Wyvern's Sting

by Jarris Shepard

Lee and Amanda take in a lost boy and protect him. I don't make money from stories posted here. This was written many many years ago for a mailing list, and I never got around to posting it here.

56

TITLE: Wyvern's Sting

AUTHOR: Loree

E-MAIL: phax_halfelven

ARCHIVE: Sure, just let me know where.

RATING: I don't rate'em I just write'em. No seriously, I won't know that until I've finished it, but it shouldn't be more than PG-13 for a bit of language, but nothing too bad.

SUMMARY: Lee's past escapades come back to haunt him. Or do they? This show is a little more mushy than I usually watch(but I love it anyway) so forgive me if the romance is a little off.

TIME: Soon after the fourth season. Before anyone officially knows Lee and Amanda are married.

DISCLAIMER: Scarecrow and Mrs. King DOESN"Tbelong to me nor do the characters, except for the ones I make up. They belong to others and if those others wish to take legal action I would point out that I am a hopelessly broke college student, so you won't get much if anything at all. Nik does belong to me and if you want to use him please ask.

NOTE: Gai is pronounced guy.

THANKS: To my betas, your insight was a great help in getting this thing back on its feet. I'm so very grateful to you.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Julianne Tyler, having spent most of her adult life as an agent woke in milliseconds to the sound of footsteps in the hall outside the darkened apartment. She sat up and looked toward the door, making sure Nik's blanket still protected him from the chill breeze coming from the open window. She watched the lights sway beneath the door, it looked as if someone were using a flashlight to check the door numbers.

Quickly, she woke her seven year old son, with a hand on his mouth to be sure he made no sound. He opened eyes that were fully alert. He'd learned over his life with his mother that waking quickly and quietly was an asset. She gave a hand signal and he swiftly headed for the fireplace, taking the blanket he'd been sleeping under with him. He opened the metal cage and slipped into the chute.

He located the familiar, carved, hand an foot holds easily and climbed up higher in the flu. After a few seconds he reached the small ledge and crouched down, wrapping the soft blue blanket protectively around him, to await his mother's all clear signal.

Below the silent boy, still in the darkened room Julianne lie feigning sleep as the door opened. Two men stood in the doorway with flashlights searching the room. It didn't take them long to spot her lying on the couch. "Go check the other rooms. She's got a boy and I want them both in here where we can keep an eye on them." She saw the speaker's friend nod through slit eyelids. He then walked off as the speaker walked toward her. She closed her eyes before the light slid over her. "Deadly for a spy to sleep too soundly." She heard him mutter. "Oh well, better luck for us."

Soft footsteps approached after a time as the second man returned. "If she's got a kid he ain't here. I checked all the rooms and the closets, nothin' but clothes in 'em."

"Help me to hold her. We'll tie her and then get her to tell us where the boy is." She heard them move closer and waited until the last possible second before exploding into action against them. She put the first speaker on the floor with a roll from the couch and a fist in a very sensitive area. She sprang to her feet as the shorter man surged forward. She'd taken the bigger man first thinking he'd be the more difficult opponent, but the second man proved to be a worthy adversary, as well as an unbeatable one. After a few minutes of furious struggle the man finally gained the upper hand and pinned her on the couch long enough for his associate to tie her hands behind her.

"Calm down and we will not hurt you." The smaller man said in a thick Russian accent.

"What are you doing in my home? You have no right to be here! Look take what you want and go. I'm sorry I fought you, I had to try to protect my things."

"Please, we know you are no ordinary woman protecting her ordinary home. Where is the boy? We are to take the both of you."

"He's not here. He's staying with relatives out of state over his holiday. Who are you people?"

"That is not important. You're coming with us and will take us to the child."

"I will not until I know what you want with him!"

"We want nothing from him, but another is interested."

"Fine I'll go, but let me call Mr. Melrose. He's the owner of this apartment. I must notify him that I'll be leaving."

"No, you aren't calling anyone."

In the little alcove in the chimney Nikolas covered his mouth to muffle the gasp of recognition. His mother had drilled into him the codes she'd come up with and she'd just used two of them. He listened to them exchange a few more words, some of it inappropriate, and then he heard the footsteps leaving the room. Still he didn't move his mother had instructed him in this too. He'd wait at least forty-five minutes before climbing down and doing what she'd instructed.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Billy Melrose sighed as the door opened with only the slightest of knocks before. He set down the doughnut that he'd been about to eat, and looked up to see one of his top agents standing there.

"Am I interrupting anything, Billy?" Scarecrow said in that flip way he had.

"As a matter of fact yes, I am eating my breakfast and going over the latest reports. What do you want Lee?"

"Well I've been thinking, Amanda has been a full fledged agent for over a year, she needs a codename. I think I've come up with the perfect one too."

"What is it Glinda the good witch?" Francine Desmond walked in before the door could close behind Lee.

"Ha, ha. Very funny Blondie." Lee chuckled at her look of daggers. "Actually, it's not from The Wizard Of Oz at all. It's from Greek Mythology. A well known goddess actually, the description fits Amanda perfectly."

"Well, don't keep us waiting spill it." Francine said sarcastically.

"Athena, huh." He spread his arms wide waiting for their reactions.

"The goddess of war fits Amanda? Please."

"Much as I hate to agree with Francine, it is a little bizarre."

Lee's face took on a reproachful look. "Just listen for a minute, okay. Yes she was the goddess of war, but also the goddess of crafts and the domestic arts. I read that Athena derives no pleasure in war, in fact, she prefers to handle disputes diplomatically using her wisdom, but in a pinch she's one hell of a fighter."

Both Billy and Francine nodded at that it did, after all, sound like Amanda King. "All right, Scarecrow and Athena, what a pair. I'll send the notice where it needs to be, you inform Amanda. Oh, and if you decide to initiate her, go easy. Her training was strange enough that it would be cruel to be too hard on her."

Lee smirked, "I don't know about the others, but I think she's had a hell of a test in fire over the last four years."

"Good, I don't think she'd appreciate the humiliation of finding out the stalker was a practical joke." Francine spoke up.

"They got you with the stalker bit, ouch." Lee grimaced in sympathy. He was about to say more, but Billy's phone rang cutting off any further conversation. The two agents left the room as Billy answered.

"Hello, this is Melrose." He answered in his customary way.

"Uh, hi." The voice on the other end was that of a young child. "My mom left me a message that I was to call you and say Zulu Blue."

"WHAT!" Billy hoped that this was a prank of some kind.

"She said Zulu Blue." The voice sounded scared.

"Okay, who is your mom, son?"

"She told me you would ask. She said to say that she is one of the twenty brightest stars in the night sky."

Melrose froze for a moment, Acrux, but she was on assignment overseas pretending to be a good little Russian. "What else did she want you to tell me?"

"I don't know. She's gone."

"Where?"

"Two men broke our door. They took her with them. They said they were looking for me too."

"Okay, I want you to stay there and hide after we finish. I need you to tell me where you are."

"I don't know exactly the address. Only the city. We just moved here a few days ago, and I haven't memorized it yet. I know we were in Washington DC though, well Georgetown."

"Okay, I need you to stay on the line for me, I'll be right back to talk to you some more."

"Okay."

Billy popped his head out of the office door. "Francine I need a trace on the call in my office."

"Give me a couple of minutes." He nodded and went back to the phone.

"Okay, we're going to trace your call and find you. What's your name son?"

"It's Nikolas, but my mom calls me Lee or sometimes Niki." The fear had left his voice and it was surprisingly steady.

"You must be one brave young man. You don't sound scared at all."

"I am, but Mom says that showing fear to people who could be your enemies is dangerous."

"I'm not your enemy. I want to help you."

"But I don't know you so you could be an enemy."

"Logical. Look I'll come and get you myself. I want you to stay hidden until you hear the word Acrux, okay, can you do that?"

"Yes sir, does this mean you want me to hang up now?"

He looked up at Francine's desk and got a thumbs up. "Yes, I want you to go and hide now. I'll be there soon." He heard the click of the receiver and then a dial tone. "Francine, I'm leaving for a bit. Hold down the fort, and give me that address. Also, pull any files we have on Julianne Tyler, and anyone else associated with her." She handed it over and he grabbed his coat putting it on as he left the building.

"Okay, but why? BILLY!" He was already out the double glass doors though and didn't turn back.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Lee heard the door in the hallway open and shut then Amanda's voice as she spoke to one of the other agents for a moment confirming something. He got up and stood beside the door so that she wouldn't see him when she entered as the door would block him from view. It would give him a chance to get behind her. The door opened and her perfume wafted over his senses. He stepped forward as the door shut and careful not to make a sound locked it tight. Amanda was carrying her purse and the customary flowers for her desk. He waited for her to set the things down then sneaked up behind her, and slipped his arms around her waist nuzzling her neck with his lips.

"Good morning Mrs. Stetson." She turned in his arms to share a good morning kiss with him.

"Good morning, sweetheart."

"I missed you last night. Didn't have anyone to snuggle with and keep the chill away."

"I know, I missed you too." She looked dejected.

"Hey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."

"I know. It's just that this is harder and harder every day. I want to live with you, I want you with me everywhere, not just at work or whenever we have a chance to be alone."

"I agree, but is now really the best time to come out, so to speak."

She tilted her head to look in his eyes, seeing that he wanted to tell people as much as she did. "No, you're right. Not now."

"Hey, I love you." He held her hands in his caressing the backs with his thumbs.

She gave him a radiant smile, "I love you too." She pulled her hands away from him and cupped his face pulling it down for another kiss. "We better get to work, or we'll never get out of here in time for the basket ball tournament this afternoon."

"Oh, right. Phillip must be excited." Lee said as he let her go and they went to their respective desks.

"He can't wait. It's all he's talked about since his team qualified. He's been practicing every night after school and homework for three weeks now." She settled herself and opened a file that was waiting for her from the day before.

They worked in silence for a bit before Lee's hormones gave him a break long enough to remember his reason for coming in so early this morning. "Oh, by the way Amanda, I've talked to Billy about a codename for you. Actually, I requested one and, well, suggested one to him this morning. He liked it, so he said I should inform you that you will be known as Athena from now on."

"Athena, the Greek goddess of war? Lee I know you love me and think I'm beautiful, but isn't that a little too much." She raised an eyebrow at him.

"No, I thought about this for a long time. Look," Lee began to explain the reasoning behind her name, and finally Amanda was as convinced as Billy and Francine had been.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Billy pulled up outside an apartment complex and turned off his engine. The building was five stories and red brick except on the corners which were done with white. The overhang trim was also white. He climbed the steps and entered the lobby. It was a rich-looking establishment with plush new, tan, carpeting and walls painted to match the carpet. A long hall led to the ground floor apartments. He looked again at the address that Francine had given him and took the stairs on his left to the second floor.

This floor had a cream carpet motif with wood paneling on the walls. It had a friendly feel to it. He took a second set of stairs, this time on the right, to the third floor and came out onto dark gray carpet with a lighter shade of gray wall paint the furniture in a small alcove matched the walls. He took the hall to his left and looked at the number on the door. 1052 was the first and the second was 1050. He was looking for 1071, so he turned and walked in the opposite direction. The first door said 1080, so he continued until he found the apartment with the door standing open. He flattened himself against the wall beside it and removed his gun from the holster.

He spun around the frame gun trained on the room looking for any sign of trouble. The apartment would have been lovely had it not held clear signs of a struggle. The end table was on its side and the potted plant that had been atop it had spilled its contents on the beautiful royal blue carpet. There was a blanket hanging half-off the silver, plush sofa. He noted the open window by the breeze billowing in the curtains. The grate to the fire place was closed but not latched.

He began looking around the rest of the apartment. The kitchen, which connected with the dining and living rooms, was tiled with black marble tile and had all the best appliances of the day. It was clean though, the two bedrooms had been ransacked, as though someone were looking for something. The bathroom was the same, every door was open and the contents pulled out onto the floor as though the culprits were trying to reveal someone or thing hidden behind. The only places that had been opened were large enough to fit a person. 'Apparently they didn't believe that the boy was away.' Billy thought as he made his way back to the smaller bed room. "Hello, the word is Acrux. Are you in here?" There was no answer so he moved into the larger bedroom and repeated the recognition word. Still nothing so he went from room to room until he again reached the living room.

"The word is Acrux." He was worried that the boy hadn't stayed, after a moment, though, he heard scraping noises coming from the fireplace. He walked closer and waited, a few seconds later a pair of socked feet appeared and then the boy dropped down out of the flu. "Nik?"

"Yes, sir." Billy opened the grate and held out his hand. The young man took it and stepped out of the fireplace.

"I'm Mr. Melrose. Let's get you some clothes and get out of here, son." The red headed child nodded and walked back to his bedroom with Billy following. It surprised Billy when the boy pulled a suitcase out of the pandemonium and then indicated he was ready to go.

"You packed already?"

"No, Mom knew we were going to have trouble so she has bags ready for both of us in case we have to leave in a hurry."

"I see. Get your shoes on and let's go." The child obliged and they descended to Billy's car and rode in silence to the agency.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Mrs. Marsden looked up in shock at William Melrose when she saw the pajama clad child, with a blue suitcase in his hand, enter behind him, and look around suspiciously.

"I need a visitor's badge for our young friend here."

She handed him the badge and waved them on. Melrose put a hand on the child's shoulder and led him to the closet elevator then the doors closed, and she saw no more.

Billy stepped off the elevator gently pushing the child in front of him. He steered the way to the glass doors and across the bull pen to Francine's desk and his office door. "Any messages Francine?" He asked as they got to her.

Francine was typing furiously on a report and hadn't looked up when they'd entered. "Yeah, one from Dr. Smith," she made a face, "and Lee says that Amanda has accepted her codename. Here are the files you asked for." She looked up as she handed them over. When she noticed the little boy with him her eyes widened in recognition. "Nikolas? Billy, is this the number we traced."

"Hello Ms. Desmond." Nik said solemnly.

"You know this young man, Francine."

"Yes, Billy, this is Julianne Tyler's son. Where is she?"

"Two men took her last night, Ms. Desmond. She left me a message to call a Mr. Melrose, so I did and he came to get me."

"Oh, God, Niki did you see them? Can you tell us who they were?"

A shake of his small head was all it took to dash her hopes. Then Billy stopped him from saying more. "Let's take this in my office, shall we. I want to get the full story from our young friend and this is not the place for it."

"Right Billy. Sorry, it's just that Juli is my friend, and I'm worried."

"I know, Francine. We all know her, although, I'd say it's apparent that we don't know much about her." He opened his office door and ushered the boy inside. "Why don't you have a seat in here, son. I'll join you in just a minute." Nikolas nodded and walked into the room. "We're going to need to find someone to care for him while this is being investigated." She nodded and then protested when Billy's gaze remained on her.

"Oh, no, Billy, no. I don't get along well with kids. Besides Jonathan and I have plans for the weekend. It is my weekend off you know. You approved it two weeks ago." His gaze still didn't waver, "We leave for PineTop as soon as I get home tonight, Billy."

"But you are a familiar face to him, Francine. Help to put his young frightened mind at ease."

"I refuse. He and I don't get along. The few times we have met were cold and distant. And I can assure you that of all the children you could have found in this situation Niki is the only one that is not scared. Confused, maybe, but not scared." She finished with a huff.

"Fine, then. Since you are going to throw a tantrum, if you can find someone to look after him for the weekend before you leave this building, and someone reasonable. Don't look like that I have to approve, and don't even think about asking Amanda. She is working tomorrow. Sunday she requested to spend time with her own sons. So, get to work, and good luck. First, I want you in here to take his statement." He entered his office brusquely, not waiting for her answer.

When she got into the office Billy was behind his desk speaking softly to Nik about the cowboy hat that Billy displayed in his office. "Yeah, my staff gave me that last Christmas."

"It's neat, I've never seen a cowboy hat before. At least not up close."

"Would you like to try it on, son?" Nik shook his head as Francine sat herself beside him in a chair ready to record his statement. "Okay, first of all, how long have you and your mother been in the U.S.?

"We got into California about three weeks ago. Mom said that we were gonna just disappear. Then the men showed up and we left fast. We've been hiding and stuff until we got here. She said she needed to contact someone, but she needed a safe time to do it.

"Can you tell us what happened last night, Nik?" Francine asked delicately.

Nikolas nodded, a stoic expression on his face. "My mom and I were asleep in the den, she was on the couch and I was beside her on the floor. We were sleeping there because she heard someone was looking for her, and she thought it would be easier to get out if she could hear them coming, and we were close to the fire escape.

She woke me up and gave a signal that I was to hide, so I did. Then I heard them. There were footsteps out in the hall by our door. Then there was a crash; I guess that it was the door that had been kicked in. Then there was a whisper that I didn't catch, and lights shining back and forth, I could see the shadows and things in the chimney bottom. It was quiet for a long time after that.

Then I heard a struggle and then talking. One of the men said that he was looking for my mom and me. The other didn't say much. My mom told them that I was out of state with her family, and that she should call the landlord to notify him that we weren't going to be there." He stopped and Billy prompted him gently. "I knew it was a code to call you. My mom set them up as soon as I could read. We have hand signals too. Anyway I knew it was a code because we have a landlady not a landlord. Mrs. Blake is nice she brings cookies and things for me. After that they left, I guess, because it got really quiet and still. But I didn't come out in case they were watching for me. I waited until morning to call someone."

"Is that all, son?" Billy asked and received a nod in reply. "Okay, it's fine. You did a very good job." Nik straightened proudly. "Why were there people after you, and why did your mom return to this country?"

"She blew up some buildings on our way out of Russia, and I suppose her boss didn't like that she had sold out to you, which I found out she was working for you all along. She said she didn't like the attention she was getting and that we had to leave Russian soil and go somewhere we'd be safe."

"So she came to DC" Another nod.

"Yeah, it took a while to get here though."

"Okay, thank you, Nikolas. This will help us get started looking for her." Billy smiled at him. "Is there anything you need, son?"

"Well, I am sorta hungry. I haven't eaten in a while, and Mom says to eat when you can."

"I can have something brought to you. You wait here and I'll go order you some breakfast." At a nod he ushered Francine out of his office. After the door shut he spoke. "Get everything you can on what Acrux has been working on and who she was working for. I want all the information you can dig up on our young friend in there too. He must have some family somewhere. And order him a breakfast from somewhere."

"On it Billy. What are you going to do with him right now?"

"He can stay in my office until we know more about what's going on." Billy turned and reentered the office and Francine got down to business.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

The noon hour came and went, Billy took Nikolas to lunch with him, and now they were back in his office. Billy was going over the files Francine had produced and Nik was occupying himself watching the security feeds from the Georgetown foyer. There was a knock on the door and both looked toward it. "Come in." Billy called.

