Author's Note: Thanks for continuing to read! I think they've had enough good times.
May 1982
It was late on a Wednesday evening, and Cassidy was cramming for finals. Graduation was a month away and she was trying to graduate with high enough grades to increase her chances of scholarships to the local community college that she'd applied to. Murdock had helped her go over the options, but when it was time to send them in, they had crayon drawings all over them. While Cassidy didn't blame her Uncle Murdock for doing it, the admissions board didn't mention it until the end of the meeting. Now she was trying to make sure she passed all her classes with excellent grades, which meant a lot of study after working the dry cleaner. She had re hired Mei Sung for the daytime work and had used some of the extra money from the shop to get some newer furniture from the local thrift shop. Now she lounged on the new couch that was significantly softer then the old one, books and notebooks and paperwork all over the coffee table and floor, as she was reading up on economics. She was about to compare the graph from class to the chart in the back when a rapid, almost frantic knock came at her door. Cassidy looked up and grabbed a baseball bat that was next to the sofa before going to the door, but the bat was discarded when she heard Face calling her name from the other side.
When she unlocked the door she only just opened it when it came swinging in and Face rushed forward looking around, Murdock's bomber jacket in his arms. "Cassidy we need a bed for Murdock, he's been hurt." Casidy didn't hesitate at the door and quickly ran to open her father's bedroom door. She had the lights on and the doorway cleared right as Hannibal and BA carried in Murdock between them, one of his arms over each shoulder. He was sweating badly and mumbling in what Cassidy thought was Vietnamese. His left side just under the rib cage was covered in blood that trailed down to his knee staining the flannel shirt and tee shirt underneath. Cassidy rushed to the closet throwing a box out of the way and pulled out what looked like a military medical kit. "Here use this, what happened?" Hannibal took it and started pulling out rolls of bandages and the large bottle of antiseptic. "He took a knife to the side in a pile up fight. Didn't even notice it until we got into the van and down the road. He's lost a lot of blood and we need to get the wound cleaned and closed. We need hot water and more bandages or clean rags if you got em." Cassidy nodded looking at her Uncle briefly before rushing from the room. BA and Hannibal tried to get his jacket off and then get his shirt removed as he slipped in and out of his delirium. They got his flannel shirt off with no problems, but when they went to take his tee shirt off, he started fighting them. His eyes getting wild as Murdock swung his fists at them both Hannibal and BA, yelling for them to leave him alone in Vietnamese. Cassidy hurried back into with an arm load of rags. "Water is boiling as fast as I can get it going and Face said he's on watch at the window." She watched Murdock's violent reaction and tried to get to his right side to grab his hand, but BA held her back. "Easy mama, he think he in the camps at Nam. If you ain't careful, he might accidentally hurt you." Hannibal nodded motioning for BA to hold him down and started pouring antiseptic into the wound, which caused Murdock to cry out in pain. Taking it all in, she quickly hurried back out of the room and to the front door where she grabbed her father's military jacket. Face watched as she put it on before she grabbed an open kettle from the cabinet filling it with the hot water from the stove. Walking back into the room carrying the hot water by the handle, she saw Hannibal sterilizing thread from a needle and thread kit. BA had his hands on Murdock's chest to keep him still, his face pale and scrunched up in pain. Cassidy set the kettle down next to Hannibal and then moved around next to BA grabbing Murdock's right hand which was in a tight fist. He didn't lash out at her, but he also didn't seem to acknowledge that it was her keeping his fist clenched tight.
