Part IV
Amanda smiled absently at her companion across the table, not really paying attention to what he was saying. She would have given a lot to be able to cancel her date with Thomas Carlyle this evening. She'd even tried, but being a salesman meant he was mobile and she hadn't been able to locate him to let him know that she couldn't go out this evening. She'd finally accepted that she had no choice but to go, but she was determined to make it a short evening. She just didn't have the heart for it.
Despite her best efforts, her thoughts kept returning to Lee. She was still a little numb. She had never been involved in an altercation like the one she'd had with him . . . not even during the worst times when her marriage to Joe was falling apart. She had been so angry. The audacity of the man, to check up on her like that!
And yet, the thing that surprised her the most was that she wasn't angry with him any longer. She kept telling herself that she should be, but it seemed that the only emotion left to her was hurt . . . a deep, constant ache that seemed to drain her energy and leave her numb and exhausted.
" . . . dinner?"
Amanda blinked at her companion, suddenly realizing that he had asked her a question. "I beg your pardon?"
He tilted his head and looked at her questioningly. "You seem rather distant this evening, Amanda. Is anything wrong?"
She smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry, Thomas. I guess I'm just a bit preoccupied. It was a difficult week."
"There's nothing wrong with your mother or sons, is there?"
"No. They're all fine." She hesitated momentarily and then said vaguely, "It was work."
"Why don't you tell me about it?" he suggested, leaning forward and grasping her hand across the table. A light seemed to flare behind his eyes and his lips parted in anticipation. Something about his stare and his sudden avidness made her uneasy. Stop that, she said sharply to herself. Don't let Lee Stetson's cynicism infect you.
She shrugged noncommittally. "There's not really anything to tell," she replied. "The man I work with . . . the director . . . and I got into a dispute yesterday. It was just the most recent disagreement in a series of things, and I – I'm just not sure I want to put up with it any more."
"There must be more to it than that," he urged. "What was his problem? He didn't like your work in some way?"
"No. He's had some problems with my work in the past, but we resolved that."
"Then what?"
"I'm sorry, Thomas, but I'd really rather not talk about it."
"That means that it must be something personal," he said flatly, and his expression changed subtly, turning harder. "You have a relationship with him." It wasn't a question.
"No!" she protested immediately. "Mr. Stetson and I are working partners. Nothing else."
Carlyle gestured to the waiter, calling for the bill. "If you say so," he said distantly. "You're finished, right?" He didn't even give her a chance to reply before he continued, "Good. Let me pay the bill, and then we'll leave."
"All right," she agreed readily. She smiled at him apologetically. "I have to admit that I'm tired tonight. I hope you'll forgive me if I ask that you just take me home."
He didn't reply, simply counting out bills onto the table. Then he rose, caught her by the elbow, and steered her in the direction of the front door. As they approached the valet parking station in front of the restaurant, Amanda noticed that none of the attendants were anywhere in sight. She paused, that feeling of unease stirring again, and she turned to say something to her companion. But he tightened his grip on her arm painfully, dragging her away from the valet station and up Pennsylvania Avenue.
"Thomas, what are you –" Amanda began to protest, trying to pull her arm free, but the man continued dragging her along.
"I'm in the mood for a walk," he said tautly. "Pershing Park is just up the street. I thought we could take a walk through there and work our way down toward the Washington Monument."
"No, Thomas! I want to go home!"
"But it's too soon," he replied, continuing to drag her along forcibly. For the first time since they left the restaurant, he looked directly at her. In the reflected light of a distant streetlamp, his face appeared totally alien, and she recoiled in fear. "You should never have lied to me, Amanda. But then, I never expected anything less. Hurry up."
Terrified, Amanda began to struggle, but before she could scream, Thomas cuffed her sharply across the side of the head, leaving her partially stunned. She stumbled and began to fall, but he forced her to keep her feet and shoved her onward toward the trees and manicured shrubbery in the rapidly approaching park. A few more strides and darkness surrounded them.
The fog in Amanda's mind was starting to fade as the force of Carlyle's blow began to wear off, and she tried to make sense of her surroundings. She'd been in this park before, but not often and not for a very long time. In the summer, it was heavily shaded by trees, shrubs, and a profusion of flower beds amidst carefully tended landscape that was a haven for birds. With the early onset of spring, all of the plants were leafing out and great pools of darkness now filled the park. She knew that near the center of the park was a small lake that extended all the way up to Pennsylvania Avenue. The ground around the lake was raised, there were steps leading down to the water's edge and a pedestrian walkway followed the contours of the lake until the walkway met up with the sidewalk that ran along the thoroughfare. On the other side of Pennsylvania Avenue sat the Willard Hotel. There was safety there if only she could get free from Carlyle and make it that far.
She suddenly became aware of his voice, muttering low and incessantly. It took her a moment to realize that he wasn't talking to her at all; rather he appeared to be talking to himself . . . or at least, someone only he saw.
"Be quiet," he hissed in agitation. "It's coming. I will give you the blood. This one won't get away!"
