INTRODUCTION
This is not my story. I didn't write it. It was posted on an old website of fan fiction. I tried to determine who did write it (to ask permission and all that), but couldn't. I did heavily modify the original story. Not only did I correct grammatical errors (there are probably some I missed), but I also added bits and pieces.
Access the original story at ./1999/behind/articles/fanfiction/fan9_
"Stalked"
Caitlin made her way slowly to her apartment door. She put the key in the lock and opened it gratefully. Letting her carry on and the sack she held fall to the floor with a thud, she leaned against the door frame for just a moment.
"Why do I do this to myself? Every time I go home it's the same thing," she said exasperated. "Are you ever going to meet someone? When are you going to get married? Mothers!"
It had been three months since she'd last been there. Her neighbor, Dee Dee McCall, had kept her word and watered her plants. Caitlin put her cane down against the back of the sofa and glanced at the answering machine. The light was flashing away madly.
Three months was way too long to be away from here, from Le, Dominic, and especially Hawke. She remembered telling them she was going home to recover from the crash.
"I have to go. Both of you met my mother. She wants me home for a while. I've decided to indulge her for just a bit to stop the arguing."
"Okay. But, I don't like you leaving so soon after getting out of the hospital," Dominic said. "String, you're not saying much."
"Can't change a woman's mind when she's made it up," Hawke stated without so much as turning around to look at Caitlin.
"Talk to him Cait, try to make him understand," Dominic said.
He gave Hawke a worried look before heading to his office in an effort to leave them alone. Maybe Cait could get through to him. After all, it wasn't as if she wasn't coming back. He hoped.
"Hawke, please look at me."
Hawke turned around. His eyes settled on the cast on Caitlin's left leg, then the small bandage covering the stitches in her head. She'd been in rough shape following the Jet Ranger crash, but was better now than she'd been while still in the hospital.
"I won't be gone long, just a few weeks, maybe until this darn cast comes off."
She started to move over to him. He motioned for her to stop and moved to meet her. He saw the tears in her eyes. She didn't want to leave. He reached out and wrapped her in his arms.
"Don't stay away too long," he whispered in her ear. "You have to come back and spend some time with Le and me at the cabin."
"You've got yourself a deal Mr. Hawke, but that definitely means that the cast has to be off."
Caitlin shook herself back to reality.
"Well should I check those messages now or should I take a long hot bath to recover from my so called vacation?"
"The bath sounds like the better idea."
The voice came from behind her. She turned around breaking out into the first smile she'd had in weeks. Standing in the doorway was Dominic Santini. He had the biggest grin across his face and in his hand was a single rose.
"Dom, you scared me half to death!"
He closed the door as he entered the apartment and handed Caitlin the rose.
"Sorry kid. Hey welcome home." He gave her a big hug. "I gather from the expression on your face that you didn't have a good trip home."
"It felt more like the third degree. You'd think she was the one recovering from a helicopter crash, not me. Remind me next time, I would be better off recovering in a FIRM hospital than at my mother's."
"That bad?"
"That bad," she said with a small laugh.
Caitlin slipped out of the hug and sat down on the sofa. She motioned for Dom to join her.
"Speaking of the crash, how are you feeling? The cast is gone and you seem to be walking better on that leg."
She reached down and rubbed her calf.
"It still hurts a bit from time to time and it still isn't strong enough to hold my weight without help, hence the cane, but it's getting there. By the way, what are you doing here; I wasn't due back from Dallas until next week from the last time I talked to you and Hawke?"
"Erin called the office this morning. Said you and your mother got into it pretty heavy last night and that you caught the first plane back to LA this morning."
"Yeah, Mom wants me to stop flying, settle down, and get married. It's been the same argument that we've been having since I came to LA. But Dom, it's been getting worse since Dad died last year. All three of us kids have been getting it both barrels at once. Even Erin gets asked when she's having grandkids."
Caitlin laid her head back and closed her eyes.
"How's Hawke handling having a teenager at the cabin?"
"He won't admit anything but he's enjoying it. He has also missed having you around, so have I."
Caitlin smiled. The idea of Hawke being a father to his brother's child made sense to her knowing Hawke as well as she did. It just seemed like the thing he would do. A serious look came across her face and she turned to face Dominic.
