Author's notes: Same as previous chapters. Also I apologize for the long wait, but it's not easy writing lengthy explanations of complicated plots. Hopefully most of you will be pleased with this chapter after something like two or three months of no updates. A lot of the explanation might not make sense if you haven't watched the first three episodes of Season 5 ("Dishpan Man," "Trial by Fire", and "Firing Line"). I don't think there's anything else worth mentioning, so on with the story!
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Half an hour after the Abels kidnapped Billy, Lola still lay sobbing in Murdock's arms. At one point she had asked to walk along the beach, but Murdock refused since he believed Lola was so distraught that she'd try to drown herself. He might have only been a father for twelve hours, but he knew what grief felt like. Someone in Lola's state of mind shouldn't be left alone for more than two minutes.
"Jesus, Murdock," Lola finally hiccupped through her sobs. "I can't do anything right! I think I'm doing the right thing for a change, but then the people I love the most are taken away from me as punishment. First you, now Billy. When will I ever learn?"
Murdock rocked Lola as she started on a fresh bout of tears. "Look, don't worry about Billy," he murmured. "Hannibal should be here any minute. He'll know what to do."
"Know what?" Lola sniffed. "I should've taken up Hannibal's offer to help out with getting rid of Stockwell last year. Maybe then we could've stayed together and raised a family like normal people. I hear the vast majority of them don't have to worry about creepy guys with guns abducting their children in the dead of night."
Lola tried to laugh, but it died into yet more sobbing. Murdock wished that Hannibal would hurry up and come to try to save the day before Lola tried to do anything stupid.
As if on cue, Hannibal knocked on the front door and entered the bungalow before Face could answer. "Hi, sorry I'm late," said the colonel, "but BA just got into town and we had a heck of a time trying to get Frankie up at this hour."
"I still don't get how you military types can be up at all hours, no problemo," moaned Frankie, who followed Hannibal.
Lola bolted upright and wiped her face as BA retorted, "You Hollywood types are supposed to be partying all night long."
"Yeah, whatever," said Frankie. "So what's so important that you dragged us all the way up to Santa Monica at 3 a.m., Johnny?"
"Why don't you let Lola explain?" said Hannibal. He gestured to the brunette on the couch. "Frank, meet Lola Sanchez. Lola, this is Frankie Santana. He got roped into working for Stockwell along with us. Lola has vital information on that scumbag and--"
"Lola Sanchez?" exclaimed Frankie, interrupting Hannibal. "Not Lola Sanchez from the Barrio!"
"Oh, yes indeed, Frankie," growled Lola. "Or should I call you Francine?"
"Umm, you two know each other?" asked Face.
"Oh yeah," said Frankie. "We grew up on the same block. She was about seven years older than me, always knocking over the local shops with that gang of hers."
"You loved to tag along, Francine," retorted Lola. "Always ratting us out to your daddy whenever you thought we were up to something. You were always wrong though."
"I wasn't wrong about you robbing my pop! He took you in after your mother died, and you turned around and busted up our place!"
"I told you, we were set up by a rival gang! We got sent up to the farm because the Bulldogs didn't like girls intruding on their territory, which coincidentally is the reason why we're all standing around here now. If your family hadn't believed that my gang and I were responsible for that robbery, Stockwell never would've recruited me in the first place and none of you would ever have met him. So you can thank Francine for getting you all out of bed at this ungodly hour!"
Frankie launched himself at Lola, but BA held him back. "If anyone's gonna beat her up, it's gonna be me," BA said.
"You already did, don't you remember?" asked Lola as she ran her fingers down the scars BA's rings had left on her cheek the year before. "I remember it every time I look in the mirror."
"Yes," Hannibal said as he cleared his throat, "it's nice to take a trip down memory lane, but we need to know what happened here tonight."
"It's like Face told you," said Lola, "Abel One through Abel Seven came and abducted Billy."
"Billy? They can't kidnap an imaginary dog!" exclaimed BA.
"Of course not! Billy's our son," Murdock replied. "Lola's and mine."
