Sorry for the late update. Funny story. My computer got stolen. This chapter was originally two chapters, but for the life of me, I cannot remember what I wrote. I'm not happy with this for the last chapter, but I didn't want to leave you all hanging for too much longer. So, here it is. Enjoy.

CHAPTER 44

Three days later:

"I'm still here."

The voice was back. It was faint, barely audible. But it was there, in the back of his mind, taunting him every minute of every day.

There was no escape.

"Hell is a good look on you, McGarrett."

The voice came from behind him. His heart beat furiously in his chest as he tried to contain the fear that threatened to engulf him. He spun around to face the man that had caused his nightmares.

"You missed…again."

The evil-sounding cackle was enough to make the hair on the back of his neck stand up. The man himself made his stomach roll and caused a cold sweat to break out on his forehead.

Qari Nazeef stood before him. His face…

The flesh was rotting away, exposing the bone. Two holes from which maggots emerged, eating at the purifying mash of muscles and tissue.

It couldn't be…

No!

He was…He was dead. Wasn't he?

This had to be a dream. A nightmare.

Wake up. Now!

"I've left you another surprise," Nazeef said gleefully.

He turned around quickly, his eyes searching for any clue as to what was going to happen next.

There!

A small square of light, gradually growing larger, wider.

He felt the fear rising in his throat.

It was like watching the television screen. He knew it wasn't real…but it was. It was happening right in front of him. He tried to yell, to scream, to warn them.

They couldn't hear him. He was so far away, in a hell of his own making.

Too weak to get to them.

Nazeef's taunting voice returned. "You have no idea what you are doing. You have no place being their leader, their friend. Always putting them in danger. Your team will never be safe. Grace will never be safe. This is what having friends does. You will always end up alone."

He couldn't stop it.

He couldn't move. He was…incapable.

It started small, then grew larger and larger. It engulfed them as they tried to run away. Heated ribbons of golden light created a mural in the sky, competing with the vibrant blue luminescence. The battle continued until all that remained was darkness.

There was nothing left but complete and utter darkness

Except…

His eyes popped open suddenly. He stared at the ceiling as he tried to get his breathing under control. He spotted the areas of peeling paint and immediately felt calmer. He was home. He was safe. It was just a dream.

Steve took a deep, shaky breath and tried to rid his mind of the images conjured up by his nightmare. He tried to remind himself that it was just that; a nightmare. He almost wished he was haunted by his old recurring nightmare involving his father's untimely death instead of what his polluted brain conjured.

Another death that was his fault.

Steve shook his head to rid himself of the unwanted thoughts. He had to stop thinking like that. He had to put all of this behind him. He had to accept it and move on.

He threw the covers back and sat on the side of the bed. He rubbed his hands roughly through his hair, making it stick up at weird angles. He heaved a sigh and glanced at the bedside table. He quickly realised there were two items missing; his gun and badge.

He didn't remember losing them. To be fair, he didn't remember much about his ordeal, just the highlights. He still wasn't sure whether that was a good or a bad thing. His brain hurt just thinking about it.

He knew there would be no more sleep for him tonight. Steve stood on shaky legs and made his way carefully down the stairs and into the kitchen. He poured himself a glass of water and leaned against the counter as he sipped.

He stared out the window and saw nothing. The sun still hadn't risen and the moon was nowhere in sight. He ran a hand over his face before turning back to the sink and pouring another glass of water. He could feel his legs starting to tire the longer he stood there, starting into the dark night.

Steve let out a frustrated sigh. He knew it would take time for his body to fully recover, but after spending more than three weeks in the hospital he wanted nothing more than to be back to normal. The doctor had said it would take months before his body bounced back completely.

Steve shuffled into the living room and sat down on the couch. He stared at the blank television screen, lost in his thoughts.

How could he lead the team in his state? He would just be a liability. All he seemed to do was put their lives in danger again and again, over and over. What would happen if he never fully recovered? How would he be able to protect them?

Suddenly, the room felt claustrophobic. He had to get out, get some fresh air. He stood up quickly, but crashed to the ground when his legs wouldn't support his weight. Steve laid there, wanting to move but not able to. He lamented his body's weakness, but more so his mental fallibility.

He was weak. Frail. Defective.

He screamed. He screamed until his voice became hoarse and then screamed some more. All the pent up rage, frustration, despair and grief was released. He screamed until he couldn't scream anymore.

Then he cried. He cried for all the people whose lives had been affected by Nazeef. He cried for Ari; the sweet young boy whose life he'd destroyed. He cried for the pain deep in his soul that refused to leave.

Finally exhausted, he closed his eyes and promptly fell asleep right there on his living room floor.

