The Beginning
By
Landon Richardson
Official Disclaimer
The characters of Lieutenant Commander Steven 'Steve' McGarrett, Chin Ho Kelly, Kono Kalakaua, Victor Hesse, Anton Hesse, Former Detective John 'Johnny / Jack' McGarrett, Mary McGarrett, Lieutenant Catherine 'Cath' Rollins, Frederick 'Fred' Doran, Detective Meka Hanamoa, Amy Hanamoa and Billy Hanamoa do not belong to me in any shape or form. I am merely using them for my own entertainment purposes.
The character of Detective Sergeant Danielle 'Danni' Williams probably can be considered to be mine by now. Although she was originally based on male Danny, she soon evolved becoming her own person. She has her own background, her own family, her own history and her own distinct personality. This isn't to say that the Danny Williams we all know and love is completely gone, he still emerges through her at times. I like to think of female Danni as what Danny could have been if everything in his life had gone his way. As in full custody of Grace and a decent relationship with his ex.
The character of Grace has also changed slightly due to the change in Danni. Her surname is Taylor as this is her father's surname and was Danni's married name (Danni reverted back to her maiden name when she was divorced). Her parents also are amicable which has also impacted Grace but never fear, she's still the sweetheart we know and love, if anything she's more a sweetheart now.
The character of Duncan Taylor, Detective Rory Clements, Supervisory Special Agent in charge Ryan Moore, Special Agent Kale Meade, Special Agent Alexis Moss, Jeanine Landon, William 'Will' McGarrett, Noah Landon, Anna Michaels nee Landon, Theresa Law nee Landon, Deborah 'Debs' Landon and Michael Landon also belongs to me as does any other character who you do not recognise from the show. Please do not use them, or my version of Danni and Grace without first asking for my permission to do so.
Thank you.
Author Note
Here's the next chapter for you all.
I've been looking forward to getting Chin into the story, I'm such a big fan of his character and just felt like they could have done so much more with him then they did. I plan to take that potential and actually make the most of it so you can expect a lot of him in all the stories!
Please note as well that I've taken some creative liberties with the building which the taskforce is situated in, making it larger, with more floors then it is in real life. There are reasons for this which will come up in later stories.
Please enjoy
Official Summary
When Danni Williams moves to Hawaii, all she wants to do is keep her head down and survive the time she had to stay there. The last thing she expected was to meet Steve McGarrett, a man who seems more intent on getting her blown up and finding out everything about her life than he is about following proper procedure. Danni has a job to do though and one way or another she is going to do it.
Chapter Summary
"I was beginning to wonder whether you had managed to get lost between the third floor and the ground floor, it's the only explanation I can think of why it's taken you ten whole minutes to get down here Williams."
Overall Romances
Hints of Steve McGarrett / Danni Williams (McDanni)
Hints of Steve McGarrett / Catherine Rollins (McRollins)
Mentions of past Duncan Taylor / Danni Williams (Dunni)
Hints of Ryan Moore / Danni Williams (Rynni)
Meka Hanamoa / Amy Hanamoa (Mekmy)
Mentions of past John McGarrett / Doris McGarrett (Joris)
Michael Landon / Karen Landon (Micren)
Chapter Romances
Hints of Steve McGarrett / Danni Williams (McDanni)
Mentions of past Duncan Taylor / Danni Williams (Dunni)
Warning
This story features a female Danni Williams in place of a male Danny Williams. Although in some stories I write, Danny does exist, he does not exist in this one.
If this is not your cup of tea then please hit the back button.
Other note
I do not have a Beta so please forgive any mistakes which may creep in, I always do my best to edit the story and check it but sometimes mistakes do creep in.
The places I've mentioned in Hawaii are ones which come from google, including the addresses. I've never been to Hawaii myself in person so I apologise for any mistakes which I may make, these are not intentional.
Chapter Eleven
Danni Williams meet Chin Ho Kelly
Thursday 23rd September 2010
The main Car Park
Ali'iolani Hale
417 King Street
Honolulu
Oahu
"I was beginning to wonder whether you had managed to get lost between the third floor and the ground floor, it's the only explanation I can think of why it's taken you ten whole minutes to get down here Williams."
Danni glanced up at the sound of Steve's shout, raising an eyebrow when she picked up on the impatient tone which flavoured every word he uttered. A tone which she hadn't heard from him before and one which told that Steve McGarrett hated to be kept waiting by anyone when there was somewhere else he wanted to be. Breathing out, she looked around the car park, making sure that they were alone before she spoke, raising her voice slightly so he would be able to hear her clearly as she walked down the stone stairs and headed towards him.
"That's an amusing comment for you to make Commander, it's good to know that beneath everything is a sense of humour buried away." Danni shouldered her bag, adjusting it so it was comfortable as she continued to speak, her eyes fixed on Steve's face; watching as emotions danced across his features, emotions which once again they eluded her. "And for the record I am actually good at following directions to places or asking for help if I need assistance however I was more than capable of navigating a six-storied building on my own. The reason why I was late was because I used my incentive and decided to use the bathroom while I had the opportunity since I had no way of knowing whether the next place we are heading has one because you won't tell me where we are actually going" She pointed out as she came to a halt beside the car, tilting her head to the side so she could see his face. "I assume that's okay with you?"
"I suppose I'm okay with that" He responded, his mouth curling into a half smile while his eyes gleamed with amusement as he watched her closely. He shook his head as though he was clearing his thoughts and instead slapped his hand down hard on the roof of her car and spoke. "Unlock the car Danni so we can get going unless of course you want to do the sensible thing and pass me the keys so I can drive us to the location. We've got at least ten minutes to make up now after all"
"Is that so" Danni responded giving him a long look before she shook her head at him. "I'm beginning to think that you're suffering from some mild delusions if you think that I'm going to pass you the key to the car after you've just done that." She informed him as she nodded towards his hand which was still resting on top of the roof. "If you remember our conversation earlier then you would remember me telling you that I had borrowed this car and therefore this car must remain undamaged because I can't afford to replace this if anything happens to it. The easiest way to ensure that nothing happens to it is for me to drive. Maybe, just maybe, when I have my own car back I'll consider letting you behind the wheel of my car though if that's how you treat cars then the answer will probably still be no." She said.
"How I treat cars?" Steve repeated, making no effort to move from where he was standing just in front of the driver's seat blocking Danni off from the seat again.
