Title: The Price We Pay

Disclosure: Warner Brothers Television Distribution and Shoot The Moon Productions owns these characters, as well as to the writers, and actors who created and portrayed them. Generous references to the past and the events of the 4th season... I don't make any money off of this - my only reward is my personal satisfaction at having written a decent story (and the story is all mine). Oh, and any new characters that you meet along the way - those are creations from my own twisted imagination, so hands off, unless you ask for permission to play with them.

See Chapter 1 for more information on timing and all that other good stuff...

Chapter 13 is clearly not going to be the conclusion of the story, as I had an epiphany this evening and changed direction slightly... and I still have a bit of a ways to go...

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After Becca had left the room, Amanda laid her head down on her desk in relief. In truth, she was trying not to giggle, but from all outward appearances, it seemed as if she were trying not to cry. To that end, Lee didn't know what to do being shaken himself from the close interaction with Becca and chose to turn his chair towards the window. Finally, Amanda lifted her head and gasped for breath. Lee turned, hoping that he could say something that would make it better, and caught the twinkle in his wife's eye.

"Amanda? Are you all right?" Lee clearly was confused by this change of events.

Laughing, and trying to catch her breath, Amanda nodded. "Oh, Lee," she continued to speak between fits of laughing, "you should have seen yourself when I came out of the vault. You looked like a deer caught in headlights!" With that, Amanda started laughing again.

"I can't find the humor in this, Amanda. Becca is most likely to be the one who is writing you those letters." Lee stood up and crossed his arms, standing over Amanda's desk trying to look stern. He failed, and Amanda continued to smile, all the while trying to get herself back under control.

"I know. I figured that out before I went into the vault. Lee, we can take this to Billy and be done with it." Amanda got under control and became a little more serious as she continued the conversation. "It's over, Lee. It's going to be over. No more phone calls, no more flowers, no more letters." She stood up and approached her husband and reached out to touch his hand. "I'm so relieved I don't think I even care why this whole thing happened." She moved closer to Lee, loosening his arms to place them around her waist, and placing her hands just under his suit lapels.

Lee stiffened slightly, then relaxing under his wife's touch. He recalled Becca moving against him in much the same way just a few minutes earlier, but with Amanda he felt warmth, love, and a comfortable feeling of being home. He smiled down at Amanda who was looking up at him with such hope that their ordeal was almost over, and nodded his agreement. She snuggled into his embrace, tucking her head down into his shoulder, and he placed his chin atop her head. And all felt right with the Stetson's world.

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That feeling didn't stay with them through the remainder of the day, however. The approaching evening found Lee and Amanda sitting at the kitchen table with leftover lasagna in front of them. Lee had barely taken a few bites; Amanda was simply pushing the food around the plate with her fork.

They had left the Q shortly after Becca had left, and they'd barely spoken since then. Upon arriving home they had spent the rest of their afternoon in separate parts of the house doing little non-taxing tasks. It wasn't that they were purposefully avoiding each other, but that not talking about the subject that was foremost at their consciousness just seemed easier. Amanda and Lee both knew that they would have to talk about the situation and how to approach Billy about their findings. While it was fairly obvious to the both of them that it was Becca who was behind everything, Billy would want evidence of a less coincidental nature than her hitting on Lee mercilessly and the fact that the typewriter in the Q had a dropped 's'.

As she now pushed her food around her plate, Amanda knew that she finally had a name as to who was trying to instill doubts in her about her husband's faithfulness, and despite her earlier statement, she *did* care about the reason why. This was the crux of the problem - they couldn't bring this to Billy without a solid reason why, and other than an initial thought that Becca was simply obsessed, Amanda couldn't figure out another reason why. And other than obtaining samples of how the letter 's' sat in every other typewriter in The Agency compound, there was no concrete way to prove that the letters came from the Q.

Lee had continued chewing the same bite of food for the previous five minutes. He was also trying to figure out why Becca had pursued this course of action. In his colorful past he had intrigued many women with his looks and panache, and many had been broken hearted when they had called him, sometimes for weeks afterward, with no positive results to show for it. But they had never progressed to the point of obsession, and neither had he, he thought, with two small exceptions on his part. He had been obsessed with finding out what had happened with his parents and how Thomas Blackthorne had been involved. But that was minor when he compared it to how he felt about Amanda. His eyes watched her every movement now, as she stared at her plate and moved the food around. His heart ached that he couldn't have done anything to prevent the whole situation from happening. He knew that he was in more pain than Amanda - to the point where the emotional pain was starting to manifest itself physically and mentally - he had a headache that wouldn't quit, his body was feeling exhausted, and his thoughts weren't quite of a rational nature. 'If anything ever happened to her...' he straightened up slightly, stopping the thought abruptly. He knew that he would lay his life down to spare hers and the thought of anything happening to her was impossible to comprehend and unbearable to ponder. And nothing would happen to Amanda - she knew how to take care of herself, and Becca wasn't much of a threat to the two of them.

