For the full experience with pictures go to our blog at whump2go dot wordpress dot com
Thank you all for reading, we hope you will enjoy this chapter.
A Wrinkle in Time
by Sam and Cokie
Chapter 7 – Getting to work
Steve was way too comfortable to move or even acknowledge that he was indeed awake. And he knew if he moved, the pain would be back. He had had to use the bathroom shortly after his nightmare, and even with Cath's help it had been painful to walk the short distance.
"Five days," he mumbled. "Five freakin' days I walked on this damn leg but I get home and turn into a wuss," Steve grumbled under his breath.
"What did you say?" Cath asked, rolling to her side to look at him.
"Nothing," Steve sighed and opened his eyes to look at Catherine. "Morning."
"Morning," she said, smiling at his tousled hair and sleep-laden eyes. "Did you sleep well?" Cath wanted to know.
"Think so," came the mumbled reply. "What time's it?"
"Six thirty. We need to get a move on if we want to get to Tripler and be in the office at nine."
"We don't want to," Steve clarified.
"Oh, but we do," Cath countered.
"Cath, they will only waste our time and in the end, will tell us that I have bruises," Steve started to argue, but then remembered what the doc in the infirmary had told him about permanent damage. And he also remembered he had given his word to seek further treatment. "OK, I'll swing by to get an MRI. But you don't have to come."
"You know, Commander that is what partners do. And now I'm not just your girlfriend, but I'm also your work partner, and it is my job to have your back. So, get your cute, bruised six in gear," Cath told him, and it was clear that any resistance would be futile.
"Fine," Steve grumbled, but was secretly thrilled to have such a caring person in his life.
H50 – H50 – H50
On the way to Tripler Army Medical Center
"You know, we need to think about cars," Steve suddenly said.
They both sat in the back of a cab they had called to get them to the hospital. It was a way more comfortable ride than John McGarrett's old pick-up. He had offered to give the two a ride, but Steve had opted out, still remembering the painful trip from the night before.
"Oh, I totally forgot," Catherine called out.
"Forgot what?" Steve asked and hissed when they hit a pothole and his hip made contact with the car door.
"You OK?"
"Yeah. What did you forget?" Steve reminded Catherine.
"Governor Denning called me on Monday to talk about transportation options and said we should use modified civilian cars," Catherine explained. "I told him I wasn't sure if everyone had a car that could be modified. I know we don't."
"So, he wants us to use our own cars, or what?"
"Kind of. He said the State of Hawaii would sponsor our cars. They would pay fifty percent of the cost if we needed to purchase a car and they would also pay for insurance and maintenance."
"That's a pretty generous offer," Steve replied.
"Guess he really wants this task force to work smoothly."
"Have you thought about what kind of car you want?" Steve wanted to know. "I know you have always loved corvettes, although I'm not sure that is really practical. Or in the budget."
"No," she shook her head. "Unfortunately, I don't think that would be a good choice. Guess we have to go car shopping," Catherine said with a smile.
"Never done that before," Steve told her. "Actually, this will be the first car I own. I always drove dad's car until I left for the Academy, and after that I never needed one."
"Well, how about on Saturday? If you can walk better by then. Preferably without pain," Catherine added.
"I'm fine," Steve assured her. "Saturday. It's a date."
H50 – H50 – H50
Orthopedic clinic at Tripler
"Commander, tell me exactly what happened please," the orthopedic on call asked after Steve sat down on the exam bed and Cath sat on the chair in the corner of the room. He looked up from the computer screen and waited for Steve to speak.
"That is mostly classified, Sir."
"Commander, I don't want to know where you have been, I just need to know how you got injured. And in detail, please," the doctor said and glanced back at Steve's file on the computer. "The notes from the field hospital don't tell me much; even the x-ray they took of your wrist is inconclusive. So, we will do another set of x-rays."
Steve looked at the persistent doctor and regretted that he had told Cath she could come in for the exam. Seeing the doctor patiently waiting and smiling he began to recount the incident. "My team and I did a HALO-jump from 30,000 feet. Everything went according to plan until my chute opened. The lines got all screwed up and the chute didn't completely unfold," Steve explained. "There was no time to eject and use the reserve. I couldn't steer and I couldn't slow down my velocity enough for a safe landing. I went down pretty hard right into a dry riverbed full of gravel and boulders. I crashed into one of the bigger ones. When I hit the rocks, I blacked out for a moment from the pain and shock, I guess," Steve confessed. "I-uh-I was sure my hip and leg were shattered. My foot was stuck between two stones and when a gust of wind went into my chute, it jerked me forward. I heard a popping noise and then this horrible pain shot into my leg."
