Chapter Eleven
Monday Afternoon, September 21st
Amanda placed the book in the bag, and smiled as she handed the package to the woman in front of her. “Your daughter is going to love that book. Little Women was one of my favorites when I was growing up.” She gave a small wave as the woman nodded her agreement and turned to walk a way.
Amanda scanned the crowd trying to catch a glimpse of her husband. However, instead of catching sight of Lee, she caught sight of two very familiar youngsters approaching her table. “Jamie, Sydney, why aren’t you on your way to class?” She glanced down at her watch. “Oh, I didn’t realize what time it was.”
“Yep, it’s lunch time. We were on our way to the cafeteria and thought we’d stop by and see how your conversation with Principal Dennis went.” Jamie looked around at the other tables. “Mom, where’s Lee? Don’t tell me he actually found a way to weasel out of helping you with the book sale?” Suddenly he felt a pair of hands on his shoulders.
“Nope, I’m right here, Champ.” Lee smiled as Jamie turned his head around to look at him. He then glanced at his wife over the top of his stepson’s head. “Sorry, my meeting ran a little longer than expected, then, because I knew it’d be close to lunchtime when I got back, I stopped by the deli near the office and picked us up a couple of sandwiches.”
“That was good thinking. I’ve been so busy here at the sale that I didn’t realize how late it was, and I am getting hungry.” She turned towards Jamie and Sydney. “Shouldn’t you two be heading to the cafeteria?”
Jamie shrugged. “Yeah, and we will, but we’re dying to know what you found out from your meeting this morning.”
Lee put an arm around Jamie’s shoulders and another around Sydney’s. “I’ve got a surprise for you two. How would you like to go to the Oriole’s game this evening?” He looked over at the young girl beside him. “They’re playing the L.A. Dodgers, and the tickets are behind home plate.”
Both Jamie and Sydney turned their heads to look at each other then at Lee, their eyes wide with excitement.
Jamie practically jumped where he was standing. “Home plate? Really?”
“And they’re playing the Dodgers?” Sydney’s voice was almost as excited as her friend’s.
Lee nodded enthusiastically, as he caught Amanda’s eye. “I realize that I haven’t cleared it with your mom yet,” he looked over at Jamie, “but a friend of mine called me as I was on the way over and offered them to me.” He looked back towards his wife. “He has six tickets for seats three rows behind home plate, I just couldn’t pass them up.” He winked at her, hoping she’d get the hint.
“I think it’s a wonderful idea.” Amanda nodded. “What time do we need to be there?” She had been hoping to put off answering Jamie’s question until she could talk to Lee about everything, and it seemed that her husband had come up with the perfect diversion.
“Well, I have a buddy who works at Camden Yards, and if we get there early enough, we might be able to meet some of the players during batting practice. So, I’d say we probably want to leave here as soon as school gets out, get over and pick up Phillip from football practice, and then head on over to Baltimore.” Lee squeezed Jamie’s shoulder. “The sooner we leave, the less traffic we’ll run into.”
“My dad is going to be so jealous.” Sydney’s face beamed. “He loves the Dodgers.” Then as she realized that she was getting to do something her father would probably never get a chance to do, since he was always so busy, her excitement turned to guilt. Stepping away from Lee, she moved over and began inspecting the books. Her eyes fell on a set of Nancy Drew Mysteries. Picking one up, she began running her finger over the well-worn cover.
“I loved reading those when I was your age. I used to pretend that I was Nancy Drew, solving cases and helping to catch the bad guys. I used to tell my mother that I wanted to be a detective when I grew up.” Amanda glanced briefly at her husband and smiled when she caught him looking at her, one eyebrow raised knowingly.
Sydney smiled as she glanced up at Amanda. “I’ve read a few myself. I love how she stumbles on to the crime and ends up getting involved. I guess it helps that her dad is connected to the law somehow, and for some reason, I can’t remember how.”
“I thought you said you had a memory like an elephant.” Jamie looked up from the comic books he was scanning through, and smiled teasingly at his friend.
Sydney shrugged. “Hey nobody’s perfect.” She scrunched up her nose and then stuck out her tongue at Jamie.
Lee moved over and was now standing next to Sydney. “Stumbles onto crimes, huh. Did Nancy happen to witness any murders that no one else saw but her? Perhaps she reported the crime but the cops couldn’t find a body or the victim’s car, or any trace of the suspect’s car that she just happened to see leaving the scene of the crime; even though Nancy wrote down the license plate number?” He chuckled when he caught the glare his wife was giving him.
Sydney nodded and looked at Lee. “I think I do remember one like that, I can’t remember the name of it though. Did you read these too?”
Lee shook his head. “Definitely not my type of book, but I’ve seen enough detective shows to know that some of the plots get used over and over again.”
Amanda kept her glare even and trained on her husband. “I wonder if they get some of the stories from real life police reports.” She then moved her attention back to Sydney. “You know, I may have a few of those in the attic at home. How about tomorrow after school, you and I can go through some of the boxes of my old books and see if I have any that you haven’t read, and would be interested in reading.”
“That’d be great.” Sydney smiled and then moved her hand to her stomach as it let out a tiny growl.
Amanda glanced down at her watch and looked back at Sydney and Jamie. “I think its time you two headed over to get some lunch, before lunch time is over.”
Sydney nodded and put the book down. “Where should we meet you, so that we can get to the game on time?”
Lee glanced first to Sydney and then to his stepson. “Meet us back here as soon as your last class is over.” He then looked directly at Amanda. “Do we have to help clean up here, or can we sneak out as soon as school lets out?”
Amanda understood the subtle meaning behind his question, and subtly nodded her head. “I think I can get Mrs. Thompson to let us out of any after school responsibilities.” Then looking at Jamie. “No dawdling after class, we’ll expect you right after the last bell rings, okay? Especially if you want to meet the players.”
Jamie linked his arm through Sydney’s. “We’ll be here, you can count on it.” He called out, before turning to his friend and starting a debate on which was the better team.
“That was very clever planning. What made you think of the baseball game?” Amanda eyed her husband curiously. “Last minute tickets must have cost you a fortune.”
Lee walked around the table and placed a quick kiss on her lips. “Actually, it didn’t cost me anything. The buddy I mentioned owed me a big favor. I helped him out with a situation a little while back, so I gave him a call. I know how much the boys love baseball, and when he told me that the O’s were playing the Dodgers, I knew it was an opportunity that we couldn’t pass up. What could be better than getting to watch her favorite team to get Sydney’s mind off of the tournament?”
