A/N: Of course fate has it that right after I say I'll update weekly, I don't. But let me tell you, UTIs are a super duper fun way to spend a weekend. TMI, sorry.

But Holy ego boost, Batman! Sheesh, I ask for constructive criticism and all I get are generous and lovely compliments. You guys are the best! If I ever need a pick-me-up I'll just come back here and instantly feel good about myself. Thank you all so much for the ideas, thoughts and encouragement. I'm so glad you are all enjoying the story!

For those wondering, I haven't figured out a few big points in the story, or how far I want to follow the recovery portion, but I anticipate wrapping this thing up sometime in March. So if you're waiting for a complete fic, check back around that time.

Warnings/Spoilers: Big time on both. If you haven't seen 5.04, a) you're missing out on some seriously intense H50 b) the motivations for everything in this chapter will make absolutely no sense to you and c) just huge gigantic spoilers for the entire Reyes/Danny/Columbia plotline. This fic, if not this chapter, will completely spoil the episode.

Warnings – Beware of more intensity, I ratchet it up pretty high right at the start and don't really let go. Mentions/discussion of child endangerment/abuse that luckily never happens thanks to our intrepid hero, as well as a more detailed description of Grace's injuries. Please suspend biological and/or medical reality though as I'm not anywhere close to a doctor and Wikipedia can only do so much.

Disclaimer: See Chapter 2. I'm lazy.

CHAPTER 4

"My name is Juan Carlos Santos. And Marco Reyes was my best friend."

Shit. As if his day could get any worse. So that's what this was about. Danny, Matty, Reyes: the names swirled around with memories in Steve's head as he recalled their brief trip to Columbia a few months ago.

That basement. What Danny did.

He supported his partner, he really did. Once Grace was threatened, all bets were off. If it had been Danny in that barrel, and Steve in his partner's place, he had no idea how he might have reacted. Steve would like to think that he'd be more controlled, he was trained for extreme circumstances, but still, Danny in that barrel…

"You have not heard of me, Capitán McGarrett? I must say I am disappointed. You should have followed up after what you did in my country. To my best friend. You are former Navy Intelligence, no? I think you would want to know the chain of events that you caused. After all, it is what led you here, Capitán." Santos was still walking circles around Steve who remained immobile, restrained in the chair.

"So what, this is some grand revenge scheme?" Steve accused, his voice dripping with disdain.

"Exactly, Capitán," was the pleased answer from the faceless voice now positioned eerily close behind him.

"So what, you try to kidnap his daughter to make him suffer? That was your plan? You have to know that we'd find you. And you know that we'd do the same thing to you that Danny did to Reyes! Your friend wasn't innocent, you know. He killed Danny's brother and he deserved –" A swift punch to the gut cut off Steve's retort and he once again cursed the fact that he couldn't see it coming.

"I wasn't going to simply kidnap her, Capitán McGarrett." Santos waited. He seemed to enjoy baiting Steve.

"Kill her then? Kill a twelve-year-old girl? You're sick, you know that. You're a disgusting piece of –" His rant was once again cut short by a well-timed fist to his midsection. Steve grunted and tried to suck in a few shallow breaths while his diaphragm took its sweet time to overcome the abuse.

Hey, SuperSEAL. Maybe not a great idea to keep antagonizing the bad guy, huh?

'Shut up, Danno!' Steve thought as Santos spoke again. "Surely you know, Capitán McGarrett, there are worse things than killing a person."

Steve knew what he meant. The disgusting son of a bitch!

"I – am going – to kill you." Steve struggled to keep his voice steady and menacing despite the pure rage that threatened to take him over. He had never hated a person more in his entire life. He had also never been happier to be taken prisoner in his entire life. Forget wondering what he would have done to Reyes if his and Danny's positions had been reversed. He was going to take this son of a bitch out, hopefully with his bare hands, slowly and painfully.

Down boy! He doesn't have her! Okay, babe. Grace is safe! We'll get this son of a bitch eventually, you just have to stay alive, alright SuperSEAL? Stay. Alive.

Steve tried to listen to the wisdom of Danny's voice being the voice of reason for Steve, whereas Danny was the one who should have been completely losing it. This was his daughter they were talking about after all.

