Chapter 22: The Last Time

"It's alright," Lee reassured Dotty for the fourth time. "There was a man hiding in the garage, but the police caught him."

"I tackled him before the police got him!" Philip bragged.

"I can't believe one of those men from the other day came back!" Dotty said.

"It's alright," Lee repeated calmly. "The police have him, and nobody's going to come back again. It looks like this guy broke his leg falling through the trap door from the loft."

"I knew that trap door was dangerous!" Dotty said. "Amanda, didn't I always tell you it was dangerous? Thank goodness, it wasn't one of the children!"

The kids weren't worried about the situation at all. The party guests were all buzzing with excitement. Philip was a hero, and he was definitely making the most of his new hero status, telling and retelling the story as dramatically as he could. Jamie and Antonia were more subdued, although some of their friends wanted to know what they'd seen from the loft window.

"Not much," Jamie said, putting them off. "Just a lot of people running around." Antonia nodded in agreement.

"I can't believe the things that have been happening in this neighborhood lately!" Dotty said. "What will the other parents think?"

Amanda looked at Lee, and he knew what she was thinking. It was the kind of moment they'd always dreaded, having the children involved directly in Agency business, put in harm's way, and it wasn't just their kids, either. But, Lee had an answer.

"The truth," Lee said. At Amanda's astonished look, Lee quickly went on, "That a couple of strange men who were harassing children by the school recently hid out in the garage, trying to cause trouble on Halloween." For Dotty's benefit he added, "There are a lot of strange people out there, and they probably thought it would be funny to scare the kids."

Dotty shook her head sadly. "It never used to be like this when I was young. Why can't people just treat Halloween like it's a peaceful harvest festival?"

Dotty went off to comfort Alice, who was still sitting next to Philip and seemed a little in awe of the way he'd tackled her would-be abductor. Philip, a former Junior Trailblazer, had done a good job bandaging her hands, which made him even more of a hero in everyone's eyes. Tom, Alice's brother, was looking at Philip with new respect. Antonia's parents hugged her, and Jamie stood a little off to the side. He was kind of hugging himself and looking at Lee, his thoughts still unreadable.

Lee kept an eye out for the new security team to arrive, and when they did, he had one of the men escort the Petrescus home. As they left, Lee whispered to the agent that he should stay with them in their house that night. It might not be necessary, but since Vasile was still on the loose, they would find it reassuring. Jamie didn't like to see Antonia go, but Lee quietly reassured him that everything would be alright and promised to talk to him later. They had a lot to talk about.

After what had happened, no one was interested in watching scary movies or telling scary stories. The kids munched on their snacks and talked about what happened until their parents came to get them. Some of the neighborhood parents were distressed when they came to pick up their children and heard about the incident.

"I can't believe a thing like this could happen in our neighborhood!" many of them said.

Amanda reassured them that none of the children had been hurt, and most of them had even missed the incident completely, having been in the house when it happened. The kids were excited by the events of the evening, and those that hadn't actually seen what happened were envious of the ones who had. By the time the night was over, they'd exaggerated the incident to the point of folk legend, inventing elaborate stories that they told to each other about how the man hiding in the garage was probably an escaped convict, wanted by the police. Some of the stories turned the man into an axe murderer, although no axes had figured anywhere into the situation. Amanda did her best to tell the parents that none of that was true, and Dotty got her chance to tell the neighbors her idea of forming a neighborhood watch, which met with general approval.

By the time all the guests had left, everyone was exhausted. Dotty ushered the boys upstairs to get ready for bed, and Lee and Amanda were left alone downstairs. Amanda leaned tiredly against Lee, and he hugged her tightly.

"Well," Lee said finally. "We got through that one."

"Yes," Amanda said. "But, it was too close for comfort."

Quietly, Lee asked, "Has it changed your mind about marriage?"

Amanda's head came up. "No! No, of course not." With a quick glance toward the stairs, she whispered, "Lee, you are my husband. Nothing is going to change that. I don't know what I would do without you." Then, she asked, "Has it changed your mind?"

"No," Lee said. "This did hit pretty close to home, but all things considered, it went pretty well. I'm really pleased with the way the boys handled themselves. If Billy has his way, this will be the last time we get any assignment like this." Then, Lee grinned. "Besides, I've made up my mind that, between Agency business and the trouble that you, Dotty, and the kids can run into just in the suburbs, I don't want to let any of you out of my sight, ever."

