Written by Scooplet

Concept by Cheryl and Scooplet

Scarecrow and Mrs. King characters are the property of Shoot the Moon Productions and Warner Bros. Television. No copyright infringement intended. Not for commercial use. Sarah Stetson and Matt Granger are my creation, however, so please respect my right to claim ownership of them—I do not authorize permission to use them in stories not authored by me.

I Know He Watches Me, Part One

Chapter Seven

Relieved that the class had ended fifteen minutes after Sarah's mishap, Matt rushed to the infirmary without changing his clothes. As he spotted his wife through the open door of a treatment room, he was relieved to see Sarah sitting up on a gurney, no longer cradling her arm.

Before he could walk into the room, he was stopped by Dr. Fitzgerald. "She's fine, Granger. Just a few sore tendons, but she needs to stay on the bench this week in your class."

"Okay. Can she leave, then?"

"Just waiting on an X-ray. I sent the digital file over to a NEST radiologist offsite for final diagnosis. It's regulation. Should only be a few more minutes."

Matt wasted no more time reaching Sarah's side. "I'm so sorry about Costas. He was out of line, but I should have been clear on the moves."

"You were clear, Matt. And Wong already warned us. He sure did come down hard on Costas, though. The guy already felt badly."

"Yeah." Matt leaned a hip against the gurney and took her good hand, but his mind seemed elsewhere.

"What? Are you worried he's going to hold a grudge? Because I am. He expected me to fight back more."

From Matt's expression, that was clearly not what he had been thinking, but he only said, "Let's not borrow trouble, okay? I don't think Costas meant any harm—I think he just doesn't want to rock the boat with Wong."

Because they did not know who was listening, Sarah refrained from making a remark about walking on eggshells around Richard Wong. Instead, she glanced down at their joined hands. "Um, while I have you here, I need to tell you I won't be home much this week."

Matt pushed off from the gurney so he could be face-to-face with his wife. "Oh, really?"

"I have night surveillance. At least they're teaming me up with Grace Tanaka. Francine pulled me aside to say that with the Jamal thing, two agents I don't know will be coming along, too."

"At least they have you protected out there. Seems ridiculous. Why not just have you work from here?"

"We do that at the end of the week or next week."

"I guess we were expecting this. Will you get dinner? Should I bring you something?"

"I might bring something tomorrow. Grace and I will buy something tonight."

"I'll make enough dinner for a few nights so you can have homemade food."

"I'm sorry to stick you with all of the cooking this week."

"I don't mind—I'll just miss you. Maybe I'll be busy with Jamal and get this case out of the way."

Sarah caught the hint of disappointment in her husband's voice. He was putting on a cheerful face for her, but she was not fooled. "I made sure I'm off the weekend after this one."

Matt cheered up at this. "Well, that is good news. Your dad said we could have the cabin that weekend." He placed his hand on her cheek. "We can celebrate your birthday."

Smiling, Sarah replied, "It was sweet of you to think of going somewhere."

"I want to plan other trips, too. B and Bs, maybe some skiing up north. But we'll just have to see how your schedule goes—it might have to be this summer." He grew thoughtful and took her good hand again. "Have you seen Phillip today?"

Sarah looked away. "No."

"He came looking for me in the bull pen. He knew your parents came to our place after they left the family thing early yesterday."

"I hope he wasn't upset with you."

"No. He came to apologize. He said he tried to apologize to you over the weekend…"

Sarah cut Matt off. "It wasn't much of one. He gets all worked up about things and doesn't realize how he sounds."

Matt had to admit Phillip was thoughtless at times. "Well, he was concerned. I guess your parents said something."

"They shouldn't have to get involved anymore. We're not kids. He's always thought he was right because he was so much older."

Furrowing his brow, Matt was thoughtful. "I hope I don't come off that way. Being the oldest in the family can make a person kind of bossy."

Before Sarah could respond, Dr. Fitzgerald breezed in. "I'm giving you the all clear, Sarah. You can get back to class. Just don't lift anything heavy for a week."

