Steve had been admitted into the hospital and was being treated for dehydration, the laceration around his throat and an examination of the scars. They also planned to take some x-rays to make sure there wasn't any other problems.
Danny paced back and forth in the waiting room, waiting for Steve's doctor to give them an update.
"He's going to be fine Danny, Steve isn't going to be taken down that easily" Kono tried to console him but her words were falling on deaf ears.
Chin took the initiative and stood up from his chair, stepping into Danny's path and putting his hands on Danny's shoulders, "why don't you take a seat and try to relax, if something was wrong they would have told us by now. Now c'mon, your making people anxious" Danny wanted to retort that they were in a fucking hospital! Everyone was anxious! But instead he nodded and sat down next to Kono, Chin taking the chair on the other side of him.
"What if he isn't though? What if he's in there dying as we speak?" he knew he was being ridiculous but his emotions were getting the better of him and Steve had been so weak...
Kono placed her hand on his arm and leaned in towards him, "don't think about that, just think about all the things you're going to do with him when he gets out of here" Danny smiled and turned his head,
"Thanks Kono, guess I went a little crazy huh?' they all chuckled and the nervous atmosphere around them dissipated a little.
Ten minutes later Steve's doctor appeared and the trio stood up from their chairs to meet him.
"You came in with Mr. McGarrett right?"
"Yes, he's our boss at 5-0, how is he doc?" the nerves that Danny had been dealing with found a new home in his stomach.
"He's going to be fine, we're treating his lacerations, examined the scars for possible infection which there was none, x-rays were taken and he does have a few fractured ribs but besides that nothing too serious and we have him on an IV drip to treat his dehydration" there was a key piece of information that he had left out, the x-ray had turned up more than just fractured ribs, implanted under the skin above his right pectoral was a pill sized capsule. He had tried to get more information out of Mr. McGarrett but he wouldn't divulge the information and he had requested him not to tell his friends about the capsule. Due to patient confidentiality he had to comply but he had a gut feeling that whatever that capsule was, was not good. Trying to suggest an extraction of the capsule received a strong negative reaction from his patient, Mr. McGarrett adamantly refused and demanded that he keep the information to himself.
A visible sigh of relief escaped Danny and Chin patted him on the back, a relieved smile on his face, Kono was beaming as well and expressed her gratitude to the doctor, Chin and Danny gave their own thanks and asked when they could see Steve.
"You can see him now, all of you in fact, his condition is perfectly stable so I don't see why you can't all see him at the same time" they followed the doctor down the hallway and entered Steve's room.
Steve was resting in his bed, an IV in his hand, gauze bandages wrapped around his throat and bruises were beginning to darken all over his body.
Walking to the bed they all pulled up chairs and sat down, Danny took his hand and gave him a loving smile.
"Hey babe, how are you feeling?" he rubbed circles into the palm of the hand he was holding.
"A little sore and tired but nothing I can't handle" Steve tried to adjust his pillow but was having some difficulties so Danny temporarily relinquished his hand and stood up to held him.
"Thank you" Steve leaned back into the pillow and smiled when he felt a pair of lips on his forehead, "no problem" Danny sat back down and took Steve's hand back.
There was a conversation that needed to be brought up but no one had the heart to, luckily the subject of their impending talk chose that moment to enter.
"I heard you had been admitted" Danny moved his chair a little to give her some standing room, he offered her his chair but she declined.
Taking in Sarai's appearance Steve's eyes zoned in on the fading bruises that dominated her face and the hand that had a brace around it, "Sarai, what the hell happened to you?" he tried to sit up but his ribs protested and he was forced to lay back.
"Easy Steve, you've got to take it easy" Danny ran his hand through Steve's hair, lightly massaging his scalp.
"I'm fine Steve, just a few injuries, in fact I'm pretty much healed, just a few more weeks and I should be able to take the brace off; so don't worry about me, focus on getting better" she had just returned from a checkup with her doctor and the information she had relayed was the truth, although she did leave out the prescribed physical therapy that she had in an hour for her arm.
"Would you guys mind if Sarai and I talked in private?"
They agreed and slowly trickled out of the room, Danny stayed behind a little longer to tell Steve to call him and to kiss him goodbye then he left as well, closing the door on his way out.