Amanda leaned over and placed a quick kiss on his cheek. “I’m so glad you got here when you did. I didn’t know what to tell them.” Glancing around, she took note of the lack of customers. “How about we head outside and find a place to eat lunch so that we can fill each other in on our meetings.”
Lee started to nod when someone caught his eye. “That sounds like a great plan, how about I meet you out there.” He motioned his head in the direction of the intrusion.
Amanda immediately brought her hand to her mouth to hide the giggle that wanted to erupt. “You didn’t.” She shook her head slightly. “You know she’s going to find a very slow and painful way to kill you for this, right?”
“I know, but like Billy told her, there are only three others besides you and I that know about Sydney, and Dr. Smyth would not make a good gym teacher.” Lee took his keys out of his pocket and handed them to her. “The sandwiches are out in the car. I’ll meet you out front as soon as I find out what she so urgently needs to speak to me about.”
Amanda accepted the keys. “Okay. Why don’t I try and convince her to come over here and talk to you, make it look like she wants to buy a book, otherwise we have no way to explain you talking to her, and you know how these PTA mothers love to talk.”
“Good idea.” Glancing around to make sure no one was watching, Lee playfully swatted her rear. “Go on, the sooner you get her over here, the sooner we can have lunch. We have a lot to discuss.”
Amanda smiled back at him briefly, before heading over towards Francine. As she got closer to their co-worker, a group of four boys passed by, all of them drooling as they looked in the blonde’s direction. She chuckled as she heard one of them comment about how lucky they were to have a ‘babe like that’ as a gym teacher. “I’m sorry about this Francine,” she whispered as she approached her friend. “I want you to know that I had nothing to do with this.”
Francine narrowed her eyes in Lee’s direction. “Trust me, I’m fully aware of whose idea this was: Billy and Lee’s. Speaking of whom, why did he send you over here when I was trying to get his attention?”
“I thought it might be a good idea if you went over and pretended to be buying a book. You know to try and maintain your covers.” Amanda made a sweeping gesture with her hands, making it look like she was trying to make a sale.
“Ah, good idea. You really are getting the hang of this agent business, Amanda.” Francine whispered as she patted the brunette on the shoulder. “Thanks for the advice.” She then headed over to the table Lee was standing behind.
Amanda shook her head as she watched Francine walk away. She hoped that their friend didn’t keep Lee too long; not only was she was hungry, but she was extremely anxious to find out what Mr. Melrose had told him. Hopefully there was some news about Jack. It still worried her that he hadn’t called. Sighing, she walked over to the head table to let Mrs. Thompson know where they’d be for the next hour, in case they were needed.
Lee nodded at his fellow agent as she bent over his table and picked up a book on cooking. “Interesting choice of books, Francine.”
Francine glared at him. “I don’t think you are in any position to be making any snide remarks, Stetson.”
Lee gave her one of his most charming smiles. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. Now do you want to tell me what’s so important that you need to talk to me here?”
“It’s about your cover, Lee.”
Lee looked at her with a mixture of curiosity and worry. “What about my cover? Smyth’s not yanking me is he?” He whispered through clenched teeth. “Because if he even thinks of pulling me off of this case, I’ll make his life a living hell.”
Francine shook her head. “Oh, no, nothing like that.”
“Well then what is it, because I really don’t have time for any of your games, Francine?” Lee tapped his foot impatiently. “I still have to touch base with Amanda. There are quite a few things that she really needs to know about.”
“Look, I ran into Jones this morning after stopping by Leatherneck’s to pick up my vibrator.” Francine pointed to the device clipped to her pocket and rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah I know. Anyway, Jones had just come off of his shift, he’s on the team stationed on Maplewood, and he told me that he thinks you may be taking this assignment a little too seriously. When I asked him why, he asked me what your cover on this assignment really was, because he saw you kiss Amanda goodbye this morning, right before you drove off with her son.” She lowered her voice to just above a whisper. “Don’t worry I told Jones that due to a threat to Amanda’s family you’re staying there pretending to be her boyfriend, no mention of Sydney. But for my own sanity, please tell me that the kiss he saw was just you maintaining your cover, because I don’t know if I could handle it if the two of you were involved again. It’s bad enough that she’s affected your sense of fashion, but I’d hate to think that you really believe you’re a member of the family.”
Lee gave her a devilish grin. “You never know, Francine, miracles have been known to happen. And would it really be so terrible if it were true?”
Francine unceremoniously dropped the book she was holding back on the table, and put her hands on her hips. “Don’t even joke about that, Stetson. Isn’t it bad enough that you got Billy to agree to stick me here, teaching a bunch of drooling adolescent boys how to spike a ball over the net, all the while getting death stares from the girls. I think I’d rather date Jeff from the morgue than have to spend another minute in that gym. So now that you’ve had your fun, you can drop the act. You’re just not the ‘normal’ type.”
“Maybe I’ve changed, Francine. And besides, who you wish to date is really none of my concern.” Lee glanced around hoping that none of the other PTA mothers were paying attention to their conversation. He silently cringed when he noticed a few of them were curiously looking in his direction and decided it was time to end this discussion. “Well, Ms. Desmond if you don’t plan on buying anything, I’m going to go find my girlfriend, we have lunch plans,” he said in a voice a little louder than normal.
Lee chuckled to himself as Francine huffed off muttering curses at him under her breath. He knew that she was adding that to her long list of things to get even with him for, but he didn’t care, it had been worth it. Walking around the table, he headed in the direction his wife had gone a few minutes before. As he passed some of the other tables, he received approving nods from the mothers who had been scrutinizing him. Oh yes, it had been extremely worth it. Not only had he managed to throw Francine for a loop, but he also managed to look good in the eyes of these women; women who could make Amanda’s life unbearable if she had to listen to stories about the wandering eyes of her boyfriend. He would repeat that performance over and over if it would prove to every woman in the world that he only had eyes for Amanda.
As he followed the hallway towards the front of the school, he wondered what Francine’s reaction would be when she found out that, not only did he want to be a member of Amanda’s family, but he already was, and had been for the last seven months. He hoped that his friend would be happy for him, and for Amanda, once they finally came clean, but after her little scene, he wasn’t so sure. He began to wonder what it was about him settling down that really bothered Francine. Was she afraid that he wouldn’t stay in it for the long haul, and that in the end he’d end up hurting Amanda?
