A Minute

By Heidi H

Disclaimers-These are not my characters and I am

making no money off of them.

Ratings-R, language, images, Sam/Donna friendship

Spoilers-In The Shadow Of Two Gunmen, Noel, The

Portland Trip, The Stackhouse Filibuster

Thank you to all the people who beta’d and

pointed out all of the little details. You are a great

help and responsible for this story being a good

one.

Sam Seaborn rushed to keep up with the blond

already making her way across the parking lot. The

cold October breeze made the night seem darker and

more devious. He pulled his coat tighter around

him and took the last few steps to meet with the

blond.

“Hi Donna.” Sam said as his breathing resumed

to normal.

“Hi Sam.” Donna said pulling her jacket

tighter as the wind began to blow harder. The leaves

fell to the ground around them and crunched as

they walked toward their cars.

“What are you doing here so late on a Saturday

night?” Sam inquired.

“Josh needed me to finish typing up a memo and

of course it couldn’t wait until the morning or

Monday.” Donna explained with a smile and a

laugh.

“Do you need a ride home?” Sam asked wanting

to be a considerate friend.

“No, I’m gonna take the train. My place is

only a couple blocks away.” Donna said.

A car came squealing around the parking lot and

headed straight for the pair. Donna’s face filled

with shock and terror. She was frozen with fear.

Sam reacted quickly throwing himself toward Donna

and knocking them down to the ground between

cars. He covered Donna as the car squealed past them

and sped up.

After the car passed them, Sam managed to get a

look at the plate and grabbed his phone to call

security.

Security dispatched agents to the parking lot and

sent an aide to Leo McGarry’s office to inform

him of what had happened in the parking lot. Leo

grabbed Toby, Josh, and CJ on his way out.

Sam gently nudged Donna, who hadn’t stirred since

he knocked her down.

“Donna? Donna, it’s okay, we’re safe. You can

get up now.” Sam pushed on her shoulder.

The security officers found Sam leaning over

Donna, trying to wake her up.

“Mr. Seaborn. We need to fill out a report and

take a statement from you about what went on here

this evening.” a security officer said.

Josh, Leo, CJ, and Toby came up on the scene and

heard Sam yelling. They knew it was serious

because Sam barely raised his voice, let alone

yelled.

“What? I need an ambulance for that woman.”

Sam hollered at two of the junior security

officers that were crowding him.

“What the hell happened and how the hell could

it have happened here?” Toby asked, coming up

next to Sam.

“Mr. Seaborn, an ambulance is on the way.”

another officer informed the group.

“What’s wrong with Donna?” CJ asked.

“I pushed her down when the car came at us and

now she won’t wake up.” Sam said with a slight

tremor in his voice.

CJ was the only one that appeared to hear the

tremor. She’d heard it before, after Rosslyn. It

was something she’d never wanted to hear again.

“Sam, the ambulance will be here soon. She

probably just hit her head on the ground.” Josh

said and put his arm around his best friend as a

comforting gesture because he knew that Sam felt

badly about what had happened.

“Ron, I want a report on my desk as soon as

possible with as many of the details that you guys

can piece together. I need to brief the President

on what happened out here.” Leo said, to the

senior Secret Service Agent.

Three police cars and an ambulance roared into

the parking lot at full speed, squealing their own

tires.

Sam glanced at Josh. He wanted to make sure his

best friend didn’t loose it.

“Sam, I’m fine with it.” Josh said.

“I just wanted to.....” Sam trailed off.

“I know. Thanks.” Josh said. It never

surprised him that Sam thought of everyone else before

himself.

The EMTs pushed CJ out of the way, as she had

been with Donna. They strapped on a C Collar and

braced Donna on a backboard before they rolled her

over. The senior staff gasped at the sight.

Donna had a bloody, still bleeding gash on her

forehead. Her blond hair was matted and coated

with blood from a cut on her head, hidden by her

hair. A black eye and an assortment of bruises were

forming on the right side of her face.

“I’m riding with her.” Sam said.

“That’s fine.” an EMT said.

“Leo,.....” Sam started to speak.

“No Sam. Go with her. We’ll all be along

later.” Leo brushed him off.

Sam climbed into the ambulance as the EMT shut

the doors and headed for GW. Another EMT that was

in the back radioed Donna’s information into the

hospital and started to check her vitals again.

Sam was shocked. He had only tried to protect

her, yet he’d managed to hurt her.

“Don’t feel guilty. You did the right thing.

She’ll recover from these injuries. She might

not have if she’d been hit by a car.” the EMT

reassured him.

“How did you know?” Sam asked.

“An agent gave us the pertinent details.” the

EMT said.

The ride to GW seemed to take hours and when they

drove up to the doors, Sam had never been so glad

to see a place in all his life.

The doors opened and things happened rapidly.

“Almost run down by a car.”

“Pushed down.

Head wounds.”

“Unresponsive.”

A nurse pushed Sam toward the admittance desk as

Donna was rushed into a room.

“Please fill out these forms with as much

information as possible.” a nurse handed him a

clipboard with a thick sheaf of papers.

