A/N: Sorry for the delay in posting this chapter! Work and life have been a little crazy lately, which has kinda zapped both my free time for writing and my creative energy, plus I wanted to make sure it would still work with what I have planned for the next couple of chapters. The next parts all kind of tie together closely, so I wanted to make sure I won't suddenly need to rewrite anything for the story to work.
And to those of you who have been reviewing this fic here on FF, thank you! It's a little hard to keep up with replying to reviews here, but I 100% read them and appreciate them. If you want, come say hi over on Tumblr: itsjustdg. I'd love to hear from you!
Now, without further ado, here's chapter 6!
Ivan had finally left again, and none too soon for Magnum.
The questions had continued, but Magnum had refused to answer them. There was no chance Ivan would let them go even if he got the information he was after, so the only play was to stall. Of course, that was easier to do when he was the only one in danger. Now that Katsumoto had been brought in, the stakes were even higher. It still didn't change the fact that Magnum couldn't give Ivan what he wanted, but it certainly made it harder to commit to.
Of course, he hadn't only refused to answer the questions. He'd done his best to get his interrogator to focus on him and leave the detective alone, but that had only gone so far. Although Magnum had earned several more painful blows, Ivan had seemed to realize what Magnum was doing and had mostly ignored the goading.
Magnum swallowed. Of all the things he'd dragged Katsumoto into over the few years he'd known the detective, this had to be the worst. They had certainly been through their share of trouble together, but the circumstances had never been this dire. Even when Katsumoto had gone to the Triple Frontier to rescue Magnum the first time Ivan had shown up, it was with Rick and T.C. and the others. This was completely different and so much more dangerous.
Looking over at Katsumoto lying on the hard floor, Magnum tried to evaluate the other man's condition. It was hard to fully tell how Katsumoto was doing because of the distance, but Magnum could see the bruises already coming up and the blood drying on the other man's split lower lip. Any injuries hidden by his torn shirt were impossible to see, and Magnum just hoped none were too severe. They were going to need to work on a way out of their predicament, and that was going to be a lot harder if broken ribs or other internal injuries were going to keep Katsumoto from being able to move quickly.
Thankfully, the goons had left with their boss. Magnum wasn't sure why they hadn't stayed behind to guard the prisoners, but he wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. Something told him it was because the men were working on whatever the next phase of Ivan's plan was, but the only thing that mattered at the moment was no one else was in the room other than the two prisoners. That gave them a little time, although undoubtedly much less than would be ideal, to figure out a way to escape. Hopefully they could pull it off before their captors came back; Magnum had no doubt things would get even worse once they did.
But first, Magnum needed Katsumoto awake.
"Katsumoto?" he called tentatively, watching for movement. "Hey, Gordon, come on, man."
But there was no sign Katsumoto had heard Magnum at all. There was no noticeable change to his breathing, and he didn't so much as shift at the sound of his name.
Magnum gritted his teeth and yanked at his bonds again, but there was still no way out. He clenched his jaw as he watched the battered form across from him for signs of consciousness. "Come on, Gordy, you gotta wake up," he urged. He swallowed as he glanced around as if he somehow expected there to be a way out he'd missed before. "Open your eyes."
If they were lucky, there would be some way for Katsumoto to pick the lock or cut through the handcuffs holding Magnum to the chair. Of course, they'd need to address the zip ties first, but those were at least pliable to a degree. With the right angle of pressure or a sharp edge they could be rubbed on, they'd snap easily enough.
Magnum took a deep breath, slowly so as not to exacerbate the roughness in his chest, and then tried again. "Gordon!" he exclaimed, putting as much volume and determination behind the word as he could. They didn't have any time to waste on pleasantries. Katsumoto could yell at him later for… well, for everything, but they didn't have time to wait around just then.
He still winced at the pressure in his chest, but he didn't stop to worry about it. Experience had taught him to deal with the most serious problem first and only worry about himself if his injuries were hampering their actual escape.
Whether it was the timing or the change of tone, Magnum wasn't sure, but he was rewarded with the sight of his friend's eyes blinking open.
"Hey, there you are," Magnum remarked, giving the other man a lopsided grin. Relief spiked through him at the sight of the detective's dark eyes slowly focusing on him. "Welcome back."
"Magnum," Katsumoto groaned. His shoulder twitched as if he was trying to lift a hand to rub his head, which Magnum could imagine was pounding something fierce right about then. "What…?"
Shrugging a shoulder apologetically, Magnum glanced around the room. "I don't know where we are, but it seems like Ivan has finally poked his head above ground again." He made a face.
