Once again thanks a lot for your reviews, it's what keeps me writing this story. I appreciate it a lot!
Here's a shorter chapter as the following one will be a long one.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
Danny and Catherine walked into the headquarters and all the eyes turned to them in surprise.
"Danny?" Tani said.
"What are you doing here, man?" Lou asked. "You are supposed to be in the hospital."
Danny forced a slight smile and clenched his fists in an attempt to ride off the wave of pain and dizziness washing over him. The hospital was not an option now. They were running out of time and options, and Steve needed them. He needed him. He wanted to be there when they find him, to reassure his best friend it's going to be all right, no matter what they've done to him. "I signed a warrant," he said.
Shocked looks in his colleague's faces expressed their surprise and disagreement with his decision but he didn't care.
"I think you spent way too much time with McGarrett," Lou said. "His behavior is rubbing off on you. I don't think we can handle two McGarretts."
Danny would normally find it funny but not this time. Because his friend's life was still hanging in the air. "What do we got?" he asked.
"Not much," Junior answered, his fingers dancing on the smart table. "One of the cameras caught Steve about an hour after he attacked you guys." With a quick move of his wrist, he moved the video recording to the screen. "He disappeared into the alley and he's been avoiding the cameras since then."
"It's Steve," Tani said. "If he doesn't want to be found, we don't stand a chance."
"She's right," Adam chimed in. "But if our theory about Red Hill is right, we'll know when they make a move and get Steve there."
Junior released a loud sigh. "It might be too late," he mused. "And I don't think we would get an invite anyway."
"We'll find a way," Danny said with determination in his voice. "Whatever it takes."
The orange light of the sun setting had illuminated the entrance of the Red Hill as Steve walked over to the gates with two guards in full battle armor. Everything went smooth so far, as planned. One of Aaron's men stayed in the vehicle, taking care of the security cameras. The first two guards were distracted by Steve while Aaron and his goons took them down silently. Using Steve's ID card they managed to open the steel ramp and get in.
As earlier that day, Steve walked toward the two guards standing in front of the green entrance door. Bennett's and their crew were hiding in the back, their tranquilizer guns ready.
Steve handed over his ID and let the stone-faced guard scan his fingerprints. After the scanner flashed green, the guard entered the code into a keypad and waved him in. Commander Jackson was already waiting for him in the hall.
"Twice in a day," Jackson said, staring at Steve as he held the door open for him. "Is there any problem? On the phone, you said it's urgent."
Steve nodded. "I'm sorry to bother you again, but unfortunately it can't wait."
Jackson gestured Steve to come in. "What's wrong?" he asked as he closed the door behind them. He turned around and his jaw opened wide as he stared into a barrel of a gun in Steve's hand. "What the hell is this?" he said, a surprise in his voice. "How did you even get that through the security?"
"Let's say they were sleeping," Steve answered. "Open the door," he ordered, pointing his head to the entrance door.
Jackson hesitated, taking a few moments to understand what was happening. Steve's gun was pointed at his chest, with no emotion in his face.
"Look, I don't need you alive," Steve said. "Don't make me do this the hard way."
The threat seemed to work. Jackson did as told and opened the door. His jaw dropped in surprise as he saw two guards lying motionless on the floor and a group of masked people standing above them.
"Step away," Steve said. "Keep your hands above your head."
Jackson reluctantly made two steps back and watched as Aaron was the first one to enter, rifle hung on his shoulder. Esther and a crew of six armed men walked in just a moment after him.
Jackson's head whipped left to look at Steve. "I hope you understand what you've just done," he said, gritting his teeth. "Looks like was wrong about you."
Steve ignored his words but didn't interrupt eye contact with him. "What about the cameras?" he asked, directing his question to Aaron.
"We're good," Aaron answered. "They've got a recorded loop. We've got nine minutes before they find out. Lead the way."
"What about him?" one of the masked men asked, pointing his finger to Jackson.
"He's going with us," Aaron said.
Steve lowered his gun as two goons grabbed Jackson and another one stayed behind his back, aiming at him. He spun on the heel and headed for the security door, taking the path he'd learned earlier that day. As he reached the door, he quickly punched in the code on the keypad and waited for the panel to slide upward and reveal a black glass surface beneath. He turned his head to Jackson. "He needs to open it," he said.
"Do it," Aaron ordered, aiming his rifle at Jackson's chest.
