Means To An End
Disclaimer:
Sadly I don't own anything related to Hawaii Five-0 :-(
Thanks:
JazzieG, thank you so much for the betaing, I really don't know what to do without you!
rewob17, thanks a lot for your input – as always it was a pleasure to discuss story ideas with you!
Notes:
English is not my native language, so please forgive me my mistakes.
I hope you enjoy the story...
Chapter 1
Danny hurried out of the bathroom, his hair still damp from his usual morning shower. He swiftly closed the buttons of his light blue dress shirt, throwing a glance at the alarm clock as he grabbed his badge and weapon from the nightstand.
"Damn," he cursed under his breath, angrily shaking his head when the badge slipped from his fingers and rolled under the bed. It was already twenty past eight and Danny was supposed to be picked up by his partner in exactly ten minutes to attend an important meeting at the Governor's office.
He had got up extra early to be on time because if he was only a heartbeat late he would never hear the end of it from his military-army-navy-whatever-punctual-to-the-second partner. And Danny had been on time until his doorbell had rung and that damned electrician had shown up to check the breaker box. Danny frowned angrily, making a mental note to speak to his landlord about that appointment because he could have sworn that the electrician's visit had been scheduled for tomorrow instead of today.
"Oh, for God's sake, I don't have time for this," Danny huffed out when he knelt down and blindly fished for his badge. He hissed out in pain when his fingers came in touch with something sharp and only a second later he had instinctively drawn back his hand and was now staring at the large drop of blood that welled up from his right index finger.
"This is just getting better and better," Danny sighed in annoyed frustration, sucking the blood from his fingertip while he bent forward to look under the bed.
As to be expected the badge had rolled to the farthest corner and Danny groaned softly when he stretched his left arm as far as possible to retrieve the lost item, all the time trying to avoid the little pieces of broken glass that were scattered all over the floor.
Three days ago Grace had tried to surprise her Danno with a self-made breakfast which she had piled up on a big tray, intended to bring it to Danny's bed at half past six on Sunday morning. Unfortunately she had tripped over one of her Barbie dolls that had been lying in the middle of the bedroom and the tray had slipped from her small hands, scattering its contents all over the floor.
Grace had been devastated that her surprise had been spoiled and that she had made a mess of her father's bedroom but Danny had quickly been able to convince her that some broken plates and glasses were not the end of the world and that he loved his Monkey even more for the nice surprise she had prepared for him. They had ended up in a nearby diner and Grace had soon forgotten about the little incident, but during the last few days Danny had found tiny pieces of glass all over his bedroom even after vacuuming the whole room about a million times.
Breathing out a small relieved sigh when he finally got his badge, Danny quickly stood up and clipped the item to his belt, careful not to drop it a second time. He also buckled on his weapon before he grabbed his cell phone and wallet and stowed them away into the pockets of his gray suit pants.
Running his hands over his hair he quickly checked his hairstyle and nodded contentedly, at least one thing was working as planned this morning. He briefly debated if he should wear a tie; the occasion would certainly justify it and it would definitely annoy his partner. A smirk played around his lips when Danny imagined Steve's face but then he dropped the thought and looked around for his favorite pair of black leather shoes until he finally remembered that he had placed them right beside the nightstand the evening before.
Slipping into the shoes Danny cried out in pain when something sharp pricked his right big toe. These damned little shards seemed to be literally everywhere and Danny swore to himself that as much as he loved his daughter, he would make sure that she'd never again bring breakfast into his bedroom.
Danny had just slipped off the right shoe when a sudden and unexpected spell of dizziness hit him full force and he blindly reached for the nearby wall to keep his balance.
"What the hell…" he murmured but the sentence ended in a hoarse groan when a sharp wave of pain rolled through his right leg, all the way from his toe up to his hip.
His breath caught in his throat and before he knew what was happening Danny felt his whole body seize; his legs buckled and he couldn't prevent his crash to the floor. His right leg was on fire while the rest of his body was covered in clammy sweat, violently shivering beyond his control. Danny tried to swallow but his tongue seemed to be too thick for his mouth. His breath came in rapid, short gasps and with every breath of air his chest felt tighter and tighter as if there was not enough air to fill his lungs. His heart beat a mile a minute, painfully hammering against his ribcage in an erratic rhythm.
The edges of Danny's vision started to gray when he gathered his last strength and pulled his cell phone out of his pocket but the small device slipped from his trembling fingers and toppled out of his reach.
The pain from his leg had now expanded; his whole body felt as if it was on fire and suddenly Danny found it incredibly difficult to keep his eyes open. Blinking sluggishly, he exhaustedly dropped his head to the carpet, frowning slightly when he noticed another tiny piece of glass right in front of his face. The shard sparkled nicely in the early morning sun and the many different colors were the last thing Danny saw before his eyes closed and he slipped into a pain-filled darkness.
(tbc)
Note: There will be regular updates, probably once a week because real life is terribly busy at the moment and because I need a litte bit more time to finish this story. I'm currently working on chapter 6 so you don't have to worry about the next few updates... :-)