Suddenly a light bulb went on. Lee had to smile as he realized the hidden messages behind his friend’s sarcastic comments and snide remarks. Francine was afraid that he would end up hurting Amanda, not unlike Francine had been hurt by Jonathan, not once, but twice. In her own way, she was looking out for Amanda. He had heard the tail end of the warning she had given his wife during the whole Raymond Piralta-T.P. mess. She had pretty much told Amanda that he wasn’t the type to commit. Even though Amanda had given him a brief synopsis of what was said, he had actually been standing outside the door eavesdropping and had heard Francine tell her that he was a confirmed bachelor at heart who would never be satisfied with just an hors d'oeuvre, that he had to have the whole buffet. Amanda had, of course, known the truth, especially since she had proof of that, even if her engagement ring had spent more time in a box in his apartment then on her finger.
Lee shook his head at the fact that Francine couldn’t have been more wrong about him. She had been referring to the old Lee, the Lee Stetson who had a reputation of dating a lot of women, a new flavor of the week as they were referred to. The old Lee didn’t want a steady girlfriend, he was too busy bouncing around from place to place for some case. His life had been too hectic back then for anything permanent. Sure he had four black books, but it wasn’t like he used these women, he just needed variety, and back then he’d had no desire to rely on anyone but himself.
It wasn’t until Amanda had come into his life and showed him what he was missing that he realized what he’d really been doing with all those women he’d put into those little black books; he’d been searching for something. He’d been searching for a place where he belonged, where he felt loved, and when he finally opened his eyes, he realized it had been right in front of him, in the body and soul of Amanda. Reaching the front doors of the school, he exited and scanned the area looking for his reason for being. He spotted her instantly, sitting on a stone bench and swinging her legs. He quickened his pace as he headed in her direction.
Amanda smiled as Lee approached the bench. “Hey, handsome,” She scooted over to make room for him. “I was going to give you five more minutes, before I started to eat without you.”
Lee sat down beside her. “I’m very tempted to kiss you right now, but I think the rumor mills have enough to talk about already.”
Amanda handed him a sandwich and a drink. She caught the curious raise of his eyebrows as he took the cup. “You only mentioned sandwiches, so I stopped in the cafeteria on the way out here.” Unwrapping her own sandwich, she looked at him. “What did you mean about the rumor mills?”
Lee sighed and let his gaze fall on Fred Fielder’s team working diligently on the street. “That’s what Francine so desperately wanted to talk to me about. Apparently Jones saw me kiss you goodbye this morning. So, we basically gave the water cooler gossips something to really talk about.” When he heard her sigh, and saw her shake her head slowly, he put down his drink and rubbed her shoulder affectionately. “Well, even though our reputation at work is being dragged through the gutter, at least I salvaged my reputation here, the PTA mothers think I’m a very loyal boyfriend.”
Amanda looked at him curiously. “What did you do?” She asked as she took a bite of her sandwich.
“Well while I was talking to Francine, I noticed a few of them giving me questioning glances. I guess they were thinking that I might be interested in her.” Lee chuckled good-naturedly. “So after she finished lecturing me on not getting too caught up in my cover, I told her, in a very loud voice, that I was going to go find my girlfriend.”
Amanda closed her eyes and laughed. “Oh, I bet that got Francine good and annoyed. I guess she’s going to give me another lecture about watching out for my heart where you’re concerned, since she obviously won’t get anywhere talking to you.” She sighed. “I’ll be very glad when this is all over and we’ve come clean with everyone. We can finally put an end to the rumors, and stop hiding our true feelings for each other.”
“Amen to that.” Lee took a sip of his drink. “You know, I think I know why Francine’s so against our relationship.”
“Oh, really?” Amanda eyed her husband skeptically. “This should be interesting.”
Lee put a hand over his heart. “Oh, I’m hurt.” He then gave her a look of mock annoyance. “You think you’re the only one who can analyze people?”
Chuckling, Amanda shook her head. “No, but if there’s anyone who is totally out of their element when it comes to reading people…”
Lee glared at his wife. “I think I’m qualified to read Francine, I’ve known her longer.” His features softened as he continued, “anyway, as I was saying, I think Francine’s afraid that I’m not in this for the long haul and that I’m going to get bored, just like I have in the past. She may not always show it, but in her own way she considers you a friend, and is afraid she’ll have to pick up the pieces when I dump you just like I dumped her.”
Amanda scrunched her face as she thought about his analysis. “Hmm…not bad for a beginner, but I don’t think you’re entirely right. Eight months ago, when she was lecturing us about our relationship, and we pretended to break up, I might have agreed with you. Now, however,” she turned to look at her husband, “I think it goes deeper than that. Francine’s not really worried about me anymore, she’s protecting herself.”
Lee looked at her curiously. “I’m afraid you’ve lost me now. Why would she want to protect herself, I’m with you, not with her.”
“Think about it, Lee. You’ve said it yourself a time or two before. This job makes you afraid to love, afraid to get close to anyone, afraid to rely on anyone else other than yourself.” She patted his arm affectionately. “You and Francine hooked up all those years ago because you were so much alike, and although Francine believed differently, you were in the relationship as a means of physical comfort, nothing more and that’s why you ended it, you didn’t want to lose a friend.”
Lee looked sheepishly at the ground and kicked at the dirt. “That’s true, but I was a different person back then.” He looked up into his wife’s loving gaze. “You know that, right?”
Amanda nodded and smiled endearingly at him. “Yes, love, I do. We’re married remember, and besides, I’m not talking about you, I’m talking about Francine. But you’re right, you have changed and that’s exactly my point. You allowed yourself to trust again and let someone break down your walls…you let me in.” She fought the urge to touch his cheek tenderly. “Francine's afraid to admit that you've changed, and if you can change, that would mean she could too. She's afraid of admitting that it's okay to love and trust someone. Especially after Jonathan burned her – twice.”
Lee took her hand in his. “I never thought to look at it that way. How is it you’re so good at figuring people out?” He smiled as his wife shrugged. “I guess I shouldn’t be so surprised, you’ve always been good around other people. It’s one of the things I love about you. I can’t wait to see the look on her face when we tell her that not only am I committed to you, but that I pledged to love, honor and cherish you for all the days of our lives.” He gently squeezed her hand and winked. “The look on her face will more than make up for her earlier comments. Do you know that she not only thinks that you’ve made me normal, but that you’ve corrupted my sense of fashion, apparently she doesn’t like the relaxed flannel look.”
Amanda relaxed and, letting out a laugh, rubbed his arm ever so gently. “Yeah, well four years ago you were worried about being caught dead wearing flannel.”
“First off, I never hated wearing flannel, I just didn’t want to be caught wearing Dan’s flannel, and it was plaid.” Lee huffed.
Amanda shook her head and laughed. “It was Dean’s, not Dan’s. I know you know his name, Lee.”
