Disclaimer: Scarecrow and Mrs. King belong to Warner and Shoot the Moon - not me!
Author's Notes: Sorry if I scared any of you earlier, this is the beginning of a series. Everything will be resolved! Stay patient. :)
Amanda peeked her head around Jamie's door. She smiled at the sight before her. He had fallen asleep, his new camera still in his hand, in the middle of his bedroom floor. There were pictures scattered all over the place, as he was beginning to organize them into his new book. It was almost two in the morning, and after the day he had had, she didn't wake him to put him in bed. Lee had been so happy. She could hardly believe the things he had told her when he and Jamie came back from taking the camera for a trial run. She looked at her sleeping son once more, then turned out the light and walked down the hall to her room.
Amanda went over her list of things that needed to be done the next day. She'd have to go to work early and get some paperwork done before she came home to meet the delivery man in the afternoon. She smiled to herself. Jamie was expecting something simple for his birthday. Amanda had explained how tight the money situation was, and he hadn't complained. Despite all the troubles he had experienced through the past year, he was still so much more understanding than Philip about the money situation.
He'd never be expecting the piano. She'd been saving for it since he started taking lessons. When her mother had discovered what she was up to, Dotty had insisted on paying for the rest of it. Amanda was intending to have the thing paid for by the time Jamie graduated high school, but with Dotty's help, he was getting a gently used baby grand piano for his fourteenth birthday. She wondered how he was going to react. The camera from Lee had brought him to tears, and had left the rest of the family wondering what was going on in the boy's mind. Amanda leaned up against the headboard and recalled the events as Lee had described them to her once Jamie had gone upstairs and he had stolen her away for a walk around the neighborhood.
*******************************************
Lee stood under the tree, patting Jamie on the back. The boy had been overcome when he opened the camera. It was an awkward moment, as the rest of the family looked on, not quite understanding the enormity of the exchange between stepfather and son. Lee finally broke the silence. "Now, let me tell you the story behind this camera," he smiled.
He told them how he had broken a lens on one of his video cameras when he was making his documentary film in Russia, and had ended up in a tiny little store in one of the worst parts of the capitol city. He met an old man in the store, who didn't have the lens Lee needed, but impressed upon him that he MUST buy the camera. The man said he had a premonition that Lee would be needing the camera for something in the near future. Lee finally gave in to the old man, and reached for his wallet, only to discover that it was gone. Someone had picked his pocket as he made his way through one of the sidestreet markets. He shrugged and was about to leave when the old man handed him the camera. "You will be needing this. I can feel it in my bones. I can tell from looking at you that you are a good man. Take the camera, you will know when you need it."
"You sure can tell a tall tale, Lee," Kurt had laughed.
"No, I'm serious. That's how it really happened," he replied seriously. "I got back to the states and sold it. It took me all afternoon to track that thing down yesterday."
Philip and Kurt had gone off and were tossing a football, and Amanda and Dotty were cleaning up. Lee was sitting under the tree watching his wife when Jamie quietly sat down next to him.
"Do you want to go into the city with me and try it out?" he asked.
"Absolutely," Lee smiled.
As soon as they got back to the house, Lee and Jamie sneaked out the back door and got into the corvette. Amanda watched them drive off down the street, smiled, and started the laundry.
They had been driving in silence for a few minutes when Lee finally cleared his throat and started conversation.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yeah. I'm sorry I reacted so weird earlier … it was just …"
"Hey, don't worry about it …"
"No, no. There's a lot of things I want to tell you. I just really don't know where to start."
"Well, how about we start with a trip to the White House?"
Strolling down Pennsylvania Avenue had made Lee feel a little guilty. The lies that were keeping he and his new family apart all boiled down to this. Lee Stetson, codename Scarecrow, guardian of Western Civilization. He knew that thought wasn't completely true, but sometimes it sure felt that way. As he was lost in his thoughts Jamie had disappeared. Lee's first instinct was to panic.
"Jamie?" he called, trying to keep his voice calm.
