Billy’s Case Files
By Ermintrude
See part 1 for disclaimers
Part 32
Billy’s Lost Weekend November 7, 1986
Billy came slowly to consciousness sitting at his desk in his office deep within the Agency. He remembered a series of events and images—weird stuff—things that couldn’t have been real—bears—dogs—skeletons. He tasted his tongue—a weird acrid taste came to his attention. He tried to move and found his limbs were unusually heavy. He shook his head and discovered he was dizzy. He checked his watch—very early Monday morning—4:56am. But he was dressed in evening wear. So what had happened? Where had he been? He remembered leaving the office Friday afternoon—dressed in his suit—Jeannie had been out of town visiting relatives. He thought long and hard—but try as he might—he couldn’t remember anything that had transpired between Friday evening and waking up at his desk other than those weird images.
‘This is not good. I’ve lost an entire weekend—and based on how I feel and how my tongue tastes—I’m pretty sure I’ve been drugged. Which means someone tried to get to me—and I retreated into Thornton’s repression. I’m in big trouble—and so is the Agency. And until I find out what happened and who tried to get to me—I’ve got to put myself on administrative lockout.’ He reached for the phone and started the process.
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Billy read the reports while waiting for the results of his blood tests. Picked up at 3am by DC Metro police in an alley. He had been disoriented—but hadn’t blown anything to indicate he was over the legal limit—no surprise there—he had been drugged—not drunk. He had managed to get the cops to drop him off at IFF—he convinced them he had attended a party and gotten lost—and got down to his office by pure instinct. He remembered nothing of any of it.
He knew the statistics on agents using Thornton’s repression. It was an effective technique for keeping secrets—but the cost to the agent was usually reassignment or retirement. If he couldn’t recover his memories of his weekend he was going to be retired early. After what happened with Max Bateman—he couldn’t risk it. Even though he was an administrator—there were enough unusual occurrences in the office to require him to be fully fit for field duty—even if he rarely went in the field anymore. He thought back to the Cyclops case—that had been a fluke. He was grateful for Scarecrow and Amanda’s help. They had insisted on giving him credit for the whole thing—but he knew without their help he would be dead.
So he sat back and relaxed—he tried a bit of meditation—hopefully he could access his memories once the drugs cleared his system. And he would do what he could to help himself. He wasn’t going to go down without a fight.
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It was late—he and Lee and Amanda had been going at it all day—two days. They were back at the Agency and Amanda was getting the computer ready to research the Kalahari list. He had a tickling feeling in the back of his mind that he knew all about it—but it was behind the wall of repression. It was like he could see it—but couldn’t reach far enough to grasp it. ‘No good forcing things. The best thing is to think about something else entirely.’
He thought back to his two best—and favorite agents. ‘They are finally doing something about their relationship. And unless I’m totally off-base something pretty big happened during the Birol case. I’ve had a while to really think about it and I’m good with whatever they choose to do together. Hopefully that includes marriage. Amanda deserves some happiness and it’s about time Scarecrow finally settled down.’
‘They are playing a risky game here. If Smyth were to find out that they were involved… The manual expressly forbids relationships between partners—but we all know that rule is more often broken than honored. It usually doesn’t work out—and often the partners end up being reassigned. But not those two. They’re in it for the long haul. If what happened with Birol couldn’t break them up—nothing will. So I’ll give them my blessing—except if I’m retired early—I won’t be here to shield them. Francine is more sympathetic than she was a year ago—hell two months ago considering what Smyth pulled during the Stemwinder case—but she won’t be as willing to put her neck on the line. She has a long career ahead of her. Mine is winding up. I don’t have nearly as much to lose.’
‘So if they are to stay together working at the Agency—I have to remain their section chief. They’ve been a big help so far—I’ve managed to remember Kalahari—that’s what they were after—the Kalahari list. Now if I could only remember what it was…’ He shifted his thoughts back to his mental diversion.
‘I should let them know I’ll support them, no matter what they choose to do. They’ll pretend they don’t know what I’m talking about—but the message will get through.’ He shook his head. ‘This business—we hint and allude and make vague statements—and hope the other person understands what we’re getting at without saying anything directly. For once it will be good to state something clearly and without any obfuscation. It will be fun to watch their faces. I’ll remember that for a long time.’