"Ivan? The guy who attacked Robin's Nest and then lured you out into the middle of nowhere?" Katsumoto sighed and dropped back to the floor. Then a thought seemed to occur to him, and he tilted his head to look back at Magnum. The private detective could see the way Katsumoto looked him up and down, assessing the visible damage. But, even though the evidence of Ivan's interrogation had to be obvious, Katsumoto just settled for asking, "You know what he wants yet?"
Magnum swallowed and gave a small nod, trying not to upset the truce he'd managed to achieve with the nausea that was still threatening to rise into his throat. "Yeah…" He gritted his teeth. "Seems like Hannah's still causing trouble."
"Hannah?" Katsumoto frowned. "I thought she was—"
"Yeah," Magnum interrupted quickly.
There was silence, then Katsumoto sighed and shifted his weight to sit up. It took him a moment, along with several pained groans, but he was finally up. He pushed back a little so he could lean against the leg of the closest work table, then closed his eyes and tried to calm his breathing.
Magnum could see the beads of sweat gathering on the other man's brow and the way Katsumoto winced with each inhale. "You okay?" he asked in concern.
In answer, Katsumoto just nodded, although his eyes remained closed. "I just need a minute," he said quietly.
Things fell quiet again, and Magnum felt the guilt starting to nag at him again. As much as he often dragged Katsumoto into things, this was entirely different than when a case he and Higgins took became bigger than they'd expected. This wasn't setting a trap for bank thieves or even chasing down a client who turned out to be a murderer. No, "taken prisoner by a ruthless international criminal" was a whole different type of situation and one Katsumoto shouldn't be facing. The only reason the detective had been taken prisoner was because Ivan thought he could be used as leverage to make Magnum talk; if not for Magnum, Katsumoto wouldn't be there at all.
"Don't do that."
The words had Magnum blinking his eyes open to look back at Katsumoto. "What?"
"Don't blame yourself," Katsumoto told him, clenching his jaw. "This isn't your fault. Besides, you're a civilian; it's my job to protect you." He moved his arms, trying to loosen his bonds as he spoke. "I'm sorry you had to be put in a position where you had to choose between protecting me and not negotiating with a terrorist."
Magnum chuckled; it wasn't the most logical reaction, but he couldn't help it. He coughed at the way it aggravated his chest and side and shook his head. "Let's just get out of here before they come back."
He could see Katsumoto shift again as the detective clenched his jaw and realized Katsumoto was rubbing the tie around his wrists along the edge of the furniture where he was leaning. The edge wasn't sharp, but it would still do the job with enough pressure.
"Right. I've almost… got it." Katsumoto's eyes narrowed in concentration, and then, a moment later, he grinned in triumph as a dull snap came from behind him. He immediately pulled his arms around in front of him and rubbed at his wrists.
Magnum could see the blood drying around the bruises on Katsumoto's wrists and winced in sympathy.
"Okay," Katsumoto said, taking a breath and glancing around quickly. "What do you say we figure out a way to get you out of those cuffs and both get out of here?"
The island was passing below them quickly but still much too slowly. Rick wanted to be at their destination already or, for that matter, to already have the information they needed to find Magnum. The chopper was faster than a car, but it still wasn't fast enough, he thought as he stared out the window. Any other time, he would have been enjoying watching the scenery as they flew along the coastline; today, however, his mind barely registered what he was seeing.
"Hey, earth to Rick," T.C.'s voice came through the headset.
Looking over at the pilot's seat, Rick met his buddy's gaze and flashed him a grim smile. He meant it to be reassuring, but he knew it came across almost as worried as he felt.
"You good, bro?"
Rick swallowed and tried to nod, but his only thought in response to the question was that he was doing a lot better than Thomas was probably doing at that moment.
"Don't do that to yourself," T.C. said quickly, and Rick knew his friend was thinking something similar to what he was. "We're going to find him."
"Guys!" Higgins' voice from the backseat drew both of their attention.
Even though he could hear her through his earpiece, Rick turned to look over his shoulder. There was something in her voice that made him hope they were now a step closer to finding Thomas.
"I found something," she continued, and Rick felt his eyes widen slightly.
"Really?" he asked in response, shouting a little to be heard over the noise of the rotors.
She nodded. "I was able to find a satellite that let me track the boat's course. It made a stop on the far side of the island before continuing toward where the Coast Guard eventually picked it up."
Rick turned to look back at T.C., knowing the flip-flopping of his stomach had nothing to do with the way the helicopter rolled slightly in the wind.
"So T.M. must still be on Oahu," T.C. said firmly. The tightness could be heard in the pilot's tone even if his friends couldn't clearly see the way his jaw was clenched. "Whoever took him must have wanted to make it look like he'd been taken off the island so we'd be distracted looking elsewhere."
Rick was nodding along. "Plus, a boat is an easier way to throw us off his trail than if they'd just driven him somewhere."