Lee Stetson popped his head in the door. "You busy in here?"

"Yes I am, Scarecrow, what do you want?" Billy replied.

"I just thought I'd let you know that Amanda and I are done for the day, and I'm going to accompany her to her son's basketball tournament."

"The infamous Scarecrow, at a high school basketball tournament?" Billy raised his eyebrows.

"Hey, I like basketball." He noticed Billy's visitor and acknowledged him. "Hi, there, I didn't see you before."

"Hi," The voice was softened with awe. "You're Scarecrow?"

"The one and only."

"My mom told me all about you. She said you saved her life once."

"Could have. Who is your mom?"

"Lee, this is Nikolas, Julianne Tyler's son."

Lee's mouth dropped for an instant. "Nice to meet you. Yeah, I saved her and she saved me too. Man, the last time I saw you, you weren't even born yet." He smiled and shook his head, "Anyway, we're heading out Billy. If you need us, call my car phone."

"Will do. Have fun, Scarecrow." Lee nodded and left. Billy noticed Nikolas's eyes following his agent across the Bull Pen. An inspiration lit his face. Maybe Francine was off the hook.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Amanda was waiting patiently for her husband in the car. Finally, he arrived and they drove to Phillip's game. "So, did Billy give you a hard time about going to the game."

"A little. I think he was wrapped up in a caseload though. He had a young visitor in his office."

"Oh, who?"

"You wouldn't know him, or his mother for that matter. She worked over here in '78 briefly. Her name is Julianne Tyler, and her son looks exactly like her. Red curly hair green eyes and all. She was one of the brightest up and coming agents of the time, hence the codename, Acrux. It's one of the twenty brightest stars in the sky at night. Last I heard, she was going overseas to play Russian roulette."

"That sounds dangerous. Especially with a small child."

"If anyone could do it, it was her though. Here we are." The car pulled to a stop and they both unbuckled and exited the 'Vette. Dotty and Jamie met them.

"Hi mom, Mr. Stetson." Amanda pulled her younger son into a hug.

"Hi, sweetheart, how was school today?"

"It was great, Mom." Lee smiled listening to his family converse. Dotty noticed the smile and thought, 'he's hooked that's for sure. Now all he needs to do is propose.'

They heard a buzzer from the gym across the parking lot. "Lets get in there or we'll miss Phillip's game." Lee slipped an arm around Amanda and they walked inside together. Dotty was escorted by her grandson.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Billy was down to the last file Francine had brought in. It was six thirty in the evening and Francine, who hadn't been able to locate a suitable caretaker, was sweating with dread. Nikolas had curled up on the couch in Billy's office and was in a light doze. He started awake when he heard the startled 'Oh, good lord.'

Francine had heard it as well and came rushing in. "What's wrong, Billy?"

"Francine you're off the hook. In fact, get out of here and have a wonderful weekend." She looked confused, but decided that it was best she didn't look this gift horse in the mouth.

"Thanks Billy, see you Monday. Bye, Niki. I'll probably see you Monday as well." The red head bobbed up and down, and Francine disappeared. Billy looked over at the boy on the couch.

"Sorry I startled you, son. Look why don't you go sit in Francine's desk for a moment. I need to make a call."

"Yes, sir." Nikolas stood and left the room.

Billy dialed Lee's car phone. Finally, he got an answer. "Hello, this is Mr. Stetson's car phone. Jamie King, speaking, may I ask who's calling?"

"Hello, Jamie. This is Lee's boss. I need to speak to him; is he anywhere nearby?"

"Uh, yeah he's talking to my brother and my Gramma. Hang on, I'll get him." Billy heard a yell of 'Mr. Stetson, there's a call for you.' Then Lee answered.

"Hello?"

"Scarecrow, where are you right now?"

"I'm standing beside my car in the parking lot of the High School that Phillip attends getting ready to join them for victory pizza. Why?"

"I need to talk to you, you might want Amanda there too. I'll meet you at your place ASAP."

"Billy, we're off right now."

"Scarecrow, if I have to I'll track you down and we'll have this conversation in front of Amanda's family." Billy's voice was tense and Lee knew better than to argue any further.

"All right, my place ten minutes, but I'm not going to drag Amanda away from her family right now." Billy acknowledged and hung up. He gathered the file back together and tucked it under an arm. Then he grabbed the suitcase and collected Nikolas, locked his office and they left the building.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Amanda watched Lee's stiffened form speaking on the phone, out of the corner of her eye while Phillip went on about his winning hook shot. She saw Lee lean in and hang up the phone. She hadn't missed his admission of not wanting to pull her away from her family right now. That made her all the more determined that she wasn't going to let her husband out of her sight. He walked back over looking disappointed.

"Hey, I'm going to have to decline your offer of pizza, chief. Our boss wants to see me in ten minutes. So, you guys go and have a great time. Congratulations again Phillip."

"Thanks, Lee." His usage of Lee's first name showed how much more at ease Phillip was than Jamie with him.

Amanda spoke up. "Mother, I'm going with Lee if its work I'll need to be there too."

"No, Amanda, its okay. Billy just wanted to meet me at my place."

"In ten minutes. Sounds like an emergency to me. I'm going." Everyone present knew that tone and no one was about to cross Amanda when she used it.

"Okay, come on. It'll take ten minutes to get there from here." He waited for her to hug her boys and her mother and then he walked her around the car and held the door for her. Then he got in and they left the parking lot.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Billy waited impatiently, in the car with Nikolas, for Lee to arrive. Finally, the familiar silver Corvette pulled up and parked. Billy got out and then waited for Nikolas to do the same. He put an arm around the boy's shoulder and led him forward to greet Lee and Amanda.

"What's so important Billy?" Lee asked a little upset.

"Not here, Stetson, lets go inside first." Billy turned and escorted the boy to the steps of Lee's building. Lee preceded them and opened the doors. Finally they were in the apartment and Amanda couldn't take anymore of the silence.

"Who is our young friend here, Sir?" She indicated the boy under Billy's arm.

"Oh, sorry, Amanda King this is Nikolas, Nik this is Amanda, Scarecrow's partner."

Nik nodded at her and she smiled softly. "Can I get you anything, Nikolas, Billy?"

"No Amanda, thank you. Well, actually can you find something for Nik to do. Maybe watch a little television or something."

"Sure, come on, Nikolas. I'll let you watch in the bedroom in here." She led him out with Billy's request of her to rejoin them once the boy was settled.

"Sit down Lee."

"What is this all about Billy? We had plans."

"Look I know you and Amanda had plans, and that you don't get to see each other nearly enough for a newlywed couple." Lee's mouth dropped. "Please, Scarecrow, I'm not section chief for nothing. I'm paid to know things like that. I've looked the other way for your sake though. I know you two don't want this common knowledge yet."

"Is this what you wanted to talk about?"

"No, but depending on how Amanda takes what I do want to talk about it could be a problem for your marriage."

"What is it?" Neither man had heard Amanda return. She seemed to take Billy's knowledge of their marriage in stride, as she crossed to the couch and sat with Lee. "He's not dying again is he? I mean the PD2 didn't mutate or anything?"

"Oh, no, Amanda nothing like that." Billy was sorry that he'd worried her now. "Its not a life threatening thing, but it could be hard to take. Look, I don't know how to say it so I'll let you read it." He pulled a piece of paper from the file neither she nor Lee had noticed, and handed it to Lee.

"It's Nikolas birth certificate, so what." Amanda's eyes widened in understanding without even looking at the paper.

"Oh, my gosh." Lee looked over at her as she stood and started to pace.

"What is it? Amanda?" Lee stood to try to comfort her even though he didn't know what she was upset about.

"Look at the certificate, Lee. Read all of it." Billy pulled him away from his wife for a moment, his voice quietly commanding.

Lee looked. It read:

Child: Nikolas Lee Tyler-Stetson

Mother: Julianne Tyler

Father: Lee Stetson

That was as far as he got. He stared at it for a moment shocked. Then his mind started working. He looked further for a date. It said Born on January 13, 1979. "This isn't possible, Billy. I worked with Juli from August until the end of September in '78. Nikolas would have been conceived before then. Besides, even if I wasn't chaste, I didn't sleep with every woman I worked with. I was in a semi-serious relationship at the time. Remember, after Eva, I met Sarah Townsen, and we went out for, gosh, it had to be two years or more. Hmm, I think the relationship with Sarah was the better of the two."

"Lee, even if you aren't his father biologically, legally, because of this paper, you are responsible for his well being."

"What is going on, Billy? Where is that child's mother?" Amanda wanted to know.

"We don't know. Julianne Tyler was abducted last night. Nik was there, but he didn't see anything because he was hidden up the fire place. They were looking for him to take with them. This much we know, and he was lucky that they didn't find him. We'll be lucky to find her in time. She was a double agent and if they've found out...well, lets just say it's going to be bad."

"Oh my gosh." Amanda quietly intoned.

"Can he identify them even if he didn't see them?"

A voice came from behind them, "No, one of them sounded kinda familiar, but I've met so many of my mom's contacts and co-workers that I don't know if I could be sure of who it was unless I heard him again." They all turned to look at Nik wondering just how long he'd been there. His expression gave away nothing as he watched them watching him.

Amanda stood after a moment, "Do you need something Nik?"

"I wanted to hear what you were talking about." They were all surprised by his open honesty as to his intent. Other children his age would be tripping over their own mouths trying to hide the fact that they were eavesdropping on what was clearly an adult conversation, and this little boy, who was in what they all saw as the worst trouble he'd been in, was proclaiming that he'd been listening and didn't care that they knew.

Amanda was beside him now and had a hand on his shoulder turning him back to the bedroom, "Let's go back in here and let Lee and Mr. Melrose talk in private okay. I'll stay with you." Nikolas let himself be led from the room. Lee took a deep breath and turned back to Billy.

"What do you think he heard, Scarecrow?"

"I don't know, but Amanda will find out. She has an uncanny way with kids."

"It comes of having two of her own, and putting up with you as well. That can't be easy." He chuckled at his own joke.

"Ha ha, very funny." Lee turned serious. "Do you want Amanda and me on this case?"

"I as much as said that didn't I. For now though, get Nik used to being around you and her. If we can't save his mother I hope that you'll at least think about taking him."

"I don't know Billy. Amanda and I have been talking about kids, and I sincerely don't know if I am cut out to be a father. I love her boys, I really do, but they're teens. I won't be raising them as I would if Amanda and I were to have a baby or if I took Nik."

"I think you'd be fine, Lee. Besides you have one hell of an ally in Amanda. Don't forget that she'd be there to help you learn to be a good father." Lee was silent for a moment thinking.

"I hadn't realized that Billy, I mean I knew it, but I didn't you know." Billy nodded in understanding, "thank you for reminding me of that. Oh, by the way, who else knows about us?"

"So far just me. I've kept a pretty tight lid on your relationship around Smith, Francine suspects you're involved but has no proof. If I were you though, I'd stop hiding it, grab life with both hands, and damn the consequences." He let Lee think about it for a bit. "I'll expect to see you and Amanda on Monday. I'll work on finding Acrux myself for a while, but Monday its all yours."

"Right Billy, did Nik have any clothes or anything, or should we go shopping tomorrow?"

"His case is down in the car. Come on and get it." Lee nodded and called out to let Amanda know he was walking Billy out. Nikolas appeared before they got to the door.

"I'm going to be kept here then, Sir."

Billy walked over and knelt on the boy's level. "Yes, I want you to be safe and these two are my best agents. They'll take good care of you, and Scarecrow has some stuff to talk to you about I believe." He looked questioningly back at Lee who made no response. "Well, I'm going to let Lee walk me out and he'll bring your things back up here."

"Okay, thank you sir, for coming to get me, and for trying to help." The boy held out an unwavering hand. Billy grasped and shook it then turned and left the boy with Amanda.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

The room smelled of rust and mold. If the feel was anything to go by it was small and cluttered. There was the sound of a dripping faucet in the near corner. The floor was cold stone on her bare feet, and the chair she sat on was unfinished. There was a man standing by what had to be the door. She could feel his presence. She heard the skitter of a small rodent, mouse or rat she wasn't sure. The blindfold was black, but it had shifted at some point and she saw dim light seeping through the tiny space near her eye. Other than that light she could see nothing. Taking in all the details she'd noticed using her other senses.

She heard a clicking and then a door opened in front of her. She heard slow footsteps as if the person knew she was going nowhere so they could take their time. Finally, the person spoke and she gasped in recognition of the voice. "Where is my son, Juli? I will not let you make a traitor out of him."

Gai. She hadn't see the biological father of her son since 1978 right after she'd found out she was with child. She'd fled her post in Russia to try her hand at domestic assignments, but the money had pulled her back overseas. "He's with family."

"But you have no family Juli, remember. I took care of that a long time ago. My son is the only family you have left, and even that won't last for too much longer. " His accent was not as thickly Russian as it had been when she'd last seen him eight years ago.

"Then let us say he is safe. Out of your reach and being protected from my enemies." She felt the pain and anger she'd always felt when she was reminded of her mother and father. Gai had found out about Nik and killed them to get to her. They'd been the last of her family at the time. Now Nikolas was and he was hopefully with the Agency and Lee Stetson being cared for. She prayed that he'd heard her message and that he was safe.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

At the moment, Nik was absolutely safe. He was sitting on Lee Stetson's couch listening to the great Scarecrow tell a tale of his mother's first case with him. They'd only shared a few since she'd returned overseas after a couple of months. Nik found himself becoming more and more comfortable with the two adults in whose care he'd been left. He'd even spoken of a few of the lessons his mother had given him in espionage. "She taught me codes and ciphers, well mostly codes. That's how I knew to call Mr. Melrose."

"You are very talented, Nikolas." Amanda sat beside him trying to be a comfort. He had scooted slightly away from her though.

"Please, call me Nik or Niki or Lee. I'm not used to my whole name being used, unless I'm in trouble. I'm more used to Lee, Mom calls me that. Now at least I know the man she named me after. I always wondered what you were like." Lee looked at Amanda for a moment. He really needed to talk to her.

"I'm glad to have met you too. Tell you what why don't you go and grab a bath. Its getting late and Amanda will need to get home to her sons soon." The look she gave him asked if she would really be going home tonight. Nik pretended not to notice, and nodded his head. Lee stood and showed him to the bathroom and procured his towels and a wash cloth for him. Nik opened his case and pulled out a pair of pajamas. "I guess you can take it from here, huh?"

"Yes. I'll be out soon." He disappeared into the bathroom and Lee heard running water. He returned to Amanda in the living room.

"Should I tell him that I'm his father, or does he know about this already?" He didn't hesitate or stumble. He'd learned from her that it was easier when you got it off your chest and he'd started to talk to her without tripping over his feelings more and more over the past year.

"I don't know if he knows, he's hard to read. If he does why hasn't he asked about it. If he doesn't how do you explain that you are legally but not biologically his father. I think he'd understand, but I'm not certain. He's a puzzle Lee. He shows so much independence that neither of my boys had at his age. I wasn't even sure how old he is, until I read the birth certificate. I thought he had to be close to eight or nine, but I wasn't at all sure. Then there is an uncertainty about him too. He hides it well. I doubt that anyone but a mother would see it."

"I'm glad you're here. I don't know what I'd do without you to help me. I talked to Billy about some things. I figured it couldn't hurt since he knew about us anyway. He reminded me that whatever my insecurities you're here to help make me better at the things I'm not so good at." He leaned in for a quick kiss of thanks. "I'd say lets talk about a baby again, but I think our plates are going to be full for a while because I want to tell your mother and our boys that we're married. We also need to think about Nik. If we can't get Juli back I am responsible for him. Are we going to raise him as ours or should we try to find someone in her family that wants him. If we do keep him I'll want to tell our family even more because I don't want him to miss having you for a mother. Or should I say that I want you to be his mother more than a few days a month."

"You're ahead of yourself again, Scarecrow. He will remember his real mother. He may not want me, and we may get a break and he won't need a mother. I'll say that I agree with telling Mother and the boys, but not at this moment. Its going to be hard to explain you and me and our job, but add another kid to that and it'll be harder."

Lee sighed and pulled her closer. "I know, but something Billy said has been nagging at me for a while now, and when he said it. Well, it brought it all home to me. I want my family to know they are my family and I want to hold onto them with both hands while I have the chance." Amanda smiled softly at him, feeling his words as much as hearing them. She wanted that too. She decided then and there that even with Nik they would talk to their family as soon as possible before anything else happened to deter them while they were agreed on it.

"Okay, lets tell them Lee. The sooner the better. Tonight, or tomorrow I don't care but lets do it before we start to disagree about it again." He smiled at her the dazzling full mouthed grin that melted her insides and made her want to kiss him until she died for lack of respiration.

"Really?" She nodded at him. "Okay. We'll talk to Nik first. I'm going to tell him. I want him to know that I'll be here for him after we've told them. Even if we don't share the same DNA. He's named after me for god's-sake. If she'd wanted his biological father to have any rights she'd have put his name on the birth certificate."

"Not to mention told the guy he was going to be a father." She added matter-of-factly. They sat back holding on to one another waiting for Nik to get back to them.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Nikolas walked out dry after his bath in his pajamas with is hair dried and brushed into place. Lee and Amanda were sitting on the couch that they'd been on when Mr. Melrose had spoken to them. Lee was apparently waiting for him for he was noticed the moment he stepped into the doorway.

"Nik, I need to talk to you, Billy was right about that. You have a right to know about some things."

"You're going to tell me that you are my father legally." He said in the same tone he'd used to tell them he'd been listening to their conversation.

"Yes, I take it you either knew already, or you heard most of our conversation earlier."

"I heard your conversation." He paused, looked to the floor and back. "I asked my mom a while back about my father. She said that the man who shared in my creation has no meaning, but the man I'd meet as my father was a good man, and that he was the only father I'd ever need to know. I guess she meant you." Lee grinned saddly, and nodded as he was wont to do in certain situations that were perplexing and frustrating as well.

"Come here?" He held his arms open to the boy, who shook his head and took a step back instead of one forward.

"If it's okay I'd rather not, sir." Lee was hurt, that much Amanda could see in his face, but he understood all to well how the boy was probably feeling no matter how well he hid it.

"Okay, but if you ever need me I'm here, and please call me Lee. Unless you feel uncomfortable calling me that. You could, uh, you could even try calling me dad if you wanted." Amanda felt how hard it was for her husband to suggest that. She knew he would need to get used to the idea as well as Nik would.

"Lee's okay for now." Her husband nodded softly, relieved and disappointed at the same time and unable to resolve the feelings within himself.

