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Rating: PG

Summary: I'm trying to explain Dotty's smile in the tag 'Wrong Way Home.' I used the unedited CBS version of this ep. (Thank you, Merel.)

Disclaimer: 'Scarecrow & Mrs. King' is the property of Warner Brothers and the Shoot the Moon Enterprises. This story however, belongs to the author and is for entertainment purposes only. No infringement of rights is intended. Reference is made to situations from "Wrong Way Home" written by George Geiger.

Author's Notes: Special thanks to Wendy, who breathed life into this story and kept me moving forward. Thanks to Ann for planting the idea in the first place, and to all those who helped me along the 'beta trail' making this a learning experience.

Feedback: Please! On list or off

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Prologue

"Why is this stuck?" Dotty was engaged in a tug of war with a kitchen drawer. She continued to pull at it while talking to herself in a steady, determined voice meant to master the problem at hand. "Now, I know I should be able . . ." as she spoke, she began working her way through the contents.

"No doubt something has gotten pushed to the back." Walking her fingers through keys, tools, batteries, and items she couldn't identify, she felt paper or maybe the corner of something thicker. Whatever the item was, she gave it a tug. It wouldn't budge.

As she pulled, the drawer tried to close on her. With a start, she gave the object in question a hard yank. Out it came, intact. "Ah!" With a sense of victory she looked at . . . "An envelope?! Now how did that get in there?"

Sitting down on the kitchen stool, she turned the old, opened envelope over and recognized the handwriting and return address. It was one that Joe had sent from Estoccia.

Shaking her head, Dotty ran her fingers over the envelope while her mind turned to memories it brought back to her. Had it only been three years since Joe's sudden departure from Africa. Sometimes it felt like another lifetime.

**********************************************************************

Sitting in the driveway . . . in the station wagon . . . in the driver's seat . . . waiting . . . tapping her nails against the steering wheel . . . Dotty's voice carried a soft, but impatient tone. "Amanda, what is keeping you?" She'd been mapping out her morning plans and the necessary driving maneuvers those plans would present. Surely she could get it all done with only right turns and no parallel parking. Now, she sat waiting, erect and stiff, as she anticipated the 'driving challenges' ahead and wondered what was delaying her daughter.

Dotty heard the click of Amanda's heels and looked up to see her walking quickly down the driveway toward the wagon. 'Thank goodness,' she said to herself as she turned the key in the ignition. At that moment, she noticed Amanda's gaze. She was studying her own fast steps with preoccupation or perhaps something more.

"Are we ready to go?" Dotty asked as Amanda got into the car. "Who was on the phone?"

"I'm ready if you are," Amanda replied as she fastened her seatbelt. "I'll explain the phone call on the way." Her voice seemed to have the same quiet impatience Dotty had heard herself use only moments ago.

"Whatever you say." Dotty backed down the drive and eased the station wagon out into the street. "I'm glad Edna Gilstrap has stopped parking her car on the street. It's hard to get clear of it when I pull out of the driveway. She's parked in that spot for years. Funny she'd change now. It sure helps me out, though." She smiled confidently, feeling that her day was now on track.

"Darling, are you listening to me?" Dotty glanced over at Amanda, who was fingering her necklace and looking out the window, apparently deep in thought.

"Oh . . . yes, Mother. It's nice that she's moved her car."

"Amanda." Dotty's voice emphasized the name, while her eyes glanced at her daughter and then quickly back at the road. "Who was on the phone?"

Amanda turned in the seat to look directly at her mother while seeming to gather her thoughts. "Mother, that was Joe and he's back here in DC. He only had a minute, so we really didn't get a chance to talk. I'm sure we'll hear from him again, soon."

"Did you know Joe was coming home?" Dotty spoke, her brow furrowed, her eyes looking straight ahead.

"No. I had no idea."

When Amanda offered no further comment, Dotty forged ahead. "The boys will certainly be excited."

"Mother, I'd rather not say anything to the boys until I can talk to Joe and find out about his . . . plans."

With a look of puzzlement on her face, Dotty glanced over at her daughter again. The traffic light allowed her a moment to focus on the information she seemed to be missing. "I don't understand, Amanda. You know he'll want to spend time with the boys. It's been a long while since he's been back here to see them."

A sense of Amanda's discomfort with Joe's sudden reappearance and apparent trouble carried through in her voice. "Mother, I think Joe has come back unexpectedly. I'm not sure why. He only had a moment to talk on the phone, so I think we should just wait until he can tell us what his plans are. Please don't say anything to the boys just yet. Okay?"