"What did those investigators of Michael's turn up on the crash?"
"The chopper was tampered with."
"What! Tampered with, but how?"
"Yes tampered with, and Mr. Whiter Than Snow won't tell me how. He's also very concerned because you weren't supposed to fly that day. String was but that other job came up and they requested him."
"Have there been any other incidents since the crash?"
"No, but there have been strange telephone calls. Hang-ups, and there was one message on the machine that said that they could get to you but they didn't say who 'you' was."
"That is weird. What do you think is going on?"
"I don't know what to think Cait. Only I'm grateful you're as great a pilot as you are."
"Dom, any pilot with a brain could have landed that bird with no tail rotor, and probably better than I did. They would have walked away from it."
"Cait, give yourself some credit. The way she was spinning…Your Airwolf experience enabled you to land that chopper without hurting anyone on the ground. But, I have to admit, you had me scared to death the way you were slumped unconscious inside of her."
"Well, I'm home, and much better thank you very much. I'm ready to return to work. At least the Santini Air stuff, the Lady will have to wait a while."
"Now hold on there, you're still officially on sick leave for another two weeks so enjoy it. Take some time to recover from your recovery."
The telephone rang. Caitlin debated a moment on whether to answer when a thought occurred.
"Does Hawke know that I'm back?"
"Nah, he was out at the cabin with Half Pint when Erin called so I didn't bother him. Why?"
"Nothing, I'll just let the machine answer. It's probably Mom anyway."
She was right. As Dom apologized for staying too long, Caitlin's mother's voice came into the room saying that she was sorry for the way she acted and that she hoped Caitlin would call her next week sometime.
"Dom, why don't you let me unpack, shower and change then come back here and pick me up? We can surprise Hawke and Le out at the cabin."
"That sounds like a good idea. I'll see you in a couple of hours. I have to pick up a few things for String."
"Great. I'll see you then."
She walked Dominic to the door seeing him out. After giving him a quick kiss on the cheek she closed and locked the door. She telephoned her sister to let her know that she'd arrived home and to thank her for letting Dom know she was coming home early. She unpacked her carryon and was glad she'd packed light as she was exhausted from the trip. She made sure she put the sack she'd carried aside so she would remember to take it with her to the cabin. It was a present for Le.
A few hours later, Dom knocked on her door.
Caitlin grabbed Le's present and opened the door for Dom.
He let out a whistle.
"Mama Mia, you clean up real nice Red!"
"Stop it Dom." She took a mock swat at him. "It's just jeans and a blouse."
Dom let out a laugh. He liberated the sack from Cait.
"What's this?"
"Just a present for Le," Caitlin answered as she locked the door. They drove to Santini Air in the familiar red, white, and blue jeep. Before long they were in the air, heading towards Eagle Lake.
Caitlin was a little nervous about seeing Hawke again after so long. She'd missed him terribly. The separation had been longer than she had intended. Her mother had guilted her into staying weeks longer that she should have. The whole experience made her take a long look at the depth of her feelings for Hawke.
Caitlin thought back to just after the crash. She woke up in the hospital. Never in her life did she think she could ever hurt so much. A concussion, a few broken ribs and her left leg was broken. She glanced around the room.
Hawke was looking out the window and Dom was out in the hall talking with a doctor. Michael was nowhere to be seen and that was a blessing of sorts.
"Hey, what does a girl have to do to get a glass of water around here?" Her voice was a little raspy and she wondered just how long she'd been out.
Hawke turned around immediately. His face was an impassive mask. His eyes locked onto hers. He moved over to her bed.
"Well, it's about time."
"How long have I been out?"
Hawke swept some hair from Caitlin's face.
"About thirteen hours." He couldn't help the slightly accusatory tone. He smiled to try and brush away the obvious concern. "But who's counting."
Caitlin tried to move. A sharp pain made her gasp for breath.
"Oh god!"
"Hey, stay still." Hawke's hand covered hers. "Remember, helicopter and ground meeting at a high rate of speed, not good."
"Okay, I get the point. Besides the way I feel I won't be moving for a while."
