Created Jan-Mar99     (Re edited: June/July 2000)
 

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. Do not reproduce this story without express written consent of the above author.  All characters in this story are fictional.

*** ***

"There is no way I’m going to Iraq. Not now, not next week, not next month, the answer is no." Lee was shouting at the top of his lungs at Dr. Smyth with pure hatred in his voice.

"Stetson, I think you forgot who hands out the assignments around here. Let me remind you, it’s me, not you! So you will go where I send you," Dr. Smyth reiterated heatedly.

There was no denying it. These two men didn’t care for each other. Lee despised the man. He was cold and calculating and would go out of his way to make Lee's life miserable.

"Will you both calm down so we can discuss this rationally? Lee’s not a chemical weapons expert, far from it. He doesn’t speak Farsi; he’s way too fair skinned to blend into that population." Billy had the unenviable position of playing mediator to the two of them.

"Melrose, this subject is not up for debate. Stetson is going to be on that plane next week; I’m going to write the orders myself."

"You can write them, but I’m not going," Lee yelled and stormed out of the office, the door slamming behind him.

Billy winced, expecting the glass to break from the force of the slamming door. He knew Lee was right, but storming out on Dr. Smyth was certainly not going to help his case any.

"Temper, temper!"

"Dr. Smyth, you are wrong on this one. We have several agents who are fluent in Farsi and look Arabic. Hell, Metunde lived there for several years and he’s got a degree in chemistry. Lee would go if he felt he was qualified."

Dr. Smyth got up from his chair, and pausing before he headed out of Billy’s office. "I want Scarecrow on this one, Billy. It’s time that boy learns who's boss around here."

Billy leaned against the doorframe of his office. He knew Lee would fight this one. He was no longer the carefree agent who took on any assignment. Since he and Amanda were working together, he rarely volunteered for assignments out of the country. Scarecrow liked working with Amanda; they worked well together and if the assignment called for him to go solo, Scarecrow thought twice about it.

***

Lee headed for the Q bureau. He rushed in and slammed the door. A startled Amanda jumped out of her chair. "Let me guess, you went another round with Dr. Smyth?"

Lee looked at her with astonishment. "How’d you know; did Billy call up here?"

Amanda shook her head. Very few things at the Agency could upset Lee like Dr. Smyth could. For the most part Lee got along well with all the other agents; he was somewhat revered for his record by the younger agents and well respected by the veteran agents.

"No, but only Dr. Smyth gets under your skin to make you storm in here like that. What’s wrong?" she asked as she put down the file she had been working on.

"I have orders to report to Iraq to investigate whether they are stockpiling chemical weapons."

"But you’re not a chemical weapons expert. Besides, you don’t speak Farsi, do you?" Amanda asked somewhat surprised at the assignment. Dr. Smyth hadn’t liked her from the start, and cared less for Lee.

"Not a word. Billy and I have been arguing with him for the last half hour, but he’s still adamant about sending me," Lee said in disgust. He pounded the filing cabinet in frustration. "I swear the man’s trying to get me killed."

"What are you going to do?" she asked. She didn't want him to go considering the instability of the area. It would be an extremely risky assignment.

"I’m going to turn it down. I’d be a sitting duck out there. They need a chemist or a weapons expert to go in there, not me!"

She was somewhat relieved that he would turn it down. However, Dr. Smyth could be an even bigger thorn in Lee's side if he crossed him. Either way she knew this would not be the last of this issue.

"You know, if we announced that we were married…" Her voice trailed off, her face grimaced.

Lee was shaking his head as he paced in his office. "I know, I know. Married personnel have a whole different set of rules than we ‘eligible bachelors’. We bachelors are more expendable."

Amanda flinched. "Lee, don’t even think that."

"I’m sorry. That bastard gets me so worked up. I have to be very careful how I deal with this. I don’t need Smyth on my back any more than he already is."
 
 

Later that afternoon, Francine knocked on the door of the Q bureau and walked in. Both Lee and Amanda were working at their respective desks. She seemed almost disappointed that she didn’t interrupt anything. "Billy wants to see you, Lee."

"About what?" Lee grumbled.

She tried to beat around the bush. "I’m really not sure. He didn’t really say…"

"Yeah right," Lee snapped, his anger from this morning was beginning to resurface. "Since when don’t you listen in to Billy’s conversations?"

"Lee!" Both Francine and Amanda scolded him at the same time.

"I’m sorry, Francine, I’m a little on edge."

"Just turn the assignment down," Francine said as she closed the Q bureau door behind her. Her voice got real quiet, almost as if she was afraid to say what she was about to suggest. "Just be careful how you do it; crossing Dr. Smyth is a dangerous game. Lee, I don’t know all the facts, but what I do know is that you speak several languages, but Farsi is not one of them. You’re not a weapons expert. Yes you have training, but it would be fair to say ‘chemical weapons’ is not your specialty. I think you have sufficient grounds."

"Thanks, Francine, it’s nice to know I’ve got a few people in my corner. Tell Billy I'll be right down."

Francine headed out of the office. "Well, I guess there’s no time like the present," Lee said with a resigned tone as he got up from his desk. He wasn’t looking forward to this meeting with Billy. Poor Billy didn’t deserve to be caught in the middle. But Billy was supporting him, at least so far.

"Would you like some moral support?"

"No, no sense in getting you mixed up in this mess. But I do appreciate the offer. How about a kiss for luck?" he asked as he walked over to her desk. "Dinner tonight?"

"Are you taking me out, or am I cooking?"

"Hmm, tough choice, a home cooked meal with the family or an evening out with you alone?" He winked at her. "If you don’t mind, I think I’d prefer to have you to myself this evening."

"I’ll see you later. I’ve got to get some paperwork done. I’ll catch up with you before I leave." She smiled at him. She liked that idea better, too.

Lee walked down to Billy’s office. He was glad to see he was alone, but he really hadn’t expected Dr. Smyth to be there; Dr. Smyth was never around for the dirty work, only for the glory. Lee closed the door behind him. He sat down and Billy handed him a file.

"Is this what I think it is?" Lee asked politely.

"Afraid so." Billy looked at him helplessly.

Lee tossed it casually back onto Billy’s desk, shaking his head calmly. "Billy, I’ve never done this before, but no. I’m not qualified for this assignment. I’m not sticking my neck out on this one. We have other agents who are more capable of handling this and surviving. I respectfully decline."

Billy knew he was going to do it; he already warned Dr. Smyth. "I understand, Lee. May I suggest that you steer clear of Dr. Smyth, at least for the next few days."

"That would be my pleasure," Lee sighed. "Billy, thanks for supporting me on this one. I don’t think I ever thanked you this morning."

"You’re right about this one; you wouldn’t make it out of there alive. A dead agent doesn’t do me much good, too much paperwork!" he kidded, as he tried unsuccessfully to break the building strain.

"Thanks, Billy," Lee said as he got up and headed out of Billy’s office, closing the door as he left. He bumped into Francine in the bullpen.

"So how’d it go?"

"Turned it down. Billy understands; I’m sure Dr. Smyth won’t."

Francine reminded. "You had every reason to turn it down. I can’t think of a good explanation why you should have been chosen to go…."

"You know, Desmond, curiosity killed the cat!" Dr. Smyth railed. Francine closed her eyes, hoping that he would go away. But he continued, turning his attention towards Lee. "You think you have won this one don’t you, Scarecrow?" he snipped, chomping down on his cigarette. Francine stepped back, not wanting to be in this showdown.

Lee groaned inwardly. "I’m not qualified. Get a weapons inspector in there."

"If I thought I could get a weapons inspector in there, I would’ve tried. I think you’re getting a little soft. Maybe it’s time to consider retiring?"

Lee gritted his teeth; he wasn’t going to be goaded into a fight, not here and certainly not now. He promised Billy. "No, just getting wiser," Lee answered and started to walk away.

"I’m not finished with you yet, Scarecrow!" Dr. Smyth said as he grabbed Lee’s arm to stop him.

Lee stopped, looked distastefully at Dr. Smyth’s withered hand on his crisp white shirtsleeve, and then looked him directly in his eye. "Take your hand off of me," he answered quietly, but firmly.

Dr. Smyth let go of him. "The Scarecrow I remember took on tougher assignments than this one. I think you’ve lost your nerve and you’re afraid to admit it." He continued to needle him; he knew his Achilles’ heel. "Maybe we should send your partner instead."

"Leave Amanda out of this," he snarled at him.

Dr. Smyth smiled, he knew he found his weakness. "Afraid she would out shine you?"

"I told you to leave her out of this. This is between you and me." Lee was starting to lose his cool.

Dr. Smyth continued to work on Lee. "You sound like you want to step outside. This isn’t high school, Scarecrow."

Lee was trying desperately to hold his tongue. "No, this isn’t high school. So maybe you should quit trying to get me killed and do your job and let me do mine."

"Ah, but you’re not doing yours. You turned down a very important assignment. National security depends upon getting someone in there."

"It won’t do national security a damn bit of good if I don’t get the information or get caught trying. Or maybe that's really your master plan. Me, in front of an Iraqi firing squad," Lee callously shouted.

A crowd of agents was now forming around Lee and Dr. Smith. Nobody had ever seen Dr. Smyth lose his cool before. He was always the modicum of professionalism, but at the moment, both men were ready to explode.

Dr. Smyth was now poking Lee in the chest with his finger. "You are expendable you know."

"Expendable, yes. Suicidal no!" Lee yelled at the top of his lungs.

"Stetson, I am sick of your cockiness, your insubordination. I won’t take any more of your lip. Melrose may take this abuse, but I won’t. I will have your resignation on my desk within the next week if it’s the last thing I do."

Lee was right in Dr. Smyth’s face shouting back at him. His face was red, the blood vessels in his temples pulsating. "I’m not quitting my job over the likes of you. You're nothing but a insensitive son of…"

"STETSON!" Billy bellowed, finally aware of the confrontation and the growing audience. Billy tried to put some space between the two men. "Scarecrow, get out of here, NOW!"

Lee looked at Billy with frustration he looked at Dr. Smyth with disdain. He shook his head and pivoted an about face and exited the bullpen.

"Billy," Dr. Smyth scoffed. "I want that boy's resignation on my desk or a formal apology by the end of the week." He looked around at the agents who were still gawking at him. "Do you all want to be on the unemployment line on Monday?" With that he turned and walked headily out of the bullpen.

End Part 1

*** *** *** *

Dr. Smyth Part 2

Lee burst into the Q bureau and startled Amanda yet again.