Matt breathed a sigh of relief, but he did not say anything as they walked back to the training center. He imagined Sarah had had enough coddling for one day.

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"Well, thanks for letting me know, Matt. When I didn't hear from her, I wondered what had happened…" Sitting at the kitchen table with her cell phone to her ear, Amanda took a sip of coffee, but her mind was on the phone conversation. "Yes, I know. I should have expected you would call if anything was wrong…Thanks for understanding. You want to join us for dinner tonight? Great. Just text me when you're leaving. It isn't meatloaf, but you don't have to cook it yourself." Amanda chuckled at the response on the other end.

When Amanda ended the call, she looked up to see her husband watching her. "Sarah has been working double shifts all week. I hope you don't mind that I invited Matt to dinner."

"Of course not. It's not much fun to spend evenings by yourself when you've just gotten married." He gazed significantly at Amanda. They had had their own share of nights apart when they were keeping their marriage a secret from their family and the Agency. "Since we only saw the two of them for an hour on Sunday, it will be nice to have a chance to catch up a little. Last week was pretty tense."

"Well, I don't know how much Matt can tell us about Sarah, other than she's on surveillance with Grace all week. He said she hurt her shoulder in hand-to-hand on Monday, but she's better now."

Lee bristled at this news. "What is Matt thinking? He knows she had the dislocation. He found her on the rocks, for…"

"Lee!" Amanda positioned herself in front of her husband so she could capture his attention before he became too upset. "You know better than anyone how protective Matt can be. That time she fell was traumatic for him, too." Seeing that Lee had cooled a little, she continued. "It was one of the freshman agents. He didn't follow instructions. Apparently Wong reprimanded the guy in front of the class."

Lee frowned. "I hope that won't be a problem."

"Let's hope not. Wong tends to invite trouble his way. Sarah usually gets along with her colleagues."

"Has Matt heard any more from Jamal?"

"He's set up with a new advisor. This professor is in the lab that does work in conjunction with AST. But you know that. Tristan gave us a briefing yesterday."

"I just wondered if he'd been back to the lab—if Jamal was putting the screws to him. I don't like that Sarah's out in the field every night. Especially after the creep threatened her to Matt."

"She should be back in the bull pen helping to monitor over the weekend."

"The weekend? After pulling all that overtime? Is Wong trying to work her to death?"

"She wanted the following weekend off."

"Oh—that's her birthday. We can have a birthday party for her."

"Lee, that isn't going to happen until Jamal is out of the picture. Phillip may have been unkind in the way he broke the news to Sarah, but he's right. Besides, Matt asked for the cabin, remember?"

"Oh yeah." Lee tugged at his collar and searched for a way to change the subject. "Does she at least have other agents out there with her? It's not just her and Grace, right? And this is some other case, not Jamal?"

Amanda noticed Lee's discomfort at the mention of Matt and Sarah's weekend away, but ignored it. "Francine has been placing other agents out there with them—and she would not tell me what the case was about specifically. They are keeping track of some for-hire thugs—making sure they are not working for a terrorist group or something to that effect. I think they're watching a safe house. Wong isn't happy Francine's overseeing Sarah's field work. He wants to know why Sarah is somehow involved in a highly classified case that he isn't privy to."

"Sounds like the poor kid is in a hornet's nest. The sooner we get rid of Jamal, the better."

Amanda raised her eyebrows. "You mean arrest him, right?"

"Uh. I was just repeating Tristan's words."

"They want to take him out?"

"He's too high profile. You know he isn't selling the weapons. We get rid of him, the network he's created collapses. The goal is to take him and his local cronies out and destroy his base."

"The women and children, too?"

"That's not his base. It's his home. He wants us to think it's his base. His base is mobile and always far from his family. Unlike other terrorists, he has no little kids playing games outside or wives hanging up laundry on the roof of his headquarters."

"Thank God we can leave them be—or at least not bomb the place."

Lee reached for his wife. "You know the man has threatened our daughter, right?"