"Of course, Darling, whatever you say." Dotty's mind found itself trying to consider what Amanda had just said. . .or more precisely what she hadn't said. That, along with the demands of driving, reduced her to silence. Amanda seemed to be preoccupied with her own thoughts. Several quiet minutes passed with only the sounds of early morning traffic.

Dotty pulled up carefully alongside the curb near the entrance to International Federal Film. She let out an audible sigh at being able to stop without having to parallel park. Amanda opened the door and quickly got out, saying, "I'll see you later." Dotty watched as she stepped away from the car and turned.

Recalling Joe's strange return, Dotty leaned over toward the passenger window. "Call me if you learn anything, or if you need a ride home later."

"I will," Amanda called out. "Drive carefully. Don't worry about me, Mother. I'll get a ride." With those words, Amanda waved and began to move quickly toward the IFF entrance.

"I'm sure you will." Dotty said softly, shaking her head as she pulled absently away from the curb. 'It's always good to have Joe home, but it could be very . . . unsettling. I wonder . . . I worry about Amanda and . . . Joe.'

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Dotty could hear squeaks, clicks, and thumps from upstairs. Drawers were being opened and closed, and the contents of closet shelves quickly rearranged. Sitting on the sofa in the den, she looked at the small pile of letters in front of her on the coffee table, wondering where to begin, while Amanda's search for the rest of Joe's letters was underway. Dotty was more than ready for some straight answers to her questions. And she certainly had enough questions ready to ask when Amanda was able to slow down and listen. 'What will we be looking for in these letters? Why are we looking? What kind of trouble is Joe in?'

Joe's return had set this quest into motion. Amanda was, as usual, not very forthcoming with information other than, "There seemed to be a problem at EAO and the authorities are looking for Joe." Her daughter's words and her actions were not sending the same message.

As Amanda walked rapidly through the den, toward the kitchen, Dotty peered over the top of her reading glasses and simply couldn't wait any longer. She reached out toward her daughter. "Amanda. We need to talk."

"Sure, Mother, but I'm in kind of a hurry." Amanda stood in the kitchen, her eyes scanning the room. She opened the junk drawer and began rummaging through its contents.

Dotty took off her glasses and, using them as a pointer, searched for a question that might get a clearly worded reply. She hesitated, and Amanda, looking up, caught her mother's frown. "Mother, what is it?"

"Amanda, you come bustling in here from work, asking me to help you go through Joe's old letters. I'm always glad to help . . .but I'm most helpful when I know what I'm doing." Dotty paused with her head cocked and her eyebrows arched. "What am I doing? I don't understand any of this. Now, that's not to say that I expect to understand." She threw both hands up, emphasizing her frustration, as she looked directly at her daughter with eyes intent on drawing out information.

Amanda, with studied hesitation, began to give Dotty reassuring words but very few facts as quickly as she could. "Mother, Mr. Prescott, from EAO, didn't give me much to go on this morning. I'm as curious about what has happened as you are. When we see Joe, I'm sure he'll clear this up."

"Well, Amanda . . . where is Joe?" Dotty's hands, palms up, shaped the question.

"I'm afraid I don't know that, either. Joe was on the phone only a minute this morning." Dotty leveled an annoyed look at her daughter and Amanda paused. "Mother, I know this is confusing for you. It's confusing for me too. Amanda's soulful expression indicated more than confusion. Dotty opened her mouth to say just that, but she was interrupted. "But right now we need to start going through these letters for something that might help. I'll go get the rest of them and you can begin reading. Okay?" Amanda laid her hand on her mother's shoulder. "I know Joe will appreciate your help."

Dotty watched Amanda as she headed up the steps leading out of the den. She put her glasses back on and turned her attention to the first letter she picked up, but the words didn't come into focus any more clearly than her thoughts. There were too many unanswered questions. In a whisper, she spoke. "When this is all straightened out, Amanda, you and I are going to talk."

**********************************************************************

After the unsettling time she'd spent the day before, Dotty was relieved to put Joe's problems out of her mind for a moment. A new salsa recipe had been the focus of her attention when Phillip and Jamie, going full blast, burst through the back door. Dotty, sitting on the kitchen stool, looked up, momentarily taken aback. At this hour of the morning, she knew the boys should be in school and Amanda at work. "What . . . " was all Dotty got out, before Jamie began with, "Grandma, you won't believe what happened. We were in the gym before school . . ."

Phillip's voice ran right over the top of Jamie's. "Yeah, this dude came in and tried to grab us. You should've seen it."

Dotty, wide eyed and open mouthed, only got out another startled "What . . . " before both boys began again. Words piled on top of each other, their volume escalating rapidly.

