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We will be on hiatus next week. So check back for chapter 10 in two weeks.

A Wrinkle in Time

by Cokie and Sam

Chapter 9

McGarrett Residence, Saturday morning

"Cath, you're not ready," Steve said when he entered the bedroom and watched as she came out of the bathroom.

"Steve, it's only eight. I think we have time."

"Come on, get a move on. I'm gonna go car shopping."

"Excited much there, Commander?"

Steve sat down on the bed, grinning at the thought. "Maybe, Lieutenant. But tell me you're not looking forward to finding a car. Remember, you get one, too."

"That's true," she agreed while pulling a sundress over her head. "Although you are forgetting that there is money involved. We are paying for these vehicles. Well, partially, anyway."

"Yes, but the governor is purchasing them," Steve reminded her. "Our pay will be docked monthly for our share. How much easier can it be?"

"Good point." She sat down next to him on the bed and began towel drying her hair. "How's your leg today?"

"Better," he assured her. "Cath, it's fine."

"Uh huh. Did you put the brace back on after your shower? And did you keep the cast dry?"

Steve leaned in and kissed her mouth and then stood up. "You ask too many questions. Come on, Cath, get ready. Dad's gonna drop us off before he and Kalani go look at another condo." He walked to the door, then turned back. "And yes, I have on the brace. Chop, chop, woman."

"Get out of here and give me ten minutes," she yelled as he closed the door.

H50 – H50 – H50

Cutter Dealership

"OK, let's just look around before we get a salesperson," Steve said beneath his voice as they stared at the acres of cars on the lot. "I don't want to be hassled."

"They are car salesmen, Steve. I think that's in their job description. Besides the governor told them we were coming."

"Here comes one."

"Welcome to Cutter," the man said, holding out his hand to shake first Steve's then Cath's hand. "I'm Dirk Steele, Commander McGarrett and we are here to help you in any way possible."

"Uh, right, thank you. I think we would just like to look around first."

"Not a problem at all. The governor's office has taken care of most of the paperwork, so when you make a decision, please come find me. Oh, and one of your teammates is out on the lot, looking at the Sonics with his wife, I believe."

"Ah, thank you. I appreciate that," Steve said as they turned to check out the cars.

"Can you believe it? Lou got here before we did."

Catherine turned and stared at Steve. "What?"

"Lou and his wife are already here. I bet she was up and ready early this morning," Steve told her only half teasing.

"Are you actually… this isn't a… Steve are you making this into a competition?"

Steve grabbed her hand and grinned. "No, I'd never do that. But I bet we find cars before they do."

"Steve! There is something seriously wrong with you," she laughed.

"Hey, my man!"

"Lou. Hello," Steve said as they cut through a row of cars to greet Lou and his wife. "So, you ready to buy?"

"Hell, no, how 'bout you?"

"We just got here," Steve told them with a glance at Cath. "Renee, it's good to see you again."

"Likewise. Catherine, love the dress."

"Thank you. So, do you know what you are shopping for?" she asked Renee.

"I've done some research and I've got my eye on a Sonic. And they've got the cutest red one over here. Come on, I'll show you."

"Yeah, those are nice cars," Cath said. "I've been doing a bit of research and that is on my short list. I want to check them out."

"There they go," Lou grumbled. "Lord help us all." He called out to his wife. "Price point, Honey. Don't forget we talked about that."

"We'll catch up, Lou. Don't worry," Renee said with a wave over her shoulder.

Lou turned around and found that Steve was looking around the car lot with a confused expression on his face.

"What's up, man?"

"Well, these cars are nice and all, but I was hoping to look at something… bigger."

"Oh, now I see. The man is looking for something bad ass," Grover said. "We're on the wrong lot; follow me, Commander. I've got my eye on a sweet little Equinox. Did me some research and they have just what I'm looking for somewhere on this lot."

"Lead on," Steve said, looking back and seeing Cath and Renee sitting inside a red Sonic running their hands over its upholstery.

H50 – H50 – H50

Steve and Lou walked over the huge parking lot, leaving the smaller cars and their significant others behind.

"So, how are you doing?" Grover asked.

"I'm good," Steve replied and moved past a black Camaro.

"Well, last night you were anything but good. I don't like to see my friend in such pain, you know?" Lou said and touched Steve's arm to halt his walk. "Let me know if you need any help. For example around the house or so. OK?"

"Thank you, Lou, I will." He paused then added, "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure," Grover replied and started walking again.

"You think there was anything to the conversation I overheard?" Steve asked about what he had put quite a bit of thought in since last night.

