Tissue of Lies

Tempers had been short in the 5-O offices for a couple of weeks now, but today things had suddenly come to a head and everyone who was present wished they weren't as the chief of 5-O, Steve McGarrett, and his second in command, Danny Williams, indulged in a shouting match that could probably be heard across the whole island.

"So now you're infallible," Danny scoffed as they stood in the outer office. The door into the rest of the Iolani Palace was open, too, allowing anyone passing to overhear the row. Nobody from 5-O made a move to close the door. Moving meant drawing attention to oneself and they didn't want to get caught up in this argument.

"I said I was right; you didn't believe me," Steve reminded the younger man. "The evidence speaks for itself."

"You didn't know that when you busted into that club and threatened to break a few heads," Williams flared back. "You decided they were guilty and set out to prove it. What happened to 'innocent until proven guilty'?" he demanded. "Or does that not apply to the high-and-mighty Steve McGarrett? I don't know why we waste money on courts and judges when we could just ask you and you could decide."

"That's enough!" McGarrett snapped, a flush crawling up his neck. "Your insubordination has gone far enough! I run this unit and you'll do as you're told!"

"Save me the speeches," Danny retorted. "You just don't like hearing the truth and you especially don't like hearing it from me. Nobody ever argues with Mr McGarrett." He sneered at Steve. "You wanted an ass-licker in this job and got me instead. Too bad – wrong choice." He laughed wildly, but there was nothing humorous in the sound.

"That's it!" Steve declared quietly and everyone winced. Steve quietly angry was even more dangerous than Steve shouting at the pitch of his lungs. "Get out! You're done with 5-O. Give me your gun and badge and get out."

"This is a public building," Danny taunted as he dropped his gun and badge on the nearest desk. "You can't make me leave."

"No?" In a swift movement, Steve caught Dan's right arm in a steel grip and had the younger man's arm twisted up behind his back in a moment. As Danny struggled ineffectually to break free, Steve propelled him out of the office, along the corridor and paused for a moment at the top of the stairs. "Don't come back!" he ordered and let go of Danny at the same moment that Williams pulled free. It was only Danny's natural athleticism that saved him from falling, although he did stumble and turn his ankle.

Shaking down his rumpled suit, Dan made a rude gesture but Steve had already turned away and didn't see it. Danny looked around, but nobody met his eyes and with an angry sigh, he limped towards his car. He had taken several steps before he remembered that the vehicle he had driven to work that morning belonged to 5-O. With a snarl, he changed direction, limping downtown with thoughts of getting a bus home.

He didn't notice the shadowy figure in the window of McGarrett's office watching him leave.

It didn't take Danny long to divert into a bar and down a couple of straight Scotchs. His shoulder throbbed after having his arm twisted, but the Scotch proved a cure for both it and his ankle and he decided it was a perfect day for the beach. Catching a few waves would cheer him up and now that he was unemployed, perhaps he really would turn pro and make a living surfing. He was good enough and still young enough.

It didn't take him long to change when he got home and he was soon down on the beach. The smell of the sea cleared his head and he plunged into the water with enthusiasm. The admiring glances he got from the girls when he came in for a drink didn't hurt and Danny wondered how long he ought to grow his hair. With the natural curl, it wasn't typical cool surfer hair, but perhaps that wouldn't matter.

The afternoon at the beach did wonders for Danny's mood and the exercise eased out his sore muscles. Still, he wasn't quite as ebullient as usual after a day on the beach as he drove home. The quarrel with Steve had never left his mind and Steve's last words to him echoed disconcertingly at the oddest moments.

But there was no going back. His course was set and he was on his own. He knew that his friends at the police department would probably shun him and he had few close friends who were not cops. Working 12-18 hour days tended to eclipse your social life. There had been girls aplenty over the years, but few of them had last more than a few weeks – a month or two if he was lucky. There was no one serious – no one at all – at the moment. His belly-aching and griping about his boss – former boss – had taken its toll on his last relationship and the girl had ignominiously dumped him last week.

"I'll just make new friends," Danny vowed aloud. It wouldn't be too hard; he had always made friends easily.

They just had to be the right kind of friends.

"McGarrett." The ringing of the phone in the middle of the night was not an unusual occurrence, but that didn't really make it any easier to accept. Switching on the bedside lamp and wincing, Steve glanced at the clock. It was just shy of 2am.

"Steve, its Chin," said the familiar voice. "I just got a call from HPD."

"What's up?" Steve asked, feeling his sleepiness falling away.

"It seems that Danny was brought in a few hours ago, drunk. He'd also been involved in a fight." There was no mistaking the concern in Chin's voice.

Closing his eyes, Steve fought for control. Oh, Danno. "I don't know why you're calling to tell me this," Steve replied coldly. "Dan Williams is no longer part of 5-O. What he does with his own time is no concern of mine."

"Oh." It was obvious that Chin was taken aback by Steve's attitude. "Right."

"See you in the morning," Steve said and hung up. He switched the light off and lay back down, but sleep was far from his mind.