Okay, this chapter is a bit longer than the rest. Enjoy.
Just like to say thanks to Cathy for her input. I hadn't noticed that I was mixing the past and present tense up! I think I've read the chapters over and over so much I've stopped noticing the mistakes! That's what comes from not having a beta reader. My friend used to read them but she's moved away for uni!! Boo Hoo Hoo!!!
1.1.1.1 PART NINE â€" Gateway to the Past.
Colin picked up the phone and once again rang his father. He'd heard from Steve that Kate had gone to a safe house but nobody knew where it was. He was slightly relieved that Kate was still alive but he desperately wanted to know what had happened and why his father hadn't killed her. He did like Kate but he loved his father and if Kate did have the information then the cover would be blown and him and his father would be sent to prison, maybe even executed for their crimes which was something Colin did not want to think about.
"Papa, it's me."
"Where's Kawalski?"
"At a safe house. What happened? Did you find anything out?"
"No. There was nothing in the house, and she didn't seem to know what we were talking about, but she could have been faking. We still need to check out Steve â€" he may be the one to know, but I believe that it's Kate. She probably doesn't remember anything her father told her anyhow, so we may be all right."
"Yes, papa."
Colin sighed, partly in relief.
"I'll call you in a few days time. I want to see Steve in person, so work out where the best place to meet him would be. And try and find out where Kawalski is â€" we may still need her. I'm counting on you, son."
The line went dead. Colin exhaled.
********************
It was dark when they arrived at Crystal Lake. Face, Murdock and Kate were fast asleep in the back. Hannibal turned and checked on them, smiling at what he saw. Face was slouched down in his seat, his elbow on the arm of the seat and his head in his hand. Murdock was back in his seat, but was sitting so that his back was against the side of the van, and he was leaning against the back of the seat. Kate was sitting next to him on the bench, behind BA's seat, and she was leaning against Murdock, who had his arm around her.
Hannibal quietly got out to go and get the key from the sheriff, then they drove up to the cabin by the lake. BA pulled up quietly and turned the engine off. Hannibal turned in his seat again.
"Hey guys, we're here. Time to move. Face, Murdock, Kate."
Face stirred as did Murdock but Kate was deeply asleep. Hannibal and BA got out and while BA went to the back to start taking the supplies in, Hannibal slid the side door open. Face blinked blearily at him.
"We're here?"
"That's what I just said." He replied quietly. "Take the key and open up. Then come and help BA with supplies."
Face took the key from him and stepped out of the van, stretching his muscles. Hannibal looked in on Murdock who was looking down at Kate. He was just moving his arm when he heard Hannibal whisper.
"Murdock, let her sleep. She needs to sleep off the concussion. Carry her inside and put her in the middle bedroom."
Murdock looked up at Hannibal.
"I was gonna. She looks so peaceful when she's sleeping."
And with that he manoeuvred around her carefully so that he could pick her up in his arms. He slowly walked up to the main door, where Face was coming out from taking some supplies in. He held the door open for Murdock and smiled at him as he passed. Murdock gave him a nod back and headed up to the bedroom situated between the other two bedrooms. For one, it was smaller of the three and only had one bed, plus is was the safest. Being in the middle meant she would be surrounded by the Team just in case anything happened.
He carefully laid her on the bed and tucked her in. She stirred and he sat beside her and shushed her, running a hand down her face. She settled and he ran a finger down her hairline. Only when she slept did the lines of pain and exhaustion leave her face. He stood and turned to see Hannibal in the doorway. Murdock smiled and they both moved away, Murdock closing the door quietly. They went downstairs to where Face and BA were bringing in the last of the supplies. Face crashed down onto the sofa where Murdock joined him.
"Okay, we're gonna take alternate watches â€" Murdock you take the first watch, wake Face in three hours. Face, you wake me and I'll take the rest of the night. BA, you've been driving for hours so you can take first watch tomorrow."
BA nodded and he and Face got up and went upstairs.
"See you in the morning, Murdock."
Hannibal said as he turned to go.
"Goodnight, Colonel."
Hannibal followed BA and Face upstairs, and joined BA. He always shared a room with BA while Face shared with Murdock.
Murdock did a quick sweep of the house, making sure it was secure, then sat down in the living room with a cup of coffee and the TV on quietly. He did checks every half hour but the place was silent.
At 1.30 he snuck upstairs and nudged Face awake. Face moaned and rolled over, away from Murdock.
"Wakey, wakey, Faceyguy, your turn to watch. Come on."
Face moaned again and turned to face Murdock.
"Already?"
"Yep."
"All right..."
He grumbled and dragged himself out of bed. Murdock smirked at him and pulled off his jacket, tossing it into a nearby chair. Face moaned at nearly everything, including early mornings, but he never complained, which Murdock found amusing.
He'd thrown his shirt onto the chair and was about to pull off his 'too many freaks, not enough circuses!' T-shirt when he heard a cry from the next room. He gave Face a startled look and bolted out of the room. Face followed, hopping, trying to hitch up his trousers as quick as he could.
Murdock opened the door of Kate's room. The curtains were open leaving moonlight flooding the room and the bed, where Kate was half tossing and turning, mumbling frantically to herself. He was immediately by her side and he perched next to her.
He looked up at the doorway to see Face standing there. He wasn't surprised to see Hannibal and BA a moment later looking surprisingly alert.
"It's okay, just a nightmare, I've got it."
They nodded and returned to their room. Face pulled on his jumper and headed downstairs. Hannibal and BA got into their beds and soon Hannibal could hear light snores coming from BA's bed. Hannibal sighed and listened to the hushed voice of Murdock next door, calming Kate. She never woke, and she never remembered the nightmares in the morning. It had been the same back in 'Nam. Hannibal couldn't count the times he woke to hear Murdock singing gently to her in the tent nearby.
