I do not own Hawaii Five-0 or any characters. No copyright infringement intended.
Notes: thanks again for such GREAT comments! I'm sorry I haven't been able to get back to many of you ... squeezing this in with work is a balancing act. :-)
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CHAPTER FOURTEEN
"In...side," Ray coughed a second time after Ramirez released the stranglehold on his throat. Livid red marks stood out from where the medical doctor had gripped so tightly and Ray had to swallow hard before attempting to breathe in a deeper inhale.
"Inside." Letting his breath out in worried rush of air, Steve didn't know what to do as he stated what Ray coughed up. With Danny so grievously wounded, he was still genuinely concerned about risking any one of them. Nonetheless, it was entirely necessary.
"Where exactly ... what are we looking for?" Steve waited less than a heartbeat for an answer. Then, there was certainly no compassion or any shred of patience left as Steve physically rounded on Franklin Ray when he took too long. Directly antagonized, he replaced Ramirez in Ray's face.
"We have a problem." Steve's own level of tension undeniably became more lethal to finally jolt the philanthropist from any continued attempts at deceit. "I'm done with you."
The promise, along with the very personal qualities of the message were clear and Ray didn't even move as the Five-0 Commander removed any residual doubts about his handling while amongst the group of authorities. "You have five seconds."
"Alright .. I got ..the message." Blood dripped down Ray's chin and he winced against the pounding in his head from both the collision with HPD, and the somewhat rough initial altercations afterwards. He wasn't quite willing to confess that he was truly quite finished since he didn't believe it; though now, he did grudgingly provide more specifics regarding where the antivenin was housed within his rambling mansion. "False door in ... the pantry ... leads down ... to the ...den."
Anyone within earshot, blanched at the jaggedly coughed out words. The only pause Ray took was to spit accumulated blood down to the grass before wiping his chin on his sleeve. The time allowed him to regain a bit of breath as he tried to clear his head and gain focus. It was then he realized everyone was staring at him. Gazing intently first at Steve and then turning his attention towards Ramirez, he leered threateningly as he absorbed each person's incredulous reaction where the unfamiliar mental imaginings of a 'den' conjured many different things.
"Yes, in their den. Downstairs. There's a small refrigerator stocked with venom and antivenin products," Ray rudely repeated while stressing each syllable.
"Someone has to go back in." Ignoring Franklin Ray's sickly pleasure, Kono broke the stunned ranks as she tugged gloves back on and readied her weapon. Her actions caused Ray to lose his smile as she diligently slammed a new full clip into place and made sure that two more were within easy reach.
"I'm good with this and I'll do it."
Steve glanced up at Kono and shook his head at her announcement, the sizable mansion was a horrific trap and they were out of their league. His heart and head warred together as his mind raced through options; entirely coming up empty because she was right. However, he had no intention of allowing her to go in alone, but Kono was interrupting Steve before he had a chance to disagree or float his own plans.
"How many did you let loose?" Kono demanded to know. It was an important question for a number of reasons. With the Five-0 commander still threatening him, Ray's answer was given directly to Steve, but it was delivered in a cloyingly pleasurable tone.
"All of them." Obsessed eyes glittered happily as a partially bloody smile appeared. He absorbed the not so circumspect glances amongst the authorities, which seemed to say that no one quite understood what that could indicate.
"Yes, all." Smiling more deeply, Ray nodded before delivering what they wondered. "Yes, all of them. All twenty-eight."
"It doesn't matter. I'm going back in," Kono repeated herself firmly without any other type of reaction. "I need three volunteers."
Pointedly, Kono looked at Danny and her face momentarily crumbled before she recovered just as quickly. "Steve, seriously."
Her first excuse was that the EMT's had made way to Danny's side and he was being far from cooperative. Even injured and officially beyond exhausted, he was putting up a fight against his care and Ponch was failing at keeping him calm. Wanting to be three places at once, Steve looked for Duke in order to thrust Ray into his hands.
"Take him. Don't go too far yet, though." Distracted by Danny's plight, Steve handed Franklin Ray off when he realized that those present, including Ponch were indeed at a loss regarding their patient's needs. The discussion perpetuated Danny's ongoing anxiety ever more skyward as unfamiliar hands began yet another full examination under Ponch's direction. In fact, Chin had already been pushed aside as the emergency medical technicians clambered around Danny to hear the surprising cause of injuries.
"Steve, I can be in and out in less than five minutes. No one's going to be prepared for this at the hospital either." Kono cocked her head meaningfully towards the small group. Her second nod was for the deeply pained groan and Steve finally agreed as he knelt on one knee next to his partner. The oxygen was being traded for the EMT's own while Ponch attempted to keep Danny calm.
"We're going to go soon, Danny. I'm going to lay this IV, do a few more things and then we're off." With an EMT now restraining Danny's hands from his face, the whispers did little though as he exceeded his threshold of both pain and tolerance. No one had yet been able to evaluate the bite mark on his hand for his continued struggles and it was obvious that the delay was especially distressing to Ramirez.
