Second Chances…
Prologue...
Tuesday Morning: March 24, 1998 - 9:48AM
"Lee," Carly called out to her boss as she walked into his office at Oz Security. "This just came for you by FedEx. I opened it up, but the envelope inside is sealed. It's marked 'PERSONAL and CONFIDENTIAL' in rather big and bold, black magic marker. I'm not sure what it is, but I thought you might want to open it."
Looking up from his computer, Lee Stetson raised a curious eyebrow. "Who's it from?"
Glancing at the FedEx package it came in, she answered with a shrug. "Some woman named, Amanda King from Arlington, Virginia."
Reaching out for the envelope, Lee nodded. "Thanks, Carly, I'll open it."
Part One
Later that same day, Lee knocked on the door. After a few moments, it cracked open and Amanda peered out at him. She nervously glanced past him, down the hallway.
"Lee, please come in!" she greeted cheerfully. When he stepped inside, she closed and locked the door quickly. Leaning back against the door, she looked very relieved. "I wasn't sure you'd come."
"I took the first flight I could get out of New York," Lee commented in a reassuring voice.
For a few moments, there was an uncomfortable silence between the two ex-partners. "No kiss hello for your estranged wife?" Amanda asked, disappointedly.
"I couldn't promise I would stop at a kiss."
The corners of her lips turned up in an appreciative smile. "Does that mean you've finally forgiven me?"
"It's long overdue, don't you think?"
"I don't blame you for hating me," she whispered, staring down at the floor.
"I've never hated you," he answered somberly, remembering what had happened that cold November morning, back in 1996. It had created a huge rift in their marriage. It was the direct cause of what had turned out to be a long-lasting separation. "We can't change the past no matter how much we want to."
Amanda nodded and forced out in a sad voice, "Yeah, I know."
Lee gazed at her intently, wanting answers to why she'd summoned him with the enigmatic note. Only no explanation was forthcoming. The stony silence that had plagued their relationship for over a year now, still beleaguered them.
Finally, he pulled the letter from his pocket, and asked her. "You want to explain your cryptic note?"
"You mean it wasn't self-explanatory?" she forced out an uneasy laugh.
"I figured out where to find you," he started, knowing it was here, at the Inn that they'd spent their wedding night, starting their life together. "But, 'I need your help - 2/13/87, Amanda,' didn't exactly explain what the problem is. Tell me, what's going on?"
Turning away from him, she walked towards the window, and glanced out at the idyllic Virginia countryside. The flowers were starting to bloom, the birds were returning from their southern migration. Finally, she spoke. "I'll pay your standard rates. Whatever it costs…"
"Unless you're playing footsie with the Russians, we both know you can't afford my standard rates."
"I'll mortgage the house if I have to. I need your help. You're the only one I can trust," she replied, attempting to mask the fear in her voice.
Lee knew her too well and could hear the strain. "Amanda," he said, placing his hand on her shoulder and turning her towards him. His eyes stared deep into hers. "What's wrong?"
"I wish I knew," she shrugged, her voice cracking, as she fought back tears. "Everything was fine. Mostly, I've been doing security reviews, nothing exciting; definitely nothing to warrant what's happening…" she stopped, wiped her eyes, and shook her head. "The next thing I knew, Internal Affairs was poking around and they gave me… a letter."
"Limiting your security clearance?"
She nodded. "I was stunned. I've worked for the Agency for over ten years now, and suddenly they think I'm a security risk?" Her voice cracked again. "It was too bizarre, but it didn't stop there. I tried to do some digging, but my security clearance was cut so low, I couldn't even start to investigate. Scuttlebutt in the office suggested I was about to be scooched. I didn't want to believe it, but then I got a call from Leatherneck. He warned me that I wasn't going to be scooched, but arrested."
Lee's eyes opened wide and his face paled at the facts. "What's your status now?"
"Technically, I'm a runner. They've got trappers out for me. There's a warrant out for my arrest," she swallowed hard and closed her eyes, trying to compose herself. Taking a deep breath, she continued. "I'm trying to find a lawyer, but with Joe gone, I don't have anyone to ask for a referral. You already pointed out how limited my finances are. I want to invest my available funds wisely, and my best chance of proving my innocence, is you," she whispered, hoarsely.
A small smile crossed his face, but it was quickly replaced with a frown. "What's the charge?"
"Treason."
"Worry about the lawyer fees," Lee said immediately. "My services will be pro bono."
Shaking her head, she refused. "I can't ask you to do that."
"I don't remember you asking."
"I don't want charity."
"You are the most stubborn woman I have ever met!" he replied slowly, clenching his jaw; his muscle twitched angrily. "All right, how about I'll bill you at cost? Certainly, even you can you live with that?"
She nodded approvingly. "Thanks, Lee, I really appreciate it."
"Amanda, you've helped me out more than once when I've been in a bind. You never took a dime. Call it a payback for that."
Taking a deep breath, she continued. "I'm going to turn myself in, but I doubt I can afford to bond out, or if they'll even set bail. I wanted to talk to you beforehand – privately – without the worry of eyes and ears."
"Don't turn yourself in, Amanda. I can help you go underground until I get to the bottom of this – whatever this is."
Shaking her head, she argued. "Lee, you run a high-profile security business. If I go underground, sooner or later they'll figure out who's helping me, and they'll go after you. You could lose your business. Aiding and abetting is a felony."
"Really?" he commented with a raised eyebrow. "So was breaking into the Post Office, but I remember you helped me do that a long time ago."