Horrified, she realized the man was hopelessly insane! "Lee . . ." she whispered softly, suddenly realizing that he had been right all along. Blind terror took over then, and she twisted violently in his grasp, kicking out at his legs the way Lee had shown her. She caught Carlyle off guard and managed to break free, and without conscious thought, she turned and ran blindly, screaming for all she was worth.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Lee downshifted sharply and sent the silver Corvette into a controlled slide around the corner, barely managing to avoid sideswiping the elegant black BMW sedan that was already in the intersection. The driver leaned on the horn in anger, but Lee didn't even notice. He felt the tires grip again and he accelerated ruthlessly, darting in and out around other cars with abandon. Behind him, he knew that Francine was following, trying desperately to stay with him through the heavy Friday evening traffic.
"You know where?" Adam Dwyer asked tightly, obviously willing the car to go faster.
"Les Halles."
Dwyer swore. "There's no quick way to get there from here! Go east as soon as you can. Don't get down by the White House or you're going to get bogged down."
"I know. Goddamn it!" Lee snarled, yanking the wheel hard to the left to avoid another car that darted into his lane.
"You're sure? There's no possibility of a mistake?"
"No. The bracelet is the same. I got a good look at it." His eyes never leaving the road in front of him, he nodded toward the console. "There's a phone down there. Call for backup. If he leaves that restaurant with her, we don't stand a chance." He rattled off a number. "That will get you the Agency. Tell them what's going on and they'll scramble an emergency team."
"And the Bureau. They'll send a team, as well as calling out the locals."
"Hang on!" Leaning on the horn, Lee made a sweeping left onto another boulevard and accelerated once more. "I'm going to go down to U.S. 1 and we'll come back to the restaurant on Pennsylvania. It'll be faster that way." Dwyer didn't even acknowledge the comment, involved in talking with someone in his office.
As the kaleidoscope of lights and cars blurred around him, Lee whispered agonizingly, "Hang on, Amanda. I'm coming . . ."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Amanda could hear Thomas' heavy breathing not far behind her as she ran hard through the park. She was hampered by her heels, and could tell that he was rapidly gaining on her. Desperately, she dived to one side of the path, ducking into the shrubbery. The sudden move caught her pursuer unaware and he overshot her. Amanda heard him swear in fury as he skittered to a halt and turned back to go in search of her once more. Gasping for breath, she kicked off her shoes and stumbled on through the shrubs, searching for a way back out of the maze of greenery. She had been making for the lake, but her desperate attempt to elude her attacker had gotten her turned around and she had no idea where she was when she finally emerged from cover. Hearing him thrashing around in the shrubbery behind her, she set off at a run again, not bothering about direction . . . knowing only that she needed to put as much distance between herself and Thomas Carlyle as she possibly could.
She ran in silence now, fleeing like a deer from the hunter. In some small part of her mind that wasn't yet devoured by panic and fear, she thought of Lee again. He had been right about everything. Carlyle wasn't what he seemed and her naivety and trusting nature was going to get her killed. There would be no white knight to save her this time. She had seen to that. Will he care? The unbidden thought came to her mind. Or will he just be grateful to be rid of me? Not that it mattered. She'd never know.
Her breath was like a knife in her side, and her lungs burned with the effort to keep moving. Spent, she stumbled to a halt and leaned against a large tree. Struggling to suppress her breathing, she tried to locate Carlyle by sound, but couldn't hear a thing. The stillness that surrounded her was almost uncanny. She looked around and through a break in the trees, she spotted the gleaming white façade of the Willard Hotel in the distance. With a soft whimper, she pushed away from the tree, drawn by the promise of safety. But it was too late. She had taken no more than three steps when he materialized behind her.
His arm went around her midriff like a band of steel, pulling her ruthlessly back against him and pinning her arms in place. She could feel his hot breath on her neck as she once again began to fight, twisting desperately in an attempt to free herself.
"Not again," he said raggedly. "You won't get away from me this time."
With an effort she managed to get one arm free. She struck at his head with her fist and shoved against his shoulder, trying to lever herself out of his grasp. She screamed again, the piercing sound pealing through the night air like a bell. Carlyle flinched slightly at the sound and Amanda struck him again. His grip suddenly loosened and with a sob, she broke free once again. She tried to run, but he snatched at her, catching her wrist. With a vicious yank, he pulled her back toward him and clawed at his waist. Amanda caught a flash of light off of something shiny in his hand just before Carlyle jerked her against his chest and buried the knife in her back.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Lee slammed to a stop in front of Les Halles, leaped from the car and immediately ran for the front door of the restaurant. Dwyer, however, went directly to the valet parking attendant and began talking with him urgently. Just as Francine's car screeched to a halt behind the Corvette, Lee ran back out of the restaurant.
"They're already gone," he said harshly to Adam. "The maitre d' said they left about five or ten minutes ago."
"Did he know where they were going?" Francine demanded, still breathless from the wild ride through the streets of D.C.
"No. He just said that they left very suddenly and that Carlyle seemed angry about something."
Ignoring both of them, Dwyer said urgently to the valet, "If he didn't take his car, then how did they leave?"
"On foot," the young man replied. Pointing up the street, he added, "I was at the back of the lot parking a car and I heard him say something about taking a walk and the two of them headed for the park. The lady didn't look too happy about it, but the guy was pretty insistent."
"How long ago?" Dwyer demanded sharply.
"I don't know . . . ten or fifteen minutes ago maybe," the bewildered valet said. "What's going on?"
"Geezus," Dwyer muttered, turning toward Lee. "He's going to do it right here!"
Lee turned to Francine. "Wait here for the backup."