"Of course I know that. But two wrongs don't make a right." Amanda wrapped her arms around her middle.

Lee pulled her towards him. "No, they don't. And I knew you would say that."

"You know me pretty well."

"And I love you pretty well, too, Mrs. Stetson." He kissed her forehead and held her close.

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After dinner at Lee and Amanda's, where Jamal had been the topic of conversation for much of the evening, Matt was weary. He pulled into a carport near their townhouse, not wanting to block the driveway. With Sarah coming home later that night, he wanted her to be able to use their garage.

Checking for tails once again, he exited the car. His Bluetooth buzzed as he unlocked the front door. "No tails, Granger. You're clear."

"Thanks." He ended the brief phone call. It was the same every night. Phillip had given standing orders for his team to notify Matt of any suspicious activity when he and Sarah arrived home. They were to keep driving if they were being followed. The all clear at the door was just a courtesy. Matt knew it was Phillip's way of making up for shunning the Grangers at family events. He was at least making sure the couple would sleep more easily at night and not wonder if they had missed some unseen member of Jamal's team. However, someone could still have sneaked by the surveillance cameras that had been placed around the complex. But it would not have been easy.

After preparing lunches for the next day, Matt made his way upstairs. The bed was cold when he climbed inside, much as it had been the last few nights and for most of the time he had owned it. He missed his wife. Yes, she would be coming home in an hour or two, but in the short time they had been married, he had grown to love their nightly routine. Now he could not even say good night with a phone call as he had done during their engagement.

Granted, Sarah had not been feeling well the last few nights. But that was a monthly thing that would go away in a day or two. Her shoulder was back to normal. I just want to hold my wife and talk at night. Fall asleep together. He mentally shook himself. This won't last forever, Granger. You'll have her back next weekend and in a few months this will all be behind you. As long as Wong doesn't prevent her from going to Analysis. Oh, I hope she doesn't get assigned to the New York office or somewhere even farther away. Matt bent his head and prayed for a long time before sliding beneath the covers.

It seemed like a moment later that the townhouse's alarm chime woke him. Matt heard the quick succession of beeps that signaled the alarm was being set for the night. Soon Sarah was leaning over him, her hair brushing the pillow on either side of his face as she touched her lips to his forehead. "Hello, my love," she whispered.

"Mmm. I love it when you kiss me like that." He reached up to pull her down towards him and kissed her on the lips. Sarah remained there a moment, her forehead touching his. Finally Matt spoke. "But you are cold and tired. I'll let you get ready for bed."

With a final quick kiss on the lips, Sarah stood and went to change into her pajamas. Matt checked his cell phone for a text from the surveillance team. Sarah had not been followed home.

It did not take long for her to finish in the bathroom. Matt felt the slight movement of the bed as his wife eased quietly under the covers. He imagined she thought he was asleep once again. His voice was sleepy as he murmured, "Scoot over here where it's warm. You're too far away."

"Oh. I didn't think you were awake."

"I just want to snuggle with you. We both sleep better that way." Sarah fit her body up against Matt's and he wrapped an arm around her. He kissed her hair and soon felt sleep claiming him once again.

Sarah lay awake, thinking about the surveillance, willing her body to relax. She knew that as partners go, she and Grace were well-matched. Grace had more experience and maturity, but after learning tonight that the 30-something agent had younger sisters, Sarah had guessed why Grace did not seem to mind being paired with someone almost ten years younger. She seemed to enjoy helping Sarah acclimate to the new job. She thought of their conversation.

"Well, this is our third night watching this location." Grace had yawned and stretched before taking a sip of the tea she kept in a thermos. "I've been told that some international terrorist or weapons broker is supposed to use this place as a safe house, but I'm beginning to wonder if we are wasting our time here. It's always dark and quiet."

"Do you think they've seen us?"

"Not sure how. We're far away and concealed pretty well by the shrubs. No one can see in the car. We had the lights off when we pulled up." She had shifted in her seat. "Still, I'd rather Phillip send out a cable TV truck and have them set up cameras."

