I have just a few notes before beginning this last chapter. I know Murdock hasn't exactly been in character for most of this fic, but that's mainly because Dwight Schultz is so amazingly talented that I can't possibly come close to his comic genius. Murdock might still be slightly out of his usual character, but I seriously believe he would react this way if he was in a situation like this. The scene in the second episode of season five where Frankie (another character I'm not fond of) meets up with Murdock outside the courtroom where the rest of the A-Team is being court-martialed and Frankie makes the mistake of referring to them as "our guys" comes to mind. Murdock promptly drags Frankie out of sight of the crowd into an alcove, slams him against the wall, and tells him, "They're my guys. Not our guys, my guys!" Obviously Murdock can be violent if provoked, especially if someone's dumb enough to cross the line and do something to who and what he holds dear. Besides, I doubt that anyone would take something like this lying down.
Also, the chapter title comes from a Tom Jones song of the same name. I felt that the lyrics described Murdock's most likely sentiments about Lola right about now, just without cursing her outright. The title aptly describes Lola as well. You'll see what I mean… :~)
****
Murdock fought for consciousness even though he felt like BA had pounded his ring-encrusted fists into the pilot's skull and sternum. As he became aware of his surroundings, he realized that the side of his face was pressed into a padded floor.
It was all a bad dream, Murdock sighed. I was just dreaming or hallucinating in the good ol' VA. Musta been from the doc changin' my meds again…or I went through one helluva violent cycle an' he had to lock me up in here. Otherwise he knows not to put me in one of these closets.
The pilot tried to open his eyes, but found that he couldn't. He scrunched his eyes and felt adhesive tug at the surrounding skin. Blindfolded by tape? Doc never did that before…Murdock called for the orderly who usually kept watch over him when he ended up in solitary, but tape over his mouth held his lips firmly together.
Please be a dream, please be a dream, Murdock prayed silently as he tried to reach up and rip off the tape. His heart plummeted into his stomach when he found his hands were bound tightly behind his back. I'm not in a straight jacket—this ain't the VA! The pilot managed to roll himself over; he discovered he was dressed only in his shorts and his legs were tied together. Murdock yelled again, but it only came out as a muffled grunt. He thrashed around, desperately trying to think of a way out of this mess, but only one thought remained on his mind: Lola would pay dearly for this.
****
Lola watched the closed circuit feed in the surveillance room from the four cells the A-Team occupied. Murdock had been the first to show definite signs of consciousness by struggling violently against his bonds, trying to break free. The brunette clutched the pilot's sacred leather jacket as she watched the heart-wrenching scene play out on the floor above.
How could I do this to him? Lola asked herself with her eyes misting over. This wasn't supposed to happen this way.
What did you think was going to happen? a little voice whispered sarcastically in the brunette's mind. You're such an idiot!
You were the one who told me that I should do what was best for my team! Lola thought back. This is your fault! Why did you tell me the opposite of what I should've done?
The voice laughed harshly. I'm not your conscience, I'm the devil's advocate! I just give you the opposite view on a given situation, nothing more. You need to be responsible for your own actions.
All is not lost, thought the brunette. I still need to call the boss about the success of the mission…we could still be free this time tomorrow, somewhere far away from here.
But will you be happy without Murdock? the voice asked before leaving Lola alone with her thoughts.
"Lola, what's the matter with you?" Robyn questioned. When the brunette failed to respond to her name a second time, the blonde said, "Hey, Alia!"
"What?" asked Lola, waking from her trance.
Robyn stared dumbfounded at her friend with her hands on her hips. "I don't believe you!" she exclaimed. "You don't answer to your own name anymore, and you've been carrying around that guy's jacket like that dumb fuck kid with the blanket in the 'Peanuts' strip for an hour now!"
"Shut your fucking mouth, whore, before I shut it for you!" snarled Lola.
"I'd like to see you try, bitch!" Robyn challenged as she rose into a fighting stance. Lola laid Murdock's jacket on her chair and took up a similar stance in front of the blonde.
"Hey!" yelled Jazz as she leaped between her battling friends. Neither Lola nor Robyn paid Jazz any mind and tried to swing at each other around her. Jazz tried to grab Lola's arm, but caught Robyn's fist in her chin instead. "Stop it you two!" the black woman hollered as she took a step back from the fight and rubbed her jaw. "You're friends, remember?"
Lola and Robyn continued punching and kicking each other furiously, ignoring Jazz and Xiang completely. "They've had their tiffs before, but this one takes the cake," muttered Xiang. "Probably should get them to stop."
"Only way I can think of is to hose 'em down," replied Jazz. "Works for dogs."
"This is expensive computer equipment! We can't get this stuff wet!"
"Ok, fire extinguishers then."
"Don't the chemicals in those cause blindness?"