Amanda gave a tired laugh and leaned against Lee again.

"I know," she said. "Even if I didn't work for the Agency, Antonia or someone very much like her could have ended up in this neighborhood, and the boys would still have made friends with her. It's just like mother and that Russian scientist. So many things like that happen all the time, it's just that most people don't get mixed up in them like my family does."

"Probably because they care about other people more," Lee suggested. "They can't help but get involved in other people's problems."

"But I don't think I could face it all without you," Amanda said. "You and the Agency have saved me more times than you've put me in danger. Whatever happens to us in the future, I want you to be with me all the time, no matter what."

Lee kissed the top of her head.

"I'm staying here with all of you tonight," he said into her dark curls. "I don't think that there's any more danger, but I want to be here with all of you, just in case."

"Lee, we can't, with the boys-"

"I'll sleep on the couch," Lee said. Privately, he thought that soon that would be for the last time, too.

When Dotty came downstairs and they told her that Lee would be staying over, she said, "Oh, bless you! This evening has been so distressing. I'm sure we'll all sleep much better with you here. I'll just, um, get you some blankets."

She glanced back and forth between the two of them as though wondering whether Lee would spend the entire night on the couch or not.

"Let her wonder," Lee thought tiredly.

Lee and Amanda went around the house, checking doors and windows while Dotty brought down sheets and blankets for Lee. Lee hadn't brought any pajamas with him since he hadn't expected to stay the night, but he removed his jacket, shoes, and belt to make himself more comfortable. He carefully tucked his gun and holster underneath his jacket and placed them beneath the coffee table in front of the couch. They were within easy reach if he needed them but out of sight of the boys. He made his bed with Amanda's help and kissed her goodnight before she went upstairs to bed.

Lee longed to go upstairs with her, but with the boys in the house, it would have given them the wrong impression. He had to set a good example for them. Well, a reasonably good one, anyway. Besides, he was on guard duty, and he could do that better on the ground floor. He checked all the doors and windows a second time before settling himself on the couch.

Then, he thought of something. He got up, put his shoes back on, and went to the back door. He stepped outside for just a moment, retrieving the key that he knew Amanda had hidden under the flower pot there. Then, he went back inside and locked up again. He resolved to tell Amanda not to hide spare keys outside anymore. He'd done it a time or two himself since he'd learned the habit from her, but it wasn't safe. That was going to be the first tip that he'd offer to the neighborhood watch.

"Lee?" Jamie came into the family room from the kitchen. He was in his pajamas and robe.

"Can't sleep?" Lee asked.

"Can I talk to you?"

"Sure."

Lee had hoped that their talk could wait for the next day, when he wasn't so tired, but maybe it was best for them to talk now, since they had the chance to talk without the family. With Jamie being so quiet and secretive and trying to avoid talking to him, Lee was actually relieved that Jamie now wanted to talk. Jamie settled in beside him on the couch.

Jamie said, "You're not really a documentary director, are you?"

"Antonia told you that," Lee said. There wasn't any point in pretending that she hadn't.

"Yes," Jamie said. "She said that you work for the government. She told me that her father has a lot of enemies from when they lived in Romania, and your job is to help protect him."

"And her," Lee said.

"So it's all true?"

"I don't know everything that Antonia told you, but that much is true," Lee admitted. "I do work for the government, and her father does have enemies. A couple of them are actually his brothers. Stefan, the one you saw tonight, is in custody, and there is another called Vasile. They're wanted by the Romanian government, too. When Antonia's family moved into this neighborhood, I was assigned to protect them."

Jamie stared at him. "So, you're really a secret agent?" he asked slowly.

The moment had finally come.

"Yes," Lee said simply. He waited to see Jamie's reaction.

Jamie was still staring at him. "Yes?"

"Yes," Lee said again. "I'm a secret agent."

"Then what's all that stuff about IFF and documentary films about electricity and all that?"

"Because, if I told everyone that I'm a secret agent, I wouldn't be a secret agent," Lee patiently explained.

Jamie groaned and leaned back on the couch, covering his eyes. Lee smiled. All things considered, this wasn't going too badly.

"Wait a minute," Jamie said. "Do you have a badge?"

"I have an ID card," Lee said. "I don't always carry it with me because having ID can give you away, and this is meant to be secret."

"Do you have it now?" Jamie asked.

