�Ya know,� JD said softly. �Nobody with the Agency has ever been to Ezra�s house.�
�That�s not unusual,� Josiah rumbled from beside him.
JD nodded. �I know, but�what if he thinks we�re checking up on him?�
�JD,� Vin said softly. �We are.�
�I mean�intruding,� JD replied.
Buck smiled. �Ezra will understand, kid. It was a rough mission; he got hurt. We�d do this for anyone else on this team, we should do it for him too.�
�Besides,� Nathan said. �He forgot his pain meds.�
�Still,� JD started.
�We�re there,� Chris said, stopping the vehicle. Glancing up the tidy walk, they saw that the small house was fully decorated for the Christmas season.
�When�d he have time to do all that?� JD asked softly.
The six men climbed out of the SUV and made their way up the well-lit sidewalk to the house. Once they reached the door, Chris reached up and rang the doorbell.
�Purty,� Vin mumbled, glancing around at the greens hanging around the causeway.
Chris nodded and opened his mouth to answer just as the door opened a crack. A small face appeared in the doorway. Chris blinked in surprised and glanced up at the number above the door, then back at the child.
The child was a little girl who couldn�t have been more than five years old. Her wide green eyes locked with Chris�s light hazel ones, as he asked, �Is�is Ezra here?�
Turning away from Chris, the girl called back into the house, �Daddy, there�s people here!�
�Daddy?� Buck repeated.
A moment later, the door opened wider to reveal Ezra. The undercover agent was dressed in a sweatshirt and loose-fitting jeans. He was leaning on the doorjamb in order to take the weight off his injured leg. His pale green eyes passed over the group and he smiled tightly. �Well, this is a surprise,� he said sardonically.
�You forgot your medicine,� Nathan offered softly.
�And it took the six of you to drop it off?� Ezra inquired, an edge coming to his voice.
Chris smiled. �We were concerned about you, Ezra. Can we come in?�
�Certainly, Mr. Larabee,� Ezra replied, stepping to one side. The little girl scampered behind him as the six strangers entered the living room.
Ezra took her hand and gently steered her to a nearby couch. �Please, gentlemen,� he said, taking a seat. �Make yourselves at home.�
�Your daughter,� Vin commented, nodding at the little girl, who was now climbing into the southerner�s lap.
�Her name is Amanda, Mr. Tanner,� Ezra said, as he helped her up.
�Hi, Amanda,� JD said gently. �My name�s JD. I work with your daddy.�
�Hello,� Amanda replied softly, before burying her face in her father�s side.
Josiah smiled and asked, �Is she always this shy?�
Ezra chuckled and shook his head. �Never,� he said softly, straightening Amanda�s strawberry curls. �She�s just not sure what to make of you.�
Suddenly, the girl locked eyes with Chris and asked, �You hurt Daddy?�
Chris frowned and shook his head.
�I got hurt working, Sweetie,� Ezra explained gently. �These men are my�compatriots; they�d never hurt me intentionally.�
Amanda looked up at her father and nodded. �Okay,� she whispered. Climbing down from his lap, she asked, �You want a drink?�
Ezra smiled indulgently and said, �There�s soda in the refrigerator, Darlin�. Do you want to play hostess?�
The girl nodded and scampered out of the room.
�She�s really cute, Ezra,� JD said, looking after her.
Ezra nodded and Nathan asked, �Is she gonna need help carrying soda and glasses?�
Ezra shook his head and replied, �She�s got a little cart in there she�ll put them in.�
�Isn�t she a bit young?� Chris asked.
Ezra smiled. �She likes to feel helpful when she knows someone�s in pain, Chris. I won�t take that away from her.�
�How old is she?� Buck asked.
�I�m four,� piped a voice from the doorway. As Ezra had predicted, Amanda had returned with eight cans of various sodas piled in a toy shopping cart.
�That�s right, Sweetie,� Ezra said. �How many is four?�
The little girl pushed the cart over to her father and held up her hand, fingers extended. �This many,� she replied.
