"So my helpful little errand boy turns out to be a police informer," Po purred silkily. He leaned over to run a hand caressingly down Danny's cheek. It took all the detective's willpower not to react.
Straightening, Po gestured and another man stepped forward. Danny recognised him as An Sung, Po's brother-in-law and right hand man. Sung crouched down and ripped the tape off Danny's mouth and extracted the wad of cloth. Danny cautiously took a deeper breath of air.
"What do you have to say for yourself?" Po asked.
Silence was the obvious answer, but Danny genuinely couldn't speak. His mouth was far too dry. Despite knowing it made him look nervous, he licked his lips, attempting to work up some saliva, but instead just feeling the residual stickiness left by the tape.
"Nothing to say for yourself? That isn't your wisest move," Po told him. He gestured to Sung once more and the other man reached out and pressed hard against the bruise over Danny's cracked ribs.
He had had no time to brace himself for such an action, but even if he had, there would have been no way for Danny to maintain silence. Pain rocketed through his chest and a scream tore from his parched throat. Dimly, he heard Po and Sung laughing, but all his attention was caught up in trying to ride out the horrific pain and to breathe.
Eventually, the pain died back to manageable levels, although Danny was covered in a cold sweat. He slowly lifted his head, reluctant to come back to this world, but knowing that he had no choice. Po was looking at him interestedly. "Now you know what happens when you resist me," he warned. "How long have you been working for McGarrett?"
Even knowing what was coming, Danny told him the truth. "I don't work for McGarrett." Steve might be the top cop on the island, but Danny was in HPD, not Five-O and therefore did not work directly for McGarrett.
The pain was even worse this time. Danny found himself gagging and retching as the agony went on and on and on. He gasped for air, coughing and choking, and feared that he would never be able to breathe properly again. Finally, he was able to drag enough oxygen into his lungs to clear his head slightly and once more he raised his head to look at his tormentor.
As Danny lifted his head, Sung approached, smiling when the younger man flinched slightly. This time, Sung did not touch his ribs. Instead, he grabbed Danny's hair and held his head back against the post. Po walked over and picked up the roll of duct tape which Danny had not noticed was lying by his legs. With deliberation and malicious enjoyment, Po wrapped the tape around Danny's neck and the pole, forcing his head to stay up.
"This time, don't try to be clever," Po instructed him. "How long have you been working for McGarrett?"
"I don't work for him," Danny panted and this time, Po struck him hard across the face. Blood instantly started to gush from his nose and mouth. His cheek stung and his neck was wrenched. He choked anew.
"Do you know what happened to the men who beat you up and allowed McGarrett to escape?" Po asked when Danny seemed a bit less dazed. He didn't wait for the reply that he wasn't going to get anyway. "I shot them. It was quick and relatively painless for them, but don't think I'm always that generous. With you, I am going to enjoy learning everything I can about you before I kill you." He ran his hand down Danny's chest, his finger lingering on the bruised, inflamed ribs. Pain tingled along Danny's nerves. "I think a pair of concrete overshoes will fit you perfectly," he smiled. Still smiling, he drew back his fist and punched Danny hard in the abdomen. The pain was overwhelming and Danny fell headfirst into the welcoming darkness.
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"Cut the siren," Steve ordered. Obediently, Kono, who was riding shotgun to give directions, did as he was told. He knew what Steve was doing that; in in isolated area, the sound of a siren would alert any wrong-doers and give them time to escape. It would also give them time to kill their prisoner and that was the last thing Steve wanted. In the back seat, Yuri muttered something under his breath, but everyone ignored him.
Steve had to acknowledge, if only to himself at the moment, that hiring Yuri had been a mistake. His solid, reliable record concealed the fact that he was totally lacking in initiative, imagination and even common compassion. He had joined the police as a job, not a vocation. He was not motivated by a desire to help others; he helped solely because of the requirements of the job. In Five-O, he was completely out of his depth in anything that varied even a fraction from the rules – such as this exercise. He would have gone to a judge and asked for a warrant and if the judge had refused, he would have done nothing more. Danny's life would have been forfeit in Yuri's hands. Steve had to make sure that Danny's life wouldn't be forfeit in his hands.
At Kono's warming, Steve stopped the car a short distance from the house. They left the car doors open, for fear of the noise of them closing carrying on the quiet of the night air. They were high up and the air was cool and fresh after the rain. The moist ground seemed destined to make unwelcome squelching noises to betray their presence, but the longer grass on the side of the road allowed them to make an approach in near silence.
