Chapter Eight
Sunday Afternoon, September 20th
Sydney moved her queen into position and smiled. “Checkmate.” A hint of merriment twinkled in her eyes as she looked at her opponent.
Jamie looked her square in the eye and shook his head in defeat. “That’s the second time you’ve checkmated me in the last half-hour. I give up.” Smiling, he jumped off the stool and, walking over to the couch, he put his hands on the back cushion and watched the action in front of him with extreme interest.
“Pay up, Lee.” Phillip thrust his hand forward, his palm up. “You know it’s really too bad we’re not playing for real money, I’d be a millionaire.” He accepted the money from his mom’s boyfriend and started counting it.
“It’s all there, Champ.” Lee grimaced at his eldest stepson. “You just got lucky landing on Park Place and then Boardwalk within your first two times around the board.”
Sorting the money into his already existing piles, Phillip laughed and shook his head. “Ah, you’re just sore ’cause you’re losing.”
Amanda tried to hide a chuckle at her husband’s obvious dislike at losing. He hated to be bested at anything, and it was quite humorous to see the Great Scarecrow being beaten by a fourteen-year old boy, especially at a simple game like Monopoly. “It’s a shame it rained and we didn’t get to go on that bike ride along the Potomac, but I have to admit, I’m having more fun watching you lose.” She smiled sweetly at her husband, who just glared at her.
Jamie patted the shoulder of the man who was sitting on the couch. “How about we trade places, Lee. I’ll take over for you here and you can play chess with Sydney.”
Lee turned around and gave his youngest stepson a curious look. “You’ve only been playing for about half an hour.” He looked beyond Jamie towards Sydney, who was placing all the chess pieces in their starting positions.
Jamie started walking around the couch. “Sydney’s really good. She’s already beaten me twice. I think you may have found someone who can give you a real run for your money.”
“You certainly aren’t winning any money here.” Phillip let out another chuckle.
“I wouldn’t gloat too soon, Phillip.” With a twinkle in her eyes, Amanda lifted one eyebrow and gave her eldest son a stern glare. “If I’m not mistaken, I’ve got a few more hotels around the board than you do, young man.”
Lee started to stand. “Well I’m always up for a challenge and, as Phillip has so kindly pointed out, I’m obviously not having any luck here. Maybe you’ll have better luck than me.”
Jamie sat down in the spot Lee had just vacated and started surveying Lee’s lack of properties and the small amount of money he was leaving behind. He then glanced over at what his mom and Phillip had. An evil smile crossed his lips as he noticed the amount of properties still available. “Don’t worry, I’ve got a few good tricks up my sleeve.” He then turned around and watched as Lee took the seat over at the kitchen counter that he had vacated only moments before. “Hey Sydney, if you beat Lee then I’m going to put you down in my book as an expert chess player; Lee says he’s played with people from all over the world. It’s a shame you’re not sure how long your dad’s going to be out of town. You could enter the chess tournament they’re having at school next week.”
Sydney glanced over in Jamie’s direction and shrugged her shoulders. “When does it start? I mean, I probably couldn’t enter since I don’t know when my dad will be back, but it might be cool to at least check it out. I doubt they’d let me enter though, remember I don’t really go to your school, I’m just a visitor.”
“I doubt that would really matter much.” Jamie smiled encouragingly. “Apparently the winner of the tournament gets to play the final match with some chess prodigy and he’s from Russia. So you being from California shouldn’t make a difference at all.”
Lee and Amanda exchanged a worried glance. Lee shrugged his shoulders and mouthed ‘later’ to his wife. Amanda nodded in understanding.
“Well, it might be fun to go and watch. See how well some of your classmates play,” Sydney’s face lit up at the prospect,” and maybe even pickup a new move or two.”
“Do you think we could, Mom?” Jamie turned to face his mother, an expectant look on his face.
Amanda looked at her son, then over towards the counter and saw the excitement written on Sydney’s face. She hated having to say no, but it was too risky. “How about I find out more about the tournament from Principal Dennis. From what I understand, it’s a game that requires a great deal of concentration and they may not want to let in too many spectators. A large number of onlookers could be too distracting.”
“Will you be able to ask Principal Dennis tomorrow?” Jamie’s voice sounded just a little disappointed.
“I’ll definitely talk to her tomorrow. I’ll let you know what she says, okay?” Amanda ruffled his hair. She hated disappointing either one of her boys, but this time, she knew it couldn’t be helped. The possibility of a Russian student at the tournament, who would most likely be accompanied by fellow countrymen, who might just recognize Sydney, was too big a chance to take. She needed to talk to Principal Dennis and get more information about this guest player. She hoped that, after her conversation with the principal, she wouldn’t have to come up with a reason to keep Jamie and Sydney away from the tournament, but if she did, she hoped she’d be able to come up with a plausible excuse. “Now, I believe it’s my turn.” She picked up the dice and rolled.
