"He wants Sara back," Steve reaffirmed his conclusion.

Chin nodded. "That's what we're thinking."

"Where is she?"

"She's back in San Francisco with Abby. They didn't come with me for that reason. They've also got added security. They should be fine until we get him."

"And this is also why Kono's coming." Steve began putting the pieces together.

"Yes," Chin confirmed. "That's a big part of it. She, of course, wanted to make sure you're okay, too, but she wanted to help in the search."

"Speaking of which, Kono and Adam should be here shortly," Danny said. "I'm gonna grab Chin and head to the office so we can get to work. You need your rest anyway and…"

"Wait a minute, wait a minute," Steve seemed a little put off. "You say you spoke with Gabriel day one, right?"

Danny nodded.

"It's been two days and you've heard nothing?"

"My guess," Danny surmised, "is that he knows that Chin hasn't been here. And if he knows that, he probably knows he's here now. I'll bet a week's salary that he's got eyes on us, either his own or some hired scumbag."

"You're expecting a call," Steve realized and spoke his conclusion aloud.

"Yeah, kinda."

Chin added, "We don't want to take the chance that he calls and we're not ready."

"If he does, I want to be notified right away," Steve demanded.

"So you can strap on a vest and join us?" Danny quipped. "Don't think so, Superman. You know you're still in intensive care, don't you?"

"Not for long… according to the doc."

"Well you'll go from one hospital room to another. Get it? Hospital room. Where you can heal. Where you can recover from being shot, you idiot… twice. You almost died. No, we'll let you know when we know something, but let us handle it. We got this. Okay? You stay here and be a good boy and do what the pretty nurses say and we'll be in touch. Let's go, Chin."

"Danny. Danny!" Steve yelled out in vain. "And do something about that rats' nest on your face, would ya?" Steve's voice slowed to a mumble.

Chin shrugged at Steve. Danny had already left the room. "Sorry, Steve. We do need to get on this. We'll be back."

"Get him to take care of himself."

Chin nodded. "Take it easy."

Feeling somewhat defeated, Steve sank back onto the mattress with thoughts about Gabriel and his Five-0 family. Gabriel had thrown down the gauntlet and now he was trying to manipulate his family for his personal gain once again. He had managed to get Chin, and soon Kono, to return to Hawaii. He had shot and injured Lou as part of his game. He had used Tani's naiveté against her and used her for his ulterior motives.

Though Danny tried to conceal it, Steve knew he was a mess and was bearing the burden of the world on his shoulders. The self-inflicted blame, concern, and anger were floating just below the surface, unnoticeable to most people, but evident to Steve who had become attuned to the signs in his partner over the years. He knew the combination of these stress factors could make Danny vulnerable.

Steve fought his instinctive yearning to help his family as he knew he physically could not be there for them. For a while, apprehension and restlessness persisted, but the continuous flow of meds began to win out and he drifted off to sleep.

~~~~~H50~~~~~

Chin caught up to Danny in the hall. "Danny, wait up."

"You gonna ride with me or take your rental?"

"I know you want to get to the office and work on this, but I think it would be best if you go home for a while and do a little recuperating yourself. How long has it been since you've slept?"

"I've slept."

"Sitting up in a hospital chair doesn't count. Go home. Get something to eat, take a shower… and shaaave," he drew out with a smile. "Then get some sleep, real sleep. I need to unpack and get settled anyway."

"You're not going to a hotel. No, man, you'll stay with me. Eric's got his own place now. I don't think you'll want to sleep in a pink girlie room or in a race car bed, but I've got a couch, better yet, you can have my bed and I'll take the couch. I fall asleep there a lot anyway while watching TV. It's very comfy."

"Oh, no, that's not what I meant. Since Adam's moved out, Kono's going to stay at her house and she's invited me to stay with her. It'll be a good chance to catch up. I appreciate it, though. I do, but we're good. Let's say we meet at HQ in the morning. It'll be just like old times."

"All right. All right. Have it your way, but you know you're always welcome. Kono, too."

"Yes, we know. So, does that mean you agree to get some rest and start fresh in the morning?"

Danny huffed loudly. "I guess," he replied reluctantly. "Kinda feels like I don't have a choice."

"One other thing," Chin added, "I think you should give me the phone to keep on me, just in case."

Danny pulled Tani's phone, in the white case, from his pocket and stared at it, hesitant to give up what seemed to be the only chance of finding Gabriel. "You're right. You should have it. I just want to be there when he reaches out."

"I know, but we don't know when that will be. It could be days, but if he does try to contact us, I want to be the one to answer."

"Yep." Danny handed the phone to Chin. "Just…"

"I know. I will let you know the instant it happens."

"I know you will. Thanks, Chin. We gotta get him."

"We will. I promise." Chin laid his hand on Danny's arm in affirmation.

