Chapter 56

Danny had been pacing restlessly for hours. Kono glared at him, the man was starting to get on her last nerve,"Steve will ring you when he can. He'll want to be safely on a military cargo plane heading back to Hawaii before he confirms the op went to plan." Danny's phone rang as she finished speaking and he snatched it up. He listened to the person on the other end of the phone and managed to croak out a thank you as his eyes started to water from the relief,

"They've got him. Mattie's safe!" Kono pulled him into a hug and let the man cry into her shoulder, all the pent-up emotion that Danny had been letting build up just coming out. She wondered how he would cope when his brother arrived back on the island and then immediately went into WITSEC and disappeared forever. Matthew Williams was dead, killed in a classified op gone bad in Columbia and that's the way it had to stay.

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Matt finally allowed himself to relax when they were out of South American airspace and over open water. He thanked Joe and Steve again, overwhelmed that they would go to all this trouble for him. Steve had pointed out the very real danger to the whole Williams family had the missing money been linked to him. The other man was suitably contrite – he really hadn't considered the consequences of his actions . . . again.

He felt the need to make himself look less like a total shit, "Um, I've been putting nearly all the money aside that the cartel were paying me to make restitution to all the people who lost their savings when my investments went bad. Last month's shipment was a whopper and Reyes gave everyone a bonus, I should have enough to repay all of my former clients." Steve looked over to him,

"But can you get to the money without arising suspicion? Dead men can't withdraw cash from their accounts."

Matt clarified the matter, "I wanted to keep this account well under the radar, it doesn't look good if you're not up to no good when you work for a cartel – if you know what I mean. Repaying debts that I don't have to would make them wonder what I was up to . . . so, I took extra precautions and had an off-shore account set up with no way to link it back to me." Joe chipped in,

"Yeah, we should be able to spin it to avoid any suspicion. I'll make sure the news of your 'death' leaks to the FBI so they stop looking into you. Danny can receive the account details that you sent him just before your death and immediately share them with the FBI and leave them to deal with the restitution to your former clients. That will keep it all above board and Danny can't be charged with withholding evidence."

Mattie nodded in relief and slumped back into the uncomfortable cargo seat, it had been on his mind that all the people who he had defrauded we just normal working class folk and could ill-afford to lose the amount of money that they had. It was for their kid's college funds or to ease them into retirement – he felt lighter than he had in a long time, finally he was doing something right. He suddenly thought about his situation, "Er, Steve?" he asked tentatively, "what's gonna happen to me now?" The SEAL twisted in his seat to look at the other man,

"Well, Matthew Williams can never be seen or heard from again or we face the vengeful wrath of a dangerous criminal coming after you and your family." Joe leaned forward and joined the conversation,

"And to be frank, we've all had quite enough of that happening already." Steve's face twisted into a grimace at the thought of all the damage that Wo Fat had managed to do before he had finally killed him in North Korea. He sighed and carried on talking,

"WITSEC seems to be the logical option, but you would never be able to make contact with anyone from your past again. That includes your family. Danny wouldn't ever be able to find out where you were, even if he wanted to." Matt sobered, this was a life-changing prospect and he teared up a bit at the thought of never seeing his family again. Steve carefully observed him before speaking, noting the man's genuine remorse for all the trouble he had caused, "I might have an alternative that's not quite so drastic."

Matt perked up at his words and gestured for him to continue. Steve explained himself further, "In addition to the 8 major islands that make up Hawaii, we have 124 islets and I have a contact on one of the more remote of these. It's privately owned and only a select group of people have been allowed to settle there. The owner is getting on in years and his declining health has meant that he has deferred much of the day-to-day running of the island to his son and daughter. They are very committed to keeping their father's legacy alive and carrying out vital conservation work - but, it's fair to say that they're not all that great with the financials. In return for having you live on the island under a new name, you would need to take charge of the island's accounts and make sure that they don't bankrupt the whole place within the year . . . Matt, this would be your life from now on - you could never risk leaving, at least not until Marco Reyes and his cartel are out the picture. Who knows, another rival cartel might like a share of his business if the CIA ever tire of their little arrangement - but we can't bank on that happening. However, what it would do is allow you to still see your family. It wouldn't raise any eyebrows for them to come to Oahu to see Danny and then I can fly them all over to the island without anyone knowing. You could see Danny a few times a year and the rest of your family as many times as they are able to come over to Hawaii."

This was an enormous decision for the man, but if he had to take on a whole new life he would rather do it somewhere he could still see his beloved family from time to time. Plus, if he entered WITSEC he might never find out if the Reyes Cartel was ever dismantled. He would still be wanted by the FBI, but at least he would know that his family would be safe from possible retribution. A year ago he would've felt very differently – Matthew Williams was the life and soul of the party, a gregarious man making good money and surrounded by friends.

The same man today had sobered considerably. He had hurt a lot of people and that weighed heavily on his conscience. Then he had lived in fear amongst ruthless cartel members who cared little for human life and Matt had on more than one occasion witnessed someone who had crossed the cartel being killed right in front of him. That happy-go-lucky man he used to be was nowhere to be seen. Maybe a quiet life on a secluded island would be just what he needed to heal his damaged soul and decide on the kind of man that he wanted to become. He was enormously grateful to a man he hardly knew, "I'd like to take the island option, Steve . . . but why are you doing all this for me? You hardly know me?" Steve gave him a little half-smile,

"That's true, but I know Danny and he cares a hell of a lot about his little brother."