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Starring:
Adrian Paul (Duncan MacLeod) Guests:
Dara Tomanovich (Alex Raven)
Written by James Thorpe |
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Warsaw Ghetto, 1942
Soldiers are marching through the streets, patrolling the ghetto. In a back alley, Alex Raven moves cautiously down the street, a package tucked under her arm. She ducks for cover, hiding as several SS Polizei round the corner, shining their lights over the street as they walk by.
Inside one of the houses, a young Max Leiner is standing by a table, looking at the book lying open on it, next to a photograph and a lit candle. He looks a the book for a moment, then goes to where David Leiner is sitting at a desk, writing on a piece of paper.
In the alley, Alex looks around the corner, searching out the guards patrolling the other end of the street. She hears the sound of a machine gun, then the screams of a child. She moves on, as more guns begin to fire, and scrambles up a wooden staircase as soldiers come through again, searching.
In the house, David continues to write, and as the camera focuses on his work we see that it's a list of names. He's reciting them to himself as he copies them from another list in his hand.
David: "Giselle Weishaus, Eli Grosch, Rose Trilling . . ." [This is the best I can with the spelling of the spoken names, I'm afraid. Any of you lucky folks with close captioning wanna help . . .? --Jinjifore]
On the street, Alex crouches down in her hiding place, watching as the soldiers go by beneath her. Then she ducks backward into the house.
Inside, David and Max look up as she bursts in and slams the doors closed behind her.
David stands up, but continues to write. Alex dashes across the floor.
Alex: "We must hurry."
David: "Alex?" But he keeps writing.
Alex puts the package on his desk, pulling out a uniform: "Put it on."
David, coldly: "No, thank you."
Alex, desperate: "It's our only hope that we've got to get past them."
David: "No, I have to finish this first."
Alex stalks around the desk, grabbing his arm: "If they find you, they will kill you."
David confronts her, clutching the list: "And compared to this, my life means nothing."
Alex looks at him, stricken: "Not to me."
David touches her hair, speaking softly: "My schone shiksa" [My beautiful non-Jewish girl] [Thanks, Maureen, for the words and translation! --Jinjifore] David turns to Max: "Max."
Max: "Yes, Papa?"
David shows him the list: "If something should happen to me, I want you to use this to restore our people."
Outside, on the streets, the soldiers are running everywhere, converging on the house.
Max: "Yes, Papa."
Alex puts her arms around David: "I love you, David." She kisses him. Outside, they hear the crash of the soldiers breaking in, and hear their shouts. David turns to Max.
David: "Max, in the secret place. Hurry." He hustles him into a cabinet hidden under the sink, and pushes a large cauldron in after him to hide him. He turns to Alex and gives her the list.
David: "Only this is important."
Alex: "There's no more time!"
David, urgent: "Take care of Max, and finish this." They kiss passionately. David wraps her hand around the list. "Nothing matters more than this." They kiss again, but they break apart as soldiers burst into the room, firing their guns at the ceiling. They knock David down, and grab Alex, dragging her towards the door. She grabs one by the arm, and uses his gun to shoot at the others before knocking him out and taking it herself. She dispatches the others, and David gets up and comes to her side. But no sooner have the first soldiers been dealt with than others come in, and this time they shoot Alex and David down. After the soldiers are gone, Max crawls from his hiding place, looking around at the sprawled bodies. He sees Alex and David lying on the floor, dead.
Duncan MacLeod and George Thomas are playing bowls in the park. Duncan has just thrown, knocking one of George's balls way away from the jack, and putting his own in its place [see Notes]. He steps back.
Duncan: "Your turn, George."
George: "Um-hmm." He steps up and throws, and his ball lands miles away from the jack, rolling nearly off the alley.
Duncan: "Oop."
George, not looking at him as he readies his next throw: "Please, Duncan. There's no need to state the obvious."
Duncan, smiling but concerned: "Everything okay?"
George glances at him: "What? No, I'm fine." He looks back at the alley. "I just don't like being retired. One minute you're changing your grandson's diapers, the next thing you know, he's managing your bank." He punctuates the last word with his throw, and his ball hits the one Duncan just threw, knocking it away. Duncan looks away in disgust. George turns to him. "But I'll tell you. That kid could find a penny at the bottom of the ocean." He prepares his next throw. "Tell me, Duncan. Do you think it's only good deeds that define a man's soul?" He throws.
Duncan looks thoughtful, but a little puzzled: "Why do you ask, George?" He steps up, hefting his ball. "Something troubling you?"
George: "Just too much time on my hands. Finally catching up on my reading. You know, great tragedies of good men and temptation. Dickens, Goethe." [No, they couldn't mention Marlowe here, could they . . . --Jinjifore, slinking back under her Marlovian rock] He smiles slyly at Duncan. "Mickey Spillane."
Duncan, preparing his shot: "This'll make three, George." He throws, and his ball lands right next to the jack, sliding between it and the closest ball. He smiles, and George waves his hands.
George: "Ah, enough. Enough!" He laughs. "Have pity on this poor old man." They go forward to retrieve the bowling balls.