Sam sat down in a waiting room and filled out the

papers with what he knew. He reached for his

phone, but remembered everything was still in the

parking lot.

“Looking for this?” Josh held up his phone.

“Yeah. Where’s the rest of my stuff?” Sam

asked.

“Leo said he’d make sure it got back to your

office.” Josh explained.

“I grabbed this out of Donna’s bag. Give me

those papers and I’ll fill them out.” CJ said and

grabbed the papers with one hand as she held

Donna’s planner/purse thing in the other.

“Thanks.” Sam said to CJ.

CJ gave him a warm smile that seemed to say she

understood what he was going through, all the

worry and fear. They’d done this before and no one

wanted to repeat it again, but fate had stepped

in.

“What the hell happened, Leo?” Sam asked as he

walked into the hall and greeted his boss.

“Sam, let’s go back to the waiting room and

talk. The rest of the senior staff needs to hear

this.” Leo pushed him toward the door.

Toby had arrived and was sitting with CJ.

“Okay, listen up. The driver of the car was

Lisa Conrad.” Leo let the news sink in.

“Wasn’t she Sam’s.....” CJ said.

“Yeah. The very same one.” Sam said with a

dry tone and not being able to meet anyone’s eyes.

He didn’t want to see pity from them or the guilt

that was in his own face.

“She has gone off the deep end. The DCPD was

able to run a plate search. That’s how we know it

was her. They are still running checks on her

address and credit cards.” Leo explained.

“Why would she....” Sam couldn’t finish the

question because he really didn’t want to know.

“Who knows, but they are making this priority

one.” Leo said.

“What does that mean?” Toby asked.

“This case is the only thing several divisions

are working on. They are going to keep me

updated with hourly check ins. You’ll be the first to

hear the news as soon after I get it.” Leo said.

Sam got up and walked out to the hall. Josh

followed, not wanting to leave his best friend alone

at a time like this.

“Are you okay?” Josh asked, softly.

“No. I don’t understand why Lisa would do

this.” Sam said, voice shaking with each word.

“Something must have happened. You can’t make

sense of it.” Josh told him, speaking from his

own experience.

“Thanks.” Sam said.

After a few minutes, Sam rejoined his friends in

the waiting room.

“Is this the group for Donna Moss?” a doctor

asked.

“Yeah. What’s going on?” Sam jumped out of

his seat.

“We found shards of glass in the laceration on

the top of her head, she must have hit a car

mirror or something similar when she was pushed down.

There are more lacerations on her forehead which

were filled with gravel and dirt, but we were

able to clean those out very thoroughly. She is

also suffering from a serious concussion. We’re not

sure which blow to the head caused it, but it is

definitely what caused her to become unconscious.

We have her on a high dosage of antibiotics to

ward off any infection. Miss Moss should make a

complete recovery without any problems.” the

doctor looked up from his notes.

“When is she gonna wake up?” CJ asked.

“Miss Moss is awake. We’re gonna keep her

overnight and all day tomorrow for observation. If

things go well, she’ll be released then.” the

doctor explained.

“Can I see her?” Sam asked.

“Yeah, come with me.” the doctor said.

Sam was pointed to Donna’s room. He pushed the

doors open and walked in.

“Hey.” Donna said quietly and smiled.

“Are you feeling okay?” Sam asked, feeling

nervous around the woman that he was so used to

being around and he didn’t like that feeling very

much.

“Yeah, the drugs are marvelous.” Donna said in

a dreamy voice as she rolled her head back and

forth on the pillow.

“I’m sorry.” Sam said and hung his head.

“Don’t be. You saved my life tonight.” Donna

said quickly sobering up at the look on Sam’s

face.

“Yeah.” Sam said quietly, not able to meet her

eyes.

“What’s wrong?” Donna asked.

“The driver of the car was Lisa.” Sam said.

“Lisa? As in....” Donna trailed off.

“The very same.” Sam said.

“Why?” Donna questioned.

“Apparently, she’s not playing with a full deck

anymore.” Sam explained.

“What’s gonna happen now?” Donna asked.

“Leo’s taking care of it.” Sam said.

“When do I get to go home?” Donna asked.

“The doctor said they were keeping you tomorrow

and if things go well, they’ll release you the

next day.” Sam explained to her.

“How’s everyone else?” Donna asked.

“They’re a little shocked that all this is

happening. The police want to talk to you and get a

statement about what happened.” Sam said.

“Okay, but I don’t remember much.” Donna said.

“Yeah. I should let you get some rest.” Sam

edged his way to the door.

“Sam, will you stay until I fall asleep?”

Donna yawned and looked very young and very scared.

“Sure.” Sam pulled a chair up to the bed and

watched as Donna fell into a drug induced haze.

He never could refuse her anything in all the time

that he’d known her.

He barely got any sleep, as the nurses were in

every hour on the hour to make sure that all of

Donna’s vital signs were within limits. Sam watched

her wince from the pain as she slept. He’d never

wanted to have to do this again.

