Thanks for reading and for the lovely reviews. I appreciate it a lot!

I don't own anything of H50.

English is not my native language so forgive me any mistakes :)

Danny drove past the address he got from Junior, a farmhouse. He turned and parked up a track fifty yards away so the car would be hidden from the road. In the bright moonlight they could make out the farmhouse and spacious land, completely enclosed within an eight-foot-high wall. The rest of the team wasn't there yet. Danny felt his stomach moving, the first signs of butterflies for what lay ahead.

They noted the wooden gates at the front of the property. A keypad together with a camera and infrared spotlight were the only obvious security.

They approached the perimeter wall, Danny's senses on alert for any guards patrolling on foot outside, or any signs of security. There didn't appear to be anything. He signaled to Catherine with his hand. She nodded and they carried on, doing a full circuit around the outside wall, scoping out the property.

There was another wooden gate on the east side, but smaller than the one in the front. It had a camera and a security keypad. Danny could feel the adrenaline rushing through him. He felt a sudden surge of hope. It must be the right place with all the security around.

Danny's phone buzzed. He got it out of pocket and lanced over the screen. It was a text from Tani. ETA 9 mins. "Nine minutes," he whispered.

"Do you want to wait?" Catherine asked as she secured her tac vest.

He hesitated for a moment. There was no easy way to do this. Danny knew that the stakes and the risks are high. They could quite easily be walking into a death trap. They had no idea how many perps there are in the house and it was only two of them for now. But Steve's life could be hanging in the air and it was the last thing he would risk. Every minute counted. Danny was determined to save Steve and get Aaron and Esther Bennett here and now. The team can join them once they arrive. "No," he said, shaking his head.

He pointed towards the back corner of the wall, which seemed to be the darkest spot and far enough from the cameras. They sneaked over there.

They jumped up, reached for the top of the wall and pulled their bodies to the top. Once there, Danny got a look at the house. He could see the security lights attached to the back of the house. The numerous lights were on inside the house. Enough to provide some illumination for him to make out the layout of the grounds. Bellow them along the wall were thick bushes. There were three vehicles parked near to the house: two SUVs and a van. But there was no sign of any guards outside.

They gave each other a nod and pushed their bodies over the wall. They crouched low behind the bushes, waiting to see if anyone had been alerted by their arrival but they seemed to be in the clear.

They crept along the wall when the door in the back of the house opened. Danny turned his head toward the sound and froze. He heard the voice before he saw anyone. He laid down in the grass with Catherine. If they stayed still, they would hopefully remain out of sight. Two men emerged from the doorway, assault rifles slung over their shoulders. The men continued to walk toward the gate in the front of the property. Danny was glad they took their rifles from the car instead of just walking in with the handguns. Once the men were far enough, Danny and Catherine lifted up and began to move forward, crouching low.

There was another door on the side of the house. He signaled Catherine and she nodded, understanding what his plan was. They will go in that way, come upon them from the side or from behind. They approached the door and to their surprise, it'd been unlocked. Danny turned the door handle, pushed the door in and they moved forward into the house, guns drawn. The door led into a pantry. There was another door, closed a few feet in front of them. They headed for it, Catherine walking behind Danny.

The door led into a hallway with several more doors leading from it, no sounds from behind any of it. Sneaking around they heard muffled voices in the distance. They carried on toward the end of the corridor, where two door were set opposite to each other. Danny crouched low as he peered into the lit room on the right, from where the voices had come. He saw two armed men standing there and talking.

He was about to signal Catherine to move when he heard footsteps behind them. He turned his head, looking past Catherine. There was another man with a rifle in his hands. "Shit! Move!"

With a shriek somewhere between surprise and anger, the man lifted his weapon and opened fire as they shifted behind the corner. Peeking out, Danny fired back in the direction of the man, sending him to the ground in a heap. Then they heard other voices, shouting.

They rolled into one of the rooms and dived over the top of a big sofa for cover just as another man reached the doorway, firing. Danny knew they couldn't stay there as the sofa would provide only as much cover. He looked at Catherine and nodded over the door. "Cover me." He leaped up and moved quickly across the room. He didn't look back but heard gunshots coming from where he had left Catherine. In between the shots he heard the man cry out. She'd got him.

Coming back to the hall, they could hear footsteps and voices coming from behind a corner. In the opposite direction, on the other end of the corridor, Danny caught a glimpse of a man running away from there. "It's Bennett," he hissed.

"Go," Catherine said. "I'll take care of them."

Danny didn't hesitate. He couldn't let that son of a bitch escape. He sprinted down the hall, running as fast as he could. He could hear gunshots from behind him, he was sure Catherine will handle it just fine. He bounded down the corridor and saw Aaron outside, climbing into the passenger seat of the SUV.