She decided it was time to break the tension, "It's not like you two have to be best friends right away. You just met after all. I know it's hard for you, Nik, being raised to suspect people around you for your own protection and your mother's. Lee is the same way for years he's had to protect himself from new people so that he wouldn't get hurt. You two are a lot alike, Nik. I know you don't have any reason to trust me any more than him, but you can trust him to take the very best care of you." She looked over at her husband. "He's been doing it for me for five years now." Nik nodded and stepped nearer to them.

"It's not only that, but I'm used to my mom being the only person that I touch. I never really was held by anyone but her. I feel weird if someone else holds me." He looked slightly embarrassed.

"That's okay too. You seem very capable yourself. Anyone as independent as that would feel funny depending on someone else even for comfort." She smiled at him. All the while hoping that he'd learn to be more like her boys had been. It was unnerving for a young child to be so self-assured. "Why don't we get something to eat and Nik can get dressed while we figure out what we're going to eat. Then we'll head over to my place to talk to our family."

Nik stopped short. "Our family."

"Yes, I thought you would have heard that Lee and I are married." She watched him shake his head. "Well, we are. We are going to announce it to my mother and my two sons. They should know."

"You didn't tell them because you're an agent, right?"

"That's right. Does your mother's family know she's an agent?"

"Of course I do." He answered.

"I meant your grandparents, you know."

"Oh, I never knew them. They died before I was born." He looked uncomfortable again and she let him go on his way to change out of the pajamas into something more appropriate for going outside in the cold.

"I don't like the sound of that Lee."

"Neither do I, but we can't do anything right now. Lets get some food and go talk to our family." Amanda smiled at him and leaned in for a lingering kiss on the lips. Lee accepted and gave her the kiss she was looking for and by the time Nik was dressed they'd forgotten dinner and decided to pick something up on the way. He rolled his eyes at them sitting on the couch snuggling like teens.

"I'm ready now." He said to them.

"Okay, good. Lee go pack a bag. You and Nik are staying in my living room this weekend. We'll tell mother and the boys about everything and that we're protecting him, which is the truth, and decided it would be safer to keep him at the house than the apartment. Now go you two get your stuff and lets go home." Lee smiled realizing that after tonight it would most certainly be home for all of them, and maybe Nik too. They all hoped that his mother could be found and saved, but there was always a possibility that they'd be too late or maybe not find her at all.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Dotty and the boys had gotten home an hour before and they were all pursuing their own interests. Jamie was upstairs starting a book report that was due on Monday, Phillip was sitting in front of the couch watching TV, and Dotty herself was sitting on the couch doing a crossword puzzle in the back of the TV guide. Even though Lee's car purred like a kitten and she didn't hear it, Dotty saw the headlights drive up and park behind the wagoneer. "Looks like your mom's home, and apparently she brought company."

"Lee's here, all right, maybe we'll get a game of Duck Hunt going. We'll see who gets the higher score this time." Dotty shook her head at her grandson.

"Well, it is the weekend, I guess it's not too bad, but if he doesn't want to don't hound him."

"Of course not, Gramma." They heard doors shut outside and then voices. The back door opened to admit Amanda hand in hand with Lee, and a young boy, with the most brilliant red hair she'd ever seen, behind them with a suitcase in his hands.

"Hello Mother, Phillip. Where's Jamie?"

Phillip eyed the other boy as he answered. "He's up in our room doing his report. You want me to go get him?"

"No, sweetheart, I'll get him." She turned and extended a hand to Nik, "come on Nik, I'll get you settled in my room for now. If you're not asleep when we're done down here I'll come and get you." He nodded, and surprised both Lee and Amanda by taking her hand. She led him from the room.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

"Lee who was that?" Dotty asked curiously.

"Uh, well, you'll be introduced later, Amanda and I have some things we want to talk about with you all. Before you jump to any conclusions it's not what you're thinking, Dotty." He smiled at her. "So get that look off your face, before your daughter gets back and skins me alive for saying anything without her."

"All right, we'll wait for Amanda." They didn't wait too long. Jamie came down a bit later and Amanda followed after five minutes.

"It took that long to get him settled." Lee looked inquisitive.

"Not really, but I wanted to make sure he was comfortable. He's had a rough day Lee, remember that." She took his hand as she inhaled deeply preparing herself for the task at hand. As one they turned and faced her mother and sons.

"Lee and I have a few confessions to make tonight. First and foremost, I want you all to know that I have known Lee longer than you think." Amanda started.

"How much longer, mom?" Jamie asked.

"For five years actually. I met him one day when I took Dean to the train station."

"I remember that it was right before that wonderful Mrs. Welsh's cooking show was canceled." Dotty voiced remembering. Not one of the three people sitting there missed the look that passed between the two facing them. "Are we missing something funny here?"

"Actually, yeah." Lee took over for a moment. "See we are the reason she was canceled. It's a long story, but what it boils down to is she was not a nice person and the people we work for had her arrested and sent to prison."

"But I thought that you were a director at IFF and Mom was your assistant." Phillip looked puzzled.

"We do work for IFF but it isn't really a film company in the most literal sense of the word. They do make documentaries, but it's not the top priority. IFF is a front. A cover if you will." Lee continued.

Dotty spoke up, "You mean like one of those businesses that the Mafia keeps to hide the real reason they are so obscenely rich is the drugs they smuggle in."

"Sort of Mother," she was cut off.

"Are you saying that you're criminals?" Dotty jumped to the wrong conclusion.

Both Lee and Amanda hurried to correct her, sorry that they hadn't explained better. "No, no, no." They said it simultaneously. Then Amanda continued.

"I have told you that IFF works for the government, Mother. It really does. In fact, it is a front for a place called The Agency. It is kind of like the FBI, only not as publicly acknowledged."

"So you're telling us you're spies!" Phillip was excited now. He jumped up rubbing his hands together.

"We don't like to use that word, but it will do." Lee replied. "Amanda wanted to tell you, but our boss wouldn't let her. He knows that this is a dangerous business, and you'd all be safer if you didn't know."

"Your boss. Let me guess, is Mr. Personality Melrose. Amanda," She was cut off.

"Yes, Billy is our section chief. He's really a nice guy, Mother. He just has to play his part to keep things under wraps."

"I thought you told me that you weren't involved with any of those agent types." Dotty thought back for a moment, realizing that Amanda HAD told her that she was a spy before, a few times to be honest, over the last five years. Dotty realized that she'd brushed them all of as wild stories, or a joke.

"I am mother. I'm more than involved. I'm one of those agent types. I have been for a little over a year now." She had prepared herself for a big reaction, a loud reaction. The dead silence that her mother gave her was totally unexpected. "Mother, do you want to say anything?"

"I'm waiting for you to finish. You're telling us all this for some other reason, leading up to something more important. I can feel it." Dotty's expression was closed and unreadable at the moment.

"Yes, we are. It's going to be harder to explain the next. But I want you to know I took the job to make this a better safer world for the people I love, and yes mother all those times I ran out to my club or a late night in the editing room, they were all assignments for the Agency." 'Until recently,' Amanda added silently.

Lee took over again. "A friend of mine, who was also an agent got into some trouble a little over a year ago, and Amanda and I helped him out. It was a sticky situation, and it prompted our decisions over the things we are going to confess tonight." He then proceeded to tell them of the trouble that Kai and his family had found themselves in. How his wife had been devastated to learn that her husband was killed and then her youngest son was taken from her. How the reunion of the family had been bittersweet until Kai had left the agency.

Amanda took over before he could tell them all of the story though. She felt she should be the one to deliver the shock and thereby take the brunt of their hurt. She didn't want them to see Lee as the one who'd caused their pain at having been kept in the dark. "Lee had proposed to me just a few weeks before Kai and his family went through this. We'd been planning on announcing it and having a big wedding and possibly even getting a bigger house for us all, but after we found out about Kai and his son and the grief his wife was experiencing. Well, we decided that if we were going to get married no one could know about it for a while, not anyone at work because they'd terminate our partnership, and not you so that if anything ever happened and the bad guys got a hold on you, you could truthfully say you knew nothing." Her boys looked confused trying to rationalize everything to see that one thing that would make it all valid. Dotty, not being as dense as some might think, looked angry but in control. "What I'm trying to say is that on February 13, Lee and I will be celebrating our first wedding anniversary, and we're tired of being apart. Not only that, but today we were shown just how precious life really is, and that it shouldn't be wasted on good intentions because what will happen, will happen regardless of what you did to try to prevent it."

The boys faces lit and then dimmed as the imparted knowledge settled into their minds. "Why couldn't you have just said you wanted to be together, but didn't want to get married if you wanted Lee to move in?"

"Because I raised you better than that. If Lee'd moved in here we'd have to be married in your eyes as well as our own."

"Yeah, bone head."

"Jamie don't call your brother names." Lee said softly, while Amanda watched her mother stand and walk into the kitchen. She looked back at him and he nodded at her to go and try to make things better, at least as better as she could at the moment.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

"Mother?" Amanda cautiously walked in behind Dotty.

"I'm, I just, Amanda. I'm happy that you grabbed life when you could, but I'm hurt that you lied all these years. I don't know what to think about that."

"Oh, Mother, it hurt me every time I had to lie to you and the boys, but especially to you. We've never kept secrets, but now they are a large part of my job. I died a little every time I had to cover up the truth, and the few times I really did tell the truth you didn't believe it and it cut even deeper, because even though you didn't know I'd lied I felt like you didn't believe me because you couldn't trust me." Amanda was rambling as usual and Dotty stopped her.

"Darling, take a breath. I don't want you to faint while you are apologizing." She laughed a little, amused that she'd just broken the tension she had created.

"I love you so much, Mother. I know we can't heal this right now, but I want you to know how very sorry I am."

"It still hurts Amanda it is bound to for a while, but I think we're making a good start of trying to heal it. Now, who is the little boy upstairs? How does he fit in all this?" Dotty, even after all the revelations and pain, was still curious.

"Let's join the guys out there and Lee and I'll explain as best we can. It'll be a shock though, as if we haven't had enough of that tonight. It was for Lee and I, more for Lee I expect." She led her Mother back out to the living room. Lee was showing the boys his ID, and answering their endless questions.

"We're not finished yet, guys. Are we Amanda?"

"No, Mother is still curious about Niki."

"The kid you guys brought home tonight. Is he a spy or a witness or something?" Phillip asked.

Lee sighed. He was going to tell this tale. "All but one of the above. His mother is an agent. He witnessed an abduction and the something is that legally he is my son." All three stared at Lee.

"Your son!" Dotty was astounded. "Why haven't we seen him before? Don't you care about him?"

"Of course he does, Mother. Now that he knows about him. Lee is not biologically Nikolas's father, but his name is on the birth certificate and Niki was named after him."

"I worked with his mother briefly before he was born, and saved her life. I guess she wanted to repay me in some way. So she gave me a family. Until I met Amanda, I never expected to have one either. I was orphaned at a very young age, and it's been hard to let people too close to me. So, we're taking things slowly. He's had a hard life too."

"So, his mom is a spy too, and she's on assignment or something." Jamie pieced together the information they'd let slip.

"Not quite, the reason he's with us is that she is missing. We can't tell you about it, but you could have guessed that much. We also thought it would be safer if we kept Nik here in your house since we've taken great lengths to keep it quiet where your mom is concerned. We don't publicize where agents live or anything, but I'm well known to other agents and they have ways of finding out where I live. If Nik is to be safe he needs to be where no one would look for him. Given my reputation in the past the suburbs are the least likely place I would head. If they even know we have Nik."

"Anyway, let's get off the subject. We can't tell you agency business anymore than you'd tell a Girl Scout about the Junior Trailblazers." Both boys nodded and they let it drop.

"Do you think he'd want to play a video game?"

"All you can do is ask, but don't be surprised if he doesn't want to. He's still getting used to new people. From what we've gathered he's never been apart from his mother, at least not for very long."

"We'll show him a good time mom." Phillip said and Jamie seconded.

"Yeah we can take him out and play some ball at the park or ride bikes or something."

"Whoa, wait a minute fellas. Nik is under protective custody. He has to stay inside out of harm's way so he won't be seen by the wrong people."

"Is he in trouble too?" Amanda nodded and told them to drop it, but anything indoors would be fine to show him. Lee excused himself to go and check on the boy being discussed.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

For a while, Nik had tried to stay awake and wandered the room looking at this or that picture or item placing them back where he'd gotten them, just as his mother had taught him when searching a house. Finally, he sat down on the bed and eventually fell asleep curled up on Amanda's pillow. This was where Lee found him.

He silently crossed the room and pulled the bed-spread and top sheet down and back careful not to wake Nik. He then pulled the sheet back up around him to keep him from becoming chilled. He was startled by the voice behind him, "You should put him in some different clothes and take off his shoes before you leave him like that." Dotty stood in the door watching him.

"I guess so, but I don't know how to do that without waking him. I'm not a dad. I didn't even have a dad. I had, well, I had a hard childhood." Dotty smiled softly.

"I'll help you. I'm a mother and a grandmother, I've had lots of practice." She came forward and uncovered the sleeping child. She untied the shoe laces and loosened them as much as was possible before slipping them off. "Get his shirt and pants off, while I find his pajamas."

Lee moved forward, "they're in the suitcase, but um, I can get them."

"No, you undress him."

"How?"

"Gently." Came Amanda's voice close behind him. "Think like he's a bomb, and if you shake him too hard he'll go off."

"Nice analogy, darling. Lee look at it this way. It doesn't matter if he wakes up so long as you get him changed and back in bed before he becomes aware that he's awake." It didn't look to either woman like he'd understood a word they'd said. "Just pull 'em off as fast and gently as possible." He nodded and turned back to the little boy. He sat the limp body up and pulled the arms out of the shirt then eased it up over his head. Dotty had given him the pajamas and he, with as much care as he'd used moments before, pulled the top over his head, and his arms through the sleeves. Amanda had gotten the pants taken care of while Lee was working on the shirt.

"How did you do that so fast?"

"Practice. Besides pants are the easy part."

"Oh, so you gave me the challenge." He said playfully.

"And you passed with flying colors. If you can change a sleeping child's shirt you can do the rest with ease." She leaned over and kissed his cheek, and he turned to claim her mouth for a moment, both had forgotten that Dotty was there until she cleared her throat. They let go of one another and looked at her guiltily.

"Let's get down stairs before you two wake him. Besides I have a couple more questions." Dotty turned and strode from the room.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

"Okay, Mother, we're here and we are prepared to answer anything that we aren't bound by oath not to."

"It's nothing so serious as that. Really I just wondered when Lee was going to move in or were you and the boys going to move out. You mentioned getting a larger place."

"We haven't really discussed a new house recently, and we think we should let you and the boys get used to Lee and the fact that he's my husband. I mean, of course we want to live together, but the main thing right now is consideration for the boys." Amanda took Lee's hand in hers and squeezed it tenderly.

Dotty, being the observant and tenacious woman that she was decided to have a little fun with them. "Why don't you ask them now? See if they want him to live here and if they do we can have him moved in by Monday." Phillip and Jamie were still in the den and had heard the entire exchange.

"We want Mom to be happy, but we think everyone needs time to get used to everyone else." Jamie said logically.

"Maybe we should use this weekend as a sort of trial run. I mean Lee has to be here anyway." Phillip was no dummy either.

"Sounds like a plan to me." Lee said. "Let's go fire up that game for a while before bed, okay guys." The boys were faster than Lee and got the good seats on the couch. Lee was stuck with the floor and graciously bowed to them and settled himself on his side to play the game. Eventually, Dotty tired and went to bed. Amanda then came into the den and kissed her boys. She then settled in behind her husband and let him relax against her.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Juli's blindfold had been discarded when she'd recognized the voice and they'd given her some water. She wondered how long she'd been here, her instincts said it was at least a day. She'd fallen asleep before they'd taken off the blind fold. Actually, they'd awakened her by pulling it off unexpectedly. She had hoped they didn't notice how off balance she'd been. One of the men had, but chalked it up to the light surprising her being so bright after an entire day in darkness.

After a few minutes of her thoughts running wild, Gai returned. "This is your last chance, Juls. Tell me where my son is, or I'll have to kill you. I really am sorry it is coming to that, I actually loved you until I found out that you were a traitorous American dog." He pulled a hand back and cuffed her solidly across the face.

"I'll never tell you. You should know by now I didn't want you to know about him in the first place. I put someone else as his father. Even if you found him and took them to court it wouldn't do any good. He's got a father legally and a good one." She lashed out in retaliation for the blow the only way she could with her hands tied as they were. It turned out to be a big mistake. He cuffed her again harder. Hard enough that the chair she was tied to overbalanced and she fell to the floor.

"It's too bad you feel that way." He said not showing the regret the words should hold. She looked up to find him pointing a gun at her. The last thing she saw when she closed her eyes was her baby boy smiling one of the all to rare smiles that melted her heart and soul and made her realize how much she really did love him. 'I'm sorry baby.' was the last thought that echoed through her mind as Gai pulled the trigger, and she felt pain explode in her chest.

The pain was so intense she didn't feel them lift her and transport her back to her apartment. They left her there to bleed to death and suffer for turning from their cause. She lie there unaware of nothing but pain for a long time. Hours had passed it seemed. Then as sudden as a sound in a silent room, her pain lessened in intensity, and she was able to move. She tried to find a pen or paper. Finally, she gave up and wrote in her own blood the word, Wyvern. Then, her spirit left her body and drifted into a world that no one who still lives will ever see. She drifted into a place where no shadows fell.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Nik was leaning propped up by a pillow in Amanda King's den on the couch. It was after lunch on Sunday, and he'd fallen into a light sleep. Amanda and Lee were snuggled on the blanket in the middle of the floor watching a classic movie matinee. Dotty had taken the stir-crazy teens out to a movie and to get burgers for dinner. Nik shifted restlessly for a moment then sat bolt upright and called out for his mother. Lee was sitting beside the boy instantly. He'd become quite good at being there when Nik sat up startled not knowing where he was. So far, there had been no fear, but always confusion as to why he was there, or why his mom wasn't there. Nik wouldn't let him hold him, but he'd thanked Lee every time for staying with him. So, Lee stayed with him.

"Are you okay?" Amanda appeared with a glass of water.

Nik nodded his head and accepted the glass tilting it back for a drink before answering. "Yes, I had a dream about Mom. She was shot in the dream and she died."

"It was a dream, Niki." Amanda sat in front of him on the floor. "Don't let it worry you too much."

"But Mom said that I'm special because she always knows when I'm having a bad dream. What if I can feel her too?"

"Oh, Nik, that's just a mother's intuition. All us moms have that. When my boys have nightmares I know it or when they are in real danger, I just get this feeling that I should call them."

"Really?" He asked wide eyed. "Did you ever keep them from going somewhere because you felt bad about the trip. Like something was going to happen if they went." He paused and she nodded. "My mom did that once. The man who was going to take me was a friend of hers, and he had a son my age. We were going to a zoo. After mom wouldn't let me go they left without us. They got in a car accident on the way. Both of them died in the crash."