~~~~~H50~~~~~

Kono stood patiently waiting for her luggage to appear on the baggage carousel. She sensed a reason to turn toward the doors leading in from the parking area. Her instincts were correct. Adam had just walked in and spotted her as well. She redirected her attention back to the belt as she saw and picked up her bag.

"Here. Let me." Adam had approached and was reaching for the handle of her bag.

"It's okay. I can get it."

"Please."

"Okay," Kono conceded, dropping her hold and waving her hand over the bag in offering.

"It's good to see you," Adam said honestly.

"You, too."

With the perceived permission, Adam leaned in for a hug and was glad that Kono reciprocated. Familiarity and reminiscence prompted a long embrace, but when Kono recalled the truth of their current situation, she withdrew. They shared a moment just looking at each other. Then Adam broke the awkward silence between them, "It's good to see you."

"You already said that."

Adam let out a small embarrassed laugh. "Yeah, um, how was your flight?"

"It was fine."

"You look good."

"Thanks. So, how are Steve and Lou?" Kono quickly changed the subject.

They began walking toward the exit, Adam rolling Kono's luggage beside him. "Steve's improving, faster than expected, so it looks like he's going to beat this."

"Good. That's good," Kono breathed out in relief. "That's our Steve."

"However, he is still in the ICU and hasn't fully awakened, but the doctor said it should be soon. Lou's doing great, though. He went home yesterday. He's been a little antsy to get back to work on this whole thing."

"Yeah, so, where are we at on that? Any more contact with Gabriel?"

"Not yet and right now the trail is cold. Not for lack of trying though. Danny's been running himself ragged between staying at the hospital and working on this."

"Uh, yeah, he would. So, he's taking it hard," she concluded.

Adam opened the trunk. "Um, hm. Having you and Chin back, though, will help. Sorry this is taking you away from…"

"Adam…"

"No, Kono," Adam spoke almost at the same time. "It's okay, I'm okay. I understand. You're doing what you have to do. I'm proud of you. Really."

"I just want to make sure…"

"We've been through this. It's good. We're good. We should get going."

Kono nodded. "'kay. Where to?"

"Thought I'd take you home. I mean, your house… to get settled."

"I'd like to go see Steve first, if that's okay."

"Sure, sure, no problem." Before they got in the car, Adam's phone began to buzz. "Hey, look who it is… Lou," Adam announced to Kono before answering. "Hi Lou, how's… it… going?" A person in a heather gray hoodie walking between cars a few rows over in the parking garage had caught Adam's attention. The person had peered back in their direction twice. "Yeah, yeah, I'm… here. That's… Hold it!" Adam let the phone drop onto the trunk of the car and reached for the gun that was not at his side. "Damn it," he breathed out as he remembered he didn't take his firearm into the airport since he was not there in an official capacity. He took off after the suspicious onlooker.

Kono saw the reaction and was on his heels. Adam was able to quickly overtake his target, laying his hands on the man's shoulders and whipping him around. "Gabriel!"

"What the hell, dude?!"

At seeing the man's face up close, he dropped his hands and stepped back. "You're not…"

"Jeez, man, what's wrong with you?"

"I'm, I'm sorry. I thought you were someone else."

Kono pulled up just in time to see the interaction. "Hey, everything okay?"

"Why don't you ask your boyfriend, here? You need to put him on a leash."

Kono stepped in front of Adam, her ire rising at the man's disrespect. "He apologized. It was just a misunderstanding. By the way, why were you looking at us?"

The man seemed put off by the questioning and just wanted to get on his way, but he felt the fastest way to accomplish that would be to answer the questions and maybe they'd leave him be. "I wasn't. I was just looking for the rentals. Must have gone in the wrong direction."

"And the hoodie? What's that about? You're in Hawaii," Kono didn't relent.

"What's with the twenty questions? I always wear 'em when I fly… to give me a bit more privacy, in case I want to sleep or just not be bothered, and those planes can get cold."

"Bet you have a lot of friends, brah," Kono added sarcastically.

"What?"

"Nothing. Just move on. Welcome to Hawaii. Aloha," Kono piled on.

"Hey, again I'm sorry," Adam called out to the retreating man.

"Lunatics." Adam heard the man mumble under his breath as he shook his head while continuing his search for his car.

Kono turned to face Adam. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I just thought…"

"You thought he was Gabriel."

"He looked like him."

"Yes, he did, but you can't let him get to you like this. I mean, it's good to be vigilant while he's out there on the loose, but being paranoid is something else."

