Since checking the beach, Kamekona had gone into the backyard, but found nothing out of the ordinary there. He'd checked the neighboring houses, but they were dark, an indication that people were sleeping. He'd gone back to the front of the house and sat on the chairs on the porch. It wasn't long before a car pulled into the front yard and he stood up to meet the officers.

"Kamekona, good to see you, Brah," Officer Gail Chang said as her partner came toward them.

"You too, Cuz, I stayed out here and waited for you after I checked the backyard and the beach," the big man answered.

"Good, there's a car gone to check Kono's place too," Chang said and listened as her partner answered a call from the station.

"Negative at Kono's place. They found her car there and her keys were on the ground. Forensics is on the way there," Raleigh Thompson told them.

"Something's happened to them," Kamekona said and felt the guilt wash over him. "I should have checked on her this morning."

"Why do you say that?" Gail asked.

"She was supposed to be surfing today and Steve was going to meet her there, but they didn't show up. I should have known something was wrong, but it was one of those days at the beach. There were more tourists than I could keep up with," Kamekona explained.

"Kamekona, blaming yourself is wrong and we both know it," Gail told him as they entered the house. "You couldn't have known something was wrong."

"Kamekona, you need to wait out here and watch for the CSI team to get here. It's better that way because the more people in here the harder it is to maintain the evidence." Thompson said and followed his partner inside.

5050505050

Chin looked at his phone and answered the call from Kamekona. "Tell me you found them?"

"I wish I could, Chin, but they're both missing. Kono's car is at her place, and they found her keys on the ground. The CSI team is there and they also found some kind of dart on the ground. They think that's how she was taken."

"I should be there in a couple of hours, Kamekona…call me if they find anything or you hear from Steve or Kono," Chin ordered.

"I will, Brah."

"I take it they didn't find Kono either?" Scott asked.

"No, but there's evidence that something happened before she went into her home. The found her keys and a dart…probably something on it to knock her out," Chin told him.

"Are you going to call Danny?"

"Not yet. He's with Grace and there's nothing he can do until we know who's behind this disappearance. I'll call him in the morning," Chin answered.

"You'll find them, Chin," Daily said.

"I hope so, Scott, but it depends on what the forensics team finds at the scenes," Chin said and grew quiet as he thought about his cousin and friend. He silently prayer that they would find Steve and Kono, but something told him they'd need to call on every bit of training they had.

5050505050

McGarrett had no idea how long he slept, but the warm body leaning against him reminded him where he was. The pain in his side, back and chest told him this was no dream. Kono continued to sleep, and he fought the urge to move a pain flared in his lower back and left shoulder. He knew if he moved she'd wake up, and he didn't want to do that. God only knew how long it would be before they could sleep on a bed, even one this small.

Steve lay still as long as he could, but when the pain became too much, he gently called to her. "Ko…no. I need to get up."

Kono sat up quickly and heard a sharp cry from the man on the cot. She turned to look at him and noted the beads of perspiration on his brow. There was no mistaking the grimace of pain and she silently cursed herself for not waking earlier. "God, I'm sorry, Steve."

"Not your fault…help me up," McGarrett ordered. He reached up to clasp her hand and clenched his teeth when she helped him sit on the edge of the cot. He pulled her down beside him and leaned on her shoulder.

"I should take a look at you."

"In a minute," McGarrett said and felt the nausea churning through his gut.

"Steve…"

"Kono, listen to me," McGarrett whispered. "I can move and I will move and keep on moving as long as I can. These wounds are minor and if they think I'm a weak point then let them think that way. I'm going to let them think I'm weaker than I am…so go along with it."

"Steve, you should lie down," Kono said in case they were being watched. "Are you all right?"

"No, feel like hell…you get the chance you leave me," McGarrett ordered and hoped Kono would go along with what he was doing.

"I won't leave you," Kono told him, and looked up as the door opened and the woman from the night before brought a tray of food. The man who accompanied her stayed away from the cage and waited for her to slide the tray beneath the bars before they both left. She stood up and crossed the short distance and picked up the tray. There were two plates of eggs, beans, and rice as well as two cups of coffee and some kind of juice.

Steve looked at the food and wondered if they'd put anything in it, but it really didn't matter because they needed the nourishment. It smelled spicy, and he reluctantly took the plate Kono handed him.

"We both need to eat, Steve," Kono told him.

"I know…it actually smells pretty good," McGarrett said and picked up the spoon, not surprised that there were no forks or knives because they could use them as weapons.

"Do you think the others know we're missing?"

"It depends on whether Kamekona noticed you didn't show up. We all know you were really looking forward to some surf time. If he noticed then he probably called Chin," McGarrett told her.

"Maybe," Kono said and leaned back against the cage as she ate. "Even if he did they won't know where we are."

