CHAPTER 23

Saturday afternoon, North Shore:

To say they were elated was an understatement. Knowing they had a solid lead had given the team renewed energy. Assuming Fuentes didn't realise his mistake, they could have Steve home in the next two hours. It was about thirty minutes to the location on the North Shore, twenty if Kono was driving. Depending on the set up there, they could be in and out quickly without Fuentes noticing.

"Are you sure about this, Kono?" Danny asked, not willing to believe it.

"Yeah, pretty sure. I traced the video back to where he was filming from. It matches the location of one of the rental properties. I think it's a safe bet that's where Steve is," Kono said excitedly.

"Is this place close to where we found Grace?" Danny asked.

Kono scrunched up her face in thought. "No. The other place is about twenty kilometres from these ones. Why?"

Danny shrugged. "I don't know. I was thinking if we expanded our search perimeter then, we might have found the house sooner."

"Danny, even if we did that, we didn't know what we were looking for then," Chin said.

Kono looked at Danny, noting his expression of disbelief. "Chin's right. Look, don't get me wrong, Danny, I know this is not a definite. I don't want to get my hopes up either, thinking we know where Steve is. But it's a good lead, the best one we have. Second guessing everything we've done up until this point won't help us. Besides, the more time we waste debating what ifs means more time that Steve is with Fuentes."

Danny hugged Kono. "You're right, Kono. So right. I could kiss you!"

Kono chuckled. "Maybe later. For now, let's go get Steve."

They grabbed all their tactical gear, plus a few extras. Danny often criticised Steve's need for their armoury to be ridiculously stocked. What kind of police officer needed hand grenades, for goodness sake? However, it was moments like this that Danny was grateful for his partner's paranoid tendencies. He was even more grateful that Steve had taught them how to use all of it.

"Should we follow you?" Danny asked Kono as they made their way to the parking lot.

"If you think you can keep up," Kono challenged with a small smile.

Kono jumped into her Cruze, with Chin and Danny quickly running over to the Camaro. Danny watched in amazement as Kono took off in a manner very similar to McGarrett.

"Who taught her to drive?" Danny muttered as he tried to follow.

Chin smirked. Danny looked over at his companion in the passenger seat.

"It was you?" Danny queried.

"I can neither confirm nor deny," Chin said.

"I'm not sure which of you is more like Steve. One McGarrett is enough. We don't need three egotistical SuperSEALs in the office, thank you very much," Danny ranted.

They followed Kono's red Cruze through the streets of Honolulu and up to the North Shore. The entire time, Danny criticised Kono's driving while proceeding to do the exact same manoeuvre. Chin wisely decided not to say anything. Kono suddenly turned off onto a dirt road and then abruptly pulled over and into a cove of bushes. Danny steered the Camaro in beside her, effectively concealing both cars from view.

The team exited their respective cars and checked their guns and vests. Each team member had packed more artillery than they usually would. They had much more at stake this time and they were prepared for anything.

"I suggest we go on foot from here. It's about one and a half kilometres that way," Kono said, pointing north. "The place is open, with very little cover. They will spot us coming a mile off."

"How should we do this?" Danny asked.

"We keep to the bushes as much as possible. Keep cover for as long as possible. We will survey possible entry points when we get there," Chin said.

"Sounds like a 'McGarrett' plan," Danny remarked.

"You make that sound like it's a bad thing," Kono said, sounding slightly off-put.

"No. I think it's exactly what we need," Danny said with a twinkle in his eye.

After a twenty minute traipse through the brush, resulting in them tripping over tree roots repeatedly, getting their faces scratched by low-lying branches and bitten by insects, they finally reached the property. Their position in the bushes gave them a good look at the property without giving away their location.

There was a large house with giant windows on each side of the structure. There was a long gravel driveway leading to the back of the property, where there was an empty carport. They couldn't see the wooden shack where Steve was supposedly being held, so they assumed it was behind the house and out of their range of sight. There was only open grass between them and the property. No cover whatsoever.

"What's the plan?" Danny asked quietly.

"I don't see any movement. The only way to get to the back without being seen is to go through the house, then exit at the back. Hopefully we won't encounter anyone," Kono said.

"Guys, I'm getting a bad feeling about this," Chin said.

"Me too," Danny said. "It's too quiet. If Steve was here, surely there would be men surrounding the complex."

"It could be trap," Kono said of the quietness surrounding the house.

"How so?" Danny whispered.

"Think about it. Until now, Fuentes has been very careful. Why would he go from sending recorded videos to a live feed? Why would he let it play for so long, allowing us to trace it? Either he's gotten very sloppy or it's a trap. He wants us here, for some reason."

"Or maybe he just wanted to taunt us some more?" Danny suggested. "Or he wants to draw us away for some reason."

"We are here now. If Steve's here and we turn back now, we will regret it," Chin said. "But I agree, it's too eerie. Let's do this carefully. Watch your step."

