I do not own Hawaii Five-0 or any characters. No copyright infringement intended.
Notes: for Komodo Queen. I was taking a hiatus - I was really - a hiatus from writing and so. Ummm. This is her fault after I got a certain rather plaintive eMail. Ergo, this story is dedicated to KQ.
Unending thanks for the help in all things "snake" to KQ and bewildered hubby. Of course, CinderH for the fine beta. AND TheDogo for *NOT* aiding in the goal of hiatus. You're all awesomely terrible when it comes to enabling.
H5O* H5O* H5O* H5O* H5O*
CHAPTER ONE
"She was found in a drainage ditch in a plastic bag by a road construction crew. Based upon rate of decomposition, she's been dead approximately four days." Max began his explanations with a rough estimation of time of death.
The kicker would be the cause and he delivered it dead-pan with his hands folded neatly across the front of his white lab coat. Enjoying the delivery, he casually looked from one Five-0 officer to the other. "Cause of death is envenomation by a significantly lethal snake bite."
"Enven ..what? What, Max? Did you just say snake? Snake … bite?" Danny stared at the medical examiner, Max Bergman, before twitching the white sheet to the side of the badly decomposed body. He peered more closely at the gory shriveled hand and then shook his head. Splintered remnants of a dream he'd nearly forgotten upon waking started to threaten again just below the surface.
The room he'd been in had been extravagant. Rich, warm colors were suffused by light from the large window which was only partially obstructed by a flowing white curtain. He'd been in the bed. A canopy bed, waking to see a cold dark fireplace. What bedroom had a fireplace in Hawaii? But that wasn't the disturbing part. Definitely not that because something sleek, cool and moving had been wrapped around his ankle.
Danny scowled angrily at himself, muttering something about snakes and stupid dreams. It drew his partner's interest and Danny worked to completely ignore the look, opting instead to negate Max's explanation. "Nope. There's no snakes in Hawaii. So my friend, this time you are entirely wrong in your assessment. It can happen to the best of us." His next leery glance was aimed at Steve who could only hold his hands up defensively.
"It's not my fault, Danno." Grinning despite the gory find and odd news, Steve pointed to Max who was patiently waiting to resume his act on center stage. The returned bland look and complete silence only compounded the facts, though.
"I am not wrong, Detective." Unruffled by Danny's wry comments, Max merely continued in his recitation.
"The deceased was most definitely bitten by a snake. And not just any snake based upon the interesting traces of a rather unique venom in the necrotic skin tissues around the wound. In addition, the reptile did not merely bite our victim and let go, but it hung on tenaciously to rip and rend the flesh numerous times before letting go."
"That's .. different." Steve grimaced. He pulled back the sheet which Danny had flicked to cover the blackish-colored hand. He could see the ruined skin now for what it was made worse by blackened decomposition and what Max called cytotoxic necrosis, meaning that the poison had literally killed the surrounding tissues.
"It's fascinating." Max insisted while Danny gave a long-suffering sigh as the M.E. interrupted their banter.
"It's a snake, Max. Why.. why ever would that would be .. exactly .. fascinating?" Danny argued, but other lingering thoughts were drawing him away.
In his dream, he had been unable to move his legs. In a near panic, he had flicked the sheets off much like he'd just moved them from their victim's hand. There had been a snake. It's skin .. no scales .. had been an odd kaleidoscope of colors. No one part of its body had matched the other. Except for the fact it was curled around his ankle with its serpentine tongue darting constantly in and out of its mouth while it stared into Danny's eyes, the damned thing had been stunningly beautiful.
He suppressed a shudder as the images from his frightful dream returned more vividly than he thought possible. As paperwork suddenly rustled loudly in the room, Danny returned to the present, barely catching the tail-end of Max's continued recitation.
"The snake in question is the Micrurus fulvius and it's actually quite beautiful.' It was obvious that Max was impressed; Steve and Danny not so much. Almost too coyly, Max handed two large photographs to each man. Two beautiful images of a multi-colored red, yellow and black coral snake.
It wasn't Danny's psychedelic dream snake, but it was close enough and he nearly dropped what he was given as a tremor ran through his hand.
