Disclaimer: Ideas are fictional; not making any money on this. Hawaii 5-0 belongs to CBS. That's okay because none of this would work on TV.

Family Life Continues, Chapter 1

July 2022

The McGarrett-Williams family was having a great summer. Danny's recovery from knee replacement surgery in February was complete. He managed to get through the six-month period without getting shot or sick. His energy level was better than ever now that he wasn't battling pain all the time. The bad guys were apparently taking a holiday because the work load at 5-0 was manageable.

The family was flourishing with the addition of their new neighbors, Ed and Clara Williams. It was a toss-up who enjoyed having Danny's parents next door more. Steve and Danny absolutely loved having Mom and Dad nearby. They had shared dinners at least twice a week and went out together at least once a week. Jack and Jesse adored their grandparents. They spent a couple of days with them now that Leah was working a reduced schedule. It was the best of a multi-generational family living in two homes.

Ed loved his job with Finn and Cliff, although he mostly interacted with Cliff. He only worked half-time but the hours per day and number of days worked per week fluctuated as the job demanded. The crew boss and his men respected Ed's expertise and Cliff admired Ed's easy manner with his crews. Ed wasn't afraid to point out sub-standard work but he was never mean with his criticism. He frequently reminded the crews that this was going to be someone's home or office and safety was essential.

Clara quickly made friends on the island. She joined the local Red Hats group and the seniors group at church. She was elated to find the church was involved in a number of service projects. Rachel even hosted an afternoon tea to introduce Clara to some of her lady friends. Clara was surprised at the gesture and also surprised to discover that she liked many of Rachel's friends. That was the day that Clara finally accepted that Rachel Edwards had changed from the woman that she knew in the days after the divorce.

Steve and Danny didn't have any major vacation scheduled while the boys were on school break. They used a lot of their vacation days for the Christmas vacation overseas. Instead they were content to take long weekends at the cabin. Ed and Clara took the boys to the cabin one weekend to give Steve and Danny a weekend alone. It was stacking up to be a really great summer.

5-0 had grown from a four person team (Steve, Danny, Chin, and Kono) to an eight person squad (Shane, Jessica, Luka, and Kaleo) over the years, and once again the governor approved funds to add two more to the team. Steve was pleased that his staff was growing but he hated the selection process. No matter who he chose, someone was always disgruntled or at least disappointed.

It was just after the July 4th holiday that Steve had an unexpected visitor. He was reviewing a stack of resumes and had narrowed down the candidates to six people. Interviews were next on the agenda. Steve was printing extra copies of resumes when there was a knock on the door. He was surprised and a little alarmed to see Lori Weston. He had a sense of déjà vu as he remembered last year when Catherine popped back into his life unexpectedly.

Steve stood to welcome his visitor. "Lori, please come in. It's been 10 years, hasn't it, since you left? How have you been?"

Lori had a crush on Steve when she worked with him years ago and she wasn't sure how she would feel about seeing him again. He certainly was aging well and his office was filled with pictures of his family with Danny. Lori was relieved to realize that her only feelings for Steve now were for friendship.

"I've been well. It has been a little over ten years. Wow, those are good looking boys. Did you and Danny adopt?"

"Jack came to us by way of a surrogate. We adopted Jesse after his parents died. Jesse is nine years old and Jack will turn nine at the end of August. They're going into the fourth grade next month. How about you? Do you have any kids?"

"I do. I have a son, Mike, who is six. He's going into the first grade. Actually he's the reason I'm here."

Steve was puzzled. Why would Lori's son bring her to the island? "Now I'm curious. Please sit and you can tell me what is going on. Can I get you some coffee?"

"I'm fine. I heard through the grapevine that you have a couple of openings on your team. I'd like to apply for a spot. I went back to Homeland Security when I left the team; I've been assigned to the Seattle office. That's where I met Mike's father. He was a detective with the Seattle police department. Thomas was killed six months ago while working undercover."

"Lori, I'm so sorry for your loss. It must be tough to raise Mike by yourself."

