CHAPTER ONE
"He's on the jazz. The man is on the jazz."
Face and Murdock could only agree with B.A. Hannibal was indeed on the jazz. And that could mean that they could possible all get in trouble. Hannibal had a grin plastered on his face while puffing happily on a fresh cigar.
"Oh, Hannibal, please tell me this is not one of your 'piece of cake'," Face whined. "You know I'm getting sick of all of the lost caps and busted noses I ended up with over the past couple of months. My dentist is not happy and I don't think I can come up with another plausible excuse as to why I keep losing caps being a respectable member of the community."
B.A. rolled his eyes
"Cheer up, Lieutenant. I'm sure you can come up with a couple more. You have a gift, kid. You can talk your way out of just about anything."
"Yeah … just not with you."
"So what's the plan, Colonel?"
Murdock was excited as usual. Hannibal started to explain his plan to his team.
"Okay. Let's get into position. B.A., you take the left flank. Murdock, you take the right flank. Face, you find a nice and comfy spot where you get a clear view of the situation. I'm gonna try to sneak up from behind and surprise them."
The team did as they were ordered and everyone was in position within minutes. So far, the plan was working out perfectly. B.A. and Murdock were in position and Face had found a nice spot with a great overview, but he was confident that he could get even closer without getting spotted. He crouched down low so the bad guys wouldn't see him sneaking around, but something was bugging him. He had no clue when the vague pain in his stomach had started, but it really started to bother him now. If only he could get a glimpse of Hannibal before this would get any worse.
Over the years, the team had gotten so close that they could read each other's signals perfectly. So when Face had indicated that he could get closer to get a better overview, they all knew what he was going to do and they would also wait for another signal from him that he actually achieved his goal. Face once again tried to get into position, when he was hit with a very bad spasm causing him to double over and groan in pain. He tried his best to breathe through the piercing pain and when he lifted his head up again he heard a gun reloading close to his ear. He had been caught!
"Drop the gun and get up, pretty boy!" one of the bad guys sneered.
Face hated it when people called him that. Nevertheless, he did as he was told. He lowered his gun to the ground slowly and got up just as slowly praying the guys would spring into action.
"Move it will ya!"
The bad guy roughly yanked Face up by his arm and he was hit with yet another spasm. He tried his best to suppress groaning again.
"I ain't got all day. Now move it!"
Breathing through the piercing pain kept Face from following what the guy ordered him to do. The impatient guy saw this as a sign of unwillingness, got angry and hit Face in the stomach with the butt of his gun. Face doubled over in pain when the pain he had experienced before seemed to even intensify. It would take all he got to stay conscious.
Meanwhile, Hannibal, Murdock and B.A. were waiting on a sign from their Lieutenant. They only got their sign as they saw one of the goons yank Face up roughly by his arm and point his gun at him.
"Damn," Hannibal muttered under his breath.
Pretty soon the other goons appeared by his side and they all pointed their guns at Face. Hannibal's mind was racing. Even if they all tried to get a good shot, Face could still get injured. And getting shot at close range meant serious damage. Hannibal signaled to B.A. and Murdock to keep hidden and do nothing. He couldn't help but think how on Earth his second in command managed to get caught. The guy was the best sniper on the team! He never got caught while sneaking up on his target.
The leader of the goons was extremely happy.
"Well well well. What have we got here? If it isn't pretty boy! Not so tough now without your friends huh?"
Face merely rolled his eyes.
When he didn't get a reaction from Face, he got angrier. He roughly grabbed Face by the collar of his jacket and yanked him towards him. He had his gun in his other hand and pointed it now straight at Face's chest.
"I could just put you out of your misery right now, just like that," he sneered.
Face flashed him his signature smile without so much as a hint of worry with the gun this close to his chest. The guy lost control completely and punched Face hard in the stomach causing him to double over in pain. By now he was seeing stars and he couldn't help the groan that escaped from his throat. The pain was still very much present when he was yanked back up by the collar of his jacket.
"Smith! I know you're out there somewhere. I've got your pretty friend here and if you don't come out and surrender within the next 10 minutes, I'm gonna blow a hole in him."
Hannibal got up from his hiding spot, lowered his gun and raised his hands in surrender. He wasn't about to risk getting his Lieutenant shot at such a close distance.
"Alright, Jennings. You've got us!"
B.A. and Murdock understood the situation and also came out of hiding lowering their guns and raising their hands. It didn't take long for them to be surrounded by the goons.
"The famous A-team!" Jennings sneered as Hannibal, B.A. and Murdock were all brought in to join their teammate. "We're gonna get filthy rich when we turn these guys in."
They all had to laugh at that. Hannibal exchanged a worried glance with his Lieutenant, but he indicated that he had the situation under control. They were all ushered into the jeeps of the goons which meant that there was no possible way to talk to one another about the situation. Murdock kept a close eye on his best friend, but Face managed to smile reassuringly somehow. He still felt a constant dull pain in his stomach, but when he didn't move too much he could handle the pain. For now.
