Hi guys! Here is the next chapter. Most of it is written from Grace's POV. This is the first time I do this, I hope I've shown the character well. Please tell me what you think and enjoy your reading. This chapter takes some dialogue from episodes 1x02, 1x12, 1x23, 2x15, 3x10, 5x12, 5x18, 7x08, 9x12 and 9x13. There's no intention of infringing copyright. Please read the disclaimer on Chapter 1
CHAPTER 19 . There's a grain of truth in every joke.
Steve froze when he heard Grace's voice and a wave of panic surged from his stomach. He wasn't sure he could do this. Something similar to shame colored his cheeks; It was as if all the damage, injuries and risks he had faced throughout his life were nothing compared to the possibility of facing Grace. He was ashamed of his own weakness, but, as he had told Danny the day before, he had no strength to speak to anyone else... To admit his own vulnerability.
"You are being ridiculous!" He said to himself ... that's Gracie, for heaven's sake! His brain rebelled at the absurdity of his emotions, but he couldn't help it. Grace had always seen him as some kind of hero, and Steve knew that image could crumble in a minute, as soon as she saw who he was become.
He sat on the edge of the bed and tried to control his accelerated breathing. A cold sweat slipped from his temples to his neck, wetting the edge of his shirt. He leaned forward, rested his elbows on his thighs and hid his face between his hands.
Suddenly, the cheerful sound of the light-hearted conversation between father and daughter, which until then had been heard from the living room, was interrupted, replaced by the soft sound of Danny's bare feet when he entered the room again.
"Hey... Grace's here!" Danny said, but his voice changed as soon as he saw Steve. He cautiously approached and knelt in front of him. "Hey...!" he said in a low, incredibly sweet voice.
Steve mustered the courage and looked up. His eyes ached and a couple of tears dripped from his eyelashes. Danny raised his right hand and gently wiped them. "Hey... what's wrong?"
Steve let out a sarcastic laugh, "I don't know..." he answered honestly.
"Hey... Hey. You don't have to do this if you don't want to... I know you said you didn't know if you were ready to talk to someone else... I get it, Steve. You can stay here until you're ready... or if you rather, Grace and I can leave for a while. Give you some time."
Danny tried to get up, but Steve grabbed him by the arm, "No... Danno, don't go please! God ... I'm behaving like a fool!"
Steve passed his hands over his face several times, rubbing his eyes hard, took a deep breath and said, "It's just that... I don't know what's wrong with me... I'm ashamed to admit I'm afraid, Danny...! I know it's silly... that's Gracie in there. She's my girl! But I'm afraid she'll realize what I am now..."
Danny's hand kept stroking his cheek when he asked, "And what are you?"
"This... this pathetic shadow of the man I once was. I don't want her to see that..."
"Steve... we've talked about this. You're not a pathetic shadow, you're a man who's been hurt and is doing whatever it takes to get up again. That girl over there thinks you're a hero and that's what she'll see... the amazing guy she's always admired, her beloved uncle Steve is still here... don't you see?"
Steve took a deep breath a couple of times and asked, "What did you tell her...?"
Danny thought about his answer for a few seconds and then said, "I told her we were here because there were some issues we both need to solve... she knows you're hurt. Steve... she's family, don't hide from her."
Steve asked in a trembling voice, "She knows...? I mean, ... everything that happened?"
Danny smiled, "I stopped hiding things from my daughter a long time ago. Grace is now an adult, Steve... I think she started to be an adult too soon. She's been through a lot... she has seen and heard things that no child should. After Ray shot me, Grace demanded that I no longer hide things from her, no matter how painful the truth was. She said she could handle it, so, yeah ... she knows."
Steve shuddered ... this was worse than he thought; he stuttered when he said, "But... what about Mexico... and then everything that happened with the cipher... does she know?"
"Not all…" Danny got up and sat next to him on the bed. "She doesn't know the details... I told her that Doris had died at the end of a disastrous mission in Mexico and that you had gone there to look for her. I told her you were there when she died... I told her that your mother had sent you a mysterious letter that had caused us some trouble... and someone hurt me for that..."
Steve bowed his head again and sighed, "Oh, God!"
Danny spoke again, "But I also told her that you had get there just in time to save me... do you want to know what she told me?"
Steve shook his head and said, "I don't know... do I?"
