The Beginning Chapter 17: And now we wait, a hawaii five-0 fanfic

The Beginning

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, Kamekona Tupuola, 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 belong 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.

Please note that this and the next few chapters are action based, which isn't my strongest suit, but hopefully I have still done a good job for you all!

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

"Come on Gracie, we've got to get going! Have you got everything that you need for school?" Danni called out as she finished packing her daughter's lunch away into her bright pink lunch box, her mind running through a mental check list of everything she would need for their upcoming day and for the operation.

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

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.

Another 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 Seventeen

And now we wait

Friday 24th September 2010

Danni Williams and Grace Taylor's home

500 Hakaka Place

Honolulu

Hawaii 96816

She was pretty sure that she had everything which she would need for it, her secondary gun was loaded, packed away securely with a couple of extra clips as a precaution in case she ran out of bullets. She had the small forensic kit which Ryan had given her in case they needed it for the scene. She had even abandoned her usual way of dressing and had instead pulled on a pair of jeans and a simple dark vest top and a pair of running trainers. One of Danni's strength was how quickly she could run when the need for it arose, there weren't many people who could outrun her once she was after them.

There was no reason to think that anything would go awry with the operation and yet Danni couldn't shake the uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach that something was going to go very, very wrong. A feeling which was growing steadily every time she allowed herself to think about it. Shaking her head, she closed Grace's lunch box. If anything did go wrong then they would simply have to deal with it. Hopefully the fact that they were such a new unit who was still learning about each other wouldn't hinder them.

"Gracie?" She called out again, realising that her daughter hadn't answered her the first time she had called. "Did you hear what I said? We've got to leave now baby or we're going to be late." Danni picked up the lunch box and left the kitchen after a quick glance round to make sure that everything which was meant to be off was actually turned off. She made her way towards the living room, opening the door and peering in, a frown coming to her face when she saw that it was empty. She closed the door, heading towards the staircase and headed up them, moving down the corridor towards the bedrooms. She stopped when Grace came running out of the room which she had chosen for herself.

"Sorry Mamma" Grace said as she hurried towards Danni, her pink school bag clutched in one hand. "I forgot my maths books so had to get it quick but I'm ready to go now." She stated, smiling up at Danni as she came to a stop by her.

"Well that is good to know." Danni responded as she held out Grace's lunch box, waiting until Grace took it before she spoke. "It's Friday so I've made you some Turkey sandwiches to eat." She told her daughter, placing her hand on Grace's shoulder and moving them back towards the staircase. "I also made you a fruit salad without any pineapple in it so you can snack on it throughout the day if you find yourself getting hungry. Though" she went onto say, a smile coming to her face. "Considering the breakfast, we both had I doubt you will be hungry until lunch time."

"I am stuffed after the oatmeal Mamma." Grace admitted with a sigh, adjusting her bags in her hand as she they climbed down the stairs and moved to the front door. Grace reached up and unlocked the door while Danni grabbed her own work bag from where she had dropped it by the front door the night before.

"Well that is what I like to hear" Danni remarked with a smile as she straightened, shouldering her own bag. "Are you sure that you have everything you need for school today because I'm not going to be able to come back here to get it and bring it to you today Grace. If you have forgotten it then you will have to do without it."

"I tripled checked everything Mamma, especially when I realised I had left my maths books behind" Grace assured Danni, reaching out and patting her hand as though she was attempting to comfort her. "I have everything which I need for today now, I've even remembered my PE kit because we're playing netball today." She smiled widely at Danni who responded by running her hand down her daughter's dark hair, winking at her.

"Go team Danni-Grace" Danni replied with a laugh, holding up the palm of her hand and hi-fiving her daughter before she gently pushed her out of the front door. "Go to the car baby and wait for me there, I just need to lock up here" She said, turning and setting the alarm before she exited the house, closing the front door behind her and locking it. She pushed and pulled against it for a second out of habit to check that it was definitely locked before she turned and headed down the path towards the driveway where the car was parked, Grace standing patiently beside the passenger door. A quick glance at the sky revealed a bright blue sky which was almost blinding to the eyes which indicated that they were in for yet another of a scorcher of a day.

Danni unlocked the car, quickly moving toward the gate and pressing the button which would open the gates before she moved back to the car and climbed into the driver's seat and started the engine. She waited until Grace had pulled her seatbelt on and made herself comfortable in her seat before she drove the car off the driveway and onto the road, pulling to a quick stop so she could jump back out and close the gate. She climbed back in, pulling her seatbelt on and took the road to the right which would lead her to the private school which Grace attended.