The doctor, as well as Catherine, stared at him as he related what had happened. "Anything else?"
"Well, sort of," Steve said with a grimace. "After that, I crashed face first into another heap of rocks and hit my ribs and my wrist. Well, and my head, too. I kinda passed out again after that."
"How long were you out?" The doctor asked.
"Seconds, I guess," Steve replied. "I was then able to pull-in my gear and meet with my team."
"Could you walk?"
Steve nodded, but admitted, "I had some trouble getting up, but after a while the pain got tolerable and I was able to push it to the back of my mind," Steve said. "We had a mission to complete. There was no way for me to stay back or abort the mission. I had to move through it."
"I see," Captain Floras nodded and although he had heard similar stories, it never ceased to amaze him how these men and women pushed through to get the job done.
Steve glanced at Catherine and could see that she was not amused. He knew after relaying the story to the doctor, that he might not have been completely forthcoming the night before. And he could tell from Cath's face exactly what she thought about it.
"We completed our mission without further incident, and the doctor who saw me said I got away lucky but that I should get the torn muscles checked. To make sure there won't be any permanent damage," Steve concluded his tale.
"We'll see how lucky you have been. I'd like to see those bruises first, and then we will run a series of tests," the captain said. "Lieutenant, would you mind waiting outside?"
"No, Sir, of course not."
Steve watched her leave and interpreting her gaze, he knew he was in for another talk as soon as they were alone.
"OK, Commander, strip down. Do you need any help?"
"No, thank you."
Steve had put on sneakers instead of his usual boots; easier to get in and out of. He first took off his button down shirt and then the tee shirt followed. It hurt to raise his left arm, but he managed with no more than a grimace.
Next the cargo pants landed on the pile next to him. Bending down wasn't really an option so he grabbed them with his good right leg, and sat back down on the exam bed in his boxer briefs.
"Wow," the doctor exclaimed when he glanced away from the computer. "These are some very impressive bruises, Commander. I take it icing wasn't really an option?"
Steve shook his head. "We had one of those instant ice-packs that I used on the hip, but the rest got no treatment, no."
The doctor nodded, understanding the situation. "OK, I understand. First, I want to check your lungs to see if you're favoring your breathing due to the rib injury," Captain Floras explained and listened as Steve breathed, noting his patient's pained expression. "Sounds good. Now let me check the hip. Lay down, please."
"Why do you need to do this if you're doing an MRI anyway?" Steve asked and couldn't quite keep the groan in when the captain palpated his bruised hip and thigh.
"Because this might spare you the MRI completely," the doctor explained.
Steve wearily watched the captain close his eyes and gently but firmly, and painfully, check the injured muscle. His hands seemed to examine every muscle string, every inch of the bruised leg and hip. After five agonizing minutes, he was finally done, and Steve sighed in relief.
"Well, the good news is that it's definitely not completely torn. It should heal nicely and without complication. I will prescribe a special brace that you should wear for a week or two, or longer if you feel it benefits you."
"But not another annoying bandage," Steve replied, glad they hadn't put that thing back on this morning.
"No, it's a brace that will really help you. It will help with the pain, and with your gait. You should use it," Floras explained. "And I want to see you again in a week for this injury. Oh, and by the way," he added, "the field doctor was right. You were really lucky."
"Yeah, guess so. Thank you."
"Oh, we're not done yet. Please take off the wrist-brace."
"Why's that? The doc said it was just sprained." Steve did so and made sure not to move his hand. Even the slightest movement caused more pain than Steve wanted to admit.
"Looks like the swelling isn't so bad anymore. That should allow for better pictures than the one they did at the field hospital," Dr. Floras said as he gently moved the wrist. "To be honest, one can't really see much on that x-ray. That's why I want to do a double check."
"Argh. That hurts," Steve told the captain when he pressed on a spot on his forearm, close to the wrist.
"Commander, I'm pretty sure the new x-rays will show a break right here," Floras said and showed Steve the spot he had just pressed on.
"What?" Steve looked at his doctor in disbelief and cradle his injured arm to his chest.
"I don't think it's a complete break, but it is more than sprained. A technician will take you to radiology, and we will talk more then. I'll send Lt. Rollins back in, she can help you get dressed. And leave the brace off," he added as an afterthought.