"Kally did this, didn't she?" it was more of a statement than a question, he waited patiently as she took her time answering.
"She came to my cabin a little while after you left, demanding that I tell her where you were but I refused so her and her cronies beat me. But you don't have to worry-"
"I don't have to worry? Sarai you were attacked by a sadistic woman and her brainwashed lackeys! And it's all my fault!"his heart rate was picking up and so was his breathing.
"Calm down Steve, before you give yourself a heart attack!" Sarai sat down in the chair and took his hand.
Slowly his heart and breathing rate went back to normal and finally he calmed down enough to speak, "she'll be coming for me again, so if I were you I would leave Oahu and go anywhere that is far, far away from here!" Steve's tone was deadly serious, conveying to her that he begged her to listen.
Sarai shook her head, "it doesn't matter where I go, she'll always find me, I'm better off here on Oahu, at least that way I'll be close to you"
Steve closed his eyes, "I may not be around to protect you sar" he subconsciously rubbed the scar that covered his potential demise.
"What are you talking about Steve? Where are you going?" he couldn't seriously be considering leaving again? He had only just gotten back. Opening his eyes he looked at her, trying to figure out how she would react to the news.
"Before I tell you, you have to swear to me that you will not tell another living soul" she was shocked by his request, but she could tell by just looking in his eyes how nervous and serious he was.
"I swear"
Exhaling in what was seemingly relief he laid back and began, "while my clan was keeping me captive they implanted a special tracking device in me that can track me anywhere in the entire world"
"So we'll just take it out"
Shaking his head he turned to look at her, "it's not that simple, believe me, if that were possible I have done it myself but the tracker is designed to activate and release cyanide into my body if I make any attempt to remove it or at the press of a button on the tracking monitor that is in the hands of Kally"
She sat there, stunned, the ramifications of this running rampant through her mind.
"There has to be a way to get it out" she insisted, not willing to accept defeat.
"The only way I can think of it if I were already dead, that way the cyanide wouldn't affect me" he said this as if he were actually considering it.
Silence passed over them, contemplating the seriousness of the situation.
"What are you going to do?"
"pray" he replied sarcastically
"I'm serious Steven!"
"So am I! Please Sarai, don't tell anyone. I don't want to cause them any more pain than I already have" looking into his eyes she could see the pain clouding up his eyes.
A knock on the door silenced any further talk, the door opened and Steve's doctor entered, he smiled at the occupants of the room and gently closed the door as he approached the bed.
"How are you feeling Steve?"
"A lot better doc, when can I bust out of this joint?" Steve hated hospitals, he was already itching to escape.
"I want to keep you over night, just for observation and then we'll see if you can be released" the doctor looked over at Sarai and greeted her,
"hello Sarai, how's the wrist today?"
"Much better thank you"
After a few more minutes of small talk the doctor left and they were once again alone.
"Kally's going to be out for your blood, you may not live to repay the Anamakua and if that's the case you'll have to face them in the afterlife" squeezing his hand she made to leave, her last statement bounching around in his head like a ball in a pinball machine.
"Sarai"
She stopped, but did not turn back to look at him.
"Knowing you you're not going to do as I asked and leave the island but I want you to at least promise me that you'll be careful and if need be you'll do whatever it takes to survive"
A verbal response was not used as she nodded her head and left the room, leaving him alone once again.
He was finally home, but yet he still felt so far away.
0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0-5-0
Five weeks had passed and Steve was almost fully recovered, all of his bruises were almost completely gone but he was on the mend and Danny was very happy with the recovery rate and Danny's happiness made Steve happy.
Steve was sitting on the couch flipping through channels, finally settling on the Discovery Channel that was showing a special on Sharks. He had been to the doctor today and had been told that he could return to active duty at Five-0 tomorrow, which he was more than thrilled about.
Ever since returning home Steve hadn't been allowed to do a single thing, and when he did try, like helping to wash the dishes, Danny stopped him and told to sit back down and that he would take care of it. He hated being treated like an invalid, he loved Danny, there was no question in that, but Danny's mother hen act was getting a little tiring, luckily all that would hopefully begin to stop tomorrow.