She had thirty minutes until eight fifteen when she was due to pick Steve and the surveillance equipment from his father's house. If the traffic was light then she might even end up getting there earlier then she had initially planned which would be a bonus for her. The meeting with Sang Min was scheduled for nine thirty which meant that every extra minute they could gain would be to their advantage and make a difference.

"Okay Gracie" Danni said, indicating and moving the car into the righthand lane which would lead to the turn off they needed to take. "I'll be outside of your school at three o clock as usual okay?" She said, waiting until Grace nodded before she continued. "We'll go straight to the pet shop so we can get Mr Hoppy what he needs so that he can come home, after that we'll head back to ours and you can help me make the lasagne for tonight, how does that sound? Happy with the plan?"

"Yeah it sounds good to me Mamma" Grace answered her, a happy tone to her voice as she clapped her hands together and grinned at Danni. "I'll let Ms Clarke know when I get into class that I'll take Mr Hoppy home with me tonight. That will give us the whole weekend to get Mr Hoppy settled into his new home and happy. We'll make it perfect right Mamma?"

"Right Grace" Danni replied with a nod at her. "We'll make sure that Mr Hoppy's home will be the best home that any rabbit on this island could possibly have." She assured Grace whose grin widened further at her. "Should I put some music on?" She asked as she leaned forward slightly, waiting only to see Grace nod before she switched the radio on.

The rest of the short journey was passed in relative silence, broken only by the sound of Grace singing along with her latest favourite band. Danni savoured moments like these. She saw so much badness in the world due to her job that actually experiencing something as innocent as Grace singing to a CD was like a balm to her aching soul. It was also a strong reminder of why she did what she did on a daily basis, so people like Grace could gone on with their lives safe from the criminals surrounding them. Criminals they didn't need to know about.

"Here we are" Danni said as she pulled into one of the drop off spots outside of Grace's school. "Be good for Ms Clarke today and I'll see you out here at three o clock. If there are any problems baby then you can call me on my cell phone and I'll come as soon as I can okay? Now have a good day and remember that I love you Gracie-bean"

"I love you as well Mamma" Grace replied throwing herself across the passenger seat and gave Danni a tight hug, kissing her on the cheek before she scrambled out of the car, her possessions in hand as she closed the door behind her. Danni watched fondly as her daughter looked around her before she suddenly waved at someone and ran across the grass towards a group of girls who Danni recognised as Grace's friends, friends who had been over several times to their house over the past four months. Danni waved when Grace looked back at her before she hit the indicator and pulled back onto the road, taking the route which bring her to the McGarrett family home the quickest.

She tapped her hands lightly against the steering wheel in time with the beat from her music, her mind fixed on the upcoming day and what she still needed to do once the operation was completed when her phone suddenly whistled at her, informing her that she had a text message. Stopping at a convenient red light she lifted her bag onto the passenger seat and quickly hunted through it, keeping one eye on the light. She found it just as the light turned green again and set off, glancing down quickly at the screen and frowning at the unfamiliar number. Somehow, she had expected it to be from Steve demanding to know where she was and what her ETA would. Selecting the message, she quickly read it, her eyes flickering continuously between the road and the simple message which read:

About to get some coffee from the shop across the road from us. How do you take yours? Chin.

Danni smiled, stopping at another red light and quickly typed out her answer, rereading it before sending it. She couldn't remember the last time that someone had taken the time to pick her up a coffee in the morning. The last time was probably back in New Jersey when she and the rest of her team had been forced to pull an all-nighter and needed the kick of fresh caffeine to get them through the rest of the upcoming day.

Danni pulled to a stop outside the McGarrett household and beeped on the horn twice to let Steve know that she had arrived. She couldn't keep her mind off of the operation ahead and all the things which could go wrong, things which they needed to think about carefully so they could have a plan in place to counter them if any of them should occur. The whole operation was risky. After all they were sending Kono, a fresh rookie to the force who hadn't even graduated from the academy yet, straight into the lion's den. The least that Danni could do would be to have a plan to keep the younger woman safe from harm.

She glanced up at the sounds of a door behind closed and watched as Steve came down the garden path, a frown coming to his face when he saw that she was seated in the driver's seat. Danni smirked at the action, shaking her head when he pulled open the door and climbed in, giving her a quick searching look before he pulled his seatbelt on.

