Author's Note: Lately it feels like "Something's Gotta Give" has been the theme song of my life. Right down to the fact that a few days ago I found a hole in the sole of my favorite boots. =( darn. Anywhoo. Reviews make me very happy. So thank you very very much! I am glad that you are enjoying my little tale. I hope you all keep enjoying it and don't hate me too much, cause things are about to get stirred up big time. And so….
Eliot was tired. And sore. Barely a week since he had been stabbed, shot, and seriously misused and he had just spent a day involved in three different throw downs (he didn't count KO'ing the guy in the car), two chases, and then a motorcycle crash. Yeah, he had orchestrated it to crash, but it didn't mean it didn't hurt. But all in all, it was worth it. They had gotten most of the bad guys and Melina Orson was reunited with her family.
Eliot leaned his head back against the wall with his eyes closed. He was camped out in a chair in Steve's office while the team wrapped up the particulars of the case. Steve had insisted that he let the paramedics look at his forearms and he had grudgingly allowed them to clean and bandage the scrapes. He hadn't let them bother the bullet wound or explained that it was a bullet wound, but had just used the excuse that it was a preexisting injury. But he filched a suture kit from the back of the ambulance when they weren't looking. He had used it in the bathroom once they got back to Five-0 HQ. Luckily only a few of the stitches had come undone. Just enough to bleed a little. All in all, considering his various aches and injuries, the day went pretty well.
Well in all regards except for Keller. Steve had updated him on the way back to the office. HPD had cleaned up at the warehouse and once they had secured the area and the personnel they found there they had given the go ahead to the team watching the house in Moana Valley. They hadn't found much there (asides from a stash of guns and the jewelry from the robbery), nor had there been any sign of Keller. At this point, with his plans disrupted, they figured he must have fled the island. In this regard, Melina had been most helpful. Once she had calmed down and the paramedics had checked her out, Danny and Kono had taken her statement. Apparently Keller had wanted her to create reproductions of some of the more priceless pieces of the Hawaiian Crown jewelry on display at the Iolani Palace. He had gloated about how rich and eccentric his buyer was and apparently had a thing for collecting items of cultural and historical significance. Keller had planned on playing out the Mona Lisa Variant and using Melina to make several copies of each piece to then sell to other buyers in addition to the one he already had lined up.
Thanks to the quick work of the Five-0 team, with Eliot's assistance, Keller's plans were thoroughly squashed. As soon as Melina told them Keller's plans they had called the appropriate people and the security for the exhibits had been tripled. Along with several HPD patrols assigned to sit on the area for the next few weeks in case Keller decided to chance it after all. The governor was very grateful as was the museum curator in charge of the displays. The curator was grateful so much so that they were now all members of the "Friends of Iolani Palace" for life. The best part though had been to see Melina reunited with her parents. There was much hugging, tears, and relieved laughter. Eliot had watched from a distance, just glad that he could help reunite at least one family. Yes, he thought to himself, he missed his family.
He allowed himself to wallow for a moment; after all, it had been a long day. He heard Steve enter the office and he pulled his feet down from the desk and opened his eyes. Steve walked forward and glanced at the vest and gun that Eliot had discarded on the desk.
"You know you owe me a new vest now right?" Steve asked jokingly as he picked up the gun to put it away, smile turning to a frown as he hefted it.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah…" Eliot rolled his eyes.
"Eliot." Steve's voice was serious. "Why is the magazine not in my gun?"
Eliot raised his eyebrows and gave Steve a look. "You're rusty man. I had the magazine back in your go bag less than two minutes after you handed me that gun. You know I don't roll that way." He finished with a smile and a shake of his head.
"You are incorrigible!" Steve exclaimed as he raised his eyes heavenward as if asking the universe why.
"Ahhh, you know you like me that way." Eliot teased. "'sides, we got the job done. Apart from Keller." Eliot glared as he said the name.
"Don't worry about Keller. He's on our radar now. We'll get him. You ready to go?" Steve asked.
"Whenever you are." Eliot replied. Steve had offered the use of his couch and Eliot had willingly accepted being too tired to want to bother scrounging up some other place to stay. Also, he knew it would be safe. He rode with Steve in his truck, deciding to leave his own bike parked in the Five-0 lot for the moment. It would be there in the morning.
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At Steve's place Eliot lounged against the couch as Steve passed him a beer.
"So, you wanna talk about it?" Steve asked as he took a pull from his own bottle.
"Talk about what?" Eliot evaded as he rolled the bottle back and forth in his hands.
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe the reason why when I first called to ask for your help you told me you had people who mattered counting on you for a long term job and wouldn't be available. Or about how shortly after that I get a call, out of the blue, from you saying you want in. Or how you show up a week later beat to hell, although you hide it well, acting like nothing's the matter. El, I've known you since the first day of training. I know something's up."
"Hell Steve, you know I think of you like a brother. A big annoying sometimes overprotective brother, but a still a brother." Eliot sighed.
"So does that make you the smart-ass younger brother?" Steve asked with a smirk.
Eliot smirked as well and took a sip from his beer before his face turned serious again. "You really want to know?"
"Wouldn't have asked otherwise."
"Something bad went down. Real bad. Remember Ban Ho Seng? Now multiply that bad by a factor of ten." Steve whistled. "My past almost got them all killed. My team, my family." Eliot looked down as he made this admission aloud.
"Did they kick you out?"
"No, it was my choice. And what happened with Keller today just confirms I'm right. I have too many enemies out there. They are safer if I stay away. Keller and countless others are still out there on the loose. What if next time I didn't make it in time?"
"So you decided to make sure there wouldn't be a next time?" Steve asked. "Did you even say goodbye?"
Eliot mumbled under his breath and took another swig. Steve looked at him with raised eyebrows and Eliot repeated himself, "I left 'em a letter. Explainin'." At seeing Steve's look he added, "'sides, I asked John to look out for them for a few weeks, make sure everything was okay."
"Kelly? And he agreed?" Steve asked surprised.
Eliot gave a weary grin and replied, "He owed me one."
"I'll say." Steve threw back as he sipped from his bottle. "So, what now? You sure you're up for this job?"
"Hell yes!" Eliot replied firmly, with not one ounce of hesitation and in a tone that left no room for argument.
"Alright then, get some sleep. Tomorrow I'll introduce you to the rest of team for the job. Then we start training." Steve announced as he stood and made his way to his room.
"Right…" Eliot finished his beer and leaned back on the couch. He knew he'd better rest up. He'd need it. But sleep was hard to come by when his brain wouldn't quit playing memories of his team.
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Author's Note: Sorry for letting the bad guy get away. Don't worry. He'll be back. (Cue ominous music in the back ground). And thanks for the reviews. They prompted me to get off my posterior and post this. I have just recently discovered Supernatural. And now I am (lovingly but annoyingly) addicted. It is awesome. But I can't seem to stop watching it. Even when I should be doing something else: like, I don't know, sleeping, eating, and writing. You know. It's bad. But in an oh so delicious way. Back on topic: All recognizable characters are not mine- just borrowing them. So bonus points to whoever can tell me who Eliot's friend is. Heheheee….. Now, consider this chapter just a bridge. More coming sooner than you think.