Lee looked over at his opponent and, noticing her slightly slumped shoulders, he tilted his head and tried to make eye contact with her. “Hey, I thought you were going to show me just how good you were at this game.” He hoped his attempt at trying to get Sydney to forget about the tournament wouldn’t be too obvious.
Sydney looked up at Lee, her face brightening a little. “Yeah, I guess I was, wasn’t I? Do you want to go first?”
Lee shrugged his shoulders. “Since you bested Jamie twice, you’re technically the reigning champion, so I’ll let you choose.”
“Well since I already have the white pieces in front of me, I’ll go first.” Sydney picked up a pawn and moved it to its new position.
Lee concentrated on the pieces lined up on the chessboard, trying to determine his own move. “Do you like going first?”
Sydney shook her head. “Actually, I usually try and go second. It allows me to see what kind of moves my opponent is going to make. I’ve found that you can sometimes tell quite a bit about the other player by the first move they make.” As she waited for Lee to make his move, she took a deep breath. “Mr. Stetson, can I ask you a question?”
Lee caught a hint of uncertainty in Sydney’s eyes. “Sure, but only if you promise to call me Lee.”
Sydney, tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear, suddenly felt a little unsure of herself and focused her eyes on the chessboard. “Okay…Lee. It’s kind of personal.” She glanced back up at Lee, trying to gauge his reaction.
Although being around Amanda and her family for the past year had allowed him to feel more comfortable about sharing his feelings, personal issues were things he really only felt comfortable sharing with Amanda. Seeing the pleading look in the brown eyes in front of him, he nodded slowly. “Okay.”
Sydney looked in the direction of the den and then back towards Lee. “Well, Jamie said you lost your parents when you were around my age.”
Lee glanced at the group playing Monopoly. He had a feeling that Amanda had shared that little bit of information with her boys. He knew she would only have told them if one of them had asked. He could only surmise that Jamie had shared that information with Sydney once he found out about her mom. “Yes I did,” he hesitantly answered. “They were killed in a car crash.”
“Really!” Sydney’s eyes grew wide. “Jamie didn’t mention that. My mom was killed in a car crash, too.” She quickly moved her gaze back to the chess pieces.
Lee watched Sydney as her eyes scanned the chessboard. “I know, your dad mentioned that.”
“Well, I wanted to know, after your parents died, do you remember a lot about things that happened?” Sydney looked at Lee, patiently awaiting an answer.
Lee looked at her curiously. “I try not to think about it too much, it was hard being five and losing my parents. But, I guess, if I really want to think about that time, I remember most if it, why?”
Sydney picked up the queen and rolled it in her fingers, as if contemplating where to put it. “This is going to sound strange, especially since my mom died only a few years ago, but I feel like I’m missing things. I remember things like the funeral and staying with family friends when my dad had to go away for six months.” She put the queen back in its previous spot and picked up a pawn. “I can’t seem to remember a lot about things that happened right after my dad returned, though. I mean, I remember some things, but sometimes I feel like I’m forgetting things I should remember, like things that happened in school or at home or with my friends. This probably isn’t making much sense is it?” She looked up at Lee apprehensively.
Lee ran his hand through his hair. Sydney was making more sense than he would like to admit. His earlier hopes that Jack Bristow couldn’t have been heartless enough to try out Project Christmas on his own daughter were quickly dashed. Noticing the young girl watching him intently, he let out a small sigh. “Sydney, believe it or not, you’re making a lot of sense. Although I’m not a psychiatrist, it’s possible that you repressed certain aspects about that time. Maybe the trauma of losing your mom, and then your dad disappearing for six months, was just too much for you. It took me a long time to come to terms with the death of my parents. Thirty years to be exact. I’m only now allowing myself to remember most of it. Give yourself time.” Lee reached out and touched Sydney’s hand briefly. He didn’t want to tell Sydney that the memories she seemed to be missing were a direct result of some experiment her father had performed on her, and those missing memories were probably things she really didn’t want to remember anyway. “Now, what do you say, you show me just how good you are at this game.”
Sydney smiled and placed the pawn she’d been holding in its new spot. “Sounds good to me.”
Lee surveyed the pieces now scattered strategically around the board. He was amazed at how well the twelve-year-old across from him was playing. She was better than a lot of the people he’d played in the past. “Wow, you really are good. Do you play against your dad a lot?