"Oh no, not again." She scrunched up her nose. "What happened?" she asked nervously.

"Trust me, you don’t want to know," he answered in frustration as he sat down at his desk, his head in his hands.

She cocked her head and looked at Lee with concern. "You did turn down that assignment?"

"Oh yeah, that’s was the easy part. Then coming out of the bullpen I ran into ‘his majesty’ himself. We exchanged a few not too kind words. Amanda, he’s out for my job; he asked for my resignation."

"Oh my gosh, Lee, no!" she said with alarm.

Lee shook his head to calm her. "It’s all right; it will eventually blow over. I need to keep a low profile around Dr. Smyth for sure. I didn’t say anything that he could fire me over. But I would like to. I need to get out of here."

"I can see that, and the sooner the better."

He walked over and sat on her desk; he was trying desperately to calm down. "How about a nice relaxing dinner at Emelio’s, then back to my place for dessert?"

"What’s for dessert?"

Lee grinned devilishly. She just shook her head and chuckled.

*** ***

Later that evening at Lee’s apartment, Amanda was getting dressed to head home. "Don’t go. Why don’t you stay the night? Joe has the boys doesn’t he."

"I can’t. Mother knows I’m here," she said sadly.

"So, call her and tell her you’re spending the night." He got out of bed and put his arms around her and started nibbling at her neck and unbuttoning the blouse she just buttoned.

"I can’t just call my mother and tell her that." She turned towards him and looked at him incredulously.

"Amanda, I can understand your not wanting the boys to know, but your mother wasn’t born yesterday. I tell you, she knows. So lets quit playing hide and seek and spend the night together. I enjoy waking up with my wife every now and then." Lee was almost annoyed with her.

"Lee, I can’t!"

Lee picked up the phone. "If you don’t, I will. Please stay the night. I could very well be in Iraq in a week."

Her face flushed. "You said that you turned down the assignment."

"You know Dr. Smyth as well as I do; he can be very persuasive at times." He started dialing the phone.

"That’s blackmail," she blushed as Lee held out the phone. She could hear her mother pick up the phone.

"Hello, hello?" Dotty was calling into the phone.

"Lee, I can’t." she croaked, her voice cracking.

"Do you want me to tell her?" Lee asked one more time.

"Lee?" Dotty asked, slightly confused. Still neither of them was actually talking to her.

Lee answered shaking his head at Amanda, disappointed that she wouldn’t tell her mother. "Hi, Dotty, how are you doing tonight."

She grabbed the phone from him. "Mother, it’s me."

"What? Is everything all right?" Dotty asked somewhat confused.

"Everything is fine, Mother. I’m at Lee’s, we just had, um, dessert. I’m a," she paused and Lee reached in towards the phone. Amanda gave him a dirty look. "Mother, I’m going to spend the night at, um, a… here tonight. I’ll be home in the morning, before work."

"Thanks for calling. Have a good night dear," Dotty said, smiling as she hung up the phone. Dotty thought to herself, It’s about time those two got out of the editing room!

"Satisfied?" Amanda asked, still somewhat irked at Lee.

"Definitely." Lee was grinning from ear to ear.

"You’re not going to change your mind about Iraq?" Amanda asked. She was worried that Dr. Smyth would pressure him into going over there.

He pulled her close to him and began kissing her intimately; the thought of having her to himself for the entire night excited him.

She pushed him away; her face showed apprehension. "Lee, answer me."

"Yes, sweetheart, I told you I wouldn’t go. Now relax; I want to savor every minute of this evening."

*** ***

The alarm went off early. Lee grumbled for a moment, then realizing Amanda was at his side he reached over for his wife, kissing her gently. "Time to turn back into Mrs. King."

"Already?" she protested as she cuddled up close to him.

"Afraid so. You need to go home and change and I have to get to the office. I need to do some damage control," he said as he caressed her.

"Sounds like a good idea."

"Amanda?"

"Yeah?" she answered as she got out of bed.

"It meant a lot to me. I mean last night, telling your mother. I know that wasn’t easy for you," he said as he got up and met her across the room. Holding her close to him. "Sometimes I feel like this marriage is a figment of my imagination. I just need to hold you, to wake up with you beside me…"

She cuddled against him. "Tell me someday we’ll stop this crazy game and just tell the world we're married. I mean Mother, the boys, the Agency, even Dr. Smyth."

"Someday, I promise." He kissed and let her go.

*** ***

Amanda arrived in the Q bureau and was surprised that Lee wasn’t there. She went down to the bullpen expecting him to be in Billy’s office, but neither of them was there either. She bumped into Francine as she headed back into the hallway.

"Have you seen Lee this morning?" she asked somewhat concerned.

Francine looked at her with wide eyes, "No, but he’s down in the interrogation room."

Amanda looked puzzled. "Who’s he interrogating? There’s nothing on my schedule."

"I guess you haven’t heard then?" Francine smirked, pleased that Amanda was left out of the loop.

Amanda shrugged and waited for an explanation. "Francine, are you going to tell me or what?"

"Internal Affairs grabbed Lee the minute he walked in this morning. Dr. Smyth is missing, disappeared last night. At the moment, he's their number one suspect."

"What? Oh my gosh!" she exclaimed as she ran to the elevator and pushed the button frantically. When she got off the elevator she rushed down the hall. She opened up the door and Billy was in the outer room listening to Lee via the plate glass/mirror.

"Amanda, you’re not supposed to be in here; this is confidential," he said as he turned the microphone off.

"Billy, you can’t seriously believe that Lee had anything to do with Dr. Smyth’s disappearance?"

"I’m here because Lee is my agent. And no, I don’t think he had anything to do with it. But considering half the Agency witnessed their little altercation yesterday in the bullpen; he certainly had a motive."

Amanda bit her lip. She could see from the window that Lee was more than agitated. He was yelling at Scagwell, the Internal Affairs section chief. "What’s going on?" she asked again. Billy hesitated to put the mike back on. "Billy, please, I’m his partner."

"They just got him wired up; they really hadn’t started." He turned it back on.

Scagwell asked Lee. "Where were you last night?"

"Out," he shrugged. "Why do you want to know?"

"I’ll ask the questions around here. Now the record shows you left the agency at 4:42 p.m. Is that correct?"

Lee was being evasive. "You should know, Mrs. Marsten never lies. Sounds about right."

"So where did you go when you left here?"

"Out for a few drinks."

"And later?"

"Home. Why?"

Scagwell was getting aggravated. "Stetson, just answer the questions. Were you home all night?"

"No, I went out for dinner?"

"Were you alone?"

"No, there were other people in the restaurant," Lee answered smugly, becoming increasingly annoyed.

"Stetson, now I know why Dr. Smyth finds you so irritating," Scagwell yelled.

"Hey, all I want to know is why I’m being questioned. I do have a right to know," Lee yelled right back.

"Billy, he doesn’t know!" Amanda asserted with concern.

Billy’s face was beginning to show concern; it appeared that he didn’t know why he was being questioned. "Scagwell must have told him. It’s procedure."

"He doesn’t look like he has a clue," Amanda worried.

"Scagwell, when you decide to let me in on this little secret of yours, I will be glad to answer your questions." Lee started pulling off the wires. "Until then, you can’t question me; I know my rights."

He got up, threw the wires on the table and walked out. He was surprised to see Billy and Amanda in the waiting room. Shaking his head in frustration he asked. "Billy, what the hell is going on?"

"You don’t know?" Billy asked with surprise.

"No, but I wish somebody would explain. I’ll be in the Q bureau if someone would like to enlighten me," Lee snarled and then stormed out of the room.

Amanda looked at Billy briefly then headed after Lee. "Lee wait," she shouted but the elevator doors were already closing.

When she arrived in the Q bureau Lee was looking out the window. "Are you OK?" she asked softly.

"Oh, sure. I get to the office this morning, get strong-armed by two Internal Affairs guys and get asked a lot of personal questions about how I spent my evening." Lee’s voice was strained, still in the dark about Dr. Smyth’s disappearing act. "I think Dr. Smyth is having me followed, but I don’t remember seeing a tail. He’s fishing for something; we might need to tell Billy about ‘us’ sooner than we thought."

"Lee, that’s not the reason they were questioning you. Dr. Smyth is missing. You’re the prime suspect."

"What?" He looked at her, tilting his head with a serious look. "That’s not funny."

"I wouldn’t joke about that. When I got here this morning and couldn’t find you, I went to see Billy. He wasn’t in his office either. I bumped into Francine; she told me."

"Oh great, that’s just great." Lee slammed his fist into the filing cabinets. "That SOB probably had himself kidnapped just to pin it on me. When was all this supposed to have happened?"

"Lee, calm down. You have an alibi. I spent the night with you, remember? We just have to tell Billy the truth - the whole truth." Amanda cornered him in the room and turned him around. "It’s going to be fine."

Billy entered the Q bureau. Lee was still ranting. "Lee, calm down. I need to talk to you, alone."

"Amanda’s already told me what’s going on Billy. She doesn’t have to leave. I have nothing to hide."

"Lee, I said alone; I meant it. Be in my office in five minutes. I’m going to need a stenographer. I need to know your whereabouts since you left here last night."

"Damn it, Billy, I didn’t have anything to do with Dr. Smyth’s disappearance. You really don’t think I’m going to ruin my career over that, that…bastard?"

"So then it will be a very short meeting. Just be in my office in five minutes," Billy answered curtly, then turned and left.

He kicked the filing cabinet. "Damn."

Amanda returned to his side. "Lee just tell him the truth. Tell him everything; it’s better coming from you than Internal Affairs digging it up. They’re going to find out about the marriage anyway; it’s just a matter of time."

END PART 2
 
 
 
 
 
 

Part 3

A few minutes later, Lee settled down in Billy’s office. The stenographer was ready and waiting. Billy began his questioning.

"Lee, where did you go when you left here yesterday?" Billy asked.

"I went to Nedlinger’s with Amanda for a few drinks. We got there just before five. We stayed there until almost six; then I dropped her back at her car. The parking attendant can confirm it."

"So where did you go then?"

"I went home to my apartment. Amanda called me to see how I was. She knew I was still upset. I asked her to dinner. I left my apartment just before seven and went to Emelio’s. She wasn’t there yet; she was waiting for Joe to pick up the boys. So I sat at the bar and waited for her. Norman the bartender can verify that." Lee continued on about their evening.

"So when did you leave the restaurant and where did you go?"