Duncan: "Just this once."
George: "But it's not just this once."
Duncan hands him three of the balls: "Well, Here you go, George."
George: "Thanks." They walk off together. "Did we have money on this?"
Duncan, pretending to remember: "Hmm, let me think . . . Mmm, Possibly."
George: "How much?"
Duncan laughs heartily. As he does, we see two disreputable men lurking nearby, watching Duncan and George walk off. Duncan and George walk down to where George's car is parked, still discussing the wager.
Duncan: "Should I name a figure?"
George: "No, no, no, I'll name a figure."
They both laugh. But as they near George's car, Duncan senses another immortal. He looks around, but sees no one.
Duncan: "Stay out of trouble, George."
George: "What sort of trouble can a man at my age get into?" He laughs, and prepares to climb in while Duncan walks off toward his own car, a green Jeep, still looking around. He pauses and waves to George, and George waves back before getting in and shutting the door. He starts the engine, but the instant he does the car explodes, bursting into flames. Duncan ducks instinctively behind his own car, then comes out, staring in disbelief as the car burns before his eyes.
Alex is striding purposefully across a parking lot. She reaches the car where Max Leiner waits, and gets in.
Max: "Well?"
Alex: "He's dead, Max."
Max looks down, his mouth tightening, then looks up again: "Now, we talk to the boy. He has to know about this." Alex nods, looking sad. "That money is ours. We must have it back, whatever it takes." Alex looks at him sympathetically. "We never forget."
He flashes back to his father, handing him the list.
David: "Max, when the war's over, you know what to do with this list, right?"
Max: "Yes, Papa."
Alex looks down, her face sad.
On the street where George's car was parked, Duncan and Grant Thomas are walking towards the scene.
Grant: "I can't believe this. They told me it was a bomb." He looks at Duncan. "Did you hear that? They told me it was a bomb." They reach the edge of the lot where the car is, and Grant stops dead.
Duncan: "I'm sorry."
Grant looks at him: "Why should anyone do this?" He starts walking forward, more slowly.
Duncan, roughly: "I don't know." He hesitates a moment. "Did George have any enemies? Did he receive any threats lately?"
Grant glances back sharply: "Threats? Enemies? No."
Duncan: "You're sure."
Grant: "Everybody loved the guy."
Duncan: "Not everybody." He steps forward, and is intercepted by a policeman.
Policeman: "Pardon, Monsieur. I have to ask you some questions."
Duncan: "Yeah, just a moment." He turns back to Grant. "The police want to talk to me. Will you be okay?"
Grant: "Yeah. I'll be okay. Right after they get the bastard that did this."
Policeman: "Excuse moi, Monsieur." He gently urges Grant aside, and Grant leaves, looking back one last time before walking away. Duncan goes with the policeman towards the ruined hulk of George's car.
Grant returns to his car and gets in. He sits behind the wheel, and shuts the door. As he does so, Alex sits up from the back seat, putting a hand on his arm and smiling in an open, friendly way.
Grant: "Neat trick."
Alex: "Here's another one." There's the distinct click of a gun being cocked, and Alex's smile vanishes. "I've got a Sig Sauer P226 nine-millimeter right behind your seat. Average muzzle velocity roughly--" She makes a thoughtful noise. "--2000 feet per second. Now, I can only really guess where your spinal cord is, so it's going to take a few shots before you become paralyzed for life." She shrugs. "But, hey, what's a couple of kidneys between friends?" Grant starts looking around, trying not to move, and she follows his eyes, turning to look in every direction. She makes a sympathetic noise. "Never a cop around when you need one, is there?"
Grant: "Look, what do you want?"
Alex, all business now: "I want to finish what I started with your grandfather."
Grant: "I don't have time for riddles."
Alex quickly shifts the gun to press it against his neck: "I'm talking about the money."
Grant, giving an incredulous little laugh: "Look, I've got a couple a hundred in my wallet, and--"
Alex: "Sixty million dollars." Grant makes a small choking noise of disbelief, shaking his head minutely. Alex waves the gun in front of her face, looking at it, then puts it back. "You know, let me just bring you up to speed, here. I've had a really bad day today, little moody. Cranky. You know. Could be PMS. Or it could be because you're pissing me off so much I won't be able to control myself."
Grant, quickly: "No, let's work something out."
Alex: "That's better."
Grant: "What--what do you want me to do?"
Alex: "Go over those bank records of yours and look for the name David Leiner. Then we'll talk." She produces a business card and flips it in front of Grant's face. "My number." Grant takes it. "And don't worry, 'cause I've already got yours." She gets out, and Grant starts the car at once. She watches him drive off, tucking the gun behind her back. But as Grant leaves, Alex senses another immortal and looks around to find Duncan standing nearby. They look at each other, Duncan's mouth tightening a little, and Alex regarding him with a touch of pain.
Alex and Cameron are holding each other and kissing on a blanket spread on the grass, the remains of a picnic scattered around them. A tall stone house is behind them.
Cameron: "You still haven't given me the answer."
Alex: "I gave you the answer, Cameron. Just not the one you want to hear."
