A round of thanks to all for taking the time to read and to those who have been writing up reviews filled with encouragement, thank you very much indeed!

Chapter 10

Reading the paper at the breakfast table had become a ritual for Chin to begin his Sunday mornings.

"Hey Dad," greeted a tall teenage boy as he came down the stairs yawning.

"Morning Dad. Hey mum, pancakes!" A girl around the age of 15 chirped as she strolled past the dining area and peered into the kitchen where sure enough her busy mother was cooking another new batch of pancakes.

"Daddy!" a squeal of delight followed by the sound of small running feet heralded the youngest of the detective's eight children.

"Ah Tilda! Umph - " Chin put his paper down just in time to catch the tiny tot in his arms. He smothered her cheeks with kisses then picked her up with both arms exposing her pronounced belly button as her pyjama top rose an inch. Chin chuckled and blew a big raspberry on the little girl's belly button causing her to erupt in a fit of giggles.

More patters of feet trundled down towards the dining table as the family took their seats eagerly awaiting breakfast. The two eldest girls, Alia and Susie hurried to the kitchen to help their mother whilst Gabriel and Thomas had other intentions, racing into the kitchen. Dipping their fingers into the giant mixing bowl of batter, the youngsters were ushered from the kitchen by Mrs Kelly, "Oh Gabriel, Thomas! Go sit at the table,"

It wasn't long before the phone rang and Tim rushed to pick it up, worried his new cute girlfriend would give up if he didn't make it to the phone by the third ring.

"It's for you, Dad," sighing in disappointment, Tim called his father to the phone.

Chin ruffled Tilda's hair then settled her in the chair next to him. He walked over to Tim and took the receiver.

"Hello,"

"Chin, it's Keoli. Sorry to bother you on a Sunday but I thought you'd like to know. Officer Webber just called in saying she saw a van matching the description of the APB we sent out. The one that Father Davies reported stolen. She's off duty and said she would've checked it out but she had her kids with her. I called dispatch but no one's available for another 30 minutes. Do you want me to take a look at it? I'm at the church. The Harpers are inside, but I can be back before the sermons finished. They've only just started,"

"No, stay where you are, I'll go. What's the location?" Chin grabbed the note pad and pen on the table by the phone.

"It's off Manoa Road in the Honolulu Watershed Forest Reserve. Webber says she could just make out the bright blue paint of the van from the main road but to get a better look you gotta veer off into an off beaten track. She drove down a little ways and borrowed her kid's binoculars. She's positive it's Father Davies' van. There's also a shack nearby." Keoli recounted over his radio transmitter.

"Ok thanks. I'll take a look around and if I see anything suspicious I'll call for back up but right now it could be that the van's been dumped there. Plus if Annie is at the shack I want to keep it low profile until we know what we're dealing with,"

"Ok,"

Chin tore the page off the notebook and hurried to retrieve his coat. He didn't worry about adorning his tie. Not heading to the office anyhow.

Lin poked her head out of the dining room, a plate magnificently stacked with freshly made pancakes in her hand, "Where you goin?"

"I'm sorry honey, I'll have to have mine later. I love you," Chin walked over to his wife of many years, tilted her head with gentle fingers and kissed her lips tenderly.

"Work again? Maybe you should ask for a pay rise," Lin smiled fondly at her hardworking and loving husband.

"Yeah. Maybe if you ask Steve over for breakfast he might give me a bonus," Chin nodded at the pancakes. You're the light of my life. Someday I'll retire rich and take you to see the world. Chin never once heard Lin complain about his long hours he dedicated for Five' O. She always stood by his side and understood his duty bound nature. They rarely fought and even then, instead of exchanging heated words, Lin would simply give Chin the silent treatment and make them cups of green tea and all would be well again.

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The clouds had begun to clear and shafts of sunlight infiltrated through the windows of the small cabin in the Watershed Forest Reserve. A small child sat at the square table in the center of the room, whilst a second figure of a tall and heavyset Hawaiian man stood glancing out the window nervously.

"The sun's out Timmy! Let's go play hide and seek," a small voice declared within the weather beaten walls.

"I don't - I don't know it's a good idea, Annie. It's still wet outside. Father Davies said we shouldn't go out a lot," a slow deep voice rumbled.

"Aww come on! I thought camps are suppose to be fun. It's boring in here. I wanna go home. I miss my mommy," Annie's puppy eyes won the big man over.

"Oh Ok. We'll play a little bit but not too far," Timmy relented and the girl nodded with a half a smile. Together they headed for the front door.

"Timmy, why haven't mommy or daddy called me?" Annie reached up and pulled at Timmy's sleeve.

"I told ya the phone don't work,"

"Then why don't they write me? I gave Father Davies my letters when he visited. Are they mad at me?"

"No. Why would dey be mad keiki wahine?" Timmy paused after opening the door and looked down at the little girl. His puzzled expression was genuine for he was sometimes slower at grasping and processing information than most people. Children often made fun of him, calling him names but not Annie. She was always nice. Annie's my friend.