Lee shook his head running his hand nervously through his hair. "I’m not sure; I really wasn’t paying attention to the time. I didn’t know I needed to. I guess it was around ten. We went back to my place. My doorman could tell you." The frustration growing in his voice and the strain apparent in his face.

"Amanda came back to your place?" Billy asked, not liking where this was going.

Lee looked and sounded a little uncomfortable. "Yes, Amanda came back to my apartment."

Billy continued on. "So what did you do when you got back there."

Lee got up from the chair and gritted his teeth. "Billy, what do you mean, what did we do?"

"Did you have coffee, dessert or another drink? When did she leave? Did you walk her out? Come on, Lee; I need some details. You know the routine." Billy’s temper was swelling.

"She didn’t leave, OK? She spent the night. She left this morning about six." Lee finally admitted, not looking over at Billy. He knew at this point there was no turning back. He would have to tell Billy everything.

Billy groaned loudly. "Did anybody see the two of you once you got back to your place last night?" Billy asked, knowing that Internal Affairs would have a field day with an agent having an affair with his partner and now giving him an alibi. It was all too convenient.

"Billy, think about it. Amanda is a beautiful woman and I'm a healthy man; what do you think? Do I really have to spell it out for you? Do you want the ‘intimate details’?" Lee was yelling now. He knew this wasn’t going to be easy, but he knew how uncomfortable Amanda would be discussing their private life in front of Billy and even worse, Internal Affairs.

Billy tried to calm him down. "OK, Scarecrow, so technically you have an alibi up to around ten when you left the restaurant, or a little after when you got back to your apartment."

"What do you mean technically? Amanda spent the night with me, at my apartment. She can corroborate everything I just told you," he yelled in frustration.

Billy started pacing behind his desk. Finally looking over at the stenographer. "Judith, can you please give us a few minutes - alone." Judith nodded dutifully, got up and quietly exited Billy’s office.

Billy waited for the door to close. "Damn it, Lee. Amanda isn’t like the ‘other women’ you've bedded down over the years. Internal affairs is going to have a field day with the two of you and you know it. She’s your partner and your lover; of course she’s going to give you an alibi." Billy raged louder as each word escaped from his mouth.

Lee felt like a cornered cat. "I know she’s not like the other women I’ve slept with over the years. This isn’t just a physical relationship; it’s different with Amanda. You know that." Lee was trying to defend Amanda, but Billy was right; Internal Affairs would do their best and twist it all around.

"What I know at this moment really doesn’t matter now does it? Scagwell and Internal Affairs are going to rake you both over the coals on this thing. Lee you’re a hell of an agent and Amanda has great instincts, but couldn’t you keep her out of your bedroom? Do you realize this could cost you both your careers? For once I wished you had been a responsible adult. When are you going to grow up?" Billy pounded his fist on his desk; he was red in the face, his cheeks were puffing mad.

Lee closed his eyes; he understood where Billy was coming from. God knows his reputation would be hard to live down. There was no doubt that he had to tell him everything, but this wasn’t exactly the way he had planned for him to find out.

They sat in an uncomfortable silence for what seemed like an eternity before Lee finally spoke up. "Billy, from your side of the desk this looks pretty bad; I know. But my relationship with Amanda is not what it looks like. I’m not having an affair with Amanda; she’s my wife."

Billy plopped down in his chair; this was about all he could take. He just looked at Lee for a few seconds, as if he was trying to digest what he thought he just heard. "You’re married? When did that happen?"

"A few months ago."

Billy looked at Lee, still not sure he was on the level. "This is for real; you have proof?"

"Would a marriage license and wedding bands do?"

"It would be a good start. Why the big secret, why didn’t you tell me?" Billy asked still in shock.

"We weren’t really sure how ‘The Agency’ would deal with us as a married couple. You would probably want to split us up. It’s not exactly a family oriented business environment." Lee answered candidly.

"Well at the moment, that’s the least of your troubles." Billy buzzed Francine’s desk. "Get Amanda in here, NOW!" He bellowed.

"Not a problem, she’s sitting right here," Francine volunteered.

"Scarecrow, get out, but don’t leave the bullpen." Billy warned, "This is far from being over."

Lee got up as Amanda opened the door. He gave her a quick hug for moral support.

"You told him?" she asked. He nodded. "Are you OK?" she whispered quietly.

"I’m fine. Confession cleanses the soul," he whispered confidently.

"Excuse me," Billy interrupted. "Do you mind? Scarecrow get out, but don’t go far. Get Judith back in here. Amanda sit down." Billy was barking these orders; his patience was wearing thin. It had been a trying day already and it wasn’t even ten yet. Too many surprises.

"Yes, sir," Amanda replied as she sat down.

Billy waited for the stenographer to get seated before he started his questioning.

"Amanda, I need to hear from you, where you were last night. Start with when you left the office. Where did you go?"

"Yes, sir. Lee and I left and went to Nedlinger’s for a few drinks. He was pretty upset. We got there about five and had a couple of drinks. I needed to get home; Joe was picking up the boys at seven. Lee dropped me off at my car at just after six."

"So when did you meet back with him?"

"I called him when I got home, it was around 6:30 p.m. We made arrangements for dinner. Joe was running late though so I didn’t get to Emelio’s until 7:30. He was waiting at the bar for me. We had a drink at the bar, and then ate a quiet dinner."

"So what time did you leave Emelio’s?"

"It was about ten. Lee had walked over to Emelio’s earlier, so we took my car back to his apartment. The doorman saw us."

"And you stayed the night?"

"Well, I hadn’t planned on it, but the boys were with Joe. So I called my mother and told her I was spending the night. Lee set the alarm for five. I took a shower and was home just after six."

"You called your mother from Lee’s apartment?" Amanda nodded. "Lee didn’t mention that." Billy added somewhat intrigued.

Amanda shrugged. "He’s the one who dialed the phone."

"Who did your mother talk to, you or Lee?" Billy asked knowing that would give their late night alibi some credibility.

"Both of us, briefly."

"What do you mean briefly?" Billy questioned.

"Lee dialed the phone, he talked to her for a few seconds before I picked up the phone."

"What time was that?"

"I guess it was just after eleven."

Billy buzzed Francine again. "Get in here, bring Lee."

As Francine and Lee came back into Billy’s office, Billy was excusing Judith. "I’ll need at least six copies of that by noon today, Judith." She nodded and left the office.

Lee sat down next to Amanda. He put his arm tenderly across her shoulders. Amanda leaned into him a little, sighing ever so quietly; she was relieved that the truth was finally out. Francine was still in the dark and just gave them an odd look as she sat down in the chair nearby.

"Francine, I need you to verify both of their alibis. You are going to need phone records for both Lee and Amanda’s house for yesterday. Statements from the bartender and waiter at Emelio’s, and statements from Lee’s doorman. I don’t want any mistakes; there is too much riding on this. Oh, and one last thing, you are going to need to interview Mrs. West. I need to hear from her mouth, that at eleven o’clock last night she talked to both Lee and Amanda by phone."

Amanda looked at Billy with alarm, shaking her head. "Billy, my mother doesn’t know we’re married."

"Oh, Francine, you need to be discreet when talking to Mrs. West." Billy smiled at Amanda and looked over at Francine.

"Married? What? Tell me you’re kidding!" Francine looked around the room like it was spinning.

"Let me be the first to introduce you to our newlyweds, Mr. & Mrs. Stetson." Billy said cynically, giving Lee an aggravated look.

"When did this all happen?" she asked not believing it was true.

"A few months ago," Lee mumbled, tired of the questioning.

"I don’t believe it. The playboy of the year marries the happy home maker," Francine wisecracked.

"Francine, save your comments for later. You better get to it." Billy suggested "I want that done by one o’clock this afternoon." He added.

"Billy, that’s impossible!" she shouted, not believing his request.

Billy’s composure was waning. "Francine, I have to deliver Mr. & Mrs. Stetson back downstairs to Internal Affairs by one today. I want the proof in hand that Lee had nothing to do with Dr. Smyth’s disappearance. So instead of complaining, I suggest you get to it. You have three hours."

Lee and Amanda just smiled at her weakly. Billy was asking a lot, but neither of them was looking forward to spending the night in an agency holding cell.

"Oh brother," Francine snorted as she huffed out of Billy’s office.

Lee and Amanda started to get up.

"Sit down you two. I’m not done with you yet. You’re not getting off that easily!" Billy bellowed and they sat back down. Both of them were looking somewhat uncomfortable. Billy started his lecture. "These alibi’s better check out or you will both be on suspension until you are brought up on charges. Understood?"

Amanda only nodded, Lee confidently replied. "We’re not lying to you. It’s the truth; it will check out."

"So, tell me now, before I go to Scagwell with your depositions, any more surprises in store for me?" he asked looking first at Lee, then at Amanda. He waited but neither of them spoke up. "I mean it. If there is anything else you’re hiding I want to know now before Scagwell gets a hold of you."

"We aren’t hiding anything, damn it. For god sakes, Billy, our only crime is we fell in love and got married," Lee snarled, he was getting angry.

Billy paused, he hated to ask, but he needed to know. "You’re not expecting are you?" he asked looking directly at Amanda.

She looked at him with a shocked look; her face turning a bright red at what he was suggesting. "NO!"

"I didn’t marry Amanda because I had to. I married her because I wanted to," Lee yelled again.

"Calm down, Scarecrow. I’m not asking you anything Scagwell won’t. If Francine gets your alibi’s checked out, you will be cleared of suspicion, but your mouthing off at Dr. Smyth has got you in a lot of trouble. The way I see it is you have a couple of options. Dr. Smyth wants a formal apology from you."

Lee stood up, and shouted. "When hell freezes over. Billy, I tried to walk away yesterday; he grabbed me."

Billy gritted his teeth. "Sit down, Lee. I don’t want to hear it," Billy yelled. "These are your choices and I’m sure you won’t like any of them. You can either write a formal letter of apology to him and hand deliver it to him when we find him, or you can tender your resignation, or lastly, you can investigate his disappearance and find him."

"And if I don’t find him, I guess I don’t need to write the letter?" Lee looked at Billy smugly.

"Stetson, I’m not warning you again."

"I’m starting to like the suspension better," Lee groaned.

Amanda stared at him. "Lee, don’t be ridiculous."

"I think you better listen to your wife. She’s got more sense than you." Billy tried to stifle a laugh.

"Great, this day really stinks. Is that all?"