Sydney shook her head “No, I sometimes play against Maria, she’s my, well I guess the best way to describe her is that she’s the woman that my dad hired to take care of me after my mom died. Anyway, she doesn’t really like to play too often, especially since I always beat her. Actually, I don’t really get to play very much. I guess the game just comes to me naturally.”
Lee smiled at her in admiration. His thoughts, however, were somewhere else. He wondered if Sydney really was a natural, or if it was a result of her exposure to Jack’s Project Christmas experiments. “Well it’s not an easy game, so I’m really impressed.”
“My friend Rachel Thompson’s dad told me the same thing.” Sydney looked sheepishly at Lee. “He’s the one who taught me. He said I picked it up amazingly fast. He loves it when I come over and he’s not busy so that we can play a game or two. He says I help challenge him to learn new strategies.”
Lee’s curiosity was getting the better of him. He had to know if his suspicions were right. “How long have you been playing?”
Sydney’s voice grew quieter and she got a far away look in her eye. “About six years now. After my mom died, I would spend a lot of time after school at Rachel’s house and, one day when Rachel was sick, Mr. Thompson asked if I wanted to learn how to play. Rachel doesn’t really care for the game and he was really happy to find someone who was interested enough in the game. Mrs. Thompson teased him about being more excited than a kid in a candy story, because he could finally teach chess to someone who was eager enough to learn.”
Lee felt anger boiling up inside him. He dropped his hand to his side, balling it into a fist. He wanted to find Jack Bristow and punch him. It was hard to digest that anyone would want to train children as spies to begin with, but to use your own daughter. Remembering where he was, he took a deep breath, trying to keep his anger in check. He took another deep breath and glanced at Sydney, who was, thankfully, busy looking at the chessboard and didn’t seem to have noticed his sudden change in demeanor.
Sydney glanced up from the board and looked at her opponent inquisitively. “Have you really played against people from all over the world?”
Lee let out a small chuckle. “Well not from all over, but from quite a few countries.”
Sydney looked up at him with admiration. “Wow, I bet that was cool. Is it because you have to travel a lot for your job? My dad travels a lot, but his work only has him traveling within the U.S.”
“Although I do a lot of traveling for work, I really gained most of my experience when I was living with my uncle. He’s a Colonel in the Air Force and not long after my parents died, I was sent to live with him. Well he was always being transferred from one base to another and wherever he went, I went.” Lee picked up his rook and moved it. “He was stationed in the Sahara for a little while. We were even sent to Greenland, Hamburg and Guam. There isn’t much to do in places like the Sahara and Greenland. Believe me when I tell you that Greenland isn’t very green. It’s very cold and covered in ice.”
“Yeah, that’s what my geography teacher told us. She said that Greenland is really all ice and not very pleasant, but Iceland is supposed to be beautiful.” Sydney slid her bishop across the board. “I think she mentioned that the Vikings did that to trick explorers or something like that. Anyway, I guess in a place as cold and desolate as Greenland, you probably had to find things to occupy your time.”
Lee picked up his knight and moved it into position, hoping to avert his opponent’s current plan of attack. “I spent most of my time trying to challenge the men in my uncle’s barracks to various games. Cards were more their style. A few of the locals, though, enjoyed a good game of chess.”
Lee and Sydney both turned towards the den as the sounds of laughter interrupted their conversation.
“What’s so funny?” Lee stood from his stool and walked over to the couch.
Sydney jumped down from her seat and followed, eager to find out what was going on.
Jamie pointed to his brother. “Phillip was grumbling because he landed on my property, again, and he was complaining that he may have to mortgage one of his hotels.” A satisfied grin crossed his face. “See, Lee, I told you I’d get you out of the hole in no time. Anyway, he was trying to decide which hotel to mortgage, grumbling and grumbling the whole time, and then all of a sudden his stomach decided to join in.”
“His stomach seemed to have perfect timing.” Amanda wiped away the tears of laughter from her eyes. “One minute he was grumbling about losing, the next…his stomach was grumbling. We found it extremely amusing.”
Phillip’s eyes narrowed, and he glared at his mother. “I don’t think it’s that funny…but I am hungry.”
“Maybe it is time for lunch” Lee glanced at his watch just as his stomach growled in agreement. He rubbed a hand over his midsection. “I guess you’re not the only one hungry, Phillip.”
“Well if you’d eat a little more at breakfast, you wouldn’t be so hungry now.” Amanda chuckled, knowing full well how her husband felt about the concept of eating in the mornings.
