When you hear the name Higgins you might think of a middle-aged, posh British man with a finely trimmed mustache and a tight sense of what it is to be a proper Brit. But Juliet was not middle-aged, have a mustache, and was as far from being a man as could be. But she was definitely British and carried herself with the bearing of a woman with a purpose. She was strong, had a defined sense of loyalty, and was a woman Thomas Sullivan Magnum was grateful to have on his side. But he was also determined to annoy her any chance he got, which was rare seeing as how the demon spawn she called lads kept watch over her and on him seemingly 24/7. But he couldn't deny that she was an excellent friend. At times it seemed that she genuinely cared for him, except when he would catch a smirk on her lips when the hounds of hell terrorized him. Yes, Juliet Higgins was a mystery, a conundrum, an enygma and any other adjective of the same meaning; and one Thomas Magnum was far from solving.
000000000000000000000000000000000
"If the day ever comes when helping you doesn't get me shot, cause me to bail you out of jail, nearly get me crushed inside of a campervan, or covered in humanity's filth is the day I quit my job Magnum". Higgins was upset. And she had every right to be. She and Magnum had just returned from investigating, and apprehending, an escaped convict who had turned up hiding in the sewer system of the island. "C'mon Higgins it wasn't that bad".
"Not that bad? Not that bad Magnum? Let me explain to you what 'not that bad' means. Your detective skills are 'not that bad', our relationship is 'not that bad', getting arrested for not paying your parking tickets..., Okay that is bad but my point is that when I have to cover myself in slop, to, once again, pull your bum out of the fire, that is bad Magnum".
"You weren't supposed to be there anyways".
"Well if I weren't, you would be dead".
"Well then you would finally be happy without me getting in your way". For whatever reason, that hit Higgins hard. Sure they had their quarrels and little spats, but this had turned into a full blown fight. Of course she didn't want him dead. She honestly didn't know how she would feel; of course she would miss him, but she would miss him more than she would care to tell him. "Well, if that's how you feel, then next time I'll just stand by and let you get yourself killed". With that, and a hidden wipe off her eyes, she walked out. Silently Kumu walked out and looked hard at Thomas. "You know, for someone who makes a living from picking up details you are stupid".
"What's that supposed to mean"?
"It means that that girl cares for you, more than you know. The least you could do is treat her like the friend you say she is instead of like some delicate little thing that is helpless".
"I don't do that".
"No, then why is it when she saves your life you treat her like she did you wrong"?
"Because..."
"Because why Magnum"?
"Because I would never forgive myself if anything happened to her on my watch. When that man pulled that gun on me I wasn't scared, because I knew if I died then she would have a chance".
"Well, maybe you should tell her how you feel before it's too late".
"Why, how do I know she won't laugh in my face and turn me down just like everyone else in my life".
"Because she just might feel the same way. But you didn't hear that from me".
00000000000000000000000000000000
In a dark car on the far side of Oahu a dark figure climbs out and pulls a bound woman from the back seat. The woman's throat was sore from screaming and her face was tear stained. The dark figure threw her down on the beach and went back to the trunk of his car for a shovel. The bound woman watched as the figure walked to the middle of the beach and began to dig. The woman didn't know how much time passed before the figure came, unbound her legs, which were more bodily decorations than functioning limbs at this point, and buried her in a five foot hole which left her head, mouth gagged, unburied. The last words she heard were dark and sinister. "Don't worry, the tide will be in soon".
000000000000000000000000000000000
Detective Gordon Katsumoto hated interference in his crime scene. So, therefore by process of transference he hated Thomas Magnum at his crime scene. Thankfully though Magnum hadn't caught wind of it yet so, for the moment, he was happy. That was until he noticed a certain helicopter flying past. It was then he knew that Magnum wouldn't be too far behind. "Sir, we've got something". A young CSI ran over. "We found this in the vic's shirt pocket sir". The note he held was lamenated, for obvious reasons. On it were six words. 'Hello Magnum. Ready For Another Game?'
000000000000000000000000000000000
"Magnum, would you care to tell me why your name is, quite literally, all over my crime scene"? Gordon Katsumoto was suspicious, as he always was of Magnum's involvement with a crime scene in one way or another. "Look Gordo', Magnum said, opening a beer, 'I haven't been to any of the past few crime scenes..."
"For which I am extremely grateful for",
"And that hasn't changed with this one. So all I can say is, I have no idea why".
"Maybe this will ring your bell". With that, Katsumoto threw his evidence into Magnum's hands. Turning the note right side up Magnum looked at a very unique calligraphy. One he had hoped to never see again.