As he was watching a great white shark swim straight towards the screen there was a knock on the door. His ribs were still a little tender so he had to carefully lift himself up from the couch, wincing slightly when he irritated them then, when he was fully upright, walked to the door.
Without a thought as to whom it could be he unlocked and opened the door, revealing a scene from one of his many nightmares; Leader and five guards were standing at his door, wearing plain clothing so as to not draw attention to themselves, although being that they were in a group of six people with military style walking the clothes really did nothing.
"Don't be rude Steven, invite us in! And why you're at it make us some fresh coffee, I haven't had coffee in so long it seems" the sweet smile that was on Leader's face was a mockery, he was very, very displeased with Steve's actions and he was going to punish him to the fullest extent.
He could try to stop them, barricade the door with his body but he was still to weak, and he didn't want to annoy Leader into retaliating by hurting or worse killing his loved ones.
Stepping inside he gestured for them to come inside, but that wasn't good enough for Leader,
"The polite way to invite guests into your home is by saying 'please, come in'" Steve couldn't believe the manners lessons that Leader was giving him, newsflash! He wasn't a child and they both hated each other's guts, no need for niceties, they would all be in forced pleasantries.
He wanted to tell Leader that he could take his lesson and shove it up his ass but that would only lead to punishment, and no matter the fact that he was ready to sacrifice his own life he had to think about Danny, he already thought the was dead once, he wasn't going to make him go through the real thing.
Taking a breath he made eye contact and forced a stiff smile, "please, won't you come in?" his right fist was clenched into a fist, his nails digging into skin.
Smiling Leader and his men entered, the same contempt smile never left his face.
Making himself comfy in the spot that Steve had just vacated while his men stood around him, he spoke once more,
"I must say Steven, you truly surprised me. You escaping was always a possibility, we are talking about you after all, but having the nerve to do so even when you know that you could drop dead from a touch a button. Either your suicidal or just plain stupid"
Closing the door Steve walked over to him, he didn't sit down, instead opting to stand, he wanted to feel like he had some control.
"That's a mighty good question, honestly? I was prepared to live the rest of my days as a plaything for Kally, as long as Danny and the people I cared about were safe I didn't care what happened to me. And another thing, I've been here for about five weeks now and Kally still hasn't made a move and as you can see I'm still alive, care to answer that?"
Leader chuckled and a small laugh escaped him, laughter sounded wrong coming from him, it was too human, which he most certainly made a goal not to be.
"Kally's plans are no business of mine, she may do whatever she pleases, just so long as neither clans are exposed that is, but otherwise she could kill you for all I care and I wouldn't care the slightest. But I'm not here to talk about that, I'm here to collect your debt"
All the blood in his body froze, and he could have sworn his heart skipped a beat. He had completely forgotten about that, his other debt to the Anamakua still fresh in his mind.
"I take it you have forgotten about our little deal, but not too worry all that matters is that you pay"
Seeing no way out of this, that didn't end in his death or that of his friends he resigned himself to his fate.
"What do you want?"
"I'm sure you remember Johnny, Dana's little brother? Anyway, Johnny was recently arrested for battery and assault of a man in a bar that he had been at, his alcohol level was way over the limit and the man that he assault happened to be an officer at HPD. Unfortunately, there is no way that I can have the charges against him dropped, too many witnesses to deal with and the paperwork would take forever to wipeout, in other words getting Johnny out of prison is not worth the effort"
Steve had a feeling that he knew where this was going.
"Johnny has become too much a liability; now that he's in serving time there is no doubt in my mind that Johnny will get into an altercation and use. He will likely tell them anything they want, for instance exposing all of us, for a reduced sentence and I'm not willing to risk that" he didn't have to say anymore for Steve to have his suspicions confirmed.
"You want me to kill him?"
Leader rose from the couch and walked to him, "his purpose has run its course, I have no further use for him. He's like a batter, all his juice has been used up and its come time to throw him away"
Murder. He wanted him to commit murder. He was an officer of the law! Preventing crime was his job, to commit a crime was an insult to the badge!
"Before you answer, let me ask you this: if I were to give you an ultimatum, say Danny's life, would you be more inclined to do this for me?"
"You go anywhere near him I swear to god!-"
As he was making to stepped forward and rearrange the sick fuck's face he was pulled back and restrained by two of his men.