Lee waved her off. “Yeah, well, as I was saying, I didn’t want to be wearing someone else’s clothes, and I happen to like flannel, it’s warm and comfortable.” He took another bite of his sandwich.
Amanda lovingly wrapped an arm around his waist. “I happen to like you in flannel.” She moved her lips closer to his ear and whispered, “although, I think I like you better in your birthday suit.”
Lee let out a small groan. “If we didn’t have so many eyes watching us, I’d kiss you senseless right here and now, Mrs. Stetson.”
Amanda shivered slightly with anticipation. “I know you would.” She squeezed his side gently before removing her hand from his waist. “Now, before we let ourselves get too distracted, I believe we have a ton of things to discuss. You really are the knight in shining armor, you know. I really didn’t know what to tell Jamie and Sydney about the tournament. Principal Dennis said that it’s open to the public, which means that there’s no reason the students can’t go in and watch.”
Lee nodded. “I know, and even though on one hand it makes it a little more difficult to come up with ways to keep them away from the tournament, it also makes things a little easier, too. The fact that it’s open to the public actually works to our benefit.” He caught the curious expression on his wife’s face. “We’re having a few agents pose as spectators. What else did you find out?” He asked before taking another bite of his sandwich.
Amanda shifted slightly on the bench, and turned to face her husband. “Well, she did tell me that the arrangements for the guest player, Aleksandr Molinkof, were made weeks ago when they agreed to host the tournament. However, she said that she only found out Friday that he was going to be needing ‘mandatory bodyguards’ and that she wasn’t thrilled with the idea of the school having to let men with guns onto the premises. I was thinking of using that excuse with Jamie and Sydney, and I may still use that as an excuse, especially since the tournament continues through Wednesday, and you’ve only managed to take care of today. Otherwise we’ll have to come up with more fun and exciting after school activities to keep them away for the rest of the tournament.” She let out a sigh. “Although, it seems kind of hypocritical of me to tell them that they can’t be there because of men with guns, when they’re around you all day, and you’ve got a gun on you, even if they are unaware of that fact.”
Lee took her hand in his and gently squeezed it. “I know but nothing about this whole situation is easy, and that may be the best ploy we have to keep them away. Look, today’s taken care of; we’ll worry about tomorrow, tomorrow. Okay?”
Amanda nodded and gave him a reassuring smile. “So what did you find out from Billy? Did Jack call? Are Aleksandr’s bodyguards KGB?”
Lee shook his head and chuckled. “Now I know where you get it from. Your mother did the same thing to me yesterday. She fired question after question at me, she’s lucky I answered them all.”
“Don’t even mention my mother and her questions. At least you got to leave this morning. I had to handle the clean up from the Scarecrow issue. She may be putting on a happy face for the sake of the boys, but she hasn’t forgiven me for lying to her all this time.” Amanda shrugged. “I know it’s going to take her a while before she truly gets over being kept in the dark for so long. This morning’s revelation just proves that we’re really going to have to be on our toes. It also got me wondering about the kind of reactions we’re going to get from Phillip and Jamie.”
Lee looked at his wife and gave her a reassuring smile. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get there. It’s like you said yesterday, there’s going to be a period of adjustment, but we’ll get through it. Hopefully we’ll be able to convince them to be more forthcoming with their questions, and not just spring them on us.”
Amanda laughed softly. “I doubt it. Mother may be curious, but she’s got nothing on the boys. Now, no more diversions, what did Mr. Melrose find out about Aleksander Molinkof?”
Lee crumpled up his sandwich wrapper and shot it into a nearby garbage can. “Unfortunately he didn’t have good news for me. Turns out that because Aleksandr is the pride of Russia, they have one of their best assigned to him, and it just happens to be the Magician.” He looked over at his wife when he heard her gasp. “Yeah, I know, but even though we knew that he was in town, we had no idea why or where he’d turn up. None of our sources even indicated that he was here to protect a Russian prodigy. Look at it this way, at least now we know where he’s going to be and we’ll take every precaution we can.” He so desperately wanted to put his arms around his wife and let her know it would be okay, but he knew that he couldn’t, not with the Agency eyes watching things, so he settled with taking her hand back into his.
“Aside from arranging for Francine to be here, and placing a few other agents at the tournament, the team’s going to buzz us the minute they see the embassy car arrive. I talked to Fielder, and if something should go wrong, we’ll meet him at the main entrance.” Lee nodded in the direction of the doors with his head. “This way we can find out what’s going on and formulate a plan of action.” He gave her a reassuring smile when he saw the concern on his wife’s face. “It’s the only option we have. We can’t pull Sydney out of school without raising a whole lot of suspicion, so we just have to be extra cautious. Look, Billy suggested that one of us should follow them to and from class, and I think it’s a pretty good idea. We could take turns. I can follow them to one class, and you can take the next. If they spot me, I’ll just tell them I got lost.”
Amanda nodded. “And if they spot me, I can always tell them that I’m trying to track down a teacher for some reason or another.” She looked down at the ground. “I really hate this. All the lying…”
Lee reached over and put his finger under her chin, guiding her to look at him. “Hey, no one said this was going to be easy. We’ll make the best of it, just like we always do, and you’re not doing this alone. I’m right here with you.”
“I know.” Amanda gave him a small smile. “Did Mr. Melrose hear anything about Jack?”
Lee let out deep breath. “Yes and no. He found out from the CIA that he’s been making his check-ins, and that he’s not deep undercover.” He let go of her hand and ran it through his hair. “I tell you, Amanda, the next time I see him, it’s really going to take all my willpower not to beat him senseless.”
Amanda looked at him curiously. “Why? What else did Mr. Melrose say?”
“Billy didn’t say anything.” Lee turned to look at his wife. “Did you by chance hear any of my conversation with Sydney while we were playing chess, yesterday?”
Amanda shook her head. “No, I was too busy trying to outsmart my two boys at Monopoly. Why?”
Lee rubbed his forehead. “Well, after what Sydney mentioned to me, I’m thoroughly convinced that she was Jack’s test subject.” He watched his wife’s eyes grow wide, and her brow creased with concern. “Sydney asked me if I remembered much about what happened right after my parents died. When I asked her why, she told me that she felt like she was having memory lapses. The way she described it to me, I felt as if I was talking to one of the agents I mentioned to you the other night; the ones who had their memories reset after the war. I knew, without a doubt, that someone had reset her memory, and that someone had to be Jack.” He ran his hand through his hair again. “Amanda, the Russians don’t want to get their hands on Sydney because they want to break Jack; they want to get their hands on the first test subject. That’s the leak Jack is trying to uncover. He wants to find out who knows, and how they found out. And if he is anything like me, he’s not only trying to plug the leak, but he’s also trying to find a way to keep them from ever coming after Sydney.”