Danny let out a giggle and said, "She said, 'Of course Uncle Steve got there in time Danno... he always does'... Listen to me Steve... Grace knows what post-traumatic stress is. We haven't talked about it, but I'm sure she has a pretty good idea of what people like you are going through... those who protect our country at an incredibly high cost... You're her hero, Steve... nothing's going to change that."
Steve resisted believing him, how could he? At that moment he felt the exact opposite of a hero. As usual, Danny seemed to read his mind; He took his hand and said, "And the fact that you're going through all this, that you're here, trying to get better, reinforces the idea. She loves you... nothing can change that either".
Steve felt his breathing calm down, his heart no longer seemed to want to come out of his chest; he gently stroked Danny's hand when the man asked him, "So... do you want to do this? You want to see Grace? Because she's dying to see you..."
Steve nodded, got up, and walked to the mirror. He wiped his eyes and ran his hands through his hair. Then he examined his clothes; He was wearing a faded Navy T-shirt and shorts. "Maybe I should use something more... appropriate", he said.
Danny smiled and got up, walked until he stood behind Steve, wraped his waist with both arms and put his chin on his partner's shoulder, his gaze fixed on their reflection in the mirror. "Don't be silly..." he said, "Grace has seen you dressed like this thousands of times... Also, despite how you feel, it doesn't matter if you wear this, or your blue uniform which is black... you're still the most stupidly attractive guy I've ever met."
A frightened look peeked into Steve's eyes when he asked, "Did you tell her... I mean… about us?"
Danny smiled again, "Not yet... but I don't think it's necessary. I think she'll find out very soon."
They stood there, looking at each other in the mirror. Steve shuddered when he asked, "Do you think she'll be okay with this?"
Danny kissed his neck and said, "I think so... she'll be more than okay... Like everyone else, Grace made jokes about us for years, and you know what Freud said, there's a grain of truth in every joke, ¿right?"
Danny grabbed him by the arm and gently forced him to turn around, then put his hand on Steve's neck and pulled him for a kiss. He smiled again and said, "Don't worry about it now... we'll talk to her when you're ready... for now, come and give your niece a hug, before she comes looking for us, okay?"
Steve took a deep breath and began walking behind Danny to the living room.
Grace was nervous. She hadn't seen Danno for over six months, when they met at her grandparents' house for the holidays. Now, she had just finished her first year at Columbia University... in all that time, she hadn't seen his uncle Steve and she missed him.
She was worried when Danny told her about Steve's mom... She knew Danno hadn't told her everything... Dad had hidden the horrible details that, she was sure, were everywhere in that story. She was still mad about it… damn it! The man hadn't suffered enough?
She began to suspect the seriousness of the situation the first time she spoke to his dad after his arrival in Jersey. Danny had told her that Steve was in a program to help veterans with PTSD. She did research... she read everything she could about the topic. She spent hours in the campus library looking for a way to help this man who, to her, meant almost as much as her own parents.
When Danno pulled away from their third hug and whispered that he was going to look for Steve, she sat down on the huge couch and her mind began to wander. Steve and Grace had a very special relationship and she wasn't going to give that up. She knew that the man would have trouble admitting what he thought was a weakness, so she had to show him that she didn't think it was so. Gradually, her memories carried her through all the incredible moments they had spent together.
Steve had shaken her little hand that day with great affection. From that moment on, she had been able to guess that, between her father and this huge guy, there was a special connection. She immediately understood why.
"Hey, Gracie. I'm Steve! It's great to meet you finally. Your dad… he talks about you all the time."
"He talks about you a lot, too."
Steve had laughed about it... his smile was open and contagious when he said, "Really? Does he?"
Then Danno had been nervous and tried to explain it, "We, uh… we commiserate. It's a father-daughter thing."
She remembered that, at first, she had been afraid of meeting his dad's new boss. Danno always described him as crazy. But that wasn't what she saw that day. His smile was like child's, with that mischievous look when he also asked nachos for him. Quickly, the fearsome man her father complained about all the time became Uncle Steve.
She was so angry with her mom when she said the shooting on the football field had been Danno's fault. At that time, she didn't understand the reason, although he had begun to get used to it... they had fought so much, all the time… and Danno had been so sad. He had even had to go after them when Stan set out to move to Hawaii. But since Danno had changed his work at HPD to join that 'crazy Neanderthal' his life began to change... he was calmer and he smiled more often.
Everyone thought she was too young to understand... but she knew Uncle Steve had a lot to do with that change, so she started trusting him.
She would never forget that first Christmas. Danno was smiling… Uncle Steve and the others were there. The smile on the man's face as he observed the father-daughter hug would always be etched in her mind.
