Consequences          By Robin      Written April - June 99

 

Disclaimer: This story is based on characters copyrighted by Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Production Company. It is meant for enjoyment purposes only, I retain the right to the plot and not the characters. All characters in this story are fictional.
 
 

They had been waiting in his car for hours; the conversation had finally dwindled down to a calm silence. Lee looked over at Amanda who was almost asleep; then he looked down at his watch. He realized dawn was only an hour away; yet another night wasted waiting. Just as he reached for his keys to start the ignition, a tall thin man skulked towards the entrance of the warehouse.

"I guess better late than never. Call Billy for backup and meet me inside," Lee whispered casually as if it was just another routine assignment, but it wasn’t. If their intelligence was right, this was Aziz Dejalou, known on the streets as ‘A D’ or ‘Always Dead’, because that’s the way he always left his victims. He was one of the most notorious terrorists in the world.

Amanda nodded and started to call Billy while Lee carefully slipped from his car pulling on his ski mask and headed towards the warehouse door that Aziz just walked through. He was dressed in black from head to toe; Amanda was dressed the same. Moments later she entered the warehouse, her gun drawn, her eyes darted back and forth in search of Lee. She spotted him quickly in the long, dimly lit hallway. He signaled her that it was safe so she stealthily walked down to meet him.

He whispered. "Go down to the far entrance, when you see my signal open the door fast. Just like we planned – remember?"

Amanda smiled as she nodded, of course she remembered; they only went over this a hundred times in the car. "Right, be careful."

"Always," Lee nodded and watched as Amanda headed down the hallway. She looked back and nodded to him that she was in position. Lee signaled her and she threw the door open and shut the lights off. Then Lee opened the door he stood by and threw the lights back on. There were sounds of bullets hitting the door Lee opened.

Amanda re-entered the room and stood behind the lead-lined door for safety and yelled, "Freeze."

Aziz turned towards her voice still trying to focus his eyes and continued to shoot blindly at it. Lee calmly responded to his action. "Give it up, Aziz. Drop you gun."

Aziz laughed as he turned towards Lee’s voice, but Lee too was protected by a lead-lined door. Lee smiled to himself as he thought of his choice of locations. This place couldn’t have been better.

"Drop your gun, Aziz. I won’t ask you again. The next shot will be ours and I have to warn you, her aim is always a little low; you’ll survive but I guarantee you won’t want to," Lee laughed. "Besides, the place is surrounded."

Aziz paused for a moment he looked around furiously at the old abandoned warehouse contemplating his limited options before he finally dropped his gun. Lee instructed him to kick it away. Once Aziz complied with his orders he headed down to him and pinned him against the wall, while Amanda covered him. Lee patted him down and handcuffed him tightly behind his back. "Come on, let’s go."

Aziz looked at Amanda and Lee still wearing their ski masks, then looked around the old dusty warehouse again, waiting for other agents to file out and commented angrily. "I thought the place was surrounded?"

"So I lied," Lee shrugged and smiled. "But I wasn’t kidding about her aim."

"Son of a bitch!" Aziz yelled as he tried to get himself free.

"Hey, not in front of the lady," Lee corrected him as he looked over at Amanda.

As they walked out of the warehouse, Billy drove up followed closely by another car of agents. He stopped the car only a few feet from where they stood.

"Nice timing, Billy. You missed all the fun stuff. How about you drop this package off downtown so we can get cleaned up. Just don’t lose him," Lee grinned proudly. They had been searching for him for almost a month now. They knew Aziz was in DC but couldn’t catch up with him. But they wanted to catch him before he killed again.

Billy grinned; this was quite a catch. Another agent took Aziz from Lee and escorted him to the backseat of the car. "Dr. Smyth is going to be very pleased. Meet you back at the Agency."

***

Several hours later Amanda and Lee headed into the bullpen to cheers and compliments. They were all cleaned up and dressed; it was hard to believe just hours before the two of them caught one of the most wanted terrorists in the world. It was quite a coup for the Agency to finally catch Aziz.

"Great work, Lee. We searched his hotel room and came up with quite an arsenal of information on their next attack. They were going to hit the Israeli embassy. You saved a lot of lives today." Then turning and opening a letter, Billy announced in front of the entire bullpen. "This comes from the President himself, ‘Congratulations on a job well done.’ Lee you did a great job, I know it’s taken a while, but it was worth the effort."

"Thanks, Billy, but it was a team effort. I couldn’t have done it without Amanda," Lee grinned and looked over to Amanda who was smiling proudly. They were a team, and a good one at that.

"Legal wants the report as soon as possible."

"So much for riding out the high," Lee said shaking his head. "Do you realize the last time either of us had a full nights sleep was some time in October?"

"I know you two have been tracking this dog for weeks. Just get me that report and you two can disappear for a few days," Billy promised.

Lee nodded and turned to head up to the Q bureau with Amanda to pound out the report. They were both exhausted, but would welcome a few days off together, alone. They hadn’t spent the night together since this case started, except on surveillance.

"I don’t suppose that you can spend the night tonight at my place?" Lee asked when they were safely tucked inside their office. He wanted to be alone with his wife, but preferably without having to chase down terrorists; it took all the romance out of it.

"How about you come over for dinner? I haven’t seen my children for almost a month either," Amanda replied.

Lee reached over for her and held her tightly. "How about I stay for breakfast?" he asked, kissing her deeply. Amanda sighed and returned his kiss.

"We can be Mr. & Mrs. Stetson all weekend. Joe’s has the boys; he’s picking them up Friday afternoon. Do you think you can survive that long?" she teased.

"It’s not going to be easy. But I guess we could get this report done, hand deliver it to Billy and sneak over to my place for some afternoon delight!" Lee suggested with a tired grin.

Amanda grinned a conspiratory smile. "Hmmmm, I think that’s an idea I can live with." Then she headed over to her computer to start writing. "Let’s get to it then."

Lee poured them each a cup of coffee, as he poured the cream into his cup it ran dry. Amanda looked up at him. "Haven’t had the time to pick any up."

"No time, all you did last night was sit around," he teased. "As exhausted as I am, I think I’ll just drink it black." He gulped down his first swig, he hoped it would help him stay awake until they were done.

They had been working on the report for over an hour. They were both exhausted and deep in though when the phone rang, startling them. Amanda answered it. "Q bureau."

"I need to see you and Lee in my office ASAP!" Billy snapped.

"But, sir, we’re not done with the report yet, it should be just a few more min..." Amanda tried to explain.

"Amanda, I said now!" Billy yelled into the phone so loudly that she pulled the phone away from her ear. Lee heard him yell and looked at her with alarm as he heard a loud ‘click’ as Billy hung up the phone.

"What was that all about?" Lee asked as Amanda put the phone down.

"Billy wants to see us downstairs now. He sounded really angry."

"Oh no! Aziz, he must have escaped."

"But he’s locked up tight downtown. How could he get away so quickly?" Amanda asked but she wasn’t sure if she wanted to know the answer. They had literally spent the last month tracking every sighting of him, and spent more nights in Lee’s car waiting for him to show. Until this morning he had eluded them. She knew if he escaped, his first move would be to get out of the country making all their hard work for nothing.

Lee was just shaking his head; he didn’t want to know either, but from the tone of Billy’s voice they better not keep him waiting. He reached out for Amanda’s hand and headed downstairs.

They got to Billy’s office and he was waiting at the door. Lee asked immediately. "Please don’t tell me Aziz got out, or they released him on a technicality. You did read him his rights?"

"Sit down, Lee. This isn’t about Aziz, he’s behind bars and heavily guarded."

Lee was starting to grow concerned. If this wasn’t about Aziz, why on earth were they sitting in Billy’s office when legal was breathing fire down their necks for their report?

"What’s going on?"

Billy closed the door and walked slowly around his desk picking up a file. Walking back around the desk he stood in front of Lee he handed him the file.

"It’s about this."