Jazz sighed, "Ok, we're down to one last option. Pick which one you want to tackle."
"Lola. Robyn's nasty when she gets like this," replied Xiang.
By this time, Robyn and Lola had dragged each other to the floor and were rolling around, beating each other senseless. Jazz and Xiang leaped onto the blonde and the brunette respectively, and wrestled to pin down the fighters. A few minutes later, the black woman and the Chinese woman managed to drag the two apart. All four women sat on the floor panting.
"What the hell is wrong with you two?" exclaimed Jazz. "You've never fought like this before!"
Lola wiped blood from a cut on her lip with her sleeve. "Robyn's the problem!" she retorted. "She's been giving me shit all day about this mission, and I got tired of it!"
"What?" cried Robyn as she dabbed at her bloodied nose. "You've been acting strange since you called us up this evening with the plans! You're like one of those undercover cops who becomes a criminal after spending so much time hanging around drug dealers—the A-Team made you into one of them."
"Did not!" Lola replied defensively. She looked around to the faces of her three friends and realized that that lame comeback was all she could defend her behavior with. Robyn, Xiang, and Jazz all wore looks that plainly said, "Yeah, right. You can't fool us. You've crossed over."
"Fine!" huffed Lola. "I will admit that I've been out of character today, but I'm still the Lola Sanchez you've known for twenty years. Now that that's settled, I'd better call the boss and see what the last part of his plan is before Decker and his boy scouts storm the fence."
Lola picked herself up off the floor and went into the office next door. She shut the door behind her and sat at the desk. After she picked up the phone and dialed, the brunette heard the familiar dispatcher answer. "This is Cain One calling Empress One," said Lola.
A click as the call was transferred, then, "This is Empress One, go ahead, Cain One," answered a curt, masculine voice.
"The mission's successful, Stockwell," Lola replied. "We have the A-Team locked up at Alliance Technologies in Las Cruces. There is no easy way they can escape, and we've got all the files you asked for."
"Very good, Miss Sanchez," Hunt Stockwell said appreciatively. "This will help your team get pardoned before too long."
Lola froze a moment. "Excuse me?" she asked.
Stockwell sighed, "I said, good work. I'll send Abel One through Abel Eight over there to relieve you and your team of the A-Team. They'll meet you out in the back southwest sector in half an hour."
"No, no, no! You know what I meant! What did you mean by this will help us eventually get free?"
"We've had the same deal for fifteen years, Miss Sanchez. You and your team go on the missions I tell you to until I feel that you've paid your debt, or the police find you on their doorstep one morning."
"This 'deal' is off, Stockwell," Lola growled into the mouthpiece. "You said this would be the last job. I'm sick and tired of doing all your goddamn dirty work!"
The brunette could practically hear the smile on the other end of the line. "When did I ever say I would give you leave?" Stockwell asked sarcastically. "You're much too valuable to let go at this stage in the game. You've been in on everything from the beginning."
"That's precisely the point! I can call up the platoon of US Army personnel outside this compound and spill everything on all your little schemes over the past few years. You'd be locked up before you can say 'Leavenworth'."
"I don't think so, Miss Sanchez. Once I tell them of you and your team's many indiscretions, including involvement in several key assassinations and stolen government property, you'll be the ones worrying about getting attacked in the shower. Remember: I am the master of blackmail."
"You fucking bastard!" Lola snarled.
"Funny. I think that description fits you better, Miss Sanchez. You slept with Lieutenant Peck the other night, correct?"
Stockwell's last comment took the brunette completely off guard. "Who the hell told you that?" demanded Lola. This bit of misinformation could just save Murdock if I play along, she thought. Who could possibly think I slept with Face instead of Murdock?
"A little bird warned me that I should come down myself to make sure that my plan resolves out the way it's supposed to. That's why I'm standing outside the main gate beside Colonel Decker as we speak."
"Robyn told you? Why would she sell out to a gutless, slimy, evil prick like you? I'll personally tear out her tongue!"
"Are we losing control of our people, Miss Sanchez?"
"Knock off the goddamn patronizing tone, Stockwell!"
"Why should I? After all, I am your father."
"You better run and hide, Padre, because I made a blood oath to kill you on my fourteenth birthday. And that was before I met you, asshole!"
A click on the other end signaled that Stockwell had hung up. "Shit! We're screwed!" Lola cursed and slammed down the phone. Ok, Lola, she thought to herself, what do you do now? We gotta get outta here before Stockwell penetrates the outer defenses since he's definitely going to set us up to take the fall. On the other hand, if I ditch the A-Team, they're gonna be blackmailed to work as his slaves, just like my girls and me. Damn these catch-22's! And on top of that, I have to find out why Robyn's been snitching on me! Perfect!
