One of my resolutions for 2020 is to spend more time being creative. That means, my goal is to post at least one chapter a week. So, if I get behind, please feel free to call me out on it. I need the accountability. Now, a lot of you are probably going to hate me for this chapter, so here we go. ~Avy73
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It had been a celebration of sorts; Azucena had taken her last final of the spring semester and Steve and Catherine had finally found the perfect location for their wedding. They selected a date and signed the paperwork for the wedding venue. Tommy joined the family for the celebratory dinner and the four stayed up later than normal laughing and joking.
Catherine had taken a moment to show Azucena the wedding dress she had been thinking about but had put off until a venue could be selected. It was truly a beautiful dress and with Catherine's hair and figure, she would be a stunning bride.
As the evening came to an end, the four quickly cleaned up the kitchen. Tommy and Azucena made their way upstairs and into her bedroom. Azucena was honestly exhausted from all the studying the week prior and Tommy was completely content to hold her in his arms while they fell asleep. They had plans to spend the next morning on the beach and then daydream of their upcoming trip to Maui. They had spent the spring semester coming up with ideas and they had finally put everything into action. It was just a matter of two weeks before they would island hop over to Maui.
Azucena quickly drifted off to sleep and was rudely awaken to the sound of her cell phone ringing. She sleepily peeked at her alarm clock, 1:15. As she reached for her phone, she couldn't fathom who would be ringing her at this hour. Unless Frog was calling from Japan and forgot the time difference, but it wasn't his number on her cell. It was a number she didn't recognize, so she hit ignore and closed her eyes.
Tommy held her closer and drowsily asked, "Everything okay?"
"Yeah, some number I don't know." She responded back and pulled his arms around herself a little tighter.
Her eyes hadn't been closed a minute, when her phone started ringing again. She reached out for it and saw the same number pop up. She hit ignore and pulled her arm back under the blanket. Tommy didn't bother to open his eyes, "Wrong number for a booty call."
She responded, as she closed her eyes for the second time, "Someone isn't getting lucky tonight."
They both drifted back into slumber, when the phone rang a third time. Azucena, frustrated at this point, grabbed the phone planning to tell the person they had the wrong number. She pushed the accept button and placed the phone to her ear, "I don't know who you are trying to get ahold of, but I'm certain you have the wrong number."
As she prepared to hit disconnect, a male voice came over the line, "Is this Azucena Santiago?"
Azucena was surprised by the authoritative voice, and the fact that the person actually knew her name, "Yes, who am I speaking with?"
"My name is Charles MacNamera, I'm a US Marshall." The voice on the other end of the line shared. She sat up in bed at this piece of information and click on the bedside lamp. Tommy knew whoever was on the other end of the line was making Azucena uncomfortable. He sat up and reached out for her free hand. He couldn't hear much of the other end of the conversation, but it wasn't common practice for his girlfriend to receive phone calls in the middle of the night.
"Why are you calling me at 1 in the morning Marshall MacNamara?" Questioned Azucena, trying to be polite, but waiting for the shoe to drop. Azucena knew phone calls in the middle of the night were never good.
"WoFat has escaped." Came the voice on the other end of the line. Azucena's blood ran cold and she dropped the phone onto the comforter of the bed. Tommy reached out to her and could see the expression of terror on her face and could feel her body begin to shudder. He picked up the phone and spoke, "Who is this?"
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Steve and Catherine were dead asleep when Steve's phone started ringing. He had to slowly pry his body away from Catherine's warm sleeping form. At the second ring, Catherine turned over and wrapped her body around his, as he reached for the phone in the darkness. He didn't even bother to open his eyes and look at the screen, he figured it was a case and wanted more than anything to stay wrapped up in the cocoon of blankets with Catherine.
He placed the phone to his ear and answered, "McGarrett."
"Commander Steve McGarrett, this is US Marshall James Stone." Steve's eyes popped open at the mention of US Marshall. This wasn't a Five-0 case, this was something different. When the US Marshalls called in the middle of the night, something was terribly wrong. He switched hands holding the phone and reached out to the lamp that adorned the bedside table. Catherine knew something was wrong when the lamp came on. She loosened her grip on Steve and he pulled back the covers, sitting up and placing his feet on the floor. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and focused her mind on the Steve's body language and his end of the conversation, "Marshall Stone, I assume there is a reason you are calling me in the middle of the night."
"Unfortunately, Commander McGarrett, WoFat has escaped from prison." The Marshall paused, and then continued to speak with Steve, "We are reaching out to you, your sister Azucena, and Doris McGarrett to place you all in protective custody until he can be caught."
"Excuse me?" Steve bellowed, "How did a lethal criminal in a SuperMax prison escape?"
"That is being researched at the moment and there is a manhunt underway, but currently we have no trace of him. We know there is a vendetta between him and specifically yourself, your sister, and your mother. Therefore, we are reaching out to your family to place you in the Witness Protection Program until he can be found."
