Changed Roles, chapter 17

As he continued to chew on the antacid Francine knocked on the office door in a preemptory manner and rushed in.

"Good morning Billy, Lee, I'm sorry to barge in but I have to speak to you; it's urgent."

"If you'll both excuse me, Amanda and I have several people to see this morning. We have appointments on Capitol Hill that may shed some light on who might want to see the President's arms control agenda derailed." Lee left the office quickly and Francine seated herself in the chair he had vacated.

"I'm sorry that I'm late but I don't think that you'll mind once you've heard the reason why I'm late," Francine began confident that her ploy to get Billy to agree to allow her to go to New York would work.

"You're sure, are you," Billy asked as he reached for another antacid.

"I had dinner with Michael Tanner last night. He invited me to spend a few days in New York with him; it's the perfect opportunity for me to get close to him. Isn't that what you wanted me to do," Francine asked in her best eager to please the boss voice.

"I got the distinct impression that you didn't want to take this assignment," he replied suspiciously.

"I didn't initially but things have changed. I'm going to prove to you that no matter how long Suzanne Peters works at it she will never be the agent that I am. If you want the best person for this job I'm it."

"What about your personal reservations regarding this assignment," an unconvinced Billy questioned. "Have your personal feelings for Tanner changed as well?"

"I found out that I don't know him as well as I thought I did. I want to find out as much as I can about him before I get any more involved with him. This trip is the ideal opportunity for me to get answers for the Agency and for myself. Should I call Michael and tell him that you agreed to let me take a few personal days even though I asked you at the last minute. He'll never suspect my motives for going with him since it is a last minute decision." Francine moved to sit at the edge of the chair as if the only thing stopping her from getting up was Billy's acquiescence.

"If I agree to this; when would you be leaving?"

"Michael will be flying up tomorrow. He has some business to take care of at State today. May I tell him that I can go with him," Francine asked as she stood up.

"Yes, tell him that I agreed to let you go but I can only give you two days," Billy said reasserting his authority. "I expect results."

"Don't worry; when I go after something I don't let anything get in my way," Francine declared as she breezed out of the office.

"That's precisely what I'm worried about," Billy said aloud as soon as she'd closed the door behind her.

While Billy sat at his desk wondering where Francine's loyalties actually lay Amanda was sitting at her desk replaying her conversation with Lee in her mind. She wasn't really angry with him she concluded; she was angry at the situation that they were in. They had discussed the pros and cons of the mystery marriage when Lee had first suggested it and they had both agreed that it was the best way to protect her family. How can I fault him for embracing my family as his own and wanting to protect them? Maybe that is his only reason for wanting to keep things as they are?

"Amanda, you were right earlier," Lee stated startling Amanda who was lost in her own thoughts when he quietly entered their office. "I am resistant to change and I don't like to find myself in situations where I feel as though I'm out of my league. I'm accustomed to being the senior agent, having all the answers, but I've learned a lot from you over the years," he acknowledged as he perched on the corner of her desk.

Taking Lee's statement as an olive branch Amanda responded," As the junior agent I've found myself in plenty of situations where I realized that I was in over my head and you helped me get my bearings. I think it's time for us to trade roles in certain areas. We can strategize more later; right now we'd better head over to Capitol Hill," Amanda concluded. They both fought the urge to share a kiss but the intense way that they looked at each spoke volumes as they hurried from the office to the relative privacy of Lee's car.