Friday Night Dinner at "The Bar & Grill"

Steve slowly made his way into the bar and grill, but had to stop at the door when pain shot down his leg and low in his back. He took the weight off his injured leg and waited for the pain to subside.

It had been a long day. He had spent most of his day sitting in meetings… way too long meetings. The first was a rather boring one about budgets and lots of administrative stuff. But at least he had learned what kind of budget they were talking about, and Steve had been rather surprised that he had received almost everything he had requested.

The second had been a security meeting with all of the law enforcement agencies on the islands. It was interesting to meet the leaders of all the agencies, although Steve was sure not everyone saw it the same way. He had felt a slightly hostile undertone from the one or other. But he was used to handling similar situations, so he was confident they would all work well together. Eventually.

His injuries had not taken too kindly to all the sitting, and the discomfort he had felt all day had turned into some serious pain. Steve thought that he would like nothing more than to head home and lie down. But he had promised to meet his team for dinner. Besides they would be interested to learn how the meetings went.

After a minute the pain was down to a more bearable level and he continued his slow trek into the restaurant. At this point he didn't much care that he was heavily limping.

"Hey, sorry I'm late," he greeted his team who was sitting at a round table in the corner. He sat down with a sigh and looked into the round. "Where's Danny?" He asked Catherine after greeting her with a kiss.

"He's just taking a call from Rachel. He went out back," Cath replied. "Are you OK? I saw you coming in."

"Yeah, we all did," Grover chimed in. "Man, why didn't you call and go home?"

Steve looked at his new friend and had to smile. "I'm OK. My hip just hates me right now. Sitting all day was not really the best thing to do."

"And here you are, sitting again," Chin said in sympathy. "You should get some rest over the weekend."

"I will," Steve replied. "Now, where's the menu? I'm starving."

"Weren't you fed at your fancy meetings?" Danny asked when he joined them at the table.

"We had coffee and cookies," Steve told them. "And a half hour lunch break. Not enough time to actually have lunch."

"What did you do during your lunch?" Chin asked and handed Steve the menu.

"I talked to the new SWAT captain."

"And?"

"And what?" Steve asked, distracted by the menu.

"What do you think of him? We will probably work with him in the future," Grover chimed in.

Steve looked up and wondered what to tell them. "I'm sure he knows his stuff."

"You hate his guts," John said and received a glare from his son.

"No, Dad, I think he's competent and will do a good job."

"But?"

"He's not very happy that he has to deal with a newly-formed task force. And he especially doesn't want to deal with an idiot Navy guy who doesn't know the first thing about the real world," Steve told them.

"He did not call you that," Grover said in disbelief.

"Not to my face," Steve elaborated. "It was actually quite funny. He was talking to one of the other guys and asked if he had met the idiot who washed out from the Navy. I then introduced myself." Steve chuckled at remembering the look on their faces.

"So, I take it you have already made a bunch of new friends," Danny said.

"It actually went better than I thought. Most of them are pretty open minded," Steve explained. "You get the difficult ones no matter where you go. Some people need time to adjust. I'm sure Captain Bings will come around when we work together."

"Was he the only problem?" Chin wanted to know.

Steve thought about the question before replying. "I don't think he is a problem. Apparently he has had a pretty bad experience with the Navy, that's all," Steve said and looked for the waitress. "Jennings is the one we need to watch. He was openly hostile, trying to get others on his side."

"Jennings? No way. We play baseball together. He's OK," Danny said.

"He had hoped to be appointed by the governor. He is… not amused."

"I didn't know that," Danny confessed. "I had no idea he had plans to change jobs."

"What's his position?" Catherine asked.

"He's with Narcotics," Steve replied and waved at one of the waiters, and was ignored. "What do I have to do to get something to eat and drink here?"

"Be on time," Danny laughed. "It's always packed here."

"Funny." Steve glared at his coworker and turned to Catherine. "Order me a steak, fries, sautéed mushrooms and also water?"

"Sure," Cath nodded.

"Thanks. Be right back," Steve said and slowly stood up. He wasn't quite able to school his face when the movement reminded him in a very unpleasant way of his injury.

He could practically feel the looks at his back when he moved through the room to the restrooms. He didn't even bother trying to hide how much it hurt to move. Every step was like a knife into his torn muscles. And his hip felt stiff and sore, and hurt like a bitch.

All in all, he was not a happy camper. He at least hoped he would get something to eat as soon as he got back from his business.

A couple of minutes later he was washing his hands when he heard heated voices coming in from outside the back door. Steve dried his hands and was about to go back to his friends when the voices again caught his attention.

"I won't have anything to do with that!"

"Will you shut up, man! We're getting paid a boatload of money for it."

