I can't go on if you leave me
... the noise of breaking glass and a piercing scream sounded right outside the door of the boardroom, which burst open a second later.
Four men dressed completely in black and wearing ski masks entered violently in the boardroom. The one who seemed to be the leader, shouted something in that strange language, pointing to Danny and the hand that held his gun. He had no choice and slowly, he removed his finger from the trigger and bent down to put the gun on the floor. When he straightened up, he saw how the other armed guys pointed their weapons at the governor and her men; with signs and shouts, the three masked men forced them to gather in one of the corners of the room and sit on the floor.
The leader approached Danny and gave him a violent push... The words weren't necessary to understand. Danny walked to the corner, joining the others, while trying to calm down the aggressive guy. He raised his hands and said, "Easy ... you have control here, man... just relax and tell us what you want."
The man spoke in english with a strange accent, which Danny couldn't identify, "What I want?" He asked with an ironic laugh, "How arrogant you are to pretend to understand what I want!... I want my country to stop suffering from hunger, while yours here organize peaceful conferences in which everybody speaks of countries that don't understand... and don't care about!"
At that moment, Danny remembered: The Asia-Pacific Leaders' Summit had started the day before at the Honolulu Convention Center, to talk about the most urgent problems related to the new economic strategies for the region. He tried to focus on the man, who spat fiercely, "I want my people to stop being exploited by multinational companies that pay them a pittance!... I want health services, efficient and sufficient, for my people!"
Danny replied, trying to make his voice soothing, "I understand that, man... I do, but this is not the way to make that happen..." The man, furious, hit Danny with the stock of his weapon, knocking him down, "You don't understand anything...!" he shouted.
Danny's head hit the floor hard and blood began to flow from his nose and mouth. He closed the eyes as he felt numb and a loud buzz pressed in his ears. A pair of hands came up and cradled his head and, without knowing why, he thought about Steve. In the midst of his confusion, he knew it was absurd... Steve wasn´t there... He wished for a second that he was... Steve would know what to do. With a glimmer of hope, he opened his eyes and couldn't help the slight twinge of disappointment when he saw the face of the gray-haired man whispering... He focused on understanding what the man was saying, while the governor tried to clean the dripping blood, with the sleeve of her immaculate white blouse.
The man shouted again, "Is there anyone else who has any good ideas?" Everyone remained silent, "Good! Then get comfortable, we will be here for some time... and no one will say a single word... or I swear I will kill you all!" The man left the room, slamming the door with fury, while his three partners kept pointing to the hostages with their automatic weapons.
The morning had been silent and quiet at Five-0 headquarters. Jerry was doing some updates on the smart table software. In Lou's office, the captain and Junior had an absurd conversation about sports while they drank coffee and devoured pastrami sandwiches. Tani took her sandwich and went to refuge in her office to escape from the silly debate.
Suddenly, Lou's phone rang, and the man took it hopefully... everyone was bored and needed some action.
Because of the tone in Duke's voice, Lou couldn't help thinking with irony, "Be careful what you want, because someone can grant it to you".
"Captain Grover... it's Sergeant Lukela"
"What's wrong, Duke?" Lou asked, alarmed.
Duke said nervously, "I tried to call Steve... but he doesn't answer his phone."
Lou tried to reassure him, "He's at the naval base... a diving training exercise, I think... What's going on Duke?"
Duke began to explain, "A couple of minutes ago we received a strange phone call... A man told us, he and other guys were in the Hawaii State Capitol and had Governor Mahoe along with a group of ten or twelve people as hostages."
Lou straightened in his chair and shouted, "What?... Wait a second... Did the man say who they are or what they want? "
"He didn't say anything else... only he would call again in two hours. He said he wanted to talk to someone who had enough authority to meet their demands".
Lou tried to think quickly, and asked, "Did you manage to identify the source of the call?"
Duke replied, "The guy called from the governor's office... Also, there were two calls to 911, saying they had heard screams and gunshots in the building."
Lou took a deep breath a couple of times, trying to calm down, "Then we must assume that the threat is real..." Suddenly, he remembered, "Hey ... Danny is there. He was supposed to replace McGarrett in a meeting with the governor."
Duke cleared his throat and said, "Then I guess he's one of the hostages..."
"Damn it!" Lou thought... Immediately he took control of the situation and said, "Listen, Duke... I'll try to contact McGarrett. Meanwhile, use all the available units and establish a perimeter... no one leaves the building without being identified... We'll see you there ..."
Duke quickly answered, "I'll gather as many units as I can... Remember that HPD is supporting the Army and the Department of Homeland Security in the surveillance of the Summit at the Convention Center."