"Up here," a voice came from a tree. "You need to come up here and show me how to focus the lens, Lee," Jamie smiled.
"I'm getting too old for this," Lee huffed as he finally got into the tree and sat next to Jamie. "Come here often?"
"It's my favorite spot. Don't tell mom. I'm pretty sure this looks kind of suspicious; me, photographing the White House at night from a tree!"
"Well, you're right about that," Lee laughed. He showed Jamie how to adjust the lens and then listened to his stepson's laughs of excitement as he took pictures. Lee's eyes traveled between Jamie and the White House. He was coming clean tomorrow, and Amanda would follow suit. The boys would understand. They had to.
"This might be the best present I ever got," Jamie finally said.
"I just wanted to get you something special. I'm not trying to buy you or anything, Jamie. I just know how things are, growing up with no dad around. I know we haven't exactly been pals or anything, but it's something I want to work out. I mean, I know …" Jamie cut him off.
"You scared me. Last year when you went to Russia, I hated you. I hated you for leaving mom and Philip. I guess I hated you for leaving me, too."
"I know it's a lot for you to have to deal with."
"Dad left a week before you. Mom was a wreck, Philip was gone all summer, and that pretty much left me to pick up the pieces."
"I didn't want to go to Russia, Jamie. I really didn't have any choice."
"You've always got a choice, Lee," Jamie said.
They were silent, listening to the traffic around the city. Lee reached over and put his hand on Jamie's neck.
"I'm not planning on leaving you, Philip, or your mother again. Ever."
"Dad said the same thing."
"I'm not your dad. Look, Jamie. I know you've been hurt, a lot. I know a lot of crazy things have happened the past couple years. Your mom and I got messed up in that whole treason mess with the government, then your dad gets married, then he leaves for Africa," Lee sighed.
"Then you left."
"I didn't mean for any of this to happen to you. I didn't want to make your life so unbearable that you would try and …"
"It wasn't completely your fault, and you know it. I don't know what was wrong with me. Swallowing a bottle of pills didn't help anything with Mom. Especially since you were gone. She had to take off work while I was in the hospital …."
"Nothing, ever, ever again, is going to do that to you. Your family loves you very much. Your dad loves you, too, though he has his own way of showing it. Do you still go to the … the …"
"Shrink? Oh yeah. Highlight of my week," Jamie remarked sarcastically. "But if I want to go off medication, I guess this the alternative."
"What a life for a teenager," Lee sighed.
"Life is getting better," Jamie said quietly and glanced up at Lee.
"I want you to talk to me. If you ever feel bad, lonely, upset, whatever. I know more than anyone that sometimes you just need someone besides a relative to talk to."
"Thank you, Lee."
"You're welcome, Jamie."
"How old were you when your dad left?"
Lee sighed. They sat in the tree for another hour while Lee told Jamie about his parents' accident, and growing up with his uncle, and seeing the "shrink," and how reckless and wild his life had been until he met his mother. Jamie smiled as Lee mentioned Amanda. She was obviously his favorite topic of discussion.
"Lee?"
"Yeah."
"Do you still see the shrink?"
"Every once in a while, Jamie. Your mom is the best 'shrink' I've seen, though."
"I'll agree with you there."
Amanda stood in the dining room of her house and looked at the piano. It was beautiful. Her mother bought a huge blue bow a left it sitting on top on the instrument. Dotty had been great, getting the food and the house ready for all the guests for Jamie's reception. She heard the water turn off upstairs, meaning Jamie was out of the shower. She closed the door to the living room and smiled. Tonight was going to be quite a night.
The doorbell rang. She answered the door, expecting Jamie's boutonniere to be delivered from the florist. To her surprise and delight, Lee stood, a red rose extended to her, on her front porch.
"Tonight's the night, my love."
"Yes, it is," she smiled as he leaned and gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek.
"And tonight I'll get to lay down next to my wife and wake up beside her tomorrow morning. Go downstairs and drink coffee, read the paper, and leave. Through the front door," he smiled.