During the night, the DCPD was able to get a hit

on one of Lisa’s credit cards. It had been used

to rent a hotel suite dating back three weeks.

After the proper warrants were drawn up, they

converged on the hotel. Lisa was nowhere to be found,

but the search turned up several items that would

reveal her true nature and the vendetta she

carried against the senior staff.

The DCPD was very shocked at the state of the

hotel suite. It was neat and orderly without

anything out of place. Even the bathroom was weird.

There were no toothpaste lids laying on the

counter. There was no hair caught in hairbrushes and

combs. Even the bottles of assorted hair dye were

in a straight line. It was like a hospital ward.

A Notre Dame ball cap, a replica of a sailboat,

and a ceramic statue of Bast were proudly

displayed on a table, like a shrine to something the

police couldn’t figure out. Only a few things

remained in the room, but everything was bagged, since

the police didn’t know what they were looking

for.

After rifling through drawers and bags, they

recovered many items that would link Lisa Conrad to

the senior staff.

At the

hospital..........................................

“Good morning.” Josh breezed into her hospital

room.

“What are you doing here Josh?” Donna asked.

“I wanted to make sure my assistant wasn’t

broken. I really don’t want to have to trade you off

for this year’s new model.” Josh said, trying to

get her to smile.

“No other model would do what I do for you.”

Donna laughed.

“Seriously, though, how are you feeling after

last night’s little escapade?” Josh asked,

concern gracing his face and features.

“I’m fine. Nothing is broken. I’ll be back to

work in a few more days.” Donna said, reassuring

him that she was okay.

“No, you are going to take the rest of the week

off.” Josh ordered.

“Thanks.” Donna said with a genuine smile.

“I gotta get back. I just wanted to see you

for myself.” Josh gave her a pat on the shoulder

and a kiss on the forehead before walking out of

the room.

Donna had just finished moving the breakfast

around on her tray when Sam walked in the room with

flowers and get well balloons.

“Thanks for the flowers and the balloons.”

Donna said.

“How are you this morning?” Sam asked.

“I’m fine, but I want to go home.” Donna

pouted.

“You have to stay here tonight, but after that,

you’ll get to go home.” Sam said.

“Yeah.” Donna said.

Sam stayed for a little while and when he left,

CJ showed up. They were having a little girl talk

when the rest of the senior staff showed up. The

grim looks on their faces signaled that there was

something going on. Leo quickly stepped into the

room, followed by two Secret Service agents. The

relaxed look on Donna’s face moments before

vanished with all trace of happiness and fear replaced

the smile on her face and in her eyes.

“What’s going on?” Donna asked, scared.

“The DCPD and the Secret Service were able to

finish running Lisa Conrad through their systems.

They found out that she has been here in

Washington for the last couple of weeks and most likely

long before that.” Leo said.

“What is that deranged bitch doing here?” Josh

asked angry that this woman had tried to hurt his

closest friends.

“Josh. Miss Conrad is employed by some new

tech start up company.” Leo said.

“Why is the Secret Service here?” Donna asked,

acknowledging the agents that were positioned

near the door.

“When Miss Conrad’s hotel suite was searched,

items turned up that indicate that she is mentally

unbalanced. She seems to have a personal

vendetta against most of you. We are taking no chances.

As of this moment, you are all under protective

custody. That means that you all have an agent

who is going to be with you until Miss Conrad is in

custody. This order comes straight from

President Bartlet’s desk.” one of the agents explained.

“What things did they recover?” Toby asked

quietly, having to know exactly what they were

dealing with and how to deal with the situation.

“The items in question were several photographs

of Mr. Seaborn with various lady friends over the

past several years, including Miss Cregg, Miss

Moss, Miss Hayes, and Zoey Bartlet. A diary with

dates of senior staff trips and presidential

trips. Newspaper clippings and a fake White House ID

badge were also found with her belongings along

with other oddball items the police are still

sorting through.” an agent relayed the information.

“How are they linking it to a vendetta against

the senior staff?” Toby asked wanting to make

sure he had all the information.

“They are still investigating at this point.

We are expecting to have more answers this

afternoon.” an agent explained.

While the senior staff mulled this over, Leo

motioned for Sam to come into the hall with him.

“How are you holding up?” Leo asked, concerned

that Sam would explode with all this new

information.

“I’m okay.” Sam lied.

“Like I believe that for a minute.” Leo said,

knowing that Sam was feeling the entire weight of

this thing on his shoulders.

“The truth is I’m hurt and confused. I don’t

know why Lisa would do this or what happened to

make her do this. I just want some answers.” Sam

hung his head.

“We’re gonna get answers soon.” Leo said

hoping that the answers that they found weren’t gonna

hurt Sam even more than he had already been hurt

by this woman. Leo knew that Lisa had almost

destroyed Sam when she broke off the engagement and

he didn’t think Sam could stand to go through

that kind of thing again and come out unscathed.

“God, Leo. Did Lisa think that I was “with”

Zoey. She’s an attractive girl, but I work for her

father and there’s no way I’m crossing that line

again. Think about it, basically any woman that

I’ve some into contact with is in danger.” Sam

said, finally exploding.

