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I hope you had a great weekend - are you ready for a little bit of whump?

Chapter 3:

"Hello, mister."

Paul Baines cringed slightly when the cheerful voice of a little boy reached his ears. There were only very few things in the world he hated more than children but for the sake of his revenge he gritted his teeth, plastering a fake smile on his face as he bent down.

"Hello there," he answered, hoping that his voice sounded friendly enough not to scare the group of children who swirled around him, every single one of them trying to be the first one to receive their portion of ice.

"Did you see us surfing?" One of the children, a skinny girl with short blond hair asked excitedly, hopping up and down as she impatiently waited for an answer as well as her turn to get some ice cream.

Baines nodded enthusiastically, much to the delight of the girl in front of him. "You did really good, I was quite impressed with your skills," he forced out, even if he had no idea if the blond girl actually had been on a surfboard let alone how well she'd performed.

"Rosie," one of the other girls whispered urgently as she tried to drag her friend away, her big brown eyes suspiciously watching Baines. "We're not supposed to talk to strangers."

"But he is no stranger, Gracie. I saw him sitting here all day long and he was talking to Mrs. Hillerman earlier," the blonde girl answered, gesturing toward the owner of the ice cream parlor. "So he isn't a stranger anymore," Rosie repeated, absolutely determined to force her point, but the other girl was equally stubborn when it came to her opinion.

"We don't even know his name, and I haven't seen him before, so he is a stranger and we won't talk to him."

Baines had to stifle a smile, he had to admit that he was quite impressed by the fierce behavior of the dark-haired girl but to be honest he hadn't expected anything less from Detective Williams' daughter. Swallowing the last bit of his chocolate flavored ice cream he watched the group of children, soon filling the tables around him, happily licking and slurping their multicolored ice.

Trying to cut out the loud chatter and giggling of the boys and girls, Baines let his gaze travel across the beach, noticing five or six adults drawing near. Narrowing his eyes, he leaned forward, taking a closer look at the young woman at the end of the group, he finally recognized the surf instructor, her dark hair still slightly wet from her time in the water. Baines' eyes grew wide, he slightly shook his head in astonishment, not believing what his eyes and his mind were trying to tell him.

The only reason he was on Molokai was the little dark-haired girl who sat at the table next to him, still throwing him suspicious looks from time to time. He'd never expected to also meet Officer Kono Kalakaua. Luck was truly on his side today. Now he would be able to kill two birds with one stone.

Running his hand over his face to hide his ferocious smile, Baines swiftly stood up and left the place, he couldn't risk getting recognized by the youngest member of Five-0. Turning his back on the group of adults he sauntered along the beach, heading toward his original destination, a small boat rental about half a mile away from the kids' holiday camp.

Playing expectantly with the small vial hidden in his pocket, Paul Baines tried to imagine what it would look like when one of the jet-skis raced headlong and at full speed into a surfboard. What a pity he wouldn't be around to watch the spectacle, but his presence was needed on Oahu, where the fourth and, for the time being, final step of his revenge would be executed.

Steve had spent the whole Saturday not only cleaning the house from top to bottom, but also finally repairing some long postponed things, like the few broken floor boards on the lanai, the creaking door to Mary's old bedroom and the rotten window frame on the backside of the garage. It had been a sweaty, tiresome day and he was actually glad that Danny had announced that he would spend his spare time with Gabby and that under no circumstances – and he had made that point very, very clear – would he'd like to be disturbed.

"I'll tell you once and for all, Steven," Danny had said Friday night before he'd left McGarrett's house, emphasizing every single word by poking his finger in Steve's face, "if I hear so much as one tiny little sound coming from my cell phone or your ugly face showing up on the display, I swear by the life of my daughter, you'll have my resignation letter on your desk faster than you can say 'we have a case'. It's the first time I'm actually able to spend a whole weekend with Gabby and I won't allow that you or some slimy little criminal ruin my date."