�Very good,� Ezra said. �What did you bring for everyone?�
�I brought three red cans, a purple can, two brown cans, and two green cans,� Amanda answered, glancing into the cart.
Ezra smiled and said, �I�ll take a red can and I know you want the purple one. Why don�t you see what everyone else wants?�
She nodded and pulled out the two cans her father had indicated. Turning to Chris, she said, �What do you want to drink, Mr. Larabee?�
Chris smiled, surprised that the girl could remember his name, since her father had only said it once. �I�ll take a green can, please.� She handed him the can; then turned to Buck.
Buck smiled and said, �Can I have one of the brown ones, Sweetie.�
She nodded and handed him his soda. Turning to JD, she asked, �Do you want a brown one too, JD?�
JD blinked in surprise and nodded. �Thank you,� he said as she held out the can to him.
�You�re welcome,� she answered. Turning to Vin, she said, �What kind of soda do you want, Mr. Tanner?�
Vin smiled and said, �Coke?�
Amanda looked confused and turned to her father, who explained, �The red ones, Sweetheart.� While she retrieved the red can, Ezra explained, �She cannot read yet, Mr. Tanner, but she does know her colors quite well.�
�That�s clever,� Nathan said.
�Yes, well, she�s a clever child, Mr. Jackson,� Ezra said, smiling with pride.
�Would you like a green soda or a red one, Mr. Jackson?� Amanda asked softly.
Nathan smiled and said, �The green one, please, Amanda.�
Amanda handed the soda to him and turned to Josiah. She frowned and asked, �Is red soda okay?�
Josiah smiled and replied, �I love red soda, Amanda.�
The girl giggled happily and handed the can to him; then bounded over to her father.
�Good job,� Ezra said, kissing her on the forehead as she climbed into his lap once again.
Chris smiled and asked, �She decorate the house for Christmas too, Ez?�
Amanda giggled and shook her head, while her father rolled his eyes. �I decorated the house before we left for�� Ezra stopped and glanced at Amanda; then finished, �work, Mr. Larabee.�
�You must love Christmas, Ezra?� Buck said.
Ezra smiled at Amanda; then turned to Buck and said, �Mr. Wilmington, it is impossible to have a small child and dislike this holiday.�
�That�s probably true,� Josiah answered.
�She looks like her mother,� JD said softly.
Ezra glanced up in surprise and followed JD�s line of sight to one of the many pictures scattered about the room. He smiled sadly. �Yes,� he replied. �She has the same shaped face her mother had.�
Vin frowned. �Yer wife died?� he asked gently.
Ezra nodded and said, �Mandy and I were returning from�a holiday party. I was driving and a car struck the passenger side. Mandy�� Ezra paused as tears welled in his eyes. �Mandy was killed instantly. I was severely injured, but eventually recovered.�
�Wow,� JD breathed in astonishment.
�He was drunk,� Ezra added softly, hugging his daughter tighter.
Chris closed his eyes, remembering how he�d felt when Sarah and Adam had been killed in that house fire only a few years ago, how he still felt when he thought of them. In a soft voice, he asked, �How long ago?�
Ezra blinked the tears away and said, �It�ll be three years in two weeks.�
�That must have been difficult,� Nathan said softly. �Trying to recover and raise a child.�
Ezra sighed and said, �Mandy�s parents certainly didn�t make it easy for me.�
�What did they do?� JD asked in surprise.
Taking a deep breath, Ezra tried to explain his father-in-law�s actions to the members of the team. �Mandy�was very devout, as were her parents. They wanted to be sure that Amanda was raised in a Christian atmosphere.�
�Mandy?� Buck asked softly.
Ezra sighed and nodded. �My wife�s name was Melinda Rothchilde Standish,� he said softly. �But I always called her Mandy. Amanda is named for her.�
�Mommy lives with the angels now,� Amanda said softly.
