There were two differences now. Sam was present, something that had happened a few dozen times before, but this time he was different. The big, boisterous voice was silent, and he was unable to hide the emotional agony he was in today. Amanda wished she could hug him, but now wasn't the time. He had accepted one from her at the hospital a few days earlier, before he had shut down emotionally from all of them, even Sarah and Philip.
Philip was the biggest difference to her. Her mother had been interrogated once, after she had accidentally gotten involved in a case. Amanda had watched it, just as she had watched Philip's. No one in her family, however, had been brought into the conference rooms. Philip was being debriefed like an agent, and Amanda didn't like it. They hadn't spoken about his recent excursion into the land of the spies, with Amanda too scared to bring it up, and Philip too drained to mention it. She knew her son, though, and she could read the look in his eyes. She was going have to make a big adjustment in her life, and she just hoped that she could do it.
"All of his accomplices have been arrested, and interrogation has begun. I expect we should have a full report by next Friday, sir," Sam finished softly. He was struggling to make the report, and Amanda wished he had allowed someone else the opportunity. Lee had allowed him to make it because, as he had told Amanda that morning, Sam needed to do it to exorcism some demons. He also knew the results of Jack's debriefing better than anyone. He had never left the room, his arm in a sling, as his brother spewed words of hate and anger at him.
His brother's desire to show how smart he was had helped them to completely close that particular path of leaks. Jack Williams told them *everything* in an effort to show his intelligence, his brilliance, in planning. Amanda doubted that his accomplices were appreciating his "brilliance" right now.
"Thanks, Sam." Amanda smiled at her husband's tone. He had been extremely easy on his friend, understanding some of the pain that the man was going through. He had been betrayed before, too, by people he thought loved him. It had never been a brother, however.
Lee's attention turned to Philip. Smiling at his stepson, Lee spoke in mock seriousness. "Thank you for your aid, Mr. King."
Philip grinned back at Lee. He looked over at Sarah and took a deep breath. "Lee, have you considered--" Another deep breath, and her son continued, "Have you considered. . .uh, my offer?"
Lee looked at Amanda before answering. He had a silent apology in his eyes, and Amanda's eyes pleaded with him. She hoped this "offer" wasn't what she thought it was. Lee looked down, giving her the answer she didn't want. Philip wanted to work for the Agency, he wanted to be a spy. Her son was going to be a spy.
"I have, and I want to talk to you more about it later," Lee answered. Amanda thanked him for giving her an opportunity to discuss it wit her son before it was brought up officially.
However, Francine, never one to keep her curiosity in check, asked Philip, "What offer?"
Philip flashed her a grateful smile. Her son was determined to discuss it now, and Francine had opened the doorway for him. "I want to help out here, part time, Aunt Francine, until I graduate in May."
Amanda had to hand it to him. He had handled the introduction of his "Aunt Francine" as another agent very well. He had only looked like he had swallowed his tongue for a minute, and then he had smiled at her and asked how her second honeymoon with "Uncle Jonathan" had been. He waited a few minuted before asking if Jonathan was an agent, too.
Francine turned to look at Amanda, understanding in her eyes. There was also a hint of amusement that worried her. "Part time? You mean like a civilian who just kind of drops in occasionally?"
"Ha, ha, Francine," Amanda snapped. She glared at Lee after he left a few gasps of laughter out at Francine's comment.
Sam, Sarah, and Philip glanced at each other, and then at the other agents sitting across from them. They didn't understand the joke. "For what it's worth, I think it's a great idea," Billy said, gathering his papers.
"Billy, he's my son." All of Amanda's anguish was in those words.
Billy turned to look at her, reminding her of a day long ago in his office. Nervous, flying high from the euphoria of helping Lee solve that first case, she had sat in front of Billy Melrose and told him about her adventure. His eyes had been so full of kindness and understanding. He had been amused by her exuberance like Lee and Francine, but, unlike them, he had also enjoyed and appreciated it. His gentle understanding, even more than her initial attraction to Lee and to the adventure, had given her the courage to keep coming back to the Agency, even when it was obvious that Lee didn't want her there.
"Yes, he is, Amanda," Billy answered, smiling and nodding. "He has great instincts, can handle himself under pressure, and can think outside of the box when it comes to possible solutions. He is definitely your son, and *that's* why I think it would make a great idea."
Amanda opened her mouth to protest, and then thought about what he was saying. He was right. Hitting a raving madman over the head with a skillet was more like something she would do than Lee. Even Sam had admitted, fearing that he would have to kill his brother, he had never thought about just knocking him over the head. The Agency had a habit of training their agents to think of kill first--it usually was the best solution in a world that did live entirely in the land where only the fittest survived.
Philip had reacted like her. He had handled himself well under fire, and he was an adult. As much as she didn't want to admit it, her baby was growing up, and Jamie, her youngest, would soon follow him into adulthood. They both were becoming men before her eyes. She was going to have to accept that they were going to make choices in life that could hurt them, and she couldn't do a thing about it. Long gone were the years that she could sit on their bed with a couple of mugs of hot chocolate and talk about their problems, showing them the solutions.
The problems were larger now, and not as simple. Philip had lost a close friend to murder, was engaged to the daughter of that man. He and Sarah both were going to have to work through their emotional pain, and no amount of hot chocolate or band aides would take it away. Philip had witnessed the murder of man at point blank range. He would never be able to forget such an image. She knew, because she could still see the motionless form of a beautiful young woman lying on the sidewalk in front of her as Amanda whispered, asking Lee why the bad guys had killed her.
As a quote she once read said, motherhood was forever having your heart walk outside your body. She was going to have accept it. She could hardly condemn him for doing what she had done for over a decade. She loved her job, in spite of the danger, and Philip seemed to share her feelings for the work.
Meeting Lee's eyes, she could see that he agreed with Billy. He didn't care for the danger in their line of work, either, or at least he hadn't enjoyed it since they had married. It was why he had agreed to a desk job soon after their marriage became public. However, he also had the belief that somebody had to do it, and Philip showed signs that he was good at it. Lee would keep a close eye on Philip--he kept a close eye on all his agents--and at the first sign that he couldn't handle it, he would jerk him out of the field. She knew it without being told. Smiling, reluctantly, she nodded her head.
Lee turned to look at Philip. Suddenly, he smiled when his eyes shifted to Sam. "You know, Sam, I think we have found you a partner."
For the first time the entire meeting, Sam showed some animation. He shook his head violently. "I don't think so!" He looked over at Philip. "No offense, Kid, I just don't work with partners."
Lee, Billy, Amanda, and Francine all laughed. Sam got up, smiling like a man who was the in the middle of joke and didn't like it. "You know I don't work with partners, Lee." They laughed harder. "If you will excuse me, I've got some paperwork that needs to be done."
Sarah looked up at Sam, startled. "Sam Williams? Doing paperwork? Voluntarily?" She began laughing with the others. Philip, looking confused, began joining in with the others. The laughter was contagious.
Sam sighed, and then walked out of the room, closing the door behind him a loud snap. Good thing the room was soundproof, or the laughter would have followed him all the way down the hall.