Author's note: We have had a sudden, unexpected (not COVD-19) death in the immediate family. I'll be
a little 'occupied' next week. Please accept my apologies.
...
"I think the Commander has had enough for today." Nurse Jenny said as she finished taking Steve's
blood pressure. "Tomorrow is another day." She lowered her voice and spoke to the commander
directly. "Will you be able to relax your mind or do you want a sleep aide?"
Steve nodded acceptance to Jenny's offer. His body needed rest but his mind was running at full speed.
He knew without the sleep aide, he would rest fitfully. As much as he hated sleep aides, he accepted
the fact he needed it as he watched Jenny leave.
"We'll let you rest now, sir. We'll be back in a day or two." Junior said as he got up and replaced his
chair back against the far wall. Tani followed Junior's lead and put her chair back too.
"Tthhannkksss Jjunniorr." Steve held out his hand until Junior took it, shook it. "Carrry onn, Reigns."
"Yes sir." Junior turned smartly and taking Tani's hand, he smiled a 'good-bye' to Catherine. Then the
young couple left quietly as Steve's nurse returned.
"I have a very mild sedative, Mr. Steve. It won't leave you 'hung over' in the morning. I'll be able to
wake you up; you'll be able to get up to relieve yourself." She held out the syringe for his inspection.
"Only ten CC's. I promise not to knock you out."
"Tttenn CC'sss ssounddss llikke aalot." Steve eyed to needle with a suspicious look.
"Less than half dose. A man of your height and weight would call for twenty-five cc's to be sedated. I
gave you thirty cc's in recovery. I want to make sure you're bright eyed and ready for your therapy."
Steve pulled up his pajama sleeve and extended his arm reluctantly. He watched the needle pump the
medicine in his arm. In short time, he felt a calmness overtaking his restless mind. He was aware of
Catherine and Jenny talking but couldn't wrap his mind around their soft conversation. Sleep was
starting to overtake him when he felt Catherine slip into bed next to him. She lifted his arm and
snuggled up to him. He drifted off happily playing with her hair.
Junior and Tani said 'good night' to McTavish and hopped the elevator. After pushing the 'lobby'
button, Tani leaned against Junior. "I never would have believed the commander's condition if I hadn't
come."
Junior nodded. "I can see it in his eyes, his frustration."
"Have you met his fiancée before? They look like they belong together. Now I can't see either of them
without the other."
Her comment took him by surprise. "Ah, what now?" Junior asked with a frown.
"Lynn has an obvious romantic interest in Steve. She told Jen and me all about her visit with him the
other day in the bar. She really didn't mention Catherine at all. I think on purpose; guess she's hoping."
Junior shook his head. "If she's hoping for a chance with McGarrett, she's shit-out-of-luck. He told us
they have been together about decade. I don't see him leaving her or vice versa. I think if Lynn is
hoping, she's setting herself for a big disappointment."
Tani nodded as the elevator doors opened. "Can we stop and pick up some food? I'm starving."
"Sure."
Steve was almost completely asleep when Catherine slipped in next to him. He felt her lift his arm and
snuggle against his side. He didn't even manage to kiss her head before the sleep took him.
Catherine felt Steve's rhythmic breathing and knew he was sleeping soundly. She caressed his chest; in
his sleep, he took her hand and managed to interlock their fingers. He sighed contentedly.
Assured her man was settled for the night, she closed her eyes and let sleep come to her.
Lynn was still shaking from her latest nightmare. She finished another scotch and soda and got another
blanket for her make shift bed. She laid down and snuggled down into her blankets. She called out for
her beloved feline who appeared in seconds and settled down on the woman's chest.
"Let's hope for dreamless sleep, Kimba."
The cat licked the woman's nose and meowed softly.
"Good idea, Kimba. I'll try to dream of Steve." Lynn closed her eyes and tried to replay her time with
the handsome naval officer, in her garden, undoing his belt, his pants… She fell asleep with a contented
little smile.
Kimba checked on her mommy, then the room one last time. Satisfied, she too closed her eyes and
invited sleep. She put a soft paw on her mommy's chest so she could monitor her mom's heartbeat.
Junior was suppressing yawns the best he could as they approached Camp May. He'd be teaching in less
than seven hours and all he could think of was sleep. He looked over at Tani who had been dozing the
past fifteen minutes or so. She was already leaning toward him. So after checking traffic, he reached
across and gently pulled Tani to his side. Tani slid across the seat with very little fuss, her head found
Junior's shoulder.
Suddenly wide awake, Reigns grinned in the darkness as he headed to Tani's apartment. As sleepy as he
was, he entertained the idea of spending what remained of the night with the exotic beauty.
George found refuge in an abandoned grocery warehouse. It was a damp, misty night so he was grateful
to be indoors and warm. He slipped away from his 'escort' detail easily.