"You truly think you will kill me?" Santos laughed at him. "But how will you do this, Capitán? You are all tied up? You are helpless, are you not?"

Steve growled, literally growled, and pulled hard against his restraints in response. He was almost becoming accustomed to the throbbing pain of his broken collarbone, or maybe that was his rage and adrenaline keeping the pain in check.

"Do you know what is more painful than having your loved ones killed, Capitán?" Santos waited again. Apparently this man was very patient. Steve was tempted to let the stalemate linger to see if he could get under his enemy's skin, but ended up giving in.

"Try me," he grunted.

"To try to put them back together again…and to fail." Santos' steps echoed across the empty room and soon returned with something, probably a chair, scraping along behind him. "To be responsible for someone's destruction, or death, that is one thing. But the pain eventually fades, I know this. Not quickly, and not without wanting to die yourself. But what is worse? To see your pain every single day. To look at it, and know that you caused it, and to not be able to escape it. And to not be able to fix it or ever make it go away. This is what is worse, Capitán." The slow scraping stopped and the chair was dropped directly across from Steve. With his senses fine-tuned due to the deprivation of his sight, Steve could hear Santos drop himself into the chair.

"This is worse, no?" Santos asked with pleasure tainting his words. It was disgusting, really.

"So, you're telling me you get your jollies from torturing people almost to death, making their lives hell, and then returning them as a warning? That about sum it up, you sick bastard?" Steve asked sarcastically, throwing as much judgment and disdain into his words as possible. But inside he was filled with fear. It did seem a fate worse than death, maybe. But for which party involved?

Perhaps he would still be alive at the end of this. And it wasn't anything he hadn't gone through before.

Some classified missions with the SEALs. Wo Fat in Korea. The Taliban in Afghanistan. Wo Fat again…a week ago. A fucking week ago and here he was again, facing torture by another madman.

But as he thought about all of the horrible physical and mental trials he'd had to endure, he thought that by far the worst was Freddie's funeral. Telling his little girl, his precious little girl, that… that her daddy loved her very much. She would never know her father, and that was on Steve. He took that from her before she was even born. His heart broke every time he thought about it. That was the worst moment of his life. And he wouldn't ever be able to do it again. He could never face that little girl again, it was just too painful. And Kelly, it destroyed him inside to know that he was responsible for all of her pain and suffering, and that their child would never know her father.

His breath hitched. That's exactly what this psycho was talking about. That's the exact pain that Santos was going to force onto Danny. That horrible, crushing regret. At least Steve didn't have to see Kelly and Freddie's daughter every day, the way that Danny would have to see Steve at the end of this. It would have been with his daughter. Sweet, precious Grace. But now Santos had to settle for Steve instead.

He was glad.

He was absolutely terrified.

Danny-in-his-head was silent. A silent Danny was never a good thing, even if he was a figment of the imagination.

Santos must have realized the moment that Steve figured it out. The moment that Steve realized the truth of his sadistic statements.

"So you see, Capitán McGarrett, you can call me all of the names that you wish. But you know that I am right. You see that for Detective Williams this is a fate worse than death. He will suffer with guilt as long as he is alive. And you will suffer horrible pain."

The bastard was so sure of himself. But there was a complication in his plan that maybe Santos didn't realize. And that complication was Steve. This sadistic plan was dependent on him being so broken at the end that he couldn't function anymore, that Danny would feel responsible for ruining Steve's life. So Steve wouldn't break.

He couldn't break. For Danny's sake.

…..

Kono barreled into the office, ashamed at herself that she slept through her alarm. This had never happened to her before. And now, of all the times! Her boss was missing and even though she had set the alarm for a mere three hours after she fell asleep it still seemed like a complete waste of her time. A call from Chin finally roused her at seven o'clock and she had arrived at headquarters not twenty minutes later, her cheeks burning with shame.

"Don't sweat it, Cuz," Chin said as she stormed in without even looking up at her. "I've just been collected traffic cam footage and contacting businesses for their security tapes. Not much has come in yet. Lou is on his way to the scene now to see if they've found anything more in the daylight."

"What does the footage tell us so far?" asked Kono. If Chin was going to ignore her blunder, than maybe she could as well. But it wouldn't make her feel any better about it.

