Mid-October 1943
Scott and Betty settled themselves across from General Hopkins in his new office located in a drafty, disused warehouse in the wharf district.
"Nice place, General," Scott commented wryly.
"Not as cozy as our previous location, I admit, but the change was necessary, considering how severely Alex compromised us," Hopkins allowed.
"How bad was the damage?" Betty asked.
"Not as bad as you might expect. My agents work in segmented departments for that precise reason to limit the harm any double agent can cause. Frankly, I'm just glad to be rid of him," the general stated emphatically.
"I only wish Gustav had been able to kill him in France, or that I'd had a chance in Germany," Scott lamented.
"Don't be too downhearted, Scott," General Hopkins said in an attempt to cheer him. "You got the plans out of Germany, and that was the goal of your mission, not Alex's assassination. The information you brought us regarding the location of the plant enabled us to destroy it. Konig won't be producing MG-42s or '43s anytime in the foreseeable future. Your mission yielded better results than I'd let myself hope."
Betty basked in the General's unusual appreciation of their efforts, but Scott wasn't quite ready to let it go. "Still, I can't help but have the feeling that Alex will cause problems for us again. He was anxious for reassignment the last time we saw him, and he'll be more than ready to cause headaches for the Allies."
"We'll be ready for him next time," the general answered briskly. "We know his methods and his face. He'll find infiltration a good deal harder if he tries it again." He pushed the question aside to move to another subject.
"I didn't bring you both down here today to discuss Alex, or even the success of your latest mission." Hopkins took a deep breath and the twinkle in his eye was so unusual that Betty suddenly felt an odd excitement.
"Why are we here?" she asked, the feeling that she was about to get good news growing by the moment.
"I have good news. The very best, in fact," Hopkins' face practically glowed as he confirmed her suspicions.
"Well, what is it?" Scott demanded with a smile, the general's good mood becoming infectious.
"You're both going home."
"Home?" Scott and Betty chorused the word in utter disbelief.
"Yes, home. You remember home, don't you?" the General asked when they both looked at him with blank stares. "Pittsburgh. Somewhere on the east coast of the United States," he spoke as though trying to jog the memory of a pair of amnesiacs.
"I don't believe it," Betty spoke slowly. "Both of us?"
"Both of you," the general spoke firmly. "I have conferred with my commanding officers, and in light of the tremendous contributions you have both provided for us, we feel your term of service is complete."
"Complete." Scott repeated the word as if he'd never heard it before. "I thought I'd be going into the regular service."
"That is entirely your choice," the general verified. "Your other option is to return to Pittsburgh and your jobs at WENN. We reserve the right to ask for your help should that unlikely need arise in the future. But for the moment, as far as we are concerned, you are both honorably discharged from Section N."
"It's over? We don't have to be spies anymore?" Betty didn't dare to believe her own ears.
General Hopkins spoke firmly. "Yes, my dear Mrs. Sherwood, it's over."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"I can't believe it," Scott said for what had to be the fifth time that day.
"Neither can I," Betty answered him, not caring that they sounded like a broken record.
He pulled her closer as they swayed easily to the music, the rhythm of their bodies perfectly in tune. She didn't try to pull away or be dignified, but laid her head on his chest where she could hear the reassuring thud of his heartbeat, sense the heat radiating from his body, and follow his lead just by feeling him move.
"You don't suppose Scotty minds, do you? I mean, us leaving him again after just a few days?" she asked with just a trace of anxiety.
"No." She could feel his lips in her hair, hear his words vibrating in his chest. "We'll only be gone for a couple of hours, and he loves Mrs. Crawley. Besides, I seem to remember someone accusing me of not taking her dancing enough."
"Whoever she was, I don't blame her. This is heavenly," Betty answered dreamily. "And appropriate, considering that we have so much to celebrate. At least, I hope we do."
A serious note crept into Scott's next words. "What do you mean?"
Reluctantly, Betty lifted her head so she could meet Scott's eyes. "I mean, you haven't told me where you're going to go yet, Pittsburgh or the Army?"
He sighed heavily. "That's because I haven't decided yet. There's still a lot to do before we win the war, Betty, and I want to go where I can help the most."
"I know, it's just..." Betty's voice trailed off as Scott's face swam before her eyes. She felt simultaneously miles removed from him and so close that the nearness was suffocating. Everything seemed too real, too immediate, and the world around her was sucked into a vaccuum of blackness save for the white blur that was his face.
White hot fear gripped Scott as his wife crumpled in his arms.
"Betty? Betty!" he called, but she was oblivious to his cries.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"I still think you should have let me take you to the hospital," Scott persisted stubbornly as he kicked their front door closed.
