AN: Finally! the new chapter. I'm sorry for the delay, but I had a terrible week that ended with a visit to the hospital!
I don't want to bore you with the details, but I'm back now! Thank you for your patience and I hope you enjoy this.
Please let me know what you think.
Chapter 10: Exasperating wait…
Sergeant Lukela smiles and the elevator doors close, while Steve continues his mad career to join his team, happy because finally, he can see the end of the complicated skein that this damn case has become.
Steve gets into the headquarters at full speed. The team is gathered around the smart table, waiting for him. "Jerry ... I'm going to need your help here!" Steve says, as he starts typing on the smart table. "Lively talked about a warehouse on Pier 51 ...He didn't tell anything else." At Jerry's incredulous look, Steve nods and says, "I know, I know!... It's like looking for a needle in a haystack ... But it's the only thing we have. Please, find any relationship with Anderson or with Jeremy Bolton."
Jerry gently pushes Steve and begins his search; the rest of the team wait, with the look fixed on the screens. Two minutes later, a satellite map of Sand Island appears and a blinking red dot indicates the location of the warehouse. "I've got it!" Jerry exclaims. "The name and phone number of Jeremy Bolton appear as the contact data for this warehouse..."
Soon after, the team meet some HPD officers, in front of a huge building with white facades and metal roofs that sparkle brightly, reflecting the intense sunlight. Warehouses for all types of merchandise, are lined up side by side in front of them.
Steve shows a paper with the corresponding search warrant to the shocked face of the security guard, so the man has no choice but to open the padlock that secures the double rolling steel shutter. Junior and Steve slide it up, lighting their flashlights and covering their nose when they perceive a pungent and penetrating odor.
Inside, a large number of plastic boxes stacked on top of each other, practically fill the tiny space. "Okay, guys..." Steve says, looking alternately at the security guard, at the members of his team and at half a dozen HPD officers. "We'll have to get all this out of here ... You have to check everything systematically ... Everyone use protective masks!"
Forty minutes later, a lot of plastic boxes are piled up on the asphalt ground of the parking lot, in front of the warehouse. Steve is checking thoroughly every inch, until something catches his attention. A yellowish stain on the concrete floor, next to a pile of boxes that is still inside the warehouse. He leans down and rubs his gloved hand over the stain, then brings his fingers to his nose. The characteristic smell ignites its internal alarm, looks up at Junior and says "Ammonia ..."
Slowly, he gets up and starts reading the labels on the boxes ... "Ammonium Hydroxide ... Special Health Hazard Substance ... First Aid ... Emergency Phone numbers ..." Below, on the label with the recipient's name, Steve can read the name and the address of the High School of Waipahu. "I found it!" He shouts, as he begins to walk around the stack of boxes. On the other side, the third box catches his attention: There's a small hole a couple of inches from the base.
"Here! ..." he says loudly. Junior and Lou approach and begin to remove the boxes above. Steve takes the plastic cover. Inside, two containers of Ammonium Hydroxide, one of them empty. Carefully, takes out that container and looks, enthralled, the inside ... at the bottom of the container, are the remains of what was a .38 caliber bullet.
Junior comes over and looks at the container ... "Is it usable sir?" He asks, doubtful.
"I don't think so ..." Steve answers, as he places the container inside an evidence bag. "The Ammonium Hydroxide is highly corrosive, but at least we know we've found the boxes that were in the basement of the school building, that day ... We must search in all these boxes, Danny said the guy fired four times, so here should be more evidence. "
After a frantic search, in which the three members of Five-0 check the plastic boxes one by one, they've found two more bullets. This time, as if it was a strange miracle, the ammonium hydroxide containers were not drilled and the bullets are intact. Finally, in the last box, Steve finds the last elusive bullet embedded in the sidewall.
Carefully, he puts the three bullets into another evidence bag and turns to look at Junior and Lou, saying "Please take this to the crime lab ... I want the results today!"