After that, he went by the Traveler's Oasis but seeing the police were already there, waiting for him, he
passed and went to plan B.
His plan B was a bust also. Bus rides to Goodweather's office and his private residence both proved to
be a dry well too. He had no idea where to look for the paralegal; since she was Dennis' lover, she was
probably with him.
He made a 'bed' out of discarded cardboard. He pulled his jacket a bit tighter around his torso. At least
he was dry, the cold he could ignore. As he fell asleep, he took stock of his situation. Lynn could
redeem herself and make herself useful again. But the U.S. seaman, he had to go. This time, George
wouldn't underestimate the younger man. From their first brawl, he knew the pretty boy sailor was
more than he appeared. Next time, he wouldn't give him the chance to defend himself; he'd kill him
before he knew he was even in danger.
Rachel tried to hide her joy at the loss of the one-of-a-kind free flowing glass 'sculpture'. Danny had
shared a secret with her: he hated that lump of glass also but it was from his sister and Italy.
Considering this, the kids were punished rather lightly. After dinner, Rachel supervised the children's
baths and warned them to go to bed without further mischief – or there would be severe punishment.
Once the children were down, she went in search of her husband.
Coming home, Danny was hoping for quiet evening but the kids ruined that – before dinner. He had
swept up that shattered remains of his sister's wedding present, then fell asleep in his recliner, watching
the New Jersey Devils shut out the Toronto Maple Leafs. Usually, hockey held his attention almost as
well as football did but his day had been an extreme exercise in interagency diplomacy. His brain was on
overload and refused to process any further incoming information, even if it was only a pre-season
hockey game.
Rachel smiled as she reached over the top of the recliner and started to massage the detective's
shoulders gently but firmly. Even asleep, his shoulders were tight. Without opening his eyes, he took
one of Rachel's delicate hands in his and kissed it repeatedly.
"Dinner was great, Rach."
"Glad you liked it; I packed the leftovers for your lunch tomorrow." Rachel kissed the top of his head.
"Hey! Don't mess with the hair." Danny protested playfully.
Rachel ran her fingers through his hair, effectively messed his hair up, giggling all the while. She turned
and ran for the staircase. Danny got up quickly and ran after his wife. "You did it now, Mrs. Williams."
"Daniel, please!" Rachel turned and warned her husband. "Those children are down and you better not
wake them."
Danny caught up to his wife and wrapped her up in his embrace. He picked her up and started up the
stairs. "I'll bet you will make more noise than I will."
Junior returned the car to the motor pool just before 2300. He jogged back to the quarters he shared
with McGarrett. At the top of the stairs, he paused to both regulate his breathing and to look out over
the base. At night, the base looked like any other suburban neighborhood. No uniforms, marching
cadets. Just personnel resting up to be ready for what tomorrow would bring.
He turned and unlocked the door. Once inside, he set the coffee maker up for the morning and secured
the door. He took off his shoes, stepped out of his pants and pulled his shirt off. Dropping it on the pile,
he sat on the edge of the couch and took of his socks. He then stretched out and covered up. In
moments, he was asleep.
Lynn woke up with start again. She had been dreaming of Steve. He was wearing a blue dress uniform,
a white hat with fancy gold stitch work under his left arm. With a soft, sexy smile, he was offering his
right arm to a dark haired woman dressed in a white, lacy dress. Lynn tried to reach out and take the
offered arm but found her feet barely worked. Looking down, she realized her shoes were stuck in
inches of white, soft but thick FROSTING. The woman in white moved effortlessly toward her. All she
did was finger push Lynn's shoulder ever so slightly and Lynn was falling down a trellis. Through the
green leaves and majestic purple roses, she could see Steve was oblivious to her plight, too busy kissing
his bride.
Lynn laid in the dark with tears running down her face. The dream had felt so real. Her feelings for Steve
didn't matter once she met Catherine, and seen her engagement ring. She could set the pre-dawn light
starting to brighten her room.
"Meow?"
"Oh Kimba, I'm such a fool." Lynn sniffled
"Prrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. Meow?"
"I never had a real chance; he was never serious." Lynn whined as she cuddled the cat. "He was just
trying to help find his friend's killer. I was just a mean to an end." She got up and started to pace.
Kimba fluffed her fur and licked her shoulder. She knew her human mommy well and it was her job to
make mom see what she didn't want to see. "Meow?"
Lynn turned to face her furry companion. "I know he saved us, you know that better than I do. But I
was nothing to him, someone to use." The tears came again.
"Mmmmmmmrrrrrrmeowww!
Lynn felt her face burn with shame. "I know, Kimba, you're right. He did protect me." She sighed as she
sat down next to the cat. "I know. I owe it to him. I'll call Detective Williams in the morning."
