Happy 4th July to all of you in the US. Here's a little treat from me.

Things finally pick up speed and the rescue time is here. I hope you'll like it.

When Rachel offered him to stay for the night to be close to the kids, he thought he'd spend the night on the couch. Instead, he slept in Charlie's room, clutching his son close to him. His rest had been fitful and when he woke he had bleary eyes and a fatigued ache in his bones.

Rachel noticed that something was bothering him, and Danny dismissed her concern with rudeness that he was unable to avoid, but one that he had immediately regretted.

"You forget I know you, Daniel. So what's on your mind?"

"Nothing," he lied.

Her concern was entirely appropriate, but Danny did not want to get into a prolonged discussion about what he was about to do and why. She would have been even more frightened than she already was, and, more than that, Danny knew that if he thought for too long about the plan that he had allowed himself to be drawn into, his doubts might get the better of him.

He insisted on waking the kids up early and making breakfast for all three of them, pretending all was fine in the world, before he glanced at his watch and saw it was time to go already. Grace seemed tense the whole time, almost as if she sensed something was going to happen today, but didn't dare to speak about it. Charlie revelled in Danny's attention, oblivious to his father's worry, not even bothered by the fact that HPD officers were still guarding their house – courtesy of Duke.

But if Danny had any doubts about breaking Steve out of prison, they all diminished when his eyes landed on the tiniest of the kids, curled up on the kitchen chair with arms wrapped around his knees, staring ahead without so much as touching his pancakes. That little boy had been through enough for several lifetimes and deserved to be happy again. He needed Steve by his side more than anything else.

And Danny had a promise to keep.

He looked out through the window and saw Lou and Jerry in the car on the street, waiting for him as they had arranged the previous night.

Grace watched him as he strapped on his gun belt.

She jumped on her feet and crashed into Danny, her arms squeezing him tightly at the waist. "Danno, be careful, please," she said.

"I will. I'll be back later." Hopefully, with your uncle Steve, too.

Danny kissed the top of her head and said his goodbyes to all of them, and made his way out to the car.

Lou rolled down his window. "Morning," he said as Danny approached.

"Morning."

Jerry was in the back of the car, so Danny went around to the passenger side and got in next to Lou.

"You get some sleep?" the older man asked.

"Some," Danny said.

"You ready for this?"

"I think so. The team's already at Steve's place?"

"Yeah. We need to go through some details together. As Jerry pointed out, we can't just go in, guns blazing. That would get us nowhere. I like his idea better."

Danny did, too. If for nothing else, then for a fact that he would be the only one getting in the building, so, if caught, his teammates might even get away with this a little easier than himself. And he should be out before it all started anyway, and then let the team make sure Steve would make it out on his own without trouble. All from the safety of the car parked outside.

"Jerry said you don't have much to do," Lou reminded him. "Just get the phone near to the computer."

"I know," Danny said. "I remember."

Danny turned around and looked into the back of the car. Jerry was in the middle of the seat, with an open laptop on either side of him. The phone that Danny had taken from him yesterday was hooked up to one of the laptops. He was wearing a pair of headphones through which Danny could hear the loud music playing. He didn't look up.

"Don't expect anything from him until we get there," Lou said. "He's been working on this all night."

"But he's ready?"

"Not yet. But he says he will be."

"Best we get going, then."

Danny turned around and looked up at the window of Rachel's house. He saw Grace's face between the curtains as Lou put the car into drive and pulled away.

It was half-past four and Jerry still wasn't ready. But they couldn't wait any longer.

Danny walked through the entrance into the building and walked with as much confidence as he could muster, doing his best to mask the worry and fear that was churning in his gut.

Jerry had worked on whatever it was that he was doing for the duration of the drive, and his regular curses of irritation, rendered louder than they might have been by the fact that he was listening to music and couldn't hear himself speaking, did nothing for Danny's confidence. He had had all night and all day to finish whatever it was he was working on, and he was still finalizing it. The clatter of his fingers on the keyboard became faster and faster the nearer they got to FDC, and he only handed the phone over to Danny as Lou pulled up in the same place that he had parked yesterday, outside the prison complex. The rest of the team parked right behind them. It wasn't necessary for all of them to be there, but they insisted.

Danny made his way through the lobby. It was busier again, with the same bustle of staff and visitors as he had seen during a previous daytime visit. There was a queue of men and women waiting to pass through the scanner in the security lodge and, as he made her way across the hall to the plexiglass window, he noticed that there were two people already waiting ahead of him.

That, at least, was good. It would grant him a little added time for Jerry to do whatever it was that he was proposing to do. But his good luck did not hold. A second clerk sat down behind the counter and beckoned Danny to step up.