"But nobody said anything about that shit."

"She won't even know what hit her, man. Now, get your act together. Soon, Jameson will be toast."

"I don't know. Man, I…"

It was now pretty obvious that those two were talking about some form of crime that would be committed soon. Steve made his way to the emergency door that led to the back of the restaurant. He pushed the door open and found himself in a small, dark alley.

Steve stepped away from the exit and looked to his left, just seeing two men disappearing around the corner. He started to run after them, but stopped with a cry of pain dying on his lips. His left leg gave way and he fell against the wall; not being able to keep on his feet he slid down the wall. He instinctively used his arm to soften the crash to the ground.

Pain shot into his wrist and hip when he impacted with the unforgiving wet ground. Steve curled in on himself when daggers of pain in his injured groin muscle threatened to overwhelm him. He lay on his injured left side, panting to get air into his lungs.

It took about a minute for him to slowly roll onto his back, then slowly make his way back to his knees. The pain was still intense and he wasn't even sure if he could get back to his feet, let alone walk. He used the wall for support and finally made it upright. Steve leaned heavily against the wall on his way back to the door he had come through just a couple of minutes before.

He cursed under his breath when he found the emergency exit locked. Now he only had one option, he had to walk all the way down the alley and back to the front door of the restaurant.

Steve held his hurting left arm protectively to his chest and fished his phone out of his pocket.

"Rollins. Leave a message."

"Crap." Steve debated for a second to call one of the others, but then decided to simply walk back. It had been so noisy inside the bar that no one would probably even hear the phone.

On his way, he thought if what he had heard was really a conversation about a crime to be committed, or if it was something completely harmless. The name Jameson wasn't that uncommon; he didn't even know if it was a first or last name.

What felt like an hour later, but was probably only about five minutes, he reached the front door and went into the restaurant. For the second time that evening.

"Hey, miss me?" Steve said when he reached the table and looked into five shocked faces.

"What the hell happened to you?" Danny called out.

"Oh, you mean this?" Steve asked and pointed to the wet and dirty spots on his shirt and pants. "I overheard something… and went to… investigate. Unfortunately, it didn't quite go as planned. The door fell shut, and, well, I had to take the long road," Steve explained and gingerly sat down. "Where's my dinner?"

H50 – H50 – H50

"Well, to be honest, even if there is, there isn't much we can do about it," Grover answered Steve's question. "It was near dark and you didn't get a good look at the guys. Besides, we don't know who Jameson is."

"Yeah, I guess so," Steve had to agree. "Dad said the only Jameson he knew of was the former governor and she doesn't even live here most of the time anymore."

"Here we go," Grover said when they reached the section they were aiming for, and after checking the options and price on an Equinox parked in the lot. "This is the one I saw online. Fully loaded." He opened the door and climbed in. "How do I look?"

Steve chuckled. "You look good. Although won't a black car be really hot in all this sun?"

"No, man. Black cars are sexy, what'yo talking about?"

Steve held up both hands in defeat. "Nothing. It's your car, you get what you want."

"Well, let's be real, McGarrett. If I was getting what I wanted, I would be sitting in an Escalade and not this. But I surely can't turn down the governor's deal of going in halvsies on my car."

"Just out of curiosity, let's find the Escalades."

"You want me to cry, don't you?" Grover said while slamming the car door. "You're brutal, anyone ever tell you that?"

"It won't hurt to just look," Steve told him, already making his way to the cars he spotted earlier.

Several minutes later, Grover made another circle around a black Escalade, shaking his head. "Man, this would be a sweet ride, but that price tag. Who-whee."

"Let's take it for a ride," Steve suggested.

"And what would our reason be for that? You do want to see my tears."

"No, come on, let's find the salesman and get the key. Or you know what, why don't we just call him," Steve said and took out his phone, not looking forward to making the trek all the way back to the offices. His leg was pleasantly not hurting too much, and he would rather keep it that way.

Fifteen minutes later, Grover was cruising. "This one has more gadgets than the one I drove from HPD," Lou said. "Too bad it isn't included in the offer from the governor, 'cause I would surely love this."

"Well, about that," Steve began, turning in his seat to face his new friend. "The governor said if we found something that has been used as a fleet model, we could buy it. He has a special deal with Cutter and there is a substantial discount for state employees. I'm pretty sure this could be setting in your driveway tonight."

"For real? Man, you knew that all along and you had me checking out that old Equinox? Boy, there's something not right in your head."

Steve laughed. "Hey, you wanted to see the Equinox. You might have fallen in love with it."

"No way in hell after driving this sweet deal." He turned right to head back to the dealership. "Now let's see what you're gonna find. Any ideas?"