“Sam, don’t let it upset you. Lisa hasn’t been

playing with a full deck and any woman that you

were seen with probably fueled that jealousy. We

know that she has chosen to focus on Donna.

That’s a good thing, even though it might not seem

like it. We can protect Donna now.” Leo explained

to the younger man in hopes of calming him down.

Morning of release

“Good morning.” Sam sailed into Donna’s

hospital room.

“Hey.” Donna said from the bed where she sat

dressed and ready to go home.

“Have the doctors released you yet?” Sam

asked.

“Yeah, I just need to get a ride home.” Donna

said.

“Your chariot awaits you, my lady.” Sam said

with a smile.

“You don’t have to take care of me. I’m sure

you have work to do.” Donna said.

“Nonsense. Leo told me to take the day off and

make sure you are okay. Besides, I can work from

home with my laptop and files. The only thing

I’ll miss is Toby yelling and bouncing those damn

balls.” Sam said.

“I won’t be much company cause I’m on these

nice drugs.” Donna said, her voice slightly higher

than normal.

“That’s okay. I’ll just work on stuff while

you sleep.” Sam said.

“Thanks.” Donna said.

After waiting for a wheelchair, Sam drove Donna

to his place as she dozed in the passenger seat.

“Donna, we’re here.” Sam nudged her gently.

“This isn’t my apartment.” Donna said after

she opened her eyes.

“Yeah, because you have cats and I’m allergic

and you need someone to take care of you.” Sam

said.

Sam managed to support Donna and carry his laptop

and a pile of work up the stairs to his

apartment.

After getting Donna settled on the couch with the

remote, he fell into a chair with his laptop and

went to work.

Sam didn’t even notice it was lunch time until

his laptop beeped the time. He looked over at

Donna to see her sleeping soundly. He decided she

needed her rest before food. After all, he could

always whip something up for her later.

Donna felt the sunlight on her face. She knew it

was time to get up and her growling stomach

seconded that motion.

“Welcome back Sleeping Beauty.” Sam said when

he saw that she was awake.

“What time is it?” Donna asked stretching out

her arms and her body.

“It’s about 3:00.” Sam said looking at his

watch and trying to ignore how Donna’s body

stretched out on his couch. She reminded him of a cat

stretching out her paws.

“Wow! I can’t believe I slept that long.”

Donna said.

“You needed it.” Sam said.

“Well, I missed lunch.” Donna said.

“No problem. What would you like to eat?” Sam

asked.

“Grilled cheese.” Donna said.

“You got it.” Sam headed for the kitchen.

Donna loved Sam’s apartment. It was a man’s

home. It was decorated in reds, blues, greens, and

plaids. It felt so homey. All of the little

touches around the place reminded her of how

wonderful he really was. The sailing trophies, the

pictures that graced the bookshelf, down to the

monogrammed towels that sat on the floor of the

bathroom.

Sam was soon back with a grilled cheese and chips

along with a glass of water.

“Thanks.” Donna said and dug into the food.

Another couple of hours went by with Donna

watching tv and Sam typing. He looked up when he heard

the theme of the local news on the tv.

“What do you want for dinner?” Sam asked.

“You don’t have to cook for me.” Donna looked

at him.

“It’s not a problem, so, what do you want to

eat?” Sam asked.

“Soup or something like that.” Donna said.

“Would beef stew be okay?” Sam asked.

“Yeah, that’d be great.” Donna said.

Sam headed into the kitchen to heat up the left

over stew for dinner.

He brought the food into the living room and sat

it one the table. Donna crawled off the couch

and sat on the floor.

After eating, Donna took more of her medicine and

was yawning.

“Hey, I think it’s time for bed.” Sam said.

Donna headed for the couch and Sam grabbed her

arm.

“Where do you think you’re going? The

bedroom’s this way.” Sam said.

“I don’t want to kick you out of your bed. I

can sleep on the couch.” Donna said.

“Nonsense. You’re hurt and need to sleep

comfortably.” Sam said.

Donna gave in and followed Sam into the bedroom.

He dug sweats out for her to wear, tossed them on

the bed, said goodnight, and shut the door behind

him.

Donna changed and slipped between the cool sheets

and was soon fast asleep.

Sam stayed up for another couple of hours before

falling asleep himself on the couch. His mind

was plagued with thoughts of Lisa and what the hell

she was doing. Sam didn’t want Lisa to hurt

anyone else and he wondered what he could have done

to prevent this thing.

The loud screams and low whimpering woke him up

and it took him a few minutes before he figured

out that they were coming from his bedroom. Sam

quietly walked into the bedroom and saw Donna in

the throes of a nightmare. He gently sat down on

the bed and tried to wake her up.

“Donna, Donna. You are okay. Nothing’s

happening.” Sam coddled to her.

Donna heard the voice and was climbing to the

surface. Her eyes popped open and she scanned the

room. Her eyes came to rest on Sam who had a very

concerned look on his face.

“Nightmare?” Sam asked.

