Hey ya'll, I'm baaaccccckkk! No, I am not actually typing. My incredible boyfriend got me one of those Dragon Nuance things. It's like a speech recognition thing that types what you say! So while it looks a little silly with me talking to my computer, it works well enough. I cannot tell you guys how much all of your kind words meant to me. You are all truly the best! I will update Cat and Mouse soon! I already have it typed out, but it's on my PC, not my laptop and my PC has been having some issues after a power outage. I promise as soon as I can get it off, I will update. For now, please accept this as a thank you for your patience!
Danny and Rachel walked, hand in hand for the first time in what felt like forever. Though they both had a few drinks in them, they weren't drunk enough to call the feelings rekindling inside them a product of alcohol. They had slipped away from the governor's fundraiser and into the private gardens that surrounded the hotel. Danny figured Steve wouldn't notice, seeing that he was too absorbed in Catherine to notice much of anything. As they strolled through the beautiful Hawaiian flowers and trees lit up with millions of tiny lights strung everywhere, Danny couldn't help but notice how much it felt like the early days of their marriage, before everything went wrong. It had been an impulsive move, inviting Rachel to the fundraiser, but it was not one that he regretted. He had to get rid of the ticket and things had been better between he and Rachel since things went south with Gabby. Now that breakup had had even more fireworks than his divorce. As for Stan, their marriage was crumbling around them. They slowed their walk and then stopped at the edge of the garden, looking up at the stars.
"I never saw the stars in New Jersey." Rachel said quietly, taking his hand. "Well, I guess that's not true. There was that one time. When you took me out on that little sailboat at night." They smiled, remembering the night Danny had proposed to her.
"What happened to us, Rach?" Danny sighed.
"Life." She said simply. "We lived in a too small apartment in a too crowded city. There was too much noise, too much stress, too much worry. It was all too much. But here, it's different. And I don't think this is the wine talking."
"I think you're right. We've slowed down, and being part from you has made me realize just what brought us together in the first place."
"Yes." She breathed. And suddenly, their lips were locked together in a desperate need for the contact they had been deprived of for so long. When they paused for air, Danny held her in his arms and stared at her perfection. Then it all came crashing down. Literally. The brick wall behind them broke into a million pieces as a large truck crashed through it. Danny pushed Rachel back quickly and narrowly avoided getting hit himself. Before he had time to react, three men all pointed guns at Danny and Rachel. Realizing that this was a fight he couldn't win, Danny put his hands up, then let his jaw drop as he saw the figure that emerged from behindthe cloud of dust.
"Stan!" Rachel gasped.
"Hello dear. Thought you'd go bonk the old ex while I was on a 'business trip'?" Stan asked coldly, putting air quotes up as he said business trip. "Oh come on, Rachel darling. You can't be so stupid as to believe that all these trips were to build hotels, can you?"
"What do want, Stan?" Danny asked boldly, inching in front of Rachel. Stan didn't answer, just opened the back of the truck.
"In." he said, the men with guns herding Danny and Rachel into the back. Danny immediately noticed the temperature of the truck. How the hell does Stan have a refrigerated truck? Danny wondered. As the door slid shut and he heard a lock click into place, he caught Rachel's terrified look.
"You see Daniel, it's nothing personal. But Five-0 was too close to mu business and you were the easiest way to shut down that investigation. But then, I needed a way to get rid of you, Rachel darling. Then this truck caught my eye and I thought 'what better way to dispose of my whore wife and the man who threatened to expose me than this?' Well, I should be going. Lots of work to do you know. And Daniel, I wouldn't count on Commander McGarrett coming to your rescue. Judging by the fit of Miss Rollins' dress, he will be quite occupied for a while. Maybe my next wife will look something like her." When Stan's voice stopped, the truck started and drove off.
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When the truck stopped, no matter how much Danny pounded on the walls, no one answered them. It had to be well below freezing and Danny wasn't sure how much longer they could last. Probably no more than a few hours. Cheery thought. As it became clear that no one was around to hear them and that they tiring quickly, they sat down against one wall of the truck, Rachel curled into Danny's arms. Seeing how she shivered in just her flimsy dress, Danny shed his jacket and snugged it over her. When she tried to protest, he shushed her.