"How can I help you?" the man said. It was the same clerk as last night. He looked up and recognized Danny, adding, "You again."

"Yes," Danny said. "You said I could come at this time to see McGarrett."

"Hold on."

The man turned to his computer and scrolled through the information on the screen. Danny reached into his pocket and took out the cellphone that Jerry had given him. He looked down at the screen, pretending to use it. There was no indication that the phone was anything other than normal, no tell-tale information on the display that might betray the alchemy that Jerry had promised.

There was a narrow sill on his side of the window, and he placed the phone on it, sliding it so that it was obscured by the computer on the other side of the glass and, he hoped, out of the clerk's sight.

"Go through to the visiting block. They'll bring him out when you get there."

"Thank you," he said. He turned away and started for the security lodge.

"Excuse me!"

Danny stopped and turned back.

"Your phone."

The woman who had been standing behind Danny in the queue was proffering the cellphone that he had purposely left behind.

Danny managed a fake smile, thanked her, and took the device. His stomach dropped. He had only been at the desk for a minute. Jerry had said that it might take him longer than that. Had he given him the time that he needed? There was no way of knowing and now he was committed. He had to follow through with the rest of the plan.

He felt sick as he put the phone back into his pocket and made his way to the lodge and the line of people waiting to be searched.

This time, he wasn't taken to the communal visiting room as before. Instead, the guard led her farther down the corridor to a private room.

Danny's unspoken question must've been obvious, though, because the guard gave him a look. "Sorry, there's too many visitors in the visiting room at the moment. This will have to do," he said.

He nodded, not complaining at all, waited for the door to be opened, and then followed the guard inside. There was a table and two chairs, one of which was positioned over an iron bracket that had been fitted directly into the concrete floor.

"Take a seat," the guard said. "He's on his way."

Danny did as he was told, sitting down and lacing his fingers together on the table. They had taken her gun and the hacked phone when he passed through the security lodge. He had felt uneasy handing it over, relying on Jerry's assurance that his alterations were undetectable and the assumption that it would just be dropped into a box until he returned to collect it, but still fearful that it would give him away. He felt exposed and vulnerable.

The door opened and Danny heard the jangle of metal. A guard came through first, stepping aside so that Steve and a second guard could follow him inside. Steve's wrists were shackled together, the metal chain rattling as he moved. The guard pulled back the chair for him so that he could sit, and then knelt down and attached a tether to his chain and fastened that to the bracket.

The guard turned to Danny. "Five minutes," he said. "Then he goes back again."

"Thank you."

The guards retreated to the edge of the room, and–to Danny's surprise–left. Danny could see the silhouette of one of them through the smoked glass on the door, though.

"Talk quietly," Steve whispered.

"Bugged?" Danny mouthed silently.

"Probably," Steve said. "Otherwise they wouldn't have left."

Danny shifted in his seat. He was aware of a prickling sensation between his shoulder blades, as if someone was behind him, watching.

"You okay?" he asked, aware of how dumb of a question that was. It was downright obvious his friend was as far from okay as humanly possible. "Did anyone try anything again?"

Steve shook his head at that. "Not since the last time. A different shift, I guess."

"So the guards are going in this, too?" Danny struggled to keep his voice down.

Steve hesitated, but he probably knew Danny well enough to know he wouldn't be fooled by another lie. "Some of them," he said eventually.

With his head, Danny gestured toward the doorway, asking if 'some of them' included the two waiting outside.

Steve nodded without a word.

Anger surged through Danny. But Steve's answer removed the rest of the doubts he'd had. If he left Steve with them again, his best friend would no doubt be a target again. He couldn't let that happen again.

"We'll get you out," he whispered.

"Danno, I don't think–"

"Today."

Steve scrunched his eyebrows and frowned at Danny's interruption. "What?"

Danny lowered his voice again. "What do you mean what? We're getting you out and worry about clearing your name later."

Steve shook his head, surprise obvious in his banged-up face. "What?" he repeated in disbelief. "You can't do that."

"Look, we don't have time to argue about it, okay?" Danny protested. "It's all set up. You just need to be ready."

"You do realize what you want to do, right? And what the consequences would be. I can't let you do that."

"Yes, Steven, I know. But as I said, we'll figure it out, okay? You know you won't be able to take more beatings."

"Maybe not, but better me than you."

"Damn it, Steven! I'm not letting you die in here, you hear me? We'll all be fine. Now, would you listen to me, please?" His voice was urgent, the look in his eyes pleading. "I recall you have a son to take care of, right? He needs you, Steve. More than you think."

