The mall was starting to empty. They couldn't hide there for much longer. Danny glanced at his watch and estimated that another half hour would leave them vulnerable and he decided that they had to move now. The big question was where could they go? Somewhere with a lot of people was the obvious answer, but where? The answer came to him as he looked up – a movie theatre!

It didn't matter what film was on. Without telling Melissa what he had in mind, he led her out of the mall and a block or two down the road to the nearest theatre. He was glad that she had travelled in flat shoes, because high heeled pumps would have made his life a misery. Melissa was already complaining that her feet hurt from all the walking.

There was a show just starting – some chic-flick thing Danny had never heard of – but it would do. He quickly bought tickets and urged Melissa into a back row corner seat. She complained, but he was already learning to tune out her complaints. They were legion and covered almost everything they had done so far today and he was top of her list. The movie began, but Dan saw none of it.

If there was a leak at Five-O, there was always a possibility that there was a similar leak at HPD. Perhaps going there was not an option, as he had first thought. Contacting one officer would inevitably mean that anyone with a police scanner would soon know that he was in trouble and they would instantly become targets again. He had to take Melissa somewhere that nobody would expect. Danny sighed. He had already ruled out his apartment, Steve's apartment, Chin's house and Kono's place. Where did that leave them?

The movie was almost over when the idea came to him. One of Danny's surfer buddies had a beach hut on the North Shore. Danny had an open invitation to use it whenever he wanted. Dave was on the mainland, so he wouldn't be using it and Danny knew where the key was. Getting to the North Shore was slightly more problematical. Hiring a car was out – Danny had to assume that Haliburton had bought people in the service industries like that and like the hotels. Walking there was doable, but impractical. Borrowing a car would be perfect, but who could he borrow from? He shook his head. There was only one answer; they would have to get a bus.

As they left the theatre, Danny scanned the people milling about. It was dark now and the nightlife of Honolulu was getting underway. People now were no help to them. There were too many drunks who might be assassins. Danny had to get Melissa to safety now.

All of a sudden, Danny saw a man through a gap in the crowds. The intensity of his gaze as he looked at the young couple alerted the detective to trouble and as the man began to move, Danny grabbed Melissa's hand and hurried in the opposite direction.

"Williams! Let go of me!" Melissa was fighting him. She was tired, hungry and scared and she had had enough.

"If you want to die on this street, I'll cheerfully leave you behind," Danny hissed. "If not, follow me." He didn't let go of her hand.

Rounding a corner, Danny saw the answer to his prayers. Just up ahead, a patrol car was pulled over at the side of the road and the cop was out of the vehicle, standing a few feet away, talking to a youth. Danny didn't recognise the cop, but he didn't give the man a second glance, either. Smoothly, he pushed Melissa into the car, sliding in behind the wheel and gunning the engine. A shot pinged off the wing of the car, causing the crowds to duck and scream. Danny risked a single glance in the rear view mirror and saw that not only was the cop firing at him, the man he had spotted was jumping into a car and chasing him!

Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all, Danny thought as he flipped on the lights and sirens and floored the accelerator.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Steve, HPD reported finding Danny's LTD in a parking lot. The front and rear windows are shot out and the car is slightly damaged from a collision, too," Chin reported anxiously. "No blood in the car, but no sign of Danny, either."

"I'll be right there!" Steve replied, mentally noting the address. His phone was now safe for use, which was a relief, but hours had gone past since Danny called and it was now dark and there had been no further word from his detective.

Driving through the evening traffic, Steve listened vaguely to the chatter on the police radio. He came to sharp attention when he heard the report of a stolen squad car. His heart leapt and he knew – just knew – that it had to be Danny. He snatched up the mic. "This is McGarrett. Danny, let me know if you are both all right."

It was a long shot, and he had to admit it. It could just be some punk who had stolen the squad car, but it was such an unusual occurrence that Steve's mind made the connection and refused to let go of it. His faith was rewarded a moment later.

"Steve, its Danny. We're fine."

No more than that, but Steve could not blame his friend. While he wanted nothing more than to have Danny and Melissa under his own watchful gaze, he at least knew they were all right. He was too far away to run an intercept without explicit directions from Danny and he knew that those would not be forthcoming. Che had not given Steve the all clear about HPD and although Danny didn't know that, he would have guessed that there might be a problem with HPD as well as Five-O. If there was a leak at Five-O, there could be a corresponding leak at HPD. Danny was playing it cautiously.

Turning into the parking lot, Steve was relieved that Danny was all right for the moment, but he wasn't going to stop worrying until he saw his friend, alive and well, bringing Melissa into the court room to testify.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Hearing Steve's voice bolstered Danny's courage. He had flipped off the lights and siren as they cleared Honolulu, but he knew they would have to ditch the squad car as soon as possible. It was too visible; too big a target. He could only hope that when he decided to make his move, he would know the island better than the men chasing them.

Up ahead, there was a turn-off leading down to a secluded beach. Danny flipped the headlights on full beam for a moment, then killed the lights completely. He yanked the wheel round and felt the change from asphalt to dirt beneath the tires. Danny braked fiercely and hauled the car round into a small parking bay. He killed the engine and reached for Melissa's hand again. "We've got to go," he urged her.

For the first time since he met the girl a few short hours before, Melissa had lost her arrogance. She looked scared and Danny could not blame her. What had seemed very easy had become a complete nightmare and now this mad cop who was protecting her looked as though he was going to drag her onto a dark beach while someone was chasing them and trying to kill her. No, Danny did not blame her for feeling scared. He felt the same way.

The beauty of this stretch of beach was the number of sand dunes. They provided a great place for children to play hide and seek and Danny hoped to emulate those children.

Above them, on the road, Danny heard the screech of brakes as their pursuer missed the turn. A quick smile crossed his face. He had managed to outwit them for a moment. Panting, he slowed slightly as he felt Melissa tiring from the uncertain footing. They had to find somewhere to hide.

It seemed to take forever, but was no more than a few minutes, before Danny found the spot he was looking for. In one particular place in the dunes, the sand was curled around, providing an almost perfect hiding place. Danny pushed Melissa into the deepest part of the curl and crouched by her side, drawing his gun.

His eyes were rapidly getting used to the moonlight and he could see a couple of dark shapes moving against the starlit sky. They weren't coming anywhere near them and Danny was not going to risk shooting in this kind of light for several reasons. First and foremost, he did not want to alert these men to their position. Second, he did not want to gun them down in cold blood and third, he was not sure how Melissa would react to any shooting and she was his top priority.

"Williams…" she whispered and the sound carried on the still night air.

Instantly, the men turned in their direction. Danny leaned in, gently covering Melissa's mouth to prevent her saying anything else. He could see the liquid gleam of her eyes as he leaned over her, waiting to feel the bullet in his back, knowing that because of her, their luck had run out. They were going to die on this beach and Steve would find their bodies in the morning. He ached for his friend's grief and regretted that he had let Steve down.

The sand crunched as the men drew closer.