"Slapping your hands against it for one, I bet you're one of those people who want to test the engine to see how far you can push it regardless of what it does to the car" She said, her eyes narrowing slightly when his eyes flickered away from hers for a split second telling her that she had hit the nail on the head.
"What car do you have?" Steve queried causing Danni to sigh.
"I have a Chevrolet Camaro RS" She answered him, a smile curling her mouth when his eyes widened.
"That's a nice car" He said, a disbelieving tone to his voice which amused and irked her in equal measures.
"What did you think I would have a soccer van?" She commented wryly before waving her hand towards the mustang. "Can we go or do you want to stand here, wasting time so we can discuss cars?" She waited a second before Steve twisted round on the spot and moved round the back of the car.
Danni shook her head as she opened the driver's seat and climbed in, putting her bag in the passenger footwell just as the door opened and Steve climbed in. She pulled back, sticking the key in the ignition and started the car up, reaching out and closing her door behind her.
She glanced towards him, a smile coming to her face as she caught sight of expression on his face which he was clearly trying to hide behind a blank mask.
"Are you planning on sitting there and pouting for the entire journey because you're not driving because on one hand that would be kind of adorable but on the other it would also be kind of…" She trailed off for a moment, considering her words before she carried on. "Pathetic"
"I'm not pouting Danni" Steve stated, crossing his arms over his chest and arranging his features into a glare which caused her smile to widen, suddenly reminded sharply of her younger brothers who would often do something similar if they were called out on something.
"Is that so" She said, turning slightly in her seat so she could see over her shoulder to make sure the way was clear behind them before she reversed out of their space. "Well in fairness to you, you're not pouting anymore, now you merely look as though you need to do a number two which for the record isn't a good look for anyone, not even someone who looks like you."
"Danni" Steve growled at her, his eyes narrowing slightly at her when she reached out and patted his arm with her hand before pulling back.
"Where are we heading? I need to know if we're turning left or right" She told him as she pulled the car to a halt at the entrance.
"Turn to the right Danni, we're heading over to Pearl Harbour, I'm guessing that even you know how to get to Pearl Harbour from here?" He queried with a glance at her.
"I haven't been there yet but I know the general route you take to get there, if I get into any difficulties then I'll simply do what everyone else does who comes here for a visit and read a road sign for directions." She answered him as she hit the right indicator and pulled out into the road, automatically raising her hand to thank the driver who slowed to let her out. "Did you manage to get any information out of Doran once I left the room? Did he get us any leads which we could use to narrow Hesse's location down?"
"He didn't give us as much as I hoped he would have" Steve admitted, tapping his finger tip against his knee in time with the music on the radio.
"Giving his attitude, I think the fact that he gave us anything is probably more than we could have hoped for" She commented, her eyes flickering to one of the road signs which indicated she was going on the right way. She had the feeling that if she got lost to Pearl Harbour then she would never hear the end of it from her new partner. A partner who would probably have no problem in bringing it up in the future.
"He admitted that he had heard of Victor Hesse and that they were acquaintances who have met face to face recently, so we were right in our assumption that they knew each other but after he admitted that, he seemed to realise that what he had just said and clammed up. He wouldn't tell me anything which tells me that Doran is more afraid of Hesse then he is of me, which probably means that Hesse has something on Doran which he desperately wants to be kept hidden."
"I checked out Doran's record before I put the request in this morning to have him wire tapped. He hasn't left the island in two years and he's been under constant surveillance by HPD the entire time, if he had slipped off the island then someone would have been notified and sounded a warning which means that Doran must have met Hesse here. If we can figure out where they met then we could get the CCTV and see what happened at the meeting. If we get a good enough angle then we can probably run it through a lip-reading program and see what they were saying to each other" Danni remarked thoughtfully, frowning slightly as she pulled to a stop at a red light and looked towards Steve. "I'm guessing that when he told you he wouldn't answer anymore of your questions that he asked for a lawyer?"
"Yeah" Steve replied with a nod. "He didn't ask for one to be appointed to him so he is probably going to use his one call and ring his older brother to ask him to come down and represent him. No doubt the elder Doran will be on his way to the airport the moment that call is made to get a flight to Hawaii so he can clear up his brother's mess and their name. It's probably not the first time he had to do it either."
"If he comes down then he'll resent it" Danni remarked with a shake of her head. "Especially if it isn't the first time. I know that older siblings tend to look out for their younger siblings but there is a limit over what they are willing to do, especially if they have their own lives to deal with" she stated as they set off from the light again.
"You sound like you're speaking from experience?" Steve commented.
"Yes and no, my older siblings have never abandoned me and I've never abandoned my younger siblings. My older brother Nathan is the eldest out of us and we would always go running to him rather than our parents with our problems because he would do deal with them without subjecting us with a lecture. It's an automatic reaction, I'm sure you're the same with your sister and your cousins. It's not surprise that Doran has done the same. Why have to rely on a lawyer from the state who probably has more cases then they can deal with or hire a lawyer which would cost the earth when you have one who is on speed dial who would represent you for free. I know if I was in his situation I would do the same thing." She told Steve, glancing over at him in time to see him slowly nod. "Do you know if his brother is any good at his job? I know you said he made partner but that could be more politically then talent driven."
"I made a call and had someone check his brother's record while I was waiting for you to come down and it looks like his promotion was talent driven. He rarely loses his cases and he doesn't have a speciality when it comes to the cases he takes. It seems that he can deal with anything which comes up." Steve said, taking a sip of the coffee which she had gotten him.
"Can he now" Danni said, taking a hand off the wheel and picking her cell phone up, she pressed on the number four button, quickly putting the hands-free ear piece in her ear.
"Who are you calling?" Steve asked her. Danni held her hand up at him when the phone was answered after four rings with a brisk.
"Special Agent Moore."
"Hey Boston, it's Jersey" She announced down the phone, aware of Steve frowning beside her.
"Hey Jersey, this is a surprise, a phone call on top of already seeing each other today? People will begin to talk more about us then they already do if you keep this up." Ryan said, sounding amused over the line.
"Well considering how amusing you find everything they say then I doubt it would bother you if they do talk or not Ryan. You forget that I know the way you think." Danni replied, a smile coming to his face when he laughed.
"Well don't let my team know that because otherwise they are going to be blowing up you phone asking for tips." He replied. "I happen to know you as well so I know that this call isn't a call between friends but rather a call between a lead Detective on a case I'm working so hit me Jersey. What can I do for you? What do you need?" He queried, his voice changing becoming brisk and business like.
