Chapter 3

Somewhere on Oahu in Danny's car, 8:30 am...

Danny didn't know where he was driving, but he had to get as far from headquarters as possible. He didn't know what Chin and Kono were thinking of his behavior at the office. They might come to the conclusion he had finally lost it. And when Steve didn't show up for work, they would wonder if something was wrong. Hopefully, the cousins would put the pieces together and figure out he and Steve were in trouble.

For now, Danny could only wait for his next instructions from Dr. Tric. The things he had already done were strange. And personal, which made Danny uneasy.

He tried to remember past cases they had worked which might have involved someone with the skills to pull this off, but nothing came to him. Dr. Tric didn't pretend to know the members of Five-0 personally, yet he seemed to know a lot about them in a creepy stalker kind of way.

It wasn't until a few hours later, when Danny finally heard the voice in his ear. "Take the next right, detective," Dr. Tric said.

Danny looked in the rear view mirror. "You following me?"

"No, there is a GPS installed in your ear piece."

"You think of everything don't you."

"I do try."

"Where am I going?"

"Have you forgotten your lunch date with Gabby?"

Danny stiffened. He found it difficult to answer calmly. "I can reschedule, she won't mind."

"But that will be the third time this month. That's not the way to have a successful relationship. She's going to think you aren't interested in her anymore."

"She is well aware that work sometimes interferes with my personal life. She'll understand."

"I'm sure your ex-wife understood also, but look where that relationship ended up."

Danny let out an exasperated breath. "Can we just forget about lunch, so you can give me my next assignment. I've been waiting for hours."

"I already gave it to you. Lunch with your girlfriend. Enjoy yourself."

Danny ran a hand through his hair. He knew there was no way this would go well. He only hoped he wouldn't have to do anything really crazy. But so far with Dr. Tric, things were naturally crazy.

#~~#~~#~~#

Meanwhile at Five-0 headquarters...

Chin discontinued the call when Steve's voice mail chimed in. "Where's Steve?" he asked for the third time.

Kono pressed her lips together, concern written on her face. "You know it sounded like Steve and Danny had some kind of fight, so maybe he's taking time to cool off."

"But why wouldn't he call?" Chin asked. "He'd know we would wonder if he didn't come into work. I'm gonna track his phone to see if we can locate him." Chin worked his magic on the surface table. "I got it. He's at home."

"Or at least his phone is," Kono suggested. "Maybe he's sick?"

"I think I'll stop by his house to see what I can find."

"I'll go with you. I just have to cancel my lunch plans."

"I got this, cos. You should go."

"Are you sure?" Kono asked.

"Yeah. I'll call you if I find out anything."

"Okay. I should get going."

"I'll walk with you."

Leaving headquarters, they made their way toward the stairs. Governor Denning met them on his way up. "Is McGarrett in?"

"No, he actually hasn't come in yet," Kono answered.

Denning looked at his watch. "It's almost noon. That's incredibly late by his standards."

"Well, he worked late last night," Chin said. "I'm sure he'll be in any time now."

Denning noticed the bruise on Chin's jaw. "I see you're having an eventful day even without him."

"We try," Chin replied.

"When you see him, I'd like a word. It's nothing too pressing, but I'd still like to get it taken care of. He doesn't seem to be answering his phone."

"Sure, I'll let him know."

Denning nodded and continued up the stairs. Chin and Kono hurried down and made their way to the parking lot.

"Did you just lie to the governor?" Kono said. "Steve and Danny left at six. They were grilling steaks or something."

"I think we should keep this quiet until we know exactly what's going on. Steve might not even be missing and we would have made a big deal about nothing."

"And if he is missing?"

"Well, I think we'll need to get in touch with Danny because he's probably the last person who saw Steve."

#~~#~~#~~#

Restaurant, 11:45 am...