"WHAT?!" thundered BA. "You had a kid with her? You are crazy!"
"I'll second that," added Frankie. "When did you two ever meet anyway?"
"Last June when Colonel Decker almost got his hands on all four of us for real," Face answered. "Speaking of which, that's what Lola promised to explain to us now."
"No, she's going to explain why she thinks Murdock's the father of her kid which isn't here!" growled BA. "She's up to her tricks again."
"No, I'm not!" exclaimed Lola. "Face, show 'em the pictures I have of Billy in my wallet. You've still got it, right?"
"Yeah, right here," Face said as he pulled the wallet out of his pocket and handed it to BA. "I went through everything in there twice and checked it out with public records. Lola's been telling the truth since she showed up yesterday afternoon."
BA flipped open the wallet and pulled out half a dozen photos of Billy. Sure enough, Murdock's eyes and smile beamed up from the baby's face in the pictures.
"This baby ain't Murdock's!" BA said doggedly.
"BA, I held Billy in my arms and I knew he was mine!" exclaimed Murdock.
"Let's just drop the whole deal about who Billy's father is, Ok?" Lola said exasperated. "There are a lot more important things we need to talk about first, believe me."
"Yeah, like how Stockwell's your boss," said Face.
"And more importantly, why he wanted us working for him in the first place, then let us go with those pardons," added Hannibal.
"Those pardons are fakes," said Lola. "Anything that comes out of that man's mouth is a lie."
"What?" exclaimed Frankie.
"Why should we believe you?" asked Face. "I checked over the documents that Hannibal swiped from his office. They're genuine."
"Then they're very good fakes," said Lola. "I've checked all the papers from all over the country over the last year for any news about you guys. Nothing. Especially about any sort of pardon. Something like that would've made headline news even though you've fallen out of the public eye in recent years."
"What makes you think that we're going to believe you over Stockwell?" asked Hannibal. "Especially given your track record."
Lola rubbed her eyes in frustration. "Will you guys just hear me out before you start questioning me about my motives? I need to tell you everything I know before we run out of time. We only have about forty-five hours left to come up with a plan to get Billy back and take down Stockwell before he skips out again."
BA opened his mouth to question Lola further, but Hannibal held up a hand to silence him. "Ok," said the colonel, "let's hear it then."
Lola sighed. "There's so much you need to know… I should've told you ages ago when I first met you, but I was stupid and naïve. Anyway, that's no longer important. What is important is that Stockwell's had it out for you for years, especially Murdock."
"That's not news," grumbled Murdock. "Ever since I met him last year, he's seemed like he has a grudge against me. Can't figure out why though."
"It's because he fears you, Murdock," continued Lola. "He's feared you since you met during your CIA years."
"What!" cried Murdock. "I never met him before last August!"
Lola buried her head in her hands for several moments, then raised her head again and ran her fingers through her hair. "Oh God, I don't like bringing this up… I can only imagine how bad this is going to be for you, Murdock. This is why I didn't want to tell you guys anything in the first place.
"Murdock, you probably blocked out the memories of the incident that made you leave the CIA. Stockwell used to work for them, back in the '50s and early '60s, did really well too. Until you came along. He was your superior on a mission to find a mole in the company…"
It was Murdock's turn to hide his face in his hands. A tidal wave of memories crashed through the perfect mental blockades he'd had to keep them at bay for more than twenty years, flooding his mind with images no one should have to witness.
"Stockwell ordered you to torture another agent he said was the mole," continued Lola in a cracking whisper, as if she was displaying the pain Murdock felt, "but you refused. You said that there were other ways of finding proof and getting a confession. Stockwell didn't listen and tortured the agent in front of you instead to 'teach' you how to be a better agent.
"After being forced to watch the other agent almost tortured to death, you called up Washington and reported Stockwell to the director. Turned out--"
"Stockwell was the mole," Murdock finished in a hollow voice. "He just tortured the other agent to keep the rest of the company off his tail. Bastard! The agent died of his wounds a month later. Left behind a pregnant wife. I can't believe I didn't recognize that bastard when he showed up last year! Jesus Christ!"
