CHAPTER 12

Saturday morning, Koolau Mountain Range:

Detective Danny Williams was not a happy man.

Not happy at all.

It was hot and humid. Not a good combination. His hair, normally the picture of perfection, was frizzing out in every direction. His pale skin was red with sunburn or exertion. Probably both, if he was honest. Or it could be from all the mosquito bites and scratches from low-hanging branches. Danny huffed in frustration as he pushed passed yet another scraggly bush.

Kono, having observed his obvious discomfort, asked, "Hey, are you okay Danny?"

Danny nodded in response to her question. "Yeah. Are we almost there yet?"

"Only another eight hundred meters or so," Chin called from a position ahead of them.

Danny groaned. "Are you sure about these coordinates? I don't see anything around here that suggests anyone has been here recently. Nor do I see any abandoned bunkers."

"Yes, I'm sure," Chin said testily.

Danny, surprised by Chin's unusual tone, decided to keep quiet for the time being. Kono offered him a small smile, which Danny returned gratefully. They were all under pressure here, but Chin appeared to be taking it very personally.

The group was silent as they continued to trudge through the forest. They had no idea if anyone would be up here, but had decided a silent approached would be best in case there were. It was the one thing they had agreed on before leaving headquarters.

After Kono's announcement of her hypothesis as to Steve's location, there had been an argument about whether or not they should take back up. Kono had suggested the FBI, Chin had suggested HPD and Danny had been vehemently against all of it. He didn't trust anyone, except Five-0. Especially after the conversation with Agent Weir. They would find Steve without their help. And if that meant traipsing through a forest full of bugs in the warm Hawaiian weather, then so be it.

Danny slapped the back of his neck as he felt something crawling on it. He received identical glares from the cousins. 'Right, they were supposed to be stealthy,' he thought. 'Stupid bugs. Steve had better be up here, otherwise I will kick his ass for making me hike up here.'

Kono smirked at Danny as though she could read his thoughts. Her eyes were twinkling with delight as he jumped and swatted at his arm when another mosquito decided it was time for a feast. Danny just gave her the finger and continued to stomp through the undergrowth that kept threatening to trip him up.

If Steve was up there, Danny had no idea how they would get him out of there. They all knew he had been shot. That alone could be problem. They had no idea if he had been injured further or how serious his condition was.

Danny was so busy concentrating on not tripping over that he almost ran into Chin, who had stopped completely and motioned for them to get down. Squatting down beside a rotting log, Danny peered over a dense shrub to see what had alerted Chin.

About a hundred meters away was a rusty steel structure, covered in vines and moss. It would have been easily overlooked if it weren't for the two armed men patrolling the area outside it.

"What do you want to do?" Chin whispered to Danny.

Danny shrugged. "Go in and get our guy."

Chin glanced at Kono, who nodded. Quietly, they checked their ammunition and weapons. They watched as the two guards crossed paths and headed in opposite directions. Danny indicated to the others that he would take the one on the left and Kono would take the one on the right while Chin covered them both.

Despite being together only six months, the team could read each other like they had been together for years. They worked like a well oiled machine. Danny snuck up behind his target and quickly placed him in a chokehold. He placed the unconscious man on the ground before patting him down to check for weapons. Finding nothing, he turned to where Kono had disappeared to.

She had her target in a chokehold also. However, the man outweighed her by at least sixty kilograms and was taller than her by a head. The man quickly escaped her hold. He turned on her and aimed his gun. Chin took the shot as the man turned around. Instead of killing him, Chin only winged him. Unfortunately for them, his hand clenched on his weapon and let off a volley of shots.

With the element of surprise now out of the realm of possibilities, the trio approached the entrance to the bunker with extreme caution. They were certain they were in the right place. They edged inside the bunker. It was pitch black. They turned on their flashlights, which revealed a long hallway with multiple doorways.

Slowly, they started clearing each section of the bunker. They had just returned to the large hallway after checking the sixth room when something moved in the near distance.

"Five-0!" Chin called.

The figure started moving, firing shots in their direction. The team quickly ducked into one of the rooms off the corridor to avoid being hit before returning fire. Chin popped his head out to fire at the perpetrator. His shot was true and the man dropped to the floor, writhing in pain as he clutched his leg.

"Clear!" Chin called to the others.

Together they approached the man and disarmed him. They heard the sound of running footsteps further down the corridor. Chin shone his light down and saw a person dart across the hallway. A few moments later, another person, a very familiar one, followed.

"Steve!" Chin called.

Chin started after Steve before turning back to the team, unsure what to do.

"Go," Danny said. "We've got this guy."

Chin nodded and took off in the direction he had seen the two running. Danny watched as Chin turned the corner and disappeared from sight. He quickly turned his attention back to the man in front of him, cuffing his hands behind his back while ignoring his pitiful sobs. He didn't have it in him to be sympathetic. This man had taken part in Steve's kidnapping. He deserved everything he got.

"I'm going to call this in," he said to Kono.