The tirade was stopped by a clear voice. "Hey, fellas!" Amanda stepped between the boys and brought the verbal duel down several decibels. "I'm sure your grandmother would appreciate your telling her what happened in a reasonable volume and *one* at a time." Then, looking directly at Dotty, she spoke. "Mother, everything is okay. I'm going to let the boys tell you what happened."

Dotty sat spellbound, her glasses dangling from her right hand, as the boys described what they had watched happen in the gym earlier that morning. Details were garbled at times, with clear excitement and fright affecting their perspective. Her eyes moved from her grandsons to her daughter in dazed amazement.

"Amanda, what on earth happened?" The words rolled out with increasing emphasis, her brown eyes snapping with alarm.

"Mother, everyone is okay. Joe is fine and the problem at EAO has been cleared up. That's what this morning in the gym was about." Amanda rocked uneasily on her heels as she spoke. Motioning to the boys, she drew them in towards her, encircling them in her arms.

In that pause, Dotty drew herself together. "Since when does the EAO use guns, trampolines, and swinging on gym ropes to solve the world's food shortage problems?" With each word the pitch of her voice began to rise, again.

"Mother, Joe will be coming by later and the three of us can talk then. He can answer a lot of your questions."

"Well, Amanda, why were *you* at the school?"

"When I dropped the boys off, Mrs. Dennis stopped me and told me that someone had been asking about them. That's how I ended up in the gym." Amanda turned her attention to the boys. "Fellas, I want you to take your things upstairs and get out of your school clothes if you're going outside. Your dad's coming by later."

They began to collect their jackets and bags, stepping away from Amanda. She pulled both boys back for a tight hug. "I love you guys." The moment was still as she placed a kiss on top of each head, tousling their hair, "Now upstairs and out of those clothes. And hang those jackets up." The last words were lost in the sounds of a scramble that carried both boys quickly out of the room and up the steps.

Dotty had been watching Amanda and the boys, still trying to process what she had just heard. "Amanda, I don't even know which question to ask first, so I'll start with . . . Are you really okay?" Her instincts told her that her daughter was on the verge of losing her composure.

"Yes, Mother, I'm really okay." Amanda stood, hands in her jeans pockets, looking preoccupied. "It was pretty frightening, but . . . ah, an agent there got things under control, quickly." She seemed to hurry her words along as she spoke.

"Well, thank heavens for that agent, whoever he was. Glad he was there at the right moment."

Biting her lower lip, Amanda looked down. "Mother, I'm going to check on the boys and call IFF." She moved quickly out of the kitchen and up the stairs without looking back.

Dotty slipped off the kitchen stool, where she had been rooted during the entire scene. A moment later, she followed Amanda's path to the bottom of the stairway. "Amanda, I'll go get some things at the grocery store to put some lunch together," she called up the stairs.

Jamie's voice, coming from the boy's room, caught her attention. "Man, did you see that guy use that trampoline?" Clearly, he and Phillip were still talking about the experience they'd had in the gym.

"Yeah, did you see him swing into the creep that grabbed you?"

Dotty stepped away from the stairs and turned back toward the kitchen, shaking her head. "I just don't believe any of this."

**********************************************************************

Sitting at the picnic table, Dotty took in every word as Joe spoke. She filed answers in her head, as he explained what had occurred in Estoccia, and why he'd had to return home. "You mean they actually accused you of murdering the Prime Minister of Estoccia?" Her voice carried the outrage she felt. "And the Prime Minister was . . . is . . . still alive?!"

"Everything happened so suddenly . . . there wasn't time to do anything except get back to DC and the office at EAO. Unfortunately, Foster expected me to do just that." Joe described his efforts to get at the truth. He seemed to be picking his words carefully, giving few details. "I never wanted to bring danger home to all of you, but this time, that's exactly what happened. It's the very thing I'd hoped to avoid when I called yesterday morning." Concern was written in his furrowed brow and intense gaze.

"Joe, you couldn't have known. It's okay." Amanda's voice carried a soft tone.

"I'm just grateful that that federal agent was so good at his job." Shaking his head, he glanced at Amanda as a strange, uncomfortable look swept across her face. Joe quickly cleared his throat and turned to Dotty. "I, uh . . ."

At that moment, the boys came clamoring out the back door, running to embrace him. "Hey, guys, I was wondering if you'd like to help me check out your fishing gear. See what we might need for a fishing trip next weekend. That is . . . if you'd like to go?"

Jumping straight up, Jamie burst out, "Yeah, Dad!"

Joe's gaze moved from the boys to Amanda. "And . . . ah, if it's okay with your mother."

"Wow, Dad!" Phillip's voice rose to a high, awkward pitch.

