See Part 1 for Disclaimers, Notes, etc.
Chapter 3
Lee opened his apartment door to find that his home held the same emptiness he had found in the Q-Bureau. He tossed his keys on the table by the door and went directly to his bedroom. He needed a quick shower and change before heading back to the Agency.
He opened his closet door to retrieve a change of clothes. He stopped his search as he realized all of Amanda's personal effects had been removed. She had kept some clothing and makeup at his apartment for all those cases that turned out messy. This made her life easier when she didn't have to face her mother with a bullet hole in her sweater, or mud caked on her clothes. He left the closet open and went to inspect his bathroom. "It's all gone. It's like she was never part of my life," Lee groaned as he went to his dresser.
He pulled open the drawer gradually, afraid that it wouldn't be there. He pulled the velvet box from its hiding place and walked over to his bed. He slumped down onto the bed and opened the petite box. The diamond within glistened at him as the light from the window caught its reflection. He had placed his hopes for his future in this tiny object a few months ago. Lee remembered the love that shone in Amanda's eyes as he placed the ring on her finger that day in the Q-Bureau; it was undeniable that she loved him.
Lee closed the box and placed it back in its hiding place. "When I find out what is going on you, will not be kept in this damn drawer," he vowed. He turned his attention to the task of preparing to go back to the Agency.
Amanda focused on the houses that were decked with Christmas decorations as she rode to the airport. Her body tensed as the car pulled off to a side street and stopped. She coughed slightly as the back seat filled with smoke, and the window from the driver's compartment slid all the way down.
"I see that Scarecrow didn't take the news well."
"How did you expect him to take it?" Amanda fanned her hand in the air to remove the smoke from her face.
"He's an agent. Agents don't get emotionally attached, my dear." Smyth turned to face Amanda.
"He's a man, not a robot." Amanda looked into his emotionless blue eyes.
"You must not be concerned about our little Scarecrow's feelings. It's his life you are interested in." Smyth mocked as a crooked grin crossed his lips.
"I know that," Amanda firmly stated.
"The last agent that went missing was found floating in the Potomac yesterday. Tests show that he was doped to the gills with truth serum. We can't afford for all our little secrets to get out." Smyth exhaled another cloud of smoke.
Amanda bit her lip in an effort to hold back the words she wanted to fling at Smyth.
"Cat got your tongue?" Smyth chided, narrowing his eyes at her.
Amanda glared at him, but remained silent.
"Well, well. You're running out of time, 'Little Mother Hubbard'. Before long, when you go to the cupboard to fetch your poor dog a bone, you may find it to be bare. Do I make myself clear?" Smyth asked as a small smile crossed his lips.
"Crystal clear, Sir," Amanda calmly stated.
"Carry on." Smyth opened his door and exited the car.
Amanda exhaled the breath she was holding. Smyth's verbal garbage meant that Lee's name was rising to the top of the list. She was going to have to make this trip count.
"You all right, Mrs. King?" the young driver asked.
"I'll be fine. Let's go. We shouldn't keep Mr. Dobson waiting." Amanda tenderly smiled at him.
"Yes, ma'am," the driver said before he closed the window between them.
Lee entered the Q-Bureau to make a few quick phone calls to his civilian contacts, and then a trip back to Billy Melrose's office was in order. He shuffled through the papers on his desk looking for his contact book.
"Hello, Mr. Stetson."
Lee looked up from his task to find a man in his early twenties standing in the office doorway.
"Can I help you?" he asked, annoyed to be pulled from his search.
Kevin strode over to Lee's desk and extended his hand. "My name is Kevin Miles. I'm your new partner."
Lee looked at the young man as if he were a leper. "I think you've been given the wrong impression. I already have a partner," he sneered, glaring at the young man.
"I don't think so. Mr. Melrose sent me up here to introduce myself," Kevin beamed as he walked over to Amanda's empty desk. "So, what's our first assignment?"