Hang on…I thought I didn't care for anybody. Well, I still think BA's an idiot, but Murdock…I can't let Stockwell fuck him the way he fucked me. I honestly love him, more than anyone I've ever met. Boy, did I make the wrong choice! There's got to be something I can do to at least make the situation a teensy bit better…
****
"So what's the news from Stockwell?" Xiang, cleaning a 9mm, asked Lola as the brunette returned to the surveillance room. Lola promptly screamed and punched the wall. The Chinese woman looked the brunette over, then replied, "That good, eh?"
"That fucking asshole!" Lola spat. "He's not letting us go, not in a million years. Instead, we're taking the fall for him while he disappears back to Langley with the A-Team. How many times did I say that Stockwell was going to screw us in the ass again?" The brunette whipped around and locked eyes with Robyn. "And he doesn't need your help, Robyn," she growled.
"What are you talking about, Lola?" the blonde asked.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about! You've been ratting on us to Stockwell! How could you sell out your friends to him?"
"What?" exclaimed Xiang, Jazz, and Robyn in union. Robyn continued, "I did nothing of the sort!"
"Oh, yeah? Then why did Stockwell tell me that you told him I fooled around with one of the A-Team on the mission? Hell, where did he get the idea that I slept with Face the other night? I told Xiang and Jazz about Murdock the day after you were going on with those double entendres about Face's nickname. You're the only one who would possibly think that I would have sex with Face. Explain that!"
Xiang and Jazz turned and fixed their gaze on Robyn, along with Lola. "I don't know why he would say that," the blonde replied, her voice barely above a whisper. "All I know is I had to check in with him back in Arizona to give him an update. I think I made an offhand comment about wanting to be in your shoes, Lola, because Face's hot. Stockwell must've misconstrued that and thought that you would give in to temptation and sleep with Face. I swear I didn't say anything else! You're my best friend since we were kids! I wouldn't do anything to betray your trust like that, especially not to Stockwell."
Lola stared deep into Robyn's eyes for what seemed like an eternity before saying, "I believe you. I'm sorry, Robyn. I've been making some huge mistakes lately."
"I'm sorry too, Lola," the blonde replied.
"Now that's figured out," interrupted Xiang, "what're we going to do about Stockwell feeding us to the feds?"
"Can't just hang around and wait for the army to come and get us," Jazz agreed.
"Well, I just happen to have a half-assed plan that might work," answered Lola. "I studied the blueprints of this compound thoroughly, and I think I found an escape route. Only problem is that someone is going to have to stay behind and distract Stockwell and Decker so the others can get out safely. I volunteer myself."
Xiang and Jazz exclaimed, "No, Lola!"
"No is right," agreed Robyn. "I'll stay behind. I've been a pain in the ass all day anyway."
"Not a chance!" Lola replied. "Stockwell found us because I was stupid enough to leave behind evidence for Decker. Besides, I got you all into this mess fifteen years ago. It's time I started making up for it."
Robyn locked eyes with Lola and sighed, "You're not giving up, are you? Ok, what's this plan of yours?"
****
Lola loaded up the canister gun in Jones' office and looked out the window to the crowd of army personnel outside the main gate. Soon the men in green would break down the barrier. Not if I have any say in the matter, thought the brunette. She aimed into the center of the platoon outside and fired. The men dived for cover, and Lola quickly launched the remaining canisters of tear gas over the main gate.
That oughta keep them busy long enough for my girls to get out, Lola thought. Now to make sure the guys get out as well. I don't have much time. She grabbed a bag filled with the A-Team's clothes and ran out of the office towards Murdock's cell.
****
Ninety-nine bottles of beer on the wall, ninety-nine bottles of beer, Murdock sang in his head. It was pointless trying to even talk to himself with the duct tape gag. Why can't I ever find a decent woman to try to hang onto? How could I tell her all that stuff about me? Hell, nobody outside the Doc and the team knows that much! How could I fall for her so hard? Take one down and pass it around…
Murdock stiffened when he heard the door to his cell open and felt a blast of cool air on his face. He listened to his visitor's footsteps to try to guess at their identity since he was blindfolded. They were too light for a man. Then he caught a whiff of the visitor's lavender perfume.
Alia. Or should I say, Lola Sanchez.
The pilot braced himself in case an opportunity to escape arose as he felt Lola kneel next to him. This whole escapade reminded him too much of the CIA: he couldn't figure out who was the enemy until they started the horrific mind games. Murdock felt Lola's fingers tug at the duct tape over his mouth.
"Hi, Murdock," the brunette greeted her prisoner after she pulled off the gag. "I changed my mind. I'm getting you guys outta here. Now do you want me to rip off the duct tape in one go or do it little by little?"
Murdock chuckled and wheezed, his mouth cottony from being gagged. "I'm supposed to trust you now, huh? You are crazy!"
