PART 12
BA and the men with him rushed the guards at the back door with cool efficient ease and without even breaking into a sweat.
"Back door secured," he growled into his radio mike,
"Good work, big guy," Murdock responded. He was following Kyle's bobbing back as they worked their way through the parking lot towards the front door where two guards stood casually chatting and certainly not expecting an attack. "Start working through the building – we'll be inside in a tick!"
Kyle turned back to him. "Not gonna get any closer without showing ourselves," he whispered.
Murdock nodded and with one last check of the clip on his gun, he smiled. "Let's show then!" he said. "I've been without my Faceyman for long enough – I'm starting to get cranky!"
They leapt forwards and the rattle of gun fire smashed through the sultry afternoon air.
"Oh how touching!" Lorelei mocked as she came into the room, flanked by her men. "I have to say Peck your libido is quite insatiable. Really, you're old enough to be her grandfather!"
Peck gulped, moving away from Shannon as his body was unconsciously stung by her words. "Looks like your time's running out, Lorelei!" he said.
She was ruffled, slightly less together than at any time he had known her. She obviously had not expected that Murdock would find him and come. Peck allowed himself a brief grin of satisfaction. "Amazing how small they can make trackers now, isn't it? And the range you can get on these suckers!" He could not resist the taunt.
She hit him hard and he groaned despite himself as his vision blurred and the pain he had so carefully filed away, exploded through his body intensified a thousand times.
Her gaze was withering in the extreme. "You think you're so clever, Peck!" she spat. "But you will not win – I won't allow it, I promised. True I would have preferred longer to play with you but no matter. Do you smell it, Peck? The fires are set, this warehouse is made of wood and there has been such a drought – it's a tinderbox! Your friends won't make it here until you're nothing but ash and cinders. Oh yes – it is you that will burn in hell!"
"Let the girl go!" Face shouted angrily.
"And stop the stain of guilt from searing your soul? I think not! It's been a blast but now I have to go, I have a burgeoning empire to run!"
"Lorelei!" he forced himself to his feet, staggered to the end of the length of the chain that held him. "Lorelei, come back here!"
But the blonde beauty was gone and the telltale smell of burning wood drifted in through the door she had so recently exited with her men.
"It's no good, Face!" Hannibal's voice came from close by his ear. "She'll keep for another day. Right now you have to get the girl out!"
Peck nodded, whirled around to see Shannon kneeling on the floor, her eyes terrified once more. He moved to her, took both her hands in his bandaged ones, felt her trembling like a fragile sparrow. "It's OK, Shannon. I want you to go get help." He said.
She shook her head, moaning softly. She had dealt with much over the last few hours but this was a step too far. She had a deep-seated fear of fire from a BBQ accident of her childhood and this new fear absolutely petrified her to the spot.
"OK," Peck said softly, his mind going back to the jungles of Nam. He more than any understood the feelings that were crashing through the girl, knew she could not be blamed but equally realised that she would be no help to him.
Wood smoke was drifting into the room, filling it with a scent which would be sweet in moderation but even now was biting at the back of Peck's throat and causing him to cough. He looked around the room, taking stock. The gun fire had not been far away, but he did not know how big the complex they were in was, how long it would take Murdock to reach him and whether the fires were between them making an impenetrable barrier. He knew he had to do this himself.
He knelt down and focused all of his attention on the shackle around his ankle. His eyes were beginning to stream and he was coughing frequently but the lock at least did not look a difficult one to pick. If only his hands had not been ground into uselessness and he had his set of picks!
"Shit!" he breathed, feeling pure panic begin to rise in him.
"Easy, Face," Hannibal's voice was there again, instantly calming him. "Stay cool, work it through – you can do it!"
Face looked around on the floor, eyes squinting as they searched. He became aware of the layer of smoke swirling around the ceiling. He pulled Shannon down onto the floor where the air was relatively clean. She coughed a little but otherwise did not move. Face glimpsed an old black blanket she had been lying on. He pulled it close, knowing he could use it, if only he could undo his manacles.
He forced his eyes back to the floor, scanning it. It didn't look as if the room had been cleaned in a while and there were a number of piles of rubbish spaced around. Finally he saw what he needed – he crawled along on his knees to the pile, grasping hold of the old bent nail as if it was the most precious thing in the whole universe. Sitting back on his haunches, he licked his lips as he tried to work the nail into the lock. Damn his battered hands that were shaking uncontrollably, damn his watering eyes that made his vision unclear and indecipherable. Damn the sweat on his brow and the thickening black smoke. Despite it all, he would do this!