"Maybe not, but they'll be looking for us. Chin will call Danny and they'll start searching the evidence. Hopefully they'll remember what happened to you at the beach and make the connection with the couple at the restaurant," McGarrett observed and shifted back so they were sitting close together.

"I'm sorry, Steve, if it wasn't for me you wouldn't be in this mess."

"Kono, how many times have we fought side by side no matter who the perp was?"

"More times than I can count," Kono answered.

"How many times was it because the perp had a beef with one of us?"

"A lot," the woman answered.

"Exactly, did you blame me, Chin, or Danny when they came after us? No, you did your job and so did the rest of us because in our line of work we make enemies. Sometimes those enemies are not of our making, but because some people think they have the right to do whatever they want without having to serve the time. We're in this together and we'll get out of it together as long as we keep our heads," McGarrett said and looked up as five people entered the large room and moved to the front of the cage.

"Good morning, Puta, I trust you slept well?" Juanita asked.

Steve smiled inwardly when Kono simply continued to eat the food on her plate. He knew how hard it was for her to hold her anger in check, and felt like decking the woman himself.

"I came to visit during the night and found you two snuggling like two dogs in heat. Enjoy your meal because it's the last one you'll ever have," Juanita told them.

"The hunt will begin in one hour. Dante and his men will escort you to the maze and release you. You will be given a one hour head start, but I should warn you the maze is not so easy to navigate even for a cop and a SEAL. You will think Hell Week was fun and games, Commander, and Marcos will take great pleasure in putting a bullet in your brain when we find you," Benito Gonzales said.

"Your padre took my son from me, Commander, but he is dead now so I will have to satisfy myself with killing you," Marcos Garcia told him.

"I'm sure Commander McGarrett will be able to fashion some crude weapons, but to do so will mean time wasted….time better spent trying to find a way out of the maze and there are several. The problem is they are well hidden and you will have to find one of them before we find you. Mark my words, Commander McGarrett, you and this insolent Puta will both die….you for your father's sins…her for what she said on the beach," Carlos said.

"Marcos, breakfast is probably ready and we need to keep up our energy. Dante, give them half an hour before you take them to the maze," Benito ordered.

"Si, Senor," Dante told him and smiled at the people in the cage. "You heard him…you have half an hour to finish your last meal and make peace with your God. I will be back."

"Steve, maybe we should make a stand when they open the cage?"

"I was thinking the same thing, but it depends on how many there are," McGarrett told her. The cold light in Juanita Garcia's eyes spoke of the evil in her heart and he hoped they could escape before she got to Kono. Something told him, she wanted Kono to suffer and that wasn't going to happen if he could do anything about it.

5050505050

Kamekona knew Chin should be there any minute and looked around at the police vehicles parked in and around McGarrett's home. He stayed out of the way, letting the officers and crime scene people do their jobs, but there wasn't a whole lot to go on. Kamekona looked around and frowned when he saw something sticking out beneath the flowers near the entrance to the driveway.

Kamekona hurried over and bent down to see what it was and knew he'd just found proof that something bad had happened to McGarrett and Kono. He knew he shouldn't touch it and motioned for an officer to come over.

"What is it, Kamekona?" the man asked.

"Think I found the reason there's no sign of a struggle here," Kamekona said as Chin pulled into the yard.

"Any word, Cuz?" chin asked and looked at the picture Kamekona was pointing to. "That's Kono!"

"I know, and if McGarrett saw this he'd be easier for them to handle," the big Hawaiian observed as the cop used a pair of tweezers to pick it up.

Chin looked at the man on Kono's right and frowned as he took the tweezers from the officer. He'd seen the man before, but couldn't quite place where it was.

"You see something, Cuz?"

"I'm not sure, but the man on Kono's right looks familiar. I know I saw him recently, but…wait a minute. He was at the restaurant the other night with the couple Kono saw at the beach. The guy dropped in on her wave…"

"Big mistake…must be a tourist," Kamekona observed.

"He was, Kono was pissed at him and told him off. We need to find out who they are and where they are staying," Chin said. "If they paid with a credit card we might be able to find out who they are."

"You get me a copy of that picture and I'll use my contacts…might go faster that way, Brah," Kamekona said.

"As soon as forensics is through with it," Chin said and hoped Charlie Fong was on duty. The man was gifted and could really work magic when it came to fingerprints. Max Bergman had the day off to attend a geeky Star Trek con set up by several mega fans.

"Lieutenant Kelly, Lieutenant Lukela wants you to call him," a female officer said.

"Thanks," Kelly said and reached into his pocket for his cell phone. He called Duke and wasn't surprised when the man answered almost immediately. "Duke, you wanted me to call?"

"Yeah, sorry you had to cut your vacation short, but I know how worried you are about Kalakaua and McGarrett. I've got people at both places and they're going over everything with a fine tooth comb."