"I told you, I'm fine, and you're being ridiculous," she huffed.
"You faint in the middle of a conversation and then refuse to see a doctor, and I'm the one being ridiculous?"
"Scott, you just carried me ten blocks. If you're not careful, you'll be fainting next. Considering that we're home now, you could put me down," an exasperated Betty added.
"Not yet," Scott disagreed, the firm line of his jaw telling her this was an argument she wouldn't win.
He crossed their small living room in short order and didn't stop until he'd deposited her safely on the bed.
"Don't move," he ordered sternly, pointing a threatening finger at her.
"But where are you going?" Betty demanded, raising up on an elbow.
"To make you some tea. Then I'm calling for a doctor." The look he gave her brooked no refusal and he left the room before she could renew her arguments.
Betty laid back on the bed and closed her eyes. She was awfully tired, and it felt so good to lay down for a few minutes after the exhaustion of the last several weeks. The fainting spell she'd had at the club mystified her. She'd never been the fainting type before. But with the confusion and tension of their time in Europe, a little post-mission stress was understandable, at least to her mind.
The soft sound of Scott's footsteps and the distinctive rattle of the tea tray caused her to open her eyes as he re-entered the room. She started to push herself to a sitting position, but Scott immediately protested.
"Don't sit up." His voice was hushed and soothing, it washed along her raw nerves like a balm on burned skin. His anger seemed to have evaporated in the time he was gone and Betty smiled with the realization that it wasn't truly anger that had made him so brusque.
"How did I ever get so lucky to have you love me this much?" she asked, smiling up at him sweetly as he sat next to her on the side of the bed.
"I'm the one that's lucky," he corrected her, bending to kiss her softly. "And that's why you scared me so much tonight. Are you going to tell me what's wrong?" Worry caused his eyes to darken, and Betty wished she could tell him something to make him feel better.
She shrugged instead. "I don't know what's wrong. Maybe I'm just tired, or maybe it's the excitement of being able to go home. Or maybe I'm worried that you really will join the army and I won't see you for months and months. I don't know, Scott." She sighed heavily as he crawled over to lay beside her on the bed. "I've just been so worn out lately. I haven't felt like this since..." Her voice trailed off thoughtfully, but Scott, preoccupied with his own thoughts didn't seem to notice.
"I'm not sure what I should do, Betty." He clasped his hands behind his head and contemplated the ceiling. "Going back to Pittsburgh and WENN with you and Scotty is everything I've been wanting for the last year and a half, but I still feel like there's more I can do. I'd feel like a deserter if I just went home now."
He waited for a moment, relying on her judgment to give him some words of wisdom, knowing she'd be unselfish enough to help him find the right course, no matter what it might be. But the silence continued and Scott began to fear that she'd fallen asleep.
"Betty?" He rolled onto his side to look at her, but she didn't notice him at first. "Did you hear me?" he asked, wondering if her unusually bright eyes were a sign that she'd become feverish.
"Yes," her answer was dreamy and unfocused and Scott still wasn't sure she even knew he was in the room. "But did you hear me?" she demanded, suddenly focusing on his face.
"Yes. No. What?" Scott was sure he'd missed something, but unsure how much trouble he'd be in for admitting it.
Exasperated but indulgent, Betty raised herself up on an elbow to face him. "I said, I haven't felt like this for a long time."
Scott shook his head. "How long?"
The smile she gave him held a thousand secrets. "Since a few months before Scotty was born."
The realization slowly came over him. "Betty, are you saying...?"
She nodded slowly, her smile broadening as she watched emotions flicker across his face. Before she had time to react, he'd pushed her back into the pillows, half-covering her with his body. His mouth sought hers for a long moment before he spoke again.
"How far along are you?" His voice was husky and she shivered under the delicious weight of his body.
She cleared her throat, knowing the answer would be unexpected. "As close as I can guess it, nearly three months."
He blinked. "Three months? You've been pregnant for almost three months and you're just now noticing it?"
"Well, I've been busy," she answered defensively. "And anyway, does it really matter?" The dreamy look was back in her eyes and Scott felt himself melting under their spell.
"Not at all. But, there's just one thing." He lowered his head, but stopped just short of kissing her.
"What?" Betty's voice was breathless.
"Let's go home," he suggested simply.
"Oh, would you look at the time," Betty breathed on one long, satisfied sigh before lifting expectant lips.
The End
Our Mutual Spy
Back to Our Mutual Spy, Part 11!
Back to the Our Mutual Spy Introduction Page!
Back to the Fanfiction Library!