Cameron: "Marry me."
Alex rolls over, looking at the sky: "I can't."
Cameron, getting angry: "That's not nearly good enough."
Alex, sitting up: "It has to be."
Cameron stands up with her: "Tell me you don't love me. Go on. I'll never ask you again."
Alex: "There are things you need to know about me."
Cameron, quietly: "I know everything I need to know."
Alex: "Do you? Do you know how old I am?"
Cameron, impatient: "What difference does that make?"
Alex shakes her head, smiling, and begins to speak: "My earliest memories are of my tribe, the Calvetti (sp?)." Her voice grows dreamy, and her smile is wistful. "We lived in Cumbria. My father was a warrior, and my mother priestess."
Cameron: "What are you talking about?"
Alex, matter-of-fact: "My life." She looks at him sadly, and he makes an exasperated noise and turns away. She looks down, and continues to speak. "It was a good life." Her voice turns bitter. "Until the Romans came. The rest of the world wasn't enough for them. They had to have Cumbria. And for every one we killed, five more came."
Cameron, dryly: "It's a lovely story."
Alex, shaking her head: "It's not a story."
Cameron, getting angry: "And you think I'm actually supposed to believe that?"
Alex grabs his face, kissing him: "I love you. You are my heart, you are my soul. And what I am telling you is true." She lets go of him, backing away. "I am immortal."
Cameron is looking at her wonderingly, but before he has a chance to say anything she senses another immortal. Gerard walks around the corner of the building, his sheathed sword in his hand.
Gerard, shouting: "Alexis!"
Alex: "Gerard?" She starts forward, but Cameron is faster. He walks up to Gerard.
Cameron: "Explain yourself."
Alex to Gerard: "Leave him alone."
Gerard decks Cameron anyway, and draws his blade, facing Alex.
Gerard: "Your time has come."
But Cameron jumps up, grabbing Alex's sword and facing Gerard.
Cameron: "Back away from her!"
Alex reaches her hand for the sword: "Give me the sword, Cameron."
Cameron ignores her, and trades only a few blows with Gerard before he runs him through.
Alex: "No!" She runs to Cameron and falls to her knees next to him, sobbing. Gerard wastes no time in striking for her head, but she grabs his sword arm and breaks it, grabbing the sword and throwing him to the ground. She faces him with his own sword.
Alex: "You're a dead man, Gerard!"
Gerard runs off, clutching his wounded arm, and Alex seems to forget him at once, dropping his sword and falling down next to Cameron again. She lifts his head, sobbing.
Cameron, weakly: "My . . . love." He dies.
Alex: "Oh, Cameron . . ."
Duncan, meanwhile, rides up on his horse just in time to hear Alex's aunguished cry.
Alex: "No. Nooo!!!"
Duncan turns and rides toward the cry.
Gerard is running away from the house, still holding his arm. Alex leaves Cameron, and jumps on her horse, sword in hand. She rides after Gerard.
Gerard flees, but it doesn't take long for Alex to catch him up. He keeps running, though, and ducks down into a stream bed just as Duncan rides up. Duncan doesn't interfere, though, just watches from the trees as Alex dismounts. She senses Duncan, but her attention is focused on Gerard. She jumps down into the stream, sword raised, and Gerard retreats.
Alex, roughly: "You can't run away from me now." Her voice drops to nearly a whisper. "You bastard."
Gerard, desperately moving backward: "No, please. I beg you!"
Alex: "Beg all you want. You don't deserve to live."
Gerard, cowering: "Mercy! Please, mercy!"
Alex: "Mercy, my ass." She takes his head.
Duncan watches as the Quickening begins, a circle of white fog bubbling up from where Alex stands in the water. Flames erupt behind her as the lightening begins to strike, and water showers down. When the Quickening is finished, Alex falls to her knees in the water, panting. Only then does Duncan ride up to her.
Duncan: "Interesting style." Alex only looks at him, not answering. Duncan goes on, "Chasing an unarmed opponent on horseback and then taking his head."
Alex: "Was he a friend of yours?"
Duncan hesitates: "No."
Alex: "Then we have no quarrel, unless you choose to make one."
Duncan: "Some other time."
Alex: "Some other time."
Duncan rides off without another word, leaving her standing in the stream.
Alex watches, eyes narrowing, as Duncan walks up to her.
Duncan: "You responsible for this?"
Alex: "It's none of your business." She paces up to him.
Duncan: "Wrong. This time it is my business. This time, it was a friend of mine."
Alex: "Then we have a problem. Haven't we?" She starts to back off.
Duncan: "I'm Duncan MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod."
Alex: "Alex Raven." She turns and gets on a motorcycle and starts it. She looks up at Duncan and smiles a little. "See you around, Duncan MacLeod."
Duncan nods, smiling too: "Yes, you will."
Alex drives away, leaving Duncan to look after her.
Inside the barge, Duncan is kneeling in front of a long table, drinking tea from a bowl. There's incense burning at the other end, and the katana, still wrapped up, is lying in front of him. Duncan puts the tea down, looking at the sword, then picks up the blade and gets up. He takes it to a chest sitting by the wall and puts it inside, shutting the lid. He looks at the closed chest for a moment, thinking, then walks away.