Lee reached down to his jacket and pulled out the small card holder that held his identification badge. He handed it to Jamie, and Jamie carefully inspected it.

"Lee is your real name?" he asked.

"Of course!" Lee said. "I wouldn't give a fake name to your mother."

"I thought maybe secret agents had to," Jamie said.

"No, not when we're with friends and family," Lee said. "I'm sorry I couldn't tell you before what I really do for a living, but part of the rules are that we can't tell anyone unless they absolutely have to know. Now, you need to know."

There was an awkward silence as Jamie seemed to be struggling with something. Finally he said, "Mom's a secret agent, too."

It wasn't a question, it was a statement. Antonia must have told him that, and it wasn't an easy thing for him understand.

Lee said, "Yes. And, like me, she can't talk about her work. Not to anyone. She would have told you before if she could."

"Does Grandma know? Does Philip?"

"No, just you, right now."

"Are you going to tell them?"

"I don't know," Lee admitted, running a hand through his hair. "I think we'll have to eventually. We weren't supposed to tell anyone, but they might have to know, just like you have to know because of what happened with Antonia. But, your mother and I might not stay with IFF. We might decide to leave the Agency."

"Why?"

The question surprised Lee. Jamie had already had some shocking revelations about his mother and Lee. Lee didn't want to have to explain about their marriage, too. While he felt bad about deceiving Jamie after he had worked hard to earn his trust, it was necessary to break the news of their real relationship slowly.

"Being a secret agent is a dangerous life," Lee said, "and it involves a lot of deception. We do what we do because we want to make our country a safer place. But, we both agree that we want to make our home a safer place for you and Philip. Have you told him about what Antonia told you?"

Jamie shook his head. "Antonia told me not to. She said that her parents didn't want her to tell anyone anything about her father's work or his enemies. She didn't really say who they were, just that he has them. She told me because she was scared and figured that I'd understand because you and mom work for the government. When she found out that I didn't know anything about it, she asked me not to tell Philip or anybody."

Lee nodded. "That's the point of secrecy. Sometimes, we keep secrets because we're trying to protect the ones we love. Even though we want to tell them, it might not be good for them to know. But, now I'm talking about it with you because it's important for you to understand."

"I think I do," Jamie said quietly.

"Good. I promise, not matter what, I'm going to make sure that you, your brother, your mother, and your grandmother are all safe."

"If it will help," Jamie said, "I'll keep your secret, too. I won't tell Philip or anybody until you say it's okay."

"Thank you," Lee said.

"You carry a gun," Jamie said. "Does mom?"

"Not unless she really has to. She hates them."

Jamie smiled. "She always says that guns are bad. But, after tonight, I wasn't sure."

"Guns are tools," Lee said. "You can use them to harm people or to keep them safe. It's what some people do with them that makes them bad."

Jamie reached into the pocket of his robe and pulled out the knife that he'd taken from Stefan.

"I guess you'd better take this," he said.

"Yes," Lee said. "Thank you for keeping it safe. I was proud of how you kept your head this evening and got it away from Stefan when you had the chance. Your brother got a lot of credit for being a hero, but you're one, too."

"But, I'm not supposed to talk about it," Jamie guessed.

"It would be better if you didn't," Lee said. "In a way, you've been a spy, too. You kept secrets for the safety of other people, you kept your eyes and ears open, and you were ready to act when necessary to help your friend."

"And that's what you and mom do?"

"That's what we do," Lee said.

"Are you still awake?" Both Lee and Jamie jumped when they heard Dotty's voice. Lee shoved his ID and the knife into his pockets.

"I got up for a glass of milk," Dotty said. "What are you two talking about so late?"

Lee gave Jamie a warning glance.

"Oh, I just wanted Lee's advice on something," Jamie said to his grandmother.

"Oh, really? What do you need advice on at this time of night?"

Jamie thought quickly. "I was thinking about how Tommy likes to be called Tom now," he said. "Maybe he's right, and some names just don't sound grown up. I was thinking, maybe I should call myself something different. What do you think of Jim instead of Jamie?"

"If you ask me, I think I like Jamie better," Dotty said, coming over and giving the boy a hug.

"Well, I'll think about it some more," Jamie said.

"I think we'd both better go upstairs and let Lee get some sleep," Dotty said.

"Don't worry about it," Lee said. "That's what I'm here for."

Jamie turned and gave him a wink as Dotty led him back upstairs to bed.