Author's Note: So this is the start of the next story for this series, just wondering if you're interested in seeing it continue! And I wanted to give you a small taste of what's to come. Don't worry, this is NOT a death fic. And I'm going to keep it friendship only.

Epilogue

Say it isn't Real

Danny watched Grace push Charlie on the swing, and he couldn't help the feelings that seemed to wrap his heart in a comforting blanket. He'd been out of the hospital for a little over two months and things had slowly returned to a semblance of normal. He and Steve were closer than ever, in fact the SEAL seemed to keep a much closer eye on what was going on with Danny and the kids. He was involved in every family activity and the Jersey native found he loved it. He's missed the close relationship he used to have with his little brother, and over the years Steve had filled that gaping hole. After their stint in Colombia, Danny had hoped that they would find their way back to that, they had.

He smiled and took a deep breath reveling in the fact that he didn't feel a twinge of pain. He'd been blessedly pain free for a few weeks now and he was grateful for it. Grace waved at him and he grinned at her before waving back. Charlie's face was a gleeful representation of what it meant to be a kid and Danny was glad that he was there to see it.

The sound of an engine being cut behind him pulled his attention around. Steve was climbing from his blue Chevy truck; his phone already to his ear as he walked purposely toward the Williams's family.

"Yeah Lou, I agree. No wait for me and Danny. We'll be there in about twenty minutes. Alright, you too." He hung up and stuffed the phone into his front cargo pocket.

Danny sighed, "Case?"

Steve nodded, "A body turned up out in the Warehouse District in Waimaia. Lou and Chin are already there. Kono's still will Adam, but she'll catch up as soon as she can." He stopped and glanced toward the kids. "You okay to be my backup on this one?"

He let his blue gaze slip toward his children longingly before nodding. "Always."

The taller man couldn't stop the smile that lit up his normally stoic features. This would be their first case back and he was chomping at the bit to get back in the game. Danny had taken the offered time to recover, but his partner had been back at work for six weeks now and he missed them. The shorthand that he and Danny had developed over the past five years was a gift for someone like him. Steve knew he could depend on his partner in any and all types of situations. And Danny understood what he needed in way that didn't normally exists outside of Team guys.

Twenty-Seven minutes later…

Steve angled the black Camaro into the remaining parking space and quickly killed the V8. The sudden silence sent chills along his skin. Lou's black Suburban was parked a few spaces over and there were several cop cars populating the other areas.

Danny frowned, "This seem right to you?" His hands were already feathering over the grip of his Sig Sauer as he stared out at the empty lot.

"No, There's definitely something wrong." In a swift motion, Steve pulled his own pistol and carefully exited the vehicle. The soft Hawaiian breeze wafted across his face and he narrowed his eyes. Blood.

"Danny—"

The blonde groaned, "Yeah, I caught that to." His fingers shifted and he carefully leaned the passenger side door closed. The three story warehouse was one of the older ones in this area. It had a few broken windows on the upper level, but for the most part it was serviceable. According to Jerry, it had been a meat packing plant until recently when the owner was foreclosed on. So that might explain the metallic smell.

"Didn't this place close a few months back?" Danny's statement of the obvious realigned McGarrett's thoughts.

"Yeah, so why're we getting the fresh scent of blood?"

Danny shrugged. But his body language told Steve that he wasn't comfortable with what they were walking into. "Lou?! Chin?!"

Steve listened for a response from their friends, going so far as to sink down onto his haunches and go perfectly still. A really feat for someone that couldn't sit still for the space a song; he furrowed his eyebrows when they didn't hear anything. Without saying anything he tilted his head toward the left and rose up.

Danny was in the lead now as they worked their way through the silence of the main floor. They never got any sort of response and now the hair on both of their arms were standing on end. Neither man was happy about their current situation or the lack of communication with their co-workers. Steve stepped past Danny as they came to a set of stairs.

With a skill and grace that the detective would always envy, Steve floated up the stairs without making one so much as squeak. The stench of blood transitioned to one of rotting flesh and both men gagged back their natural responses.

"That's a body." Steve mouthed silently. Danny nodded, biting back his normal instinct to snap sarcastically at his partner. This wasn't the place and he didn't want to give away their position.

He followed as Steve moved along the interior wall toward the source of the stench. He stumbled to a halt and stood up as shock rippled through him…a man was hanging from one of the meat hooks. He'd been tortured, that much was obvious, but that wasn't what drove the breath from Steve's lungs; it was recognition.

He knew this man. Petros. The kind old man that had save both his and Danny's lives in Colombia was hanging in all his battered glory before them. At his blood-soaked feet were the bodies of Lou and Chin. It took a moment for Steve's brain to kick in and even longer before he could respond properly. Rushing forward he dropped to his knees, headless of the blood and yanked off his tactical glove before placing shaking fingers at the juncture between Chin's jaw and throat. He prayed to God that he would find the steady thump of a heartbeat.

His eyes flickered sideways as Danny did the same thing next to Lou.

TBC…

Will be continued in Chapter 1 of "Silence" (final stories in the Words series)

Author's Note: I am putting up the first couple pages from "Silence", which is the last in the four part Words Series of my Hawaii Five-O storyline. Interested in seeing this one? Let me know… Thanks for your continued support.

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