Worry rose up through Lou's throat, as he remembered the Summit... Maybe he was making hasty conclusions, but it was too much coincidence that this... group, decided to attack, precisely at that moment... and he stopped believing in coincidences a long time ago. Without much hope, he pressed the speed dial to call Steve, as he left his office, and saw Junior, Tani and Adam join him and Jerry around the smart table.
A team of seven men was trapped in the depth of Mamala Bay waters, under the great structure that had collapsed. The rescue maneuvers had started an hour ago, at that moment, a group of men worked quickly and efficiently. The incandescent red rays and bubbles sprang from several laser cutters that devoured the twisted metal, inch by inch. Steve was with them, supervising the operation, once he made sure that all the men inside the structure were still alive.
On the support vessel, Steve's backpack was stored inside a locker... in one of the pockets, his phone vibrated incessantly.
Frustrated, Lou threw the phone to Junior, who was in the passenger seat, while saying, "Steve still doesn't pick up... Junior, how long are these damn underwater demolition exercises?"
Junior kept thinking for a second and then replied, "They may last two or three hours... but I think there may be a way to contact McGarrett..."
Tani looked at him from the back seat and asked, "How?"
Without answering, Junior took his phone and dialed a number, a few seconds later he said, "This is Officer Junior Reigns, from Five-0 task force. There is an emergency and I need to speak with Commander McGarrett." For a couple of minutes, an agonizing silence invaded the interior of the Suburban, while Junior listened. Finally, he said, "Okay... I understand. Please try to contact him and tell him it's urgent that he call me as soon as possible..."
After pressing the button to end the call, Junior looked alternately at Tani, Adam and Lou who looked back at him expectantly. "I think we must take care of this situation, for now..." he said and, before the others could reply, he clarified, "There was an accident in Mamala Bay during the training excercise... It seems that the underwater structure collapsed and there are several men trapped."
The three were stunned... until Tani interrupted the stifling silence, "McGarrett... is he okay?" Junior shook his head, "The lieutenant couldn't confirm that... he's going to try to find out and he'll keep me informed." Three minutes later, the black Suburban parked next to the Camaro and some HPD cars, outside the Hawaii State Capitol.
When they got out of the car, Duke approached them and, pointing to the Camaro, said worriedly, "I think it's confirmed that Detective Williams is inside... Is there any news from Steve?" Lou shook his head and answered, "We're waiting... What's going on here?"
Duke pointed to the HPD officers and the vehicles that, at that time, surrounded the building, "We have the perimeter secure. Apparently, the rebel group has retained the hostages in the boardroom on the second floor... The elevator is blocked, but we were able to evacuate the rest of the building."
At that moment, Junior's phone rang, and Lou looked at him, unable to hide his nervousness, while the boy answered, "Sir..."
Finally, the rescue had ended successfully, and all the men were on the deck of the vessel, after the slow ascent due to forced decompression stops.
Steve, exhausted, took off his helmet, and was walking from one place to another, checking the boys. Two of them were being treated for some deep and bleeding cuts and one had multiple fractures. The other four, fortunately, were unharmed.
At that moment, an Ensign came out of the cabin and approached him, running. "Commander... there is a call for you, from the base control center."
Steve took the device that the ensign handed him and, pressing the button, answered. "McGarrett..."
"Commander..." the voice on the radio sounded slightly metallic, "Officer Reigns has been trying to reach you... he said he tried to call you on your phone... It looks like it's an emergency, sir."
"Roger that! thank you, I'll call him." Steve handed the device back to the ensign and ran to the small locker room, to find his phone, unable to suppress the sudden nervousness that was building up in his stomach, which intensified when he turned on the screen and saw the large list of missed calls. Quickly, he pressed the speed dial, and a second later he heard Junior's voice, "Sir ..."
Steve heard a deep sigh of relief on the other side of the line, when he said, "Junior... What's going on?"
While Junior explained the situation, Steve felt fear gripping his heart... No doubt, the situation was serious, but at that moment, there was only one thing on his mind.
"Where is Danny?..." he asked, silently praying that the meeting with the governor was over by the time the kidnappers arrived at the building.
Junior's answer was quick, "When we got the scene, we found the Camaro parked outside the building... we assume he's still inside." Steve felt a bitter wave of bile rise up his throat... He took a deep breath and said. "Okay... Ask Lou to keep the perimeter secure." He tried to control the fear, before speaking again, "I'll arrive as soon as I can... Keep me informed."
"Understood, sir." Junior replied. The unmistakable click sounded, indicating that the call was over.
Steve started to take off his diving suit and put on his uniform hurriedly, trying to stay focused... A new wave of adrenaline invaded him... He couldn't let panic dominate his mind... at that moment, Danny needed him. When he left the locker room, the vessel was anchoring on the dock. Quickly, he informed the lieutenant of the situation and ran to the parking lot.