He returned to the bullpen and after discussing the computer search he laid it on them. “I want you both to know that your relationship—whatever it is—is fine with me. We all look for something and when we find it I think—we should hang on with everything we’ve got.” Their faces went totally blank, and as he turned to make coffee he caught them looking at each other. ‘Gotcha! That was well worth it. Message received—by both of them. The way they can have an entire conversation with just a look—if that’s not just like an old married couple—nothing is. Might as well go the rest of the way. Yep—they’re headed for marriage for sure. Amanda—you’re amazing!’
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Sitting in the Smithsonian with the recovered disk—Billy addressed Scarecrow. “She’s going to be just fine Lee.”
Lee looked to where his partner had gone to phone for backup and replied confidently. “I know.” He turned back to his boss. “How do you feel?”
“I feel like beer and steaks at Randy’s.” The two men laughed in quiet camaraderie.
Lee and Amanda started to round up the criminals as Billy was tended by the paramedics. Billy watched them. ‘They’re my best team—and they’re getting better. Amanda used a weapon effectively—I think she would have shot him if he hadn’t submitted. Or at least she made him believe that. That was her last barrier. Hopefully she will never kill anyone. Scarecrow is discharging his weapon less since she started using a weapon effectively. This is good. Less paperwork for the both of them. She will complete the freshman agent course with flying colors—if Beaman lives to the end of it. She’s really challenging him. It’s good for both of them.’
‘I have to think about ways to give them time together. It has to be tough for her with the job and her family. I’ll give them a three-day weekend—they deserve it after all the extra hours they put in on this one. As long as they keep it discreet and don’t screw it up—they’ll be fine. And if they do slip up—I’ll be there to help them out. I owe both of them more than I can ever repay. So whatever they want for themselves—I’ll do all I can.’
Photo Finish November 14, 1986
Billy fumed after Dr. Smyth left his office. ‘The security board is getting ready to give Amanda King a letter. Meeting at 10. They’re downgrading her security clearance. What the hell happened? I oversaw all her security reviews up to now. The woman is clean as a whistle. I’ve staked my life on that more than once. This is just too suspicious—coming during her training. Is someone inside the Agency trying to ruin her before she’s fully certified? Wouldn’t be the first time. Hopefully she and Scarecrow can get to the bottom of this. Because I can’t lose my best team. And it will be the end of their relationship unless they both quit—and I won’t have that. I need them working for me—together—and in the field.’
‘I know Internal Review is an important part of this Agency—but nobody likes them. They poke into all of our lives looking for dirt. And when they find something it’s all too often a fast railroad job. They give it a week or so and then they “close the case”. So few agents ever get cleared—and that’s not good. I know they’re necessary—but sometimes they like to push their weight around just a bit too much. I’ll do what I can to make sure Amanda King isn’t railroaded on this one. It will do Frampton some good to get taken down a peg or two. Teach her a bit of humility.’
After Photo Finish November 14, 1986
Billy returned to his desk after Amanda had been reinstated and Ms. Frampton had apologized for the frame-up. ‘I knew it had to be something like that. But how it came from outside—that’s a new one. We shouldn’t let the subjects of our security reviews know they’re being evaluated by agent trainees. It lets outsiders know they’re in a vulnerable position. Too much pressure could be applied—in too many ways.’
‘Amanda managed to find the security breach and she and Scarecrow cleared her name at the same time. Too bad about the Green Dragon. He was off our radar for years—but he didn’t deserve to die like that.’ He shook his head. ‘Anyone who knows Amanda King should know she’d never be anything like a campus radical. She was in a sorority for heaven’s sake. I think the whole ‘60’s thing passed her by. She never did drugs—didn’t go to concerts—didn’t protest. She got married while still in college and had her kids immediately after that. She didn’t have time to do any protesting.’
‘Once again—they managed to close the case and come out on top. Hopefully they’ll get some private time to celebrate together. They deserve some good memories.’
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