"Francine is pretty old school."

"Yes. Like your dad and mom. I have to say it's hard to argue with their experience. Sometimes cameras can't do everything."

Sarah trained the telephoto lens on a darkened upstairs window. She snapped a few photos. "There it is again. A strange movement. I saw a dim light—like a reflection."

"Maybe it's a mirror picking up the street light. The blinds are open."

"Maybe…or someone taking photos. My dad showed me this once. The lens of the camera reflects a little bit of light. It could also be eyeglasses."

"Only your dad would teach you that. Was he hoping to take you on surveillance as a kid?" Grace snickered.

Sarah laughed softly in response. "My mom would have killed him. Actually, he taught me a few tips on how to spot surveillance, so I'd know if someone was watching me."

"This is why I like working with you. You have that Stetson instinct—I'm not sure I would have noticed that reflection." Grace glanced at Sarah, approval on her face. "But no one should be there. Phillip says no one has been in or out of here today."

Sarah had continued to watch the windows and the area surrounding the house, but there had been no more signs of movement that night. When she had tried to get further information about the man behind the safe house, Grace had been noncommittal, saying she had been given minimal background—clearance for more information was too high.

But Sarah had wondered all evening if they were watching for Jamal or his men. The thought had made her skin crawl at first. After thinking it through, she decided that if that were true, it should be a relief to be helping in some way to get him off the streets.

The heat from Matt's body had warmed hers, and she found the sound of his even breaths comforting. His arm was heavy as it draped over her, but that, too, was comforting. Soon she found herself drifting off.

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"Here's a photo that Sarah took while on surveillance last night." Jamie glanced around the group assembled in an Agency conference room. Lady Farnsworth leaned forward at the same time as Francine. Both women peered at the monitor. Before either one could ask a question, Jamie spoke. "She had picked up some kind of reflection or minimal light source moving in the window, so I enhanced the images." He clicked the remote. "This one picked it up the best."

"It's a camera lens. Sarah has a sharp eye." Rene offered his partner an approving glance. He was feeling almost as proud of her as Matt and Jamie. He leaned over towards Matt. "Where is she, anyway?"

Before Matt could answer, Jamie did it for him. "She's in the Arena this morning. I wanted to bring her along, but Wong refused to give his permission." He stared meaningfully at Francine before continuing. "What this means is that someone is in the safe house, alright, but they are monitoring the people watching them."

Emily Farnsworth jumped into the conversation. "We should not be surprised that Jamal's men are onto us. We knew they would be at some point. It was very clever of Sarah to pick up on it for us. This will change how we handle things from now on." She glanced over at Francine, who nodded. "Chief Beaman and I agree that the best way to end this game with Jamal once and for all is to give him just what he wants." She cleared her throat and glanced briefly at Matt, who was still quiet, a tense expression on his face. "So far we have yet to locate a base of operations for him or his team. That mole we had was used in the field only—he never had access to Jamal's operations center. And he was found out."

Matt knew what they were saying, but he asked the question anyway. "So you want him to take me or Sarah hostage in the hopes that we'll lead you to his center of operations." He stared at Francine before directing his gaze to Emily.

Raising her hand up towards him, Francine attempted to placate Matt. "Not necessarily. But we do want you to give him the files he wants. They will be doctored, of course. You and Sarah can wear wires for safety's sake."

Emily tried to be reassuring. "Matthew, no one wants our dear girl to be taken hostage. But we do need to be ready in the event it does happen. If we can track Sarah, we can find Jamal and extract her before any harm can come to her."

Phillip took this opportunity to interject. "Excuse me, Lady Farnsworth, but I've come up with another method for tracking Sarah. We can give her a special GPS device with a simple microphone that's harder to detect." He turned to Matt. "I've been able to increase the range and scramble the signal on the collar piece you used in Kazakhstan. It can be used in jewelry, with a button, you name it. We can keep an eye on Sarah at all times. But Jamal won't know."

