Chapter 10:

Face remembers when the chopper crashed in the Vietnamese jungle in 1970. He was sure that the only reason most of them survived were the amazing flying skills of his friend. Their communications officer, Sergeant Suarez had died upon impact, as well as Murdock's copilot. The VC were on them in in a matter of minutes and his heart stopped when he saw one of them poke the unconscious pilot with the barrel of his rifle. When the soldier rattled off something in Vietnamese and motioned for B.A. to carry Murdock, Face let out the breath he didn't know he was holding. When they arrived at the camp, Murdock was singled out almost instantly. Taking advantage of the confusion caused by his head injury they made him their pet project. Face shakes himself like a wet dog… Murdock had been slipping since that first day and Face was sure it was because his brain never got the time to heal properly.

After he'd heard that godawful scream they found Murdock lying against the wall, gasping for breath. His body was limp like a rag doll and there was a look of pure desolation on his face. B.A. had a panicked look on his face, wringing his hands repeatedly like he was washing them clean. Hannibal nor Face could get either man to talk about what happened, no matter how hard they tried. In the end, it'd hardly mattered because few days later they were saved by American troops that had come across the camp by accident. Talk about luck… Surprisingly, it was Sergeant Young that carried the pilot to the waiting choppers.
"Never leave a man behind."
They were taken to Cam Ranh Bay to be treated and regain their strength. After weeks of showing absolutely no reaction to his surroundings, Murdock eventually started talking again but never mentioned his experiences at the camp. It was like they had been erased, his brain had been reset.

The pilot had once told Face that people think they have a memory but in reality, their memories have them. Sometimes it's better not to remember at all than to be forced to remember everything.
"Don't let it eat at ya…"
Back then he was as green as they come and Murdock was in the last leg of his first tour. Even though the pilot was two years younger than him, he'd been battle hardened by his time in country. The LT had walked up to him after pulling them out of his first true firefight with the team. Face had felt numb. The mission had been a disaster. He had lost his helmet like a FNG and Ray Brenner gave him his. The sergeant had been sure that he would be booted out of the SOG-team Hannibal was forming, when word got around about his mistake. What would he do then… Go back to the brig? Hannibal had been very clear about the consequences of failing to live up to expectations. They just sat for a while in the back of the chopper, smoking a cigarette until Murdock patted him on the shoulder and shared his wisdom. He'd pondered the pilot's words, but didn't really understand them back then, but after the camp… Face shuddered. In the end, it was Murdock who got eaten alive.

He must have fallen asleep somehow because he just woke up to a dark room with a crick in his neck. Face rubs his eyes and yawns. Seeing that Murdock is still asleep, he quietly moves from the bed into the hallway.
He nods at Jack who is apparently waiting for one of them to wake up. He waves a thermos and cup at the conman. "I thought you might need some when you woke up."
Face smiles. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were army." Jack snorts at that.
"You wish… Does he often have these flashbacks?"
Face sighs. "No, it has been a while. Years actually." He takes a seat in the chair placed conveniently in the hallway.
"He didn't remember did he…?"
Face looks at his sleeping friend through the open door. "He suffers from intermittent memory loss." Jack nods in understanding but doesn't interrupt. "He is my best friend you know, my brother in all but blood. I would die for him and he would do the same for me. But I can't fix this for him…" Face sees Cassidy sneak into the room. "Some things are better left forgotten, but when they do resurface… He pays for it dearly." The twenty-year-old moves closer to the bed and sits on the edge. Without any hesitation, she takes the pilot's hand in her own and rubs her thumb along his long fingers. Jack smiles at the sight.
"They sure seem to have taken a liking to each other."
"You're not worried?" Face asks, surprised.
"Nah… They're cut from the same cloth." Jack salutes the lieutenant with his cup and smirks.