"Hey, Grace. Hi!"
Everyone screamed, "Mele Kalikimaka!" From the room, Danny's voice had screamed, "Merry Christmas, please."
Uncle Steve had looked at her with complicity and asked her, "Who's that? Did you hear that?"
Then the fake laughter, "Ho! Ho! Ho!"
She had hugged Santa... the Christmas ritual had always been important to them, so she shouted, "Santa!"
"Oh! Yes, it is Santa. Merry Christmas."
She smiled as she recalled how ridiculous Danno looked in that huge suit, "Looks like you lost some weight".
"Just a little bit. Come here. What did you get me? Any presents?"
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Uncle Steve's beaming smile.
Grace remembered the fear she had felt that day:
"¡Hey, Gracie!"
"¡Uncle Steve…!"
"Hey… Hey, kiddo."
Suddenly, Grace had realized something was wrong. It was the first time Uncle Steve came to school to pick her up, so she asked, "¿Where's daddy?"
She had been scared... so scared when she saw the look in those eyes, Uncle Steve had explained what happened as best he could, "Listen, Gracie, Danno's, uh… not feeling the best, okay? I'm gonna take you to the hospital. We're gonna go see him."
"Is he going to be okay?"
Steve put his brave face and answered, "Is he gonna be okay? Let me tell you about your father. He might not talk like it, but he's one tough guy. And he's brave as well. Can you be brave like Danno?"
No one had called her dad Danno, besides her... That was his special name, but somehow, she didn't mind Uncle Steve doing that, so she had tried to be brave and nodded.
"Are you sure?" Steve had asked and she had nodded again, then the man got up, took her hand and said, "Then we should go see him. What are you waiting for? Come on."
Somehow, the contact of her little hand wrapped in that big hand had made her feel safe.
In the hospital, time had passed very slowly. She had started to get bored ... Grace smiled when she remembered that somehow Uncle Steve had gotten some sheets of paper and some crayons... She never knew where he had got them.
"Gracie, let's go see Danno." Uncle Steve hold her hand, picked up her backpack and took her to his dad's room. They both sneaked in and Steve whispered, "Looks like he's sleeping." But Danno opened his eyes and looked at her with a smile.
"Danno!"
"Monkey!"
"I made this for you." She had given him the sheet with the drawing, Danno had turned it over and had shown it to Uncle Steve with eyes full of pride, "Look at this. This is me. This is you. This is a masterpiece. Look at that. I mean, she's an artist, no? It's beautiful!... I'm gonna make a nice space on the refrigerator, move some stuff around. This is going dead center. Thank you."
Uncle Steve had stood at the end of the bed and crossed his arms, looking at Grace and Danno with a smile, "¿How are you feeling?"
"Uh, I don't know. I feel like everything hurts. My head feels like it's gonna explode. Like the worst hangover I've ever had."
"What's a hangover?"
Danno had stuttered and Uncle Steve was looking at him with a strange smile, "It's, uh... You'll figure it out. You'll learn about it one day when you're about, what, 35?"
She hadn't understood what they were talking about, she understood less when Uncle Steve smiled again and said, "Thirty-five, Thirty... Sixteen."
But Danno interrupted him and said, "Forty years old." Then Danno's expression turned weird too, when he looked at Uncle Steve and said "Thank you."
"Yeah, don't mention it. Listen, since you're, uh, looking so good, I'm gonna head back to the office, okay? I'll swing by, pick her up later. She can stay with me until Rachel gets back. How's that sound?"
Danno knew that Grace didn't like being with strangers, so he had asked, "What do you think?" But she nodded with a smile; somehow, the chance to spend time with Uncle Steve seemed fun.
He smiled and said, "Okay." Then he looked at Danno again and asked, "¿You okay?"
"Yeah, I got everything I need right here. I'm good."
Grace smiled as she remembered the way her father had hugged her that day, still holding the sheet of paper covered in childish strokes. She tried, unsuccessfully, to recall the moment she started to make more drawings... half of them had ended in Uncle Steve's refrigerator door.
She felt a pressure in her chest when she remembered the darkness, the knocks on the heavy metal door, and Danno's scream. "Grace!"
"Daddy!"
"Baby, stay away from the door, okay?"
A moment later, Danno and Uncle Steve's faces were inches from hers, "You okay, baby? Huh?"
She tried to be brave again, "Yeah."