"I want you both back here, in my office by 12:30pm. You’re not to leave the building until you’re cleared by Internal Affairs. Is that understood?" Billy warned, watching both Lee and Amanda nod in agreement. "In the mean time, I suggest you come up with a strategy for finding Dr. Smyth, because it’s been almost twelve hours since he was last seen, and we have yet to find a body or receive a ransom note."

"Maybe they just realized nobody wants him back," Lee mouthed back, as he headed towards the door.

Billy just looked up at the ceiling, closing his eyes, not commenting on his last remark. "You two continue to keep your personal and professional life's separated and I won’t split you up. Now get out of my office."

Amanda and Lee quickly left and headed back to the Q bureau.

End Part 3

** ****

Part 4

Lee and Amanda were back in Billy’s office. They had just been cleared by Internal Affairs. Francine had outdone herself. She had confirmed Lee and Amanda’s whereabouts for the previous evening beyond any doubt, without even arousing suspicion from Mrs. West. Everything checked out, almost to the minute. Internal Affairs reluctantly agreed that they could not have been involved. So Scagwell gave Billy the file on what he knew about Dr. Smyth’s disappearance.

"OK, here’s what we have and it’s not much." Billy started on the time line. "He sat down to dinner alone just after 7 PM and finished by 8 PM. Was last seen on his patio at 8:30 PM. When the butler went to find him at 10 PM for a phone call he was no where to be seen!"

"Ten PM!" Lee blasted. "You put me and Amanda through hell and we only needed to prove our whereabouts until ten."

"Lee, relax, what’s done is done." Amanda tried to diffuse the situation. "It’s better that it’s out."

"Can we get back to business? We still have no clues and a long list of suspects to go through." Billy was anxious, he still had to find Dr. Smyth and Lee was his best hope.

Lee was still hot. "Well personally I don’t have a clue as to who wouldn’t be on the list of suspects. It’s not as if he was liked by anyone."

"I suggest you start by talking with his staff. See what he’s been doing in his evenings and with whom. Internal affairs already went through his office, other than your name on his desk, it’s clean."

"I can hardly wait," Lee complained.

"Scarecrow!" Billy shouted. "I have had enough of your moaning and groaning. Now you can either accept this assignment like a professional or you can hand me your resignation. But I don’t want to hear another word about your personal feelings. Like it or not it’s your job to find him and the sooner the better."

Amanda shot Lee a look, he grimaced, knowing he’d been pushing the envelope.

"What’s the address?"

They arrived at Dr. Smyth’s house late in the afternoon. "I’m impressed!" Amanda commented as they walked up the steep front steps to the sprawling estate, it was set on several acres and it overlooked the Potomac River. "Maybe he’s playing footsie with the Russians?"

Lee laughed, "Ah, let me enlighten you. Mrs. Smyth came from a very wealthy family. Dr. Smyth married very well."

"Mrs. Smyth? I didn’t know he was married. So why then was he dining alone last night?"

"Mrs. Smyth left him years ago for some Swiss playboy she met on the French Riviera. He got this house and from what I hear, a hefty expense account to run it; she got everything else."

"Oh that’s so sad. Maybe that’s why he’s so bitter?" Amanda said sympathetically.

"Amanda!" Lee couldn’t believe her sometimes. "That was years ago; that's no excuse for the way he behaves and treats people now."

"I guess you’re right," she conceded as Lee knocked on the door.

A tall, well-groomed man with a large build answered the door, he was probably in his late fifties. Lee surmised he was the butler. "May I help you?"

Lee and Amanda flashed their badges. "Lee Stetson, Amanda King from ‘The Agency’. We’re here to investigate Dr. Smyth’s disappearance. Can we come in?"

"Oh yes, please do come in. I’m very troubled about this whole incident," the butler stated as he escorted them in.

They walked into the foyer of Dr. Smyth’s house. It was just as impressive from the inside as it was from the outside. The atrium was large, with a grand staircase leading to the second floor, and an antique chandelier hanging above. Amanda was gawking about and stumbled on the steps as they entered.

"Amanda!" Lee warned rolling his eyes.

"Sorry. This house is just so lovely. It must be well over one hundred years old," she commented to the butler with her eyes darting about.

"Actually the main house was completed in 1850," the butler boasted, very pleased that Amanda commented on the house.

Lee was getting annoyed at the small talk. He didn’t want this assignment; he didn’t want to be here and he certainly didn’t want to be chatting with Dr. Smyth’s butler about architecture. "I assume you’re the butler?"

"Very good, sir!" the butler answered very formally. "Horace Applegate at your service."

"Yeah, pleased to meet you." Lee was being curt. "How large is the staff here; who was here last night, and who discovered that he was missing?"

"Well, last night it was just me and the cook. The housekeeper is only here during the day, as is the groundskeeper. The cook and I reside here permanently in the back wing." The butler explained. "I took a phone call just about ten last night. When I went out on the back patio where he had been smoking a cigar he was gone. His cigar was still burning. I looked all through the house, but he was no where to be seen."

"And nobody heard anything?" Lee asked wearily.

"No, unfortunately, I was on the other side of the house," Horace explained.

"What about the cook?" Amanda asked.

"Mrs. Calabrese? She was probably still in the kitchen."

"Is she here now?"

"Yes, of course. Please follow me." Horace led them through the house to the large kitchen, which was in the back of the house.

"Mrs. Calabrese, these good people are here to talk to you about Dr. Smyth’s disappearance.

She was a small, but plump woman, probably in her early sixties. Despite her size, she moved swiftly within her kitchen and quickly came over and greeted Lee and Amanda. "Nice to meet you. We’re so worried about him. Oh, where are my manners, can I get you something to eat? "

"No, thank you," Amanda answered politely.

"Do you have any idea what happened to him yet?" she asked with genuine concern in her voice.

"No Mrs. Calabrese, I’m sorry we don’t have much to go on. What can you tell us about last night?" Amanda asked.

"What can I tell you?" she shrugged, throwing her hands up in the air. "I was in the kitchen, you know cooking, cleaning."

"You were in the kitchen until ten last night?" Lee asked skeptically.

"Of course. I was marinating the roast for tonight’s dinner; we were expecting company."

"Who were you expecting?" Lee asked her.

She shrugged her shoulders, "Me, I don’t pry. Just nice to cook for more than one, he usually eats dinner alone. He told me that dinner would be for two this evening."

Lee and Amanda looked at each other with interest, perhaps a lead at last.

"When was the last time you saw him?" Lee asked.

"I finished serving him dinner at 7:30. After dinner he got up and went on the patio for a smoke, nasty habit, but…" she again gestured with her hands. "He says they relax him. That was just after eight last night. I finished clearing the table just after that, haven’t seen him since." Tears welled up in her eyes.

"Thank you, Mrs. Calabrese. If you think of anything else, please give us a call." Amanda added.

Amanda and Lee headed out of the kitchen. "I suppose you’d love to search the house." Lee said watching Amanda as she admired the house.

"Well, it certainly wouldn’t hurt any," she shrugged, smiling at him defiantly.

"Go on. I know you’re dying to see the rest of it. Maybe you can make the five o’clock tour," he said shaking his head. "I’m going to have a chat with old ‘Horace’ and see what else he might know."

Amanda grinned. "I’ll catch up with you in a few…"

"Hours." Lee mumbled under his breath as he turned and started to look for the butler.

On the drive back to the Agency, Amanda was telling Lee how beautiful the house was. "That house was gorgeous, the craftsmanship, the tapestries, that staircase. They don’t make houses like that anymore. You wouldn’t believe the view from the upstairs, the view of the river was breathtaking."

"You were supposed to be looking for some clues, not sightseeing the house," Lee snickered.

Amanda gave him an aggravated glance. "I did. But the butler keeps a pretty tight ship. I looked in his study, but his desk was locked, everything else was neat as a pin. Fred Forrester’s name showed up on his blotter and on his day planner. He met with him a few times in the last week."

"Fred Forrester? From accounting?"

"That would be my guess. I’ll talk to him tomorrow. How about you? Come up with anything from Horace?" Amanda answered.

"Not much. Mrs. Smyth originally hired him. He stayed on after she left, been there for over twenty years. The cook has been there for the past five years. The rest of the staff has dwindled down over the years. He doesn’t entertain much and he didn’t know who was supposed to come to dinner tonight. Dr. Smyth goes out on Friday night to the O’Ryan Club; that gives the staff the day off. Not a whole lot to go on."

"What a pity; with that beautiful house, the yard and gardens, looked like a carriage house out back, you would think he would want to show it off."

"With those grounds, anyone could have driven up and snatched him last night. I can’t believe he doesn’t have any type of security system. We’ll have to go back in daylight and check out the grounds."

"Good, I meant to ask Horace who was on the phone last night when he couldn’t find him."

"I got it covered," Lee said and quietly looked away.

She waited for him to tell her, but he didn’t come forth with the information. "So, who was on the phone?"

"Don’t worry, I’ll check it out," he said reaching out for her hand, giving it a kiss and winking at her.

"Lee, who was it?" she argued a little irritated at him.

Lee tensed up, not wanting to share the information.

"Lee?" Amanda insisted.

"Elisa Danton."

She pulled her hand away from him and turned and looked out the side window of the car.

"Now that’s why I didn’t want to tell you. I knew how you would react," he argued hopelessly.

"I only reacted like this because you didn’t tell me."

"I can’t win. I tell you, you're going to be upset. If I don’t tell you and you find out, you’re furious with me. Amanda, she is part of my past, I can’t change that. You are my present and future. You don’t have anything to worry about."

"It’s not me you have to convince, it’s Elisa. I remember from the last time that she crossed our paths. She doesn’t comprehend the word NO!"

"Do you trust me?"

"Of course I do."

"Then let it go."
 
 

End Part 4

*** *** ***
 

Dr. Smyth Part 5
 
 

Back at the Agency, Billy was frustrated by the lack of answers. "So basically, we still don’t have anything to go on."

"Not much," Lee sighed wearily. "Billy, could it be possible that he hasn’t been kidnapped. We still don’t have a note. Maybe we need to consider other scenarios that he left with someone willingly or…"

Billy cut him short. "Let’s not even go there yet. Go over those grounds first thing in the morning and see what if anything the police overlooked. I’m answering directly to the President on this one and I can’t go there empty-handed. Go see Elisa and then have a talk with Fred in the morning. See if either of them can shed any light on the situation,. I want some answers. "

Both Lee and Amanda groaned. "Do you have a problem?" Billy countered sharply.

"No, no problem." They chimed in unison.