It took forty minutes and eight stitches to close him up, but Hannibal has made them small enough to be hidden by a bandage. Once he was bandaged and had been made comfortable he seemed to fall into an unconscious sleep. Cassidy braught a chair into the room and sat at the side of the bed holding his now limp hand. She was using a rag to wipe the sweat from his face as BA and Hannibal stepped from the bedroom to leave them alone. Hannibal was cleaning up in the kitchen when Face looked over from the window. "How is he?" Hannibal nodded. "He'll be alright. He just needs rest and some time to heal. I'm impressed with how calm Cassidy stayed." Face nodded as BA saw the books all over the living room and began to stack them up. "She keep her head real good. You think crazy fool still think he in Nam when he wakes up?" Hannibal shrugged glancing at the doorway. "Maybe Cassidy will snap him out of it. Face you take first watch, four hours. I've got the next one and BA you have the last. I don't think Lynch figured out we were there or would think that we would come here, but best to not take any chances. Let's move the van into the back and get some rest." Everyone nodded and BA went downstairs to move the van as Face shifted the second chair from the counter to the window. Hannibal moved to the doorway of the spare bedroom and saw Cassidy had moved to sit at the head of the bed, her Uncle's head resting next to her as she brushed a cold cloth along his forehead. Hannibal remained still, listening as she spoke softly. "I'm here Uncle Murdock. I'm here." Murdock opened his eyes a little to reveal deep, dark, glassy borwn pools that looked confused and lost. He seemed to tense for a brief moment and Cassidy spoke firmly but softly. "Captain, it's Kellen. At ease Captain. At Ease." Murdock blinked once, then twice as he looked at her confused, his throat rough. "Steven?" Realization dawned on him and he corrected himself, the confused look leaving his eyes. "No, you're Casssidy." She grinned and offered him the cup next to the bed with a straw. "Hey, welcome back." Murdock took a sip and then rested his head back with a sigh. "Steven teach you that trick?" Cassidy grinned. "Amoung others. Let it never be said I am not my father's daughter." Murdock closed his eyes slowly before responding. "The fatigues didn't hurt, but thank you." She, nodded and went back to brushing his face with the cold cloth, glancing up at Hannibal, now that she noticed him at the doorway. Hannibal smiled broadly at her, giving her a thumbs upand slipped away to let them alone to try and get some sleep.
Cassidy woke the next morning curled up into Murdock's uninjured side, and he had an arm carefully wrapped around her as if he was afraid she would roll away or disappear. She listened to the steady even pace of his breathing and knew he was still asleep. Careful not to wake him, she slipped from underneath his arm and the bed and crept outside to the living room where she saw Face asleep on the couch. Hannibal was asleep on the arm chair and BA was sitting by the window looking down at the street. Cassidy smiled when he looked over at her and put a finger to her lips for quiet before she pointed at the kitchen. Then she started working in the kitchen,brewing a pot of coffee and making a pile of toast with some eggs getting cracked into a bowl. As the coffee woke the men in the living room, she smiled giving them all a quiet good morning but they responded just as quietly to not wake up Murdock. Hannibal took over with the eggs as she made up a cup of coffee and carried it into Murdock's room, seeing he was still asleep. She set it on the end table and slipped into the living room again. "He's still out." Face was trying to get motivated to get off the couch and grab breakfast. Hannibal was setting up a mini buffet on the counter between the kitchen and living room. "I couldn't help but overhear some of your conversation last night kid. Good job bringing Murdock back to the here and now." Cassidy nibbled some toast and watched them all dig in. "What's going to happen now?" Hannibal looked at Face, who looked at Cassidy and then back to Hannibal. Drinking his coffee, Hannibal made the call. "We'll give him until tonight to rest and make sure the wound is alright. Then we'll move him and get out of your hair. He needs to be back to the VA by tomorrow afternoon, and he needs to be able to hide the wound well enough for them to not notice." Cassidy frowned looking at Hannibal. "This happens often? Cuts and the like?" Hannibal shook his head. "Not really. Maybe a few bruises and busted ribs, but nothing like this." Face put a hand on Cassidy's arm to try and reassure her. "It sort of comes with the jobs that we take and it doesn't get this bad often enough to really have a plan for it. We won't do anything to hurt him or make it worse. But we have to keep moving in case Lynch gets on us." Cassidy nodded and grabbed some eggs and toast on a plate. "I'll go make sure he has an option for food when he wakes up. I'm glad he has you guys, you know? It feels like you all really take care of him." The team watched her disappear into the guest room before talking quietly. "Hannibal, we could always leave him here for an extra day, it might help with his wound." Face spoke quietly as BA nodded. "Yeah Hannibal, Lynch won't come lookin for crazy fool here. He might even think he escaped to come see her, which give us time to get away. Murdock would be ok with it, and ya know it." Hannibal nodded as he ate some more breakfast. "I'll propose both ideas to Cassidy, see which one would work better, but I don't want to leave him behind just so we can get away." Face shook his head. "It's not like that. We could easily stay here until he's well enough to move. It's just a matter of if that's the best course of action. I know she wouldn't be opposed to the idea, but I also don't want to expose her to Lynch and anything his troops might try to do to make sure we can't come here or she can't go see Murdock."