He couldn't sleep â€" the cry in the night had given him quite a fright and for a split second he thought he was back in 'Nam, back in the nightmare. His adrenaline was still pumping and he rolled over trying to get comfortable.
Screams weren't unusual in 'Nam, but Kate's were the ones that always affected him. They had a way of reaching into his chest and squeezing his heart so tight that it was unbearable. It was probably because she was an innocent, she shouldn't have had to witness atrocities like that. Thinking of her brought back the memories of when they'd first met. Murdock had talked about her none stop when they were in the helicopter, he was so proud to have her by his side. Hannibal had heard so much about her, even before he'd met her and he already liked the sound of her. She was normal, real, someone to keep Murdock's feet on the ground, keep him sane. It was terrible once they'd been taken to Hanoi Hilton. Murdock's rock was gone, his grip on reality was not there. He'd never told him, but it had broken his heart to see Murdock like that, and to see Kate's reaction when she saw him.
Vietnam 1969.
Lighting a cigar, Hannibal inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly, savouring every moment. He hadn't had a cigar for ages. They'd been out in the field too long and even Face couldn't get any out where they'd been. Hannibal took a breath. His unit had been very lucky, just a few minor injuries. Unfortunately the other unit hadn't been so lucky. Nearly all of them had major injuries, a few minor, two dead. He had mixed feelings about this â€" he was sad for the losses, but relieved that it hadn't been in his unit. He had some very good men in his unit, ones to be proud of, and having an exceptional pilot had swayed the odds in their favour.
Finishing his cigar, he threw it to the floor and stubbed it out with the ball of his foot. Everything was quiet now. Half an hour ago there were soldiers and nurses everywhere, but now the place was as quiet as a mouse. It was a calm Hannibal liked. A calm where he knew who he was and what was happening, it was comfortable. The silence in the jungle that had surrounded them for the past fortnight was eerie, uncomfortable. It was a full silence where you never knew what was going to happen from one moment to the next, whether the person next to you was going to be there the next time you turned to them.
Hannibal shook his head. This was no time to contemplate life. He had a unit to check up on. He was about to enter the hospital wing and had just stepped through the doors when a small figure rushed past him and out of the doors. She ran down the side of the building and around the corner. Hannibal followed worried. He turned the corner to see a young girl of about 19 in a nurses uniform. She had one hand on the wall for support and she was throwing up. And by the sounds of it, it was the whole contents of her stomach. Hannibal sighed, knowing the feeling. When she'd finished he moved over, taking out a water bottle.
"Here."
He held it out to her. She jumped slightly and turned around. Seeing that it was the Colonel that had brought the men in, she gave him a small smile.
"Thanks."
She said quietly. She took a mouthful and rinsed her mouth out, then took a couple more sips and handed it back.
"Can't seem to keep anything down."
"I know the feeling. You okay now?"
"Yeah, sorry...it's just..."
She didn't know what to say.
"I know. It's always hard seeing what we see."
"Does it get easier?"
She asked quietly.
"To deal with...yeah. To figure it out...no." He paused to let the information sink in. "This your first tour?"
She nodded, glad that he'd changed the subject.
"Yeah. I, uh, wanted to help...people."
He put a hand on her shoulder and smiled, liking the girl.
"You'll be fine, kid. I can still remember my first tour. It does get easier to deal with. Anyway, how's my unit?"
"Oh, they're fine. All of them. You'll have them all back in about a week."
"Great, thank you...Miss...?"
"It's Kate...Kate McKnight."
"Murdock's Kate?"
He questioned. She smiled, thoughtfully, dreamlike.
"Yeah...Murdock's Kate. Oh â€" you're the Colonel he's always talking about. He really admires you, you know."
"And he never stops talking about 'you'."
She blushed slightly.
"That's my Murdock."
They started walking back round the corridor and as they reached the door they heard a shout from behind.
"Kate!"
They both turned to see Murdock jogging up.
"Murdock."
She said sounding relived to see him, as she always felt. She never knew if one day he'd never come back. She ran the couple of steps between then and he pulled her into a tight embrace, lifting her off the floor. She savoured the musky, leather smell that always surrounded him.
"Missed you."
"Missed you too, Chiquita."
He put her down and, his arm still wrapped around her, he turned to Hannibal.
"Hey, Colonel. How's the Team?"
"Team's doing fine. They'll all be back in no time."
"And Face?"
Kate answered for him.
"Oh he's hit on just about every nurse there is. And he won't stop moaning about the stitches in his leg from the bullet wound!"
"He's fine then."
Hannibal stated which made them all laugh.
Present
Hannibal could hear Murdock singing again and he partly smiled to himself. Kate was right, some things just never change. It felt good to have her back with the Team again, even if it was under such bad circumstances. He closed his eyes and found himself drifting into a dreamless sleep.
*****************
Kate had soon settled back into a dreamless sleep as well. Murdock sat stroking her hair, gently singing 'You are my sunshine'. A song that they all sing a lot, for reasons unknown. When he recognised that she'd calmed, he delicately placed a kiss on her forehead.
"I still love you, you know. I don't know how long I can last not touching you how I want to."
And with that he got up and mindfully crept out, closing the door. He yawned as he entered his and Face's room and he was asleep almost as his head hit the pillow.
*******************
It was 9am and Hannibal was in the kitchen, frying bacon. Seeing as it was a vacation, he decided to let everyone sleep as long as they wished, but he knew that the smell of bacon would bring all of them down in a matter of minutes.
He was surprised to see that it was Kate that had stirred first. He'd figured that she may be asleep for a bit longer because of the concussion. He smiled as she entered the kitchen. She was wearing light blue thick cotton shorts and a strappy white top. Hannibal hadn't seen her in something so casual for ages. She always tended to wear trouser suits for working.