Steve opened his mouth and closed it again.

"So, Jerry's helping," Danny said, taking Steve's silence as a signal to keep going. "He said you'll know when it happens."

"Nothing more specific?"

Danny allowed himself a satisfied smile. For a moment, he was worried Steve wouldn't go through with it. "He's still working on it. But he gave me a phone number. He said when it all starts, you should get to a phone and call it. We'll guide you out. You think you can do that?"

"I don't know."

"Well, you don't really have a choice, okay? So just remember the number."

"Go on."

He recited the number. Steve closed his eyes, made him repeat it, and then nodded.

"You've got it?"

"Yeah."

Danny looked up at the door. He could see the silhouette of the second guard now, too. They were both close to the door.

"Danno?" Steve met Danny's eyes. "Thanks."

"Don't thank me just yet."

Danny looked up and down He had been battered, his face marked with bruises that ran through blues and purples and blacks, but there was a certainty of purpose about him that was impossible to mistake. Despite the injuries and the whole situation, he was obviously nowhere near to giving up, which made Danny feel a tiny bit better.

They exchanged a glance.

The door opened.

Danny stood up and then walked out without turning back.

Steve watched Danny walk out, still trying to wrap his head around what he'd just heard. He couldn't believe it.

Yes, Danny was right and Steve knew that sooner rather than later he was a dead man if he stayed where he was. Still, his ohana breaking the law and risking everything to save him was more than he could ever ask for. It was something he'd never able to repay, no matter how hard he'd try.

The guard unclipped the tether from the bracket and told Steve to get up. He did as he was told. The cuffs were tight, cutting into the flesh on his wrists, but he didn't give them the satisfaction of seeing that he was sore. That was just the latest of his inconveniences. His muscles were still tender from the beatings that he had taken, one of his teeth had worked its way loose, and his neck and shoulders ached from being forced to sleep on the stone floor.

The guards took their places again, one in front and the other behind. "Move," the guard behind him said, jabbing him in the back with the point of his baton.

They escorted him out of the visitors' block and back toward the main building. He recognized the entrance to the isolation wing, but they passed by it.

"Where are we going?"

The guard jabbed him in the kidneys. "Quiet. Walk."

They made their way to the other wing and went inside through the main door. They followed the corridor until they reached the stairs, then climbed up to the second floor.

The door to Steve's old cell was open. And Aydan's cell was open, too. Two guards emerged from there. They were bearing a stretcher between them. There was a body on the stretcher. Steve looked down at it as the guards negotiated their way around him and a wave of heat washed over him.

Aydan.

The man's eyes were closed and one arm hung limply over the edge of the stretcher. He was dead.

Distracted by the view of the body of the only person who'd genuinely tried to help him, Steve didn't notice a guard moving closer to him from behind.

The guard put his hand on Steve's shoulder and pushed.

Steve took another step. He turned and looked into the cell.

There was a man inside, wearing an evil grin.

Savage.

Lou looked at his watch.

It was ten past five. Danny had been inside the building for forty minutes. Lou had a good view of the prison forecourt from their spot outside. He could see the parking lot and the tall building with its grand entrance. He had watched Danny disappear inside, but he had not yet come out.

He turned and looked into the back of the car. "Well?"

Jerry had taken out a USB drive and inserted it into the port of one of his laptops. He ran his finger down the screen, chewing on his bottom lip. "Here," he said, finally. "That's the Bluetooth connection I saw from before."

"What are you doing?" Quinn asked.

"Running a Linux script. Getting the unique ID of the keyboard." Jerry paused, dragged his finger across the laptop's mouse pad, and stabbed his finger on the return key. "There," he said.

Tani peeked over Quinn's shoulder. "Done?"

"I've spoofed it to this laptop and paired with the computer."

"You're in?" Adam asked, obviously unsure if that meant yes.

"Nearly." Jerry's fingers flashed across the keyboard.

Junior checked his watch too, threw a nervous glance to the building, and then back at Jerry. "How much longer?" he asked.

"Nearly there."

"Jerry, you gotta hurry up, man," Lou reminded him.

"It'll take longer if you guys keep distracting me." Jerry typed in commands and then sat back, leaning against the seat, his hands held up. He turned the laptop around so that the team could see the screen. There was a download bar slowly filling with green from left to right.

"What's that?" Adam asked.

"I'm connected to the server that has the exploit I wrote last night. I'm uploading it to the computer in the security building."

The bar crawled. "It's taking ages," Tani complained.

"Download speed is terrible," Jerry said with a shrug. "Not much I can do about that."

The bar was halfway full.

"Inside."

"Again?"

"Inside!"

