Lizaveta

Lizaveta

By: Pam (mailto:pmarquard@triad.rr.com)

Disclaimer: The SMK characters in this story are the property of Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Productions. Balanchev, Beau, Big Ernie, and Korvinski belong to me, as does the plot of this little excursion. Nothing here is intended to infringe on anyone or anything.

Timeframe: March of 1986.

Summary: A routine assignment gives Lee and Amanda a chance to explore their feelings for each other, but when things go wrong, more than their relationship is tested.

Rating: PG 13, for some violence and suggestive situations

Feedback: Absolutely! I want to know what you liked and what didn't work for you.

Archive: Only if you ask beforehand, please.

Author's notes: Although it's not the first piece I've posted, this was my first attempt at fanfiction. My thanks to all of the authors whose wonderful stories provided me with unknowing encouragement. My hope is that my contribution enhances the SMK fanfic world. Thanks for reading!

Special thanks to Merel and my other beta readers and to Emily Ann for helping me with the Russian folklore and translations.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Prologue

Friday, March 14th - Mid-evening - Somewhere in the mountains of Virginia

She woke up slowly, wondering why she was having trouble clearing her head. She was disoriented, ached all over and felt as though the world had been turned upside down. There was a painful pressure across her hips, and her right shoulder and chest felt like someone had hit her with a baseball bat. All of the exposed skin on the right side of her face and on her right arm felt raw and bruised. Her head was throbbing. She forced her heavy eyelids open and looked around. What little she could see caused her breath to catch in her throat.

She was in a truck that she didn't immediately recognize. The vehicle was lying on its left side, and she realized that she was, indeed, hanging nearly upside down. The pressure she felt across her pelvis and lower abdomen was from the seatbelt, the only thing keeping her in her seat on the passenger side.

Suddenly, she remembered. Not all of it, but bits and pieces that came flying into her brain like pictures from a late-night TV movie.

She remembered him driving down a narrow dirt road like a bat out of hell, the trees that lined the sides of the road melting into a blur as they sped through the twilight.

A pickup truck behind them and closing fast.

The sound of gunshots.

Their truck veering suddenly to the left.

The sickening feeling as they plunged down the steep, tree-covered slope, bouncing like a pinball off large trees and flattening small ones in the wild descent.

The dizzy sensation of going airborne for a moment as they careened over the edge of another, much smaller embankment.

And last of all, the bone-jarring impact of their final stop.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter One

Tuesday, March 11th - Late morning -The Agency

Lee walked into the Q bureau, grinning as he saw Amanda, hard at work at his desk. "Come on, Amanda. Billy wants to see us in his office."

"Sure, Lee. Give me just a minute." He waited while she finished the last page of the report she was working on.

Moments later, she lifted her eyes to him with a satisfied smile. "I can't believe I finally got caught up," she said. "It looked like I'd be up to my neck in paperwork for the rest of the month." Standing, she rounded the desk and joined him.

"Don't remind me," he returned, placing his right hand on the small of her back to guide her toward Billy's door. "I've been stuck in this office for too long."

Amanda smiled to herself as they entered Billy's office. Scarecrow hadn't been in the field for over two weeks, and the lack of action didn't sit well with him.

They sank into the chairs across from Billy's desk and looked at him expectantly. He finished signing a small stack of expense vouchers before looking up. "I'm glad you two are available," he said. "Scarecrow, I have an assignment for you. There's a meet planned for this weekend, and you are to be the contact."

Lee smiled. At last - a chance to get out of the office for a while. "Sure thing, Billy. Just tell me when and where."

"It's a very special circumstance, Scarecrow," Billy answered. "We got word earlier this morning that Antonin Balanchev is in the States, wanting to pass some information to us."

"Balanchev?" Lee asked with surprise. He straightened in his chair, then leaned forward. "He went missing nearly three years ago. No one's heard from him since that botched drop in Poland. I thought he was out of the picture."

"So did everyone else in the intelligence community," Billy said. "But he got word to one of our informants last week, saying that he wants to meet. He's insisting that you are the only one he'll talk with."

"Of course I'll go," responded Lee quietly. "Where am I supposed to meet him? And why did you want to see Amanda?"

"Amanda will be part of your cover," Billy chuckled. "The meet is to take place near the Wolf Gap Recreation Area, in a rugged section of the George Washington National Forest up near the West Virginia border. We've arranged for you and Amanda to attend a couples-only camping retreat."

"We're going camping?" Lee repeated, remembering the last night they had spent in the "great outdoors". They had been huddled together in a swamp, chained together, hoping that somehow they'd be able to elude Sacker's gang. They'd clung to each other, for warmth and for comfort, and then . . . The sound of Billy's voice brought his mind back to the present.

