Kono steps out of the tattered wooden shed, wearing a black tank top and jeans, which seem almost brown from dirt. Her hair is messy and full of dust, dirt marks cover her face, and she is weak and has a limp. Evidence of gunfire and an explosion is all around. Three men start running towards her. She can barely see their faces through her tears. She collapses onto her hands and knees before they reach her. Her tears are soaking the ground in front of her. Steve reaches her first. He says nothing to her just kneels beside her and holds her close to him. She can't hold back the tears. She sobs into his shirt. Her sobs are continuous. Danny and Chin reach the two on the ground and are frantically asking if she is ok. Kono can only hear muffled sounds through the helicopters and sirens….

2 Days Earlier:

"Hey Brah."
Kono seemed cheerful as she walked into the office and greeted Steve. Steve lifted his head from the work he was focusing on and gave her a half smile.
"New Case?"
Danny walked in before he could answer her, followed closely by Chin.
"Hope you guys are rested…new case from the governor. Apparently there is a new wave of abductions and drug trafficking hitting our shores."
Steve pulls up three photos on the screen for the team to look at.
"Our 3 top suspects…apparently they all lived in…"
He paused as he took notice of the expressions on the faces of Chin and Kono. Kono seemed especially taken back by the photo she saw in front of her.
"You know one of them?" asked Steve.
Kono stared blankly at Steve. No words could make their way out of her mouth. Chin interjected when he noticed his cousin was at a loss for words.
"The middle guy, Brian, he was a close…friend of Kono's years ago. He left the islands a couple of years back."
Chin replied to Steve, while keeping an eye on his cousin.
Danny, seeing the awkwardness interrupted.
"What's he supposed to have done? "
Steve found it difficult to take his eyes off Kono. She seemed so lost in the thought of her friend involved in Drugs.
"Uh.. he is suspected of being the local distributor".
He stared at Kono a little more, waiting for her response.
"NEVER!"
Finally words came out of Kono's mouth to the surprise of all three men. Steve tried to be gentle.
"Do you want us to hand this one back to the governor? I'm sure she will understand."
"No, we have to clear his name."
Kono quickly responded, almost too quickly.
"Well then everybody, how do you propose we approach this?"
"I'll go undercover, I'll make contact with him and find out why he's involved in this".
Kono's words were once again a shock to all three men.
"Come on Kiddo." Danny said softly, " This is not going to be easy for you in the first place…"
His words were quickly interrupted.
"I will be fine, trust me," she retaliated.
"Does he know you're a cop?"
Steve knew not to question her on her motives. He knew she would never leave a friend to be arrested by somebody else. He remembered how she had brought in Ben Bass when he was suspected of murdering Ian. She wouldn't let this go.
"No, he left the islands before I joined the academy, and we don't run in the same circles anymore."
She realized how incriminating her words sounded.
Steve stared at her. Her eyes seemed misty.
"Okay." he said reluctantly, "but we aren't leaving you out there alone with these people, friends or not."
She nodded.

Steve knew this wasn't a good idea. He could feel it in his gut, but knew all too well how things worked when friends were involved. He slowly walked to his office and motioned for Kono to join him.
She shut the door quietly behind herself. She had a meek look about her. Steve couldn't handle seeing her so conflicted. He gently put one hand on her shoulder and spoke softly to her.
"Are you sure you're ok with this?"
"Yeah, sure."
"I know he was or is your friend, but there could be a chance that he is guilty. Are you gonna be ok if that's the outcome?"
She wanted to say that it would not be the outcome, but she knew it would make her sounds completely biased.
"Yeah, I will".
The sadness was clearly visible in her eyes. She was such a beautiful, strong, yet somehow vulnerable woman. He wanted to grab her in his arms and tell her that all was going to be okay. He also wished that he had not gotten the case from the governor. He knew he was going to have to keep an eye out for her on this case. He just couldn't have her getting hurt on this.
"Ok, well then, you'll have to find out where he hangs out and re-connect with him."
Steve tried to sound as normal as possible, just like it was any other case, but Kono could hear the concern in his voice. She decided then that she needed to try her best not to let her emotions get in the way of this case, but she knew it would be one of the most difficult things she had ever done. She could not lose another friend in one year.
"Sure, I'll get on it."