“Yeah. This one was so scary.” Donna

whispered as she wrapped her arms around him as a scared

child would. Although a child’s arms probably

wouldn’t make him feel the same way.

“Wanna tell me about it? It might make you

feel better to talk about it.” Sam told her.

“Lisa was driving her car straight at me and I

couldn’t move. I was like frozen in place.

Everyone was there and yelling at me to move.” Donna

teared up as she told him about the nightmare.

“Hey, it’s okay. I can only imagine how scary

it was for you.” Sam comforted her.

Donna laid her head on his shoulder and let her

breathing return to normal. She was just starting

to drift off when she felt Sam push her down to

the pillows and remove himself from her arms.

“Stay.” Donna said grabbing his hand and

looking directly into his eyes.

Sam saw the fear and wariness in her face and

heard it in her voice. He knew that this would look

bad if anyone was to walk in and if anyone

did...they’d have a bigger problem to deal with, but

Sam also knew that this was the only way for Donna

to overcome what had happened. He wanted her to

be able to get through the night and get her

confidence back. He nodded and crawled into bed next

to her.

Donna finally relaxed when Sam crawled into bed.

She held his hand and felt herself drifting off

to sleep. She needed to know that someone was

there for her and would be there for her.

At the White

House...................................................

Josh was the first one that Leo talked to.

“Josh, we got some new information on Lisa

Conrad.” Leo greeted the younger man.

“What else did they find out about this bitch?”

Josh asked.

“Just that she’s been conspiring with your ex

girlfriend, who was also a bitch according to

quite a few people around here.” Leo said with all

seriousness in his voice and a pointed look at

Josh.

“How is Mandy involved in this?” Josh asked,

wondering what the hell Mandy was up to.

“She is employed by the same start up tech

company as Lisa. Apparently they are best friends.”

Leo said.

“Someone needs to tell Sam and Donna. Did they

find out anything else?” Josh asked.

“They have some leads, but nothing solid yet.”

Leo told him.

“I’d better call Sam.” Josh said and headed

for the door.

“No. Don’t tell them yet.” Leo said.

“Why not?” Josh asked.

“Let them have this night without any problems.

After what they’ve been through the past couple

of days, they need to recoup.” Leo said.

“Yeah. I’ll talk to them in the morning.”

Josh said.

Josh went back to his office and wondered what

the hell Mandy was doing and who was their next

target. All the unanswered questions and unasked

questions made him nervous. He didn’t want anyone

else to get hurt in the mess that this was

shaping up to be.

Next day at work-Donna’s first day back

“Are you sure you want to come back so soon?”

Josh asked as he met his assistant in the entry

way.

“Yes. I was going crazy with nothing to do at

home. I need to do something.” Donna told him.

“Fine, but take it easy. Take breaks and rest

if you need to.” Josh told her.

“I will. Thanks.” Donna said and headed for

her desk.

As Donna headed to her desk, she was stopped by

concerned co-workers and friends. They all wanted

to make sure that she was really okay for

themselves. Other friends wanted to let her in on the

gossip that was going on in the building and

around Washington. Apparently she and Sam had made

the tabloids and she was being portrayed as the

innocent girl who gotten taken in by Sam and the

ex-fiancé was out for revenge. She’d brushed it

off, knowing that someone was just trying to sell a

story that wasn’t true. Donna also knew that Sam

was having a hard time dealing with his life

being tabloid and gossip column fodder again and made

a mental note to talk to him later that day.

When Donna got to her desk, there was a plain

white envelope on her computer keyboard with her

name on it. She picked it up and opened it. After

reading the contents, Donna was visibly pale and

shaken. It was at this moment that the senior

staff walked by. Both Sam and Josh saw her and

made a beeline for her.

“Donna, what’s wrong?” Josh asked.

“This.” Donna said shakily and held out the

paper.

Sam grabbed it and skimmed it. He handed it to

Toby who passed it to CJ and then finally Josh.

After Josh read it, he called Leo and moved the

rest of the senior staff and Donna into his

office. Donna let herself be guided into the office by

Josh and Sam. She couldn’t believe that this

woman had gotten into her personal and private

space. By that time, the fear had overtaken her body

and she appreciated what Sam was trying to do for

her. Sam sat down with Donna and tried to keep

her talking. He didn’t want her to go into shock

over the letter.

“What the hell is going on?” Leo shouted as he

came into the office.

“This.” Josh handed him the note.

Leo quickly skimmed over the note and looked up.

“Where was this?” Leo asked Donna.

“It was sitting on the keyboard of my computer

when I came in.” Donna explained.

“Okay. No one is to leave this office until

you get the okay from me personally.” Leo

instructed and reached for his phone.

After several calls, the White House was in lock

down mode. The building was cleared of all non

essential personnel and visitors, the president

was kept in the residence with extra Secret Service

roaming the building, and the senior staff was

gathered in Josh’s office waiting for the next

step. Leo burst into Josh’s office with an envelope

in his hand and followed by secret service

agents.

“This was found for you. It has been checked

for fingerprints and stuff, but you might want to

read it. It explains a lot.” Leo said and held

the piece of paper out to Josh.