"Didn't think you'd be up for another few hours. How's the head?"
"Bit sore, but I'll live. As soon as I smelt the bacon I just had to get up. I can't remember the last time I had a proper cooked breakfast."
"Well, you're in luck today. We've got everything. Bacon, eggs, sausages."
He smiled. She sat down on one of the stools by the breakfast bar, smiling.
"You've been busy. I have to admit I didn't think you were one for cooking."
"Well, it's all worth all the effort to see you smile like that again."
She blushed, still smiling.
"Smells fantastic!"
They turned to see Face enter the kitchen in a silk dressing gown, his hair wet from the shower and combed back.
"Morning Face."
"Morning Hannibal. Hey Kate, sleep well?"
"I did thanks, you?"
"Like a log."
He said, easing himself down onto the stool next to her.
"Where's Murdock?"
"Still sound asleep. Though I'm sure as soon as the bacon smell hits his nose, he'll be down before you can say 'first class!'"
"He always loved cooked breakfasts."
She said, remembering. Hannibal came over with the frying pan and tipped some bacon and eggs on the plates infront of Face and Kate.
"First come, first served. The sausages and bread will be ready in a moment."
Hannibal was just serving out the sausages when they heard a joyful shout from upstairs.
"OOH, bacon!!!"
They heard a banging from above and then a door burst open as Murdock's feet were heard on the stairs.
"Shuddup, you fool! Some people are trying to sleep!"
BA's voice came pounding through the house.
"But BA, it's bacon!!! Gorgeous bacon and eggs and sausages and toast, followed by freshly squeezed orange juice â€" the perfect way to start the day!!!"
"I don't care fool!! Bacon can wait!!"
The door slammed again. Not to be put down, Murdock came bounding down the stairs and just about flew into the kitchen. He smiled at everyone.
"Morning all!!! Beautiful day! The sun is shining, and we have a whole two weeks vacation!!!"
They all watched him, amused at how childlike he was. Kate found it absolutely adorable and reminded her of his playful side when they were together. Just this time, the serious side was never there. Murdock smiled at her and sat down on the stood next to her.
"Hey, how you doin', Chiquita?"
"Good."
She nodded. Hannibal placed a plate infront of Murdock and he looked down at it eagerly.
"Mmm. Hannibal, you've outdone yourself this time, it looks fantastic!"
"I know."
He said sitting down with his own plate. He'd placed BA's in the warm oven for later, knowing that BA would get as much sleep as he could. They'd all finished and were drinking their freshly squeezed orange juice â€" courtesy of Kate, when BA came down the stairs.
"Morning, you ugly mudsucker!! Good sleep?"
BA just grunted. Kate, who was by the oven, took his plate out and handed it to him, with a glass of ice cold milk.
"Thanks, lil mama."
He gave her one of his special smiles and sat down in the spare seat.
Kate stood and watched them all chatting expressively, remembering how lovely times had been when they'd been together between tours. She leaned back, thoughtfully. Oh, how she'd missed this. Being together like a family. She'd missed that the most about them. She'd been so alone the past 14 odd years, but she'd never really admitted it.
She watched Murdock explaining something to Face. He was so expressive and so deeply absorbed in what he was saying. She sighed quietly to herself. It hurt her to watch him, to know that she couldn't touch him how she wanted, hold him how she wanted. She could feel him deep inside of her, his very soul and for once it seemed painful. It was worse than when they were apart. And she knew this was because the worse way to miss someone was to be sitting right next to them knowing that you couldn't have them.
"...what do you say, Chiquita? ...Kate?"
At the sound of her name she looked up. All four of them were looking at her.
"Mm? Oh, sorry, switched off for a moment there, what were you saying?"
"I was asking what you thought of taking a walk round the lake? You, me and Face?"
Kate smiled. Just like the three of them used to take walks along the beach after a very filling meal.
"Sounds great."
Face and Murdock climbed down from the stools, took their plates to the sink and then the three of them left the kitchen, Face heading upstairs to get changed, while Kate and Murdock grabbed their trainers.
BA and Hannibal watched them leave, then picked up their plates on the counter and placing then in the sink.
"Any mention of the nightmare?"
BA questioned. Hannibal shook his head.
"Is there ever? I'm not even sure she remembers. Anyway, what are you gonna go today?"
"Thought I'd make a start on the van. What bout you?"
"I think I'm just gonna crash out on one of the deck chairs and sleep."
********************
By mid morning, Face, Murdock and Kate were exhausted. They'd walked all the way around the lake, chatting away like old times. They came wandering round the corner of the cabin, their clothes soaking wet, and onto the deck and jetty where Hannibal was asleep in one of the deck chairs, with a newspaper resting on his chest.
"I can't believe you threw me in!"
Kate was saying.
"And I can't believe you pulled me in, when I gave you a hand out!!!"
"Well, you deserved it. Especially after grabbing Murdock and pulling him in after you!! Did you see the look of pure horror on his face!"
"Yeah, it was priceless!"
Murdock shushed Face and Kate quietly and pointed. They both grinned at the scene.
"Now that brings back memories."
Kate whispered. They quietly walked past him, dripping water everywhere.
"Come on, we should get out of these wet clothes. Don't want to catch cold."
Face and Murdock nodded and headed inside. Kate paused for a moment, looking at Hannibal. She hadn't thought of work once that morning, she'd had so much fun. She smiled to herself, glad that she had come with them in the end and followed the others inside.
When they came down, Hannibal was stirring. He yawned and looked up at them as they crashed down into the other three deck chairs.
"Have a good walk?"
"Fantastic!"
Kate said.
"Yeah, until we ended up in the lake!"
Murdock said half laughing.
"What?"
Kate explained.
"Murdock told me about last time you came here and how Decker caught you."