"But –"
"There's no time, Francine! He's going to kill her. Just bring the backup as soon as you can." Turning to Dwyer, he said, "Come on!"
The two men set off for the park at a run. Lee could feel the cold sweat that beaded his forehead as he thought of what might be happening ahead of them. I never should have lost my temper. If anything happens to her, it will be my fault. The two men were less than 100 feet from the entrance to the park when a shrill scream split the night.
"AMANDA!" Lee yelled frantically as he plunged into the dark park grounds. They ran hard for a few yards, but were then forced to halt by a lack of direction.
"We've got to split up," Dwyer panted. "We'll never find them like this."
"I'm going to go right," Lee replied. "If she has the chance, Amanda will make for lights and people." He gestured swiftly toward the wash of light in the sky that marked the Willard Hotel.
"I'll go left, then." Swiftly, the two men split up and began combing the park. After his initial cry, Lee stopped calling. Something whispered to him that it wasn't wise to let Carlyle know that someone was looking for him. He spent what seemed like an eternity searching through the blackness before he heard an indistinct sound that might have been a voice off to his left. Turning toward the sound, he was moving forward carefully in the direction of the sound when a second scream sent him leaping forward, forcing his way through a patch of shrubbery. As he broke into the open once more, he saw them.
Carlyle's arms were wrapped around her, holding her body tightly to his. Lee could see Amanda struggling against his hold. One of his arms seemed to loosen for a moment and then he pulled her back against him, causing her to cry out weakly once again.
"CARLYLE!"
The man's head snapped up at the sound of Lee's voice. Some quirk of light caused his face to be illuminated and Lee realized that there was no sanity visible there at all. Approximately 30 yards of open ground separated them and Lee yelled the man's name again as he ran toward them. Grasping her right wrist, Carlyle spun Amanda, slamming her back-first into the trunk of a nearby tree and then turned to face Lee head-on.
In the distance, the sound of approaching sirens could be clearly heard. But Lee didn't care . . . he was totally focused on the maniac that faced him. The two men circled each other warily. Several times, Lee saw Carlyle's hand flutter to his waist, only to have it come up empty again. Lee spared a minute to wonder what he was expecting to find there, but before the thought could gel in his mind, Carlyle lunged at him. The two men tumbled to the ground, struggling roughly as each tried to get the upper hand. Carlyle fought mindlessly, his hands clawing at Lee's throat as he tried to get a good grip on the agent's windpipe. Lee got the heel of one hand planted firmly under Carlyle's chin and with painstaking slowness, he forced the other man's head back until his grip slipped. With a lightning-quick move, Lee flipped the man off of him and rolled to his feet. As Carlyle rose unsteadily, Lee stepped in and caught him in the stomach with a roundhouse punch that doubled his opponent. Then he followed it up with several sharp blows to his face. Carlyle sagged to the ground again, only partially conscious. But rage had taken over by this time and Lee grabbed the man's shirt, holding him tightly as he continued to strike the unconscious man repeatedly.
Finally, the feel of hands on his shoulders and the sound of another voice began to penetrate his obsessive fury.
"LEE!!! Lee, stop! You're going to kill him!" Dropping the man, Lee staggered back under Dwyer's sharp shove. Sudden light blinded him, and he threw up a hand to shield his eyes. He became aware of figures running toward him out of the darkness and heard the sound of Francine calling his name.
Turning from those people, he looked around frantically for Amanda. He spotted her almost immediately. She was still leaning heavily against the tree where Carlyle had thrown her, but Lee could see her sagging slowly toward the ground. He leaped forward and caught her around the shoulders as her legs finally gave way and she began to collapse. Catching her around the upper shoulders with one arm, he sank to his knees, cradling her body in his lap as he called her name desperately.
Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked up at him. "Lee?" she whispered painfully.
"I'm here, Amanda. It's over. He can't hurt you anymore."
"Sorry . . ." she whispered.
He looked at her in confusion. "What? Amanda . . ."
"You . . . were . . . right," she gasped in a barely audible voice. "No . . . judge . . . of people. Was . . . stupid . . ."
"No! It could have happened to anyone. It has before." He stroked her hair back from her forehead and caressed her cheek gently. "He's crazy, Amanda . . . a serial killer. The one Dwyer's been looking for. Just rest. You'll be okay in a minute." He felt her stiffen and fear gripped him again. Something was wrong! Was she hurt?
"Lee, is she okay?" Francine dropped down beside him and he felt someone else at his back.
"Amanda, what is it? Tell me, baby."
"Hurts . . . so . . . much . . ."
Ice seemed to encircle his heart and suddenly he felt as though he couldn't breathe. He reached across her and wrapped his right arm around her waist to support her back. As he did so, he found that her dress was wet. An instant later, his hand encountered the hilt of the knife that was still embedded in her back. He pulled his hand away and stared at it in stunned horror. It appeared black in the dimness.
"Oh God!" Francine gasped and then turned and yelled, "Peter! There's an ambulance en route somewhere. Find the EMTs and get them here now!"
Carefully, Lee tightened his arms, pulling her body up out of his lap and against his chest so they could see her back. The hilt of the knife shone a dull gray in the light of the flashlights that were now trained on them. Lee automatically reached for it, but a hand snatched at his wrist, holding him back.
