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Plot[]
Roulette croupier Joe Scanlon was summoned from his table to see his boss, Mrs. Gustavson. When the lady offered Joe a drink, Joe politely replied he did not drink when working the table. Mrs. Gustavson dropped a bombshell: Joe was not to work the tables anymore. Apparently, a customer won over fifty thousand from the house the night before, and Mrs. Gustavson was not pleased. At the snap of her fingers, her enforcer, Mr. Clinch, stateed the house rules to Joe: The customer shall not go home with too much of Mrs. Gustavson's money, and Joe was therefore responsible for replacing the fifty thousand dollars. Joe begged for time to get the money together, and Mrs. Gustavson allowed him five days. To prove her seriousness, however, Clinch broke Joe's little finger.
Elsewhere, at The West Side Orphanage, Richie Ryan was posing as a messenger to the desk clerk, in an attempt to issue a bogus request for access to a file. When the clerk arrived with the file, but questioned him about his credentials, Richie grabbed the file and bolted, only to be pinned by a security guard in the stairwell. Despite Richie's attempt at smooth talking the guard, he was quickly cuffed and hauled back upstairs to await arrest by the police.
Duncan arrived to bail Richie out, asking why Richie made the attempt. Richie admitted to being placed in the orphanage when he was five, before he was adopted by a foster family. Richie was very bitter about the experience, and Duncan, rather than pressing the issue, simply took him home. Later, while working on a sculpture with Tessa, they discussed Richie, saying he could guess what Richie wanted: to find out where he came from. Tessa suggested Duncan may be able to help Richie, an idea which Duncan did not seem to approve of.
Inviting Richie to help tune his Thunderbird, Duncan gave him another chance to talk about the incident. Richie admitted to being reluctant to ask for help, as it had taken him a while to learn the "ask-for-help reflex." When Duncan asked if Richie found something in the file he didn't know already, Richie said he got a peek at the name "Emily Ryan, deceased," and the name Jack Ryan. Playing devil's advocate, Duncan asked why "Jack Ryan" would not have tried to find Richie. Richie admitted he didn't know what happened, Duncan found himself remembering ...
- Glenfinnan, Scotland, 1622. Duncan has been mortally wounded in a clan battle, and is carried back to The MacLeod Family house by two kinsman. His father, Ian MacLeod, storms in, and kneels by his son's bedside, telling him how he fought well. As Duncan expires before him, Ian pronounces that Duncan's name will be remembered with honor. Rallying his troops, Ian stirs them up with a rousing speech extolling Duncan's bravery, only to be interrupted by a terrified scream from a peasant woman inside the cottage. Ian returns inside to find Duncan sitting up, saying it is a miracle. Ian, horrified, responds: "No, it is the work of the Demon Master of The World Below. Ye're no boy of mine! Ye're not my son!"
In present-day Seacouver, Duncan was relating his story to Richie and Tessa, having decided to help Richie find Jack Ryan. While preparing dinner for the three of them, Duncan warned Richie: "If you go hunting tigers, be sure you're prepared to find one." Richie said he thought about it, but still wanted to find Jack. They brainstormed, and learned that Richie and his mother, Emily, used to go to the post office once a week, then to a candy store run by a Mr. Stubbs. Richie remembered the store well because it was the place where Emily died of a brain hemorrhage. Reasoning that the store was near one of the post offices in town, Duncan had Richie talk to several mail carriers.
Eventually, Richie tracked down Mr. Stubbs, and introduced himself. He discussed his mother with the former store owner. Mr. Stubbs revealed that Jack Ryan was in town and living at the nearby Spinning Wheel Hotel. Hurrying to the site, Richie began looking around, and encountered Joe, also living at the hotel. Richie asked Joe about Jack Ryan, only to have Joe deny knowing anything about him. Joe pointed out people at the hotel like to remain anonymous, and Richie had little or no chance of finding any information from anyone. Richie left, dejected, but gave Joe a calling card. As Joe relaxed in his apartment, Clinch stormed in. Reminding Joe that it was the second day Joe has in recovering the money he owed, Clinch made ready to break another of Joe's fingers, but Joe, cowering in fear, swore to have the sum by the next day. Joe said he had a line on an antique dealer who would be fronting him the money. Clinch appeared unconvinced, but decided to trust Joe. He warned Joe not to trick him, however, or he would take his whole hand.
