so interested in,” Nick suggested, pulling his shirt on and sitting down by the computer. He gave Amanda’s legs a look before focusing his attention on the screen.
“Yadda, yadda, yadda, patient files.. Wait a minute.. He has Rachel listed here.”
“What does it say?”
“Subject believed to be Immortal. Blah, blah.. It mentions David.” Nick skipped through the paragraphs, “Here we go. He had acquired a blood sample from her, courtesy of our friend Henry I suppose. He was waiting for some tests on it.”
“Henry must have taken her blood sample while I was knocked out,” Amanda noted.
“Look!” Nick pointed at the screen, “That’s not the only blood sample he took. He stole a blood sample from the hospital.”
“From Frank,” she breathed, “Henry must have suspected the same as us.”
“That Frank was a pre-Immortal.”
“Yeah. But I don’t get the same sense around him as I do around David.”
“I know. Just the feeling of something.. severed, in a way.”
“It can’t be,” she shook her head, “No way. He can’t have.. It shouldn’t be possible. It *isn’t* possible. He can’t have..” she trailed off.
“What, Amanda?”
“Given his Immortality to Rachel and David.”
******
Morning was barely an hour old when Rachel exited the house again. She hadn’t slept, but she didn’t feel tired at all. Maybe it was the recent Quickening that made her feel so awake and fresh, or maybe it was something else.
She smiled as she got into the car and drove, passing a few cars on her way. The house she pulled up in front was very familiar, she felt a small stab of sadness knowing she could not really come back to it ever again.
She rang the doorbell without hesitation, she had decided to do this and there were no point in hesitating. He deserved to know.
As she heard steps from inside, she straightened up, wondering what she would say. What could she say after all?
“Hey dad,” fell out of her as soon as the door opened, automatically. He stared at her for the longest while, his eyes as misty as hers. And she knew she had done the right thing. What she should have done in the first place. He reached out to touch her cheek, still not speaking.
“My Rachel,” he finally muttered, embracing her. She held him for an eternity, knowing she would lose him soon, but that she would never let him go.
Never.
******
Amanda stared into the fireplace as Nick sat down gently beside her. Rachel had just called from Sydney, letting them know when the plane arrived. She had quite briefly told them Henrik Stromgard’s fate, but Amanda suspected there was more to the story.
The flames reminded her of another fire she had seen, one of countless bodies being burned. The image had burned itself into her mind, and would never really go away. Twelve hundred years, and so much pain to carry. So many memories of death.
But some many of love also. She leaned against Nick, and he embraced her silently. She wondered if he ever thought of her past, if he ever wondered where he fit into it all. She did, after all.
“Should we tell them?” Nick asked after a while.
“We don’t know anything for certain.”
“Just the ramblings of a crazy doctor.” He sighed. “I don’t want to lie to them, Amanda.”
“So don’t lie,” she whispered, wanting to say so much more. Don’t change. Don’t leave. Don’t let me go. Don’t stop loving me.
“Then I won’t,” he whispered by her ear.
******
The sun was high on the sky as Rachel walked onto the green grass of the cemetery. Scanning the area, she soon spotted the source of the Presence in her mind. Margot was standing by a grave, one that had not been fitted with a headstone yet. Rachel was willing to bet Johan Herman would be put to rest there.
“You were right,” Margot said as Rachel approached. “He was trying to atone. Johan, I mean. He helped the police track down several war criminals, and he gave financial support to several Jews after the war. He didn’t turn himself in, and it doesn’t make up for all he did, it never will, but..”
“It’s was a start,” Rachel finished.
“Yes. Maybe that’s what I need to. A start. A beginning.” She glanced over at Rachel. “We all need it.”
“Yeah.” Rachel glanced up at the sky, feeling a cold shiver down her spine. A new start. Paris would give her that. She had to believe it.
“Thank you, Rachel,” Margot gave her a light hug.
“Thank yourself. Where will you go?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I will visit Israel and see if I can find Thomas’s children. I cannot promise you will give up my hunt, but.. Maybe I will find something more than that.”
“If you’re ever in Paris..” Rachel smiled.
“I’ll keep you to that in a decade or two. Watch your head, Rachel Goldstein.”
Watching her go, Rachel felt something lift from her heart. It wasn’t just a curse, or a nightmare. It was that too, but also a gift. A chance to correct wrongs. A chance to love again. A chance.. To live, not just survive. To fade the nightmares.
“Hey,” Frank called out, walking up to her. There was a smile tugging at his lips, and it was almost catchy.
“Hey.”
“So..?”
“So what?” she replied, hiding a smile.
“Ready to go? We have a plane to catch,” he reminded her.
For a second she wanted to remind him she had never asked him to come to Paris with him, but decided against it. In a way she had. And besides, he would come anyway.
Looking over the cemetery, she glanced over to where she knew Jack’s grave lay. With time, it would be forgotten, mould growing over the white stone. But she would remember. She would remember them all. Jack, Jonathon, Helen, Jeff, her father, Frank.. They would never completely die. And when she died, her essence would live on in someone else and so the memories would truly be forever.
By the road, she saw Helen and David waiting. The wind brought David’s laughter all the way to her, and she smiled.
“Yeah, I’m ready,” she told Frank and together they walked down the hill.
Gone the nightmare, it's all faded now
~~~~~~
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