CHAPTER 6

Monday morning, unknown location:

The return to consciousness was slow and happened in waves. Steve would become slightly aware before the darkness would come for him again. When he finally awoke fully, his body shook with the cold. He curled in on himself, hoping to contain some warmth. Opening his eyes, he found he was blind. He questioned whether his eyes were even open. He blinked hard, hoping to see something when he opened his eyes again. After slowly opening them again, he decided he wasn't blind. The room was just really dark.

His mind felt foggy and his head pounded in time with his heart. His stomach rolled and he felt bile rising up into his mouth. A low groan couldn't be stopped from escaping his lips. He swallowed and took a few deep breaths with his eyes closed, willing the nausea to recede. Thankfully, after a few minutes, it did just that.

Keeping his eyes closed, he listened to the noises around him. Initially, all he heard was silence, indicating he was alone. Then, he could hear voices in the distance. They sounded like they were coming from a long way above him. The voices were very muffled and he couldn't make out any words. Based on the darkness in the room and the location of the voices, Steve deduced he was in a basement.

Opening his eyes again, Steve decided it was time to sit up. As he pushed himself into a sitting position, he realised his hands were restrained with what felt like zip ties behind his back, giving him limited mobility. Sighing, he leant against the wall and waited for the fresh wave of dizziness to pass. Then he realised he was sitting on a thin mattress, providing some protection from the cold, hard floor.

Steve tried to remember what had happened to land him in this predicament. Steve growled when he remembered that he, Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett, Navy SEAL, had been bested by four guys with fake bullets and masks. At first, Steve thought they were professionals. The more he remembered, the more he realised he had been holding back. But why did he hold back? Steve wracked his brains, trying to remember the reason.

He could have taken out all four of those men with one arm tied behind his back, but he was too worried about…

Grace!

Where was Grace? She wasn't in the basement with him, so where was she? They were both taken, hopefully to the same place - which could be anywhere on the island. Steve didn't have any idea how much time had passed since he was knocked unconscious. It could have only been a few hours or a day.

Danny would definitely know they were missing by now. If he hadn't had a heart attack at the fact that his daughter was missing, he would have called the team and started searching the minute he knew something was amiss. The sounds of the fight would probably have alerted the neighbours, which meant witnesses. All Steve had to do was wait for rescue and keep Grace safe.

He knew he couldn't hold back anymore. His priority was Grace's safety and getting her home to her family. He had to take any opportunity to get Grace out of here. He couldn't let what occurred at his house happen again. He would not let his caution overpower his training.

Whoever these people were, they definitely wanted them alive. Otherwise they would have left his dead body on his living room floor. The fact that the guns were loaded with blanks suggested that they didn't want to harm them. Now he just needed to find where they were keeping Grace.

Steve stiffened when he heard footsteps approaching what he assumed was the door to the basement. He heard what sounded like a key turning in a lock from his right. A door creaked open, allowing light to flood into the room, blinding him. Someone turned on a light, encasing the room in more light.

Steve blinked dazedly, the dim light from the single bulb in the ceiling having caused black dots to dance across his vision. Steve quickly blinked to clear his blurry vision so he could see what was happening. Three figures stood in the doorway, two tall and one very small. As his vision finally cleared, Steve could make out more than shapes.

"Grace!" he called.

The smallest figure suddenly ran towards him. Steve managed to get himself onto his knees before she collided with his chest and wrapped her arms around him, sobbing. Relief at the sight of Grace shot through him. Grace tightened her hold on her Uncle, causing Steve to grunt. Steve could feel his shirt getting soaked with Grace's tears. He silently cursed the people who were responsible for scaring Grace like this.

The two figures in the doorway watched the exchange with smirks on their faces, not that you could see them underneath the masks. Steve eyed the two men, whom stood casually in doorway, hands in their pockets. Steve averted his eyes to their holsters, spotting two guns.

As Steve silently consoled Grace, he glared at the two men standing in the way of their freedom. They obviously thought Steve and Grace were of no threat to them based on the way they slouched. Trying to go for one of the guns would have been a futile effort anyway. Steve's bound wrists weren't the issue. What stopped him was Grace. He feared what would happen to her if he made a move.

For the moment, Steve decided that Grace was more important than attempting an escape. He averted his eyes instead to the child gripping him with her deceptively strong arms. His eyes roamed over her body, looking for injuries. He was pleased when he found no obvious ones. What worried him was that Grace still hadn't stopped crying.

"Gracie. Are you okay?" Steve muttered into her ear.

Instead of answering, Grace burrowed her head into his shoulder and sobbed harder than before. The two men snickered at her reaction. Steve lifted his head and glared at the two men in the doorway. Apparently the fire in his eyes stopped them in their tracks. They cleared their throats and shuffled uncomfortably.