"Don't!" Dwyer commanded urgently. "Not until the paramedics get here. The blade's got the wound partially blocked. You pull it out and she may start bleeding uncontrollably." There were two obvious wounds. The first was on the left side of her upper back, and the second, which still contained the knife, was on the right and slightly lower. Blood flowed steadily from both wounds, saturating the silky fabric of Amanda's dress until the blood dripped wetly onto Lee's clothes.
Dwyer shrugged out of his jacket and balled it up, pressing it against her upper back in an effort to staunch the blood flow. "Where the hell are those paramedics?!" he muttered.
"Lee . . ." The pain-soaked voice whispered hoarsely from where Amanda's head lay against his shoulder.
"Shhh," he urged her. "Help's coming."
"Lee . . . you have to . . . tell . . . Mother . . ."
"No!" he interrupted her desperately, easing her down slightly so he could look her in the face. "You can tell her yourself! You're going to be fine . . . you have to be."
But Amanda wouldn't be stilled. "Tell . . . her . . . and the boys . . . that . . . I love . . . them . . . very . . . much." She looked up at him, her eyes glazed. With an effort, she tried to reach up and touch his cheek, but she didn't have the strength to complete the gesture. Lee caught her hand in his and pressed it to the side of his face. Her fingers were icy. "Sorry . . for what I . . . said. Didn't . . . mean it. Was . . . unfair . . . to . . . you. Know . . . you were . . . only trying . . . to . . . protect –"
"Amanda, stop . . ." he moaned. "Don't talk this way. You can't leave me. You're my partner." As he stared at her pleadingly, her eyes drifted shut and for a heart-stopping moment he couldn't feel her breathing. "AMANDA!" he screamed at her in terror. Finally, she took a shallow breath and coughed. Blood glistened on her lips.
"WHERE ARE THOSE GODDAMNED PARAMEDICS???" Dwyer yelled.
"Here," a man said, running up and dropping down beside Dwyer and Lee. "What have we got?"
"Two knife wounds . . . in her back," Dwyer said swiftly. "She's bleeding heavily. We've left the knife . . ."
"Sir, you have to let go," one of the paramedics said to Lee, trying to take Amanda from him. But Lee fought him, refusing to release her.
"Amanda, don't go," he begged over and over. "You're my partner . . . my friend. You have to stay with me. Partners don't abandon each other. Do you hear me?"
"Lee, let the paramedics take her!" Francine said urgently. "She needs help. You have to let her go."
"Come on, Lee," Adam urged him, grabbing his arm and forcing him to release his hold on Amanda's body. "Let them take her to the hospital. We'll follow them."
"I have to go with her . . ."
"You'll just be in the way," Adam said firmly. "If she is to have a chance, you have to let them do their jobs." Adam held one of Lee's arms tightly while Francine clung to the other, pulling him away as the paramedics took Amanda and laid her on her side on the gurney that had now arrived at their location.
The three stood by silently as the younger of the two emergency workers started an IV while the other carefully examined the knife in Amanda's back. Finally, he took several large pads of surgical gauze and packed them around the weapon, carefully leaving it in place. "She's losing too much blood," he said to his partner. "The wound's refusing to clot. Is she a bleeder?" he demanded, looking up at the three agents who still hovered nearby. Lee shook his head mutely, his eyes never leaving her. "If we don't get this to stop, she's going to bleed to death," the man muttered to his co-worker.
Lee listened numbly to the paramedics' back and forth conversation as they attempted to stabilize Amanda enough to transport her to the hospital. She's dying, he thought numbly. This is my fault. I'm supposed to protect her. He was dimly aware of others around him, but no longer cared. The only thing that mattered was the woman who lay unmoving on the gurney.
"We can't wait any longer," the older paramedic said decisively. "This is beyond anything we can deal with. We've got to get her to the hospital. Let's move." The two men lifted the gurney and carried it to the waiting ambulance. Lee started after them, but was held back by Dwyer and Francine.
"Let me go!" Lee demanded. "I have to go with her."
"Not in the ambulance," Dwyer replied firmly, dragging him in the direction of the restaurant. "We'll go in your car. Come on."
"I'll be right behind you," Francine added quickly and set off at a run in the other direction for her car.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Ten minutes later, Billy Melrose strode determinedly into the emergency room at the George Washington University Hospital only to be confronted by absolute bedlam. Raised voices echoed off the walls and he immediately noted that two of the loudest were ones he knew well. "Let me through," he said sharply to two armed security guards and a couple of hospital staff as he flashed his credentials. As he cleared the people obscuring his view, the first person he saw was Francine Desmond. She was determinedly struggling to hold onto the arm of a man in a tux who appeared equally as determined to shake her free. It took Billy a moment to realize that the man was Lee Stetson.
"Lee, stop! You can't go back there!" Francine was shouting at him.
"Let go of me!" Lee snarled back at her, fighting to throw off her restraining hand.
Adam Dwyer was there as well, struggling to hold the frantic agent, who seemed practically mindless as he wrestled to get free. "Lee, stop it," Dwyer kept saying. "They told you that you've got to wait. Let them do their jobs!"
"No," Lee said raggedly. "Let me go! I have to be with her . . ."
"SCARECROW!" Billy bellowed, his voice slicing through the cacophony like a hot knife through butter. Sudden silence followed his yell, and Lee Stetson flinched at the volume and tone of his boss' voice. However, in spite of Billy's obvious ire, Lee turned to him frantically.