"But that still leaves us not knowing who these guys are or what they want," T.C. remarked, shaking his head. "And they have three of our friends at this point." The worry, tinged with fury, in his voice was impossible to miss.
Glancing back again, Rick exchanged a look with Higgins, but then he happened to glance out of the window and caught sight of where they were. "Hey, we're here!"
Minutes later, they were hurrying toward one of several structures standing in a clearing in the forest. A road led through the trees, snaking past the open space where T.C. had set down the brightly painted helicopter.
A large man with tattoos covering both arms and dark hair tied back was heading toward them, having exited the building when the noise of the chopper had cut through the still evening.
"Which one of you's Rick?"
"Right here," Rick volunteered, raising a hand before extending it in greeting. "You must be Marty's friend."
The guy nodded silently, appraising all three newcomers with a firm gaze before turning back to Rick. "I hear you're looking for a missing P.I."
It was hard to evaluate the man based on his flat tone. Rick just hoped they hadn't come all this way for nothing.
"That's right," he said, squaring his shoulders. He could hear T.C. and Higgins shift behind him, but they stayed quiet and let him do the talking. "Marty said you had some information for us?"
There was a brief pause, and then the guy across from Rick nodded. "Yeah, I might've heard something. But what I'm about to tell you didn't come from me, okay? You never met me."
Rick nodded slowly. "Fair enough. What do you know?"
"I heard there was a real big-shot criminal haole on the island. He got here a few days ago and started hiring a few guys for a crew from some people he could trust."
Something about the timeline struck a wrong chord in Rick's mind. "'A few days'?" he repeated.
In response, the other man tilted his head. "That's what I said. As far as I know, he's only been here about four days. Might've had someone setting something up for him before, I don't know. All I know is he's into some real dangerous stuff overseas, and most people in my circles want to keep our heads down and avoid him. I'm only telling you this because you're a friend of Marty's."
"Okay," Rick sighed and nodded. "Understood. You wouldn't happen to know where this guy might be, would you?" When his question was met by a dubious look, he swallowed and continued, "Look, it's important. Some friends of ours were taken, we think by this guy you're describing, and we just want to get them back. Nobody ever has to know you gave us the info."
"Please," Higgins spoke up from behind Rick, and Rick could see the other man's gaze flick back over his shoulder. "Our friends are in serious danger if this man has them."
Rick didn't even have to look back to know T.C. was nodding along with Higgins' plea. When the informant looked back to him, Rick held the man's gaze. The moment seemed to stretch on for an eternity as each side watched the other, and then Rick sighed in relief as the guy nodded.
"Okay, but you didn't—"
"Didn't hear it from you." Rick nodded. "Got it."
"All I have is a first name," the man said quickly. "Ivan."
Those two simple syllables made Rick's heart clench. He should've guessed, but he also had been hoping they'd never hear from the criminal again. Ivan had already nearly killed Thomas once, and it had taken a daring rescue mission into a no man's land to save him. Rick's stomach clenched to think what would've happed to Thomas then if they hadn't made it to him in time, and now it seemed like Ivan was back and had once again ambushed their friend.
They couldn't let Ivan succeed at killing Magnum this time.
"Word is he's got several locations leased around the island," the informant said, his words snapping Rick's attention back to the conversation happening in the present. "None of them in his name, of course, but the guys he hired rented them. I'll give Marty a list."
"You can always give it to me," Rick offered, putting as much confidence in his tone as he could muster. "You can trust us."
The man across from him tilted his head. "Sorry. I don't know you."
"But—" Rick began.
"Forget you ever met me," the man said quickly, interrupting Rick's attempt to sway him. Then he turned on his heel and stalked back inside.
Rick turned to face T.C. and Higgins. They both looked apprehensive, and Rick couldn't blame them. His stomach was knotted in dread as the enormity of what they'd just learned settled on him.
They all knew what Ivan was like; there was too much evidence pointing to just how ruthless the criminal was. And it wasn't just what Magnum had told them about the man's criminal history or the fact that Ivan was a shadowy figure known but not known in the intelligence community. They knew what Ivan had done to get Magnum to the Triple Frontier as well as what had happened once he was there — and what it had taken to get him out. Not only that, they knew what the mercenaries Ivan had hired had done when Robin's Nest had been attacked. None of them were comfortable with Ivan being on the island.
And that was before he'd kidnapped three of the people they cared most about.
They all stared at each other momentarily before T.C. looked back at the helicopter. "So, what's our next move?" he asked as he turned his attention back to the other two. "Higgy, can you get us information on where these guys took our boy after the boat docked?" He clenched his fists. "Or can you find a trail after they took Kumu?"
Higgins sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. "I can certainly try. It's apparent these guys Ivan hired know what they're doing, based on our success rate so far, but there's always a chance they slipped up somehow."