Lee put his hands on hips and glared at his wife with a mock scowl. “Hey, Phillip’s hungry, too but you’re not giving him a hard time.”
“That’s because I’m a growing boy, Lee. Mom’s right, you didn’t eat much of anything for breakfast. It’s no wonder you’re hungry.” Phillip grinned at Lee, as he rose from his spot on the floor.
“I’m kind of hungry, too.” Sydney leaned her hands on the back of the couch.
Jamie rubbed his own stomach. “Yeah, me too. Can we have lunch now?”
Amanda stood from her seat. “I guess that makes it unanimous. It looks like the rain has slowed down to just a drizzle. How about we head out for lunch?”
“Mom, can we go to Marvelous Marvin’s?” Phillip looked pleadingly at his mother.
Amanda looked at her husband and they exchanged a knowing look. “I suppose we could. We’ll leave the games the way they are and pick up where we left off when we get back.”
Jamie bolted off the couch and gave his brother a high-five. “Race you to the car.” He quickly dashed in the direction of the front door, with his brother close on his heels.
Sydney just laughed as she followed them to the door.
“Don’t run outside, fellas. The ground is still wet from all the rain.” Amanda called after them, as she went to grab her purse from the counter.
Lee moved to stand beside his wife. “Marvin’s huh? I know one thing for sure, I’m staying away from the Colossus Burger.”
Amanda fought the urge to shiver at the memory of that case. “I think I’ll have a hot coffee.”
Lee wrapped his arm around her shoulder and whispered in her ear. “I’ll keep you warm, and protect you from any big bad freezers.”
Amanda looked up at her husband and smiled. “I know you will.” She laughed as her husband’s stomach growled again. “Come on.” She patted his stomach affectionately. “We’d better get some food in you.”
“Yeah, and I’m sure the natives are more than restless.” Removing his arm from her shoulder, Lee took his wife’s hand in his and led her in the direction of the foyer.
Reaching the front door, Amanda could hear one of her sons calling them. “I’d say they’re more than restless. If we make them wait any longer, they’re going to have everyone in the neighborhood wondering what’s going on.” Opening the door, she stepped outside and saw her oldest son, sticking his head out of the car window.
“Come on, Mom. We’re fading away from hunger out here.”
Amanda handed the house key to her husband and marched in the direction of the Jeep, shaking her finger at Phillip. “Stop shouting, young man. They can hear you three blocks over. Now stick your head back inside the car, sit down in your seat and fasten your seatbelt. We won’t be going anywhere until everyone is properly buckled in. Safety first, hunger second.” She watched as her eldest son did as instructed, and then noticed the other two occupants of the vehicle pointing to their already buckled seatbelts. Smiling at them, she opened the car door and climbed into the passenger seat. After shutting the door, she fastened her own seatbelt and waited for her husband to join them.
Lee shook his head in amusement as he locked the front door. He put the key into his pocket and, with a contented smile on his face, headed to join his waiting family.
SMK a SMK a SMK
Lee took the now full kitchen trash bag out of the can and tied it shut. Picking it up, he stepped outside to deposit it in the larger cans near the garage. He was thankful that the rain had stopped; taking out the trash was never a pleasant task, but having to do it in the rain would have been even more unpleasant. As it was, the ground was soaked and squished beneath his feet as he made his way to the garage. He knew he’d be taking his shoes off once he got back inside; he was pretty sure Amanda wouldn’t be happy if he tracked mud all over her nice, clean kitchen floor, and he was already in the doghouse, no need to add more fuel to that fire.
He didn't think telling the boys that they could rent that movie would be such a big deal. Then again, what did he know about what was and wasn’t okay for teenage boys to watch. Movies like Predator were similar to the type of movies he'd watched when he was their age, probably because his uncle never really monitored what he did in his spare time, especially what movies he watched. Even if his uncle did care, Predator was basically a war-type movie, just with some sci-fi thrown in, so the Colonel probably would have let him watch it, considering the fact that he was living on military bases, and watching movies that focused on some aspect of war wasn’t that much different than the environment he was growing up in. However, he hadn't thought about how much more real the movies were today than when he was the boys’ age. Besides, he knew how much his stepsons liked science fiction and action movies, so he thought there’d be no harm in renting it. He just hadn't thought about the blood and gore aspect, or the fact that Sydney probably wouldn’t have enjoyed it very much either.
So somehow, in a matter of seconds, he had managed to get Amanda mad at him, and had disappointed Phillip and Jamie. He wasn’t sure which part the boys were more upset about, the fact that they wouldn’t be able to watch the movie, or the fact that he had eventually backed down and sided with their mom instead. He had a feeling his cool status had dropped another few notches.