"I'm just ringing to check to see what you and your team have found in Doran's trailer so far? He's just lawyered up and according to our intel the lawyer in question is extremely good at his job. I just want to make sure that what we have on him evidence wise is rock solid so that the lawyer can't have it thrown out in the court room." She told him.
"I don't think the DA office will have a problem putting this guy exactly where he belongs Jersey regardless of how good the lawyer is. We have weapons galore here, Tristan even found a box of them hidden behind one of the panels in the wall which we're thinking are probably the guns which are linked to ongoing cases because why else keep them out of sight right? On top of that we've found enough drugs that the man could open his own pharmacy and never run out of the stuff. We've got cocaine, we've got heroin, date rape drugs and some drugs which I don't recognise which I'll be passing straight to Natalia when we're back at the lab so she can tell us what exactly it is." Ryan told her, the comment causing Danni to nod, forgetting momentarily that he couldn't see her. She could hear him moving so he was clearly making his way through the trailer.
"That's a lot for us to go with" She said when he remained silent for a moment.
"Well you'll be pleased to know then Jersey that the guns and the drugs are just the tip of the iceberg with what we're finding. We've got other weapons other than gun and there some DVDs here as well which are bad enough that they even turned Kale's stomach and I hardly need to tell you of all people how difficult a feat that is to accomplish."
"Just a little bit." Danni said quietly. Kale Mead was one of Ryan's senior agents who often took charge of the external team when they were sent out to a crime scene. It was a well-known fact among the people who were considered his friends that Kale lives on horror films and thrillers, he loved them, more often then not watching them just before he went to sleep. For him to watch something and his stomach to turn meant that whatever was on those DVDs wasn't for the faint hearted to view. "I'm almost scared to ask but what was on those DVDs that turned his stomach?"
"I don't think you really want me to go into the details Danni, especially not over the phone. Let's just say that it didn't end up well for the women who were featured on the films." Ryan told hr abruptly, his tone making it clear that he meant what he said about not going into the details any further.
"Are you telling me that Doran made snuff DVDs?" She questioned, her voice rising in disbelief aware of Steve suddenly sitting up in his seat and fixing his full attention on her.
"I can't tell if he had a hand in making the videos but there's no denying that he takes a starring role in them." Ryan admitted. "That's all we've got on him at the moment Jersey but I'd like to stress the at the moment part of that sentence. This guy has more hidden spaces and panels than a paranoid millionaire does. God only know what is hidden behind the other ones if this is what we've found out already. It shouldn't even be possible to have this many panels considering this is merely a trailer. We do need someone to go through the guns and check the permits on them after we do the initial ballistic test on them though." He told her.
"Yeah I can do that for you Boston" She offered. "Have someone in your department takes pictures of all the guns and any registration numbers you can find which haven't been scraped off and deliver them to me in my new office. I'm based on the third floor of the Ali'iolani Hale building instead of HPD now. I'll go through the database and see whether he has any permits for them. Send me the results of ballistics tests as well so I can compare them to the ongoing crimes or cold cases which might be on the system. Just because he might have a permit for one it doesn't mean that it hasn't been used in a crime. Doran has a temper on him, he would be the kind of man who would simply grab the first handy weapon and not even consider whether it was the right gun for him to use."
"I've already sent the first batch of them back with Connor and he knows what he has to do. I'll drop the pictures over to you myself once we've got enough for you to start working on. Are you going be at yours around six tonight?" He queried, a curious note to his words.
"I'm not sure yet, Gracie is with Duncan tonight until seven so I may try and work late, I'm just not quite sure where I'll be, considering this is my first day on the job I've already got quite a lot to catch up on so I'll have to let you know nearer the time where I am." She told Ryan with a sigh.
"Yeah if you call me then I can come to where you are, that wouldn't be a problem. You want to grab a coffee together when I get there? It's my treat since you paid for the drinks the last time we met up" he offered, the professional tone lightening.
"You know that normally I would jump at the offer Ryan but I think I'd be cutting it too fine with the timing if we met up tonight. I need to be home by at least six fifty since Duncan is often early. I don't want Grace having to wait for me, especially since she'll probably be tired by that point." She explained, unsurprised when Ryan made a sound of agreement at the back of his throat.
"I can understand that." He said to her.
Danni glanced over to Steve unsurprised to see that he has twisted towards her, clearly listening to every word she was saying. He could probably even hear what Ryan was saying.
"I'm going to invite Meka, Amy and Billy are coming around tomorrow for dinner. If you're free say at around six thirty then you should come over as well. It won't be anything fancy because of time so I may just throw together a lasagne and chuck it in the oven. Just let me know if you are coming or not" She offered.
"If you're cooking your grandmother's lasagne Danni then I'm going to be there. I'll give you a call later on then and you can let me know where you are and we'll work from there. I'll speak to you later." He responded.
"See you later Boston." She said before ending the call, slipping the ear piece out of her ear again she turned to look at Steve briefly before focusing back on the road.
"Well?" He prompted after a moment of silence.
"Well they've found quite a lot of stuff in Doran's trailer so far. They have several weapons, several different types of drugs. They have even found a collection of snuff videos which apparently has Doran starring in the lead role in them. Ryan think that it's only the beginning though and that they will find more things for us to use."
"So, it looks like from what you're saying that we have the Doran case wrapped up. It doesn't matter how good his brother is at his job, the evidence we've gathered will speak for itself. He will be going away for a long time." Steve remarked, a satisfied look coming to his face before he became serious again. "What we need to do now is focus our attention back on Hesse and finding out who he is working with. I'd rather you go through the airport film then you looking through permits. Looking through those permits sounds like a job which should be done by CSU" He said, backing up her previous thought that Steve had been listening to both sides of the conversation.
"Actually, that part of the investigation is done by the police not by the CSU lab. There are only thirty people who works at the labs, fifteen on each shift since they are split between the day and night shift. They deal with all the cases on the islands Steve and that is a lot of cases. They don't have the time to do things like searching through the HPD database for permits." She explained with a shrug. "Besides in case it slipped your notice Steve, Ryan did let us have Doran trailers for twenty minutes earlier on, going through permits is the least I can do for him in return. Besides, you've said yourself that it will take at least a couple of hours if not longer for your friend in intelligence to get back to us with the accomplice name. I'm going to be busy regardless of what I do tonight, I've already got to go through the footage, check the permits and write up our reports on Doran's arrest which for the record you will need to read, sign off and then add your own comment to the bottom before you send it off the Governor and the AD office."