"Hey, I've got more on than you. Take it, ok? Someone's going to find us. We'll be okay." As the minutes ticked by, they found that they could no longer keep their eyes open.
"Danny?" Rachel asked, her voice weak and tired.
"Yeah babe?" he replied, his voice equally faint.
"I'm sorry."
"s'not your fault. Mine."
"Shoulda told you before. Always loved you." Rachel said softly.
"Me too babe. Forever and ever." As their bodies went limp, they still managed to grasp one another's hands.
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As Steve tore through the streets of Honolulu, one thought was burned into his mind. It had refused to leave him alone ever since he had seen the huge hole in the wall in the garden. What if Cath and I hadn't left the party? What if we hadn't seen the wall? What if I hadn't gone through the surveillance footage? A quick call to HPD had the truck traced through traffic and found on the edge of town. As he broke every traffic law, Steve prayed his partner was still alive. Finally, the Camaro roared into the abandoned lot where only one car, a white truck, was parked. Knowing that Chin, Kono, HPD, and EMS were behind him, he ran to the door of the truck.
"Danny! Rachel! Can you hear me?" he yelled as he reached the back door. Not hesitating when he got no response, he shot off the lock and threw the door open. Before him, Danny and Rachel lay, in the same positions they had been in an hour ago, frost coving their skin. They were so pale and still, with blue lips and lax faces. With the paramedics now at his side, Steve charged into the van.
"This one's got a pulse. Barely, but it's there!" the medic attending to Rachel yelled.
"I can't feel one on him." The other said and Steve's heart clenched. "Let's get them out of here." Gently, they carried the stiff bodies from their frigid prison. Both were carried into separate ambulances. Once Danny had been laced on the gurney, the paramedics began charging the defibrillators. Charge. Shock. Nothing. Charge. Shock. Nothing. Charge. Shock. A pulse. Steve released the breathe he hadn't even realized he'd been holding. The ride to the hospital was one of the scariest of his life, second only to the Danny's Sarin incident. The whole ride was spent trying in vain to restore some heat to Danny's hands. They were just so cold. Hours later, as he sat in the waiting room, the doctors told them that Rachel would have died if it hadn't been for Danny. They were both severely hypothermic and aggressive measures were being taken bring up their core temps. However, the doctors all seemed to think that they would be okay. As Steve sat next to Danny's bed, once again trying to warm his partner's frozen hands, he thought of Stan ad all of the things he would like to do to the man once he had been caught. After seeing the footage, HPD had looked into Stan's history and had found a connection to him as a smuggler and money launderer for the Yakuza's drug dealings. He thought of Grace. How would she react to this? The little girl was currently at home with Rachel's sister and being guarded by HPD. So caught up in his own thoughts, Steve didn't notice Danny looking up at him.
"Ya know how I always say that I your violent Rambo stuff annoys me? I take it back. Step Stan's going down. Hard. You with me Steven." After shaking off his surprise at Danny's awakening, he gave a feral smile.
"Hell yes."
"Good. Grace okay?" Danny asked.
"Yeah, she's good. She's still with Claire at the house, but we've got HPD watchin' the place. What about you? Last time I saw you, you weren't looking so hot. You actually died on us for a while there, partner."
"M'good. Tired, cold, but okay. Rach?"
"She's fine. Actually better than you. Doc says you saved her life." Danny gave his trademark 'oh it was nothing' shrug and Steve laughed. Same ol' Danno.
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One month later, Stan Edwards, also known as Stanley Pratt, was sentenced to life in prison. In the end, Danny had resisted the urge to carve off Step Stan's balls and feed them to him. Instead, he settled on knowing that Stan would spend the rest of his life trying not to drop the soap. As he and Rachel lay beneath the stars on the roof of Iolani Palace, Danny thought about how funny his life was. Something always had to go wrong first before they went right. At first, Hawaii had been awful, but now he had a good job, a good house, and new friends that had become his family. As he lay next to Rachel and relished in the warmth of her perfect body, he thought about how things had gone so wrong, only to turn out so right.
Good? Bad? Thoughts? If you haven't noticed already, I'm a Stan hater and Danny/Rachel shipper. Big Time. Missed you all!
