"Scarecrow and Mrs. King" is copyrighted to Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Productions. I retain rights to the plot, but not the characters. This story is meant for enjoyment purposes only. No infringement is intended.
All in the Family
Part X
Four hours later Lee and Amanda were at the Agency. They had spent the better part of the early morning standing outside Assi Birol's house. Dozens of agents had been over Assi Birol's home with a fine toothed comb, but the search had yielded very little. The smashed transmitter had been located upstairs, and two wineglasses had been found in the living room. The lack of a struggle had suggested that Elizabeth had been drugged. Lee and Amanda were still waiting on the results of the test they had run on what was left of the wine.
Lee now paced back and forth running his hand through his hair while Amanda sat motionless at her desk thumbing through Elizabeth's latest report for the fifth time that morning.
"Amanda, this just doesn't make any sense!" Lee cried slamming his fist on the desk. "We didn't have anything on Birol, he's got to know that. Why take Elizabeth? Huh? It just doesn't make any sense."
"We're missing something," Amanda replied. "I know we are. You're right, Birol hasn't told her anything. So he found out she was an agent, there would be no reason to take her. He has to know that grabbing Elizabeth will just bring him under fire. We've got to be missing something. I just wish I could figure out what it was."
The door swung open and a still frazzled Francine breezed in, file folder in hand. Despite the fact that Francine was a seasoned agent, who had plenty of experience in operations gone bad, this one held an eerily familiar feeling that she didn't like. A fifteen-year-old memory played over and over in her head like a broken record. She was sitting in front of Billy's desk waiting to find out if any human remains had been located in the explosion at Birol's house. In her line of work it was imperative to learn not to dwell on the past. Yet, there were some memories that stayed with you. It became a day-to-day task of keeping them at bay. Addi Birol was not one of her favorite memories from this job, and today she couldn't seem to get away from it.
"What have you got?" Lee asked still walking the floor.
"Well, I'm afraid not much," Francine replied. "If it was Lizzie drinking from that wineglass, and we can pretty safely assume that it was, she was definitely drugged. He gave her a pretty potent mix; she would have been out within a few sips. The details are in here." She tossed the folder to Amanda who opened it, grateful to have some new material to look at.
"That's it?!" Lee asked. "I've had dozens of agents climbing over every inch of that house and all you can tell me is what we already know?"
"Lee..." Amanda started.
Ignoring her Lee turned back to Francine. "I want you to get those agents back to Birol's house. I want them to go over the house for a second time, and if necessary a third time, and a fourth time, and a fifth time. I don't want ANYONE to walk back through those doors until they have something of substance to tell me!"
Francine dropped her eyes to the ground. "Alright," she responded quietly and left the room.
"Don't you think you were a little hard on her? She feels bad enough." Amanda commented.
"Amanda, Birol is out there, with one of our best agents and we don't have a clue where to find them. No, I don't think I was too hard on her."
"Look, that's just it," Amanda attempted to comfort him. "Elizabeth is one of our best agents. She can take care of herself. You are not the only one who suffered while Addi Birol held me captive. If I remember correctly Francine put her career as well as her life on the line to help us, and that wasn't the only time. This Birol business has rattled her as well, and no amount of yelling and screaming are going to get us any closer to finding Elizabeth."
Lee let out a deep sigh. "I hate that," he mumbled.
"What?" Amanda asked.
"When you're right," he moaned as he tossed the door open and headed out to find Francine.
********************************************************************************************
"Rise and shine lovebirds," Assi Birol's low sinister voice forced both Jamie and Elizabeth into consciousness. "Today is going to be a very busy day." Noting the terrified expression on Jamie's face he leaned in closer. "Don't worry Mr. King," Assi began to laugh, "your Mommy will be here very soon. It's about time she and Scarecrow pay for all I lost as a child."
Assi tossed a tray of stale bread and old fruit on the table and left the room, his laughter following him all the way down the corridor. Entering another room down the hall Assi found himself face to face with Margarita. 'Not now,' he thought. 'I'm just not sure if I can take her this morning.' Assi was more than aware that Margarita had somewhat of a crush on him. In fact, he had more than once used her feelings to suit his needs, but this morning he wasn't up to dealing with the lovesick woman. In reality, he actually found her rather annoying. "What is it Margarita?" he barked.