On Danny's count, the trio sprinted across the open grass to the front entrance of the house. Testing the door handle found it to be unlocked. Carefully and quietly, Danny and the cousins entered the house. They searched each room, not encountering Fuentes or any of his men. They reconvened in the kitchen, where they found the coffee pot to still be warm.

"No one's here," Chin relayed.

"They must have been here recently. The coffee is still warm," Danny said.

"I really don't like this," Kono said.

A muted bang caught their attention, making them nearly jump out of their skin. Readying their weapons, they moved to the back entrance of the house. Looking out the window, they saw a small, wooden shack. Looking at each other, they slowly exited the house. They walked across the grass, ready to move fast if anything unexpected happened.

They reached the shack without incident. Remaining on alert, they inspected the area around the shack. Nothing untoward leapt out at them. They could hear nothing from the outside. Danny reached for the door handle, but Chin grabbed his arm to stop him. Chin pointed at the ground and Danny saw why Chin had stopped him.

Chin had just saved his life.

"Whew. Thanks, Chin," Danny said in relieved whisper as he looked down at his feet.

Chin just nodded as he knelt down to inspect the trip wire at the base of the door. Danny was only a millimetre from having set if off. Chin traced the almost invisible wire to the side of the shack, where a small, but crude explosive device was hidden expertly in some long grass. Chin quickly disarmed the device and nodded to Danny, indicating it was safe to open the door.

Now even more alert, Danny carefully opened the door. As he inched it open, he inspected the area immediately around the door for any secondary booby traps. Luckily, there were none that he could see. Danny entered the shack slowly, keeping his eyes on the ground as he searched for anything out of place. Kono's audible gasp made his stop in his tracks. He turned to face her. He took one look at her ashen face and immediately felt sick.

Following Kono's line of sight, Danny's eyes roamed the small shack until he saw the object of Kono's disbelief. Hanging from the ceiling, held up by chains around his wrists, was Steve. He was covered in blood, bruises and burns. His head was hanging on his chest and he wasn't moving. His body listed to the right, thanks to his dislocated shoulder. The rapid, shallow rise of Steve's chest indicated he was still alive and still hanging despite the abuse his body had evidently undertaken.

Seeing his best friend like that spurred Danny into action. "Kono, find something to cut these chains! Chin, help me take some of his weight!"

Chin and Kono immediately followed Danny's orders. Kono ran back to the house to find some tools while Chin approached Steve. As soon as Chin touched Steve's legs, Steve moved. How he was able to move so quickly was unexplainable. In an instant, Steve had Chin in a strong chokehold between his legs. Chin struggled in his friend's hold, gasping for air. The more Chin struggled, the tighter Steve held on.

"Steve! Steve! It's Chin! Let him go!" Danny yelled, trying to get through to his friend.

Steve either didn't hear Danny or was ignoring him as he held fast. Chin was fading quickly. His face was turning purple as his oxygen supply was cut off. Chin held onto Steve's legs, trying to dig his nails in, hoping Steve would stop. Instead, Steve just kept holding on, as though he wasn't choking a member of his team, but some mystery assailant.

"Come on Steve! It's us. It's Danny, Kono and Chin….Steve, stop! You're killing him, Steve!" Danny yelled.

Steve continued to apply pressure to Chin's neck. Chin was getting desperate. Even tied up and beaten half to death, the SEAL was still an enigma. Danny looked around desperately, searching for something that would snap his friend out of whatever was going on inside his head.

"Steve, you need to let Chin go," Danny said quietly. "I don't want to have to hurt you."

Danny aimed his gun at Steve, hoping Steve would see them for who they were and not someone trying to do him harm. He hoped he wouldn't have to use his gun against his best friend, but looking at Chin as his eyes started to roll into the back of his head, he had to make a quick decision or someone would die. Namely Chin.

"Commander McGarrett!" Kono yelled, coming back into the shack with a pair of bolt cutters.

Steve opened his eyes at that and looked around the room, apparently confused, like he didn't know where he was. If Fuentes was telling the truth about the hallucinogen, then that was probably an accurate assumption. Steve's glazed eyes roamed over Danny and Kono. He still didn't let Chin go.

"Commander! Stand down!" Kono said in a stern voice.

Slowly, Steve let his legs uncoil from around Chin's neck. Chin dropped to the floor on his hands and knees, choking as he gasped for air. Danny slowly lowered his weapon as Kono rushed towards Chin and pulled him away from Steve's reach.

"Keep going, Kono," Danny whispered. "He's responding to you."

"Stand down Commander. It's over now. Help is here," Kono continued as she watched Steve visibly relax despite his unfocused gaze. "We'll get you down from there in a minute, sailor. Just hang in there."

Steve chuckled slightly. It sounded more like a cough, but at least it was a sound.

Kono smiled. "Excuse the pun, Commander."

