CHAPTER FIFTEEN

AN HOUR AND FIFTEEN MINUTES

WAITING ROOM - KING'S MEDICAL CENTER - O'AHU

From the moment the ER sliding door had opened until the gurney disappeared behind surgical doors, only seven minutes passed. In Steve's mind, it had taken much longer than that. Coming to think of it, the doctor and nurses had moved quickly and smoothly, in contrary to his own brain, which had processed like an old computer with the need of multiple software updates. Or, in other words, unbearably slow. And it still hadn't rebooted. Steve kept staring at the double doors, just staring blankly at them. Finally, after another few minutes of staring, he managed to drag himself to the waiting area.

There he encountered his co-workers, all anxiously await for news.

"Steve!" Tani jumped up from her seat. "How's Danny?"

Steve let out a nervous breath. "They— they rushed him into emergency surgery," he began but needed to pause as his brain finally had processed those seven minutes. Then he continued. "It's not good, guys. The doctor mentioned a massive right Pneumohemothorax. Some broken ribs too. He lost a lot of blood, and apparently, there's some internal bleeding. I don't know if he's gonna make it."

Lou placed his hand on Steve's shoulder. "Don't go there. Don't even go there, man. Danny is tough."

"I know," Steve nodded. "I know." He repeated and scratched his eyebrow, smearing the blood of his best friend now onto his face too. He instantly lowered his hand and gazed at his trembling bloodstained fingers. "I—," he never finished his sentence. Steve just turned around, walking away from the group.

Confused, Junior asked. "Where you going, Sir?"

"I just need a minute," Steve answered and fled down the hallway.

HOSPITAL BATHROOM - KING'S MEDICAL CENTER - O'AHU

Steve crashed into the hospital bathroom and rushed to the nearest sink. He pumped the soap dispenser empty on his hands. Rubbed them together and cleaned in between in fingers. Then he rubbed the back of his fingers against his palms. Then he rubbed the tips of his fingers on the palm of his opposite hand and did the same with his other hand. He scrubbed and scrubbed until the white foamy soap had turned all pink. Then he rinsed his hands with water. Danny's blood had barely come off his hands, and it was still underneath Steve's fingernails. Upset, he repeated the whole process again. It was to no avail.

Steve dried his hands with a disposable towel and used it to turn off the tap. As the water stopped streaming, the adrenaline suddenly departed from Steve's body, like a soul does in a paranormal movie. He did a few steps backward and bumped into the bathroom wall behind him. He leaned against it and slid down the tiled wall until his butt reached the floor. He buried his face in his hands, which were, despite the intense scrub, still stained with Danny's blood. Steve closed his eyes, trying to keep his breathing even and not worry. But, again, it was to no avail.

Simply, because there was nothing more important on his mind than his best friend. Suddenly, Steve remembered how Danny came into his life like a whirlwind and turned everything upside down. He couldn't leave like that too. Danny had kids to care for and family to love. He couldn't die. Steve would trade places with Danny instantly, no doubt. Steve didn't care. They could break his soul. Beat him. Hurt him. Kill him. Take his life away. But for the love of God — Steve stared at the ceiling with his eyes mist. "Don't let him die. Just don't."

CORRIDOR - KING'S MEDICAL CENTER - O'AHU

Lou Grover had followed McGarrett to the bathroom. However, respecting Steve's wish to take a minute, he didn't follow him inside. Instead, he waited in the hallway, And to be honest, Lou could use a minute himself as well. It had been terrifying to see Danny lying on the bottom of that skate bowl. Blood and bruises everywhere; hanging on to life by a thread. Lou had seen a lot of awful things in his career, but not ever would he get used to seeing so much blood. Especially not when it was leaking out of someone he cared about. Life could be immensely unfair sometimes, and this was one of those times. Terrified, Lou leaned back against the wall. He wrapped his arms around his chest, waiting for Steve to show his face again and praying that Danny was going to make it. If not, Lou would lose not one but two of his friends, and he really didn't want that to happen.