McGarrett grinned knowingly when he remembered the look of anticipation on his partner's face. Danny's relationship with Gabby had reached a new level, ever since he'd finally screwed up the courage and brought Gabby and his daughter together. Grace had immediately made it clear that she agreed with Danny's choice, she and Gabby got along great from the very beginning. Gabby's immense knowledge about almost everything related to Hawaii matched perfectly with Gracie's never-ending thirst for knowledge and she patiently answered every single question the little girl had.

The weekend passed in a rush, after the busy Saturday, Steve spent the whole Sunday doing literally nothing, he commuted between the beach, the lanai and the couch, feeling more bone-crushingly tired than actually comfortably lazy. He even did something he usually never did – he slept for almost three hours during broad daylight, awakening with a slight headache and the feeling that something was not quite right. Brushing off the weird sensation he decided to go to bed early that evening, planning to sleep off any upcoming cold or sickness.

Paul Baines was really annoyed, not to say outright furious. How could he possibly have missed something as vital as the little fact that Detective Danny Williams was in a serious relationship.

After having spent the whole Sunday in front of Williams' pathetic apartment, looking for his next victim to show up, his famous patience finally wore thin. It was obviously pure luck that the man decided to briefly come home, rushing inside to pick up some clothes before he headed back to his swanky silver roadster where a petite dark-haired beauty was waiting for his return.

Narrowing his eyes, Baines pondered for a moment before he quickly rearranged his plans. The longer he thought about it the more he liked the new idea that was forming in his mind, now he had not only Williams's daughter but also his girlfriend. All he needed to do was find out who that woman was.

When Steve awoke the next morning, he felt much better, hoping that his usual morning run would chase away the last bit of headache that nagged persistently at the back of his skull. With newfound energy he jumped out of his bed only seconds after the alarm clock went off, a habit he had acquired during his military days where lazing around hadn't exactly been very popular.

After quickly using the bathroom he slipped on his training shorts, sneakers and his favorite Navy SEAL T-shirt and less than five minutes later he was out of the house, jogging down the deserted streets into the early Hawaiian morning. With the blood pumping through his body, Steve felt more alive with every step he made and with every breath he took, the headache quickly faded away into nothingness.

Almost sixty minutes later he returned home, breathing heavily and soaked with sweat but happy and satisfied. Tossing the newspaper onto the kitchen table Steve threw a brief look at his watch, it was almost seven o'clock which meant he had a little bit more than one hour before Danny would pick him up. Gulping down a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice, he started the coffee machine before he went upstairs to shower and get dressed.

Looking into the mirror McGarrett decided that he would be good without shaving for another day. Brushing his teeth, searching for something to wear and tightly wrapping a waterproof cover around his forearms had taken more than twice as much time as Steve's usual short-lived shower. Happily whistling along he finally strolled downstairs, looking forward to a cozy breakfast and a good read through the newspaper.

A steaming cup of coffee, a bowl of fresh fruit mixed with milk and cereals and the newspaper in front of him, Steve sat down at the kitchen table. As was his habit he finished his meal before he started to read, a nostalgic smile playing around his lips at the thought that he probably picked up this special trait from his father.

Pushing away the empty bowl, Steve took a sip of coffee as he opened the newspaper, the cup almost slipping from his fingers when he read the headline – Amok at MPD, four policemen dead. With a heavy weight settling down in his stomach he carefully put his coffee back on the table, leaning slightly forward to read the article.

Steve had read only the first few words when without any warning the room suddenly began to spin around him, the letters blurring in front of his eyes. Grabbing the edge of the table, Steve sucked in a deep breath of air, squinting his eyes to get rid of the resurfacing headache. His hands and feet were tingling, his ice-cold fingers trembling slightly against the tabletop. The simple task of breathing was almost too much, Steve felt his eyelids drooping as the air around him seemed to crush him.

Somewhere in the back of his mind a little voice was screaming at him, McGarrett knew that he quickly needed something to boost his blood pressure if he didn't want to end face flat on the floor. With all the remaining strength he could muster, Steve dragged himself to his wobbling feet, hoping that there still was a bottle of Gatorade in the fridge.

He barely managed two small steps away from the table when the dizziness increased to an unbearable level and he was no longer able to fight the darkness that pressed against his mind.

"Not good," Steve mumbled, already out cold long before his body actually hit the floor.

(tbc)