Don't Quit

Rating: PG (Just like the show)

Classification: Angst/Hurt-Comfort

Disclaimer: I don't own the poem and I definitely don't own the series. I just love them both and wanted to put them together.

Summary: A series of vignettes set around the poem about the times the job makes them want to quit — and why it's so important that they never do.

Spoilers: Includes episode-specific filler scenes for There Goes The Neighborhood, Service Above & Beyond, The Long Christmas Eve, Remembrance Of Things Past, Our Man In Tegernsee, Spiderweb, All The World's A Stage, Stemwinder I & II, Night Crawler, Bad Timing, Suitable For Framing, and A Matter Of Choice.

Also contains minor references to The First Time, If Thoughts Could Kill, Magic Bus, Saved By The Bells, Lost & Found, I've Never Been A Spy, Fearless Dotty, The Mole, Vigilante Mothers, We're Off To See The Wizard, Fast Food For Thought, The Eyes Have It, Unfinished Business, The Man Who Died Twice, No Thanks For The Memories, and Santa's Got A Brand New Bag.

A/N: All non-episode related vignettes are set between the series finale and 1990 and are standalone except for the last two chapters.

"When things go wrong as they sometimes will"

Night Crawler

Lee didn't know how long he sat behind the wheel of the corvette, simply staring out at the hollow streets in front of him.

At first he hadn't been able to move — just stood on the sidewalk watching the road in disbelief. Then the adrenaline and anger had taken over and he hadn't been able to stop moving. He'd torn down the sidewalk and nearly tripped the car door off its hinges before taking off at a speed that pushed even the fast-wheeling sports car to its limits. He knew the van already had a head start, but it didn't have the speed—there had to be a way he could catch up if he could just find them!

He'd taken every street and alley he could think of, but it was like the van had disappeared into nowhere. The van—and Amanda.

Now he sat still, pulled over by the side of the road, his brain and every nerve fiber screaming.

What had he done?

Birol was never the type who would give in to anything, no matter how cornered he was. Lee knew that, had studied the man's profile to where he could practically recite it in his sleep. Why had he let himself believe in the trap?

Billy had expressed concern regarding Amanda's involvement when they'd gone over the plans the night before. Billy—the one who'd always been ready and willing to push Amanda to the next level, even when Lee's fears had held him back from believing she was ready. Billy had never hesitated—until this time. That should have told Lee something right there. Why hadn't he listened?

And that little voice that had compelled him to stop by the news van and check on Amanda before going into the studio. He'd heard that little warning then, had heard it again in the undertone of Amanda's voice when she tried to assure him she was okay. He'd known she wasn't comfortable and he hadn't taken the time to do more than pat the side of the van. Hadn't even taken those extra seconds long enough to touch her shoulder, squeeze her arm, look into those huge brown eyes and read how she was really feeling. Why hadn't he stayed?

At least if they'd been captured together—they'd always managed to get out of things then. Always...together. Amanda had said it more than once—she stayed safer when she was with him. The last three years had tried to teach him that lesson over and over.

Like the time he'd asked her to feed his fish while he went on vacation and she'd been abducted by KGB agents mistaking her for him. Ten years of seeing things on the job that nobody should ever have had to live with and nothing had undone him more than one he'd stood in Billy's office and stared at the container of fish supplies.

Lee had told Billy he couldn't live with Amanda being taken because of him. He couldn't live with it then and he would not be able to live with it now. Not after...He slammed his palm against the steering wheel, unable to let his brain complete the thought.

Instead the image was immediately replaced by another one. Meeting Amanda at what he'd called a routine drop—when he'd been in this business long enough to know where that kind of overconfidence could get you. Stepping across the street to use the phone without even thinking to take the time to check out who might have been watching. Watching helplessly as two revolutionaries forced Amanda into their car. Another time he'd been too late to run across the street and save her.

He still remembered sitting in Billy's office, admitting, "I blew it, didn't I?" Lee gripped the steering wheel tighter, trying to force the waves of nausea back. "Blew it" didn't even begin to cover it this time.

Maybe Paul Barnes had been right about his code name.

"Dagger Two, what's your status? I repeat, what's your status?"

The sudden voice over the radio nearly sent Lee through the windshield. He forced himself to pull one hand off the steering wheel to reach for the radio clipped to his belt, to find words for what he hoped was a professional tone of voice.

"This is Dagger Two. Birol has taken Dagger One. I repeat, Birol has taken Dagger One." Lee's voice broke. "He has Amanda."