"I'm coping but some days I don't think that I do anything right for Mike. A few weeks after Thomas' death, I started receiving anonymous phone calls in the middle of the night. Then I received pictures of Mike at school and daycare."

"Did you go to the police?"

"Yes I did and they were no help. Thomas and I never married, and his friends in the department didn't care much for our relationship. If it didn't involve Mike, I would stay and find out who is behind all this. But I cannot and will not put my son at risk."

Steve stood and walked around the desk to where Lori sat. He leaned forward and took one of Lori's hands. "Lori, our jobs can be dangerous but it is totally unacceptable for anyone to come after our family. Do you want me to see if I can find out who is harassing you?"

"Steve, I'm would love to take down whoever is threatening my son but first I want to get away from Seattle. I'm hoping that whoever is threatened by me will back off if I'm not there anymore. I've often thought about my time with the team with a sense that we did really good work here. I'd like the opportunity to do that again, and it would be nice to be with friends again."

Steve considered his options carefully. "Lori, I would be interested in having you join the team. Do you have an updated resume? I'll be reviewing the candidates with Danny, Chin, and Kono. I have a short list of people for interviews with the four of us. How long will you be in town?"

"I'm taking this week as vacation. I can take a few more days if I need to but I'm only renting the cottage for a week. Then I will have to make other arrangements."

"I'll see what we can do to work with your current time constraints. Is your son with you?"

"Yes, he's with a sitter at the cottage. The owner recommended someone trustworthy. It's so difficult to find someone that I can trust."

"Fortunately that hasn't been an issue with us. We've had a nanny since Jack was born, and Rachel helps out when we're called out in the middle of the night. And Danny's parents moved here earlier this year. They live next door which has turned out to be really great for us."

"I remember Ed and Clara from my time here. They are terrific people. You couldn't ask for better in-laws or better neighbors."

"That's so true. Listen, Mom is making lasagna tonight for supper. She always makes enough for a small army. Why don't you and Mike come over for supper? Come over early and Mike can go swimming with the boys."

Lori was momentarily choked up. It had been a long time since anyone had extended any kindness toward her or her son. "I would really like that. What would be a good time?"

"Danny and I won't get off until five. Why don't you get there between 3 and 4 p.m.? I'll let Mom and Dad know that you're coming. They will be happy to see you."

After Lori left, Steve called Danny, Chin, and Kono to come to his office. He briefly explained Lori's situation and gave copies of her resume to each. "Lori joined the team under difficult circumstances but she was an asset while she was here. It's been several years but I'm definitely interested in hiring her. What do you think?"

Kono was the first to offer her opinion. "I know that she was sort of my replacement for a while but I enjoyed working with her. It's not easy working with all you guys but she handled it well. If her reviews with Homeland Security are solid, I think we should give her a chance."

Chin nodded in agreement with his cousin. "She was a little awkward at first but she hung with us when we needed her the most. She went with us to North Korea. That counts big for me."

Danny waited to have his say last. He knew that Lori had a thing for Steve way back when and he was interested to see if those feelings had been resolved. "You said that her son's father was killed only six months ago. How is she handling that?"

"She's struggling to raise her son as a single parent but I have no doubt that she's doing a good job. You'll get the chance to see for yourself. Lori and Mike are coming over to swim with the boys and are staying for dinner. I already talked to Mom and Dad about it. Danny, she can really use friends now. You know how hard it is for us with the boys and we have lots of support."

"I remember how it was when I first moved here. I only had Grace for a few hours a week and I struggled with being a good parent. I can't imagine doing it alone much less with the threats she is getting. Let's see how it goes tonight."

With a consensus reached, the team dispersed to continue with some paperwork. It was a slow day so Steve decided the team could leave a little early. It was 4:30 p.m. when Steve and Danny pulled into the driveway at home. A compact rental car was in the driveway ahead of them.

Steve and Danny smelled the lasagna in the oven when they came in the front door. They could hear Mom and Dad in the back yard with their company. Three boys were frolicking in the surf while Dad acted as lifeguard. Lori was sitting on the beach with Mom; she looked a lot more relaxed than earlier in the day.