Lee opened the file and looked at it. The blood slowly draining from his face; he passed it over to Amanda. A mournful groan slipped from his mouth as he looked over at Billy. Amanda looked at the file quickly after noticing Lee’s reaction; she closed her eyes in hopes it would go away and then glanced at Lee painfully.

Billy couldn’t help but notice both of their reactions, he knew the answer to the next question but was still obliged to ask it. "I take it that the information in the file is genuine?"

"It’s authentic all right," Lee stated firmly, not even glancing at Amanda. Then looked Billy straight in the eye asked the next question. "Is there a problem?"

Billy’s eyes opened wide. He couldn’t believe Lee was asking the question. Surely he and Amanda were fully aware of the consequences of their actions. He paused for a moment, wanting to choose his words very carefully. Knowing no matter what he said, Lee wouldn’t like it and would fight it all the way.

"Certainly you are aware of the regulations of relatives working in the same department, let alone being partners," Billy finally said with regret.

"Aw, come on, Billy. We’ve been married for over nine months, we just captured one of the most wanted men in the country if not the world and now you’re going to point out that relatives working in the same department is frowned upon," Lee retorted abruptly.

"Frowned upon is putting it mildly. Lee, it’s not done, obviously you knew that or you two wouldn’t have hid this marriage from the Agency in the first place," Billy yelled.

Amanda spoke up for the first time, quietly adding, "Billy, we didn’t announce our marriage to protect my family. We were worried about the boys…."

Billy snapped at Amanda. "I’m sure that was part of the reason, Amanda, but you both know full well that you and Lee can’t continue to work together now that you’re married."

Amanda gasped noticeably; Lee just got furious. "So how long have you known? A week? A month? Two months? You hold onto this little tidbit until we get your dirty work done for you then you spring it on us. This is such typical bureaucratic BS! Come on, Billy, don’t tell me you’re going to split us up."

"Settle down, Lee. I just got this from Dr. Smyth about an hour ago," Billy fumed. "I’ve argue this until I’m blue in the face. I don’t like it and in this case I don’t agree with this, but rules are rules. We’ll move Amanda down into research, she’s got great computer skills and will be very useful down there."

Amanda just looked at Billy with her mouth wide open. She was speechless. Research? She had spent the last year and a half qualifying as a full fledged field agent. Finally she had lost her freshman ‘rookie’ status only to be demoted into the bowels of the Agency doing research

"No way, Billy. She’s been my partner for the last five years, you’re not going to stick her in some hole downstairs in research. She’s a fully qualified field agent. I don’t care if you break the rules, or just bend them. But you’re not splitting us up," Lee argued adamantly, the look on his face was intensely serious.

Billy knew neither of them would be happy about this decision, but surely it had crossed their minds when they married that this would be the inevitable outcome of their union. He sighed heavily, Dr. Smyth was the one who made the decisions, but it was usually Billy’s role to be the bearer of the bad news.

"It’s already a done deal. Dr. Smyth cut the orders himself. The only concession I got from Dr. Smyth is that she doesn’t have to start until next week. So once you finish that report you two are on off assignment mode’ until Monday," Billy explained knowing it wasn’t much to settle for, but it was all he could offer them. "Personally I think it’s a mistake, but…"

"Rules are rules," Amanda uttered disgustedly, she knew the changes in their life would be dramatic.

Lee looked at Amanda crossly. "Don’t give up that easily; this is far from over. Billy, we won’t take this lying down. We’re a team and you can’t break us up."

"Lee, it’s already done. Like I said, the orders are already cut. Amanda won’t have a cut in pay, she keeps her seniority. It’s really not a bad deal." Billy tried to maintain a calm tone but Lee was irate.

"Billy, we’re a package deal. Either we stay a team or I leave the Agency," Lee looked at Billy calmly but Amanda gasped loudly, staring silently at Lee. She couldn’t believe what he just said. But Lee reached out for Amanda’s hand and stood up.

"Lee, be reasonable," Billy replied.

"I think I am being reasonable. I’ve served this Agency faithfully for over ten years. I’ve been beaten, shot, drugged, stabbed, you name it. I’ve worked with Amanda for the last five years and we’ve done a great job, you told me that just two hours ago. But now, all of a sudden because you found out we got married we are no longer suitable as partners - that’s garbage! I’ll have that report done in ten minutes. You can reach me at my apartment or Amanda’s house. Let me know if I need to report to work on Monday morning."

With that said, Lee and Amanda walked hand in hand, out of the office and bullpen. Billy stood in stunned silence, still leaning against his desk. He had expected Lee to be angry, and rightfully so, their silence for the last nine months had proven that they could work together as a team and be husband and wife. But never would he had thought that Lee would give him an ultimatum: their partnership intact, or his resignation.

***

Lee was true to his word and finished the report in ten minutes. They returned to Billy’s office and handed the report to Billy and without saying another word they turned to leave.

"Lee, wait!" Billy pleaded hopelessly, but Lee didn’t even pause; he continued out the door of the bullpen directly to the elevator. Francine was in the bullpen and gave a questionable stare to them, not quite sure what was going on. She got up and headed for Billy’s office.

"What’s going on?" She asked, she knew Lee had great respect for Billy and would never under normal circumstances purposely ignore him.

"Francine, there are days I really hate this job." Billy said as he sat down heavily into his chair.

"Am I missing something? They just caught Aziz Dejalou! Why is everyone so down? Every spy in DC has been looking for him for the last month. I’d think you’d be thrill, it isn’t everyday the President send his regards," Francine remarked totally unaware.

"Dr. Smyth is splitting them up," Billy weakly replied.

"WHAT?" Francine demanded. "Why?"

Billy handed her the file, she glanced at it quickly her eyes widened. "For real?"

Billy only nodded as he sat back in his chair. This day had started out so brilliantly and now his best agent had threatened to quit; his best team would be broken up. He had pushed Amanda on Lee years ago, seeing something there. He watched silently over the last five years as their unique alliance developed into friendship then finally had blossomed into love. He turned the other cheek; he knew full well that they were ‘involved’ and now his silence may cost his best agent, his best friend, his job.

End Part 1

***

Part 2

Back at Lee’s apartment, Amanda and Lee were still in shock. They needed to talk to each other about their future, but neither one of them knew what to say. Lee was willing to quit his career over their partnership; but as much as she appreciated and loved him for it, she felt a terrible burden for that decision. He was good at his job with or without her, actually he was one of the best, if not the best. She didn’t want to be responsible for him quitting; this was his career.

Lee poured himself a drink, looking over at Amanda who nodded yes; she could use one too. Lee took a deep breath; he knew she would take the research job however grudgingly to keep him at the Agency. He didn’t want her to do that. She had worked so hard to get where she was today and he was very proud of her. She had just as much right to be a field agent as he did. He didn’t want to work alone again; he had grown to rely on Amanda’s keen insight and instincts. She had saved his butt more than once. He wouldn’t feel comfortable in the field alone and breaking in a new partner after working with Amanda all these years he wouldn’t even give that option a second thought.

As Lee brought their drinks in the living room and sat down next to her, Amanda finally broke the silence with a subdued comment. "I know how much you love me, but you can’t give up your job for me. It wouldn’t be right; it wouldn’t be fair. I’ll be fine in research, besides, we both knew at some point this could happen. We couldn’t keep our marriage a secret forever."

Lee swallowed hard, he knew she would say that but he was prepared for that. He handed her her drink. "To the most wonderful, selfless wife in the world," he toasted her, quickly drank his drink and put it down on the table.

Amanda sipped her drink and sat back, holding it carefully. She was surprised with him that he didn’t give her more of a fight but she was glad that he realized so quickly that his spur of the moment ultimatum was such a big mistake; or maybe he was bluffing, hoping Billy would cave in. Unfortunately, it wasn’t Billy’s decision to make; it was Dr. Smyth's.

Lee wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her gently towards him. She rested her head on his shoulder. "Amanda, I really appreciate the fact that you’d take the job in research so I can continue to work in the field."