"Are you sure, Max?" Suddenly serious, Danny's worried darker tone drew Steve's inquisitive gaze more strongly. Staring at the picture only made his remembered waking unease return. An uncomfortable feeling that had faded so quickly when he woke that morning, he had shaken it off. He had discounted it completely as a normal work day began. But now, the feelings of déjà vu were rankling the hair on the back of his neck as a shiver ran down his arms.
"Yes, positive actually." Missing what Steve adroitly noted, Max took each photograph back for his files on the Jane Doe. Rocking on his heels, he couldn't help smiling as he continued to dazzle the two Five-0 officers. He'd done a great deal of reading once the toxicity tests had been returned, and he had been graphically amused by a number of findings.
"Have you ever heard this rhyme? Red touches black, friend of Jack, red touches yellow, kill a fellow? Or actually, the entire rhyme is as follows: Red Touch Yellow - Kills a Fellow. Red Touch Black - Venom Lack. Yellow Touches Red - Soon You'll Be Dead. Red Touches Black - Friend of Jack."
Staring mutely at the medical examiner, Steve's mouth worked aimlessly for a few seconds. Nothing coming out as he glanced once towards Danny who now had lamely shoved his hands as deeply into his pockets as humanly possible without tearing the material.
As usual Max was happily grandstanding. However, Steve knew something greater was distinctly unsettling Danny enough for him to be jittery and on edge.
"Can't say I have, Max." Danny muttered under his breath. "What else can you tell us. Something more useful please since that little rhyme obviously didn't do a thing for our victim here."
Moaning under his breath, Danny closed his eyes patiently as Max seemed encouraged to continue. "Here we go." Steve bit back a grin because the snide comment was at least more Danny-esque, even if it did lack some of its usual volume.
"The Eastern coral snake also called the American cobra which is predominantly found in Florida. Definitely not Hawaii or anywhere even close. My supposition therefore is that someone arranged for it to be brought here quite illegally."
"So, a collector? This woman here .. possibly?" Steve asked, but Max was already shaking his head to the negative as he flicked the sheet off the deceased woman's other arm to point to a bruise that Danny and Steve could barely make out.
"Evidence of an intravenous line indicates that someone tried to help her before she died."
"What? Like she was in a hospital?" Danny asked. "I.V. for fluids or antivenin?"
"No. There isn't a hospital or clinic in Hawaii that would stock or have a coral snakes' antivenin. In fact, very few even state-side have inventory." Max had another very disturbing theory based upon toxicology reports which were still coming back with rather intriguing results.
"What happened to her, Max?" Asking about the symptoms, Steve muttered in sympathy under his breath.
"I"m sorry to say that her death was likely quite frightening. Coral snakes have a powerful neurotoxin that paralyzes the breathing muscles; mechanical or artificial respiration, along with large doses of antivenin, are often required to save a victim's life." Max visibly sobered at the probable diagnoses because the woman would have essentially suffocated without proper aggressive care.
"Respiratory failure will occur within hours and sometimes sooner especially if the person panics. Which no doubt, she did."
"You're kidding." Not liking where this was going, Steve barely breathed the two words out with a sidelong glance towards his partner. The unhappy swallow and forced inhale, the only two silent responses giving credence to his displeasure.
"If not a hospital, than who?" Danny prompted.
"Someone else with access to an antivenin product. Someone with money or means .. or at least with illicit black-market connections. The toxicology results prove that someone tried to provide her with an antidote .. a strain of coral snake antivenin and it was either ineffective or given much too late."
"A strain?" Picking up on Max's words, Steve narrowed his eyes in confusion. "Not the antivenin?"
"No. Most definitely not and you would need more of these snakes to collect enough raw venom to even consider beginning the process." Max confirmed, realizing he needed to elaborate to make himself more clear as both men simply stared blankly back at him.
"Only one major pharmaceutical manufactured the approved antivenin and they ceased making it in 2003. Lack of suitable demand for the cost." Max cocked his head and took a deep breath because what he was concluding was indeed very interesting, if not frightening.
Danny inhaled sharply at the concept of someone daring to play such a life and death game. "Someone is trying to manufacture it and ... this woman .. was a test subject?"
The strange images of the mansion's plush bedroom shot through his mind and Danny frowned angrily at himself, unable to stop from scrubbing hard at his face. Now was no time for ridiculous premonitions.