"Yes," smiled Billy. " The idea is for couples to spend a long weekend relaxing together and learning how to 'get back to nature'. The campsite is remote and isolated so that the couples don't have to worry about any unwelcome interruptions." He paused for a moment. Anyone could see the growing bond between his favorite pair of agents, and this assignment would throw them closer together than normal. Suppressing a smile at the thought of how they would handle the situation, he continued. "It's a perfect set-up for a meet. You'll be roughing it; no cabins, no soft beds, just tents, sleeping bags, and Mother Nature. We've sent Balanchev all the information he needs, and he'll find you when he's ready to meet. Now you two get with Leatherneck. I want you here tomorrow morning, ready to leave. The retreat doesn't begin until Thursday at noon, but you'll need some time to scout out the area."

Lee took the files from Billy's outstretched hand and escorted Amanda out of the office.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tuesday, March 11th - Early afternoon - Agency Conference Room

After lunch, Lee watched as Amanda studied the pictures of Balanchev and read an overview of the Russian's association with the Agency. When she had finished, he fleshed out the sketchy portrait the documents had painted and explained his relationship with the Russian.

On one of Lee's early assignments with the Agency, he had found himself in trouble deep within the Soviet Union. When Balanchev had trapped him in an isolated cabin near Novomoskovsk, he'd been sure his life was over. To his great surprise, however, the KGB agent had only disarmed him and then had begun to talk, giving him information about a planned break-in at the American Embassy. Promising that he'd be in touch from time to time, Balanchev had then helped Scarecrow find his way back into Moscow in time to prevent the attack. It was the first contact between Balanchev and the Agency, and it was one of the establishing moments of Lee's career.

Balanchev had loved Mother Russia but was frustrated with the direction the Soviet Union had been taking, especially after the construction of the Berlin Wall had divided Germany and brought the Cold War to a head. His contacts with Lee were infrequent, but the valuable information he passed along once or twice each year had helped avert more than one East-West crisis along the mostly invisible barrier of the Iron Curtain.

"No wonder Billy needed you for this," Amanda said thoughtfully. "You're the only American agent Balanchev has ever really trusted." She looked at Lee with admiration.

"Yeah, and he's the only KGB agent I've ever learned to respect," admitted Lee. He'd revealed more of himself than he was really comfortable with, but she deserved to know as much about Balanchev as possible. "I guess we'd better go see Leatherneck and get our gear for the weekend."

"Well there's one good thing about this overnight assignment," Amanda quipped as they headed for the elevator.

"What's that?" asked Lee, pushing the call button.

"We won't have to worry about who's going to get the bed," she laughed. "We'll both be stuck in sleeping bags on the cold, hard ground!"

The doors opened and Lee escorted her into the elevator. 'True enough,' he thought. 'We won't be sharing a bed. But a two-man tent can get pretty cozy. . .'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tuesday, March 11th - Late evening - 4247 Maplewood Drive

Lee stood in the shadows outside Amanda's house, watching through the kitchen window as she pulled the last of the chocolate chip cookies from the oven. She poured a glass of milk, put two of the freshly baked cookies on a dessert plate, and disappeared up the stairs.

He picked the lock and let himself in, then poured his own glass of milk and leaned back on the kitchen counter, munching on one of the warm cookies while he waited for her to return.

He picked the lock and let himself in, then poured his own glass of milk and leaned back on the kitchen counter, munching on one of the warm cookies while he waited for her to return.

He could hear her talking to herself as she came down the stairs. "Okay, I'm all packed . . . my camping gear is in the back of the station wagon . . .all I need to do is finish the trail mix and I'll be all ready to . . ." She gasped as she rounded the corner into the kitchen and nearly ran into Lee. "I wish you'd quit doing that!" she exclaimed.

"I just wanted to check and be sure that you're ready to leave in the morning. Where's your mother?"

"She's upstairs, so keep your voice down," she answered, still breathless from being startled. "And yes, I'm nearly ready to leave. I just want to put some trail mix together for the trip."

Lee watched her discomfiture with amusement. "You don't have to go to that much trouble, Amanda. The club is furnishing all the food. All we're expected to do is show up for meals and spend the rest of the time away from the group, pretending to be a couple. It's the perfect cover for Balanchev to contact me." A fanciful feeling fought its way up from his subconscious mind as his thoughts turned to the weekend, to spending time alone with Amanda in the isolated setting. He shook his head to banish the idea.

"Oh, I'm not packing enough to feed us for the whole weekend, Lee," she answered. "But I always fix a batch of trail mix when I'm going camping. You can get pretty hungry while you're out hiking and doing outdoorsy stuff."

"Amanda, we're not going to be doing that much 'outdoorsy stuff', as you put it. We just have to meet Balanchev!"

"That's true," Amanda replied reasonably, "but part of the cover is to look and act the part, so we'll have to get out some, and I'm just trying to be ready."

