Keeper of the Truth
Disclaimer: I do not own The A-Team movie or television series or any of the delightful characters found on The A-Team.
Chapter 15
Face reached for the next handhold on the mountain face. Above him, Hannibal carefully drove in the next piton. With every clink the hammer made, the Lieutenant gritted his teeth. To him, the sound was loud enough to be heard all the way to LA.
Hope the Keepers are sound sleepers.
Neither man spoke. Face figured they had already scaled half of the distance to the top but the con man knew he should not look down to check their progress.
Keep your eyes looking up or directly ahead. Don't look down.
But looking up only made the dimly luminous plastic bag seem farther away than ever. He refocused his attention on the next piton an arm's-length away and stretched to reach it.
B. A.'s voice crackled over the earpieces. "In place, Colonel. Waitin' for your signal."
Hannibal answered back, and even his low mutter seemed to the con man way too loud not to be heard by the occupants of the compound. "Good, B. A. Stand by."
Face had just tightened his grip on the next metal stake Hannibal had placed and began to pull himself up when a rock plummeted to the ground from above him. Instinctively he hugged the stony wall as more stones of varying sizes, none bigger than a softball, cascaded down after it. At the same time, he heard a pained grunt over the earpieces.
"Hannibal?" He wasn't sure what had happened but the soft exclamation made him dare to take a peek upwards.
"Colonel!" There was no response. His CO, the one with 'the plan,' dangled limply from the rope attached by carbiner to the last piton he drove into the rock. The piton hammer hung from his harness. A few feet above him, a fresh scar in the stony mountain face marked the origin of the shower of rocks.
From the earpieces he heard B. A. say something. It was a question but the con man was too stunned by what had just happened for the words to register in his mind.
"B. A.," Face managed to stammer. "I think we might have a problem."
oooooo
Murdock felt free . . . free from the past, free from his worst memories of Nam . . . free. He breathed in, his eyes closed, and repeated the words Brother Luke was saying.
"As long as I live . . . as long as I breathe . . . I will not forsake my brothers and sisters . . . I will live in harmony . . . with all . . . "
The litany seemed to continue on for hours, Brother Luke intoning the creed of the Keepers and Murdock echoing what he said.
Finally, Luke murmured, "Open your eyes, Brother Merle. You've completed the pledge. There is one more thing you must do but it can wait until morning. For now, you may return to the barracks."
"Can't I finish it all t'night? I'm not a full-fledged Keeper 'til I do . . . am I?" Murdock felt a pang of disappointment.
I don' know . . . it seems like the real deal . . . 'n' if it is . . . why are we thinkin' o' wreckin' it?
He was starting to have more than a nagging doubt about their mission.
I mean, Schreiker had t' of known what he was doin' when he signed over his property . . . why should we be breakin' up a group that seems like all they want is t' live in peace . . .
Luke interrupted his thoughts. "All of the members of this community must be here to witness you take the final step to becoming a Keeper. They are asleep right now. They . . . and you . . . need rest." The Keeper smiled and stood, holding out his hand to help Murdock to his feet.
"It's . . . it's jus' . . . I wanna start helpin' . . . I wanna b'long . . . "
"I know." Brother Luke patted his shoulder and walked toward the door, then beckoned Murdock to walk with him. "The night will pass quickly enough. You must be patient."
"I'll try . . . but it ain' easy for me . . . "
The pilot looked over his shoulder at the curtained area where the Reverend Barger's voice came from that first time he was in this building. He couldn't be sure but he thought he detected a shadow moving behind the heavy cloth. Staring at the curtain, he paused to make sure but saw nothing else.
Was that Rev'rend Barger? 'N' will I ever get t' see him face t' face? He's awf'ly mysterious.
"Coming, Brother Merle?" Luke held the door open for him, a smile on his face. He cast a glance at the place Murdock was looking and nodded as if reading the other man's mind. "You'll get an opportunity to see the founder and leader of our group tomorrow."