"Hey, morning Steve" She said brightly. "How are you?"

Steve's searching look melted into a brief startled look as though he was surprised that she had asked how he was. She waited for him to speak.

"I'm fine" He said finally with a shrug. "What about you? Is everything okay with you?"

"Well, considering the day which we have planned I'm surprisingly okay" She responded, glancing down towards his empty hand and frowning. "Where is the surveillance equipment? Did you leave it back in the house or something because if you did then you need to go and get it again. It's not going to do us any good if it's inside."

Steve looked at her for a moment before shaking his head and rolling his eyes.

"I'm hardly going to forget something that important Danni" He replied dryly. "Chin came around this morning at seven and picked it up. He should already be at headquarters setting it up in the van which the Governor got for us. If we step on it now then we will get the time to properly talk to Kono before she heads into Sang Min's warehouse" He told her, his eyes flickering down her as a slight smile came to his face as he met her eyes with a look of amusement in his.

"Okay" Danni said slowly, moving the car away from the kerb. "Care to explain to me what that look you just gave me was for?" She demanded, pressing her foot down on the accelerator so the car shot forward.

"You're dressed in jeans and trainers" Steve commented with a nod towards. "I guess that means that you're expecting an active day today or something?"

"Expecting an active day today?" Danni repeated as she raised an eyebrow. "Today Steven I am expecting us all to be shot at several times by a group of thugs with no consciences and guns which was why I made the rational decision to put my trainers on so I can run and tackle the previously mentioned thugs if need be to stop them from getting away from us." She stated with a shake of her head, rolling her own eyes when Steve made a sound of amusement from beside her.

She glanced at him from the corner of her eyes, feeling a curl of worry blossoming in her stomach. He looked tired as though he had slept little the previous night, she doubted he had slept, probably consumed with the need to decode the notebook. He no doubt believed that he would sleep once he had caught his father's murderer and dealt with him and not before.

"So how did you get on with the notebook then? Did you carry on working on it after we had spoken on the phone last night?" She asked, breaking the silence which had fallen between them. She felt Steve turn to look at her but kept her eyes fixed on the road as she weaved the car through the growing traffic determined not to get caught in any jams.

"I've nearly finished decoded it all" He responded after a brief pause.

"That's good" Danni responded, "And what was in it? Was there anything interesting in it that we could use to give us the upper hand here?" She pressed, finally glancing towards him in time to see him nod at her.

"Let me put it this way to you Danni, we aren't going to be short on work anytime soon" He remarked, the comment causing Danni to sigh out loud.

"There goes my hope that it was just a simple book of old family recipes which had been passed down from generation to generations in a secret code to keep them safe from any stranger's eyes." She remarked sadly, smirking when Steve made a second sound of amusement at her comment.

"Yeah, I'm afraid that hope has flown out of the window already" He replied, falling silent for a second before he spoke again, a curious tone coming to his voice. "So, how did last night go then? Did your daughter enjoy the charity event she went to with your ex-husband?" Danni shot him a startled look, surprised that he had asked before she replied.

"She had a good time but I think she would have rather have spent the time with her Dad in a different way" Danni said. "which makes complete sense. She is only seven so the world of business and banking which Duncan moves through doesn't interest her in the slightest. She likes movies and collecting pretty shells from the beach for her collection and making her own jewellery, none of those you can do at a banking event. Still it's over now" Danni said, pulling the cat into the Ali'iolani Hale car park and into the same space she had used the day before. She killed the engine and gathered her belongings together before exiting the car. She glanced around her absently as she locked the car before heading towards the building aware of Steve joining her at her side. A quick look down at her watch told her that the journey had taken them fifteen minutes which would leave them with at least thirty minutes to prep Kono before they had to move out.

They made their way up to the third floor and into the headquarters without any delays. Danni followed Steve into the room, automatically looking round to take in the scene. The place, which had been empty the previous day, was now littered with several closed boxes, including boxes which had been placed in her own office, indicating that they were for her.

Chin was standing at the main wooden table in the middle of the room, working away on the laptop which Steve had produced for them the day before with a serene expression on his face, as though there was no other place in the world that he would prefer to be at that moment in time. Kono stood beside him, bouncing on the sole of her feet, clearly pumped full of adrenaline. Danni could sympathise with her, god knew that she had been in the same position as Kono more times than she could remember though the amount of undercover work she could do had ended extremely quickly once she had moved to Hawaii and joined HPD. As Chin had pointed out the previous day, Danni colourings and position in the department had quickly singled her out making undercover work almost impossible.