“Oooh, that man makes even me want to punch something!” Amanda jumped up from her seat. “When he does get back and if you manage to get your hands on him…don’t finish him off.” She looked him square in the eye, anger written on her face. “I want a crack at him first. I don’t understand how anyone can be that heartless. One thing’s for sure, Jack Bristow doesn’t deserve to be that sweet girl’s father.” She squinted her eyes and put her hands on her hips. “Wait a minute, if you came to this conclusion yesterday, why are you just telling me now?”
Lee looked up at his wife and shook his head. “I wanted to tell you yesterday, but other things came up, and I never got the chance.”
“You’re right, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to jump at you like that. This whole situation is just getting more and more complicated.” Amanda bent down and gathered up the rest of their trash. She took a few deep breaths before walking over to the nearby garbage can and threw the items inside. Turning back around, she saw that Lee had risen and was moving towards her. “I wish Jack would have been more honest with us from the start. Although, I don’t know what we would have done differently if he had, I’d still agree to take Sydney in, you know that.”
Lee stood next to her and put his hand at the small of her back. “I know, but at least we’d have known more of the puzzle rather than having to put the pieces together ourselves.” He looked down at his watch. “I guess we should head back inside. I want to make sure Jamie and Sydney are at their next class, and I want to be ready when the Magician does show up.” Walking towards the front of the school, he let his hand move up and down her back ever so slightly, just enough to comfort his wife without raising suspicion from the Agency babysitters. “Don’t worry, we’ve got plenty of backup if something should happen.” As he opened the door for her to enter, he wondered who he was trying to convince more, his wife or himself. No matter how hard he tried to be optimistic, he couldn’t help but feel like a black cloud was following them, waiting to rain on their parade.
SMK a SMK a SMK
Jamie tapped his pencil on the desk as he watched the second hand move around the clock for the third time. Turning his head, he couldn’t help but smile at how intent Sydney was on getting tomorrow’s homework done now, so that they could enjoy the game tonight. He knew he should be doing his own homework, and he was excited about the game, too, but he really wanted to check out the chess tournament, which had started half an hour ago. Glancing at their substitute teacher, an idea suddenly sprung to mind. Leaning over, he tapped Sydney’s shoulder.
Sydney looked over at her friend. “What’s up?” She noticed that he hadn’t written anything down on his homework and her expression turned to one of curiosity. Miss Downs had instructed them that Mrs. Severn hadn’t had a chance to leave any assignments before she left and that they should use this time as a study period. “You’re not having problems with the math assignment, are you?”
Jamie shook his head. “Nah, haven’t even started it.” He turned in his seat and motioned for Sydney to move her head a little nearer. Glancing quickly towards the substitute to make sure she wasn’t paying any attention to them, he smiled and leaned his head closer to Sydney’s. “I’ve got an idea,” he whispered. “My mom never said what the verdict on the tournament was, and now that we have the game tonight, we won’t be able to see anything till tomorrow. What if we head over there now?”
Sydney looked at him skeptically. “Um, how do you suppose we do that? Miss Downs may be a substitute, but she’s not going to just let us walk out of here.”
Jamie nodded and smiled. “I know, but I’ve go the perfect plan that will get us out of class with a pass and everything. That is, if you’re game.”
Sydney shrugged. “Let’s hear what your idea is, before I agree to anything.”
Jamie glanced briefly back towards the teacher and, satisfied that she was still preoccupied, he leaned in closer and put his hand to the side of his mouth as he whispered in Sydney’s ear. “If you pretend to have an upset stomach and need to go the nurse’s office, I’ll tell her that I have to go with you, since you’re sort of my responsibility.”
Sydney leaned back and eyed her friend cautiously. “I don’t know.”
Jamie kept his voice low. “Come on. What have we got to lose? I know you want to check out the tournament just as much as I do. Look, if we go now we can hang out at the tournament for the last half hour of school. We can sit in the back and leave as soon as the last bell rings, that way we can head over to meet my mom and Lee at the sale on time and they’ll never be the wiser.” He moved back into his own chair and looked at her pleadingly.
Tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear, Sydney sighed. “Okay, but if we get in trouble, I’m blaming it all on you.” Putting her hand over her stomach, she raised her hand.
Miss Downs looked up and saw the raised hand, then looked back down at the seating chart. “Yes, Sydney…isn’t it?”
Sydney nodded her head slowly. “I’m not feeling so good all of a sudden. I know it’s almost the end of the day, but I don’t know if I can last that long.”
Miss Downs rose from her seat and quickly approached the young girl. “You do look a little pale,” she commented, as she got closer. “Let me write you out a pass to the nurse’s office.”
Jamie reached over and touched the substitute’s arm. “Miss Downs, Sydney’s staying with us, and I should probably accompany her to the nurse’s office, especially since she doesn’t know where it is.” He smiled innocently at the teacher as she turned to look at him. “My mom would be awfully upset with me if there was something wrong with Sydney and I didn’t do everything I could to help her.”
Miss Downs looked at Jamie, a hint of uncertainty in her eyes, and then back at the young girl. “Do you think you can manage on your own Sydney?”
Sydney shook her head slightly “I think it might be better if Jamie came with me.” She clutched her stomach a little tighter and let out a small moan.
Miss Downs turned and nodded towards Jamie. “Okay, I’ll go write out the note. I guess you should pack up your books and hers, I’m guessing you won’t be back to class.” She headed back to her desk.
Jamie was trying hard to suppress the grin that was tugging at the corners of his mouth as he gathered his books. He then moved over and gathered Sydney’s keeping up the charade. He waited for Sydney to stand up before moving to the side and letting her pass. Following her, he made his way up to the desk at the front of the room.
“Here’s your pass. I’m not fully familiar with procedure here. Do I need to let the nurse know you’re coming?” Miss Downs looked directly at Jamie.
Jamie called on all his courage to keep from fidgeting. He knew that usually the nurse needed to be notified so he told a variation of the truth. “Normally, yes if the person were heading down by themselves, but since I’m going with Sydney, you don’t have to.” He silently prayed that Miss Downs would buy it.
Miss Downs handed the pass to Jamie. “Okay, I’ll take your word for it.” Then turning to Sydney, she gave a concerned smile. “I hope you feel better soon.”
Sydney smiled politely. “Thank you.” She then turned and slowly walked towards the door.