"You hurt anywhere?" She shook her head, "You sure? Huh? Come here… Okay."
Uncle Steve's voice was the opposite of Danny's: Calm, as always... trying to make her feel safe, "One more second, sweetheart, and we'll have you out of here, okay?"
"I wanna go home."
She remembered very few things after that... the clearest was his father's tight hug and the warm, comforting touch of Uncle Steve's hand on her back.
"I once saw a boar... kill a tiger in India." Uncle Steve's gaze was like a kids' on Christmas morning... Grace smiled remembering ... all the Aloha Girls looked at him, spellbound. "This is serious business, okay? I'll tell you why. Boars are deadly, unpredictable beasts. They are all around us right now. They can attack without warning, so you guys have to be ready to protect yourselves at all times. You understand? …All right, good. We're gonna talk about the kill zone now. This is very important, okay?"
Grace had noticed her dad and Madeline's reaction when she called Uncle Steve "Colonel Kurtz" and had warned Danno to make sure Uncle Steve didn't kill anyone. It was true that the man had pulled out a huge knife, but God! Didn't they know that he wouldn't hurt anyone?
The man kept talking, excited, "Hunters think they can get through the armor of a pig. The most vulnerable spot is right between the shoulder blades. This is my weapon of choice."
Grace didn't know if the girls were even more excited than Uncle Steve when the man pulled out his knife and they all said in amazement, "Ooh…!"
"It's got a 10.5-inch, razor-sharp..."
Then, Madeline had gone looking for Lucy, and Danno started talking to Uncle Steve to convince him to do boring things. She didn't want that to happen... this was exciting.
"Let's take this opportunity to talk about something else. Something useful, like how to find fresh water. Or… I don't know, how to build a pillow out of flowers, something like that. Something appropriate for the age group."
Uncle Steve had smiled at Danno's suggestion and said, "Yeah, we could definitely do that… Or…" Danno thought he had won the battle, but Uncle Steve, as always, had done something unexpected and absolutely fun. All the girls screamed in amazement as the knife dug neatly into the trunk of that tree.
"Oooooh!"
The man's smile had been huge when he asked, "Who wants to learn how to do that?"
All the girls started raising their hands and screaming excitedly, "I do! I do…! Me! Me!"
Things got very difficult after that, the bad guy had shot his dad and she had been so scared... But Danno and Uncle Steve had figured it all out… they had caught the bad guys, they had retrieved all those diamonds, and Uncle Steve had kept Lucy safe.
When the blond girl confessed to her, days later, that when she grew up she would marry Uncle Steve, Grace couldn't suppress the small wave of jealousy… Uncle Steve was hers and no one else's.
The constant tapping of their feet echoed in her ears. She was sure she couldn't make it, but Uncle Steve kept saying, "Dig deep… You got this... Keep breathing. Okay?"
She was tired, but Uncle Steve looked cool as a lettuce... he didn't even sweat even though they had been running for over an hour, "Mm-hm ..." that was the only answer she was able to give.
"Just a little further. All right, push yourself now… Push yourself. Straight away, push yourself… Go, Grace! Go! Go! Push yourself, Grace…! That's it!"
She stopped, resting her hands on her thighs and trying to catch her breath. Uncle Steve approached her and they both clapped their hands as he said, "Hey. That right there is what we call a six-minute, 18-second mile. That President's Physical Fitness medal is in the bag. You hear me?"
She had gasped before answering, "Good, because I didn't do so hot last year."
But, as always, he tried to cheer her up, "Forget about last year. This year's gonna be different."
When she was finally able to speak, she had said, "Thanks for helping me, Uncle Steve. Danno says only thing he hates more than swimming is running."
"Don't worry about Danno. It scares me to think what that guy's gonna be like when he actually is a grumpy old man."
"I know…" The screeching of tires made her look away, "That looks just like your car, Uncle Steve!"
"That's because it is my car… Listen, you don't move from this spot. You don't talk to anybody" He told her, worried about leaving her alone, but afraid that he wouldn't be able to catch the guy who took his beloved Marquis.
She had tried to reassure him, "Okay, I won't"
"Don't move, all right?"
"I won't. I won't, I promise. Go!"
Of course, Danno was furious when he learned that Steve had left her alone, no matter that it had only been a few minutes. But then, as always, everything was solved between them.
"You know what you are?" Danno had asked when he came over to talk about the boy Uncle Steve had helped. Grace stopped paying attention to what Samantha was saying and began to listen.