"I hope this goes over all right. And when the guests go home, we have to tell them about IFF," she whispered.
"That was my line," he beamed, relieved that she wanted to tell the family everything as much as he did.
The boy from the florist arrived while they were still standing on the porch, and Amanda paid him and went to put the flower in the refrigerator. Lee sat down in the living room with Philip and laughed. The entire family had worn something blue, as if to support Jamie from the audience. Philip and Lee both had on blue ties, and Amanda and Dotty also had incorporated blue into their outfits. Captain Kurt had on his nicest blue hawaiian shirt.
Everyone stopped as Jamie walked into the room. He was decked out, from head to toe. His tux shoes were shined and polished, his vest was straight, and he'd even tried to get his hair to look a little less wild. He smiled when he noticed the blue everyone was wearing.
"Mom, can you tie my bow tie?"
"I sure can, sweetheart," she smiled and went to work on the new tie. "I have something else for you, too."
Amanda retrieved the white rose out of the refrigerator and gave it to Dotty.
"Now, if you don't wear this it's ok. Your mother and I just thought it was a special night, so why not get decked all the way out?" Dotty smiled.
"Pin it on me, grandma," Jamie replied.
"Okay, fellas. We need to get going if we're going to make it to the school in time for Jamie to warm up his band," Amanda said. She kissed Jamie on the cheek and the family filed out of the house.
They arrived at George Mason University with plenty of time to spare. His recital was in the Center for the Performing Arts, so the family sat comfortably in the lobby while Jamie warmed up his band in the recital hall. One by one, family friends started to arrive. Lee greeted Billy and Jeannie with a warm smile, while Amanda spoke to Jamie's piano teacher and some of the other faculty members. There were a lot of people gathering in the lobby; a lot of Jamie's peers from the high school, a few of Philip and Jamie's mutual buddies from the baseball team, Summer's family, and what appeared to be a lot of university students. Amanda also greeted friends from the neighborhood and some of Jamie's middle school teachers. She was shocked to see Francine enter, on Jonathan's arm.
"Well, hello you two!" she smiled. The two women had finally been able to get along better when Lee was in Russia and they were assigned to work with each other more often. "I really appreciate you coming, Francine."
"I wouldn't miss this, Amanda. Finally time to see one of those beautiful King boys in action," she laughed.
At eight o clock, the audience was seated and quiet as the lights dimmed. There was quite a crowd for such a small boy; even a newspaper reporter had come. Amanda was almost sick she was so nervous for Jamie, but Lee reassured her by taking her hand in his and giving her a knowing look.
"You know he's going to be fine," he whispered.
"I know," she whispered back. They were interrupted by applause and Jamie took the stage. He took a bow and sat down at the piano. His pieces were practically flawless. Amanda was bursting at the seams by the time The Secret Agent Men took the stage.
Jamie stepped up to a microphone shyly and cleared his throat.
"I just wanted to thank everyone for coming tonight. This has been quite an experience for me, to be able to perform in front of all my friends and family. I also wanted to thank a few people for accompanying on my journey to this first recital. First of all, my hero, the best person I know, my mother. She's supported me since day one, and I would have quit things long ago if she hadn't urged me on. I'd also like to thank my best friend and brother, Philip, for all the friendly competition we've enjoyed. I know I've probably been impossible to live with lately, but you stuck with me, and I can't thank you enough. I'd also like to thank my grandmother, who suggested I play the piano in the first place, and compliments even my worst practice sessions. Dr. June, I can't thank you enough for your guidance this year at the high school, you've been great, despite the fact that I'm sure I'm your moodiest student. I'd like to thank my inspiration, Duke Ellington, wherever you are," Jamie smiled nervously, as the audience applauded, and he stepped back from microphone. He suddenly remembered something and ran back. "I'd also like to thank my friend Lee, for proving to me that everything happens for a reason."
Amanda squeezed Lee's hand and looked at him through teary eyes. He was beaming.
