I do not own Hawaii Five-0 or any characters. No copyright infringement intended.

Notes: my thanks to CinderH for beta-ing each and EVERY crazy chapter and offering suggestions - even at the last minute, by the muse who then demands yet even more changes when least expected and on my part! And Jazzie for the occasional "what have I done?" conversation when the bad muse takes off and running! Of course thanks to you all for the ever constant reviews. :-) Yes, I am behind AGAIN and I am very sorry. I will try to correct that this weekend.

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Chapter 10

In the hills, Danny and Becca heard the delayed first reports of gunfire first. As worn out as he was, the loud echoed report of a shot-gun had Danny grinning tiredly. He nearly laughed when the second report echoed on the growing breeze.

"Chin's arrived." He muttered softly. That knowledge was his absolute excuse to stop their ascent for good behind a large boulder and just below the shelter of heavy jungle vines. Becca was shivering from the increasing chill in the air and trying to hide the fact that her wrist was achy. Danny was shivering too not only from the chill, but from sheer exhaustion and pain from his injuries. Adrenalin was gone and only having Becca by in his care was keeping him more aware than he likely should have been. Sinking down to his knees, he used the boulder as a prop and then pulled Becca under his good right arm. From their vantage point, they could see the sporadic light from muzzle fire and after the natural acoustical delay, hear the reports echoing up.

"What .. did I tell you?" Danny whispered more from weakness than from a real need to be quiet. His head was pounding to the beat of his heart which in turn affected his breathing to pull on his injured rib and gunshot wound. Each fueled the other and he was becoming incredibly tired.

"It's Uncle Steve … and real help … because … you were so darn smart about … that cell phone." So relieved for a moment, Danny closed his eyes after his words came out on a few short exhales. However, mesmerized by the almost surreal sight, Becca didn't answer the compliment at all. Almost in a daze, she wrapped her arms gently around his waist while she watched the sparkle of lights. It was scary and exciting all at once.

"Are they okay?" She asked, with a voice which was small and worried.

"Yeah." Danny suddenly found himself down to near monosyllabic replies suddenly. His mind was planning what they would do next once the scene was under control. But he knew that he'd have major issues simply getting up from where he was leaning, let alone back down to the compound. Becca sensed the rising trouble as she gave him a gentle squeeze.

"I can go back down." She whispered bravely. "Bring back help?" But Danny only tightened his hug in response.

"No." There was zero chance that he'd ever allow her to traipse back down the dark hilly and now very slick bit of jungle they'd just conquered. The misty drizzle was changing and he would also would never risk her life with the men below - regardless if Steve had arrived - just in case. There was always a 'just in case'.

"No." He repeated firmly under his breath. "No. Stick .. together."

"Okay." Becca was torn but she obeyed his soft commands. She quieted with a strong shiver as the mist became a more real rain and cradled her bruised wrist. Looking up at him from where she was tucked under his arm, she was afraid of his partially opened eyes and very pale complexion. His shivering was also more like a bad shaking as muscles became more fatigued and objected to even remaining vertical while leaning up against the boulder.

The two stayed together as the rain intensified and the muzzle flashes eventually stopped. When the house lights flickered on and lit up the distant area below them, Danny finally spoke again. Moving in and out of the light from house and yard, he could just make out silhouettes. The house had been over-run and help had definitely arrived.

His voice was hoarse and barely audible, but totally pleased by what he knew had happened. "It's over, Becca. Let's go back."

If asked, Danny didn't know how he accomplished the return route down the hilly, slick landscape in the pitch darkness. Side by side, he and Becca slipped and slid helping each other on the way; perhaps, Becca taking more slack than her small frame might be able to truly handle. Worried for Danny, she was still mostly happy and the activity not only kept her a bit warmer, but brought her closer home. But Danny was near spastic with pain and exhaustion; barely on his feet, each step was becoming a repetitive nightmare which jarred his head and he'd begun to breathe raggedly through his mouth. Only Becca's warm presence and his responsibility in getting her back to her own family kept him going.

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On the opposite end, Steve had organized Kono and the men to begin searching the neighboring jungle. Frank Curtis was dead and the three had very mixed emotions about what had happened in the house. Higgins was confused by the event when Steve quietly explained in more detail what had happened.

Professionally concerned by a civilian's actions in the midst of a takedown, but understanding the big doctor's emotional state, the SWAT leader remained quiet. He didn't doubt that Curtis would have been shot by a valid team member based on what he'd attempted - but that in itself, was the point.

After the shooting, Ponch had discharged the remains of the clip to the floor, opened the chamber and thumped the weapon firmly into Chin's chest. Higgins had entered when the two men were toe to toe. Chin still uncertain of how to proceed and Doctor Ramirez telling him blatantly that he would willingly accept the charges and be arrested later … only after .. he got his niece safely back home.

While Higgins and the rest of Five-0 watched in amazement, Chin had taken Ponch's weapon and Steve had come down on the big man in a worried outpouring of remorseful words; all of which was irrelevant. Because regardless of what might come, Ponch was distinctly not remorseful for what he'd done.

"What are we going to do?" Kono asked Chin as the doctor stubbornly followed Steve across the brightly lit yard to begin the search. "I would have taken Curtis out .. I should have taken him out .. I'd be justified. I swear he was just faster."

The issue remained that the doctor had been faster and now his bullet lay inside the mobster's chest. The explanation would be difficult at best and there would be major repercussions and likely disciplinary action for all of them.

"I should have realized he'd be right up here once the shooting stopped." Heaving out a loud puff of air, Chin had his hands on his hips. He'd practically forgotten about placing the doctor in a safe place below the action. Chin was kicking himself now for not cutting the big man off immediately instead of coming to the house himself.