"Billy! Make them let me go. I have to go to –"
"You can not go back there," Billy told him firmly, struggling to hide his dismay at the depth of Lee's agitation. "You go sit down . . . NOW!"
"Billy, she's my partner and they won't tell me anything . . ." Lee tried again, but Billy cut him off.
"Just sit down." Then in a softer, more kindly tone, he added, "Please, Lee. I promise you that I'll find out what's happened. But I can't do that if you're throwing the entire ER into an uproar. Just give me a few minutes."
"Come on, Lee," Adam urged, grasping his arm tightly and dragging him toward a group of chairs on the far side of the waiting room.
Billy watched as Lee's shoulders slumped in defeat and he finally allowed himself to be led away. Once Billy was sure Dwyer had him seated and under control, he turned to Francine with a formidable scowl. "This had better be good, Francine," he growled. "I get a call from the central switchboard that a couple of my agents are calling for backup, but no one seems to know who or why. I'm halfway to the office when I get another call that sends me here instead, and informs me that an emergency NEST team is also en route. However, there's still no explanation about what's happening. What the hell is going on?"
As she drew a deep breath to begin explaining, Billy saw her eyes dart toward Lee Stetson fearfully. Following her gaze, Billy saw that Lee now sat, elbows on his knees, holding his head in his hands. For the first time, Billy really took in Lee's appearance. Even from this distance, he could see the blood that covered Lee's hands and stained his jacket, pants, and white formal shirt. Shaken, he said hoarsely, "Geezus! Francine, is he . . ."
"He's not hurt," she assured him hastily.
"Then who . . ."
"Amanda King." Francine glared at the nurse who still eyed them warily from the far side of the room. "They won't tell us a damned thing. We were doing okay, until that – that woman over there had the nerve to tell Lee that because he wasn't a relative, she didn't owe him any explanations . . ."
"And Lee went ballistic," Billy finished for her. He followed Francine's gaze to the nurse and then said shortly, "They'll talk to me." Billy pointed at Lee. "You stay here and make sure he behaves himself for a few minutes."
"Oh, yeah . . . right. Like I have a prayer of accomplishing that if something sets him off again!" Francine responded sarcastically, but Billy was already gone. Shaking her head, she went to join Lee and Adam. Before she could reach them, however, Adam came to meet her.
"Any news?" he asked softly, trying to keep his voice low so that Lee couldn't hear their conversation.
"Not yet. Billy's trying to get some answers. How is he?"
Adam looked troubled. "I honestly don't know. I've never seen him like this before, Francine. Is there something going on between him and Mrs. King?"
"No," she said, shaking her head. "They're just partners. He feels responsible for her, though, and he always takes it hard when she gets into trouble."
"Maybe I'm being nosy here . . . and feel free to tell me to butt out if you want . . . but if they're not personally involved, why is he this upset? He's always been very careful to keep himself aloof and professional. Surely he's been prepared for something like this. I mean, they work as field agents for the Agency; they knew the risks going in."
"But that's just it, Adam. She didn't. Lee picked her at random off the street during an emergency." She sighed softly. "If you ever repeat this to anyone, so help me, I'll call you a liar to your face, but the truth is, she did a damned good job. Got the Agency and both Lee and me out of a real mess. Billy was so impressed with her that he put her on payroll as a part time civilian aide, and she's been with us for nearly two years now."
"Civilian aide?!" Adam said incredulously. "Francine, everyone in the business has heard of 'Mrs. King'. Hell, when people talk about Lee it isn't just 'Scarecrow' any more, it more or less comes out in a single breath . . . 'Scarecrow and Mrs. King'. Are you telling me that she's just his secretary?"
Francine shook her head. "No, she's a lot more than that. Billy didn't originally intend to put her in the field. She was more or less an in-house jack-of-all-trades. Initially, she did some secretarial work and background research, and after a while Billy took to letting her do the occasional courier job, both domestic and international. More or less anything that looked like it wasn't risky. But she turned out to have a flare for field work, and we kept ending up with cases where her background or contacts made her useful." Francine rolled her eyes. "Not to mention the fact that the woman has a talent for finding trouble. So, slowly but surely, she ended up working mostly in the field. Initially, Lee didn't want to work with her, but because he felt responsible for her being there, he always insisted that she not be assigned to work with anyone else."
"The old Stetson conceit . . . no one can do it better than he can," Adam said somewhat ruefully.
A reluctant grin tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Pretty much. And Billy deliberately kept throwing them together."
"For God's sake, why?"
"Because riding herd on Amanda forced Lee into being more cautious. He didn't take as many risks. And whatever else you can say about Amanda King, you can't say that she doesn't have nerve. She'll follow him anywhere, whether he wants her to or not. She clings to him like a leech and she covers his back pretty effectively. Her methods may be unorthodox, but so far, they've worked."
"I'd say he's a lucky man."
Francine glanced at Lee again, looking worried. "I hope so, because I don't know what he'll do if she doesn't make it." Turning from Adam, she went and knelt down in front of her friend. Laying a hand on his arm, she asked, "Lee . . . Lee, are you okay?" Under her fingers, she could feel the blood that was starting to stiffen the sleeve of his jacket.
