"Before you do, can I at least make your acquaintance?"
"Sure." Prescott came to stand before him with a gun thrust at his head. "Recognize me?"
"Sorry to disappoint you but I don't."
"Name's Gary Prescott. I'm sure your friends mentioned me once or twice."
"Yes they have...many times over. You'll be happy to know that you're a household name around here." Murdock retorted with sarcasm.
"You're part of the A-Team, aren't you?"
"I'm afraid I don't have that honor."
"Whether you are is of no consequence. You know them and that's plenty. I preferred taking the girl but you'll do."
"If you're planning to kidnap me, I hope you've got the muscle for it. As you can see, I don't move around so good," he continued to sneer. "You'll have to carry me." He cast a swift glance up at the house to see if anyone was looking out the windows. He quickly assessed his predicament and mentally thumbed through the various means of escape known to work in this particular crisis situation.
"I won't have to do anything of the sort," Prescott sassed back. "I just need you to wheel yourself down to my car parked at the end of the driveway." he motioned with his gun,
"And if I don't?"
Prescott shot at the ground, mere inches from Murdock's foot. Unfortunately for Murdock who hoped the noise would alert the team, the discharge was muffled by the silencer. "The next one will be in your leg and if needed, I'll work my way up to your head. Now move!"
Murdock reluctantly complied, still hoping that his friends had witnessed the entire scene and were poised ready to soar to his aid. "You're taking an awful big risk coming here alone," he temporized.
"Who says I'm alone? I've got men surrounding the place in case one of your friends has half of mind to derail my plans."
"What exactly are your plans?"
"Get the money I lost from the Evans kidnapping. The A-Team shouldn't have gotten involved."
"Yeah, I always tell 'em to keep out of people's affairs but they can't help themselves," he taunted.
Undeterred by the sarcasms, Prescott grabbed the chair handles and wheeled his captive down the alley to speed it up, unbeknownst to him that Amy was sneaking up from behind with a shovel, ready to smash it against Prescott's skull.
Sensing a presence, Prescott swirled on his heels and fired a shot at Amy. Luckily the bullet ricocheted off the shovel's metal plate and lodged itself in the ground. Out of the blue, Murdock sprung up in his chair and leapt at Prescott. Both crashed to the ground with the gun firing a shot into Murdock's right leg. He cried out in agony. His scream rent the air and alerted his friends who came dashing out to the rescue, but not before Amy could take a swing at Prescott with the shovel, knocking him cold.
As Face, Hannibal and B.A. guarded the unconscious crook, Amy rushed to Murdock's side to stem the bleeding. "Did you see what you just did?" she enthused.
"Yeah, I managed to get shot," he hissed out in great pain.
"You got out of that chair. You stood on your legs. You did it!"
"I did, didn't I?" he expressed gleefully through searing pain. "I can feel my legs again...unfortunately," he grimaced "Ohhhh crap, I think I'm going to pass..." his voice trailed off as Murdock surrendered to darkness.
"Guys, carry him into the house, gently" Evelyn instructed. "The doctor should be here any minute."
"Just haul him over my shoulder, Face."
"You sure B.A.? I can give you a hand." B.A. waved Face's offer and bent down to receive the package being loaded onto his good shoulder. Face and Amy both helped him steady himself and walked alongside the burly, though staggering, frame in case of a mishap. Face stopped at the front porch and returned to Hannibal.
"What do we do with him?" Face asked Hannibal who stood stoically by the unconscious criminal. "Hannibal, you ok?"
With a crazed look and veins throbbing in his neck, Hannibal slowly pulled the hammer back on the gun and aimed it at Prescott's chest. "Waste him."
Taken aback by Hannibal's merciless designs, Face grabbed a hold of his arm and lowered it. "Hannibal! You can't do that. Listen...it's over and Murdock's gonna be alright."
"He's a spineless jellyfish that manages to slip through the cracks of any judicial system. There isn't a cell that can hold him. He's escaped once he'll do it again. Do the world a favour and take out the trash." He thrust the gun at Prescott's head as he moaned awake.