H50 – H50 – H50
Special Task Force Headquarters
"Hey, Lou, have you thought about what kind of car you wanna buy?" Chin asked his colleague and handed him a cup of coffee.
"Is there a limit what we can spend?"
"Catherine didn't say, but I'm sure Denning won't sponsor a Ferrari," Chin replied grinning.
"Hard to get in and out anyway," Lou said laughing. "Guess I'll get one that's practical. Renee has her eyes set on a Sonic. You don't suppose the governor would sponsor her car too?"
" 'Fraid not," Chin replied. "What about you? Have you narrowed it down?"
"Yeah, this Saturday we plan to take an Equinox for a test drive."
"That would be a good choice," Chin said.
"Yeah, well, I would go for something else, but you know we have to pay for two cars. So…"
"Yeah, I get it. The move, new stuff, now cars, I guess that isn't cheap."
"No, but we'll manage. It's OK, but we need to be sensible about the cars. No need to waste money on something I don't really need, you know?"
"Yeah, but I think the Equinox fits you pretty good."
"We'll see what kind of deal we can get. I would love a Tahoe or at least a Traverse, but they are both a lot more expensive. I don't think Renee will go for it. And rightly so."
"Good man, listen to your wife," Chin replied, saluting with his coffee cup. "Speaking from experience."
"Ah." Grover nodded his understanding. "Hey, what's Williams doing here this early? It's not even eight."
"Let's find out."
H50 – H50 – H50
Steve watched her face as Catherine helped pull up his pants, careful not to touch any of the bruises. "Thank you."
"Hmm."
He sat back down on the exam bed, still cradling his arm that hurt more after he had put his tee shirt back on. "The doc said a technician will be here soon," Steve said, trying to start a conversation. Catherine hadn't said a word since she had come back in. "Do you want to go to the office? I mean, who knows how long this will take."
She finally looked at him, ignoring his questions. "Does your arm hurt much?"
"What?"
"Your arm, does it hurt much?"
"Ehm… a lot more without the brace," Steve admitted.
"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked, placing her hands on her hips in an 'I'm-not-taking-any- crap-from-you' stance. "And why didn't you tell us last night how hurt you really are?"
"What? Catherine, I told you and Dad the same thing I told Captain Floras."
"You think that was the same?" Catherine asked, her eyes widened in absolute denial.
"I crashed down hard, got bruises and got checked out in the field hospital," Steve replied, shrugging his shoulders.
"Oh," she nodded as if in agreement, but he knew it was anything but…
She continued, "How about the part that you passed out from pain, or that you passed out a second time, after hitting your head? That you could barely move? Steve, you downplayed your injuries as some minor things," Catherine made her point. "But they weren't. You got really hurt. You ARE really hurting. As your partner… your girlfriend I want to… no, I need to know that." By this time, she was almost in his face. "Do you know why? Because I want to be there for you; share your pain. Do you understand that?"
Steve could see in her eyes how serious she was and hesitated only a moment before answering. "Yeah, I do. Cath, I'll try to be more… I wasn't dishonest… I just," Steve wasn't sure how to explain it.
"Hey," Catherine interrupted and stepped closer, placing her hands on his shoulders and making sure she had eye contact with him. "I get it," she softly said. "But now we're together, and we will share these things. Get used to it, Commander." She closed her words with a soft kiss.
"Yes, ma'am," Steve sheepishly replied, leaning forward for a second kiss.
"And don't think you would have gotten away this easy if you were not hurting and were such a pitiful sight," she told him grinning.
"Gee, Rollins, how do you really feel?" he asked, grinning back at her.
H50 – H50 – H50
Lou couldn't contain his laughter. "So, let me get this straight. You told your wife that your mother in law…. Her mother, could actually stay in a hotel when she visits? Man, you've got the sense of a turnip. Bad move… I repeat, really bad move."
Chin laughed along with him after Danny had sheepishly told the tale of his morning.
"Laugh all you want, but it was just a slip of the tongue," Danny tried to defend himself. "My first thought was 'Did I really say that out loud?' "
"And, apparently you did," Chin said.
"Apparently, I did," Danny agreed while pouring himself a cup of coffee. "But she'll get over it. Funny thing is that her mom drives her more nuts than she does me. Only I can't be the one to say that."
"I hear you," Lou nodded. "Closing in the ranks of femininity. Happens all the time."