After a moment, he shook his head. Finally, he looked up at her with an agonized expression. "What am I going to do, Francine? How do I tell her mother and her sons that she's never coming back?"
Francine gripped his arm tightly. "Don't think that way," she said sharply. "Amanda's tough. She'll make it. You just have to have faith."
"Faith?" The derisive sound that Lee uttered could hardly be called laughter. "I gave up on faith a long time ago, Francine. Everyone that ever really meant anything to me has died, so I don't have much of a reserve of faith left anymore. And here I am again, waiting for Amanda to . . ."
"Stop it!" Lee didn't even bother to reply and the silence that fell was tense and painful. Finally, Francine shook his arm. "She needs you to be strong right now. Don't give up on her just when she needs you the most." When Lee still didn't respond, she sighed. Finally, she said, "You're a mess. Why don't you let Adam or me take you home so you can get cleaned up?"
"No," he replied immediately. "I won't leave her alone in this place."
"She's not alone," Francine argued. "There're all kinds of doctors and nurses with her, and Billy will be here, too. There's nothing you can do right now, and –"
"NO!" he snarled.
"Well, I didn't get much," Billy said, looking worriedly at Lee as he returned, "but at least I know that she's still alive. The woman I talked with said that they've just moved her to surgery and that Madison and his NEST team are here and in charge. I've sent him a message letting him know we're waiting. As soon as Madison knows anything, he'll see that the word is passed."
Lee had looked up when he heard Billy's voice, but now he dropped his head into his hands again and simply sat, motionless and silent. Billy stared down at him for a long moment and then caught Francine's arm and drew her off toward a quiet corner of the room, well out of Lee's hearing.
"All right, Francine, I want answers. What the hell is going on? What happened to Amanda? She wasn't on duty tonight. And what was Lee doing anywhere near her? He was ordered . . ."
"Be grateful he didn't follow your orders, Billy," Adam Dwyer said quietly, coming up to join the other two. "If he had, she would be dead now and my serial killer would still be on the loose."
"You mean the guy you've been chasing . . . the one that's been killing all those women . . ."
"Had picked his next victim and it was Amanda King," Dwyer said interrupting him. Swiftly, Dwyer outlined his discussion with Lee at the British Embassy, finishing by holding up the silver dolphin bracelet for Billy to see. "Carlyle had given one of these to Amanda. She must have been wearing it the last time Lee saw her and he recognized it. We went after them, but were damned near too late."
"Tell me," Billy demanded, riveted on Dwyer's explanation.
"She was knifed in the back before we could catch up to them," Francine replied with a shudder, glancing at her friend again. "Lee was just wild. What did they say about her condition?"
"Not a lot more than what I said a moment ago. But I did get this much . . . they're seriously worried." He glanced at Adam. "Didn't you say that the knife he usually used was heavy but with a very short blade?"
"Yes."
"Well, I think you've got your murder weapon then. The doctor I just talked with described the knife they took out of Amanda and it sounds exactly like that. He also said that the wounds weren't very deep, but that she was bleeding heavily."
Adam nodded. "That fits the profile."
"There was blood everywhere," Francine agreed with a shudder. "She was certain she was dying, Billy. You could tell it. She kept trying to talk to Lee . . . tell him the things she was afraid she would never have another chance to say. And he kept –" Suddenly, she broke off, a strange look on her face, as she thought back over that incoherent conversation. Baby? she thought blankly. Did he actually call her 'baby'? After a moment, she mentally shook herself. No . . . no, he didn't . . . of course he didn't. I must have heard him wrong.
"Francine!"
She blinked, her surroundings suddenly coming back into focus again as she felt Billy shaking her arm. "What?"
"What's wrong with you?" Billy demanded.
"Nothing," she replied hastily. "I just thought of something and lost track of what I was saying." She thought back frantically, trying to remember what they had been talking about.
"You were saying something about Amanda trying to tell Lee something and what Lee was doing . . ." Billy prompted her.
"Oh, yeah. He kept trying to shush her . . . like if she couldn't say them it would mean she wouldn't die." She looked at her boss, the strain in her face obvious as she relived those frantic moments and heard Lee's frantic cries to his partner echoing in her ears again. She licked her lips and continued in a low voice, "He kept telling her over and over that she couldn't die . . . that they were partners, and that partners don't –" At that, her voice cracked and she swallowed hard. After a moment, she added, "It was awful."
Billy looked over at Lee again. The pain that surrounded him was almost palpable, and Billy wondered briefly if he would survive the loss of another partner. Turning back to his assistant, Billy eyed her with concern. She was staring sightlessly at the floor, still lost in thought, and she was practically vibrating with tension. In an effort to draw her back out of the memories of the incident, he said, "Now, I have another question, Francine. I can understand how Lee ended up in the middle of this, but exactly how did you end up here?"
She blinked, focusing on him once more. Then a flush washed across her face and she stuttered, "Oh . . . well, I was just . . . you know, I had . . ."
"Yes?"
Looking decidedly uncomfortable, Francine glanced at Lee again and then looked back at Billy. Taking a deep breath, she said, "I'd been thinking about Carlyle ever since the episode when he turned up and gave Mrs. Marston such a hard time. It just seemed really funny to me. Then, I heard he was seen in the area again and I started to get suspicious. So I did some checking and found out that there were some really squirrelly things about the guy. I wasn't sure what to do about it, so I showed the stuff to Lee and . . . well . . . I guess I was in the right place at the right time, and . . ."