"Kono, go ahead." The brief discussion had Steve grimly nodding as Chin made a sound under his own breath. Half appreciative agreement and half concern, Steve caught the proud smile off to the side. Behind them all, Duke was already spreading his own demands to identify three qualified officers to assist in the retrieval.
"Do it. You and Chin can take two or three HPD volunteers."
"You got it, boss." Kono couldn't help the flash of her own pleased grin as she kicked the plastic bag which held the Rhinkals' remains purposefully with her shoe. It was a decent wallop to noisily shift the bag's contents. As it was her goal, the act intentionally aggravated Franklin Ray who stiffened under Duke's guard. Steve would have smiled at the ploy had Danny not begun to softly cough sporadically while tiredly trying to free his hands.
"I ...just ... can't." Lamely, Danny sought better solace. He felt the change as stronger hands replaced those of the medical technician who had been kind, but certainly more clinical. More familiar ones circled his wrists just as gently, but decidedly more demanding.
"You're okay, Danny. Let's try something." Based upon what the EMT's were assembling, they had decided to cease the painful flushing of Danny's eyes for the time being. Placing his hands under Danny's shoulders, Steve sat back on his heels and lifted to prop his partner slowly up in his arms. Ponch scowled for the ashen complexion as all the color drained from Danny's face despite the steady flow of oxygen, yet the tactile support eventually lessened some of the reactive trembling and eased the argument.
"Take advantage of the oxygen and breathe, Danny. Slow yourself down and let these guys take care of you." The soft coaching was rhythmic and delivered with a sincere sense of calm. "Better?"
"Better." No longer stranded on his back, Danny weakly muttered as he focused on the solid texture of Steve's tac-vest which was oddly comfortable against his back. He was held up by Steve's right arm, while his left hand took a reassuring hold of Danny's own. Meant to be both comforting and supportive, the position additionally freed the medics to follow Doctor Ramirez's orders more efficiently.
"Danny, I'm going to cover your eyes." Ponch softly explained as he readied the sterile gauze pads and had an EMT waiting with a roll of white bandages. With supplies from his own ample medical bag, plus those from the medics, he was steadily working and very focused. His silent communication to Steve relayed a concern for Danny's reaction but he needed to protect his eyes for transport and until a qualified ophthalmologist could better evaluate them.
"Gauze pads and then I'm just going to wrap them to keep them in place." Ponch explained as he began the ministrations.
"Steve?" Once more shaking badly as Ponch gently applied the bandages, Danny pulled his left hand from Steve's with Ponch's quiet permission. Shakily, he cautiously touched the gauze by his temple as more and more was placed over his eyes. Beyond stressed, Danny felt trapped within his own body as more unfamiliar hands wrapped a blood pressure cuff around his bicep, affixed a pinching intravenous line for fluids or opened his shirt to examine his chest with a stethoscope.
"Steve?" His strained voice was muffled under the oxygen mask. Bandages now wrapped eyes that burned and ached relentlessly in his head. Not knowing what to say and utterly helpless, he winced as the small pressure bandage was smoothed tightly over his hand. Steve watched as the badly swollen and bruised wound disappeared from sight, aggrieved to see that the swelling had progressed well beyond Danny's wrist.
"You're going to be fine. We're going to move you up to a gurney and get you to the hospital." Steve spoke softly into his ear, secretly alarmed by the much too rapid uneven thud which he felt through his right forearm. It seemed to be of an erratic pace and he glanced up worriedly to Ponch as the ex-TAMC physician yanked his stethoscope from his ears.
"Arrhythmic." Ponch mouthed as he watched Steve move his free hand up to Danny's heat-drenched forehead when a medic finished wrapping reams of more bandages. He cocked his head then towards the gurney. "Let's move him. It's time to get out of here. Kono can meet us at the hospital with the serum."
Danny hummed painfully under his breath for what he'd just overheard. "What?" His voice was badly muffled and barely reached anyone's ears. Through his arm though, Steve felt the instantaneous shift as Danny's anxiety grew and he bent his head to hear the second raspy attempt at questioning. "What ... Steve?"
"Relax." Stifling a curse for what Danny was still hearing, Steve blew out a hard disagreeable sound. "It's under control. Chin and Kono are doing their thing now and I'm staying with you for the time being. You're going to feel us moving you now, Danno. Relax for me, buddy."
Working as one, the small group transferred Danny from where he had been sitting against Steve to the waiting gurney. Once strapped in, Steve kept a firm hand on Danny's left arm while he simultaneously searched out Kono and Chin.
"Danno, I'll be right back." Quickly bending down, Steve waited for his partner to give out with a sketchy affirmative noise of sorts before soothingly squeezing his arm. Utterly tapped out, Danny was only hanging on to a tiny thread of reason based solely upon Steve's presence. "Five seconds ... just five," Steve repeated, having finally spotted the other half of the team near the side of the house coordinating their next steps. "
"Steve." Before he could move though, a hand fell on his own arm as Ponch towed him a few short steps to the side.
