So, my break from Airwolf was more brief than I thought. I was feeling burned out and not very creative. But, I got an inspiration from reading something to my class and I just couldn't shake it. So, here I am writing again.

Murder for Hire

"Hey Dom, where did you say you put that part?" Hawke asked as Dom came strolling out of the back office.

"I said it was coming today," he replied. "I don't have it yet."

"Oh," replied Hawke sarcastically. "That would have been nice to know before I took that whole engine apart."

"You'll live," Dom said with a smirk.

"I hate to break up this little family moment," Michael told them as he made his way into the hangar. "But, I need to see Caitlin."

Dom and Hawke immediately noticed that Michael wasn't alone. Following behind him was the local police Captain.

"What's going on Michael?" asked Hawke.

"Where is Miss O'Shannessy?" asked the Captain.

Dom shrugged. "She's not here," he replied. "She took the day off."

The two men looked at each other. "Any idea where we can find her?"

"I want to know what this is about," Hawke demanded. "Why do you want Caitlin?"

Michael sighed. "Let's step in the back office and discuss this."

"I'll contact my men and have them keep watch at her apartment," said the Captain.

Dom and Hawke followed Michael into the back.

"Damn it Michael," Hawke said growing angry. "Tell us what the hell is going on here!"

"Caitlin is wanted for murder," Michael replied bluntly.

"What?" asked Dom. "Who?"

"We believe she's a contract killer," he replied.

Hawke stared at him. "This has got to be some joke Michael," he told him. "We all know Caitlin is not a killer."

"I don't know that," replied Michael. "All evidence points to her. So far she's killed ten men."

"No!" said Dom. "Michael you know that's not true."

Michael opened the file he was carrying and laid it down on the table. He pulled out a stack of photos and spread them out. "These are the men. Look at the dates they were killed. Caitlin was supposedly out of town during each of these times."

Hawke and Dom picked up the photos and looked through them.

"This has to be some kind of coincidence," Hawke insisted. "Either that or someone is setting her up."

"Why are there black lip prints on their foreheads?" asked Dom.

"It's her calling card," replied Michael. "She apparently lets them get close to her, intimately, and then she kills them. Afterwards she leaves that black kiss print."

"It's like something out of a book I've read," replied Dom. "But I still don't believe that Caitlin's a killer. Nothing will ever convince me of that. Not our Caitlin."

"I wish I could believe that as well," replied Michael. "But all of the evidence is there. We also have a DNA match from the last victim. Caitlin has been through some traumatic events since she came here. Any one of those could have pushed her over the edge."

Hawke was unusually quiet as he was taking in all of what Michael had told them. Finally, he spoke up. "She's being set up," he said coldly. "I know it and you know it."

"Where is she Hawke?" asked Michael.

"I don't know," he replied.

"Would you tell me if you did?" asked Michael.

"No," he said bluntly. "But I plan to do everything in my power to prove she is innocent."

"Fine," replied Michael. "I'll leave these here for you to review. I have copies. I need to get back and help search for her. If you find her first, I would suggest you have her turn herself in. It would be in her best interest."

"You know I won't do that," Hawke told him.

"Then you'll be harboring a fugitive," replied Michael.

Hawke laughed. "Wouldn't be the first time," he replied and then grew solemn. "I'm going to prove she's innocent."

After Michael left, Dom picked up the photographs of the dead men and looked through them. "Why do some of these look familiar?"

Hawke took them from him and stared at a couple of the men. "I see now why Michael is involved," he told him. "Two of these men were members of the Firm."

"Why would someone want to set Caitlin up?" asked Dom. "I mean, what threat is she?"

"She can fly Airwolf," replied Hawke. "That's enough isn't it?"

"I guess so," said Dom. "Still, none of this makes any sense. Hawke she wasn't with us during any of these times. How are we going to prove she's innocent?"

"First we find her," replied Hawke. "I want to see what she has to say about it."

"What if they find her first?" asked Dom. "What then?"

"I don't know," replied Hawke. "Either way, we need to prove she's innocent."

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Caitlin slowly opened the door to her motel room. It was dark in the room and she could have sworn she had left the bathroom light on. She leaned back outside and took out her gun before slowly pulling the door so that it appeared shut, leaving just a small crack just in case.

Slowly she made her way towards the dressing area in the back of the room. She cut on the lights and then began humming as she moved back over to the bed, leaving her back to the bathroom. She felt someone creeping up behind her but waited just as they got close enough to grab them and pull them down on the bed, putting the gun directly in the man's face.

"Who are you and what do you want?" she asked coldly. "Tell me now!"

"Don't kill me," begged the man. "I just came for my boss. He wants to hire you."

Caitlin laughed. "I only kill for two reasons," she told him. "They are protect myself and for money. I don't see you as threat. Tell me more. Who is this boss of yours?"

"I can't," he told her.

Caitlin shoved the gun closer to his head. "I may just see you as a threat after all," she insisted.

"He wants to meet with you," the man told her nervously. "How about tomorrow afternoon at the diner? He knows you only meet in small public places."

Caitlin pulled back the gun and let go of the man. "I'll be there at two," she told him. "Your boss must come alone though or he won't see me."

"I'll tell him," he said as he got up quickly from the bed and moved towards the door.

"Also tell him that it will cost him," she said.

"He knows," the man replied. "But with your reputation, he's willing to pay anything."

"Good to hear," she said with a smile. "I hope we're able to do business."

After the man left, Caitlin quickly closed and locked the door behind him. She leaned against the door and breathed a sigh of relief.