"Great. Lee, my guess is you can probably catch Elisa at the O’Ryan club," Billy suggested.

"Yeah, that was my thought too," Lee muttered unenthusiastically.

"Well, Scarecrow, I suggest you get your dancing shoes on."

They left Billy’s office in silence and made their way up to the Q bureau. As Billy said earlier in the day, if their personal relationship didn’t affect their professional one, he wouldn’t split them up.

"It’s business," Lee finally said breaking the silence.

"I know." A very melancholy Amanda replied.

"Why don’t you wait for me at my apartment."

"No, I’ll just go home."

"Don’t be like this."

"I don’t have to like this," she whispered honestly.

"It’s not my choice either," he reminded her.

"I’ll see you tomorrow," Amanda said as she grabbed her purse and headed towards the door.

"Hey, don’t I even get a kiss goodbye?" Lee called out in a hurt voice.

She stopped and almost mechanically gave him a peck on his cheek, and turned to leave.

Lee reached out to her in concern. "Amanda are you OK with this?"

"No, but what choice do I have?" She refused to hide her feelings. She left the office in disgust mumbling, I’m thrilled that my husband is dating another woman.

Lee arrived at the O’Ryan club later that evening. He knew Amanda was upset; he understood. He didn’t want to be here. It wasn’t more than five minutes before Elisa latched onto Lee’s arm.

"Lee, darling! How wonderful to see you," she gushed, kissing him on his cheek.

"Elisa, what a surprise," he said politely, but with a definite lack of enthusiasm.

"I haven’t seen you in ages. Where have you been hiding?" she asked, holding him tightly.

"You look well, Elisa," Lee answered, pulling away.

"You look very tense, let’s get you a drink," Elisa headed towards the bar with him.

"Great idea," Lee answered, so far that was the best idea of the evening.

Lee chatted with Elisa at the bar for what seemed like an eternity. Then came the obligatory dance or two. She finally dragged him out to the balcony to enjoy the cool spring air. The drinks were helping him relax.

Elisa turned to him. "Lee, it’s been far too long." She pinned him against the ivy covered balcony wall and began a flurry of kisses.

"Elisa, stop," Lee grumbled uncomfortably, trying to push her away.

"Lee, I didn’t bring you out here to chat," she admitted, smiling seductively, "We need to make up for some lost time. Or would you prefer to go back to that cozy little place you call home?" she asked very suggestively, nibbling at his neck as her fingers danced on his face and chest.

"Elisa, ah…" He didn’t know where to begin.

"Lee, don’t tell me you came here to see someone else tonight. You’ve had eyes for no one else." She continued to kiss him.

"Elisa, I did come to see you, but not for that reason…" and Lee began to explain to Elisa about Dr. Smyth’s disappearance.

Lee finally got home in the early hours of the morning. His chat with Elisa was rather non-productive. He had hoped to find Amanda at his apartment. He hadn’t liked the way they’d parted earlier. He sat down on his couch alone, but he ached to talk to her. He sat there for a few minutes restlessly, but his frustration grew. He finally got up, grabbed his car keys and headed to Amanda’s.

He let himself in with the key Amanda had given him. He tiptoed up the stairs, and quietly opened her bedroom door. She was sitting up in her bed in the dark.

"Sneaking in kind of late aren’t you?" she whispered quietly as she put the light on.

"I’m glad you’re awake," he whispered.

"I thought I heard your car come up. I’ve tried, but I can’t sleep," she answered quietly.

"I was hoping you’d be at my place when I got home," he confessed.

"I told you I’d be here."

"I know," he said dejectedly as he sat down on the bed next to her. "I just wasn’t comfortable with how we left things earlier."

"I’m sorry, I’m getting tired of this game. I’m tired of whether we’re spending the night at your place or mine, or more likely alone. I’m tired of sneaking around my mother, and the boys and I’m tired of the Agency sending you out on assignments because you’re the most eligible bachelor," she stated bitterly.

He reached out for her, pulling her close to him. "I’m sorry too." He said kissing her delicately. "I think it’s time we tell everyone the truth: the boys, your mother, even Dr. Smyth. No more nights with Elisa Danton or anyone else. If I go out, it’s with you by my side or not at all."

She looked up at him hopefully, wanting to believe him. "Are you serious?"

"Amanda we can tell your mother tomorrow morning and the boys as soon as they’re back if you want. All I could think of tonight was you."

"I can tell what Elisa was thinking," Amanda countered softly, noticing the lipstick on his collar.

"Amanda, I can explain…" Lee started.

"No, you don’t have to," she said in an understanding voice. "But you can make it up to me." She said as she pulled him down onto her, playfully rolling on the bed.

"Amanda, your mother!" Lee protested.

"I thought we were going to tell Mother in the morning. As you told me just the other night, my mother knows we’re sleeping together, so what’s the difference if we spend the night here in my house or in your apartment?" she countered, her eyes twinkling.

He stood up and quietly pushed the door closed. "There’s no turning back if I spend the night," he warned.

"Exactly my thought," Amanda grinned as she turned off the light.

End Part 5

***

Dr. Smyth Part 6

The phone rang early. Amanda answered it, still half-asleep, Lee lay sleeping next to her. Billy was on the phone. Despite their discussion the night before, a talk with Dotty would have to wait for another time. A ransom note had finally arrived at the Agency. She woke Lee and they hurried to the office.

"So what do we have?" Lee asked as he and Amanda rushed into Billy’s office.

"Here’s a copy of the ransom note, it was sent with one of his rare cigars. The original note and the cigar are making the usual rounds. Nothing conclusive yet." Billy said as he handed it to Lee.

Lee and Amanda looked at it. It still wasn’t much to go on, but at least now they knew he was kidnapped. The note read: ‘We want $250,000 in unmarked bills. You have until Friday noon. Be at the Potomac Hills Mall parking lot. Or we trade him to the highest bidder.’

"I tell you he’s not worth it," Lee remarked as he handed the note back to Billy.

"Scarecrow! I’m not in the mood." Billy snapped.

"Hey, I’m just saying that everyone’s expendable."

"Scarecrow, I said that’s enough." Billy was barking at him now.

"Surprised that they aren’t asking for more," Amanda commented almost to herself, but Billy and Lee both heard her.

"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing; that’s pocket change to the Iraqi’s, the Chinese, even the Russians. Doesn’t sound like your typical greedy terrorist group." Billy agreed.

"This seems kind of odd, that it took so long to get the ransom note, not really asking for a lot of money. Are we sure it’s not a fake, where did they find the note?" Amanda asked feeling something wasn’t right.

"Left in front of the door at the IFF entrance early this morning. All the security camera got was a man’s back in an old beat up coat; looks like one of the local street people."

"Yeah, but how many homeless people do you know who carry around expensive cigars?" Lee reminded them.

Billy was nervously pacing his office, his frustration growing. "OK, we've got to believe it is real until we can prove otherwise. What did you find out last night from Elisa?"

"Not much. She just got back into town; she was returning his call. She hasn’t seen him in weeks, hasn’t been out to the house since Christmas."

"Great, so we aren’t any better off than we were yesterday. Damn! Well you better check out those grounds again, see if the police missed something, anything. Talk to Fred; it’s a long shot, but maybe he has something that we can use. I can’t go to the President empty handed."

"So who’s putting up the ransom money? Or are we sticking to our hard line that we don’t deal with kidnappers or terrorists?" Lee asked.

"Good question, but it’s not my call. So I suggest you find him by Friday noon."

"Great, no pressure there, that gives us less than 30 hours to find him," Lee grumbled.

"So you better get moving now," Billy answered as he opened his office door.
 
 

When they arrived back at Dr. Smyth’s house, Horace met them at the door. "How can I help you today, sir?" he asked Lee.

"We just want to look around, check out the grounds. Is the groundskeeper here?"

"No, sir, I’m sorry; he’s off this week, on vacation. Is there something you need?" Horace asked.

"We’ll let you know if there is," Lee answered him curtly.

They spent quite some time looking around the estate. The gardens were in full bloom, and were well cared for. There was a modern three car garage on the side of the driveway. The carriage house was in the back and overlooked the river. Amanda and Lee walked down and looked inside. It was unlocked, it had been converted into a work shed and held a variety of gardening equipment and lawn mowers for the vast estate. Amanda went back outside and looked down at the river. The grounds began to slope steeply just a few feet from the back wall of the carriage house.

Lee caught up to her a few minutes later. "I hope you have some bright ideas, because I’m running out of anything other than our link with Fred. And that stinks at best."

"Did anybody think to drag the river? Maybe he took a walk down and drowned?"

"Not likely, his body would have washed up by now. It’s been two days."

"Yeah, you're right. It was a stupid idea," Amanda conceded.

"No, it wasn’t stupid, and at this point any idea is better than what we have," Lee replied as he reached around her slender waist, helping her up the steep slope.

"I wish I had some other ideas. But other than a feeling that we’re missing something, I just can’t put my finger on it."

They made the short walk back up to the patio where Dr. Smyth was last seen. Nothing had been disturbed the night he was kidnapped, almost as if he had just vanished. "I just don’t get it. How could someone have gotten all the way back here without Dr. Smyth seeing them coming?"

"It was dark, probably never saw them coming." Amanda reminded him.

"Yeah, but these gardens are pretty extensive. Walking though them at night in the dark would have been hard. If he hadn’t seen them, he would’ve heard them coming. And coming from the river in the dark would have been impossible, too steep, slippery and again he would’ve heard them coming."

"So he probably knew his kidnapper then, and wasn’t concerned when they came up?" Amanda suggested, finishing Lee’s sentence for him.

"That would be my best guess, and at this point that’s all we have. Somehow I don’t think Fred Forrester is our kidnapper, but that still leaves us with no one and everyone as suspects. Well, let’s go back and see what Fred has to say," Lee reached out for Amanda’s hand

**

When they got back to the agency, Lee conveniently bumped into Fred. "Hey, Fred, how are things going in accounting these days?"

"You know, same old same old," Fred answered, heading back into his tiny office. "Is there something I can help you with?" Fred asked, somewhat uncomfortable.

"Well, now that you mention it, there is. I heard from the grapevine that Dr. Smyth has been visiting you a lot lately. Just wondering if my name came up at all?"

"Your name?" Fred repeated, somewhat surprised. "No, definitely not."

"So what exactly were you talking about?" Lee asked jokingly, not wanting to scare Fred, but he needed answers and he couldn’t waste much time coddling him.

"I don’t really recall," he shrugged.