"Yeah, well, until she forgives me, I thought this was the safer place to be," Danny admitted. "So where's our fearless leader this morning," he asked after pointing at Steve's dark office.
"John said he had to go to Tripler for some tests," Chin told him. "Apparently his hip is a total mess. But," he warned. "You didn't hear that from me. Steve and Catherine should be here a bit later."
H50 – H50 – H50
Almost an hour later they were still waiting for Captain Floras to get back. Steve cradled his arm to his chest and started to believe that it really was more than sprained. The pain had steadily increased ever since they had taken the set of x-rays. One of the positions had hurt so much that he couldn't help but cry out in pain.
"Catherine, you should go to the office, it's almost nine. No reason for both of us to be late," Steve said just as Captain Floras entered.
"Commander, you don't plan to go to work today, do you?"
"Yeah, sure I do," Steve replied and nodded his head. "Why?"
"You should rest that leg. Walking on it won't help the healing."
"I had to walk on it for the last five days, Doc. I'm sure I will survive sitting in an office," Steve explained.
"Well, it's your pain." Floras shook his head. "So, as I said, you do have a broken wrist."
"Seriously?"
"Yes. But it's not a complete break. I will show you on the x-ray; it's hard to see when there is a lot of swelling. But we have to cast the arm. One wrong move or hit could fracture the bone. And we don't want that. As of now, we don't have to do anything but cast the wrist up to your elbow and you should be fine in about three to four weeks."
"A cast? Really? Can't I use a brace?"
"No. That would mean you could take it off, and you really shouldn't," Floras said smiling.
"Busted," Cath mumbled.
"Fine," Steve grumbled.
"You can pick a color if you want," the captain said cheerfully.
"Great." Although his glare was the exact opposite of 'great'.
"Now… here is the brace." Floras removed it from the plastic bag and held it up.
Steve's eyes widened at the size of the thing his doctor expected him to wear.
The captain saw his reaction and said, "Don't worry; it's not that bad. And you will be amazed how much better your leg will feel with this on. After I show you how to wear it, you can go get your arm casted and get a control x-ray. Then you're free to go. But please remember to take it easy. Stay off the leg as much as possible. And see a physiotherapist."
"Anything else?"
"No, that's it. Make an appointment for next week," Floras said.
"I will. Thank you."
"You're welcome."
H50 – H50 – H50
"Whoa, you look different," Danny exclaimed, looking up when Steve and Catherine walked into the office just before ten a.m.
"How so?" Steve asked, looking down at himself. He was rather pleased that he wasn't limping as badly as he had yesterday and had to admit that the brace on his upper leg really did make the injury feel much better. Although the doctor had warned him again before he left to stay off the leg as much as possible.
"Well, for one, yesterday you had a splint on your arm and today you're sporting a brand new, blue cast."
"Yeah, that," Steve looked at it like it was a snake. "Doc decided to call the sprain a partial fracture. It's no big deal," he assured the team, who were all now staring at the two of them.
"The cast says otherwise," John wisely pointed out.
"Nah, it will be gone before you know it," Steve assured him, heading toward his office. "Someone get us up to speed, please," he requested. "Can we meet in the conference room?"
John followed him to his office door and leaned against the side of it. "You sure you're OK?" he quietly asked.
Steve looked up and saw the concern on his dad's face. "Absolutely. He didn't even have to do the MRI. Gave me a brace and it really helped."
"So, I don't have to go see Cath and find out the real story?" John said with a grin.
"No, you don't. But I'm sure the two of you will gossip about me anyway." He came around his desk and slapped his dad's arm. "I'm OK, really."
"Good. We've been working this morning and have something on Noshimori and the Yakuza that you may be interested in."
"Great," Steve said as they met the others in the conference room. "Let's get down to business."
He turned around when his office phone rang. "You go on, I'll be there in a second," he told John before answering the line.
H50 – H50 – H50
"Hey, Danny, can I have a minute?" he asked, opening the glass door to the conference room. He nodded his head toward his office, assuming Danny would follow.
"What's up?" Williams asked, leaning against the door frame.
"Have a seat, please," Steve asked, glancing up from his cellphone. He finished a text and then set it on his desk. "Just got a call from IA."
Danny rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I heard that was coming. After Hesse got to Halawa, he talked to an attorney and wants to sue me, the state of Hawaii and God from what I understand."
"This isn't a laughing matter," Steve reminded him, rubbing his thumb along the grain of wood on top of his desk. "What happened last month can't happen again. While the governor gave us immunity and means, shooting unarmed prisoners isn't even remotely OK. Do you understand that?"