Steve stays for a few more minutes, while HPD officers search in the remaining plastic boxes and make an inventory to move everything to the police deposit. Then gets into the Silverado and takes his phone, looking at it absently for a few seconds ... Considers for a moment to call Danny, to inform him about the progress of the case, but then remembers the disastrous results of their last conversation. While absently rubbing the remains of the bruise on his cheek, he decides to wait until he has all the information from the crime lab. Instead, dials Tani's number.
"Hello?" She answers.
"Hey ..." Steve greets her, "How's my boy?"
"His mood is much better ... Grace and Charlie arrived an hour ago ..." Steve breathes a sigh of relief, while Tani tells him, "... the three of them are playing in Charlie's bedroom, putting together a huge city of Legos ..." Steve notices a light cheerful tone in her voice.
"Listen, Tani ... There are some news."
After speaking briefly about what was found in the warehouse, remains silent for a few seconds, until Tani asks, "What do you want me to tell Danny?"
"If he asks you, tell him we're moving forward with the case and that we have Lively in custody. I want to wait to see what they find in the crime lab... "
"Don't you think it would be better to tell him? ..." she asks, doubtful.
"Listen ... he has already had many disappointments with this and ... I just.. I don't want Danny to have high expectations ... I'm pretty sure there will be a match between those bullets and the gun we took from Lively... but I want to confirm it before telling Danny, okay? ... I asked Lou to push the guys in the lab to have the results today."
After finishing the call, Steve turns on the engine and leaves the pier yard, to State Highway, heading the Palace. His mind is spinning. He wants to solve this as soon as possible and then go to see Danny and help his friend to collect all the pieces of his mind and his soul and recompose them. He knows it won't be easy, because the last few days have made his friend doubt his aptitudes and police skills... The last time, he even talked about giving up Five-0, regardless of his efforts and the result of the investigation.
"... I don't know, Steve. I'm thinking that this damn case is never going to clear up and Cage has everything he needs to ruin my career ... and yours!" Danny had told him, in a defeated tone and Steve's heart had broken into a thousand tiny fragments. He had never seen his friend like that... without hope, and seeing that scared him to death. Danny had always been the one who had kept Steve's head on his shoulders, even in the most adverse situations and all these years, ever since he met him, he had never seen his friend giving up ... until now. However, although he didn't like it, he still thought he could help Danny to overcome this, until he heard his next words: "I'm thinking it would be better to quit Five-0, before Cage can put his claws on me and take advantage to ruin you too ... I don't know, maybe I could go back to Jersey, or somewhere else ... I don't care anymore. I'm tired! "
"What are you saying?" Steve asked, surprised and hurt. The possibility that Danny could leave everything in Hawaii and return to New Jersey had not crossed his mind before, without thinking he shouts, "Listen pal ... I'm doing everything I can to help you ... to solve this."
"Well, maybe you shouldn't, Steve! Maybe, if you let things take their course, you can get away from this crap. "
"I don't care, Danno! You don't understand, do you? Without you there's no Five-0 anymore! ... " he makes a sad pause and then he mumbles, "I'm nothing, I don't exist, without you! Please, just give me time and I'll solve it." Steve realizes he's begging, but he doesn't care. Not -anymore.
"I think maybe it's time to go, Steve. No matter if you can prove that Anderson fired his gun in that basement. The truth is that professor is dead and I killed her ... my reputation is destroyed ... I don't know where to go without this! " Danny sobbed heartbreakingly, while Steve looked at him, feeling that the anguish pressed his heart, "I'm a cop, Steve ... Yes, I know I was thinking about retirement, but not like that ... I wanted to go on my own terms and with my head high ... If I can't have that, I don't want anything else."
Steve felt a profound helplessness at Danny's devastating words, without thinking, he muttered "Hell, Danny! I'm trying here ... and you give up! How can you be such a coward? "
Danny flushed with anger and approached Steve, giving him a hard punch in the face, "Coward? You call me a coward? You have no idea what I've been through, Steven! "
"I would have it if you told me!" Steve replied angrily.
