It was 11:00 pm, and as soon as the plan had started rolling, Hannibal began playing his part expertly, hoping that he could be in and out of the casino with Dolly before security got wize-whether of him and his rescue, or of the rest of his team. He smirked at no one in particular, confident in his team's skills and in Amy's role as a distraction just to make sure everything went smoothly.

He straightened his black bowtie and smoothed out his fake salt and pepper mustache, turning from one hallway to the next in the large hotel several floors above the casino. He felt his wig securely on his head, puffed the cigarette in his mouth (he really did prefer cigars), and smoothed out his suit-complete with hidden gadgets from their new scientific friends that seemed to electrify him with Jazz as he checked the watch on his wrist.

The signal was getting less and less fuzzy as Hannibal went higher and higher in the seemingly endless building, and he refrained from chuckling to himself as he looked again at Mr. Parton's watch that was honing in on its twin nearby.

It seemed almost impossible to Hannibal that such technology existed-that any of the technology that they had used existed. If they had had these gadgets back at The Bank of Hanoi… But now wasn't the time for reminiscing, and Hannibal wasn't one to reminisce, and so he pressed on, staying in high class character to the few rich gamblers he passed.

Hannibal wasn't surprised to peek around a corner and spot two burly guards who were definitely carrying guns in their jackets standing guard outside the door to the suite section of the hotel, and knowing it was his destination, he backtracked a little, thinking fast. The old room-service gag might work, but required more prep then Hannibal had done, and so he reached inside his jacket to fish through his pockets. It didn't take him long to find what he was looking for.

He pulled out a cigarette case, identical to any other, half empty and worn out. Giving his own cigarette another puff, he casually strode past the two men, stopping as if he had just noticed them.

"Ah! gentlemen! Maybe you can help me? I'm looking for friend who I know is rooming on this floor, tall, brunette, very good looking-if you know what I mean?" Hannibal gave a loud guffaw that startled the men, and then when neither answered him, he pulled the cigarette from his mouth and gestured towards them, "You two haven't seen my lady, have you now?"

The first man shook his head in a way that told Hannibal to get lost, but he just sighed and said, "Well, that figures." He stretched the cigarette case in front of them, offering one to each as he continued on, "I should've known that a girl with those looks wouldn't want to stick long with a bachelor like me." His demeanor seemed to disarm the large men enough to take his gift, and he pulled his lighter out as he rambled,

"I just sometimes wonder if there's ever a girl that'll stay with me, you know?" He glanced up at the men as he lit their cigarettes, "But you two probably wouldn't know anything about that, the ladies are probably lining up to get just one night with one of you."

One of the goons snorted at that, and Hannibal gave another loud guffaw as the three of them smoked their cigarettes.

He saw that the man who had snorted his cigarette was already beginning to get droopy, with the other guard quickly following, and he snickered one more time as himself as they fell at his feet, completely out, "I'm just not as young as I used to be… heheh." However old he may be, Hannibal knew that when those two woke up with pounding headaches, they would feel like even older men.

Hannibal pulled the men's bodies into a nearby closet he had passed, making sure no one saw him (virtually no one was this high up in the building), grabbed their pistols, and shoved them in a nearby potted plant, dropping his own cigarette and snuffing it out. Feeling satisfied with a job well done, He smoothed himself down again and continued on his way, being much more careful as the danger grew.

Mr. Parton's watch/compass was directing him unwaveringly farther into the suites, and Hannibal was sure he had found his way when he reached an elaborate door after dodging his way past a guard casually patrolling the floor. The door was locked, naturally, but Hannibal made quick work of it and managed to get in the door before the guard came strolling back.

He was a little surprised to see the empty room before him and not an entourage of security, but pressed on, through the fancy living room he had entered, and towards the bedroom from which the signal was coming. The door was slightly ajar, and Hannibal could hear quiet sniffling coming from inside it.

After making sure he wasn't walking into a trap by cautiously peering all around the room that Mrs. Parton was in, he stepped in and said, "Knock, Knock!" The woman nearly jumped clear out of her skin as she whirled around to look at him, fear written all over her face, and Hannibal put a hand up and softened his voice, "Never fear, Mrs. Parton, I'm Hannibal Smith. I'm here to help."

She seemed less scared after she stared at him for a moment but not nearly as much as she should have as she shifted in her worn pajama dress and robe. She wiped her eyes and gingerly brushed back her graying blonde hair, but paused before she looked up at him again, this time with eyes widening in surprise, and she shakily asked, "Hannibal Smith? From The A-Team?" He gave her a toothy smile and a confident nod,

"That's right."

The surprise seemed to fade from her face, leaving a woman in her late forties looking more like she was a century old, aged and worn out. She slowly slumped a little farther on the bed she was sitting on, and gave a sad sigh, "I'm so sorry to have dragged you into all this, Mr. Smith."

"Hannibal is fine, Ma'am-and don't you worry, we've got nothing better to do." He stepped closer to her after glancing to make sure they were still alone.