Maybe he should have agreed with Amanda and just come back and finished the games they had started this morning, but neither of the boys nor Sydney really wanted to do that anymore. So when he had suggested the idea of stopping at the video store, who would have thought it would turn out so badly. The worst part about the whole ordeal was the fact that the argument over the movie had taken place right in the middle of the video store. If it hadn’t been for the store manager coming over and suggesting a film that would be appropriate for everyone, he had a feeling he would have been calling a cab home, which probably would have been better than the eerily silent car ride. It was probably a good thing that Phillip waited till they were back at the house to mention the art supplies he needed for school; it gave both him and Amanda the opportunity for a little space. Sighing, he realized that adjusting to being part of this family was definitely not going to be all fun and games, and for some strange reason, he was looking forward to it.
Reaching the side of the garage, Lee took the lid off the large can and deposited the garbage inside. Closing the lid, he turned back towards the house just as the back door opened, and was pleasantly surprised to see his mother-in-law stepping out onto the patio. “Dotty, you’re home. We were getting worried about you.” He started walking towards her. “Amanda had to run Phillip to the store. She’s going to be so that you’re back.” As he stepped onto the patio, he peered through the windows, looking for his mother-in-law’s sometime boyfriend. “Is Captain Kurt with you?”
“No, Kurt just dropped me off. He had to get home. And Jamie already told me where my daughter is.” Dotty had been quite relieved that Amanda hadn’t been home. She had been hoping to speak with Lee, privately.
“Well, why don’t we head inside and I’ll help you bring your luggage upstairs.” Lee began to head back into the house, but his mother-in-law moved in front of him, effectively blocking his path.
“You’re not going anywhere, mister.” Dotty pointed a well-manicured finger at him. “I have a few questions I need to ask, and I expect some straight answers from you.”
Lee had seen tough and inflexible expressions on enemy agents before, but the look that Dotty West was suddenly giving him, would make even the best agent crack. “Questions? What kind of questions?”
Dotty put her hands on her hips. “Well for starters, what kind of business have you gotten my daughter involved in?”
Lee looked at her dumbfounded. That wasn’t the question he had been prepared for. He thought for sure she was cornering him about getting him to finally ask Amanda to marry him. “Dotty, I…uh…what do you mean?”
“Don’t give me that, you know exactly what I mean. You two are no more filmmakers than I am. Documentaries on the flight patterns of geese, please.” Dotty looked Lee square in the eye. “No more lies. I want the truth.”
Lee pulled at his shirt collar. There wasn’t a doubt in his mind that Dotty West could definitely give the interrogators at the Agency a run for their money. “Dotty, isn’t this a conversation you should be having with Amanda?”
Dotty shook her head vehemently. “If I thought she’d give me a straight answer, I would. But I’ve come to discover that my daughter has apparently been lying to me for quite some time. I’m not exactly sure when the lies started, but I think I noticed her behavior start to change around the time she got the job at I.F.F. Since I know she works with you, I decided to start with the source.” She fixed him with a pointed stare. “Am I wrong in assuming that you’re the reason for her odd behavior over the last few years?”
Lee ran a hand through his hair and let out a deep sigh. Closing his eyes, he shook his head. “No, you’re not wrong.” He was now wishing that he had paid more attention to Amanda’s intuition about his mother-in-law’s unexpected trip. When was he ever going to learn? At the time his reasons for Dotty’s disappearance had seemed to make perfect sense. She’d been hinting about them getting married for quite some time and it would be just like her to head out of town, giving them a chance to feel like a family. After four years, he should have learned not to doubt his wife’s instincts, they were always right. However, he knew one thing for sure, he hated being in the hot seat and decided it was time to turn the tables. “Dotty, how did you find out?”
“How I found out isn’t important.” Keeping he gaze focused on Lee, Dotty sat down on one of the picnic table benches. “I want to know what ‘the Agency’ is. Do you even work for a film company? Does I.F.F. really exist? I mean it must exist because I’ve called Amanda there on a number of occasions and the receptionist, if she really is a receptionist, always answers ‘I.F.F.’. What is the Q-Bureau? I’ve always assumed it was some fancy film talk. I’m guessing I’m wrong about that, too.”