"Do you want to go back to LA or not?" asked Lola. "I'm letting all four of you go before my keeper comes to collect you, and believe me, you don't want to get mixed up with him. If you think I'm a lying, conniving, despicable creature, I look like a fucking girl scout next to him."
Lola helped Murdock sit up. She then tore off the duct tape over his eyes, taking some of his eyebrows with it. The pilot glared at his captor, his once mirthful brown eyes filled with contempt. The brunette immediately regretted removing the blindfold. She loved his youthful gaze; it was the puppy dog eyes that had enraptured her and brought her here now.
"Look, Murdock--" Lola tried to explain.
"No, you look!" the pilot exclaimed. "You'd better look in a goddamn mirror and see just how much of a manipulative and loathsome whore you really are! You don't give a damn about anybody other than yourself. You just step on whoever's in your way and don't care how much you screw them up in the process!"
The brunette's eyes flashed. She raised her hand as if to slap Murdock, but instead jabbed an accusing finger in his face. "I did look in a fucking mirror!" Lola screamed. "I saw exactly how vile I am! I wouldn't have come here if I didn't. Now there's a man named Stockwell who's coming here to take you, but I'm not going to let him. He wants to steal your lives. I know because he blackmailed me into working for him for the past fifteen years. There's no way to escape him once he's got his claws in you. If I don't take you guys out of here, Stockwell's going to mold you into something like me: a weapon at his beck and call."
Murdock laughed in Lola's face. "You expect me to believe you after all the lies you've told over the past few days? Put the duct tape back on and leave!"
The brunette set her lips into a line. "Not everything was a lie. All that stuff about my childhood in New York was true. I can't lie about something like that. Now if you really want to stay here and see what my boss is going to do to you, I'll go. But I'll warn you it's going to be pretty damn close to the mind games of the CIA and the mental torture in Vietnam. I know how much you suffered through those years. I wouldn't put you through that crap again. Someone like you doesn't deserve that kind of treatment." Lola whipped a switchblade out of her pocket and cut through Murdock's bonds. "So I'm dragging you with me. You can do whatever you like to me later, when you all get out alive."
Lola tossed the pilot his clothes. Murdock rubbed his wrists and ankles to get the circulation back into his limbs as his blood boiled. How can she come back here after all the crap she's put me through and act as if she's my friend? the pilot thought as he dressed himself. He waited until Lola turned her back on him, then lunged at the brunette. The pilot slammed her against the wall, stunning Lola momentarily, and grabbed the knife out of her hand.
"You're not very bright, Lola" Murdock growled in the brunette's ear as he pinned her against the wall. He pocketed the switchblade and held fast to Lola's throat. "You don't screw with people's minds as if it's some sort of game, then turn your back on them. How many other guys did you sleep with and then make them think that you truly loved them when you were just using them for your own pleasure? You're one sick, twisted freak to get off on that!"
Lola struggled against Murdock's weight, but couldn't budge. The sharp mood swing in the pilot frightened her to no end. She knew he could maim or even kill her if he really wanted to, but she prayed he wouldn't do something else that he would later seal off in that far corner of his mind where he stored his horrible memories.
"Murdock!" Lola said in a terrified whisper. "I—I do love you! That's why I'm here! I'm letting you go. I swear on my mother's grave I'm telling the truth!"
"Bullshit!" the pilot hissed. He grabbed the brunette by her hair and smashed the back of her head into the doorframe.
"You're hurting me!" cried Lola. She felt hot blood trickling down her neck from her wound. "Murdock, stop! You're scaring me!"
"Oh, you think that hurts?" Murdock sneered. "Why don't you try havin' your heart broken by the one person you've been able to trust enough to expose your soul to sometime?"
Lola watched in horror as the usual mischievous glint in the pilot's eyes faded into dark cruelty. Who was this man? Was this the part of himself that Murdock kept buried from view? The brunette couldn't believe what she'd done to transform such a sweet man into a monster. She had to try to rectify the situation before something horrible happened.
"Murdock!" the brunette pleaded. "You're the only person I've ever known that's been able to peel away every layer I've built up around me as protection. You saw the real me; the person I've always wanted to be, but never thought I could. You changed me, Murdock; you and your friends, the A-Team, changed me. Please, Murdock, believe me!"
Tears welled up in Lola's eyes, the first tears she'd cried since her mother died. She couldn't remember being this terrified in her entire life. Maybe it was due to the fact she was finally faced with the wake of destruction she left after each job and it sickened her that she could be as cruel and despicable as her loathsome father. The brunette let the tears fall, almost wishing that Murdock would end her suffering.
Murdock's face barely softened as Lola cried. "Don't cry crocodile tears for me," he growled. He grabbed the brunette around her shoulders and spun her around so that her back pressed into his chest. The pilot twisted Lola's arms behind her back and hissed in her ear, "Now you're gonna take me to my friends and let us go if you don't want to have your arms broke up like matchsticks, comprende?"