"I didn’t say I’m going to like it, or that I’m not going to worry about you, but it’s best this way," Amanda interrupted.

He put a finger up to her lips to silence her. He shook his head and replied. "The only problem is that I can’t work in the field alone. We’ve work together for five years now; I rely on your judgment, your intuition, I wouldn’t be safe in the field by myself. I’ve changed the way I do things and I’m not about to change back."

Amanda was about to say something but Lee again put his finger up to her lips to quiet her. "Don’t even suggest I get a new partner. Who are they going to team me up with? Some kid just out of college? It wouldn’t work, it took me forever to get use to you," he smiled and kissed her.

"You’ve worked plenty of cases without me over the past few years; you’ve work with Francine on quite a few of them. Lee, were talking about more than a job, this is your life long career. Like it or not you’re good at what you do."

"We’re good at what we do and they shouldn’t let a marriage license change that. But they’re willing to split us up over it. So maybe it’s time we quit all this secrecy and live happily ever after – as husband and wife. We’re looking at today as being an awful day, but together we bagged one of the country’s most wanted terrorists. Why not go out on a high note? Why wait until they send one of us to the morgue to realize it’s time to quit?"

Amanda gulped down the last of her drink, she couldn't believe what he just said. Was he really ready to give this all up for life in the suburbs with a wife, a house, two cars and two teenage boys? "I think you’re tired and you need to give this some more thought. I think you need to sleep on this decision."

"You’re right; I am tired, but it won’t change my mind." He took the glass out of her hand and put it on the coffee table. He started to kiss her again softly, sensuously, on the lips then traveling down her neck. "I don’t think that I’m really sleepy at the moment. Come to think about it, I think we had a date this afternoon," he whispered seductively.

"I’m really not in the mood," she said somberly, still uncomfortably with his decision. She tried to ignore his kisses and pull away from him. But his hands were touching her, and as usual her body was betraying her to his touch.

"I promise what I have in mind will change your mood," he mumbled as he started to unbutton her blouse and continue to explore her body with his hands.

"Lee, I don’t think even you can change my mood at the moment," she replied

"All I want to do is make love to my beautiful wife," he mumbled between kisses, determined to change her mood. His hands explored her body gently and caressed her tense muscles until she began to relax.

"You don’t play fair, Stetson," she murmured, unable to resist him any longer.

He laughed huskily, then commented. "All’s fair in love, my dear."

When she woke up a while later alone in his bed. She called out to him but there was no answer. She got up slowly and grabbed her robe she headed into the living room only to find a note from him on the table. She picked it up and read it. ‘I’ll see you for dinner at your place – I’ll bring the wine. All my love, Lee.’ Amanda sighed as she put down the note and turned to head back to the bedroom to get dressed and go home.

***

Lee arrived at Amanda’s just moments before dinner with two bottles of wine. "I didn’t know what you were serving so I brought a bottle of red and a bottle of white."

"Well, if you hadn’t done your disappearing act this afternoon I could have told you that we were just having hamburgers," she answered as he kissed her hello.

He grinned brightly at her and whispered. "I had some things I needed to do this afternoon and you seemed to be sleeping so peacefully…"

"Hmmm, you know I don’t like it when you disappear on me like that. Now go sit down in the dining room before this crowd gets unruly.

They ate a quiet dinner and enjoyed a night to really relax with the family; it had been weeks since they had the opportunity. The boys were happy to have them both around for a change and it was mentioned in the conversation several times. As the meal winded down to a close, Lee stood up and said he had an announcement. Amanda looked at him curiously, not sure what was on his mind.

He walked over to Amanda and got down on his knee and took her hand in his. He looked deeply into her soft brown eyes and with a gleam in his, he asked simply. "Amanda King, will you marry me?"

A startled Amanda just stared at him with her mouth wide open but nothing coming out. She finally stuttered. "Lee, what do you think you’re doing?"

He chuckled. "You’re the only person I know who can answer a yes – no question with another question. Now, will you please answer my question?" he asked softly in a warm and loving tone.

Dotty was on the edge of her seat, she was about to answer for Amanda personally, if she didn’t answer him soon. The boys were both grinning from ear to ear. They realized what they were expecting for months now was finally happening right before their very eyes.

"Of course I’ll marry you," she grinned as she pulled him close to her, tears welled up in her eyes.

As Dotty finally took a breath sighing loudly in relief; Phillip and Jamie cheered. Lee pulled away from Amanda’s embrace and pulled a familiar box out of his pocket, the sparkle in his eye was so bright as he put her engagement ring on her finger for the last time. No more hiding it in a drawer; it was to be worn proudly on her left hand for all the world to see. Amanda had tears in her eyes. She realized that this ring had spent too many months in a drawer. It could now sparkle as brightly in the sunshine as Lee’s eyes sparkled everyday.

After the hugs and kisses from the family, Dotty volunteered to clean the kitchen and ordered the boys upstairs to do their homework. Phillip and Jamie glanced at their grandmother only once, she never made them do their homework. Then they realized that she was trying to give their mother and Lee some privacy they headed upstairs without further argument.

Amanda was glad for once that her mother was around; she had handled that situation like she had planned it for months. Then she laughed quietly to herself and thought she probably had been planning that moment for months. They sat quietly together in the living room, Amanda admiring her ring like she had never seen it before.

"I can’t believe you just did that."

He shrugged. "We’ve already wasted so much time, I didn’t want to waste anymore. I want to get on with our lives – together, as a married couple. I gave it some thought this afternoon and figured this would be easier than explaining we were married nine months ago."

"Oh you did, did you?" she teased as she played with the collar of his shirt. "You’re probably right."

"Oh, there’s one more thing that I did want to share with you," he said as he got up and reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a long thick envelope, then quickly sitting back down close to her. "I thought since we were getting married again, maybe we can have a second chance at a honeymoon too!"

"Lee!"

"Open it," he urged her quietly, a broad smile on his face.

She opened the envelope to find two plane tickets. "London? Oh my gosh!" she shouted, then looked again at the tickets. "Lee, these tickets are dated not quite two weeks from now!"

He shrugged, "I figured why wait? All we need is a quick quiet ceremony for your family’s benefit. The only one I really want to be there is you. We can leave right after Thanksgiving weekend."

"Oh, Lee, I love London."

"I know, so I figured we could stop there first."

"First? What?" she glanced down at the tickets again and did a double take. "Oh my gosh!"

Lee laughed. "You’re always laughing at me because I like to ski Gstaad. So I thought, before I turn into a ‘regular person’, that maybe you’d enjoy it too. I know it will be early in the season, and if the skiing isn’t great, well, I’m sure we’ll think of something to do."

"Lee, this must have cost you a fortune, we really shouldn’t do this. If Dr. Smyth doesn’t change his mind we’re both out of a job."

"Amanda, let me do this for us please. I don’t care what it costs. You can’t put a price tag on our happiness. This is the last time I plan on marrying you and I want this honeymoon to be special. We deserve it. I promise you things will work out. I’m not sure what we’ll be doing, but it will be OK."

Amanda hugged him tightly, bursting at the seams with joy and excitement. Lee looked optimistically at their future, and as long as they were together, she knew it would be OK. This was an opportunity for the two of them to finally share their life together.

"My mother is going to have a fit when she finds out that she has less than two weeks before we get married. Wait until I tell her where we’re going for our honeymoon, a week in London and a week in Gstaad."

Lee looked over at his wife, he hadn’t seen her this excited before. Her smile was brighter than usual, her eyes were glistening with the tears of joy that moistened her eyes. Even her voice had a special lilt to it that he had heard before, but not recently. Lately they had been working night and day, but now was their chance to be ‘regular people’. Somehow that didn’t scare him as it would have just months ago. Now he looked forward to it, welcomed it. In less than two weeks, they would publicly become, Mr. & Mrs. Lee Stetson. He smiled at that.

"I love you," he said as he wrapped her in his arms and kissed her.