"This should be good."
"You're a half-baked cookie. Soft, gooey on the inside. Kid should be in juvenile hall and you go and you give him a job. That's why I love you, babe. You… You like fixing broken toys, right?"
"Yeah. I guess I do."
Silently Grace crossed her fingers… That was the first time she had heard Danno tell Uncle Steve that he loved him… she prayed it wasn't the last.
Grace was on the swing ... Sadness and worry clenched in her throat ... This couldn't be possible... Danno wasn't a murderer, but the man had said that when he arrested him, in front of the entire class. The noise of the engine made her look up. Uncle Steve's blue truck pulled over at a short distance.
Unable to suppress hope she got up and screamed, "Dannooo…!"
Disappointment kept her from going a step further when Uncle Steve got out of the car... alone.
When they were both sitting, she dared to say what she was thinking, "They said he was arrested for murder."
Uncle Steve didn't seem to know what to answer, so he just said, "It's a complicated situation."
She pushed him, "Is it true? Did he kill someone? Who is it? Was he bad?"
He looked at her as if he wanted to convey a confidence that he didn't feel, "Gracie, listen to me, all right? You have to believe in your father. Your dad, he's the best man I know, and everything he does, he does to protect the people he loves. So, no matter what happens, you got to know that."
Fearful, she replied, "Okay."
Uncle Steve seemed to understand the fear that was choking her, so he hugged her, in the same way that his father would have if he had been there, "Come here…" Then, he made a promise, "I promise you, kid, I promise I'm gonna bring Danno home, all right?" He kissed her head and said, "I love you."
That gesture reassured her in a way she didn't think was possible, Uncle Steve had said he loved her and that he would bring Danno home. She believed him... and he kept his word.
Everything got complicated with the transplant... At first she couldn't understand why her dad would let a piece of his body be ripped off to give it to someone else... What would happen if Danno died? A dark part in the back of her mind knew that she would always blame Steve if that happened. But she understood later, when her dad woke up after surgery and asked to see her... Danno wasn't just trying to save someone's life... It was Uncle Steve's life!
Danno told her that he understood the risk he took, but he had no choice... Without his liver Steve would die hopelessly... She understood... Her father loved Uncle Steve and he couldn't survive if he died... In silence, she thanked that man for having given Danno a chance to love again... unconditionally... Although, at the time, she doubted either of them would do anything about it.
"Stay down! Stay down!"
"Everybody stay down!"
"Everybody all right?"
She was terrified, even when she knew she was safe with Danno… Her dad's arms wrapped tightly around her as the shots pierced the air. She dared look up slightly and saw him enter the ballroom... in her mind, Uncle Steve was the knight in shining armor. When it was all over, the man started pacing the room looking for someone... "Grace… Where's Grace...? Grace, where are you?"
She got up and ran to him, "Uncle Steve!"
The man seemed to breathe at last and said, "Grace! You okay?" He took her in his arms and hugged her desperately." When they moved away, he looked at Danno incredulously and said, "What, nothing? Nothing? No hug?"
Danno took a deep breath, Grace was sure her dad didn't notice his words until they escaped his lips, "I'm so happy to see you right now, I'll give you a hug, I'll give you a kiss, pick a base."
She couldn't suppress a small stab of disappointment when Uncle Steve replied, "Give me the hug." God! Could these two be dumber? She knew Uncle Steve couldn't have chosen the other option... they were in a public place and it wasn't the best time to accept how they felt about each other... She could only hope that would happen someday... soon.
She felt, once again, the enormous peace she always felt with Uncle Steve's hugs ... The man smiled at her and said, "Welcome home, honey. Come here."
Everything that happened after the accident was spinning in her head, shrouded in mist. Her father had told her that Uncle Steve had caught the guy who caused the accident... She wasn't surprised at all. The guy could do everything.
Mr. Grover's voice sounded distant. At that time she only had eyes for her uncle Steve. She tried to thank them, but she knew that any word she said wouldn't be enough, "Dad told me what you guys did for me."
"Oh, yeah? What?" Steve pretended not to understand what she was talking about, so she tried to explain what she was feeling, "How you found the guy who... I just want to say thank you."
Uncle Steve had smiled, "Well, you're welcome. Listen, just 'cause you're all growing up and out to college, and, you know, being independent, we're still here, okay? Any time you need us, we got you." She didn't doubt it for one moment.