Laughing Leader got up close and personal with him, "Kill Johnny and your lover is safe, besides, Johnny's scum and if I recall you two weren't exactly BFF's"
He watched the fight slowly leave Steve's body and he slumped down, his body screaming defeat.
Nodding to his men Steve was released and he dropped to the floor like a sack of potatoes.
Kneeling down in front of him Leader pulled a syringe out of his jacket pocket.
"Since it is clear that your still weak I want you to inject this into Johnny right before you kill him; the serum will release a highly lethal toxin into his system that will attack all of his nerve endings, it will look like he suffered from a fatal heart attack, sad but it happens" grabbing Steve's hand he placed the syringe into his hand and made him curl his fingers around it.
Steve stared down at his curled hand, slightly opening it to look at the syringe, "why me? Surely you have other people that would gladly do this for you?"
"Yes but you have the highest level of police authority out of them all and I know you won't make any mistakes"
One of the guards walked up behind Leader and whispered something in his ear, Leader nodded and looked back to Steve, "I want this done before the end of the week, if you do not Danny will die and speaking of Danny he is pulling up to the house now. I will be listening in Steve, do not disappoint me"
The sound of a car door closing was heard and Danny's voice followed, from the sounds of it he was talking to Gracie.
Leader made no move to evacuate so when Danny entered the house he was met with Steve's back to him and six unknown men standing in the living room.
Quickly stuffing the syringe into his pants pocket he turned to face Danny, "Danny hey! I wasn't expecting you home so soon" he could practically feel Danny's curiosity bubbling inside him.
Keeping a wary eye on the six men Danny first answered Steve's question followed by his own, "I sent everyone home early, all the paperwork from our last case was finished and no new cases had come in but we're still on call. Who are your friends?'
Danny walked towards the strangers and stopped before the one Steve had been facing.
"You must be Daniel, Steve has told us so much about you, I'm Mark Gallagher and these are my associates, Frank, Ben, Peter, Louis and Ian. Steve and I are old friends, we went to High School together and just a few days ago ran into each other" the lie flowed so easily off his tongue that Steve wanted to check to see if he was reading from a script.
Something wasn't right, Danny could feel it, but he had no evidence to suggest anything other than the story he was given, but Mr. Gallagher's 'associates' continued to fill him with suspicion.
Shaking the offered hand Danny shot a glance over to Steve then looked back to their 'guests' "it's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Gallagher, are you planning on staying long or did I catch you right as you were leaving?" he knew he was being rude but Danny didn't like the vibe he was getting off these guys, especially Mr. Gallagher, he had a very high suspicion that that wasn't his real name.
Choosing not to comment on the rudeness he was being shown Leader replied with, "as a matter a fact we were just leaving, it was nice talking to you again Steve, hopefully we'll be able to catch up again soon, maybe sometime this week?"
Forcing a smile on his face Steve agreed, "yeah, you have my number so give me a call and we'll set something up"
Leader motioned for his men to vacate the house, he stayed behind to say goodbye to Danny then walked over to Steve who was standing by the open door, "Thank you for taking the time to catch up with me, I do hope that we do this again" he offered Steve his hand.
The smile that Steve had was cracking around the edges and his face was beginning to hurt from the strain, "so do I, goodbye Mark" he squeezed his hand a little tighter than was strictly necessary but Leader took the shake in stride, adding some of his own strength.
Departing hands Leader, now going as Mark, left with his men leaving Steve alone with Danny.
Silence descended over the two while they tried to come up with words. Danny could tell by Steve's body language around the men, especially Mark, was uneasy and angry.
"What did I just walk in on Steve? And don't tell me it was just conversation between old friends! You look like a caged animal! Just tell me the truth, please" Danny was now in front of him, imploring him to be truthful with him using his ocean blue eyes.
Steve tired to look away but Danny didn't let him, reaching up he moved Steve's face back, the same imploring look remained on his face.
"Tell me" he repeated, his eyes desperate.
"It's nothing Danny, just let it go" walking away he made his way up the stairs towards the bathroom to take a shower, Danny followed after him, becoming angry with Steve.
Opening the door Steve walked inside and turned the shower on, testing the water he then closed the curtain and started to undress.