Murdock surprised everyone, except Lola, by punching the couch. He jumped up and started pacing the living room, muttering under his breath.
I can't believe I did that! Murdock thought, his body shaking with pent up rage. I could've saved my friends from that bastard! But no, I had to put my own selfishness ahead of them. I stupidly thought that I could lock it all away so it couldn't come back to hurt me again. If something had happened to any of the guys, I never would forgive myself…
"Murdock?" asked Hannibal quietly. "Is what Lola saying true?"
"I wish it wasn't, but it is," said Murdock, rubbing his temples to get some sort of order in his brain. "Every last word is true."
"And it gets worse," said Lola, her eyes misting over. "Do you remember what really happened that night when you reported back to HQ after dropping the rest of the team off for the Bank of Hanoi job? About who murdered Colonel Morrison?"
Already vulnerable from Lola bringing up his time at the CIA, Murdock stopped pacing and jammed his hands into his eyes as if to stop the memories from flashing across his mind.
"Yes," he hissed, pain and anger cracking his voice. "I remember hearing Stockwell's voice in Morrison's office just before the bombing. They were arguing about something, something about dealing weapons and the A-Team getting too close… then gunshots… I ran from there just as the Viet Cong blasted HQ to hell."
"Wait," said Hannibal, "you heard Stockwell murder Morrison? What the hell was Stockwell doing there?"
"When he got booted from the CIA, Stockwell decided to join his criminal buddies and went into gun running," Lola said. "He ended up getting involved with your buddy Curtis and went over to Vietnam with him. The two of them negotiated a deal with Morrison so that they could run guns and give intel to the Viet Cong—basically covered each other's butts.
"However, the A-Team gained respect and some power among the men, causing Morrison to fear you. He knew you were bright enough to figure out what all of them were up to and told the others that they needed to shut down the business. Curtis opted with Morrison, but Stockwell had other plans. He figured they could set you guys up with the Bank of Hanoi job and get you sent to a military prison for the better part of your lives.
"The plan seemed easy enough, but at the last minute Morrison got cold feet. Stockwell and he fought in Morrison's office when Murdock came back from dropping the rest of the team off. Stockwell had had enough of Morrison, who was threatening to go to his superiors and report everything, and shot him. Stockwell heard Murdock run for it and chased after him just as the bombing began. When Stockwell finally caught up to Murdock, he was… jabbering incoherently. He figured you weren't much of a threat, but stayed suspicious, so he kept tabs on you through the years…until he could use you.
"Stockwell got himself connected high up in the government between his CIA years and his different 'side jobs', but no one could keep looking the other way forever. So someone made Stockwell a deal that if he did some 'favors' that included suicide missions, they'd leave him alone. Since he's not one to do his own dirty work, Stockwell figured that if he played you guys right, he could blackmail you all into doing the missions for him under the pretense of being a government agent capable of getting you pardoned."
Hannibal took a long drag on his cigar and said, "It's a great story, Lola—might make a good Robert Ludlum book even—but how do we know for sure that it's the truth about why Stockwell was interested in us in the first place and you're not just blowing smoke?"
"Because I've got proof," answered Lola. She picked up Billy's stuffed dog, unzipped its stomach, and pulled out a computer disk that was hidden inside. "When I was in jail awaiting trial and found out that I was pregnant, Stockwell somehow found out and paid me a visit. He played on my fears that I would have to give birth in prison and have to send Billy to an orphanage until I got released, and then suggested that I agree to come work for him again. He promised to make sure my case got dropped… and threatened that if I didn't accept his offer, he'd make sure that none of you, especially Murdock, would make it back from your first mission alive.
"I had no choice but to go do minor work for him, planning your missions, usually sneaking in more information than Stockwell would want to give, back at Langley. That's why Billy was born there.