"Well people don't talk to each other if they are angry. Mommy and Daddy are always angry. Sometimes Daddy yells at me," Annie's quiet voice could barely be heard.

"Hey let's go play," Timmy tried to think of words to console the girl but his mind drew a blank. He took Annie's tiny hand in his and led her into the sunlight.

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Chin's LTD came to a halt as he parked it off the main road and consulted his map. He'd been driving down Manoa road for some time and haven't sighted the van. He called central and asked to be patched through to Officer Joyce Webber.

"Joyce I'm sorry to trouble you but I need your help on finding the location of that van," the detective relayed.

"Ok where abouts are you?"

After each determined Chin's location, Joyce who knew the area well due to her taking the children on hiking trips, began directing Chin as best she could.

"You'll pass the old well and after oooh say half a mile you'll come across a dirt track. Should be able to see it from the road if you look to your left,"

After driving 10 minutes, Chin finally spotted the vehicle, "Got it. Thanks Joyce,"

"10-4"

Chin replaced the mike and parked his car at the side of the road. Turning off the ignition he got out and began walking down the track. He decided going on foot was less risky to be seen if anyone was about and the track was too narrow and rugged to drive back to the main road in a hurry.

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It was Annie's turn to hide and she began to lose interest in the game as Timmy always had trouble finding her and more often than not she had to give him clues of her whereabouts. She waited crouched behind a large tree trunk that lay on its side in a wooded area behind the cabin. She couldn't see Timmy so she decided to wait for him to call out her name then snap a twig to clue him in.

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As he neared the van, Chin thought he heard someone moving through the trees but couldn't pin-point exactly where. Carefully he approached the blue van and checked the license plate details against the information in his note book. A match! Shielding his eyes from the sun with his cupped hands, he peered inside the driver's side window. Empty. He walked to the side door and slowly pulled the handle using his handkerchief to avoid mixing his fingerprints with the possible suspect's. It was unlocked and he slid it open to reveal empty seats and tattered children's comic books strewn on the floor. Chin closed the door and walked towards a shabby looking cabin further ahead. He kept close to the trees to help cover him.

As the rear view of the cabin drew nearer, Chin caught a movement in the long grass next to what looked like the trunk of a fallen tree. As silently as he was able, he walked in a semi crouched position towards the tree trunk.

He couldn't believe his eyes! There was a little girl peering over the over-sized log as if she were hiding from someone. Was it Annie? Did she manage to escape from her captors? Chin didn't bring her photo with him but he'd studied it long and hard from the moment Mrs Harper handed him her picture. He could see her image clearly in his mind. Her porcelain face, big brown eyes and velvet chestnut hair that cascaded down her shoulders.

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Chin wasn't sure whether to call out her name. Fearing it may alert the kidnappers if she was Annie Harper, Chin chose to sneak up on the unsuspecting child and hold on to her gently. It was a tricky situation and he hated the idea of frightening her but there were bigger consequences if he were right about his instincts. Twenty-two years of experience told him to follow his gut feelings.

And he did. Reaching out he wrapped his arms around the girl and covered her mouth with one hand, careful not to cause her any pain.

"Easy, easy! Sweetheart it's ok. I'm not going to hurt you. I'm a policeman. I'm going to let you go now but you have promise not to scream. You can look at my badge ok?" Chin whispered into the struggling girl's ear. She ceased her struggles and nodded though Chin could feel her small body was still tense. Slowly the detective released her and as she turned to face him, he drew out his wallet and showed her the badge, "My name is Chin Ho. Are you Annie Harper?"

The girl nodded and Chin could see her face relax.

"Your mommy and daddy miss you very much. Let's go see them," Chin reached out his hand to her.

Just as Annie was about to take the detectives hand in hers, her eyes wondered to the place above Chin's shoulder and they grew wide in fear, "No Timmy! No!" Annie cried out to the towering figure behind Chin.

The detective's reflexes were not quick enough and all he had time to do was turn his head behind him. A log the size of a baseball bat collided with the side of Chin's head.

Darkness overtook the detective and he fell on to his side. Annie stared up in horror as the big Hawaiian man raised the log like a club ready to bring it down on the prone figure lying on the ground before him.

"No Timmy! He's a policeman! Don't hurt him!" Annie cried out but the man didn't listen. As he swung, the detective came to and kicked his leg out catching his attacker in the kneecap. The wooden club still found its mark, but the momentum of the blow was disturbed and thus lessened the brutality of the impact. Chin lost consciousness almost instantly. The splintered edge of the log cut deeply into the side of his face.

Annie's eyes were wide with horror as she felt the warmth of the detective's blood on her face and hands. She looked up at Timmy.

"Annie?" registration dawned on Timmy's face at what the little girl just witnessed him do. He dropped the bloodstained weapon beside him and reached out for her to try to comfort her. He could see she was frightened.

Annie shook her head and ran as fast as she could deeper into the forest.