Chin threw up a few screenshots on the overheads. "Nothing that we didn't already guess. This SUV arrived at the school before Steve got there, and now we can confirm that it was following them. The windows are all tinted, but I'm hoping that we can get something to work with from some business or ATM cameras."

"Okay. So what do we do until we get more footage?"

"Well, you can go light a fire under Fong, but I'm sure he's plenty motivated. Or," Chin hesitated and looked at her guiltily, "you can start looking into Amber's background."

"Brah, you can't really be serious about this? I mean, I realize that Lou has some good points, but, Danny needs her right now. We can't take that away."

"Cuz, Danny needs Steve, too. And if Amber has any information or may be involved in any way, we need to know."

"I know, I know. I just – I really hate that we have to do this," Kono lamented.

"Me too, Cuz. Me too."

…..

The silence was killing him. Santos had been seated in front of him for at least ten minutes and neither man had spoken a word. Steve finally decided that for better or worse, he had to get something started. His team needed a clue.

"So, when does the gloating start?" he asked his captor as if they were having a friendly chat at the beach.

Santos laughed at him again. "Oh no, Capitán. You are mistaken. There is no gloating. That might spoil my fun. No, no. We cannot have that."

Steve's heart started beating frantically in his chest. How would his team ever find him? Get him out of this mess?

Hey, settle down. Why do I have to keep telling you this? How did you ever survive the SEALs? Geez. C'mon, you're smart. You'll figure out a way to make him contact us. You've got to.

Steve took the advice to heart. "Seriously? You're gonna keep me here for who knows how long and never tell my partner, the man you want to cause all of this suffering to? He'll suffer a lot more if he knows you have me. But you know that. So why not brag, why not make the call?" Steve thought aloud, goaded on by Danny-in-his-head. "I mean, you can't be scared that they'll actually find you, right? A man like you, he's gotta have resources and protection. You're smart. Surely you know about all the technology that can make a phone call untraceable. Surely you've got men bought and paid for to keep you safe."

"Of course I know these things!" Santos snapped.

See, babe, there's definitely something weird going on here.

'Right you are, Danno' thought Steve.

"Of course I want Detective Williams to suffer. And he will. But no, I will not let him know who I am. Not yet. The risk is too great. I must be able to finish my plan." Santos had gotten up from his seat and started pacing again.

Damn. Steve was going to have to be really sneaky about this. He couldn't make it obvious what he was doing, except that he already had. Damn, again. But Steve had the feeling that Santos truly understood the pain that he wanted to inflict upon Danny. This guy had to be deranged, mentally unstable in some sense of the word, or in every sense of the word, to understand that kind of pain, and to go to these lengths just to cause it. But there was something fishy here. If it was true that he took over the cartel, then he really couldn't afford to stick around very long, right? There was no contact with the outside world inside this bunker. A man running a cartel would have to have an incredibly faithful second in order to be out of touch for any length of time. Right? That, or something else was at play like Danny-in-his-head hinted.

Steve wished that he knew more about this man. Santos was right. Steve was former Naval Intelligence, of course he should have followed up after the events in Columbia. But he had been so caught up with trying to help Danny, and then the whole business with Wo Fat happened. Fine, he'd had other things on his mind. But that certainly wouldn't help him now.

With a tilt of his head, Steve could better hear the frantic pacing and panting that Santos had worked himself into. Definitely something weird going on here.

"So, let me get this straight. You get off on torturing people, causing their loved ones to suffer so horribly, and then handing them back. Haven't you accidentally killed anyone before?" Steve asked, genuinely curious on behalf of his own well-being.

"Of course. It has happened many times." Santos stopped his pacing a little to Steve's left. Steve turned his head to, hopefully, face him.

"So if you kill me, Detective Williams just gets a dead guy dropped on his doorstep? What's the good in that? Like you said, sure it causes plenty of pain, but that pain fades. You know that. I know that." Steve took a breath and played his ace in the hole. "Have you ever tortured a SEAL before? Do you know anything about us? You know that I'm trained for this, right? You know that I can hold in my emotions and not show my pain. The chances of you accidentally killing me are much higher than you think. And maybe I'll make you do just that, and you're plan will be ruined." Sure, Steve was bluffing about being able to control his emotions and his pain. Maybe on a good day. Maybe if he hadn't been through almost this exact scenario one fucking week ago! His heart beat faster in his chest just thinking about it.