Steve hurried up to change into his suit; playing with his sons in the water was one of his greatest pleasures. Danny went out to let everyone know that they were home. He was just going in to change when Steve came out in his board shorts.

"Danno, are you coming in too?" Danny started swimming regularly as his physical therapy progressed from his knee surgery. It was great low impact exercise and something he could share with Steve and their sons.

"I think I will. The boys are waiting for you. Little Mike is a really cute kid and the boys are playing nice with him. Try not to scare him with your horse play."

Steve managed to look totally insulted. "Danny, I'm really good with kids. I promise not to throw him more than ten feet."

Steve went out to greet Mom and Dad and their guests. When Steve stopped to welcome Lori to their home, he was ambushed by two rambunctious boys. Mike waited for his new friends to rejoin him in the water. He was a little intimidated by the big man with the tattoos who walked over to meet him.

Steve stooped down to get to Mike's level. "You must be Mike. I'm Steve. I'm a friend of your Mom's, and you've already met my sons." Steve held his hand out to Mike.

Mike looked over at his mom who nodded that Steve was okay. He finally accepted the offered hand. "It's nice to meet you Steve."

It only took a few minutes of watching Jack and Jesse dive off Steve's shoulders before he stood in line for his turn. Danny joined them a few minutes later, and soon the men and boys were playing a game of keep-away with a beach ball.

Lori watched her son play in the water and missed Thomas so much that it ached. Things weren't always great with them but Thomas tried to be a good father. Mike hadn't laughed this much since his death.

Clara watched Lori with interest. She knew that Lori had been through a lot during the time since she left Hawaii. "You don't need to worry about your son's safety with Danny and Steve. The boys have younger friends and they're always careful around them. Chin and his wife, Malia, have a younger son. So do Rachel and Stan. Jack and Jesse are always careful with the smaller children."

"I can see that. The boys seem very protective of each other too."

"I'd say that they get that from Danny, but Steve is in some ways even more protective than Danny. They are all so happy together."

"I remember how they were when I was with the team. I was at their civil ceremony. I didn't think that I had ever seen two people so happy to be together. It's nice to see that hasn't changed. Thomas and I were together only six months when I realized that I was pregnant. We stayed together mostly because of Mike, but the last few years we were more like roommates."

"It's admirable that you wanted Mike to grow up with both parents, but it's a lonely way to live."

Lori was a little surprised at Clara's insight. "It was, but it was worth it for Mike."

Clara was nodding in agreement when she heard the sound of a car door closing. "Excuse me for a moment. I think our other dinner guest has arrived."

Lori turned toward the house and saw a casually dressed man walk around the side of the Williams' home.

"Cliff, we've over here. Lori, this is Cliff Russell. He's the reason we moved to the island."

Cliff laughed and offered his hand. "Clara, I believe the reasons you and Ed moved here are in the water. I may have facilitated it a bit."

"Cliff offered Ed a job as a consultant here and made him an offer we couldn't refuse. Cliff, this is Lori Weston. She worked with Steve and Danny several years ago and is hoping to move back with her son, Mike. He's the one tackling Steve and stealing the ball."

"He did a good job of taking a former SEAL down. It's a pleasure to meet you Lori. Clara, do I smell lasagna?"

"Of course it is. I know how much you enjoy it. Cliff isn't much of a cook so I try to get a good meal in him at least once a week."

Now that he was closer, Lori regarded Cliff with interest as she shook his hand. He wasn't wildly handsome the way Thomas was (or Steve and Danny for that matter), but he had pleasant features. More importantly, he had a very kind face. When he turned a genuine smile on Lori, she had to revise her assessment. His blue eyes twinkled with good humor and transformed his face from ordinary to a little sexy.

"It's nice to meet you Cliff. How long have you been on the island?"

"I moved here a little over a year ago. It's an interesting story and I could use a cold drink. Clara, I'll check on the lasagna for you." Cliff linked his arm through Lori's and led her back to the house.

Clara smiled as she watched them. She remembered Lori fondly, and she knew that Cliff hadn't dated since he broke up with Jesse's aunt last year. She decided that there was no harm in bringing two nice people together.