"Good morning guys" Danni called out, smiling in amusement when both cousins looked up at her with the exact same startled look before they both smiled at her. Clearly the two of them were close, regardless of the age difference between them, if they were mirroring each other's actions like they were doing.

"Hey Danni" Chin called back with a nod at her. "How are you? Your coffee is the one which is on the right-hand side. A large latte with an extra shot of espresso in it. Steve your coffee is the one which in on the left." He said, waving a hand towards the two takeaway cups waiting on the table surface. "I got back about fifteen minutes ago with them so they should still be warm enough to drink, otherwise you can always heat them back up in the microwave which has now been installed in the kitchen area."

"Is everything running smoothly for later on" Steve demanded, not giving Danni a chance to respond to Chin. The older man nodded, turning his attention away from what he was doing to focus on Steve instead.

"I've got the equipment set up in the surveillance van which is currently parked outside and ready to go" He stated. "I headed over to the location of the warehouse last night once I had finished here and scoped the place out. I think I've found us the perfect location where we can park the van. It's far enough away from the warehouse Kono is due to meet Sang Min in that it shouldn't make any suspicion over it arise but it's close enough that we can get to it in under a minute if we drive there." Chin explained.

Danni nodded, moving towards the table and picked up both of the coffees, taking a long sip of the one Chin had indicated was hers before she moved over to where Steve was standing, nudging him softly in the ribs with her elbow and holding the cup out to him.

"Drink this" She ordered him softly. Steve glanced down at her face for a moment, his own wearing a slightly puzzled frown as he searched her eyes before the expression disappeared and he turned his attention back to Chin with a thoughtful look. She smiled when he reached out and took the drink from her, taking a sip from the cup. Satisfied, Danni turned to look at Chin and spoke. "So, you went down to the warehouse area yesterday?" She asked, waiting until he nodded at her before continuing "What was the security of the place look like from what you saw?"

"Considering that it was already after eight when I got there the security was surprisingly heavy, clearly Sang Min runs a twenty-four-hour operation from the area. I counted at least nine hired muscles moving around the perimeter, so we have to assume that there was a lot more inside and that we'll be dealing with today. They all had guns and it looked as though they knew how to use them as well. From what I've seen Sang Min is no fool, anyone who can keep an operation of this size and scale hidden from all the authorities on the island is clearly dangerous and smart and that is often a deadly combination. There were at least four security men in the area I picked so we'll have to clear them out."

"We'll take care of those guards" Steve responded, glancing towards Danni before he took a sip from his coffee. "Sang Min is expecting Kono so she should be safe from the outer perimeter guards, they'll just wave her in."

Danni nodded her head, looking between Chin and Steve before her attention landed on Kono who was looking between them all. She moved towards her.

"Hey, how are you feeling today?" She asked softly, smiling at the younger woman when Kono looked towards her, her dark eyes sparkling with supressed excitement

"I feel like I can't wait to get this party started and to get out there!" She responded causing a reluctant grin to come to Danni's face.

"Well let's see if you still feel quite the same way after the operation" She remarked dryly, tilting her head to the side, her eyes narrowing slightly in thought as she studied Kono again before speaking. "You'll do fine in there though. Chin wouldn't have recommended you for this if he didn't have complete faith in your ability to get the job done"

"Thank you" Kono responded, looking grateful at the words. Danni nodded once at her, giving her another smile before she turned her attention back to her partner. "Did you want to do a run through of the operation than Steve because we're running out of time if that is your plan."

"Move around" Steve said in response, waiting until they had gathered around the table before he began speaking. "This should be a straight forward operation for us. Kono, you need to get Sang Min talking about the way his trafficking ring is run. The minute he does that and he admits that he is in charge of it then you get out of there okay?" Kono nodded at him, crossing her arms over her chest, a look on her face which made it clear that she was listening intently to what he was saying. "We three" Steve went on to say, waving a hand towards Chin and Danni. "Well be in the surveillance van nearby listening to everything which happens in there. If we think that you're in danger than we'll come in there and get you regardless of everything else." He stated, leaning back from them. "Once we have his confession we'll go in hard and fast. Sang Min isn't going to surrender easily and he is going to have plenty of additional fire power to support him. We need to take out his men, preferably without killing them. Danni and I will go in first and clear out the surrounding area of guards which Chin picked for us to park the van. Chin you and Kono will follow us after giving us a five minutes head start. Does anyone have any questions they need to ask?" He asked looking around them before he nodded once when his query was met with a silence. "Okay then, in that case let's move out."