The house was as well screened as Kono had told them. Pushing through the undergrowth without making untoward noise would take time and patience and Steve was not sure he had either. Still, they had to try. Beckoning the others close, he whispered out his instructions. Chin and Kono would go around to the right and Steve and Yuri would go left. Steve wanted Yuri right where he could see him at all times. In a situation like this, the man could prove to be a liability. Once more, for a brief moment, Steve wondered how he had not managed to see past the man's boring exterior during the interview, but now was not the time for self-recrimination. Now, he had to be totally focused on rescuing the young officer who was in danger because of his lack of forethought.
Step by careful step, Steve led Yuri through the trees and shrubs towards the light that shone brightly in the star-shot darkness. There was no moon to help their passage and carrying a flashlight was definitely out of the question. Several times, the hint of something indefinable in the air caused Steve to pause, his hand out to prevent movement or speech from the man following behind him. Each time, there was nothing there and they cautiously moved forward again.
When Steve finally reached a position where he could see the scene playing out in front of them, he wanted to throw caution to the wind and race out to rescue Danny in a rush reminiscent of the cavalry in old Westerns. It was only with extreme difficulty that he stopped himself doing so, for he did not yet know if Kono and Chin were in position and since there was a knife currently pointed right at Danny's stomach, he did not want to do anything that would precipitate an unwanted move on the part of Lee Wing Po, who was wielding the knife.
"What are you waiting for?" Yuri asked, his voice little more than a breath of air.
"The right time," Steve replied, equally quietly. He placed a finger over his lips, knowing that the 's' sound of a 'shh' would carry on the air. Yuri subsided, although he looked extremely unhappy.
The faintest of movements signalled the arrival of his detectives at the other side of the yard. Steve took another long look. Danny was tied to a post almost equidistant from both sets of detectives. It was impossible to tell what condition he was in, but with Po and another man looming over him, Steve was willing to bet that Danny was not in the best of health. However, getting to Danny was going to be a problem because of the proximity of the other men. Steve did not want to shoot and risk hitting Danny. He had no idea what kind of marksman Yuri was and had no way to signal to Kono and Chin which man he wanted them to take down. Danny would die for sure if both sets of detectives focused on the same man.
As that thought went through his mind, they got a stroke of unbelievable luck. The second man crouched by Danny rose to his feet and walked over towards the house. That took him closer to Kono and Chin and Steve knew that they had to act and had to act now. Seeing Po straighten up, Steve tapped Yuri's arm and burst out of his cover. "Police! Freeze!"
An echoing shout reached Steve's ears, but he was focused entirely upon Po. The wily old man was frozen for the moment, but Steve knew he had not become rich and powerful without being able to think on his feet. Steve cocked his weapon, aiming at Po's arm. He could only hope that Yuri was aiming for Po's body.
In the next instant, Po was in action. He threw the knife he was holding at Steve and dropped to the ground, snatching up another implement that was lying out of sight behind Danny's legs. Steve fired, knowing that he was a heartbeat too late. His shot missed, but Po was luckier. The knife sliced agonisingly across Steve's arm and his gun dropped from suddenly nerveless fingers.
There was no shot from Yuri, but Steve didn't have time to think about that. He ignored his fallen weapon and charged across the yard like a line-backer blocking a winning touchdown. With his long legs, he covered the short distance in a matter of seconds and threw himself upon Po, heedless of the fact he was bleeding or that the other man had some kind of weapon in his hands.
There was an almost audible crunch as Steve and Po hit the ground. The weapon that Po had was another knife, this one a Bowie. Steve knew he had to take control of it at once and he punched Po viciously, allowing his anger free rein just for a few moments. Po was not going down easily, though and they rolled back and forth, Steve always regaining the upper hand, for several minutes before he finally managed to knock the weapon from the man's hand and subdue him.
"Boss!" It was Chin and the Chinese detective looked distressed. "Are you all right?"
"Yeah," Steve panted, although he knew it wasn't true. "Cuff him, Chin. Book him." He was too winded to try and think what the charges might be, but they would doubtless come to him in a minute. Clutching his injured arm, Steve staggered to his feet and drew in several deep breaths. He would be sore come the morning, he knew. However now, his priority was not himself. He glanced over at where Danny was still a prisoner.