"I don't know. Doc's far from sorry about it, too. And honestly, I don't blame him one bit for what's happened to his family."

Shelving the issue for later, Chin and Kono joined Steve to finalize the next plans to find Danny and Rebecca. Chin was instructed to remain behind with three of the SWAT team members to keep Curtis's remaining men firmly under lock and key while communicating status back to HPD Central. Demands needed to be made for waiting ambulances and more plans needed to be put into action to get everyone safely back down the terrible so-called roadway. Leaving Chin to manage that end of the rendezvous, Steve had already assigned grid-like sections for the rest of the members of the team to fan out to conduct their search.

With the damage already done, Ponch had adamantly refused to stay behind declaring that a search and rescue was safe enough for him to participate in. They could charge him and place him in custody later for all he cared; but he made it clear that he would fight them tooth and nail if they tried to stop him at that point. Reluctantly, Steve agreed as he permitted the doctor to tag along with himself and Kono.

The three took a route that Steve considered to be the most likely option. It was raining more heavily now and the terrain had become even more treacherous and awkward to navigate. Nearly twenty minutes in, he stopped them with one hand held high as he peered through the trees and up higher into the jungle.

"You see them?" Ponch asked as he desperately tried to see.

"There. I think ... maybe?" Holding the night vision goggles to his eyes, Steve breathlessly watched the dark shadows to eventually make out Danny's shape and a smaller one walking off-balance and hunched through the trees. Each had their own pair of the special equipment and with a startled gasp, Ponch followed his hand and finally spied the tell-tale shapes too.

"It's them." Steve confirmed and then notified the rest of the teams to hold their positions. Dimly, he heard the others seconding his demand from their search areas; all were now waiting for a final rescue and anxious for success. Stuck in place with Doctor Ramirez breathing heavily down his neck, Steve fisted the doctor's shirt to keep him from advancing too soon up the slippery and virtually non-existent trail.

Prevented from doing what he wanted, Ponch took in a lungful of air to shout out both their names. He was seriously frightened when they didn't respond. It took Steve's simple explanation for the anxious doctor to understand.

"They're not as close as you think and they won't hear us through the wind and rain. The storm's really picked up." Groaning under his breath, Steve tried to survey the slope, but it all looked the same. Simply bad. Making a decision that looked to at least intercept his partner at a closer juncture, he pointed and began walking.

"This way. Let's try and meet them ... find a better way down." Keeping an eye upwards, the three clambered closer using both flashlights and goggles as the rain continued to mercilessly pound the trees and ferns around them.

Breaking through an open space where the rain only pelted them harder, the three began a careful jog over the wet ground, all the while keeping an eye on the wavering pair. Even for the distance and heavy jungle above, when they could make them out, it was obvious that Danny was in real trouble.

"Medical bag." Ponch was out of breath as he narrowed his eyes through the rain. Danny had just stumbled badly and the two had stopped for a brief moment to rest before shuffling forward again. "I have everything .. in my backpack … here."

Steve didn't answer more than a brief guttural sound of approval. He'd seen Danny nearly fall as well; he could see the pure struggle now as Danny tried to make it back down. In the back of his mind, Steve was shocked that he'd gotten away so far in the condition he was in with the child.

Then he gritted his teeth in frustration when Kono verbalized it for them all. "How ever did they get this far? So .. fast?"

Obviously - and as he well knew - his partner could do quite a bit when he put his mind to it; including take on deep jungle in the middle of the night. It was also obvious that they'd gone far, but only far enough to keep the house in sight should help come. The only reason Danny would be attempting the return trip now was due to an awareness of their arrival. He knew the stand-off had ended and that the good guys were in control.

"Smart, smart, smart." Steve mumbled to himself. But the doll and the pins still took the cake in his opinion. Next to his shoulder, he sensed Ponch's mutual amazement at the feat which had rescued his niece and then kept her wholly safe from even more danger.

"Hey! Danny!" They were close now and Steve tried again. But his eyes widened in a moment of fear as Danny stumbled once more, and this time fell to a knee.

"Danny!" He and Rebecca were close to a steep water-soaked slope; Steve could just make out Becca's frightened shivering body as she tried to help his partner to his feet and failed. They seemed to be talking .. at least Becca was .. and pointing in their direction. He frowned worriedly about what that could mean if Becca was the one so much more aware.

"Steve." Kono warned as she began to light up the foot of the incline on their fast approach. "They can't get down this alone!"

Shouting even louder, Steve's voice boomed up to the near-stranded pair. He was only slightly relieved when Becca again pointed in their direction. She was almost tugging on Danny but he wasn't actually responding. And it was his partner's attention Steve also wanted as he seemed to try vainly to get to his feet but literally collapsed into a seated position.

"Kono, try to light up the slope for us." Steve sensed Ponch getting ready next to him when he heard the sharp intake of fearful breath. With a loud shout, Steve tried once more to make Danny simply stay where he was.

"Danny! Stay where you are … we're coming up!"

But it wasn't Danny he had needed to worry about. In slow motion, Steve watched him weakly reach out one plaintive hand for Rebecca who had backed away from him. Still seated, he watched as Danny's upper body swayed in her direction before pitching forward to the ground and just out of view. Simultaneously, Becca was moving as if to take on the steep slope herself.

"No .. she's not!" Stunned at what his niece was about to do, Ponch had his own hands out-stretched and then no time to shout a command for her to wait because she was already in motion. He watched in horror as she seemed to intentionally size up her first step. Crouching low on her heels, she teetered on the lip of the hill before making her move only to slip immediately onto her bottom.

There was a startled yelp as her small muddy slip quickly became an uncontrollable, rain-slicked slide. "Rebecca!"

Surging forward, the two men lunged for the hill. One to intercept a small tumbling child and the other aiming for the top.

~ to be continued ~