"Come on," he began to whisper, grinding his teeth in frustration. "Damn you! Come on!" He was waggling the nail desperately between over big bandaged fingers as he repeated the words as a litany. He glanced over at Shannon, but she was lying motionless seemingly unaware of what was happening.
"Keep trying, Face!" Hannibal was reassuring and close.
Peck was breathing deeply and muttering, so hell bent on what he was doing that he almost did not register when the lock clicked open and he manacle fell from his ankle. He allowed himself a long sigh of relief but it was short-lived.
"Gotta get out Face," Hannibal ordered. "There isn't much time."
Peck nodded but his pain was intensified to such a point that it was almost consuming him. Still he had to go on. He gulped in air, gagging as the smoke filled his lungs. They had to leave and quickly! He crawled back to Shannon, knowing he didn't have the time to wake her; he was going to have to carry her!
Smoke from the fire drifted lazily on the air through the open doorway. Face knew he could not wait. He sighed at the knowledge of what he would have to do. He tried to pull himself to his feet by leaning on the wooden chair but his legs suddenly buckled, and he had to support himself by leaning on the chair. He stayed like that for a minute, until the shuddering in his muscles had ceased. He very slowly let go of the support and stood up, holding himself still simply by the power of his will.
He fancied he could hear the fire roaring now, as columns of flame leapt along the corridor and caught the wooden posts that lined it at regular intervals. The whole building's interior would soon be aflame, or at least the part of it through which he must pass to reach the door. Moving as quickly as he could Face bent down and picked up the blanket.
The smoke was becoming more uncomfortable as it swirled around the confined space and clutched at Face's throat, trying to steal away his breath. Ignoring it, Peck draped the blanket around his shoulders and pulled it up to cover his mouth and nose. He took a deep breath through the smelly material and tried not to retch as he breathed in its stagnant scent.
Then he bent and very carefully lifted Shannon up in his arms; trying to cover as much of the girl's body as he could with the blanket. The girl was petite and light-limbed but Face's strength was ebbing. Slowly, he turned and made his way out of the room.
He stopped on the threshold to check that he held Shannon as firmly as he could, but he knew that his hesitation only delayed the inevitable. The fire seemed to roar with hunger as it came nearer; he could now feel its dreadful heat on his face.
It was only fire, he told himself. Easily sorted with an extinguisher and a little water!
"That's right, Face!" Hannibal's voice seemed to follow him down the corridor.
Taking another deep breath and praying that the flames would not close around their path, clutching Shannon's motionless form to his chest and drawing on stamina he did not know he possessed, Peck stepped forward to walk through the fire.
Murdock and the rest of his men had been forced from the building as the flames grew in intensity. The erstwhile pilot had been pulled from the building by Kyle and one of his men when they realised that the situation was desperate and they had no chance of moving further through the billowing smoke into the building as the flames began to leap skyward. Murdock had fought all the way, desperate not to leave Face in the inferno but the Green Berets' hands had been firm and he had found himself forced back and away to the parking lot.
Amy and the others had been there too and BA had jogged up with his men. Now the big black man was holding Murdock's spasming body in his arms, fearful that the pilot, desolate with grief, would run into the flames at any minute.
Amy passed a bottle of water and BA forced it to Murdock's parched lips. "Drink it, fool," he muttered compassionately
Mo hugged Kyle to her. "You did what you could," she muttered despondently.
BA glanced helplessly back at the building and his body tensed. "Look!" he shouted.
The group turned to squint where BA pointed, each transfixed
by the sight they beheld. At first all they were able to make out through the smoke and dust was the outline of a shape. A lone figure was walking very slowly towards them through the haze. As it neared they could see that it was a man and lying across his arms was the immobile body of a girl.
"Face," Murdock said softly, as his heart swelled in his chest. His keen eyes though sodden with tears were the first to see their friend and comrade.
The normally suave conman was barely recognizable. Face's torn, scorched clothing was covered by a faded black blanket. His shirt gaped open where it had been ripped to make bandages. A wound still bled from his left thigh. A hole in his pants showed a patch of reddened, blistered skin above the dirtied bandage. Soot and blood streaked his bruised face as well as his neck. Face's silver-gold hair was filthy, and matted around a head wound. He walked as if each step caused him great pain.