Steve jangled the cuffs. "At least take these off. Make it a fair fight."

"Move," the guard said curtly, putting his hands on Steve's shoulders and shoving him.

Steve staggered into the cell and looked up at Savage. "Where are your buddies? You think you can handle it on your own?" he taunted.

Savage dominated the space. His head was just an inch or two beneath the ceiling, and there was barely enough room to pass on either side of him. Steve was close to the door. The guard put his foot against his lower back and pushed, causing him to stumble another two steps inside.

The door scraped across its runners and then clattered as it crashed into the other side of the doorway, the lock fastening with a loud click.

Savage was almost within touching distance.

"You die today," Savage said. He raised his hand up and drew his finger across his throat.

Steve heard excited voices behind him and, when he risked a quick turn of his head, he saw that the guards were still there. They had been joined by three others. Front-row seats. The guards were going to watch him take his beating.

Steve laced his fingers together. He knew that he was outmatched. Savage was bigger and stronger than he was, and, despite the fact that he had managed to get without being beaten every day, his body was still bruised and sore. In addition to all of that, his hands were cuffed.

Savage took a step forward.

Steve swung both hands at him, but Savage leaned away from the blow, raising one arm and deflecting it with his wrist. Steve lost his balance and stumbled closer in. Savage crashed his right fist into Steve's face. It was a quick jab, without too much momentum behind it, but it was still stiff enough to jerk Steve's head back against his shoulders. He staggered away until his back was up against the bars of the cell door.

He heard laughter from the watching guards. He felt the taste of his own blood in his mouth and spat a gobbet on the floor.

Savage smirked.

Steve readied himself again.

Danny came through the security lodge and waited in line to collect his gun and the phone.

"Detective Williams?"

He stopped and turned.

Agent Hoffman was hurrying in his direction with two other men in tow. "What are you doing here?" he said.

Danny's breath was clenched deep in his gut. Did Hoffman suspect anything? "I came to see a friend," he replied. "Is that a problem?"

Hoffman smiled. "No," he said. "The problem is that you keep sniffing around despite so many warnings. Questioning poor HPD officers and giving surprise visits to the grieving family, I heard. And not even dismantling your taskforce didn't stop you."

Danny clenched his teeth. "You had me watched?"

Hoffman didn't answer. "I'd like you to come with me, Detective," he said, gesturing to the hallway with his hand.

Danny's gaze shifted to the two men behind Hoffman. They were dressed in suits and wore dark sunglasses despite being inside. They had wires trailing from underneath their shirts up to the earpieces in their ears. Not for a second they looked away from Danny.

"Why?" Danny asked, sensing trouble.

"I just want to talk."

"Here?"

"Does it matter?" Hoffman shrugged.

"No, I guess not."

"Good. This way, please."

Hoffman led him into the lobby, and the two other men followed. They turned to the left, toward the doors that led into the administrative wing of the building. There was a guard sitting at a desk next to the door.

"Open it," Hoffman said.

The man was looking down at his computer. He pressed the return key half a dozen times, each one harder than the last.

"I'm sorry, sir. My computer is down."

Hoffman looked from the guard and then back to Danny. He flinched. There was no way that he could possibly have guessed what Jerry was trying to do, yet she felt as if he was able to look past the lies and obfuscations and see the truth.

"Open the door," Hoffman said.

The man got up from the desk and opened the door. Hoffman walked inside, expecting Danny to follow him, but he didn't really like this. He should have been out by now. When he didn't move, one of the security guys reached out and grasped Danny firmly around the elbow.

Danny tried to yank his arm free, but half a second later, another man joined him on the other side, and they pulled Danny inside, shutting the door behind them.

Steve thudded against the wall and then crashed down against the floor.

Savage had grabbed him beneath the arms and flung him across the cell. He had managed to twist in mid-air so that he might take the jolt against his back rather than crash into it headlong, but now he was winded. The back of his head had bounced off the stone and, when he looked up, he had to blink away the darkness that was leeching around the edges of his vision.

The big man flexed his shoulders, his muscles bulging.

Steve scrabbled to his feet.

Savage lunged for him.

Steve was able to duck beneath his grasping hands, crouching low enough so that he could swivel and slide through the narrow gap the big man had left between himself and the wall.

He stumbled back until he was up against the bars once again. He took a deep breath, filling his lungs with as much air as he could.

He felt a sudden prod against his back. One of the guards had taken out his baton and was jabbing him with it.

Steve knew it was hopeless. He was just buying time, but he wouldn't be able to do that forever.

*to be continued*

Ooops. Looks like now Danny is in trouble, too.

Let me know what you think if you find a moment.