"Hannibal, think about what you're doing here," Face warned, hoping to quell the disturbing thirst for blood. "You kill him and we'll be sitting ducks in the Army's shooting gallery for the rest of our lives."
Hannibal frowned at Face's absurd statement. "We're already wanted by the Fed."
"On a crime we did not commit!" Face reasoned. "This can still be proven in a court of law, not that we dare test that theory. If you waste Prescott, we'll have permanent blood on our hands. Is that what you want?"
"Alright," Hannibal yielded but kept the gun fastened on Prescott. "Get up you scum bag!" he spluttered with rage. "We'll give the law one more shot at keeping the screws on you but be warned, you snake," he raised the gun to the dastard's head. "If you so much slither your way out of the hole this time, I'll hunt you down and rip you to pieces. You've got my word."
"I'll get out," Prescott gloated with a conquering smirk. "I have endless loopholes that allow me to squeeze my way out of any indictment they may slap me with." He stepped up to Hannibal with malicious glee. "And your threat don't scare me none. I've heard worse and I'm still here."
In a split second, Hannibal fired a shot into Prescott's leg. "A taste of your own medicine might do you some good for a change," he drooled, relishing the sight of Prescott writhing in pain on the ground. "How does it feel?"
"You son-of-a-bitch!" Prescott shrieked.
"Hannibal! What's going on here?" B.A. asked as he frantically came rushed out the door. "I heard a shot. You ok?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." Hannibal pondered his action for a brief moment and smiled contentedly. "I'm really great. It felt good, real good." He handed the gun over to Face and marched into the house to check on Murdock.
"What's going on? What happened to that creep?"
"Euh... you might say he's had a little accident. He's not quite handy with that gun," Face chaffed with a knowing wink. "How's Murdock?"
"Doc says he'll be fine. The bullet went clean through. It missed the bone."
"Hey, I'm bleeding here!" Prescott cringed in agony.
"Here!" Face pulled at the bandana around his neck and threw it at Prescott. "Knock yourself out."
Face drove into town with two farm hands in order to bring Prescott to the local sheriff's office. As a precautionary measure, the Lieutenant kept low key while the package was being delivered to the authorities. His mind roved back to the day they found Murdock underneath that van and how close they came to losing him. The raw memory sent Face's senses reeling and although he wouldn't admit it to Hannibal's face, he shared his yearning to waste Prescott.
Two weeks flew by since they closed the Prescott chapter. Murdock's condition had improved significantly over the past few days, and our Captain was now walking with the mere aid of a cane.
On the morning on his birthday, Murdock was nowhere to be found. His absence sent everyone in a tizzy as each began searching for the missing party. Amy suspected that Murdock had taken his favourite horse out for a ride and sure enough, Lady was missing from her stall.
"Is he strong enough to be riding?" Face expressed with great concern.
"Is it like Murdock to go off without telling you?" Evelyn asked.
"Not to my knowledge. Should we go after him, you think?" Amy's question was directed at everyone present.
"No," Hannibal answered wistfully. "Let him be. He asked for breathing space."
"Yeah, but what if the fool gets into a jam? The horse could trip up and throw him. They both ain't exactly steady on their legs," B.A. claimed.
"I'm sure Murdock would appreciate your concern for him, B.A," Hannibal smiled thoughtfully, touched by the big guy's compassion for his buddy. "If he's not back by lunchtime, we'll ride out after him."
Two hours later, Lady galloped back to the farm without a rider. A large note was attached to her saddle and Hannibal read it out loud:
"Guys,
I will be gone by the time you find this note. Sorry I couldn't say goodbye face to face but if I told you the reason for leaving, you'd try to talk me out of it and force me to stay. While riding with Lady, I had a flash. Can't share what it is for I don't know myself whether it's noteworthy or not, but I have to pursue my hunch.
Please don't try to find me. I'll get in touch with you once it's over and hopefully, my suspicion pans out.
Take care of my Lady for me I will be back for her ...and for my other lady.
Howling Mad