Looking hurt Margarita glanced shyly at him. "It's nothing, really. I just thought that maybe you'd be excited about my little find last night." She moved to stand closer to him and placed her hand on his arm. "Assi, you look tired," she commented. "Maybe you should lie down."
Annoyed with the smothering attention that was typical of Margarita Assi responded in a flat, disinterested tone. "You mean Mr. King?"
"Mmm-hmm," Margarita nodded. "He will come in handy, don't you think?"
"Luck," Assi mumbled as he filled a glass with bourbon.
"What?" Margarita gasped. She had been sure that the capture of Jamie King would be her ticket into Assi's heart. At last she had proven herself.
Assi's patience was growing thin. "It was simply luck, Margarita. You wouldn't have ever followed him if I hadn't insisted that there was something off about his exchange with the woman. You simply followed instructions and ended up at the right place at the right time. Nothing more." He downed his drink and reached out to pour himself another. Silently he prayed that he had offended her enough to get her to leave. He wasn't sure if he could take her for another minute.
Margarita's eyes filled with tears. Not wanting Assi to see her cry, she pivoted on her heals and abruptly left the room.
"Thank God." Assi mumbled.
********************************************************************************************
Lee reentered the office just in time to catch the end of his wife's conversation. "No, I haven't seen him since last night. He seemed fine. Of course, I'll call if I hear from him. Could you do the same? Thank you. Good-bye," Amanda hung up the phone with a worried expression on her face.
"What's that all about?" Lee asked.
"I called Jamie to see if he could help us with some of the details of Birol's car," Amanda told her husband, the color slowly draining from her face. "The school said that he never came to work this morning, and they haven't heard a word from him. Lee, I don't like this. Jamie hasn't missed a day of work without calling in first as long as he's been a teacher. He wouldn't do that. Something's wrong."
"Amanda calm down," Lee attempted to reassure his wife despite the fear rising in his own stomach. "Maybe he just needed some time off. Have you called his apartment?"
"Not yet," Amanda replied reaching for the phone. Before she could pick it up it rang causing them both to jump. Amanda grabbed the receiver. "Stetson."
"Mother? Mother...Calm down. What? ... No, it was dark when we left. We didn't see it. OK, OK.... Mother ...Mother listen to me! Don't go anywhere near it, Lee and I are going to send some people over to check it out. I want you to go get Jenny out of school and go stay with Aunt Lillian. Don't worry, I'm sure it's nothing. I love you, I'll talk to you soon." Hanging up the phone Amanda dropped her head into her hands.
"Amanda, what is it?" Lee demanded rushing over to her side as she began to shake violently. "Talk to me," he demanded.
"Jamie's car," Amanda managed to get out. "It's still parked in front of our house."
Before he could react the door to their office opened again revealing Francine white as a ghost. "We've got...." her voice trailed off as she saw Amanda. "What happened?" she asked.
"Jamie's missing," Lee supplied seeing that Amanda was far too shaken to talk.
Francine sunk into a chair. "This has to be a nightmare," she moaned.
"What have you got Francine?" Amanda asked forcing herself to pull it together.
Not even trusting herself to open her mouth Francine held a photograph out to Lee and Amanda. In the picture Assi Birol stood in front of the house that was currently being pulled apart for the third time by a team of agents. In the background you could barely make out another figure who was turned slightly to the left, yet his face remained visible.
"I don't get it," Lee looked at Francine puzzled.
Handing them another photo Francine managed to mumble, "We found it in the house. I had it enhanced."
"No!" Amanda cried. "It can't be." But there was no mistaking him. He was older, thinner, and much grayer, but the eyes that stared back at her were eyes that would be burned into her memory until the day she died. "Addi Birol," she said his name in almost a whisper, as if speaking it too loudly would make him come off the page.
"Look at the date on the back of the photo," Francine continued, figuring that they had better know it all now.