Lee put his hand up to stop her questions. “Whoa Dotty, please, one question at a time. I really think that we should wait for Amanda, but since I don’t know when she’ll be back, and I can tell you really don’t want to wait any longer,” he watched as Dotty nodded in agreement, “I’ll do the best I can to answer most of your questions.” He sat down on the bench across from his mother-in-law. “Now, to begin with, I.F.F. does exist and on some level, it is a film company. However, even though, I.F.F does create documentaries, Amanda and I, well…we really have nothing to do with those films.” He ran a hand through his hair. “We’re federal agents for a branch of the government called the Agency. The Agency uses I.F.F. as a cover.”
“So you’re telling me that my daughter is a spy and that this Agency is a government organization like the FBI?” Dotty kept her eyes locked on Lee’s face, trying to read his expression.
Lee shook his head vigorously. “No, we’re nothing like the FBI. We’re more like the CIA. We do a lot of undercover work like the CIA does, but the difference between the CIA and us is that we’re not supposed to exist. That’s why we use I.F.F. as a cover.” He listened to the sounds of the neighborhood, hoping that he would hear the sound of the ’Vette pulling back into the driveway. He really didn’t want to continue this conversation without Amanda present.
“So you’re saying the work you do is more dangerous than the work the CIA or FBI does?” Dotty stared at Lee with an expression of concern on her face.
Lee fought the urge to run his hand through his hair again. “Yes…sometimes, but most of the time we just do research. There are times when it does get dangerous, but I’m a highly trained agent and your daughter has some amazing instincts. She’s gone through the Agency’s formal training and knows how to take care of herself.” Pride was evident in his voice, as he spoke about his wife.
Dotty knew that if she hadn’t had the last few days to think about what she had overheard and taken the time to think back on all the crazy things that had happened to her daughter in the last couple of years, this information may have come as quite a shock. However, she had taken the time, and the answers didn’t surprise her as much. Hearing the truth, though, didn’t make her worry any less. “What I don’t understand is, how you could convince my daughter, my honest, sweet, kind daughter, to lie to me, her own mother?”
Lee looked his mother-in-law directly in the eye. “Dotty, I’ll be honest with you, Amanda’s hated having to lie to you. In the early days when she started working with me, I lost count of the number of times she said she refused to lie to you. We always tried to come up with some story that was pretty close to the truth.”
Dotty shook her head. “I just don’t understand how she could lie to me. Did she think I wouldn’t understand? I’m a romantic at heart and would’ve thought that, although possibly dangerous, her career choice isn’t without its sense of adventure. I’ve also read enough spy novels, and seen enough movies to know the importance of keeping a secret. I wouldn’t have told anyone what she did for a living.” The hurt was evident in her voice. “I mean, why is it okay for Joe to know the truth, and yet, she couldn’t confide in me?”
“Amanda was ordered not to tell anyone about her association with the Agency. It wasn’t just for her safety but because, well, it was safer for you and the boys’ if you didn’t know the truth. As for Joe…well that’s a long story, but the bottom line is that we were the ones who helped him get out of that mess he was in when he returned from Africa.” Lee eyed his mother-in-law suspiciously as a sudden thought occurred to him. He was pretty sure that Joe wouldn’t betray Amanda’s trust by telling Dotty what they really did for a living. Amanda’s ex-husband had known about her job for just over a year, now. Joe had told Amanda that he’d had some suspicions after his return from Africa, but had made the actual connection when she’d disappeared last September during the Stemwinder case. No, it had to be something else. Maybe Dotty had overheard a conversation she wasn’t supposed to hear. Had his mother-in-law overheard them talking Thursday night? No, they had been careful…hadn’t they? “Dotty, how do you know that Joe knows?”
Dotty suddenly found the etchings on the picnic table quite interesting. “Um…well…” She really didn’t want to admit that she had been eavesdropping on her daughter’s conversation; she’d yelled at the boys enough times when they were listening to conversations they shouldn’t be. “Well, I had some time to reflect this weekend, and it suddenly occurred to me that Joe didn’t seem at all surprised about that Mr. Melrose’s presence at the house last September, or the fact that Amanda had just up and left us all behind to run off…with you. He seemed too calm about the whole thing, too willing to except everything as almost normal behavior for Amanda.” She glanced up at Lee, who was watching her intently. “So all those times she said you were working late in the editing room, that was really a code for something, wasn’t it?”
Lee looked away quickly and cleared his throat. Recovering his composure, he turned back towards his mother-in-law. “Yes, in most cases when she told you were working late in the editing room, it was because we were on what we call a stake-out. Some of those stakeouts would last all night.” He was trying really hard to be honest with Dotty, but he felt like he was being just a tad bit dishonest with that answer. The truth was that lately when they had used that excuse, Amanda was really just spending the night at his place.