Duncan drives up to the Thomas's house, and meets him on the front steps. [see Notes]
Grant: "Duncan. What gives?"
Duncan: "I have a few questions."
Grant: "Uh, a little pressed for time right now."
Duncan: "A couple of minutes should do it." He smiles, and Grant takes his arm to lead him inside. There's a few suitcases sitting at the foot of the stairs, and Duncan asks, "Going somewhere?"
Grant: "Out of town, couple of days. The bank, the press, you know how it is."
Duncan: "Yeah, yeah." His voice turns casual. "You going alone?"
Grant, puzzled: "Alone? Sure. Why?"
Duncan shakes his head, shrugging: "I just thought, maybe, she was going with you."
Grant: "Who?"
Duncan, his voice getting harder: "The girl I saw getting out of your car today."
Grant: "Girl, in my car?"
Duncan: "Tall, beautiful, long hair. Kind of hard to miss."
Grant shakes his head: "Doesn't compute."
Duncan gives him a doubtful look: "Hmm? Black Daimler, right?"
Grant, firmly: "Right car, wrong people."
Duncan turns back, his voice even: "Friends don't usually lie to me."
Grant, soft: "Pull up a minute, Duncan. You asked, I told. You don't like it, too bad."
Duncan suddenly looks around, sensing another immortal. He walks to the door and looks out, then stalks back to the stairs.
Duncan: "Where is she?"
Grant, beginning to be exasperated: "This is getting a little old."
Duncan comes back to him and takes his arm: "Go on. Out of here."
Grant: "What are you--"
Duncan: "Now!"
Grant, even as he's gently but firmly pushed outside: "What are you doing?"
Duncan shuts the doors on Grant, then looks around. He stands for a minute, hesitating, then heads for the basement.
In the basement, Alex is crouching over a ticking bomb, working carefully at the device while the timer beeps softly. Duncan comes in.
Duncan: "Move away from that."
Alex: "MacLeod, you're like a bad penny."
Duncan starts toward her: "I said, move away."
Alex, not stopping what she's doing: "I'm in a bit of a hurry here, so why don't you just fetch us something cool to drink?"
Duncan: "Very cute. Maybe I should let you arm that bomb, too."
Alex: "It's already armed. I'm trying to disarm it."
Duncan reaches over her shoulder and pulls her hands away: "Right."
Alex backs off, raising her hands in an "Okay, whatever," gesture of surrender. Duncan leans over to look at the bomb.
Alex, clearing her throat: "The yellow wire."
Duncan looks at her: "And maybe you've got a bridge for sale."
Alex smiles tightly: "Have it your way." She crosses her arms as Duncan pulls the other wire. The ticking immediately accelerates, the numbers moving faster, and Duncan shoots her an incredulous glance.
Alex, smug: "Yellow wire."
Duncan pulls the yellow wire, and the clock stops with a hundredth of a second to go. He looks back at Alex.
Alex, turning to go: "I told you."
Duncan steps in front of her: "Well, now maybe you'll be a good girl and tell me about the rest of it."
Alex: "Move it or lose it."
Duncan: "Not until you've talked to me."
Alex: "I've got nothing left to say."
Duncan reaches inside his coat, and pulls out a long, thick stick, like a wooden practice sword but with no hilt or blade, just long and straight. [All right, all right! Just save me a place in the gutter . . . --Jinjifore] Alex pulls out her own sword and faces him.
Alex: "That's the best you can do?"
Duncan: "We'll see."
They fight. Alex quickly retreats into the hall, striking at Duncan but not able to get through his defense. They fight some more, but before long Duncan has the stick against her throat, pinning her while he grabs for her blade.
Alex: "Not bad. Maybe I'll take some lessons sometime."
Duncan: "You're going to need them."
Alex twists free, and they fight again, and once again Duncan pins her, this time against the wall.
Duncan: "You were saying?"
Alex, smiling: "Good night, MacLeod." She whirls and cuts a power cable nearby, plunging the hall into darkness. She runs off, leaving Duncan standing in the hall.
Duncan: "Damn."
Duncan is confronting Grant in the library.
Duncan: "The truth, Grant."
Grant, backing up: "Your guess is as good as mine."
Duncan: "And you have no idea what she wants."
Grant, still backing until he falls into a chair, nearly babbling: "Well, no."
Duncan: "You're running out of excuses." He holds up the disarmed bomb, saying pertly. "And you're running out of time." He tosses the bomb into Grant's hands.
Grant: "Are you crazy?"
Duncan, as if stating the obvious: "It's disarmed." He snatches the bomb back. "I'm trying to save your life." He tosses the bomb on the table.
Grant, pointing a finger, getting angry: "That bitch, she killed my grandfather and she said she'd kill me, too."
Duncan: "Go on."
Grant sighs: "A couple of years ago, my grandfather got the bank into leveraged bonds."
Duncan starts pacing around the room: "That's a pretty risky investment for a conservative man like George."