"No, no, Mr. Smith, you don't understand…" She looked up at him as if she wanted to say something, but ended up biting down on her lip and shaking her head sadly. Feeling the time pressing them, and knowing the rest of his crew must have been halfway to the vault already, he reached for her arm and pulled her to her feet, stating,

"Well you can explain after we get outta here." Not giving her much choice, he guided her to the door, and then through the suite. After peeking out of the hallway door to make sure the lone patroller wasn't in sight, he took Dolly's hand and slipped into the hallway and then back out of the suite section of the hotel. She said nothing until they had nearly reached the elevator, when she gave his hand a tug.

"Mr. Smith-I can't let you do this… you're only going to get caught!" Hannibal only pressed the elevator button and raised his eyebrow at her, and she blurted, "He's waiting down there for us!" Hannibal stopped in his tracks in the empty elevator lobby.

"What?"

The woman nodded frantically, "It's true! He doesn't know who you are, but he knew that my husband would try to hire someone to save me, and he told me that if I let you take me away he will send a signal and-and-" her voice cracked as she finished, "-and someone will shoot Mark!"

Hannibal yanked the woman out of the center of the room and looked at his own watch, trying to somehow factor in this new development.

11:41.

"How much do you know?" He asked, all business.

"I-" Dolly stilled, "Not much. He-Mr. Castellano-told me that if I didn't cooperate, he would have my husband killed." She seemed to shiver with horror when she spoke Vito's name. "He said that someone would probably try to save me, and if they did, then I had better lead them down the elevator after eleven PM cause that's where all the guards would be waiting."

The truth in her words rang in Hannibal's stomach, but before it could do any acrobatics, he stopped it and took hold of Mrs. Parton's wrist, ignoring the fearful squeak she gave. He pulled her away from the elevator that was just arriving, and they began walking briskly toward the nearest stairwell. He gave her a grin as she fearfully followed him,

"Well, a plan that doesn't go accordingly is the best kind!" And they began making their way down the stairs. Hannibal knew full well that the stairs were probably guarded too, but he knew that if he played his cards right, they wouldn't be for long.

As they reached the bottom of the stairwell, Hannibal signaled for Mrs. Parton to step back while holding a finger to his lips. She did so, and he stood next to the door listening carefully for several long moments. His watch said 12:45 now, and he knew the time was close at hand for Amy to do her thing. If they could just stay undetected for five more minutes…

"Is this who I think it is?"

Hannibal closed his eyes for a brief moment before turning slowly to meet the eyes of Vito Castellano, who had stepped out of the darkness under the stairs with a pistol in his hand to give Hannibal a blindingly white smile to go along with his white tuxedo.

"I was right! Hannibal Smith! I am pleasantly surprised that a rag tag group of scientists would have the money to hire The A Team!"

"Vito Castellano, how very wonderful to meet you! I was afraid you weren't smart enough to show your face before I made it out of here!" Hannibal gave his most annoying guttural chuckle and folded his arms. "Looks like we've both been pleasantly surprised!"

"Ha!" Castellano didn't seem ruffled as he grabbed a Mrs. Parton who was frozen with fear around the shoulders, bringing her close to his body. "Shall we proceed, then?" She let out a tiny sob when his pistol nestled its way into her side, and Hannibal nodded, as confident as ever,

"After you!"

As they were led quietly through the door into the main lobby, they were quickly surrounded by several guards, Hannibal was disarmed, and they were led through a back hallway discreetly until they reached Castellano's large and ornate office. Hannibal hadn't been able to catch a glance at Amy, though by the time they reached the office, it was 11:47.

"So what do we do now? There aren't any refreshments, are there?" Hannibal let The Jazz talk for him as he surveyed the room, noting the green walls and large wooden desk as well as comfy looking furniture.

"That is the question, isn't it?" Castellano ignored Hannibal's latter sentence and shoved Mrs. Parton down in a large red velvet seat. "I don't think I have ever been with someone so famous, I feel as if I shouldn't let this moment pass by."

"Famous? Me?" Hannibal gave a snicker, "It's so good to meet someone who finally sees my worth!" He cut the mob bosses' next response off to say, "You can kneel, if you want."

"Ah-...hah." Castellano gave his own annoyed laugh and then seemed to dig into Hannibal with his next words, "But I know that The A Team is more than just one man… surely you did not come here alone?"

As if on cue, a gunshot rang through the building.

Ah! So... To be honest, I wrote the first four chapters a little less than a year ago, and when I found them and read them, I thought I might as well post them, though I may never finish. But rereading them, and getting one wonderful review and one follow was just enough to get me writing another chapter.

To Lat: Thank you for reviewing, and yes, I am a sucker for romance, so I am enjoying adding hints of a little love between Amy and Face. I love this show, and I'm so happy you enjoyed reading!

Again, to the few who care, THANK YOU! It's the only reason that I wrote this chapter today!