"Wait a moment please" Danni said, holding up her hand in a classic stop sign, her attention fixed on Kono. "Is that what you're planning on wearing for the meet?" She queried.

Kono blinked at the question, shooting her cousin a quick look before she glanced down at herself.

"Yes?" She said, looking back up at Danni with a questioning look.

"No" Danni countered firmly with a shake of her head. She reached into her bag and pulled out a plastic bag from inside, glancing in it quickly before she held it out towards Kono. "It's a good thing I brought this with me as a failsafe. Take this and change into what is inside."

"What's the issue Danni?" Steve asked, an undercurrent of impatience to his voice which she ignored as she turned to look at him and Chin.

"The pitch which Kamekona gave Sang Min to get us the meeting was that Kono was someone who was working two jobs at the moment to afford bringing her family over here from China which means that all the money she earns which isn't spent of essentials is put towards that. Sang Min will take one look at the outfit which Kono is wearing and know instantly that isn't the case and the operation will blow up before we even begin." She stated.

Steve blinked at the comment, looking towards Kono for a moment before turning back to Danni.

"Explain what you mean" He demanded.

"The quality of Kono's shorts is clearly good which means that they are expensive or at least costs more than someone with two jobs and no spare income could hope to afford. The top is a brand name and therefore also expensive. We can't have this operation falling apart over something as small as that because Sang Min is the type of person who will notice those small details so please go and change Kono." She said, a stern note coming to her voice. Kono reacted, nodding and taking the bag from Danni before she headed to the back of the room where the toilets were situated.

"So, what is in the bag then?" Chin asked curiously, breaking the silence which had fallen between the three of them.

"It's just an old dress and a pair of cheap sandals. The dress belongs to my older sister, she's tall, probably about the same height and build as Kono is so the dress should fit or at least be slightly baggy on her which will help sell Kono's cover story."

"How did you end up with the dress?" Steve queried suddenly.

"It must have got caught up in my belonging when I moved out here. I doubt Cait has even noticed that its missing and even if she did, I doubt she would mind it being used for this." Danni commented, a small smile coming to her face as she briefly thought about her older sister.

"What about the sandals you mentioned, do they belong to your sister as well?" Chin pressed.

"The Sandals? No, I found them cheap at the local market a few months ago. I didn't realise until I was home that they were the wrong size for me but they should be okay for Kono to wear."

"Good job Danni" Steve said, attracting her attention to him. She smiled at him before shrugging.

"Thanks" She stated before glancing towards the back of the room just as Kono reappeared. She smiled, giving a single nod of satisfaction as she took in the outfit. The dress was slightly short on her, ragged at the bottom from constant use and the once rich blue of the fabric had faded to a pale washed out version from the continual washes. The look, added with the sandals, was the one they were looking for. A girl who was working herself to the ground for the family she was trying desperately to bring over while attempting to be fashionable on the money which she has and failing at it. "Perfect" Danni said happily as she adjusted her bag on her shoulder, looking back at Steve with another smile. "Now we can get head out."

Steve nodded, turning to look at Chin,

"You and Kono can travel together in the surveillance truck, brief her on anything which you think we may have missed but make sure that you drop her a few blocks away from the building. We don't know how far Sang Min's security stretches and the whole operation would be blown if Kono is seen leaving the truck which you are driving. Leave here in five minutes and drive slowly, that should give Danni and I the time we need to clear the area.

"I've got it Steve" Chin said.

"Good" Steve replied before looking at Kono with a critical look. "Good luck." He told her.

"Thanks" Kono said, letting out a breath when Steve turned away from her. She glanced towards Danni, searching her eyes for a moment before she straightened, a focused look coming to her face which told Danni that the other woman was entering a zone.

"Good luck Kono, you'll be fine and as Steve says we'll be there the whole time with you." Danni said, smiling at Kono before she turned and followed Steve, rolling her eyes when he reached back and wrapped his hand round her elbow, pulling her out of the office and towards the elevator. Thy left the building in silence and got into Danni's car, starting it up and reversing out of the spot when Steve suddenly spoke up, a thoughtful tone to his voice.