Jamie followed right behind Sydney and as they got closer to the door, he quickened his step so that he reached the door before she could, figuring that it was best if he was as helpful as possible in order to keep up appearances. With his free hand, he pushed open the door and moved aside so she could enter the hallway ahead of him.
Sydney stepped out into the hallway and moved slowly until she was out of sight of the door. As soon as she heard the door shut behind them, she turned and smiled at Jamie. “I wonder if that would have worked so well with Mrs. Severn.”
Jamie waited till he had caught up with her, and they had started walking in the direction of the auditorium before replying. “I don’t know, but that was great. You were really convincing, I really thought that you were in terrible pain.”
Sydney shrugged. “I’ve always enjoyed play acting. My fifth grade class had to put on a show about the gold rush in California. We wrote the play ourselves and I was cast in one of the lead roles.”
“Maybe you should pursue a career in acting when you get out of school.” Jamie kept his eyes open for any teachers or parents who might be wandering the halls.
“Nah,” Sydney shook her head, “I want to do something important with my life, something that makes a difference in the world.”
Jamie looked at her curiously. “You mean like become President or something?”
Sydney laughed. “Not a bad idea, Jamie, but I was thinking of something a little different, something exciting, but still important. I just have no idea what that could be, at least not yet.”
Jamie shrugged his shoulders. “Hey, we’re here.” He stopped in front of the auditorium doors. Pushing one of the doors open, he whispered, “After you, my lady.”
Sydney giggled and entered the auditorium. Since it was still early, there weren’t a lot of people in the room. On stage a man and woman were staring intently at their chess pieces. The only object on the table, other than the chessboard, was a box with two clocks and two buttons on top. Next to the table was a screen, projecting the image of the chessboard, so the audience could get a better view of the players’ moves. She started walking towards the front of the room, watching the two players. She stopped when she felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning she looked at Jamie. “What?” she whispered.
“I thought we were going to sit near the back, so we could hear the bell.” Jamie pointed towards the door with his head.
“But then we can’t see what’s going on. There are a couple of doors near the stage, I was thinking we could sit there, and still be able to hear the last bell ring.” Sydney looked pleadingly at her friend.
Jamie shrugged. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. We just have to make sure we leave as soon as the bell rings, or we’re in deep trouble.”
Sydney nodded and sat down in one of the seats three rows back from the stage. She moved her arm away from the armrest of the chair when Jamie sat down, to avoid bumping elbows. Shifting in the seat in order to get comfortable, she took note of the activity on stage. A boy, not much older than herself, was sitting behind the two players, watching the game intently. Sitting on either side of him were two men, one with dark black hair, the other blond. The boy had to be the prodigy that Jamie had mentioned was going to be attending. As her gaze began to shift back towards the two players, she caught sight of the dark-haired man looking at her intently, as if studying her. It made her feel very uncomfortable.
Jamie sensed a change in his friend’s demeanor and leaned closer to her. “Sydney,” he whispered. “Are you okay? You’re not worried we’re going to get in trouble are you? I mean we are the only two kids in here, I guess it does look suspicious.”
Sydney glanced around the room. Jamie was right, aside from the boy on stage, they were the only two students in the auditorium. That was probably why the man was looking at her strangely. “Yeah, I mean no. I’m not worried about being caught. Let’s just watch this game play out.”
As Sydney watched the game, she noticed the man glance at her one more time before standing and walking over to the blond-haired man. He bent down and said something and then disappeared back stage. She felt a little better with the man gone, and concentrated on the game once again. It was actually kind of fun to watch. Every time one of the players made a move, they pushed a button above the clock on their side of the table. “That’s pretty cool,” she whispered to Jamie after the woman pushed the button.
Jamie nodded. “Yeah, makes it more intense when you know there’s a time limit. You know, trying to make a move in a time faster than you’re opponent.”
They were both so intent on watching the players, that Sydney didn’t notice the dark-haired man return.
Sergei Romanovich, better known in the intelligence circle as the Magician, walked back on stage and headed over to his comrade. Bending down he whispered in Russian, “Take the boy to his room backstage. Tell him we will be bringing him a couple of visitors. No questions, Comrade.”
Ivan Plotkovich knew better than to question orders, so he nodded and moved over to talk to their charge. The young boy rose from his seat and headed towards the edge of the stairs. Ivan followed behind and as they descended the stairs from the stage, he glanced over and watched the Magician approach the two youngsters who had entered the room a few minutes ago. The young girl looked vaguely familiar, and he wondered just what the Magician was up to. As he exited the auditorium behind Aleksandr, he figured that he would find out what was going on soon enough, and turned his attention back on the young boy whose safety he was responsible for.
Sydney looked up to see the dark-haired man approaching. He was tall, and reminded her a little of her father, not in looks, but in the way he carried himself, very self-assured and with an air of authority. The only real difference was that this man seemed more relaxed then she’d ever seen her father, and the smile he was wearing as he approached them, seemed just a little too friendly. Growing very nervous, she grabbed onto Jamie’s arm. She nodded in the man’s direction when her friend looked at her questioningly.
“I could not help notice that you are the only two students in the room.” Sergei commented quietly as he stood before the two children.
“Is that a problem, sir?” Jamie asked, a slight quiver in his voice.
Sergei shook his head and let out small laugh. “Oh, no. But you are the only students who have visited the game so far, and I thought you might want to meet Aleksandr Molinkof.”
Jamie and Sydney looked at each other, their earlier nervousness erased. “Really?” They both whispered in unison as they looked back at the man hovering over them.
“Oh yes, he is in the classroom assigned to him right now, working on some strategies, and I thought one of you might want to challenge him.” Sergei smiled, hoping that the two young children would eagerly jump at the chance. Noticing the worried expressions on their faces as they exchanged glances with each other, he extended his hand. “Oh where are my manners, as you say, I really should introduce myself. My name is Sergei Romanovich, and I am with Aleksandr.”
Jamie looked skeptically at this dark-haired man before glancing at the clock on the wall. He knew that they still had about fifteen minutes before the final bell rang. Deciding that it this was an opportunity too good to pass up, he reached out and shook the man’s hand. “My name is Jamie King, and if you don’t think it’ll be a problem, it would be an honor to meet Aleksandr, but I don’t think we’ll have time to play against him.” He turned towards his friend. “What do you think Sydney?”
Sydney still felt a little unsure of this stranger. He kept looking at her strangely, like he recognized her, in fact his features seemed to almost brighten when Jamie had said her name. “I don’t know…”
Jamie stood up and reached his hand out, motioning for her to do the same. “Come on, we may never get another chance to meet someone like Aleksandr again. I have a feeling that my mom will probably come up with something for us to do tomorrow, and we won’t get another opportunity like this.”