She smiled fleetingly at the long ago memory. "At the very least, they could go after your business license. You can't operate without it."
"Hell, Amanda, let them try," Lee snapped, running his hand through his hair. "I'm nothing more than a high-priced detective. Let them go after my license. It'll give my New York attorney something fun to do for a change. I might need your input. If you're locked up, that's going to be difficult."
"Lee, I'm really scared," she admitted.
He wrapped his arms around her, resting his chin on the top of her head. "I know you are. We both know you wouldn't have asked for my help otherwise."
"I had no where else to turn. Leatherneck and Francine can't help me without risking their own jobs."
"I'm not complaining, Amanda. Damn it, don't you know I still care about you? This is not what I wanted for us…"
The room was bathed in silence until Amanda spoke. "I'm really sorry for what happened that day. I have no one but myself to blame, Lee," her voice faded as she pulled away from him and stood near the window. "I should have waited for backup to get there…only there wasn't time; you didn't hear the desperation in Billy's voice. I was his only chance…"
"I know, but it cost you, us, so much," he replied at the bitter memory, his voice sounding hurt and distant. "That bastard shot you twice, tossed you down an embankment, and left you for dead. I still don't know how you found the strength to crawl back up."
"You knew what I was fighting for. A mother finds strength from within when she needs it. I didn't want to die. I didn't want…" Turning away, she grabbed the windowsill for support, and gasped for breath. It was a few moments later before she continued. "Maybe a trip down memory lane isn't the best thing right now."
"Yeah, you're probably right," he answered, not being able to look at her. In a strained voice, he suggested, "Let's get back to business. How long have you been here and how did you get here?"
"I got here last night. I took a bus from the Metro, a taxi from the bus station. It was dark; as long as they don't plaster my face on America's Most Wanted, I doubt anyone around here will know I'm a fugitive."
"You've been paying with cash?"
"Yes, Scarecrow," she answered, rolling her eyes. "I'm not a rookie. I've done this for a while now. I'm registered as Amanda West. I've got an old ID to match. It'll take a while for them to find me."
"Good. I'll need a list of the cases you've worked on; for starters, let's go with the last six month…"
Amanda went over to her purse, and pulled out a disk. "Already done, like I said, mostly security reviews, some spring cleaning, none of it was highly classified. The majority of my time is spent working with the freshman class, so it's low-level stuff. Beaman acts as if he's a dictator. I do most of the work with them now."
"Does he have a personal vendetta against you?" Lee suggested, hoping for a lead.
She had to laugh. "Oh my gosh, no! Without me, he'd actually have to work."
"OK, we can probably rule out Beaman. What about someone else at the Agency you've had problems with?" he pressed.
"Not really."
"Not really isn't no," Lee argued pacing with frustration. "Amanda, you're being charged with treason. Now is not the time to consider other people's feelings. If someone's got it in for you, I'd like to know now, before you're sentenced to life!"
She swallowed hard at the thought. "All right, there is one freshman candidate I really don't like. Casper, spelled like the ghost, last name is Conrad. He gets his assignments done, but usually late despite always cutting corners. I've spoken to him about it a couple of times, but each time, Beaman's overruled me. He's arrogant, you know the type, an over confident know it all."
"That's not much to go on. Anyone else?"
"There's a new guy in polygraph, he… um, sort of follows me around…"
"He's stalking you?" Lee surmised.
"No, not exactly," she replied, scrunching up her nose. "Actually, he keeps asking me out. I've turned him down, of course. I tried to explain I was married, but…"
"He's been told I'm out of the picture," Lee finished for her, the muscle in his jaw twitching in anger, as pangs of jealousy coursed through his veins. "Who is he?"
"His name is Sam Lieberman. He's a nice enough guy, but he doesn't seem to get the message. I really doubt he'd do something like this."
"I'll look into him just the same. Is that it?"
Nodding her head, she shrugged her shoulders in despair. "Lee, you know me. I'm not that hard to get along with."
"I want you to stay here tonight. I'll go back to DC and see if I can speak with Leatherneck, maybe Francine, and any of my contacts around town. See what they've heard. Do you have your cell phone with you?"
"Yes, in my purse, but I haven't used it."
"Give it to me. I'll dispose of it when I'm back in DC. I'll pick you up another cell phone. No calls to anyone you know, not your mother, the boys, nobody. Do you understand?" he asked solemnly.
She nodded, tears clouding her eyes. "I already feel so isolated."
"Amanda, it's going to be all right. I'll be back late tonight, I promise," he assured her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Tomorrow, we'll move you somewhere a little more spacious. I have a place in mind." Glancing around the room, he commented. "This was a good place to come, Amanda. You knew I'd find you here, but no one else would know about it."
Tears flowed down her cheeks, and she choked out. "I have such wonderful memories of this place, Lee. Coming here, I felt like everything would be all right; even if it was for a few last nights of freedom."
"We both know you're innocent, and we're going to prove it," he replied, tenderly brushing away her tears with his fingers. "Remember, this is no job…"
"For a pessimist," they both finished the words together.
Lee leaned down, captured her lips, and gave her a brief kiss. "I still care about you, Amanda Stetson."
With that said, he slipped out of the room, pausing in the hallway only for a moment until he heard her lock the door behind him…
End Part One
Author's Note: The remainder of this story is posted on my IFF Film Library website. Fan fiction net doesn't allow for a direct link. If you go to the author link, you can find the website, or search for IFF Film Library on any major search engine. Happy Reading!
Robin