Steve couldn't wrap his head around any of the information that had been provided to him, but he could assume both Doris and Azucena were receiving this same phone call. He was shocked by the news, but he knew his sister was going to be an absolute wreck. "Marshall Stone, I need to speak with my sister and my mother before I can make any decisions. Is this your direct line?"
"Yes Commander, but the sooner we get your family relocated the safer everyone will be."
"Understood," Steve responded, and squeezed Catherine's hand that he didn't remember reaching for but knew he did. She could provide comfort in any terrible situation and this was devastating news. Steve disconnected the call and looked to Catherine, who was seated next to him on the edge of the bed.
Catherine could tell Steve's world had just been rocked off its base and hearing of a criminal who escaped from a SuperMax prison, she could only assume WoFat had escaped. She looked to him, "Talk to me, Sailor."
His voice was barely above a whisper, and she could hear how distraught he was, "That was the US Marshall's service. WoFat has escaped and they are calling to relocate us via the Witness Protection Program."
"Witness Protection?" questioned Catherine, softly.
"This is unprecedented, most of the time someone has to provide testimony in exchange for Witness Protection placement. It makes me think that someone higher up has orchestrated our opportunity into the Program."
"What do you mean 'orchestrated.'"
"I have always suspected that WoFat hasn't always worked alone. I assume he was part of the CIA at one point in time and went rogue. He's killed too many people, so I think the CIA is stepping in to try and cover up their mess. In the process, I think they are ramping up our protection since his escape."
"That would make sense." Catherine conceded and then questioned, "What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to hunt the bastard down and make sure he stays down this time." Steve answered, and then thought of his sister. The Marshall said they were calling Azucena and Doris. He needed to check on his sister. He softly squeezed Catherine's hand, "I gotta check on 'Cena."
He stood up, pulled on pajama pants, a t-shirt, and opened the door to the hallway. He could see a light shining from under Azucena's door. The light answered his question, she had already received her call. He softly knocked on the door to her room and heard Tommy's voice, "Come in."
Steve opened the door to see the young people were shellshocked. His sister's knees were pulled up to her chest and her arms were wrapped around them. Steve recognized this form, how she could make herself as small as possible in times of crisis.
Tommy had his arms wrapped around her compact form and was working to calm her, but Steve could see the look of disbelief on his face. Steve could hear Azucena's soft voice repeating, "Not again, I can't do this again."
Steve and Tommy made eye contact and Tommy nodded, knowing Steve was probably the only other person in this instance that could reassure the young woman. Catherine stood in the doorway and watched as Steve stood at the edge of the bed and lowered himself to his sister's level. He could see the tears silently sliding down her cheeks. He doubted she even knew she was crying. She always tried to keep a tough façade, but there were only two people that could create terror in her world, and one was on the loose.
He gently reached out and rested his hand on her cheek, "'Cena, can you look at me."
He could tell she hadn't registered his presence in her bedroom. She was trapped back in the nightmare of her WoFat encounters. The moment his hand touched her face, she experienced a full body shudder. Steve spoke softly, "You're safe, he isn't here."
She finally registered his presence and looked him in the eye. He could see the terror in her eyes and her voice expressed it, as she squeaked out, "He's out. He escaped Steve. He's coming after us. He's gonna do it again."
"Hey, I'm not going to let that happen." His heart crumbling at the sound of her voice, as he thumbed away a few stray tears. She was beyond shattered; he could tell she was absolutely crushed, and her world was in ruins around her.
"He escaped a SuperMax prison and the cops can't find him." Her eyes cut away from Steve, "He's gonna do it again and this time, he's gonna kill me."
"No, I'm going to find him and I'm going to make sure he doesn't bother our family again."
"How?" she challenged, anger in her voice. He knew she wasn't mad at him; she was furious about the situation and the fear a single man could inflict in her life.
"You're going to enter the Witness Protection Program and I'm going to hunt him down. This way, I know you are safe, and I can focus all my energy on finding him and bringing him down."
"No, I'm not leaving. I have finally put together a life here. I'm not going to let him take everything away from me." She responded; Steve could hear the fight in her voice. It devastated him, but he had to be completely honest, "'Cena, I'm afraid if you don't go. He will take you away from us forever."
"Please," she begged her brother, tears fully streaming down her face. She couldn't imagine starting over again with nobody. "Please don't send me away. I won't leave the house, I won't go to work, I'll take online classes until they find him. Please don't make me go."
Steve was gutted by the fact that she was pleading with him to stay. She would put her entire life on hold to stay with her family, but he knew that wasn't practical. He knew she needed to be tucked away some place safe. He pulled her into his arms, and she cried into his chest, "I don't want you to go. I want you to stay here, but you can't live your life that way. The Program will keep you safe and when I find him, I will make certain he doesn't bother our family ever again."
He didn't come out and tell her that he was going to kill WoFat, but it was implied. He held her to his chest and felt his heart breaking, just as hers was. The kid sister he never knew existed was being wrenched from his life in the middle of the night and it was killing him. He glanced up the solemn faces of Tommy and Catherine and they both understood what had to be done. They both knew that if Azucena didn't join the Program, WoFat would try to find her and kill her.