"Are you worried?" He asked her, watching her closely.

"What about the operation do you mean?" Danni queried, driving out of the car park with a backward glance in the mirror towards the building.

"Yeah" Steve clarified.

Danni thought about the question for a moment before she slowly nodded at him.

"I'm always worried before an operation goes down." She admitted. "There's a lot of things which could go wrong with what we're planning. Sang Min could instantly see through Kono's story or he might not give us the information we need or he might ask for something in return for helping Kono with her problem and then what will we do?" She asked him, her hands tightening on the steering wheel, she glanced quickly towards him taking in his thoughtful gaze. "Look at the end of the day Kono is still a Rookie and it's always dangerous sending them into something like this, especially when they haven't even finished the academy yet."

Steve remained silent for a moment before he spoke.

"As you said to Kono earlier, Chin wouldn't have recommended her for the job if she couldn't do it." Steve pointed out. "And we're going to be there the whole time, we'll be close enough to her that we can be there in seconds if we need to be. Rookie or not Kono knows the drill, she knows what to do and we have to trust that she knows what she's doing. If she messes up then we step in and do it another way. One way or another Danni, Sang Min is coming into custody with us." He assured her. Danni nodded at him.

"See that comment right there from you is why I decided to wear a pair of jeans today" Danni commented lightly. "Because when you say that we step in, what you really mean is that we're going to enter into the lion's den and we will end up being shot at multiple times."

"Its all in a day's work and besides you keep mentioning us getting shot and so far, it hasn't happened." Steve pointed out with a shrug. Danni rolled her eyes at him, falling silent as she made her way through the streets, listening to Steve's directions to the warehouse. "Stop here Danni" Steve said suddenly, the tone of his voice causing Danni to react automatically to it. She pulled the car over, killing the engine leaving them in silence as she looked over at Steve with a questioning look. He was staring out the window, eyes scanning the surrounding area.

"Have you seen something?" She asked him quietly.

"The next block from where we are, is the block where Chin saw the first security man yesterday. We'll go by foot from here on and keep the element of surprise on them. We need to clear the area. Have you got your gun with you?" He asked glancing at her.

Danni tilted her head towards him, shooting him an unimpressed look before she answered him.

"I have both of them"

"Good, we got some hunting which we need to do" He answered, pushing the door open and leaving the car. Danni stared after him for a moment, shaking her head before she grabbed her gun and exited the car, locking it behind her and silently following him, they had gone about three hundred yards when Steve stopped, pressing a finger against his lips to indicate silence before he pulled them into a small alleyway to the side of them, pressing them back against the wall and peered around the edge of the alley way.

Danni waited as she watched Steve's tense back wondering what he had seen. She had her answer a second later when Steve leapt from their spot just as a man holding a rifle passed them. He locked his arm around the guard's neck as he dragged the man into the alley way they were in. There was a brief struggle as the man tried to dislodge Steve's hold on him but it was a hopeless effort. A minute after Steve had struck, the fight was over. The guard suddenly going limp in Steve's hold.

She spared him a quick look before she moved to the edge of the alleyway, looking at the surrounding area closely to make sure that the scuffle hadn't attracted anyone's attention.

"Clear?" Steve called out to her softly.

"Yeah, we're clear for the moment." She answered with a nod, looking back towards him as he dragged the body to the back of the alley, dropping him to the ground and leaning beside him for a moment, his fingertips resting against the side of his neck with an expressionless look. He took his fingers away and stood, moving back to where she stood, his hand wrapping round her elbow as he leaned down close to her ear and spoke quietly.

"Chin had counted four guards in this area so we're looking for three more of them, perhaps more considering the fact its day time now." He stated, his eyes flickering away to look out of the alley way. "We can assume that the others will be similarly attired as this one when it comes to weapons."

"That would be a safe assumption to make" Danni responded, equally quietly as she looked back over her shoulder to the still guard. "What do you want to do with the guards once we have them all?" She queried, looking back at him, her head tilted back slightly so she could meet his gaze directly.

"Do you have your handcuffs on you?" Steve asked, continuing to speak when she merely nodded at him in response. "Handcuff that one to the fire escape ladder so that he can't escape to warn the others. He's going to be out for a long while and when he does come to he'll have one hell of a headache which will make it difficult to think so our presence should remain unknown for the time being. We can store them in the van once Kono is in play and then hand them over to HPD to book and process. I'm going to go on ahead while you deal with him" He commented, jabbing his thumb over his shoulder.

