Chapter 10 – Eavesdropping! Their Favorite Pastime?
The next morning, bright and early, B.A. pulls up in front of Face's place. He gets out and goes up to the apartment and knocks on the door.
"Come in." Face is sitting at his desk, reading the newspaper.
"You guys ready?" The way B.A. says that, it could be a question, or a command.
Murdock calls from the other room. "I'll be right there, as soon as I tell Kelly bye."
"Huh, well let's get going, we still have a lot of ground to cover. Maybe in the daytime we can find them."
He doesn't wait for them to follow, just heads out the door. Face picks up his sport jacket and follows B.A.
"Coming, Murdock? You better hurry, or B.A. will leave you."
"I'm here. Let's go."
"How's Kelly doing?"
"Okay, she says not to call too often, cause she doesn't want me distracted."
"Well, she may have something there. We do need to stay sharp and focused. Things are likely going to get hairy real quick now."
"Oh Faceman, don't worry about me. You know I'm right on target when it comes to dropping bombs on the bad guys."
"Uh, Murdock, we aren't dropping bombs, but they may be. We need to find them before that happens. Got it? We are not bombing anything, okay?"
"Right! No bomb dropping! How about name dropping? Would that be okay? Maybe dropping the ball, or dropping a line." Murdock continues along this line until they get to the van. As soon as he sees B.A.'s angry mug, and hears his growl, he stops, climbs in, and shuts the door without another word.
"Face, I marked on the map where we were last night, and some of the buildin's near where our dish may have picked up the voices you heard. I figured how far our dish would work, compared ta where we were parked last night."
"Wow B.A., this is great. Let's head back down to that area. Of course, we'll have to be a little more careful today, because we can't get caught again by that security guard, Connors, and we don't want to be spotted by the robbers, either."
"No problem. I think I remember a little place I can pull inta and we can still get the dish out far enough ta pick up any conversations goin' on."
"Face, are we ready to move if we need to, to stop these guys?" Murdock is itching for action and it is going to get active, real soon, he can feel it. Right Murdock, be one step ahead of those scumballs. Face has the main plan down. Just follow his orders and stay loose. You'll catch em. I know. Thanks Hannibal, I know we can do this. We may be old, but we're not done yet. We'll get em for you.
"Murdock, did you hear what I said? Murdock?"
"Sorry Face, I guess, I zoned out a bit. What did you say?"
"I said, make sure you have your fake i.d. again, in case we get spotted, and stay loose. We may have to improvise as we go along, you, too, B.A. You handled it just right last night guys, but he was an easy con. These guys won't be that gullible, so be ready to go with anything."
B.A. pulls into the area he has marked on the map and they settle in to try to locate the building that Face heard the conversation emanating from last night. "Okay Murdock, hold it up and let's get started." Face once again puts the headset on and starts listening. They try different directions and altitudes on the dish for about an hour. "I don't get it. I know what I heard last night. Why can't we find these guys!"
"You know Face, maybe we should try to increase the range of our dish, or try moving again." Murdock suggests.
"Murdock, what do you know about these things? I could try to increase the range, Face, but it will take a little time. Do you think we have it?" B.A. and Murdock are both looking at Face for conformation. Ok, Lieutenant, you've got em now! Keep up the good work kid, you're doing me proud. Ok, Hannibal, I'll try, and thanks for the confidence in me. To B.A. he says, "do it."
B.A. spends about thirty minutes working on the dish and fiddling with the receiver. He finally declares that he thinks it will reach a little farther than before.
"Let's give it another try." Face puts on the headset again and immediately hears a voice. It is faint, but it sounds like the same guy he heard last night. "B.A., can you turn up the volume a little, I've got something."
B.A. reaches behind him and turns a knob. "How's that?"
"Better, thanks." The man is talking about going somewhere and…"what was that, putting together the bomb? "Can we figure out which building we are picking up?"