"I don't think you have too much to worry about, sweetheart, but we can call Billy for an update if you like." She reached out to stroke his hair. He pulled out of her reach and nodded.

"Sure. I hope you're right. She was at home in my dream." He settled back against the couch while Lee walked around to the kitchen to make the call.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

"We're still looking, there hasn't been much to go on. Actually, I'm sending a second team to go over the house. Francine and Jonathan got into an argument so she came in today. I'm sending her since she knows Acrux pretty well." Billy nodded to the messenger who handed him a file to look over.

"Keep me posted so I can tell Nik what's going on. He's still pretty edgy Billy, we may want to wait a while longer before bringing him in for more questions." Lee took a deep breath, this was going to be hard to suggest, but he could see where it might be better for Nik. "We might want to think about bring Pfaff in on this. I think the doc might do Nik some good. He's suppressing a lot. I should know better than anyone how unhealthy that is." There was a brief silence as Billy got over the shock of Scarecrow's words. The infamous scarecrow that hated doctors of any kind and despised hospitals. Was Lee Stetson finally growing up in that respect? Billy doubted it.

"We may indeed. Look I've got a report to go over from the first team, and Francine should be calling in anytime now. For the moment tell Nik we're doing our very best and that he should sit tight and remember that he's in good hands."

"Will do boss, keep us posted." Lee hung up and rejoined Amanda and Nik. Nik had left the couch to stare silently out the window. Amanda had a sad smile on her face as she watched him observe the neighbors going about their outdoor work or play. Lee told them what Billy had said as he settled beside his wife and draped an arm around her pulling her close.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Francine wrinkled her nose at the smell coming from the cordoned off door. The strong scent of blood hung in the air. She entered past the uniformed police flashing her ID as she did. "Fielder, what's up?"

"They found a body Francine. Its Julianne Tyler. A neighbor identified her two hours ago for Georgetown PD. Its not pretty." She pushed past him and took in the scene. End tables askew and dirt from a potted plant on the carpet. A blanket covered body in the middle of the room, and a pool of blood on the floor. She stepped closer and lifted the blanket to confirm for herself that this was her friend. She swallowed against the bile that rose on sight of the dead eyes that greeted her. Then she noticed above her friend's head near her raised arm a word was written in the carpeting. She called Fielder over and asked him to find the cop in charge.

Detective J.P. Randal sauntered over. "Did you see this?" She asked without preamble.

The cop looked down to what she was pointing at and nodded. "Yeah, we figured the victim was trying to write something, but was so far gone it didn't make sense."

"What did you get from it? A word that's for sure, but it's soaked in and I can't make anything out."

"Well we made out a W then a missing letter, then a V an R and another missing letter and an N." Francine looked down more closely and set the blanket back away from the word.

Whispering to herself she traced over the letters without actually touching the carpet. "I think the second letter is a Y. See how the trail comes below the other letters. So that would be W-Y-V-R-blank-N." She went over them again in her mind sounding them out as well. 'wyv-rn, hmm, wyvern.' "Oh my god! It's Wyvern. She wasn't delusional she was telling us who shot her. Fielder, I'm heading back to the Agency. Billy needs to hear about this." Francine walked back out of the building to her car. Then pulled out into Sunday traffic and headed for the Agency.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Billy had just gotten off the phone with Lee and was now sitting back in his chair looking over the report. There was nothing much found. No finger prints and no clues besides the voices that Nik heard, and those were unidentified. He looked up as a flustered Francine Desmond rushed into the room. The look on her face silenced the reprimand. "What is it?"

"We found Juli. She was shot and killed Billy, and they left her in her own living room. Our people didn't even see them. She left us a message. If we've deciphered it right. it was smeared and the carpet was as dark as her blood, but it looked like the word Wyvern. Billy that is the codename of a soviet agent. He was Juli's partner for a while before her stint over here in '78. I never heard his real name."

"Great. I told that boy everything would be all right. Lee told me that boy just woke up and told them that his mother was dead. He'd had a nightmare or something. Lee just called here for an update."

"Do you want me to go over there and tell them? Like you said Nik knows me, at least."

"No, it's my responsibility, you can come if you want, but I should tell them. I just hope he's gotten used to Lee and Amanda because it looks like Lee is the only family Nik has. In the file on her it says that Juli Tyler's parents were killed in a car crash in late '78. After she returned to Russia." Billy took a deep breath and stood. "On second thought you stay here and coordinate with Georgetown PD. I want an autopsy done and arrangements for a funeral made, and I want all the latest records on Wyvern. Nik is going to get the chance to say goodbye to his mother, and we're going to find the man that killed her."

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Nik still stood looking out the window when Billy drove up and rang the doorbell. Nik didn't even acknowledge him walking up the sidewalk, he was so lost in his own worry. Lee, gun at the ready but hidden behind the door, answered. "Oh, hi Billy."

"Lee," Stetson knew that tone and that greeting. Something was wrong.

"Come on in, Billy. Amanda and Nik are in the den." He said returning his gun to his shoulder holster.

Billy didn't even take a step before asking, "How's Nik doing Lee? Emotionally how much do you think he can handle."

"I don't know Billy. Amanda might, she knows kids better than me. I'd say he can't handle much more though. You found her didn't you?" Billy just nodded. "That bad."

"The body was found in their home, Lee. She left a name. We know who did it and I've got people looking for him, but who knows if we'll find him." Lee nodded. Let me go talk to Amanda for a bit. Sit in there with Nik, huh?" Billy nodded and they entered the room. Nik didn't turn, but Amanda looked surprised.

"Hello sir." He nodded and Lee beckoned for her to follow him. She stood and he led her upstairs.

"Hello Nik," Billy walked over to stand beside him. "Wish you could go out huh?"

"Not really. I know the drill with protective custody. Plus, I couldn't go out a lot if Mom was on assignment." He looked up at the man who'd come for him when he'd been the most scared in his short life. "She's dead you know. I can feel it. They didn't want her at all. They want me." Billy didn't say anything, but put a firm, comforting hand on the boy's shoulder as Nik turned back to contemplate Amanda's neighbors again.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Lee closed Amanda's bedroom door and turned to face her. "Billy said that Nik's mother was found a little while ago-"

"That' wonderful, Nik can go home now."

"Amanda!" Lee cut in urgently without anger or rancor, "She was murdered and left in their home. Francine was there, and she knows Juli so she probably ID'd the body. Billy thinks they know who did this. Juli left a name for them to find. But that's beside the point. I wanted to know what you thought about Nik, about what he can handle. Should we tell him now, or what? Should we, I mean, what do we do about this?"

"We have to tell him Lee, but we have to do it gently. He's had a hard time and this will make it harder. We should make a decision about what's going to happen to him before we tell him though. It will help him if he isn't worried whether he will be taken care of or not." Lee nodded. This was something he'd thought hard about over the last two days, and he'd yet to come to a decision. He liked Nik, even loved him maybe, but it was a big decision for just two days worth of thought.

"We haven't really talked, whatever we do, it has to be mutual Amanda. You're my wife, so he'll be in your life too."

"Lee, you should know that I won't object to another child, to any child. I love my boys. If you want to make Nik a part of this family then let's do it. It's not like discussing a baby. We don't have any time before conception on this. Nik is standing downstairs in my den. He needs a home and we are capable of providing one, but if he has other family out there he may not want to stay with us. We should maybe hold a conversation with him on this subject. He'd know better than anyone where he wants to be."

"But according to his birth certificate, I am his family Amanda. That paper says that he is my son. He doesn't know us, and if I know Juli he doesn't know a lot of others either. He is acting the way he is because he's never been with anyone but her. I've seen it, Amanda. I've lived that. I've felt what he's got to be feeling. Right now he's confused, but soon he's going to hurt a lot, and after that he'll hate her with all his being. He'll hate himself for hating her, and its going to be one hell of a messy road that we'll be helping him travel if he stays. And what about Phillip and Jamie. They have to get used to me, throw in Nik and we may be asking too much." He reached out and held onto her hands for strength.

"Lee, it'll be hard but everyone will adjust eventually. It would be the same if we were to have a baby. The boys would get used to it. They already accept Nik as your son Lee. So it'll take time for them to get used to living with him. Big deal. Besides, we haven't even decided when you'll move in here, or if we are going to get a bigger house. We could move Nik in with you while we decide what to do. Actually, I've had some wonderful ideas the last couple of days. Mother is always complaining that she doesn't have enough privacy with two teens in the house. What if we converted the garage to a small apartment? She could move over there and Phillip could move into her room then Jamie and Nik could share the room that the boys have."

"Now who's got us moved in with two cats and a porch swing?" Lee teased her softly.

She leaned in and gave him a quick kiss, "Ha, ha, really I've done a lot of thinking on this, and not just this weekend either, Lee. I've actually been thinking of converting the garage for a few years, but I've never gotten around to it, or had the money to be serious about it. I have that now, and I happen to think it's a good idea. After this weekend, I like it even more. I know the boys aren't going to want to move. They've lived here their whole lives and all their friends are here their schools are here. Lee I think either adding on or converting the garage is the best compromise to offer them."

"I still think this is a big decision for just a few minutes discussion and a few days of thought." He looked into her eyes and could see how much she understood what he was feeling. He also knew that she was right, and he realized as he looked into her brilliant brown eyes, that he'd made a decision before Billy had told him about Juli. Before even knowing if he'd have to make the decision. "Let's go open our life to my son, huh? Lets give him the choice of a home with us."

Amanda smiled broadly at him and kissed him proudly. "I knew you'd come around."

"Oh, you did? Then I guess we wasted a lot of time coming up here." He said in jest.

"No, I'm glad you wanted to discuss it with me first, partner. Now we can face whatever comes together." Her face sobered and Lee nodded.

"Let's go and break the news." Lee put an arm around her as he they slipped downstairs.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Nik turned as they entered and walked over to them. He watched Lee expectantly. Lee sighed and let go of Amanda. He stooped and lifted the seven year old off the floor and went to sit on the couch. Amanda joined them, and Billy stayed where he was in the background. Lee waited for Amanda to get settled and then lifted Nik's face so that he was looking him in the eye. "We've got some bad news, Niki. Your mom was shot, and she didn't make it. I'm sorry, Nik. Amanda and I have talked and if you want it you have a home here. I am your dad after all. We'll understand if you want to stay with other family though, but we wanted you to know you have a home." Lee's heart almost broke when the jade colored eyes liquefied. Then it did break when the tears disappeared before they were allowed to fall.

He pulled the boy to him and held him firmly when he tried to pull away. "Don't, Nik, don't hold it in. Let yourself grieve. If you don't it'll eat you up inside. I'm here for you. Amanda's here, let us be strong for you." There was a shake against his shoulder as Nik rejected him. The boy pushed away from him, and Lee held on tighter. "I'm not letting go, until you let yourself grieve. Nik, I know what it's like. I lost my mom when I was a kid too, and my dad. You still have me and you will for as long as you want me. I'm not going to let you hurt the way I did."

"Let me GO!" The last word was a cross between anger and a pleading. Lee pulled him even closer. The little boy fought all the harder for it. Amanda's eyes filled as she watched the fight. Lee held on for all he was worth and took every blow that the little fists bestowed. The blows themselves didn't, couldn't hurt, but the emotions that were behind the blows tore at the three adult's hearts. The eeriest part was aside from the sounds of the small fists landing on Lee's sides and chest the entire battle was silent. After a few minutes the arms stilled and Nik sat rigid in Lee's arms.

"Let it go, Nik. Let me be your dad." Nik had reached the end of his emotional rope, and his shaky arms slid around Lee's torso and held on. Still there were no tears, but he didn't let go. "Thank you for trusting me Niki." Amanda scooted nearer to them and placed a hand on the red hair then leaned in and held them both. Billy turned away seeing that this was a moment for them alone to begin to build the foundation for their family.

After a few minutes Amanda stood and crossed to Billy. "Sir, thank you. I know this is hard for you too."

"Yes, Juli was a friend and she was under my supervision for a time. I wish she'd been able to come to me if she was in trouble. Oh, well now's not the time. I'll want to speak with you and Lee first thing tomorrow." Amanda gave his arm a squeeze and walked him to the door. She then returned and sat with Lee and Nikolas, she rubbed Nik's back as she did to comfort her own boys.

Dotty and Phillip and Jamie came home to find them still sitting on the couch. Lee still held Nik tightly to him and Amanda's head rested upon the small head on Lee's chest, her hand rubbing his back. To Jamie, it looked like a Nik sandwich with his mom and Lee being the bread. Dotty sensed the somber air about the three and had the boys help her carry the burgers into the kitchen and set the table.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Amanda didn't know if Nik was awake or not any longer, he'd been silent for a while now. She heard the door and then saw her mother and sons walk in. She didn't show she'd noticed them though as she continued to soothe Nik's back. Finally Lee spoke up. "It looks like dinner is here guys. Lets go eat." Amanda sat up after bestowing a chaste kiss on Nik's forehead. He didn't move though, he still held tightly to Lee. "Come on Niki, you need to eat too." The small head shook a negative.

"I'm not hungry, Lee." His voce was fragile with the effort of holding his emotions in check.

"Okay, you can at least sit with us at the table then. Maybe try a bite or two." He got a nod this time and Nik stood silently. Lee stood as well, and was surprised when Nik molded up against him wrapping his little arms around his hips, and pressing his face into his side. He recovered quickly and put an arm around Nik in kind. "Let's go sit down." The three of them joined the rest of Amanda and Lee's family.

Lee sat down and was again surprised when Nik climbed into his lap. Amanda seated herself beside them and Dotty doled out the burgers. Phillip and Jamie were animated, as usual, at the dinner table and in general respect left Nik alone. They could all see that he didn't feel like talking. He hadn't even touched his burger. He sat silently on Lee's lap and watched the tabletop. At one point Dotty asked Nik if he was hungry. Nik shook his head no and turned himself in Lee's lap to rest his head on Lee's chest.

Lee himself made the most of it and ate with one hand while the other arm held the little boy close. He didn't neglect the older boys either. They held a long conversation, and finally everyone had eaten except Nik. Dotty and Amanda cleared the table as Phillip and Jamie went upstairs to finish their weekend homework. Dotty went to remove Nik's burger and Lee stopped her. She smiled at him and resolved to ask her daughter what had happened. Lee stood and lifted Nikolas Lee Tyler-Stetson into his arms. He then grabbed the burger and stepped out into the back yard. He walked over to the picnic table and sat his son down. "You really should try to eat at least a little of this, Nik."

"I'm not hungry Lee." The voice was flat and emotionless.

"I guess not, but I want you to eat some anyway." Nik gave him a look of pure venom but stuffed a bite in his mouth and chewed hard. Then he swallowed and started another bite. Lee sighed, he didn't care if Nik stomped it before eating it just so long as he ate it.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

"Amanda, what happened while we were out? You can't tell me it's nothing, a little boy doesn't shut off the world because of nothing."

Amanda thought about how much to say to her mother. Finally, she settled on the bare minimum and started. "His mother was found dead this afternoon. Billy came by and Lee broke the news to him a little while before you got home. Nik has decided not to cry or show any grief. Lee and I are doing what we can for him right now, and we'll be ready when he decides it's time to say goodbye to her."

"That's just horrible, Amanda. What is the world coming to when someone would take a single mother and kill her for no apparent reason." Amanda knew the reason, but her mother didn't need to it would only worry her anyway. They turned back to the dishes and a little while later Lee returned carrying Nik once more. He handed Amanda the empty wrapper from Nik's burger and headed into the den with his burden. Amanda smiled sadly as she watched him go. Dotty watched her daughter's eyes follow her husband. The love she saw in them helped to heal more of the pain of being lied to.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Lee sat up and held Nik all night, which explained why his back hurt this morning on the way in to work. Amanda had some other errands to run and had taken her own car Nik had asked to go with her, and Lee had allowed it since he doubted that this Wyvern would be at Amanda's neighborhood grocery store. Lee rode in silence the whole way to the agency. He entered to a large number of messages on his desk. The one on the computer screen was from Billy requesting that Lee get down there ASAP. He left a note for Amanda on her desk then headed for Billy's office.

"What's up Billy?" He opened the door and escaped the Bull Pen bustle.

"I've taken the liberty to make arrangements for a funeral for Julianne Tyler. I wanted Nikolas to be able to say a proper good bye." Billy looked up at him.

"Thank you Billy. That was one of the things I wanted to talk to you about today. Also where are we on finding this Wyvern?"

"All we know for sure is that he's in the States and he wants Nik." Billy was getting frustrated. "We don't even know why he wants Nik. It's a huge puzzling mess, Lee. I'm going to put you on it see what you can find and if you need to you can leave Nik here with me or with Francine out there. How is he by the way?"

"Not to good, but not as bad as Amanda and I had feared. He's taking it hard, but I don't think he quite believes it yet. Holding the funeral will drive it home I suppose. He still hasn't grieved at all." He blew air out his nose amused. "I sat up all night last night holding him to make sure I was there if he needed me. He didn't even wake up once, and I got him to eat. Both last night and this morning, I had thought it was going to be a challenge. The challenge was getting him to let go long enough for me to grab a shower this morning. I was afraid of that little kid Billy. I didn't know if I had what it takes to be a dad. Now after just one night since Amanda and I decided he had a place in our lives, I would give my life for him, Billy." Lee shook his head in the still fresh amazement of what unconditional love for a child could do. Billy was pleased that Lee had finally found his niche in life. Scarecrow was as happy now as he'd ever seen him.

"Lee, I was glad last night when you and Amanda opened your home to him, but to know that your heart is behind it is more than I'd hoped for. I can see the question in your eyes, and the answer is no, Scarecrow. He doesn't have any family living that we've been able to track down. Unless his biological father shows up, you're the only family he's got." Lee was a little relieved, while at the same time he felt for his son's losses. "Have you and Amanda decided what you're going to do about the living arrangements?" He said conversationally.

"We've talked. For now Nik and I are staying in the apartment so the boys can get used to the idea of a step-father and a step-brother. We're going to take it slow. I think Amanda has some ideas though. She doesn't want to force the boys to move if they don't want it. I tend to agree, there'll be enough changes in all our lives." He said from his seat in front of Billy's desk.

"You better get back up there before you're missed too much. Here's the arrangements and time and place, everything you need to know. You'll have to wait for a while to go and pack his things, until the investigation is over. Take him out and get some appropriate clothes for the funeral. Charge it to the agency, its the least we owe them."

"Sure Billy, I'd bet we could find something in Amanda's attic though. She keeps all the boys clothes. I can't believe that she made me clean my closets out but her attic is off limits." Lee sounded a little sour. Billy just grinned at his friend. "What's so funny?"