Lee watched the self-assured man make himself comfortable in Amanda's chair. He was neither in the mood, nor did he have the patience, to deal with this arrogant rookie.
"We'll discuss this further later. Right now I need to go have a word with Billy. You stay here and don't touch anything! Understand?" Lee snapped, emphasizing his last few words.
"Yep, I'll be waiting right here for you, Chief." Kevin quipped back at him.
Lee gave his boss's door a light tap before he entered. Taking a seat in front of Billy's desk he asked, "Billy, what's the big idea of sending me a new partner? I thought we already had this discussion?"
"Good afternoon, Lee." Billy cheerfully smiled at his employee.
"Well!" Lee was growing impatient.
"You need a partner in the Q-Bureau, Lee. You can't handle the caseload all by yourself." Billy leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Billy, I don't need a new partner. I already have one," Lee insisted as he rose to pace the room.
"Do you know something that I don't?" Billy arched his thick eyebrows.
"Amanda is still my partner regardless of what you, she, or anybody else says for that matter." Lee stopped in his tracks and turned to face Billy. "Something stinks about all of this and I'm going to find out what it is
"Lee, you need to face the facts that she has moved on with her life, just like you should be moving on with yours," Billy tried to convince him.
Lee gave Billy a quick glance before he continued his pacing.
Billy watched his agent and friend. He knew that this had to be hard on Lee. He was finding it hard on himself not to tell Lee the truth, but he knew that Amanda didn't need him shadowing her at the moment. She was treading on thin ice, and needed her contrary partner as far away as possible. "What did Amanda have to say?"
Lee stopped at the window and looked towards his superior. "How did you know that I talked to her?"
"I know you, Scarecrow. You went to straight to the horses mouth for answers," Billy responded.
"So? What if I did?" Lee snapped, returning his attention back to the bullpen.
"What did she tell you?" Billy asked. He could only imagine how hard it had been on Amanda to face the wrath of a very pissed off Lee.
"It doesn't really matter what she said, it was how she said it," Lee glared at his boss.
Billy rose from his chair and placed his hand on his friend's shoulder. "Lee, I know you're hurt. She had a hard time deciding, but in the end, we all have to accept her decision."
"Hurt! I hardly think that describes what I'm feeling at the moment," Lee grumbled as he looked back out at the busy bullpen.
"Give it time. It's always hard to let someone you care about go. Perhaps, if you throw yourself into your work, everything will look better in a few days," Billy said, trying once more to take Lee's mind off of Amanda.
"It seems the bad guys are the only ones I can depend on not to change." Lee turned from the window, and flopped in the chair in front of Billy's desk.
"Yeah, they are definitely a constant in our lives. What do you say you give your new partner the grand tour of the Q-Bureau?" Billy returned to his desk.
"Billy, I already told you—" Lee began.
"I know it'll be hard to adjust to someone new, but I think you should give Kevin a chance. He definitely needs some refining and I think you're just the man to do it," Billy interrupted Lee.
"I don't want--" Lee started again.
"Don't make me make this an order, Scarecrow. Just do it!" Billy firmly stated.
Lee stood and left the office quietly, almost too quiet for Billy's comfort.
"I'm going to have to send him out of the area and as far away from Amanda King as possible if this operation is going to work," he mumbled, watching Lee exit the bullpen. Billy reached for his red phone to make a few inquiries about the availability of any out of state assignments.
Lee walked up the steps to the Q-Bureau as if he were walking through quicksand. He mulled over Billy's words. 'I'll give Kevin the grand tour and more. I think me and rookie boy have a new assignment: Mrs. Amanda King,' Lee thought as a slight smile glinted across his face.
Amanda pulled her coat up around her neck as she walked through the frigid air into the airport terminal.
Mark slipped up behind her placing his arm around her waist. "I'm glad to see you made it."
Forcing a smile to her lips Amanda replied, "The roads were clear. The state is really on top of things this year."