The Silverado was going at full speed... The blue and red lights and the sirens were on and the cars were moving to give way... Steve squeezed the wheel, while an endless series of images of Danny bombed his mind... In some, Danny looked at him with that dazzling smile... or he was arguing, waving his arms the way he used to do... or panting on the bed, while swinging his body along with Steve's. He didn't want to think about what would happen if something went wrong... if Danny...
He shook his head to cut the thread of thoughts... He couldn't... not now. He had to focus on taking Danny and the rest of the hostages out of that building, alive... It was the only option.
When he arrived at the scene, the chaos was total... The sirens sounded and some HPD officers ran from one place to another. He scanned the scene until he saw Lou, who, at that moment, was talking to Duke and the rest of Five-0 team, next to the yellow tape that surrounded the building of the Hawaii State Capitol.
He left the truck and ran towards them; he couldn't help but notice the expression of relief when they saw him. He began to unbutton and take off his uniform jacket and, without a previous greeting, put it in Junior's hands while asking, "What do we have? Do we already know who are these guys? "
Lou hurried to answer, as he looked at his watch. "Not yet... They said they would call again in two hours... The operator of 911 said they would send the call directly to my phone... we're waiting to know who they are and what the hell they want".
At that moment, Lou's phone rang, the text appeared on the screen, "HPD" Without answering, Lou gave the phone to Steve, who took a deep breath, pressed the button to accept the call and activated the speaker, "This is Commander McGarrett, from Five-0. Who am I talking to?"
Inside the boardroom, Danny was sitting on the floor, along with the other hostages. The bleeding from his nose and mouth had stopped, but the headache was getting more intense. He held his breath when he saw that the doors opened and the leader of the kidnappers came back in, with a cordless phone in his hand, while pressing the button to call 911.
"911. What is your emergency?" The operator answered.
The guy said, in a threatening voice, "This is the person who holds the Governor of Hawaii and ten other lucky ones as hostages... The deadline has been met."
In the line some sounds were heard, while the operator transmitted the call, finally, someone answered. "This is Commander McGarrett, from Five-0. Who am I talking to? "
The guy sat on one of the chairs and said, "Well, Commander McGarrett. Are you ready to negotiate?" Danny tried to suppress the sigh of relief that threatened to escape from his mouth when he heard Steve's name.
Outside, Steve held the phone stronger and asked, "Who are you and what do you want?"
For a couple of seconds, the voice on the phone was muffled, as if the man was covering the handset with his hand, while speaking in his language with one of his accomplices. Steve half-understood what the guy was saying... he had heard that language several times, during a deployment in South Asia.
A few seconds later, the guy said hoarsely, "I want our leader, Mishaal Zafir, who was arrested by Interpol, last week in Bangladesh, to be immediately released. Also, I want to make a statement so that all the attendees at the Asia-Pacific Leaders' Summit... and the whole world, listen to our demands. So, I want a television crew, with cameras and microphones."
"Listen..." Steve tried to speak, but the guy interrupted, "There are no buts, Commander. They assured me you were the person who had enough authority to make this happen, so there's nothing to discuss, do what you have to do but Zafir should be released today... and you have an hour to bring that television crew here, or I will kill the first hostage..."
Steve tried one more time, "I can bring the TV crew, but to negotiate Zafir's release, I need more time."
"Well, you don't have it, so you'd better hurry up, Commander..."
"How do I know the hostages are safe?" When he asked that question, Steve did everything he could to make the panic not to be evident in his voice.
At that moment, a burst of gunfire was heard, and the screams flooded the phone line. "That's your proof of life, Commander... For now, all the hostages are alive... within an hour, who knows?" Without saying anything else, the call ended.
Steve gave the phone to Lou, while the captain said, "We can't send a group of reporters there, and you know that... It's too dangerous."
Steve nodded, taking his phone and pressing the button to call Jerry.
"Jerry... did you record the call?" He asked, as soon as he heard Jerry's voice on the speaker.
"Yes Boss…"
Steve was working out a mental plan, but he needed all the information he could get, "Listen, Jerry. I want everything you can find about Mishaal Zafir." He paused and said, looking at Lou. "I think the guy spoke to his partners in Bengali... I couldn't get everything, but he said something like 'we're ready, make the call'... Listen Jerry... this guy must be someone from the South Asia region."
"Wait a moment..." Jerry replied, "Here he is, Mishaal Zafir... thirty-eight years old... he's the leader of a small but bloody dissident movement in Abindahara... He was arrested by Interpol, last week in Dhaka."
Lou couldn't help but ask, "Abindahara? What the hell is that?"