Dotty tilted her head, eyeing him skeptically. “What do you mean, most of the time?” “Well…I guess you could say that some of the times when Amanda told you were in the editing room and couldn’t call, we were really tied up on a case.” Lee avoided making direct eye contact with Dotty. That answer wasn’t a lie, either, sometimes they really had been tied up.
“Do you mean to tell me that you were really tied up…with ropes?” Dotty watched Lee shrug slightly and nod. “Wouldn’t you have just said you were tied up? In fact I believe Amanda used that very excuse on quite a few occasions, I just thought she meant she had gotten stuck with something at work, you know what most people would think. I guess now that I know the truth, I won’t ever be able to think of that phrase in the same way again, no matter who says it.” She still had her suspicions behind the ‘editing room’ excuse, however. Reaching over, she gently patted Lee’s hand. “You know Lee, Amanda’s a big girl. I’m pretty sure that not all those nights she told me that you guys were in the editing room were spent on some stake-out.” Noticing the lack of eye contact and sudden change in color on Lee’s face, she knew she’d been right.
“Um, Dotty, is there anything else you want me to tell you? I mean about our jobs?” Lee tried to focus on anything but the knowing grin on his mother-in-law’s face.
Dotty relaxed a little and chuckled at his obvious discomfort. Being kept in the dark for so long, she felt justified in seeing Lee squirm just a little. “Actually, there’s a lot more I want to know. Like exactly how did Amanda get involved with you? And how long have you two really known each other?”
Lee felt a little more at ease with these questions, but he still wished his wife were here. He was feeling a little guilty telling Dotty all of this without her present, but they were planning on coming clean anyway; so what did it matter if his mother-in-law found out sooner rather than later? “Amanda and I met about four years ago. She helped me out when I was in a huge jam. She was taking that weather guy…Dan”
“Do you mean Dean?” Dotty smiled at his obvious misuse of Amanda’s former boyfriend’s name. “I always wondered why Amanda suddenly lost interest in Dean.” Amusement danced in her eyes. “Now I think I know why.”
Lee waved it off and shrugged. “Yeah, well…anyway, she was taking Dean,” he emphasized the name with the tiniest bit of sarcasm, “to the train station when we sort of bumped into each other.” He caught the look of skepticism in his mother-in-law’s eyes. “Okay, so that’s not quite accurate. The truth was that I was in a lot of trouble and, just as I was starting to lose all hope of completing my mission, I looked up and there she was. So I approached her and asked her to help me. She refused at first, but after quite a lot of begging on my part, she finally agreed.” He got a faraway look, as he remembered that morning. “To this day, I still don’t know why she actually agreed to help me but I’ll be forever grateful that she did. Anyway, once she agreed to assist me, I gave her a package and pretty much forced her to get on the train. She was supposed to give it to my contact, a man wearing a red hat. Only, when she got on the train, there were twenty-five men in red hats.” He laughed at the memory and, catching Dotty’s curious look, he smiled. “Apparently there was a Shriners’ convention on the train and she had no idea what my contact looked like. Anyway, she kept the package, and well, because of that package she ended up saving my life, twice. She also helped us catch the bad guys.”
“So, because she helped you that day, you offered her a job working for you?” Dotty’s interest was now truly piqued.
Lee let out an amused chuckle. “Oh, no. I didn’t think the Agency was the right kind of place for a mother of two boys, who had no experience with my line of work. If you want to blame anyone, you should probably blame my boss. He’s the one who kept insisting that I work with Amanda. The Agency uses civilians from time to time, for odd jobs here and there. Billy must have seen something in Amanda from the start, and obviously thought she would be good for me. Right after she helped me that first time, Billy called her my partner. Believe me when I tell you that I was not at all happy about that.” He caught his mother-in-law’s questioning gaze.
Lee let out a sigh, before continuing, “You see, back then I didn’t work with a partner. I believed in working alone. I didn’t have to depend on anyone else, or look out for anyone other than myself. Your daughter, however, is a very stubborn person, Dotty. She refused to believe that I didn’t need anyone. No matter how many times I tried to push her away from me and the Agency, she kept coming back.” A wistful expression crossed his face. “I thank God every day that she took that package. It took me a long time to admit how much I needed Amanda, but in the end, I wouldn’t change a thing.” He suddenly grew embarrassed. He wasn’t used to pouring his heart out to anyone other than his wife, and even that was difficult at times, although, it had grown easier since they’d gotten married. Now, he found himself openly telling his mother-in-law things that he normally kept to himself. Amanda had definitely changed him.
