The Illusion of Caitlin O'Shannessy

A/N: I do not own or make any profit off of the Airwolf name or any of the characters involved within. My stories are for entertainment purposes only.

Chapter 9

A couple of hours later, after discussing strategy and plans for the next day, Hawke, Dom and Caitlin decided it was time to get some sleep. The small hunting cabin that the Airwolf team had been brought to by Ed Hargraves was really nothing more than a shack that offered minimal protection from the elements of the night. The whole building consisted of one room with a rickety stove and small sink along one wall for a kitchen, a card table and 4 rusty chairs for eating, a fire place on another wall and one cot near the fireplace. It was obvious by the thick coating of grime and dust on everything that the place had stood empty for some time. Therefore, Dom had volunteered to head back to Airwolf to pick up a couple of sleeping bags and a few more supplies he figured they may need for the night, leaving Caitlin and Hawke alone at the cabin.

Cait crossed her arms and shivered as she looked around the dilapidated shack. Coming up behind her, Hawke slid his arms around her waist. "Cold?" he asked.

"Yeah, a little, I guess," she answered as she leaned back against Hawke. "I wish we could start a fire."

"I know, me too," Hawke said as he pulled her in a little closer. "But I'm afraid if someone sees the smoke they'll come around to see what's going on. We've got to keep a low profile."

"I know." Cait agreed as she turned in Hawke's arms so that she was facing him. "I guess we'll just have to make our own warmth, huh?"

"Hmmm, now that sounds like a pretty good solution," Hawke said with a grin as he leaned in to kiss her.

Just as their lips were about to touch, Hawke heard what he figured was Dom at the door. "Perfect timing, as usual," he sighed as he placed his forehead against Cait's.

"C'mon, we better help him. Knowing Dom he brought back everything we brought with us and then some!" Caitlin agreed with a grin as she broke away and headed towards the door. Just as she reached out to open it, however, she was thrown back as the door flew open knocking her off her feet. Before either Hawke or Caitlin could react, two large men came barreling through the doorway, guns drawn. Hawke tried to reach for his own gun but was grabbed by one of the men before he could get to it. He watched in horror as the other man, went for Caitlin. Within seconds, it was over. Both Hawke and Caitlin had been restrained and disarmed by the intruders.

"Who the hell are you?" Hawke demanded to know as he struggled against his captor.

"Let's just say we were sent by an old friend of the lady's over there," the one who held Hawke answered. "Someone who wants to see her again, real bad."

As Caitlin struggled to free herself from her own captor, she cried out as he tightened his already vise-like grip on her arm.

"Stop hurting her!" Hawke instinctively yelled.

"Trust me, this lady don't know from hurt, not yet," the man snarled back at the pilot. "Believe me, by the time the boss man gets through with her, she'll beg to have my gentle touch back. Now, move it!," he ordered as he shoved Caitlin in front of him towards the open door with Hawke's captor doing the same to him.

AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW

Dom was just getting ready to head back to the cabin with the supplies when the communications beacon in Airwolf sounded. Rolling his eyes, he sighed as he climbed back into the cockpit and turned on the monitor. "What is it, Michael? It's cold out here and I need to get back to the cabin with these supplies."

"Are Hawke and Caitlin with you?" the spy asked.

"No, Michael. That's why I need to get back to the cabin. Mamma Mia!" Dom exclaimed in exasperation. Deep down he really liked the spy but he could be very frustrating at times.

"Dominic, listen to me," Michael said very sternly. "We've got a problem. Ed Hargraves' body just turned up just outside of Willow Springs. He was tortured by the look of it."

"What?" Dom yelled as the implications began to sink in. "You think it was Simmons?"

"No doubt. They left a very clear message with the body...a white lily."

"Dammit to hell!" Dom cried. "I've gotta get back to those kids."

"Dominic, I trusted Ed but there's only so much a man can take. From reports I'm receiving, whoever killed him did a very thorough job in their interrogation. My guess is that they got him to give up something. Chances are, Simmons' men are already on the way or have already made it to that cabin. Now how much they know about how many of you there were or about Airwolf is anyone's guess. You take every precaution. Whatever you find, I'll expect a report back in one hour. Any more than that and I'm sending out everyone I've got. You understand?"

"I understand, Michael." Dom confirmed quietly. "One hour."

"Good luck, Dominic," the spy said as he switched off the call.

Loading everything back into Airwolf, Dom suited back up in his flight gear and prepared to take off towards the cabin. If Cait and Hawke had been taken, he'd need the fire power of the aircraft. If not, he didn't want to waste time heading back to the aircraft on foot to get out of there.

"God in Heaven," Dom thought to himself as he powered up the rotors, "Please let those kids be alright."

TBC...