Back at the antique store, Richie was sweeping in the back room, when Joe showed up. When Richie asked if Joe found something, Joe, looking nervous, told Richie he lied to him: he tried to improve his life by changing his name. Joe said his real name was Jack Ryan; he was Richie's father. Stunned, Richie walked with Jack, listening to him relate stories of his and his brother's various swindles. Richie's anger surfaced; he demanded to know why Jack never contacted him. Jack said he tried to find him, but he had spent time in Leavenworth and by the time he got out, Emily had already left. Richie berateed Jack for leaving Emily in the first place; to which Jack had no real reply. The two walked off in an uneasy silence.
At the antique store, Duncan was brooding. He found Jack's sudden appearance suspicious, and wanted to find out more information. Sneaking into Jack's apartment, Duncan found Clinch already there, waiting for "Joe, or Jack, if you like." He waited for Jack and Richie to arrive, and questioned Jack in front of Richie. When Richie accosted Duncan in the hall, Duncan told Richie they would talk later. He tracked Clinch to Mrs. Gustavson's club, asking for information about Joe Scanlon, and pinning Clinch when he resisted. Mrs. Gustavson spilled the details: Joe's employment, the money he owes.
That afternoon, Richie asked Tessa if Jack could stay at the antique shop for a few days, as the rent on his apartment was overdue and the landlord had been taking Jack's property. Tessa agreed, but said she would have to check with Duncan. As Jack settled in, Richie showed him around the shop and pointed out his favorite pieces, including a gold Inca Mask worth several hundred thousand dollars. When Duncan arrived and found out the news, he is furious. "He's sold you too," he scolded to Tessa, pointing out the details of Joe's situation. However, at Tessa's insistence, he let the matter wait until the morning. When he went downstairs, he found Richie glaring at an empty display: Joe had stolen the Inca Mask.
After giving a description of Joe and the mask to the police; Duncan and Tessa attempted to calm Richie down. When Richie said he never believed Joe for a second and that he no longer cares where he comes from, Duncan countered him, telling Richie about an incident in his early life:
- Scotland, 1622. Duncan, now Immortal, tracks down his father, Ian, riding with a band of his kinsman. While Ian's warriors panic and ride off at Duncan's approach, Ian stares at his former son, transfixed. Duncan notes how Ian's horse recognizes him; yet Ian himself will not acknowledge his own flesh and blood. At this Ian flares up with a bombshell: Duncan is not Ian's son, but a foundling brought to Ian's doorstep during the birth of Ian's real son, stillborn. At the insistence of Mary, Ian took Duncan in as their own, and buried his real son in secret. Anguished, Duncan demands to know whose son he is, but Ian will say no more, and rides off. Screaming in anger at the top of his lungs, Duncan proclaims himself Duncan MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod, whether Ian chooses to recognize him or not.
Surprised at the revelation, Richie can only ask if Duncan ever did find his real parents. Duncan admitted that he never did, but after four hundred years, he had gotten over it. One day, Richie would, too.
Elsewhere, Joe was contacting Clinch and Mrs. Gustavson, telling them he had an item for them that would cover his debts. Richie, however, crept out of the antique shop, and showed up at Joe's apartment, where he attempted to confront Joe but is instead captured by Clinch. Joe, at a nearby travel agency, witnessed the abduction, and followed Clinch to Mrs. Gustavson's. As Clinch questioned Richie about what he was doing at the apartment, Joe entered, offering up the mask. Mrs. Gustavson was displeased, noting the property was hot and not worth trying to fence. When things go further south, and Clinch attacked, Duncan appeared, having followed Richie. He easily dispatched Clinch and his men, allowing Joe and Richie to escape. An irate Mrs. Gustavson paused long enough to inform Clinch that he was fired before walking out of the room.
After seeing Joe off on a bus to Tuscon, Richie encountered Mr. Stubbs again, and talked more with him about Emily Ryan. He learned the reason Emily went to the store so often was to cash a check given to her by a foster agency - for fostering Richie. Richie, coming to terms with the fact that he would never know who his true parents were, discussed the incident later with Duncan and Tessa, who reassured him that he could still lead a good life. Settling into his new life in the antique store at last, Richie began tuning up the Thunderbird again with Duncan.
Cast[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Adrian Paul | Duncan MacLeod |
| Alexandra Vandernoot | Tessa Noël |
| Stan Kirsch | Richie Ryan |
| J.E. Freeman | Joe Scanlon |
| Peter DeLuise | Clinch |
| Tamsin Kelsey | Mrs. Gustavson |
| Matthew Walker | Ian MacLeod |
| Walter Marsh | Mr. Stubbs |
| Jessica Van Der Veen | Secretary |
| Aurelio Di Nunzio | Security Guard |
| Mary MacDonald | Old Peasant |