After a good ten minutes, the bathroom door opened. Steve stepped out, with his eyes locked on the floor. He didn't even notice Lou standing there.

Lou pushed himself off the wall and took a step toward his friend. "You okay?"

Startled by the sudden question, Steve looked up at him, and Lou could see his bloodshot eyes. His voice was strained as Steve asked. "Where's Kim Leung?"

"HPD took him into custody," Lou informed.

"Good," Steve bobbed his head, pleased but thinking. "Keep him locked up for as long as we can. I'm guessing a bunch of lawyers are gonna show up in no time, but tell HPD they can release him when I say so."

"To hell with that," Lou snapped. "I don't care how many lawyers are gonna show up. None of them can get him out. HPD arrested him for kidnap and extortion. It's jail time, Steve."

"I know," Steve started, staring at Lou with unbearable pain in his eyes. "But if Danny doesn't pull through, it doesn't make a difference," neither men had something to argue against that fact. Then Steve added. "And if he does pull through, we'll have to release Kim Leung no matter what."

Lou had known McGarrett for a few years now, and without a doubt, the man made insane decisions every now and then. And for some reason, Lou figured this was going to be one of them, but it didn't stop him from frowning and asking. "Why on earth would we do that?"

"I made a deal with the Chinese Triad." There it was. Insane decision.

Lou's eyes went wide. "You did what now?"

"I know that it's not a perfect situation," Steve confessed. "But I don't care. We were out of time, all right."

"You're right," Lou agreed after giving it some thought. "We'll figure something out later," he put his hand comforting on Steve's shoulder. "We got other things to worry about right now."

"Yeah."

WAITING ROOM - KING'S MEDICAL CENTER - O'AHU

Together with Lou, Steve managed to drag himself back to the waiting room, and he sat himself down on one of the uncomfortable chairs. Steve stared into space. He sat there waiting, along with every team member of the Five-0 Task Force. Nobody said anything, but everyone seemed to know they were in for a long slow process. There was no point in starting out impatient by pacing around or anything else to help control Steve's nerves. So instead, he leaned back in his chair, in the silence.

That worked for about five minutes. Steve had never been a patient person, and he had tried to take deep breaths and remain calm, but it was useless. He wouldn't be able to relax until he knew for sure that Danny had made it out of surgery and made a full recovery. So he got up from his chair and paced from one side of the room to the other. He started counting the minutes in his head to muddle through the long wait.

Clearly, they were all coping with the situation in their own way. Jerry drummed his fingers on the arm of the chair impatiently. Lou beached. Next to him, Tani sat quietly. Next to her was Junior. Nobody talked. There was nothing to talk about, except the fact that their friend was hanging by a thread. And nobody wanted to say that out loud. Ergo, the room was totally silent. Like a heart monitor that had been beeping bravely and resolutely against impossible odds had just abruptly gone quiet. Flatline.

WAITING ROOM - KING'S MEDICAL CENTER - O'AHU

Passed an hour into their long wait, Steve rechecked his watch. Three minutes had ticked by since the last time he'd checked. The wait was driving him nuts. Each minute felt like an eternity, and yet to keep his mind calm, he started counting them. An hour and ten minutes. Eleven. Twelve. Thirteen. Fourteen. An hour and fifteen minutes. Steve wasn't counting the minutes because it was taking him too long. He was doing the opposite of that. He was counting to see if Danny had a shot of making it out alive. Steve figured the longer they wouldn't hear anything, the greater the chance was that Danny would survive.

And although that seemed an adequate and comforting thought, there was still a possibility where Danny wasn't going to make it. If that were to happen, the surgeon could be standing in front of Steve literally any minute. Chilled with terror, Steve sat back down and went quiet. And just as he was hoping that no one would be entering the waiting room for at least two more hours, a man stepped through the door. Only it was not the person Steve was expecting.