"I love you Steve, I really do, but if this relationship is going to be filled with secrets and half truths I don't know if I can do this, just tell me! Whatever it is I won't judge you" as Steve was going to unzip his cargos Danny walked up to him and grabbed his hands.
Steve looked down into his eyes and his heart wanted to climb out of his throat, "please Danny, let it go" his voice almost cracked and his own hands squeezed Danny's back.
"I can't Steve, not if this secret could get you killed"
He wasn't going to let this go, he expected as much but he was hoping for a miracle.
Moving his hands up to Danny's neck Steve gave him a watery smile, hating himself for what he was about to do.
"I'm sorry Danno, I'm so sorry" his eyes glistened with tears and his hands shook.
Becoming concerned Danny raised his own hand and rubbed the back of Steve's neck, trying to soothe him.
"I love you" raising one of his hands a little higher and a dark glow began to emit from his hands. Before Danny could react Steve's hand sunk into Danny's head and soon he was inside his lover's mind.
Looking around he saw that he was standing in New Jersey. No one else was around and the streets were void of cars and trash. He did a full 360 with his body, trying to find the area where Danny kept his memories.
The answer came to him in the form of a loud laugh, a familiar one at that, traveled to his ear from what looked to be a 50's style diner.
Approaching the diner he could hear music coming from inside. Entering the establishment he discovered the familiar floating memories filled the room, but these were most certainly not the genre he was looking for.
Spying a back door he walked past the memories to stand in front of the door, he tried to listen for what was on the other side but the memories in this room were much too loud.
Turning the handle and pushing in a bright light consumed him. When the light faded out he found himself standing in what he presumed was the Newark Police Department, he surmised this based on the emblem on the door nearest him.
Like all memory banks the memories were floating around the room, these memories were reminiscent of the area they were in, suspicion and curiosity.
He found the memory he was looking for in the far back of the room. Before absorbing the memory he took a moment to prepare himself, the drain this was going to take on him but he knew he had to do this.
Reaching out he made contact with the memory and the affect was immediate. The memory attached itself to his arm and began to seep into him; little by little the memory disappeared into him until finally he had absorbed the memory completely.
Now physically drained he almost didn't have the strength to hold on to Danny's memory bank but somehow, whether it be God's will or his own sheer will he didn't know, he managed to hold onto and start the search for the last vital memory.
Walking through the police station he saw many other memories, some even had Rachel and Stan in them, but he chose not to look any further, he had already broken Danny's trust by just being where he was, he didn't want to trample on it as well.
A familiar light, much like the one that had led him here, radiated out from under an exit door, ironic in his mind but he didn't have the heart to smile. Pushing the door open that same light consumed him and when he was no longer blinded he was stunned to find that he was standing in a hospital.
Not bothering to examine the memories that he passed, not wanting to see the past pains that Danny had suffered, he cringed when he heard the unmistakable scream of his lover, and he hated the fact that he could identify Danny's scream.
Hurrying down the hallway he was in such a state that he almost ran into a closed door, stopping in the nick of time he pushed the door open and stepped inside, acknowledging that he was in what looked to be an operating room, it was here that he found the memory that he was undoubtedly more than willing to erase from Danny's memory.
Making no hesitation he touched the memory and the transfer process began. He was doing a very risky thing, the last time he had absorbed two memories in such a short amount of time he had wound up in a hospital bed, hopefully this wouldn't result in the same aftermath.
Once the memory was completely downloaded Steve no longer had the strength to maintain the connection so he was ripped out and smacked back into his own mind.
Both Danny and Steve stumbled back, Danny, confused by the sudden loss of balance and Steve struggling not to collapse; he could feel something trickling down his chin and, lifting his hand and wiping the area he found that it was blood. He was nose bleeding.
Danny saw the blood and he got into action. Grabbing a washcloth from the towel rack he handed towel to Steve to pinch his nose with and helped him sit down on the closed toilet. As Steve leaned forward, to prevent blood from dripping down his throat, Danny grabbed another washcloth, dampened it and brought it back over to Steve to wipe the blood off him.
"Geez babe, you're not even in the field and you still manage to make yourself bleed" finishing wiping the blood off his chin Danny wiped the spots of blood off his chest.