"It'll be fine. We'll be fine." Lee smiled down at Amanda. He still couldn't believe how she approached every situation with such enthusiasm. "What did you tell your mother?"

"Oh, that part was easy this time," Amanda said. "Next week is spring break, and Mother is taking the boys to visit Aunt Lillian. They'll leave Friday afternoon, and they'll be gone for the whole week. I'll just be leaving a couple of days earlier than they do. I told Mother I had to go away to scout a location, and that I wouldn't be back until the middle of next week. I'm just so glad that the timing worked out - I still hate lying to her." She looked up at him, and, as always under her gaze, he felt the barrier he'd so carefully placed around his heart threaten to erode.

"That's good, Amanda." He smiled down at her. This assignment was important, and he did like the idea that Amanda would be with him. Maybe this time she wouldn't find a way to get herself into trouble. After all, no one knew that Balanchev would be near, and they wouldn't have much interaction with the other campers. 'Besides . . .' another unbidden thought drifted upward into his awareness, 'it might be interesting to be out there with Amanda. She'll be looking to you to take care of her, and . . .'

'STOP IT,' his conscious mind screamed when it realized where the thought was heading. 'This is Amanda! She's just my partner . . . All right, she's a lot more than that,' he had to admit to himself. 'She's a very good friend.' His subconscious got in one more observation before sinking back into obscurity. 'Yeah, right. Just keep telling yourself that, Stetson. Someday you might even start to believe it . . .'

Amanda had been watching Lee curiously. He had become quiet for a few moments as he looked down at her, and a succession of emotions crossed his face before the mask he presented to the world returned. She wasn't sure what she had witnessed, but an electric tingle ran down her spine.

"Lee . . ." Her voice was soft and questioning.

Lee forcibly cut off the unwanted thoughts. "Uh, yeah, I was going to get, uh, an early start tomorrow," he stammered. "I'd better be going." He finished the milk and grabbed another cookie, heading for the back door. "Guess I'd better get out of here," he repeated. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Sure thing," she said. 'What just happened?' she wondered. 'I've never seen him look at me like that before.'

Lee settled into the driver's seat of the 'Vette and watched as she turned out the lights before going upstairs. 'What happens to me when I look into her eyes?' he asked himself. He saw the light come on in her bedroom and waited a few minutes until it went back out, telling him that she was settled for the night. He wasn't sure why he'd come by; she didn't need him to check up on her, and starting tomorrow morning they'd be together constantly for six days. He'd thought that, since they'd been spending more time together over the past few months, he'd be able to forego his habit of checking on her from a distance. But it hadn't worked that way; if anything, his need to make sure she was safe had grown stronger. He didn't even pretend to understand it; he just knew that it was so.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Two

Wednesday, March 12th - Late morning - The mountains along the West Virginia border

They pulled into the little town of Columbia Furnace, where the group of campers would meet the next day. "Okay if we check in before we get some lunch?" Lee asked Amanda. He needed to stretch his legs and clear his mind. He'd been trying to focus on the upcoming meet by remembering details of his past encounters with Balanchev, but thoughts of Amanda had hovered just beneath the surface the whole morning.

"Sure," she said gratefully. Lee had been pensive all morning. She had tried to get him to talk, but he had cut her off, making the drive somewhat strained. She hoped that he'd be able to relax, at least until Balanchev contacted him, but it didn't seem like that was going to be the case.

Lee pulled into the parking lot of the motel. After checking in, he moved the Bronco to the back of the building and parked just outside room 134.

After he got out of the truck, Amanda drew a deep breath. Playing husband and wife had always been hard for her, but lately she'd realized that the reasons for the difficulties had been changing. Over the past two and a half years she'd gone from worrying about how things might look and about how Lee might act to being concerned about how she might respond to any action on his part. She didn't want to rush into anything, but recently, as they'd begun to explore their relationship outside the confines of their professional lives, it was becoming harder for her to ignore the physical attraction that drew her to him with every touch, every look. She wasn't quite sure what working and living so closely together for the next few days would do to her resolve, and she was more than a little apprehensive about finding out.

"Are you coming, Amanda?" Lee was standing at her door, holding it open for her to get out, but she hadn't moved.

She gave herself a mental shake and returned to the present. "I'm sorry," she said to him with a smile, "I guess I wasn't paying attention."

Able to guess what she'd been thinking about, he gave her an understanding smile as they went to the vehicle's back door to retrieve their bags. He handed her the daypack, her duffle bag, and her jacket, then grabbed his own things and led her to the door, unlocking it and pushing it open for her to enter their room. He watched with some amusement as she struggled to keep relief from flooding her features when she saw the two double beds inside.

"The motel only has double rooms, Amanda," he explained with an almost-regretful smile. "We won't have to worry about the senior agent taking the only bed. But you'd better enjoy what privacy there is tonight," he added. The tent we'll be in starting tomorrow will hardly be larger than just one of these beds."

