Troubled Waters XIII

Disclaimer: I do not own Hawaii 5-0. I would love to be a fly on the wall in the writer's room so I could shake them up a bit.

Thanks to everyone for reading and tolerating my irregular postings.

Chapter 13

Danny led the way through the doorway that led to the front portion of the building. Staying low, he went to the driver's side of the van and glanced back at Grover who had to double over to join him. The lights were on in this portion of the building, casting shadows among the vehicles.

Up in the office Kono took on the job of being the eyes of the team. She kept track of the perps, ready to break a window and provide cover fire if necessary. For now she was able to observe the movement below and inform the others if the men moved towards their positions.

Down on the floor, Tambor and Pono broke off their conversation to rejoin Lyle and Terry alongside the rusty Oldsmobile.

"The two by the front door have moved over to the two by the car," Kono softly relayed to the others. Lou raised a hand and waved so she knew they had heard. She turned her attention to the men by the sedan, wishing she could hear what they were discussing.

Grover and Danny quietly moved forward until they were between the rear of the van and the pickup truck. They were able to hear the conversation going on close by.

"Pono has a cousin in Hau'ula who might have a lead on a building we can use in Kailua. That's closer to Honolulu which should put us closer to buyers as well as deliveries. The building's owner is doing time in Halawa so he won't care if we set up business in his small engine repair shop. The guy liked robbing the homes of his clients and his sticky fingers got him arrested," Tambor chuckled. He glanced at McGarrett sitting by the wall and sighed. "We can't stay here, there are too many clues that could bring 5-0 here. I want us to move somewhere I haven't left a paper trail. We're waiting to find out if Pono's cousin can secure the keys to the shop," he finished.

"Sounds good Boss," Lyle nodded. "If this place isn't compromised then we can always come back later."

"What do we do about him?" Terry asked jerking his head towards McGarrett. He still wanted to punish the man for knocking him out in the jungle.

Tambor looked at McGarrett who was now sitting straighter and listening in on their conversation. He knew that the task force leader knew too much and the unflinching stare from the Commander confirmed that Tambor couldn't leave him alive.

"Once we're ready to move, I want the Commander dead. Dump his body in the ocean. He will be of no use to us once we leave here," Tambor instructed.

"Let me deal with him. Let me show you I can handle it," Terry said eagerly.

"I need to know there won't be any mistakes. I'm not sure I can count on you Terry," Tambor said with a smirk. He had no trouble reminding Terry that he had made several errors today.

"Boss…I swear I won't mess this up," Terry insisted.

Steve's expression hardened as he listened to them plan his death. He caught a flash of movement through the window of the sedan near the rear of the pickup truck. He froze, not wanting to call attention to where he was looking and warning the others that someone was in the room with them. Peeking sideways, Steve hazarded a look at the man standing next to him and was relieved to see that Jack was concentrating on the argument between his boss and Terry.

A rush of adrenalin pumped through Steve as he guessed his team might actually be in the building. He shifted on the bench, gathering himself to be ready to move if things began to happen quickly. He listened closely to see if he could hear any sounds from the area between the truck and van.

Above in the office, Kono noticed Steve change his posture. She could see he was looking towards the spot where Lou and Danny were hiding.

"Guys…..I think Steve is aware you are out there," she quietly informed them. Grover wiggled a finger over his head to acknowledge that he heard her.

Below the office at the foot of the stairs, Chin eased the door open slightly. He was able to get a glimpse of the men to his left. If he opened the door further they would be warned that he was there. Looking to his right, he could make out a sneaker clad foot and bare leg that had to be Steve's.

"I know you want to prove yourself Terry but I can't trust you won't screw things up. I have to be sure McGarrett is disposed of properly. Lyle will go with you and make sure it's done right. We move as soon as Pono's cousin calls back," Tambor ordered curtly.

Terry considered arguing but wisely changed his mind. He knew Lyle would let him pull the trigger and having a second pair of hands to deal with disposing of the body would be helpful. Lyle jabbed his elbow into Terry's ribs and grinned at Tambor.

"No problem Boss, we'll take care of it," the redhead assured the man. Terry nodded, still smarting from the negative feedback his boss directed at him. He was going to prove he could get rid of the task force leader and do it right.

Danny began to inch around the rear of the truck to have fewer obstacles between him and his targets. He knew it would be better to take out this group with as little bloodshed as possible. And more importantly, he needed to have this over quickly and get Steve to a hospital.

"We have to move," he whispered to Lou. A light tap on the back told Danny that Grover was with him. They were ready to move when Pono's phone rang, startling everyone. As the big Hawaiian dug his phone out of his pocket, everyone went into action.