"All too well," Lola whispered in reply.
****
Hannibal lay, bound and gagged as Murdock had been, and ran escape plan after escape plan through his mental tests, each time coming up empty. Gotta admit, Alia—Lola and her friends are thorough, he thought. They didn't put the team together, lock us in a shed with any sort of tools, or make any stupid mistakes like most of our enemies. This just makes escaping that much more interesting—hopefully. Now, if I could only find something to cut with…
Suddenly the colonel heard someone open the door to his cell. From the sound of shuffling feet he could tell that there were two people, one forcing the other in front. The person in back shoved the one in front to the floor hard. When the person on the floor moved, Hannibal guessed to get up, the other hit him, or her, the colonel corrected himself, causing the one on the floor to gasp in pain.
"Don't you dare move!" growled a familiar voice with a Texas accent.
"Murdock!" Hannibal mumbled through his gag.
"You all right, Colonel?" asked the pilot. He realized his mistake when Hannibal mumbled an unintelligible reply. "Sorry, Colonel," Murdock said as he pulled off his commanding officer's gag and blindfold.
"Boy, am I glad to see you, Murdock!" coughed Hannibal as the pilot cut the bonds on his hands with the switchblade, then handed the colonel the knife to cut his feet free. When Murdock pulled the colonel to his feet, Hannibal caught sight of Lola huddled in a corner holding the back of her head. "What's she doing here?" he asked as Murdock tossed him his clothes.
"She claims she released me so we could escape from her boss," growled the pilot as he handed the switchblade to the colonel. "I don't buy it. Her friends are probably lying in wait for us somewhere in the building so we'll get caught by Decker."
After he finished dressing, Hannibal grabbed Lola by the arm and hauled her to her feet. "Ok, where are your friends?" the colonel demanded. He wrenched the brunette's arm, and she gasped in pain.
"They're gone!" exclaimed Lola. "I'm the only one left. They don't even know I'm helping you guys escape before Decker and my boss come to get you!"
"I say we beat her senseless and tie her up in here, just like she did to us, Hannibal," Murdock hissed. "She's useless anyway. We can find Face and BA without her."
Lola's eyes widened in horror as she shrank away from her former lover. Hannibal placed a fatherly hand on the pilot's shoulder. "Murdock," the colonel whispered. "I know what she did to you was unforgivable, but that doesn't justify beating her and you know it."
Murdock looked at his friend and realized his mistake. "I was just toying with her," the pilot muttered. "Wanted to see her suffer as she made me suffer."
The colonel clapped the pilot on the back and turned his attention to Lola. "Now we're going to lock you up in here and then go find our friends."
"You won't find them in time," replied Lola, looking only at Hannibal. "This place is built like a maze and the cells we put you four in aren't on the blueprints I showed you. Now Decker's men are probably close to fully recovered from the last round of tear gas I launched at them and will resume cutting through the front gate shortly. The only way you guys can get out of here safely is if you let me help you. I swear I won't do any funny shit, and if I do, all four of you can beat the hell out of me. I deserve it."
Hannibal shrugged, "Can't take any chances. Lead the way, Lola, but remember: we're watching you."
****
Oh God! thought Face as he lay tied up in his cell in another corner of Alliance Tech. He had managed to wriggle himself into one corner of the room so the wall could help him feel a little secure. We've been through some hellish times, but this—this is something else. I can't see, can't call for help, none of the other guys are in here with me—wherever here is. Where the hell are my clothes? I don't even want to think about how I got in this state! I feel so violated!
Snap out of it! Gotta think, Face, gotta focus. I need a plan. Where's Hannibal when you need him?
The lieutenant heard the door to his cell open and felt the footsteps of two—no, three people enter. "Face, it's Murdock and me," said Hannibal as he knelt next to his lieutenant and cut his restraints. The pilot tossed Face his clothes while restraining Lola. "We don't have much time if Lola told us the truth," the colonel continued. "Decker's on his way in and we still need to get BA."
The lieutenant quickly pulled on his clothes and tried to get his bearings on the situation. "Why's Lola here?" he asked.
"Information," replied the colonel. "Seems she conveniently knows where BA is and the only way out of here."
"Don't worry, Face," Murdock interjected, "we can take turns slapping her around once we get out of Decker's reach." He wrenched Lola's arms so hard they popped.
"Fuck!" hissed the brunette. "Why don't you just beat me within an inch of my life right now so we can get it over with? I think I'm gonna need stitches in the back of my head anyway."
"Murdock!" yelled Hannibal. He yanked Lola out of the pilot's grasp and examined her. The brunette had a split lip, a good shiner developing, bruises all up her arms, and dried blood encrusted on her neck and hair around a deep gash. "Did you do all this to her?"