Josh took the letter and cleared his throat

before beginning to read.

Josh-

by this time, I’m sure the secret service has

locked down the building

you took my Sam away from me for that stupid

campaign

I want him back

I will have him back, your secretary won’t be

able to prevent that

watch your back and watch hers too cause Mandy

isn’t too fond of her either, from what I

understand

It was unsigned, but they all knew who it was

from. The office was quiet after hearing the

letter. No one knew what to say or do at that point.

Three weeks later

Donna was sorting through the mail when the

familiar handwriting caught her eye. This would be

the eightieth note she’d received, so she figured

that Sam would be getting his notes, sorted by

Ginger. Each time the threats and comments got to

her. Each hitting the right mark in her heart and

the threats just kept getting more intense.

There were threats that made her blood run cold.

There were threats against her roommate, who wanted

blood from Lisa. This woman threatened to use

poison on her cats and poison on her. Lisa had

threatened to run her down again and this time there

would be no one there to protect her. Sam had

received notes threatening his family in

California. Lisa had threatened to blow up his car and his

boat. Sam had plastered on a smile and was

making the effort to not let it get to him, but Donna

knew that it was just an act and the threats and

the harassment was bothering him.

Josh, Sam, Toby, and Leo had tried to get her to

take some time off and get out of the office.

Each time Donna refused, saying that Josh needed

her, but that wasn’t the truth. The truth of the

matter was that she was afraid to be alone or go

to sleep. She was maybe catching an hour of sleep

a night while her roommate was still up and then

watching tv until it was time to go to work. She

was living on coffee and caffeine pills and Donna

knew that things were starting to catch up to

her. She was having a hard time concentrating on

things, her weight had dropped, and she looked

deathly. Donna was also sure that her co workers

were starting to notice that things weren’t normal

with her.

Sam was putting all his time into work. He

really didn’t want to take the time to sit down and

think about what Lisa had been to him and what she

was doing to the people in his life that he loved

and cared about. He was also so concerned about

Donna who looked like she was scared of her own

shadow and jumped at loud noises.

Josh and Toby and Leo and of course, Sam had all

taken on a protective role. They made sure that

someone was with Donna at all times. They made

sure that she was walked out to her car and

followed home. No one wanted to take any chances with

the people in their lives. They all knew and

realized that Lisa was a dangerous woman who was

unpredictable.

CJ thought about all the times that she had met

and hung out with Lisa. There had never been any

indication to her that Lisa was mentally

unstable. CJ realized how much Lisa meant to Sam before

they called the engagement off and she knew that

Sam was going through hell and feeling

responsible for Donna’s accident. CJ was also worried

about Donna. She’d seen the dark circles on her face

and the too loose clothes that just hung on her

friend.

“Donna, can I see you in my office please?”

Josh asked after coming back from the morning staff

meeting.

Donna simply got up and followed him into the

office. Josh waited for her to enter and shut the

door. She knew something was up because he only

closed the door when they were discussing serious

matters.

“What did you need Josh? I have your memos

still to type.” Donna glanced towards the door.

“I wanted to let you know that the rest of the

staff and I want you to take some time off until

this thing clears up.” Josh said.

“I can’t take time off. You need me.” Donna

said.

While Donna was talking to Josh, the senior staff

came into the office quietly. They’d discussed

this at their staff meeting and knew it would take

all of them to convince, if not force her, to

take some time off.

“This isn’t a request. It’s an order.” Josh

told her.

“An order? From who?” Donna demanded.

“From all of us. We’re concerned about you.”

Sam said.

“I don’t need to take any time off. I am

perfectly fine.” Donna stated without making eye

contact with anyone.

“Donna, please stop lying to us and yourself.

You’ve lost weight. You’re here from early

morning to late evening. That doesn’t make you

perfectly fine.” CJ said.

“I’m not taking time off.” Donna said firmly.

“Yes, you are. As of noon, you are on

administrative leave.” Leo said.

“What am I supposed to do at home? Worry that

this woman is out there somewhere?” Donna said,

fighting back the tears.

The staff suddenly realized that Donna was going

through hell over this thing. The quiet was

broken by the sound of Leo’s cell phone ringing.

After a few terse words, Leo hung up the phone.

“My office now. Everyone, including you

Donna.” Leo said before leaving the office.

Leo’s office..................................

As the staff came into the office, they noticed

the DCPD officer was there with a file.

“Okay, listen up. The DCPD has some new

information on the case and you need to hear it.” Leo

said before turning the floor over to the

officer.

“The body of Madeline Hampton was found this

morning in the apartment that she shared with Lisa

Conrad. We only discovered this information this

morning after talking with people who knew Miss

Conrad. The reason it took so long was because

only Miss Hampton’s name was on the lease.” the

officer explained.

“How was she killed?” Toby asked.

“There was a single, point blank gunshot wound

to the chest. There was also a note discovered

with the body.” the officer told them.

“What did the note say?” CJ asked.

“The note was cryptic but stated that Miss

Hampton was the lucky winner and that she could be

comforted that she was dying the way her boyfriend

should have.” the officer said.