The results of one of Amanda's earlier tasks in the day sat on the kitchen counter. She had decided to burn off some anger and energy and spent the afternoon melting and tempering chocolate to make a cake from scratch. She'd spent the time while the cake was baking working on the frosting, and grating more chocolate for decoration. Lee couldn't wait to have a slice, but he expected that he wouldn't fully appreciate the taste. He could barely discern the flavor of what he was eating at the moment.

Later that night, Amanda quietly brought some lemonade out to the two agents still positioned outside the house. Jack Stevens thanked her with an enthusiastic smile, and was puzzled when she walked away with just a quick lift at the corner of her mouth, and a very quiet and solemn wish for a goodnight. Stevens cocked his head toward his right shoulder as he watched her walk away. His partner, Russell Lynne, grabbed the thermos and chuckled. "See, Stevens, paradise can't last forever with Stetson."

Jack held out a cup he had in the car for some of the lemonade, keeping his eyes on the retreating agent. As he watched, he noticed a slight movement from the front windows of the house, and found himself making eye contact with Lee Stetson. Jack gave a quick nod of his head to Lee, who mirrored the movement at almost the same time. "Doesn't look like that to me, Russell." As Amanda got closer to the front door, Lee moved from the front window. He met his wife at the door, with an arm quickly moving into position around her back at her waist before the door closed, obscuring any further view of the two agents from Jack's sight. He shook his head once again at the younger agent and his apparent naiveté at the dynamics of a permanent commitment. As he turned to look at the younger agent who was surprised at Stetson's interaction with his wife, he chuckled lightly. "Russell, you have so much to learn."

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Morning came quietly to the house on Maplewood drive. It was clear to Lee that Amanda was still grappling with the events of the previous day. Amanda went about getting ready for the morning very quietly, and without her usual smile or bounce in her step. Lee figured that the events of the previous day had been too much to add to her already fragile state. Despite the laughter that they shared yesterday afternoon over Amanda surprising Becca by coming out of the vault, Lee knew that his wife wasn't happy over the turn of events. Neither was Lee - after worrying about Amanda while she was in Pfaff, and then finding the dropped 's' on their own typewriter in the Q, combined with a lack of sleep made for a very grumpy agent.

Lee and Amanda had stayed up the previous night after she brought their two friendly 'watchdogs' the thermos of lemonade, trying to figure out the best way to approach Billy with the information they had found yesterday. They both knew that what they had found could easily be dismissed, but they also knew that Billy wasn't going to discount it easily either. There had been many an agent who had discounted Amanda's gut feelings about things and had been sorry for it afterward when it proved that she was right. Lee knew that Billy wouldn't write this off immediately, simply because of that fact.

But Lee also knew that Billy wouldn't give a lot of attention to a theory that was coming from an emotionally drained agent, no matter how much he respected and trusted them. When personal matters crossed the line into the workplace, there was very little that an agent could do to make their case be heard and believed. And Lee knew that Billy wouldn't be any different on this situation. That's why Lee was going to talk to Billy alone. He and Amanda had quarreled over this issue well into the night - Amanda defending her right to present this to Billy with every argument she could come up with. And it had taken hours for Lee to make her see that her arguments about his being her life and her husband wouldn't fly with their Section Chief - no matter how beloved they were to him.

Lee had convinced Amanda to stay home for the morning - she was tired after the long night, and she wouldn't be in the right mind to focus on work anyway. She agreed reluctantly, knowing that she would be safe at home with the watchdogs outside. After a quiet breakfast of toast and coffee, of which Amanda barely had a couple of bites, Lee put down the newspaper and moved across the kitchen to where Amanda was standing, looking out the kitchen window. He wrapped his arms around her from behind, and felt her relax into his embrace. After a moment she turned to snuggle into him for a long and reassuring hug. Lee placed his chin on the top of her head, as she burrowed into his shoulder, and tightened his grip on Amanda. 'And if things weren't so nuts with Becca, I would say that all was right with the world,' he thought and then changed his mind the very next second. 'And that's what I thought yesterday in the Q before Amanda let this drag her down and tire her out. We should have gone to Billy yesterday with this.'

As if she were reading his mind, Amanda spoke up. "Lee, go talk with Billy. We should have yesterday, and I just want this over with." She straightened up in his arms and looked into his eyes. As she opened her mouth again to speak, she yawned instead. When she finally stopped, she was blushing slightly. "I'm sorry."

Lee held up one hand. "You're tired. I'm tired. Stay home, take a nap, and I'll be back in an hour or two after I've talked with Billy. OK?"

Amanda nodded. "I'll just start cleaning up some of the-" Lee placed a finger over her lips.

"No, you're not. Rest today. Read a book. Pamper yourself in a bubble bath. Don't think about work, or housework, or anything else. I'll bring home some Chinese food for lunch and let you know what Billy said. OK?" Lee placed a stern emphasis on the OK this time to try and convey his meaning to Amanda.