"Yeah. Maybe," Steve said, then looked at the captain and grinned. "I've always wanted a truck."

H50 – H50 – H50

"Well, that's something you don't see every day," Cath said, grinning at Renee. They were staring at Steve and Lou's backsides while both men had their heads inside the hood of a Chevy Silverado.

"Can you whistle?" Renee asked. "We need to whistle."

Both women let out cat calls and the men didn't bother to turn around.

"Oh for Pete's sake," Renee muttered. Louder, she exclaimed, "Just look at those fine specimens of manhood with their heads stuck in a truck."

They walked closer and Cath said, "Ooh, look, it's a shiny new engine. Renee, I bet you good money that neither of them know what they're looking at."

The men turned around, indignant looks on their faces.

"I beg your pardon," Grover said, giving both of them the evil eye.

"For your information," Steve began, "this is a Standard 6.0L Vortec TM engine."

"And be honest, you Googled that, right?" Cath asked.

He grinned back at her. "Nope. Read it on the sticker on the windshield. Have you made your decision?" he asked.

"No, I want your input," she told him. "This is a big decision and I want your advice."

"Sure."

"Woman, do you still want that little red thing over there?"

"I surely do, Lou. I love it."

"All right, we can swing that. And guess what I will be driving?"

"Probably that Equinox you checked out last night," Renee replied.

"No, Baby. I'm getting me that big ole black Escalade parked right over there."

"Oh, my, that's big," she said, walking toward the car.

"Yes, it is," he replied, following along behind her.

"And nice and shiny."

"That, too. Now, can you just imagine your man sittin' behind the wheel of this fine vehicle?"

"Well, yes, I can Captain Grover, now that you mention it. And I'm wondering just what I would look like sitting there next to you in this fine car."

"Well, Mrs. Grover there is only one way to find out." He opened the door for her and then ran around to the driver's side. "McGarrett, this is gonna be a Kodak moment. Get out your phone."

Steve waved to his friend before turning back to Catherine.

"Commander, have you made your choice?" Cath asked him.

Steve grinned. "I think you're looking at it," he replied.

"Wow. That's a big truck."

"Yeah," he said with pride. "But think, surf boards in the back or camping supplies in there and we can head to the mountains… even sleep in it if you want. It's great. Not to mention having an equipment locker right in the truck. It's perfect."

"And the color?"

"This one. Blue Granite. Closest thing to Navy blue that they have," he added with a grin. "Only there are a couple options of interior. This one is Deep Ash and I like it, but look over here. See the tan interior in that red one? It's called Cocoa Dune. What do you think? I like them both."

Cath looked at the dark gray interior, then back to the other truck. "You know, the tan one won't show sand as badly as this one."

"That, Lieutenant is a very good point. See, I always need your opinion. Cocoa Dune it is." He leaned down and gave her a kiss. "Now, show me what you have found. Hey, Lou," Steve called and pointed across the lot. "Headed to check out the cars again."

Lou and Renee were still sitting in "his" Escalade and he barely gave a wave of acknowledgement.

"There's one I really like but I want your opinion on it," Cath said, reaching for Steve's hand. "It is a good price, I think and I really like it."

"OK, then I think you should get it," Steve assured her.

She stopped in front of a car and pointed. "This one. Isn't he cute?"

"He?"

"Well, of course, Commander. I wouldn't name him a girl's name."

Steve stared at the shiny blue Cruze in front of them. "So you like blue, too, huh?"

"Absolutely. This is called Sapphire Blue and look, it has the same Cocoa Dune interior as your truck."

"My truck, huh?" Steve grinned. "I like the sound of that. You need to take a test drive," he told her.

"Oh, Renee and I already did that," she assured him. "I think I really want it, Steve."

"Then let's go talk to Mr. Steele and see what we need to do. You know, we'll have to take them to HPD and have equipment installed. These babies will look pretty sweet with flashing lights in their grilles."

"You know, Commander, sometimes you sound about twelve years old. And I love seeing you so excited. Now, let's go buy us some vehicles. What will you name your truck? My car is "Satchmo".

"Huh?" Steve asked. "Why?"

"Cause he's got the blues…" she said, laughing at him.

Steve shook his head and together they made their way over to the offices to complete the deal on their new cars.

H50 – H50 – H50

"I need your help," the voice said over the phone.

"I thought you said my debt was paid," she argued. "I went to the hospital and got the information on Hesse that you wanted."

"That was last month. I need your services again. And it is very important. Besides it will be easy."

She paused, but knew she had no choice. "What do you need?"

H50 – H50 – H50