000000000000000000000000000000000
Higgins sighed heavily into her folded hands. It had been four hours since Thomas had sped off into the evening. Now she sat worried alongside a less worried Rick and T.C.. They had both come as soon as she had called. She had convinced Katsumoto to let her photograph the note in case either of Magnum's aquatinces could be of help. Begrudgingly he had agreed, and now she was more worried than ever after what the men had told her. About a year or so before the POW camp a friend of Magnum's had gotten involved with drug running with a local dealer. Thomas found out about it, confronted him and in the end helped put him away. And if he had been released he could be after Magnum.
000000000000000000000000000000000
Rage filled, and on an empty highway, Magnum was pushing the Ferrari to it's limits. As the car raced through the night his mind kept pushing away what his heart already knew to be true. He prayed his heart was wrong.
000000000000000000000000000000000
"So this Marcus Hershell wants what? To kill Thomas"? Higgins was near to bursting, her emotions raged between worry for Magnum's safety to hatred for the man that was causing him such torment. "No one ever knew exactly what Hersh was thinking", T.C. provided, "not even the psychs were sure. Yeah he was sane, sane as anyone else, but it went deeper than that. Hersh never did anything for a reason. He had this tendency to do things that didn't make sense, but in the end everything fell into place. He's either very lucky or something far more dangerous than we've ever faced". As T.C. finished Higgins couldn't shake the feeling that, at this moment, nothing could be more dangerous than Thomas Sullivan Magnum.
000000000000000000000000000000000
The beach was dark, sparse bits illuminated only by Magnum's flashlight. He scanned the beach in wide, sweeping motions, and then he saw it. The crime tape stood Illuminated like the sun in the beam, and, beneath the glow, was a sunken area. Kneeling he began to dig, his strong arms scooping sand like a backhoe until... until he came across something metallic, something small. Fingering the object he brushed sand away until he recognized the locket in his hand. And all of a sudden his worst fears were realized. Inscribed we're initials that made the dam of tears burst in torrential showers. H.M. Hannah Magnum.
000000000000000000000000000000000
Higgin's heart lurched as the headlights of the Ferrari pulled up the drive. She swiftly hit a button on the control panel by the door and the sports car drove down the drive. A Haggard and very drenched Magnum climbed out of the car and stepped into the rain. Something was wrong, something... something was so, very wrong.
000000000000000000000000000000000
In the dark of the living room Magnum sat on the sofa, his hands clinched together tightly. His heart, or what was left of it, burned. She was gone. How he missed her, how his heart ached when she had left. He knew that she loved him, but she just couldn't be the wife of a soldier. And he had never faulted her for her choice. As he sat alone with his thoughts a knock sounded through the room. Slowly he stood. Higgins knew better than to rush him the way he was. He opened the door to a thuroughly soaked Higgins, her blonde hair matted to her head with the rain. She looked as though she had been crying. "Tho... Magnum', she said, trying her best to be steady and steadfast for him, 'I just wanted to make sure you are alright". Magnum sighed, shook his head and looked her in the eye. "Now is really not a good time".
"Well, maybe in the morning over a cuppajoe or...".
"Julie. I just... I need some time alone right now. Please"? Silent, Higgins shook her head and turned. Magnum never saw the tears she was crying for him...and she never heard the gunshot that would have sounded were it not for a clap and roll of distant thunder.
000000000000000000000000000000000
"Don't worry Julie. It's Magnum, he'll be up and about very soon".
"You didn't see him last night. Something was... beyond bothering him. He looked like something had ripped his heart out and..."
"And what"?
"It's just, that's the way I was when my mother died. She died not knowing who I was and...I don't know if she knew how much I loved her".
"She knew. And so does Magnum".
"He what"?
"What? Nothing".
"No, you said, 'And so does Magnum'. What did you tell him Kumu"?
"Nothing. But you won't know for sure until you go talk to that boy".
"I can't". For so long Higgins had been alone. As a child she had been more interested in adventures and the outdoors than sitting around with the girls her age and having tea parties and dressing up. She had always been an outcast of her peers. But she had never minded. She had had her mother and her mother never treated her any different. She took Juliet's differences and worked around them, she taught Julie to be a lady that was strong and elegant, tender and steadfast. But still she felt alone, even working with MI-6 she was alone. Until she got too close to a target, ending up with her disavowment from MI-6. "I got close to someone once, and my life changed. I can never do that again".
"So did Magnum. I saw him when he came in last night. He wouldn't have looked like that if he hadn't lost someone he was close with. I know you have lost, but that was different. There is nothing stopping you from being with the one you love". For the first time in a long while, Higgins looked surprised. "How di.."?
