Chapter Eight: The Hawke Brothers Together Again

The three men stood embracing each other. String held on to Sinj afraid that if he let go he may never see him again. Finally breaking away from him the question was on his mind and then off his lips. "Sinj, where the hell have you been?"

St. John was not prepared to answer what was more of a complex question then either man knew. "String, I'll explain later. I take it you're here to find your friend Catlin?"

The question brought Dom and String back to reality. "Do you know where she is?" Dom asked looking hopeful.

"Right now Dom I need to make contact with someone that works with me, and then we can talk."

Strings smile turned angry. "You mean another operative don't you?"

St. John was uncomfortable. "Yeah, it's another operative. I told you I will explain. Right now Caitlin is running out of time."

AVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVVAAVAVAVAVAVAV

Two hours later in their hotel room the three of them sat silent. String was up looking out the window. It was hard to comprehend. St. John chose this life over him. He didn't have the time to process it or ask why.

"So you helping Cait was just a coincidence?" String asked without turning around.

"String I swear, I had no idea who Cait was before this. I've heard rumors over the past two years that you had commandeered a highly sophisticated helicopter that you were the test pilot for. I heard that you were the best out there and the only one that could fly her."

String spun around. "Is that all you heard?" He asked in an accusatory tune.

St. John knew he had to come clean or String would know. He needed String to trust him if they were to rescue Cait. "No I knew more. I know that you and Dom have been working for the FIRM." He stood then went to the window that String had been standing at. "I also knew you were looking for me."

Strings anger boiled over as he headed for the door. If he didn't leave the room one of them would wind up hurt. St. John started to go after him. Dom grabbed his arm.

"Leave him be Sinj, you know him as well as I do. Let him cool down. He knows we need to get Cait. He won't take long."

String headed out into the street. Spotting an alley way beside the hotel he walked to it punching the first thing he saw, a sign saying No Parking. His hand took in more damage than the sign did. Nursing his hand he decided he couldn't afford an injury if they were going to help Cait. He ran his fingers through his hair and leaned against the wall. Nothing Sinj could ever say to him would take his hurt away. His anger he could deal with, his hurt was there for the long haul.

String paced the room as he was updating Michael by phone. St. John was on his laptop putting together the last details of the deal that was to go down tomorrow night. He had removed everything from the building that he called "home base" for the last year. It had now been compromised and would be of no use to him. Dom was on the phone to the military base where they had left Airwolf letting them know she would need to be fueled up when they arrived. When they all finished they filled each other in on what they had found out.

Dom started first. "The lady is still secured and they will have her fueled up."

St. John laughed to himself. He had been noticing that Dom thought of Airwolf as a live person. That was so much like Dom.

St. John shut his laptop. "There's no turning back now. We meet them tomorrow at eight o'clock pm. They think the weapons will be delivered by truck. I told them I would have the truck there after I verify they have the money. That should give us at least twenty minutes to stall before they get suspicious that the weapons aren't coming." Looking at String, "Do we have ground cover from the FIRM?"

"Michael has a small group of men that will be in place when we arrive. They need to get in and out as soon as possible. He doesn't want an international incident."

Dom stood up ready for a fight. "I don't give a rat's ass about an international incident. This is Cait we're talkin about…."

String was to him before he could finish his sentence placing his hands on his shoulders. "Dom, Michael is doing all he can. You know as well as I do that he is just as worried about Cait as we are. Nothing is as important then bringing her home safe but he does have others he has to answer to."

Dom calmed down. "I know kid, I just want this over with and Cait back home where she belongs."

St. John didn't feel he had a right to comfort either one of them considering his betrayal of the both of them. He wanted to tell his brother that she would be ok. He was beginning to see that there was more to his feelings for her than just friends. He could understand why. He had only briefly known her and had begun to fall for her. "Let's say we all get some sleep."

String picked up his things and headed for the door. Dom asked him where he was going.

"I prefer to sleep in Cait's room tonight. I need to clear my head."

Dom looked to Sinj. He knew there was more to it than that. String needed the comfort that being close to her things would bring.

String was lying in bed unable to sleep. Now that there was no planning to do there was nothing to stop the thoughts in his head. He didn't want to think of what she was going through. St. John had assured him they would not sexually assault her. String knew that was true but he had been deployed in the Middle East as well and fought against the terrorist there. They would not hesitate to hurt her if she tried to escape or failed to cooperate. Both things he knew she would do if the opportunity would present its self. He was startled by a knock on the door. Opening it he found St. John standing there. String motioned him in.

