If Anyone Could Manage It

Chapter 6

Lee and Amanda landed at Dulles, and getting off the plane, collected their luggage at the baggage carousel, and as they got to the parking lot, Lee scanned his lot number to find the car.

Reaching the Corvette, he unlocked the car, and opening the trunk, helped Amanda put their luggage in, and closing the trunk, gestured, "Hop in, and we'll be on our way-"

Amanda, noticing that Lee, who didn't need the crutch any more,but had been limping slightly since they left Miami that morning, put up a hand stating quickly, "Wait! You can't drive with that foot, remember? Give me the keys-"

But Lee protested quickly, "A-Amanda! I'm fine! Let's go-"

But Amanda shaking her head answered as she looked concernedly at him, "You don't look that well. Are you sure you're alright?"

Lee swallowed and shrugged, commenting, "I didn't get a whole lot of sleep last night, but I took my meds...I'm fine-"

Shaking her head once more, she stated with a gesture, "C'mon, open the door and sit on the driver's seat with your feet out. I wanna check your foot-"

Lee growled irritatedly, "Amanda! I told you I'm fine! Stop mothering-"

Amanda shaking her head, admonished him gently, "Gosh! You're as bad as my children! Sit down now and let me check your foot...Please?"

Lee, seeing willful determination on her face, groaned, and went to sit down on the driver's side seat, his feet out of the car, responding with a sigh, "Alright. But make it quick, will ya? Billy's already steamed that we were gone this long-"

Amanda, squatting down, gingerly removed Lee's right shoe stating gently, "You just hush now. It'll be over before you know it...Let's see here."

But as she went to remove Lee's sock, she felt dampness and asked, "Lee? When did you shower?"

Lee incredulous, commented, "What? Th-This morning. Why?"

Amanda sighed querying, "You didn't change your bandage, though, did you?"

Lee shrugged saying, "I was packing, and in a hurry. I'll do it when I get home-"

Amanda, getting up, went to the trunk, and opening it, asked him, "Where are your bandages?"

Lee answered flatly, "In my carry on. But I told you, I'll change it later. C'mon, we gotta go-"

Amanda, bringing Lee the bandage pack, handed it to him stating firmly with a pat to his shoulder, "Sit tight. I'll be right back..."

Lee barked angrily as Amanda headed back towards the airport entrance, "Amanda King! You come back here right now!"

But to no avail! Amanda was long gone, and Lee had no choice but to wait!

Grumbling, he got on his car phone to call the Agency.

When he got through to Billy, he commented, "Hi, Billy. We're back, sort of, but Amanda's concerned about my foot."

Billy asked worriedly, "Is it worse?"

Lee answered, "It's just throbbing and I guess it's bled a little but that's all-"

Billy interjected, "I see...Well, I'll tell Scardelli to expect you. See you shortly."

When Billy hung up, Lee remarked, putting the receiver back on the cradle, "Geez! Not you too, Billy..."

Moments later, Amanda returned with a paramedic, who was carrying an emergency bag and responded, "Lee, this is Sam. He was just inside near the terminal on his way out when I asked him for help. Now, while he's fixing you up, I'll get a clean sock out of your luggage..."

Sam, nodding to Lee, squatted down where Amanda was before, and taking a look at Lee's foot, shook his head commenting, "Don't worry, Sir. I'll have you fixed up in a jiffy..."

As Amanda came back over with the sock, Sam answered to Lee as he cleaned the wound, "This might sting a little...Hang on."

Lee gasped, gritting his teeth as pain hit him, but Amanda rubbed his back soothingly answering, "It'll be alright, Lee. You'll be just fine, huh?"

Sam, finishing up, put a fresh bandage on Lee's foot, commenting, "She's right, but you need to change the bandage once a day to make sure infection doesn't set in. Do you have a primary physician, Sir?"

Before Lee could answer, Amanda nodded, responding, "Yes, and we're going to see him as soon as we leave here...Thank you, Sam."

As Sam rose up from the ground, Lee shook Sam's hand, answering grimly, "Yeah, thanks for your help. Appreciate it."

Sam nodded to both as he remarked, "No problem, Folks. Take care."

As he left to head back inside the airport, Lee queried curtly to Amanda, "Was that necessary? I told you, I was fine, right?"

As she opened her mouth to answer, Lee, seeing the sock she held in her hand, grabbed it commenting roughly, "And no, I don't need help putting a sock on! Give me that!"

Handing her back the bandage pack, he stated firmly, "Here! You can put this away while I get in the passenger side...Sheesh!"