She set her overnight case on the far bed and turned back to Lee, forcing herself to smile. "You're right, Lee. We'll just have to deal with that tomorrow, though, won't we? Let's go get lunch."

Lee smiled, opened the door, and bowed slightly, gesturing her outside. With his hand at her back, he guided her across the street and into the only restaurant in town. They sat at a table in the back, looking over the soups and sandwiches listed on the typewritten menu. After the waitress had taken their orders, Amanda turned to Lee.

"Are you all right, Lee?" she asked gently. "You seem a little preoccupied."

"I've been thinking about Balanchev all morning," he replied. It was the truth; even the attempts by his subconscious to force him to think of Amanda hadn't deterred him from reviewing in great detail his history with the KGB agent. "I'm sorry, Amanda. I guess I haven't been very good company."

"It's okay, Lee," Amanda answered softly. "It must have been hard for you when you didn't hear from Balanchev for such a long time."

"The man has always been a mystery, Amanda," he sighed. "This is the first time I've ever met with him outside of the Soviet Union or its puppet states, and I'm concerned about what could have made him take the chance to come to the States."

"Are you worried that he's setting you up for something?" she asked.

"No," Lee replied with conviction. "Since I first met him, he's had plenty of chances to bring me down in one way or another. I trust him more than you can trust most people in this business. But I always have to keep my eyes open for anything that could go wrong."

They finished lunch and spent the afternoon driving in the national forest, stopping here and there to leave the road and explore on foot. On one of their hikes, they had visited the Agency cabin near the recreation area, a sort of a rustic "safe house".

"No one from the Agency has had to use the cabin for some time, Amanda," he explained as they left the established trail and began the rough ascent over unmarked terrain. "It's kept stocked with supplies, though, in case of an emergency, and Billy asked me to look in on it while we were in the area."

The cabin was set far back into the woods, out of sight from any of the marked trails. "How could anyone ever find their way here?" Amanda asked Lee as they topped a small rise and saw the cabin, sitting back in the woods. "Anyone who didn't know it was here would just hike right past it."

"That's the whole point," Lee explained with a grin. "We're not likely to need it this time - it's a good six or seven miles from where we'll be camping, but it's one of the reasons the meet was set up for this area."

Amanda was exhausted by the time they arrived back in the small town and went back to the restaurant for dinner. The afternoon with Lee had been pleasant, with no further discussion of Balanchev or the assignment, and dinner conversation was nothing more than comfortable, if uninspired, small talk.

She was looking at Lee, who was seated next to her at the small table. He had turned to face her and had her left hand in his right, absently playing with her rings as he explained to her what to look for when choosing just the right wine to go with Beef Wellington. Unexpectedly, he flashed a brilliant smile her way and encircled her shoulders with his strong left arm. "We're going to have a great weekend together, aren't we, sweetheart?" he asked as he pulled her close.

Amanda hesitated for only a moment before she, too, caught sight of the men approaching their table and relaxed into his embrace. "You bet we are, honey," she crooned, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

Lee pulled back when the strangers stopped and stood near the table. The larger of the two, an immense man, easily four or five inches taller than Lee and nearly twice his weight, was wearing an army green t-shirt under a blue and green plaid flannel shirt. The bottoms of his well-worn jeans covered the tops of his hiking boots, which had obviously seen many miles of use. The giant kept back, not saying a word. His companion, a wiry man about Amanda's height, was similar in dress but completely different in manner.

"Hi, folks," he said. "I saw you unload your gear this morning, and I'm taking a chance that you're going to be part of our 'Into the Woods' experience. Am I right?"

"That you are," said Lee as he stood and extended his right hand. "Lee Steadman, and this is my wife, Amanda. Nice to meet you, Mr. . . ."

"Beau Hewlett, at your service, folks." He shook Lee's hand and touched the brim of his camouflage baseball cap as he nodded to Amanda. He gestured towards his companion. "Big Ernie and I will be your guides for the weekend."

"Oh, well, we're really looking forward to it," Amanda smiled at him. "I've been telling Lee for a long time that he works too hard. I'm so excited that he arranged for us to get away this weekend. He really needs to relax some."

"And I thought it'd be a good chance for the two of us to spend some time together," Lee continued. "With our hectic schedules, it seems that we hardly get to see each other."

"Well, we'll sure be able to provide you with time away from your day-to-day routine," laughed Beau. "And once we get things set up at the campsite, you'll have plenty of time to spend with each other." He let his eyes linger on Amanda a bit longer than necessary, thinking how he would spend his free time if he were Lee . . .

Big Ernie nudged his partner, who reluctantly drew his eyes away from Amanda. Lee's arm had tightened around her shoulders, and the look Scarecrow was giving Beau made him take a half step backwards.