Santos still hadn't said a word. Steve had laid out his hand, repeating any of it might give him away. He was banking on the fact that Santos seemed more than a little unstable the more he talked and shared his plan.

Without a word uttered, several pairs of footsteps headed for the door, which clanged shut and left Steve in silence. He strained to hear if there was anyone else in here with him, but after a few minutes of total silence, he decided that no one could be that quiet. He grunted and struggled against the restraints, remembering how he had broken through the last set and fought Wo Fat's hired help before she could stab him with another needle.

Speak of the devil. The door opened again with a scream that shattered the silence and made Steve cringe. He stopped struggling but tensed up, waiting and wondering what was coming next.

"We'll be going on a little trip, Capitán McGarrett" Santos sounded pleased with himself, and Steve wondering what that meant for his hope that Santos would contact his team.

He had been distracted by Santos' words and didn't notice how close one of the lackeys had gotten to him until he felt the needle in his shoulder.

No!

Not more drugs. He needed to pay closer attention. He needed to be…ready. He needed…

Steve thoughts slowed down and eventually fled as the sedative worked its way through his system. He was unconscious by the time his hands and legs were released from the restraints and two men dragged him out of the room.

…..

Lou nearly burned his lips on the coffee in his thermos, but hardly noticed as he was so focused on what was ahead of him, and what was behind. He was on his way to the sight of the accident, the crime scene technically, as he thought back to a few hours ago when he picked up Rachel and escorted her to the hospital.

"Rachel Edwards? Hi, I'm Lou Grover," Lou held out his hand which Rachel distractedly took.

"Captain Grover, nice to meet you. I'm sorry, but I'm really not in the mood for pleasantries right now. What can you tell me about what's going on?" Rachel asked in a rush, eager to hear an update about her daughter after the chaos of getting back to the island.

"Of course. Let's walk and talk." Lou grabbed her bag and started a quick pace toward the exit. He was surprised when he actually had to utilize his huge stride to keep up with the worried mother. "Grace is holding her own. The docs are optimistic that she'll wake up soon. She took a pretty big hit to the head in the crash, but they haven't found anything major wrong yet. That's really all I know. I'll let them tell you more when we get there."

"What about Commander McGarrett? And how is Daniel holding up?" The British woman surprised him again, remembering their missing teammate even through the distress of knowing that her daughter was injured and lying unconscious in the hospital.

"No leads yet. We're still looking for him. There's not much we can do right now until we get something back from the crime lab and get some more video footage in the morning." Lou had to push his stride to its fullest to keep up with this fireball of a woman. "Danny is…well, he's rough. He's handling it as best as I think he can. And knowing how close he and Steve are, I'm surprised he's not more of a mess, honestly."

They reached Lou's SUV and he stashed Rachel's bag in the back quickly. If she was hoping that he would open the door for her, she would be disappointed. He was too worried about getting to the hospital as quickly as possible. Talking about Danny's state of mind had him worried for the detective all over again.

The drive was completely silent and very tense. The roads were empty at this time of night. When they arrived at the hospital Lou found a close parking space and went to grab Rachel's bag so she could take it with her whenever she left the hospital…if she ever left the hospital. Once again surprised, he saw her practically jogging to the entrance and shouted, "PICU, 4th floor!" as she disappeared through the automatic doors. He shook his head, grabbed the extra coffees he'd picked up before the airport and locked his truck as he followed in her hurried footsteps.

Lou arrived just after Rachel and watched the desperate reunion between Danny and his ex-wife from the doorway. He handed two of the coffees to the uniforms on duty. They thanked him as he hesitated in the doorway, then finally decided to impose on the family.

If Danny had looked rough before, it was nothing to how he looked now. Barely six hours into his vigil and his eyes were already starting to bruise while his cheeks had a hollow look about them. Amber must have left as she had mentioned, to stay out of the way of Rachel when she arrived. Lou wondered how long Danny had been sitting alone. He felt instantly guilty. He knew that Danny should've had someone with him, supporting him, but they all knew that this could easily turn into a very intense, stressful case. And with Danny more or less out of commission, he, Chin, and Kono were going to need every second of sleep they could come by in order to help Steve. The drama wasn't over by a long shot.