Danny walked to the door and flung it open, "You better go!" He had said. His voice distilled a venom that hurt Steve much more than his throbbing cheek.
"Danno ... I ..." He tried to say something, but Danny yelled again, "I asked you to leave, McGarrett! and stop worrying about me ... I don't need you, neither you nor anyone!"
Steve walked away from the house, sad and furious, at the stubborn Danny's reaction. Got into his truck and and slammed the door with unusual force. He called Tani to meet him at Danny's place. While he waited, breathed several times, trying to calm down. He didn't care that stubborn asshole pushed him away, Steve wouldn't give up on him.
Tears crowd in his eyes, preventing him from seeing the road. He furiously wipes them with the palm of his hand, while the memory of the fight with Danny keeps spinning in his head. At that moment, his phone rings, cutting the thread of his thoughts.
"Yes, Eric ... what did you get?"
Danny's nephew's voice sounds enthusiastic, "I have the results of the fingerprints found in the revolver ..." he says.
"And? ... " Steve asks, impatient.
"There are two sets of fingerprints ... The first one belongs to Lively ..."
"I know that, Eric ... The guy shot at us in that tunnel ..." Steve answers, trying to calm his voice, "But Lively was not in the basement at the time of the shooting, he picked up the gun afterwards ... The other set of fingerprints should belongs to the person who shot at Danny. Is there a match? "
"Indeed yes, and you won't believe this ..."
Steve tries not to lose his patience, "Listen, Eric. Actually, I'm not in the mood for riddles ... Whose fingerprints are those? "
"They belong to Professor Kani" Eric answers.
Steve brakes sharply, fortunately, there is no vehicle behind him, so he quickly parks, letting his mind absorb this new information, "What are you saying?"
"Yes ... The other fingerprints on the gun belongs to the victim!"
Steve lets an idea forms in his head ... "We've been focusing things badly from the beginning! ..." he says, as things clear up, quickly and painfully, "All the time we assumed that there was someone else in that basement! And that person shot at Danny, but it was her! Our victim! ..." He says, unable to hide the sarcasm, "First, the deposits in her bank account and now this! " After a heavy and uncomfortable pause he says," Listen Eric ... I have to confirm something. I'll call you later, okay? ... And Eric?... Thank you!"
Steve ends the call and quickly dials another number. When he hears the voice that answers, he says urgently, "Listen, Noelani. I have a question for you!"
"Tell me, commander," the coroner answers, intrigued.
"Did you perform tests to look for gunpowder residue during the autopsy of Professor Kani's body?"
"I didn't think it was necessary, Commander ... She's the victim, isn't she?"
"Apparently not ... Listen, we suspect she was alone in the basement during the shooting, and if those suspicions are correct, then Danny really fired and shot down his attacker ... Tell me Noelani, if we exhume the professor's body, still we have a chance to find gunpowder residue that can confirm, beyond any doubt, that she fired a gun? "
Noelani thinks for a moment and answers, "It may be, commander. The gunpowder residue remains in the hands for a while. Sometimes I've even found them after the suspect has washed his hands ... " She makes a pause and then continues talking, "Professor Kani's family requested a closed coffin funeral, so the cleaning I did after the autopsy was superficial. I would say it's likely that, if she really fired a gun, we'll find the gunpowder residue in her hands."
That afternoon, Steve walks through his office like a caged lion. Patience was never his biggest strenght. The puzzle has formed the image slowly and the pieces have been fitting little by little ... He hopes... prays for finally the last two pieces fit, which would prove, beyond any reasonable doubt, that Danny is innocent and killed that woman because she fired against him first.
Junior, Jerry and Lou are in the bullpen. An overwhelming and exhausting silence floats undefined in the room, broken only by the hum of the air conditioning. The three team members exchange glances and turn their heads, from time to time, in the direction of the corner office, not daring to go there. Finally, they hear Steve's phone ring and look at him as he puts it to his ear. It remains there for a few seconds, before Steve ends the call and collapses on his chair, hiding his face in his hands.