Chapter 4

Caitlin listened intently as Michael went over the plans for rescuing Hawke and Dom. He explained that he and Doc were going to enter a small border town that was the agreed meeting place in case the men couldn't get out of Mexico by other means. Caitlin was to be the air support and escort. Since they all couldn't fly out in Airwolf, Marella would be meeting up with them and waiting with Caitlin.

"If all goes well Caitlin," said Michael, "You'll be flying out with Hawke and Dom and Marella will pick up Doc and me."

"Just like old times," she whispered to herself.

Doc continued explaining the plans. "Now Cait, if we don't come back in twenty four hours, you and are Marella are to leave and go home."

"That's right," Michael added. "We don't want anything to happen to the two of you. If we get in trouble, you two are our only hope. You'll have to go for help. Marella will know who to contact."

Doc was adamant, "You need to promise me that you'll leave Cait. Hawke will kill me for dragging you into this if you get hurt."

"You and me both," quipped Michael. "The plan was to keep you out of this for your safety. I just felt that I had no other choice at this point. Bringing you in now seemed to be the best solution."

Caitlin was silent for a long time after that. Both men knew what she was thinking but they waited for her to ask.

"So, my leaving Santini Air was planned, wasn't it? They wanted me out of the way."

"They wanted you safe," replied Michael. "There just wasn't any other way."

She didn't know why, but his words made her angrier than she'd ever been. "They didn't think I could handle myself? Hadn't I proven to them that I could take care of myself? Why would they do that to me?" She held back the tears that were welling up in her eyes.

"Come on Cait, you know better than that," said Doc. "You mean the world to them."

Michael continued. "This mission has saved thousands of lives. I wish I could explain more but right now, that's all I can say. But, they weren't willing to do it if it meant putting you in danger. They knew you wouldn't just leave. They had to find a way to make you want to leave. After the bombing, they knew they made the right decision."

It was sundown by the time they met up with Marella. They quickly covered the helicopters to keep them from being spotted in the air and Michael and Doc set off to locate their friends.

Marella and Cait waited inside Airwolf for protection. Caitlin was tired and emotionally drained. She had learned so much in the last twenty four hours. Everything she thought she knew wasn't as it seemed. "I should have known that it didn't make sense for Hawke to push me away like that," she told Marella. "It just wasn't like him. It broke my heart."

"It hurt him too," Marella responded. "I mean, he didn't say anything but I could tell."

"Well, I don't care what they say," Caitlin protested. "I'm not leaving here without them. If they don't come back in time, I'm going in."

Marella smiled. "I figured you wouldn't. I didn't tell Michael but I came up with a backup plan for us just in case. I don't want to leave without them either."