***

Sunday morning they slept in, it was a cold mid November day. The sky was gray and the wind howled. Amanda was wrapped tightly in Lee’s comfortable and warm arms. The silence was broken only by Amanda’s stomach growling.

"I guess I better feed you, huh?" Lee laughed at the loud grumbling.

"Well, now that you mention it, I am starving. How about we heat up the left over Chinese food from last night."

"Ughh!" Lee grimaced looking down at her like she was crazy. "How could you eat leftover Chinese food for breakfast? I was thinking coffee and donuts."

"You better get use to crazy concoctions for breakfast. If I can get the boys to eat anything before they go to school in the morning I’m thrilled, that includes pizza, cold of course and yes, leftover Chinese food. Besides, it’s almost lunch time anyway."

They both laughed again as her stomach continued to growl. "OK, I’ll go heat up your leftovers, but I’ll stick to donuts myself."

"When you move in you’re going to have to leave the donuts behind." She got out of bed and headed for Lee’s shower.

"What’s wrong with donuts? You just said yourself you’re thrilled when the boys eat anything before school…"

"You’re impossible. I’ll be out in a few minutes, I want to take a quick shower. I’m really starved, throw something in the microwave, or the toaster. Preferably something that’s not green with mold on it."

"Well, I guess that means you’re having Chinese food," he laughed as he got out of bed. He threw on a pair of jeans and headed into his kitchen to start coffee and leftovers.

Amanda came out of the shower and dried off. She quickly threw on her robe loosely, her stomach was growling even worse. Wrapping her damp hair in a towel she headed out of the bathroom stopped for a moment to get dress, then decided against it. She was famished; she could dress after breakfast.

"Hey, how come I don’t smell..." she was half way across the room when she realized they weren’t alone. Quickly tightening her robe around her and suddenly feeling very self conscious of her current state of undress, she blushed a deep shade of crimson and pulled her robe to her as to protect herself.

"Good morning, Amanda, I didn’t mean to startle you," Billy choked out, he too was slightly embarrassed, more because of her reaction than her appearance.

"I didn’t realize we had company," Amanda added quietly, mortified to be caught in her bathrobe so late in the morning.

"I just stopped by…" Billy stammered. "I wanted to talk to Lee."

Amanda was happy to hear that and started to turn back towards the bathroom. "I’ll let you two talk."

"No! Don’t leave. This concerns the both of you," Billy urged. "Can I sit down?"

Lee nodded and sat down with Amanda on the sofa as Billy sat in one of the chairs nearby.

"So what do we owe this unannounced pleasure?" Lee asked with a slight hint of sarcasm.

It didn’t go unnoticed by Billy. He had hoped that Lee would come to his senses and realize his abrupt decision to resign could and would have grave consequences. He would do anything within his power to get him to come back to work, but it hadn’t been his decision to split them up and he didn’t have the authority to put them back together.

"I hoped that Amanda had talked some sense into you."

"Oh, we’ve talked quite a bit the last few days, Billy," Lee advised as he looked over at Amanda and squeezed her hand.

"So I can expect you both to be at the office tomorrow?" he sighed with relief, misunderstanding Lee’s last comment.

"With Amanda by my side?" Lee looked at Billy with a hopeful smile.

"Lee, if it were my decision to make we wouldn’t be having this conversation at all. I would have congratulated the two of you the other day and probably yelled at you for not inviting me to the wedding. But it’s out of my hands. If Amanda doesn’t like research she can go to choose whatever department she wants to go to…"

"But not where I’m at now, right?" she burst into the conversation angrily.

"Afraid not. Dr. Smyth won’t budge on that one."

"Billy, come on, you knew we were involved, he knew we were involved. I really don’t know what the problem is. I’ve done, no, correction, we’ve done some of the best work over the last year, and for most of that time, we’ve been married."

"Lee, the regulations are pretty cut and dry on this subject, you can’t work in the same department when you’re related."

Amanda got up from the couch, she was seething mad. "Damn it, Billy, this is so unfair."

Billy and Lee looked at her, both startled by her outburst. Billy said in an understanding voice. "I know it is, Amanda."

"No, I don’t think you do! You knew for over a year that Lee and I were more than friends, not just business partners. Nobody says a word when he was sleeping and working with Francine. He can sleep with me, that’s just fine, but marry me?"

"Amanda!" Lee looked at her in shock, but she continued on her tirade.

"Lee, it’s the truth. It’s OK for you to sleep with me without the benefits of marriage, for God sakes, it’s even expected of you. But once you put that ring on my finger, everything changes? Now we’re split up, penalized for caring enough about each other to make a personal commitment. Billy, you encouraged us, you just about gave us your blessing, and now you pull out the rug from underneath us! I expected that from Dr. Smyth, but from you I expected more. If you’ll excuse me, I think I’ll get dressed." She got up from the couch, attempted to tidy her appearance and walked headily out of the room.

Billy watched as she stormed out of the room and slammed the bedroom door behind her. He cringed slightly at the sound. He looked over at Lee and closed his eyes. He wished that this problem would disappear, but knew it wouldn’t.

"She’s just upset, she didn’t mean what she said," Lee uttered weakly, still taken aback from what she just voiced out loud.

"She right though, I did encourage the two of you. You’re good for each other, you bring out the best in each other: both professionally and personally." Billy slowly got up from the chair and headed for the door. "But you know, if I had to do it all over again, I’d put you together again. You were meant for each other."

Lee held out his hand to Billy, and gave him a firm handshake. "I’ll call you later in the week to arrange a convenient time to clean out our desks."

Billy pulled Lee into a bear hug, a simple handshake just wouldn’t do. They were more than just colleagues; they were friends, best friends. "If you need anything let me know."

"Thanks, Billy," he said hoarsely, a lump forming in his throat, then he tried to smile. "Right now we have a wedding to plan; I wish I could invite you…."

"A wedding?" Billy started to ask then shook his head with understanding. "For the family, of course."

"Just the family, it was easier than explaining, well you know." Lee started and then stopped. There had been so many changes in the last week in his life, drastic changes. He wasn’t sure he could keep up with them all.

"Tell Amanda I said goodbye," Billy said as he headed out the door.

Lee watched as his good friend left. A long and happy chapter of his life was ending. Now he was going to be Lee Stetson, husband and family man living in the suburbs. The thought scared him more than bullets did. But Amanda was worth it to him; she meant the world to him even if his world was turning upside down. He headed into the bedroom to check on her.

She was fully dressed and brushing out her still damp hair. She turned to him as he entered the room. "I owe Billy an apology."

"No you don’t. Everything you said was true," he said reluctantly, for the first time he saw the situation from her view.

She looked at him, tears formed in her eyes. "It’s just so unfair."

He came over and wrapped his strong arms around her. "It’s their loss. I got you! I think I’m way ahead at this point."

"How can you joke at a time like this?"

"Amanda, I’ll miss that job for a while, but there are a lot of things I won’t miss. Like getting shot at, traveling to weird places on a moment’s notice, and spending the night in my car waiting for someone to show. It just wouldn’t be the same without you by my side. Don’t you see, the most important thing in my life is you, not my job."

"I hope you feel that way six weeks from now and six months from now. Lee, I’m really scared."

"Scared, about what? You don’t have to worry anymore every time I walk out that door that I won’t come back."

She spoke quietly, in a hushed tone. "I’ll always worry that you won’t come back; being shot isn’t the only way I could lose you."

He looked at her for a few seconds before he understood what she meant. "You must really think I’m a shallow man if you think that. You know what Billy said to me before he left? He said that if he had to do it all over again, he’d still put us together. He knows we were meant to be together. I’ve been looking for you all of my life and when I found you, I tried to deny it, but my love for you kept growing stronger until even I couldn’t ignore it anymore. Amanda, you and I belong together, as husband and wife, now and forever."