"Uh . . . why don't we um . . . get out of here now and let y'all enjoy your evenin'?" Beau stammered. "We'll be meetin' tomorrow at the front of the motel to caravan out to the trailhead." Deciding to cut his losses and run, Beau started out of the restaurant.

With slight shrug of his massive shoulders, Ernie nodded towards Amanda. He met Lee's eyes evenly as the two men shook hands, then turned and followed his partner.

"I don't like that little man," Amanda said in a low voice.

"The guy's a jerk," Lee replied tersely. "We'll keep our distance from him." He looked down at Amanda, the hardness of a few moments ago now replaced by concern. "You stick close to me this weekend, understand? I don't want to give him a chance to catch you alone."

Amanda nodded and snuggled closer into his protective embrace.

Outside, Beau and Ernie joined a third man, who had been waiting impatiently for them. "Did you talk with him?" he asked irritably.

"Yeah, Mr. Korvinski," Beau answered. "He and his wife were just eatin' dinner." He looked at the Russian with a puzzled frown. "What's so special about this guy?" he asked. "He looks just like any of the bozos who come up here for a weekend, 'cept most of them don't find a honey like that wife of his to keep their sleepin' bags warm."

"That is not your concern," the third man hissed, his accent growing with his exasperation. "You just keep your eyes on them and tell me anything you see. Don't let them out of your sight, or you won't be getting the other half of your money. And be sure to keep your eye out for the other one."

Beau just shrugged and nodded. It wasn't like the guy was asking them to do anything illegal, and if he wanted to pay them the equivalent of two month's wages to keep an eye on the couple and watch for this other fellow or for 'anything strange', whatever that meant, then he and Big Ernie were glad to oblige.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thursday, March 13th - Early morning - The Trail's End Motel

The night passed more quickly than Amanda had thought possible. She was tired enough to sleep soundly, despite Lee's unsettling presence only a few feet from her in the other bed. She awoke about 7:30 to the sound of the shower. Her half-awake mind leapt to an image of him standing under the falling water, his shoulder muscles flexing as he reached up to rinse the shampoo from his hair. In her imagination, her eyes traveled down his naked torso to his waistline and . . .

She sat up suddenly, blushing at the mental picture. Unsettled, she grabbed her robe from the foot of the bed and, pulling it on, crossed to the front of the room. She pulled back the curtain and looked out at the scenery.

The beauty of the view helped her focus her thoughts on safer topics. The motel backed up to a small valley, with a rocky stream running down its center. The eastern sky was beginning to lighten, and the mist gave the air a shimmering quality, as though she were viewing it through a sheer curtain.

She loved being out like this; the mountains always seemed to bring her a special serenity. She chuckled to herself. She'd be sharing the weekend with Lee, and even though it was 'strictly business', she wasn't sure that 'serene' would be the proper word to describe this weekend. Yet, despite her misgivings, she was certain that the mountains would have time to work their magic on her during the five days and four nights they'd be at the remote campsite.

She didn't notice that the shower had stopped. She didn't hear the soft sound when the bathroom door opened and Lee stepped out, covered only by the towel slung low around his hips.

He stopped for a moment, transfixed by the figure at the window. The morning light cast a halo around Amanda's hair, still tousled from sleep. She leaned her head against the window frame and sighed gently. Before he was aware that he had moved, he found himself standing behind her, one hand reaching out.

She didn't jump when she felt his hand on her shoulder; somehow the touch meshed seamlessly into her thoughts. But when she turned to wish him a good morning, she was disconcerted by the intensity of the look he gave her. She blushed and, with effort, broke from his gaze. She looked down at her hands, her gaze passing over an expanse of still-damp, muscled chest and abdomen, only inches from her. She squeezed her eyes shut and turned her head, unable to speak.

"I, uh, just wanted to let you know that the shower is all yours, Amanda," he said. He paused for a moment before continuing. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"Thanks, Lee," she said, moving away from him. "I'll be ready in just a few minutes." She didn't look back as she entered the small bathroom, but when she closed the door behind her, she leaned back against it for a moment to regain her composure. 'It's going to be a long weekend,' she thought.

Lee didn't relax until the door closed. 'I let it happen again,' he thought, running his fingers through his hair in frustration. 'No,' he corrected himself, 'that's not quite right. I have no control over it. It's been happening more and more often, and there doesn't seem to be anything I can do about it.' He let out a heavy sigh. 'It's going to be a long weekend.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Three

Thursday, March 13th - Mid-afternoon - On the way to the main campsite

They had met the other five couples participating in the weekend retreat in the motel parking lot. It was a mixed crew, for sure. The youngest pair in the group were true newlyweds, married only a month before, on Valentine's Day. They scarcely seemed to notice that they weren't the only people in the universe. Two couples were, like Lee and Amanda, in their mid-30's and were on their first venture with the camping club, not quite sure what they had gotten themselves into. Another couple consisted of a 50-something woman and a much younger man. It embarrassed Amanda to see them carrying on. The woman seemed to be working her way through some sort of a mid-life crisis, and the way she openly pawed at her male companion made Amanda's stomach turn. The last members of the group, however, warmed her to the core. The older couple had been camping together in the area for over 40 years and claimed that the fresh mountain air was God's own aphrodisiac. Their affection for one another was obvious in every word, glance, and touch that passed between them.