"I know…I'm at McGarrett's place. Kamekona found a picture…whoever took them had Kono and that's probably why Steve went without a fight," Kelly explained. "I'm going to take the picture in and have Charlie Fong check it out."

"You know about chain of command, Chin?"

"I do, and right now this is the only real lead we have on them. It looks like the shot was taken some time either last night or the night before and maybe we'll get lucky if we get Fong working on it right away. I'll call you as soon as we know anything."

"All right, Chin…we'll find them."

"Thanks, Duke," Kelly said and hung up. "Shauna, give me an evidence envelope."

Kamekona watched as Kelly gently placed the picture inside the envelope and sealed it. "Am I coming with you?"

"Might as well…I'll get you that picture and head to the restaurant. Hopefully one of us will get lucky," Chin said and knew there was no choice, but to call Williams and quickly hit the speed dial number.

5050505050

"See, Monkey, I told you we'd be back in plenty of time for Lea's luau,' Williams said as he pulled into the driveway leading up to his ex-wife's home.

"I know you wanted to stay…"

"Me? Stay in the wilds? No, Monkey, I'm glad we're home, but I'm sad we're not spending the rest of the day together."

"I could tell Lea I can't make it," Grace said.

"No, that's okay. We have next weekend and that makes Danno very happy," Williams said. Rachel had called to ask him if he could take Grace the following weekend because Stan had a dinner meeting and she was required to attend. How could a wife be required to attend anything? If he'd tried something like that while he was married there would have been an all-out war. He watched as she hurried toward the car and got out as she reached them.

"Thank you for bringing her home early, Danny," Rachel said and hugged Grace. "Did you have fun, Grace?"

"I had lots of fun and Danno let me help make dinner. We named the constellations and saw some bird near the cliffs. We even found a nest," the child answered and hugged her father before hurrying into the house.

"I really do appreciate you doing this, Danny," Rachel said as his cell phone rang.

"I need to get this…tell Grace to call me after the party," Williams ordered and got back into the car. He hooked his phone up to the hands free system and used his rear view mirror and backed out of the driveway.

"Danny, where are you?"

"I'm at Rachel's…is something wrong?"

"Can you meet me at HQ?"

"Does this have anything to do with the 'Doomsayer' case?"

"No, I can't really explain right now, but hopefully I'll have some answers when you get here."

"All right," Williams said, frowning when the phone went dead. He drove toward headquarters, wondering what the hell had Chin Ho Kelly so uptight.

5050505050

Steve looked at the man standing outside the cage, anger evident in his eyes at feeling so useless. They'd taken Kono out first and told him they would return for him in 15 minutes. Kono had a sack placed over her head and her hands cuffed behind her before she was led out of the room. He'd been forced to stay put until they came back for him.

"All right, McGarrett. Looks like it's your turn," Dante told him and tossed a set of handcuffs through the bars. "Use these to lock your arms behind your back."

"Where's Kono?" McGarrett asked as Marcos and Carlos Garcia came into the large room.

"Don't worry. She's waiting for you in the car. It will take an hour to reach the maze, so stop wasting time," Dante ordered and watched as the SEAL did as he was told. "Okay, now back up to the bars and I'll make sure they are tight enough."

Steve turned around and backed up until his body came up against the bars. He felt Dante check the cuffs, but didn't make a sound when he jerked his arms and caused sharp pain in both shoulders. He moved away and turned to face his captors, keeping his face neutral as he watched the two men standing behind Dante.

"You know, McGarrett, it would have been fun just to kill you, but it will be even more fun watching your face when Juanita kills your Puta," Carlos observed.

"It is only fitting that she dies first so you mourn her loss as I have mourned the loss of my son. You will suffer as he did, and it will be by my hand. Dante, get him out of there and cover his head with the bag," Marcos ordered.

"Turn around, McGarrett," Dante ordered and handed his weapon to Carlos. "Shoot him in the arm if he tries anything."

"It would be my pleasure," Carlos told him.

Steve knew there was no point in trying anything, not while the other man held the gun. He felt the bag placed over his head and the cinch tightened around his neck, not enough to choke him, but enough to mark his neck if he tried to pull away.

"All right, McGarrett, it's time to let you join your partner in the maze. Between you I expect it to be quite entertaining, but the end result will be revenge for what your father did," Marcos told him. He moved aside as Dante led him from the cage, and smiled when his son stuck his leg out and McGarrett tripped over it.

Steve cried out when his upper body hit the edge of one of the crates stacked against the wall, and knew he'd fractured or broken a rib or two. Either way, he knew it would make moving a lot more uncomfortable for him. He felt someone grab his arms and pull him to his feet, silently cursing the bastards who laughed at his predicament.

"I didn't think SEALs were so damn clumsy," Carlos said.

