Danny knew he should go and update Chin, but he hated leaving Steve alone, although truth was he was far from alone with the medical staff constantly checking one thing or another. He glanced at his watch and knew Rachel would be there in less than half an hour. He'd told her he would meet her in Kono's room and glanced back at McGarrett one last time.
There just didn't seem to be an inch of wasted space on the bed and Steve was covered to his waist in a thin white sheet. Danny could see the bulky white bandage that covered the wound to his partner's right side and silently cursed the man who'd put it there. In the last 30 minute he's let his thoughts wander and none of what he came up with looked good.
There were times during his partnership with David that he'd seen things that didn't fit right, but they were minor things when taken individually. The problem was over the few years they'd been together, David had done things they'd glossed over. A small bribe here, turning his head away there, and that could be explained away as debt owed, but there were bigger things, things Danny didn't want to face at the time. He still didn't want to face the fact that David could be dirty, but the fact that he'd shot Steve and there was a DVD of evidence at McGarrett's home was quickly showing him a whole new path. One he really didn't want to walk down alone.
Danny glanced at the monitors over the bed, unaware that he was beginning to understand what each line meant. He turned away from his friend and walked out the door and almost walked into the governor.
"How is he, Detective?" Jameson asked softly.
"He's stable. He lost a lot of blood," Williams answered.
"What happened?" the woman asked, her voice edged with anger as she looked at the man in the bed.
"Somehow Steve found out what we were doing," Williams said and saw something change in her expression. "Did you tell him what was happening?"
"I let it slip when I came to visit him this morning," Jameson said and saw the anger in the detective's eyes. "I'm sorry, I know I should have..."
"You should never have told him about what we were doing. If there's one thing I know about Steve McGarrett it's the fact that he don't like to be kept down or kept out of the loop. He was here for a reason and because you told him what was going down he showed up at the bar in a set of scrubs with no weapon or backup!"
"He had you and the rest of his team!"
"Did he? We didn't even know he was there until he strode into the middle of the operation, Governor." Williams spat.
"I tried to talk him out of it, but as you know Steve is a stubborn man once he's made up his mind," Jameson said and knew Williams understood what she was saying.
"I bet his name is in the dictionary under stubborn," the Jersey native told her.
"Right next to yours I'd say. How long have you been here?"
"I came in with Steve."
"Have you eaten?"
"No, but Rachel's on her way over with sandwiches," Williams told her.
"Good, now I'm going to check with Steve's doctor before I go home and you should do the same."
"Can I ask you something?"
"Yes," Jameson said.
"What's on the DVD you gave Steve?"
"Evidence," Jameson answered coldly.
"That David and I are dirty?"
"Yes."
"Do you believe it?"
"Steve believes in you and that's good enough for me."
"What about David? Do you really think he's dirty?"
"I wish I could give you the answer you want to hear, Detective, but i can't. Jake was pretty thorough in what he sent me and the evidence against David is strong."
"Then why didn't he bring charges?"
"He tried, but it appears David has friends who are willing to help him. Jake had a run in with a couple of them and he barely escaped with his life. The problem is by the time he pieced it all together O'Brien had transferred here and all the evidence disappeared with him. All of this is on the DVD I gave Steve, Detective."
"I'm going over to Steve's tonight and I'm going to take a look at the evidence and make up my own mind."
"Good, maybe you can shed some light on the older cases," Jameson said.
"I'll keep and open mind," Williams said. He turned and headed toward the stairs, his mind in turmoil at the thought that David could have shot Steve on purpose. God help if he did, because Danny didn't take it well when his Ohana was hurt.
5050505050
David O'Brien sat down across from the two men who'd identified themselves as being part of IA. He had no idea whether they were assigned to his case, but he felt a certain aura about them that didn't quite sit right. Sheffield and Higgins were your typical IA agents who thought they were above everyone else and that a cop was guilty until he could prove his innocense.
O'Brien didn't say a word as Sheffield poured two cups of coffee and handed one to Higgins, keeping the other one for himself. He sized up both agents, seeing something in the way they looked at him that reminded him of himself. He knew they were trying to make him nervous, but they were sadly mistaken if they thought he was afraid of them. If anything they should be afraid of him and what he could do with just a phone call.
"So, Detective O'Brien, you shot a fellow officer," Higgins said, his voice laced with distaste.
"I guess we won't know for sure until we get the ballistic report," O'Brien said and leaned back in his chair.
"You told Lukela that you shot McGarrett," Sheffield said.
"No, I said it was possible," O'Brien told them.