"You're experiencing the joys of marriage, Scarecrow. A word of warning, when you do move in together, do not, and I mean absolutely don't move, even in the slightest, one of her knickknacks. It'll be the start of World War III right here in Arlington." Lee gave him a look and Billy laughed whole-heartedly.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Amanda walked confidently and quickly down the aisles of the store gathering the few things they were running low on in the Q Bureau. Nik held her hand tightly and walked beside her without complaint, without sound of any kind, really. She was starting to worry about him. He'd been quiet before, but this was ridiculous. He hadn't spoken directly to anyone but her husband since they'd told him about his mother. Yet, he clung to both her and Lee, mostly Lee, unless he was unavailable, as he had been while in the shower. He'd surprised her by asking Lee if he could ride with her, but she'd agreed to let him come telling him he was more than welcome.

"So, is there any particular reason you didn't want to go with Lee this morning?" She didn't really expect an answer.

"Am I going to have to answer a lot of questions?" He asked.

"Not if you don't want to Nik. Billy found out what he could from you on Friday. They might have a follow up or two, but it won't be an interrogation." He visibly relaxed and took a deep breath.

"Good. I don't like to answer a lot of questions. Mom says that I shouldn't if someone asks too many. She says that I know stuff that I shouldn't and that bad guys would want to find it out."

"Then we'll keep you away from the bad guys Nik. You won't have to answer too many questions."

"Thank you, Amanda." They walked on down the aisle and found the small jar of mayonnaise that was her last item. She looked into the carry basket she'd grabbed to double check. Bread, lunch meat, mayo, a set of plastic forks knives and spoons, and paper plates. She had it all.

"We've got it all, let's go pay and find Lee." Her young companion nodded and they made their way to the front.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Lee was in his desk when they walked in. "Hey, what took so long? I was worried."

"Shopping takes time, sweetheart." He smiled at her use of the word, he felt privileged to be included in her list of the people she called sweetheart. She knew he'd calm with her use of the word on him, and smiled secretively while she and Nik put their purchases away.

"Did you enjoy your trip Niki?" Lee asked as the boy passed his desk to carry the meat and mayonnaise to the 'fridge. Nik nodded and set the things inside. He then crossed to and climbed back onto Lee's lap. Lee smiled and hugged him close. "Good, we're going to have a little shopping spree of our own later. Billy has arranged a funeral for your mom and we are supposed to go out and get you something to wear to it. We can't get your stuff from the house because the police don't want anything moved until they're finished with their investigation." Nik nodded, looked up at him briefly and then leaned forward to rest against him. Lee sighed, he seemed to do that a lot lately, "I know Nik, I know."

The battle for control of his emotions was raging once more in the small body that was Nikolas Lee Tyler-Stetson. He held on to Lee with all his might as he beat them back once more. Finally, it was finished and he loosened his grip. Lee decided to let him stay where he was and he began the task of finding one Soviet agent codenamed Wyvern.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Francine carried an armful of files up the stairs to the Q bureau and wondered why Lee had requested so many. She entered to an unexpected and astonishing sight. Lee Stetson was holding a small child on his lap like any run of the mill dad. She did a double take and then put the files on his desk.

"Practicing for the real thing Scarecrow." She said in her usual flip way, not realizing the underlying tension until it was too late.

"Button it, Blondie, this is the real thing." He threw back, as he put an arm around the boy protectively.

"Sorry, Lee. I, well I'm sorry." She meant it, and he knew it so he let it drop. "Thanks, for the files, do you know about the funeral?"

She nodded, "Yeah, I helped Billy set it up. The staff meeting is back on in half an hour. Billy's driving everyone nuts down there canceling then reconvening then canceling again. Don't hold your breath for the meeting either, he may postpone again." Lee nodded as his concentration went back to the screen.

"Tell him that I won't be there, and I'm taking tomorrow to get Nik some clothes and things. He'll understand."

"Ahh, okay." Francine wasn't sure Billy would understand, but she didn't want to cross Lee at the moment. He was acting strange and she didn't know what to make of it. She turned and walked out, Amanda hadn't even looked up at her after the crack she'd made. Francine, walking down the hall, heard Lee ask Amanda to keep Nik for a while he had some things to do. She was tempted to turn and see what was happening, but still didn't have the inclination to incite Lee's wrath.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Amanda accepted Nik's tense form, as Lee deposited him on her lap. "Where are you going?"

"I've got a few leads and I want to check with some of my Family to confirm or deny their validity." He kissed her forehead tenderly, "I'll see you at your place later. I'll bring Marvin's Burgers."

"Sounds good to me. You want to know what to get or are you going to guess?" She asked as she wrote the outrageous names of the burgers and shakes that her mother and the boys always ordered. "What do you want Nik?"

"A fish one with no stupid sauce." His frame tightened even further and he leaned into her. She winced in sympathy at his reaction to what was obviously a reminder of his mother. She knew Lee'd seen it to by the way his body language changed.

"We'll be okay Lee, go on. Here. Don't forget the order." She held out the paper, he took it and leaned down to whisper to Nik.

"I won't be long, okay? I'll see you back at Amanda's." Nik nodded, and Lee kissed the top of the boy's head. He shared a quick kiss with his wife and left to find out if his Family knew anything about the Wyvern.

Amanda listened to Lee's footsteps down the hall and out the door. She supposed that she'd either have to skip the staff meeting or take Nik in with her. Abruptly she picked up the phone, 'when in doubt ask.' She thought as she dialed Billy. He answered, "Hello sir, Lee left a few minutes ago and Nik is with me. Do I really need to be at the staff meeting or can someone just take notes for me?"

"I've got you covered Amanda. If you want, go on and take Nik home. Francine said that he didn't look too good. If he is ill get him home and make him rest."

"He's all right sir. I think it's just an overload of change, and other things."

"I understand, why don't you go on and call it a day. He'd benefit from the rest. I assume Lee told you that the funeral is the day after tomorrow."

"Yes, sir. He's taking Nik shopping tomorrow. I'm going to help and make sure Lee knows what he's doing."

"Good, he'll need the help. He's a first time parent you know." Amanda laughed at that.

"Yes, sir. Thank you, and we'll see you day after tomorrow." Amanda hung up after Billy's goodbye. "Well, we've been cleared to head home. Are you ready?" Nikolas nodded and stood up off her lap. She gathered her purse and tiddied her desk, then she took his hand and they went home.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

The next morning Amanda found Lee in the kitchen talking quietly with her mother over coffee. Nik was still sleeping on the couch and the boys were upstairs getting ready for school. Dotty appeared very much at ease with her new son-in-law. Amanda hoped they had been able to talk about things between them and that her mother had been able to get closer to her husband again. Lee was sitting with his back to her as was her mother so she sneaked up behind him and slipped her arms around him resting her head on his shoulder. "Good morning, Mrs. Stetson." He said even as her hands settled on his waist.

"How'd you know I was here?"

"Tricks of the trade." He grinned slyly, as he turned his head to give her a peck on the cheek.

"Well, good morning to you to. I'll get you one of these days. It'll be a good one too for all the times you've sneaked up on me." She hugged him and then let go to find her own cup of coffee. "Are you ready to hit the stores today?"

"Yeah, I thought that we could hit more than just the stiff suit shop too. Since we won't be getting his things for a while, I figured we might buy him some new stuff. Shirts and stuff to play in. Maybe a few toys to go with it." She gave him a look, "Hey every kid needs toys. I don't think Nik has had nearly his share of them either." Amanda had to agree with him on that Nik barely knew what a toy was let alone what it was for.

"Okay, but only a few. We need to concentrate on something he can wear to the funeral. I'd say one of the boys old outfits, but I want Nik to feel like he's got his own place, and getting him a new suit will help with that." Lee nodded with her reasoning.

"Let's get breakfast ready before we're overrun. We can decide what we're going to buy once we get to the store."

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Nikolas stood beside Lee in the stuffy department store while Amanda looked through the clothes. She'd already had him try on a dozen different suit combinations. He was tired of the effort and the smell, and the salesman. He put his arms around Lee again and sighed. Lee looked down and recognized the extreme look of boredom on the boy's face from the one he was sure graced his features as well. "We won't be much longer, Nik. I promise." Nik nodded and wandered between a rack to look at what Amanda had picked this time. It was a dark midnight blue suit with a tie to match. The dress shirt was black, and the shoes that went with it were leather, and didn't look comfortable at all. He made a disgusted face and returned to Lee. "Hey, stick this out and the next store we go to will be a Toys 'R' Us, okay?" Nik looked a little confused but nodded, subdued for the moment. "Amanda can we hurry this up. I'm telling you I liked the last one the best. Niki is tired and bored and I can't say I blame him. You've had him try on twelve different suits. Make a decision already."

"Okay I'm sorry, I liked the last one too," came her reply.

"Let's get it, then. I'm starved. It's after noon lets get some lunch." Lee led the way to pay for the suit. Ironically, the one they bought was not so different from the last one Amanda had been looking at. It had the same midnight blue color on the blazer and pants, but the shirt was a gray-silver color instead of black the tie that came with it was black, and the shoes were a pair of loafers.

Amanda gathered the bags as Lee gathered the boy and they walked out of the store to find a restaurant or a fast food place, window shopping as they walked. Finally, they settled on a little pizza place with outdoor seating as well as in. Lee chose indoor and they sat while the waitress came to take the order. Lee got a medium pizza with pepperoni on half and Canadian bacon on the other. They ordered their drinks as well and then sat back to wait for the food to arrive. Nik looked wiped out. He kept glancing up to Lee for reassurance, "Are we going back to Amanda's after this?"

"I thought we'd go to a toy store, remember, Toys 'R' Us." He nodded and decided to give it a shot.

"After that are we going back to Amanda's."

"If that's what you want Nik that's what we'll do." Lee exchanged a glance with his wife that said 'see we took too long looking at clothes.'

Amanda shook her head at them both as their pizza arrived.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Nikolas walked into the somber room holding on to Lee's hand while Amanda stood beside him for moral support. He looked toward the front to the half open coffin. He could just see the red of his mother's hair from where he stood at the back of the room. There was an aisle leading between the chairs to the front of the room. The chairs themselves were in neat rows and the first two rows in the middle section were reserved for family only. Lee led him forward. "Come on let's go say what we need to before others start to arrive." Lee's voice was quiet and didn't disturb the quiet respect felt throughout the room. Nik allowed himself to be led forward.

At first glance, Nik could pretend that his mom was sleeping, but when he got closer the make-up didn't hide the unmistakable mark of death. Her face was fixed in a peaceful position, but not relaxed like in sleep. Her face showed the relaxation of someone without the worries of even sleep. Her hands were at her sides and Nik reached out to take one. It was cold and stiff to the touch, and with that Nik finally lost the battle he'd waged for three days. "She's cold Lee. You need to get her a blanket, she's cold."

Lee took the little boy in his arms and Amanda helped him to pry his small hands from his mother's cold one. Nik was hyperventilating, "Get her a BLANKET! Please!" He fought again with all his might. Kicking and pushing away from Lee. Amanda saw the tears streaming from his jade green eyes Lee could feel the sobs that came between struggles. Finally, there was no fight left and he sagged. Lee turned him around and squeezed him close as tightly as he dared. He didn't pull away and he didn't stop grieving, and Lee and Amanda let out a collective sigh. They knew he'd begun the process of healing. Amanda stepped closer to help however he'd let her, but Nik didn't acknowledge anyone except Lee. Lee however, was getting sore crouched as he was, so Amanda helped him to a chair. He settled and Nik held on even tighter than he had before, still sobbing bitterly.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Dotty, Phillip and Jamie stood in the back of the room. They'd all heard the scream and now Dotty's heart went out to the child in Lee's arms. Phillip stood with his Gramma while her own tears fell. Jamie watched his mother's reaction. He wondered if he would ever be in Nikolas's place grieving for his own mother. He hoped not. Slowly he made his way to the front as well and stood near her. Amanda pulled him closer and kissed his hair. She held him to her while they stood in support for Nik and Lee.

Finally, Dotty and Phillip came forward and sat beside Lee, Amanda and Jamie. Nik didn't look up or around as the room filled with many people from the agency who'd known his mother. His face was buried in Lee's shirt and jacket. Billy stood at the front and spoke briefly. Francine gave the eulogy, having asked to before Billy could ask someone else. Quite a few of the agents present shed tears. Lee hadn't known that many of them had known Julianne, he was grateful to the ones who hadn't for being there for Nik and offering their sympathy and condolences, even if Nik was in no shape to accept or acknowledge them.

After the funeral they went to Arlington National Cemetery, where Acrux was being laid to rest in honor for all her deeds to the country. Nik stood beside the grave as the coffin was lowered into it and it was filled. He said goodbye to his mother only after everyone had moved a short distance away giving him privacy.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Two men sat in a car quite far from the grave site ceremony. They watched the American dogs grieve for their own and were proud that their boss had been the one to cause it. Finally, they got the glimpse of the child Wyvern wanted, and they followed the car that he entered with the tall man and the brunette, and two other boys and an older blonde.

They took note of the house where the vehicle stopped and it's passengers piled out. The tall man carried their quarry into the house and the door was closed. They parked a few blocks away and reserved to wait for their opening.

They continued to watch the house and it's occupants for a week before they decided that they knew them well enough to try for the boy.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Amanda noticed a change in Nik after the funeral. He'd opened up a little when others would speak to him, but he did not want to be touched at all. She had insisted that he and Lee stay at the house for a while, but tensions between Nik and the older boys rose and rose and finally Lee decided it was time they went back to his place. He'd left a little over an hour ago to transport some of the things that had migrated to her house with him, and things they'd purchased for Nik. He had been moving things all day, and was almost finished, he'd stuffed probably more than was acceptable into the 'Vette on this load so she didn't expect him back anytime soon.

She was standing at the sink washing dishes that had piled up through the day and watching Nik in the back yard. It was dusk so it was getting a little hard to make him out. With the sun going down in front of the house the back yard was full of shadows. She decided to call him in. "Nik," She walked to the back door drying her hands on a dish towel. "It's getting kinda dark let's get inside and wait for Lee to get back." There was no answer to her call. She wondered if he was ignoring her or just lost in his own world again. "Nikolas. It's time to come inside. I can't see you through the window. Come on." Still no answer. She stepped further out and searched the spot he'd stood in when she'd crossed to the door. He was no where to be found. "NIK!" She went to the gate and checked the drive. She didn't think he'd go out of the back yard, but wanted to make certain before she panicked. He wasn't in the drive way so she opened the gate calling out again. A quick scan of the front yard didn't reveal him and then a more thorough check still didn't find him, so she decided it was high time to panic. "Nikolas Stetson! where are you? NIKI!" She ran back into the house to call Lee.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

She didn't see the men concealed in her bushes beside the house holding a slight form between them. The larger man covered his small mouth so that the only sounds to escape were muffled grunts. The smaller of the two held his legs immobile and they pinned his arms to his sides between them. It wouldn't have mattered at any rate. Nik was so scared all he could do was try to scream. He didn't have the ability to think about too much of a struggle.

After the brunette went haring off into the house, they left their hiding place and returned to the car. The big guy drove while the other held Nik in the back seat. He was able to let out a yell as they shoved him in the car. The young woman sitting on her porch went unnoticed by all three, but she kept her eyes on them. Being in a wheelchair she knew that she couldn't do anything to help the child at the moment so she picked up the pad she kept nearby and took the license plate number as they drove away. She then went inside to call her neighbor. She'd seen the boy with Amanda King for the past week, and knew something wasn't right, besides she'd heard the fear in Mrs. King's voice as she'd called for the child.

The line was busy, so she made her way back out of the house and down her walk to the gate. She let herself out and wheeled down to Amanda King's residence. She opened the white gate and got to the door knocking and ringing the bell as soon as she could reach them.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Amanda entered the house frantic and startled Dotty half to death. "Mother, have you seen Nik?"

"No, he was out in the back the last time I saw him."

"Oh my gosh." She pulled the phone to her across the bar and dialed Lee, hoping fervently that he was still home. He answered after three rings.

"Stetson."

"Lee, Nik is gone! I can't find him!" She was still frantic and rambling.

"Amanda slow down, where was he?" He prompted her and helped to calm her with his voice.

"I was watching him out the kitchen window while I did dishes, and I walked to the door to call him in because it was getting dark so it was hard to see him out there. He was there when I looked out at him, and when I got to the door he was gone. I called to him, and he didn't answer. With the way he's been all week I thought maybe he was ignoring me or lost in thought again, but I walked out and he wasn't there. I looked for him in the driveway and in the front yard and I still can't find him, I thought maybe he'd come around the front and come in so I asked Mother if she'd seen him. She hasn't, Lee I'm scared. He hasn't played any practical jokes before, and I don't think he'd start now."

"Okay, it's okay, have you checked up stairs. Maybe he's with the boys in their room. No wait, they're still at dinner with Joe. Just finish going through the house, I'm on my way."

"Okay." She was somewhat calmed now. They hung up and Amanda was in the process of enlisting her mother's help looking for Nik when the bell rang and someone pounded on the door. Amanda rushed to it and threw it open hoping it was Nik. It wasn't. Her neighbor two houses down, Mrs. Reiley sat in her chair looking as frantic as Amanda felt. "Lise, what's wrong?"

"Amanda I tried to call you as soon as I could, I saw you're little guest. There were two men, they put him in a car and drove away. I was on the porch and heard you calling for him. Then I saw them, I couldn't do anything in this chair to stop them, but I took the number down as they drove away." She finished and handed over the pad with the license plate number on it.

"No, oh my gosh, no." She slumped against the door for a moment taking a few deep breaths, 'Pull it together Amanda, Nik needs you to think clearly if you're going to find him.' She straightened and asked the other woman in. "I'll make some tea and we can wait for Lee, Did you get a good look at them Lise? Please tell me you can describe them."

"Oh, definitely. I got a good look and can tell you that poor baby looked so scared. If I hadn't been confined to this blasted thing I'd have tried to stop them on my own." She said as she entered the house. Amanda nodded in sympathy with the angry tone. Mrs. Reiley and her husband had been in a boating accident a few months ago and Lise was still undergoing physical therapy for her legs.

"You've done more than I had hoped for already." Amanda told her to make herself comfortable and went to the kitchen to start the tea. By the time it was finished Lee had arrived, and Amanda told him what had happened. He'd called Francine to keep up appearances that Amanda still worked at a film company. Now, they were sitting in the den listening to Lise's description, and Francine was taking notes as all agents knew how. When she finished Dotty escorted her out, and left Lee and Amanda to figure out what to do. She'd ushered the boys upstairs when they'd returned, and informed Joe that now was not a good time to chat. He wanted Amanda to call him and Dotty had agreed to pass on the message.