Turning the picture over Lee looked up at Francine. "This was taken a week ago," he stated in disbelief. "Well, at least we finally figured out what we were missing."
All in the Family
Part X
Four hours later Lee and Amanda were at the Agency. They had spent the better part of the early morning standing outside Assi Birol's house. Dozens of agents had been over Assi Birol's home with a fine toothed comb, but the search had yielded very little. The smashed transmitter had been located upstairs, and two wineglasses had been found in the living room. The lack of a struggle had suggested that Elizabeth had been drugged. Lee and Amanda were still waiting on the results of the test they had run on what was left of the wine.
Lee now paced back and forth running his hand through his hair while Amanda sat motionless at her desk thumbing through Elizabeth's latest report for the fifth time that morning.
"Amanda, this just doesn't make any sense!" Lee cried slamming his fist on the desk. "We didn't have anything on Birol, he's got to know that. Why take Elizabeth? Huh? It just doesn't make any sense."
"We're missing something," Amanda replied. "I know we are. You're right, Birol hasn't told her anything. So he found out she was an agent, there would be no reason to take her. He has to know that grabbing Elizabeth will just bring him under fire. We've got to be missing something. I just wish I could figure out what it was."
The door swung open and a still frazzled Francine breezed in, file folder in hand. Despite the fact that Francine was a seasoned agent, who had plenty of experience in operations gone bad, this one held an eerily familiar feeling that she didn't like. A fifteen-year-old memory played over and over in her head like a broken record. She was sitting in front of Billy's desk waiting to find out if any human remains had been located in the explosion at Birol's house. In her line of work it was imperative to learn not to dwell on the past. Yet, there were some memories that stayed with you. It became a day-to-day task of keeping them at bay. Addi Birol was not one of her favorite memories from this job, and today she couldn't seem to get away from it.
"What have you got?" Lee asked still walking the floor.
"Well, I'm afraid not much," Francine replied. "If it was Lizzie drinking from that wineglass, and we can pretty safely assume that it was, she was definitely drugged. He gave her a pretty potent mix; she would have been out within a few sips. The details are in here." She tossed the folder to Amanda who opened it, grateful to have some new material to look at.
"That's it?!" Lee asked. "I've had dozens of agents climbing over every inch of that house and all you can tell me is what we already know?"
"Lee..." Amanda started.
Ignoring her Lee turned back to Francine. "I want you to get those agents back to Birol's house. I want them to go over the house for a second time, and if necessary a third time, and a fourth time, and a fifth time. I don't want ANYONE to walk back through those doors until they have something of substance to tell me!"
Francine dropped her eyes to the ground. "Alright," she responded quietly and left the room.
"Don't you think you were a little hard on her? She feels bad enough." Amanda commented.
"Amanda, Birol is out there, with one of our best agents and we don't have a clue where to find them. No, I don't think I was too hard on her."
"Look, that's just it," Amanda attempted to comfort him. "Elizabeth is one of our best agents. She can take care of herself. You are not the only one who suffered while Addi Birol held me captive. If I remember correctly Francine put her career as well as her life on the line to help us, and that wasn't the only time. This Birol business has rattled her as well, and no amount of yelling and screaming are going to get us any closer to finding Elizabeth."
Lee let out a deep sigh. "I hate that," he mumbled.
"What?" Amanda asked.
"When you're right," he moaned as he tossed the door open and headed out to find Francine.
********************************************************************************************
"Rise and shine lovebirds," Assi Birol's low sinister voice forced both Jamie and Elizabeth into consciousness. "Today is going to be a very busy day." Noting the terrified expression on Jamie's face he leaned in closer. "Don't worry Mr. King," Assi began to laugh, "your Mommy will be here very soon. It's about time she and Scarecrow pay for all I lost as a child."
Assi tossed a tray of stale bread and old fruit on the table and left the room, his laughter following him all the way down the corridor. Entering another room down the hall Assi found himself face to face with Margarita. 'Not now,' he thought. 'I'm just not sure if I can take her this morning.' Assi was more than aware that Margarita had somewhat of a crush on him. In fact, he had more than once used her feelings to suit his needs, but this morning he wasn't up to dealing with the lovesick woman. In reality, he actually found her rather annoying. "What is it Margarita?" he barked.