"OK. Gotcha. I'll be lazy today." She leaned forward to kiss Lee lightly. He tightened his arms around her again, and accepted the kiss, and then placed one on her forehead. He stood there for a couple more minutes with his lips against her forehead, and his eyes closed, breathing in the scent of her shampoo. He was going to go make everything right with the world again just for Amanda. He stepped back and smiled at her before grabbing his keys off the counter and heading out the front door. As he got into the Corvette, he nodded once again to Jack Stevens and his partner, and drove away.

Back inside the house, Amanda remained standing where Lee had left her, looking around the house with a critical eye. Knowing that housework waits for no one, she thought about a few easy tasks she could set about doing, including reviewing a few files from the Q, before settling down with a book, as Lee had suggested.

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Jack watched as Lee Stetson got into his car and drove away, knowing that Amanda was still in the house. Russell was slumped down in his seat, trying to catch a few winks before their shift was over. 'Stetson, if I were you, I wouldn't leave a woman like that alone in the house,' Jack thought to himself. He knew that Amanda was completely qualified to protect herself in almost any situation, but that still didn't quell the butterflies in Jack's stomach. Needless to say, Jack would do anything to protect Amanda King Stetson - it was his job, and she was a lady of class and grace who deserved it.

He was just thinking about how his partner would probably never be able to recognize and appreciate that kind of woman, when an Agency vehicle pulled up behind them. Jack reached over and punched Russell lightly on the shoulder to get him to wake up. After a groan and a moment, Russell sat up and rubbed his hands over the stubble on his face. "What's the matter, Jack?"

"Looks like our relief is here. We can go and catch a few winks on real beds for a couple of hours." Jack watched through the rearview mirror as he tried to figure out who was in the car behind them, as it wasn't the car that Lindsey and Cabral usually used, but the sun shining on the windshield obscured his vision and he averted his eyes so as to not be blinded by the shine. Russell stretched as much as he could in the confines of the front passenger seat and shifted in his seat to try and get a view of who was in the car behind them, but he couldn't determine who it was either. Just then the driver side door opened.

Russell watched as Becca Dobson got out of the car, and came around to the passenger side window of their surveillance vehicle. 'Well, well, well, isn't this a sight to see,' Russell thought to himself. He unrolled the window and looked up into Becca's smiling face. "Hi there, gorgeous. Ask me anything and I'll get it for you."

"Morning, boys. Uneventful night here in suburbia, I take it?" Becca took a step back from the car, and leaned her arms on the edge of the window, taking full advantage of the fact that Russell would be staring straight down the v-neck cut of her light yellow sweater. She almost patted herself on the back for wearing the pink lace demi-cup, as she noticed Russell start to redden and shift in his seat as he looked down the front. Becca found herself slightly disappointed that she didn't elicit the same reaction from Jack. He simply rolled his eyes upward, and developed a wry smile on his face. "Dobson," he greeted her gruffly, "Are you are relief car?"

"Yup, just little ole me, unless one of you gentlemen wants to spend the next 8-10 hours with me in the car? Have to warn you, though, it's supposed to get up into the 90s today." Becca smiled over at Jack, and when the agent didn't change the look on his face, she aimed her eyes and smile over at Russell, who looked almost awestruck. 'This guy has *got* to get a life,' she thought to herself. It was a dangerous question she asked, but she knew that neither agent would want to pull watchdog duty on a hot summer day, no matter how enticing the company would be. Both agents shook her heads negatively in response to her question, and she sighed inwardly in relief. But her relief was short-lived.

Jack spoke up. "Where are Cabral and Lindsey? They're supposed to be here to relieve us." Jack watched the female agent carefully, but if she was up to something, it certainly wasn't apparent to him.

"They got tied up on another matter, so I stepped in."

"That was good of you, Dobson." Jack nodded his head.

Russell broke from his reverie to voice his agreement. "Yeah, Becca, you're an angel." He winked broadly at the woman, who simply smiled back at him.

"Come on guys, get out of here. I'm sure you have comfortable beds waiting for you at home." Knowing that they wouldn't be heading back to The Agency and reinforcing that fact made Becca feel that much more confident. "I've got this situation covered."

Jack looked over at Russell and was fairly convinced that the other agent wouldn't be able to speak for the look of lust and puppy love that battled for the real estate of his face. "Last night was uneventful, Boo. The Stetson's came home, didn't leave the house again for the night except when Amanda brought us some lemonade." Jack reached behind the seat and brought up the thermos. He passed it in front of his partner to hand it to Becca. "Scarecrow left just before you got here for work, and Mrs. King is still in the house, alone. When you give the thermos to her, could you give her our thanks? That was some of the best tasting lemonade I've had in a long while." Jack turned the ignition over in the car, and put it into gear. He couldn't wait to get home, and he knew, despite his reservations over Becca's overtly physical nature, that she was a good agent. "Have a good one, Boo. And don't forget to thank Mrs. King for me." Jack pulled away from the curb and headed down the street.

Becca got back into her Agency issue vehicle as Jack was driving away. "Oh, you can be sure that I'll thank Amanda. Personally."