The man barging in, Jin Leung. All alone, without any of his guards. He seemed furious and had his gaze fixed on Steve. "Commander McGarrett, where is my son?"

Steve stayed calm and seated. "Your son's being held by HPD until further notice."

Jin Leung's eyes were blazing with anger. "We made a deal, Commander."

"That's right, we did," Steve declared, rising up from his seat.

"Then you know that this was not our agreement."

"Neither was finding my partner like that."

Jin Leung's eyes narrowed. "What are you insinuating?"

"I changed our deal," Steve crossed his arms in front of his chest. "On my order, HPD will release your son, but that's not before I know my partner's gonna be okay," he stated. "And you better pray that he's gonna make it because if he doesn't make it — your son is going away for a very long time."

"Steve," Lou interfered before Steve could declare war with the Chinese Triad. But both men ignored Grover.

Jin Leung did a step forward. "Is that a threat?"

Steve stayed put. "No, I'm just stating the facts, Mr. Leung."

"Your father was a wise man. A man of his word. I sure hope you're too."

Steve gave a dismissive nod. "We'll see about that. Won't we."

WAITING ROOM - KING'S MEDICAL CENTER - O'AHU

After Jin Leung left, the waiting area went quiet again and stayed quiet for some time. The hospital had gone quiet too. They reached the time of night where the day shift hustle died down to a slow and easy night shift. All people waiting in the waiting area had been updated or picked up by doctors or had gone home for the night, except for the members of Five-0. They were still anxiously awaiting to hear if Danny survived.

And as they waited, another three hours ticked by without one single update. In those three hours, Steve had checked his watch, over and over. He had kept on counting the minutes for as long as he could, but he had reached the point where the math went absurd. So instead of counting, Steve was pacing nervously to deal with the wait. Crossing and recrossing the route between the elevator and the waiting area, side to side.

Reaching the elevator for about the fiftieth time, Steve watched the doors jerk open, and Eric Russo stepped out. The boy seemed relieved to see Steve standing there.

"Hey, I wanted to come sooner, but I had to process the skate park," Steve immediately felt sorry for the kid. "How bad is it?" Eric asked with eyes as big as a deer staring down a pair of headlights.

"Bad," Steve answered direct. Eric looked like he was about to cave in emotionally at any second now. Steve couldn't imagine how hard it must've been for Eric to process the scene. Blood all over the place, along with three days' worth of evidence, said; torture. Steve looked sincerely at the kid. "You okay?"

Eric shrugged. "It's just way too soon to be back here again, you know. It's not fair."

Steve let his eyes down. "No, it's not."

The both of them stood there in silence, letting the reality sink in. Then, after a beat, Eric asked. "Did anyone call Rachel yet?"

Steve exhaled deeply and ran his hand over his face. "No, and I don't think we should until we have more information."

Eric was fighting back the tears, but to make the moment less dire, he forced a small smile. "That bad, huh?"

There was no need to act all tough in a situation like this, so Steve grabbed the boy by his shoulder and pulled him into a hug. "I'm really sorry, buddy."

WAITING ROOM - KING'S MEDICAL CENTER - O'AHU

Lou had his eyes on the door, waiting for McGarrett to return for yet another pace down the hall. But, instead, he watched Tani return from a quick bathroom break. She had barely been gone for five minutes, yet she wanted to know if she missed something important. "What are they saying?"

Jerry shook his head. "Nothing yet, still in surgery."

Disappointed, Tani sat slouched back in her seat and started peeling her nails again. She seemed tired and nervous and worried sick. Lou took place in the chair opposite Tani. "What's on your mind, kiddo?"

Tani looked up at Lou, hesitated, and looked again at the floor. "I should've checked up on him." Guilt.

"Oh, c'mon now. This is not on you, Tani. We found him in time," Lou said, leaning forward in his seat. "Danny's tough. He'll pull through."