Aaron glanced back at Danny, making eye contact. Danny could swear Aaron grinned. He knew he was getting away.

"No!" Danny shouted, anger in his voice. He opened fire but within a second Aaron was safely inside the car. Danny ran forward, gun held out. He fired again and again but the bullets only hit the metal of the car. There was nothing he could do, he didn't have a shot. The SUV sped away, through the open back gates and into the dark. He'd blown it. He had Aaron and he'd let him get away.

Another gunshot echoed from the house. And if Aaron'd been there before, there was a big chance Steve was somewhere inside too. He didn't lose any more time, he rushed back to the house as he heard a few more gunshots from inside. He kept his weapon drawn. Approaching the corner of the hallway, he paused, listening for any clues as to who might be around. Nothing.

But a sound from downstairs caught his attention. Someone was there. Holding the gun in front of him, he carefully approached the stairway and peeked from behind the corner. It was clear. He slowly moved forward, one step at a time, his weapon drawn all the time. There were a small, square hallway and two wooden doors on the bottom of the stairway, directly opposite each other. One was closed, the other one half-open. Leaning against the wall, only inches from the open doorway, he heard movement coming from inside. He waited for it to go quiet, then quickly moved into the doorway, twitching on the trigger of the gun.

Danny lowered his gun and his jaw opened as he found himself staring down the barrel of a handgun, just inches from his face. But it was not the gun in his face that made his heart skip a beat. It was the man holding it.

"Steve?"

His best friend was leaning his back against the wall, using it for support. He was barely keeping himself on his feet, he was pale, battered up and covered in blood. His whole body was trembling and he had a weird, blank look in his eyes. The one that Danny had never seen before. But he was alive. Steve was alive. They found him. Nothing else mattered at the moment.

"Steve, are you all right?" Danny lunged forward to make sure his partner is okay but Steve made a step back, still holding a gun at Danny's face. He looked scared and confused. As Steve made another step back, he wrapped an arm around his ribcage, as though movement sent a spike of pain over there. He'd clearly been in pain.

"It's all right, buddy. You're safe now," Danny said with a pleading look in his eyes but Steve didn't seem to be listening. He was staring at Danny, his thoughts clearly somewhere else. Feeling a surge of anger and hatred towards Bennett's for doing this to his best friend, he took another step toward Steve but he ducked again, the hand with the gun trembling. He didn't say a word. "Steve? Drop the gun. It's me. It's Danny." Nothing. Just a blank gaze, like he couldn't even recognize his partner.

"Steve, what are you doing?" Danny asked, hoping his friend will lower the gun so he can finally get him out of this place. A big lump formed in his throat as Steve didn't move nor say anything.

"Buddy, I don't know what they've done to you. But you're safe now," Danny kept talking to him. "You're hurt, let's get you out of this place." Danny straightened his arm toward Steve but it only made his partner even jumpier, his finger squeezed around the trigger.

Danny could feel the pit of his stomach churning out of concern by now. He never saw Steve in such a state, he would never aim a gun at him, no matter what he had been through. "Come on, drop the gun. Let's go," he pleaded.

Steve's eyes softened for a brief moment, hesitating, but his gaze went cold again just shortly after. He didn't move his finger from the trigger, didn't lower the weapon. The right hand in which he held the gun had begun to tremble even more. He took another two steps back until he had reached the corner of the room.

Danny didn't try to move closer this time, he didn't want to scare Steve even more. He just held both of his hands up and in front of him, showing Steve he won't hurt him.

"It's all right, buddy. It's all right. Let me help you," Danny kept trying, his voice pleading.

But besides a few groans of pain Steve didn't make a sound, didn't move. As Danny stared into the barrel of the pistol, a cold shiver swept across him. He noticed something in Steve's eyes changed and in a split second, a deafening bang echoed the room as Steve pulled the trigger.

After she shot the last perp going after her, it was all quiet. No signs of any movement anywhere. Catherine emerged from her cover and moved to the lounge just next door. Clear. The rest of the team should be here any minute now. A sound came from her right. It came from the corridor. She spun on her heels, her finger twitching on the trigger.

She peeked from behind the doorway but couldn't see any movement. There hadn't been any other sound. She moved through the hall with stealth, gun drawn in front of her. She heard another sound, definitely a movement. Her finger twitched on the trigger again. She had to concentrate. If she wasn't careful, it could be well someone from Five-0 she shot.

She was almost relieved when a gunshot rang out, loud and clear. At least now she had an idea which way to go. She guessed it had come from the downstairs. But the relief was short-lived. Not long after the shot came a muffled scream. It sounded like Danny.

She kept on moving with a gun raised in front of her, turning right to the stairway. There was a movement behind the half-opened door. She kicked the door open and moved in quickly. But she came to a stop when she spotted them. Just in front of her, there were two people.

Danny. And Steve.