"FLIGHT 739 TO ATLANTA, GEORGIA NOW BOARDING AT GATE 34," an airport attendant announced over the intercom.
Amanda pointed to the flight chart. "That's our flight, Mark. I guess we should be heading that way."
"Nope. We've had a change of venue," Mark cheerfully replied.
"What do you mean?" Amanda asked as she looked up at Mark's cheerful face.
Mark took her hand and led her in the other direction. "I.A. had some important information that was needed in New York. I thought it would be a perfect opportunity for me to show you around the New York office. We work so closely with them."
"Oh, Mark, that was very considerate of you." Amanda's mind raced with the new information. Mr. Melrose and Dr. Smyth both thought she was going to Atlanta. Her backup was already on the way there. She needed to slip away from Mark and inform them before she boarded the plane.
Mark continued to lead her in the direction of the terminal gate that lead to the private jet. "Not a problem. I don't want my new aide to be in the dark about our operations there."
"I really should go to the ladies room before we board," Amanda stated, hoping for the time needed to make a quick phone call.
Mark tightly gripped her hand. "We really need to board now, since we are flying in on a private jet, and the pilot doesn't like to be kept waiting."
Amanda didn't want to tip her hand, so she returned his grip and continued with him to the gate. "Oh, I didn't know that I.A. had a private jet."
"A friend of mine is letting us borrow it for the flight to New York. There weren't any spaces available for us on regular flights, and he owed me a favor," Mark boosted.
"That was very nice of him. Whose jet is it?" Amanda asked, hoping to obtain more information about Mark's associates.
"You wouldn't know him. He's the type of man who keeps pretty much to himself," Mark explained as he stopped at the terminal gate. "We're here."
Amanda straightened his tie. "You'll have to thank him for me."
Mark smiled down at the beautiful woman before him. "You never know, you might just get to meet him on this trip." He was going to enjoy her company; even more than that, he was going to love flaunting her in front of Lee Stetson over the next few weeks.
"That would be wonderful!" Amanda exclaimed as she took the hand Mark offered, and followed him down the walkway to the jet.
Chapter 4
Lee entered the Q-Bureau to find Amanda's desk empty. He looked over towards his own desk to find that Kevin was engrossed in one of his civilian contact books. Letting the door slam behind him, he took two quick strides in the direction of his desk.
As Lee ripped the book from Kevin's clutches, he shouted, "What in the hell do you think you're doing!"
"I was just trying to get familiar with our contacts." Kevin looked calmly at the angry senior agent.
"This is my book, not yours," Lee seethed through clinched teeth.
Kevin quickly exited Lee's chair. "Wow, Chief. No harm intended, man."
As Lee shoved the book into his coat pocket, he could feel his blood pressure rising to the boiling point. "I told you NOT to touch anything! What part of 'anything' don't you understand?"
"I just thought—" Kevin started.
"You thought wrong." Lee continued to glare at Kevin as he sat behind his desk, and turned his computer on.
Kevin decided he should change the subject. Taking up residence behind Lee, he asked, "So, what did Mr. Melrose have to say?"
Lee swore under his breath as he felt Kevin's presence looming over him. Pointing towards Amanda's desk, he ordered, "Just go take a seat over there."
Kevin took a few steps toward the desk. "Man, who pissed in your cheerios this morning?"
"Mark Dobson," he muttered to himself. Glancing up from his task at hand and glaring at the young man, Lee raised his voice, "Just sit your butt down and mind your own business." As he watched Kevin move towards Amanda's desk, he returned his attention back to the computer.
"Pretty nice office we have, Chief," Kevin ignored Lee's orders and decided to check out the vault instead.
"Don't get too used to it," Lee snapped.
"You didn't answer my question about Mr. Melrose," Kevin pointed out as he opened the vault door.
Lee looked up to see Kevin entering the other room. "How in the hell did you do that?"
"Mr. Melrose gave me the combination. I guess he figured you wouldn't." Kevin shrugged his shoulders and continued his investigating.
