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Closing In (1/1)
"Grace is going to come over here to stay until this is resolved," Steve said hurriedly as he checked his weapon. "Danny doesn't want her driving at this hour so their neighbor, Mrs. Whitaker, is going to drop her off."
Steve, who had just slipped into bed after 36 straight hours on duty, got a call from Duke just before midnight letting him know that the suspects they had been pursuing since the murder of a pharmacy clerk Thursday morning had been caught on camera attempting to rob a CVS in downtown Honolulu. They ran off when the alarm sounded and had managed to elude HPD officers who arrived just minutes later.
"We'll be fine," Catherine assured him. "Don't worry about us. Just concentrate on keeping yourself and the team safe."
"I will," he promised.
He kissed her quickly and headed for the front door. His hand on the knob he paused and turned back. "These guys are brutal and they're getting desperate. Until we get a handle on their location, I'd feel better if you all stayed here."
Catherine nodded. She understood exactly what he was feeling. "We will."
"Call Joseph and Elizabeth and let them know too," Steve suggested. "I love you."
"I love you," Catherine replied immediately. "See you soon."
"Catherine is monitoring the situation on the HPD live feed," Elizabeth reported as she, Joseph and Grandma Ang sat down to breakfast. "She said they have quite a few reported sightings and they hope to have the guys in custody soon."
"That's good," Grandma Ang said as she spread jam on her toast. "I saw the family of the man who was murdered on tv last night. Such a tragic story. He was giving those two thugs everything they asked for and they shot him anyway."
"Catherine said they both have pretty long rap sheets, but this is the first time either has been involved in anything this serious." Elizabeth poured herself some orange juice then passed the pitcher to Joseph. "I have complete faith that Steve and the team will catch them. I just hope they can do it before anyone else gets hurt."
"You and me both," Joseph said. "According to the news they're looking for drugs and the longer they go without getting them the more desperate they're going to become."
Elizabeth nodded. "Unfortunately, that's probably true. Which is why Catherine suggested we stay close to home until they catch these guys."
Joseph chuckled. "Suggested?"
"Strongly suggested." Elizabeth grinned. "In fact, while I was talking to her I got the distinct impression our daughter was grounding us."
"Are they gonna cancel the robotics expo?" Dylan asked Cody dejectedly as Jenna talked to the event organizers on the phone in the other room.
"I don't know," Cody replied honestly. "I guess they'll do what they think is best. There's gonna be a big crowd there today and they can't take a chance on anyone getting hurt."
Throughout the night the pair of suspects who had been terrorizing the island for days were involved in at least two violent carjackings and sporadic gunfire as they moved around the city and surrounding communities desperately looking for an escape route.
"I've been working on my project for two months." Dylan looked at his robot sitting in a box on the coffee table ready to go. "Uncle Chin was gonna meet us there. Why did this have to happen this morning?"
"I'm sorry," Kaitlyn said softly from her seat on the couch beside her brother. "Your robot is really awesome and I just know it's gonna win a prize."
"Thanks," Dylan grumbled. He appreciated his sister's support, and he even understood why the expo might need to be postponed, but that didn't take away the crushing disappointment he felt at the thought of not being able to attend an event he'd been looking forward to for months.
"I have some good news." Jenna smiled as she entered the room. "The police have the suspects cornered across town. They have a lot of the streets blocked off and they're confident they have the men contained. Since the expo is 20 miles away they told the organizers it's safe to go ahead. They're routing all traffic away from the blocked off area so everyone can stay safe."
Cody looked at his mother nervously. "They have the guys cornered?" He'd been watching the coverage and was well aware of how violent the suspects were.
Jenna nodded. "I called Catherine after I talked to the event people. She said they're closing in. Unfortunately that means Chin most likely won't be able to make it to the expo."
"I hope Uncle Steve and Uncle Danny and Uncle Chin and Aunt Kono and all the police stay safe," Kaitlyn said with a slightly quivering lip.
Jenna knelt in front of her daughter. "I hope so too."
Dylan looked at his mother and sister. "Maybe we should wait here and … " his voice trailed off.
"Absolutely not." Cody's tone was resolute. "You and Uncle Chin worked hard on this robot. And Uncle Steve was absolutely blown away when you did the demonstration for him the other day. They would not want you to stay home because of this. As they always tells us, this is their job and the team all have each other's backs."