Steve wondered why they were hanging around, watching them with the door wide open. They obviously thought he wasn't a threat, restrained as he was. Steve vowed he would prove them wrong at the first opportunity that presented itself.

Steve decided the best thing to do now was to wait for Grace to calm down. He comforted her as best he could, whispering calmly in her ear and letting her hold on to him, despite the face he could no longer feel his arms due to the constriction from Grace's octopus arms.

A moment later, a third masked man came in to the room, carrying two trays. The man knelt down in front of them, placing the trays on the ground. Glancing at the trays, Steve saw there was food and water on each tray. Steve quirked his eyebrow in question at the man kneeling in front of him. The unknown man shrugged before standing up and walking back out of the room. The other two men followed him. The door closed behind them, the sound of the lock sliding into place reminding Steve of their bleak situation.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Grace lessened her hold on her Uncle, still not letting go, but not constricting his blood flow any longer. Steve continued to wait for her to relax enough to let go of him. After about fifteen minutes, he got his wish. She finally unwrapped her arms, wiping her face free of tears with the palms of her hands.

"It's okay, Grace. Everything is going to be okay," Steve promised.

Grace sniffled. "Who are those guys? What do they want from us?"

Steve looked into Grace's wide, fearful eyes. He sighed before answering. "I don't know, Grace. I really don't know."

Grace's next question caused Steve's stomach to flip.

"Are they going to kill us?"

Steve didn't know how to answer that question. The facts were that they were provided with food and water, the men had remained masked and they hadn't been harmed (at least physically). All of those things pointed to a typical kidnap and ransom scenario. However, Steve knew more than anyone how a simple hostage situation could change in an instant. Steve knew they had to be careful. If the team didn't get here soon… well, that was something Steve didn't want to think about.

"Gracie, I need you to listen to me very carefully," Steve said, making sure to keep his voice steady. "Nothing is going to happen to you. You are going to be fine. If they wanted to kill us, they would have done it already."

Steve hated having to be so brutally honest with the young girl, but he needed her to understand that one fact. He hoped that would provide her with a small amount of comfort.

Grace's bottom lip trembled. "I want Danno!"

"I know, Gracie. Me too," Steve lamented. "But you know what? Danno is probably on his way right now. He would know something was wrong as soon as he got back to my house. He has probably got the team searching for us right now. Besides, Danno's the best detective I know. He'll find us."

Grace nodded, determination present on her face.

"Now, Danno is going to need some time to find us so we need to take care of ourselves until he does. How about you eat some of that delicious looking food?"

As soon as Grace turned her head to look at the food on the trays, Steve grimaced. On each tray was a small cup of water, a stale looking sandwich and a few, browned pieces of what looked like apple. It certainly didn't look appetising, but Steve knew they would need all the sustenance they could get if this turned out to be a long-term predicament.

"What about you, Uncle Steve?" Grace asked, looking at the way Steve's hands were secured behind his back.

"I'll be fine, Grace." When Grace pouted, Steve amended his statement. "How about you eat first and then you can help me eat?"

Grace seemed satisfied with that and began eating. Apparently she was hungry as she ate with gusto. Then Steve remembered that they had never gotten around to making the pancakes. That had to have been at least eight hours ago, Steve thought.

While Grace was eating, Steve took the time to inventory the room they were in as he looked for possible weapons. Glancing around, he noticed the walls were constructed of what looked like solid concrete. There were no windows to see out of or identify a possible location. Other than the bulb in the ceiling, there were no other sources of light. The floor appeared to be also concrete. The mattress he and Grace were sitting on was thin, with no springs that he could rip out of the stuffing. The only exit was the door that stood mockingly in the way of their freedom. From his position on the mattress, Steve could see that it was made of solid wood and opened inwards, which meant any attempt at kicking it down would be pointless. There were no hinges present on this side of the door, ruling that out as an escape method.

For now, it appeared there was no way to escape. Steve knew they would have to wait for an opportunity to arise, preferably outside of the basement. Steve had deduced they were in the basement due to the cool, damp atmosphere and the lack of windows or natural light. Another cursory glance around the room indicated there was nothing he could use as a weapon.

A noise from upstairs brought Steve out of his pondering about escape techniques. Apparently, it had also caught Grace's attention, as she shuffled closer to Steve. The sound of footsteps approaching caused Grace's breath to hitch. Steve hated that she was scared by a simple noise. Steve sat up straighter, waiting for what happened next.

"Is it them?" Grace whispered, afraid to make any noise.

"Probably. When they come in, Grace, let me do all the talking. Okay?" Steve said.

Grace nodded in response. The sound of a bolt sliding across caused Grace to jump slightly. The basement door swung open, hitting the wall behind it with a loud bang. In the doorway stood three men. Steve couldn't tell if it was the same three from before, or even the same men from his house. One of the men walked into the room, his dark, cold eyes fixed on the pair huddled on the mattress.

