It took twenty minutes to get to the hospital even with sirens blaring and the ability to speed through every red light or traffic stop along the way. Steve and Danny were following the ambulance which succeeded in making it the longest twenty minutes of Steve's life. He wanted to know how Sophia was doing….He needed to be with her. But, he also knew what she needed in that moment was Brian's expertise as a doctor. Having him with her may save precious minutes once they got to the hospital and Brian already had an idea what she needed upon arriving.

Steve felt a small measure of comfort knowing Mary was okay after leaving her in Kono's care. He was going to have a serious talk with his sister later…before possibly locking her up and not letting her out for a very long while…..but for now, his main concern was Sophia.

In the meantime, Chin and Lou were transporting the one perp left behind to the Palace for questioning. Steve would get to him later. He didn't care if the man had to sit in the interrogation room for 12 hours; As far as Steve was concerned, the man could sit…..and stew…and think about how he was going to negotiate himself out of the mess he was in.

"So, let me get this straight," Danny began as he gestured with his hands. Steve had learned the hand gestures were a sure sign of Danny's irritation level, so he took a breath and let it out slowly as Danny continued.

"You allowed him to ride in the ambulance with her? Not only did you let him, but you even suggested it? Why the hell would you hand her off to HIM?"

Steve sighed. He'd known this was coming since Danny was a 'glass is half empty' kind of guy and it was his nature to look at the negative side of everything.

He tried to keep his voice calm, "He's a doctor, Danny. She needs a doctor right now. "

"Yes, I know he's a doctor, Steven, but he's also a good-looking, rich, successful doctor who is supposedly her 'best friend'."

"Right!" Steve's temper began to flair as he turned to give Danny an irritated look. He was more than familiar with these conversations with Danny since they'd been having similar "carguments" for over six years. "He's a friend….which means he is someone she trusts. We've just rescued her from what was probably the most terrifying event of her life; Not to mention getting her away from one of the most dangerous men on the island. She's been traumatized, and you know how victims can shut down after something like this…..and they won't talk. I figured the best thing for Sophie right now would be to get Brian with her since he can not only use his medical expertise to make sure she's okay…..but also possibly get her to talk a little about what's happened."

He looked away from the road briefly to look at Danny, "Look buddy, my main concern right now is making sure she is okay. Her best friend just happens to be one of the best doctors in the country…So right now I am trusting that he has her best interests at heart and will make sure she's taken care of. Can you understand that?"

"So you're not bothered by the fact he showed up out of the blue to give her a surprise visit?"

The thought had crossed Steve's mind, but only briefly. For whatever reason, he felt a sense of security over what he and Sophia shared. So in response to Danny, he shrugged and grimaced. "Why would I be worried?"

When Danny gave him a look, he decided to shut down the conversation. The last thing he needed was to worry about anything other than Sophia's welfare.

"Let it go, Danny. I've got it under control. I don't know how to explain it, but Sophia and I have something special…..I know it, she knows it…and if you're honest, you know it…..even though you're trying your damndest to make me doubt it right now. I'm just asking you to let it go. Please. Do it for me…..Okay? "

Danny wisely decided to follow his advice for once and didn't say anything else.

They rolled into the hospital right behind the ambulance. Steve barely brought his truck to a complete stop before he jumped out and asked Danny to park it and find him inside.

Brian exited the ambulance right behind Sophia and with the paramedic who had been in the back with him. Steve could see an IV in Sophia's arm and his eyes met Brian's with worry. Seeing Sophia with an IV in her arm was more unsettling to him than he'd anticipated.

He'd seen many 'victims' in similar situations over the years, so this should seem fairly routine. It anything but "routine" for Steve, though. She was different...He loved her and couldn't deny that fact any longer. Loving her made it all infinitely worse for him to watch.

Steve stood by as they got her out of the ambulance as quickly and gently as possible. His heart constricted in his chest and he felt as if he could barely breathe.

Seeing the concern on Steve's face, Brian gave him an encouraging smile as he reached a hand up to put it on Steve's shoulder. "She's just dehydrated. I started some fluids to help with that. Those bastards must not have given her much of anything to drink while they had her." He sighed. "I've also given her something to calm her down a little."

"Calm her down?" Steve asked. "Calm her down….why?"

"She was having a panic attack in there, Steve. It was all I could do to get her to calm down long enough to get the IV started." Noticing the expression on Steve's face, he continued, "As you know, this is normal with trauma victims. Please trust me when I say that hers was not the worst I've seen, but she needed something to help her relax. I just gave her enough to calm her down until we can check her out further. It'll make all of this easier for her. Okay?"

All Steve could do was shake his head.

"Okay," Brian said. "Now follow me and we'll go take care of our girl."

Hearing Brian talking to someone, Sophia opened her eyes and saw Steve standing at her side as they wheeled her into the emergency room. She reached a hand out to him and he took it gratefully. He felt her fingers curl around his, and even though they were weak, that small touch was enough to calm his heart rate down as well.

She gave him a sleepy smile. "You're here….." she whispered.

He leaned down closer to her and gently moved a lock of hair away from her eyes as they continued to move her inside. "Of course, I'm here, honey" he whispered. "I'm not leaving you."

