Chapter five

Detective Kao found him in Lukela's office, phone pressed to his ear. "Williams! What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Danny didn't acknowledge him or give any indication that he'd even heard him.

"Put down the damn phone!"

"What?" he asked, glaring at him as he ended the call and put his cellphone back into his pocket.

"What is your problem?"

"What is my problem?"

"Hey, I'm not the one who just made a fool out of himself in front of the Sergeant here!" He countered, barely keeping the anger out of his voice. "Your boy McGarrett signed a confession. His fingerprints are all over the place, scratches on his hands match the dead guy's wounds. They're not gonna let him walk unless we can produce new evidence, or another suspect."

Danny shook his head. Jimmy Kao wasn't going to cut him any slack, not to mention let a murderer off the hook just because he was his partner, or in this case, his partner's sister.

"I know he's your partner and all but—"

"My boy," Danny hissed, matching the other man's irate tone, "is a decorated Navy SEAL. Show some respect!"

The detective held up his hands in surrender. "Alright, I'm sorry, that was uncalled for. But you're crossing the line here and, Sergeant, I don't want this case to get screwed because he's unable to think straight."

"Steve doesn't belong in jail, alright? Duke? You know that as much as I do. And I'm getting him out of there, whether you like it or not!"

Kao stared at him, a frown on his face. "Why do you think you owe him?"

"Because I do!" Danny snapped, throwing his arms out in frustration. "He's my partner. My best friend. He's a self-sacrificing son of a bitch who got radiation poisoning just to keep me safe. It's the least I can do..." He lowered his head, almost ashamed by the sudden outburst. "He's innocent, and he's throwing his life away. Someone needs to stop him, and if you're not doing it I will!"

The Asian detective sat down in one of the chairs in front of Lukela's desk and handed the Sergeant a manila folder. "ME's report on Morris," he informed them. "No post-mortem surprises. The slug to the chest is the cause of death. Alcohol level's 0.16%. I'm not surprised he wasn't cooperative." A beat passed, and he turned to face Danny. "There might be a way to sort this thing out, but I don't think you're gonna like it."

The Jersey native narrowed his eyes at him.

"We let McGarrett out of the joint and track his phone. Or, we put a tail on him and wait. Either way, he's gonna lead us to his sister."

"No way."

"You wanna help him out, Williams, that's the only way. If he's really got nothing to do with this, I'm sure he'll understand."

Like hell, Danny thought to himself.

He'd sworn never to lie to Steve or go behind his back and he wasn't about to start now.

"Do not involve me in this, you hear me?" he admonished, pointing an angry finger at the man's chest. "I want no part in your stupid plan!"

Kao shook his head in annoyance and rose from his chair. "I'm warning you, detective, you let McGarrett in on this and I'm personally going to have your badge. Don't care if you're one of the Governor's golden boys!"

Danny shrugged, unfazed by the threat. "We'll see about that."

Steve turned the doorknob to his house with the kind of hesitancy of someone who was afraid of the memories that would come at him once he got inside.

The silence that assaulted him once he stepped in the doorway almost threatened to overtake his frazzled nerves and he closed his eyes, drawing a deep breath before walking into the living room. Moving to his left, he reached for the lamp next to the couch and turned it on.

As the room came to life under the soft, yellow glow, his gaze came to rest upon the large stain marking the carpet just between the recliner and the coffee table.

The blood was now almost two days old, and he frivolously thought it would be a bitch to clean. But even the best detergents would never fully erase what had happened, because the air itself felt permanently imprinted with fear.

Decades of violence, starting with his mother's fake death and his father's murder, had marked his soul as well as the cream-painted walls and the wooden flooring despite his numerous attempts to compartmentalize it all.

The thought of his father brought a new wave of sad, unpleasant memories. His gruesome death was still an open wound that would probably never heal. Not a single day had passed by since that fateful day that he hadn't thought of him, wondering if he too had felt alone in this big house after sending them away, or if he'd ever been proud of him and his accomplishments.

Realizing that he'd been absently rubbing his fingers against the transplant scar on in his chest, Steve averted his eyes from the bloodstain and walked up the stairs, ignoring the headache and the light dizziness he was experiencing. With all the commotion he'd forgotten to take his anti-rejection meds, which was probably why he felt nauseous and his hands were shaking.

After swallowing his prescriptions with a mouthful of water and taking a much-needed shower, he quickly changed into jeans and a t-shirt and went back to the living room. Sitting down on the couch, he leaned back against the cushions, closing his eyes. Just for a minute, he thought to himself, until the medicine kicked in.

He awoke to a terrible headache a short while later. And that was in the two-second reprieve before he remembered where he was and what had happened.

Then he focused on the loud shrill coming from his pocket. His cell phone.

"McGarrett."

"Steve?"

Steve jumped to his feet. "Mare?"

"Oh, god, Steve, are you all right?" Mary's voice on the other end of the line sounded scared and upset.

He pressed the phone hard to his ear. "Mary, where are you?"

"I just... I needed to hear your voice, make sure you were safe."

Steve clasped the back of his neck and closed his eyes. "I am. I'm okay, but I need to know where you are."

The young woman, lost in her own thoughts, completely ignored his plea. "I'm so sorry, I never meant for you to get involved in this," she said between sobs. "I never meant for you to go to jail."

"Mare..." Steve's heart ached for the pain his sister was going through.

"Will you please forgive me?"

"Mary, listen to me! I do, I forgive you. Just hear me out, okay? We don't have much time. HPD's looking for you, and if they find you before I do you're the one who's gonna end up in jail. I need to know where you are. Please. Let me help you."

Mary seemed to ponder what to do for a moment before finally giving in. "Pacific Marina Inn. Room 16."

"Alright, it's alright, I'll be right there," he reassured her, relief seeping through his voice.

"Okay."

He heard a siren in the background. "Are you in your room?"

"No. There's a payphone just outside."

No no no no

"Listen to me, go to your room. Now. You hear me? Lock the door and do not open it until I get there."

"Okay," she repeated, nodding her head as if her brother could see her. "Steve?"

"Yeah."

"I love you."

"I love you too, Mare. Just—just wait for me, alright?"

Steve ended the conversation and put the phone back into his jeans pocket, hurrying outside. When the front door closed behind his back he was already sliding in the driver's seat of the Silverado, the headache now just a distant thought.

He jammed on the gas and the silver truck roared to life, spun out and headed west towards its destination.

In his haste to get to the motel, he failed to notice the familiar car sitting around the corner.

"He just left," a flat voice stated through the police scanner.

"Don't lose him. I'm on my way," came Kao's immediate reply.

Danny scowled as she watched Steve's truck speed past him. Despite his refusal, the son of a bitch was going through with his plan to tail his partner in hope he would lead them to Mary.

He knew it would happen, and that's why he'd stayed close to Steve's house.

Straightening in his seat, he turned on the car and started after him, hoping to beat the detective and get there first.

TBC