Lee ignored the smart comment and continued to fight with the computer. "Shit!"
"What is it?" Kevin asked, stepping out from the vault.
"I can't get this damn thing to cooperate! Amanda always did this stuff." Lee slammed his hand down onto the top of the monitor.
Kevin walked to the front of Lee's desk. "I'm pretty good with those things. I took a few classes last semester at college."
Lee looked up and gave the rookie a hard stare before standing up. "Well, college boy, are you going to stand there all day, or are you going to help me?"
"What do you need?" Kevin asked as he quickly took Lee's seat.
"The first thing that I need is for you to remember that 'partner's' are always loyal to each other. Also, I'm the senior agent, and what I say goes." Lee placed his hand on Kevin's shoulder and gave it a good squeeze.
"Yeah?" Kevin looked up to see that Lee's eyes had narrowed, and his face had hardened.
"So, what we do here is between us. Got it!" Lee released his grip on Kevin's shoulder.
Kevin smiled up at Lee. "Got it. So, what do you need me to look up, Chief?"
"Mark Dobson."
"Isn't he one of the head honchos over at I.A.?" Kevin asked nervously. He wasn't sure what to make of the request.
"Yes. Now pull up his file," Lee insisted.
"Okay, okay, hold your horses." Kevin shook his head and began working on the computer. As he did, he began to wonder how Mrs. King had put up with this man for so long. He had only been with the famous Scarecrow for less than an hour, and he was already regretting his request to be his partner. He had met Mrs. King a few times in a couple of Beaman's training classes. He always thought she was a gentle, kind woman; now he knew she had to be a saint. 'I think I can see why she took another job,' he mused to himself. A few minutes later he had found the correct menu, and attempted to pull up Dobson's file.
"Sorry, Chief. No can do." Kevin looked back at Lee.
Lee looked over the rookie's shoulder at the monitor. "Stop calling me CHIEF. The name is either Lee or Scarecrow. Understand? Now, why the hell can't you get into Dobson's files?"
Kevin turned to look at the towering figure. "Sorry, I'll try and remember that." Turning back to the computer monitor, he answered, "It appears his file has a security code Delta Green – 17."
"Damn it!" Lee ran his left hand through his thick hair in frustration.
"I may be able to crack the code, if you give me a day or so. It's going to take me some time with all the security codes I have to break to get into a Delta Green – 17 level."
"Well, don't just sit there. Get started. What are you waiting for? An invitation?" Lee gave Kevin a hard pat on the back.
Kevin glanced at Lee's approving smile and went to work.
Billy sat in his office and stared at the red phone on the desk.
"If I didn't know better, I'd think you were waiting for that phone to grow legs and walk out of here," Francine laughed as she walked over to Billy's desk.
"I'm waiting on an important call. Do you have everything ready for your trip?" Billy asked, his eyes still on the phone.
Francine held out her ticket for evidence. "Yes, I have my ticket in hand."
Billy pulled his gaze from the phone and stared at Francine. "Good. I want you to report to me every twelve hours. You know how important this is, and how much is at stake."
"Yes, Billy, I know." Francine asked, taking a seat in front of Billy's desk. "So, how is Lee taking all of this?"
Billy raised his eyebrows and leaned back in his leather chair. "How do you think?"
"That good, huh?" Francine gave him a half smile.
"I don't know how long I can keep him occupied. He's really going to sink his teeth in on this one until he gets some answers," Billy groaned.
"Scarecrow always does. I'm surprised you have any walls left in this room with the loop Amanda's thrown him."
"At first, he was livid. Then, he went and talked to Amanda." Billy grimaced at the image in his head of Amanda trying to deal with Lee.
"He went to see Amanda!" Francine's eyes went wide with shock.
"Yep. When he got back here he was irate, but by the time he left, he had calmed down; I mean, really calmed. He was too quiet; way too quiet, if you know what I mean." Billy returned his gaze to the phone.