A never used fireplace in a bedroom with a high-posted canopy bed. Filtered sunlight spreading its warmth over a handmade Indian rug. A warmth that didn't extend into the room because a snake curled so dangerously around his right ankle. He had woken just as it had begun to traverse up towards his knee, tongue flicking again as if it could sense his rising fear.
Danny jolted back to the present as Steve lay a hand on his shoulder. The unexpected touch sent a shocked trill down to his finger tips and he heaved in a deep breath to shake off the macabre memory.
"I don't like any of this, Max. You're thinking that someone kidnapped this woman, intentionally exposed her to a live coral snake and then subsequently tried to cure her with a facsimile of a self-manufactured cure?" Clearing his throat for his partner's sake, Steve pestered the medical examiner with questions.
"Kidnapping for some sort of crazed experiments?" The why supported an evident level of insanity and Steve's mind raced at the implications of having more coral snakes within the boundaries of the islands. "Using deadly snakes? Come on, Max, this could be a real mess. An enormous problem with a new definition of serial killer."
"Yes, Commander. That is entirely my theory." Max confirmed, pleased that he might have actually hit on something of tangible value.
"Random?" Danny asked hopefully, knowing that it sounded wrong. Even saying it simply felt entirely wrong and he muttered under his breath about Frankenstein, dark dreams, and crazed people.
"Doubtful." Max concluded. "This just doesn't happen .. not even once .. it's methodical and purposeful. The cause of death is too unique. While we only have one victim, I don't doubt that there is or even will be more."
"Agreed. We're already dealing with some sort of lunatic." Rubbing his face, Steve didn't even know where to begin on the case. It was clear that Danny felt the same, but his choice was to start at the beginning.
"Do we at least know who she is?" Danny finally asked the one remaining question.
"Still a Jane Doe. There's nothing in the system on her and she doesn't match any missing person's reports, though I will continue to inquire." Max admitted with a sad twist to his mouth.
"She's probably a homeless mark that was easily picked up. This collector knew what he or she was doing in that respect."
"We'll ask questions on the street, advise HPD and look around .. I'm not sure what else we can do without better identification." Steve said. "We need more, Max. For now, it's all we can do."
"Maybe check with zoos to see if they're missing any reptiles. I don't know what to think of this." Danny complained. "How do we find someone smuggling snakes .. here .. illegally. I don't know where to start other than with this Jane Doe and right now, she's a dead-end."
His mouth twisted into a grimace at his accidental choice of words which actually brought a humorous smile to Max Bergman's lips despite the seriousness of the issue. "If I find anything more, I will certainly revise my reports." Max added.
Steve nodded his thanks. There was one other thing that could be done and he voiced it to Danny as they left the medical examiner.
"We'll have Chin and Kono scour the system for anything remotely similar. Since this is so unique, there could be a case file or a report sitting idle on someone's desk that will help us out here." The case was more than strange with limited concepts of where to start. It was the best Steve could suggest as they settled together in the Camaro.
Staring at his partner before he even started the car's engine, Steve frowned at the distant expression. "What happened in there?"
Lost in stale feelings he couldn't describe, Danny only replied with a abstract shrug. Once more the images were fading and none of it seemed even remotely important. The rudely chuffed sound from Steve made him look over and in turn, Danny pointed to the key rocked in the ignition switch.
"You want to turn that so we can get out of here?"
"You want to tell me what happened in there?" The retort proved that Steve had no intention of doing a single thing until Danny offered him at least some explanation for his strange behavior.
"Nothing. Happened." He tried to avoid the topic because whatever he said would sound incredibly stupid. However, Steve shook his head while fisting the keys to lean arrogantly back in the driver's seat.
"Fine." Danny groused softly before throwing his sanity to the wind. "It was just a dumb dream that I had last night. Just some stupid, dumb dream .. with a snake. I don't even remember it anymore."
Brow furrowed in all seriousness, Steve didn't say a single word. Obviously, Danny remembered quite a bit and based on his mood, the dream was gnawing at his psyche. The unfortunate Jane Doe making it an odd coincidence. A few sarcastic comments flit across his mind yet never made it to his lips. Instead he cocked his head for Danny's defensive posture and annoyed expression.
The only thing Steve finally did say as he started the engine was benignly understanding. "Must have been a bad one."
"Yeah, well." The hesitant mumble came with a fidget as Danny fit himself firmly into the leather bucket seat. "It was."
~ to be continued ~