"Hey, Mom, is it okay?" Jamie's face carried his excitement as he turned to his mother.

"I thought it might be best to stay closer to home *this* weekend." Joe's words followed the look of concern to Amanda.

Amanda's soft smile relayed her message. "Sure, that sounds great!"

"And while I'm at it, I have tickets to the Orioles' game tomorrow afternoon. What do you think, guys?"

"Cool!" Phillip reached over to his mother to confirm that this would be okay.

Joe watched as Amanda responded to the boys. Her eyes sparkled with enthusiasm and the joy that came from them.

Dotty sat quietly, taking in the scene before her. For the moment, her presence was unnoticed. Her attention was drawn first to Joe's expression as he spoke to Amanda. She sensed something there that tugged at her heart and brought a tinge of apprehension to her thoughts.

Amanda was absorbed in the boys, as usual. If she noticed anything, no sign of it showed in her expression. Her body language showed the same warm, welcoming attitude she always offered Joe . . . except she seemed quieter. She had said very little throughout the conversation.

Dotty shook her head almost imperceptibly, wondering . . . Joe's attentive looks . . . Amanda's quiet mood . . .

**********************************************************************

The next day, Dotty was sharing her usual Saturday afternoon gardening time with Amanda. This was a double treat. The contrast between the previous day's tensions and today's pleasures filled the air with laughter and relaxed, comfortable clatter. Standing at the potting bench, both were making the necessary preparations for 'hands on' weeding, planting, and repotting. As the boys left with Joe for the game, they donned their gloves and armed themselves with the necessary tools. They were glad to be outside with time in the garden together.

Dotty was less talkative than usual. Amanda, on her knees, worked her way slowly along the row of mums near the patio. "Mother, are you okay?" She paused with her hand hovering over a too-healthy weed and looked directly at Dotty. "You're awfully quiet." Waiting for her mother to respond, she gave the weed a tug.

"Amanda, I've been watching . . . ah, thinking . . . well, both. I was wondering as I watched you and Joe." Dotty paused, and then spoke softly. "There's no going back?"

Amanda sat back down on the ground with a thump, "Wha . . ."

"That's a question, Amanda. Well, it's also a statement. Actually, it's both." The trowel in Dotty's hand punctuated her thoughts. "I guess I'm wondering what you're thinking . . . feeling."

"About what, Mother?"

"Amanda, I think you know exactly what I'm asking . . . saying to you. What about Joe?"

"Where did that question come from, Mother?" Amanda chagrined at her mother's question.

Dotty leveled a look at her daughter that she had used over the years in moments marked with a straightforward exchange of information. She had often seen Amanda use that very look when she expected a straight answer from the boys.

"You're worried about this, aren't you?"

"Amanda, I don't want to invade your privacy, but . . ." Dotty looked down at her hands, pulling off her gloves as she spoke.

Amanda interrupted. "I know you care about Joe. You know I love Joe. He *was* a big part of my life." A heartfelt look passed from daughter to mother. "He's the boys' father." Her voice dropped, but her tone remained firm. "But the marriage was over a long time ago. It's *over*. There is no going back."

Dotty reached out and gently touched Amanda's cheek. "I don't mean to poke and pry, or make you revisit old wounds, but I just wouldn't want you to . . . Oh, Amanda, I don't want you to make a mistake. I don't want to see you hurt."

"Mother, whatever gave you the idea that Joe and I would think of going back?"

Letting out a soft sigh, Dotty looked directly into Amanda's eyes. "There was something about the way Joe watched you yesterday. A look . . .a feeling I got."

"Oh, Mother, you're imagining things."

"Amanda, a mother just knows these things." Dotty paused for a moment, considering her next words. "You and Joe were so young and just didn't know what you wanted." Dotty's dark eyes expressed the sadness in her voice. She reached out and took Amanda's hands in her own.

Amanda looked down at their hands as she spoke. "Even though you never said it, I know you were disappointed. I . . ."

"Amanda . . . I was never disappointed in you . . . only for you. It's hard to see your child in pain . . . hurting." She reached out and drew Amanda into a hug filled with the reassurance only a mother can provide. "It's so good to just talk . . . share these thoughts and feelings with you. I've been concerned."

"Oh, Mother, I love you." Amanda gave Dotty a tight squeeze and released her, taking a step back, looking into her face.

"You know, sometimes I feel that you're holding back." Dotty's hands directed her words to Amanda. "I know you're very much your own person."

"Mother . . ." Amanda's voice drew out the word softly, dropping her tone in gentle disagreement.