"Oh come on, Detective, you know damn well whether you shot him or not," Higgins snapped. "But don't worry, you're among friends here and we don't all think McGarrett is God's gift to law enforcement."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," O'Brien said.
"Don't you? I'm pretty sure if we dug deeper we'd find you're not as clean as your record shows. Don't be afraid to come clean with us, Detective. After all we're here to find the truth whether we agree with it or not. The cameras are off and no one can see or hear us so I'm going to be frank with you. McGarrett is a thorn in the side of a lot of people, and we know of several gang members who would gladly take him out for the right price."
"I repeat, I have no idea what you're talking about."
"So you're going to be a hard sell, but rest assured you'll come to us before long...just remember the price of our silence will go up with each passing day," Higgins warned.
"So I can leave now," O'Brien asked.
"Yes, but don't leave..."
"Town, oh, please, as if I would even think of leaving this wonderful tropical paradise. Good day, Gentlemen, I must say IA deserves the reputation it has," O'Brien said with a smile before leaving the room. Higgins and Sheffield had no idea that he now had enough on them to rake them over the proverbial coals if he wanted to, but perhaps there'd come a time when they would come in handy.
5050505050
Chin looked up from the magazine he'd been reading when the door opened and nodded to Williams as he moved closer to the bed.
"How is she?"
"She's sleeping. The nurse said she would probably sleep through the night, but I know Kono and I think she's already coming out of it," chin answered. "How's Steve?"
"They got the bullet out, but he needed a lot of blood. The doctor seems to think he'll be fine," Williams answered.
"That's good," Chin said and could sense the tension in his friend. "Why do I get the feeling you don't agree."
"I agree with the doc, Chin, Steve's a stubborn SOB and he's not going to quit on us, but when they brought hi in after surgery he had every piece of medical equipment you could name attached to him."
"And that scared you more than seeing him get shot," Chin observed.
"Yes, it..."
"Made him human."
"Yes, I know that we joke about him being a Super Seal, but when I saw him in that bed it made me realize we're all vulnerable," Williams told him.
"Danny, no matter how strong we are there's always something or someone stronger, but as long as we keep fighting we'll beat the angel of death," Chin said and heard a soft moan from the woman on the bed. "Kono, can you hear me?"
Danny watched as Chin talked to the woman who was still under the influence of drugs, but turned when he heard the soft click of heels grow closer. A hint of a smile was born when Rachel walked into the room carrying a takeout bag from the little deli near her home. He went to her, took the bag and hugged her as they walked to the bed.
"How is she?" Rachel asked.
"She's still sleeping, but Keanna said she'll be fine," Chin answered.
"I brought sandwiches," Rachel said and took them out of the bag before handing one to each man. She handed them both a coffee from the same place before making them sit down while she move to the bed and looked at the sleeping woman.
"Thanks for doing this, Rachel," Chin said.
"You're welcome, Chin," Rachel said and looked at her ex-husband. There was no doubt that he needed to get some rest, but she wondered if he would leave the hospital. At least he was eating and that was half the battle when Danny was worried about his friends, and even more when it was his family and that was just what these people were.
5050505050
Duke Lukela looked at the report that had been filed several hours ago and knew things could not possibly get any worse. A body had been found at a rest stop north of the city. The coroner had been unable to pin down the time of death yet, but he knew it wouldn't take long once they ran their tests.
The body had been identified as Chris Jacobs, and Duke knew the man had been vocal about his dislike of Steve McGarrett. He knew about the fight at Doc's gym, and Jacob's humiliation at McGarrett's hands. He didn't think Steve had anything to do with Jacob's death, but he new there were others on the force who didn't give a damn what he thought.
Lukela looked up to see Higgins and Sheffield watching him, but he didn't let them intimidate him. There were agents of IA that he trusted and liked, but these two were just like the stuff he scraped off the bottom of his shoe. He picked up the report and reread it, hoping the two men would pass him by, but no such luck.
"Lieutenant, could we have a word with you?" Higgins asked, but his tone said there'd be no denying them what they wanted.
"What can I do for you?"
"Rumor has it there was a body found," Sheffield said.
"What does that have to do with IA?" Lukela asked.
"A lot if our information is correct," Higgins told him.
"I guess that depends on what your information is, doesn't it?"
"Was the body Chris Jacobs?" Higgins asked.
"I can't answer that right now."
"That answer tells me everything I need to know," Sheffield said. "Charlie, I believe it's time we questioned Commander McGarrett."
"In case you didn't know, Commander McGarrett was shot..."