"So you think this guy's telling the truth?" T.C. asked.
Tilting his head in thought, Rick took a slow breath. "Yeah… yeah, I do. It makes a lot of sense if it's Ivan who's behind all of this."
T.C. looked at Higgins in concern. "You good?" he inquired. When she nodded quickly, he raised an eyebrow in a prompting manner. "After all, Ivan's mercs—"
"No, I'm good," Higgins quickly interrupted him. "Promise," she added. "I want this guy as much as you do."
Neither of the men pressed the issue.
Pulling his phone out as it vibrated with an incoming text, Rick immediately started tapping away at the screen. The others didn't have to ask what he was doing; they both could see the texts being exchanged. They just hoped the mysterious man they'd just talked to done as he'd promised and sent the info to Marty. It was their only real lead at the moment, as much as that frustrated them all.
The lack of clues after so long spent trying to locate their missing friend was frustrating and exhausting. They just hoped there would be a break in the case before long.
Just then, Rick glanced up from his phone. "Just sent you a list of four potential properties," he told Higgins, his expression grim even though he was still trying to stay hopeful.
"That's three addresses too many," T.C. muttered.
Higgins sighed but squared her shoulders as she responded, "Okay. I'll try to cross-reference potential sightings of the white SUV with those locations." She bit her lip. "Let's just hope these guys made a mistake somewhere along the way. They clearly know what they're doing."
"Hey," T.C. said gently. "You got this. Nobody's perfect; no matter how good these guys are, we're going to catch up to them eventually."
Rick clenched his jaw, biting down on the pessimistic comment that came to mind. He needed to stay positive; thinking that eventually might not be soon enough wasn't going to help anybody.
It wasn't long before they were in the helicopter again, heading back in the direction from which they had come. Higgins was in the back seat again, bent over the tablet as she worked on trying to track down the offending SUV they all hoped would mean they'd find their missing friends. The clock was ticking, and they all knew the situation only grew worse with every passing minute. Magnum had been gone for far too long, and now Kumu and Katsumoto were also missing.
After flying in silence for a few minutes, T.C. cast a quick glance backward. "Any luck, Higgy?" he called over the microphone.
The heavy sigh that came through their headphones was enough to tell Rick and T.C. the answer to the question. They exchanged looks as Higgins replied to the pilot.
"I wish I had better news, but whoever Ivan has driving that SUV seems to know where every traffic camera on the island is. And he either takes advantage of busy streets or places that have a lot of tree cover, meaning I can't get a consistent track on it with satellite coverage."
Rick shook his head and swallowed down on the worry trying to creep up on him. He knew they had to head back to Island Hoppers, based on what T.C. had mentioned about his fuel levels. They couldn't stay in the air indefinitely, just hoping for a break in the case, and there was no way they could check out all of the addresses Marty had sent without filling up first. It would save them time in the long run if they did it now rather than rolling the dice and hoping the location they picked was the right one. If they had to backtrack after it turned up empty, they'd lose time.
No, they needed to hit the ground, refuel, and then get out there — and cross their fingers that the first place they searched turned out to be where Ivan was holding the others.
By the time they touched down back at Island Hoppers, Higgins looked even more frustrated than before, and Rick sighed. He didn't even have to ask to know she hadn't been successful with the satellites.
"I'll text Palima," Rick offered. "Get him to have units check out the addresses."
"I—" Whatever T.C. was about to say was interrupted by the ringing of Higgins' phone.
She quickly pulled it from her back pocket, and both of the men watching her felt their stomachs clench at the way her face paled.
As the phone rang a third time, Higgins turned the device around so the other two could read the screen.
Rick's brow furrowed. It was the number for the estate's landline, which seemed odd. Not that it was necessarily odd because Higgins did have other employees who could be working, but something about the look on his friend's face made Rick pause. He immediately tugged his own phone from his pocket and opened the voice recorder. He had a feeling they were going to need the conversation on tape.
The call was ringing a fifth time when Higgins finally swiped on the screen to answer it. "Hello?"
"Juliet!"
All three listening to the call felt a ripple of shock and stunned disbelief at the sound of Kumu's voice.
"Wh— Kumu?" Higgins exclaimed, looking up at T.C. and Rick with wide eyes. "What happened? Are you okay? We've been looking all over the island for you!"
"I'm okay," the older woman was quick to reassure her.
"What happened?" T.C. jumped in. "We saw the security footage of you getting kidnapped! How'd you get away? Are Magnum and Katsumoto with you?"
"Wait, Gordon's missing?"
The conversation was confusing Rick more the longer it went on. "Kumu, you and Katsumoto both went missing around the same time, and we just assumed—"
"No, I'm fine," Kumu said quickly. "I have so much to tell you, but the important part is I have a lead on Thomas."
To be continued...