Grant makes a sound of agreement: "Tell me about it. He wanted to retire big time. The bottom line is, they tanked. The bank was going under, we needed money, as in cash. Truckloads of it. Along come these businessmen, offer to bail us out." He shakes his head. "We don't ask any questions."
Duncan, skeptical: "Businessmen?"
Grant: "International traders, according to them. Russian mafia, according to everybody else."
Duncan: "And they were the ones that threatened George."
Grant: "Not if he cooperated, but he couldn't keep it up. One day he pulled the plug. He'd had enough."
Duncan: "So why didn't you go to the police?"
Grant, matter-of-fact: "Scandal. The last thing George wanted was a run on the bank. Everything he worked for would be gone overnight."
Duncan: "And what's stopping you now?"
Grant, a little defiant: "I don't know. How's fear?" Duncan regards him impassively. "End of story." Grant gets up. "My bank, my problem. I'll handle it."
Duncan: "No, no. You can't handle it."
Grant: "No police."
Duncan, agreeing: "No. No police." He looks at Grant. "Can you contact this woman?"
Grant: "I have a telephone number. That's all."
Duncan: "Then call her. It's time to set up a meeting." He picks up the bomb from the table.
Grant: "Okay." He goes to make the call, leaving Duncan looking at the bomb thoughtfully.
Alex rides up to the rendezvous on her motorcycle. Duncan is standing on a white pavement that supports twelve thick stone pillars that reach up to nothing. He's looking over the view, but turns as he senses Alex's approach. She rides up and gets off the bike.
Alex: "We've got to stop meeting like this."
Duncan, smiling: "And you've got to stop trying to blow up my friends."
Alex, nearly biting the words off: "I don't suppose you'd believe me if I said I have nothing to do with it."
Duncan, still smiling: "Not at the moment."
Alex holds up her sword: "One more time?" No sooner has she issued the challenge, however, than a shot rings out and she jerks as the bullet hits her in the back. She falls, revealing Grant standing behind her.
Grant: "Good thing I followed you."
Duncan: "What are you doing here?" He kneels down beside Alex.
Grant: "She had a sword in her hand, she was going to kill you."
Duncan, peeved: "I could have handled it." He snatches the gun from Grant's hand. "You didn't have to shoot her."
Grant: "You're welcome." He looks down at her. "What the hell was she doing with a sword, anyway?"
Duncan looks up at him, and stands up: "Let's get you out of here." He takes his arm, urging him away. They're barely out of sight when Alex revives, gasping and arching up as she comes back. She stands up and snatches her sword, pacing to the edge of the platform to look for them, but Duncan and Grant are already gone.
Grant and Duncan are at the Astree Hotel.
Grant is saying: "That bitch killed my grandfather, and she said she'd kill me, and she was about to nail you. And now . . . she's dead. Now what is your problem?"
Duncan: "Look, if she's part of the Russian mafia, maybe they'll send someone else."
Grant: "Great. How long do I have to stay cooped up here?"
Duncan: "I'll let you know." He claps him on the arm and turns to leave.
Grant: "Duncan . . ." Duncan turns. Grant continues nervously. "All this--" He waves his hands, as if sweeping it away. "Our little secret, right?" Duncan looks doubtful, and Grant goes on. "The whole world thinks my father was a hero."
Duncan nods, reluctantly: "I'll try and keep it that way." He claps Grant's shoulder again and leaves.
Duncan returns to the barge, but as he walks up he senses another immortal. He goes warily to the door and walks in. He doesn't seem overly surprised to find Alex standing in the middle of the room.
Alex: "You didn't kill me while I was dead."
Duncan: "For the record, I had nothing to do with you getting shot."
Alex strolls toward him: "Now who's got the bridge for sale?"
Duncan: "You're not going to kill Grant."
Alex, incredulous: "Kill him? You're worried about me killing him? First of all, that son of a bitch just shot me. And secondly, I'm trying to keep him alive."
Duncan walks to her, looking doubtful but listening: "Why?"
Alex turns as Max enters through the other door.
Alex: "I'll let Max tell you." Max crosses the floor and stops near Alex. "Duncan MacLeod, Max Leiner." She looks at Duncan. "I think it's time you two should meet." Max nods politely.
Duncan approaches him, and asks him something in another language.
Alex: "He didn't kill anybody. And he doesn't speak Russian."
Duncan, to Max: "Then why are you interested in Grant, and the bank?"
Alex answers for him: "Because they stole sixty million dollars."
Max: "It's true, Mr. MacLeod."
Duncan looks from one to the other, confused: "Come again?"
Alex: "Blood money." She nods at Max. "The Nazis killed David, Max's father. And they left me for dead."
Duncan: "He knows about us."
Alex: "Yeah. He knows."
The soldiers are getting into their jeeps and driving away. Inside the house, Max climbs out of his hiding place and walks to where his father is lying. He touches his face, then turns to Alex, but as he touches her, she gasps and jerks up, reviving. Max starts back, but Alex is quick to take his arms, reassuring him.
Alex, her face still streaked with tears: "I'm all right. See? I'm alive."