"The doctor should be by again in a bit. I asked him to come explain everything to you," Lou heard Danny say quietly. He gave a polite cough and offered the coffees to the couple while he set Rachel's bag down next to the bed.

Looking down at the little girl in the bed, Lou was amazed by the strength Danny showed. Sure, he wasn't holding up all that well, but if it was his own daughter lying there, Lou know he would still be a complete mess. Danny was either completely exhausted, which was highly likely, or he had some sort of private reserve of strength to draw from that Lou hadn't found within himself yet.

The doctor's arrival interrupted his thoughts. "Mrs. Williams, I'm Dr. Kanohe and I've been taking care of Grace since she was brought in a few hours ago."

"Nice to meet you. Please, tell me how she's doing." Lou was very interested to note that Rachel didn't correct the doctor on her name, but had to agree with her that there were more important things to worry about right now.

Rachel had tight hold of Grace's hand and Danny's arm was wrapped around her shoulders as the doctor explained the tests and treatment that Grace had undergone so far. Lou hadn't heard the detailed version yet so he tuned in as well.

"Grace impacted the window right here," he pointed to a spot just behind his temple. "The pterion is the region where four different bones join together, so it is naturally the weakest part of the skull. She has a small extra-axial bleed that we are watching. That means that the bleed is within the skull but outside of the brain. We are hoping that it will resolve itself and we are monitoring her closely for any change. This is the most likely cause for her extended loss of consciousness. We are concerned, but shouldn't be too worried unless she is unconscious for a full 24 hours, but we're not there yet. I have every hope that she'll wake up before then. Once she wakes up, we'll test her verbal, motor, and stimuli reactions and go from there. This could end up as simple as a concussion or it could become a lot more serious than that, but we can't know right now."

The doctor paused, waiting for the information to be internalized. He knew that it was a lot to take in for any parent and didn't want them to become too distraught. At Rachel's nod he continued. "Her other injures, while not severe, could also be hindering her return to consciousness in some way. She had a few lesions on her scalp from the impact with the glass but those have been cleaned and stitched. There are bruises from the seatbelt, which likely saved her life as this was a rollover I'm told. She has two cracked ribs on her right side as well as a sprained wrist. A few more cuts on her legs that have been cleaned, but overall there was very little superficial damage.

"She had some diminished breathing sounds on her right side when she was brought in, which is why we chose to intubate. The impact trauma can have unforeseen results and we thought it best to give her lungs and diaphragm a break while her body was recovering from the shock. We will evaluate again in the morning, but for now it is just a precaution to help her heal. Despite her continued unconsciousness she is really recovering quite well. Do either of you have any questions for me?"

The doctor had listed all of this off very fast in Lou's opinion, but he supposed it was a little like ripping off a Band-Aid. It all sounded so serious to him, but the doctor seemed only mildly concerned. Lou really wished that Grace would wake up and stop all this worrying that everyone was doing. Well, half of the worrying. They were still missing a certain troublesome Lt. Commander.

"My colleague, Dr. Mathers will have the day shift and will be taking over Grace's care when she arrives. Please have the nurses find me if you need anything or have any more questions."

Seeing that the couple wasn't going to say anything as they stared at their daughter in mutual distress, Lou stepped in and said, "Thank you for everything, Doc."

He nodded his acknowledgement and left the small group to their privacy. Rachel was now sitting in the chair that Danny had vacated, crying quietly as she registered everything she had just been told about her daughter. Danny looked like he had no more tears to shed as he held his ex-wife and stared blankly at the small figure on the bed.

"Danny?" Lou asked gently. When there was no reply or even motion from the former Jersey detective, Lou tried again with a hand on his shoulder. "Danny?" he asked more forcefully.

"Huh? Yeah?" Danny finally asked, his puffy red eyes meeting Lou's sympathetic gaze.

"Do you need anything? Can I get you or Rachel anything?"

Danny looked at him for a moment and then, as if he finally understood the question said simply, "Steve."

Lou felt like he'd been punched in the gut as he squeezed Danny's shoulder once more in comfort and, not knowing what to say without turning into a blubbering mess himself, left the hospital quietly to grab a few restless hours of sleep.