"When you were little, you shared it all. Your daddy and I would laugh at some of your long-winded explanations about your everyday adventures. But now . . . you seem to avoid that." Dotty searched Amanda's face for some insight into her daughter's thoughts.

"Mother, I always enjoy sharing with you, but you know, growing up means you learn to deal with . . . handle things on your own."

Dotty nodded her head slowly. "I guess I just need to know you're okay, and that you're considering the situation with Joe carefully."

"Mother, I really *am* okay and I love you for your care and concern. Joe is part of my past. Please, don't worry." Amanda paused for a long moment. "I wish that I . . ." and then in a moment's hesitation she cleared her throat. "Let's just enjoy Joe's company and his time with the boys."

"Amanda, do you think Joe knows . . . understands how you feel?"

"Mother, Joe knows. This is a just a mixed up time for him with all the trouble at EAO."

Dotty hesitated, weighing what Amanda had said. "If you say so."

"Mother . . . trust me. I can handle Joe. It's okay." Dotty sensed the truth in the words. Amanda could handle Joe. That somehow, she had really moved on and would not consider going back. It was almost as if . . . Amanda interrupted her thoughts. "We'd better finish . . ."

"Amanda, is there someone else?" Dotty forged ahead.

"Mother, where in the world are all these questions coming from?"

A slow, almost mischievous smile moved across Dotty's face. "Well, is there, Amanda?"

"Mother, don't you think I would tell you something like that?" Dotty, with her head cocked to one side, considered her daughter's response. "Mother, we'd better finish some of this work before the guys get back."

With a slight nod of her head and a twinkle in her eye Dotty replied, "I'm so glad we talked." She reached over and squeezed Amanda's hand.

"Me, too, Mother. Me too."

**********************************************************************

Amanda and Dotty worked on the last of the mums to be potted, their relaxed chatter keeping up with their busy hands. The earlier conversation had been left behind in exchange for current neighborhood gossip. Dotty loved sharing all she'd learned during her morning visit with Mrs. Gilstrap.

The sound of a car pulling into the drive didn't draw their attention, but the voices of Joe, Jamie, and Phillip made both look up from their work. With a smile, Dotty listened as the guys expressed their delight at the way the game had gone. She felt a sense of ease knowing that the course of her daughter's future was not with Joe. He was a good man, but just not the right man for Amanda.

Dotty had supper ready for the boys, so she began to steer them toward the back door. As she approached the door, she heard Joe and Amanda talking. She looked back at them . . . 'She really is moving on.' That thought showed itself in the smile that carried her through the door, knowing her daughter was moving forward and really coming into her own.

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Epilogue

Dotty was roused from her reverie as Amanda came through the back door carrying a grocery sack Lee, juggling two bags bulging with groceries, followed close behind.

"Hi, we're back!" Amanda said as she set the bag on the island counter. "What's going on?"

Dotty paused and then spoke, "Look what I found stuck in the back of that drawer." She motioned toward the junk drawer, standing partially open.

Looking puzzled, Amanda took the opened envelope from her mother. "This looks like it was from one of Joe's old letters. How did it ever wind up in there?"

"You remember how we had to go through all those letters when Joe came back from Africa? All those questions?"

"Oh, yeah. I rem . . ."

Amanda was cut off as Dotty looked at her knowingly and spoke. "Questions that you didn't want to answer, as I recall."

Lee looked up from the grocery sack he was slowly emptying and glanced over at Amanda. "Like what, Dotty?" A curious grin on his face brought a somewhat shy expression to Amanda's face..

"I remember asking my daughter if she had met someone?" Dotty's look moved from Lee to Amanda

Amanda attempted to interrupt. "Mother, I . . ."

Lee headed her off. "And what did she say?"

"She didn't give me an answer. I think she asked me a question instead." Dotty looked at Lee with interest and smiled at the knowing grin on his face.

The mischief in Lee's voice was obvious. "That sounds about right. Doesn't it, Mrs. Stetson?" Lee reached out and put his arm around Amanda's shoulders and drew her to him.

"Very funny, Stetson." Amanda gave his arm a smack.

Dotty, realizing she was missing something, shook her head and chuckled. Getting off the kitchen stool, she stepped over to Amanda and gave her an unexpected hug. "I love you."

"I love you too, Mother." Amanda and Lee exchanged a puzzled glance.

"Funny how an old envelope can bring back so many memories." She spoke more to herself than to her daughter and son-in-law. Now, Lee and Amanda stood watching her as though they had missed something. Dotty's expression, however, reflected a smile of pleasure and satisfaction. The satisfaction of knowing that the conversation she and Amanda had had three years ago, about not going back, had given both of them so much to anticipate.

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