Chapter Twenty-one

"Hey, come on, Murdock, slow down a little." Sure, Face wanted to get to Hannibal and BA as much as the Captain, but he really preferred to get there in one piece. "You know, these back roads really weren't built for speed."

Hunched over the steering wheel, Murdock flashed a mischievously toothy grin at Face—which unsurprisingly didn't help ease the con-man's fears of careening off the road.

"Ok…" Face closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair, trying to take his mind off their break-neck speed. "…so, I think I made all the necessary calls and…"

The momentum of the van changed slightly, and a stomach-dropping wobble throughout the vehicle caused Face's eyes to snap open. Losing traction on the loose gravel, the van skid into a watery ditch and then, from sheer velocity, immediately popped back out. There was a brief flurry of motion in the driver's seat as Murdock regained control.

For a moment, both men were silent as the van continued, at a much more practical speed, down the road. Slowly, Face turned to look at his friend. Wide-eyed and white-knuckled, the Captain was only able to muster the sheepish of grins. Adrenaline fading, Face couldn't' help himself; he started laughing.

Tears were rolling down his cheeks before he could draw in enough breath to speak again. "Murdock, BA is going to kill us."

The Captain nodded happily, obviously enjoying Face's little outburst, but still looking a little shaken from the whole ordeal.

Face gave a contented sigh; it had felt good to laugh like that. Sure, he could blame it on the meds from the clinic, but the truth was that he was just so relieved to have his best friend back. He had really thought—just for a bit—that maybe he had lost him for good this time.

Sensing that he was being watched, Face glanced over at Murdock. The Captain's brown eyes were searching, questioning while his mouth pursed in a slight frown.

"I'm fine," Face said with a soft chuckle, but could tell that the gentle brush-off wasn't going to work. "I just…back at the bridge…"

Murdock's attention was back on the road, his frown tightening.

It was hard to keep his voice audible; the words just seemed to weaken as he said them. "I was really scared…I-I thought you were gone."

In a flash, the Captain's expression changed. Head cocked toward Face, his eyes twinkled as he gave a coy little smile. It was his patented 'Aw, you do care!' look.

"Of course I care," Face laughed, "if I didn't have you around, who would be the brunt of all BA's bad attitude?"

Murdock batted his lashes a little.

"Yes, I'd miss that beautiful face of yours as well."

Again, that slight look of surprised amusement crossed the Captain's expression. Face grinned; the man still thought he could read his mind, did he? Heck, Murdock was as animated as a cartoon character. Sure, he could surprise the team plenty with some of his quirky ideas, but, most of the time, he was pretty predictable—at least to Face.

"Turn here, Murdock. We'll stash the van and head the rest of the way on foot; it'd probably be best if we caught them off-guard."

Murdock pulled off the road, hiding the van well back within the dense trees, but as he pulled the keys from the ignition, he gave Face a long, inquisitive glance.

"I'll be ok…the drugs are wearing off." Which meant the pain was coming back, but he decided to leave that little tidbit out. Besides, Murdock was probably hurting more than he was. "What about you, buddy? How are you feeling?"

Pulling a pistol from his waistband, the Captain settled into his best James Bond pose.

"Alright," Face laughed, "You're ready then?"

Murdock nodded and the light-hearted mood departed as they both shifted into combat mode. It was time to save BA and Hannibal.

At the top of the ridge, Hannibal paused; his breath was raspy, his heart pounding. Shots echoed through the woods where he had last seen BA—before they got separated. He could only hope that his Sergeant was holding his own.

Another of Blackburn's men lunged at the Colonel, but he was too quick to be taken that easily. He swung around, catching the attacker hard in the face. The guy crumpled, but not before Hannibal got one more punch in. It wasn't sportsmanlike, but, damn it, these guys had really ticked him off.

He stripped the fallen man of his pistol and ammo and glanced back at the woods. There was no way he was going to lose a third man. That lone thought suddenly shamed him. He hadn't lost any men, not yet. They were alive; they had to be.

A twig snapped directly behind him and he spun around, instinctively striking out. The man who had so stealthy snuck up on Hannibal sunk to his knees with a weak groan.

"Geez, Hannibal, really?" Face was gingerly touching his cheekbone. "Did you have to hit me? That is going to leave such a mark!"

Mind fuzzy as his haze of grief lifted, Hannibal gaped at his Lieutenant. "Face…I-I thought you were dead."

"So you hit me! Come on, Hannibal, your Grandma Smith has departed, but please don't tell me you'd punch her in the face if she walked up to you today."

Regaining his wits, Hannibal grinned and helped Face back up to his feet. "It's good to see you, Lieutenant."

"Yeah, sure," Face quipped, "I'd hate to see your reaction if it wasn't good to see me." Still rubbing his cheek, he flashed a grin at Hannibal. "Oh, and if you happen to see Murdock, he's not dead either, so don't go punching him in the face, ok?"

"Murdock?"

"You know—the lanky, goofy fellow with the crazy gleam in his eyes and an affinity for imaginary dogs."

Hannibal grinned. "Yeah, I get it, Face, but what about him? Did you locate the Captain?"

"Actually, he located me back at the cabin. We got BA's van up and running and came here to rescue you guys, but…" He glanced around at the limp bodies surrounding them. "…it doesn't look like you need much help."

"Where's Murdock now?" The Colonel shifted; he wasn't going to feel relaxed until he had all his men back in his sight once again.

"We split up," Face replied quickly, "but he should be heading up the ridge soon." An air of hope entered the Lieutenant's voice. "Maybe he found BA?"

Hannibal shrugged. Maybe, but with the luck the team had been having lately, he wouldn't bet on it.

Murdock had always enjoyed pleasant jaunts through the woods. The smells, the sounds, the sights—they were all so delightful! Glancing up, he found Rusty's limp form draped within the broken branches of an oak. Now, how did he get up there? Murdock grinned. Looks like BA's handiwork.

Marching on, the Captain decided that the best way to track the ugly mudsucker was to follow the trail of pummeled bad guys. It was like Hansel and Gretel with a twist! Daydreaming of the possibility of BA and him finding a life-sized gingerbread house, Murdock nearly jumped out of his skin at the sudden thunder of gunshots.

After diving for cover, he peered out to find BA in a clearing surrounded by five guys, and, if that wasn't bad enough, a sixth guy was lurking back in the trees taking shots at the big guy. Without a second of hesitation, Murdock was sprinting toward the gunman. Launching himself through the air, he tackled the guy— hard.

The impact had knocked the goon out, but—Murdock grimaced as he stood up—it also really hurt. Seeing that BA was still struggling with the other five guys, the Captain made his way into the clearing, with perhaps a little less vigor than he had before his daring tackle.

Taking a stance behind BA, he made quick work of one of the thugs, but, of course, by the time he was finished, BA had already taken out the other four. Ok, so maybe the big guy hadn't really needed his help after all. Still, it's the thought that counts, right?

Murdock turned, ready to tap the ugly mudsucker on the shoulder, when a flash of gold clad fist filled his vision and then everything went dark.