The Bomb Epilogue

Author's Note: Just wanted to say again, how very much I appeciate all of you that have stuck with me on this story. Thank you for the kind reviews and wonderful thoughts. You make all the time put into this worth every minute.

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Lee sat stiffly in the hospital room, holding tightly to Amanda's right hand as he watched her sleep. Although the old pipe factory was still swarming with agents, and he had yet to be debriefed, Billy had waved a few regulations so that Lee could go to the hospital first and check on Amanda.

He'd been there now for three hours. The nurse had told him that when she was brought in, they had to sedate her to keep from trying to get up and leave. Smiling at that, he realized that even seriously hurt, she would back him up, if she could get to him. "You're some woman, Amanda King." He brought her hand up and softly kissed it.

Amanda woke to the feel of Lee's lips on her knuckles. Opening her eyes, she looked over to see him smiling at her. "We've got to quit meeting like this, Scarecrow." She said, softly returning the smile.

Lee nodded as he sat up and moved closer. "Yeah, I guess we should. How about the back of your place next time?"

"That's a deal, Pal." She wanted to say more, do more, but the narcotics in her system drug her back down into the darkness. Closing her eyes, she drifted back to sleep with a smile on her face.

Lee reached over and brushed a lock of hair from her bruised forehead, before gently replacing it with a kiss.

Billy stepped into the room just then and watched them for a moment before speaking. "Lee."

Lee continued to watch Amanda as he answered. "She woke up a minute ago. She sounded good. The doctor said she'd be alright in time. She's got a broken arm and now two broken ribs. But she'll be okay."

Billy heard the love and relief in Lee's voice and wondered if Lee knew how plain it was to others. "I'm glad to hear that, Scarecrow. But we've got to get out of here. I called her mother. She's going to be here in a few minutes and I don't think we should be here, when she arrives."

"Why'd you call her?" Lee asked, irritated at having to leave and giving Billy a scowl.

"Because, she's her mother and Amanda's going to need her." Billy told him. "Besides, as badly hurt, as Amanda was, we can't keep her family out of it any longer. Come on, Lee. We still have some clean-up to do on this case and you need to be debriefed. Besides, as you said, Amanda is going to be fine."

Reluctantly, Lee placed another kiss on Amanda's knuckles then relinquished her hand and rose from his chair. For just a second he hesitated, seriously wanting to kiss more than her hand. But Billy's presence behind him, brought him up short. Taking one look at her sleeping face, he turned and followed Billy from the room.

Just as they reached the elevators, one of them opened and a small blond dynamo, by the name of Dotty West, came barreling out, heading straight for the nurse's station. "I want to know where my daughter is." She declared as she arrived, startling the nurses sitting there. "Her name is Amanda King. Take me to her right now."

"See?" Billy grinned and slapped Lee on the shoulder. "I told you, Amanda would be fine. With her mother here, she has no choice."

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(Two weeks later)

Amanda walked into the kitchen for a glass of water when she heard a soft tapping on the window. Looking up, she saw Lee's smiling face on the other side. Stepping over, she opened the door and ushered him in. "Come on in." She greeted him happily. "Mom's out with Captain Curt and the boys are with Joe, so it's safe."

"Good." Lee answered gratefully; it was a little chilly outside and she looked so warm and inviting. "How are you feeling?" He gently touched the fading bruises on her face and the cast on her left arm.

"Oh, I'm alright." Amanda answered. "My side's still a little sore but it's nothing really."

"Has your mother let up on you yet, about your dangerous job with the film company?" Billy had told him, that when he'd called her mother to tell her that Amanda was in the hospital, that he'd told her she'd been hurt in an accident while on location. If he knew anything about Dotty West, and by now he did, Lee was pretty sure, she was now campaigning to get Amanda to quit.

Amanda looked at him in surprise. "How did you know what she told me?"

Lee chuckled. "I've been watching her from there," he jerked his thumb to the window behind him, "for some time. Besides you've told me before how she feels about the impressive list of injuries you've acquired since you started working for IFF." He paused, ruefully thinking of that. "Injuries you shouldn't have gotten. Amanda, I am so sorry…"

Amanda shook her head. "Lee, we've been through this before. I choose to do this. Now look, I can handle my mother and I am fine, honestly. But how about you? I haven't seen much of you since I got out of the hospital."