"Listen, Fred, I really need some answers here, and I don’t have much time. You know me well enough to know I’m going to find out, so help me out here," Lee's voice was demanding but not yelling.

"There’s nothing to tell you."

"I’m supposed to believe that Dr. Smyth visited you three times in the last week just to say hi?" Lee was getting irritated.

"I really don’t recall the conversation, I’m quite busy down here you know," he scoffed, as he sat down behind his desk, almost ignoring Lee.

Lee grabbed him by the shirt collar and pulled him out of the chair he just sat down in. "Now listen, I don’t have time to play games. If you don’t tell me in the next ten seconds what he was doing down here, I’m taking you to Internal Affairs and let the wolves eat you alive," he threw him back in the chair and waited for his response.

"OK, OK. But I don’t see how this has anything to do with his disappearance. He was asking me questions about annuities, retirement plans, the penalties to take money out early, investment strategies. Stuff like that?"

"What? Why didn’t he go to personnel? You don’t handle that in this office do you?"

"No," Fred was shaking his head. "But I think he wanted to keep this quiet, he was really nervous and even threatened me. He said if I told anyone about our conversations, I would be back in payroll working on expense vouchers. I’ve seen your expense vouchers. This is a good job; I don’t want to lose it. My brother’s a broker, so I told him what I knew and told him to get back to me for the rest. That’s why he was here, I swear," he looked at Lee uncomfortably.

"That’s it?" Lee looked stunned; it didn’t make any sense.

"Well, he did invite me to his house for dinner. I guess that was his way of thanking me. But then he disappeared, so obviously I didn’t go."

"So you were the mystery diner."

"Mystery diner?" Fred questioned.

"Don’t worry about it. If you think of anything else, and I mean anything, let me know, got it?"

Fred was fixing his shirt and tie. "Yeah, I got it."

***

It was late afternoon, Lee and Amanda headed down to Billy’s office and updated him with the bad news.

"We don’t have much. I’m honestly stumped," Lee said disgustedly.

"Maybe he was having financial problems, maybe that’s why he was talking to Fred," Amanda suggested.

"It’s an angle we haven’t covered, wouldn’t hurt to check into his financials," Lee replied.

"If you could give me one shred of hard proof for me to give you the go ahead…" Billy started.

Lee interrupted. "I know, I know. Dr. Smyth would have your hide right after he fired mine."

"Go see what the street knows, check with your informants, somebody has to know something. We’re running out of time," Billy proposed.
 
 

Lee and Amanda headed back to the Q bureau. "So where do you want to start?"

"How about a nice home cooked dinner at your place?" Lee teased frustrated by the whole assignment.

Amanda glanced at her watch. "Oh my gosh! Joe’s going to be back at the house with the boys any minute now. Lee, I’ve got to go, I’ll catch up with you later."

"The boys are back already?" he asked with surprise.

"Yes, they were just going down to Williamsburg for a ‘Living History’ exhibition."

"Go home; spend some time with the boys. I can make the rounds and I’ll call you later." Lee answered somewhat disappointed that he would be alone.

"What about our discussion earlier this morning? Are we going to tell them or are we going to chicken out?" she asked him leaning against her desk.

"No, we are definitely going to tell them, but after we find Dr. Smyth. I’d like to do it when I’m calmer. One disaster at a time." The look on his face was that of apprehension.

"LEE! It’s not going to be a disaster. The boys care about you, and you know my mother will be thrilled. She’s going to kill me for keeping this a secret for so long." Amanda reminded him.

"I’m sorry. This case has really got me. I think I’d rather take the Iraq assignment."

She gave him a harsh look. "Don’t say things like that. We’re going to find him; we’re just overlooking something."

"I’ll call you later."

"What you don’t want to spend the night?" she kidded, as she gave him a tempting kiss.

Lee wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to him. "More than anything, but I think we should talk to the boys before they find me shacked up in your bedroom, don’t you?"

"Yeah, I know your right. But it has been nice the last couple of days waking up with you."

"That was the only nice thing of the last couple of days! Now get out of here before I lock the door and have my way with you here," he teased.

End Part 6

***

Dr. Smyth Part 7

The King household was quiet at last; the boys had finally gone to bed. The family room was cluttered with lots of pamphlets, brochures and other information on the ‘Living History’ fair. Amanda was reading through them when the phone finally rang. She picked up the phone; it was Lee.

"Hi," he said with a tired voice.

"Did you just get in? I was wondering if you were going to end up missing too. What did you come up with?" A concerned Amanda bantered at Lee, hardly giving him a chance to answer.

"Slow down, will ya. I hit just about every contact I have on the streets and nobody’s heard a thing. This town isn’t usually that good with secrets," Lee explained with a stunned voice.

"I can’t believe it. I thought since you hadn’t called, that you were following up on a lead."

"Nope! Besides, I wouldn’t work on anything without my partner, especially not on this case," he chuckled. "Everything there OK? How are the boys?"

"They’re fine; they had a great time. I just got them off to bed. So the coast is clear if you want to come on over," she suggested in a soft voice.

"Sounds very tempting, really, but I’m exhausted."

She sighed, but she could hear the exhaustion in his voice. "I’ll see you in the morning then. I love you."

"I love you too. Sleep well."

***

The next morning Amanda dragged the boys out of bed. They were still quite tired and moving slowly. As they finally entered the kitchen Amanda was packing their lunches. They slowly started their breakfasts and just minutes later the bus was honking outside the door. The boys grabbed their lunches and jackets as Amanda herded them out the door. Amanda closed the door, half-exhausted already and looked on the sofa and noticed Jamie’s books. She quickly grabbed them and ran out to the front porch, but the bus was already half way down the street.

As she closed the door she announced wearily. "I can’t believe it. Just what I need this morning, a detour to the school."

"What’s the matter?" Dotty asked her."Jamie forgot his books of all things, his report’s in it. Now I’ll have to stop at the school before work. I guess I better get moving. I had an early meeting this morning."

"Boys will be boys!" Dotty exclaimed throwing a dishtowel over her shoulder and heading back into the kitchen. "I’ll get the kitchen for you. Is Lee coming to dinner tonight?"

"Thanks, Mother," Amanda said gratefully. "If we get this project done today. We have a noon deadline and I’m not sure we’re going to make it. Otherwise, we’ll probably be working most of the night," Amanda answered in a worried voice.

"You always seem to make a deadline somehow," Dotty smiled.
 
 

Amanda headed to the school. She was walking into the main office when she actually looked at the books she was carrying. "The Underground Railroad!" she exclaimed. "That’s it!"

The secretary looked at her with an odd look. "What’s it?"

Amanda hadn't realized she had shouted so loudly and turned a bright red with embarrassment. "Oh, it was just a clue in the puzzle I was working on. You know how you finally figure out the last piece of the puzzle," she covered hastily.

The secretary smiled and nodded agreement. "So who forgot his books this time, Phillip or Jamie?"

"These are Jamie’s." she sighed. "We were all running late this morning. They had a wonderful time at the ‘Living History’ exhibit in Williamsburg, but didn’t get to bed until late."

"I’ll see that he gets them," she promised, taking the books from her and smiling. "Have a good day, Mrs. King."

"Thanks, Betty," She called out as she hurried out the door and headed to the office.

She could feel she was right. The house was of that era, pre Civil War. The carriage house would be a perfect hiding place to hide someone and nobody would notice it unless they knew it was there. They had looked around there, but they hadn’t gone over it inch by inch. There had to be a secret hiding place. That would answer a lot of questions.

She raced to the office. When she got there, Lee wasn’t in the Q bureau, so she headed down to the bullpen and Billy’s office. But they weren’t there either. She headed back up to the Q bureau dejectedly, wondering where they were. She looked around but there was no note. The phone finally rang.

"Q bureau," she answered grabbing the phone on the first ring.

"Amanda, it’s Francine." The phone was almost all static. "It’s about time you got to the office."

"Francine, where are Lee and Billy?" Amanda asked, ignoring Francine's sarcastic remark.

"We’re heading up to the Blue Ridge. We got a call this morning with a lead on Dr. Smyth. Someone thought they saw him there last night, staying at a cabin in the…" The rest of the message was unintelligible because of the static.

"I know where he is," Amanda yelled into the phone, hoping to get her message through.

"What? Amanda I can’t understand you. You’re breaking up, this phone connection is the worst."

"I said I know where Dr. Smyth is. I think I might even know..." Amanda was mid sentence when the phone connection was completely lost. She wasn’t sure how much they understood of her message if anything at all.

She glanced at her watch. It was well after nine. If she hadn’t been so late, she would’ve caught them. Suddenly she laughed, if it hadn’t been for Jamie forgetting his books, she’d be with them. She thumbed through her rolodex looking for Francine’s cell phone number. Once she found it, she dialed the number but got a recording that the caller was out of range. She dialed Billy’s next, hoping she would get a better connection. But it, too, was either turned off or the mountains were blocking the signal.

She paced the office, looking nervously at her watch, then out the window. She hoped they’d call her back, but if they didn’t understand her message, they wouldn’t turn around. She could be wrong too. If she was wrong, it could be costly to Dr. Smyth to drag them back on what could be a wild goose chase.

She sat down at her desk and wrote a note to Lee. She crumpled it up and threw it into the garbage. Still arguing with herself. ‘Amanda, follow your instincts, you know you’re right.You may be his only hope.’ She started another note to Lee, it read: ‘Lee, I think Dr. Smyth may be in a secret room under the carriage house. I tried to tell Francine on the phone. I’m heading there now. Meet me there. Amanda.’

After several more minutes arguing with herself, she left the note prominently on Lee’s desk and headed to Dr. Smyth’s estate.
 

End Part 7

***

Part 8

When she arrived at Dr. Smyth’s estate she took a deep breath before she headed out of her car. She knew the staff had off on Friday, so she went directly to the carriage house. She first walked its perimeter; the steep drop in the grade towards the back of the carriage house made her feel more certain. Somewhere under the foundation was an old hiding spot that was probably used a century ago to hide slaves in the underground railroad. But where and how to get into it? ‘Come on Amanda think!’ She coaxed herself, but looking around the outside she saw no observable entrance or exit, so she realized that it must be inside.

She quietly entered the carriage house, looking around at first cautiously and then calling out his name, hoping for some reply. There was no response. She poked around for some time, not knowing what exactly she was looking for. Suddenly she heard footsteps approaching the door. At first, she was going to call out to Lee, hoping it was him returning, but then she luckily decided to hide, just in case.