"And Kate started teasing me so I threw her in."
Face stated, almost in a whine.
"Yeah, and when he gave her a hand to help her out, she pulled him in."
Murdock carried on.
"But Face grabbed hold of Murdock to regain his balance."
Kate continued.
"And I lost my balance and went in with them."
Murdock finished.
Hannibal sat there and laughed. Not just at the image of all of them in the lake, but the fact that they were so in tune that they had told the story between them without interrupting any of them. Just like old times.
"Well, it serves you right. Now, who's turn is it to make lunch?"
"My turn, I think." Murdock said. "How does chicken salad sound to you? Followed by yummy apple pie, Mm?"
He glanced at Kate, knowing that it was her favourite pudding. She smiled.
"Well, I don't know about anyone else but it sounds fantastic."
The others agreed. Murdock nodded and headed inside to make a start. Hannibal relaxed back into his seat and started reading his paper, while Kate and Face decided to go and sit down on the jetty, so their chatting wouldn't disturb Hannibal.
After about half an hour, Murdock walked out of the back door, wiping his hands on a cloth. He leaned on the doorframe and watched Kate and Face deep in conversation. He had her laughing about something and Murdock thought she looked absolutely gorgeous. He hadn't seen her laugh for so long and she hadn't stopped smiling all day. He was glad that she seemed to be at ease with them. She'd looked so tense for the past couple of weeks and now the tension seemed to be leaving her, her shoulders looked much more relaxed. Or maybe she was just so distracted she wasn't thinking about it.
Hannibal looked up to see Murdock standing in the doorway, a thoughtful, serious expression on his face. He looked over at what Murdock was looking at and his suspicions were confirmed. It was Kate and she was smiling at Face. He looked back at Murdock.
"She'll be all right you know."
Murdock looked down at him and gave him a small smile,
"You think so? I'm just worried that she's hiding the pain. I want her to talk to me about it, but I don't think she's ready and I'm not sure she will when she is."
"Then give her time. It's been what, 14 years since we last saw her? Give her time to adjust, to remember what life used to be like when she was with us. She's forgotten how to trust people, Murdock, she's been working undercover for too long. Give it time."
Murdock nodded.
"I know. I know. Time."
He snapped out of his daze and shouted over to them.
"Hey you guys, lunch is ready."
They looked over at him and Face helped Kate to stand. She gave Murdock one of her special smiles. She'd had a long chat with Face about Murdock and about how he's been since 'Nam. Face reassured her that Murdock was fine. That he wasn't about to have a mental breakdown. She'd seen too many people with normal problems just suddenly flip and turn nasty. Face assured her that if Murdock was going to, then he would have.
He smiled back at her, his eyes twinkling. Maybe there was hope for them.
After dinner, they all lounged back outside, BA included. Lunch had been just as delicious as breakfast and they all needed to rest because they felt so full. Kate had never really known how great a cook Murdock was, as he'd never really needed to cook for her. There was only a couple of times right before 'Nam and they were just so long ago.
Kate said that she'd wash up as she felt that it was her turn to do something. First though, she sat Face down and took his stitches out, which he was very relieved at. He was also very relieved to see that the scar that the bullet had left was so small that it could hardly be seen. Kate had made the stitches incredible small and she told him that in time no-one would even know there was a scar there.
After about half an hour Kate got up and headed into the kitchen to make a start on the washing up. Hannibal was puffing on a cigar, Face was reading and Murdock had fallen into a light doze. BA was once again back working on his van. It was his way of relaxing.
Fifteen minutes later and Kate had almost finished. She picked up the last glass and started to dry it. As she turned it over in her hand she lost her grip and it slipped. She watched it fall in slow motion and shatter on the tiled floor. Murdock was pulled out of his light daze and he sat up at the sound, concerned. He was up and out of his seat first.
"I'll go check and see if she's okay.
Face and Hannibal followed him, they weren't going to take anything for chance. Especially after what happened at her place. They entered the kitchen and saw Kate standing still, staring off into space â€" glass shards lay around her on the floor.
"Kate? Chiquita, are you okay? Did you hurt yourself?"
He moved over and took her by the arms.
She was in another place, another time...long ago.
She was sitting at the kitchen table watching her mother cleaning glasses. Suddenly someone burst into the room â€" a stranger â€" her mother dropped the glass and it shattered. The man, who was faceless to her, went over to her mother, who was demanding to know who he was and was calling to her husband, Kate's father â€" he never came. The man did something to her, and Kate saw her jerk, then slowly turn to face her, eyes wide, Kate's name on her lips, then she sank to the floor. Kate saw a glimmer of metal in the man's hand. He turned to her smiling, Kate knew he was smiling even if she couldn't see his face properly. He moved over towards her brandishing the knife and reached out to grab her.
It was at this point that Murdock gently took hold of her arms. Kate gasped and back-pedalled, frightened out of her wits, and terrified beyond all rational thought. She hit the breakfast bar and stood there shaking uncontrollably as if she'd seen a ghost. Murdock stood there stunned for a moment at what had just occurred.
"Kate? What-what's wrong?"
She finally seemed to look at him rather than through him and her face screwed up in pain and distress, she couldn't control her shaking. Murdock moved closer carefully. As he neared she reached out and grabbed him, clinging to him in sheer terror. He seemed shocked but hugged her back gently shushing her to quieten her sobs.
"Shh, Kate it's okay. I'm here. I'm here."
Face had grabbed a dustpan and brush and was sweeping up the shards of glass, watching her carefully. Hannibal gave Murdock a questioning look, but Murdock just half shrugged, not exactly sure of what had just happened.
Does anyone else get annoyed when you type 'from' and it comes out 'form'? And of course it's still a word so it's not noticeable!!! That really ticks me off!