But walk he did, slowly.
They stood immobile watching him, frozen in surprise and shock.
Suddenly Face stumbled and fell awkwardly to his knees on to the dusty parking lot. The body in his arms lurched and the girl's head jerked but Face kept hold of her.
Peck lifted his head gradually and looked towards them. All could see, even at that distance, the desperate need in his red-rimmed eyes. In the next instant, everyone rushed towards him.
When they arrived Amy and Mo wanted to embrace Face, but they both stopped short for fear of crowding him. Murdock and BA also held back. Face seemed confused. His tired blue eyes scanned the throng before him, and then came to rest on Drake. The boy knelt before him, his face contorted in sudden fear. He had discerned the identity of the girl in Peck's arms.
"Shannon?" he breathed in disbelief.
Face let out a shuddering sigh as he held out his precious charge to the boy. "She was very brave," he whispered hoarsely. "I couldn't have done it on my own….. Hannibal…."
Finally Mo moved forward, pressed her hand briefly on Face's shoulder, then helped her son gather his woman into his arms. What had so heavily burdened Peck's battered frame appeared a negligible weight for the boy. As he hugged Shannon against him, Drake's shoulders began to shake. Kyle moved to lay a supporting hand on his back as his brother stood up, then they moved away, still clutching the unconscious girl. Sirens wailed through the air.
Relieved of his responsibility, Peck began to tremble. He seemed to be falling in on himself; or was it some sort of drug – was he tripping again? The sun flashed blindingly off the hood of a nearby car, dazzling his eyes; so that though he could make out the forms of other people standing behind Drake's retreating form, but could not distinguish who they were. He was aware of a terrible thirst, and shivered with a sudden chill. Not for the first time in his life, Face felt old; and knew that this time he had no reserves of strength left to sustain him. He groaned desperately.
It was then that Murdock stepped forward and knelt beside him. Peck looked into the pilot's distressed but oh so familiar features and his heart twisted sharply. Murdock was without his cap, his hair tousled, face spattered with blood and grime, eyes circled by fatigue - Face had never seen a more beautiful sight. "I missed you," he murmured.
"You done good, Face," Murdock answered quietly while tightly clasping his hand. "Like you always do."
"Everyone else?" Peck asked, trying to glance around him but failing.
"We're OK – a few scratches and bruises. Shh, Face, you gotta rest now."
Face smiled. His heart swelled with sudden weary need and gratitude. He had survived! Hannibal had said it could be so and so it had come to be – he had to hold on to that. Now he could finally stop fighting. Shannon and the precious babe she carried were returned to her family. Murdock was safe; and the fight was over. Peck could let it all go, and, exhausted, he did. Only BA's quick step forward to catch him in a strong embrace stopped him from falling further into the dirt, unable to keep his head up anymore.
"Murdock," he muttered softly. "Can we buy a house, one with a white picket fence?" BA and Murdock exchanged worried glances.
"Rest now, Faceman, we gonna get you to a hospital!" BA told him.
Face heard his words as from a distance, and tried to smile at him. Though the worst of his suffering was now over, he still had so much to do, but he also understood that it would have to wait. He was too tired to do anything other than sleep now. At the end of his strength, Face could at last welcome oblivion.
And so he did.
"I just wish they'd chosen a different name – Templeton is so… so goofy!" Face bleated. "He'll get into so many fights over it, and anyway, it's not even my real name!"
Murdock snorted. "You know damn well why they chose it so quit whining! You're fooling nobody, Face – I saw that contented glint in your eye when they told you!"
Peck screwed up his perfect features, looking unconvinced. "But I…."
"No!" Murdock cut across him. "Quit it all ready! We are not buying your protests. Save your breath and do what you do best – look good and smile!"
They were in the back garden of Mo's house, attending the Christening party of her new grand son; baby Templeton, who had been born a couple of months before. For obvious reasons Mo had decided against a BBQ for the party and so the guests were helping themselves to the impressive spread which weighed down three massive tables in the dining room. Murdock, while reaching for a sausage on a stick, had noted his partner sliding away unobserved into the yard. Firmly placing the aforementioned food in his mouth, he had followed him, picking up two glasses of champagne on his way out, and chewing away.
"Drink this and chill man," he continued. "The kid is a Templeton now, one of a select breed and there's nothing you can do about it!"