She peeked into the den before heading upstairs to inform the boys of the events in the house. Amanda had wrapped herself protectively around her husband as he let his mind wander for the first time since she'd called him. "God, Amanda, what could they want with a seven-year-old boy. I've talked to him he doesn't know as much as he thinks he does. Most of it is common knowledge these days, and what little things he knows that are classified are low priority, and not important in the long run. He knows a couple of passwords that will be changed in a couple days, maybe a codename or two that he shouldn't, but nothing compromising." He leaned in closer and she kissed him on the top of the head.

"Don't think about it, sweetheart. Just believe we'll find him, we've got descriptions and a license plate to track down now. Let's call Billy and get on this. I'll go get the fellas settled and then we can head to the agency." He nodded and went for the phone as she ascended the stairs to find her mother talking with her boys. Jamie noticed her and stood when she walked over.

"Nik's really missing?"

"Yeah, sweetheart. Lee and I are going to head to work and get started tracing the plate number of the car. I need you two to help your Gramma and be good, okay." She got nods from both boys and headed back downstairs. Lee was still on the phone with Billy so she gathered the information they had while he finished up. She heard him set the phone in its cradle and turned to see him leaning on the bar heavily with his back still turned. She walked over and slid her arms around him. "We'll find him Lee. We can have Lise come down in the morning and look at mug shots to identify the men. I'm sorry. I let him out of my sight long enough to walk from the sink to the door, and he was gone."

"It's not your fault, Amanda." He turned and wrapped his arms around her, resting his forehead on hers. "I shouldn't have left you alone with him. I've had suspicions that we were being watched, but I brushed it off thinking that I was overreacting to everything. We didn't know they could get to him so fast. They must have been watching us for a while. Like you said we have a lot to go on, so let's get started." Jamie watched from the stairs as his mom kissed Lee and they gathered the notes they had. His mom wrote a note and left it magnet-stuck to the 'fridge. Lee slipped an arm around his mother's waist and they walked out the back door. He watched out the window as the silver Corvette pulled out of the drive and headed into Washington.

"Be careful, Mom." He whispered softly. He felt his Gramma's arms slide around him and hug him.

"She will, Jamie. She and Lee have been doing this stuff together for five years. Lee's been at it longer than that. Try not to worry, okay." He nodded. Dotty kissed her grandson and sent him up to bed. She knew he would worry. She was worried herself, but she knew it would be pointless to try to stop her daughter.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Nik was ushered into a small house an hour's drive from Amanda's home. He'd silently counted seconds while they drove. He'd had nothing better to do. The two men sat him in a chair and told him to keep quiet for a while and wait.

They sat by a table and started a game of cards. Nik sat and looked around the room. there was a metal frame, twin size bed by the wall opposite the door. A window, covered with foil, above it, a smaller room on the left wall was the bathroom by the sounds of dripping water. He stood up and walked over to the bathroom to take a look. It was dingy and disgusting. He wrinkled his nose at the unclean smells wafting from the commode. "Hey, kid. Sit down, shouldn't be to long." Nik gave him a dirty look and purposefully walked over and stood beside the locked door. "I said sit down boy." Slowly, Nik shook his head in defiance. "That's it." The taller of the two men came and grabbed him placing him forcefully on the chair.

It hurt, so Nik stayed where he was. It was a trivial thing to be obstinate over anyway, he reasoned to himself. So he sat and looked around the room and waited. Before too long, a third man entered the room. This one was tall with dark brown almost black hair. His green eyes were set close together and his chin was pointed, making him look cruel. He appeared to be well built physically, and to be the boss of the other two, who straightened as he entered looking more alert than they had before. He didn't even acknowledge them; he walked straight to stand before Nik. "Hello Nikolas. I hope they didn't scare you too badly." Nik didn't say anything. The man's voice sounded pleasant enough, but Nik was not going to trust him. He remembered the other two men's voices from the night his mother had been taken, and he figured it this man knew them then he was the one who'd killed her. "I was so sorry to hear about your mom. She was a dear friend. Tell me, who have you been staying with, Nikolas?" Still, Nik was silent, his jaw clinched tight. "I am your friend Nikolas. I am your father. The people who had you probably told you I was dead or I didn't want you. That's not true at all, my son. I didn't even know about you until recently." Nik still did nothing to indicate he cared what the man said, for he didn't. The man then introduced himself as Gai Donovan. He also introduced the other two men. The taller was Dolan, and the shorter Andrei. At this Nik spoke up.

He pointed to Dolan, "He hurt me." Gai spun around and looked intensely at the taller man, his face had turned red with anger.

"You dared to touch my son. You harmed him."

Dolan backed away, "Well no sir, I just sat him in the chair is all, if I hurt him I truly didn't mean to. And I am truly very sorry." This seemed to placate Donovan and he turned back to Nik. Once he was turned Dolan gave Nik a look that made the hairs on the back of Nik's neck itch with apprehension.

"He didn't mean to hurt you, and if he does again all you need do is tell me. I'll handle him if you are harmed." Nik nodded. Donovan stepped closer and knelt before him. "We are going home to Mother Russia." His fake American accent slipped then and his voice was thickly laden with Russian intonation. He set a hand on Nik's shoulder and a chill went through him. He knew if he didn't want to be here with this man, he definitely didn't want to go to Russia with him.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Amanda looked up as Lee sighed once again. He was hunched over the computer waiting for the plate number to run through. She was checking once again with contacts to find out anything about a Russian agent by the name of Wyvern. It appeared that Lee was having the same luck as she was. Giving up for the moment she stood and walked over behind him. She slid her hands from his shoulders down his chest then back to encircle his neck as she rested her chin on his head. "Hey, any luck yet?"

"I put in the number and it asked for more information. It shouldn't have done that, but I put in the model of the car and now it's searching the database. You'd think we, as the agency, wouldn't have a glitch in the computer when we need it most." She kissed the top of his head.

"I know, I'm still getting nothing with your family. I've called at least a dozen of them and they've never heard of a Russian by the name of Wyvern. Gosh, you're tense." She let go of his neck to rub his shoulders.

"I know, I'm scared to death Amanda." She knew how hard it was for her Lee to admit his fear, even to her. She swiveled his chair so that he faced her.

"I'm scared too, Lee. For him and you, and me too. We both opened our hearts to him, and it's going to hurt if, God forbid, we don't find him, but we have to keep our heads, and this time we won't let Billy sit us on the sidelines. You and I can do anything as long as we're together." Lee pulled her down to his lap and held on kissing her. This was a kiss she felt from the tips of her toes to the ends of her hair, and she returned his affections full force. The kiss went from brutally seeking the knowledge that she was still alive and with him to a tender, gentle, giving kiss that let her feel his worry better than his words could ever describe them.

The computer beeped its search results, and Lee reluctantly broke the kiss. "We'll get back to this after we find Nik." She smiled and nodded in agreement. He looked around her at the screen and read the results. His face fell when the result was a reported stolen announcement. "Damn it!" He leaned his head back against the head rest on his chair and closed his eyes. Amanda caught the barest of glimpses of the tears in them before the lids closed concealing them. She leaned forward and pulled him against her once more.

"Let me call Mr. and Mrs. Reiley. They'll understand the lateness of the hour if we explain that a child depends on it. We can take the mug books to her and have her look tonight." Lee hadn't wanted to do this hoping that the plate number would be enough. Now, he nodded his ascent.

"Go on, I'm going to get the description of this car out to the police and other agents. I'll see you in fifteen minutes." She nodded as she walked back over to her desk to use the phone. Lee kissed her cheek then headed out the door. Amanda called her neighbors fearing that they were already in bed. At two in the morning most sane people would be. She was shocked when Mr. Reiley answered promptly.

"Hello, James, this is Amanda King. Sorry to call so late, but Lise witnessed a kidnapping this evening and the investigation has hit a snag. We, ah, the police needs her to look at some mug shots as soon as possible to see if she can identify either of the men she saw taking Nik. I was wondering if it would be okay for me to bring the books to her now, so that if one or both of the men are in them we can find them so much faster."

"Slow down, Mrs. King. I think she'll be ecstatic if you could bring her something soon. She has refused to sleep until she can help find the boy. Let me offer my deepest sympathy for what you are going through."

"Thank you, James. I'll be there as soon as I can with the mug books." Amanda hung up and went in search of the books. She found them and her husband in Billy's office. "Hello, Mr. Melrose. I came for the mug books. If I can I'd like to take them to my neighbor. She's anxious to help and can't sleep."

"That's fine Amanda. I've had them here since you and Lee gave me the descriptions. I'll need you to sign for them and we need them back as soon as possible."

"Thank you, Sir. I think I'll take these to Lise and then head back here to see what else I can do." Amanda replied while signing for the books.

Lee stood and took her hands in his. "No, Amanda we're not going to find him tonight, as much as I may want to, we just aren't. I want you to go get some sleep you have to get the boys off to school in the morning."

"Lee, Mother is there and she's gotten them to school before."

"Look, you need rest I need rest, and Billy needs rest. So go on. I'm going to run this description to a few members of my family; the ones I know are still awake. Then I'll see you back at the house. If you want you can wait up for me in the den. I'll be there in about an hour."

"Okay, but I'm going to wait up and make sure you get some rest too." She stood waiting.

"Deal. I'll see you in an hour." He gathered the books in his arms. "See you in the morning, Billy. Come on, I'll walk you to the car. Oh, damn. We're in the 'Vette. I don't want to," he stopped in mid sentence, "Billy do you think you could give Amanda a ride for me."

"Not a problem, let's get out of here." They left the office and went to the garage. Amanda had her arm around Lee's waist as they walked, since his hands were full. The three of them reached Billy's car, and Lee deposited his burden on the front seat after Billy opened the doors. Lee pulled her to him then, "See you in a bit. Try to stay out of trouble." He kissed her once.

"I will. You be careful and come home soon." She kissed him again. Billy got in and started the car. Amanda pulled away and settled herself in the front seat holding the books in her lap. Lee closed her door and stepped away from the car. He watched for a moment as they pulled out and then headed for his own vehicle. Soon he was on his way too.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Billy was silent for a while, but needed to hear Amanda's opinion. "Amanda, how is Lee handling this?"

"Pretty well, so far, but I think that the longer this drags on the worse he'll get."

"I know. I may have to pull him off of this and assign someone else. Someone more objective."

"I don't think that would be good at all, Sir. If you pull him he'll try it on his own and he'll get reckless. He's safer with your support."

"I know, and he always works better with you around, but he may be too close to this one. Which house is it that the witness lives in?" Amanda hadn't even noticed they'd arrived. She pointed out the house and Billy stopped in front of it. "Thank you, Sir. I'll be fine from here, only two houses down."

"All right. I'll see you in the morning then."

"In the morning." Amanda got out and walked up to the door as Billy pulled off. She rang the bell and left the books with Lise declining their offer of tea saying she needed to get some sleep before work in the morning. She let herself into her darkened home and closed the door behind her. She turned on the light in the den as she entered and settled herself on the couch. Precisely forty minutes later Lee entered the room after locking her front door behind himself. "I got the car descriptions out to all those I could. I'll give it to the rest tomorrow. Now, I'm here safe and sound, so it's time you got into bed." He stood in front of her. She stood and took his hand.

"Then let's get to bed. Turn out the lights on your way up." She let go and walked toward the stairs.

"Amanda, what about the boys?"

"They know we're married Lee. They're going to have to get used to it eventually, and I'm not sleeping alone. Neither are you, not tonight. It's not like I'm propositioning you. I just want my husband to hold me while I sleep tonight." He smiled and flipped the switch then joined her walking up the stairs. They entered her room. Amanda went to get her nightgown on while Lee turned down the bed and shed his clothes down to his boxers. He then slid under her sheets. Amanda joined him a few minutes later, face devoid of make-up and looking beat, but still beautiful in the gown he'd given her on her last birthday. It was sexy, but they were both tired. He spooned up behind her and put his arms around her holding on tightly.

"Good night, sweetheart. I love you."

"Love you too, Mrs. Stetson. Sleep well, I've got you." He kissed her neck through her hair, and she relaxed, as she always did when he kissed her there. Soon they both were sleeping soundly.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Nik lie on the little, uncomfortable, stinky bed. Donovan had questioned him, nonstop, about the man he'd been with. Nik was tired of it. He'd given only silence as his answer until a little while ago he'd said he was tired. Donovan immediately allowed him to rest. Nik was a little surprised at that, most kidnappers he had heard of were mean, nasty people that hurt the kids they took. He was rapidly becoming confused.

Somewhere in the quiet watches of the night Nikolas finally drifted to sleep hoping for a way to ease his mind. Andrei sat watch over him the whole night. He'd seen the look Dolan had given him, and didn't want to leave the boy alone for a second. He knew that Donovan didn't suspect a thing, being that he was blinded with the anticipation of turning his son against the people who'd cared for him. Andrei didn't care one way or the other about Russian and American policies or rivalries. All he cared about was getting paid, but he wasn't going to let an innocent be hurt for being frightened and confused. Dolan knew that he was doing it but he didn't care of Dolan knew the secrets of the universe. He wasn't getting near the boy again.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Nik slept the morning through whilst Amanda, had been awakened by a small knock on her bedroom door in the early morning hours just before the bus came for the boys.

"What is it?" Amanda called feeling unusually warm and safe in her bed.

"Mom, Mrs. Reiley is on the phone for you. She says that she's found something." Jamie's voice filtered through the door.

"Okay, I've got it sweetheart." She reached for the phone and answered it, with some difficulty since Lee's arms were around her own. "Hello,"

"Oh, Amanda, I thought you'd want to know, I've spotted one of the men I saw in the books you brought. I've been looking all night, and finally I spotted the shorter of the two men. I can bring it over if you'd like." She sounded absolutely pleased with herself.

"All right, I'll need a little while to get up and moving. If I haven't called you back in an hour call me again. We've been worried about this all night, and haven't been asleep long." She yawned for emphasis.

"I understand, I'll call back in an hour."

"Thank you. We should be ready by then." She heard the click of disconnection and hung up herself. She turned to look at the reason she'd felt so safe upon waking. Amazingly, he hadn't stirred during her conversation, and she was grateful for that. She didn't want to wake him again. It had been rough enough to wake at his struggles and have to pull him out of the dreams. She watched him sleep for a little while and then kissed the tip of his nose. She gently extricated herself from him to grab a shower.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Lee woke with the sound of a shower pounding in the bathroom next to him. He stood and crossed to the door. "Amanda are you in there?"

She poked her head around the curtain and let out a "Yeah, I'll be done in a second. I'd ask you to join me but we need to get to work." Lee smiled at that and crawled back into bed for a little while. When next he awoke his wife was leaning over him to give him a kiss and her hair had left some of its droplets on his chest. He reached up and pulled her flat against him kissing her before she got the chance to pull away. She melted against him after the shock passed and they enjoyed a leisurely kiss, that was interrupted all too soon by another soft knock at her door. Amanda sighed and kissed him softly once before acknowledging it as he slipped into the bathroom to take his own shower.

"What now, Jamie?" She called.

"Can I come in for a second?" Came the muffled question through the door.

"Sure, just give me a second to throw on a robe." She went into the closet and dropped the towel she'd been wearing to slip into her soft bathrobe. "Okay, sweetheart, you can come in now."

"I just wanted to give you a kiss before heading for the bus." He walked over and bestowed the kiss on her cheek. "Be careful today, Mom."

"Thank you, sweetheart. I will, I'll have Lee to watch over me too. We're careful, baby, you don't have to worry."

"I know you won't take any unnecessary risks, but it's still dangerous work." He hugged her and kissed her again. "I'll see you tonight. I better get to the bus or I'll miss it."

"Okay, I'll see you later. We're probably going to be late again, but I'll come in and kiss you goodnight if you're already asleep."

"Okay, love you mom."

"Love you too, sweetheart. After all this craziness is over we're all gonna sit-down and have a long talk, okay." He nodded and headed out of the room. Amanda smiled as she watched him go. Then stood to get dressed and dry her hair.

As she went through the ritual of getting ready for the day, she didn't notice Lee watching her from the bathroom door. He loved to watch her put on her makeup with such care. Finally, she was finished and brushing her, now dry, hair into place. He walked over before she got too far and took the brush from her. "Lee-"

"Shhh." He soothed. He knew they didn't really have time for this, but it relaxed him almost as much as it did her, so he indulged himself, and brushed her hair out. Once finished, he gave the brush back and let her style it while he got dressed. Amanda finished and called Lise Reiley to say they were on their way.

She met them at the door with the photo in her hand. "This is him! He was sitting in the back seat with the little boy."

Lee took the picture from her, "This is Andrei Polansky. He's small time. Works for the highest bidder. I've never known him to kidnap though. Who ever this Wyvern is, is a high roller. He's paying big money for Pol to stick his neck out."

"So now we can find out if he's in town." She looked at the picture herself, but didn't recognize the man. "Thank you, Lise. So very much. Keep looking and call me at this number," she gave her an IFF business card, "if you find anything else."

"I will Amanda, good luck with the search. I'm glad I could do something." They were heading back down her walk already and then they were gone. Lee drove them to the agency and gave Billy the latest information. He got a copy of the photo for Amanda and they set out to track Andrei Polansky down.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Donovan wanted to get out of this country as fast as he could, so he'd insisted they go to the airport to get their tickets today. They stopped to fill up the tank of their stolen vehicle and spoke in hushed Russian while the attendant filled the car and wiped the windows, taking note of the young very American looking boy in the back seat. "Sir, if you'll pop the hood I'll check your engine for you."

"Yes, yes, fine." He pulled the hood lever.

"I'll need you to kill the engine Sir." The engine died. She set to work checking oil and transmission fluid, wiper fluid, the water in the radiator. Even the wire connections. She took her time stalling hoping that her friend would get there before this guy got mad. He'd called to say he was on his way to see her with some questions. Alas, the driver of the car yelled for her to hurry and finish he didn't have all blasted day. She closed the hood and removed the nozzle from the gas tank. "She looks in good condition sir. I'll go get your bill. She walked away into the shop as a familiar silver Corvette pulled in. She called that she'd be there in a minute, or they could get out and wait. The driver got out and walked toward her.

Nikolas looked around and saw Lee walking toward the lady. He yelled out for him. "LEE!" Stetson looked around. "I'M HERE, IN THE CAR! LEE HELP!" Lee started for the car and Donovan started the engine and put it in gear speeding away. Amanda, being the quick thinker cleared the gear shift getting behind the steering-wheel and pulled up beside him. She sped after them, but the car was already too far ahead of them. She made her way back to the station. Lee got out and started questioning the attendant. She told him about the airport, and then he asked about the men in the car showing her the picture of Andrei.