Steve awoke just before sunrise. He smiled since his internal clock always got him up at 0500, things
were returning to normal. At least some things. He was in bed, warm and comfortable and most
important: Cat was by his side. Her rhythmic breathing, her invitingly warm, soft body. He seriously
doubted she would consider sex with that jaw support on his head. He sighed and consoled himself by
playing with Catherine's soft hair. He realized he forgot about the door when the nightshift nurse stuck
her head in to check on him.
"Good morning, Mr. Steve." Nurse Melissa whispered and smiled. "I'll be back to take your morning
vitals." She was gone as fast as she appeared.
He sighed again, life was pretty good with all things considered. He rubbed Catherine's back and she
stretched like a contented cat and re-snugged up to him. She rubbed his hard abs in her dozing state. If
he didn't know better, he'd swear she was purring. Again, his mind circled back to sex but before his
mind got him into too trouble, Nurse Melissa returned.
"Let me get your vitals. By the time I'm done, your breakfasts will be here. Yet another advantage of
being by the nurse's desk."
At the mention of breakfast, Catherine sat up and stretched. "Good morning, handsome." She kissed
his cheek. "Did you sleep well? And did someone say breakfast?"
Steve smiled at her. "I slept well and yes, breakfast is on the way, my Cat." He caught Nurse Melissa's
slight frown. He smiled dopily as he extended his arm for his blood pressure reading. "Her name
Catherine but she's my Cat."
"I see." Melissa humored the lovesick sailor. "She's a lovely kitty cat."
"No, she's a beautiful Catty Cat."
All three of them laughed.
"So, is he your tom cat?" The nurse teased Catherine.
"Oh no. He's my mustang." From Melissa's raised eyebrow, Rollins knew she didn't understand the
reference. "Mustangs are wild horses, tamed to be of service. But they always remain a bit wild,
unpredictable. The Navy took Steve, a wild young man. They molded and shaped him into an Officer
and a gentleman. But he remains a bit untamed, mercurial. He is my mustang."
Melissa was so engrossed she over pumped the blood pressure cuff. "Sorry Mr. Steve." She quickly
deflated it and started over. "Did I hurt you, sir?"
"I've been trained to endure physical pain." Steve said stoically.
Melissa looked at Catherine bewildered.
Catherine shook her head and slipped out of bed. "And on that note…" She went into the bathroom and
quietly closed the door.
Melissa took McGarrett's blood pressure. When she finished, she looked at Steve. "Your vitals are real
good, sir. Have you urinated yet this morning?"
"Negatory."
"Please don't go until I bring back a specimen cup. I'll be right back."
"Better be quick, no promises." Steve whispered to Melissa's back. He settled back, arms behind his
head. He was counting the dots on the suspended ceiling tiles when Catherine bounced out the
bathroom, face washed, her hair brushed. Her bathroom door collided with the room door with a
resounding BANG that made Steve jump even though he watched it happen.
"Sorry dear." Melissa pulled her door closed, waited a second or two, the cautiously opened the door.
Seeing the coast was now clear, she entered with the specimen cup discreetly in her hand. She entered
the just vacated bathroom and came back out. "Do you need help, Mr. Steve?"
Catherine was already assisting him out of bed. "No, I think we got this." Catherine said as she helped
Steve shuffle to the bathroom. She noticed he felt more confident in his gait now that he had adequate
rest.
"Just hit the call button and I'll come get it." She turned clinical. "Use the wet wipe to clean …"
"We both know how. It isn't a first rodeo for either of us." Catherine said with a smile while Steve
ignored the conversation entirely.
Melissa nodded graciously and gave them their privacy.
Lynn was waiting in the lobby of Danny's office. She couldn't go back to sleep after 'talking' with Kimba.
She came to the police station directly and had been waiting for Detective Williams since 7:15. She
already had two cups of lousy coffee and three donuts.
"Good morning Ms. Downing." Danny said as he walked in with his travel cup of home brewed coffee.
"I assume you're here to see me." He scanned the box of donuts and found nothing that appealed to
him.
"Yes, I want to help you find George."
"Really." Danny thought a moment. "Come with me, please." He headed for the bullpen.
Lynn grabbed her purse and coat and hurried after the detective.
Chin Ho, Lou and Kono looked up as Danny hurried in. "Everyone, Lynn Downing is right behind me.
Play this by ear; follow my lead."
Danny no sooner finished speaking when Lynn came through the glass bullpen's doors. Everyone did as
told and 'finished' good mornings.
"Well, good morning Ms. Downing." Lou took the ice breaker. "What can we do for you?"
"I want to help find George Federchuk."
"Why?"
"I think he's going to try to kill Commander McGarrett."
