Chapter 16

The rest of dinner was a simple affair. Charlie was a good baby, he hadn't cried once the entire time. Walking back to the hotel, Lee carried him, wrapped in the blanket as the air was cooler now that the sun had gone down completely. As they walked into the room, Charlie's eyes were heavy so Amanda took him from Lee and laid him down in the portable crib. He shoved two fingers into his mouth as he closed his eyes. She tucked his blanket around him and rubbed his head gently.

Lee took the backpack and unzipped it, taking the contents out. He started looking through the papers that they had removed from the glove compartment. Flipping through, he found nothing of interest so he moved to the smaller pockets. Finding most of them empty, he unzipped the largest compartment. Inside he found a notebook, what appeared to be a diary of sorts, a few pens, a science fiction novel, and Lauren's wallet.

Lee handed Amanda the wallet as he began flipping through the notebook. Amanda looked in each slot, finding her license, credit cards, a few dollars cash, a receipt for gas and a small pack of pictures. She looked at each one slowly. The first was a picture of Charlie the day he was born, then another more recent picture of him. There was another picture of Lauren with what appeared to be a few friends. Next was a picture of Lauren's mother and stepfather taken in front of a Christmas tree and the last picture was of Lauren and a much younger Harry. She was sitting on his lap, a teddy bear in her arms, and they were both smiling. Amanda handed the pictures to Lee, "They look happy. I wonder if there's more to the reason he stayed away."

Lee understood what she meant, "I think Lauren's stepfather may have been the reason to be honest. Harry was never one to get between a relationship."

"Well, I wouldn't say that. He seems to have a say in ours lately," she smiled.

"Amanda…. Harry just wants us to be happy, you know. I think he really loved Maggie… Peggy…. But I don't think he trusted his own heart. I think he knows that now. Especially now that he's with Christina," Lee said. Reaching forward, he put his hand on Amanda's chin, tilting her face toward him. "I just want you to be happy, too." Leaning forward he kissed her lightly.

Amanda kissed him back but dropped her eyes down again. "I am… we are… aren't we?" she asked.

Lee pushed the backpack aside for the moment. Pulling her closer to him, he asked, "Hey, what's going on with you?"

Amanda wasn't sure what to say to him. "I don't know. I just keep thinking how much Harry must have loved them but didn't do anything to fight for them. It seems like he just gave up."

"Hey, hey, I'm never going to give up if that's what you're thinking. It's not going to be like this forever," Lee knew what she wasn't saying. He hated living apart like they were, only spending a few hours outside of work together when they could. He wanted to change things, he just wasn't sure how.

"I know, I know. Look, this isn't going to get Lauren back so let's see if there is anything else here that can help us find her," Amanda sighed. Picking up the diary, she started skimming the pages.

Lee could see the strain in her eyes that she was holding back but also knew she was right. He glanced over at the portable crib, and silently thought Don't worry, little guy, we'll find your mom soon. I hope. He picked up the notebook and began thumbing through the pages. "Anything?" he asked Amanda.

Amanda stopped reading for a moment. Backtracking she read the sentence again, "Lee, this looks like it was Lauren's diary when she was about 10. Funny, her writing reminds me of Jamie's. But there is an entry here… maybe it will make more sense to you. 'Mom went on another all day outing without us again wearing that blouse she loves. When she came back, it was missing a button and she was angry. She said something about the mad Russian and the little fish under her breath. I don't think she knows I heard her.' What do you think that means?"

Lee looked perplexed for a second, "Mad Russian? I'm not sure. That could mean almost anything. And little fish? I have no idea… but you know what… maybe T.P. could give us some insight. He's great for coming up with obscure references. Let me give him a call."

Picking up the phone, he dialed T.P.'s number. Hearing him answer, he said, "Hey T.P. it's Scarecrow. I need your help with something."

"Well, Lee, that's quite a greeting you have for me boy. No pleasantries, just right down to business as usual, huh? How's Mrs. King? Is she still keeping you in line?" T.P. asked as he took another bite of the sandwich in his hand.

Lee smiled at T.P.'s reference to Amanda, "She's fine, she's right here with me. Sorry, we're working on a case… off the books… and well, I think I need help only you can give."

"Shoot. I'll do what I can," he answered, wiping mustard off the corner of his mouth.