"So, now I'm paranoid. Paranoid people are irrational. Do you think I'm irrational?"

"No, of course not. Sorry. I guess I should have chosen my words better. Say, I got to see some of your new Five-0 moves," Kono smiled with an attempt to be more lighthearted. "How are you liking your new gig, anyway?"

"It's good. It's better than good. Everyone has accepted me and I feel I've found a place where I can make a difference."

Kono smiled. "I know. I get it. That's exactly how I felt in the beginning," she lamented wistfully, briefly harkening back to her latest, self-assigned mission. "I'm glad, Adam. Really."

As they started their trek back to the car, they heard sirens in the distance. Then, they saw a couple of uniformed security officers from the airport running in their direction with their guns at the ready. They both stopped and looked at each other in realization. "Lou," they said in unison. The pair threw up their hands to pacify the officers.

"It's okay. We're, well, I'm with Five-0." Adam displayed his badge. "Everything's fine. I guess you heard from one of our team members."

Kono jumped in, "It was a big misunderstanding."

Honolulu police department cruisers were now converging on the scene as well. As they arrived, the newcomers got to witness the security officers backing down and securing their firearms and realized the situation was under control.

Kono picked the abandoned phone up off the car and saw that it was still connected to Lou. "You sure know how to welcome a girl back."

"Kono? Girl, is that you?" She heard the familiar, robust voice on the other end.

"Hi, Lou. Yeah, it's me. I guess we've got some explaining to do."

"Is everything okay? It sounded like Adam saw Gabriel."

"He thought he did, but it wasn't him… this time at least."

"Well, I wouldn't put it past the son of a bitch. Glad to hear everything is okay."

"The reason I was calling Adam to begin with was I heard from Danny. He's been with Chin at the hospital. They are going to call it a day and go home to get a good night's rest. He wants everyone to meet up at the Palace first thing in the morning. Will you pass that on to Mr. Noshimuri for me?"

"Sure thing, Lou. Are you going to be able to be there?"

"A little soreness and stiffness won't be able to keep me away. Yes, I'll be there."

"Great. I look forward to seeing you. I've missed you, Lou."

"I missed you, too, sweetheart. I'll call off the cavalry. You two be careful and I'll see you tomorrow."

~~~~~H50~~~~~

Adam parked on the street in front of the house they once shared. A car they didn't recognize was in the driveway and they both assumed it was Chin's rental. Kono had verified that he still had the house key she had given him years ago when they were both living on the island. It was now dark outside, but the lights that glowed through the sheer curtains were welcoming to the weary traveler. It had been a long day and Kono was eager to get inside and rest.

"Sorry you didn't get to visit with Steve," Adam said.

"It's okay. He looked like he was resting peacefully. That's what he needs right now. I'm just glad he's able to sleep and let his body continue to heal. I'll get my chance. Thanks for taking me, though."

"Sure. Of course."

Adam removed Kono's luggage from the trunk of his car and she grabbed it and immediately started walking toward the house.

"I wonder if Chin's still up or if he just left the lights on for us," she said, innocently including Adam with the normalcy of the moment.

She had almost gotten to the door when she turned, expecting to see Adam right behind her. He was not there. She saw him leaning against the car with his arms folded across his body. Even in the darkness, the street lights and moonlight cooperated so she could see a hint of a wistful smile on his face.

Ever since she and Adam had been together, he had always been there with her, going into their home together… or carrying her in his lap while he was in a wheelchair, she recalled, another grim reminder of Gabriel and the reason she was here. She rebuked herself for forgetting things were not as they used to be. Adam was not coming into this home with her anymore.

She rolled her eyes, angry at herself for the flub. She left her suitcase and walked back toward Adam, lifting her hands in apology before they ended up on her hips. "Adam, I… "

"It's fine," he half-laughed. Now the smile was apparent.

"Would you, would you like to come in? Just for a minute?"

Adam's smile faded. However, it wasn't from disappointment, but from a place of staid reflection. Now, it was his turn to fall back into a habit. However, unlike Kono, he recognized the audacity before acting but succumbed anyway. He carefully wrapped both hands under Kono's hair and around the back of her neck and leaned in and lightly kissed her forehead, lingering just a second longer than accepted decorum for friends. A comforting familiarity prickled her senses and allowed the moment.

"Good night, Kono." She had gotten her answer. He was not coming in with her, but at the same time, had been left with many other questions. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Good night, Adam," her tired self relented for now. She would have to deal with these fresh misgivings another time.

Adam got back into the car and waited until she safely entered her home. He had to admit to himself, it was good to have her back on the island, even if it had to be a detached, platonic relationship.

~to be continued~

\,,,/BronsonL