Danny Williams stared at the ceiling of his bedroom. Normally, he would be fast asleep with his face mashed against the many pillows that populated his bed, snoring lightly and maybe drooling a little bit (not that he'd ever admit that to anyone). Instead, he was wide awake and unable to sleep. On a Sunday!

Danny rolled over and reached for his phone. No messages. He threw his phone back onto his bedside table and rolled back over onto his back.

He didn't know what he was expecting, really. Either that the Governor would call with a case or that Steve would…something.

The hardest part about this whole thing was being apart from Steve. He desperately wanted to go to Steve, to make sure that he was okay. Except he knew that would not be welcome. The first week of Steve's recovery was always the hardest. Steve, being bull-headed and stubborn, would refuse help whilst Danny would insist on it. It was stressful for both of them.

The last few days had been…quiet. There had been a time when having Steve absent from the office was a good thing. But lately, it had been different. They were lacking a kind of energy. The Governor had even stopped assigning them high-priority cases in favour of mind-numbing tasks instead.

Danny threw back the covers with more force than necessary and sat on the side of the bed. He looked at the clock and was surprised to find it was almost seven o'clock. He stood up and got dressed. If he wasn't going to sleep in, then he may as well do something productive.

The drive to the Palace was quiet and monotonous. Many cars passed him, all with surfboards attached in some way or another to the roof or shoved inside the vehicle. Danny briefly wondered if Kono was on her way to some surfing hotspot this morning too.

Before long, he arrived at the Palace and parked in his usual spot by the entrance. He climbed out and yawned into his fist as he walked up to the front doors. He shuffled up the stairs slowly, looking down at his feet the whole way. He pushed open the glass doors to Five-0 headquarters and immediately walked towards his office.

He paused when he saw a figure in Steve's office. He took a step closer and realised that it was Steve.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Danny yelled as he entered the office without permission.

Steve, who had been sitting behind his desk, looked up at Danny and smirked. "I work here."

"Not right now, you don't. The doctor hasn't even cleared you for desk duty. You're not even supposed to drive. Wait, you didn't drive, did you? No, you can't. You don't have a car. How did you even get here?"

"No, I didn't drive. I took a cab," Steve said matter-of-factly.

Danny relaxed slightly. "Fine, but that doesn't explain why you are here. You should be at home, resting, watching TV or something."

Steve shrugged. "I got bored."

"Oh, you got bored? So you decided you would take a trip to the office, on a Sunday. What would have happened if you collapsed here, huh? There's no one here to help you," Danny ranted.

Steve sighed. "I just came to get something and then I'm going home."

Danny stopped and looked at his friend. He looked okay, just tired. Very tired.

"Did you sleep at all last night?" Danny demanded.

Steve looked down, avoiding Danny's intense gaze. "Some."

Danny knew that meant not much at all. Nightmares, if he had to guess.

"Right…So what did you come here to get that couldn't wait until you were officially cleared for duty?"

Steve reached into the draw in his desk and pulled out his gun and badge. "I went looking for these."

"You couldn't have asked one of us to bring them to you?" Danny asked.

Steve opened his mouth before closing it again. "Probably."

"When are you going to get it into your head that you can count on us? You don't have to do everything by yourself. You have a family now," Danny said loudly.

"I know that. I just…forget sometimes," Steve said sheepishly.

Danny chuckled. "Well, I always said you were brain damaged."

"Hey!" Steve said indignantly, grabbing one of the pens from the holder and throwing it at Danny.

"Watch it, you Neanderthal."

Steve responded by grabbing another pen and throwing it at his partner. Danny caught it mid-air and smirked at Steve while twirling it in his hand. Steve held up his hands in surrender.

"Let's get you home," Danny said, placing the pen back in the holder.

"Actually, can you give me a ride somewhere else?" Steve asked.

Danny frowned at Steve. "Sure, but I'm driving."

Steve pouted, but followed Danny anyway. Danny grinned triumphantly. It would be nice to drive his own car for a while.

Steve stared at the stone plaque embedded in the grassy field. Just another in the sea of people that had been memorialised in slabs of cement set in perfectly straight lines. Another brave soul added to the group of people that had sacrificed something for the greater good.

OWEN PERRY

SSgt USMC

Afghanistan, Iraq

NCIS

June 15, 1975 — March 19, 2011

Steve wished there was something more meaningful printed on the plaque so people could really understand what Perry did. What he sacrificed. How many lives he saved.

"This never should have happened," Steve whispered to the gravestone.

If he had just killed Nazeef the first time, then he wouldn't have come back. He wouldn't have killed so many people, tormented others and Perry would still be alive. Knowing that Perry came to Hawaii to warn him made his death that much more…painful. He didn't need to die.

Perry had done exceptional work. Finding a mole inside NCIS and discovering a once-thought-dead terrorist was alive was good work. To a greater extent, the compilation of a database that recorded every person associated with the murderer meant that no one got away with their crimes. Without Perry, they would still be chasing after ghosts and not knowing who to trust.