"We absolutely need the serum." Ponch affirmed, he was loathe to hesitate at suggesting they send Franklin Ray back into the mansion because they couldn't dare trust the man. Illogical thoughts traced across his mind that he'd intentionally commit suicide, get someone else grievously wounded, or even destroy the serum. "Kono's right. None of us are prepared for this, but we need that antivenin."
"They're going in very well prepared this time though." Steve noted definitively. He no longer delayed after a sudden insight had him determinedly stalking towards where Kono and Chin had assembled their team. He pointed to each of its members and stopped their immediate egress with more orders.
"You're going in with more than this because we have more at our disposal. I want everyone geared up with flash bangs, fire extinguishers, tear gas canisters, and full tactical equipment with face masks in place."
"No, you'll kill them!" Ray's stunned shout was ignored as he newly fought in HPD's hands. Eyes wide, he heard what had been said and then watched in a rising panic as the requested equipment was assembled. These facts sent his mood escalating exponentially. His screamed anger and rage brought his fight to the grass as the entourage literally took him off his feet. Shouting now into his own well-manicured lawn, Ray bucked and fought for his children's survival to no avail. "I won't let you do it! You can't kill them like that!"
"I can because that would be the point." Growling under his breath, Steve gained Duke's attention and waved his hands towards the cruisers, "Lock that lunatic up and do not take your eyes off him at any time. Not for any reason." It was clear that Steve still wanted Ray on the premises should something more be required of him; especially should he be lying. "I don't care about what you need to do in there. Just get it done safely." The ideas which Steve had might work and they could even be borrowed from fiction. He snorted under his breath when he met Kono's determined expression and Chin's more mocking one.
"You got it, boss," Kono said with a deep inhale. She knew what he wanted and refused to make a mistake. He didn't need to add anything about taking their utmost care as teams of two scrambled for every available piece of equipment which could be used to combat the horrors let loose in the large mansion.
Having lingered nearby for a moment, Ponch quickly paused in following the gurney to the ambulance. He snagged Kono's sleeve with a distinctly concerned expression. "Go. Go get it done and be very careful."
"Definitely." She whispered with a partially cocky grin just for his benefit. "And you take care of Danny for us."
Ponch's lip quirked as he watched the now fully geared team prepare to enter the house, but he needed to leave as Danny reached the rear doors of the ambulance. He realized then that the first ambulance with Riku Bhandari was just beginning to roll as well. There were medical priorities to focus on and Ponch wanted to move. "Steve, we're going. Are you staying here or coming along in the bus?"
"Bus," Steve murmured with a glance towards the last person who was disappearing through the front door. A firmly pointed finger at Duke resulted in the flash of a thumbs up signal. Duke would keep Ray on the property until Five-0 released him entirely. With a true sense of fear still tightening a hard knot in his chest, Steve nodded, praying the diligent flushing of Danny's eyes would truly work in the end. But then there was the issue of the bite wound coupled now with the successful retrieval of the antivenin.
From inside the house and then inside his headset, he could hear the organized chatter and flash bangs being deployed in a studious pattern. A steady progress was being made step by step.
"Yeah, they have it well in hand. Chin or Kono will call when they get it. Let's go," Steve agreed. Turning together, the two jogged to the ambulance, climbing in quickly and forcing themselves into whatever space remained. Leaning forward, Steve found his partner's arm again as the EMT's relayed information constantly to the hospital. The sweat and heat continued to flow off Danny in sickly waves.
Once again almost too weakly malleable, only Danny's left hand twitched in recognition as the ambulance began to move and emergency sirens were flicked on. "You're going to be fine." Steve wended his body into a tight corner to be more close to Danny's ear. There was barely a nod as the oxygen mask fogged and then re-fogged in a randomly panted pattern. Danny was struggling and Steve was helpless to do more except to be there for him. "It is, Danno. Everything's going to be alright."
Steve said those things for himself, too. Danny's right hand boasted a thick pressure bandage and his face was mostly hidden under reams of white bandages and obliterated by the oxygen mask. Only a shock of blonde hair sloppily peeked out from just the top of his head. Through Danny's arm, Steve continually felt the ongoing shudders of pain and fearful uncertainty. No longer moaning, only the sound of his erratic breathing reached Steve's ears. Danny had mostly fallen unnaturally quiet though he was conscious and Steve could only rub his thumb more firmly across Danny's forearm in a soothing pattern. The reality was that there was nothing any one of them could really say or do until they contacted the real experts and retrieved the serum.
Under his eyebrows and rocking in time to the vehicle's increasing movement, Steve glanced up to watch Ramirez work. He hadn't had the foresight to ask the big doctor even how he was; and the poor man had been essentially kidnapped and forced into a completely unwanted set of circumstances. No one had even contacted Ellen Ramirez or the rest of the Ramirez family.
"Doc," keeping his voice low, he tried twice more, but Ramirez didn't look up. "Hey? Ponch?" So Steve frowned as he cataloged the white bandage which he hadn't quite had the time to notice and the faint dots of redness leaking through. Yet he still didn't push for conversation based upon the zoned-out look on the doctor's face because Steve wouldn't have gotten an answer anyway.
~ to be continued ~