"You don't know that for sure," Tani pointed out the truth. "You saw what Kim did to him, right? There was honestly no chance for him to escape from that guy, was there?"

"Who? Danny?" Lou huffed, trying to lighten the mood and at the same time expressing his beliefs. "I'm pretty sure Danny would've taken Kim out for good if you and McGarrett hadn't shown up. You might not know this yet, but he's actually a damn good fighter. He can choke you without you realizing he was even near you."

Suspicion overtook Tani's face. "Really?"

Lou nodded, full of confidence. "Really, over the years, I've seen him handle himself just fine, and you might've been underestimating him because he's partnered up with a crazy skilled SEAL, but Danny," he shook his head. "Man, he's more than capable of taking out anyone that's in his way," and with his eye spying Steve and Eric entering the room, Lou added. "In fact, if you would put Williams and McGarrett in a ring, I would put my money on Danny."

Steve stopped dead in his tracks while holding a plastic tray of to-go coffee cups. "You're just saying that because you owe him after he put his money on you with that stupid tuna bet."

A smile beamed on Lou's face. "Now that's not true, and you know it."

It also put a smile on Steve's face, small and brief, as he passed around the coffee and handed Lou a cup. "You might be right."

Tani accepted her coffee graciously. "I learn something new about you guys every day."

WAITING ROOM - KING'S MEDICAL CENTER - O'AHU

The hours swam together — other people leaving, nurses coming and going — but Steve and the task force were still waiting. The clock ticked past seven in the morning and marked the end of a six-hour wait. The OR doors opened at the end of the hallway, and Dr. Keller came walking through with a small entourage of surgeons. As Steve jumped up from his seat, he studied their faces anxiously. Nobody said anything, which terrified Steve. He took a deep breath, bracing himself for whatever news he was about to face. However, there weren't enough deep breaths on this earth to prepare him.

He had waited for hours to know if Danny was okay or not, if he made it out of surgery or if he bled out and died. Steve needed to know. He managed to drag himself halfway through the hallway where he encountered the surgeons. The task force had followed him and were standing anxiously behind him. Swallowing hard, Steve found the courage to ask.

"How is he? How's-How's Danny?"

Dr. Keller pulled down his surgical mask, smiling. "Detective Williams' made it through surgery," once those words left the doctor's mouth, Steve let out a sigh of relief. "He's still in critical condition. Lost a lot of blood, but for the moment, we believe he's out of immediate danger."

Tani gently put her hand on Steve's shoulder and asked the doctor for confirmation. "He's gonna be okay? He pulled through?"

"Yes, he pulled through. And he's in stable condition, but it's still early. He suffered extensive injuries, and there's considerable internal trauma, so right now, he's in post-op, and once he regains consciousness, he'll be moved to the ICU. There we'll monitor him closely for the next couple of hours for any complications. We're doing everything we can. I promise."

"Thank you, Doc." Steve breathed out and smiled. He felt a warm flood of gratitude, and he could finally really breathe again. In that split second, he knew Danny was going to be okay.

"Sure thing," Dr. Keller gave a firm nod. "Commander, can I talk to you? Alone?"

In the short silence that followed, a million thoughts raced through Steve's mind. But one glance at the doctor and all hope drained from Steve's face. It left him without words. He simply nodded once, looked back over his shoulder at his friends, and followed the doctor up to a nurse's station at the end of the hallway.

Steve's heart was pounding in his chest. "Doc, did something— what's going on?"

"Take a breath," doctor Keller instructed, and Steve did as told. "Good, now I'm not gonna sugar coat it and say the surgery was easy," he said as he stretched his neck. "Danny's condition going into surgery wasn't ideal. The emergency thoracotomy we were forced to do is an invasive procedure. One that's already extremely tough on someone who's relatively in good condition. However, he did well, all things considered. I was even able to take care of the scar tissue near the old bullet wound and his heart. If he makes it through the next 24 hours, it should give him great relief and probably no longer problems breathing."