"But enough mush. I give you The Secret Agent Men performing Duke Ellington's 'Mood Indigo,'" Jamie laughed and sat down at the piano. Billy turned around and smiled at Lee and Amanda.
"Runs in the family I guess," he chuckled.
The recital had been a huge success. Jamie stood in the lobby for almost half an hour greeting people and thanking them for coming. When the last person had left the building, he and Philip headed for Arlington in Philip's little car.
There were cars all over Maplewood Drive when they arrived home. The house was packed with well-wishers and friends for Jamie's birthday and reception. Everyone had gathered around the surprise in the dining room and waited for Jamie's entrance. They heard the front door open and immediately got quiet.
"Mom must have your birthday present," Philip smiled. "I think they're in the dining room.."
Jamie opened the door to a huge "SURPRISE!" and he was startled. He looked around the room, smiling at all the people, and then realized what they were standing around.
"Oh my gosh," he managed.
"Happy Birthday, sweetie," Amanda smiled and kissed him on the cheek.
"Mom this is too much! I know how things are-"
"You shush. Your grandmother and I wanted you to have this. Now you can thank us by playing along while we sing Happy Birthday," she smiled. The friends and family in the room cheered in agreement.
"Okay, okay," he laughed. He played the song while all his friends and family stood around him and sang.
"Happy birthday, sweetie," his mom said again. "Okay everyone, there is PLENTY of food in the kitchen and just sit wherever you can find a spot!"
Everyone filed out of the dining room and made their way to the spread waiting for them in the kitchen. Amanda stood with Jamie in the dining room, he still staring at the piano.
"Mom, this is really too much. There's so many more important things we could have used this money for," he began to protest.
"Jamie, honey, this piano is the most important thing I can think of," she said as she sat next to him on the bench. "It wasn't quite as expensive as that hunk of junk your big brother is tooling around in these days! It's just a used piano, but I want to be able to hear you practicing and playing whenever I want." Jamie smiled up at his mother. "Now, go on upstairs and change so you don't get food on your nice vest. Lee and I have a big announcement to make when everyone is done eating."
Jamie gasped. "Are you going to get married, mom?!"
"You're just going to have to wait and see, sweetheart. Now go on and change before everyone misses you," she said and tapped his behind as he quickly left the room to change.
He flipped on his bedroom light and collapsed into the hammock. He was exhausted. He smiled as he replayed the night in his mind and wondered what big announcement Lee and his mom were going to be making. They had to be getting married. All the family and friends were here, and they'd want them to know too. Jamie stood up and took off his jacket, vest, bow tie and tux shirt and placed them on the hangers he's haphazardly left on the floor while getting dressed earlier. He opened the closet door and felt that something wasn't right. A man stepped out of the closet quickly and covered Jamie's mouth with a handkerchief. Jamie squirmed, knocking over his shelf and all the pictures he had organized on his desk. He tried to scream but was completely muted by the handkerchief. He began to feel faint, let go of the hangers, and everything went black.
The tall, dark man easily lifted Jamie onto his shoulder and passed him out the window to his assistant.
"We need to get out of here, now. He struggled and knocked some things over. Someone will be up to check on him momentarily," the man said as they crossed the roof. The assistant climbed down the trellis and took Jamie from the tall man, and they crossed the street. They placed Jamie in the trunk of the dark sedan and vanished into the night.
It had been a few minutes since Jamie had gone upstairs. Lee wondered if he'd fallen asleep. Glancing around the living room, he picked up his wine glass and made his way up the stairs. He felt a gust of wind in the hallway and immediately sensed something was wrong. He slowly and cautiously made his way to Jamie's door and then opened it slowly. A shelf was off the wall, there were pictures all over the floor, and the window was open. Lee swore he could smell chloroform. His stomach sank as he noticed an object sitting on the windowsill. A black cube, marked simply by a silver 'V.' It wasn't much bigger than a die, but as Lee picked it up, it might has well have been the weight of the world.
