Chin looked up from the file he was reading as Duke Lukela entered the office. The HPD sergeant handed him a single sheet of paper that held the roster of the HPD officers who had been assigned to guard McGarrett's hospital room. "I have to admit Chin, I was surprised when you told me that Larkins volunteered for guard duty. I put him and his partner on this evening's roster. Larkins never volunteers for anything if he can help it."

"I think he was just trying to impress Kono." Chin grinned.

"He certainly seems to believe he has a way with the wahines. It's a shame the wahines don't quite feel the same way about him." Duke laughed before he grew serious. "I heard that Kono was asking around if Steve had asked anyone to carry out surveillance on Danny."

"We discovered after Steve was shot that someone done a full background check and has been carrying out surveillance on Danny over the last four weeks." Chin told the HPD sergeant. "We're not sure if Steve ordered the background check and surveillance and if so why, or someone else carried it out and sent it for Steve for some reason."

"I knew Steve was up to something but I wasn't sure what, Chin." Duke admitted quietly, "He approached me the day before he left for his holidays and asked me some questions about Danny's background as an officer in HPD."

"What sort of questions?" Chin asked

"He wanted to know the type of cases Danny was involved in, who his partners were, if there were any problems with senior officers that he wasn't aware of either at HPD or in Jersey." Duke shifted uncomfortably on his feet before he continued in a lower voice. "He asked how well Danny got on with other officers while he was at HPD and how well he is getting on with them now that he is in Five 0."

"Did he tell you why he wanted to know, Duke?" Chin frowned.

"No." Duke shook his head as he remembered Steve's agitation. "He just asked that I kept his questions to myself. I wish I had have asked him what was going on."

"I doubt Steve would have told you." Chin told the older officer. "I think whatever was going on, Steve was trying to protect Danny."

Duke sighed, as he turned to leave, "If I hear anything at all on the coconut wireless, I'll let you know."

"Mahalo, Duke."

xxxxx

Catherine ordered a second cup of coffee as she watched the Camaro pull up to the curb outside the small diner where Danny had requested to meet. She smiled and thanked the waitress as she settled the cup onto the table, and turned to watch as Danny pushed open the diner's door and entered.

Sliding into the seat on the other side of the small table where Catherine was waiting, Danny Williams ordered a coffee and waited a moment until the waitress had moved away before he spoke softly, "Thanks for meeting with me, Catherine."

Catherine studied the exhausted detective in front of her, resisting the urge to comment on the Danny's obviously fatigued state, "Has something happened to Steve? The doctors told me he was stable when I went to see him at the hospital this morning."

"Steve's stable," Danny rushed to reassure Catherine. He fell silent for a moment while the waitress placed a cup of coffee in front of him and walked away before he continued. "But I need some information, information that I am hoping you can get for me."

"Of course, Danny, anything to help. I gather whatever you need has something to do with Steve's shooting?" Catherine asked quietly. After receiving a silent nod in confirmation from the Five 0 detective sitting across from her, she asked, "What do you need me to help with?"

"I'm not sure just what is going on but what I am sure of is whatever Steve was doing, it was somehow linked to the CIA." At Catherine's questioning stare, Danny hurried to explain. "Steve lied to us – me- about where he was going on holidays. He was supposed to be on the Big Island, I didn't even know he was back in Oahu until after he was hit! It was then that I found out just how much Steve had kept from me about what he was up to." Danny paused a moment and looked away, drawing a deep breath to settle himself, unwilling to show the hurt caused by Steve's secrecy, before he continued. "While I was trying to find out why Steve had changed his plans and hadn't told me, I found a file and a USB that contained an in depth background check and surveillance photos on me hidden in his office drawer."

"He was running a background check on you? Why?" Catherine frowned as she leaned closer.

Danny shrugged. "I don't know if Steve authorized it or not, but what I do know is we tracked Steve's movements back to Maui where he appears to have arranged to have met up with a private eye named Clarke. The same PI who we have since discovered ran the actual background check and I suspect had me under surveillance."

"Private Eye named Clarke? Not Sam Clarke?" Catherine's eyes grew wide, before they narrowed in concern as Danny nodded.

"Yeah, do you know him?" Danny asked leaning forward. "I tried to run a background check on him but seemed to hit brick walls."

"Not surprising." Catherine told Danny softly as she glanced around to see if anyone was listening in on their conversation. Satisfied that both the waitress and the cook were paying them no attention, Catherine turned back to Danny. "Listen Danny, if Clarke was running some sort of background check on you, than you are in danger! Clarke is CIA."

"That's why the CIA have told me to stop me checking his background." Danny breathed.

"They warned you to stop?"

"Agent Anderson. He called me today and ordered us to stop running any background checks on Clarke."

Catherine laughed quietly, "Anderson would have had a heart attack at the thought of explaining why you are checking the background of one of their top agents."

"He was one of their top agents?" Danny asked surprised.

"Was?" Catherine frowned.

"After Steve was shot we traced Steve's last steps to Maui where we discovered Clarke's body – murdered- everything points to Steve as the murderer."