Max, frightened: "But how?"
Alex: "Max, can you keep a secret?" He nods. "I'm not like other people."
Max: "You mean you're a angel?"
Alex: "No, no, I'm not an angel."
Max: "Yes you are."
Alex: "Max, listen to me . . ."
Max goes on: "Like the one who came to Abraham, to wrestle Jacob." He glances at David. "Papa said you'd come to protect us." His voice breaks. "I just have to believe." He reaches out and touches her coat. "Now I believe."
Alex, gently: "Then if David said it, it's true. I'll protect you. But you've got to keep the secret, okay?"
Max, brave: "I can keep a secret."
Alex smiles: "I know you can." She looks at him, smiling. "You know, you've got your father's eyes. Strong ones. Good ones. You're going to be an important man." She smiles. "And he's going to be so proud of you."
Max, smiling back: "Then I can protect you."
They hug each other tightly.
Alex concludes: "And he's kept it a secret for all of these years."
Duncan, with respect: "Not many survived the Warsaw Ghetto."
Max: "I had to." He takes the list from his inner pocket.
Duncan: "What's that?"
Alex: "Not what. Who."
Max begins reciting the names from the list: "Giselle Weishaus, Eli Grosch, Rose Trilling, Benjamin Vol, Alex Berner, Bert Linder . . ." He shakes his head. "I know them all by heart."
Alex: "People [leave?] their money in foreign bank accounts, before their families were rounded up and taken to the camps."
Duncan: "And you think George Thomas's bank was one of them?"
Max: "They have millions of dollars stolen from our dead, and they deny it."
Alex: "That's where Grant comes in."
Max: "He's just like his grandfather, tries to bury me in the paperwork. Doesn't realize he's dealing with a human [shredder?]."
Duncan: "Yes, but there must be some way to trace the money, some proof, some records."
Alex: "There's a safe somewhere in Grant's house. That's what I was looking for before I found the bomb." She throws her arms up. "You see, you just crashed my party--"
Duncan cuts her off: "Yes, yeah, yeah, yeah, I remember." He paces to the bed stairs and turns. "But I've known George and Grant for years."
Max walks up to him: "Mr. MacLeod. I am an old man. Many things I have seen. Some things, I still cannot speak of. I have looked into the face of darkness. Do you know what that face looks like?" He leans closer. "It looks like you." He turns to Alex. "It looks like Alex." He pauses. "It looks like me."
Duncan nods, then turns and heads for the door.
Alex: "Hey! Where are you going?"
Duncan: "To find out why Grant lied to me." He leaves.
Alex turns to Max: "Go home, Max. Wait for me there." He nods, and she leaves. Max carefully tucks the list into his jacket, and leaves.
At the Astree Hotel, Duncan and Alex are walking towards Grant's room.
Alex: "We make better friends than enemies, MacLeod. Now that you finally trust me."
Duncan: "Who says I trust you?" He waits for a moment. "Why are you doing this?"
Alex: "Because I loved Max's father. Because it needs to be done."
Duncan, dubious: "That all?"
Alex: "It's enough."
They reach Grant's room, and Duncan knocks on the door. It moves open at his touch.
Alex, smirking: "Sure you've got the right room?"
Duncan turns and glares: "I've got the right room." He pushes the door open and walks in, calling, "Grant!"
Someone fires from beyond the entrance hall, hitting Duncan three times in the chest. He staggers back, and slumps against the wall next to Alex.
Alex, supporting him as he slides down: "You got the right room, huh?"
Duncan, choking: "Go!" She leaves him, and goes into the hotel room. It's empty, and she moves to check the window. She looks down, and sees a man running from the back of the hotel, dashing up the steps to the street. She positions herself in the open window, and jumps down the four stories to the ground.
In the hall, Duncan dies, going limp against the wall.
On the bridge, Alex catches up with the man she's chasing, tackling him and bringing him down. They fight briefly, Alex kicking his legs from under him, and him pushing her away, but before either one gains the upper hand a car drives up, someone shooting at Alex from inside. The man she was fighting heads for the car, and Alex leaps for the bridge rail, flinging herself over to avoid being run down. The man gets in the car and it drives off, leaving Alex dangling above the busy highway. She pulls herself up, but by the time she regains her footing the car is long gone.
At the Thomas's home, Duncan and Alex open the cabinet where the safe is concealed.
Alex: "I knew it! Now we can match the deposit records to the account numbers on Max's list."
Duncan: "Yeah, and then they get the sixty million dollars." He watches as Alex rummages in her bag, and finally produces a brick of plastic explosive.
Duncan: "What are you doing with that?" Alex gives him an exasperated look. Duncan gestures at the safe. "You want to open this thing or send it into orbit?"
Alex: "Well, you got any better ideas? Let's hear it?"
Duncan, blase: "Yeah. You got a nail file?" He bends down next to the safe.
Alex: "What?"
Duncan crouches next to the door, filing at one of his nails.
Duncan, looking up at Alex with a touch of smugness: "Watch, and learn." He finishes and blows on his fingers, then reaches for the dials.