"How I know doesn't matter, what does matter is you moving your butt over to the guest house and talking to Magnum". And with that Juliet Higgins began her trek to see the man who would soon challenge her feelings in a way that would seal the future.
"Magnum"? *Knock*knock*. "Magnum it's Higgins. I know you told me to give you time but, there is something I need to tell you". Knock after knock left her more nervous. "Okay I'll just tell you from out here. Thomas I...". But the words never came as she heard a low, almost inaudible, moan come from within. Quickly she opened the door and stepped inside. As her eyes scanned the room she saw the sliding door at the east wall had been shattered from the outside. Then her eyes caught sight of something that broke her internally. The body of Thomas Sullivan Magnum.
00000000000000000000000000000000
Detective Katsumoto, while not a big fan of the man, didn't like seeing Thomas Magnum in such a state. With various tubes and lines coming out of his body he looked like a dying man. And he was. The bullet had been removed and his wounds patched, but the loss of blood was substantial. It had been a miracle he was still alive at all. Sighing he walked over to the ever strong Juliet Higgins who, right now, looked about as alive as Magnum did. She hadn't slept in the 36 hours since she had found Magnum bleeding out on the floor of the guest house, through the long surgery, until now when she never took her hands from Thomas's, and her eyes never leaving his face. "Juliet, I know now isn't a good time",
"Your right detective, it's not".
"But I need your statement about what you saw".
"What is there to tell. I wake up to find the man I l...live with dying in a pool of his own blood". Katsumoto could tell that he wasn't going to get anywhere and pushing her would do nobody any good. " Well, if you think of anything else let me know".
000000000000000000000000000000000
Rick and T.C. sat together in the chapel of the hospital. It hadn't been long since they had buried a brother. And now they feared they would lose another. "You know', Rick started, 'the last time I was in a church, my dad was in the hospital. He had been in a car accident and he was, pretty bad off. Anyways, I spent hours inside the chapel, begging God not to take my dad. Five days later we buried him". T.C. looked at his friend. He understood where he came from. But he also knew that, most importantly that, at this moment, he needed to know that Thomas would pull through.
"Look man, I ain't gonna debate spiritualistic things, but if any of this helps Thomas, then I'm gonna do it". Silently, Rick agreed.
00000000000000000000000000000000
The steady beeps threatened Higgins' conciousness. Hour after hour she steadfastly stayed awake, hoping, praying for any sign from Magnum that he was in there. She had long since determined in herself that she would not allow their last words be ones of sorrow. Tears pooled behind her eyes at the thought of their last words to each other. She hadn't been angry, and neither had he, but hearing those words, from him especially, hurt more than she cared to remember where that hurt came from. Instead she focused on the positives. Thomas was stable, and alive. But in what state of living? She knew from experience that someone could be alive on the outside, but completely dead to the world around them. "Magnum', her voice, for once, not austere and solid, was now a whispered plea, 'I know that I'm probably the last person you want to be by your side, especially as long as I have been, but I need you to know that...there is no place I would rather be, not when you need me. The morning I found you, I was coming to tell you that, i... I love you, Thomas Sullivan Magnum, you and all of your crazy American quirks. I love the fact that you can't resist helping someone when they can't afford your services, or the way you stand up to defend your friends, even when it gets you arrested. I just love you. And I need you to find your way back to me". And with that final plea, Higgins felt her prayers answered.
Marcus Hershell sat by himself outside the Lilioukilani memorial hospital. On his phone he watched Higgins confess her feelings. He smiled. "How sweet".
000000000000000000000000000000000
'Dear Uncle John,
Little has been said between us for far too long. Robin's Nest is well, as, I'm sure, you are glad to hear, and Zeus and Apollo are in fine health and spirits, they do miss you however, many nights they lay at your bedroom door before bedtime. I too am well... actually, Uncle John, I am not doing well. As you may have perceived there has been more to Thomas's and mine animosity. You once asked about my feelings for him and I am ready to tell you the truth.
My feelings for Magnum, as you have guessed, are more than just fraternal. I am , as of yet, not making a permanent statement, but... I do care deeply for him. And, if he dies, I do not know what I would do. In time I may prove to love him.'
Higgin's looked away from the laptop and looked towards the empty, Hawaiian night. The laptop screen, the only source of light aside from the full moon, cast a melancholy light on her face. Absentmindedly she fingered the necklace she wore. All her life she had loved, and lost those she loved. Now, she wasn't sure she could bear to lose another. She had just recently admitted to herself her own feelings for Thomas and couldn't believe that it was at a time when he couldn't either reciprocate or tell her off, and she feared she would never hear him do it.