"So you think Steve might be responsible for Clarke's death?"

"No, I don't, but it's going to be hard to prove he is innocent." Danny admitted honestly, "I think whatever the reason I was being investigated was also the reason why he was killed and Steve was hit! I seem to be the motive behind whatever is going on, and the only ones who can tell me why are either dead or unconscious in the hospital. I doubt that anyone in the CIA is going to tell me much about Clarke or why he was investigating me or who authorized it. That's why I need your help."

Catherine nodded. "Sam Clarke was a maverick, Danny, it's rumored that he liked to run his own operations on the side using his position in the CIA to gain classified information - nothing has been proved. Let me see if I can find out what he was up to and whom he was working for. If Clarke was doing background checks and surveillance on you Danny, then someone has you marked! Clarke was the man the CIA sent in to clean up their messes. Be careful." Reaching across Catherine placed her hand on Danny's as she tried to reassure him. "I don't know what Steve was up to, Danny, but what ever it was, I am sure he didn't tell you because he thought by not doing so he was protecting you and Grace."

"Yeah maybe, or maybe he decided he doesn't trust me as his partner. Thanks Catherine." Danny said softly as he rose from his seat and dropped a few dollar bills onto the table before he turned and walked away.

Biting her bottom lip as Danny left, Catherine rose from her seat to follow him. She hesitated for a moment before she turned away from the door and headed out of the diner through the kitchen.

xxxxxx

"Want to grab him now?"

"No, not yet, there are too many people around. Let's just wait until he is alone and then we will take care of him."

"What about the woman he was just talking to?" The Hawaiian asked, glancing out of the car window towards the diner from which Williams had just emerged.

"Find out who she is and why Williams was meeting with her. After you find out what we need to know - you know what to do!" The older man instructed softly as the Hawaiian nodded and began to climb out of the car. Grabbing the larger man's arm to momentarily halt his exit, the older man growled, "And this time, make sure you clean up after yourself, got it?"

"Got it, Sir." The Hawaiian nodded as the older man released his arm and he stepped out of the car and watched as his boss pulled away. Turning back towards the diner, he quickly straightened his clothes before he entered the tiny establishment and looked around. He froze in surprise as he stared at the empty table where Williams and the woman had been sitting. It was empty and the woman was nowhere to be seen.

Turning he rushed behind the counter and through the kitchen, ignoring the startled shouts from the waitress and the cook as he pulled open the back door and ran out into the small alley behind the building, searching for some sign of Williams' companion. Cursing under his breath after discovering the alley was empty; he turned and walked back into the diner, drawing his gun as he menacingly approached the two people within, demanding they tell him where the woman had gone.

A few minutes later the peaceful calm of the nearly deserted street was shattered by a scream from the small diner before gunshots silenced the frightened cry.

Xxxxxxx

"I can't believe you managed to get us get us such an easy assignment for the afternoon." Kimo grinned at his partner. "Pulling guard duty on McGarrett."

Shrugging his shoulders, Tim smiled, "I told you partner, all it took was one little whisper in Kono's ear this morning when I saw her in the parking lot and the hint of a date and she was more than willing to recommend me to her cousin for cushy assignment of guard duty. It sure beats walking the beat in the rain. I just glanced out of the window and it is really coming down out there."

"Man, you certainly have a way with the wahines." Kimo grinned before he glanced toward the entrance door to the ICU and the coffee machine just beyond, "But I'm dying for a coffee!"

"Why don't you go to the machine and grab one, also grab one for me." His partner suggested. "It's not like no one is guarding the door. I think Kelly and Williams went for overkill by having two of us guarding McGarrett anyway."

Kimo hesitated, "Are you sure, Brah? You know if Chin or Danny comes it will be both our heads, not just mine."

Tim grinned and gave his partner a push towards the door. "It's shaka, just go!"

Larkins waited until his partner disappeared through the doors leading out of the ward, before he quickly turned and opened the door he was guarding, slipping quietly into the room and closing the door securely behind him. Crossing the room to the side of the bed, the young HPD officer swore as he realized the ventilator that had assisted McGarrett to breathe had been removed and replaced by a nasal cannula.

"Damn!" He muttered in frustration as he ran his hand nervously over his face, staring down at the motionless man in the bed. "This was going to be easy on you, McGarrett but I guess we will have to do this the hard way." He murmured to the unconscious man as he quickly glanced around, a small smile tugging at his lips as he noticed the discarded pillow on the chair nearby.

He turned and quickly crossed to chair, picking up the pillow before turning it over in his hands, examining it as he returned to the side of the bed. "But either way, I guess it won't matter." He whispered as he held the pillow in one hand and reached down removing the nasal cannula with the other. "Cause the end result will be the same- you'll be dead and you won't be able to tell anyone what you know - especially Williams!" He laughed softly as he pressed the pillow down onto Steve's face.

xxx

AN- I just want to again thank everyone for all the reviews, faved or alerted my story. Thank you! I am thrilled that you are enjoying my story. :)