"I assume it's not why you wanted to speak with me, is it?"

"Well, no," the doctor confessed, and worry crossed his face. "Commander, your partner has been through hell. The extent of his injuries, left unattended, would've killed Detective Williams. I mean the amount of trauma, the blood loss — his injuries tell a really worrisome story."

Steve nodded, steeling himself to actually question what had been haunting his mind. "What'd they do to him?"

"Truthfully, Detective Williams' the only one who can answer that," the doctor said compassionately. "But if you're asking for my medical opinion, his injuries are consistent with someone who's been beaten badly. And repeatedly, I might add," as Steve had already figured that one out by himself, Dr. Keller continued. "He did put up a fight though, the cuts and contusions on his knuckles are quite severe, but are most certainly defensive wounds. As for the bruising around his wrists it more or less indicates that they had him restrained. Besides there are stun gun marks all over his torso. He's severely dehydrated, probably malnourished too. He was kept a prisoner, Commander. And I'd say they tortured him."

"I just, I-I really need to see him," Steve supplicated. "Can I see him?"

"All right, come with me."

They headed for the elevator. The doctor hit the button sending the elevator down to their floor. They waited, side by side, in silence. The doors jerked open after less than a minute. The elevator car was spacious. It was broad and deep and lined with stainless steel. They rode up one floor then stepped out. Steve checked the signs which way to go. Neonatal care was to the right. ICU to the left. They went left, passed the ICU, and followed another corridor around to a pair of tall glass doors. The doors were all the way covered with frosted window film, except for the letters PACU being cut out. The doors slid apart as the two men approached. Doctor Keller stopped about five steps away from the doors, and they slid back shut. He turned to Steve and sighed.

"Commander, on top of everything else I just told you, Detective Williams has a severe concussion. It might cause him to be confused and disoriented at times. Especially since his sight's limited as there's quite some swelling around the left eye socket," he signaled to his own left eye. "It's not gonna give him any problems. He'll be able to see just fine within a day or two. Though, the swelling in his knee's gonna be troublesome."

"His knee?" Steve frowned as the injuries were piling up by now.

"Yeah, he blew his right knee. The ligament fibers are partially torn. According to the orthopedic surgeon, rest and elevation are the best courses of treatment, but knowing he tore his ACL a few years back, we don't think he'll be able to put weight on that for at least a few days."

"He's going to anyway," Steve warned as he remembered Danny not taking the doctor's advice when he tore his ACL years ago either. "He's not very good at sitting still, you know."

"He'll have to," Dr. Keller stated, strict. "His injuries aren't giving him another choice. He needs to rest and a lot of it. The fist punches bruised his left lung and kidney severely. Four of his ribs are broken, one on the left, three on the right. We plated them during surgery, so hopefully, that will minimize the discomfort, but I'm not expecting him to get up and out of bed for at least a few days," he concluded. "He's right in here," the doctor pointed at the sliding doors. "Commander, don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to increase your worry, but the fact that he made it through major surgery doesn't mean he's in the clear just yet. The next twenty-four hours are crucial."

"I understand." Steve could only nod as none of that sounded reassuring.

"Good, I'm gonna give them a heads up that you'll be accompanying him. Now," the doctor checked his watch. "Sit tight. I expect him to wake up within the hour. He might be loopy or come across as doing fine, but that's due to the high doses of pain medication. That's, well, he needs it."

"All right, thanks, doc."

PACU - KING'S MEDICAL CENTER - O'AHU

Steve didn't go in right away. It took a moment for him to settle his nerves down before allowing his legs to take him to see Danny. Steve paused another beat, then did a step forward.

The sliding door opened, and he went inside the post operate care unit.