She smiled slightly when Steve breathed out nosily at the comment before he changed the subject.
"Did you tell me earlier that you've never been to Pearl Harbour?" He demanded, causing Danni to blink at him. She thought back to their conversation when they first entered the car before she nodded.
"Yeah, I mentioned it earlier" She agreed with him.
"Care to explain to me how you could live here in Hawaii for six months and not have gone to see Pearl Harbour, it's normally one of the first things that people go and see after the beach" He stated with a slight frown.
Danni considered the question for a moment before she shrugged at him.
"Well, I think that we've established that I'm not like most people." She answered him, wincing when she caught sight of the look of sheer disbelief which covered his face at his comment. "Enough with the looks already, you don't need to get yourself a headache where there's a simple explanation behind it. The first two months Grace and I were on the island was spent looking for the house, then we found the house and moved in and had to turn it into our home. That took months and took a most of my wages as well because I hate to tell you this Steve but being a police detective isn't as well paid as being in the navy and being a police detective in Hawaii is even harder when you're trying to raise a young daughter on that wage." She admitted, glancing at another sign relieved to see that they were nearly there. She was finding it easier to talk to Steve then she had thought it would be and that could be a dangerous thing.
"What about your ex-husband, he must help you out with Grace?" He queried, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back in his seat, his eyes fixed on her thoughtfully.
"He does" She replied with a nod at him. "Duncan is an amazing father to Grace and he is always willing to help me out with Grace but I can't rely on him for everything."
"So, you and your ex actually get along with each other?" Steve pressed. Danni turned and shot him a quick look which caused him to roll his eyes at her, clearly picking up of the meaning behind her glance. "That's only about three, maybe four months, which you've explained. What about the past two months, once your house was a home? You still need to explain that."
"I still need to explain it to you do I?" She asked, feeling amused by the comment before she shook her head. "Well by the time the house was finished we had both made friends on the island so the weekends when we could have done things like Pearl Harbour was spent instead seeing them. Grace had a lot of parties so I end up having to take and pick her up from them and then obviously we wanted to spend time together as well. We have a list of things we want to do, and one day we will, it's just not the right time at the moment." She confessed, cursing silently in her mind when she felt her face reddening beneath his gaze. "We're here" She announced as she pulled into the car park, finding a parking space straight away. "Now let's focus back on our job. Who are we here to see exactly?" She asked him as they exited the car.
"We're here to see a man called Chin Ho Kelly" Steve replied as he walked behind the car, placing his hand on her lower back and using the touch to propel her forward.
"Chin Ho Kelly?" Why does that name sound familiar to me?" Danni remarked, frowning slightly as she tried to remember where exactly that name had popped up for her. "Oh, and by the way, do you care to explain to me why you keep feeling the need to push me around? I have to pair of perfectly functioning legs which are more than capable of walking without having any assistance from you. If you point out the direction we're heading in then I'll be able to head over there under my own steam."
"True but doing it this way is just as easy for me, especially since I already have reservations about your ability to find your way around the island" He responded, a half smile coming to his face as though he found her reaction amusing.
Danni made an annoyed sound at the back of her throat before she looked around her, her gaze moving across the faces of the people surrounding them looking for a sign of anything being out of place before she spoke.
"Where does Chin Ho Kelly work exactly?"
"Right here" Steve answered, gripping the back of her dress lightly and bringing them to a halt outside of a one storied building. Danni tilted her head to the side to look at the window display in confusion.
"This is the gift shop though." She stated, turning so she could look at her new partner. "Is he a confidential informant you have or does he just work here?"
"Chin works security here" Steve said, stepping to the side and dragging Danni with him allowing a group of excited school children to head towards the exit.
"He works security? Is there anything else you want to tell me before we go inside and speak to him? Like perhaps what it is about him that you think can help us with the case? How do you know him?" Danni questioned as she looked back towards the shop.
"No, I don't have anything to add and yes I do know him" Steve answered her simply, continuing to speak before she had a chance to say anything in response. "I can tell you where you've heard his name before. He used to be my Dad's partner on the force, Dad trained Chin so you probably saw his name on some of the old cases my Dad worked on. I'm guessing you probably have glanced through a few of them." He explained.
"That's it" She exclaimed falling silent as she remembered what else those records said about what had happened to John's partner and how strongly John had defended his partner against the charges he faced. That degree of loyalty was hard to achieve. "Well let's go and speak to him than" she remarked nodding towards the entrance to the store.
"Lets" Steve said finally letting go of her. She straightened her dress, bringing a hand up automatically to her hair to smooth it down before she entered the gift shop behind Steve, looking around her curiously. As far as she could see there were a few employees around putting out stock and some behind the till but no one who looked as though they were working the floor as security.
"So, do you see him here at all?" She asked Steve who shook his head at her, a frown on his face.
"No, I don't" He admitted.
"Maybe he's out back on a coffee break or something? Normal people do tend to take breaks for something to drink after all." She pointed out, smiling sweetly at him when he turned to glare at her. Danni moved away from him, across the shop and stopped by the counter waiting for a moment while the young girl behind it finished serving the elderly couple in front of her before she stepped forward, flashing a pleasant smile at the girl. "Hello, I'm sorry to interrupt you while you're working but I was wondering whether you could tell me if Chin Ho Kelly is working here today? I need to speak to him about something and I was told that he would be here but I don't see him out on the floor."
"Chin is at work today Ma'am but he's currently out back with a suspect. If you want to speak to him then I'm afraid that you'll have to wait out here for him. I can't allow you to go out back to him and I'm not sure how long he'll be out there either. If you want to give me your name and information then I can send him a text to let him know that you're waiting for him." The girl offered, picking up a pen and a nearby post-it note and offered them both to Danni with a smile.
"Thanks for the offer Miss but we don't have the time for that, this is official police business" Steve said bluntly as he came to Danni's side, flashing his military badge at the young woman. "You said that Chin was out back with someone right?" He demanded.
Danni sighed resisting the urge to reach up and rub at her eyes as the girl merely looked startled, staring at Steve with her mouth open. Danni wasn't sure whether it was because of Steve's mannerism and the badge he held or whether it was because of how he looked which caused the girl's brain to temporary malfunction. From what she could tell though it was most likely the second option considering how many women had checked him out since they had entered the shop, looks which Steve didn't even seem to register indicating to Danni that he was used to it.