Two goons holding his arms manhandled him in front of the door and forced his right palm on the glass. A quiet beep and a click followed. Steve pushed the door open and entered.
"Eight minutes," Aaron said, glancing at his wristwatch.
The long L-shaped corridor showed up behind the door. There were several doors but Steve headed for the door on the left in the back of the corridor. He heard steps from somewhere close. A second later, a man came rushing toward the same door from behind the corner. He was dialing the code when Aaron, moving almost without a sound, rushed him from behind. With one swipe, he smashed the butt of his gun against the side of the man's head.
Steve winced at the cracking sound as metal made contact with the man's skull. The man was out cold before he'd even known Aaron was there.
Aaron rested the limp body down, then turned and walked quickly toward the open door, approaching it from the side so as to stay out of sight. He reached the door and peeked his head around. The doorway opened into a long corridor with thick pipes dragging across the walls carved into volcanic rock. "Clear," Aaron said and stepped away.
Four masked men entered first, their rifles ready to handle any unexpected complications. They headed straight across the bridge and down the ladder, disappearing from Steve's sight.
Esther looked at Jackson, still tightly held by the other two men and grinned. "Do we still need him?" she smirked.
"No," Steve said.
Jackson frowned, a dribble of sweat was running down his forehead. "You're going to regret this," he said, mostly addressing his threat to Steve. "You won't get out of here anyway."
"We'll see about that," Aaron answered calmly, checking the time again. He lunged forward and swung the back of his rifle to the side of Jackson's head, sending him down to the floor in a heap.
Aaron turned on his heel and walked onto the yellow bridge when he spotted two armed men in the navy uniform walking from the other side of the bridge. "Shit!" He crouched low, Esther and Steve just a few steps behind him and tried to sneak back and find a cover.
The two goons were half-crouching to cover themselves, hands fumbling at their sides for their weapons.
But they were too slow. They heard shouts from the two men. As they approached the door on the left, there was a volley of gunfire coming from behind them. Bullets whizzed past Steve's head, ricocheting off the floor and walls. He ducked instinctively, but it was only through sheer luck that he wasn't hit. A bullet caught the gun Steve was holding. His surprise at the sudden jolt sent the weapon flying from his grip but there was no time to pick it up, he had to keep moving.
Aaron and his two goons returned the fire and Steve watched one of the men falling down in a heap. Taking cover behind a barrel he risked a quick glance. The man was lying still in a puddle of his own blood. Steve caught a voice from Aaron's walkie-talkie.
"What's going on up there?" the man in the walkie-talkie asked. "We're done, the bombs are ready. We've got twenty minutes until the explosion."
Esther emerged from her cover and fired at the remaining soldier while Aaron answered the walkie-talkie, gritting his teeth in anger. "Get up here, we could use some help!"
The sound of fire stopped in a few seconds and judging by Esther's grin it was because the other man had been hit too.
"We need to get out of here," Aaron said, looking around with his rifle drawn.
Steve fished in his memory for an escape route and one came to his mind in an instant. "Follow me," he said and headed left toward the tunnel on the south-west side.
Almost running, he led the way through the tunnel, Aaron and Esther just two steps behind him, followed by the two men watching over their backs constantly.
"This way," Steve said and picked up the pace as high-pitched sound of alarm carried through the tunnels. He moved as fast as he could with his aching body and low energy levels, fighting the dizziness.
"Shit!" Aaron swore again.
Steve had been moving for about half a minute, when as if from nowhere, the unfamiliar figure came into a view from behind the corner, illuminated by the dim light of the tunnel.
The man reacted fast and in a second he was holding his gun outstretched in both hands, pointing off to Steve's right. "Freeze!" he shouted. He was almost within touching distance of Steve. He could hear Aaron lifting his gun behind him.
The sudden appearance of the man to Steve and vice versa caught them both by surprise but Steve had a second longer to process it.
Steve lunged forward, tackling him just above the waist, hearing the burst of air from man's lungs as he knocked the wind out of him. They fell back in a tangle and Steve heard a loud cracking sound as the man's head bounced off the rock wall behind him. They were both on the ground, Steve straddling him. He was ready for action, fists clenched. But there was no need. He soon realized the man was already out cold. Nothing more than an accident.
Steve felt around his head with his hand. His hair was wet and sticky. Blood. But he was still breathing. He probably wouldn't have anything more severe than a cut and a concussion.