"Well, we can drive in the direction that Murdock is holdin' the dish. Just keep it pointed the same direction, no matter which way I turn. Can you do that?"
"Sure big guy. Just don't make too big a turn, or jerk the wheel around and I should be able to do it?"
"Don't you tell me how ta drive, I know what I'm doin', you do your part."
"I always do, big guy, I always do."
B.A. slowly drives the van down to the end of the row they are on, turns right, and then back to the left as soon as they get to the next row of warehouses.
"That's it B.A., I think it is coming from that building. Go past it and park in between this building and the next one."
Just as they drive by, the big garage type door opens up and a car pulls out. Murdock moves the dish out of the window and Face ducks down in the seat.
"Keep going B.A., don't stop now. Just keep going, slowly."
"They pulled out and went the other way. I'm goin' ta go up a couple more buildin's and then turn around. Okay, Face?"
"Sure." Face says this as he sits back up in the seat. "Yeah, pull over here. Let's see if anybody else comes out."
They wait for about ten minutes with no sign of activity. It has been several hours now since they came down to the warehouses, and Murdock is tired of waiting.
"I'm going in to see if I can find anything that might prove these are the guys we're looking for. If I'm not out in an hour, you can come in and help me out."
"Good thinking. Get in there and look around. We sure don't want to waste our time on this warehouse, if it's the wrong one." Face comments.
"Wish me luck, big guy?"
"Just don't blow yourself up if you find the bomb."
"Thanks, B.A. I mean, thanks, for caring."
"Carin', if it's a bomb, it might take us out, too. Now get goin!"
"Yeah, I knew you loved me."
"Git!"
Murdock slides open the door and climbs out. Then he shuts the door behind him. Next, he walks over to the left side of the building. He searches around and finds a door in the back that has a lock he can pick. He slips inside, hoping no one is standing just inside the door. He lets his eyes adjust to the darker interior, and then slowly starts moving around some boxes that are stacked in front of him. He gets to a corner and peers around. He hasn't heard any voices, but that doesn't mean no one is here. Well so far, so good. He steps out into the open and heads for a group of tables, with chairs scattered around them, like someone has recently had a meeting and then just got up and left. There are some papers and what looks like plans on the table, so Murdock shuffles them around so he can look through them. It seems he is looking at a building layout. It shows three stories above ground and a basement. Two of the rooms are numbered. The one on the first floor looks like a laboratory of some sort, and the one on the second floor, maybe a classroom? Hey, this looks like a college. Wonder what they're planning. He starts to move around to the other side of the table to look at some other drawings, when he hears the motor on the overhead door kick in. Oh no, time to go! He heads back toward the boxes and just manages to get out of sight before the door is open far enough for the people in the car to see him. He doesn't have time to get out the back door, so he lays low, hoping no one will come back in his direction. He will have to wait for the opportune time to get out the door, unheard. Oh drats! I left my cell phone in the van. How could I be so forgetful? He knows the guys are watching and they will realize soon enough that he didn't get out. The only thing they won't know is if he is safe or not. Well, I'll just have to hope they don't come barging in the door, guns blazing, or we might lose this lead.
While Murdock is inside, Face and B.A. sit outside keeping an eye out for trouble. Face decides to tell B.A. that Hannibal's been "helping" him to know what to do.
"Ah, B.A., I have something to tell you. Since Hannibal died, I have been, you know, hearing him in my head, like he's talking to me." Face glances over at B.A. to see him looking at him as if he has lost it.
"You are hearin' Hannibal talkin' ta ya? Are you goin' senile? I mean Face, you gotta be kiddin' me?"
"Forget it. I shouldn't have said anything. I just figured maybe I should level with you, cause I am not coming up with all these ideas on my own. Hannibal has been helping me." He looks at B.A. again out of the corner of his eye and what he sees tells him he really should have kept this to himself.
"Face, you are losin' it. I know that since Hannibal died, we have all been a little upset, but…"
"Okay, B.A. Just forget I said anything, got it?"