Ezra nodded and said, �That�s right, Sweetie. She lives with God and the angels and watches over us as our guardian angel.�
Turning to the undercover agent, Chris said, �And her parents were gonna take your daughter away from you because you weren�t religious enough for them?�
Ezra shrugged and nodded. �They never approved of our marriage and it only got worse when Amanda was born. They tried to convince Mandy that�� Ezra paused, as if considering his next words. After a moment, he said softly, �We�d never gotten married in a church�they tried to convince Mandy that our daughter was a child of sin.�
�No,� Josiah breathed.
Ezra shrugged. �My mother�s�nature didn�t help matters any. She�s been married five times now, and none of them was my father.�
�They wouldn�t really have been able to convince a judge to deny you custody, would they?� Vin said in disbelief.
Ezra nodded. �I am in a very dangerous line of work, Mr. Tanner. I�m gone for long stretches of time�it wouldn�t have taken much to convince a judge that I was unfit, especially in the aftermath of losing Mandy.�
�Bad,� Chris said softly.
Ezra nodded again. Sighing deeply, he said, �I loved Mandy very deeply. I was�devastated when she was killed. For a long time I blamed myself. It was only because I finally sought professional help that I was able to make it through�and because I had Amanda.�
Chris shook his head and said, �You never struck me as a religious man, Ezra.�
�I didn�t used to be,� Ezra admitted. �However, once I began attending services�I must confess there was an immediate attraction. It was as though I�d found something that was always missing in my life previously. I felt the same way when�� Ezra stopped and looked away, blushing slightly.
�When?� Buck prompted.
�When I began working with y�all, Mr. Wilmington,� Ezra confessed softly.
Vin nodded. �Me too,� he said softly. �It were like I found a missin� part of my soul�or somethin�.�
Chris nodded. �This team�s probably one of the best things that has happened to me in a long time,� he confessed softly.
The others agreed and Amanda looked up at her father. �I�m sleepy, Daddy,� she whispered.
Ezra frowned and glanced at his watch. �My goodness, look at the time,� he exclaimed. �You have to get ready for bed, darlin�. You have pre-school in the mornin�.�
Chris smiled and said, �We�d better get going, Ezra. See you next week.�
Ezra nodded slightly and Amanda blinked up at her father. �You get a whole week off of work?�
�Well,� Chris said. �Your daddy can�t do his job until her can run quickly and not limp, so he has to rest his leg and get better.�
�Bedtime, you little imp,� Ezra said softly. �Go put your nightgown on and I�ll be up in a moment to help you say your prayers and tuck you in.�
�Okay, Daddy,� Amanda said. As she scampered up the steps, she called back, �Bye, everybody, it was nice meeting you.�
�She�s really smart, Ezra,� JD commented softly.
Ezra shrugged and said, �She takes after her mother, JD.�
�And her father,� Vin added softly.
Ezra blushed and ducked his head in embarrassment. As his teammates headed out the door, Nathan handed him a pill bottle. �You need to take one now and one in the mornin�. Every twelve hours.�
Ezra nodded. �Alright, I will,� he replied softly. �Goodnight.�
�Goodnight, Ezra,� Nathan said softly.
As Ezra closed the door, he sighed deeply and wiped away the tears that had suddenly come to his eyes. �Lord, I miss you so much, Mandy�� he said softly.
Taking a deep breath, he bounded up the steps to tuck his daughter into bed. He hoped the pain medication was strong enough to make him sleep deeply enough that he didn�t dream. He knew what his dreams would be about and he didn�t like the idea of reliving that horrible night nearly three years ago.
As he reached his daughter�s doorway, he heard his daughter�s soft voice saying, �Thank you, God, for giving my daddy friends to work with. Bless Daddy and Grammy and Grampa and Nana and Mary and Billy and Mr. Larabee and Mr. Wilmington and Mr. Tanner and Mr. Jackson and JD and Josiah and bless me and Mommy in heaven too. Amen.�
�Amen,� Ezra repeated.
Amanda climbed in bed and lay down under the covers. Ezra smiled and kissed her on the forehead; then stepped away.
�Night, Daddy,� Amanda said softly.
Ezra smiled and replied, �Goodnight, Amanda.�
End