Hannibal sits alone in the living room. His head in his hands in a rare show of weakness.
"You're a good man Hannibal…"
The colonel chuckles. "You have a real knack for sneaking up on unsuspecting officers, ma'am."
"Well, the unsuspecting ones are the easiest target." Josie smiles. "Let's say I have a lot of experience." She pauses and puts a comforting hand on the older man's shoulder. "I know what's it's like, having to watch someone break down and not be able to do anything about it. It takes a lot of willpower not to break down ourselves." Josie feels a small shudder go through the colonel. "Jack's doing all right now and the kids are all grown up. So, I have some strength left to share." Hannibal sighs deeply and puts his hand on hers. He squeezes her fingers lightly.
"Thank you Josie."

Murdock awakes to soft voices in the hallway. He can hear the distinctly nasal voice of his best friend and what sounds like Jack Simms. He feels a warm soft hand rubbing his fingers and arm. Opening his eyes to slits he can faintly make out the face of Cassidy, looking thoughtful. Murdock is contemplating letting her know he is awake when something in the hallway sparks his interest.
"So…" Face starts, draining his cup of the last bit of coffee. "How did you manage to get that chopper back here? And how did Murdock know you were brothers?"
Jack had been expecting that question and for the first time in years, he was okay with talking about his brother.

"You know, I never understood why Howie preferred the damn things over good old fashioned wings." Jack laughs softly. "I always told him they were just overgrown lawnmowers waiting to be shot down." The major pauses, reminiscing the good old days. "Howie served in Korea before dropping out of the army to take over up this place and take care of his family. This used to be an army aviation training strip, but needed a new purpose after the second world war. When the demand for chopper pilots rose, he volunteered, retaining the rank of Captain, and got deployed to Vietnam. That's where he met your friend Murdock." Jack gestures at the room. "My brother and I often wrote to each other. That's where the photograph downstairs comes from..."

"So, that's why Cassidy knew him from somewhere." Face says, his expression pensive. The major nods affirmatively.
"After Howard died, our dad pulled some strings and got the chopper shipped back to the US and restored. It took some searching though, because it was handed off to other pilots after him. It was completely shot up by the time we found it and was going to be scrapped anyway."
"Must have been some big strings though." Face states, contemplating the amount of paperwork that had to be pushed to make something like this happen. He could have done it sure… But why would he.

Face remembers the older pilot clearly. Tall and lean with a mustache and dark brown eyes. They could have been brothers if not for their age difference. The diabolical duo was always in for some fun when together. They were the scourge of many base camp, both feared and admired. All his experience as a conman could never protect him from their wicked sense of humor and he often fell victim to their pranks. Both men sit in silence for a while.
"Murdock didn't fly with your brother during his second tour but I remember him. Murdock had his own bird by then."
"That's true."
Suddenly he's struck by something Jack said the other day. His attention had been on his friend, but the memory had somehow stuck. Blue eyes open wide, Face looks at the major. "You said Howard's boy… Does this mean…?"

Jack looks at the floor, clenching his jaw a few times to get his emotions under control.
"Everything fit, you know. The year, Beaumont, the name of the girl… And then my nephew Theo, was shot down and killed." Jack pauses. "Howard had nothing left in Nam except for Billy and..." They both look up startled when they hear a strangled gasp come from the bedroom. Murdock is clinging to the door sill. Cassidy is rubbing comforting circles along his back, her eyes wide open in shock.
"There wasn't any hard evidence H.M., but Howard never stopped looking for you. You have to believe that." Jack looks up at Murdock's pale face, looking deep into his brown eyes trying to convey his sincerity. "We tried to find you after the war, but at every turn the military stonewalled us and when the suits turned up… we knew we were outnumbered…" Jack looks away, a hand rubbing his eyes. "The chopper was the only piece of them… of you we had left…" Face grabs the older man's arm and forces Jack to look at him. Willing him to say the words he's afraid to ask, Murdock is grabbing the wood so hard his fingers turn white.

"Howard believed that H.M.'s his son."