Hawke smiled. Their eyes met. She could see the concern he was trying to hide. She'd scared him.
"Hawke…" she began.
"Cait," he said at the same time.
At that moment the doctor entered the room.
"Cait, Earth to Cait, we're here."
"Oh. All ready?" She looked out at the cabin.
"Yes, where were you just now?"
"Nowhere really," she answered. "Just, thinking."
Dominic walked around to Caitlin's side and helped her down.
Hawke was upstairs when he heard the chopper come over the mountains. He made his way quickly down the stairs. He was opening the cabin door to greet his old friend when he saw him helping someone out of the other side.
Now who could that be? He thought to himself. When he caught a glimpse of strawberry blonde hair, he found himself smiling.
"Caitlin! She's home!"
A sudden weight seemed to lift from his heart. Caitlin was home. He finally felt like she was safe. Back here with Dom and him.
"Howdy stranger," she called out. Her accent had reasserted itself during her absence. "Are you just gonna stand there or are you gonna give me a hug?"
Hawke walked down the stairs to meet her. He picked her up and spun her around glad to see her. He then put her down gently, minding the injured leg and the cane she carried.
"There is that better," he laughed hugging her.
"I'm not sure. I'll let you know when the world stops spinning," she laughed.
"If you two are quite finished fooling around there are groceries to be brought in."
"Yes Dad!" Hawke and Caitlin said in unison.
"Caitlin!"
She turned at the sound.
"Le, how're you doing?" She stretched out her arms.
Hawke's nephew came running from behind the cabin with Tet bounding along behind.
"Great!" He gladly accepted her hug. "How was Dallas?"
"Still standing, here I brought you something." She handed over the sack she retrieved from the chopper.
"Herschell Walker number thirty-four! Thanks," Le said. "Look Uncle String, a Dallas Cowboys shirt.
"You're going to spoil him, Cait." Hawke whispered in her ear.
She started at the warm breath against her neck. She hadn't realized he was that close to her.
"That's okay because I know you won't," she said with a grin.
They both stood there smiling happily at each other for a moment. The moment was broken when Le reached between for the bag of groceries Dom handed him. Hawke cleared his throat.
"I guess we'd better get inside."
With the fresh groceries, Dom and Hawke started to cook a feast. Caitlin sat at the table out of the way watching them both. It felt good to be back with her guys.
"How do I look?" Le said coming down the stairs.
"Great but I think you'll have to grow into it. It's a bit big."
"A bit big, Cait, he swims in it," Hawke commented.
Caitlin laughed. She got up from the table and started to move to the sofa in front of the fireplace when she felt her leg start to give out from beneath her. Hawke, who was walking behind her, caught her before she fell. He held onto her concern evident in the way he looked at her. She patted his arm in reassurance and let him help her to the sofa.
"Don't let Dom know," she whispered as he helped her sit. "He's worried enough that I came home early."
Hawke glanced toward the kitchen then scowled at her. He knelt in front of her and laid a hand on her knee.
"Okay, but you have to slow down or your leg won't heal properly."
Caitlin nodded in agreement.
Le sat down on the floor at the end of the coffee table and started to finish his homework.
Hawke put a log on the fire and sat down beside Cait. She relaxed and laid her head on Hawke's shoulder as he put his arm around her.
Dom looked over from the kitchen about to ask Cait a question. The words died on his lips as he took in the homey picture.
What a perfect family, he thought to himself. I wish those two would quit pretending and admit that they have feelings for each other.
Sometime later, Dom walked into the living room.
"Dinner will be ready soon," Dom said. "But, I don't think Caitlin will be joining us."
Hawke looked down at her. Caitlin had fallen asleep against his chest. He eased his arm down, carefully picked her up, and carried her upstairs. He gently placed her down on his bed. Caitlin woke just as Hawke covered her with a blanket. He sat down on the edge of the bed.
"You over did it today, coming home and then here huh."
"I guess so."
"Well, you get some rest. I'll have Dom take Le. After they leave I'll crash on the sofa." He gave a humorless laugh. "Sorry, bad choice of words."
"That's okay," she said with a yawn. "But I can go home you know."
