A/N: Early posting this week! I'm supposed to kayak pilot for a race this weekend, and I don't know how long that plus the rest of my to-do list will take. Sorry this is shorter… if things go well, I might be able to post the next chapter sooner rather than later!

A/N: mild language warning

Danny refused to follow Steve over the fence- after all, someone had to stay with the car and, after his little 'adventure' Wednesday, Danny wasn't cleared for field duty. In fact, he really shouldn't be out at all, having not yet had his requisite follow-up visit to the doctor, so he was especially keen to avoid any more trouble. Taking advantage of his absent partner, he plopped down in the driver's seat, turned the radio to his favorite station, and cranked up the AC to drive away the late morning's humidity.

For the first few minutes, he could hear Steve panting heavily into the mic as he ran up the grassy slope, and then the soft, slight sounds of movement as his partner slipped in SEAL stealth mode. But then, suddenly, the heavy breathing stopped and was replaced by silence.

"Steve?"

Nothing.

"Steve, you okay?"

Danny tapped the earpiece a few times, then turned off the car radio and messed with the dials, just in case it had, somehow, interfered with the connection. "Hello? Earth to Steven!"

Annoyed now, but unwilling to leave his car, Danny decided to make a loop through the Lanikai/Kailua neighborhood to see if his partner had perhaps crossed over the hill and tackled the suspect on the other side. Ten minutes later, he returned empty-handed.

"I'm gonna kill him," he muttered as he rested his head against the wheel and tried to think of the next logical step. "If nobody else gets to him first, then I'm absolutely gonna kill him."

He closed his eyes for a few minutes and tried to think, but the only options involved calling backup, which was useless without a warrant, or going over the fence himself. "Just once, just once, would you listen to me!" he growled to the empty car.

Then his phone rang. Seeing the screen, he groaned.

"Governor Denning, hello." Danny ran a nervous hand over his hair. "I assume you're looking for my partner."

To Danny's surprise, the governor was not looking for his partner. "Detective Williams, I was not aware that Five-0 had a case."

"Oh." Realizing that, in the excitement of the week, he had neglected to finish filing the appropriate paperwork with HPD, Danny sighed. "No sir, we don't. Not exactly."

"Not exactly?"

"We borrowed a case from HPD." Please don't ask what it is, please don't ask, please don't ask.

"Which case?"

Damn. "A missing… um… unicorn, sir." Danny reddened slightly at the ears.

"I'm sorry, Detective, I don't think I heard that correctly. You're missing a what?"

"A unicorn. A horse dressed as a unicorn. Sir."

"Uh-huh."

"It's a long story, sir."

"I look forward to reading your report. Where's McGarrett?"

Oh, now he wants to know about Senor Destructo. "He's… um…" Danny glanced out the window at the no trespassing sign where Steve had disappeared. "He's out hiking."

"Hiking," returned the governor dubiously.

"Looking for the horse. He's in the field, sir." Literally.

"You're being rather vague, Detective Williams." The governor paused and Danny tried to think of a better, logical response. "Actually, Detective, I'd rather not know where McGarrett is, and I don't know what the hell you two are doing, but it needs to stop. I just got a call from the Secretary of the Navy. Do you know who that is?"

Danny gulped. "Yes, sir."

"His message was brief and simple enough that even McGarrett should be able to follow this instruction: Cease and desist. That's it. You are to stop whatever you are doing and return to the Palace."

"But," Danny looked out the window at the rusted fence and grassy hill, "Steve is…"

"Return to the Palace immediately, detective! That's an order!"

Danny swallowed thickly. "Yes, sir."

…

Danny paced Steve's office impatiently, throwing the occasional glance out the glass at Jerry who was still working at the large computer in the bullpen. He'd made some excuse to Jerry, a very lame one he thought, for why Steve had not returned with him, and then immediately sequestered himself in his partner's office where he was now wearing a track on the floor between the two bookshelves.

"Think, Danno," he muttered to himself as he spared a brief look at the computer screen, which showed an abysmally tiny progress bar in the upper left-hand corner.

The Secretary of the Navy- that was big. Bigger than Danny wanted to think about, if he were being honest. If the man at the top of the food chain was involved, then Steve's career could be over. There might be a court martial or a dishonorable discharge or…

"Positive thoughts, think positive thoughts," Danny chided himself. He stopped to check the progress bar again. Emergencies only, Danno, Steve had said. Well, if this wasn't an emergency, Danny didn't know what was. He and Steve had discussed possible scenarios before and what each should do in the other's absence, but this was one scenario Danny felt like they had never properly prepared for.

Unlocking one of the drawers with his copy of Steve's key, he pulled out a little device and gave his clothing and the office a once-over. Nothing. That was good. "No one listening to us, babe," he muttered softly as he replaced the small gadget. "Just me and… well, me."

He sat down in the chair behind the desk and watched the tiny bar creep slowly across the screen. He'd begun copying Steve's hard drive off onto a back-up, which he would then hand over to Kamekona to hide in a secure location. It was something they had agreed upon a long time ago, a just-in-case for extreme situations. Danny would like to think that this was all just a misunderstanding but… well…

He opened the phone trace program and entered Steve's number, just as he had done a few minutes before. "Okay big boy, help me out here. Where are you?"

But, of course, the phone was switched off and no location could be found.

He opened Google Maps and zoomed in on the site where Steve had disappeared. He could make out two small, round structures on the top of the hill, but otherwise there was no indication that anyone ever used the place. For all he knew, those two lumps could be water towers or abandoned gun mounts from the war.

