Working Relationships
By Heidi H.
March 2001
Disclaimers-These are not my characters and I am making no money off of them.
I do not own The Breakfast Club or St. Elmos Fire.
Ratings Info-Donna gets arrested, friendship, Sam/Donna in the end
Spoilers Info- small ones Somebodys Going To Emergency, Somebodys Going
To Jail, AND.......
The Leadership Breakfast AND.........
17 People AND..................
Noel
Special Thanks-Norma, Sheila, Lisa, and Clare for being great beta readers and
helping me find the bugs and work them out. You guys are wonderful and deserve
tons of praise and thanks.
Feedback-Greatly appreciated and loved.
Archiving-Need my direct approval and that can be done through
emailing me at bugrad2023@aol.com
Note-There will be a sequel to this story that deals with Josh and his reaction
to the couple, Donna having to talk about her experience in prison with Sam,
and everyone else finding out. So keep that it mind when you are reading
because there are several unresolved issues.
Donna knew that this was going to be a great day. The sun was shining by the
time that she got to work at 8 a.m. Josh had told her that she could come in
later, even though there was a 7 a.m. senior staff meeting. This was the bonus
Josh had promised her for giving up the previous weekend to do research for the
education bill. The White House senior staffers were all walking through the
bullpen discussing daily business when the DC Police entered, escorted by the
secret service. The senior staffers, assistants, and other employees
immediately silenced themselves and watched the scene before them play out.
You could hear a pin drop, it was so quiet.
“We’re looking for Donnatella Moss” Officer Campbell simply stated.
Everyone immediately turned to look at Donna, who was sitting at her desk. She
slowly stood and stepped forward.
“I’m Donna Moss” she said quietly.
“Miss Moss, you are under arrest” Officer Jackson responded.
“What is Miss Moss under arrest for?” Josh and Sam said at the same time,
coming to stand next to Donna.
“That is between Miss Moss and her attorney” Officer Campbell said, grabbing
Donna’s arm roughly.
“Hey!! Watch how you handle her” Josh said, stepping up, after Donna’s face
fell.
“What’s your relationship to Miss Moss?” Officer Jackson snidely asked Josh.
“First of all, I’m her boss and secondly, I am her friend.” Josh replied,
getting the eye from Leo to be quiet.
Donna kept quiet throughout the whole exchange in the bullpen. She studied the
floor and walls intently. She couldn’t look at any of her friends or the people
she worked with in the eye.
“Why don’t we move this into an office, so other people can get back to
work?” Leo said, finding that the rest of the bullpen was more interested in
the police, Donna, and members of the senior staff, than doing actual work.
Leo opened the door to Josh’s office and the cops, Donna, Sam, and Josh all
walked into the office.
Sam and Josh took positions behind the desk and Leo stood behind Donna, who had
sat down in one of the office chairs. They were already into their fighting
modes.
The DC Police stood near the door.
“What is Miss Moss being arrested for?” Sam asked the officers.
“Again sir, are you her attorney?” Officer Jackson asked.
“We don’t know what she is under arrest for or even if she needs an attorney”
Sam said, snapping into lawyer mode.
“Why don’t you tell us what she is under arrest for, so we can move on” Leo
said.
“Fine, just tell them what this is all about” Officer Campbell said to
Officer Jackson.
“Okay. Miss Moss is under arrest for theft and fraud. We have orders to
arrest her and take her into custody.” Officer Jackson explained.
“What are you talking about? I haven’t done anything like that.” Donna said,
speaking for the first time and having her voice rise to a slightly hysterical
tone.
Donna sat in the chair and tried very hard not to cry in front of her boss, her
friends, and the police.
“We can’t discuss this here. We need to take her into custody.” Officer
Campbell said.
“I think that Miss Moss had better get an attorney to handle her case.”
Officer Jackson said.
“I think that Miss Moss already has an attorney.” Leo said, looking at Sam
and then back to Donna.
“Then let’s get this over with.” Donna said, resigning herself to what was
happening.
“Fine then. Miss Moss, please stand up and put your hands on your head.”
Officer Campbell said.
“Do we have to do this? She works in the White House. I don’t think she is
dangerous or carrying any weapons on her.” Josh chimed in.
“Well, that’s our procedure. She is a criminal with a felony warrant out on
her. I don’t care if she works in the White House and 50 yards from the leader
of the free world. We have to follow our procedure and that demands a regular
arrest and these.” Officer Jackson stated, pulling out a pair of handcuffs.
The cop roughly grabbed Donna’s arm and pulled her out of the chair that she
was sitting in. Donna yelped as her arm was pulled on.
“You’d be wise not to try that move again, officer. There are three very
influential people in this room who would love to go into the pressroom and
tell them about the DC Police and their procedures and one of those people is
her attorney.” Sam said with a warning tone in his voice.
“Of course. We will treat Miss Moss as any other wanted felon.” Officer
Campbell explained with a sarcastic tone lacing his voice.
“Does she have to walk out of here in handcuffs?” Josh asked, hoping to spare
Donna the humiliation and angst.
“Yes, no exceptions.” Officer Jackson said, with a gleam in his eye that was
supposed to frighten Donna into confessing all of her sins right then and
there. It didn’t work and Donna wasn’t intimidated yet because her friends
were there with her, supporting her.
Donna looked up at Sam and Josh as she put her hands on her head. They both
caught the deer in the headlights look that crossed her face. Both of the guys
would trade places with her in a heartbeat. It was so hard for them to control
their emotions, but they had to because it was what Donna needed to see at that
minute. She needed to see that someone was in control and there were people
that she could trust to do the right thing. She felt the handcuffs bite into
her wrists and lock into place. Donna couldn’t meet anyone’s eyes when the cop
patted her down. She was so humiliated and embarrassed beyond any words that
someone could utter.
“Donna, we will be right behind you.” Sam and Josh both said, trying to
reassure the now frightened and scared woman.
Donna was led out of the office, through the bullpen, and out of the White
House and into a waiting cop car. As soon as she was in the car, Sam and Josh
were getting into another car. This was one of those times where they closed
ranks and defended their own. True, Donna wasn’t a senior staffer, but she was
one of the few assistants who was with the senior staff virtually everywhere
that they went. She was one of the best assistants in the west wing and she was
very valuable to the people who mattered.