After hearing this reference to the shooting,

Josh was visibly shaken and Sam was in shock. Donna

was first to speak.

“That’s it. I’m gone.” Donna said and stood

up and headed for the door. Toby quickly blocked

her path to leave.

“What do you mean?” Sam asked turning his

attention to Donna.

“I mean that I’m done. I quit. I’m leaving

because I can’t take this anymore.” Donna shouted.

“I know this must be a shock to you all, but

please understand that we have doubled our efforts

to catch this woman.” the officer said.

“That’s a real comfort knowing that this woman

is out there stalking me and now she’s killed.

What the hell am I supposed to feel?” Donna

lashed out, no longer caring what she said.

Everyone could see that Donna was slipping into

shock and the fear that had been building for the

past three weeks was finally coming to the

surface. CJ went over and put her arm around Donna.

The tears started slipping down Donna’s face and

CJ took Donna to the restroom.

The guys were left in Leo’s office.

“She’s not handling this real well.” Josh

said.

“Yeah.” Toby said.

“What are we supposed to do?” Sam asked.

“This is what you’re gonna do. Sam, you and

Donna need to hole up someplace. Don’t be seen in

public. If she doesn’t see you and Donna, that

might force her hand to make a move. I am

doubling the agents on you both for the time being. Do

you have a place?” Leo asked.

“Yeah, we can stay at my apartment.” Sam said.

“The rest of you have to stay away and not go

visit. It’s the only way. If Lisa thinks that

Sam and Donna are romancing it up, well, you know

the rest.” Leo said.

“Why did Lisa kill Mandy?” Josh asked the

officer.

“We don’t have any conclusive evidence yet, but

the theory is that Miss Conrad killed Miss

Hampton because Miss Hampton was no longer a help, but

now more of a hindrance to her plans.” the

officer told them.

Sam’s

apt..........................................

“How long do we have to stay here?” Donna

asked as she sat her bag on the floor.

“Probably a few days, not more than a week.

Everyone thinks Lisa will make her move by then.”

Sam said.

“Well, then. I guess I can try out my cooking

skills this week then.” Donna said.

“A homecooked meal would be nice for a change.”

Sam said.

“What are we supposed to do this week then?”

Donna asked.

“Toby sent a few speeches to work on, but

nothing major.” Sam said.

“What am I supposed to do?” Donna asked.

“You can be my assistant for the week.” Sam

teased.

“I get to work as your assistant this week,

huh.” Donna smiled.

“Yeah and I expect coffee brought to me

promptly.” Sam teased.

“I don’t think so.” Donna said.

Sam and Donna worked throughout the rest of the

afternoon and evening. After a quick dinner and a

movie, both of them heading for bed. Donna in

the bedroom and Sam on the couch.

Sam’s apt...Day

2......................................

Donna had just awoken from a horrible nightmare

when she sat straight up and listened closely.

She heard what sounded to her like someone hitting

the glass of the window. In her fear she did the

only thing she could think of.

“Sam.” Donna yelled, her voice full of fear.

Sam heard her yell and stumbled into the room.

He was shocked at how she looked. Donna looked

scared and afraid and the tears were threatening to

fall.

“What’s wrong?” Sam asked softly.

“I heard a noise.” Donna whispered.

“Donna, we’re on the third floor. Lisa won’t

be able to get in, even if she tried. There are

agents all over this building and outside too.”

Sam said and started for the door.

“Don’t go. Please stay.” Donna begged him.

Sam easily gave in and crawled under the covers

with her. He couldn’t resist those eyes and that

tone in her voice.

This wouldn’t look good if anyone else saw them,

but screw it was Sam’s first thought. This woman

was his friend and even more than that. She was

scared and this was the only thing that made her

feel safe. He wanted to make her feel safe

regardless of how it looked to other people.

Day

3...............................................

“Sam, why did you and Lisa not work?” Donna

asked as they both lay on his bed.

“Lisa liked the idea of a law firm partner and

those parties. She wasn’t exactly happy when I

quit my job to write and live on a bus for

months.” Sam said.

“Oh.” Donna said.

“She wanted someone who looked good for her

friends. Lisa hated Josh before the campaign

because of something that happened when we went out one

night.” Sam said.

“Do you miss it?” Donna asked.

“Miss what?” Sam asked.

“Being in a relationship. Having someone there

to come home to.” Donna said.

“Some days I do. The bad ones. The ones where

it hurts.” Sam said.

“I know what you mean. It would have been nice

to have someone there through all this.” Donna

looked wistful.

“You do have somebody. You have me and the

rest of your friends.” Sam said.

“That’s so sweet Sam.” Donna smiled and looked

happy for a change.

“Don’t let it get around.” Sam smiled himself.

“I won’t, but what would CJ say if she could

see us now?” Donna asked.

“Probably something about being the first phone

call.” Sam joked.

They talked for a few more minutes and drifted

off to sleep comforted that they were together and

going through the same thing.

Day 4....................................