"Lee, I want to believe that, but I’m afraid that one day you’re going to wake up and realize that I’m just a housewife from Arlington with two boys, a mortgage and a live in mother. I love my life really; but I wonder how long you’re going to be able to handle this before you want more…before you want to go back, to the parties, the travel, the excitement. I can’t compete with that; I can’t take that away from you."

Lee looked at her in disbelief. He didn't know how to reach her. Finally he smiled; he reached out his hand and gently led her to the bed and sat her down. "Amanda, you don’t compare the boys do you?"

"What? Of course not," she stated emphatically. "They are two totally different people with different ideas and likes and dislikes. You can’t compare your children, you just have to love them individually for who they really are."

"Then stop comparing me to Joe. I’m not going to leave you; we’re growing together, not apart. I will never understand how that man could leave you and the boys so easily and not fight to keep you when he realized he was losing you. My job is not as important as you are; there are other jobs. You are my life. When we got married I thought about this day, that the Agency would try to break us up when they found out we were married. This decision wasn’t a rash one, it was one I’ve thought about since I put a wedding ring on your finger."

He held her hands tightly in his. His fingers mindfully playing with the shiny diamond engagement ring that was now proudly displayed for the world to see.

She looked up at him still not quite sure she believed what he just said. "You thought about leaving the Agency since we got married?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, I always hoped it wouldn’t come to this, but I really am comfortable with this decision. There are things that I’ve always wanted to do that we could never do before…"

"Such as?"

"Be openly married; go out as Mr. & Mrs. Stetson. Take the family on a vacation, I’d like to teach the boys to ride, maybe a dude ranch or go skiing – the whole family. I know it’s not always going to be fun and games, that raising kids is tough. I’ve watched you do it the last five years and I’m amazed at how easy you make it look. I’ve even thought about having a family of our own."

"What?"

He shrugged and blushed. "Thought did cross my mind."

"I’ve never thought, you never…" she stammered, not quite believing what he just suggested.

"I know, but the more I’m around the boys the more I really like the idea of having a family with you."

"Oh, Lee, what did I do to deserve you?" she asked him in such a resolute tone, Lee had to grin.

"I ask myself the same question ten times a day. What did I do right to get someone as wonderful as you to want me in their life."

Lee reached over and pulled her into a kiss. It started gently, and it was beginning to intensify quickly, when her stomach growled loudly. He laughed. "I guess I better feed you."

"Sorry, my stomach has a mind of it’s own."

"That’s OK," he said as he looked at his watch. "How about I take you to lunch?"

End Part 2
 
 

***

Part 3

It was Tuesday afternoon when Lee and Amanda arrived at the Agency to clear out their respective desks. When they entered, Mrs. Marsten greeted them, giving them each a visitor’s badge.

"Mr. Stetson," she said formally, "Mr. Melrose would like to see you in his office immediately."

Lee glanced at Mrs. Marston oddly. Not use to such a dry greeting. He looked over at Amanda. "I’ll meet you in the Q bureau. I’m sure I won’t be long."

"Right," she smiled as she headed upstairs and he headed to the elevator.

When she got into the Q bureau, she looked around. The silence in the room was eerie. She remembered the times past when they had argued some of their worst arguments in there. How she had laughed at his tall tales and the special moments they had shared. Their relationship had developed over time in this room: the first time they had really kissed, when Billy came up and Lee locked him out. It was this special room where he slid her engagement ring on her finger. If it hadn’t been for this very room and the privacy it bestowed upon them, she wondered if their relationship would have developed. This very room had changed her life both personally and professionally, it kept their secrets well. She didn’t notice the tears as they slowly fell from her eyes until the voice next to her remarked.

"Tears of joy? You finally got what you wanted; I hope you’re satisfied," Francine griped as she pushed her way past and headed towards the vault.

Amanda just looked at her with a blank face. "Francine, what are you talking about?"

"Oh, come on, Amanda. You’ve been after Lee since the first day you walked into this place. I hope you’re happy now that you’ve got him, but how long do you think he’ll be happy with life in the suburbs?"

"Francine, this was Lee’s decision," she argued, but that old fear started to gnaw at her.

"Yeah, right. A successful career agent would leave his job for a housewife from Arlington."

"Francine, did you need something?" Amanda asked, not wanting to be baited into an argument.

"Am I bothering you, Amanda? I’m so sorry. Don’t let me keep you from more important things, like making cookies for the PTA bake sale or ruining anyone else’s career. I’ve got twenty bucks in the office pool that gives you two a year before he comes to his senses. I don’t suppose you would be interested in joining the pool?"

Those hurtful words were more than she could take. She pushed by Francine in a rush and headed down the stairs and flew out the door. Francine shrugged and thought, ‘She’s always been too emotional for this job’ and headed into the vault to research the files that she needed.

Lee hadn’t realized he was with Billy for so long; it was a while later when Lee finally headed up to the Q bureau.

"Hi, beautiful," he said as he peeked into the vault, expecting to find Amanda. His face flushed when he realized it was Francine. "I’m sorry, Francine, I thought Amanda was in here. Did you see her?"

"Yeah, she was here for a few minutes, but she left," she remarked as casually as she could manage.

"Left? Where’d she go?"

"I don’t know, it’s not my day to watch her," she snapped starting to feel a little on edge. She knew Lee would be angry if he found out about their conversation. "Sorry I can’t chat; some of us still have a job to get done," she answered as she hurried out of the office without as much as a goodbye.

He walked over to the window and looked out onto the street where they had parked her car, it was gone. He looked around the room and saw all her things were still there, almost as if she hadn't even started to pack. He glanced again over his shoulder at the door where Francine had just left. ‘Damn it, Francine, I can only guess what you said to her.’ He picked up the phone and called her house.

Dotty answered it. "Hello."

"Hi, Dotty, is Amanda there?"

"Let me guess, you’re the cause of Hurricane Amanda? Trying to pull off a wedding in less than two weeks is finally getting to her. You two have a fight?" Dotty started on him.

Lee sighed uneasily; he had hoped he was wrong, but now he knew he wasn’t. "No, Dotty, I didn’t set Amanda off, but I have a good idea who did. Let me talk to her. "He waited on the other end of the phone. He heard Dotty yell upstairs for Amanda. He never heard her respond but after a long silence, she finally picked up the phone.

"Hi," she hesitated.

"Didn’t you forget something or at least someone?" he asked warmly.

"I’m sorry…" she whispered with little control in her voice.

"Would you mind driving over and picking me up? I’ll be outside waiting for you," he added, having a strong feeling she wouldn’t want to come back inside. After he hung up the phone with her, he quickly threw their stuff in a box, not as neatly or as carefully as she would have, but at this moment he didn’t care. He looked around and was feeling kind of downhearted. Amanda had brought so much joy to this room and now it seemed so empty, just like any other room. The fresh flowers she always had on her desk made the room feel more cheery. The way she always tried to keep his ‘mess’ organized. He’d learn so much about her in this room. These four walls had kept their secrets well. He couldn’t help but realize how much this room changed his life. With one last look around the room he finally grabbed the box and headed downstairs. He nodded to Mrs. Marsten he headed out the front door for the last time.

He was only there a few minutes when Amanda pulled up. "Hey!" he smiled as he got into her car; she flashed him a quick tense smile. She waited for him to buckle his seatbelt and quickly pulled away from the curb. "You want to tell me why you left without me?"

"It doesn’t really matter."

"It does to me."

"Just let it go," she responded as she drove towards his apartment.

"How about we go for a walk in the park. You look like you could use some fresh air."

"Lee, it’s freezing cold outside.""I’ll keep you warm, I promise. Please.""You know you’re impossible," she softened and finally gave him a real smile, just being with him could always make her smile.

"But you still love me."

"OK, but a short one."They walked in the park, arm in arm. Amanda hadn’t said a word, neither had Lee. He had hoped that she would confide in him, but it was obvious she wasn’t going to.‘Damn her stubborn streak.’ Lee thought to himself.

"Lee, it’s freezing and it’s starting to get dark. Can we go home now? I really have a ton of things to do."