Danny took his phone out of his pocket and noted there was no signal inside the bunker. He groaned and showed Kono the phone. She just shrugged in a 'what are you gonna do?' kind of way.

"Stay with him," Danny said to Kono, who nodded seriously and focused her weapon on the suspect.

Danny made his way further down the corridor in the hope of finding a signal and stopped where they had seen Steve coming from. There was a pair of feet sticking out of a room to the right. Slowly, Danny peered around the doorway to inspect the body.

He sighed as he knelt down next to the now deceased Matteo Vivaldi.

"Damn," he muttered.

Chin sprinted down the hallway, the sound of his feet hitting the concrete echoing off the walls as he went. He had lost sight of the pair and was desperate to catch up. The one thing that assured him was that Steve was in a good enough condition to go chasing after Vivaldi.

There, in the distance, was light. He saw Steve exit the tunnel before he lost sight of him again. Putting on another burst of speed, Chin ran towards the exit. As soon as he exited, he saw both Steve McGarrett and Roberto Vivaldi rolling down a hill.

From the top of the hill, Chin watched the fight unfold. It was short as Steve rolled over, putting Vivaldi in a chokehold. Chin watched as Vivaldi tried with all his might to escape Steve's hold. Chin was amazed that Steve even had the energy to keep going at this point.

Something metallic glinted in the sunlight. Chin froze when he saw Vivaldi pull a knife out of his pocket and stab Steve in the side. Steve obviously didn't feel it, running on pure adrenaline as he tried to choke the life out of the other man. Chin could hear the horrible man's wheezing from his position.

"Steve!" he called.

Chin watched as Steve looked up at him, mouthing something that he couldn't hear. Chin ran down the small hill and stood next to Steve, who was determined to make Vivaldi suffer.

"Steve. Let him go. It's over," Chin said in a steady voice.

Steve looked at Chin, as though startled by his sudden appearance. "Chin?"

"Yeah, it's me," Chin said as he took a step closer. "Steve…I need you to let him go."

Steve looked from Chin to Vivaldi and back again before shaking his head. "Can't."

"Yes, you can," Chin said quietly as he kneeled down next to Steve and the still struggling Vivaldi.

"No," Steve said vehemently. "He'll go after you and Mary. I can't let that happen."

Chin closed his eyes as he thought about how he could convince Steve not to kill Vivaldi. Sure, the man deserved to be put into the ground, but there was a punishment worse than death.

"Steve, I promise you he won't. He's going away for a very long time. He will never see the light of day, ever again."

Steve frowned at Chin as he thought it over. He had started to release his hold on Vivaldi before tightening it again. Chin wondered where Steve even found the energy to be conscious, let alone holding down a man that had at least forty kilograms on him.

"No. He's a cockroach," Steve stated.

"True," Chin said. He couldn't disagree.

Chin watched as Vivaldi's eyes started rolling into the back of his head as his struggles died down.

"Steve…we found it."

Steve froze. "What?"

"We found the key. We have all the evidence and can put Vivaldi away for all of his crimes. Every last one. He won't be getting away with anything," Chin said. "He will be in jail for the rest of his life. I promise you that."

Steve stared at Chin in disbelief. "Really?"

"Yes…Thanks to your father."

"Dad really had it all along?" Steve asked.

"Apparently, yes. He gave me a trail of breadcrumbs to follow…Your wardrobe may need some repairing. You can blame Kono for that."

Steve frowned in confusion. "What?"

"Doesn't matter," Chin said quickly. He realised Steve was quickly running out of steam. "How about you let him go and we can get you some help?"

"What?" Steve asked. "I'm fine."

Chin huffed a laugh at his response. It was so typical of Steve. If he had multiple limbs severed, he would say the same thing, insisting there was nothing wrong and that everything was normal.

"I hate to break it to you, but you have an awfully large knife sticking out of your side," Chin said, pointing to Steve's right side.

Steve looked down to see that Chin was right. There was indeed a knife embedded in his side. As soon as Steve saw it, the pain made itself known. Groaning, Steve let go of Vivaldi, pushing him to the side like trash. Chin quickly cuffed him and checked his pulse. It was slow, but steady. He then turned his attention back to Steve.

Chin could see fresh bruises already forming on Steve's face. The fight must have been brutal if the amount of bruising was any indication. There was a deep gash on the left side of Steve's head, but it had stopped bleeding ages ago. Steve's shoulder had begun to bleed again, staining his shirt anew.

Chin grabbed Steve's shirt and ripped it open to get a better look at the stab wound. He winced when he saw the dark bruising over Steve's ribs and abdomen. If he didn't have any broken ribs, Chin would be surprised. Not to mention the possibility of internal bleeding.

Chin used what was left of Steve's shirt to staunch the flow of blood from Steve's shoulder. The knife wound would be okay, provided the knife wasn't removed or jolted. Right now, it was stopping the blood from pouring out, which played in Steve's favour.

Steve was quiet as Chin tended to his wounds. That was unusual. Chin looked back at Steve's face, noting how pale it was, even beneath the bruises.