Matt had heard enough. "You hope. If he figures out she's wearing any wire because his team detects a signal, what do you think he'll do? He'll do what he did to the mole." He ran his hand over his face. "Have you told Sarah any of this?"

Emily leaned forward again. "Now, Matthew. Sarah has an advantage over the mole. As loathsome as this will sound to you, we do know that Jamal has held quite an interest in Sarah from the start. Unfortunately for our mole, Jamal saw him as an expendable member of his team. Whether Jamal leaves Sarah alone or takes her, he will use her to get you to meet his demands and follow his orders. She is worth quite a lot to him as long as she is alive."

Leaning back in his chair, Matt stared up at the ceiling before responding to Emily. "And Sarah knows all about this?"

Jamie, who was sitting next to Matt, put a hand on his shoulder. His voice was quiet. "It was her idea, Matt. I argued with her. Phillip pitched a fit."

Reddening a little at his brother's words, Phillip was quick to defend himself. "Well, I was thinking of Mom and Lee."

Speaking authoritatively, Francine took control of the room again as she turned to Matt. "I don't think anyone in this room really wants Jamal anywhere near Sarah, but she herself said that if he takes her, it's an ideal way to catch him."

Just then the conference room door opened. Sarah poked her head in a caught Francine's eye. "May I come in?"

Breathing a sigh of relief, Francine nodded. "Please." She waited until Sarah had slipped inside the room and closed the door behind her. "We were just explaining to your husband why you are willing to pose as bait for Jamal." She glanced at Matt. "Or at least allow yourself to be taken hostage. I assume you finished your training exercise?"

"Yes, Ma'am." Sarah went over to the empty seat across from Matt. He watched her with an enigmatic expression on his face.

"We've already discussed the photo you took and the technical details of keeping track of your location. Perhaps you can explain your reasoning, so everyone will be onboard." Francine glanced meaningfully at Matt.

Before Sarah could reply, Matt spoke up. "For the record, Francine, I understand that it's not my place to interfere with your decisions. However, I am the senior agent here. Sarah is working with me on this case. I still think that every effort should be made to keep Sarah from being taken by Jamal." Watching him, Sarah knew he was thinking of the time Brad Smith had taken her hostage. Matt had stopped the rogue agent from fulfilling his plans, but not until after following the car for several miles.

"I am well aware of that, and it will be duly noted that you objected to this decision for safety considerations." Francine glanced at Emily and exchanged a small smile with her before nodding to Sarah.

Although she was directing her words to everyone, Sarah's gaze mostly rested on Matt. "I realize that you all went to a lot of effort to keep me out of the hands of the cartel only a couple of months ago." She glanced at her brothers. "However, I was not working as an agent, albeit a partially trained agent, at the time. In addition, this situation is far more dire. The technology that Matt has been asked to steal could lead to the development of nuclear weapons by a highly unstable government or by a terrorist organization. When I signed on with the Agency, it was to help provide counterintelligence and counterterrorist protection to our country. If Jamal does decide to take me hostage, there is a good chance I could help us discover his base of operations."

Sarah said something about serving her country, or words to that effect, but Matt was too busy trying to keep his emotions in check. Sarah was right. As an intelligence agent for the United States government, one needed to be willing to place oneself in harm's way when the need arose. Certainly Matt had placed himself in harm's way more than once. In the Army it was expected. But he had never had someone he loved do it. Matt had a new respect for his parents, who had not cried or complained when he signed up for the Army. Now his Sarah was volunteering to place herself in danger. You're a pro, Granger. You can do this. It's part of your job, and you need to support your wife.

The meeting was breaking up, and Sarah was about to leave with Phillip so he could brief her on the tracking device.

Matt called out to his wife. "Sarah, hold up. Please."