Under his breath, B.A. mutters, "That crazy man is rubbin' off on all of us!"
Just then the suburban pulls around the corner and triggers the garage door to open.
"Oh, no! They sure came back in a hurry. Now what?"
They wait for five tension filled minutes hoping Murdock will come out. No Murdock.
"Okay Face, now what do we do? That crazy fool must still be in there. He could be in trouble, they might be hurtin' him, what are we gonna do?"
"Just calm down B.A., I haven't heard any gun fire, so he is probably hiding out. We need to…uh oh, here comes that rent- a-cop again. Duck B.A. Let me into the driver's seat. We don't want him to see you. He thinks you're in custody. Now, to get out us out of here."
From the floor behind the front seats, B.A. speaks up, "Where are we goin'?"
"Away from here, for now. We can't have this guy walking in on this he could get hurt."
"Yeah, but what about Murdock?"
"Well, we'll get back to him as soon as we can. Murdock knows what to do. He'll be okay." Under his breath he says, "I hope."
Face takes a right turn and then another right and drives out of the warehouse area. Quickly, he heads for the highway, to try to lose Officer Connors. He doesn't want to go too fast, or appear like he is running, he just needs to lose him and get back to Murdock. He gets enough ahead of Connors' car so he can safely leave the highway. He stops at the bottom of the ramp, and waits to see if Connors follows him off. No sign of him, so he drives under the freeway and up the onramp heading back to San Pedro.
"Okay, B.A. you can get up now."
B.A. climbs into the passenger seat and asks, "so now what? How're we gonna get the crazy man outa there?"
"Well, I've been thinking about that. I think we need a diversion. Then maybe Murdock can get out. If that doesn't work, I guess we'll have to break out the weapons."
"Yeah? What kinda diversion?"
They are pulling off the highway again and heading for the warehouses.
"You know that warehouse across from the one Murdock is in?"
"Yeah, what about it?"
"I think we can heat it up. Know what I mean?" Face looks at him with a wild look in his eye and a smile on his face. He raises his eyebrow and then the light bulb goes off in B.A.'s head.
"Oh, right, now I know what you got in mind," he says grinning.
Just then, they pull up to the building that is one down from where Murdock is hiding. They quietly leave the van and sneak into the unoccupied building. They go about gathering flammable materials and place them in a pile for burning. Then, Face pulls out a lighter and they get the flame to catch.
"Now B.A., let's get out of here."
They head back out the door, and when the smoke starts coming out from under the door, they go into action. B.A. jogs back to the van and turns it facing along the side of the building, just out of sight, so they can head out as fast as possible. Face is running toward the building yelling, "Fire! Fire! Somebody help me." He doesn't want to get so close that they get a good look at him, but he needs to get their attention.
Waters and the others hear Face yelling and rush over to their walk-in door to look out.
"Hey, that warehouse is on fire. Shouldn't we do something to help? Would that be okay?"
Waters pushes him and the others out the door and grabs a fire extinguisher just inside.
"We've got to get this out before the whole San Pedro fire department shows up. We can't have them looking too closely at what is going on in our building."
"Thank you, Faceman and B.A." Murdock uses the "fire" to make good his escape. He manages to get out the back door and heads in the opposite direction from the fire.
Face jumps into the van when he sees the door opening and the bad guys spilling out. B.A. guns the van's engine and they take off. They go around the building and pick Murdock up on the way down the back row. The guys putting out the fire don't even notice them. They are too busy fighting the fire and worrying about Mr. Thompson's plan being ruined to notice anything else.
"Thanks guys, I was hoping you hadn't left me for good."
"Face wouldn't let me."
"Oh come on B.A., you know you were worried about me. Wasn't he, Face? He was worried, right?"
"Ah, Murdock, did you learn anything while you were in there?"