"Yeah, he was in there, and the taller ugly guy. He was called Dolan. They called the third guy Gryph. He was the driver." She then described him.

"Gryph, okay at least we've got more names to go on. Thank God for those sharp ears of yours."

"Glad to help Lee, as always. Hope you catch them."

"For my son, I'll kill them." Her eyes widened and then she smiled in compassion. Lee returned to the car and switched places with Amanda. "Call Billy and have him look up the name Dolan. Then have him look up the codename, Gryph, in the Russian database."

"Got it." She dialed and got the agency operator. "Codename Athena for Melrose." Lee smiled at her, liking the thought of hearing that codename all the time. "Mr. Melrose we have a couple more names to trace. One is the name Dolan. The other is a codename from the Russian database, its Gryph."

"Okay, the first is an American, who recently moved up in the world of crime. He kidnapped a senator's daughter, and held her for ransom. Obviously he got away, but he didn't get out with his money. I'd guess that this is his way to making it back." The second name took longer. "We've got two possible matches on this one. The first is an agent codename Gryphon. We have a photo. The second is an agent codename Saber, with the name Griff. If you can find a place with a fax we'll wire you the information." Amanda relayed this to Lee who responded by taking the phone.

"Billy don't worry about us. Get a copy of the photos of both to all the airports in the area; one of Nik too, if you have any. I don't care if it's a parachute service, if it's got a plane capable of flight, I want them to have seen both men. If they see him they are to call the police immediately. Amanda and I will head to Dulles and get a copy there."

"Okay Lee. I'll close them down too."

"No not yet. If it's closed they'll know we're on to them. Just get the information out and have them detain him. He may or may not have Nik with him at the time, so tell them to use extreme care."

"Got it. Talk to you in a bit." Billy hung up and was promptly back on the phone sending the information out as quickly as possible.

Lee sped up heading to the international airport as fast as safety permitted.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Nik walked beside Donovan, knowing that he had to get away if he was ever going to feel safe again. Dolan continued to look at him as though he were a piece of meat. Donovan continued to be oblivious, and Andrei was getting more and more nervous. Donovan walked over to the ticket booth and began the process of purchasing two one-way tickets to Russia. The cashier hadn't yet received a description of the man that the government was looking for, but the information was trickling down throughout the other stations and it would only be a matter of time before they found him.

Indeed, it wasn't even five minutes later that the girl in the next booth over noticed him and called the attention of security. They let him buy his tickets in peace, and waited for them to pass through the metal detectors. It finally went off when the boy stepped through. They pulled the three men aside, and decided a routine spot check was in order. They informed the impatient man who seemed to be in charge, and led him and his companions to one side. The security team was led by one of the agency's finest, Effram Beeman, who'd been there under a cover story to see his girlfriend off on her trip to Chicago, in reality he was sending off one of his trainees to her new post. Billy had remembered him being there, and contacted him with the developments in the case. Beeman stood, watching as the guards searched the cases.

Lee and Amanda walked through the doors and saw the proceedings. Lee dashed forward without thinking and his gun set off the detectors. He was stopped and gone over. The guard found his weapon before he got his ID out and yelled "GUN!" Dolan looked up and saw the man and the brunette who'd had Donovan's brat. Something snapped at that moment. He grabbed the guard nearest him and threw him against the wall, it wasn't a challenge since everyone had been startled by the shout at the gates. His next move was for the hidden catch on the case the guard had been searching. A panel popped up and he grabbed a .45 semiautomatic. Then he grabbed the red haired pest who'd gotten him in trouble. "That's it. NOBODY MOVES ANY CLOSER!" The gun rested against Nik's temple.

The barrel was cold on his skin and Nik froze instantly. Staring at Lee, his green eyes terrified. All eyes in the area were turned to the man with the gun. Gai's included. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! If there is one hair on his head missing, I swear to you I'll kill you."

"What like you killed the mother of your child. SHUT UP! I'm tired of your bull. All I ever did was work faithfully for you, and as soon as this kid says one little thing you think he's telling the absolute truth. YOU are out of your MIND!" The gun trained on Gai for a moment then went back to Nik's head then back to the Russian in front of them. Beeman was watching and saw that the full attention of the gun wielder was on the man speaking to him. He eased his gun out of its holster and aimed at he guy's head. The next time the gun came away from the boy Beeman pulled the trigger and hit his mark. In his death throes Dolan's finger squeezed the trigger sending a shot into Donovan's stomach.

Nik felt a jerk and then was pulled to the ground with Dolan's hand gripping his shirt. He felt the sticky blood on his face and neck and seeping into his shirt. He didn't move, still scared out of his wits. Then a movement off to the side pulled him back to reality and Nik pulled away from the mad man tearing his shirt where it was held in the death grip. He scooted away from the body across the floor. Then Amanda was there pulling him up and carrying him away from the grizzly scene. Lee met them and took possession of the shaking child.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

As soon as the detector went off Lee cursed himself violently. What kind of idiot are you Stetson? Then the voice that was his conscious told him. 'The kind that is terrified for his son.' He tried to pull out his ID but the guard found his gun first, and then all hell broke loose. Nik was being held with a gun to his head, and the man that could only be Dolan looked as though he wanted to explode right there. Lee saw, but didn't hear for the pounding of his heart, the exchange between the two men. Then Dolan did explode, all down the front of his son.

Lee couldn't move as the body fell in, seemingly, slow motion to the ground. Then Nik hit the floor with him and everything sped up again. Nik looked dazed for a second and then Gryph moved a little where he lay clutching the hole in his belly. Nik seemed to snap out of his trance and pulled away from the hand that still held him tearing the new shirt they'd gotten him; the blue and white stripes were now discolored with crimson blood making a macabre joke of patriotism. His boy was staring at the gore, and still Lee was afraid to move lest something else happen. Then, thankfully, Amanda was there pulling Nik into her arms as Beeman and the other guards got Andrei handcuffed and subdued, not that he was putting up a fight. Paramedics had arrived and were checking over Gryphon, still moving.

Amanda pulled Nik close and held him to her. He struggled out of her grip and continued to stare wide eyed at the two men on the floor. She lifted him and walked over to where Lee stood watching them. By the way he looked, she could see that he hadn't noticed the guard still watching him warily, even if her husband had been capable of movement he'd have been unable to move. As she neared, Lee let the ID he'd finally retrieved slip from his fingers and took his son from her. He pulled him close and hugged him relieved that he was again with them and unharmed. Nik made no move to return the gesture and this confused Lee. He really looked at the boy for the first time, and could see that he was in shock. Lee sat him on the conveyor belt and checked him for injuries. Other than a few angry bruises on his upper arms that looked like someone had gripped his arm too hard, and Dolan's blood covering him and a violent shivering, he was fine. "Nik. Hey, it's okay. It's over." Still no response. "NIKOLAS!" Nothing. His small face was still turned to watch the body being removed and the paramedics working on Gai. "Nikolas," He turned the face to look at him. Then inspiration struck. "LEE TYLER-STETSON! look at me."

Nik heard someone call him; his mom, he thought, for she was the only one who called him Lee. He snapped out of his shock and looked at his father. "DADDY!" He threw himself off the belt at his father. Lee caught him and held on not caring that the blood was staining his suit.

"Thank goodness." Amanda said as Lee hugged his son back. "Let's go find a phone and inform Billy that he's safe." As Lee turned the guard who'd detained him handed his ID back to him.

"Sorry, sir. I saw you running and then the gun, well it's my job."

"Not your fault. I lost my head when I saw him. He's been missing, and the men we knew had him killed a woman last week. I didn't think. I'm sorry, and I'm sure I'll be reprimanded for the stupidity I just showed. I could have gotten him, myself and a whole lot of other people killed." Lee shifted Nik to one arm and held out a hand. The guard took it and shook it firmly. Then let them go on their way. Lee made the call to Billy while Amanda went to find what had happened to Beeman. She found him coordinating the clean up. Everything looked well in hand. "Effram. Thank you. Lee and I will be forever grateful that you saved Niki."

"It's my job just like yours, Mrs. King. That one is still alive they're taking him to Galilee General. I'll go with him you two get that boy back to the agency."

"Lee's on the phone with Billy right now. We'll get him to send someone to relieve you."

"Thank you." She turned and met Lee who was walking back to her.

"Billy says we should get back there for debriefing as soon as possible so we can get him home." He took her hand and they left Dulles.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Billy and Francine were the only ones present in Nik's debriefing, and Dr. Smith joined them for Lee and Amanda's. He about had fits when Nik was with Lee throughout the entire thing. The boy hadn't let go since snapping out of his shock. Amanda had driven them back. Upon their arrival they learned of Donovan's DOA status at the hospital. Beeman had already called the agency and was on his way in to be debriefed.

"So let me get this straight, Scarecrow, you endangered the lives of civilians by rushing in and not thinking through your actions." Smith said in his condescending manner.

"Yes, I made a royal mistake letting my heart decide for my head. I've admitted that freely, but I'd like to see you in the same situation where some one you love, who holds a piece of your heart with them, is in danger. Your wife, child, your cigarette holder, whatever, let's see you make a rational decision."

"Point taken, but he wasn't in immediate danger, until you set off the guard and the kidnapper."

"Every moment he was in their hands he was in immediate danger." Lee countered.

"If that wasn't bad enough, you froze and left an instructor to remedy the situation."

"I did freeze, yes. That guy, Dolan, told everyone to freeze. If I'd made a move he'd have gone off. He watched me with Nik for a week. He knew what I'd do if I got my hands on him. Beeman was the logical solution to that problem he had a gun he has top notch aim, and he was being ignored." Smith opened his mouth to say more, but Lee interrupted. "Dr. Smith look at this little boy, and tell me that you could have watched him or any child die, just to catch the man who would have killed him." Smith sat back and took a drag on his cigarette. "You can't so I'm not taking anymore of this. I'm taking my son home to get him cleaned up and fed and a good night's rest. And don't expect me in tomorrow if Nik needs me to stay with him." Smith was silent. Billy was the one to give them leave to go. Lee stood and headed out; before he could open the door Smith spoke again.

"Good work Scarecrow, even if you did make mistakes. You caught the elusive Wyvern also known as Gryphon to the English and Russians." Lee turned the knob and left without a glance back to Smith.

Amanda drove them to Lee's apartment and they got Nik cleaned up and in fresh clothes. Lee got cleaned up as well. Amanda would have to wait until they got to her house to get out of her blood ruined dress. She packed them a bag while Lee was helping Nik to wash up. Amanda went in at Lee's call. "I can't get his hair clean."

"Let a pro have a go at it." She stepped over and set to work on the matted curls. He went into the bedroom, shaking his head at her forwardness, and finished packing the bags she'd started. Finally, they were all through and she drove them to 4247 Maplewood Drive.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

"Mother we're home." Amanda had taken the time to call her mother during Lee's debriefing, and informed her that they were bringing Nik back to the house. "I'm going to go up and get cleaned off before someone sees me." She informed her husband.

"Mom!" Too late, Jamie was in the door watching her in horror.

"It's okay Jamie. Let me go get cleaned up and then we'll talk."

"But you've got blood all over you." He sounded shaky.

"There was a slight mishap during Nik's rescue and the kidnappers were shot. We're all fine. Nik was the only one close enough to be in danger. As it is this blood came from his clothes when I picked him up. I need to go and get out of this if it's going to be salvageable." Jamie nodded and Lee ushered him back to the kitchen.

"Is she telling the truth, Mr. Stetson, she wasn't in any danger?"

"No, she wasn't. I was closer than she was, and the guy that got killed, had been holding Nik hostage. He had more on him than your mom. We were all covered in it after we got Nik back. We stopped by my apartment to get Nik cleaned up though. I took a shower too, but your mom thought it would be pointless to shower when she'd just have to put the dress back on and get it all over her again." He put an arm around Jamie. "Do you think you could call me Lee? I know we're still getting to know each other, but I am your stepfather, and I'd be very honored if you could call me friend." Jamie nodded.

"Dad?" Nik leaned back in Lee's arms.

"What is it, Niki?" Lee asked gently. Nik hadn't said much since the questions.

"No more questions, okay." It was more command than request. Lee smiled and set him on his feet.

Keeping his arms around both boys, Lee responded, "No, no questions. Only happy stuff from now on." Lee squeezed his small shoulders carefully avoiding the bruising. "I'm gonna make sure of that." They entered the kitchen where Dotty was cooking dinner and Phillip was on the phone with another of his new girlfriends.

"Hi there, Nik. I'm so glad you're okay." Dotty looked up from her cooking, and came to wrap the little boy in a hug despite the flour that covered her from head to toe. Nik nodded and looked up at Lee. "Me too." He answered after she released him. Lee could see by the look that Nik knew, as well as he did, that it wasn't okay yet, not by a long shot. He could see a long road of therapy sessions and nightmares in the coming weeks.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Amanda rejoined her family downstairs refreshed and resigned herself to tossing the dress in the trash. She'd worked on it longer than it had taken her to get washed up, and not even a little of the blood had come out. She didn't mind anyway. She didn't want the reminder of today's events.

Nik was sitting at the table with Jamie talking softly, which she took as a good sign for both of them. She wanted to talk about more than today with her sons, including Nik, and mother and her husband. "Hello, Mother." She kissed the floury cheek and moved on past. "Hello, fellas." She settled at the table by Jamie. Lee was sitting across from her and she felt his foot rest on hers and rub a little. She smiled across at him before speaking. "I want all of us to forget what we planned for after dinner tonight. We need to hold a family meeting. I have something to say, and I want everyone here to listen." She got nods of confirmation from all of them and settled back to talk to Jamie about school and listen as Nik asked what school was like and Jamie explained it to him and play footsie under the table with her husband, holding his hand across the top of it.

Dinner was lively, but Amanda worried about Nik. He sat as close to Lee as he could without actually being in his lap, and ate small bites intermittently. He seemed overwhelmed. Lee kept an arm around him and rubbed the bruises on his upper arm gently and absentmindedly, as if the rubbing would make them disappear. Finally, they had all finished and everyone had helped with the dishes and clean up. "Okay, family meeting." She ushered everyone into the den and waited while they found seats.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

"You all know that Lee and I are married, and that Nik is Lee's son. You also know that this house is a little small for two more people to move into. I know that you boys don't want to move, and I know that Lee wants to give everyone time to get used to him and Nik living with us. I think that gives us enough time for my idea. I've been thinking about this for a long time, and I wanted to include everyone before deciding its what is best." She paused for the nods, and took a deep breath before continuing. "I propose that we turn the garage into a small apartment for you, Mother. That way you can come and go as you please, but are still close by for the boys and the rest of us. Phillip could move into your room, and Nik and Jamie can share the boys' room. We could even add on down here to give everyone separate rooms if they want them. If we agree to this we'll decide what we want and while it's being built, Lee and Nik can live at his apartment during the week and here on weekends. That gets everyone used to their being around, and it gives Nik time to get used to more than one other person living with him." Dotty looked like she liked the idea, Lee still looked unresolved, Jamie was introspective and unreadable while he was thinking it over, and Phillip looked happy at the prospect of having his own room. She watched Nik apprehensively. She knew all the others well enough that she knew she'd win them over in the end, but Nik she couldn't read. He was staring at the carpet at the moment sitting on Lee's lap holding both Lee's hands by his sides. He got up slowly and walked to the window and looked out at the lamp lit street. A car passed by and the headlights appeared to dim as it passed under the street light.

He turned back to face them, "I like the idea. If you are all Lee's family and he's my dad, then you're my family too. Mom always said that my family was important. If you're my family now then you're important." The way he said it left something to be desired, but somewhere in there the seven-year-old logic seeped through, and Amanda understood.

"Thank you, Nik. I'm glad you agree."

"If he can agree then I can." Jamie spoke up. Amanda was tempted to ask if that was how he really felt, but read the truth of it in his eyes. Lee was the only one left to accept the idea.

"How can I argue with all of you when you look at me like that?" He said. "Let's get to work. The sooner the thing is finished the sooner we can be a family all the time. Not just weekends."

They settled down then and started working on what they'd want done. It was finally decided that they would add on and convert the garage. Both Phillip and Jamie wanted their own rooms. Amanda was prepared for this and had approved of it before they said anything. The next Monday found Lee and Amanda signing Nikolas up for school, there in Arlington, and looking for a good contractor.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Nik had scheduled meetings with Doctor Pfaff every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday after school. They'd spent the holidays in the house as a family, as well as held a birthday party for Nik. Lee and Amanda had spent a week alone at the apartment for their anniversary while Dotty looked after all three boys at the house. The house, itself, was coming along nicely and everyone was adjusting well to Lee and Nik being in the house. He was finally getting back normal after thirteen weeks of therapy. Pfaff actually lessened his visits to once a week, on Fridays, and praised Lee and Amanda for helping him at home. It was their support and care that helped him the most. The third Friday evening of the month of April found Nik in the front yard with Lee and Phillip practicing for little league. Currently he was 'at bat.' Phillip was kneeling behind him and Lee was pitching. He hadn't gotten a hit farther than Lee himself yet, but Lee could feel they were close to a grand slam. "Okay, Niki, you're almost there. Come on, give me one good, solid swing." Nik nodded and watched as Lee pitched the ball. He swung the bat the way Amanda had shown him and the ball popped high into the air. Lee caught it and encouraged him again. "That was good but I want you to keep the ball more level this time send it over my head."

"Okay, Dad." Nik hefted the bat once and got ready. Amanda watched from the window in the den. Lee pitched the ball again and Nik swung with all his might. The ball flew over Lee and into the next yard. They then heard a crash and glass breaking. Lee's face transformed into a beaming smile.

"Way to go, Nikolas." He didn't even appear to care that there was a broken window next door and probably an irate neighbor coming to return the ball.

"But I broke the window." He looked like he was about to cry.

"Don't worry about the window, Niki. You just belted that ball outta the park. It was a great hit and a perfect swing. You do it that way every time and you'll be the best on team." Lee praised him, his face beaming with a proud smile.

"Yeah, Mr. Sanderson is used to his window being broken, Jamie and I broke it four times when we used to practice out here." Phillip flicked the bill of Nik's Bomber's cap back. "It was a really good hit."

"Thanks." He was starting to get excited now. He liked having older brothers and wanted them to like him too, so anytime they praised him left him feeling ten feet tall. "I didn't think I'd ever hit it that far."

"Does this ball belong to you three?" A wizened old man stood beside the corner of the fence holding their baseball.

"Yes, sir. It's mine. My dad was teaching me how to hit good. Sorry I broke your window." He walked over and the man dropped the ball into his hands.

"Good hit then." Nik smiled at him. Lee walked over.

"We'll pay for the window and Nik and I will come over and help fix it." He reached for his wallet. Mr. Sanderson raised a hand.