It took nearly an hour and a half for the campers and their guides to make the fifteen-mile journey to the remote campsite, climbing further into the mountains on what passed for roads but looked more like accidents of nature, clinging to the side of the mountain. Thank goodness the Ford Bronco from the Agency motor pool had 4-wheel drive. Potholes and rocks were scattered along the steep, sharply curving road, and several remaining patches of ice made the way nearly impassible.

They left the vehicles in a clearing just off of the 'road'. Beau and Big Ernie took their time as they hiked in to the main campsite; it took nearly an hour to make the trip. Amanda was glad that they weren't truly backpacking. They carried only their personal gear and equipment; the tents and other large pieces provided by the camping club awaited them at the end of the rugged trail. She managed quite well, with her sleeping bag and a small duffle bag strapped to her backpack.

Lee had been on the alert as they hiked, assessing the terrain and wondering when, where, and how Balanchev would contact him. Walking behind Amanda because of the narrow trail, he smiled to himself. The view ahead of him could match the breathtaking mountain vistas any day. Her jeans fit her like a glove, clinging to all of the right places; he could see the play of every muscle as she made the strenuous climb with seeming ease.

'Thank goodness for TV exercise programs,' she thought as she worked her way up the trail. Lee had made such a big deal of how silly she was, thinking that her experience with the Junior Trailblazers had prepared her for this trip. Maybe he was right. In any case, she didn't want to embarrass herself. She made a vow to match him stride for stride on this assignment, no matter what it took!

Finally they arrived at the main campsite, where a cooking pit and a fire ring would provide the group with a gathering place for their evening meals and for relaxing around the fire afterwards. Their tents were far enough from the main site that they weren't visible from the fire ring. In addition, the woods were thick enough and the tents scattered over a sufficiently large area that the campers would neither see nor hear each other from their individual campsites. They would have nearly complete privacy.

They grabbed the box lunches that were waiting for them and walked up to their 'home' for the next four nights. Lee had managed to secure the tent farthest from the main site and the road, hoping that it would give Balanchev an even better chance of contacting him without being observed.

Amanda put down her pack and walked to a clearing a short distance away from the tent while Lee went to roll out his sleeping bag. As he had predicted, the area was, indeed, no bigger than a double bed.

"Oh, Lee, it's beautiful out here." Amanda looked down the length of the valley, occasionally catching a reflection of sunlight from the mirror of a car driving through the trees far below them; otherwise, there was no evidence of human presence.

He exited the small tent, speculating on what it would be like to try to sleep with Amanda so near. His subconscious thoughts surfaced again, as unexpected and unsought as ever. 'It could be more than you've bargained for, Stetson.' He squashed the thought before his conscious mind had time to dwell on it.

"It is beautiful, isn't it?" he agreed, coming to stand close behind her and putting a hand on each of her shoulders. He almost hoped that Balanchev would wait a couple of days before contacting him so that he could enjoy the time with Amanda before the next phase of their assignment began. "Come on, let's get settled in." He turned her gently and put his right arm across her shoulders before walking her slowly back to the tent.

It was her turn to find space for her things in the small space. The two sleeping bags filled nearly the entire floor, leaving only a small space at the far end for their packs and other gear. Their quarters would indeed be close for the next couple of nights. She felt the goosebumps rise on her arms at the thought. It had been hard enough thinking about sharing the relatively spacious motel room with Lee last night. How was she going to handle the next four nights?

When she emerged from the tent, Lee was waiting for her. "Amanda, we don't have to rejoin the rest of the group until dinnertime. That gives us a good three or four hours. Would you like to take a walk with me?"

She smiled up at him. "I can't think of anything I'd rather do," she said. "You grab the box lunches the guides gave us, and I'll get the rest of the stuff we'll need."

He looked at her, confused. "The rest of what stuff?"

"You know, the map they gave us, the compass, my whistle and Swiss Army knife, some of the trail mix, our jackets, the canteens . . . I filled them at the motel before we left this morning."

"Amanda, you don't need to pack for an expedition. I just want to look around a little."

She continued her inventory of the items in her pack. Everything seemed to be in place. She strapped the small pack around her waist, tucking her jacket under the strap to avoid carrying it while they walked.

"I'm not taking that much. It all fits in my daypack. We'll be hiking through unfamiliar territory. Don't you think we need to have a few things in case we get lost?" she asked him logically.