On the left, there was a wide window with blinds. They were closed against the morning sun but glowed and filled the rectangular room with soft white light. On the right side, there were gurney's lined up, a total of seven, standing separate and about two yards apart from each other. Three of them occupied, and the other four were prepped and ready for incoming surgical patients. Curtains divided the gurney into bays, but none were closed. The second gurney in line was occupied by someone Steve instantly recognized. He slowly walked over and stopped at Danny's bedside.

For a minute, the morning sun lessened the horrendous sight, but the medical equipment that packed the rest of the bay overshadowed the soothing white light. There was a silent respirator, disconnected. A crash cart, heart monitors, and an IV stand. Tubes were going unseen places and multiple bags and lots of wires, in the midst of all that was Danny. He lay flat on his back on the gurney. His eyes closed, sleeping deeply. His chest was bare and uncovered as the sheets were folded down at his waist. His right leg seemed raised underneath the sheets, probably with a pillow or two to elevate his knee. His arms were straight at his side. IV needles were taped to the back of his hands, and a pressure cuff wrapped around his left bicep. It buzzed as the cuff inflated around Danny's bicep, yet the buzz was subdued by the noise coming from other equipment that clicked and beeped as the seconds passed.

The way Danny lay there squeezed Steve's heart together. It was even worse than he had imagined. The right side of Danny's chest was covered with large bandages, one on each surgical incision. Two chest tubes stuck out from underneath the bandages, making their way down to a device hanging on the other side of the gurney. On the contrary, Danny's left side of his torso was bare and uncovered. The skin there pale and marbled with dark bruises. Stun gun marks scattered his chest, along with the circular patches that were connected by wires to the heart monitor. The screen showed sharp peaks and long troughs, and the machine-made a beep every time a rise hit the screen. Steve watched the monitor and swallowed away the fear that closed his throat. He dropped down on the uncomfortable chair near the gurney.

Steve's gaze flicked to his partner's face. There was oxygen strapped underneath his nose to help him breathe. It made his mouth suddenly seem crooked, or maybe the fat lip was to blame for that. Steve couldn't tell. Danny's face was a mess. It was certainly a lot better than hours ago. A whole lot better. There was a lot less blood this time. He was almost halfway human again, yet his facial injuries were awful. His nose was split and swollen, and bruising had spread under his eyes. His left eye, therefore, completely shut with swelling. Steri-strips were holding the minor cuts together. The one above his right eyebrow contained a few black stitches, the same for the cut on his right cheekbone. Even through the bruising, Steve could tell Danny's pallor was pale, paler than usual. Blood loss.

A few minutes later, a nurse came by. The man checked the monitors. He typed something down on a tablet, then turned to Steve. "Need anything?" He asked. Steve shook his head, taking a deep breath as all seemed good when the nurse left without significant adjustments to Danny's health. Then the room became completely silent except for the steady beeping of the monitors, a needling reminder of the horrible circumstances. He hunched forward, taking Danny's hand to let him know he was right there with him. Steve's eyes landed on the dark purple ligature marks around his friend's wrists. He instantly let go of Danny's hand and leaned back in his chair.

Steve sat there for thirty minutes, waiting for Danny to regain consciousness, but he didn't wake up. He was still deeply asleep. Steve watched the monitors as more minutes passed. Danny's heartbeat was strong and regular. His breathing was fine. Steve spent another twenty minutes with his eyes glued to the monitors. Then after those twenty minutes, hope rushed through Steve's body when Danny's hand twitched slightly. Steve leaned in as the faintest flicker of eyelashes presented itself. Danny's good eyelid fluttered a bit. He wasn't fully awake, but he was trying to open his eye and join the land of the living again.

"Hey," Steve urged his friend softly. He moved in closer and reached out, giving Danny's hand a comforting squeeze. "You with me, buddy?"

— TBC / HAWAIIFIVE0 —

A/N: Well, Danno made it through surgery, but he's clearly not out of the woods yet.

I'll post on Monday again! Have a good week!

Thanks for reading, the lovely and kind reviews and as always I love hearing what you think of it!

MAHALO