"Cait, you and I both know you won't get any rest at your apartment with your mother calling every ten minutes. You'll stay here. No more discussion. Besides that was our deal. You were to spend a few days here when you got back."
With you and Le, she thought. What's going on with you, Hawke?
"I remember. Okay you win. I'll stay."
Hawke adjusted the blankets and squeezed her hand. He turned the beside lamp off and moved to the door.
Caitlin murmured a contented sigh and fell back asleep.
He stood in the doorway for a few moments and watched his Caitlin sleep, his Caitlin. Now there's a thought. He lingered just a moment more before he went back down the stairs.
"She woke up," he said as he stepped off the last stair. "But I told her she's staying here and getting some much needed rest."
"Uncle String isn't that why she left in the first place, to get some rest."
"Yeah," he said with a wry grin. "But Caitlin and her mother have a hard time understanding one another. So, the rest part of her trip home didn't exactly happen."
Dominic ruffled Le's hair.
"Come on let's eat. I'll pick Cait up in the morning, after I drop Half Pint here off at school."
"Actually," he paused. "I think Cait's gonna stay a few days."
Hawke, Dom and Le ate the dinner. After dinner Le took Tet out for one last walk before he and Dom were to go back to town. He'd only been gone a few minutes when a scream came from upstairs. Hawke and Dom sprinted for Hawke's room. Caitlin was tossing and turning. Hawke rushed over to the bed. Dom lingered in the doorway watching Hawke trying to wake Caitlin and comfort her all at the same time.
"Cait! Cait come on wake up!" He put his hands on her shoulders and gave her a firm shake.
A startled Caitlin opened her eyes.
"Hey. You were having a nightmare." He said as he sat on the bed. His hands lingered on her shoulders.
Caitlin started to shake.
Hawke leaned over and held her. She started to cry in front of them, something she had never done in the three years that they had known her. Hawke motioned to Dominic to come over to the bed. Dom sat down and held on to her hand.
Hawke heard Le coming back from his walk. He told him to wait downstairs for a while and that they'd be down in a bit.
"Cait, hon, how long have you been having nightmares?" Dom asked.
Caitlin wiped her eyes. Hawke began to rub her back in a soothing gesture.
"Since the crash," she whispered.
"Why didn't you tell us?"
"I thought I could handle them. That's one of the reasons I went home. I thought being home would help… but the arguing with Mom only made it worst. Erin sat with me most nights so Mom never knew about them."
Caitlin closed her eyes. Tears were still flowing.
"Cait, it'll be okay." Hawke whispered into her ear as he wrapped her in another hug.
"I never told you what happened in the cockpit of the chopper before I lost everything. I didn't remember much while I was in the hospital. The doctor said it was the drugs I was on for the pain. Once I got back to Dallas, the memories started coming back. That's when the nightmares started to get very graphic. Before then they were just bad dreams that would wake me up with a start. A glass of warm milk and I'd go back to sleep and not have another dream. But now, it's every night."
"Are you alright to come downstairs? We can have coffee and talk about it," Dom said.
"I guess so. Just give me a minute."
Dom nodded and went downstairs noting that Hawke didn't immediately follow.
Hawke sat on the edge of the bed rubbing Caitlin's back for several minutes. Finally, he made a move to leave.
"Hawke, don't go."
Hawke sat down beside her again.
"What do you need Cait?" The gentle tone of his voice encouraged her to take his hand in hers.
"Can you take me up in Airwolf tomorrow? It's been nearly four months and I miss her, if you can miss a helicopter?"
"Yes you can miss a helicopter." He squeezed her hand. "And yes I'll take you up, if you think you're ready."
"I don't want to fly her." She said quickly. "I'll let you do that. I just want to listen to the sounds."
"Cait, everything will be alright." Hawke said as Caitlin's eyes began to tear up again.
"Maybe we should send Le up here when we talk. I don't want to scare him. It's bad enough he saw the crash."
Hawke moved to let Caitlin up out of the bed. She stumbled a bit as her leg had stiffened from the lack of use during sleep. Hawke reached out to catch her but she waved him off. She told him that it did this all the time and that it just took a minute or two to stretch out.
They sat down in the living room area. Caitlin was on the couch and Le sat beside her. He had said that he wanted to know what she was going through. Hawke said that it was alright for him to stay as long as it was okay with Cait.