"Miss Williams! Would you please follow me?" the man said, smiling sinisterly at the small girl.

Grace shook her head, immediately latching on to Steve.

The man sighed. "Mr Williams, would you mind telling your daughter it would be in her best interest to cooperate?"

Steve's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. They still thought he was Danny? They honestly couldn't have mixed the two of them up that badly. Apparently, they hadn't done their homework. Steve's original assessment that whoever these people were were professionals flew out the window.

"She's not going anywhere," Steve said, rising to his feet and standing in front of Grace protectively.

"Unfortunately, that's not for you to decide," the masked man said.

"And I said she's not going anywhere," Steve retorted in a low voice, one Danny often termed his 'Commander' voice.

The two men from the doorway moved into the room and stood in front of Steve. They were both tall and lean. One man's breath smelt of stale cigarettes and alcohol. Without warning, one sucker-punched Steve in the gut, causing him to fall to his knees and try to catch his breath. The other man had somehow managed to grab Grace and pull her towards the door.

Grace's piercing scream gave Steve the urge he needed to stand back up and make a stand. He didn't get far before he felt something cold at the back of his neck.

A gun.

Steve sighed and allowed himself to relax, to show he was not a threat.

"Good choice," the man holding the gun muttered.

"If you touch one hair on her head, I will personally end you," Steve threatened in a low growl.

"We don't plan to, but good to know," the man with the cold eyes said.

Steve watched as Grace was dragged, sobbing, from the room. With a gun pointed at his neck, he knew he wouldn't be able to help her without getting himself killed. He could help her more by being alive. The man behind him uncocked the gun and walked out of the room calmly, locking the door behind him. Steve slumped back down on the ground in defeat, his stomach throbbing from the punch he had received earlier.

He was disappointed in himself. He should have done more to protect Grace, perhaps insist that he went with her. He wondered what Danny would have done. Steve decided he probably would have gotten himself shot trying to protect his daughter.

Monday morning, Five-0 Headquarters:

Danny Williams sat in Steve's office, tapping his fingers on the mahogany desk while he waited for information. He reached for his mug, which held the, now stale, brew of coffee that Kono had concocted two hours earlier. The caffeine, instead of allowing his to focus, had only caused his anxiety to worsen. CSU had finished processing Steve's house hours ago. The evidence was being analysed while Danny sat there, doing nothing. As soon as any results came in, Danny knew the team would be ready to act at a moment's notice.

Danny was beyond worried. His daughter, his precious monkey, had been kidnapped. The only thing that comforted him was the thought that Steve was still with her, protecting her from the bad guys. He only hoped his partner wouldn't do anything stupid to bring harm to either of them.

The computer on Steve's desk beeped, indicating an incoming email. Danny quickly clicked on the email and opened the attached report. He sighed despondently. There were no hits on the BOLO or Amber Alert. Danny didn't know what he expected. Results, something they could go on perhaps. Steve and Grace had been missing for eleven hours now. They couldn't afford to wait around and do nothing.

Danny groaned when he thought about the phone call he had had with Rachel. Doing this job, it was always hard when you had to tell a family member bad news. It was even harder when it was someone you knew. It was monumentally hard when it involved your own family. Rachel had been hysterical and all Danny wanted to do was take the pain away. Instead, he had told her to stay home and wait by the phone, just in case a ransom call came through. He had also provided her with a protective detail. Just in case. At least, that's what he told himself. He knew the phone would never ring, but Rachel didn't need to know that.

They still had no clues as to the motive behind the kidnapping. That's what they were treating it as. There was no way Danny wanted to think about the alternative. Danny wanted to think it had something to do with his partner; an old enemy coming out and looking for revenge. But Danny also had to consider the fact that it might have something to do with him. After all, he was the common denominator when Steve and Grace were considered.

Images from the scene flashed before his eyes. He could still feel the fear in the pit of his stomach when he noticed the door was open. He remembered the splintered remains of the lanai door. He shuddered when the image of blood on the lanai invaded his vision. Danny prayed that it wasn't Grace's or Steve's.

Danny glanced down at the desk, where Steve's personal effects, the ones recovered from the crime scene (he hated thinking of Steve's home like that), were sitting in evidence bags. Nothing had been found on them, but Danny wanted to keep his friend's wallet, phone and keys safe. Danny had already been through Steve's phone, hoping that he had somehow left a secret message on it for them to find. No such luck. Danny knew it was wishful thinking, but he couldn't help but hope.

Danny sighed as he leant back in Steve's chair. He sat immediately upright when the phone on the desk rang. Danny quickly grabbed his partner's phone, hoping for…he didn't know what. Instead, he saw the caller ID was unknown. Danny answered hesitantly.

"Hello?"

The voice on the other end spoke so fast that Danny had trouble keeping up with what they were saying. Once they slowed down, Danny recognised the voice.

"Matty?"