Well...? Good? Bad? Terrible? Please R and R.
Just like to say thanks to Cathy for her input. I hadn't noticed that I was mixing the past and present tense up! I think I've read the chapters over and over so much I've stopped noticing the mistakes! That's what comes from not having a beta reader. My friend used to read them but she's moved away for uni!! Boo Hoo Hoo!!!
1.1.1.1 PART NINE â€" Gateway to the Past.
Colin picked up the phone and once again rang his father. He'd heard from Steve that Kate had gone to a safe house but nobody knew where it was. He was slightly relieved that Kate was still alive but he desperately wanted to know what had happened and why his father hadn't killed her. He did like Kate but he loved his father and if Kate did have the information then the cover would be blown and him and his father would be sent to prison, maybe even executed for their crimes which was something Colin did not want to think about.
"Papa, it's me."
"Where's Kawalski?"
"At a safe house. What happened? Did you find anything out?"
"No. There was nothing in the house, and she didn't seem to know what we were talking about, but she could have been faking. We still need to check out Steve â€" he may be the one to know, but I believe that it's Kate. She probably doesn't remember anything her father told her anyhow, so we may be all right."
"Yes, papa."
Colin sighed, partly in relief.
"I'll call you in a few days time. I want to see Steve in person, so work out where the best place to meet him would be. And try and find out where Kawalski is â€" we may still need her. I'm counting on you, son."
The line went dead. Colin exhaled.
********************
It was dark when they arrived at Crystal Lake. Face, Murdock and Kate were fast asleep in the back. Hannibal turned and checked on them, smiling at what he saw. Face was slouched down in his seat, his elbow on the arm of the seat and his head in his hand. Murdock was back in his seat, but was sitting so that his back was against the side of the van, and he was leaning against the back of the seat. Kate was sitting next to him on the bench, behind BA's seat, and she was leaning against Murdock, who had his arm around her.
Hannibal quietly got out to go and get the key from the sheriff, then they drove up to the cabin by the lake. BA pulled up quietly and turned the engine off. Hannibal turned in his seat again.
"Hey guys, we're here. Time to move. Face, Murdock, Kate."
Face stirred as did Murdock but Kate was deeply asleep. Hannibal and BA got out and while BA went to the back to start taking the supplies in, Hannibal slid the side door open. Face blinked blearily at him.
"We're here?"
"That's what I just said." He replied quietly. "Take the key and open up. Then come and help BA with supplies."
Face took the key from him and stepped out of the van, stretching his muscles. Hannibal looked in on Murdock who was looking down at Kate. He was just moving his arm when he heard Hannibal whisper.
"Murdock, let her sleep. She needs to sleep off the concussion. Carry her inside and put her in the middle bedroom."
Murdock looked up at Hannibal.
"I was gonna. She looks so peaceful when she's sleeping."
And with that he manoeuvred around her carefully so that he could pick her up in his arms. He slowly walked up to the main door, where Face was coming out from taking some supplies in. He held the door open for Murdock and smiled at him as he passed. Murdock gave him a nod back and headed up to the bedroom situated between the other two bedrooms. For one, it was smaller of the three and only had one bed, plus is was the safest. Being in the middle meant she would be surrounded by the Team just in case anything happened.
He carefully laid her on the bed and tucked her in. She stirred and he sat beside her and shushed her, running a hand down her face. She settled and he ran a finger down her hairline. Only when she slept did the lines of pain and exhaustion leave her face. He stood and turned to see Hannibal in the doorway. Murdock smiled and they both moved away, Murdock closing the door quietly. They went downstairs to where Face and BA were bringing in the last of the supplies. Face crashed down onto the sofa where Murdock joined him.
"Okay, we're gonna take alternate watches â€" Murdock you take the first watch, wake Face in three hours. Face, you wake me and I'll take the rest of the night. BA, you've been driving for hours so you can take first watch tomorrow."
BA nodded and he and Face got up and went upstairs.
"See you in the morning, Murdock."
Hannibal said as he turned to go.
"Goodnight, Colonel."
Hannibal followed BA and Face upstairs, and joined BA. He always shared a room with BA while Face shared with Murdock.
Murdock did a quick sweep of the house, making sure it was secure, then sat down in the living room with a cup of coffee and the TV on quietly. He did checks every half hour but the place was silent.
At 1.30 he snuck upstairs and nudged Face awake. Face moaned and rolled over, away from Murdock.
"Wakey, wakey, Faceyguy, your turn to watch. Come on."
Face moaned again and turned to face Murdock.
"Already?"
"Yep."
"All right..."
He grumbled and dragged himself out of bed. Murdock smirked at him and pulled off his jacket, tossing it into a nearby chair. Face moaned at nearly everything, including early mornings, but he never complained, which Murdock found amusing.
He'd thrown his shirt onto the chair and was about to pull off his 'too many freaks, not enough circuses!' T-shirt when he heard a cry from the next room. He gave Face a startled look and bolted out of the room. Face followed, hopping, trying to hitch up his trousers as quick as he could.
Murdock opened the door of Kate's room. The curtains were open leaving moonlight flooding the room and the bed, where Kate was half tossing and turning, mumbling frantically to herself. He was immediately by her side and he perched next to her.
He looked up at the doorway to see Face standing there. He wasn't surprised to see Hannibal and BA a moment later looking surprisingly alert.
"It's okay, just a nightmare, I've got it."
They nodded and returned to their room. Face pulled on his jumper and headed downstairs. Hannibal and BA got into their beds and soon Hannibal could hear light snores coming from BA's bed. Hannibal sighed and listened to the hushed voice of Murdock next door, calming Kate. She never woke, and she never remembered the nightmares in the morning. It had been the same back in 'Nam. Hannibal couldn't count the times he woke to hear Murdock singing gently to her in the tent nearby.