"I wasn't sure if you would let me in or not."

String plopped back down on the bed lying back on the pillows. "I don't want to talk about it right now Sinj."

"I know, that's not why I'm here."

String looked disinterested.

"You're in love with her? St. John waited for an answer.

String sprang up grabbing a bottle of water that was nearby. "Let's just stick to the details of the mission."

Sinj didn't take the hint or he was ignoring it. "String I may have been absent from your life for six years but that doesn't mean I don't know you. Dom tells me she is in love with you. That would explain why she responded to my kiss the way she did."

String gave him a sharp look but kept his emotions in check. Sinj Smiling to himself thought he got the reaction he wanted from his younger brother. Now he had his attention.

Strings first instinct was to punch him but he refrained. "What the hell do you mean you kissed her?"

"When I pulled her into the building to hide from the crowd I wasn't actually nice to her. She got pissed at me and started to leave."

"And" String said glaring at his brother.

"And I grabbed her to prevent her from leaving. I don't know why but I wanted to kiss her so I did. In case you haven't noticed she is very desirable." Sinj was hoping that last line would provoke him even more.

"That doesn't explain what you meant when you said she responded to your kiss." String was getting upset with himself. It was not like him to reveal this much of his emotions. He hated that Sinj was able to penetrate his steel exterior. Sinj had only been reunited with him for a day and had already discovered his weakness.

"Well let's just say she didn't fight me on it."

String was up and across the room. St. John was not able to duck fast enough as Strings fist made contact with his chin. "That's for Cait." He said as he gathered his things and went back to his room.

Sinj slowly rose to his feet feeling his chin as he grinned. "Yep, he's in love with her alright."

AVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAV

St. John stood in awe as he ran his hand down Airwolf. Turning to face String and Dom. "You lucky bastards." String didn't respond. He had nothing to say to his brother unless it pertained to the mission.

They loaded what gear they thought they would need and proceeded to do a flight check. The base had kept the high powered flying weapon out of sight as best they could. A few pilots were standing around the hangar hoping to get a chance to see her up close. Dom took on the task of keeping them away.

It was 7:30pm, time to head out. The three men took their place inside Airwolf. String and Dom proceeded as if they had done this a thousand times. St. John had not flown for awhile, he felt out of place with nothing to do as String and Dom started the complicated bird. Getting the go ahead String abruptly lifted off the tarmac. Before St. John could brace himself he was pinned against the seat as String called for turbo's. He looked down to see that they were flying at mach speed 30 feet above the ground. He had heard of Strings almost supernatural flying abilities but no amount of hearsay could prepare him for the real thing. His brother was unmatchable he thought. He couldn't have been prouder of him.

They were hovering high above the compound that they had moved their operations to. String called for Dom to do a visual and audio scan. Hoping they could locate Cait by process of elimination.

"String the bigger building to the right is the only one that's occupied. The two smaller buildings are stocked with weapons."

"Can you break down the occupants by rooms Dom?"

"I'm doing that now String."

The men hovered for a few minutes before Dom had some useful information.

"There are fourteen men, all armed. Eight of them are in the inner building. Looks like it's a warehouse of some sort. Two men are by the front entrance two by the back the last two are in the far south corner of the building. She can't be here String. Every person down there is armed."

St. John spoke up. "Dom look for a solid image, it should be close to the two men by the south corner."

"Checking now, hey wait a minute there is a solid block down there. It looks like it could be a room that is heavily fortified. She could be there and I can't pick up a heat source or…" Dom stopped himself. String didn't ask him to finish, he thought the same thing, or she could be dead.

Sinj knowing what they were thinking spoke up. "She's in there, if not why would they have two men guarding it?"

String felt his gut unclench. Sinj was right. That had to be where they were keeping her.

AVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVVAVAVAVAVAAVAVA

Cait was sitting on the cot with her knees drawn up to her chest. When they brought her food this evening one of the guards had said this could be her last meal if her lover didn't show up with the weapons. She smiled at the thought. She knew String for almost two years and the most she ever got from him was a friendly peck on the check or quick innocent kiss on the lips. She was with St. John all of two times and his kiss was passionate enough to convince them that she was his lover. The irony of it all she thought. She wondered about her family. The people she was working with from Lear had to have notified them. After all they had no way of knowing why she disappeared or who had her. She worried more about her mom's suffering than her own. She hoped that by now Michael was involved which meant that String and Dom would bring the lady. The only thing she could do was wait for St. John.