She stood frozen in horror as Danny staggered backward and leaned his back against the wall, slowly sliding down on the floor and leaving a red trail on the wall. Red blood seeping through his shirt on the right side of his chest, right under the collarbone.

Danny's pistol laid out of his reach and Steve stood above him with a gun pointed at Danny. He was pale, barely fighting to support his own body weight, and covered in dried blood. His hand was shaking as he kept the gun aimed at his best friend while holding the free hand on his ribs, his face in a painful grimace.

Her heart was pounding in her chest. She exchanged a quick glance with Danny who remained silent, not hiding the pain and worry in his eyes. He was leaning his back against the wall and only his gasps of pain were breaking in the silence. The blood was oozing between his fingers as he pressed his left hand to the wound. A lot of blood, flowing too fast, Catherine discerned.

"Steve?" she whispered hesitantly. He didn't seem to react, the barrel of his gun was still aimed in Danny's direction, his eyes locked on Danny.

"Steve, what are you doing?" she asked again, this time louder, but her voice was still shaking.

Nothing. She approached closer to his side carefully, as though she was trying to catch a scared animal. She could see his face, all battered up and his gaze still locked on Danny. The look in his eyes was cold and empty. His breaths were fast and shallow and he seemed to be in pain, the tremors in his hands were visible. He didn't answer, didn't move.

"It's me, sailor," she assured him with a familiar nickname, her eyes briefly checking on Danny. He didn't look good, he needed an ambulance. Fast. The adrenaline was rushing through her body. "Steve, drop the gun, please. It's Danny. He's your best friend, you don't want to hurt him, okay?"

Steve's breath quickened and something in his face changed, the look in his eyes softened for a moment, but he kept the gun in the air. "I don't want to hurt him," he mumbled. "I have to." The last three words were barely a whisper, she could barely hear them.

The puddle of blood around Danny was growing bigger and Catherine noticed he was fighting to keep his eyes opened. "Steve, h needs help, we need to call an ambulance. Give me the gun, please."

Steve stood still for a moment, then he slowly lowered the gun a few inches. She could see a tear running down his face, his eyes still locked with Danny's.

"Steve," Danny whispered through jolted breaths. "It's all right, you're safe."

Catherine's heart was pounding against her ribcage as she watched Steve closely, waiting for him to drop the gun completely.

But instead, Steve lifted it up and aimed it in Danny's face again, ready to shoot. "I'm sorry, Danno," he whispered with tears in his eyes and squeezed the trigger a little tighter.

"No!" Catherine yelled and barged into Steve, throwing the gun out of his hands at the same moment the shot rang out of it. She quickly turned her gaze to Danny, but she didn't see any new blood. Just a small hole in the wall next to his head. That was too close.

The moment she turned her back to Steve to check on Danny, she could feel Steve's weight bumping into her, pushing her against the wall in full force. A loud ringing sounded through her skull as her head hit the hard surface. The tears in his eyes were gone, his gaze was cold and blank again.

Groaning, Danny tried to push himself up but a wave of nausea and dizziness washed over him along with the pain as his legs gave out on him, sending him back to the ground. "Steve, stop!" he shouted. "What's the matter with you?" Stop, damn it!"

Catherine's throat was wheezing and burning from where Steve choked her. He choked her. She couldn't entirely believe it, the feel of his hands around her neck, the panic of gasping for breath and not finding it there, the weight of him pushing her against the wall. She opened her mouth and tried to shout, to bring him back, but the words were gone, like in those dreams where you scream and nothing comes out.

"Cath!" Danny screamed, unsuccessfully trying to lift himself up and help her. "Steve, stop. Please?" he begged but Steve didn't listen. The wild look on his face was fixed on Catherine now as he squeezed her throat with all the strength he had left.

Catherine gasped for air as she tried to pull Steve's hands away, getting weaker every second. The cold look in his eyes is the one she won't ever forget. This was not him. This wasn't their Steve. Despite the absurdity of it, all she could feel was a sudden fear for Steve, fear that crushed her lungs. She saw this kind of look in other men's eyes before and it usually didn't end up well for them. She blinked away the tears that have filled her eyes.

"Come on, buddy," Danny pleaded. "Listen to me!" Nothing. He pushed his hand into the ground in an attempt to lift himself up but his body didn't listen to him anymore. He gave Catherine a scared look, silently begging her to do something.

Catherine knew Steve was hurt, and by now she knew exactly what'd happened to him. She didn't want to hurt him even more but as the last air was squeezed out of her lungs, she had no choice. She mustered all the power she could as she raised her leg and threw her knee back and up, aiming for Steve's gut. He let out a loud groan, weakening his grip on her neck just enough. She immediately took a deep gulp of air. Before Steve had a chance to recover, Catherine turned around and thrust an elbow, aiming for his waistband where his bladder was. The elbow dug deep and his legs kicked out involuntarily as he'd known they would, causing Steve to stumble backward. She threw herself down on the floor between Steve and Danny, reaching for Steve's gun next that'd been lying on the floor, aiming it in Steve's direction with tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

"Cath?" she should hear Danny's scared and weak voice behind her back. "What the hell are you doing?"