He opened his mouth to respond, then hesitated. She was going way overboard, but was it really worth getting into a 'discussion' about it? 'Probably not,' he thought. 'Let's just keep this relaxed. If she wants to carry all that extra gear every time we leave the area, it couldn't really hurt anything.'

She fastened her canteen to her belt, then handed him his jacket and canteen with a cheerful grin. "Lead on, Scarecrow. Where do you want to go?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They returned to the tent three hours later, after having paid a clandestine visit to each of the other couples' campsites.

"I really don't see why we had to sneak around to all of the other campsites, Lee," she said again. "No one's supposed to know why we're here, or even who Balanchev is, so it's not as though we have to suspect them of anything."

"Amanda," he replied with a wry smile, "I don't have to be suspicious of the people around me before I want to know something more about them. This whole setup to meet Balanchev has me jumpy. I just feel better having located the other tents. It's a good thing that we're so far out from the rest of the group. The seclusion will make it easier for Balanchev to make his move without being noticed."

"We really are a long way from all of the others," she said. "They won't have a hint of anything that happens here."

"Yeah, and I'd just as soon keep it that way." He was a little more relaxed now that he'd familiarized himself with their surroundings and their neighbors. "Do you have any more of those cookies?" he asked hopefully.

"Sure, but I wanted to save enough to share at dinner tonight," she said, ducking into the tent to retrieve the airtight canister of treats. Opening the lid, she offered the container to him.

"Amanda," he sighed, "I don't want to do anything that will draw any extra attention to us. As far as the rest of the group is concerned, we're just a couple looking for a good place to be alone together." He took a large bite from the cookie in his hand. "Besides, I can't think of a single reason why we need to share any of these with anyone else." He popped the remainder of the cookie into his mouth and grabbed another one. "I'm going to stretch out for a few minutes before we go down for dinner." With that, he grabbed a poncho, spread it out in the shade of a large tree, and lowered his long form to the ground. He looked back at Amanda. 'Can't hurt to try,' he thought. Patting the space beside him, he looked up at her. "Want to join me?"

"I . . . uh . . . maybe in a few minutes . . ." she faltered, turning to put the cookie tin back into the tent. "I have a couple of things I need to do first."

"Have it your way," he replied. "But remember, it's a healthy walk down to the main campsite." The activities of the afternoon, paired with the paltry amount of rest he'd managed the night before, got the best of him and he drifted off to sleep.

Amanda busied herself in the tent. The area was so compact that she wasn't sure how she would maintain her modesty, but she was going to try her darnedest. She sorted out her clothes. She'd known better than to try to bring any of her regular clothes to such a rugged place, so her wardrobe consisted of a couple of pairs of jeans, worn enough to feel soft as they hugged her legs, some old T-shirts, and four plaid flannel shirts to go on top of them. Long underwear, several pairs of wool socks and a heavy jacket rounded out her "closet".

She pulled out a change of clothes and underwear, her shampoo, soap, and towel and headed for the makeshift shower at the edge of their campsite. If she had to sleep in her clothes, at least she and they could be clean, and she'd rather get her shower in now, while the mountain air was still reasonably warm.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She pulled the rope to let a bit more of the clean water run over her hair and down her body, shivering slightly in the cool water as she rinsed away the remainder of the lather. Squeezing the excess water from her hair, she dried off and got dressed. She'd been right - the clean clothes felt wonderful. Looking back to be sure she'd picked up all of her things, she froze as she heard the sound of furtive footsteps not far away.

She risked a peek around the edge of the tarp that formed the shower "stall". 'This isn't good,' she thought to herself as she spied Lee, still asleep under the tree. 'If he's not making the sounds, then who is?'

The sound of whispers reinforced her feeling that things weren't right. She watched with dismay as one shadow and then another crossed the tent and headed away from their site, the sounds fading as the shadows receded. She waited a few more minutes before quickly crossing the area and kneeling down beside Lee on the poncho.

"Lee, wake up!" she whispered. She gently shook his shoulder as she called to him again. "Lee, someone was here!"

His opened his eyes and looked at her, not quite awake. "What are you talking about, Amanda? Who was here?" He caught his breath at the sight of the damp tendrils of hair that surrounded her face in disarray.

"I don't know who it was," she replied breathlessly. "I went to take a shower because I needed to get into some clean clothes, and since it's still afternoon and the sun it still up, it seemed like a good time, because the water would still be kinda warm and besides, you were asleep over here and you wouldn't have . . ."

"Amanda!" He interrupted her. "Get to the point."

"Oh, sorry," she muttered. "Well, anyway, I was just finished and was getting ready to come back to the tent when I heard something. I peeked out and saw you, so I knew it had to be someone else . . . "

"Maybe it was Balanchev," Lee interjected.

"I don't think so," she said, shaking her head. "Because next I saw two shadows, and I heard voices. Lee, if it had been Balanchev, wouldn't he have been alone?"