Alex: "This I've got to see."
Duncan: "Shush." He tilts his head toward the door, and begins delicately manipulating the four knobs, listening to them click into place. In a few seconds, he gently pulls the door open.
Alex's jaw drops: "Where'd you learn to do that?"
Duncan: "Friend." He pulls open the inner door, then stands up in disgust. "It's empty."
Alex, stunned: "It's empty?!"
Grant, from the door: "I could have told you that." He walks in, raising a gun to point at them.
Alex: "I told you, MacLeod. What do you expect from a guy who shoots a woman in the back? But you don't listen, do you?"
Duncan: "Would you be quiet? At least for ten seconds?"
Grant, still aiming the gun at them: "What the hell does it take to kill you guys?"
Alex: "Why don't you come and find out?"
Duncan, casting a brief glare at her: "Tell me, Grant, why'd you kill your grandfather?"
Grant: "Conscience."
Alex snorts: "Conscience!"
Grant: "Not mine, his." He begins walking slowly forward. "The old man was only getting older, didn't want to meet St. Peter with pockets full of stolen money."
Duncan, surprised: "He was going to give it back?"
Grant: "Yeah." He gestures at Alex. "She actually convinced him it was the right thing to do."
Duncan: "So you blew him up." The two ruffians who were watching Duncan and George in the first act appear, both holding guns.
Grant: "Duncan, I'm a banker, I don't do bombs." He jerks his head at the two newcomers. "They do bombs."
Duncan, finally realizing: "And they were the ones that planted one in here."
Grant: "Had to throw suspicion off me. Shame you disarmed it."
Duncan, smiling tightly: "So there is no Russian mafia."
Grant, reasonably: "Sure there is. Somewhere." He lifts his head. "Time to go for a little swim."
Duncan and Alex both make faces.
Duncan and Alex are being escorted down an outside hall by the two thugs.
Duncan: "You know this completely and utterly your fault."
Alex: "Excuse me?" They look at each other. "I was the one that was right all along."
Duncan: "Oh, yeah, if you think that's right!"
Alex, slows, turning to face him: "Who said pull the yellow wire?"
Duncan, turning as well: "I did!"
As one, they both turn and attack their escorts. In a few moments, both men are down and knocked out.
Alex, straightening up after slugging her guy: "Now what?"
Duncan, already striding off: "Grant thinks we're dead. There's only one person that can link him to the money."
At Max's place (presumably), we see Grant's car parked outside. The place appears to be part of an old warehouse or something, with wide open space and dilapidated walls and supports. Max and Grant appear, Grant walking behind Max with a gun at his back.
Max: "Killing me will change nothing, you fool. There are hundreds more will come with I'm gone. All those souls, those voices. Do you have enough bullets for all of them?" He turns to face Grant as they reach Grant's car.
Grant: "No. Just enough for you."
He aims the gun at Max, but even as he does Duncan's car drives around the corner. Max immediately gets in the car, and Grant starts for the driver's side but is stopped as Duncan pulls up right next to the Daimler. Grant shoots at him, and then at Alex as she gets out the other side. After that, though, he turns and runs. Duncan and Alex chase him, and he takes a few shots at them, but they both take cover and he misses. Finally, though, he's out of bullets. Duncan stands up and strolls slowly towards him.
Duncan: "What are you going to do now, Grant?" He and Alex walk up, and Grant retreats, until he's finally reached the edge of the floor, and the sheer drop-off to the floor below.
Duncan: "No!"
But it's too late. Grant looks back, not realizing how close he is, and loses his balance. Before they can reach him, he falls backwards to his death. Duncan and Alex look down at him, then turn and walk away.
Back at the Thomas house, Duncan, Alex, and Max are gathered in the library.
Duncan: "That's it. We've searched the whole house."
Max: "Without those letters, all is lost."
Alex: "They must be somewhere here. Are you sure he didn't mention anything to you, MacLeod?"
Duncan: "Nothing that would do us any good." He stands for a minute, thinking, then suddenly remembers his game with George.
George: "Tell me, Duncan. Do you think it's only good deeds that define a man's soul?"
George: "Finally catching up on my reading. You know, great tragedies of good men and temptation. Dickens, Goethe. . ."
Duncan hears the last name echo in his head. He turns his head, thinking.
Duncan, almost to himself: "Good men . . . and temptation."
Max looks up.
Alex: "What are you talking about?"
Duncan, looking up at the books: "The story of a good man tempted." He strides up to the bookshelves, feeling himself getting closer. "'Great tragedies of good men and temptation,' that's what George said."
Alex: "Or a good doctor." [see Notes]
Duncan points, getting it: "Tempted by the devil."
Alex and Duncan, together: "Faust."
They both start searching through the shelves, Duncan running his finger over the spines until he finds the right book.
Duncan, pulling it down: "Here." He flips through the pages, Alex looking over his shoulder, and finally finds a folded, creased piece of paper. He carries it over to Max, who stands up.