"Billy!" he yelled.
Author's Notes: Sorry if I scared any of you earlier, this is the beginning of a series. Everything will be resolved! Stay patient. :)
Amanda peeked her head around Jamie's door. She smiled at the sight before her. He had fallen asleep, his new camera still in his hand, in the middle of his bedroom floor. There were pictures scattered all over the place, as he was beginning to organize them into his new book. It was almost two in the morning, and after the day he had had, she didn't wake him to put him in bed. Lee had been so happy. She could hardly believe the things he had told her when he and Jamie came back from taking the camera for a trial run. She looked at her sleeping son once more, then turned out the light and walked down the hall to her room.
Amanda went over her list of things that needed to be done the next day. She'd have to go to work early and get some paperwork done before she came home to meet the delivery man in the afternoon. She smiled to herself. Jamie was expecting something simple for his birthday. Amanda had explained how tight the money situation was, and he hadn't complained. Despite all the troubles he had experienced through the past year, he was still so much more understanding than Philip about the money situation.
He'd never be expecting the piano. She'd been saving for it since he started taking lessons. When her mother had discovered what she was up to, Dotty had insisted on paying for the rest of it. Amanda was intending to have the thing paid for by the time Jamie graduated high school, but with Dotty's help, he was getting a gently used baby grand piano for his fourteenth birthday. She wondered how he was going to react. The camera from Lee had brought him to tears, and had left the rest of the family wondering what was going on in the boy's mind. Amanda leaned up against the headboard and recalled the events as Lee had described them to her once Jamie had gone upstairs and he had stolen her away for a walk around the neighborhood.
*******************************************
Lee stood under the tree, patting Jamie on the back. The boy had been overcome when he opened the camera. It was an awkward moment, as the rest of the family looked on, not quite understanding the enormity of the exchange between stepfather and son. Lee finally broke the silence. "Now, let me tell you the story behind this camera," he smiled.
He told them how he had broken a lens on one of his video cameras when he was making his documentary film in Russia, and had ended up in a tiny little store in one of the worst parts of the capitol city. He met an old man in the store, who didn't have the lens Lee needed, but impressed upon him that he MUST buy the camera. The man said he had a premonition that Lee would be needing the camera for something in the near future. Lee finally gave in to the old man, and reached for his wallet, only to discover that it was gone. Someone had picked his pocket as he made his way through one of the sidestreet markets. He shrugged and was about to leave when the old man handed him the camera. "You will be needing this. I can feel it in my bones. I can tell from looking at you that you are a good man. Take the camera, you will know when you need it."
"You sure can tell a tall tale, Lee," Kurt had laughed.
"No, I'm serious. That's how it really happened," he replied seriously. "I got back to the states and sold it. It took me all afternoon to track that thing down yesterday."
Philip and Kurt had gone off and were tossing a football, and Amanda and Dotty were cleaning up. Lee was sitting under the tree watching his wife when Jamie quietly sat down next to him.
"Do you want to go into the city with me and try it out?" he asked.
"Absolutely," Lee smiled.
As soon as they got back to the house, Lee and Jamie sneaked out the back door and got into the corvette. Amanda watched them drive off down the street, smiled, and started the laundry.
They had been driving in silence for a few minutes when Lee finally cleared his throat and started conversation.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yeah. I'm sorry I reacted so weird earlier … it was just …"
"Hey, don't worry about it …"
"No, no. There's a lot of things I want to tell you. I just really don't know where to start."
"Well, how about we start with a trip to the White House?"
Strolling down Pennsylvania Avenue had made Lee feel a little guilty. The lies that were keeping he and his new family apart all boiled down to this. Lee Stetson, codename Scarecrow, guardian of Western Civilization. He knew that thought wasn't completely true, but sometimes it sure felt that way. As he was lost in his thoughts Jamie had disappeared. Lee's first instinct was to panic.
"Jamie?" he called, trying to keep his voice calm.