"That's my boy," he heard Esther's voice gleaming in satisfaction. "Let's keep moving.
Steve groaned as a sharp pain shot through his chest when standing up. If his rib wasn't cracked before, this time it certainly was. He tried to push the pain into the back of his head. "This way," he pointed to the narrow tunnel on his right. A barrage of automatic weapon fire shattered the silence.
The two goons returned the fire, signaling Aaron and Esther to keep going. "Come on, let's move," Aaron said and nudged his sister forward, following Steve.
Steve heard another gunshot nearby. He flinched and ducked down as he rounded the corner to take cover, Esther following his move.
Aaron turned around and saw another man firing at them. He didn't hesitate at all but raised the gun and opened fire, squeezing off three shots.
The man began to readjust his aim, but he wasn't quick enough and Aaron managed to get off three rounds with the rifle, each of the bullets hitting man's midsection. Almost in slow motion, Aaron watched how his lifeless body slumped onto the ground in a heap.
Rounding the corner Steve noticed a small metal door, there didn't seem to be any security on it. "Over there," he said and headed toward the door. Without once looking behind he flung himself into the door, pushing down the security bar. It was unlocked. The siblings jumped inside in an instant, closing the door behind them.
A few seconds passed before they could hear voices from the corridor outside, loud enough to make out what they were saying.
"Where are they?"
"We lost them."
"Let's split up, search the whole place. We need to find them."
The voices faded slowly with the footsteps, suggesting they ran in a different direction. Aaron sighed in relief. "Damn, that was close," he whispered, panting for breath.
Glancing over the watch, Esther frowned. "Sixteen minutes, brother," she said. "We need to get out."
Grimacing in pain and holding his arm around the ribcage, Steve scoffed. "Good luck with that."
Aaron's head whipped left toward Steve, his eyes squinted in anger.
"You screwed it up," Steve continued to speak through jolted breaths, holding his arm around his sore ribs. "I told you it needs to be done quietly. There is no chance you'll get out with all the people hunting you down. Not before the explosion."
"Us," Aaron said, clenching his fists. "Hunting us down. You're not one of them right now."
"It doesn't matter," Steve said. "You or us. We're all gonna die here anyway thanks to you screwing up."
Danny ran a hand over his tired eyes as the exhaustion threatened to take over.
"It seems you might need this," he heard Tani's voice. He lifted his sight and saw her arm stretched toward him with a coffee in it.
"Thanks," he said.
"Danny, we'll find him."
"I know," he said, pushing the doubts into the back of his head.
"How do you feel?" Tani asked with concern in her eyes.
"Been better," Danny admitted. He lifted his sight as a phone rang nearby.
Lou reached for a phone in his pocket and frowned. "Why does the Governor call me?" Danny shrugged as Lou answered the phone hesitantly. "Captain Grover."
Ashen expression of Lou's face gave away the seriousness of the call. It only took a couple of seconds.
"Yes madam, thank you. We're on it," he said. "Detective Williams is actually here too, I'll inform him." He ended the call and his jaw dropped.
"So?" Quinn asked, breaking the silence in the room. "What's wrong?"
"I think I know where our boy is."
There was something about the way Lou said it, the way he froze after the call that gave Danny goose pimples. "Where? " he barked.
"The alarm in Red Hill went off a couple of minutes ago," Lou said with horror in his eyes. "And Commander Jackson said Steve was the one who breached in and he was not alone."
Danny's eyes widened and his heart began beating faster. "We have to go," he said and walked toward the door immediately, adrenaline rushing into his body, readying him for action.
"Danny, wait," Quinn called him. "They won't let us just walk in anyway."
He didn't care. All he knew was that if he won't get Steve out of there fast, it won't end up well. And he would do anything necessary to prevent it. He ignored Quinn's voice and walked out of the room.
"Danny," Catherine's voice sounded from behind him. "Wait for me."
In an instant, the rest of the team emerged from the glass door, following him. "Let's get our boy home," Lou said with determination in his voice.
"We owe him that much," Junior joined him.
"They're right," Tani chimed in. "We'll find a way."
Not losing any more time he turned around and ran down the stairs, taking it three at a time, ignoring the pain. This might be their last chance to save Steve. A lump formed in his throat with a thought they might not succeed. That was not even an option. This had to end now.
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