Even though the little voice inside her head was telling her no, Sydney didn’t want to disappoint her friend. Shrugging her shoulders, she sighed. “Oh, okay. I guess it would be exciting to meet a real chess expert.”
“Wonderful.” Sergei’s smile grew wider. “Just follow me.” He headed towards the door next to the stage. “We must go out this door and across the hall to the room Aleksandr is in.”
As Sydney followed behind Jamie, a little voice inside her head kept repeating the mantra. ‘Never talk to strangers. Never talk to strangers.’
SMK a SMK a SMK
Amanda glanced at her watch as she headed down the hallway; she had only a minute to go before the final bell rang. Knowing that she’d need a good excuse for coming to get them, she and Lee had decided to tell Jamie and Sydney that they had gotten out of the sale early, and that Lee would be meeting them at the cars. In reality, once she had collected her son and Sydney, she was going to dial Lee’s vibrator, signaling him that everything was on schedule, and then he would head out and meet them by their cars. Reaching down, she readjusted the device hooked to her belt and laughed as she remembered the strange looks the other mothers had given them when they had jumped, startled by the vibrators going off, just under an hour ago. Lee had just returned to the book sale after safely seeing Jamie and Sydney to their last class, when the devices had buzzed, alerting them to the Magician’s arrival. It was now a dangerous game they were playing, if the Magician got even a quick glance at Sydney, he’d know she was in town, and her safety would be in even more jeopardy than it already was.
Amanda reached their classroom, just as the last bell rang. Stepping aside, she watched all the children exit the room, anxiously awaiting Jamie and Sydney. When it appeared that all the students had left, and neither her son nor Sydney had appeared, she stepped into the room. “Um, excuse me?” She caught sight of the unfamiliar face sitting at the teacher’s desk. “Where’s Mrs. Severn?”
“She had to leave early today. I’m Miss Downs, the substitute. Is there something I can do for you?” The young teacher moved closer to Amanda.
“Yes, my name is Amanda King, and I’m looking for my son, Jamie King, and a young girl whose staying with us, Sydney Bristow. They should have been here.” Amanda tried to hide the panic from her voice.
“Didn’t the nurse call you to come pick up Sydney?” Miss Downs saw the confused look on Mrs. King’s face. “Sydney was complaining of a stomach ache and Jamie accompanied her to the nurse’s office.”
Amanda took a deep breath. “Oh, thank you. I’ll head over there now.” She headed out of the classroom and walked as briskly as she could towards the nurse’s office. She had a sneaking suspicion that her son and Sydney were not going to be there, and the knot she had felt earlier when her husband had first mentioned that the Magician was going to be at the tournament was beginning to grow. It didn’t take her long before she’d reached the nurse’s office. Rushing in, she looked around frantically for Nurse Mead.
“Hello, Mrs. King. What are you doing here?” Nurse Mead asked as she rounded the corner.
“Isn’t Jamie here? He should have brought a young girl in with a stomach ache – Sydney Bristow?” Amanda tried to keep her voice calm.
“I’m sorry, I haven’t had any students in here since just after lunch, and I haven’t seen Jamie at all this year, amazingly enough.” Nurse Mead smiled as she realized just how often the King boys had been in her office for one reason or another. They usually came to her with some sort of playground injury.
Amanda quickly pulled the vibrator from her belt and dialed 1-911. She then turned towards the nurse. “Sorry to have bothered you.” Quickly she turned and dashed out of the office. She desperately wanted to go in search of Jamie and Sydney, but knew that she needed to touch base with Lee and Fred first. So, instead, she stuck with the original pre-arranged plan; if an emergency came up, they were to meet at the front of the school and determine the next step. Maneuvering as best she could through the now crowded hallway, she made it to the front of the school in a matter of minutes.
“Amanda!”
Amanda turned her head at the sound of her name, and rushed over to her husband. “Lee!” She took two deep breaths, not only to calm her nerves but also because she had just run through an obstacle course more hazardous than anything at Station One. “Jamie and Sydney weren’t in their classroom, the substitute said she gave them a pass to the nurse’s office, but when I got there they weren’t there. Nurse Mead said they never showed up.”
Lee put his hands on her shoulders, forcing her to make eye contact with him. “Amanda. Let’s not jump to any conclusions just yet.”
“She said she gave them a pass half an hour ago. I have a pretty good idea of where they are. I bet you any amount of money that they decided to check out the tournament. I never told them they could go, but then again, I never told them that they couldn’t either. Since we were going to the game, I bet they decided to check it out.” Amanda’s eyes met her husband’s, fear shining in them. “Lee, if they went to the tournament and the Magician…”
“Scarecrow? Amanda? What’s going on?” Fred Fielder interrupted as he came running up to them.
Lee let go of Amanda’s shoulders and turned towards Fred. “I need you to go out and put your team on alert. Put a man at every exit of this school, and keep an eye on the Embassy car, and be ready to act at a moments notice.” He grabbed Fred’s walkie-talkie. “You can get another one from the truck,” he began explaining when he caught the annoyed look on his fellow agent’s face, “or take one from another team member. I need a way to communicate with you.”
“We put a tracking device on the embassy car. They won’t get anywhere without us knowing about it.” Fred gave Lee a stern look, one that said, ‘we know how to do our job’.
Lee shrugged as he clipped the walkie-talkie to his belt. “Just be ready for anything unexpected. We’re dealing with the Magician. He doesn’t play by any rules.” He watched Fred head back out the main doors before turning towards his wife. “Amanda, I want you to wait here for Francine.”
“Lee...” Amanda’s eyes narrowed and she put her hands on her hips, ready for a fight. “Don’t you dare start the ‘wait in the car’ speech.”
Lee shook his head vigorously. “A-man-da, this has nothing to do with you staying behind. Someone has to wait for Francine. She won’t know her way to the auditorium, but you do, so when she gets here, you two can meet me there. Before you mention the fact that I could just as easily wait for her, let me remind you that I have a gun on me, you don’t. We don’t even know if the kids are in trouble, and if they are we’ll need backup. Let’s not jump to any conclusions just yet, okay?”
“What, you're just going to whip out your gun in a room with children present?” Amanda’s voice was just above a whisper, her tone firm. “Not to mention the fact that the Magician will probably recognize you. He doesn’t know me and if he’s there, and Sydney and Jamie aren’t, why give him reason to get suspicious?”
Lee ran a hand through his hair and stared at his wife intently. “Amanda, we don't have time to argue about this right now. We've wasted enough time as it is standing here discussing the situation. Now just stay here and wait for Francine.” He turned and hurried down the hall.