"Thanks," Steve said. "Just so you know, we got them all. Well, my team did. I don't know anything about you, but I am extremely grateful for your loyalty to our country. Without you, things could have turned out so much worse. Rest easy, brother."

Steve stood there for a few moments of respectful silence. He knew Danny was waiting in the car for him to return. He appreciated Danny giving him privacy for this. He'd sensed Danny's worry, but was glad when he didn't insist on following him. This was something he had to do on his own.

Suddenly, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. He hadn't felt like this since…was it two months ago? His sense of time was a little messed up after waking up form the coma, but he distinctly remembered this feeling of being watched from before everything became…intense.

He looked up and scanned the immediate area. He couldn't see anyone watching him, but the feeling did not subside. He continued searching for the source, jumping when he heard annoying blare of a car horn. He groaned when he realised it was Danny starting to get impatient.

He started walking back to the Camaro, pleased that his legs were holding him upright for the trek back across the uneven grass. That rest at the office had done him a world of good. Just before he climbed into the passenger seat, he gave the area another quick inspection.

There were a few people standing around the plaques, talking to their deceased loved ones. No one stood out…except for one. About two hundred metres away was a woman with blond hair looking directly at him. Something about her was familiar.

"Hey," Danny said. "Ready to go?"

Steve took his eyes off the woman and turned to Danny. "Yeah."

"See someone you know?" Danny asked.

Steve shook his head. "I don't think so."

As Danny drove away, Steve turned his head to look at the woman again.

She had disappeared.

She watched the silver car as it drove further into the distance. Only when the taillights disappeared did she move from her spot. She walked over to her car, parked under the shade of the trees. She paused by one of the plaques and took a moment to read the inscription. She smiled to herself before continuing on.

As she started the engine, she felt elated. Everything was falling into place.

She finally had everything she needed. It wouldn't be long now. No more waiting.

She grinned as she picked up the phone.

It was time.

Steve stumbled slightly as he entered his house. He was beyond tired and his body was telling him it was time to rest. He knew he wasn't up to doing much with his body still healing. That morning's emotional event and then his trip to the cemetery was more than enough to exhaust him.

He closed the door behind him and trudged over to the couch. He wouldn't even try to attempt climbing the stairs right now. Besides, his couch was quite comfortable, or so Danny had told him. He sat down and took off his gun and badge and placed them on the coffee table.

He didn't move for a moment. He just sat there, contemplating if he had made the correct decision. He stared at the two essential items for his occupation. For the first time in a long while, they felt right, like they had a place. He smiled; he was exactly where he was supposed to be.

Originally, he had taken on the job for the sole purpose of finding his father's killer. But now, it was so much more than that. It was about protecting the islands and the people that inhabited them. It was about creating a family. For the first time since he had left the island when he was sixteen, he felt at home. Safe.

His team was his family. An unlikely group of people that had grown together in such a short period of time. He would do everything he could to protect them, his Ohana. He was sure they would do the same for him.

With a contented sigh, he leaned back on the couch. He stopped when he felt something jabbing into his left thigh. He felt around the area and found a bulky object in his pocket.

He had forgotten all about it.

He reached in and pulled out the evidence bag from his pocket. Inside was the piece of the detonator that he had kept from the FBI. He'd found it when he was looking in the drawer for his badge and gun. Images from his dream earlier that morning had come rushing back and he found himself pocketing the disfigured piece before he even realised he was doing it. Then Danny had walked in and he had completely forgotten it was there.

The melted electronics represented every hardship he had been through in the last nine months. First Fuentes, then Nazeef. Just a small piece of the entire puzzle placed in a tiny, plastic evidence bag. One piece linked to so many atrocities and lies.

Steve stared at the fragment. It was just that, a fragment. Nothing tangible or significant. It was the last reminder of Fuentes and Nazeef. This is what they had been reduced to. Steve smiled when he realised they could never hurt anyone again. They were done and dusted.

Steve stood up slowly and walked outside to his garbage cans. He took one last look at the last remaining artefact from the horrors of the previous nine months before throwing it into the dank depths of the can and slamming the lid back on.

He walked back inside without giving it another thought.

It was finally over. He could make peace with it at last.

Maybe he would go and visit Ari now. Take that vacation he had promised himself when all of this first started.

"I'm going to need some winter clothes," Steve told himself as he laid back down on the couch.

The smiled remained on his face as he fell into a dreamless sleep.

The end?

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed it.

Yes, there is another story coming. I had written about half of it, but I am going to have to start again now (thanks computer thieves!).

I am also working on several other stories, so it may be a while before the third (hopefully final) instalment is done.

Thanks again!