"I thought the walk might help relax you. You still haven’t told me why you left without me."

She pulled away from him, turned and headed back to the car. He followed her sighing deeply, frustrated that he couldn’t get her to talk to him. The drive back to his apartment was subdued; neither of them spoke. She dropped him off at his apartment; he invited her up, but she refused, reminding him of all the things she needed to do. She gave him a quick kiss before she drove away, both of them forgetting about the box in her car.
 
 

Lee became more agitated as he sat alone in the dark in his apartment. This day had gone from bad to worse; he had to know what Francine had said to Amanda. He finally went over to Francine’s apartment. Ringing the doorbell he waited impatiently.

Jonathan answered the door. "Lee, come on in," he welcomed as he called out to Francine. "We’ve got company."

Francine peeked her head out the corner. "Lee!" then looking around for Amanda not seeing her, she cooed. "What a pleasant surprise."

"Cut the crap, Francine, what the hell did you say to Amanda this afternoon?" he asked crossly.

"Excuse me?" she feigned innocence.

"You know exactly what I’m talking about and I’m not leaving until you tell me, so save us both the time."

Jonathan didn’t like his tone and stepped in. "Lee, that’s no way to talk to..."

"Stay out of this, Jonathan; this is between Francine and me," he snapped at him and glared sharply at Francine. "I’m waiting."

"If you’re so concerned why don’t you ask Amanda?"

"Do you have any idea how hard this whole thing has been on her?"

"I’m holding back tears," she jeered him. "No one forced her to leave the Agency. It’s just a transfer to another department for God sakes its not the end of the world – why do you have to leave?"

"You don’t get it do you?" Lee shook his head, he turned and headed to the door to leave, but stopped just before he reached for the knob. "You consider yourself a rather modern professional woman don’t you?"

She gave him a curious look. "Of course I am."

"What I don’t get is why you’re not as fighting mad about this as I am? Amanda has just as much right to continue at the Agency as a field agent as I do. But nobody gave her the option, she was going to be transferred down to research. If they did that to you, you’d be calling the ACLU," Lee argued, he was just getting started.

She rebutted. "You’re the senior agent; you’ve got more experience. She’s just a mediocre rookie who has had her whole training spoon fed by you."

"You’re wrong there. Since Stemwinder, she’s been in training classes just like anyone else, no special treatment by anyone – you know that."

"Lee, she’ll never be half the agent you are."

"You’ve never looked at her scores have you? She took the Agency training while still working with me in the field and raising two children by herself. She scored in the top percentile of all field agents last year, but I’m sure you never noticed that."

"The classroom is a whole lot different than the field. She can’t even shoot a gun," Francine countered, but she was feeling less and less sure of herself now.

"Just because she doesn’t like guns, doesn’t mean she can’t shoot one. I’ve worked with her, she shot ‘marksman’ last time she had to qualify, what did you shoot?" he taunted, he knew how much Amanda hated guns, but to qualify she needed to improve and he had worked with her until she could shoot with her eyes closed. He laughed silently because to this very day, she never had shot at a person, probably never would, especially now.

Francine didn’t answer. She sat down in her overstuffed chair, both Lee and Jonathan were staring at her waiting for her to respond. She had always considered Amanda a nuisance; she never had given her the benefit of the doubt. She never thought of Amanda as an equal, as a woman fighting for her place in a mans’ world.

"I, ah, I never asked how she was doing," she whispered with growing shame.

"Somehow that doesn’t surprise me. And now it’s a little too late," Lee answered coldly.

"All right, so I owe her an apology."

"What did you say to her?" It was no longer a question, but a demand.

Francine looked down at the floor, she really wished she could take back what she said to her this afternoon. She whispered so quietly that both Lee and Jonathan had to take a step closer to hear what she said. "I told her that we had a pool going as to how long it would take before you left her and came back to the Agency."

Jonathan gasped. "You didn’t?"

Lee just grimaced. "Oh yeah she did." Shaking his head he turned and stormed out the door, slamming it in anger.

"Lee!" Francine yelled, but he was out of earshot.

"How could you, Francine?" Jonathan asked.

"Not you too?" she grimaced as she grabbed her coat from the closet.

"Where are you going?"

She looked over at Jonathan, then looked away. "To apologize to a friend."

Jonathan watched as Francine left her apartment. A few minutes later, Lee watched as she got into her car. Following her at a distant, he observed as she turned into Amanda’s neighborhood. He smiled and silently said, ‘Thank you, Francine.’

***

The doorbell rang and Amanda answered it, she was surprised to find Francine at her door, regardless of the late hour.

"I think you made a wrong turn, Francine," she groaned.

"May I come in for a moment?" Francine asked quietly.

"Actually, no, I think I’ve had enough of you for a lifetime," she started to close the door but Francine put her foot in it.

"I can’t blame you for that, but I came over to apologize. Now if you’d like, I’ll do it on your front porch, but I’m sure you’d enjoy it more if I groveled in your living room. So will you please let me in, it’s freezing out here."

"You, apologize?" Amanda remarked in amazement. "Did Lee put you up to this?"

"Amanda, can I please come in."

She opened the door and let her come in. "OK, Francine, but my family is right upstairs so make it quick; you’ve got two minutes."

"Amanda, I said some mean and hurtful things to you today that I had no right to say. As much as I hate to admit it, you’re good for Lee; he’s a better agent because of you, and, well I’ve never seen him happier. And you, you’ve really come a long way from when you started," she hesitated and then finished. "You’re a good agent, you can back me up anytime."

Amanda stood in a stunned silence, she never expected to hear that coming from Francine’s lips. Finally Amanda spoke up. "Thanks, Francine, that really means a lot coming from you."

Francine suddenly looked uncomfortable. She casually glanced at her watch looking for a graceful way out the door. "I didn’t realize it was so late, I guess I should be going."

"Yeah, I need to check on the boys, make sure their homework is done," Amanda indicated as she headed for the door. She watched her as she got in her car and drove away. Then turning, she headed upstairs. She felt better than she had all day, maybe she would check on the boys after all.

It was only a few minutes later when the doorbell rang again. Amanda was still upstairs with the boys. Dotty answered the door.

"Lee, kind of late for a visit isn’t it?"

Lee kind of shrugged. "She’s not in bed yet is she?" Lee asked, wondering now if Francine had gotten to talk to her.

"No, she’s upstairs with the boys, Jamie has a report due tomorrow and Phillip has a big history test."

"Maybe I should just go."

"Now just hang on. I’m sure once she knows you’re here she’ll be right down. …AMANDA, Lee’s here," she called up the stairs. Lee smiled awkwardly at Dotty.

"I’ll be right down," she yelled down.

Moments later she headed down the stairs. Lee waited at the landing for her.

"Surprised you waited that long," Amanda smirked as she reached the bottom of the stairs.

"What’s that supposed to mean?" he asked nonchalantly, but the reddening in his cheeks gave him away.

"Mmmm, just what I suspected, you put Francine up to that apology."

"Actually no, I didn’t. I did go and talk to her, but the apology was her idea, not mine."

"So how come you’re at my doorstep so late?"

"Can’t a guy come and see his fiancée a few days before his wedding?"

She grinned and kissed him tenderly. "You’re not getting cold feet are you?"

"Not on your life," he answered then paused and asked. "Are you OK?"

"Me, yeah, I’m fine. But I am curious. What exactly did you say to Francine to get her to apologize?"

"We have our ways," he smiled as he pulled her to him for another kiss.

"Hey you never did tell me what Billy wanted today?"

"Just going over some final reports and the status on a few other things." He wasn’t about to tell her that he got another pleading lecture for him to stay. His mind was made up, without Amanda by his side; he had no intentions of staying. His future was with Amanda and the boys.

"They’re going to really miss you." She allowed him the lie, she was pretty sure that Billy probably tried to talk him into staying one more time.

"They’ll survive just fine without me."