"Wish I could say so," the pilot growled. "I just gave her the gash and a few of the bruises. The rest she had when she 'rescued' me."
"He's right," agreed Lola. "I got in a catfight earlier. My friend and I didn't exactly see eye-to-eye on the current situation, so we tried to claw each other's eyes out."
"Enough chit-chat," Hannibal barked. "Let's get a move-on before Decker catches us."
****
BA lay struggling with his bonds in yet another cell on the opposite side of the Alliance Tech building. Pissed as all hell for being in such a situation, he strained with all his might to break his bonds barehanded. However, the sergeant only succeeded in slicing his wrists on the zip ties. Each time his bonds cut deeper into his flesh, BA cursed Lola's name.
Lola's gonna pay, Lola's gonna pay, the sergeant thought repeatedly, focusing his rage. Can't believe she could do somethin' like that to Murdock! He's a fool, but he don't deserve treatment like that. First chance I get, I'm breakin' that woman's face! Don't care if she's a woman, she deserves it.
BA froze when he heard the door to his cell open and three familiar voices muttering. "Hannibal!" he yelled into his gag. "Faceman! Murdock! Get me outta here!"
"Hold still, BA, and we'll get those zip ties off you," Hannibal answered as he whipped out the switchblade. Once his hands were free, the sergeant tore off the duct tape over his eyes and mouth. Face handed BA the backpack with all his jewelry and clothes in it since it was too heavy to toss.
"We've gotta hurry," Face said as BA got dressed. "Decker's on his way in along with a platoon of army personnel, if Lola's intelligence can be trusted."
The sergeant paused in putting on his forty pounds of gold necklaces. "Lola?" he growled. "Where is that little--" He caught sight of Murdock holding her in the corner and lunged with his teeth bared in a snarl.
Hannibal jumped in front of BA and tried to hold him back with some of Face's help. Lola, on the other hand, threw herself in front of Murdock, as if she wanted the sergeant to pummel her into the ground.
"BA, we don't have time to get revenge before Decker finds us!" the colonel shouted.
"Lemme at her!" snarled BA. "No one tricks the A-Team like that an' goes unpunished!"
Hannibal was about to continue the argument, but Lola exclaimed, "No, Hannibal! Let him take a swing at me! He's right—I deserve a broken jaw. C'mon, Baracus, let's see what you've got!" She gestured for the sergeant to nail her in her cheekbone.
Before the colonel could protest, BA pushed past him and swung hard at Lola's face with a ring-encrusted right hook. BA's fist connected with the brunette's jaw, knocking her off her feet and into Murdock's arms. Lola staggered to her feet and wiped away a trickle of blood from her mouth.
"Oh, come on!" the brunette spat. "That was a wussy punch! You didn't even break a tooth!"
BA was about to take another swing, but Hannibal caught his arm. "Secure that, Sergeant!" barked the colonel. "We've got to go NOW." Once BA stood down, Hannibal turned to Lola. "How do we get out of here?"
"Follow me," answered the brunette.
Lola jogged down the hallway with the four men on her heels. They turned so many corners down identical corridors and down twisty hidden staircases that the A-Team honestly believed that they couldn't have made it out of the building without Lola's guidance.
Finally, the group reached one of the labs in the sub basement, and the brunette halted in front of an odd door in a darkened corner. "This is part of a ventilation shaft that ends just on the other side of the perimeter fence," Lola panted, "right near where you hid the van. They built this shaft to double as an escape route for some strange reason so you guys don't have to crawl through or anything. Now get going before Decker comes down here!"
BA flung open the door, then whirled on Lola. "You'd better be right," he growled as he shook his fist in the brunette's face, "or I'll find ya and beat your face in!" The sergeant turned back to the tunnel, paused as if to think, then turned back to Lola. "On the other hand, maybe I'll just hit you—just in case you lied again." He swung, and BA's rings raked across her left cheek, slicing her face. With that, BA climbed into the ventilation shaft and disappeared.
Hannibal went to follow the sergeant, but turned to Lola before leaving. "You know what," he began, "I really liked you, Lola. I thought you'd make a good addition to the team, but you had to blow everything to pieces. Whatever trouble you have with your boss, we could've helped you if you'd only been up front with us. But now I don't want you to ever try to look any of us up. That is, if you ever get out of the state pen." Lola's eyes stung as Hannibal disappeared into the shaft.
Next up was Murdock. The pilot grabbed Lola by her shoulders and forced her to look into his eyes. "If any of Alia is in you, you'd know how much you hurt me," he murmured, "and that I never, ever want to see or hear from you again. As soon as I'm gone up that tunnel, you'll be erased from memory. Nothing of this will remain in my mind, and you know how good I am at forgetting things. Goodbye and good riddance, Lola." Murdock strode into the shaft without looking back once.