"That's not a police badge sir, I can't let you out there" The girl said bravely, her eyes flickering them both. Danni decided to take matters into her own hands before Steve started an incident which would take Danni a lot of time to clear up. Time which she didn't necessarily want to waste given what she already had to do that day.
"You're quite correct with that observation Therese" Danni said, dropping her eyes to the girl's name badge briefly. "My partner badge isn't a police badge, but this one here" She continued reaching for her neck and pulling her own badge out, holding it up so Therese could see it "Is a police badge. My name is Detective Williams and this is my partner Commander McGarrett and we could appreciate it if you could tell us where Chin is, he's not in any trouble or anything but we do need his assistance with an ongoing case. So, if you wouldn't mind pointing us in the right direction then that would be great thank you."
Therese glanced at Danni's badge, her eyes flickering to Danni's face before she nodded at her.
"Of course, Detective Williams. If you head out through that door then you'll be able to find him. Chin tends to use the third door on the right if he ever needs to question someone." Therese explained.
"Thank you again" Danni said with a smile at her
"Come on Danni" Steve said, wrapping his hand around her wrist and pulling her towards the door which Therese had pointed out to them. For a moment Danni considered twisting herself in his hold so she could kick him in the shin but she swiftly decided against it. As much as she wanted to, there were too many people in the shop watching their progress with interested eyes meaning that they needed to present a united front. The moment they were through the door and it had closed behind them, Danni yanked her wrist from his hold and glared at him before she looked around the corridor, noticing how chilled it was compared to the main room. "Problem?" Steve queried, an undercurrent to his voice which Danni would have almost placed as concerned if she didn't know better.
"Could we not have managed that interaction without announcing to everyone who was in hearing distance of us that we were cops who were searching for Chin Ho Kelly?" She demanded angrily, her eyes narrowing when Steve merely shrugged at her as though her point wasn't that important.
"Based on what that girl told us Chin should be down this way" He said, waving his hand down the corridor as he headed towards it. Danni frowned, cursing his long legs under her breathe as she hurried after him.
"Steve will you listen to me please" She tried again. "You've just announced to everyone in the shop that the police are looking for this guy. You might have just cost him his job or at least made the next few months here extremely awkward for him."
"Nothing like that is going to happen Danni, you need to trust me, I know what I'm doing" He told her over his shoulder as he threw open the door at the end of the doorway. Danni moved to the other side of him and peered into the dark room. There were two people in there as far as she could see. One was a young chubby looking boy of about eight, maybe nine who was staring around him with a terrified look. The second was a man of about five foot nine or five foot ten who was looking down at the boy. "Chin" Steve said, ignoring the boy as though he wasn't even in the room. "We need to speak to you. Have you got a minute?"
Chin Ho Kelly turned and shot them a surprised look.
"Steve?" He said in confusion. "What are you doing here? This area is for authorised personnel only and you're not authorised."
"I am now Chin. Is there somewhere we can go to talk? Steve remarked. Danni watched as Chin searched Steve's face before he nodded slowly.
"Sure, I can spare a few minutes to talk to you both, just let me finish off here and I'll be right with you" He said, his dark eyes flickering to Danni with a curious look before he waved his hand towards the small boy who shrank back in his chair with a small sound which tugged at Danni's heart strings.
"I don't think there's much left of this little guy to finish off Mr Kelly" Danni observed looking at the kid before her eyes came up to meet Chin's. "Whatever this child has done it's pretty clear to anyone that he won't be doing it again. You've put the fear of God into him. May I?" She queried, tilting her head to the side as she waved a hand towards Chin who watched her for a second, searching her eyes before his mouth curled up in a slight smile as he nodded.
"Please be my guest" He responded. Danni returned his smile before she moved into the room to the boy's side, hunching down beside him, her forearm resting on the surface of the table.
"Hi" She said gently. "My name is Danni, what's your name?"
The boy blinked at her, sniffling before he spoke.
"Kyle, Kyle Walker" He answered.
"Well it's nice to meet you Kyle Walker" Danni said watching some of the tension ease out from the boy's shoulders, a hopeful look coming to his eyes. "I'm guessing you did something naughty to end up in here. What did you do exactly?" She asked him.
"I didn't mean any harm Miss Danni. I came here with my mom and my little sister, she's only two and mom has been looking for something for Lydia's bedroom and I saw a snow globe which I knew she would love but Mom had already left the store so I picked it up and ran outside to show it to her. I promise I was going to being it back once I showed my Mom but then Mr Kelly stopped me and he called my Mom back in and took me out here. Please don't send me to jail Miss Danni, my Dad is in the Navy and he told me to take good care of my Mom and Lydia while he was gone and I can't do that if I'm in jail." He pleaded, sounding anxious.
"I don't think that Mr Kelly is going to throw you into jail Kyle." Danni told him reassuringly, smiling when he slumped back into his chair with a sigh of relief. "Perhaps if you apologise for your mistake then he'll show you some mercy" She suggested, pushing herself to her feet and shooting Chin an amused look before she headed back to the door, meeting Steve's eyes and frowning slightly when she noticed an expression in them which she couldn't quite read and which was gone before she could look closer. She turned back when she heard Kyle speak again.
"I'm really sorry Mr Kelly, I promise I won't do this again,"
"Alright then Kyle" Chin said, giving the small boy a stern look when he looked up at him. "I'll let you off this time but make sure in future that you don't make the same mistake again. The next time you see something which you think is perfect for your sister's room, you should call your mother over to you instead. Saying that though your sister is lucky to have a big brother who clearly cares about her so much. Now off you go, your Mom is waiting for you just outside the main door to the shop." He instructed.
"Yes Sir, Mr Kelly Sir" Kyle agreed fervently, jumping to his feet and running from the room as though the hounds of hell were after him. Danni and Steve moved out of the way for him. Danni watched until he disappeared through the door before she looked back, surprised to see that Chin had moved so that he was standing directly in front of her, his hand outstretched towards her as his eyes moved over her face in a thoughtful manner.
"I'm Chin Ho Kelly, you can just call me Chin rather than Mr Kelly" He told her. "And you are?"
Danni returned his smile, reaching out and grasping his hand in hers and shook it, noticing that his hand was warm with calluses at the fingertips as though he was constantly holding something, probably a leftover from his days on the police and that it engulfed hers.
"I'm Detective Danni Williams, it's nice to meet you Chin." She responded.
"Oh, so you're the famous Danni Williams then, it's nice to finally meet you as well. I've heard a lot about you." Chin said, squeezing her hand briefly before he let it go, his gaze flickering over to Steve.