Phillip's eyebrows shot up, but he left the room with everyone else. Emily Farnsworth, her hand on Tristan Bates' arm, paused to face Matt. "You know, Matthew. I still have not decided which of her parents your Sarah most resembles. Her dear mother, a smart agent who managed to get into as many scrapes as any agent I've known, or her father, who is still as hard-headed as they come. And when I say hard-headed, I mean that in more ways than one." She winked at Matt. "Hard-headed, smart, and resourceful. Sarah is a survivor like her father and her mother."

"Thank you, Lady Farnsworth. I'll remember that."

Emily reached up to pat Matt on the shoulder. "You're a dear boy. I'm so glad you have one another. For a moment earlier it was just like watching Scarecrow looking out for Mrs. King."

Sarah wanted to offer her goodbyes as well. "My parents told me that you're going back to England, Emily. Thank you for coming to our wedding and for your encouragement. I'm so glad I had a chance to work with you in person."

"I've made it my goal for many years now to watch out for your family. First as your father's godmother, and then as his mentor. Your grandfather helped me get started in the business, and I was there when your mother began her career. It's been my pleasure to see you follow in your parents' and grandparents' footsteps." Emily patted Sarah's cheek. "You did a remarkable job with that photo. You're going to go far, my dear. But I'm not surprised."

"Thank you. That means so much." Sarah stepped forward to hug the longtime Stetson family friend. "Safe travels, Lady Farnsworth."

Matt held out his hand to shake Emily's, but she hugged him instead. "Bless you both. Take care of one another."

After Emily and Tristan had left the room and they were alone, Matt turned to Sarah. He was wary, hoping that he had not offended her earlier. He had objected to Sarah possibly working more actively on the case—albeit in a much more dangerous role—and he knew that was a sore spot for her.

Sarah did not hesitate, however. "Matt, I'm so sorry. You should have heard about this from me, first. But you were at the campus this morning, and I was tied up in the Arena. I could not stop to contact you. As it was, Jamie and Francine pulled me out of training after they had seen the photos. Richard Wong was pretty angry." Reaching out for him, Sarah nervously ran a hand down Matt's arm. "I hope you aren't upset with me."

Embracing her briefly, Matt felt a measure of relief. "I can't say I'm not going to be as scared as hell." He smiled as her eyes widened at his unusual choice of words. "But I am proud of you for being willing to help solve this case. I'm just praying for another way. It's all dependent upon his deciding to abduct you."

"Everyone knows that surveillance is not getting us very far. That safe house is a lead, but a slim one."

"Yeah." Matt stepped back, his hands now in the back pockets of his jeans, and stared at the floor.

Sarah placed a finger under his chin so she could see into his eyes. "Hey. It might not be me. It might be you. You have to wear a wire, too. And don't forget, He's watching over me. Right?"

After he kissed her, he took her hand as they headed to the elevator and Phillip's office. "Yes, He is. I'm glad you reminded me."

Pleased that she had placated her husband and had his support, Sarah failed to notice the troubled expression that remained on his face as they boarded the elevator.

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Lee and Amanda stepped off the elevator and walked down the hotel hallway. Seeing her husband's expression, Amanda placed a hand on his arm. "Lee. What is it?"

"Oh, I've just got this gut feeling. It's depressing. I won't burden you with it."

Amanda stopped, urging Lee to as well. "Really, Stetson? After we've known each other almost thirty years, you don't want to burden me?" Amanda rolled her eyes and frowned.

"Fine. I've just had this feeling about Emily. We've been lucky to have her around this long. And now…"

Her frown softening into a smile, Amanda wrapped her arms around Lee. "I felt the same way about my mother those last few months. Maybe it's God's way of preparing you. Or maybe you're wrong. People often live well into their nineties."

"This kind of gut feeling is usually right. But since I'd rather go with your optimistic take on things, let's put our smiles back on and go say our goodbyes."

Amanda stood on tiptoe to kiss her husband. "That's the spirit, Scarecrow. And let's plan to go for a visit in a month or two. Our last trip didn't go so well."

"We'll plan it tonight." Lee gave Amanda a squeeze and kissed her forehead before pulling away and placing his hand at the small of her back so they could continue on to Emily's suite.