Cassidy walked into the guest room and saw Murdock was awake and watching her. She grinned and set down the small plate of breakfast before sitting next to him and taking his right hand. "Hey Uncle Murdock. How you feeling?" Murdock smiled squeezing her hand before trying to sit up. "I feel like I got one of those Indian burns on my side." She helped him sit up moving the pillow behind him to prop him up nd relieve any pressure on his side and offered him the coffee first. Murdock took it gratefully and sipped at the hot liquid slowly before watching her. "You alright Casey Co-Pilot?" Cassidy watched him and shook her head no. "Not really. I know you get injured doing these jobs for the A-Team, but it doesn't make me worry any less. And last night, you didn't seem to recognize anyone here, not even myself until I used Dad's trigger words. It makes me scared that the next time this happens, and I've no illusions that it won't, you might not be able to come out of it." Murdock rubbed his thumb on the back of her hand, still holding it. "I can only promise to do my best not to get hurt in the future. And if something does happen, you know the guys will do everything they can to help. We are a team. A unit. And you gotta stay with your unit." Cassidy nodded looking down at the bed. "I know. Dad told me something similar. I just want you to know I am going to worry. Please don't expect me not to." Murdock braught her hand up and kissed the back of it. "Worry away my lady, and maybe say a few prayers so the big guy upstairs will know to keep an eye on me too will ya?" He grinned giving her a wink and Cassidy looked at him wide eyed. "Uncle Murdock! Don't say stuff like that!" Murdock laughed and Cassidy couldn't help but smile, and then start laughing herself. Hannibal poked his head in as he knocked on the open door and then stepped inside. "Sounds like you're doing much better, Captain. How's the pain?" Murdock looked at Hannibal and then moved his arm to test it. "Doesn't hurt too bad Colonel. I think I'll be good to go in a couple hours or so." Hannibal nodded as Cassidy offered the plate of breakfast to Murdock. "We had an idea on the next course of action, but wanted your input before we put it into action." Murdock tilted his head and started eating, but had the look of someone who was being attentive. "Shoot!" Hannibal moved to the foot of the bed glancing at Cassidy as he spoke. "We figured we would let you rest up here until tomorrow morning. Do some running around to throw Lynch off this trail and then swing back to get you and take you back to the VA. If Cassidy is alright with that idea. Otherwise we would need to leave this afternoon and get you back tonight. I'd feel better giving you a bit more time to recover." Murdock looked at Cassidy, who looked back at him and the two seemed to have a silent conversation just by looking at each other. Cassidy spoke, but kept her eyes on Murdock. "He can stay until tomorrow morning. I don't mind at all, and if it helps, I'm game." Murdock nodded and pulled his eyes away from her to look at Hannibal. "I don't want you guys to get caught because of little ol' me." Hannibal patted Murdock's leg through the blanket. "Captain, there's never going to be just a little ol' you. You are a member of this team, and we wouldn't have it any other way." Grinning, Murdock got back to his breakfast and Hannibal nodded to Cassidy before stepping out of the room.
The team left later that afternoon, each one checking up on Murdock to make sure he was himself, although he tried to hug BA and got a growl. Face handed Cassidy a small brown envelope with some pills in it. "For the pain." He had said. Cassidy kept them in the kitchen and had moved her books into the room with Murdock, to read and study while he slept. She was in the middle of making notes for her history assignment when she heard the first signs of his nightmare. It started with a grunt, then a groan. Looking up, she saw Murdock's face was scrunched up, and he was gripping the blankets. "No...no..." She set her book aside with worry on her face. She knew her uncle had nightmares, and Cassidy had witnessed him in the throes of them before. But with his injured side, her fear was that he would begin thrashing and tear open the stitches that Hannibal had made. She covered one of his hands with her own and tried to talk to him soothingly. "Uncle Murdock, I'm right here." He calmed for a moment and spoke softly, still asleep. "Cassidy..." She smiled and took his hand as it relaxed and held it in both of hers. "Relax. At ease. Go back to sleep." Murdock never opened his eyes, but he must have heard her because he tightened his grip on her hand and then went still and quiet. Cassidy reached over to grab her history book and moved it around so she could read it and flip the pages with one hand, the other held by Murdock. When he woke up a few hours later, she had fallen asleep on the side of the bed, the book open to some pages about World War 2 and her hand still in his. Murdock gently slipped his hand from hers and brushed her hair gently with his free hand. Eyes soft and much rested. He knew she wouldn't leave his side until he left tomorrow morning, and he knew his restful sleep was her doing. Whatever he had done to deserve the Kellens in his life, particularly Cassidy, he didn't know. But he knew for as much as she needed him, he needed her. It felt good to have someone he could rely on, and trust with everything that was wrong with himself. Resting a hand on her arm, Murdock noted she was still wearing Steven's Army Fatigues but she had changed her cloths, probably when he first drifted to sleep. He closed his eyes and smiled to himself as he let his imagination take over what little coherent thought he had just had and whispered, even though Cassidy was asleep. "Quiet Billy, don't want to wake her up. Be quiet boy."