"That's what I would have expected," he agreed. "Did you get a look at either one of them?"

"No, only at their shadows," she replied. "But I'm pretty sure it was Beau and Ernie. Come with me. I can show you where they were when I saw them."

He followed her over to the shower. "I was standing right here," she said, pointing to the spot. "I didn't want to stick my head out too far, but I snuck a look around the edge of the tarp. That's when I saw their shadows."

"Lee, what do you think they were doing here?" she asked with a worried look.

"I don't know, but I don't think they'll be back." He glanced at his watch. "Will you be all right if I grab a shower before we go down to dinner? You can call me if anything happens."

"I'll be fine," she said. "As long as I stay out in the open, I'll know if anyone tries come back. Just don't be too long, okay?"

"You've got a deal," Lee said with a wink. "I'll be ready in a few minutes."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was getting dark when they arrived at the main campsite and sat down with the others to eat around the fire. Tonight, he could let himself relax a little. There was nothing he could do about the assignment until Balanchev contacted him. He'd keep an eye on their guides, especially Beau, but he couldn't really check them out until daylight.

'So - no distractions, no company . . . You have Amanda to yourself. Now what are you going to do about it?' The now-familiar thoughts floated into his awareness. What would he do? Maybe it was time to investigate the trail down which his subconscious had been trying to lead him.

The night sky was clear, and the air had chilled dramatically with the setting of the sun. Dinner was finished, and the other campers were moving to sit around the campfire. This was his chance. He wanted her close to him, and their cover story had little to do with it. He led the way to a large log and sat on the ground, leaning back against it, pulling Amanda to sit with him. He positioned her in front of him, between his outstretched legs, and loosely draped his arms around her waist.

She rested against his chest, the contours of her body relaxing soft and warm against him with a comforting presence, and he knew that it was right. Whenever he'd had the opportunity to hold her close like this, whether as part of a cover or just because he couldn't stand not to, he was overwhelmed by how a woman who seemed so delicate in his arms could be as strong inside as he knew her to be. At moments like this, he felt as though he'd found his home - a home he hadn't realized he'd been searching for.

They listened to the others talk for a while before he helped her up for the walk back to their own campsite. There was no more than a sky full of stars and a sliver of moon to light their way, so Lee took her hand in his and guided her over the trail with the help of his flashlight. His mind was on Amanda, thinking how right it had felt to sit with her in his arms, snuggled up against his chest.

He continued past their tent and into the clearing where they had admired the view earlier in the day. Shutting off the light and putting it into his pocket, he watched as she looked out over the dark velvet valley.

"The view is even better at night," she said quietly. Scattered pinpoints of light showed where homes and other structures dotted the valley floor.

"It's beautiful," he agreed. "A little more moonlight would make it just perfect."

Feeling a chill run down her spine, she looked up at him. His eyes were only for her; he was oblivious to the natural vista spread out at their feet. The urgency of his look drew her in. Without thinking, she turned to face him, bringing both her hands inside the open front of his jacket to rest on his chest. He put his own hands inside her jacket, first encircling her waist and then moving them higher up her back, pulling her a bit closer than was his custom. His lips were parted slightly, and his eyelids looked heavy.

'Oh, my gosh,' she thought, 'He's going to kiss me.' The shiver that had traversed her spine moments ago gathered strength and returned. With a sharp intake of breath, she looked down and away from his intense scrutiny. She trembled in his arms, craving the kiss but at the same time fearing its consequences. She'd spent a long time holding back her ever-changing feelings towards Lee, and she'd become almost as adept as Scarecrow at hiding her feelings. She was afraid that, if she began to let them out, she wouldn't be able to control her emotions, and the last thing she wanted was to risk the relationship that they now shared. Here, alone with him in the woods, together in that tiny tent, how would she ever be able to stop with just a kiss?

"Are you cold, Amanda?" His voice rose from deep in his chest. She didn't dare look up at him, afraid that her resolve would melt in the intensity of his gaze.

"Maybe a little bit," she admitted quietly, eyes still turned to the ground. "I think I'd better turn in for the night."

He drew a deep, ragged breath. "Yeah, that's probably a good idea," he agreed reluctantly. "You go ahead and get settled; I'll be along in a few minutes."

"Yeah, a good idea," she repeated, the struggle between what she wanted and what she should do still raging inside her. She couldn't just leave him. She moved her hands down and around to encircle his strong chest and hugged him closely for several moments before releasing him and heading for the tent.

'How could I say I was cold?' she wondered. 'Every nerve ending in my body is on fire.' She turned her head back slightly, still not looking at him. "Good night, Lee."

"Good night, Amanda." His reply was a hoarse whisper.

His eyes followed her to the tent and lingered there as the soft glow from her flashlight cast a faint silhouette. Soon, the light went out and left him alone in the darkness.