She decided to change the subject, enough was enough. "How about some hot chocolate, it will help you warm up, it’s pretty cold out there."

"Naw, it’s kind of late, I should be going," he said unconvincingly, not really wanting to leave.

She saw the look in his eye and smiled. "It’s not that late, besides, I’ve still got some baking to do; you want to be my taste tester?"

Lee grinned. "Now that’s an offer I can’t refuse," he reached around her waist and they headed into the kitchen together.
 
 

***

It was a warm and sunny, Sunday afternoon, the sky was a crisp, clear blue. It was a beautiful autumn day for late November. Their wedding was simple, just the family in a small private room at Emelio’s. It was decorated for the upcoming Christmas season with poinsettias and boughs of evergreen and holly trimming the walls, and of course mistletoe. The scent of fresh pine and poinsettias made the room smell like a winter wonderland. After they exchanged their vows they celebrated with an elegant but private lunch with the boys and Dotty to celebrate their marriage.

When they got home, Amanda and Lee walked hand in hand into the house, smiling and whispering, truly lost in their own happiness, nothing could spoil their day. It couldn’t have been more perfect.

Amanda went upstairs to change out of her dress into something more comfortable for their trip. Lee brought their suitcase downstairs when the doorbell rang. Lee yelled upstairs. "I’ll get it."

He opened the door to find Billy waiting impatiently. Startled to find him on their front porch Lee just stared at him. Billy waited uncomfortably for an invitation inside but finally asked. "Can I come in?"

"Uh, well, the boys and Dotty are home," Lee stammered, holding the door protectively.

"I need to talk to you two, NOW!" Billy urged, his expression quite serious.

"Billy, it’s not really a good time, we just got married this afternoon. We leave for the airport in about an hour," Lee explained, tilting his head towards the suitcases in the hallway. Now was certainly not the time for talk, the Agency had the last two weeks for that, they were not going to ruin their wedding day, it had been too beautiful of a day.

"I wouldn’t have come if it wasn’t important."

Amanda finally headed downstairs and noticed that Lee was talking with the door almost shut. She peeked around the door and whispered with surprise, "Billy? What are you doing here?"

Again he asked. "Can I come in? Please."

Amanda looked around, the boys were out back playing basketball already and Dotty was still upstairs. Reluctantly she ushered him into the living room.

"OK, so what’s up?" Lee asked annoyed at the intrusion.

Billy pulled a letter out of his jacket pocket and handed it to Lee. He opened it and read it. He started to smile, but Lee knew the government and the Agency so he hesitated. "What’s the catch?"

Amanda looked at them both still not sure what was going on.

"Aziz escaped at lunch time today. Two guards are dead and three others are in the hospital. I, we need your help to find him before he leaves the country again. If you agree to come back, your partnership stays intact – permanently, no transfers," Billy finished and quietly looked from one to the other trying to read their reactions.

"And if we don’t find him you give us the boot again?" Lee asked, sarcasm crept into his tone. Despite his trust and respect for Billy, he still didn’t trust the system.

"No. I’ve got this in writing from the President himself. He gave Dr. Smyth one hell of a tongue lashing when he found out that you two were, ah… how shall I put it, relieved of duty because you were married."

"Sorry, Billy, we leave for our honeymoon in just a couple hours." He handed the letter back to Billy and headed towards the door to see him out.

"Lee!" Amanda cried out in disbelief. She wondered how he could dismiss this opportunity so quickly.

"Be reasonable, Scarecrow. You and Amanda can postpone your honeymoon for a couple of days. You can leave as soon as we have ‘A D’ back. You know him better than anyone else. Don’t throw away your career over bad timing."

"Scarecrow’s gone; he’s retired. I’m sorry, Billy, but it took us a month to find him last time – I’m not waiting that long to go on our honeymoon. Besides, I didn’t lose him, you did, and knowing‘A D’ he’s probably half way across the Atlantic by now. And as for throwing away my career, the Agency made it perfectly clear over the last two weeks how important we were to them."

"Lee, this is everything you asked for not quite two weeks ago. I’ve hand delivered it to you signed by the President of the United States. Now think about this before you turn it down," Billy pleaded.

"Lee, we can go on our honeymoon later," Amanda agreed. She looked over to Lee, she expected he would come around; it was the opportunity they had hoped for.

"It’s not exactly your honeymoon, Lee, you were married months ago. We both know what you did today was just for show. All I ask is that you put it off for just a few days…" Billy appealed quietly.

With that statement, Lee was about to lose his temper. He turned and glared at Billy with anger. "Our first honeymoon was ruined when Amanda was shot in California!" he stated emphatically. He looked over at Amanda, he was desperate to convince her this was what really mattered to him. "This IS our honeymoon. Not even the President of the United States can change that."

"Amanda, talk to him," Billy argued, his voice getting louder.

She looked over at Lee but his expression was adamant. She shook her head at Lee, but no words came out.

"Billy, when we get back from our honeymoon, if the offer is still open, we can talk about it. But this IS our honeymoon and the answer is an unqualified no."

"We both know if we don’t find him in the next 24 hours, we won’t; he’ll be out of the country. I can’t guarantee this offer will still be open."
 

Amanda finally whispered, her words the mechanical litany of a good agent. "Lee, it’s OK,we can reschedule our trip – finding‘A D’ is important."

"So is our marriage; we’re going on our honeymoon," he looked at her piercingly in the eye and softly explained. "We found him once, they lost him, we’re going to London and that’s final. Billy, Im sorry, if the timing was different… but its not. I’m taking my wife on a long overdue honeymoon," he headed towards the door and opened it. "My family comes first."

Billy knew the discussion was over, that Lee had made up his mind and Amanda would stand by his decision, she always did. He quickly turned to Amanda and kissed her gently on the cheek. "Congratulations to you both." He shook Lee’s hand he walked out the door.

Amanda reached up to Lee’s shoulder and whispered into his ear. "Are you sure?"

He turned and kissed her squarely on the lips and pulled her into an embrace. "Positive."

***

Amanda and Lee boarded their flight at Dulles as soon as it was called; both of them were eager to get their trip started. Putting their carry on bags in the overhead compartment they settled down while the other passengers filed in. Lee smiled over at Amanda squeezing her hand softly, she smiled brightly at him and rested her head on his shoulder. He reached around and pulled her closer to him.

"I love you," he whispered as he gently ran his fingers down her cheek.

She smiled back. "I love you, too."

"I can’t believe we’re finally going on our honeymoon," Lee commented. "I didn’t think this day would ever come."

"I was starting to have my doubts too," she agreed.

Lee leaned over and kissed her, a gentle kiss, Amanda returning it with a more passionate one.

"If we keep this up," he teased, "it’s going to be a very long flight."

"Actually, if we keep this up, we’ll be inLondon before you know it," she giggled and kissed him again. He started to pull away but quickly pulled her to him again. "Don’t move!" he whispered with an alarmed tone in his voice.

She recognized his tone and whispered cautiously. "Lee, what’s wrong?"

"In a minute," he answered, distracted as he watched a passenger walk by, unaware of Lee’s watchful eye.

"What was that all about?" Amanda asked, her tone a mix of curiosity and concern.

Lee looked nervously over his shoulder to the back of the plane and crouched down lower in his seat. "You’re not going to believe this, but ‘A D’ just boarded the plane; he’s sitting by the window about twelve rows back."

"Are you sure?" she asked as she casually looked towards the back of the plane.

"As sure as you’re my wife. I need to get the stewardess over here. We need to get word to Billy. If he gets to London, there is no telling where he’ll go next," Lee whispered as he hit the call button.

It seemed like an eternity before the stewardess came by. "Can I help you?"

"Yes, I need to make an emergency phone call. Is there a phone on board I could use?"

"No, sir, I’m sorry; not until we’re airborne and once you’ve boarded the plane you can’t leave."

"Can you make a call for me? Please?" he begged, searching his pockets for his federal ID, realizing he no longer possessed one.

