A/N: Can I just say that I love that this is what Kono's passionate about? Sex trafficking is truly a horrific industry that profits immensely in the U.S. and other countries throughout the world. I have a friend that works with the DOJ, shutting down sex trafficking, and Kono's passion makes me think of her.
7x25 Ua mau ke ea o ka 'aina i ka pono
Steve was completely on board with his own insane idea because he needed to end this. Not just for those poor girls, not just to catch the guys who were doing this, not even because it was his job. He needed to end this for Kono. She had been restless since they'd locked up Emilio without him telling them anything. She needed closure, and Steve was prepared to do whatever it took to give it to her.
"Are you doing this for her?" Danny asked, unable to take the silence in the car.
"Huh?" Steve asked. He had been thoroughly immersed in mentally preparing for the op and had not at all been paying attention.
"Are you doing this for Kono? Because you're still in love with her?" Danny asked.
"That's not- I'm not…" Steve spluttered. That had to be the worst lie he had ever told in his life. Seriously, the Navy would have kicked him out for that one.
"Steve, you don't have to prove yourself for her. She's already head-over-heels for you," Danny informed him.
"I'm not proving myself, Danny. There's a job that needs to be done. Some little girls need to be saved. I'm just doing my job," Steve insisted. Danny just watched him, studying him intently. Steve ignored him and focused on driving.
"It's a chef's hat with your name on it," Steve told Danny over the phone.
"Why are you telling me this?" Danny asked, suddenly worried.
"Well you know, I just thought you could use it for Steve's," he replied, just to see what Danny would say.
"All right, look, my restaurant under no circumstances is gonna be called Steve's. And you're gonna know that, 'cause you're gonna be there, 'cause you're not gonna die today, okay? Just don't — you're not gonna No-no dying today, okay?" Danny's usually cool exterior had faded into a panicked, desperate tone.
"You — I thought you said-" Steve started but was cut off.
"I know what I said, and I said it because I'm trying to talk you out of it. Obviously, it's not gonna work, okay?" Danny wasn't ready to say good-bye.
"If something goes wrong, tell her… please," Steve said. He knew Danny would understand.
"You need to tell her yourself, okay? Tonight. I'm tired of you two. Just tell her to get over herself. You need to be together," Danny insisted.
"Okay. I'll do it," Steve agreed. That's when Jerry interrupted to let them know the truck was in the tunnel. All other thoughts faded as his focus went solely to saving the girls.
As soon as the girls were all safe, and Deon had been confirmed as dead, Steve hugged Kono. He didn't care who was watching or what they were thinking. To his surprise, she didn't resist. She relaxed against him.
"Thank you," she whispered quietly. He smiled softly.
"We should talk later," he told her. She pulled away and looked into his eyes and nodded. He nodded too before letting her go to coordinate clean-up. Kono watched him go, feeling entirely unsatisfied, though she couldn't say why. Deon had been taken care of. The rest of the girls were safe. But she didn't feel better. She was still burning up with rage.
"Well, I reach out to law enforcement in each of these cities. I pass on whatever Intel we have, and we hope that they follow-up and shut down these hubs," Steve said as they all stood around, looking at the map of the United States of the sex trafficking hubs.
"Is that even going to make a dent?" Kono asked, the anger in her finally exploding into passion as she spoke. "I mean, it's not like these girls are kept in one place. In every single one of those cities, there's at least a dozen houses like the ones we raided this morning. Those girls are moved around constantly. Do any one of those departments have the resources or the will to deal with this?" she asked. She could feel everyone's eyes on her, but especially Steve's. He was studying her carefully.
"Kono, look, I mean, we all agree there's more to do. There's a lot more to do. But today, ten more girls went back to their parents. Look, we did the best that we could do," he told her. She nodded, her eyes still glued to the screen, her heart still breaking for the girls that were out there that needed help, and the anger still burning in her against the people who put them into these situations. She needed to do something. Something else. Something more. This wasn't over for her.
"Hey, Chin, where's Kono?" Steve asked. He had noticed her absence earlier, but it was growing more and more prominent, the longer the party went on.
"I don't know. I've left her a couple of messages, but her phone is off, it's going straight to voicemail. Maybe she got caught up doing something else?" Chin suggested. He didn't sound sure or confident at all. Steve nodded and thanked him before looking around again. He had meant what he told Danny right before he jumped onto that moving truck. Tonight, he needed to tell Kono that he was in love with her, and he didn't care what she thought about other people, he had to be with her. He couldn't stand it any more. But she wasn't here.
Kono checked her phone as she landed in Carson City. There were several concerned voicemails from Chin. There was one from Steve. She listened to it last.
Kono, I need to talk to you. Call me back.
She shot a quick text to her cousin telling him not to worry and that she'd call him in a little while. Then she found a quiet corner of the airport.
"McGarrett." He picked up the phone on the second ring.
"Steve, it's Kono," she said.
"Kono, thank God. We were worried about you. Where are you? Can we meet somewhere to talk?" he asked. She took a second to steady her anxious breathing before she spoke.
"No, we can't. Steve, I'm in Carson City. I can't let this go. I need to help. I need to do something. My resignation letter is on your desk," she said. He was silent for a long time — too long.
"No. I won't accept it. Take a leave of absence for now," he said.
"Okay," she agreed. "I'm sorry, Steve. I'm sorry that I left without telling anyone. I need to do this. I need to help. I can't sit in Hawaii while this is happening across the country," she said.
"I get it, Kono," he said quietly. "But I'm still begging you, please, just get on the plane and come home. Just come home," he said. His voice cracked a little toward the end, giving away how hard he was fighting back tears.
"I can't do that, and you know it. If you do love me, and I believe you do, then I need you to let me go. Let me do this. And don't ask me to come back," she said. She felt a tear slide down her cheek. She couldn't remember when she had started crying. Suddenly, there were so many tears.
"I do love you. Good-bye, Kono. Good luck," he said. Her heart broke at his words. It was enough that she looked up at the departure flights, wondering how fast she could get back there. Then she shook her head, reminding herself of why she'd come.
"Bye, Steve," she whispered. But he was already gone. She stood there in the airport alone, wondering if she'd just made the right decision. She couldn't remember how long she'd stood there after that, but she couldn't stop the tears that insisted on falling. She let them come, knowing that there would be no time to cry later. She had work to do.