"I got it" She replied.

"Good" Steve said, dropping his hand from her elbow and moving passed her to the entrance of the alley way."

"Steve, be careful out there okay?" Danni said, the words bursting from her before she could stop them. He looked back at her, his gaze searching hers for a moment before he nodded.

"You be careful as well Danni, I'll find you when I'm finished the task." He promised before he moved, gone from her sight before she could so much as blink.

Shaking her head, Danni set to work swiftly, moving to the back of the alleyway and grabbing the man's thick wrist. She slapped the handcuff on it, pressing down tightly before connecting the other half to the steal rung of the ladder beside him. She hesitated for a split second before reaching down and checking his pulse, thankful to feel it beating steadily against her fingertip before she stood and made her way back to the entrance and peered out.

The area was empty of anyone but herself. She could see plenty of sold signs over the surrounding building and warehouses, buildings and warehouses which were no doubt bought by Sang Min. It was a clever plan, buy the surrounding area and limit the amount of people who would have a reason to go there. He could expand his growing empire right beneath everyone's noses and no one would even realise it. Chin had been right when he had said they were dealing with a very clever man.

Reaching back, Danni slipped her gun from the waistband of her jeans and checked it out of habit before she moved out of the alleyway, keeping close to the side of the buildings as she scanned the area, moving with a confidence as though she had every right to be there. She wondered where Steve was but pushed the though away from her mind, wherever Steve was at that moment in time he would be fine. The man would be in his element.

Danni twisted suddenly, ducking down a stack of empty boxes when she heard a scuffling sound ahead of her. She glanced round the boxes carefully, her eyes narrowing when she spotted another guard approaching where she was, kicking his boot against the ground with a bored look on his face. The gun he was carrying resting lightly against his shoulder.

Danni moved back out of sight, adrenaline beginning to coarse through her as she shook out her arms, loosening the muscle. She wouldn't be able to take him on in a direct fight, he would be too strong for that which meant that she would have to count on speed and the element of surprise to take him down.

She breathed out shakily once before locking any nerves away leaving her calm and ready. She waited, counting the steps of his approach before she struck, kicking out hard with her right leg and sweeping the guy's feet from under him. He hit the pavement hard with a grunt, looking disoriented by the fall. Danni moved, not giving him any chance to recover his bearings, she shoved him on his back, straddling him and punch him hard round the face twice, dazing him enough for her to grab her gun and pistol whip him with it before he could make a sound. He flopped back against the ground, unconscious.

Danni closed her eyes for a split second, saying a quick prayer of thanks before she glanced around her, making sure that they were still alone. Safe in the knowledge that they were she reached down and checked his pulse, confirming her suspicion that she had just knocked him out with her blow.

She stood up from him and grabbed his arms, pulling him into the area where she had hidden herself. Danni propped him up against the wall and pulled out the spare set of handcuffs which she always had with her and secured him to the metal drainage pipe. Reaching down she absently patted his face twice before she moved away continuing her way down the street, rubbing at her stinging knuckles as she walked.

The rest of the journey was silent, allowing her to look around her and come to the conclusion that Chin was correct and that the area he had chosen would be the perfect place for them to park the van and set things up.

"Hey" a familiar voice said from behind her, she swung round, her gun out, pointing it at the voice before her eyes widened when she saw that it was Steve behind her.

"Steve" She hissed "Are you trying to give me a heart attack or get yourself killed? You're lucky that I recognised your voice or I could have ended up shooting you." She stated, rolling her eyes as she lowered her weapon.

"The area is clear now." He told her, clearly ignoring what she had said to him. "I took out three more guards,"

"Good" Danni said with a nod. "I took out a fourth one so we should be good for the time being. I left him handcuffed to a pipe back down there." She said, waving her hand towards the area she had just come from. Steve smiled at her, a pleased look coming to her eyes before he turned serious again.

"Chin just contacted me, he's two minutes out from out locations. Kono's already been dropped at the point a few blocks away, no one saw them together so we should be good to go. She's going to wait five minutes to give us time to set up before she starts moving towards the rendezvous point."

"That's good to know" Danni replied. "So now we just wait for Chin to arrive here and then we can get this show on the road and hopefully get you the answers you need."

Steve nodded.

"Now we just wait."

Author Note

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