"You've heard of me?" She repeated before she sighed "I didn't realise that quite so many people knew about me."
Chin looked back at her, opening his mouth to respond but closed it when Steve spoke.
"You can have this conversation later if you want to but we've got more important things to discuss then Danni's reputation." He stated firmly. "Chin, is there somewhere we can go to talk?" He asked again, the same impatient note from before re-entering his voice, Chin nodded his head, looking between them, the warm smile melting into a serious expression.
"The canteen area is usually empty around this time of day. We should be able to talk uninterrupted there. Follow me and I'll show you the way." Chin instructed before he headed out of the door. Danni glanced towards Steve unsurprised to see that he was wearing the same impassive look she was used to seeing when they were interacting with other people.
Turning, Danni followed Chin out of the main gift shop and down the path a little before he turned and headed into a tented area which was filled with picnic tables, the majority of which were empty just like Chin had indicated they would be. The man in question headed to the back of the tent, grabbing one of the tables and sat on the bench giving them both a thoughtful look when he settled, he was no doubt wondering why they were there which was the same question which was going around Danni's head.
Why were they there?
Why had Steve brought them there?
What exactly was his plan?
Danni sank onto the bench opposite Chin, smiling at him as she opened her bag and pulled out the muffin which she had bought from her trip to the coffee shop earlier. She glanced to the side when Steve slipped into the spare seat next to her, realising quickly that both men were staring at her, their eyes flickering between her and her snack. She glanced down at the muffin before she looked back up and shrugged.
"Don't mind me, we haven't actually stopped for lunch yet so I'm feeling pretty hungry now. You should probably eat as well Steve, you've probably not stopped for anything since breakfast either, if you actually had breakfast in the first place." She commented with a frown towards him. She picked the muffin up in her hands and carefully tore it in half, pushing the larger half over to Steve. "Eat that, it's better than having nothing to eat, and just for the record if you moan about it then you can walk back to the office from here." She told him simply, meeting the glare he shot her with a smile which grew when his eyes dropped away from hers and he tore a chunk out of his half of the muffin and popped it into his mouth.
"So how long has the two of you known each other then?" Chin asked them curiously, his eyes flickering between the two of them
Danni tilted her head to the side when Steve came to his feet, resting his hand on her shoulder for a moment before he moved away from the table and towards the counter on the other side of the tent leaving Chin's question hanging awkwardly between them.
Danni shot him a rueful smile.
"Sorry about him, he… he has a lot on his mind at the moment" She said finally, reaching up and pushing some of her hair behind her ear.
"I can imagine" Chin replied, a look of sadness coming to his face, reminding Danni that Chin would be grieving the loss of John McGarrett as well, she reached out without thinking, placing her hand over his where it rested on the surface of the table and squeezed down, meeting his gaze when he looked up at her, a startled look in his eyes.
"I'm sorry for your loss" She told him before taking her hand back and instead curling it round her muffin which she had yet to start. "As for how long Steve and I have known each other, it's probably around about three, maybe four hours or so though we have definitely only been partners for three of those." She told him with another rueful smile.
"Sorry, did you say that you've only known each other for four hours at the most?" Chin said in disbelief, looking over her shoulder, no doubt in Steve's direction.
"It closer to three than four because there was a period of time between us meeting at John McGarrett's house and us meeting at HPD where we weren't together." She explained with a shrug, dropping her eyes to stare at the muffin.
"But you're partners now? Weren't you with HPD partnered with Meka Hanamoa?" Chin questioned, Danni glanced up surprised at the comment, something Chin clearly picked up on. "News of you made it all over the island, it was kind of a big deal to have a female Detective in HPD."
"So, I gather" Danni said with a sigh before she shook her head. "We met at the house, had some words and I left. Next thing I knew Steve was at HPD, had taken over the case and after I had left, told Hookano and the Governor that he was making me into his partner and that was that. The next thing I know is that I'm no longer part of HPD and instead am part of a brand-new taskforce."
Chin remained silent for a moment, clearly absorbing what she had said before he spoke, an undercurrent of sympathy to his voice.
"Sounds like you've had to take in a lot in a short amount of time." He stated. "Clearly though you must have made quite the impression on him for him to decide to make that decision."
"I must have though I'm not exactly sure how." She admitted. "It means that Meka is by himself for the moment now though, you sounded as though you were familiar with him, did you know him?"
"He was just starting out when I was there" Chin answered, his eyes flickering away, she frowned slightly, noticing that Chin's hand curled into a fist on the table before it relaxed.
"He's a good guy, Hookano placed us together from my first day at HPD, I thought it was because Meka was an easy-going guy but I found out later that he partnered me with Meka because no one else in the department was willing to work with a mainlander. Add to that the fact that I'm female and I guess I was lucky enough that Meka was open minded enough not to care, since apparently my ability to give birth is a crime with the other Detectives." She said, keeping her voice light.
"They always were backwards there, willing to believe anything if it made their lives easier" Chin said bitterly before he shook his head. "It must have been difficult dealing with all that bullshit prejudice, especially considering where you transferred from."
"It was surprising at first but I became used to it pretty quickly, they did nothing which I couldn't handle Chin and I did have Meka which made things a great deal easier for me. Things could have been much worse without him." She commented, glancing to the side as Steve slid back onto the bench beside her and placed a cupholder with three large drinks in it and a small brown bag in front of him. He handed one of the coffees over to Chin who took it with a look of surprise before placing the other two in front of him and Danni.
Danni watched curiously when Steve reached into the bag and pulled out two wrapped sandwiches, one of which he offered to Danni. She stared at it for a moment before lifting her hand and taking it from him.
"Eat that before you eat the muffin." Steve instructed. "I wasn't sure what you would want so I went with cheese and tomato because it seems to be a classic which most people tend to eat. I can't have you fainting on me on the first day Danni just because you haven't eaten properly. If that happened, then I would never hear the end of it from you. You'd be using it against me ten years down the line." He said with a suffering sigh.
Danni raised an eyebrow at the assumption that she and Steve would still be in each other's lives in ten years' time. For a moment she considered calling him out on it but instead she simply smiled at him.
"Thank you for the sandwich, you didn't have to get me anything though I appreciate it. I had food already" She commented, waving her hand towards the untouched muffin. He glanced towards it before looking back up at her with a disbelieving look.