"I won't take your money but I'd be glad for you to help me fix it. Welcome to the neighborhood by the way." He smiled slyly.

"Thank you. Just give us a call when it comes in." Lee had a huge smile on his face now. He wasn't used to neighbors being nice to him, not like this. His had always been polite but none of them actually cared.

"Hey fellas, time for dinner and homework." Amanda came out on the porch. "Hello Mr. Sanderson. I see they finally taught him to hit the ball further than the yard is wide."

"Indeed they did, Dear. Well, I must be getting back to my studies."

Nik gave him a funny look. "You got studies. I thought only kids went to school."

"Son, I am a professor at the college. I am grading test papers and I have to keep my mind sharp, so that I can continue to outsmart my students."

"Oh, so teachers gotta work too."

"Oh yes, some time I'll show it to you. You'd better go in though. Your dinner will be getting cold." Nik smiled and waved as they went in.

Dinner was as raucous as usual with the three boys in a small space. It was Lee and Jamie who ended up with dish duty. Phillip went up to his and Jamie's room and Nik settled in the den with his spelling work for Monday. He worked diligently and efficiently. Amanda was still surprised that he was so good about doing his homework. She suspected that much more time with Phillip would see him slacking off though. She sat behind him on the couch going over some files that couldn't wait until Monday. Lee eventually joined her and Jamie kissed her cheek before heading upstairs to his own work. Dotty was out with a friend.

Nik finished his spelling and brought it for Amanda to check. While he returned to his math. He worked silently for a while, then got stuck on a problem and turned. "Mom," he stopped startled as he realized what he'd said. "Uhm, I mean, Amanda, um could you help me, ah, I can't figure." He took a breath and shook his head. "Never mind." His eyes were full and his voice thick, as he looked away in embarrassment. Amanda set the files aside and leaned down to pull him into her lap.

"It's okay, Niki. I don't mind, if that is what you are worried about." She had a hunch that, that wasn't what had him upset.

"It's not that, but what about Mom? She'd be hurt, wouldn't she?" He watched her from the corner of his eye.

Lee watched Amanda, knowing this was something for her to tackle. Her voice was filled with hope and love, as it dropped to almost a whisper. "No, Nik, your mom wants you to be happy and have a wonderful life. If you want another mom then that's okay. I know that if anything were to happen to me I'd want Phillip and Jamie to find someone that they loved and trusted enough to call mother. Don't you think your mommy wants that."

"I guess so, but I don't want to forget her. I am though. I can barely remember what her voice sounded like anymore, or how she smelled." His voice was barely a whisper, as his face fell into sorrow.

"Sweetheart she'll always be in your heart, and you'll always love her. I think that we begin to forget things like that so that thinking about the person we lost doesn't hurt us as much. They wouldn't want to hurt us would they?" Nik shook his head

"I could call you mom then. Like I call Lee my dad." He asked tentatively.

"Of course, sweetheart. I'd like to be your mother, and watch out for you since your mom can't."

"Okay, Mom then. Could you help me with a problem? I'm not sure what to do." She settled beside him on the floor.

"Let's see what we can do here." Lee watched them tackle the math for a little while. He could actually see Nik's body unwinding as he sat there with her; he'd never seen him so relaxed with her. It was as if that had been his last reservation about becoming a part of their family.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Three weeks after that, the house was finally finished. It was pandemonium at 4247 Maplewood Drive. Dotty was moving her things to the new garage apartment, Lee was moving into Amanda's room with her. Nik was moving into Phillip and Jamie's old room, so that he was near Lee and Amanda. Jamie was moving into his Gramma's old room, and Phillip was moving his things downstairs into his new room. Amanda was a master at directing everyone and averted quite a few catastrophes. Getting everything in the proper rooms was the easy part. Now they had to set everything up. Beds came first so that everyone had a place to sleep that night. Then clothes went into drawers and closets, followed by models, toys and non-essentials going where the owners desired.

It was a huge day of compromise for both Lee and Amanda. She moved her things to make room for his, he gave her the chance to veto anything he brought with him. Finally, Lee was settled into her room and they were both exhausted. Lee'd helped Nik move as well as Jamie and Phillip. Dotty was easier, she'd been moving bit by bit as the conversion neared completion. Nik's was harder since Lee had to ferry stuff from storage in Georgetown, but the small quantity made up for the mileage. Jamie and Phillip were a matter of getting the right thing to the right person and there were more than a few arguments on which item belonged to which person. Finally, Amanda told them to compromise or every item in question would belong to Nik. Lee had broken down and had a good laugh at that. He wondered what Nik would do with some of the stuff that was clearly of sentimental value to Phillip and Jamie alone, and the look that Nik had given her after seeing the stuff they were fighting over nearly toppled Lee. Dotty was passing through at the time and had joined Lee with a giggle, then shook her head and moved on with her load.

They finished, finally, in the middle of the afternoon. It was warming outside, but it was still early enough in the year that it wasn't unbearable. Lee and Amanda thought briefly about going out to eat or on a picnic in the park, but when they descended the stairs to find three exhausted boys slumped on the couch, watching an afternoon movie, they decided the boys had the right idea and joined them in the den. Nik slid off the couch a little while later and snuggled with them on the floor. He was a little apprehensive about things, still, and sought comfort from them. Both Lee and Amanda had been content, sitting wrapped in each other's arms, but Nik wasn't unwelcome in their space, none of the boys were. Amanda just pulled him back to her where she sat between Lee's legs, leaning against him. Nik smiled up at her and settled down to watch the rest of the film. Dotty found all of them still in there Amanda had fallen asleep and Lee had eased her down to lie on the floor for comfort's sake. Nik was lying beside her on his tummy with his head on his hands and his feet in the air still watching the television. Jamie had pulled out a book and was reading. Phillip was content to fade in and out watching the show and dozing where he slouched on the sofa. When Dotty walked in Lee had just dozed off, himself, and was curled up facing her on Amanda's other side with one of his hands resting flat, protectively on her stomach. As Dotty watched, her daughter's hand moved to cover Lee's, and she scooched closer to him in her sleep. She shook her head at the love that shone brightly between the two.

Leaning over the back of the sofa she whispered, "Are you guys hungry in here?"

"Sure, Gramma, but I think we should let Mom and Lee sleep. They were pretty tired, and we didn't make it any easier on them."

"That's okay Jamie. It's understandable that with all the changes around here there would be a little friction." Nik had turned to watch them. "I'm as tired as they look." She intoned quietly, indicating the contented sleepers. "Tell you what, I'll go and pick up something easy. How about some Snack Shack orders?" She got nods from all three. I'll go get a pen. She returned with a pen and paper and took the orders. "I'll be back soon, boys."

Nik had moved away from Lee and Amanda to give Dotty his preference. "Can I come too?" He asked out of the blue.

"Sure, if you want to ride with me you can." He nodded and took her hand. She gave him one of her radiant Dotty smiles. "Let's get going then." The two of them left the house, and Dotty drove them to the Quickie Chickie Snack Shack. She kept up a thread of conversation with him, a little uncomfortable because he'd been distant for the most part toward her. She thought he felt apathetic.

"If I'm calling Amanda Mom now, and you are her mom, would it be okay if I called you Gramma, like Phillip and Jamie do?" Dotty about wrecked the car she was so shocked by his question.

"If you'd like to, I couldn't have a problem with being someone else's Gramma. You are Lee's son and he's my son-in-law so we are family now." Nik smiled.

"You better park before we crash, Gramma." After Dotty did pull in at the restaurant she laughed at his off-hand comment.

"Thank you, Nik. I was beginning to think you didn't like me."

"Who couldn't like you? You're nice. I'm just not used to a lot of people. Mom taught me to be suspicious of everyone I met. Except for maybe Dad, she was always saying how great and trustworthy he was. I don't know if I believed her then, but I believe her now." She didn't know quite what to say to that, not knowing all of Nik's background so she opened her door and then walked around to help him out of the car. "I didn't know how to be around you either. I never had a gramma before." Dotty found the perfect response for this when she scooped him up for a good hug.

"You just be you, Nik. A gramma's job is to love her grandchildren most of all for who they are." She kissed the top of his head and loosened her hold so that he was down on his feet again. "Let's go get some dinner, shall we." Nik's face lit up and he nodded taking her offered hand.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Lee woke from his doze before Dotty and Nik returned, he glanced around the room before asking, "Where did Niki go?"

Jamie answered. "He went with Gramma to get something for everyone to eat." Lee nodded and turned back to lie down beside Amanda again. He smiled at the content on her face, and unable to resist he kissed her cheek softly.

"Lee, go away for a while, hmm. I'm sleepy." She said half-asleep.

"Sorry, couldn't help myself." He kissed her again. She groaned.

"Stop that before I wake up completely. It's the weekend I'm supposed to be lazy and content and sleeping after the work we did today." She opened an eye to glance at him.

"Give up, Amanda. Dotty and Nik should be back soon with dinner." An evil grin spread across his face. Amanda recognized it.

"Don't you dare!" Too late, he attacked her ribs, tickling mercilessly. Amanda rolled with laughter. "Aren't you fellas gonna help your defenseless mother?" She called noticing them. The boys looked at each other then back to her then to each other again before simultaneously saying "Nah."

They then tried to tackle their stepfather. Lee knew they were their mother's sons though and anticipated the attack. He grabbed Amanda and rolled out of the way before the teens landed. Then he pounced on them. They all ended up in a heap, exhausted once more after the burst of energy. Dotty and Nik walked in as they began extricating their jumbled arms and legs.

"What in the world happened here?"

"It has been decided that Phillip and Jamie and I can take Lee on in a tickle battle any day, and win."

Nik, with a bag in the crook of each arm, stood shaking his head. "That's only because I wasn't here to help my dad. We'll get you next time." Lee reached over and pulled the boy to him.

"That's right." Nik pulled out a little.

"Gramma, take this food before my dad squishes it too bad." Dotty rescued the food and Lee hugged him again.

"Glad you got that resolved, son." He whispered to Nik.

"Well, she is my Gramma now."

"Oh, definitely."

"Come on all of you, let's eat before it gets any colder." Everyone made their way to the table and had their first real dinner together in the house and they knew that it was the first of many for years to come.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

The next day, Billy and his wife Jeannie arrived at two in the afternoon. Amanda had invited them to Nik's baseball game on Friday. They were going to share a late lunch before the game. Nik was already at practice.

"It's lovely in here Amanda." Jeannie complimented noticing the family photos on the shelves. "Are these recent?"

"Thank you Mrs. Melrose. We've worked hard on it. Yes, those just came in this week. Lee and I decided that we needed a family picture to really start our new life."

"I take it you all got settled in okay then." Billy conversed lightly approving of the photos himself.

Lee joined them, "Yeah, we're all as unpacked as we can be since yesterday. There're a few more boxes of Nik's things that I haven't unpacked yet. We'll get those next weekend though." He settled by Amanda with an arm around her. He noticed Billy's face become serious for a moment before the older man asked.

"Are you two going to make this public knowledge at work?"

"No, we are not." They answered firmly then Lee continued. "We don't want to be split up. I've never had a better partner, and I won't work with anyone else. I doubt Amanda would either." She nodded her agreement.

"We're through hiding it, but we won't announce it either. And I refuse to take my wedding ring off now that we're together all the time here. If people notice, I won't confirm or deny. We've talked about this and it's settled, we're going to be happy no matter what." Billy grinned and nodded.

"Good. I'd hoped you'd work it out. By the way, and this is just between you two and me, if you continue to keep a low profile and don't make a big show of anything, I doubt Dr. Smith will make too big a deal of it. If you two decide to add on to your family, we'll jump that hurdle when we get to it." After that they ate and enjoyed each other's company. Then it was time for the game. Phillip was front row center when they got to the field. Jamie had opted to go to his dad's for a day to rest from the hectic move. Dotty sat near Phillip watching the teams practice. The other adults joined them. Lee walked over to the dugout where Nik sat. "Hey there, ready to belt that ball like I taught you."

"Yeah, dad, but I'm nervous."

"That's natural, Nik. It's your first game. You're going to be fine." The umpire called for the teams, and Lee gave Nik a good luck wink as he filed onto the field with his teammates. He returned to sit with his arms around his wife.

"Give him a little peptalk, did you?" She asked quietly and kissed him as he sat.

He returned her kiss, "Yes, I did. He's nervous."

"He'll do fine, it sounds like you're nervous too."

"Mmm, oh maybe a little." He grinned.

"Oh, yeah, maybe." She kissed him again as the game started up. The Bombers had the field first and the opposing team had heavy hitters. All but three of the hits went into the outfield. Thankfully, there were only six batters before the third out. One run got through. Bombers' at bat wasn't much better, but they had a small lead. It stayed that way for three innings and then the opposing team hit a home run with bases loaded. Again the score stayed unchanged until the bottom of the eighth inning. Nik came up to bat with bases loaded on their side.

"Hey, Niki!" Amanda encouraged him. Phillip had been yelling for him the whole game, and his throat was sore. "You can do it. Get us a run." He smiled at them as he walked around the umpire to get to the batter's box.

"Remember how we did it when you broke the window, Nik. Do the same thing now." Lee yelled to him. Nik concentrated on the ball and the ball alone as the pitch came. He nodded, slightly, as he decided to hit this one. He swung with all his might, and the bat connected solidly with the ball. It made that special crack, and the ball flew over the heads of the pitcher and the second baseman. Nik, by that time was well on his way to first. As the ball landed, a little behind the center fielder, Nik was rounding second and two runs had scored tying the game. He got to third, and the ball sailed back to the second baseman. His coach signaled for him to stop there, and the third run scored giving them a one run lead. "Great hit, NIKI! Perfect." Billy smiled at the pride in his friend's voice. Lee resumed his seat and everyone was disappointed when the next kid struck out.

Nik ended the next half-inning tagging out the third runner between second and third. He was short stop and the ball had come right to him. All he'd had to do was hold out his glove and make sure the ball stayed in it. The runner had collided with his glove, but one run had scored to tie the game again. The first batter got to second before the out fielders got the ball back to the pitcher, and the second batter hit an easily caught pop-fly. The first batter had run, but got back to second base just in time. He'd hurt his leg though, and they needed a pinch runner. The coach picked Nik. During the next batter's stay in the box Nik stole third, and when the kid finally got a bunt he was motioned to stay where he was.

The next to hit knocked the ball between the first and second basemen Nik headed out and scored the winning run. The umpire called the game and the teams shook hands before leaving the field. Amanda didn't know who was more excited her husband or her son. Lee lifted him off the ground as soon as he was in reach. "See I told you, you'd do great. That last was a perfect hit. With a little more power it would have been outta the park."

Nik was rambling excitedly the whole time Lee was talking, and it was completely confusing if you'd never been to a little league game before. A couple other boys called Nik. "Hey, come on or you won't get your free snow cone." The funniest thing about that was that they were from the opposing teams but had their arms around each other with baseball mits dangling from the fingers at their friend's shoulders.

"I don't wanna miss the snowcone, Dad." Lee let him go, and he rejoined the other players in line at the concession stand. By the time he'd returned, Jamie and Joe had walked up. "Hi Jamie, did you see the game?" There was purple snowcone already dripping from his chin.

"Yeah, Dad and I got here in the fifth inning. You didn't think I'd miss your first game did you. I got your hit on film too." He informed his little brother. "I got some really great shots."

"Glad you made it." Amanda put an arm around Jamie. "Thank you for bringing him, Joe."

"Oh, it was my pleasure. I got to see a real live game. I watched all the videos you sent me, but it's not quite the same as being here. Lee." Joe greeted and the two of them shook hands, while Billy and Jeannie congratulated Nik.

"Thanks. Dad, taught me to throw, but I hit the ball the way Mom taught me." Lee looked hurt for a minute, as everyone laughed at Nik's admission.

"Oh, thanks a lot, son. I feel insignificant now."

"Oh, come on, sweetheart, he admitted that you taught him to catch the ball and throw it."

"Woo, he didn't even have to."

"Oh, then how did I get the ball to tag that one guy out?" Lee smiled and put an arm around Nik's shoulders

"I know, I know. I was just teasing you a little. Let's go get something to eat, and you, young man, need a napkin." The snowcone was melting in earnest now, and Nik had purple lines dripping down his arm. He finished the ice that was left and tossed the sodden cone-shaped paper cup in the waste bin. Then he wiped his arm on the dirt covered uniform pants.

"Oh, Nik, that's making it worse." Amanda sounded only slightly dismayed. After all, she'd gone through this before. Everyone started towards their respective cars, Joe declining dinner as they walked together. He and Carrie had plans.

************************Scarecrow & Mrs. King************************

Back at the house Amanda got Nik upstairs and into the tub to wash up. She came back down with his soiled uniform and tossed it with the rest of her load in the washer. Billy and Dotty were actually sitting, holding an unstrained conversation, and Amanda could see them becoming good friends, eventually. Dotty'd already started trading recipes with Jeannie.

Lee and Jamie sat at the kitchen table concentrating on a game of chess. Lee had started to teach Jamie two weeks ago, and they went a little further each time they got the chance. She wondered if they were still playing the same game they'd started two weeks ago. She carried drinks in to her mother and their guests. Then she went back into the kitchen to start their pre-planned dinner. Lee put the game on hold to come and help her. Mostly, he got in the way though. She was in the process of swatting his hand away from the fries when Nik came back down the stairs. "Hey guys. Dad, stop that. We'll never get anything if you keep eating it all."

"Okay, okay. Let's go talk to Gramma and Billy." He lifted Nik and draped him over his shoulder, not giving him a chance to object. After Lee left the kitchen Amanda got dinner finished relatively quick, and they were soon satisfied. Billy and Jeannie stayed a little longer to talk to Lee and Amanda. The boys went to their respective rooms to get ready for school the next day. A pajama clad Nik reappeared as Billy and Jeannie were standing to leave.

"Have a good day tomorrow, Nik. Come visit the office anytime you're around." Billy offered.

"I will. I come there every Friday, still, to talk to Doctor Pfaff." He hugged Billy and turned to Amanda. "Could I have some hot chocolate before bed, Mom?"

She ran her fingers through the red curls. "Of course you can, sweetheart. Let's make you some real quick." He took her hand and pulled her into the kitchen. She made the drink for him using the microwave, which was quicker, and left him to drink it standing at the bar. She went to walk her guests out, as she always did. Lee was with her until Nik called her. "I'll see what he wants." He kissed her nose and disappeared. She walked them out giving both a hug on the porch, and watched as they got in their car. As she was waving, Lee called out, "Amanda, where are the marshmallows." She rolled her eyes and shook her head. She turned and went into the house to retrieve them from their hiding place.

Freeze frame on the closed door.

May God stand between you and harm,

in all the empty places where you must walk. -An Ancient Egyptian Blessing-