Jerry replied, "It's a small country located on the northern border of Bangladesh... It's one of the smallest countries in Asia and one of the poorest in the world, with a very high population density... Most men work as employees in various transnational companies of manufacture of clothes or electronic items... The movement directed by Zafir is called, Ujjbala diganta, which, in Bengali, means Horizon of light..." Another pause. Steve could imagine Jerry typing furiously on the smart table, "Wow!" The guy said, "these guys don't go around the bush and they mean it. They openly took responsibility for the kidnapping and murder of eighteen people of different nationalities, in the last two years. The mutilated corpses have been found on the banks of the Barak River."
Steve shuddered with the mental image, while Lou asked, "This group... Horizon... whatever, have they ever taken responsibility for an act outside of Abindahara?"
There was another pause, while Jerry searched for the information; a minute later, he replied, "As far as we know, this would be the first time."
Tani asked, "What is the goal of that group, Jerry?"
Jerry's voice was heard again on the speaker, "Apparently, it's an anti-capitalist group that seeks to ensure economic and social stability in Abindahara. They complain about the living conditions of their inhabitants... they fight to eradicate the exploitation of cheap labor by the multimillion-dollar companies. Their ideology says that the only way to achieve that through violence."
Steve finally spoke, asking, "Does Interpol have a list of members of this movement?"
Jerry looked back at the computer and finally answered, "Yes, there's one list. Wait... Here is one name... Yasir Rabah. He's apparently one of the movement's most violent leaders, but he wasn't with Zafir when he was arrested. Interpol is still looking for this guy."
Steve asked Lou, "Do we know how many hostiles we face?"
Duke answered this time, "When we evacuated the building, a witness said he saw four men dressed in black enter the elevator. He said they had big backpacks. He also said that he got to hear one of them speak in other language."
Steve said, "Listen, Jerry. I want you to look in all the passenger lists, all people who have a passport from Abindahara or any other neighboring country, who have arrived in Honolulu in the last three weeks, please check the names or pictures with the Interpol list. We need to identify these guys. ASAP"
"Okay..." Jerry replied, "I'll keep you informed" and the call ended.
Steve looked at his watch, fifteen minutes had passed of the time he had to get that TV crew. He looked around the building which, by the time, was already surrounded by a few curious and several representatives of the press and the media. Quickly, he decided to use a stratagem that he used a few years before, to confront a guy who protested against the indiscriminate sale of weapons and who had requested a TV crew. He explained his plan to the team.
While Junior and Tani were preparing to play the role of TV reporters, Steve walked towards his truck... he needed a few minutes alone, to regain control of his emotions... he climbed into the driver's seat and, resting his forehead against the steering wheel, tried to contain the panic that, once again, threatened to overflow.
He didn't notice when the passenger door opened, and Lou sat next to him, closing the door softly. "Hey ..." The captain's deep voice startled him.
Steve breathed a couple of times and said, "I'm fine... I just need a minute."
Lou narrowed his eyes as he said, "Steve ... I know this is hard and you're tired from the accident this morning in the training exercise..." Noticing that Steve was looking at him with a frown, he said "Junior told us about that... someone... a lieutenant, I think. He told him about the accident."
Steve nodded and said again, "I'll be fine, Lou... I just need..."
Lou interrupted him, "I also know you're worried about Danny..." Steve said nothing, only took a deep breath. Lou continued speaking, "I know you always care about him... but there's something else, isn't it? I'm not sure what it is, but something is different this time... "
Steve started to shake his head, but before he could say anything, Lou said, "Something has changed between you two... I know, because I know you, man... and I know Danny... It's as if, suddenly, you were..."
Steve closed his eyes, trying not to be surprised by Lou's intuition... the man had noticed the subtle changes that had probably gone unnoticed by everyone else.
"Look, Steve... You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but I know something is different... It's like, since a few weeks ago, you two guys, are... better... happier and I'm willing to bet that this happiness has a lot to do with you two finally realized what you mean for each other... Am I wrong?"
"I just... I don't know how to go on without him, Lou ... If he's not here, with me ... I just can't..." He said, trying to control the trembling of his hands as they tightly grasped the phone. The captain looked at him with sadness and understanding... then Lou said, while putting his hand on the shoulder of his dejected friend, pressing lightly, "Do not go there, man!... You need to focus and concentrate on getting your boy alive from that place."
A slight ironic smile was drawn on his face. Of all the ways he imagined the world would find out about the unexpected twist in their relationship, this one was, definitely, on the bottom of the list. The last weeks had been amazing. They had explored the new feelings between them, discovering and enjoying each other; allowing themselves to feel deeply... and it had been the most wonderful thing that had happened to him in a long... long time.
Now, he knew he couldn't go on if he loses Danny, so he wiped away the tears that has accumulated under his lashes and focused on making sure that didn't happen.
AN: Abindahara is a fictitious country. Tnat country and the Movement Horizon of Light are completely a product of my imagination. Remember that I don't know the US Navy training and rescue procedures. Please excuse any inaccuracy in this regard.
Thanks for reading and please, let me know what you think