Danny was the first to arrive at the place where he and Gabby were meeting. He decided the best course of action was to get a table and wait for her. The hostess led him outside where he sat down and tried to relax. He couldn't let Gabby catch on that something was wrong. He took several deep breaths. He could do this.

A few minutes passed before Gabby arrived. Danny stood, greeting her with a hug, then helped her with her chair. He sat down, smiling. He thought if he didn't smile his expression would betray the worry that was gnawing at him.

"You must be in a good mood," Gabby said, picking up the menu.

"Good mood?" Danny answered. "Of course, I'm in a great mood. I'm having lunch with you."

Gabby smiled. She opened the menu, looking at the salad selections. "So how's everything going. How's Grace?"

Danny cringed inside. He didn't want to talk about Grace. Dr. Tric was probably listening to their conversation, but he had to say something. "She's great, but I want to hear what you've been up to."

"Okay. Well, let me see."

They spent the next twenty-five minutes talking about new developments at the museum, and other things Gabby thought might interest him. Danny wore a tight grin as they ate their lunch, and did his best to laugh at a funny mishap she recounted.

He started to think lunch would go by without a word from Dr. Tric. But during a brief lull in the conversation, Danny heard his voice. "Ask her where she sees this relationship going."

Danny tilted his head to the right and swallowed. "Gabby can I ask you something?"

"Yeah, sure. Anything," she replied.

"Um... Where do you see our relationship going?"

Gabby tried to suppress a smile. "Well, I enjoy spending time with you and I wouldn't want that to end. What about you?"

Danny scrambled for words. "I like being with you, too." That was true, but she seemed to be waiting for him to continue. "And Grace likes you a lot."

Dr. Tric had more instructions. "Ask her if she's interested in a more serious relationship."

Danny grimaced. If the crazy doctor was moving this toward a proposal, Danny would be in serious trouble. "What are your thoughts on a more serious relationship?"

Gabby seemed a little surprised, but happily so. "I would like that. You?"

Danny found himself about to say "yes". He hadn't realized he wanted a more serious relationship with her until that very moment. But Dr. Tric had a different plan.

"Tell her you're not interested. Make sure she believes you. Remember your poor partner Steve." Hum. Zap. Groan. "Whoopsie."

Danny could have screamed. Would have screamed, if Gabby weren't sitting in front of him. Instead, he dug his fingers into his thigh. "Well, actually, I'm not really interested in a serious relationship right now."

"I don't even believe you, detective. Try harder."

Danny ran a hand through his hair. "I can't do this."

Gabby looked at him, confusion and hurt lining her face. "I don't understand."

If the expression on Gabby's face wasn't enough to pierce Danny's heart, he heard Steve cry out in pain once more.

"Change your mind?" Dr. Tric asked.

Danny hated this guy, but he had established that from the first moment he heard Dr. Tric's voice. He had to sell this. No matter what. Even though it meant completely destroying everything he had with Gabby.

"It's just I'm not really wanting a serious relationship ever again." Danny put his hands flat on the table. "I'm mean, take this from someone who's been divorced. Serious relationships really suck. It's more fun to just hang out, have our fun, then move on when things get boring. You understand, don't you?"

Gabby's face paled. "I-if that's how you feel than I think we're done here." Not giving him time to respond, she grabbed her purse and walked away.

Danny's heart wrenched. This was the opposite of what he wanted. Why was this happening to him? Even if he rescued Steve, things may never be the same with Gabby.

"What are you gonna make me do next?" Danny asked the doctor.

"Oh, I'm so glad you asked. Now that you've closed the door on one relationship it's time to open another."

Danny gritted his teeth. "What?"

Dr. Tric let out a melodic sigh. "Oh, detective, it's time to express your undying love and devotion to Kono Kalakaua."

A/N: Sorry for the delay in posting. My time has been eaten up by splitting and stacking wood for the winter. Anyway, I hope the chapter was worth waiting for. Thank you for your reviews, follows and favorites, they're so encouraging. And what do you think about the ending of this chapter? Let me know. :)