As Amanda walked towards the trunk, she said under her breath, "You are the most stubborn, pigheaded..."

Lee then grumbled as he went towards the passenger side of the car, "Insane worrywart!"

By the time they got to the Agency, they were barely speaking, and Amanda stated to Billy and Francine as she gestured towards Lee, "Here! He's all yours! I'm catching a cab home. See you tomorrow."

As Amanda left, Billy had Lee sent to Dr. Scardelli, and noticing Francine's smirk, asked, "What's so amusing, Desmond?"

Francine shrugged saying lightly, "Well, ordinarily, two people who are wound up with that much tension need some sort of...release, right?"

Billy shaking his head in utter disbelief answered sharply, " Let those two work it out on their own. As for you, keep your mind out of the gutter, and get back to work, Desmond!"

-SMK-

Amanda arrived home, and coming through the front door, was met by Dotty, who after giving her daughter a hug, helped her with her luggage, asking, "I thought you would've let me know when you landed, Dear. You told me last night that you-"

Amanda sighed heavily with a nod, and thinking of a good story, remarked offhandedly, "Yes, well, there was a slight delay getting off the plane and then at the luggage carousel, Mother. I just called for a cab as soon as I possibly could. I'm sorry if you were worried...Listen, I'm going upstairs to lie down for a while. Don't worry about lunch. I'll get myself something later, alright?"

Giving her mother a hug, she responded warmly, "I missed you and the boys, and it's good to be home."

And as Amanda then started up the stairs, Dotty answered, "Oh, Amanda? Kitty called earlier, and said she had to cancel her trip here. Her little girl and her husband have the flu, but she told me to tell you that she'll call you later this week, okay?"

Amanda stopped and nodded, answering quietly , "Okay, Mother. Thank you..."

Then as Amanda got to her room, she closed the door, and closing the shades, she took off her shoes, and finally laying down on her bed, muttered to herself, forgetting Kitty for a moment, muttered angrily about Lee as she shook her head, "Why do I put up with him?! That insufferable ingrate..."

Meanwhile, at the Agency hospital, Lee was grousing about Amanda as well to Leatherneck, who stopped in to see him, responding in a flat tone, "I told her to stop mothering me, that I was just fine, but no! She flagged down a paramedic, and then-"

Then seeing Leatherneck's expression, Lee stopped and queried, "What?"

Leatherneck shrugged answering, "Well, as women go, you could do worse than Amanda King. And remember, most of us here know your track record with the ladies, Ace, so that's already happened...Except for maybe Desmond. She probably falls under the shadow of Mrs. King-"

Lee retorted with a gesture, "H-Hold on! Francine and Amanda aren't alike at all, and I'm not dating either one of them anyway! I work with them, that's all. You know that!"

Leatherneck put up his hand stating, "All I meant was, out of all the ladies you've known, those two know you well enough not to put up with your crap, and will call you out whenever necessary, which is what Mrs. King did today when she dropped you off. Am I right?"

Lee, laying back against his bed pillows, sighed and shrugged, answering quietly, "Okay, okay, you got me there-"

Billy then entered the room saying to Leatherneck, as he eyed Lee, "Thank you for pounding some sense into Scarecrow. Maybe now it will finally sink in that it's an act of kindness that Amanda performed today, and that he should be damned grateful that she didn't let him fend for himself."

Then Billy asked Lee in a serious tone, "Just like you didn't let Amanda fend for herself when she was in the ocean, did you?"

Lee shook his head responding with a hand up, " Wait a minute, Billy! The circumstances were totally different then! She could've-"

Then, a realization hit Lee as he stopped suddenly, and then swallowed hard, querying softly, " Oh, my God...How-How bad was my foot?"

Billy stated patting Lee's shoulder, "Scardelli said that if Amanda hadn't gotten help at the airport for you, it could have been far worse than it was. But you've been given antibiotics, and you'll be fine as long as you stay put here for another few days, Son...And on that note, you won't be bored-"

Billy then opened the door, where Francine entered, carrying files, which she placed on his tray table!

Lee asked, "What's this?"

Francine answered, "Your case files that need tidying up. But don't worry. The Steno group will type up what you have looked over and completed, and I'll put them away, alright? Just call when you get this done, and I'll send more down to you. Take care..."

As she and Billy left, Lee, nonplussed, looked at Leatherneck querying, "What the hell just happened here?"

Leatherneck smirked remarking, "Well, Ace, I guess your vacation has ended, and now it's back to work...See you later..."

Now Lee was alone and grumbled, "With friends like that, who needs enemies?"

Sighing, he opened the first folder to look through...

TBC