It was five minutes until eight. Dom had let String and Sinj off a mile from the compound. They stood about ten feet away ducking behind a jeep. Sinj turned to String. "I'm going in now. I'll tell them my men are a mile from here with the truck waiting on my signal. Remember try to find her within twenty minutes. If they get antsy and make a move I will signal you with two shots."

"I'm clear. Dom will keep audio on. If we run into trouble he can come in and also notify Michael's ground troops." Sinj got up to leave as String pulled him back down. "Don't disappear or die on me this time."

Sinj tried to make light of what was just said but knew String meant it. Putting his hand on the back of his neck he pulled him close. "I'll see you back at the lady." With that String watched him approach the compound.

Sinj was stopped by the guard at the entrance. "Muldoon here," The man opened the door and let him in.

Dom radioed String. "The two guards at the back door just joined the other men with St. John."

String didn't question their good fortune; he took off for the back entrance. Crouching down he spotted the two guards that were guarding Cait. It was an inner building that was ten by twelve feet. It was incased by metal that was about a foot thick. The door had a big metal latch on the outside. Some more good fortune, it didn't require a key to open. String crawled closer to the room. He could now hear Sinj talking with the terrorist leader.

"Yeah, it looks like the money is all here. I'll have my men drive the truck in." Sinj took out his cell phone. The men aimed their weapons on him. "Hey, let's all remain calm. I just need to radio the truck. Once they are here I leave with the money and the girl."

The men motioned for him to make the call. String watched as one of the guards took a seat in a chair that was facing where St. John and the men were. The other was leaning against the wall. String decided to take out the one by the wall first. His Arabic was rusty but he knew enough to perhaps call the man away from his post. Ducking behind shelves stacked with boxes he spoke loud enough for the man to hear him asking for help with a box on the shelf. The man headed down the aisle; as soon as he saw no one was there he turned to report what had just happened. He was met with a hard kick to his face as he fell to the ground. String quickly pulled him behind the shelves and waited for the other to investigate. The other guard calling out did not get a response; he made the same mistake as the first and was met with the same fate. Seeing no one else was around he undid the latch. It was dark inside. The only light came through the small air vent in the ceiling. His heart sank when he saw the room was empty. Hearing a noise behind him he turned around as someone tried to run out of the room. He made it to the door first. Catching sight of her green eyes he grabbed her around the waist. She was fighting as hard as she could which wasn't much. She was weak and not able to break from his hold. He held her tight and whispered in her ear.

"Cait, I've got you, you're ok." She instantly fell limp in his arms. He held her for as long as he dared to knowing they needed to get out of there.

Cait was trembling. She buried her face in his chest and breathed in his scent. She was finally able to speak. "I hoped you and Dom would come for me."

He kissed the top of her head. "Always" He said

String heard the sound of voices getting louder. "We need to get out of here Cait." He pulled Cait toward the door. Cait hesitated as she placed her hands on his arms stopping him.

"Wait. I need to tell you something." She feared that one or both of them would get killed before she had a chance to tell him she found St. John. Taking his chin she turned his head so he was looking at her. "String, St. John is alive. I talked to him."

They were interrupted by the sound of one of the guards looking for the absent guards. String placed his finger over her lips motioning for silence. He watched as the guard gave up the search and returned to the other men. He heard Sinj tell the terrorist in Arabic that the truck was there. Seeing the way out was clear he took her by the wrist and led her out the back door. Once out he heard Airwolf as Dom descended down. At the same time all hell had broken lose. The truck wasn't carrying weapons but the small group of men that Michael had sent to back them up. String could hear gun fire as he was making sure Cait was safe inside Airwolf. He tried to close the door but was stopped as Cait tried to get out.

"String where are you going?"

"Get back in, Dom cover me." He said as he forced her back inside. Dom lifted off.

St. John was pinned down behind a clutter of discarded metal barrels unaware that one of the terrorist was approaching him from behind. Turning as the man was on him he heard a gunshot. The man fell face first into him as his lifeless body slide down to his feet. Looking up from the man was String holding his gun with two hands. "Let's go, Dom has Cait."

St. John followed his brother as String was radioing for Dom to land. He had been keeping the terrorist busy as they were trying to fire on Airwolf the ground troops were able to easily take them.

Cait couldn't believe what she saw. String and St. John together. St. John had kept his word and had come back for her. Both men climbed in. St. John took his seat in front with String. Turning around he winked at her. "I told you I'd be back for you." He carefully looked for Strings reaction. Even with his helmet on he could see that String was clinching his jaw. Something he did when he was angry.

String lifted off without saying anything except "Turbos Dom."