Lou had just pulled up to the crime scene as he recalled Danny's heartbreaking request. The sadness in his eyes was just too much and Lou had to push it out of his mind so that he could focus on the detective's plea: to find Steve.

"Bill, anything new?" Lou asked the first uniform he saw. He regretted that he hadn't picked up more coffees for these men hard at work, but he hadn't remembered it this morning.

"G'morning, Lou," Bill said cheerfully. Maybe there was some good news after all. "The crime lab boys found some blood down on the trail that may belong to either Commander McGarrett or his attackers. It's on its way to the lab right now, left about ten minutes ago."

"That's great news, Bill. Thanks. And let your boys know how much we appreciate it," Lou gushed with relief and hope. "Excuse me while I give the others an update." Lou walked back over to his truck and gave Chin a call.

"Chin Ho Kelly."

"Hey, Chin. I just pulled up to the scene and Bill says they found some fresh blood on the trail. Could be McGarrett's or his attackers'. It's on its way to the lab right now. So we'll know soon."

"Excellent. Is there anything else you can do there?"

"Probably not, but let me check. I figured I'd stay around for an hour or so unless you need me for something," Lou answered.

"Yeah, if you could get back here soon that'd be great. We're, uh, we're gonna start looking into Amber." Regret could clearly be heard in Chin's voice.

Lou sighed heavily. "Yeah, sure thing. I'll be back soon." Lou didn't want to leave that to the cousins by themselves. He still felt a bit like an outsider sometimes on the team and he thought maybe it was better if he was the one that did it. He'd only met Amber a handful of times and definitely didn't know Danny as well as the cousins. While he could sympathize with Danny as a father, he figured Danny really needed his Ohana with him right now, and Lou wasn't sure if he qualified just yet. He hoped he did, he wanted to, but if digging into Amber's past got them closer to finding Steve he was willing to jeopardize what he may or may not be a part of to help get his friend back. After all, it was what Danny had asked him for.

Lou checked with Bill again but couldn't see any further use for himself at the scene and he wondered why he had driven all the way out here in the first place when a phone call from the crime lab could have accomplished the same thing. He walked back to his truck, replaying the hopeless look on Danny's face that morning as he had asked for one thing, as if it would make the whole world right again: Steve.

…..

"Capitán? Capitán McGarrett, wake up now."

The words were accompanied by a not-so-gentle tapping against his face as he returned to consciousness. Steve realized immediately that there was a gag in his mouth and that he was outside, the sounds of the jungle surrounded him like a blanket. The sun was fully up and it must be late in the morning, if not the afternoon already. Whatever was in that syringe had knocked him out for quite a while. They could be anywhere.

"Capitán, I want you to be awake for this part. I am going to call our friend, Detective Williams, and I am sure that you will be very interested in our conversation." With that, Santos moved away and Steve assumed he was making the phone call, presumably with all the necessary equipment to get a signal out and to make it untraceable. Maybe it had been a bad idea to lead Santos towards these precautions, which were often successful in deterring even the Wonder Twins, Chin and Kono. But if his team knew who had him, they had a better chance of finding him and getting him out of this mess. Steve had been scared shitless when he realized that he had a smart criminal on his hands. But he soon figured out that for as smart as Santos was, he was just as unstable.

Steve's musings were interrupted by Santos' greeting.

"Ah, Detective. It's so good to finally meet you." Steve could imagine Danny's confusion and hoped that he could figure out how Grace was doing through the one-sided conversation. It seemed that Santos wanted him to hear this conversation, just not enough of it to be truly useful to him.

"You may not realize who I am yet, Detective, but I know a lot about you." Okay, he may be a smart criminal, but he was also very stereotypical.

"I am Juan Carlos Santos, Detective Williams." Santos' voice sounded cocky to Steve's ears. And then disappointed when he said, "Ah, so you truly do not know who I am? You have not been doing your homework, Detective." Cocky again. A school teacher chiding an insolent student. Steve hadn't had any clue that this guy existed, so why should Danny? He tested the strength of the two men holding him and wished not for the first time that hoods had never been invented so that he could see something – anything – in order to figure a way out of this before things got worse. He figured that Santos was only standing maybe ten feet away from him, but Steve couldn't tell if there were more than just the two men holding him in the area. This may be his best chance of escape.