He couldn't sleep â€" the cry in the night had given him quite a fright and for a split second he thought he was back in 'Nam, back in the nightmare. His adrenaline was still pumping and he rolled over trying to get comfortable.
Screams weren't unusual in 'Nam, but Kate's were the ones that always affected him. They had a way of reaching into his chest and squeezing his heart so tight that it was unbearable. It was probably because she was an innocent, she shouldn't have had to witness atrocities like that. Thinking of her brought back the memories of when they'd first met. Murdock had talked about her none stop when they were in the helicopter, he was so proud to have her by his side. Hannibal had heard so much about her, even before he'd met her and he already liked the sound of her. She was normal, real, someone to keep Murdock's feet on the ground, keep him sane. It was terrible once they'd been taken to Hanoi Hilton. Murdock's rock was gone, his grip on reality was not there. He'd never told him, but it had broken his heart to see Murdock like that, and to see Kate's reaction when she saw him.
Vietnam 1969.
Lighting a cigar, Hannibal inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly, savouring every moment. He hadn't had a cigar for ages. They'd been out in the field too long and even Face couldn't get any out where they'd been. Hannibal took a breath. His unit had been very lucky, just a few minor injuries. Unfortunately the other unit hadn't been so lucky. Nearly all of them had major injuries, a few minor, two dead. He had mixed feelings about this â€" he was sad for the losses, but relieved that it hadn't been in his unit. He had some very good men in his unit, ones to be proud of, and having an exceptional pilot had swayed the odds in their favour.
Finishing his cigar, he threw it to the floor and stubbed it out with the ball of his foot. Everything was quiet now. Half an hour ago there were soldiers and nurses everywhere, but now the place was as quiet as a mouse. It was a calm Hannibal liked. A calm where he knew who he was and what was happening, it was comfortable. The silence in the jungle that had surrounded them for the past fortnight was eerie, uncomfortable. It was a full silence where you never knew what was going to happen from one moment to the next, whether the person next to you was going to be there the next time you turned to them.
Hannibal shook his head. This was no time to contemplate life. He had a unit to check up on. He was about to enter the hospital wing and had just stepped through the doors when a small figure rushed past him and out of the doors. She ran down the side of the building and around the corner. Hannibal followed worried. He turned the corner to see a young girl of about 19 in a nurses uniform. She had one hand on the wall for support and she was throwing up. And by the sounds of it, it was the whole contents of her stomach. Hannibal sighed, knowing the feeling. When she'd finished he moved over, taking out a water bottle.
"Here."
He held it out to her. She jumped slightly and turned around. Seeing that it was the Colonel that had brought the men in, she gave him a small smile.
"Thanks."
She said quietly. She took a mouthful and rinsed her mouth out, then took a couple more sips and handed it back.
"Can't seem to keep anything down."
"I know the feeling. You okay now?"
"Yeah, sorry...it's just..."
She didn't know what to say.
"I know. It's always hard seeing what we see."
"Does it get easier?"
She asked quietly.
"To deal with...yeah. To figure it out...no." He paused to let the information sink in. "This your first tour?"
She nodded, glad that he'd changed the subject.
"Yeah. I, uh, wanted to help...people."
He put a hand on her shoulder and smiled, liking the girl.
"You'll be fine, kid. I can still remember my first tour. It does get easier to deal with. Anyway, how's my unit?"
"Oh, they're fine. All of them. You'll have them all back in about a week."
"Great, thank you...Miss...?"
"It's Kate...Kate McKnight."
"Murdock's Kate?"
He questioned. She smiled, thoughtfully, dreamlike.
"Yeah...Murdock's Kate. Oh â€" you're the Colonel he's always talking about. He really admires you, you know."
"And he never stops talking about 'you'."
She blushed slightly.
"That's my Murdock."
They started walking back round the corridor and as they reached the door they heard a shout from behind.
"Kate!"
They both turned to see Murdock jogging up.
"Murdock."
She said sounding relived to see him, as she always felt. She never knew if one day he'd never come back. She ran the couple of steps between then and he pulled her into a tight embrace, lifting her off the floor. She savoured the musky, leather smell that always surrounded him.
"Missed you."
"Missed you too, Chiquita."
He put her down and, his arm still wrapped around her, he turned to Hannibal.
"Hey, Colonel. How's the Team?"
"Team's doing fine. They'll all be back in no time."
"And Face?"
Kate answered for him.
"Oh he's hit on just about every nurse there is. And he won't stop moaning about the stitches in his leg from the bullet wound!"
"He's fine then."
Hannibal stated which made them all laugh.
Present
Hannibal could hear Murdock singing again and he partly smiled to himself. Kate was right, some things just never change. It felt good to have her back with the Team again, even if it was under such bad circumstances. He closed his eyes and found himself drifting into a dreamless sleep.
*****************
Kate had soon settled back into a dreamless sleep as well. Murdock sat stroking her hair, gently singing 'You are my sunshine'. A song that they all sing a lot, for reasons unknown. When he recognised that she'd calmed, he delicately placed a kiss on her forehead.
"I still love you, you know. I don't know how long I can last not touching you how I want to."
And with that he got up and mindfully crept out, closing the door. He yawned as he entered his and Face's room and he was asleep almost as his head hit the pillow.
*******************
It was 9am and Hannibal was in the kitchen, frying bacon. Seeing as it was a vacation, he decided to let everyone sleep as long as they wished, but he knew that the smell of bacon would bring all of them down in a matter of minutes.
He was surprised to see that it was Kate that had stirred first. He'd figured that she may be asleep for a bit longer because of the concussion. He smiled as she entered the kitchen. She was wearing light blue thick cotton shorts and a strappy white top. Hannibal hadn't seen her in something so casual for ages. She always tended to wear trouser suits for working.