"That right there isn't food Danni, it's pure junk which would have left you hungry for more after thirty minutes. The sandwich will keep you filled up until we can get something more substantial to eat later so eat it." He stated, his tone making it clear that it was a command rather than a suggestion. Danni raised an eyebrow again at the tone, meeting his eyes as she considered whether it was worth arguing with him but after a moment she decided that it would be pointless, especially since he was right, and instead turned her attention to the sandwich and unwrapped it, her stomach rumbling in appreciation at the sight of it.
"Well thank you again Steve" She said with a warm smile at him, ignoring the startled look he sent her as she picked up the sandwich and took a bite of it.
"So, how can I help you both?" Chin asked attracting their attention to him, clearly wanting to get down to business now that Steve had returned.
Danni watched from the corner of her eye when Steve reached into the pocket of his cargo pants and pulled out his cell phone, fiddling around with it for a moment before he spoke.
"Chin, I need you to take a look at this photo for us and tell me if you recognise the girl at all, maybe you've seen her around. Her name is Chen Chi." Steve held up his cell phone so Chin so the other man could see the picture of the young girl who they had encountered earlier. He took it from him, looking down at the picture, a frown on his face as he studied it closely.
Danni watched him for a second before turning her attention back to Steve, frowning when she saw that he was ignoring his own sandwich, rolling her eyes she dug her elbow into his ribs, giving a pointed look at his unwrapped sandwich when he looked over at her. He made a huffing sound but unwrapped the sandwich and took a large bite from it.
"Where did you find her?" Chin asked after a few moments, looking up at them with a troubled look on his face.
"We found her in the house of a suspect who we have in custody at the moment chained to a rusty pipe" Steve answered him. Danni turned to him, picking up on the slight shift to his voice as he continued to speak. "This girl came to this country to start a new life for herself and instead someone took her and gave her to some scumbag to do what he wanted with her. She's just a child. She deserves better than this. She deserves some sort of justice for what she's been through and we're going to ensure she gets it." He stated. Danni reached out without thinking and placed her hand on his lower back, rubbing her palm in a soothing, circular manner, the same way she did with Grace when the young girl was upset over something. Steve tensed for a moment at the contact before his muscles slowly relaxed beneath her palm. "What is it?" Steve demanded, his eyes still fixed on Chin who was watching the pair of them with a smile.
"It's nothing, you just reminded me of your old man for a moment, he always had the same fire and determination to defend and protect the underdog. It's safe to say that the attitude got the pair of us into trouble on more occasions than I count though it was always worth it in the end." He remarked wryly with a shake of his head as he passed Steve's cell phone back to him.
"Then help me now like you helped my Dad in the past Chin. He always spoke highly of you saying that you were the best rookie which he trained and a complete natural at the job. You told me yesterday on the pier that you wanted to do something to help me bring Dad's killer to justice and this right here is your opportunity to do that." He said. Danni nodded her head when Chin turned to look at her, taking her hand away from Steve's back as she turned her attention towards her sandwich, knowing that this conversation had to be between Steve and Chin. She was aware of Steve's eyes flickering over to her before he looked back at his cell phone and brought up a picture of Victor Hesse which Danni recognised as a close-up version of the surveillance photo in his file. "This guy is called Victor Hesse and he is currently high up on every watch list you can think of. This man can't just get off a plane, stroll into customs and get his passport stamped without bringing both the military and the agencies down on his head. We think that he was back channelled to the island in the same way that Chen Chi was." Steve told Chin, placing his cell on the table so it was facing Chin before he took another bite of his sandwich.
"So, you think that it was the same network for both of them. It's possible, the established trafficking routes can be used for a lot." Chin said, taking a sip of the coffee which Steve had got him with a thoughtful frown.
"We're about ninety five percent positive that the trafficking route idea is what happened and for a police investigation ninety five percent is pretty much as certain as we get. It's the only scenario which seems plausible" Danni said, speaking up as she watching Chin.
"Hesse has more than enough money to pay for it as well, he made a fortune trafficking women and children out of the Malaysian area, he-"
"Stop" Chin interrupted Steve. "You said that Hesse was involved in the Malaysian area?" He queried, waiting until Steve nodded at him before he continued, leaning forward in his chair and resting his forearm on the table. "In that case you're looking for a snakehead" He told them confidently.
"A snakehead?" Danni repeated, frowning slightly as she tried to remember where she had heard that term before. Chin obviously noticing her look took pity on her and went on to explain further.
"A snakehead is the name which was given to the local Chinese gangs in the area who specialise in human smuggling, they are generally not the nicest group which you could deal with."
"The name sounds familiar" She said as she placed her half-eaten sandwich down and brushed her hands together to get rid of any extra crumbs. "Is there any chance you happen to have a name for the person who is the head of this particular snake?" She queried, raising an eyebrow when Chin suddenly moved back from them, his hands tightening on his cup.
"Are you kidding me?" He demanded flatly, looking between them both. "Take a good look at me, all I am is a rubber gun now. Why would I have information like that?"
"Because you were a cop on the force for fifteen years Chin." Danni responded bluntly, picking up her own coffee and taking a sip before she continued, meeting the older man's eyes. "You still have contacts from that time and favours from people which will still be outstanding and waiting to be cashed in. We need a name Chin and we need your help with this so please help us." She pleaded.
Chin searched her eyes for a moment before he sighed and turned to Steve.
"There is one guy who I know from the old days who might know a name. He owes me a few favours and as far as I know he still has some ties to that world, ties which we could use but-"
"Get us an introduction with him Chin." Steve interrupted brusquely.
"Forget about it McGarrett." Chin answered back, matching Steve's tone. "The guy in question is a former confidential informant. You know how he managed to stay alive and beneath everyone's radar for so long? He managed it because he doesn't trust anyone who he doesn't know well. He doesn't trust Haoles and he especially doesn't trust Haoles who are fresh off the mainland, no offence Danni" Chin said, glancing towards her with a brief apologetic look before he looked back at Steve, his eyes narrowing again.
"None taken, I'm more than used to be called an Haole by people who don't know me." Danni responded flatly, taking the last bite of her sandwich and crunching the paper into a ball as she ignored the feeling of annoyance which flowed through her.
"Fine then, if you can't get us an introduction Chin then you can talk to the man on our behalf. He may not trust Danni and I but he clearly trusts you." Steve stated.
"I'm busy" Chin replied, his voice cooling noticeably as he sat back on the bench further and crossed his arms over his chest.