Grace remembered how worried she was about Danno for the next few days… She understood, the man almost lost his daughter in an accident… Her dad had fluttered around her, trying to please her. He gave her food and all the time he asked her how she felt.
She wasn't worried about the suffocating feeling… she could handle it, if that made Danno feel better… but the man seemed nervous and he had come up with the cool idea of trying to make his relationship with his mom work again. That was the last straw, she had to do something soon. Her guardian angel appeared at that moment, timely as ever, to help her get Danno out of her own head.
"Where's my girl?"
"Good morning to you, too."
"Yoooo!"
"Uncle Steve!"
"What's up? What's up? Don't do that. Don't get up. Don't get up. Stay right there…" he had leaned down and given her another one of those amazing hugs, he sighed when he said, "Oh, hi, hi, hi!"
Then he leaned on the back of the chair and asked, "How you doing?"
"Good".
"Good. You look good. You look good."
"Thank you."
"How's Pops doing? Is he looking after you okay while Mom's away?"
Danny had come in behind Uncle Steve and approached her, "That's a silly question. Of course I am."
Grace had smiled at Uncle Steve's attempt to steal her pancakes, something Danno was unwilling to allow, "Whoa, hey!"
"What?"
"What's the matter with you? What are you, an animal?"
"Just want a little piece."
"She's, uh… recovering from a serious accident. You don't need pancakes. She needs pancakes. Sit down and relax." Danny defended his daughter's pancakes fiercely, then looked at her and said, "Eat up, so you can get back in bed."
She had smiled and pushed the pancake plate towards Uncle Steve saying, "But I'm not at all tired… or hungry."
Uncle Steve's childish reaction had made her laugh, "Yay!" but Danno objected, "Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Please put the, uh, plate back in front of my daughter, please."
Reluctantly, Steve had returned the plate to Grace. She smiled again... she loved the interactions between these two guys. She hoped that some of them would react soon, because she was going to college and she wanted to make sure Danno would be with someone who loved him deeply.
"Thank you. Okay, here's the thing. Doctor said you got to eat a lot of food, you got to get a lot of rest, and you'll feel like a nice young lady again, you'll feel normal, like a person, so please eat your pancakes."
Mentally, Grace had quickly put the finishing touches on her plan, with an innocent look she said, "Okay. But, Dad, I was actually feeling a little cold. Could you get me my sweatshirt? Please?"
She waited patiently for Danno to make sure she was okay before going for the sweatshirt. He touched her forehead and said, "You're cold? You don't have a fever or nothing... All right." He had said, looking menacingly at Uncle Steve, "Don't touch her pancakes, you animal."
When she was sure Danno was gone, she turned to look at Steve pleadingly. He approached her and listened carefully. That's what she loved most about him… he never treated her like a little girl. He always spoke to her with the truth and he trusted her... which made her trust him, blindly.
"Please. You got to do something. He's driving me crazy!"
"It's that bad?"
"Yeah. He's all up in my business all day. Checking up on me, bringing me food. So much soup."
He had frowned and asked, "Soup? He's doing soup? Matzo ball?..." Then he rolled his eyes and said, "Uff! he's like a Jewish grandmother with that stuff!" He approached her and said in a low voice, "All right, look, Gracie, here's the thing. When you were in the hospital, Danno was really upset, of course. He felt helpless, there was nothing he could do… He just had to sit there and wait for the news, but now that he's got you back home, he wants to take care of you, you know? And he's gonna do everything he can to get you back on your feet. He loves you, you know."
"And I love him for that. But if you could just get him out of here, even for a few hours."
"Give me one of those pancakes."
Danno had come back and began to spreading butter on her pancakes. She smiled when Steve reproached him, "You never butter my pancakes."
Uncle Steve's phone rang and after a short call he said, "We'll be right there."
"We? What's 'we'?"
Grace tried not to laugh when Uncle Steve gave a performance worthy of the best Broadway production, "I need you, buddy. I just got a homicide. I'm gonna need you on this one. I'm so sorry. Grace, are you gonna be okay if I take him?"
She replied with mock resignation, "Aw. You go. I'll be okay, but I was really looking forward to spending the day with you, Daddy."
But Danno didn't take the bait, he got up and walked towards the door while saying in a voice full of sarcasm: "Me, too, Monkey. Eat, please."
Uncle Steve looked at her knowingly and winked; in a barely audible voice she said, "Thank you."
