Guardian

Summary: What happens when Grace's world falls apart while Danny is in New Jersey handling some family business? Will Steve prove to be the guardian the little girl needs?

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters and make no money doing this. I'm just having fun playing with them.

Chapter 3

Waiting outside the door to Grace's room, Steve was surprised the phone call with his partner had gone so well. As awful as this day had been so far, he wasn't sure he could have handled Danny being disappointed in him.

He couldn't help but crack a small smile at the idea that Mrs. Williams would arrive several hours after her son. Grace was going to need all the support she could get to find a new normal for her life. Growing up with only one parent was rough; he knew that.

Never having wanted kids, the Seal couldn't help but wonder what being Gracie's dad would be like. Of course, she had her Danno already. She didn't need another dad.

Shaking his head in an attempt to cut off that train of thought, Steve's mind shifted to the scene from this morning. Stan had never been on his list of favorite people, but he couldn't imagine what drove him to apparently kill his wife and attack his stepdaughter.

"Steve, how is she?" Chin's voice startled him out of his thoughts.

"Scared and badly bruised, but I don't know anything else yet. Kono is in with her while Dr. Scott checks her out." He'd be glad when the doctor came out and he knew just how extensive the damage was.

"Were you able to reach Danny?" The Hawaiian cop inquired.

"He's headed to the airport. Said he'd call again after he gets through security. Mom said his flight left in 3 hours, so I'd guess he'll be here tomorrow morning. It'll probably stop on the west coast for the night. Of course, she's on the first plane tomorrow, so she'll probably get here tomorrow night."

Chin shook his head and grinned. "Shoulda known she'd follow him out here." He couldn't help but notice the serious expression on Steve's face as he stared at the closed door in front of him. He guessed that was where Grace was.

"Do you want the overview of what happened now, or would you prefer to wait until later? I took the liberty of questioning Stan a bit before coming here. Given his rather intoxicated state he wasn't completely coherent, but I got the gist."

That got the Seal's full attention. "Now." He needed to know if he was going to figure out how to fix this for Grace.

"Short version, apparently things haven't been going well at work and he's been too damned proud to admit it to Rachel. The firm he works for decided to let him go Monday so he came home shortly after Grace got home from school after having a few drinks. When he heard the two of them talking about ideas for a long weekend getaway they hoped to take, he completely lost it."

Steve looked stunned. "All this because he lost his job?"

"Apparently so. He said he and Rachel started arguing about the trip. I gather he abruptly told them they weren't going anywhere but initially refused to explain why. During the discussion, he broke out the scotch and continued drinking. Things got heated and Rachel said she and Grace were going to go somewhere else for a while so he could cool down. That's when it turned physical. He admitted to trying to stop her and getting violent. At this point, he isn't sure how it happened but she ended up hitting her head on the marble counter of the island. Judging by the damage she didn't just slip and fall."

None of this was making Steve feel better. Unless he'd missed something, this meant Grace was in the room when her mother was killed. Stan should consider himself lucky that he was in police custody already, otherwise an unfortunately accident might have occurred on the way to lockup.

Knowing he couldn't avoid the last part, Chin pushed on with the story. "When Rachel hit the floor, Grace started screaming. Stan said his head was throbbing and he didn't want to put up with her, so grabbed a hold of her and tried to shut her up. Of course, our little Gracie didn't take that well and fought back. Unless he was lying, he didn't attempt anything with her. When she managed to elbow him in the eye he lost his grip long enough for her to escape. Fortunately, he was too drunk by that point to consider the fact that he could have just busted the door open like you did."

Steve met his friend's eyes; the sadness there reflected his own. Their precious little girl would never be the same. She'd seen her mother killed and then had to fight for her own safety with the perp.

The sound of the door opening behind him caused the Seal to whirl around as Chin stepped forward to stand beside him. They stared the doctor down as she shut the door behind her.

"Commander. Lt. Kelly. I've finished the exam. She's more comfortable now thanks to the painkillers. We're going to give her fluids and nutrients through the IV to help her body catch up. She did manage to drink some water while hiding in the bathroom, but has had nothing else since Monday at lunch."

Both men nodded their heads, but Steve was the first to ask questions. "What's the extent or her injuries?"

The doctor looked relieved, which allowed the pair to relax only the slightest bit.

"She has extensive bruising on her arms, back, and abdomen. There are no signs of sexual trauma and no broken bones. From what I could get out of her, she fought hard when he tried to restrain her after her mother went down. I suspect the bruises may not have been as bad if she'd fought less, but I hate to think what else would have happened. As it is, things could have been far worse. If Detective Williams were here we'd be able to release her this evening."

"He won't be back until sometime tomorrow morning. You can release her to me this evening. They'll end up at my place anyway." Now that he knew her physical injuries weren't what he'd feared, he was anxious to get out of the hospital.

"I'm afraid we can't release a minor to someone other than a parent or guardian without prior written consent."

Before Steve could get more upset and start an argument he was likely to regret, Chin stepped in. "Why don't you check her file. I know she's been here before and I believe Detective Williams had the foresight to include approval for her to be released into Commander McGarrett's care if ever the need arose."

Nodding her head, Dr. Scott smiled. She was quite pleased that there was a chance to let her young patient leave. After the trauma she'd been through today, being stuck in a hospital would do her little good.

"I'll ask the nurse to pull the information for me. If that checks out and she continues to do well we'll have her out of here by dinnertime. Meanwhile, you two can go in and see her. Try to keep things calm and let her rest as much as possible. Also, Officer Kalakaua took the pictures that will be needed in court during the exam, so Grace won't need to be upset further by that process."

"Thank you, Doc. I'll stay with her until she's released." Shaking both men's hands, the doctor headed back to the nurses' station.

As Steve started to push the door open, Chin hesitated. His presence earlier had scared Gracie and he was hesitant to alarm her further. The boss glanced back at him and nodded his head in understanding.

Grace's eyes met the Seal's as soon as he was through the door. Keeping the door open behind him, he offered her a smile.

"Gracie, is it okay if Chin comes in too?"

She nodded her small head. "Of course Uncle Chin can come in." Much as he suspected, she wasn't afraid of Chin, but had likely just been so overwhelmed at the house that anyone out of place scared her.

Hearing her response, the Hawaiian followed Steve into the room and watched as he pulled a chair close to the bed and took the young girl's free hand. Kono still held the other.

"How do you feel?" The Seal kept his voice quiet.

"Better. Dr. Scott said the stuff she put in the IV would help and that they were going to put more stuff in there to make me feel even better before I go home." Her voice trembled at the last word and she closed her eyes as the tears formed. "I don't have a home anymore, do I?"

Her small voice broke the hearts of all three adults.

Without hesitation, Steve squeezed her hand a little tighter. "Gracie, you have a home. You and Danno always have a home with me." He couldn't help the image of the three of them building a life together that quickly filled his mind. No matter what he wished for, he would put it aside to make the two of them comfortable in his house. The house that would feel so much more like a home with them in it.

Her eyes flew back open and stared at him. "But Danno doesn't live there. We just visit a lot when I'm with him." He heard a hint of wistfulness in her voice.

"I bet if we work together, we can convince Danno that you should both live with me. Dr. Scott seems to think you'll probably get to come home with me tonight so you'll already be there when Danno gets home tomorrow."

Her current fear addressed, everyone could see she was starting to get very tired, an expected, but welcome effect of the drugs. As her eyes started to fall closed again, Steve leaned over and placed a kiss on her head.

"Get some rest, Gracie. I'll still be here when you wake up."

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