"You're busy?" Danni repeated in disbelief as she leaned towards the older man, keeping a tight leash of her annoyance. "What exactly is so important here that you won't take the chance to help us close down a trafficking ring? I might not have visited Pearl harbour before now but even from the small look around I've had it doesn't strike me as a centre of crime unless of course you're expecting a whole group of kids to be raiding the gift shop intent on stealing the snow globes for their baby sisters room?"
"If you're half as good as Detective as I think you are Danni then you already know why I can't be a cop anymore." Chin snapped back, his eyes focused on her.
"Yeah I know what happened to you and I don't believe a single word of it. It's bullshit and anyone who couldn't see that deserves to hand their badge back." Danni retorted, catching the shocked look that came to Chin's face at her words before he shook his head and ran an agitated hand through his wavy black hair. For a moment, the three of them sat in silence before Chin came to his feet and walked past them without a word, clearly intent on getting to the exit as soon as possible. Danni sighed, turning to her partner and spoke. "Say something to him." She urged.
"Why can't you?" Steve said as he looked away from Danni, twisting round on the bench so that he was facing the older man again. "You said you can't be a cop anymore and my partner clearly knows what you're speaking about but I don't so tell me why you can't be one anymore." He demanded as he came to his feet.
Danni watched as Chin stopped in his tracks and turned to face Steve with an angry look on his face. She remained quiet and seated when he took a step towards them, knowing that it had to be Steve who dealt with the issues if he was to gain more of Chin's respect.
"Because I can't be McGarrett, just understand that! I can't be a cop anymore because IA accused me of being a dirty cop and taking payoff from the scum we're meant to put away. I'm the last person that anyone wants to see wearing a badge again. I was lucky that I even got this job, if it hadn't of been for your father and him speaking to the manager on my behalf than I probably would have just been kicked out of the door." Chin answered, the bitter note from earlier reappearing in his voice.
Danni couldn't blame him for his reaction, if she had gone through what he had gone through then she would have been extremely angry and bitter as well.
Steve remained silent, searching Chin's face before he spoke calmly.
"Did you take the money?" He asked.
"What?" Chin responded with a frown, clearly confused by Steve's straight forward approach.
"I said, did-you-take-the-money" Steve repeated, speaking slowly and pausing after each word to increase the impact. His gaze never wavering from Chin. Chin stared back at him, his head lifting slightly when he finally spoke.
"No" He stated clearly.
Danni blinked when Steve turned to look at her, raising his eyebrow at her with a questioning look. She glanced towards Chin, searching his face and eyes carefully for any sign of deceit but there was nothing but a hopeful look which he couldn't quite hide.
A slight smile came to her face as she turned back to Steve and nodded once at him before picking up her coffee and taking a sip of it. Steve nodded back, smiling briefly at her before his expression turned blank again as he turned his attention back to Chin and took a step towards him.
"Then come with us" Steve offered, waving his hand back towards Danni who smiled in response when Chin's gaze followed the movement to her. "And we don't ever have to talk about this again unless you bring it up." He promised, waiting until Chin looked at him before continuing. "Consider this offer your ticket to get back into the game. Call it payback against everyone who knew you were innocent and did nothing to help you and instead turned their backs on you. Hell, you can call it justice if you want to. All I know and care about is the fact that we need you and that we both want you on our taskforce."
"You might as well save yourself a lot of time and trouble Chin and accept Steve's offer." Danni remarked, catching sight of Chin's stunned look and smiling. "The Commander doesn't take no for an answer once he's made up his mind about something, especially when its to do with who he wants working with him on his team. I know that first hand." She remarked on a sigh as she shook her head.
"What makes you think that you can trust me?" Chin asked, his question causing Steve to shrug.
"Two reasons, firstly because my old man trusted you and secondly because Danni doesn't believe you did it, those two reasons are good enough for me." Steve told him.
Danni stayed quiet, ignoring the warm feeling which came over her at Steve's words as Chin stared at floor, eyes moving side to side as he clearly considered Steve's offer. A few moments passed before he looked up, a wide grin crossing his face as he nodded.
"In that case I accept your offer, I'll meet you back here in a moment, I just need to hand in my resignation and change into my own clothes, then I'll take you both to my informant." He said as he turned from them and crossed the tent, leaving through the entrance they had come in. A spring to his step which had been missing before.
Danni sipped at her coffee, staring straight ahead as Steve sat down beside her again before she spoke.
"Chin was the one who you had in mind for the taskforce from the beginning wasn't he?" She asked him curiously, watching Steve from the corner of her eye in time to see him nod.
"Yeah, I remember from conversations with my Dad how good he is at the job. He'd probably have been Captain by now if what happened to him hadn't happened. He's good with technology and I figured that you would be more comfortable if there was another cop on the team, especially one with as much experience as Chin has." He told her, picking up his sandwich and taking a bite from it, leaving Danni to think over his words before she nodded.
"He seems like a nice person as well."
"That he does, he was friendly enough to me and my sister when we were still here and Dad was partnered with him. He stayed for dinner a few times." Steve commented before focusing his attention back on his food.
"Having him on the taskforce may cause some issues with HPD, especially if they believe that he is dirty." Danni remarked quietly, scaping her thumbnail across the wood of the bench beside her.
"Let them think what they want Danni, it's nothing which we can't handle and beside my opinion of HPD is already at an all-time low. They couldn't even see a good thing when they had it so we can't expect them to think for themselves and figure out the truth." He remarked, sounding angry for a moment before he changed the subject. "So, do you think you can work with him?"
"Easily" She answered instantly. "I don't care what the report says, there's no way that Chin is a dirty cop or he did what they said he did. Some cops just aren't natural investigators and would rather believe the first story which comes along which might make a glimmer of sense. I just hope that Chin's contact is able to get us the name that we need." She said, glancing down at her watch and smiling at the thought of Grace trying to choose an outfit to wear and the bemused expression on Duncan's face as he tried to give his opinion on it.
"Care to share what's so amusing?" Steve asked her, nudging her lightly in the side with his elbow.
"It's nothing work related" She answered with a wave of her hand. "It's time you finish your sandwich and eat your half of the muffin though" She stated firmly as she teared off a bit of her own muffin and popped it into her mouth to prove her point.
"Yes Ma'am" Steve responded, sounding amused for a moment. The tone causing Danni to roll her eyes at him.
He was going to be the death of her, she just knew it.
Author Note
Thanks for taking the time to read. An especially big thank you if you have left me a review, favourite the story or decided to follow it.
I really appreciate it