After about 10 minutes had passed Steve removed the washcloth and checked to see if the bleeding had stopped. Deeming that it had in fact stopped he used the cleaner side of the cloth to wipe the remaining blood from his face.
With the blood now gone Steve finally met Danny's gaze. He could see the concern and love in his eyes, no trace of the argument they had had moments before.
Without further thought he surged forward and collided his lips with Danny's, surprising him but not deterring from responding. Dropping the washcloth Danny caressed the side of his face, his other hand grasping at his chest.
Steve began unbuttoning Danny's shirt but Danny stopped him, shallowly getting out "not here, bedroom" jerkily agreeing he stood up and they stumbled out of the bathroom and down the hallway to the bedroom.
Pushing Danny against the wall, the bed only a foot away, Steve finished unbuttoning his shirt, exposing his skin to him. Steve bent down and placed open mouth kisses over Danny's skin, occasionally leaving love bites that made Danny throw his head back in ecstasy.
Having had enough of the foreplay Danny walked them to the bed and pulled Steve down with him, positioning himself so that he was straddling him, grinding his erection down into Steve causing Steve's cock to harden to the point of almost being painful.
Grasping Danny's side Steve twirled them around, changing their positions. Making quick work of Danny's zipper, Steve moved to allow Danny to kick them off then went about removing his own jeans, leaving both in their boxer briefs.
Crawling so that they were in the middle of the bed Steve and Danny spent several more minutes exchanging kisses before their last articles of clothing were discarded and they were under the covers; their make out session escalating into full on sex.
With Danny once again on top Steve took his time admiring the Adonis God above him. Danny's golden hair was ruffled and going in different directions, his eyes were black with lust and his muscular chest was heaving up and down. His eyes stopped when they arrived at the newest addition to Danny's body, his tattoo.
Steve had been shocked the first time he had seen it, he had always thought that Danny would never ink his skin but apparently he was wrong, not that he was complaining because he looked even more beautiful.
Shortly after discovering the tattoo he had asked him the reason behind it, wanting to know the reason for this body altering decision.
~Flashback~
When the question had left his lips he immediately regretted asking when he saw the pain in Danny's eyes.
"I'm sorry, forget I asked" he turned to leave the lanai but Danny told him to stop.
Turning back Steve watched as Danny looked away from the setting sun the luminous glow from the sun lit up the tears that were glistening in his eyes.
"When we thought you were dead I was barely dealing, I hardly ate or slept, Kono practically had to force feed me and threaten violence if I didn't get some sleep. One day Chin took me up to the summit, to get me to say goodbye to you. It wasn't on that day that I really said goodbye, it was the day that I finally went to the cemetery that I started to heal. That same day I went to a tattoo parlor and it was then that I said goodbye to you and gave myself something that would never let me forget you" by this time tears were pouring down his cheeks and his back was shaking in grief.
Wrapping Danny up in his arms he shushed him, telling him how much he loved him and how sorry he was that he had caused him so much suffering.
~End Flashback~
During his flashback Danny had rummaged through the drawer beside the bed and produced a condom and a tube of lube.
Ripping the condom out of the small packaging Danny worked it onto Steve's fully erect cock then squirting a generous amount of lube onto his hand and slicking Steve up. Without preparing himself, too anxious to feel Steve inside him, Danny sunk down onto Steve.
Taking a moment to adjust he then began to move, Steve's hand resting at his hips, mouth open in an 'O'.
Steve could feel his release coming, having already been pretty hard early on, but he was determined to ride this out for as long as he could.
It was when Danny leaned down and began nibbling at his neck he lost the battle and embarrassingly came early but Danny quickly followed, so his embarrassment was lessened, but only slightly.
Collapsing on top of him Danny rolled to his right, both of them gasping and somehow managing to smile in bliss. When his breathing was a little better under control Danny turned and rested his head on Steve's shoulder, resting his hand over his heart.
"I think we were both just a little bit too excited, and your still a little weak" Danny mumbled, trying to explain their early releases.
Chuckling Steve wrapped his arms around Danny and kissed his hair.
"I love you"
With a watery smile Steve replied, "I love you too"
A/N: Sorry it took so long to update, I've been having some health issues and finals are coming up so I've had a lot on my plate. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please Review!