Dotty noticed his sudden discomfort and put her hand lovingly over his. “I guess it all starts to make a little more sense now. I mean, all those odd excuses, those strange clubs she said she belonged to. How she would drop everything at the drop of a hat whenever I.F.F. called. I wouldn’t be surprised if you were the real reason. I remember getting annoyed with her when she ran straight to I.F.F. when Joe was in trouble. I thought she cared more about her job than the father of her sons; now I know the real reason behind her behavior.” She tilted her head and took a good look at Lee. “I still remember the first time I met you, that time you stopped by the house. You seemed so distracted, especially for someone who was just making a social call, but I was too preoccupied myself, because I was finally able to put a face to the name I’d heard mentioned so often, that I never gave it a second thought. Well, that’s not true, after you left I thought you just missed not being around my daughter, since she usually went out of town with you, and you wanted to be near her. Now, however, I can’t help but wonder…was she really on an assignment?”
Lee paled slightly as his own memories of that day came rushing back. That was one question he wasn’t going to answer, at least not completely, and he hoped that he never had to. Regretfully, he shook his head. “I’m sorry, Dotty, but I really can’t answer that last question. I can tell you that I did stop by the house because I was missing your daughter, and wanted to meet you, but I can’t tell you where Amanda really was.”
Dotty sighed in resignation. “Need to know, and all that, right?” She watched Lee nod in response. “I guess I always suspected there was more to that visit than you or Amanda would ever tell me. I suppose it’s one of those dangerous things I don’t want to know about.” She looked down at the picnic table and another memory came to mind. “Do you remember Harry Barrigan?” She watched as Lee nodded his head. “You and Amanda were quite adamant that we didn’t go to the FBI or police, and insisted that we call that Mr. Melrose. Mr. Melrose works with you, doesn’t he?”
“Yes, Billy…he’s our boss. Well, he’s more like a supervisor really.” Lee saw the apparent look of dislike for his boss on his mother-in-law’s face. “Dotty, Billy is like a father to me. He may have come on a little strong both times you met him, but I assure you, it had to do with the circumstances. Billy is usually the most even-tempered man I know. He’s gone to bat for me more times than I can count. He’s a good friend, and I really believe that if it wasn’t for him, Amanda and I wouldn’t be together today.” He caught the still skeptical expression on Dotty’s face. “Honestly, once you meet Billy under the right circumstances, I know you two will hit it off.”
Dotty smiled half-heartedly. “I’m sure you’re right.”
Lee felt suddenly drained, a feeling he often got after a lengthy Agency debriefing. He glanced into the family room; Sydney and Jamie were still watching the movie they had begun earlier. Rubbing his hand over his forehead, he sighed. “Was there anything else that you wanted to know?”
Dotty had followed his gaze into the house. “Yes, actually there is. Is your apartment really flooded, and how does Sydney fit into all of this? I mean she’s a sweet young girl, she doesn’t strike me as someone that the government would need to protect?”
Lee’s earlier suspicions about Dotty having overheard a conversation she shouldn’t have had just been confirmed, and he had a pretty good idea whose conversation she had been eavesdropping on, too. Amanda hadn’t given him all the details of her conversation with Joe, but she had mentioned that the topic of Sydney had come up, especially after Joe was concerned with his presence in the house. He decided, that since she’d obviously been hurt by his wife’s secrecy, he’d let her have this one little ‘secret’. “Well, I really can’t tell you too much. I can, however, tell you that no, my apartment isn’t flooded. We felt it would be safer for me to be staying under the same roof as Sydney, just in case.”
Dotty eyed him curiously, a hint of concern in her voice. “What do you mean, just in case?”
Lee shrugged his shoulders. “Like I said, I can’t really tell you why. What I can tell you is that her father is concerned for her safety, so the Agency is doing him a favor, and because of his concerns, we feel it’s safer for everyone, if I stay here too.” He looked down at his watch, and then towards his mother-in-law. “Dotty, we should probably get in and think about starting dinner.”
Dotty nodded in agreement as she watched Lee start to get up, but didn’t move from her spot on the bench. “Okay, but only after you answer this one last question.”
Now standing, Lee was just about to turn and step over the bench to head inside, but closed his eyes and let out a deep breath instead. “I can’t imagine what else you could possibly want to know, but…shoot.” A grin tugged at the corners of his mouth, at the irony of that comment.
“Just exactly how long have you been married to my daughter?” With her elbows on the table, Dotty propped her head on hands, fixing Lee with an expectant gaze.
Caught totally off guard, Lee sat back down with a thud and stared open-mouthed at his mother-in-law.
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