Jenna smiled proudly at her oldest son. "I think Cody is right."
"I am," Cody nodded confidently. "So let's go win you a prize so you'll have good news to share with everyone as soon as this whole thing is over."
"We have a lot of elderly customers who need their medications," Mohala Laemoa explained to Steve and Danny from behind the barriers that had been set up around his small pharmacy. "That's the only reason we even opened today." The man was clearly distraught. "I was out making deliveries and when I came back the front door was locked and I could see two men with guns inside. I only got a good look at one, but it was definitely the man whose picture I saw on the news."
"Can you describe the weapons you saw?" Steve asked him.
The man's eyes widened. "They were big. And one of them was pointed at my wife."
"Ok, thanks." Laemoa was clearly in shock. Steve knew from experience that a man in that emotional state would likely be unable to answer any specific questions. He motioned to Duke who was standing nearby. "Can you please get Mr. Laemoa something to drink and try to get as much info as you can on the employees who are inside the building?"
"Will do," Duke replied. "Right this way, sir."
Danny eyed the front of the store. "I don't have a good feeling about this. There's no way to approach from the front without him seeing us. And according to the first officers on the scene the back is like Fort Knox because it leads to the room where the drugs are kept."
"Let's get a schematic of the building," Steve suggested. "Maybe we can find a way in from the roof."
Danny exhaled heavily. "How did I know you were gonna say that?"
"Attention customers," the voice over the PA system in Jirou's Foodland said calmly. "We have been advised by local police that there is a situation happening down the road and they have asked us to lock down the store and to keep everyone inside for the time being."
Frank Kayama looked at his wife who was just grabbing the last few items on their list. "That doesn't sound good."
"We have locked all the doors," the voice continued in an even tone, "And we ask that all customers moved towards the back of the store away from the front windows. This is only a precaution. There are several officers in the parking lot but in an abundance of caution they feel it would be better if everyone stays inside until the situation is resolved."
A small girl standing a few feet away tugged on her mother's sleeve. "Mommy, are we in trouble?"
"No," her mother assured her as she picked up a suddenly fussy infant from the baby carrier in the cart. "Hold your brother's hand." She pointed to the small blonde boy studying the cereal boxes.
The girl, clearly still nervous about what was happening, took her brother's hand.
"Stay right next it me," the woman told them as the baby's crying intensified.
"Looks like you have your hands full," Frank said sympathetically. "My name is Frank Kayama. This is my wife Kathy. Can we give you a hand?"
"Oh, that would be wonderful," the woman replied gratefully. "I'm Maile Lea. These are my children Lelaini, Keo and the baby is Kini. My husband has been away on business for a week and he's coming home first thing tomorrow morning, so we were grabbing a few things for an impromptu welcome home party."
Kathy clapped her hands together. "That sounds like fun! I saw some cookies back in the bakery that I think would be perfect for a party." She looked at Maile who gave her approval with a smile and a nod. "Maybe we better taste one first though just to be sure."
Steve and Danny waited while the police negotiators attempted to get the suspects to surrender but at some point, it became clear that wasn't going to work. They feared for the safety of the people inside with each passing minute and decided to was time to take action. Just as they entered the building through a second story window by inching their way along a small cement ledge they'd accessed from the building next store Steve's phone buzzed with an incoming call from Chin.
"We may have caught a break." Chin said as soon as Steve connected the call. He knew his teammates would want to keep conversation to a minimum to avoid any chance of detection so he attempted to convey all the new information as quickly and succinctly as possible. "There are three employees inside, including the owner's wife and his daughter in law. His wife is 62 years old and diabetic. She'll need the next dose of her medication soon. His daughter-in-law is 6 months pregnant. But pharmacy tech is ex-Navy. Served 20 years including a handful of tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. He's still in the reserves. So, he might be of some help if you can get in there."
"Thanks," Steve said quietly. "Are you and Kono in position?"
"We're ready to breach the front door with an entry team if we need to."
Perfect. Wait for my signal." He slid his phone back into his pocket. "One guy inside is ex-Navy. A combat veteran," he told Danny. "He may be able to be of some help if things go sideways."
"Let's hope they don't," Danny replied. "According to the blueprints that door over there should lead us right down to the back room of the pharmacy."
"Ok then." Steve took a deep breath. "Let's do this."
THE END-ish. Tune in Monday for Mari's awesome follow up story.
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