Chin gently tapped Steve's face. "Hey Steve. How are you doing?"

Steve rolled his eyes at Chin before squinting at him. "I'm fine."

"Right. Of course you are. That's why you are squinting at me," Chin said, half jovial, half worried.

"It's bright," Steve supplied.

Chin frowned. "What's bright?"

"Everything."

Chin grabbed his sunglasses from his pocket and gave them to Steve. Steve put them on clumsily with one hand. Some of the tension drained from his body as soon as the darker glass covered his eyes.

"Better?" Chin asked.

Steve nodded. "Yeah. Thanks."

Chin returned his attention to Steve's shoulder, happy to see that the bleeding had slowed considerably. Chin glanced back up the hill.

"Do you think you can walk?" Chin asked.

"I think so," Steve said. "Where is everyone?"

"Danny and Kono are still in the bunker. They ran into some resistance, but took care of it."

"Weir?" Steve asked.

Chin sighed. "We didn't tell him where we were going. Danny and him…well, they had a bit of an argument…about priorities."

Steve chuckled. "That…doesn't surprise me."

Steve held out his right arm to Chin. Chin took it and hauled Steve off the ground into a standing position. Steve swayed, but Chin steadied him. Steve nodded when he was able to stand on his own.

"Yo Chin! You good?" Danny's voice called out.

Chin looked up and saw Danny standing at the top of the hill. He waved at Danny.

"Yeah, we're good," Chin answered. "Where's Kono?"

"She's in the bunker. Our suspect won't be walking out of here anytime soon," Danny said.

"HPD on their way?" Steve asked.

"Yeah. And Agent Weir, unfortunately," Danny said as he walked slowly down the hill to join them. "Finally got a signal to call it in." He paused when he finally caught sight of his partner with a knife sticking out of his side.

"What the hell happened to you?" Danny asked Steve.

"Nothing," Steve mumbled.

"Right. I can see that. How about you sit down and we will take care of your…nothing?" Danny suggested.

"I'm good," Steve said as he pushed passed his partner.

Danny rolled his eyes at Chin. They watched as Steve made his way up the hill. Slowly.

"What happened to him?" Danny asked, pointing at the still unconscious Vivaldi.

"He bit off more than he could chew," Chin supplied with a smirk. "He learned that the hard way."

Danny quirked an eyebrow at Chin before flicking his eyes to Steve's retreating form. Danny shook his head in disbelief. He motioned to Chin to help him grab Vivaldi. Together, they managed to drag Vivaldi to the top of the hill where Steve was sitting on a rock, his skin having gone another shade of white.

Chin and Danny glanced at each other in concern. They both knew there wasn't much they could do until the medics got there. Especially if Steve kept insisting he was fine.

"So, Matteo Vivaldi is dead," Danny announced. "Looks like pops here shot his own son."

"Yeah. That's probably my fault," Steve said. "I told him I thought Matteo was setting him up."

"And you would be correct. Matteo ordered the hit on the Webster's. He then gave the gun to his father as a way to tie him to the crime. He made an obvious trail so we could arrest Roberto," Danny said. "He wanted to take over from his father, apparently."

"Huh," Steve said noncommittally.

"Turns out the Webster's stole the key to a post office box that holds all the evidence against Vivaldi. They gave it to John, who kept it all these years. Vivaldi got word that John and I were involved in the Webster's case, and decided to use you to get the key. Only problem was, with John gone, I had no idea where it was or what I was even looking for," Chin added.

There was some rustling in the distance and everyone stood, on alert for any more of Vivaldi's men. They all relaxed when they saw members of HPD emerging from the bush. At that moment, Roberto Vivaldi started to stir.

Two HPD officers came over and dragged Vivaldi to an upright position. They started pulling him away, reading him his rights as they went.

"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law…"

The man was dragged passed where Danny, Chin and Steve were standing.

"Hey McGarrett!" Vivaldi called out.

The HPD officers paused next to the group as Vivaldi pulled against them. Vivaldi turned to Steve, a feral grin on his face.

"You should watch yourself. You have a lot of enemies, you know? And I have a lot of friends," Vivaldi stated. "It would be a shame for something to happen to you."

Steve took a step closer to Vivaldi, stopping just inches from the other man's face. "I also have a lot of friends. You will rot in jail. My testimony will put you away for a very long time, if not forever. I hope you enjoy your last few minutes of sunshine. You won't be seeing it again."

Vivaldi's smile grew larger. "We'll see about that, shall we? Say hi to your sister for me."

Steve clenched his fists tight and growled. Danny and Chin grabbed Steve's shoulders and pulled him away from Vivaldi.

"Take him away, would you?" Danny called over his shoulder to the HPD officers.

"Yes sir," one of the officers responded.

Together, Danny and Chin sat Steve on the ground as they watched Vivaldi limping away from them.

"He's going away for the rest of his life, Steve," Chin said. "There is no way he can hurt anyone else."

Steve smiled tiredly at Chin. "I know…and thanks."