"Well, can you see what you can dig up for me on a Margaret Duncan? Out of official channels. She worked as a secretary for Harry Thornton for a few years then moved to Virginia Beach. Also, see if you can find any connections between her and a mad Russian or little fish," Lee explained, knowing how crazy he sounded. But he also knew, if anyone could figure it out T.P. could.

T.P. was shaking his head on the other end of the phone, "Let me get this straight, you need information on Harry Thornton's secretary, a Mad Russian and a fish?"

Lee sighed, "I know it sounds crazy but if there's a connection I know you'll dig it up for me. Harry's told me all he knows or all he's going to tell me."

"Ok Lee, I'll do what I can. What are you going to be doing?" T.P. asked.

Lee glanced over at Charlie who was beginning to make noises in the portable crib and said, "Babysitting. Talk to you soon, T.P." Hanging up the phone, he looked at the crib again. "Is he ok?"

Amanda walked over to check on him. "He seems ok. Maybe he's just settling himself. Jamie used to make all kinds of noises in his sleep," she said wistfully. Turning back to Lee she said, "Did you find anything in that notebook?"

Picking it up again he flipped through the pages once more, "I'm not sure. Lauren was noting everything that happened, the phone calls, her office being searched, the house. She's pretty detailed so there might be a clue but I'm not really sure what we're looking for either." As he tossed the notebook back onto the bed, it fell off, the pages opening. He leaned down to pick it up and a paper fell out onto the floor. Picking it up, he could see the writing on it, in heavy black marker. It read, "Return the knopka or else you will feel the pain your mother inflicted upon Alina Kursk."

"That must be what Lauren was talking about earlier. Who is Alina Kursk? Any ideas?" Amanda said, her eyebrows raised.

"No… and it's too late for me to call Billy. Harry said he would be here by noon tomorrow… I have a feeling he has some explaining to do. This word here…. Knopka…. I know I've heard it before… it's Russian but I don't remember the translation," Lee said.

"It's getting late for us too. I don't know how Charlie does through the night so we should probably try to get some sleep ourselves," Amanda stifled a yawn, realizing she was tired.

Lee looked at his wife. He could tell she was tired, it had been a long day. "Sounds like a good idea. Wait, what did you mean… how Charlie does through the night?" he asked, unsure he liked the sounds of that.

"Well, he might sleep straight through or we may have a long night ahead of us. I only have one small problem…. " Amanda grinned at Lee.

"Do I want to know?" Lee asked.

"I wasn't kidding when I said I didn't pack any nightgowns…." she tried to suppress a laugh.

Lee looked at her, now it was his turn to grin, "So why is that a problem?"

"Lee?! I didn't think we were going to have company in our room…." she said as she glanced toward the crib.

Lee laughed, "I don't think Charlie is going to know the difference."

Amanda shook her head, "I know you packed T shirts… Can I borrow one for the night? Please?"

Lee slid his hand around her waist to pull her close. "I'd rather hear you beg for something other than a T shirt tonight," he teased, as he began dropping kisses on her neck. "We did promise each other Mr. and Mrs. Stetson time," he whispered in her ear suggestively.

Amanda sighed, leaning her head to the side. Knowing she was going to give in, she whispered back, "On one condition…"

Lee smiled, "And what would that be, Mrs. Stetson?"

"We need to be as quiet as possible. If Charlie does sleep through the night, I'd rather not wake him up," she explained.

Lee laughed, "If I recall, I'm not the one who has an issue being loud…"

Amanda slid her hands up his chest and around his neck, "Just think of this as practice for my boys and my mother. They won't be in the same room but they also don't need to hear us either."

Lee leaned back to look at her. "Do you mean, you're planning on an overnight at your house with everyone home? No sneaking around?"

Playing with the hair on the back of his neck, Amanda explained, "I was thinking of Tuesday night actually. Family dinner night, then you spend the night. After this weekend, Mother wouldn't be surprised and the boys seemed fine with it. I think it would be a good way to start transitioning you into the family more and more. Start off one night here and there…."

"So what you're saying, Mrs. Stetson, is that you want me to move in with you?" Lee teased.

"Only if that's what you want," Amanda said.

Kissing her soundly, Lee held her tight, "I would want nothing more."