Peck nodded and took a hesitant sip from the glass, screwing up his nose as the bubbles tickled it. "I've been thinking, Murdock," he began.
"Oh god, no!" Murdock staggered as if under a terrible weight. "I told you to leave that stuff to me – I'm the brains, you just look good and smile!"
Peck snorted. He ran his finger around the rim of his glass and down its slender stem. Murdock watched its passage, noting the damage done by Lorelei's stilettos was all but healed. Face had joked that he would not make it as a concert pianist now; the movement he got was never going to be one hundred per cent but it was good enough.
It was six months since the fire and Face had recovered as much as could be expected. Murdock had taken him on a Caribbean cruise for the past three weeks and the conman had appeared healthy and adjusted. But Murdock sensed there was more. In as gentle way as possible he had tried to talk about what had happened in the industrial unit but his lover had clammed up completely. Shannon had told the pilot what little she remembered but it had hardly filled any major missing parts of the jigsaw. And then there were the dreams – not the terrifying nightmares of before but disconcerting still. Face would mumble and hold quiet conversations in his sleep and Murdock had heard him mention Hannibal on a number of different occasions. Always on waking Peck denied all knowledge of what Murdock had heard.
Murdock hadn't forgotten the weird comment about a picket fence or the mention of the Colonel when Face had escaped the fire. Peck was still hurting, Murdock was sure, but why? And how the hell could he help him if he refused to open up? Maybe now he was ready to explain, he certainly looked serious enough as he chewed his lip nervously.
But when the words came they were nothing like those that Murdock had suspected he was going to hear. "I'm going to turn myself in," Peck said finally.
Murdock spluttered out champagne, almost drowning in his surprise. "You what?"
Peck nodded. "I broke my parole; I'm still wanted. I think I need to sort it out."
"But we agreed you were better off on the run."
"I know but…. Hell, I'm getting too old for this, Murdock. I can't keep looking over my shoulder! I talked to a lawyer – a good one from Beverly Hills, he said I had a good case. After all I am innocent of everything and I got some proof, everything except skipping bail. He reckons if I'm lucky I might just get another suspended sentence."
"And if you're not?"
Face shrugged. "Worse case scenario – five years!"
"Five years!" Murdock howled. "I can't live without you for five whole years!"
Peck regarded him but said nothing more and Murdock knew that his lover had made up his mind. "So that's it?" he spat. "You make a decision that is gonna radically alter both our lives and you just tell me like that. Whatever happened to discussion, option appraisal, debate, sharing, partnership?" He could tell from the steely gleam in Peck's eye that nothing he could say would dissuade him. "You egotistical, obstinate …" he murmured in defeat, further words deserting him, so he turned away as the true import of Peck's proposal hit him.
Face smiled sadly. "Comes a point when you got to stop running, when you got to face up to your responsibilities; when you got to grow up. Maybe I finally reached mine."
Murdock pouted, turned back over his shoulder to look at Peck, suddenly his lover seemed small and vulnerable and fragile. "What will I do without you?" Murdock asked in a little voice.
Blue eyes wide and beseechingly bright then. "Wait for me, Murdock!"
"How have you got the nerve to even ask, Face! You self-centred, stubborn, stupid …" He stopped, stepped forward and enveloped Peck in a deep embrace. "Sexy," he finished. They clutched each other close but Murdock pulled away finally. "What about Lorelei?" he asked.
"What about her?" It was Peck's turn to look away, unable to hold Murdock's penetrating gaze, colouring slightly.
"She got away, remember. She's out there somewhere. I know you too well, Face, you are not going to let her away with it!"
"Oh Lorelei a mythical monster to be sure! She's out there, brushing her golden hair with her golden comb, calling to me even now," Peck's features took on a dreamy quality as he mused. "She'll draw me back in time. But I can't take her on, not yet. She's holding all the cards. She could take me down easy anytime with just a phone call to the cops. When I face her I need to be clean, I need to be the good guy, Murdock. Do you understand?"
Murdock sighed. "Yeah, I do. Just as long as you are planning to face her – it's what Sundance would do."
Peck sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "First things, first," he said softly. "Got to pay my debt to society."
Murdock growled. "I thought you were too pretty for prison!" He let his exasperation out. "And I'm expected to look after things while you're gone!"
On full power Peck's smile radiated around the pilot making that hot tingling sensation run clear up and down his spine. "Please, Murdock, " Face said. "I'll make it worth your while…. "
THE END