"You gotta give me something Steve," he said softly, scouring the map. "Where could you have gone?"

…

After an hour in the dark cell, Steve's anger at being caught had subsided, but his patience was wearing thin. He was mildly offended that he had been left in restraints, particularly this uncomfortable version in which his feet and wrists were attached together behind him, forcing him to remain in a kneeling, cramped posture on an uncomfortably hard, cold floor.

His captors had taken his weapons, wallet, badge, vest, and even his shoes, leaving him only his cargos, T-shirt, and socks. And a blindfold. And that came after a very thorough and systematic search that Steve preferred not to think about. If this was some sort of military or CIA installation- and considering the sign on the fence, Steve felt this was very likely the case- then he thought they would only need to confirm his identity before releasing him, but as the minutes dragged on, he began to reconsider.

They had his wallet. How hard could it be to place a few calls and run a quick background check? He was the head of Five-0 and one of the most recognizable faces on the islands. Maybe they were screwing with him, but why? Steve knew what should happen next: someone would come in, apologize (a sham, of course), return his gear, and then he'd be free to go. And there would be a slap on the wrist for trespassing, possibly desk duty for a week or so, but nothing he hadn't suffered before.

Flexing his shoulders, he tried to relieve some of the strain in his lower back. The discomfort he was currently suffering was nothing compared to what he had suffered before, but he was not looking forward to the earful of angry ranting he would get when he got back to the office. It would be a long time before Danny let him live this one down.

Speaking of… What, exactly, would he tell Danny? His ears burned thinking about it. No details, definitely. Depending on the terms of his release, he might not be allowed to say much at all. But that wouldn't stop Danny from asking.

Steve rolled his head slowly as the tension in his arms and shoulders began to slowly take its toll. The padded restraints on his wrists and ankles wouldn't leave much of a mark, but his brief struggle in the search and seizure room had certainly left some marks. Steve could only hope he had left a mark or two of his own. Being left here, blindfolded, in a cold cell for several hours was probably some kind of punishment for not playing nice. Steve had used similar tactics before at Five-0: lost paperwork, missing signatures, an extra form to sign… anything to delay the inevitable release of a prisoner.

With the task force, there were limits to these tactics, but here? Here, Steve wasn't so sure. He wasn't even sure where 'here' was. He knew- or assumed- that it was only a matter of time before someone came for him, but the question was: how long?

…

The backup of Steve's hard drive now complete, Danny ejected the drive but didn't pocket it just yet. Instead he checked his watch. 12:47 p.m. And long past his scheduled appointment at Queen's. In his hand, he held his phone with the number for the doctor, but he wasn't sure what exactly to say when he called. Dr. Thompson knew him, so simply cancelling wouldn't cut it.

Sorry I couldn't come, I was working a case, would obviously not work either. He wasn't supposed to be working. He wasn't even supposed to be at the freaking office, and yet here he was anyway. Danny's next thought was Sorry I couldn't come. My partner is working a case and I couldn't get a ride. But that didn't sound much better. Because, after all, Danny could get a ride. He could ask Jerry or Duke or any one of the people downstairs for a lift and they would be more than happy to oblige.

But Danny hadn't called them. The responsibility - the honor- the duty- of taking him to his appointment should really fall to Steve, especially since the man had agreed to do it in the first place, and Danny couldn't help feeling a little irked that his partner had forgotten about it so quickly. The case, for once in his life, could not be blamed on his partner, but on Danny himself. Still… Steve shouldn't have forgotten. He shouldn't have agreed to talk to Jerry before going to Queen's. And he certainly shouldn't have jumped that fence in Lanikai.

Danny shuffled the inhaler out of his pocket as something deep in his chest itched uncomfortably, but after a few minutes of careful breathing, the feeling subsided and he put it away again. He hadn't used the little contraption yet, but climbing the stairs to the office this morning had been rougher than he expected. He'd been hiding a cough all morning, clearing his throat or trying to quietly cough into his sleeve instead so as to not alert Jerry or Steve that something was wrong. But when Jerry had left to pick up some lunch a few minutes ago, and with Steve still absent, Danny had finally given in. Thumping his chest vigorously, he harrumphed and grrumphed and hacked and wheezed until his chest felt clear and the itching was gone.

It was probably time to take more meds.

Of course, those were also at Steve's house, on the night stand next to the bed.

Danny plopped down in Steve's desk chair with a suppressed growl. Forget Steve- the man had gotten himself into this mess, and he could get himself out. Danny should just call Duke and get a ride over to the hospital. He could get checked out, go home, take his meds, and spend the remainder of the day resting.

He opened his phone, his finger hovering over Duke's number. Yes, that was what he should do. But…

But he decided to wait just a little while longer.

…

Was anyone coming for him? Or was he stuck in isolation forever? Steve's left shoulder began to twitch as he contemplated the wisdom of his decision to jump the fence and run up the hill after their suspect. So, Danny… was it stupid? he wondered, imagining what his partner would say. Or, is this about to lead to the breakthrough that we've needed?

He found himself drafting an argument to Danny, who would certainly not be pleased with the situation, and his partner's biting retorts were piling up in his mind when he suddenly remembered: Danny. Doctor's appointment. Hospital.

Well shit.

No, Danny was not going to be pleased with him at all.

A/N: The grassy hill is a real place around the corner from my relative's house in Kailua/Lanikai. I never actually hopped the fence, but I was curious, so I looked on Google maps and found some weird, round structures up there when I zoomed in. This chapter is my idea about what's really there.