Murdock raised his eyebrows in an unspoken question.
"We protect Reverend Barger against any attacks from the outside. Initiates don't get to see him until they have finished their preparations and pledged their devotion to maintaining the harmony of the group." Without another word, Luke gently led Murdock through the door, carefully closing it behind him and locking it for the night.
oooooo
From the moment B. A. heard Face call out for their leader and receive no answer, he debated what to do. The heavy truck he had readied for crashing the gate sat silent about a mile from the gate. It was hidden from view by a rocky outcropping and the dark surrounding it. He had turned the engine off to avoid detection.
Hannibal's orders're ta wait for his signal. But what if he ain't able ta give it?
But it didn't mean he couldn't find out if the mission had to be aborted.
He took a breath and asked the question. "What the hell's goin' on, Faceman?"
He waited for a few seconds and then the earpieces crackled with the con man's voice.
"B. A.? I think we might have a problem."
The Sergeant stared ahead at the road, dim gray in the night. Problem-solving was not something he was comfortable with. Problems meant the possibility of a teammate getting injured or even killed.
Hannibal, Face or even Murdock usually figured out an alternative plan and told him what to do.
He took a deep breath and voiced the question he needed to have answered. "What's goin' on, Faceman? Is Hannibal okay?"
There was a pause, then, "I'm going to have to climb up a little higher to answer that. Hold on."
B. A. tightened his hold on the steering wheel. Hold on? Nothin' much else I can do but hold on.
He smacked the wheel with the palm of his hand, muttering to himself, anxious for an answer.
oooooo
Brother Amos stormed into the small hut without knocking, his eyes blazing with anger.
He came to a stop a foot from a crudely built table where a overly-thin blonde woman sat, her hand frozen over a cup of steaming tea. Her watery blue eyes opened wide at the sudden intrusion. Seconds later, she relaxed and smiled weakly at the enraged Keeper.
"Brother Amos." She gestured at a wooden crate drawn up to the table. "Come, sit down and have a cup of tea with me. To what do I have the pleasure of your company tonight?" Her smile vanished as he refused the offer of hospitality. "What has my stepson done now?"
She said the word with resignation and turned her gaze toward the curtained-off area of the hut.
"Sister Karen." He breathed deeply several times before speaking again. "Sister Karen, were you aware Aaron broke curfew tonight?"
"Please, Brother Amos. Please sit down." As the Keeper did as asked, Karen stood to get a cup from a shelf above a small camping stove. "Aaron said he needed to go to the bathroom. Did you find him doing something else instead?" She turned toward him, a tea kettle in one hand and the cup in the other.
"He was at the latrine at the same time as the new member of our group. Brother . . . Merle hadn't finished his preparation yet. I have reason to believe Aaron approached him deliberately." Amos took a tea packet from a chipped pink sugar bowl and opened it. Accepting the cup of hot water and dipping the tea bag in it, he waited for her response.
Karen frowned and gazed again at the curtain. "Ever since Ted left us, the boy has been uncontrollable." She sighed heavily and took a sip of tea. "I've thought of turning him over to be punished but . . . " She glanced up at Amos and shook her head. "He's just missing his father."
The other Keeper took a swallow of his own tea. "Have you thought about my offer? We can go in front of the Assembly of Keeperrs tomorrow when Brother Merle finishes his pledges and ask for Reverend Barger's approval."
Karen's mouth hardened into a thin line. When she answered, her voice was strained. "If it will bring stability into Aaron's life and help him with his decision to become a full-fledged Keeper when he comes of age . . . I need a helpmate . . . Ted won't be returning . . . he knows the punishment for turning his back on us." She looked at Amos with teary eyes and reached over to take his hand. "If Reverend Barger gives his blessing, I will accept."
Amos enveloped her hand with his own and squeezed it. He took another swallow of tea and smiled.