Only Face was left now. Before the lieutenant could speak, Lola cut him off. "Please, before you say how much you hate me for what I did, just promise me one thing. Look after Murdock for me, please?"
Face was speechless for several moments before he finally found his words. "How dare you ask me to look after Murdock after what you did to him?" he spat. "You have absolutely no idea how much you've damaged him with this charade of yours! I'm surprised he's doing this well. He's been through so much, and if you knew him at all, you'd know how much crap he's been through before he even laid eyes on you." Face hauled off and slapped Lola with all his strength. "That's for Murdock!" he exclaimed, then slapped the brunette again. "And that's for thinking we won't look after one of our own."
Lola gingerly touched her bleeding, swollen cheek as Face vanished into the ventilation shaft. A single, salty tear trickled from her eye and stung her wounds. "What the fuck was I thinking?" the brunette muttered to herself as she shut the door to the shaft and thought of what she should do next.
What I need right now is one big fucking bottle of Tequila, thought Lola. Hell, I'll have enough salt with these tears I'm gonna cry. And I need a lime. Hey, I've still got that Molotov cocktail in my trunk…that ought to help me drown my sorrows even quicker than normal liquor.
Lola whirled around when she heard shuffling on the floor above her. It could be only one of two things, and neither option was remotely pleasant: Colonel Decker's men or a few of the Abels. The brunette darted off down another corridor to lead whoever was behind her away from the A-Team's escape route. The last thing she wanted was for the four men to get caught along with her. She doubted if her body could take another one of BA's punches.
Lola skidded to a halt when she raced up a set of stairs, turned a corner, and almost ran into a man. She looked up and came face-to-face with Hunt Stockwell and his yellow-tinted glasses. Those always looked so stupid, yet he still wears them, the brunette thought.
"Ahh, Miss Sanchez," Stockwell said condescendingly, "just the person I wanted to see."
"Damn, why couldn't I have run into Colonel Decker?" moaned Lola. "At least he'd talk to me like an adult."
Stockwell ignored the brunette's comment. "Where are your friends and the A-Team?"
Lola forced a smile. "You just missed them. My friends ditched me, which gave the A-Team the upper hand. They overpowered me and escaped. Might want to check the woods, but I bet everyone's long gone."
Stockwell looked the brunette over. "You look terrible, Miss Sanchez," he said in his patronizing tone. "What happened? Did you walk into a wall?"
"Well, you have the face of a bulldog that's been run over, Stockwell," Lola shot back. "And that's being nice."
"I see they didn't break your jaw. Pity. I was hoping to enjoy some silence from you."
"I'd never give you the pleasure even if my tongue was cut out and my jaw was in splinters."
"However, I do so enjoy our recurring battle of wits."
Lola laughed, "Battle? Hell, you're not even armed!"
Stockwell grabbed the brunette roughly by the arm. "Enough games!" he hissed.
Lola looked down at Stockwell's hand, which was bruising her arm even more. "Ooo, you actually touched me," she cooed. "I thought you didn't want to dirty yourself with contact with the likes of me."
"Quiet, Sanchez! I have a surprise for you." Stockwell dragged the brunette down the hall and into a small, empty office. He then shoved Lola into a chair facing a small television and produced a videotape.
"Oh God, no!" shrieked Lola. "You're going to make me watch Knight Rider, aren't you? You know I hate that show! Couldn't you find a kinder way to torture me, like cutting off my fingers?"
"Will you be quiet?" Stockwell snarled. "Abel Four managed to return the surveillance systems to normal just a few minutes ago." He waved the tape under Lola's nose. "This is a security tape I managed to make as the A-Team left the building. I have a feeling you had a hand in their escape. Shall we see if I'm right?" He gestured to the TV and put the tape into the VCR.
The brunette hung her head as the tape played. Fuck! All my work to try to redeem myself just got flushed down the crapper.
"Well, well, well!" Stockwell sneered. "I see you warned your lover about me."
Alia's stomach lurched. Of all the members of the A-Team, the pilot had the most to fear from Stockwell. She warned Murdock about her boss only to have him hunt the pilot down. Oh, how I wish I would just drop dead right here, right now! thought the brunette.
Lola reluctantly raised her head to watch her former lover caught on video. But the segment of the tape only featured Face slapping the brunette and then escaping through the ventilation shaft. The camera never caught a glimpse of Murdock. Stockwell still thinks that Face is my lover, Alia thought and sighed ever so slightly in relief. Play along! Maybe it'll keep Murdock from falling into his hands at least.
"You asshole!" hissed Alia. "You lay a hand on him, walk by his house, do anything, I'll kill you!"
Stockwell laughed derisively. "You're all talk, Lola. Besides, you won't have much of a chance to get me once you're inside a women's prison."