Cait took a sip of coffee from the mug that Dom passed her. She took a deep breath.
"Right off the top, Dom, you watched me do the walk around before I lifted off. Everything was in order. The chopper started with no hesitation or anything. The engine sounded fine and the tail rotor was behaving normally. I lifted off and was at about two thousand feet when everything started to go south. There was a sudden jerk. I knew at that point I'd lost tail control. Immediately I started to look for a spot to set her down safely without injuring anyone on the ground. I radioed my situation. You called for the fire trucks. I heard you tell Le to get a hold of Hawke at the other site. Less than a minute later I lost the electrical system. The top rotor had no power. The chopper started to fall out of the sky. The next thing I really remember was waking up in the hospital in more pain than I had ever been in. I don't even remember hitting the ground. But the nightmares are always the same thing, me watching the ground rushing up and there's nothing I can do to stop it, then I wake up."
"But Cait, you've been in nearly identical situations with Airwolf and you've come out of them with no problems."
"I know Dom that's what's so puzzling. I should be fine with this. No one was hurt on the ground and I'm recovering from my injuries…but the nightmares keep happening."
"I think it may be plaguing your mind that I told you that the chopper was tampered with."
"Could be Dom, but I had the nightmares before that. It bothers me that there's someone out there with a grudge so big that that person's willing to do something like tamper with a chopper."
"Uncle String?"
"Yes Le"
"There were a lot of people there that day. I watched a lot of them look at the chopper admiring the paint job. But there were so many of them around that I couldn't see if any of them were trying to do something. But, I thought that there could have been just one..."
"That's okay Le," Caitlin responded not hearing the last part. "It's not your responsibility to watch for that sort of stuff."
"Cait's right Half Pint," Dom interjected. "That's the responsibility of the production company we were shooting for that day."
"What we need is a list of all the people who were there that day that were supposed to be there and a list of those who weren't there but were supposed to be." Hawke stated.
"Hawke, how are we going to find them?"
Hawke looked over at Caitlin as she said his name. For the first time since the crash he saw exactly how terrified she was behind the bravado. The idea that someone had sabotage the Jet Ranger and that the target of the act was unknown scared him also, but it was really bothering Caitlin.
Hawke shot Dom a concerned look.
"Well maybe I had better get this boy back to my place so he can get to school in the morning. After I drop him off I'll get a hold of the production company and get those lists. String, maybe you should call Michael tomorrow and fill him in on the details Cait gave us."
Le packed up his homework and hugged Caitlin goodbye. He thanked her again for the shirt and he and Dominic left for Dom's apartment.
Caitlin walked into the kitchen and placed her mug in the sink.
Hawke watched her go. He was still watching when she braced herself against the counter and dropped her head. He walked over to see if she was alright. He pulled a sobbing Caitlin into his arms and held her as she cried.
"Oh look at me," she said when she could finally dry her eyes. "I should be used to being shot at, blown up, or held hostage."
"Let's not forget being infected with a deadly virus. Cait, it'll be alright. We'll get to the bottom of this and besides…all of those times we knew who was doing the shooting, blowing up, and the holding hostage. This time, at the moment, we don't know who did the tampering or why. But I promise you, we will find out."
"I'm just unnerved with what's going on, Hawke."
"I know."
Caitlin walked over to the sofa. She stopped, noticing Hawke wasn't following her. She turned around to see Him watching her. She couldn't read his expression.
"What are you starring at?"
"You, you've changed a lot since I first met you in Texas a little over two years ago."
Caitlin sat down on the sofa.
"What do you mean by 'changed' Mr. Hawke?"
Hawke crossed the living room and sat down beside her.
"I mean you're stronger, more confident in your abilities."
"Or at least I was before this damn crash."
"You'll be back to your old self in no time Cait, once we learn who's doing this stuff and why."
Caitlin leaned over and Hawke put his arms around her. They sat on the sofa and talked about her visit home, talked about anything but the crash. Finally, they just sat there and stared into the fire together. When she yawned against his shoulder, he softly told her to close her eyes and try to get some rest. He felt her relax and she fell soundly asleep in his arms.