Disclaimer: Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Enterprises own these wonderful characters. Bruce Boxleitner and Kate Jackson made them memorable. All I get from writing about them is the pleasure of visiting with Lee and Amanda again.
Dressing for Success – by AlaskanFan
Time was short; every moment now must be used effectively. His mind raced along multiple paths: assessing every detail, forming strategy to turn challenges to his advantage. His thoughts made plans and contingency plans, canceled those and made new plans. There were too many variables, and time was too short.
It had been wrenchingly painful to exclude Amanda from the meeting with Dr. McJohn. Since Amanda had become a full agent, there had been few occasions where her clearance had not been high enough for the briefing. Knowing that Lee's life was in danger, Billy would have ignored the rules and included Amanda, but Dr. McJohn was a stickler for regulations. Having that meeting without Amanda was probably for the best anyway. Lee was able to focus sharply on the biological warfare information that McJohn presented, and simultaneously begin planning his own response to the situation. Later, he could focus on the consequences to her, to them.
After McJohn and Francine left Billy's office, Lee made arrangements to make Amanda the beneficiary of his life insurance policy. Then, with a heavy heart, he mounted the stairs to the Q Bureau to explain the situation to Amanda. Billy granted permission for Amanda to accompany Lee to Mrs. McMurty's, and of course, she accepted. They had hardly had a moment alone to process the rapidly changing events, but their personal time would come once they arrived at the secure facility. For now, he had to change clothes and they needed to eat something. Their romantic dinner hadn't even been cooked before it was interrupted. He didn't eat breakfast, but at this hour food would be considered a midnight snack. He would force himself to eat.
As he hurried to get out of his suit and into more useful clothes, he could remember Lois Mendelson's voice chirping bits of her frequent lectures to agents. "Just as a car needs gas and oil, so does your body need good nutrition. You can't run for your life, or fight, or think clearly without properly fueling your body. At least take time for an omelet. That gives you protein, dairy and vegetables in one quick meal." Pulling on his blue jeans, he mentally gave Lois a nod of appreciation. He could hear the quiet clatter of Amanda preparing omelets as he changed.
He reached deep into the back of his closet for the blue plaid shirt that Glynnis Mendelson called his "get out of jail free" shirt. His busy mind was abruptly sidetracked with memories of Glynnis' classes in "Dressing for Success." Glynnis had been the wardrobe director when Lee started with the agency. She worked with agents to create disguises, and demonstrated the various methods of hiding gadgets in one's clothing. She was responsible for instilling his laundry ritual of checking every pocket, collar and cuff before loading the washer. He always found half-rakes and other goodies on laundry day.
His mind flashed him a clear memory of his visit with Glynnis last summer when she had secreted certain gadgets in this shirt. The cuff buttons had several layers of thread wrapped through their holes to give the appearance of being firmly attached to the shirt, but there was only one stitch holding the button to the fabric. That strategic needlework would allow Lee to detach the special buttons when he needed to use them. He turned up the collar to confirm that the thermite wire was securely attached and hidden. Glynnis had stitched loops that would keep the wire in place, but the loops were loose enough to allow the wire to slide through without hindrance when Lee pulled. As she had handed him the shirt, her fingers closed around his hand prompting him to look at her. With the passion of someone who genuinely cared about him, she said, "I pray if you ever need these devices that you will have the chance to retrieve them, and that they would do everything you hope they will do at the critical moment." Lee had swallowed hard and looked away to hide his emotions, busying himself with stowing that shirt and two others which she had outfitted. He managed to say, "Thanks, Glynnis, for... uh... everything."
Since the first half of her prayer had been answered, he was hopeful that the second half would be as well. His plan depended on getting out of that secure facility.
The thermite wire and the chemical buttons were part of his exit strategy through the bars. He wondered for a split-second how much the two sisters had contributed to national security. Then his mind returned to the problem of how he could neutralize the guards and the alarm systems. He wouldn't be allowed to take his gun. He hoped they wouldn't search him too carefully.
He tucked his shirt into his jeans, then added a half rake to his collar and another to the cuff, just to be sure.
"The omelets are ready, sweetheart. I'm pouring the coffee now." Amanda's voice from the dining room spurred him to finish his preparations. He reached for his shoes.
"Thanks. I'll be right out."
Every moment had to count.