"Yes I did. Actually, I learned a lot. They are going to put a bomb in a college somewhere here in L.A. They never actually said the name of the school, but it is one where there are a lot of kids whose daddies are rich. The whole idea is for the parents to pay up one million each for a total of ten million, for their kids to be released unharmed. Otherwise, Mr. Thompson and his friends back there are going to blow up the college and everyone in it."
"What? Blow up a college full of rich kids, you gotta be kiddin'? Is that really the plan, or did you fade out and make this all up?"
"No B.A., I didn't fade out! I saw the plans on the table. The building where they are planning the attack is one that has three stories and a basement. I think there was a pool in the basement, but just as I was going to look at the other plans, they came in and I had to hide. The rest I picked up from listening to their conversation while I was waiting for you to come back and get me out of there."
"Did you say Thompson? Anybody know who he is? I don't think I have ever heard that name before."
"I don't know him Face, but they all seem pretty scared of him. A guy named Waters was there telling everyone what to do."
"Did you hear anything else?" Face is hoping for more information because this isn't much to go on. "I mean, what are we going to tell Det. Johnson? Out of all the colleges in the city, the bad guys are going to bomb one, and oh yeah it may have a pool in the basement?"
"Well next time, you can go in and risk your own life to get some intell."
"I'm sorry, Murdock. I didn't mean it like that, but we have to have more than this to go on."
"I did hear them say something about building the bomb at the school because it's closed for the day for some reason, but they never mentioned the school by name. Did I miss a holiday, or something? "
"No, no holidays this week, none that I know about. So maybe the school is closed for some other reason?"
"Do you think Johnson could help us, maybe call around and find a college that is closed for a day for some reason, maybe a repair or something?"
"I guess we could try that. It's better than nothing. I'll give him both of those names and see if he has a line on either of them. Meanwhile, let's get back to my place. If we are going to go into a college, we have got to figure out some angles, or something to get us in and I need to get a plan going, a different one now that we have some idea as to what is going on. Did they mention anything more about the bomb? Like what kind, how much explosive they are using, anything?"
"Well, I was saving that for the right time. It's a dirty bomb. They got their hands on some plutonium. I don't know how much, but my guess is enough to get the job done at the school and plenty left over for the surrounding neighborhood, like five to ten miles of neighborhood!"
"A dirty bomb? Did you say a dirty bomb? Man that could wipeout a pretty good chunk of L.A." B.A. can't understand why anyone would want to do something like this for money. It's just too horrible to even imagine.
"This certainly puts a new twist on it, like how are we going to stop these guys, and just where in the heck are they planning to do this deed?"
"We could follow em?"
"No B.A., we need to get there first and get set up. If we are following them, we're always a step behind. And if they already have it built and in place, we may have a very hard time locating it. We have got to get the location of that college and we've got to get it before they start their campaign of destruction. It's not going to be just getting the kids out, we have to find the bomb before they get a chance to detonate it and wipe out a lot of innocent people."
"These guys are truly crazy!" Murdock is aghast.
"Well I guess you would know!" B.A. snickers, but then focuses quickly on his driving.
Murdock gives B.A. a look that says, "Thanks", but doesn't say anything else about the remark. Hannibal has just told him to "cool it, Captain, and so he does.
"We could go back to school?"
"I think you are a little old Murdock, and besides, we can't register this late. However, we might be able to go in as teachers."
"I ain't gonna be no teacher, so you better think of something else."
"Well B.A., maybe you could be a maintenance person, or security guard." He looks over at B.A. and quickly says, "No, not a security guard, besides they would be looking to take you out first thing, and we don't want that."
"No, we don't!"
"I think we need to go back one more time with the listening device and see if we can pick up the location, but I want to be totally ready to head out as soon as we get it so we can get set up. Let's go B.A. we have work to do!"
B.A. guns the van and they head quickly back to Face's apartment, their headquarters so to speak for all the plans they have been making. They just hope they can figure out a good one, so they can put a stop to this act of kidnapping and terrorism. As the A-Team of old, they don't have a care for themselves, but a total focus on how to stop the bad guys and help the innocent.