Looking hurt Margarita glanced shyly at him. "It's nothing, really. I just thought that maybe you'd be excited about my little find last night." She moved to stand closer to him and placed her hand on his arm. "Assi, you look tired," she commented. "Maybe you should lie down."
Annoyed with the smothering attention that was typical of Margarita Assi responded in a flat, disinterested tone. "You mean Mr. King?"
"Mmm-hmm," Margarita nodded. "He will come in handy, don't you think?"
"Luck," Assi mumbled as he filled a glass with bourbon.
"What?" Margarita gasped. She had been sure that the capture of Jamie King would be her ticket into Assi's heart. At last she had proven herself.
Assi's patience was growing thin. "It was simply luck, Margarita. You wouldn't have ever followed him if I hadn't insisted that there was something off about his exchange with the woman. You simply followed instructions and ended up at the right place at the right time. Nothing more." He downed his drink and reached out to pour himself another. Silently he prayed that he had offended her enough to get her to leave. He wasn't sure if he could take her for another minute.
Margarita's eyes filled with tears. Not wanting Assi to see her cry, she pivoted on her heals and abruptly left the room.
"Thank God." Assi mumbled.
********************************************************************************************
Lee reentered the office just in time to catch the end of his wife's conversation. "No, I haven't seen him since last night. He seemed fine. Of course, I'll call if I hear from him. Could you do the same? Thank you. Good-bye," Amanda hung up the phone with a worried expression on her face.
"What's that all about?" Lee asked.
"I called Jamie to see if he could help us with some of the details of Birol's car," Amanda told her husband, the color slowly draining from her face. "The school said that he never came to work this morning, and they haven't heard a word from him. Lee, I don't like this. Jamie hasn't missed a day of work without calling in first as long as he's been a teacher. He wouldn't do that. Something's wrong."
"Amanda calm down," Lee attempted to reassure his wife despite the fear rising in his own stomach. "Maybe he just needed some time off. Have you called his apartment?"
"Not yet," Amanda replied reaching for the phone. Before she could pick it up it rang causing them both to jump. Amanda grabbed the receiver. "Stetson."
"Mother? Mother...Calm down. What? ... No, it was dark when we left. We didn't see it. OK, OK.... Mother ...Mother listen to me! Don't go anywhere near it, Lee and I are going to send some people over to check it out. I want you to go get Jenny out of school and go stay with Aunt Lillian. Don't worry, I'm sure it's nothing. I love you, I'll talk to you soon." Hanging up the phone Amanda dropped her head into her hands.
"Amanda, what is it?" Lee demanded rushing over to her side as she began to shake violently. "Talk to me," he demanded.
"Jamie's car," Amanda managed to get out. "It's still parked in front of our house."
Before he could react the door to their office opened again revealing Francine white as a ghost. "We've got...." her voice trailed off as she saw Amanda. "What happened?" she asked.
"Jamie's missing," Lee supplied seeing that Amanda was far too shaken to talk.
Francine sunk into a chair. "This has to be a nightmare," she moaned.
"What have you got Francine?" Amanda asked forcing herself to pull it together.
Not even trusting herself to open her mouth Francine held a photograph out to Lee and Amanda. In the picture Assi Birol stood in front of the house that was currently being pulled apart for the third time by a team of agents. In the background you could barely make out another figure who was turned slightly to the left, yet his face remained visible.
"I don't get it," Lee looked at Francine puzzled.
Handing them another photo Francine managed to mumble, "We found it in the house. I had it enhanced."
"No!" Amanda cried. "It can't be." But there was no mistaking him. He was older, thinner, and much grayer, but the eyes that stared back at her were eyes that would be burned into her memory until the day she died. "Addi Birol," she said his name in almost a whisper, as if speaking it too loudly would make him come off the page.
"Look at the date on the back of the photo," Francine continued, figuring that they had better know it all now.
Turning the picture over Lee looked up at Francine. "This was taken a week ago," he stated in disbelief. "Well, at least we finally figured out what we were missing."