Lola spat in Stockwell's face. "I'll kill you! You just wait, Stockwell. One day when you least expect it, I'll come up behind you and slit your throat."
Stockwell shot the brunette a sinister grin. "Oh, that's going to help you in court," he sneered. "It's not good to threaten to murder the man who brought you to justice."
Lola laughed sarcastically. "Justice? I didn't think that word was in your vocabulary. Might've been better if you said I threatened to commit patricide, but then there'd be a nasty background check for you. Wouldn't want to tarnish that government spook rep you've fabricated so nicely through the years."
Stockwell advanced on his daughter, but Colonel Decker kicked in the door to interrupt. "Where are they?" Decker bellowed. "Where are Smith, Peck, and Baracus? I tried to get an answer out your men, but they just gave me the runaround. You'd better have held up your end of our deal, Stockwell, or--"
"They got away," replied Stockwell irritably, rolling his eyes. "Or rather Miss Sanchez here let them and her own team escape while she held us off. Looks like neither one of us got what we wanted, Colonel."
Decker's face turned the color of an eggplant at the news. He hated working with this snake Stockwell; he sensed the man had some hidden agenda like all CIA spooks. The only reason why the colonel agreed to work with Stockwell in the first place was that the G-man waved the chance of finally furthering his rank in the army by capturing two teams of criminals in one fell swoop. "You said this would go down without a hitch," Decker growled. "At least you got one of the people you were gunning for! I have to go back to base with egg on my face yet again because of you!"
"I'm sure you've had plenty of practice by now," said Stockwell. "After all, this is the third year you've been chasing the A-Team, and you still have nothing to show for it."
"Stop being an asshole, Stockwell!" Lola exclaimed. "After all, you had even worse luck trying to catch the A-Team. At least Colonel Decker has actually had them in custody multiple times, which is a helluva lot more than you can say."
"You shut your mouth," Stockwell hissed as he jabbed a menacing finger in Lola's face, "or I'll shut it for you!"
The brunette leaned back in her chair. "Excuse me, Colonel Decker, but I do believe that was a threat he made. Aren't officers of the law and other government employees with the power to arrest criminals not supposed to do that?"
"You're right," Decker agreed and pushed Stockwell roughly aside. "I'll take it from here, Stockwell. I sure hope you didn't give this woman her wounds, because if you did, I'd haul you off to jail so fast your head would spin right off. You can go and collect your shadows while I take this woman in on charges of espionage, theft, and possibly treason. Once the medic gets you cleaned up, you're looking at a long stay in prison, Miss Sanchez."
"Not nearly long enough," Lola muttered under her breath as Decker cuffed her and led her down the hall. "Not long enough at all to make up for this mistake."
****
Outside the compound, the A-Team exited the ventilation shaft and made their way toward the hidden van. No one spoke until all four of the men clambered into the vehicle and drove off towards California.
"I should've listened to you, BA," Murdock mumbled, breaking the silence. "I never should've trusted that—that—bitch."
Hannibal laid a supportive hand on the pilot's shoulder. "It's not your fault, Murdock. We should've seen the signs a long time ago." He turned back towards the front of the van and lost himself in his own musings. Lola was just like that woman we ran into when we rescued Dr. Richter. Murdock had a dangerous fascination with her as well since she obviously was even more mentally unstable than he was. I should've known that if a woman like that showed up again he'd fall for her hard. Some commanding officer I am! I can't even help protect my men from themselves.
"I'm sorry, Murdock," BA said, uncharacteristically gentle and quiet. "I shouldn't have been so hard on ya."
"No, you were right, an' I was so very, very wrong," insisted Murdock.
"You're not the only one she fooled," Hannibal added. "She fooled all of us, and very well at that."
The pilot just mumbled unintelligibly and curled up in his seat.
Face watched as Murdock withdrew deep inside himself to try to repair the damage Lola left behind. The lieutenant could almost hear his friend's mental barriers slamming shut. Face wished he could do something besides pray that his friend wouldn't completely shut down like the incident that landed him in the VA in the first place. He touched Murdock on the shoulder as if to say, "I'm there for you if you need me."
Murdock surprised his friend by turning towards him and giving him a wan smile. "Step on it, BA," the pilot said. "I really need to get back to the VA." His eyes then fogged over, and he hummed some arbitrary tune. The rest of the team left Murdock alone for the rest of the drive back to LA.
****
The End
So…good? Bad? Plotting something? Tell me!
I wrote this as to be a lead-in for the fifth and final season. Now I realize that this raises more questions than it answers, and that's why I've got an idea for a sequel in the works. What I need from you, my dear reader, is your feedback on this story and whether or not I should take the time and effort to write a sequel. If no one's interested, I'll go work on other projects I've got in mind (or God forbid, my homework. Please don't make me do my homework!). :~)