Steve nodded slowly and closed his eyes, allowing his head to drop to his chest once again.

"No, no, no. No passing out Commander!" Kono yelled. She reached up to pat his cheeks. There was no response.

"Danny, help me get him down, now!" Kono said desperately.

Chin motioned to Danny that he was fine, to go help Steve. Danny grabbed Steve's legs, taking his weight as Kono grabbed a chair and climbed on top of it. It took a few moments for the bolt cutters to cut through the chains. As soon as they did, Steve's entire weight dropped on top of Danny.

"Shit," Danny said as he fell to the ground, Steve on top of him.

Kono quickly jumped off the chair and helped to roll Steve off of Danny. As soon as he was free, Danny rolled over next to Steve and felt for a pulse. He found one, but it was weak and slow.

"Ambulance is on the way," Kono said as she took Steve's head and placed it in her lap.

Danny quickly examined his partner's body. There wasn't much they could do for him right now, at least until the ambulance arrived. Steve was muttering incomprehensibly under his breath, tossing his head from side to side. Danny held his hand and started softly speaking reassuring words to his friend.

The wait for the paramedics seemed to take a lifetime. Steve remained unconscious the entire time, but continued to mutter nonsense. Every once in a while they could make out a word, usually 'Grace', or 'mum', or for some reason, 'fish'. Chin, finally being able to breathe again, had gone in search of medical supplies and water. He returned moments later with a blanket, which he wrapped around Steve.

Twelve minutes later, the paramedics arrived. The two medics wasted no time in assessing their patient. Steve remained unconscious through all of it. He showed no sign that he felt anything, even when they moved his dislocated shoulder as they placed him gently on the stretcher. The urgency with which the paramedics moved indicated the seriousness of the situation. Steve was not in good shape.

They walked quickly to the ambulance, Danny jumping in right after them. When one of the medics started to protest, Danny glared harshly, daring them to challenge him. Knowing Five-0's reputation on the islands, the medic tending to Steve decided it was best not to try to interfere. The other medic quickly closed the doors and ran to the driver's seat before taking off.

Chin and Kono watched as the ambulance left down the gravel driveway, lights and sirens blaring. They had found Steve. But would he be okay after all of this?

"He's going to be okay, right?" Kono asked her cousin.

"Of course. He's McGarrett. When is he ever not okay?" Chin said hoarsely, rubbing his throat.

"Sure. But what if he isn't?" Kono asked, doubting her cousin's confidence in their boss' ability to bounce back after such an ordeal.

"Then we will be there to help him," Chin said, almost whispering now.

"We should get that checked out," Kono said, pointing to her cousin's already bruising neck.

She led him over to the car. Chin turned around and opened his mouth, about to say something. Kono held up her hand to stop him.

"I've already called Duke. He's sending some units up here to process the scene. Yes, I did warn him about booby traps, so the bomb squad is also on their way," she said.

Chin nodded appreciatively as he let Kono guide him to the car and into the passenger seat. She jumped into the driver's side and started the car. With a sigh, she pulled out and drove towards the hospital where they would find Danny, hopefully with information about Steve.

"Everything is going to be okay, cuz," Chin whispered croakily.

The 'it has to be' went unsaid as they drove towards the hospital.

Saturday afternoon, TAMC:

Danny sat in silence in the back of the ambulance, watching as the paramedic worked on his partner. Steve was pale and gaunt. His chest was moving slowly and each breath looked like it was hard fought for. There were few places that weren't covered in bruises, cuts or burns. Danny cringed looking at Steve's shoulder. The same shoulder he had been shot in had also been dislocated. That had to hurt!

The paramedic was attaching pads all over Steve for various monitors. The paramedic, Sarah, Danny figured out by reading her name tag, was all business when it came to her patients. She was focused on making sure everything was in working order. She frowned looking at the stats on the monitors. She placed an oxygen mask over Steve's face, which seemed to help the breathing problem a little bit.

She tried to put in an IV, but found all of Steve's veins had collapsed, probably due to dehydration. She had just decided to try the other arm when Steve's eyes suddenly shot open. Steve's arm reached out, grabbing Danny's hand.

"Danny!" Steve gasped.

"Steve!" Danny said, not believing how clear his partner's eyes looked.

"Danny…where's Grace?" Steve whispered.

"She's safe, Steve," Danny replied.

"No, Grace. He…Grace…said…" Steve mumbled before his eyes fluttered closed again.

"Steve! What about Grace? Steve!" Danny asked desperately, but Steve didn't respond.

Danny looked at Sarah, silently asking her what was happening.

She smiled back at him reassuringly. "It's okay. His body's just reacting to a stressful situation. He passed out."

Danny huffed out a relieved breath. He didn't know how much more of this he could take. He just wanted it to all be over. But deep down, he knew that was wishful thinking. The image of his partner hanging from the ceiling permeated through his mind. He knew that was something he wasn't going to forget anytime soon.