"Didn't think you'd be up for another few hours. How's the head?"
"Bit sore, but I'll live. As soon as I smelt the bacon I just had to get up. I can't remember the last time I had a proper cooked breakfast."
"Well, you're in luck today. We've got everything. Bacon, eggs, sausages."
He smiled. She sat down on one of the stools by the breakfast bar, smiling.
"You've been busy. I have to admit I didn't think you were one for cooking."
"Well, it's all worth all the effort to see you smile like that again."
She blushed, still smiling.
"Smells fantastic!"
They turned to see Face enter the kitchen in a silk dressing gown, his hair wet from the shower and combed back.
"Morning Face."
"Morning Hannibal. Hey Kate, sleep well?"
"I did thanks, you?"
"Like a log."
He said, easing himself down onto the stool next to her.
"Where's Murdock?"
"Still sound asleep. Though I'm sure as soon as the bacon smell hits his nose, he'll be down before you can say 'first class!'"
"He always loved cooked breakfasts."
She said, remembering. Hannibal came over with the frying pan and tipped some bacon and eggs on the plates infront of Face and Kate.
"First come, first served. The sausages and bread will be ready in a moment."
Hannibal was just serving out the sausages when they heard a joyful shout from upstairs.
"OOH, bacon!!!"
They heard a banging from above and then a door burst open as Murdock's feet were heard on the stairs.
"Shuddup, you fool! Some people are trying to sleep!"
BA's voice came pounding through the house.
"But BA, it's bacon!!! Gorgeous bacon and eggs and sausages and toast, followed by freshly squeezed orange juice â€" the perfect way to start the day!!!"
"I don't care fool!! Bacon can wait!!"
The door slammed again. Not to be put down, Murdock came bounding down the stairs and just about flew into the kitchen. He smiled at everyone.
"Morning all!!! Beautiful day! The sun is shining, and we have a whole two weeks vacation!!!"
They all watched him, amused at how childlike he was. Kate found it absolutely adorable and reminded her of his playful side when they were together. Just this time, the serious side was never there. Murdock smiled at her and sat down on the stood next to her.
"Hey, how you doin', Chiquita?"
"Good."
She nodded. Hannibal placed a plate infront of Murdock and he looked down at it eagerly.
"Mmm. Hannibal, you've outdone yourself this time, it looks fantastic!"
"I know."
He said sitting down with his own plate. He'd placed BA's in the warm oven for later, knowing that BA would get as much sleep as he could. They'd all finished and were drinking their freshly squeezed orange juice â€" courtesy of Kate, when BA came down the stairs.
"Morning, you ugly mudsucker!! Good sleep?"
BA just grunted. Kate, who was by the oven, took his plate out and handed it to him, with a glass of ice cold milk.
"Thanks, lil mama."
He gave her one of his special smiles and sat down in the spare seat.
Kate stood and watched them all chatting expressively, remembering how lovely times had been when they'd been together between tours. She leaned back, thoughtfully. Oh, how she'd missed this. Being together like a family. She'd missed that the most about them. She'd been so alone the past 14 odd years, but she'd never really admitted it.
She watched Murdock explaining something to Face. He was so expressive and so deeply absorbed in what he was saying. She sighed quietly to herself. It hurt her to watch him, to know that she couldn't touch him how she wanted, hold him how she wanted. She could feel him deep inside of her, his very soul and for once it seemed painful. It was worse than when they were apart. And she knew this was because the worse way to miss someone was to be sitting right next to them knowing that you couldn't have them.
"...what do you say, Chiquita? ...Kate?"
At the sound of her name she looked up. All four of them were looking at her.
"Mm? Oh, sorry, switched off for a moment there, what were you saying?"
"I was asking what you thought of taking a walk round the lake? You, me and Face?"
Kate smiled. Just like the three of them used to take walks along the beach after a very filling meal.
"Sounds great."
Face and Murdock climbed down from the stools, took their plates to the sink and then the three of them left the kitchen, Face heading upstairs to get changed, while Kate and Murdock grabbed their trainers.
BA and Hannibal watched them leave, then picked up their plates on the counter and placing then in the sink.
"Any mention of the nightmare?"
BA questioned. Hannibal shook his head.
"Is there ever? I'm not even sure she remembers. Anyway, what are you gonna go today?"
"Thought I'd make a start on the van. What bout you?"
"I think I'm just gonna crash out on one of the deck chairs and sleep."
********************
By mid morning, Face, Murdock and Kate were exhausted. They'd walked all the way around the lake, chatting away like old times. They came wandering round the corner of the cabin, their clothes soaking wet, and onto the deck and jetty where Hannibal was asleep in one of the deck chairs, with a newspaper resting on his chest.
"I can't believe you threw me in!"
Kate was saying.
"And I can't believe you pulled me in, when I gave you a hand out!!!"
"Well, you deserved it. Especially after grabbing Murdock and pulling him in after you!! Did you see the look of pure horror on his face!"
"Yeah, it was priceless!"
Murdock shushed Face and Kate quietly and pointed. They both grinned at the scene.
"Now that brings back memories."
Kate whispered. They quietly walked past him, dripping water everywhere.
"Come on, we should get out of these wet clothes. Don't want to catch cold."
Face and Murdock nodded and headed inside. Kate paused for a moment, looking at Hannibal. She hadn't thought of work once that morning, she'd had so much fun. She smiled to herself, glad that she had come with them in the end and followed the others inside.
When they came down, Hannibal was stirring. He yawned and looked up at them as they crashed down into the other three deck chairs.
"Have a good walk?"
"Fantastic!"
Kate said.
"Yeah, until we ended up in the lake!"
Murdock said half laughing.
"What?"
Kate explained.
"Murdock told me about last time you came here and how Decker caught you."