"You're telling me you were so disturbed by what you found that you hunted Lee down at some sort of a formal affair –"
"A reception at the British Embassy," Adam volunteered helpfully.
" – which he was attending on his own time, mind you – to show this stuff to him." Billy glanced over at Lee and then eyed Francine critically. "A function that you were decidedly underdressed for, obviously." He paused, staring at her challengingly, but when she opened her mouth to reply, he just held up his hand and shook his head. "Never mind. I think it's probably better if I don't know." For a long time, no one said anything else. Finally, Billy sighed heavily and asked in a low voice, "Has anyone notified her family?"
Adam shook his head. "No. I didn't know how you wanted to handle it. Furthermore, I thought it might be better if we had more of an idea of her condition first."
"I'm sorry, Adam," Billy said regretfully, "but I'm going to have to ask you to take care of it."
"From what he was saying a little while ago, Billy, Lee was planning on doing it," Francine warned.
But Melrose shook his head. "That's not a good idea, Francine. He's too broken up about this. How is he going to explain it to her family and not reveal how it is he knows her?" He glanced at Adam and added, by way of explanation, "Amanda's family has no idea she works for us and it probably needs to stay that way. But I don't think we should be in any hurry about it. We'll wait until after she gets out of surgery so we know something more definite."
"And pray she doesn't die on the table," Francine added softly. Billy nodded silently.
"All right," Adam replied with a sigh. "I have to admit that I really hoped you'd take care of it since she was one of your people, but if her family has no idea she works for the Agency, it probably will be better coming from me as agent in charge of the case. You know who I need to contact?"
"Amanda's mother lives with her and her two boys. She's the one you need to talk to." Francine rattled off a phone number. "Ask for Dorothea West."
Adam shook his head. "Raising two kids, supporting her mother, and working for the Agency? Lady's got guts, I'll give her that."
"I saw Scarecrow's car outside. Who's got the keys?" Billy asked.
"I do," Dwyer replied.
"Good. There's a car phone in it. When you get ready to call, use that. It will be quieter than the emergency room pay phone. No need to have hospital pages scaring the woman any worse than necessary." Billy waved at the chairs. "We might as well sit down. I think it's gonna be a while."
"Adam, let me have Lee's keys," Francine said, holding out her hand. Taking them, she nodded as she saw his apartment key on the ring. "I tried to get him to go home and clean up, but he absolutely refuses to leave. I'm going to run to his place and get him a change of clothes. I think I can probably coax him into cleaning up in the bathroom here if there's something for him to change into. I'll be as quick as I can, but call me if you hear anything."
Billy nodded. "Go on. We'll wait here with him."
A little over three hours later, a sudden disturbance brought Billy out of the doze he had fallen into. Looking up, he once again saw Lee standing at that nurse's station while the woman at counter attempted to prevent him from going down the hallway. Wondering what was going on, Billy rose hastily and crossed to the site of the commotion. When he arrived, he immediately understood. Gesturing urgently to the man Lee had spotted at the end of the corridor, he said called, "Dr. Madison."
As the graying man in surgical scrubs approached them, Lee surged forward again and grabbed the man's arm in a hard grip. "How is she? Where is she?" he demanded. "I need to see her! Is she down there?" When Lee tried to push past him, both Billy and the doctor held him back.
"Wait just a minute, Stetson. You can't go down there. She's just out of recovery and isn't being allowed visitors yet!"
"Damn it, Lee, just hold on!" Billy barked. "Dr. Madison, how is she? Will she be all right?"
The physician shook his head slowly. "I can't tell you with any degree of certainty yet, but the next 24 hours should tell us. Under normal circumstances, her injuries probably wouldn't have been life-threatening. The first blow was in her upper chest and nicked a lung, causing it to deflate. The build up of air in the chest cavity caused her to have difficulty breathing. The second blow was slightly lower and on the other side of her back and it sliced into the very top of her liver. Unfortunately, her attacker seems to have treated the knife blade with some type of anticoagulant that prevented the blood from clotting. It took us a long time to counteract whatever agent the man used and she lost a lot of blood. We're still pumping red cells into her as quickly as we can, trying to compensate for all the blood she lost. We've repaired as much of the damage as we could, and we've bled off the air in her chest and inserted a drainage tube to help keep her lungs clear, but it's still very touch and go. All we can do now is wait."
Lee turned to his boss, gripping his arm in a numbing grip. "Billy, I have to see her!"
"You heard Dr. Madison, Lee. There's nothing you can do. You only put her at greater risk if you get in the way."
"Please, Billy . . ." he said desperately. "I need to see her. She was convinced she was dying. She can't think that way. You know what will happen if she does. I have to talk to her!"
"She's still unconscious," Madison said, gripping the younger man's shoulder sympathetically. "She wouldn't be able to hear you anyway."
"Yes, she would. I know it!"
Adam gestured toward the door. "I'm going to go call her mother. I think it's time she knows what's going on."
Billy nodded and gestured for him to go on. "Lee –" he began, but was cut off before he could say any more.
"Please, Billy. She's my partner . . ." Lee begged.