Amanda took a deep breath and resisted the urge to call out a 'be careful'. She was too steamed. Tapping her foot impatiently, she scanned the hallway. Glancing down at her watch, she wondered what the hell was keeping Francine.
Lee didn’t look back as he headed towards the auditorium. He knew Amanda wouldn’t be happy, but someone had to stay behind, and he didn’t want Francine to see the worry on his face; it would raise too many questions he didn’t feel like answering right now. He needed to focus. Picking up speed as he maneuvered around the students in the hallway, he was glad that he had taken a few minutes this morning before joining up with Amanda to locate the auditorium. He wanted to make sure he knew his way just in case something went wrong. Sprinting through the hallways, careful not to run into any students, he tried to suppress the panic that was threatening to take over his common sense. Calling on his agent training to take over and help him keep a level head, he pushed open the doors of the auditorium. As he stepped inside, he quickly scanned the room, looking for any sign of his stepson or Sydney. Instead of finding either of the youngsters or the Magician, he made a beeline to a row near the middle when he caught sight of Agent Gordon. He approached his fellow agent and tapped the man on the shoulder. “Gordon.”
Gordon turned around. “Scarecrow? I sure hope you’re here to relieve me, this has got to be the dullest assignment ever, even a stake out is better than this.” He started to rise. “I should tell you the Magician was pretty busy earlier. He disappeared for a little while, but came back and talked to Aleksandr’s other bodyguard, and then the kid and the bodyguard left the stage area. Then the Magician went over and started talking to two kids, a boy and a girl.”
Lee shook his head and tried to hide the panic he suddenly felt as he listened to the agent’s report. “I’m not here to relieve you, Gordon. We’ve got a situation. Where’s the Magician now, and what about the two kids he was talking to?”
Gordon pointed to the door to the right of the stage. “He left that way about fifteen minutes ago with the two kids shortly after the prodigy left the stage. I should tell you, Ivan Plotkovich is the kid’s other bodyguard.”
Lee took a deep breath. “I’m aware of that. What about the two kids, and why didn’t you follow them?” he said through clenched teeth.
“Relax, Scarecrow. I did.” Gordon rolled his eyes. “In fact I just came back in here about ten minutes ago. I followed them to a classroom across the hall from that door.” He pointed in the direction the Magician had gone earlier. “But I looked kind of suspicious loitering outside the classroom, since the bell hadn’t rung yet, and no one was in the hallway but me. The boy and girl were talking with the prodigy, and moving pieces around the chessboard. It looked harmless to me, so I came back in here. Besides, our assignment was to watch the Magician, not follow him all over the place.” He gestured towards the stage. “I figured as long as the prodigy is still here, the Magician will be too, and Fielder’s watching the embassy car. Believe me, I’d rather be doing anything but watching this enthralling chess match.”
Lee silently cursed as he realized that none of the agents had been given a picture of Sydney. No one was supposed to know about her, that’s why all the teams had been told to keep an eye on the Magician. Pulling out his wallet, he took out a picture of Amanda and the boys. Showing it to Gordon, he pointed to his youngest stepson. “Was this one of the kids that was with the Magician?”
Gordon looked at the picture and then up at Lee. “Yeah that’s the boy. Hey, isn’t that Mrs. King in the picture?” He looked curiously at the agent. “Why do you have a picture of your partner in your wallet?” Understanding suddenly dawned on his face, and a knowing smile spread across his face. “Oh…”
Lee gritted his teeth and took a deep breath. He didn’t have time to waste discussing the fact that he had a picture of his partner and her sons in his wallet, or why he had it. Right now all he cared about was Jamie and Sydney. Ignoring the knowing look Gordon was giving him, he took another deep breath. “Look, Amanda and Francine should be here any minute. Tell them where I went.” Cursing again, he took off at a sprint in the direction the Magician had gone with Sydney and Jamie. Ignoring the annoyed looks of the tournament participants, he prayed that the two youngsters were still in the classroom, but that feeling of dread told him that they wouldn’t be. Reaching the door, he pushed it open and was thankful that the hallways seemed to have a lot less students now.
Stepping out into the hallway, he approached the room directly across from him. Peering in, it appeared empty. Opening the door, he looked inside and saw Ivan Plotkovich and a young boy in the corner. “Where’d they go, Plotkovich?”
“Well, well, well, if it isn’t the great Scarecrow. To what do we owe this pleasure?” Ivan kept his face neutral, not wanting give anything away.
“Where did the Magician go, and what happened to the boy and girl who were in here earlier?” Lee resisted the urge to reach down for his gun. The young boy was an innocent in this whole ordeal, and didn’t need to be frightened.
Ivan shrugged his shoulders. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Scarecrow.”
Lee took two menacing steps towards Plotkovich, his fists clenched at his side. “Yes. You. Do.” He turned towards the boy, and in a quieter tone he asked in Russian, “Where did the young boy and girl you were talking to go?”
Aleksandr looked up at Ivan, unsure of what to do. He caught the barely noticeable shake of his bodyguard’s head. Unsure of what Ivan wanted him to do and not wanting to lie, he shrugged and decided to be as vague as possible. “They only just left. Right after the bell rang.”
Lee was just about to ask the boy where the Magician was, when he saw an exterior door to his left. He muttered a few choice words as he made a beeline for the door. Throwing it open, he caught sight of the one thing he feared. Thirty yards a way, he saw his youngest stepson being forced into the back of a black sedan by none other than the Magician. Squatting, he pulled his gun out from around his ankle and then took of at a sprint. “Romanovich!” he shouted, just as the car door slammed shut.
The tires squealed as it headed towards the parking lot exit. Lee raised his gun ready to shoot out the back tires, just as a group of students rounded the corner. “Damn!” He didn’t want to risk causing a scene and lowered his gun. Fielder was going to get an earful for not having anyone covering the back lot of the school. Tucking his gun in the waistband of his pants, he pulled the walkie-talkie off his belt. “Black Sedan, heading north on Filer – Diplomatic tags – set off in pursuit, NOW!” He was now torn between needing to get some answers from Plotkovich, and making sure the team had dispatched a car in the direction he had indicated.
Lee’s decision was made for him when the walkie-talkie crackled. “Scarecrow, two cars are following the sedan. We’ll keep you posted.”
Turning, Lee ran back towards the door he had just come through, ready to beat some answers out of Plotkovich, and he didn’t care who saw. His son and Sydney’s lives were at stake.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Please note that any dialogue in italics is indicating that the speaker is speaking in Russian…