That had been the last time they had hung out together... until now. She had tried to talk to him when she had spoken to Danno on the phone in the past few weeks. But the man had refused. His father had told him that Steve was in a dark place and that he needed time. She had understood and, at first, she had decided to give him the time he was asking for; she had decided to wait for him to be ready, but two days ago she understood that, knowing Uncle Steve, that might never happen, so she decided to take the matter in her own hands.
When Steve came out into the living room, he looked in surprise at the beautiful young lady who was sitting on the couch. He couldn't believe how much she had changed in a year. Grace seemed lost in her thoughts and didn't realize he was looking at her until Danny said out loud, "Monkey!"
She raised her head and looked at Steve. She got up and walked over to him, wrapped her arms around his neck. He hugged her tight. "Gracie!" he whispered in her hair. They held each other for a few minutes. She sobbed into his chest and he stroked her hair tenderly. "Gracie...!" he said again. "Don't cry please, or you're gonna make me cry too." She giggled and moved away, quickly wiping her eyes. When she finally looked at him, she saw that his eyes were red too and she joked, "It's a little late for that..."
He also laughed and ran his thumb over the corners of his eyes, "You've changed... your hair is shorter" he finally said. She smiled, reached out and stroked his cheek saying, "You've changed too... I missed you Uncle Steve."
"I missed you too Gracie..."
Then, they stood there, without knowing what to say... there were many things fluttering in Steve's mind, but he didn't know how to start.
On the way to the kitchen, Danny patted Steve on the back, kissed his daughter on the cheek, and said, "Why don't we make some coffee and catch up?"
Steve and Grace didn't answer. They kept looking at each other, waiting. When Danny disappeared into the kitchen, she finally mustered up some courage and asked, "Why?"
Steve frowned and started to walk in front of her, moved one of the chairs for her to sit on and sat, in front of her, saying, "I'm sure that question can refer to many things Gracie. Do you want to be more specific?"
Grace leaned her elbows on the table and approached Steve to say, "Why didn't you want to talk to me?"
Steve didn't move, even though all he wanted in that moment, was to get up and get out of there. "It wasn't that I didn't want to talk to you, Gracie. In the last few weeks I haven't been able to speak to anyone besides Danno… the last year was… difficult."
She reached out and took his hand, "I know… that's why your family wanted to be there for you, Uncle Steve. I'm your family… and Danno and Charlie."
"Yes, Gracie. I know and I appreciate it... really, but... it's complicated. I couldn't... What's happening to me is very…"
"Uncle Steve..." she cut him off, "I know what PTSD is. When Danno told me what was going on, I made my own research, I read a lot. I thought that if I knew what was happening to you, it would be easier for you to talk to me… I want to help you, but I don't know how."
Steve sighed and wiped his eyes again, "You've already done, Gracie... more than you can imagine," he replied, "Thank you..."
She stroked his hand and said, "I've known you forever, Uncle Steve… After my parents and my brother, you're the most important person in my life. In recent days I've thought so much about you... about all the things we've been through together. I could see and hear your laughter and I remembered all the times you were there for me... for us. Please let me help you because I need you back."
He nodded and she spoke again, "I knew… about your mom, Uncle Steve. I'm so sorry! I'd have wanted to be there for you."
Steve sighed, "Yeah... it wasn't nice... it was pretty awful, actually."
"Uncle Steve, can I ask you a question?" she asked cautiously.
"Of course, Gracie."
"Do you trust me?"
Steve shuddered. He narrowed his eyes and said, "What are you talking about? Of course, I trust you, Gracie!"
She squeezed his hand and said, "Then talk to me… I know there are many things you can't tell me, but, please, talk to me. Tell me about what happened… I know it can be difficult, but talking about it can help, you know?"
Steve nodded, trying to decide what to say to this amazing girl. He thought the situation was surreal: He was supposed to be the one to comfort and help Grace. He decided that even when there were things he couldn't tell her, he wasn't going to lie. "Okay." He accepted, "What do you want to know?"
Grace didn't waste the opportunity and asked, "Your mom... she made a dangerous job, right?" Steve nodded and she asked, "Is that why you went to Mexico? To help her on a mission?"
Steve swallowed hard the lump in his throat and said, "You can't talk to anybody about this, you understand, right?" When she nodded, he said, "My mom… Doris. She had that job since before I was born. Soon things became too dangerous and she... she decided it was best if she disappeared for a while, so she led us to believe that she had died in a car accident... I was fifteen... twenty years after I learned that she was alive."
"You must have been very angry about that, right?"