Max: "Don't tease an old man." Duncan holds out the paper. Max takes it, and spreads it and his own list on an ottoman, the three of them kneeling down to look at it and compare. Max reads the names to himself. "Giselle Weishaus, Eli Grosch, Rose Trilling, Benjamin Vol . . . Oh, my god."
Alex, softly: "All the names and secret numbers. They match." She looks up as Duncan pulls out anothe piece of paper. "What is it?"
Duncan looks at them: "Looks like a confession."
Alex: "From George Thomas?"
Duncan hands the letter to Max: "All the names and dates. The whole money trail."
Max reads over the letter, and the names listed in it: "At last."
Duncan: "Looks like you'll be able to trace everything, all the money, Max."
Max takes off his glasses, looking straight ahead: "For years I hated myself for being alive. Why was I spared? Why did I survive, when so many better people perished? Now I know. All those left behind. All those poor souls. Finally laid to rest." He claps his hand over his face, overcome.
Duncan, quiet: "All those souls. And maybe one more."
Duncan and Alex are down by the river, playing bowls. Duncan is throwing.
Duncan: "Your friend from Warsaw would have been very proud."
Alex, fondly: "David." She steps up to take her place. "It was fifty years ago. A heartbeat, for you and me. I hope he's watching this from somewhere." She throws, and her ball knocks two of Duncan's away from the jack.
Duncan steps up: "That day we met in the forest. The man you beheaded." He throws.
Alex: "He killed someone. Someone I loved very much."
Duncan: "Sorry."
Alex throws, and knocks Duncan's last ball away, leaving her three closest to the jack. Duncan glares as they go to collect the balls.
Duncan: "I thought you said you hadn't played this before?"
Alex, cheerfully: "Beginner's luck."
Duncan: "Oh."
They bend down to pick up the balls, leaning close.
Duncan: "You hungry?" He looks at Alex questioningly.
Alex smiles apologetically: "I've made . . . other plans."
They stand up, and Alex hands over her three balls.
Duncan: "Some other time."
Alex smiles: "Some other time." She kisses his cheek, and walks away.
Duncan watches her go: "Some other time." He turns away, smiling ruefully.
The names, the names . . . The Rysher site, in its infinite wisdom, refers to George's grandson as "Carl." Throughout the episode, though, he's called "Grant." Hmm, my ears or the Rysher "We Can't Even Spell Highlander" Site . . . Call me crazy, but I'm banking on Grant here.
Everything I know about bowls (or boules, or bocce, or lawn-bowling, or whatever you wish to call it) I learned five minutes ago from my ever-faithful encyclopedia. Basically, the object of the game is to get your own balls as close to the jack (the small white ball) as possible. Part of the strategy involves knocking your opponent's balls away from the jack. The first player throws the jack out, then bowls, then the players take turns bowling. A game is usually 21 points, with points scored for having balls close to the jack.
This is only my crude attempt to piece the story together, but from the things Alex said to Cameron I'm guessing that she probably became immortal sometime in the first century AD. The Romans began their biggest effort to conquer Britain around 50 AD, and by around 120 AD they'd done all they were going to do in the northern lowlands. I think. Anyway, I'm guessing that they attacked Cumbria between those two dates, and I'm also assuming that that's when Alex met her first death. Anyone with better information, please let me know!
Who, me pass up a chance to mention Marlowe? Okay, when I watched the scene where they find the book, I was, I confess, wallowing in my own brand of disappointment because they were using Goethe's version of the story instead of Marlowe's (I'd've died and gone to heaven if they'd mentioned Marlowe on Highlander!). That's my only excuse for not getting the doctor reference, and I wouldn't have gotten it at all if a nice lady hadn't e-mailed me and reminded me that it was, in fact, the legend of "Doctor" Faustus. So, that's what the whole, "good man" / "good doctor" thing was about. Sheesh, it's not like I didn't type "Doctor Faustus" about a gazillion times in my thesis...
The Thomas's house, by the way, appears to be the same house that was used for the flashbacks in "The Modern Prometheus." Anyway, the steps inside looked real familiar.
This episode is the first of the four "spinoff" episodes. If you've not heard of this little scheme yet, here's a quick rundown. The USA network is possibly interested in backing a spinoff Highlander show, featuring a female immortal as the lead. To that end, four episodes this season will focus on four new female immortals, the idea being, I gather, to test the idea and to see how the new immortals fare on screen. One down, three to go.
Next week, "Diplomatic Immunity"
These pages are written by Jinjifore and are translated into HTML and maintained by Ian.
Disclaimer: All the dialogue, characters, situations, and darn near everything else belong to a bunch of fine and talented folks at Rysher Entertainment and Panzer/Davis, and in particular the dialogue belongs to the credited writer of this episode. Me, I just wrote the rest down in my own words, which belong to me, but the episode itself was made by the aforementioned people and is owned by them. This humble synopsis isn't meant to infringe on their rights, and I'm sure as heck not making any money from doing these.
Everything not belonging to Rysher, et al, ©Copyright 1997 by Jinjifore
Feel free to copy and distribute as long as this copyright notice and disclaimer are included, except where local bandwidth laws apply.
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Celtic clip art courtesy of the Celtic Art Web Page.
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