"Is he alive?" Higgins interrupted.
"Yes..."
"Then he's better off than Jacobs, and considering how well they got along, McGarrett should be at the top of the suspect list," Sheffield said. "Come on, Charlie, let's go have a chat with Commander McGarrett."
Duke watched the two men leave and reached for his phone. There was no way he could stop Higgins and Sheffield, but at least he could give Chin a heads up before the obnoxious IA agents showed up at the hospital.
5050505050
David O'Brien made his way toward the room where Steve McGarrett slept. He'd seen Danny leave the room and knew the nurses were busy with other patients as he walked toward the open area. He stepped toward Steve's bed, a smile forming as he looked at the blips on the monitor. It would be so easy to end it for the man right now.
"Can I help you?"
O'Brien hid his surprise when he turned to see a woman in her late fifties watching him as if he had two heads. "I'm a friend..."
"I'm sorry, but Commander McGarrett isn't ready for visitors. Detective Williams asked that we keep people from bothering him," Paula Willows told him.
"I'm sure he didn't mean me," O'Brien tried.
"I believe he meant anyone who is not on our list and besides Detective Williams the only other names are Chin Ho Kelly, Kono Kalakaua, Keanna Wahine, Governor Jameson, and the Commander's doctors. Since I know all of those people I don't need to be a detective to know that you are not one of those people and until I get clearance I refuse to let you stay," Willows said and motioned for the man to leave.
"David, what are you doing here?" Danny Williams asked with a frown. Rachel had asked to see Steve and he'd explained that there were only certain people on the list of visitors.
"Hey, Danny, I knew you'd still be here so I thought I'd come by and offer to buy you dinner," O'Brien answered. "Hi, Rachel."
"Hello, David," Rachel said and knew her ex wasn't happy the man was here.
"David, right now you being here is not a good idea," Williams said.
"Why?" O'Brien asked and slapped a hand on the wall. "It's because of the shooting isn't it?"
"Yes," Danny answered honestly. "Look, David, maybe you and Steve got off on the wrong foot but right now I don't want to do anything that might upset him. He's been through enough already."
"Does he know I may have shot him?"
"David, Steve's been unconscious and in case you didn't notice he's had surgery and is hooked up to a damn machine that's helping him breathe. So, no, he doesn't know anything about the shooting yet," Williams snapped.
"I'm sorry, Danny, I know you're angry..."
"Angry doesn't begin to describe what I'm feeling, David!" Williams spat. "It's bad enough he was there because he doesn't trust you, but now...now I have to tell him you shot him...what the hell are you two idiots doing here?"
"Detective, you should watch who you make an enemy of," Higgins warned.
"Is that a threat?"
"No, it's a promise. Now if you'll excuse me we have some questions for Commander McGarrett," Higgins snapped.
"Oh, is that right? Well, Agent Higgins, in case you haven't heard Steve was shot and that SOB Lamont deserved what he got, besides Steve didn't shoot him!"
"I did," O'Brien told them.
"We heard that, but that's not why we're here," Sheffield said.
"Excuse me, Gentlemen, but would you mind taking this somewhere else. You're disturbing the patients," Willows warned.
"They were just leaving," Williams said softly as Rachel moved to Steve's bed and reached for his hand. He led the others away from the room and into the small lounge at the end of the corridor.
"We need to question Commander McGarrett about a murder," Higgins said.
"Well, Steve's not going to be answering...wait a minute! What murder?"
"Chris Jacobs' body was found with a bullet hole in it. He's dead and right now McGarrett is our most likely suspect."
"I though IA was for investigating internal problems," O'Brien said.
"Jacob's was a cop and McGarrett's supposed to be..."
"You're an ass you know that, Higgins," Williams snarled and would have hit the man had O'Brien not stepped between him.
"Better watch it, Detective or you'll find yourself up on charges," Sheffield warned.
"Danny, go see to Steve. I got these two!" O'Brien ordered, relieved when Williams cursed, but left the room.
"He's lucky you stopped him!" Higgins spat.
"You're lucky I was here to stop him," O'Brien said softly, yet there was no mistaking the truth of his words. "You need to be careful around Danny Williams. He may seem like the simple detective, but he's protective of his friends."
"What about you, O'Brien?" Higgins asked.
"I protect my friends...stay away from Danny Williams."
"Another threat?" Sheffield asked.
"No, a simple promise," O'Brien said and walked out the door, leaving the two men to stew in their own juices until he found out more about them.
Author's Note—- Well, here's another part...and thanks again for the reviews...both signed and anonymous...Winnie