"After Billy turned five months old, I couldn't take living like that anymore. I hoarded away money and other supplies, planning an escape. One day Stockwell stupidly left me alone with his computer, so I copied all his files detailing all his dirty schemes over the years onto this disk and got the hell outta there as fast as I could. After I was sure Stockwell couldn't find us easily, I brought Billy to LA. I told Stockwell that I hated the city and never wanted to go back there, which is only partially true, so that he wouldn't look for me here. I knew that if you ever got released, you'd come back here. Sure enough, you did. But Stockwell must've figured the same thing because he sent the Abels here to get back the disk. He must've had them tail Murdock in hopes that I would show up with Billy and they could get me then. But since I didn't give them the disk, they took Billy, and now we have less than two days to figure out how to get Billy back from his grandfather and lock Stockwell up for good."
"Wait a minute," said Murdock. "We have to get Billy back from his grandfather?"
"Stockwell's your father?" exclaimed Hannibal.
"I knew I hated the both of 'em for a reason," growled BA.
"Ugh! That's disgusting!" Face gagged.
Lola's eyes went wide. "I wasn't supposed to tell you that. You didn't need to know that. But yes, Stockwell raped my mother and produced me. You probably think it makes sense now that I betrayed you and lied to you. I know, it disgusts me too."
"But you look nothing like him," said Murdock.
"Yes I do," said Lola. "I'm almost the spitting image of my mother, but I have his eyes. Just look at me."
Murdock gazed into Lola's deep brown eyes to see if any of Stockwell was in them. Her eyes were the right shape and color to be Stockwell's, but they had a warmth and sadness in them that were missing from Stockwell's cold, hard eyes.
Murdock managed a small smile. "You aren't your father's daughter. You have a conscience and learned to treat people right. Though it took some time and all…"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" exclaimed Frankie, who waved his hands in the air as if trying to force order into everything that had been said in the past half hour. "Did that sound nuts to anyone besides me?"
"Yeah," BA said, cracking his knuckles.
"But it's crazy enough to be true," said Hannibal. "Where can we get access to a computer so we can check out that disk?"
"You trust this liar?" growled BA.
"Not completely, but her story does make a helluva lot of sense," the colonel replied.
"Well…" Lola began, "there are two people you can check the story with--"
"Great!" said Face. "Who?"
"One you're going to like, and the other one only Hannibal will," answered Lola. "Amy Allen, the reporter at the Los Angeles Courier whom the A-Team has a rather famous history with--"
"Amy?" asked Face. "She's been overseas for the past three or four years on assignment! When did she come back?"
"When the news reported you'd been executed, she came back to the states," Lola answered. "She didn't buy the story, but before Amy could figure anything out, Stockwell blocked her path. It didn't deter her, and last I knew she was digging around for dirt on Stockwell in her spare time."
"Man, we haven't seen Amy in ages!" said Murdock. "We should look her up, even if she can't help. Who's the other person?"
Lola took a deep breath. "Colonel Decker."
"Decker?" exclaimed BA. "Now I know she's lying!"
"How can Decker help us?" Hannibal asked with an amused glint in his blue eyes.
"It seems Stockwell broke a deal with him when Decker almost caught you guys last year," explained Lola. "Stockwell promised Decker that he'd be able to further his rank and capture both the A-Team and my 'gang' in one fell swoop. Stockwell didn't follow through with his end of the deal and pissed off Decker. Ever since Decker's been waiting for a chance to get back at Stockwell. Not to mention Decker still has connections to government intelligence that'll be of use to you."
"This is getting weirder by the minute!" moaned Face.
Hannibal grinned and lit a cigar.
Murdock smiled. "Got a plan, Colonel?"
"Great, Hannibal's on the jazz," muttered Face.
"We're going to pay Amy and good ol' Decker a visit," said Hannibal as smoke curled around his sparkling blue eyes.
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To be continued…
Note: It's not explicit, but Lola decided to name her baby Billy instead of Frank after Frank Sinatra because she hates Frankie Santana and will always associate the name Frank with Frankie instead of Sinatra.
Oh, and I have no idea when Chapter 4 might get posted. Probably not until September if you're lucky.