"Detective, Marco Reyes was my best friend. We were like brothers. And I am here to make sure that no one will question my leadership of the cartel ever again. When you killed him, Marco didn't suffer. For that I am grateful, but your friend will. I want you to feel the pain of losing someone you love, as I have." With the direct threat to his life as the catalyst, Steve ripped himself away from the men holding him and launched his body in the direction of Santos' voice. He didn't have a plan, but he sure as hell didn't want his partner to hear any more of this. Danny would be distraught enough already with Grace, however injured she may be, and the fact that he, Steve, had been missing for probably almost 24 hours by this point.

As Steve broke free of the men holding him, he jostled his broken bone for what felt like the thousandth time and grunted through his gag. He got no further than a couple of steps before he was roughly tackled from behind. Someone grabbed his hair through the hood and bashed his face into the ground. He was instantly dazed and drifted for a while, not really hearing Santos' side of the conversation with his partner. Just catching the occasional word, "…life…ruined…scared…daughter…brain injury…"

Brain injury!

No! No no no no! Gracie had to be okay, she just had to be! Danny would never forgive him. Hell, Steve would never forgive himself either.

He tried to pick his head up off the ground from where the hood was trying to fuse with the dirt, but his hair was grabbed again and his face was shoved deeper into the jungle floor. New tactic. Relax, show that you're not a threat. What could he do from down here anyway? He hadn't gained anything by ripping free and trying to get at Santos.

That's the right idea SuperSEAL. Intel. You gotta be coherent to know what this guy has coming.

As Steve stopped resisting the pressure holding his head down, said pressure began to let up. He coughed around the gag as he tried to fill his lungs. Then he heard something that stopped his attempts at breathing – and felt like it stopped his heart as well.

"…a man called Wo Fat."

The world froze. Steve froze. But it was the kind of frozen that comes from complete fear. An animal, having just seen its predator, frozen to the spot and hoping against hope that it won't be pursued.

Hey, hey Steve! C'mon man, don't check out. You gotta listen, babe. You gotta know what's going on, you haven't heard much of anything. This could be nothing. This could be a bluff. Focus!

"Detective?" Santos' questioning voice brought Steve back to the moment. Danny-in-his-head was right. He couldn't let himself lose it over merely hearing the man's name, even if it had barely been a week since their final confrontation. "I see that you like my plan, yes? I have a police report, a medical report, and the statement of the Capitán. It is a very interesting read. Perhaps he needs a reminder. A very…realistic reminder."

The SEAL was frozen stiff for another few seconds. After replaying the last words again in his mind, and realizing that he had actually heard them, he completely lost it. Steve choked on the gag in his mouth and started bucking against the men holding him to the ground. This could not be happening.

One of the men kneeled on his back while two more had hold of his arms, pinning them to the ground. He was screaming into the gag and trying with all his might to get free. No! He couldn't do this again! Not so soon. Not again.

Steve! Babe! Calm down! This isn't helping, you have to be rational! Steve…

But he was beyond rational. Danny's voice faded away and he struggled frantically and focused on nothing but getting free. His struggle was hopelessly uncoordinated. Another man quickly sat on his legs, and Steve lay there, wounded and full of terror, still trying to flex his muscles and buck his handlers, causing himself more pain in his futile struggle to get free.

Steve eventually exhausted himself and gave up the fight. He lay on the ground, trying not to sob into the gag, but tears leaked out of his eyes no matter how much he tried to stop them. He was incredibly thankful for the hood at the moment, so these men wouldn't see him cry. He was ashamed and embarrassed, but he just couldn't do this again. The drugs, the water-boarding, the damn cattle prod! He just couldn't, not so soon. Not ever!

He never caught the end of the conversation. Never even noticed that it had ended. He let himself drift through a haze of pain as well as sorrow for what was to come. But it was like he wasn't feeling anything anymore. He felt himself being picked up, but he offered no resistance. He had none to give. His feet dragged through the muddy ground but he made no attempt to walk under his own power. He forgot all about his promise not to break, for Danny's sake. There was no strength left, only a muted fear. A fear that there was nothing he could do to stop what was coming.

He was exhausted and weak.

He was resigned to his fate.

...

TBC