"Up here," a voice came from a tree. "You need to come up here and show me how to focus the lens, Lee," Jamie smiled.
"I'm getting too old for this," Lee huffed as he finally got into the tree and sat next to Jamie. "Come here often?"
"It's my favorite spot. Don't tell mom. I'm pretty sure this looks kind of suspicious; me, photographing the White House at night from a tree!"
"Well, you're right about that," Lee laughed. He showed Jamie how to adjust the lens and then listened to his stepson's laughs of excitement as he took pictures. Lee's eyes traveled between Jamie and the White House. He was coming clean tomorrow, and Amanda would follow suit. The boys would understand. They had to.
"This might be the best present I ever got," Jamie finally said.
"I just wanted to get you something special. I'm not trying to buy you or anything, Jamie. I just know how things are, growing up with no dad around. I know we haven't exactly been pals or anything, but it's something I want to work out. I mean, I know …" Jamie cut him off.
"You scared me. Last year when you went to Russia, I hated you. I hated you for leaving mom and Philip. I guess I hated you for leaving me, too."
"I know it's a lot for you to have to deal with."
"Dad left a week before you. Mom was a wreck, Philip was gone all summer, and that pretty much left me to pick up the pieces."
"I didn't want to go to Russia, Jamie. I really didn't have any choice."
"You've always got a choice, Lee," Jamie said.
They were silent, listening to the traffic around the city. Lee reached over and put his hand on Jamie's neck.
"I'm not planning on leaving you, Philip, or your mother again. Ever."
"Dad said the same thing."
"I'm not your dad. Look, Jamie. I know you've been hurt, a lot. I know a lot of crazy things have happened the past couple years. Your mom and I got messed up in that whole treason mess with the government, then your dad gets married, then he leaves for Africa," Lee sighed.
"Then you left."
"I didn't mean for any of this to happen to you. I didn't want to make your life so unbearable that you would try and …"
"It wasn't completely your fault, and you know it. I don't know what was wrong with me. Swallowing a bottle of pills didn't help anything with Mom. Especially since you were gone. She had to take off work while I was in the hospital …."
"Nothing, ever, ever again, is going to do that to you. Your family loves you very much. Your dad loves you, too, though he has his own way of showing it. Do you still go to the … the …"
"Shrink? Oh yeah. Highlight of my week," Jamie remarked sarcastically. "But if I want to go off medication, I guess this the alternative."
"What a life for a teenager," Lee sighed.
"Life is getting better," Jamie said quietly and glanced up at Lee.
"I want you to talk to me. If you ever feel bad, lonely, upset, whatever. I know more than anyone that sometimes you just need someone besides a relative to talk to."
"Thank you, Lee."
"You're welcome, Jamie."
"How old were you when your dad left?"
Lee sighed. They sat in the tree for another hour while Lee told Jamie about his parents' accident, and growing up with his uncle, and seeing the "shrink," and how reckless and wild his life had been until he met his mother. Jamie smiled as Lee mentioned Amanda. She was obviously his favorite topic of discussion.
"Lee?"
"Yeah."
"Do you still see the shrink?"
"Every once in a while, Jamie. Your mom is the best 'shrink' I've seen, though."
"I'll agree with you there."
Amanda stood in the dining room of her house and looked at the piano. It was beautiful. Her mother bought a huge blue bow a left it sitting on top on the instrument. Dotty had been great, getting the food and the house ready for all the guests for Jamie's reception. She heard the water turn off upstairs, meaning Jamie was out of the shower. She closed the door to the living room and smiled. Tonight was going to be quite a night.
The doorbell rang. She answered the door, expecting Jamie's boutonniere to be delivered from the florist. To her surprise and delight, Lee stood, a red rose extended to her, on her front porch.
"Tonight's the night, my love."
"Yes, it is," she smiled as he leaned and gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek.
"And tonight I'll get to lay down next to my wife and wake up beside her tomorrow morning. Go downstairs and drink coffee, read the paper, and leave. Through the front door," he smiled.