"You need to fight it, Steve," Catherine said, locking her gaze with Steve's, ignoring Danny. "I know you're in there, don't let them win."

Steve regained his senses and stared at her for a few seconds, the blank look in his eyes still there. He looked at the handgun in Catherine's hands. "Do it," he said eventually, with no emotion in his voice.

Danny's eyes jumped from Steve to the gun Catherine aimed at him and back. "No, no, no. No one's shooting anybody," he muttered. "Steve, it's us. It's Danno and Catherine. We want to help."

"Do it"! Steve yelled, looking into the barrel of the gun in Catherine's hand, not moving an inch.

Tears were streaming down Catherine's face as she stood up, the gun still aimed at Steve. Her hands were shaking, her finger on the trigger. "Go," she whispered, locking her eyes with Steve's. "Go. We won't stand in your way."

Steve hesitated for a moment, made a few steps back toward the doorway to make sure she was serious but no shot came out of her gun.

Danny creased his brows in confusion, wondering what was going on. "What?" he barked. "No, you're not going anyw-" A sharp pain in his chest stopped him in the middle of the sentence. He growled, looking at Steve. "Steve, don't. It's gonna be all right. Please."

Steve glanced over Danny, who barely kept his eyes opened, and Catherine, still aiming the gun at him, then he spun on his heel and walked out of the door.

"Steve," Danny whispered, fighting to stay awake. But his partner couldn't hear him anymore. He was gone, again. "Son of a bitch," he muttered, gritting his teeth.

Catherine made a quick call to get the ambulance and dropped on her knees next to Danny. His hand was slowly sliding down from the wound and he was almost as pale as the wall behind him. She pressed her hands against the bleeding wound on Danny's chest, tears still running down her face.

"Danny, stay with me," she said as his eyes fluttered shut. "Hey, open your eyes."

Danny forced himself to open the eyes but everything began to be fuzzy and Catherine's voice was fading slowly. "Steve," he whispered again.

His voice was faint and tremulous. They needed to go after Steve, they couldn't let him go, wherever it was he wanted to go. His friend was hurt and who knows what those criminals did to him to attack Danny and Catherine like this. He was not himself, he needed help. All Danny wanted was to stand up and run after his best friend, to ensure him it's going to be all right, whatever happened. But keeping the eyes open was enough struggle, let alone following Steve.

"I know," Catherine soothed him. "We'll bring him back, okay? But we need to take care of you first."

The sound of several pairs of footsteps was coming from upstairs.

"Over here," Catherine screamed to get the attention of the rest of the Five-0 team who appeared in the doorway a few seconds later.

The horror in their eyes was obvious as they entered the basement room and saw half-conscious Danny bleeding out and Catherine crying next to him, trying to slow down the bleeding.

"Oh, God!" Tani exclaimed.

"Was he shot? Where is his vest?" Adam asked, surprised by the fact Danny went into the house without his tac vest and without a backup.

"What the hell happened?" Lou asked, his jaw wide open. "Did you find Steve?"

Danny's eyelids felt too heavy to keep his eyes opened, so he fluttered them shut. He just listened to the voices around him, they sounded distant.

"Danny, stay with me," Catherine pleaded, ignoring all the questions. There was no time to explain now. "You need to stay awake, just a little longer."

She gently shook Danny's shoulder to bring him back to senses, begging him to hold on. She knew it was not Steve they knew who did this but if Danny dies, finding Steve won't matter anymore. Because even if they brought him back somehow, he would never forgive himself that he had killed his best friend, his brother.

A few moments later a sound of sirens in the distance carried through the house. "The ambulance is almost here, just a few more minutes," Catherine said. "Danny? Open your eyes."

Catherine's pleading voice made him open his eyes again with what seemed a great effort. He had to. He couldn't die yet. His family needed him. Steve needed him. He clenched his fists in an attempt to ride out a wave of pain and blinked his eyes several times, trying to bring the world around him into focus.

Minutes passed and the voices around him blended together, fading away. He wasn't sure how much time had passed before a fuzzy figure rushed toward him, then another one. He felt almost detached from his body, weak and tired.

Another wave of pain washed over him as two pairs of hands laid him down and his eyes slipped shut again. He felt being lifted and moved, the voices around him sounded concerned. Then the voices slowly faded away along with his consciousness, bringing the respite from the pain.

I hope you liked this chapter and I'd greatly appreciate if you found a few seconds to let me know what you think.