"Yeah, I get it. I promise to be a good boy."
"Well, yeah, you will. IA will schedule a review on Monday. Until then, you can't do any field work."
"Yeah, well, so far I don't see anyone doing any field work. How about I go get us some lunch later?"
"Works for me," Steve said. "Thanks."
H50 – H50 – H50
"I have a question," Lou said, looking up from the file they had compiled on Hiro Noshimori. They were back to work after their lunch. "This may be crazy but do we have a title? When we go talk to someone, do we say we're with 'the governor's task force?' I mean, are people even gonna know what that is? Let's face it, in my former line of work, it wasn't a problem. We yelled "SWAT" while kicking the door in. I don't think that will fly in this case."
Steve stopped reading to think about what was asked. "Not in every situation," he agreed, grinning. "But that's a good question. I hadn't really thought about it, but you're right. And to go along with that, we need IDs…"
"That's on the list you had me start," Catherine said. "John, do you or Chin know how to order badges and IDs?"
"Yeah, HPD gets them from a place here in town," John replied. "But we need to know what to put on them."
Chin rattled off a long Hawaiian phrase that no one recognized. He looked at the confused faces around the table and laughed. "What? I think it's a very catchy phrase. It means 'To protect and to serve'," he explained.
"Uh, sorry, no," Steve told him, shaking his head and smiling. "I would have to read a cheat sheet every time to remember it."
"The Avengers," Danny said, grinning.
"I'm pretty sure that one's already taken," Cath replied with a laugh.
"McGarrett's Marauders," Grover said. "We could wear masks and capes…"
"OK, calm down, we aren't vigilantes," Steve reminded them. He glanced at his dad and paused. "Dad, you look like you have an idea."
"No, not really," John replied. "I was just remembering what we used to call ourselves when you and Mary were younger."
"Five-0's," Steve said quietly.
"Fifty?" Danny asked. "Why that?"
"Not fifty," Steve clarified. "Five-0."
"What the hell's the difference?" Danny asked, throwing his hand into the air.
"It started as something to call ourselves," John explained. "I had lived here almost my whole life and even though my kids were born here, they knew they looked different than other Hawaiian kids. I said we were 'Five-0's' to signify that we were transplants to the fiftieth state. Kind of corny, but they liked it at the time."
"I even used it for my football jersey," Steve said.
"Really? Chin said you were a quarterback. That isn't a number for a quarterback," Danny argued.
"It worked for me," Steve shrugged and replied.
"Hmm, 'Five-0'," Catherine said. "I kinda like it."
"Easy to remember," Chin said, his eyes twinkling.
"That it is," Steve agreed. "Any other ideas?"
"That sounds good to me," Grover added.
Danny waved his arms around. "Sounds OK to me. Whatever works."
"If that's settled, I'll contact the supplier and get a mock-up for you and Denning to proof," John told Steve. "Cath, cross one more thing off your list."
H50 – H50 – H50
"So, are we all in agreement?" Steve asked his team after their meeting.
"Yeah, Cath and I will go see Hiro Noshimori, and you and Grover will talk to Hesse again," Chin replied.
"Hesse is in the hospital ward at Halawa, I hope it won't be a problem getting in to see him?" Steve wondered.
"No," John told him, coming back into the room. "I called ahead. He agreed to see you, and your visit is also cleared with the prison authorities."
"Thanks, Dad," Steve said and turned to Danny. "Since you're banned from active duty, I want you to man the office. I'm sorry, but we have to go along with IA for the time being," Steve said.
"I know. I will look into Hiro's associations with the Meth group. I think there might be a connection," Williams replied.
"OK, that's good. I also want you to look into any connections to anyone on the HPD force," Steve told him.
"What do you mean?"
"I was in the process of opening the old murder case, but hadn't done anything yet," John answered Danny's question. "If, and in my eyes, that is big if, that had anything to do with the attempted murder on, well, me, then someone in HPD must have given out that information," John further explained.
"You think there is a mole in HPD?" Danny asked bewildered.
"No," Steve replied. "But we should look at all angles and all possibilities."
"Alright. I'll look into it."
"Good, thank you. Chin, Cath, remember, Hiro is not under investigation, yet. Don't spook him."
"Don't worry, we will be very diplomatic," Cath replied.
"Uh huh." Steve shook his head and grinned at her. "Let's go to work, people."
H50 – H50 – H50