The stewardess could see he was upset. "Sir, I’m sorry, I have a job to do. I’ve got to get all these passengers seated and do a preflight safety check so we can take off on time; I’d like to help, but I can’t."

Lee whispered to her, teeth clenched tightly. "Lady, I know you think I’m just another crackpot, but listen very carefully to me. About twelve rows back, the man, sitting by the window with short dark hair wearing a gray flannel shirt is an international terrorist who is supposed to be in federal prison."

She gasped, then looked back down at Lee. "Sir, it’s a federal offense to make accusations like that on a plane. Now if you don’t stop right now, I’m afraid I’ll have to call security."

"I wouldn’t call security unless you want a blood bath on your hands. Now listen if you don’t believe me, call this number, ask for William Melrose, tell him that Scarecrow told you that ‘A D’ is on flight 416 to London."

The stewardess looked at him, still not sure whether or not this was for real. She took the card from Lee’s hand and looked at the number. From the look on her face she thought it was just another passenger trying to get his way.

"Listen if after you call him, you still don’t believe me, I’ll surrender myself to security OK? Please just make the call." Lee’s face was white as a sheet, he had to get her to believe him.

"Miss, you’ve got to believe him," Amanda encouraged. "He’s not lying to you; he arrested that man two weeks ago, he’s supposed to be in prison, he’s a very dangerous criminal."

"If this is a hoax, you’re both in more trouble than you know," she said with a determined look.

"This isn’t a hoax. I wish it was," Lee sighed.

The stewardess headed towards the front of the plane and out of sight. Lee looked at Amanda then closed his eyes. "Of all the international flights why did he have to choose this one? How did he get past security, they should have been watching all the airports like a hawk."

Amanda wished she knew the answers, but she didn’t. She held onto his hand tightly in support.

Lee knew Aziz had help getting to the plane, the question was did he have help on the plane as well? He looked around the plane at the many different faces, some old, some young, a couple of families with children, businessmen and tourists. He couldn’t be sure, but his intuition was that Aziz was traveling alone. He hoped he was right; he hoped the stewardess got through to Billy.

It seemed like forever before the stewardess finally came back to them, now her face was white as a ghost. "Sir, could you both come with me. I think we have a mix up in seating." The stewardess choked out, trying to remain calm, but looking nervously towards the back of the plane.

They got up and headed towards the front of the plane, where the stewardess explained that Billy confirmed who he was and had agents in the airport and were on the way. Also, they had stopped boarding the flight until further notice, not wanting to add any additional passengers to the potentially dangerous situation.

Within minutes, the other agents began to arrive; Lee briefed them on what was going on. "He’s in row 23, window seat, he came on the plane alone, and hopefully he’s not armed since he went through security, but we can’t be sure of that, he should never have gotten this far. So let’s not end up with anymore dead bodies. I want as many of you armed and seated on the aisle as near as possible to him. Amanda will sit behind him, I’m going to sit next to him and see if I can subdue him without incident. If there is any problem, remember we have over a hundred innocent bystanders on that plane, if you have to shoot, shoot to kill!" He looked over at Amanda. "Is that understood?"

The agents nodded, so did Amanda.

"We’re going to need some guns and handcuffs. But he is coming off this plane in either handcuffs or a body bag – any questions?" Lee’s voice was low and down to business. The agents armed themselves and gave Lee and Amanda each a gun and cuffs. "OK, lets keep this casual, let’s not tip our hands, get as close to row 23 as possible. Amanda’s going in behind him, that seat is vacant as are the two next to him. Once I get seated next to him, I want this to be over with in a matter of seconds."

The agents headed casually towards their ‘seating assignments’. Lee looked at Amanda, momentarily distracted by thoughts of their last attempt at a honeymoon, when she was shot and nearly died. His heart sunk. Maybe he should keep her away from Aziz, off the plane and out of harms way.

"Lee?" Amanda called out to him and broke his chain of thought. "Are you ready?"

He nodded, his mouth suddenly too dry to speak. He mouthed ‘be careful’, she nodded to him and smiled as she quietly walked down the aisle to row 24. Sitting directly behind Aziz she nervously watched as Lee headed to his seat, right next to Aziz.

Lee sat down in the middle seat, barely nodding acknowledgment to Aziz. He reached into his pocket for the handcuffs. Now turning towards Aziz he smiled. "Would you mind if I waved to my wife, we were just recently married and this is our first time apart?" Lee asked casually.

Aziz answered a short, detached. "No."

As he leaned over Aziz in a fake attempt to wave goodbye to his wife, he grabbed Aziz one arm pinning it to the armrest. Then quickly pulled the handcuffs out of his pocket snapped them on his other arm before he realized what had happened. Aziz looked up at him with disbelief.

"Listen very carefully to me. Any false move will be your last. This time you really are surrounded and my partners aim at this range is deadly accurate," Lee growled as he carefully cuffed his other arm and pulled him up from the seat roughly.

"You again?" Aziz called out in disgust.

"Yeah! I’m getting kind of tired of this? Aren’t you?" Lee led ‘A D’ to the aisle where the other agents and Amanda ushered him off the plane. The stewardess watching closely and happily as they exited. She breathed a sigh of relief as to what could have happened.

As they walked off the plane and into the airport, there were more agents waiting. Billy came running up out of breath. "Nice work, Lee, Amanda – welcome back!"

Lee pushed Aziz towards Billy. "Don’t call me if you lose him again," he snapped angrily and he quickly reached for Amanda’s hand and turned to reboard the plane.

Billy handed Aziz to one of the senior agents. "Hang on to him tight, you lose him you get to explain it to the President." Then he noticed they were walking towards the plane. "Lee, Amanda, where are you two going?" he pulled the letter out of his pocket from the President – waving it in the air.

Lee turned to him giving him a look. "Billy, we’ve got a plane to catch."

"But, what about your report? I’ll need it right away."

"Sorry, Billy, call it a citizens arrest, I don’t care, but we’re going to be on this flight."

"We’ll hold the plane."

"Oh no you won’t. If it’s that important to you, we’ll fax you a report from London, but we’re outta here!" He turned, Amanda’s hand instantly in his and headed back towards the gate.

"Where are you staying in London?" Billy called out.

Lee stopped and shook his head and turned towards Billy, "That’s on a need to know basis and I honestly don’t think you need to know. Billy, we’re on our honeymoon. Don’t call us, and I promise we won’t call you." Amanda smiled at Lee and thought that someday they would look back at this moment and laugh, but right now, she wanted to get on that plane as much as he did.

"OK, fax me the report as soon as you get to London. I’ll see you both in a week."

"Nope! We won’t be back for at least two," Lee smiled. "Like I said, don’t call us..."

Billy smiled at the two of them; they were such a good pair, personally and professionally. He backed off, they deserved this time together. "Have a good time, we’ll talk when you get back."

Lee and Amanda nodded to Billy and smiled at each other as they headed back to their plane arm in arm.

As they got back on the plane they headed for their seats. The stewardess grabbed them before they sat down. "Mr. & Mrs. Stetson, we’ve had a change in seating."

"What?" Lee asked with a pained look on his face.

"Please, the Captain insisted," she said as she led them back towards the front of the plane and seated them both in first class.

"Thank you, thank you very much," Lee replied happily as he helped Amanda to her seat and sat down next to her.

"I guess we get to go in style, Mr. Stetson," Amanda grinned as she nuzzled against him.

Shortly thereafter, the stewardess returned with two champagne glasses. "With our compliments and gratitude." They took the glasses and nodded their appreciation to the stewardess who turned to leave and left them alone.

"To you, Mrs. Stetson."

"To you, Mr. Stetson."

They toasted and clinked their glasses together, drank their champagne and grinned happily at each other.

"This has been quite an eventful day," he remarked.

"Well, I’m really looking forward to a very eventful night," she grinned suggestively.

He chuckled and gently rubbed his fingers along her chin and down her neck. "The first of many, you can plan on that, I promise."

The End

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