Steve didn't bother saying anything as they led him form the room. He soon felt a soft breeze on his bare skin and knew he would start the hunt as he was. He was lucky he still had his cargo pants and his boots, and didn't want to bring attention to his attire. He was soon shoved into the trunk of a car and the lid was slammed shut.

McGarrett shifted in the small confines and clenched his teeth as the vehicle he was in pulled away from the house. He had no idea where they were headed, but one way or another he was going to find his way back here and show these people they messed with the wrong team. He hoped Danny and Chin were searching for them, but if they were in Mexico, how would they find out in time to help him and Kono. One way or another, he had to make sure Kono had a fighting chance, because something told him, he wouldn't be in much shape to help her.

Already his body was riddled with pain from the minor injuries. The knife wounds stung and he knew they'd re-opened during the trip to the vehicle. Kono was in one piece and stood a better chance of making it out without him, yet he understood she would not leave him behind unless there was no choice in the matter.

Steve closed his eyes and did his best to ignore the claustrophobic feeling of not only being in the trunk of a car, but having a sack over your head and tied around his neck. It took some time, but he dialed down the tension enough to concentrate on coming up with a plan to keep him and Kono alive until Danny and chin found them.

McGarrett lost track of time as he tried to concentrate on how many twists and turns they made, but it was a losing cause because each time the vehicle hit a rut in the road he was slammed into the sides or lid of the trunk. The terrain was rough and seemed they seemed to be going steadily up the mountain until it pulled to a stop with the crunch of gravel beneath the wheels.

"Where's Steve?"

"Don't worry, McGarrett is right here."

Steve recognized Dante's voice and heard him tapping at the trunk lid. He could tell Kono was angry and soon felt the lid open before he was pulled out and dumped on the ground. He could hear Kono curse and felt her hands on the bag over his head. She pulled it free and helped him sit up, but his body had stiffened up while in the trunk.

"Get him on his feet or I'll put a bullet in his head right now!" Marcos Garcia warned.

"Get the cuffs off him!" Kono ordered. She didn't see the woman move in behind her and cried out when a foot struck her lower back. She hit the ground hard and heard McGarrett scramble to his feet. She turned and glared at the woman who stood over her and wanted to wipe the smug look off her face, but right now her concern was for Steve. He lay on his left side on the ground, a cut above his left eye, but he was unconscious.

"One more time, Officer Kalakaua…get him on his feet or I'll kill him right now and we have one less person to hunt," Marcos told her.

"Steve, come on. We need to get moving," Kono said, relieved when someone tossed a key on the ground beside her. She unlocked the cuffs and smiled inwardly when he winked at her as she helped him stand.

"That's better," Benito said as McGarrett seemed to be leaning heavily on the woman. "Now, the rules are…there are no rules. All you have to do is find the correct escape route and use it. The downside is you'll be hunted every step of the way."

"What kind of chance is that?" Kono snarled.

"It's a much better chance than having me shoot you right now!" Juanita told her.

"Go through the opening in the rocks, and once inside you'll find several paths to choose from. This place is one of nature's own fortified mazes with rock walls, mud slides, waterfalls, hidden drop offs and just about any manner of danger you can think of. The maze itself is approximately 20 miles in circumference, but there's no way of knowing what direction you should take because I promise you will get turned around more than once. It's one of the reasons my padre chose it for these hunts," Marcos explained.

"You have a one hour head start, Puta, better make the best of it," Juanita said and smiled when her husband wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Your one hour starts now," Carlos told them.

Kono took a deep breath and heard a pistol cock close to her ear. She knew there was no choice in the matter and felt Steve leaning on her as they made their way through the break in the rocks. She could hear the people behind her talking, but nothing they said gave her any clue as to where they should go once they entered the maze.

Once inside and out of sight of the people, Steve straightened up and let his mind take over. He called on his training and ignored the pain from his injuries as he searched for any clue that would lead them to safety.

"Steve, nice show," Kono said of the change in the man.

"I figure if they think I'm down for the count we can move a lot faster," McGarrett told her with a grin. He knew they had to move quickly, yet at the same time they needed to hide their movements as best they could. They had one hour, if their captors were telling the truth, and they'd need every minute to get out of this mess.

"Which way?" Kono asked of the three trails that lay before them.

"Let's stick with the one on the right and see where it leads," McGarrett suggested.

"Steve, we need to find something we can use as weapons," Kono said and followed the SEAL through the narrow opening on the right.

"I know, and we will, but first we need to get some distance between us and them. They'll know which way we went, but if we can set up a couple of traps we can slow them down," McGarrett told her. He knew the injuries he had weren't serious, but that didn't mean he could continue to ignore them as blood trickled down his face. His vision blurred, but he couldn't stop to let Kono look at the wound, not when there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it.

TBC