Lee couldn't resist pulling her into his arms. "I know." He answered apologetically. "And I'm sorry about that too. I had a lot to do to finish up the case. But it's done now and I wanted to come by and let you know how it all turned out."

As Lee spoke, he almost unconsciously pulled her just a little bit closer. He just couldn't get over how good it felt to hold her like this.

"I already know some of it." Amanda told him, enjoying the embrace as much as he was. "Mr. Melrose called me. He said that the man who called you to that house was working for and killed by a man called Adolph Jurganson and that he was trying to kill you and get rid of evidence that you'd collected on him."

"Yeah," Lee sighed. "His plan at first was simple, get rid of me and probably no one else would come looking then he'd be free to do whatever he wanted. Only it didn't work. You got caught in the bombing and he had to come up with another idea. So, he had you kidnapped instead and tried to use you as bait to get me and the files I'd compiled."

Amanda nodded. "Mr. Melrose told me that much. But he didn't tell me how Max Regal figured in all of this?"

Lee shook his head. "He didn't, not really." He reached up and brushed a strand of hair from her eyes. "The information Rhonda, at the station, gave me was accurate but not complete. What Rhonda heard had nothing to do with the bombing. Apparently, Max was chafing at having to work for his uncle and was in that part of town trying to reconnect and get some sort of job in the intelligence community. When he mentioned our names, it was in attempt to get a job interview. He thought our names might be able to unlock doors."

"Then who was involved with Jurganson?" Amanda asked wishing she could be in Lee's arms like this forever.

"It was Max Regal's uncle, Gerald Regal." Lee answered wishing he never had to let her go.

"His uncle?" Amanda looked at him in confusion. "The manufacturing company's owner?"

Lee nodded with a shrug. "Yeah, he apparently over extended himself on his new building and some other unwise investments and thought he could make some quick money with Jurganson."

"How'd they know I was at your apartment?' She asked.

"Rag Mop." Lee answered. "He heard Francine and Billy talking about taking you there. He didn't think about it being wrong, to repeat things like that. So he mentioned it to his new girlfriend who just happened to be one of Jurganson's employees. She was a plant and wasn't really interested in Rag Mop at all. Just about broke his heart to find that out."

Without thinking about it, Amanda laid her head on Lee's chest, thinking about the men who'd almost killed her and had wanted Lee dead and would purposely hurt a poor soul like Rag Mop. "That's so dreadful." She shivered slightly in his arms.

Instinctively, Lee hugged her even tighter. "Yeah, it is. But it's over with now and you're home safe, where you belong. And to me that's all that matters."

Amanda pulled back to look up at him. "It is?" She swallowed hard at what that could mean. "Lee? What exactly do you mean by, that's all that matters?" She watched him closely.

Lee Stetson was a well trained agent who could put on any mask he wanted and make you believe any story he was trying to sell you. But for some reason, Amanda always saw beneath his masks. She saw his heart, no matter how hard he tried to hide it from her view. Barriers he'd taken years to construct, and had been so effective in keeping out even the most persistent of female admirers, had proven to be little challenge for Amanda King.

Looking down at her now, Lee realized how completely she had demolished his defenses. But was he ready to tell her?"

"Amanda," he said softly kissing her forehead. "I…"

Just then, the front door opened. "Amanda, Darling?" Dotty's voice could be heard as she entered. "I came home early. Captain Curt wasn't feeling well."

"Lee…" Amanda quickly pulled away. "My mother!"

"I'll see you later, Amanda." Lee said, hastily disappearing through the back door.

Amanda closed her eyes, for a moment, in irritation. She had the distinctive feeling that Lee was about to tell her something. Something really important. But once again, circumstances contrived to intervene and prevent it. Shaking her head, she pasted on a smile and turned her head to greet her mother.

As Lee drove away from Amanda's neighborhood, he too shook his head in irritation but not at the interruption. He was irritated at himself for almost speaking of something he was still very wary of.

That he loved Amanda, he was becoming certain of. But he was uncertain that he should tell her that. They had a one of a kind friendship and he didn't want to lose that. He didn't want to lose her. "Naw." He said aloud to himself. "Unless we're on the run for our lives, I think I need to keep my feelings to myself. For a while, at least."

The End