Horace stealthily entered the carriage house, with what appeared to be a small tray of food. He put it down on the workbench and went to the back corner and pushed the ride-on lawnmower out of the way. Amanda watched in silence as he reached down and lifted up a small door, one that he could barely fit through, and clicked on a light. He reached over and grabbed the tray and headed down into the hole.

Amanda watched in amazement; her suspicions were confirmed. It was Horace. She listened intently, but could barely make out their voices.

"Well this should be all over soon, sir. I will mail them your location before I leave. You should be free in a day or two, depending on the speed of your postal service. I will, of course, be long gone." Horace boasted.

"You’ll never get away with this. We’ll find you." Amanda could recognize Dr. Smyth’s voice arguing back even now.

"Sir," Horace sighed wearily, "if you’re smart, you’ll just keep your mouth shut. If they find me, they'll find out why I had to do this. Now I’m sure you don’t want a scandal. What would your high society friends think?"

"You are so sure of yourself, Applegate."

"Goodbye, you old coot," Applegate replied and headed out of the small room, leaving the light on. He carefully pulled the lawnmower back into position, looked around and headed out the door.

Amanda quietly came out of her hiding spot. Her heart was racing, realizing how close she came to being discovered. She struggled to move the lawnmower, then reached down trying to open the heavy wooden trap door. In her quest she didn’t hear Horace come back in.

"Mrs. King, where did you come from?" he asked in a stern voice.

Amanda paled but forced herself to sound confident. "Horace, you didn’t possibly think we wouldn’t figure it out."

He grabbed her arm, pulling her up to a standing position and tied her hands behind her back with some old rope. He opened up the trap door and helped her down the old wooden stairs. "Sorry, I guess it will be a little crowded down here for a while."

"Why don’t you just give yourself up?" Amanda demanded.

"Sorry you had to get involved in this mess, but I have no choice," Horace answered sincerely.

"Of course you have a choice, Horace. My partner will be here any minute," Amanda tried to stall for time, knowing Lee at least would know where to find them, but it could be hours before he got her note.

"Then I guess I better get a move on it," Horace replied matter of factly as the trap door shut, leaving her alone in the small room with Dr. Smyth.

She smiled nervously at Dr. Smyth. "Are you all right?" she asked as she worked on freeing her hands as she noticed a small bruise on his head.

"I’m fine. I suppose you’re here to rescue me?" he asked loftily and rolling his eyes.

"Lee will be here soon," she grimaced trying to get her ropes loose. She noticed that Dr. Smyth was handcuffed to the wall with one arm, but his other arm was free. "Can’t you get out of those cuffs?" Amanda asked in surprise.

"Now if I could, don’t you think I would have by now? They’re quite tight," he complained, his aging fingers not as nimble as they once were.

"I’ll help you in just a minute," she promised. "I should have these ropes off in just a second…there." She got the ropes off and shook her shoulders to loosen up her stiffening muscles. She headed over to help him get out of the handcuffs he was chained with.

"Mrs. King, I have tried for the last few days to get them off," he snipped as she fumbled with the tumblers.

"They are really tight," she commented, it was quite awkward and tight in the room, but at least Horace had left the light on. She was trying not to lean into Dr. Smyth but there was no room. It took her a few minutes but she finally managed to open the handcuffs. "There, got it." She smiled at him, uncomfortable with her current predicament but resigned to make the best of it.

"So what took you so long to find me? Or is your partner hoping not to find me alive?" He griped angrily not even thanking her for her help. He flexed his somewhat stiff and sore arm.

Amanda was losing her patience with him. "With all due respect, Dr. Smyth, we spent the first day in internal affairs trying to prove that Lee had nothing to do with your disappearance."

"Hmmph!" he snorted, pushing her aside rudely. "Well help me get this door open."

Amanda was shaking her head. "We can’t. The lawnmower is on top of the door."

"So how heavy can a lawnmower be?" he asked rhetorically. "Mrs. King, I order you to help me; now get over here," he demanded.

"Dr. Smyth, don’t you know it’s not a push mower; it’s a ride on lawnmower," she sighed wearily, amazed that he didn’t know such a simple fact. "Trust me, we don’t have a chance. We’ll just have to wait until Lee gets here."

"Wonderful. I get to spend the day with the housewife turned spy."

"You know you should work on your attitude," Amanda snapped, too tired to care how she sounded anymore and having little patience left. "Lee and I have worked night and day trying to find you."

"Oh, I’m sure of that. So where is he now?" he scoffed.

"They’re following up on a lead that you were in the mountains. But he’ll be here soon, I left him a note."

"A note. How quaint. Protocol states you should have had backup."

"I’ll remember that next time you’re missing," Amanda said ruefully, shaking her head at him in disgust.

His eyes narrowed dangerously. "Is that a threat, Mrs. King?"

She shook her head and rolled her eyes. ‘Gosh this is going to be a long day!’ She thought to herself. "Of course not. I figured out where you were. I even thought it might be Horace who kidnapped you, but I’d like to know why?"

She apparently found a sore spot of contention. "Enough of the small talk, Mrs. King. I think I’ll eat my lunch."

He sat back down and started on the tray of food Horace had prepared for him, never once offering to share. Amanda watched him in amazement, she leaned against the wooden ladder as there was no where else for her to sit in the small cramped hole.

"You know, I don’t think I’ve ever met a ruder, more insensitive person than you." Amanda finally commented, unable to hold her tongue any longer.

Dr. Smyth looked at her with wide eyes, totally shocked that she would talk to him in that manner. "Is that anyway to talk to your boss?"

"You know, I have always been cheerful, pleasant and respectful to you. I have never done anything to hurt you; I have always worked very hard on any assignment given to me, no matter how trivial or unpleasant. Do you know you have NEVER said thank you or congratulated me on a job well done. You don’t deserve my respect or Lee’s. You’re nothing but a sad, vicious old man. I pity you."

Dr. Smyth just looked at her in disbelief, not believing what she just said to him. He looked down at the plate of food he had just consumed and looked over at her. For a second Amanda thought he might say something, anything, but he turned away and said nothing.

It was what seemed to both of them an eternity. Neither had spoken a word since Amanda’s harsh but true criticism of Dr. Smyth. Finally they heard voices upstairs.

"Lee?" Amanda yelled anxiously, "We’re down here." She started banging on the trap door.

"You didn’t hear me when I yelled; he won’t hear you either," Dr. Smyth retorted.

"If we make enough noise he will. So start yelling," Amanda snapped back.

"Amanda? Where are you?" Lee could barely make out her voice through the thick door, which lay hidden under the lawnmower.

"Lee, move the lawnmower; there’s a door underneath," she yelled loudly.

They could hear mumbling and footsteps from above. Within a few minutes the trap door opened letting fresh air in once again.

"Are you all right down there?" Lee asked poking his head down into the hole.

"Yes, we’re fine," Amanda answered, reaching up to him for help to climb out.

He helped her climb out and hugged her tightly. "Amanda, does the word backup mean anything to you? You could’ve been killed. Are you sure you’re all right?"

Dr. Smyth interrupted their reunion. "Excuse me, kiddies, but do you mind? I’ve been trapped here for a week."

Lee reluctantly moved Amanda to the side and reached down to help Dr. Smyth out of the hole. "It’s only been three days," Lee grunted as he reluctantly pulled Dr. Smyth from his temporary prison.

"That’s easy for you to say. Did you get Applegate yet?" he asked as he squinted, trying to adjust his eyes to the sunlight that was flooding into the carriage house.

Billy answered. "Not yet. We’ll put an APB out for him now. Are you all right? Do you need a doctor?" He noticed a cut on Dr. Smyth’s head.

Dr. Smyth pushed them all aside, scoffing at them. "What I need is a shower and a decent night's sleep. I have what’s supposed to be the best agents in the country working for me and it takes them three days to find me in my own backyard." With that, he stormed out of the carriage house indignantly and headed to the main house.

Lee looked over at Billy and then to Amanda. Billy mumbled a warning quietly over to Lee. "Don’t even start."

Lee held his tongue. He reached over for Amanda, more concerned about his wife than Dr. Smyth. "You sure you’re OK?" She nodded. "So what happened?"

Amanda shrugged. "I still don’t know. When I asked him he changed the subject."

"Come on, let’s get you home so you can clean yourself up. Billy, I trust you don’t want me to be the one to debrief Dr. Smyth?"

"No, I’ll let Scagwell do that. We still have a lot of unanswered questions. Hopefully our Mr. Appplegate will fill us in on the details, when we find him."

"Horace did say one thing before he left here," Amanda added. "He said that Dr. Smyth should keep quiet or risk a scandal. I’m not sure what that means."

"We’ll find Applegate; somehow I doubt a butler will be too hard to find." Billy said as they headed out of the carriage house.
 

End Part 8

***

Dr. Smyth Part 9

They found Applegate at Baltimore Washington Airport. He was preparing to depart for London.

Lee and Amanda sat in Billy’s office. "Apparently Mrs. Smyth had agreed to fund a retirement plan for Horace, but when she divorced Dr. Smyth years ago, that agreement was terminated. Horace hadn’t realized that his new contract with Dr. Smyth didn’t spell out any pension plan. So when he asked Dr. Smyth about his retirement plan he found out it was almost non-existent…"

"Let me guess, when he found out that he only had a fraction of what he was expecting to retire on, he went a little nuts?" Lee suggested.

"That’s about the size of it," Billy answered, nodding.

"So what’s going to happen to Horace now? Jail time?" Amanda asked sympathetically.

"Actually, Dr. Smyth has been, how do I put this? He was rather upset about the whole matter." Billy answered in amusement. "Dr. Smyth doesn’t want a messy scandal, bad press and all. Horace will probably serve minimal time and get probation."

"I’m surprised the old man’s letting him off so easy," Lee remarked.

"He did serve him faithfully for twenty years," Amanda pointed out. "Dr. Smyth isn’t an easy person to work for."

"Amanda, he kidnapped you, too. Doesn’t that bother you at all?" Billy asked.

"The man worked all his life thinking he was going to retire comfortably. I think I’d go a little off the deep end too. Besides, it was only a few hours." Amanda shook her head, saddened by his misfortune.

"Working for Dr. Smyth for twenty years is punishment enough," Lee remarked and then smiled at Amanda. He wasn't surprised that she wasn't angry with Horace; she always saw the good in people. "Well, Billy, unless you have anything else for us, we’re going to call it a week."

"No, get out of here," Billy nodded towards the door. "You did a great job, enjoy the weekend."