"I hope this goes over all right. And when the guests go home, we have to tell them about IFF," she whispered.
"That was my line," he beamed, relieved that she wanted to tell the family everything as much as he did.
The boy from the florist arrived while they were still standing on the porch, and Amanda paid him and went to put the flower in the refrigerator. Lee sat down in the living room with Philip and laughed. The entire family had worn something blue, as if to support Jamie from the audience. Philip and Lee both had on blue ties, and Amanda and Dotty also had incorporated blue into their outfits. Captain Kurt had on his nicest blue hawaiian shirt.
Everyone stopped as Jamie walked into the room. He was decked out, from head to toe. His tux shoes were shined and polished, his vest was straight, and he'd even tried to get his hair to look a little less wild. He smiled when he noticed the blue everyone was wearing.
"Mom, can you tie my bow tie?"
"I sure can, sweetheart," she smiled and went to work on the new tie. "I have something else for you, too."
Amanda retrieved the white rose out of the refrigerator and gave it to Dotty.
"Now, if you don't wear this it's ok. Your mother and I just thought it was a special night, so why not get decked all the way out?" Dotty smiled.
"Pin it on me, grandma," Jamie replied.
"Okay, fellas. We need to get going if we're going to make it to the school in time for Jamie to warm up his band," Amanda said. She kissed Jamie on the cheek and the family filed out of the house.
They arrived at George Mason University with plenty of time to spare. His recital was in the Center for the Performing Arts, so the family sat comfortably in the lobby while Jamie warmed up his band in the recital hall. One by one, family friends started to arrive. Lee greeted Billy and Jeannie with a warm smile, while Amanda spoke to Jamie's piano teacher and some of the other faculty members. There were a lot of people gathering in the lobby; a lot of Jamie's peers from the high school, a few of Philip and Jamie's mutual buddies from the baseball team, Summer's family, and what appeared to be a lot of university students. Amanda also greeted friends from the neighborhood and some of Jamie's middle school teachers. She was shocked to see Francine enter, on Jonathan's arm.
"Well, hello you two!" she smiled. The two women had finally been able to get along better when Lee was in Russia and they were assigned to work with each other more often. "I really appreciate you coming, Francine."
"I wouldn't miss this, Amanda. Finally time to see one of those beautiful King boys in action," she laughed.
At eight o clock, the audience was seated and quiet as the lights dimmed. There was quite a crowd for such a small boy; even a newspaper reporter had come. Amanda was almost sick she was so nervous for Jamie, but Lee reassured her by taking her hand in his and giving her a knowing look.
"You know he's going to be fine," he whispered.
"I know," she whispered back. They were interrupted by applause and Jamie took the stage. He took a bow and sat down at the piano. His pieces were practically flawless. Amanda was bursting at the seams by the time The Secret Agent Men took the stage.
Jamie stepped up to a microphone shyly and cleared his throat.
"I just wanted to thank everyone for coming tonight. This has been quite an experience for me, to be able to perform in front of all my friends and family. I also wanted to thank a few people for accompanying on my journey to this first recital. First of all, my hero, the best person I know, my mother. She's supported me since day one, and I would have quit things long ago if she hadn't urged me on. I'd also like to thank my best friend and brother, Philip, for all the friendly competition we've enjoyed. I know I've probably been impossible to live with lately, but you stuck with me, and I can't thank you enough. I'd also like to thank my grandmother, who suggested I play the piano in the first place, and compliments even my worst practice sessions. Dr. June, I can't thank you enough for your guidance this year at the high school, you've been great, despite the fact that I'm sure I'm your moodiest student. I'd like to thank my inspiration, Duke Ellington, wherever you are," Jamie smiled nervously, as the audience applauded, and he stepped back from microphone. He suddenly remembered something and ran back. "I'd also like to thank my friend Lee, for proving to me that everything happens for a reason."
Amanda squeezed Lee's hand and looked at him through teary eyes. He was beaming.