Steve nodded… neither of them noticed that Danny was standing by the kitchen door, listening carefully.
Steve kept talking, "After I went looking for her in Japan, I brought her to Hawaii, remember?"
Grace thought for a moment and said, "I remember... but I also remember that she left again."
Steve shrugged, "Listen, Gracie… When a person does… the job my mother did, it's very difficult to leave it behind. There's always someone, friend or enemy, who wants that person back. So, she went back to work on it."
Grace nodded, understanding. "So, she was doing that job all these years?"
"Yes, Gracie. It seems she was on several dangerous missions. But the last one… in Mexico…"
"What happened, Uncle Steve?"
Steve took a deep breath, "Someone went to Hawaii and told me that she was in trouble. It seems that… she got involved with dangerous people… They wanted me to go there and get her out, but I couldn't do it… I did everything I could but I couldn't save her." A lonely tear slid down Steve's cheek, Grace reached out and wiped it away. When he seemed to calm down, she asked, "Did you go there alone?"
Steve nodded again, "That was the condition, Gracie... you see, they wanted to involve... as few people as possible."
"Why Danno didn't go with you?"
"He couldn't, Grace… you must understand that it was quite a risky situation. They wanted me to go alone, and even if he could, I wouldn't have let him go."
"Why, Uncle Steve? He is your partner."
"Yes. But, like I said, it was too dangerous… Danno… he has Charlie, he has you… Do you remember when I promised you that I would always do my best to keep him safe?"
Grace smiled, "Yes ... I remember."
"Well… if he had gone with me, I… I'd have broken that promise, Gracie… he had already risked enough in all these years. Either way, when the time came, he sent me help… and from Oahu, he and the team did their best to help me… without them, maybe I wouldn't have made it out of there alive."
"But your mom... she died. Maybe if Danno had been there, that wouldn't have happened."
Steve smiled sadly. "Listen to me Gracie… there's nothing… absolutely nothing that Danno could have done to prevent it to happen. Doris was involved in very serious matters, with people who don't forgive… Those people killed her."
"I understand..." Grace said, "Can I ask you another question?" Steve nodded.
"Did you have enough time...?"
Steve frowned again, "Time...?"
"Yes..." Grace replied, took Steve's hand again and asked, "Did you have enough time to tell her that you loved her?"
Steve squeezed Grace's hand and replied, "Yes, Gracie... I managed to say it before she died... and she said it too... She said she regretted everything that had happened... and that she loved me."
"That's good...!" Grace said and approached him, "I'm gonna tell you a secret, okay? But you can't tell Danno, promise?"
"Gracie... I…," Steve started to say, but she cut him off, "It's not a bad thing, Uncle Steve... it's just that if he finds out, he'll worry, promise?"
Steve nodded and she said, "You know what scared me the most about Danno's job? It had nothing to do with all those years when Mom was ranting about the riskiness of his job... or with the fact that she took advantage of that to hide that Charlie was his son... every time someone hurt him... or worse. Do you want to know what scared me the most?"
Steve didn't dare move a muscle, so she said, "It scared me that I couldn't have enough time... to tell him one more time that I loved him." Overwhelmed, Steve closed his eyes, but heard her speak again, "I started to worry less after a while, after the Colombia thing… with everything that happened that year… I understood that you two… have something special… and that you would always do everything possible to keep your promise." Grace's fingers stroked the back of his hand until he opened his eyes again.
"That is why I say that it's good that you were able to tell your mother that you loved her... not for her, because I'm sure she knew it... It's good for you. It will help you heal… You need to heal from all that pain Uncle Steve… if you don't, you won't be able to move on. And you need to move on… Hold on to Danno, because you two love each other…"
Steve looked at her in surprise, but she said, "I know, Uncle Steve... I've known for a while... I was just praying that one of you two would realize before it was too late... It's not too late, Uncle Steve."
Steve blushed deeply and Grace smiled, understanding, "It already happened, didn't it? Are you two finally together?" Grace let out a yell of joy, "Wow! Finally! I should have figured it out... You two... alone... in this apartment… Oh, come on! don't think I didn't notice that the other two bedrooms haven't been furnished yet. I bet there's a perfectly good bed in your room, huh?"
Steve leaned down and hid his face in his hands… a couple of seconds later, he sighed gratefully when Danny entered the room, determined to get him out of his misery, and said, "Yes Grace… stop torturing Steve… we… I mean… there are many things that we haven't still solved… but I think that we're both perfectly clear that we want to be together."