Chapter 11

Five months had passed since Amanda had been shot and almost killed, and although she'd helped Lee with one 'unofficial' case that involved field work, most of her time had been spent in the office, which was just fine with him. She chafed a bit at the restrictions, but only a bit; she understood that what had happened to her had frightened him so much that it would be unkind to insist on getting back into the field, even though she'd be working with him. Billy had paired him with Francine for some cases, but that no longer bothered Amanda; she knew that, whatever his past relationship with Francine, Lee was completely committed to her and her alone. A man who had waited nearly thirty-seven years to take his first set of wedding vows didn't take such things lightly.

Lee was out of the office on Thursday, July 16, when the phone rang in the Q Bureau. When she answered, the switchboard operator said, "Amanda, I have a Mr. Robert Van Slaars on the IFF line for you. He says it's very urgent."

She punched the button and said, "This is Amanda. How can I help you, Bob?"

"Amanda, can you get in touch with Lee easily? I have some very bad news. Louise and Leeanne were in a five-car pileup on Interstate 35 about an hour ago. Louise died in the ambulance on the way to the hospital and Leeanne is in serious condition with broken ribs and two broken legs; they thought at first that one of her lungs might have been punctured, but it wasn't, thank God. Barb and I are at North Texas Medical Center with her. They'd gone down to Dallas for a new suit for Leeanne; she has- had, rather – an interview for a special math and science internship program at Texas Tech in Lubbock scheduled for next Wednesday, and she wanted to look professional."

"He has a cellular phone in his car, Bob; I'll call him right now. We'll get down there as soon as we can. Do you know what happened?"

"Yes. An eighteen- wheeler jackknifed across both northbound lanes, which caused the pileup, and they were caught between a panel van and another truck. The only reason Leeanne survived was because she was in the back seat working on her oral presentation for the fellowship committee. The highway patrolman who was first on the scene is a friend and he recognized the car and called us. I know that Louise put you and Lee down as next of kin for both of them, so I told the hospital I'd make the call. I thought you'd rather hear it from me than from a stranger."

"Yes. Thank you for everything you're doing, Bob. I'm calling Lee now."

She hung up and dialed the phone in Lee's Corvette; it rang three times and, finally, he picked up. "Stetson."

"Lee, I just took a call from Bob Van Slaars. Louise and Leeanne were caught in a five-car pileup on Interstate 35 near Denton about an hour ago, and Louise didn't make it. Leeanne is in serious condition with broken ribs and two broken legs. She was in the back seat or she probably would have been killed too."

"My God. All right, I'm coming in. Go see Billy and tell him the whole story, including that we're married; our mystery marriage just went out the window. "

"I agree. I'll tell Billy, and then we need to go home and tell the boys."

"Yes. I'll see you in a few minutes. I love you. We're going to get through this, Amanda, and we're going to give that girl a family."

"Darn right we are. I'll see you soon."

Amanda hung up, took a deep breath, and headed down to the bullpen.

"Of course you can go, Amanda," Billy said sympathetically a few minutes later. "I'm putting you on leave without pay for as long as you need to be gone. I wish I could pay you, but the money just isn't there."

"I understand, Billy; I appreciate that you're willing to hold the job open at all. I'm not sure when I'll be able to come back, but I hope it will be by the end of the summer."

"Whenever it is, we'll have a job for you. This is going to be a major adjustment for your family, I know."

"Yes, but they'll do all right. Mother's been a real trouper through all of this, especially after I was shot, and Joe and his new wife have pitched in and looked after the boys whenever we needed them to."

"That's good. Here comes Lee."

Amanda turned as Lee entered the office; she hugged him right there in front of everyone in the bullpen who might have been watching, glad that they no longer had to keep their marriage a secret.

He released her, and she noticed that, for the first time in the office, he was wearing his wedding ring. She ran her fingers over it and then pulled up the chain that held her rings, turned so he could release the clasp, and watched as he slid them onto her left hand.

"I feel like I just officiated at your wedding," Billy said, as the whole bullpen broke out in applause and cheers.

"As far as this agency is concerned, you did," Lee said, as he kissed Amanda's fingers and then her mouth. "Thank you for everything, Billy. Now, we have plane reservations to make."