Melrose hesitated, knowing the scene they were facing if Lee continued to be denied access to his partner. Finally, he turned to the waiting surgeon. "Dr. Madison, is there any way he can see her? Just for a few moments."
Madison hesitated, looking from one man to the other. Finally he sighed. "All right. But only you two and for no more than five minutes." He nodded up the hallway. "Next to the last door on your left."
Lee took off at a run toward the indicated door, while Billy paused only long enough to offer hasty thanks before following. When he entered the room, he stopped just inside the door, watching silently. Amanda lay motionless in the hospital bed in the center of the room. She was deathly pale and an assortment of wires and tubes connected her to the multitude of equipment that stood at the head of the bed. It seemed to Billy that the steady beep emitting from the heart monitor was way too slow, and fear tightened his heart at the thought that Amanda might not make it this time. There's irony for you, he thought bitterly. All of us have been concerned that she would die as a result of getting involved with us. But here she is, at death's door, and it had absolutely nothing to do with the Agency. It just doesn't seem fair.
Lee had obviously gone directly to the side of the bed when he entered the room. For a long time, he simply stood there staring down at his partner. Finally, he reached out, lowered the bed rail, and leaned over the edge. His hand shook slightly as he reached out and ran feather-light fingers down the side of her face.
"Hey, partner," he said in a low, hoarse voice. "Sorry I was away for so long, but that damned doctor wouldn't let me come back to see you. They're not going to let me stay very long, either, but your mother's on the way, so you won't be alone." He caressed the side of her face again and ran his thumb lightly across her lips. Billy noticed that his voice shook almost as much as his hand as he continued. "You have to come back, Amanda. I know you're angry with me. I don't know, maybe you have a right to be. But I worry about you. You're my friend and I don't want to see you hurt. I've never had a friend like you before . . . and I – I can't lose that . . . can't lose you. Please, Amanda . . . you have to come back . . . you have to . . ." His voice broke then, and he fell silent. Catching her right hand in his left and bowing his head, he simply stood silently beside her.
Billy's chest felt tight and he struggled to swallow around the lump in his throat as he watched and listened. Lee had fought long and hard against the idea of being teamed up with the Arlington housewife. And yet, from the very beginning, Billy had recognized that his responses to this woman were different than his responses to anyone else. Even when he was letting his mouth get ahead of his head, there was a subtle difference in the way he treated Amanda King . . . more respectful . . . and his remorse was genuine and instantaneous whenever he realized that he had hurt her in some way. She could also get him to do things no one else could. There was a rapport between them that was undeniable. He's falling for her, Billy thought with sudden clarity. Our womanizing, lone wolf has finally met his match . . . and he doesn't even realize it.
A sudden image flashed through Billy's mind. It was the night of James Delano's party. Lee and Amanda had gone in an attempt to determine what kind of deal Delano had cut with the East Germans. They had known it was dangerous . . . after all, Harry Singer had already died . . . but they needed the information and Amanda had created the opportunity. Billy remembered how strongly Lee had protested, saying that Amanda wasn't trained for that type of undercover work. But Amanda had been determined and he had overridden Lee's objections. When he led the backup teams in to mop up, they had found Lee standing on the front steps of James Delano's home with Amanda held tightly in his arms. With frightening clarity, Billy remembered the way her head lolled on his shoulder, the way her right arm hung lifelessly down from her side, and how, when he first saw them, he had been certain that she was dead. Lee had stood, silent and unresponsive, waiting for the ambulance to arrive. The memory of Lee's look of devastation made Billy shudder. They had only worked together about a half-dozen times when that incident occurred. What would it do to him to lose her now, a year and a half later and after all that had happened between them?
Behind him, the door opened and Francine slipped to his side. "Billy," she said softly, "we've got to go. Mrs. West just arrived. Adam said he'd delay her for as long as he could, but none of us can be found here with her. It will cause too many questions."
Billy nodded his understanding and gestured for her to go. Francine gazed at Lee and Amanda for a long moment, then shook her head sadly and left without another word. As the door closed softly, Billy stepped forward and caught Lee's arm. "I'm sorry, Lee, but we have to go. Amanda's mother is here." For a moment, Billy didn't think that Lee heard him. Finally, he nodded slightly and cleared his throat with difficulty.
"I have to go now, Amanda," he said to the motionless woman on the bed. "Your mother's here and she'll look after you." He leaned down and kissed her forehead tenderly. "I'll be back just as soon as they'll let me. I promise. You just hang on, you hear me?"
The door opened once more and Francine stuck her head in. "Billy," she hissed, "come on! Adam can't hold her much longer . . ."
Lee pulled free from Billy and leaned down and kissed Amanda's forehead again. "I'll be back, partner." Then the three of them turned and fled the room, barely getting into a vacant treatment room across the hall before Dotty West came charging down the hallway and disappeared into Amanda's room. Adam followed quickly, looking concerned. Billy's gesture caught his attention and a look of relief flashed across the FBI agent's face. He motioned silently for them to stay where they were, and then he disappeared into the room after Dotty. A moment later, he reappeared.
"You're clear," he said in a low voice, and the three of them slipped back out into the hallway. "Get going. I think Mrs. West is here for the night."
Billy nodded. "Stick close to her for a while, okay? And keep in touch with the doctor and let us know what he says."
"Will do."
Grabbing Lee by the arm, he gestured to both of his agents and they left hastily.