"But enough mush. I give you The Secret Agent Men performing Duke Ellington's 'Mood Indigo,'" Jamie laughed and sat down at the piano. Billy turned around and smiled at Lee and Amanda.
"Runs in the family I guess," he chuckled.
The recital had been a huge success. Jamie stood in the lobby for almost half an hour greeting people and thanking them for coming. When the last person had left the building, he and Philip headed for Arlington in Philip's little car.
There were cars all over Maplewood Drive when they arrived home. The house was packed with well-wishers and friends for Jamie's birthday and reception. Everyone had gathered around the surprise in the dining room and waited for Jamie's entrance. They heard the front door open and immediately got quiet.
"Mom must have your birthday present," Philip smiled. "I think they're in the dining room.."
Jamie opened the door to a huge "SURPRISE!" and he was startled. He looked around the room, smiling at all the people, and then realized what they were standing around.
"Oh my gosh," he managed.
"Happy Birthday, sweetie," Amanda smiled and kissed him on the cheek.
"Mom this is too much! I know how things are-"
"You shush. Your grandmother and I wanted you to have this. Now you can thank us by playing along while we sing Happy Birthday," she smiled. The friends and family in the room cheered in agreement.
"Okay, okay," he laughed. He played the song while all his friends and family stood around him and sang.
"Happy birthday, sweetie," his mom said again. "Okay everyone, there is PLENTY of food in the kitchen and just sit wherever you can find a spot!"
Everyone filed out of the dining room and made their way to the spread waiting for them in the kitchen. Amanda stood with Jamie in the dining room, he still staring at the piano.
"Mom, this is really too much. There's so many more important things we could have used this money for," he began to protest.
"Jamie, honey, this piano is the most important thing I can think of," she said as she sat next to him on the bench. "It wasn't quite as expensive as that hunk of junk your big brother is tooling around in these days! It's just a used piano, but I want to be able to hear you practicing and playing whenever I want." Jamie smiled up at his mother. "Now, go on upstairs and change so you don't get food on your nice vest. Lee and I have a big announcement to make when everyone is done eating."
Jamie gasped. "Are you going to get married, mom?!"
"You're just going to have to wait and see, sweetheart. Now go on and change before everyone misses you," she said and tapped his behind as he quickly left the room to change.
He flipped on his bedroom light and collapsed into the hammock. He was exhausted. He smiled as he replayed the night in his mind and wondered what big announcement Lee and his mom were going to be making. They had to be getting married. All the family and friends were here, and they'd want them to know too. Jamie stood up and took off his jacket, vest, bow tie and tux shirt and placed them on the hangers he's haphazardly left on the floor while getting dressed earlier. He opened the closet door and felt that something wasn't right. A man stepped out of the closet quickly and covered Jamie's mouth with a handkerchief. Jamie squirmed, knocking over his shelf and all the pictures he had organized on his desk. He tried to scream but was completely muted by the handkerchief. He began to feel faint, let go of the hangers, and everything went black.
The tall, dark man easily lifted Jamie onto his shoulder and passed him out the window to his assistant.
"We need to get out of here, now. He struggled and knocked some things over. Someone will be up to check on him momentarily," the man said as they crossed the roof. The assistant climbed down the trellis and took Jamie from the tall man, and they crossed the street. They placed Jamie in the trunk of the dark sedan and vanished into the night.
It had been a few minutes since Jamie had gone upstairs. Lee wondered if he'd fallen asleep. Glancing around the living room, he picked up his wine glass and made his way up the stairs. He felt a gust of wind in the hallway and immediately sensed something was wrong. He slowly and cautiously made his way to Jamie's door and then opened it slowly. A shelf was off the wall, there were pictures all over the floor, and the window was open. Lee swore he could smell chloroform. His stomach sank as he noticed an object sitting on the windowsill. A black cube, marked simply by a silver 'V.' It wasn't much bigger than a die, but as Lee picked it up, it might has well have been the weight of the world.
"Billy!" he yelled.