"And Kate started teasing me so I threw her in."
Face stated, almost in a whine.
"Yeah, and when he gave her a hand to help her out, she pulled him in."
Murdock carried on.
"But Face grabbed hold of Murdock to regain his balance."
Kate continued.
"And I lost my balance and went in with them."
Murdock finished.
Hannibal sat there and laughed. Not just at the image of all of them in the lake, but the fact that they were so in tune that they had told the story between them without interrupting any of them. Just like old times.
"Well, it serves you right. Now, who's turn is it to make lunch?"
"My turn, I think." Murdock said. "How does chicken salad sound to you? Followed by yummy apple pie, Mm?"
He glanced at Kate, knowing that it was her favourite pudding. She smiled.
"Well, I don't know about anyone else but it sounds fantastic."
The others agreed. Murdock nodded and headed inside to make a start. Hannibal relaxed back into his seat and started reading his paper, while Kate and Face decided to go and sit down on the jetty, so their chatting wouldn't disturb Hannibal.
After about half an hour, Murdock walked out of the back door, wiping his hands on a cloth. He leaned on the doorframe and watched Kate and Face deep in conversation. He had her laughing about something and Murdock thought she looked absolutely gorgeous. He hadn't seen her laugh for so long and she hadn't stopped smiling all day. He was glad that she seemed to be at ease with them. She'd looked so tense for the past couple of weeks and now the tension seemed to be leaving her, her shoulders looked much more relaxed. Or maybe she was just so distracted she wasn't thinking about it.
Hannibal looked up to see Murdock standing in the doorway, a thoughtful, serious expression on his face. He looked over at what Murdock was looking at and his suspicions were confirmed. It was Kate and she was smiling at Face. He looked back at Murdock.
"She'll be all right you know."
Murdock looked down at him and gave him a small smile,
"You think so? I'm just worried that she's hiding the pain. I want her to talk to me about it, but I don't think she's ready and I'm not sure she will when she is."
"Then give her time. It's been what, 14 years since we last saw her? Give her time to adjust, to remember what life used to be like when she was with us. She's forgotten how to trust people, Murdock, she's been working undercover for too long. Give it time."
Murdock nodded.
"I know. I know. Time."
He snapped out of his daze and shouted over to them.
"Hey you guys, lunch is ready."
They looked over at him and Face helped Kate to stand. She gave Murdock one of her special smiles. She'd had a long chat with Face about Murdock and about how he's been since 'Nam. Face reassured her that Murdock was fine. That he wasn't about to have a mental breakdown. She'd seen too many people with normal problems just suddenly flip and turn nasty. Face assured her that if Murdock was going to, then he would have.
He smiled back at her, his eyes twinkling. Maybe there was hope for them.
After dinner, they all lounged back outside, BA included. Lunch had been just as delicious as breakfast and they all needed to rest because they felt so full. Kate had never really known how great a cook Murdock was, as he'd never really needed to cook for her. There was only a couple of times right before 'Nam and they were just so long ago.
Kate said that she'd wash up as she felt that it was her turn to do something. First though, she sat Face down and took his stitches out, which he was very relieved at. He was also very relieved to see that the scar that the bullet had left was so small that it could hardly be seen. Kate had made the stitches incredible small and she told him that in time no-one would even know there was a scar there.
After about half an hour Kate got up and headed into the kitchen to make a start on the washing up. Hannibal was puffing on a cigar, Face was reading and Murdock had fallen into a light doze. BA was once again back working on his van. It was his way of relaxing.
Fifteen minutes later and Kate had almost finished. She picked up the last glass and started to dry it. As she turned it over in her hand she lost her grip and it slipped. She watched it fall in slow motion and shatter on the tiled floor. Murdock was pulled out of his light daze and he sat up at the sound, concerned. He was up and out of his seat first.
"I'll go check and see if she's okay.
Face and Hannibal followed him, they weren't going to take anything for chance. Especially after what happened at her place. They entered the kitchen and saw Kate standing still, staring off into space â€" glass shards lay around her on the floor.
"Kate? Chiquita, are you okay? Did you hurt yourself?"
He moved over and took her by the arms.
She was in another place, another time...long ago.
She was sitting at the kitchen table watching her mother cleaning glasses. Suddenly someone burst into the room â€" a stranger â€" her mother dropped the glass and it shattered. The man, who was faceless to her, went over to her mother, who was demanding to know who he was and was calling to her husband, Kate's father â€" he never came. The man did something to her, and Kate saw her jerk, then slowly turn to face her, eyes wide, Kate's name on her lips, then she sank to the floor. Kate saw a glimmer of metal in the man's hand. He turned to her smiling, Kate knew he was smiling even if she couldn't see his face properly. He moved over towards her brandishing the knife and reached out to grab her.
It was at this point that Murdock gently took hold of her arms. Kate gasped and back-pedalled, frightened out of her wits, and terrified beyond all rational thought. She hit the breakfast bar and stood there shaking uncontrollably as if she'd seen a ghost. Murdock stood there stunned for a moment at what had just occurred.
"Kate? What-what's wrong?"
She finally seemed to look at him rather than through him and her face screwed up in pain and distress, she couldn't control her shaking. Murdock moved closer carefully. As he neared she reached out and grabbed him, clinging to him in sheer terror. He seemed shocked but hugged her back gently shushing her to quieten her sobs.
"Shh, Kate it's okay. I'm here. I'm here."
Face had grabbed a dustpan and brush and was sweeping up the shards of glass, watching her carefully. Hannibal gave Murdock a questioning look, but Murdock just half shrugged, not exactly sure of what had just happened.
Does anyone else get annoyed when you type 'from' and it comes out 'form'? And of course it's still a word so it's not noticeable!!! That really ticks me off!
Well...? Good? Bad? Terrible? Please R and R.