"Uh oh! It's not good when he gets like that, Billy. What are you going to do with him?" Francine asked as she focused on her boss's distressed face.
"I'm going to have to send him out of state. As soon as this damn phone rings, I'll know exactly where. They found another agent last night?" Billy tone softened with his last comment.
"Who?" Francine asked, her voice barely audible.
"Jack Spencer."
Francine gave Billy a puzzled look. "I don't recognize the name."
"No, you wouldn't. He was one of our deep undercover men. He has been out on assignment for over a year. He only reported to the top; I mean, the very top." Billy pointed to the ceiling to emphasize his words.
"Oh. Do you know why he was targeted?" Francine asked as she played with the ticket in her hand.
Billy gave Francine a weak smile. "Who knows, Francine? The only information that we can get is that there is a partial list of agents to be eliminated. We know that Scarecrow is on that list, we just don't know when, where, or how. I just hope that Amanda has better luck in getting to the bottom of all of this than the rest of us."
"She's taking a big chance, Billy."
"I know, Francine. She's our only hope right now. If she doesn't come up with something soon--" He stood to look out into the bullpen full of agents.
"Amanda will do the best she can. I know I've put her down in the past, but she knows what's truly at stake here." Francine stood and moved to Billy's side.
"As I stand here and look out at my bullpen, I could be looking at our next victim." Billy focused his brown eyes to meet Francine's concerned face.
"I know, Billy. We just have to keep our fingers and toes crossed," she said, trying to reassure him.
"A few prayers wouldn't hurt," Billy sighed as Francine put her arm around his shoulder.
Lee walked back and forth behind Kevin.
Kevin pushed his chair back to block Lee's path. "I could work a lot better if you weren't hovering over me."
"I think better when I pace. You've been working on that thing for over fifteen minutes." Lee glared at the computer screen.
"I told you it would take time. I guess patience is not one of your strong suites is it, chi…Scarecrow," Kevin laughed as he returned his attention to the keyboard.
Lee rolled his eyes and continued his rampage on the defenseless floor. He stopped mid-stride as the phone rang.
"Scarecrow, here," Lee spat out.
"Lee, I have an assignment for you and your new partner," Billy informed him.
"I don't think we can handle anything new right now, Billy. I'm busy introducing Kevin to the wonderful world of the Q-Bureau, remember?" Lee commented sarcastically.
"Oh, I think this would be a perfect opportunity for you to break Kevin in. The Vice President is having a small gathering at The Plaza in New York tomorrow. They have requested that I send my best operative there for extra security," Billy stated firmly.
"Can't you send Francine? She loves those high society things," Lee asked.
"She's already on an assignment. I need you to take care of this for me. It came straight from the top, so no arguments, Scarecrow. I expect you to be on the next flight out."
"When would that be?" Lee retorted.
"I have Debbie working on that as we speak. I'll call you in a few minutes with the details," Billy explained.
"Billy, I don't think—" Lee started to protest.
"Wait just a minute, here comes Debbie now." Billy motioned for the young agent to enter his office. "What did you find out, Debbie?" he asked.
Debbie started to reply, but was interrupted as Rag Mop entered the office behind her.
"Sorry, but I need to clean up in here, Mr. Melrose," Rag Mop informed the section chief.
"Go ahead, Rag Mop," Billy said, giving him a brief smile, then returned his attention back to the young woman. "You were saying, Debbie."
"They had several openings on the five o'clock flight to New York, Sir. I couldn't book them any earlier. Apparently, the noon and one o'clock shuttles were cancelled. That caused the two o'clock and three o'clock shuttles to be over-booked. Five o'clock was the best I could do," she explained
"Don't worry, the five o'clock will be fine. That'll give them plenty of time to pack and make the flight."
Debbie smiled at Billy. "I also received a package from Dr. Smyth about their assignment status for the Vice President and their accommodations."