Sam and Donna had their own routine of climbing

into bed and talking until they fell asleep.

“Sam, why aren’t we a couple?” Donna asked.

“What?” Sam asked, not sure if he had heard

her correctly.

“Why aren’t we dating? We’re close to the same

age and have some of the same interests.” Donna

said.

“I guess I never figured that you were

interested.” Sam said.

“Sam, every woman in the west wing drools over

you.” Donna smiled.

“They do?” Sam asked, totally befuddled that

the women he worked with were so enamored by him.

“Yeah, every woman wants you and I’m sure that

you are the star of some of those women’s

fantasies.” Donna said.

“Oh.” Sam mustered.

“You really didn’t answer my question.” Donna

said.

“I never thought you’d be interested if I asked

you out.” Sam said.

“Sam, Sam, Sam. All you had to do was ask.”

Donna blushed.

“Donna, would you go out with me when this is

all over?” Sam asked.

“Yes. I’d love to.” Donna said.

“Really?” Sam asked.

“You bet.” Donna smiled at him.

Donna rolled over to give him a hug and she

kissed him on the lips. Sam’s arms snaked around her

and pulled her tight against his body. He pushed

his tongue past her lips and into her mouth.

Donna was getting very excited and so was he. She

could feel him harden against her thigh. Sam was

happy...having Donna here and kissing her felt so

right.

The shrill ring of the phone brought them both

back to reality.

“Hello?” Sam growled into the phone.

After talking to the person on the other end for

a bit, Sam hung up the phone and turned to Donna.

“Lisa was tailing Josh. They tried to get her,

but she got away from them.” Sam explained.

“Oh my god. This is getting worse by the

minute. How long before she tries to get in here.”

Donna said.

“Don’t worry. They upped the agents here, so

nothing is gonna happen.” Sam tried to reassure

her.

“Do they know yet why Lisa snapped and why

she’s doing this?” Donna asked.

“Not yet, but they’re still investigating at

this point.” Sam explained.

“I want this all to be over with.” Donna

admitted.

“I know you do and so do the rest of us. Just

lay down and shut your eyes. You need to sleep.”

Sam covered Donna up with a blanket and waited

for her to go to sleep. He was constantly amazed

by Donna everyday and through this whole ordeal.

She was a strong woman and was going to survive

this thing. He was finally satisfied that she was

asleep and slipped back into the living room to

work for awhile and sleep on the couch.

The next

morning..................................................

Donna sat the cup of coffee in front of Sam’s

laptop and sat down on the couch next to him.

“Thanks for the coffee.” Sam smiled at her as

he picked the cup up.

“We need to talk about what happened last

night.” Donna brought up the inevitable conversation.

“Why don’t we just skip it?” Sam asked, not

wanting her to feel pressured about the night

before.

“No, we can’t just skip it. It happened and we

need to talk about it before we can’t even look

at each other.” Donna quietly said.

“What was last night?” Sam asked.

“I think it was our true feelings coming to the

surface and trying to tell us something.” Donna

replied to his question.

“If that was true feelings, I would say that

you like me more than a friend.” Sam said.

“You’d be right about that and I think you feel

the same way.” Donna said.

“Yeah, but I don’t want to rush into anything

right now, especially with this situation.” Sam

said.

“I agree that the timing isn’t right, but I

want to see you after it is all over.” Donna said.

Sam smiled and leaned over to give her a kiss.

She smiled back at him and was about to say

something more when the phone rang. Sam grabbed the

cordless and paced around the room, talking to Josh

and Leo on a conference call.

“Yes!!!” Sam yelled and hung up the phone.

“What is it?” Donna asked.

“They got her. Lisa is in the custody of the

police.” Sam told her.

“How?” Donna asked.

“She tried to break into the White House of all

places.” Sam told her.

“Why?” Donna asked.

“Apparently she told the police that she was

visiting her boyfriend and her sister. They didn’t

believe her and got her name and the names of the

people she was there to visit.” Sam told her.

“You mean to tell me that she actually said her

own names and ours?” Donna asked, not believing

that Lisa would be so stupid.

“Yeah.” Sam said.

“So we can go back to living our lives, then?”

Donna asked.

“We’ll probably have to testify at the hearing,

but yeah. We’re free to go back to work and our

lives.” Sam said.

Donna smiled the first real smile in a long time.

She was glad that the nightmare was finally over.

Epilogue...................................................................

The trial was a quick affair. Lisa had pleaded

guilty to all the charges by reason of mental

defect. She was sentenced to a mental hospital for a

very long time. The White House was back to

running as normal. Donna and Sam had come together

from this nightmare and were better friends from

it all. No one else understood the special smiles

that the two of them shared on occasion. Josh or

Sam or even Toby still insisted on walking Donna

to her car at night. They weren’t willing to

take a chance ever again. They were more than

friends and closer than family. Sam and Donna had

been out on a few dates and were slowly working

their way to a committed, long term relationship that

everyone was happy about. Even Josh approved of

Donna going out with Sam. They were all still as

close as before, but the experience had changed

them and made them more aware of what mattered and

who mattered.

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