She shook her head and smiled softly again. She looked as if it was taking every bit of strength she had left to keep her eyes open. "I love you…" she whispered before closing her eyes again.

Steve swallowed a lump of emotion before looking towards Brian only to find Brian smiling back at him. The look they shared between each other spoke volumes. It said:

They both cared about her…

They both loved her…but their love for her was different.

Brian loved her as a friend or "adopted sister" while Steve's love went much deeper.

They didn't exchange words, but Steve knew in that moment he had nothing to fear where Brian was concerned.

They got in to the emergency room where nurses and a doctor who had been notified by HPD approached them. Steve was grateful to realize Duke must have called ahead to let them know that a renowned doctor was accompanying Sophia in to the hospital. This was evident in the fact that there was none of the 'red tape' Brian had anticipated upon entering an unfamiliar hospital. Most doctor's didn't appreciate when an unknown came in trying to 'steal' their patient, so he had been fully prepared for a battle of wills over who would be overseeing Sophia's care. It was a pleasant surprise when the E.R. doctor was nothing but accommodating.

First, he instructed them where to put Sophia. Then he turned towards Brian and put out his hand.

"Dr. Morris, It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Dr. Jeffries…..and I understand she is a friend of yours?"

"Yes," Brian answered. "She's actually more like family, so I'd like to stay with her."

"Of course," he agreed.

Brian turned towards Steve, "Commander McGarrett needs to be with us also."

Dr. Jeffries seemed to consider it for a moment before nodding in Steve's direction. "Absolutely," he said as he put his hand out to shake Steve's as well. "Follow me, gentleman, and we'll see how she's doing. Dr. Morris, can you tell me what….if anything….you found on the way over?"

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Two hours later….

Sophia was waiting to be settled into a private room. Fortunately, her physical injuries were mild and limited to cuts and bruises. She had no broken or fractured bones which was a relief to everyone. Sophia had insisted that there was no need to do any other exams because there had been no sexual assault during her harrowing ordeal. Steve and Brian had both pushed her on this point….perhaps a little too hard….but she had insisted that nothing sexual had happened. That made both Steve and Brian breathe a sigh of relief. Steve already wanted to kill Mancini for what he'd done to her, so adding a sexual assault to the list would have likely pushed him over the edge.

Steve was relieved to see that she already had some of her Manetti "spunk" back and was insisting that she be able to go home. That wasn't going to happen, of course. She would be staying overnight at the very least...A fact that had her voicing her displeasure to both men in her life.

While they were waiting for Sophia to be given a room, Steve called Rosa and briefly filled her in on what had happened. As expected, Momma Rosa was not happy about being kept in the dark, but after some "talking down", she had completely understood the reasoning. Steve sent HPD to pick her up and bring her to the hospital while they were waiting for a room to open up.

By the time Rosa arrived, Kono, Mary, Lou, Chin, and Jerry were also all at the hospital. She immediately walked up to where Steve and Brian were sitting side by side and both men instinctively sat up a little straighter as she pointed one of her little fingers at Steve.

"You did not tell me my Sophie was in danger? You did not let me know my bambina was hurt? I understand you didn't want to worry me, but I am still not happy! Tell me…..HOW is my baby?"

Steve stood and pulled Rosa in for a hug, "I'm so sorry, Momma Rosa. I didn't want to worry you, so I waited until she was safe to tell you what was going on. She's doing very well, though…..Better than any of us expected actually."

He pushed her gently away so he could look down to her face. "You trust me, right?"

Rosa's eyes filled with tears as she let out a huff of frustration, "Of course I trust you, figlio mio," (meaning "my son"). "But I am still worried about my mia bella…. Is Sophia okay?"

At this point, Brian stood up. Seeing the look on Rosa's face, he realized she had only just realized he was there.

" Brian?"

Brian took her hands in his. "Yes, Momma Rosa. It's me."

She looked confused. "But what are you doing here?"

Brian shrugged. "I was worried about her, so I decided to come over for a visit."

Rosa gave Brian a big hug…The only kind an Italian mother can give…..before putting her face in his hands and kissing both cheeks. "Thank you, mio caro." (my dear)

She dropped her hands from Brian's face and looked between him and Steve.

"Tell me the truth…Is she okay? When can I see her?"

Steve stepped forward again. "She's okay, Rosa. Brian was with her on the way over here and he's made sure everything was checked. She's doing really well…..We're just waiting for her to get a room….and then we can visit."

"But Steve," Brian interjected, "is the one who saved her." He didn't even want to think about what would have happened to Sophia without Five-0's involvement, but he wasn't going to voice that to Rosa.

Rosa cast a curious glance between both of them. Her gaze lasted just long enough to make both of them feel somewhat uncomfortable. It wasn't long before a small smile was crossing her lips.

"You both love my girl," she said. She waited a moment as her smile grew wider before releasing a breath. "My Gio would be so happy to see that his baby sister is in such good hands."

At that moment, the doctor walked in to inform them that Sophia had been moved to a private room. They could all visit…..but no more than four at a time. This made it difficult considering how many of the Ohana already considered Sophia as "family", so they quickly devised a plan for who and when everyone could visit. The only stipulation for the others was that Steve, Brian, and Rosa would be in with her the entire time.

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