"Great. Take them up to the Q-Bureau and give them to Lee." Billy placed the receiver back to his ear. "You two have a five o'clock flight. I'm sending Debbie up now with your case file. I expect you two to go home and pack right after she give it to you," he informed Lee.
"I still don't like the idea," Lee reiterated.
"I don't care. These are your orders, Scarecrow," Billy stated strongly.
"Yes, Sir," Lee mockingly replied, and hung up the phone.
"So what's the scoop, Chief?" Kevin looked to see Lee's annoyed face. "Oops! Sorry, I mean, Lee."
"We have been given the honor of baby-sitting the Vice President," Lee huffed.
"Really! Man that's cool. When do we leave?" Kevin smiled brightly.
Lee looked at Kevin with disgust. "Our flight leaves at five."
"I know you had other ideas in mind, but doesn't I.A. have a headquarters up there too?" Kevin asked.
"Yeah, you're right. They do. Maybe we can kill two birds with one stone," Lee replied. His angry features began to soften as a grin slowly spread across his face.
"I can still do what you want on the computer once we get there. I'm sure we can tap into I.A from the Agency office in New York," Kevin added as he noticed Lee's look of approval.
"Good! Just remember to keep this little tidbit between you and me, and we should be just fine." Lee glanced at Kevin as a knock came to the door.
"Sure thing." Kevin stood to leave the office.
"Lee, I have your case file," Debbie said as she quietly stepped into the office.
"Thanks, Debbie." Lee took the file she offered.
"You must hate having to leave again so soon after you returned." Debbie looked up at Lee through her thick eyelashes.
"Yeah, I do, but duty calls." Lee gave her a quick smile before taking a seat at Amanda's desk. He then proceeded to open the file.
"Aren't you going to introduce me?" Kevin asked as he walked up to Debbie.
"Hmm…sorry. Debbie Collins, this is Kevin Miles. Kevin, this is Debbie." Lee kept his attention on the file in hand as he introduced them.
Kevin extended his hand to Debbie. "Nice to meet you."
"Same here." Debbie gave his hand a quick shake and returned her attentions to Lee. "So, Lee. We never did get that drink you promised," she said, taking a seat on Amanda's desk.
"Hmmm…What did you say? " Lee looked up from the file.
"I said, we still haven't gone to get that drink you promised me over six months ago." Debbie cooed as she ran her hand over her exposed leg.
"Sorry, about that. Slipped my mind. I've just been really busy. Maybe, I'll catch you when I get back." Lee gave her a quick glance and returned to the file in hand.
"Promise?" Debbie sulked.
"Yeah, I guess so," Lee mumbled.
Debbie gave Kevin a sultry smile and left the office.
"Wow! Did you see the way she flung herself at you?" Kevin stood wide-eyed.
"What?" Lee looked up at the rookie before him.
"That was one hot woman! I can't believe you just blew her off like that." Kevin gave Lee a gleaming smile.
Lee looked towards the door. "Yeah, she's all right."
"All right! Are you blind? If I had that offered to me on a silver platter, I wouldn't hesitate to get the silverware out." Kevin gave Lee a hard smack on the back.
"I'm sure you wouldn't." Lee gave Kevin an angry stare.
"So, are you ready to head out into the wild blue yonder," Kevin asked as he headed to the door.
Handing Kevin the packet, Lee said, "I'll pick you up at four o'clock. Here's our flight reservation information. We'll pick up the tickets when we get there."
"Do you know where I live?" Kevin asked.
"I do this shit for a living. I'm sure I can find out." Lee griped.
"Whatever! See you then." Kevin took the packet and exited the office.
Lee looked towards the door where his new 'partner' had exited. He let out a loud sigh. 'I just hope I can keep from killing the arrogant little S.O.B. before we get there.'
He took a seat behind his desk. "All right, you piece of crap, let's see if I can pull up all of my little friend's haunts and habits. I don't want to go out into the field with him until I know a few facts," Lee grumbled at the defenseless computer.
To Be Continued….