Lee and Amanda hurried out of Billy’s office and headed to the Q bureau. When they opened the door they were both surprised to see Dr. Smyth waiting for them. He looked much better than he had earlier in the day. He was now wearing a suit and tie and had showered and shaved. Lee and Amanda glanced at each other apprehensively, neither of them thrilled to see him.

"I understand congratulations are in order, that you two tied the knot?" Dr. Smyth smiled uncharacteristically.

They were both stunned, almost speechless. "Thank you, sir," Amanda smiled. Lee looked at him blankly.

"Cat got your tongue, Scarecrow?" Dr. Smyth asked wryly.

"Ah, no. Thank you," Lee stammered.

"I must say, Scarecrow, I’m surprised, but I do approve. It’s about time you settled down."

Lee was more than stunned. "Thank you, sir; we’re both very happy." Lee replied as he squeezed Amanda’s hand.

As Dr. Smyth headed out of the room, he turned slowly and remarked almost casually. "I also want to thank you both for a job well done."

"Thank you. We’re just glad things turned out as well as they did," Lee added.

"Thank you, Dr. Smyth," Amanda added before he closed the door.

Lee watched as the door closed. He looked over at Amanda who was almost in as much shock as he was. He shrugged his shoulders. "Well I’ll be damned. Dr. Smyth just gave us his blessing."

Amanda smiled over at Lee. Lee watched her face and her expression. Suddenly he knew that she had something to do with their conversation. "You never told me what you two talked about down there."

Amanda hedged. "Actually, we didn’t really talk much."

"Amanda, the old man came in here, wished us well in our marriage and thanked us for a job well done. Now that doesn’t happen everyday. What did you say to him?" Lee asked her again, curiosity piqued.

"I just told him that I thought he needed to be more sensitive to his employee's needs." She shrugged. After all, that was the basis of her message to him.

Lee looked into Amanda eyes knowing she hadn’t quite told him everything. "Mrs. Stetson, someday I hope you will tell me what really went on in that room."

"Well, now that we’ve found Dr. Smyth and the whole agency knows we’re married, are we going to tell our family? It’s the perfect night. The boys are home and Mother is expecting you for dinner tonight." Amanda sat down at her desk and looked over at Lee expectantly.

"Tonight?" Lee exclaimed sharply leaning against his desk.

"You act as if Mother and the boys are the enemy," she chided, chuckling in amusement. She couldn’t believe that he’d handled terrorists and enemy agents with ease, but dealing with a family issue made him so uncomfortable. "Mother will be delighted; the boys care about you deeply. They know how much we love each other. Three months ago, they weren’t ready, but they are now. Trust me, I know my children," she reassured him; tears suddenly filled her eyes as she realized the truth of her statement.

"So how much and what are we going to tell them?" Lee finally asked, still unsure of himself.

She grinned at him. "We tell them we eloped; it’s the truth."

Lee had to laugh; he knew how much she hated to lie. "And if they ask when?"

"I don’t know. One step at a time. Tonight, OK?"

"Tonight!" Lee agreed.

End Part 9

***

Dr. Smyth Conclusion:

Amanda was putting the final touches on dinner with her mother in the kitchen. Lee was playing basketball with the boys outside.

"You’re awfully quiet tonight," Dotty observed her daughter thoughtfully. "I thought you’d be in a good mood. You obviously made your deadline today."

"It’s been a really rough week, Mother. I’m just tired," a preoccupied Amanda explained.

"Too many late nights out with Lee perhaps?" Dotty suggested pointedly.

"Mother! We were working," Amanda admonished her mother, but her blushing cheeks gave her away.

"Mmmm hmmmm," Dotty replied raising her eyebrows.

Amanda ignored her mother's last comment and went and called the boys and Lee in for dinner. While the boys washed up, Lee came into the kitchen and snuck up behind her, holding her tightly.

"Lee!" she scolded. "You’re all sweaty."

"You usually don’t complain about that," he whispered in her ear huskily.

Dotty was within earshot and tried to stifle a laugh. Amanda elbowed him in the ribs, giving him an aggravated look and shaking her head as he relinquished his grip on her.

"Go put on a dry shirt and wash up, dinner’s ready," she answered him, shaking her head.

There was the normal chatter at the dinner table about school, Phillip's new girlfriend, basketball, typical family chitchat. Amanda and Lee kept stealing uncomfortable glances at each other. The boys didn’t notice, but Dotty did. When they finally finished dinner, Lee volunteered to clear off the table, trying to avoid the inevitable conversation.

"Mom, can we be excused? We want to go down to the park," Phillip asked permission and was already getting up.

"No, sweetheart, not tonight." Amanda answered firmly.

"But, Mom, it’s Friday night. We don’t have school tomorrow," Phillip reminded her, looking dejected.

"Phillip, not tonight. Lee, the dishes can wait," Amanda said as calmly as she could manage. "I think it’s time we have a family meeting."

"What’s up, Mom?" Jamie asked curiously.

"Everyone in the family room," Amanda instructed evasively. "Come on, Mother, you too." She ushered them into the family room, taking Lee’s hand in hers as she tugged on his arm. He reluctantly followed, his heart in his throat. He’d rather be shot than have this conversation.

"Lee and I have some news we want to share with you." She announced as she impatiently waited for the boys to sit down.

Dotty was almost bursting at the seams. From the look on Lee’s face she thought she knew what was coming. "Well don’t keep us in suspense," Dotty urged, excitedly.

Amanda and Lee were standing together, hand in hand in front of the boys on the sofa, Dotty was on the chair nearby. Amanda looked at Lee for support, but he was evading her eyes and noticeable silent. She finally blurted out. "Lee and I eloped."

Dotty’s jaw fell. She was shocked; this wasn’t what she expected, engagement yes, elopement no! The boys looked at them both kind of funny, as if they didn’t really hear her correctly.

"You guys got married?" Phillip uttered, slumping on the couch.

"Yes, sweetheart," Amanda answered, glowing with delight.

"Aren’t you supposed to get engaged first?" Jamie asked leaning forward, his elbows on his knees and his hands cupping his chin, as he looked up at them somewhat astonished.

Amanda sat down on the couch between Phillip and Jamie. "Fellas, Lee asked me to marry him a while ago. We just kept it quiet; we thought it was best for you all to get to know each other better."

Lee finally sat down on the floor by Amanda, putting his hand lovingly on her knee and looking at both Jamie and Phillip. He cleared his throat, trying to get the courage up to say what he felt in his heart. "I married your mom because I love her so much and I want to be part of this family. When she agreed to marry me, we did wait a while, but we finally decided the time was right, so we eloped."

It was so quiet in the family room you could hear a pin drop. Lee just looked up at Amanda, feeling helpless, not knowing what else to say. He looked at each of the boys’ faces, but they were stunned.

Dotty, seeing what was happening, finally got up enough composure to speak. "Well, I, for one, had a feeling you two were going to run off together sooner or later. You know, a mother knows these things." She got up and walked across the room. She bent down and hugged Amanda tightly. "Congratulations, sweetheart." Then she turned to Lee who was still sitting on the floor, unsure of what he should do next. "Now you’re not going to make me bend down on the floor to congratulate you?" Dotty scolded teasingly.

That seemed to help break the tension with everyone laughing. Lee stood up, blushing deeply and hugged his mother-in-law.

Dotty whispered to him. "I had a feeling about you the first time I met you, but it sure took the two of you long enough."

"Does this mean you’re moving in?" Jamie asked as the shock was starting to subside.

"Of course, dorkface!" Phillip yelled at Jamie. "You don’t get married and live across town."

"Phillip, don’t call your brother names. And yes, Lee will be moving in with us. I know it’s going to be an adjustment for us all, but you’ll get used to it," Amanda said, as she grabbed each of the boys around the shoulders and hugged them tightly.

"Can we get a bigger house so I can have my own room?" Jamie asked, giving Phillip a brotherly stare.

Lee looked over at Jamie, glad to see the icy mood was over. "Well you know, your mom and I haven’t really talked about it, but that’s something we can consider."

Amanda looked up at Lee with surprise. "We’ll talk about that later."

"Congratulations, Mom, Lee," Phillip finally said.

Jamie hesitated only a moment before chiming in, "Yeah, um, congratulations."

"Thanks, fellas," Lee smiled with relief.

Amanda was proud of both of her sons. She hugged them both, got up from the couch and walked over to Lee’s side. "That wasn’t so bad now, was it?" she whispered to Lee.

Lee kissed her gently on the cheek. "Does the word 'Iraq' give you a clue?"

Amanda laughed. "Well I better go clean up the kitchen. Why don’t you take the boys out, maybe go pick up a cake or something - for a little celebration?"

"Ice cream!" Jamie shouted excitedly.

"You don’t eat ice cream at weddings, you eat cake," Phillip smacked his brother.

"Boys!" Amanda warned. "How about an ice cream cake?"

"Mmmmm, that’s an excellent idea," Lee replied as he reached for Amanda to kiss her goodbye. "I was planning on celebrating a lot tonight," he whispered as he kissed her deeply. He reached around her waist and pulled her close to him. She kissed him back; they lingered together for a moment until they realized they were being watched by several sets of eyes.

"If you’ll excuse me, I think I’ll go start on the kitchen." Dotty said as she tried to quickly pass Lee and Amanda. They were both blushing.

"Maybe the bigger house isn’t such a bad idea after all," Amanda said self-consciously. "Go on, get out of here, but don’t take too long."

Amanda headed into the kitchen as Lee and the boys thundered out the door. Dotty was busily humming as she cleared off the table.

"Well, Amanda, I’m very happy that you and Lee finally got married, but I do have one question for you."

"What’s that Mother?" Amanda asked matter of factly as she loaded her arms up with dishes and headed to the dishwasher.

"I was just wondering, you were pretty busy this week. When exactly did you two find the time to get married?" Dotty mused.

"Mother, what does it matter?" Amanda sighed. She’d thought after they confessed that this third degree would stop.

"It matters, Amanda. What day is your anniversary going to be?" Dotty insisted.

"It’s the 13^th Mother," Amanda answered honestly, not really thinking.

"Oh, the 13^th," Dotty replied, looking at the calendar. "Oh, I see, you got married next Tuesday."

Amanda blushed, she really hadn’t thought about what day of the month it was. The past week had been so hectic she lost track of the dates.

Dotty stared at her expectantly.

Knowing she was caught she smiled. "OK, Mother, you win, but this is between you and me…"

THE END

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