As Danny and Lou rose up and charged around the rear of the truck and car to confront the men as Kono broke the window with her rifle butt. Glass shards rained down on Jack and Steve, forcing Jack to move away, brushing glass off his shoulders and head. Steve surged to his feet, as Chin burst through the door, his shotgun on the men by the car.

"5-0…..drop your weapons," Danny ordered loudly.

Lyle and Terry both had grabbed their weapons to face Danny and Lou while Tambor immediately headed for McGarrett, moving faster than could be expected for such a large man. Steve lowered his shoulder and slammed Tambor squarely in the chest, stunning the man for a moment. But recovering quickly, Tambor took hold of Steve's bicep and swung him around, locking his arm around McGarrett's throat. Pressing his gun to Steve's head, he kept the man in front of him as a shield. Chin stood firm, keeping his shotgun aimed at Tambor as Lou and Danny covered the others.

Terry made the foolish choice to raise his weapon to fire at the shorter, blonde 5-0 member who had given the orders but a shot from above hit him in the upper chest and he dropped to the floor. Pono dropped his phone and raised his hands quickly, backing up to the side of the car.

"Nobody else move," Kono shouted from above.

Everyone ceased moving, trying to figure out their next move. Terry's harsh breathing was the only sound for the moment.

"I have McGarrett," Tambor pointed out the obvious. "Any one moves against me, I'll shoot him."

"Try it," Danny shot back. He kept his weapon on Tambor and Jack just behind him as Chin was doing as well. Grover continued to keep his weapon on the others. Kono tried to cover all of them but found her angle at Tambor and Jack was difficult from directly above them.

Tambor stepped back even more towards the wall, still using Steve as a shield while Jack stayed alongside him to protect his back. Lyle began to inch slowly towards the front of the Oldsmobile, hoping that no one would notice him.

"Hey…you, get your ass back here," Lou called out, catching the movement. "Put that weapon down on the hood and lace your fingers behind your head." With an embarrassed shrug, Lyle set the gun down on the hood of the car and did as he was told. He ended up standing next to Terry who was moaning on the ground. Pono was on the other side of the downed man and Lou maintained his attention on all of them.

"You aren't going anywhere and you won't shoot Steve," Danny informed Tambor. "Let him go and your chances to live will improve."

"I swear I will shoot him."

"Then I will shoot you. Or he will," Danny responded, nodding his head at Chin. "And if either of us miss then Kono will get you from above. Are you willing to buck those odds? Do you want to die here? Play this smart and you will live."

"Boss?" Jack questioned softly. He could see the cold determination in the short, blonde cop's eyes. The Hawaiian holding the shotgun was equally calm and focused. Killing McGarrett would leave them with no protection and Jack wasn't sure he was willing to die for Edward Tambor.

For his part, Ed Tambor wasn't ready to surrender. He kept his arm anchored around McGarrett's throat and was pleased that the man appeared to have no fight left in him. He didn't believe that 5-0 would let him kill their leader right before their eyes.

"We're walking out of here Jack. You…..with the shotgun…move away from that door. You all talk tough but you won't let me shoot your boss. Move," Tambor instructed as he forced Steve forward.

Chin backed off slightly from a nod from Danny. They could hear in their earpieces that Kono had informed the officers outside to have some of them cover the rear exit of the building. Chin only moved a few feet to the side, not giving an easy path to the rear of the building.

Jack stuck close to Tambor's back, his weapon on the blonde officer although he had no chance to protect from the shooter up above. He had no idea if she had a good angle or not. Aware that she didn't have the best angle to shoot Tambor, Kono had headed to the door of the office, knowing that if the perps made it through the door she would have a shot from above the empty room. She would not let Tambor walk out of this building with Steve on her watch.

As they neared the door, Steve could feel the pressure of the gun to his head had lessened. He figured that the drug dealer felt that McGarrett was unable to provide any resistance to him. It was totally in his control to throw a monkey wrench into the big man's plans, his team needed him to do something. He locked eyes with Chin and mouthed the words "get ready". A smile broke across Chin's face and prepared to act.

Steve suddenly stuck his right leg between Tambor's legs and jerked his body to the left, away from the gun, letting his full weight drop down. Tambor reacted by letting go of McGarrett and catching his balance while aiming the gun at the man who had fallen to the ground. Two shots rang out, one from Chin and one from Danny, dropping the man before he could pull the trigger. The big man crashed down on top of McGarrett.

Jack dropped his gun as if it was burning hot and raised his hands. No way was he going to challenge this team.

"Don't shoot," he pleaded looking down at his former boss' body.

"Lock your fingers behind your head," Danny ordered as the room filled with the HPD officers from outside. Kono led the ones in from the back.

"You okay Steve?" Chin asked but there was no answer. "Kono, help me get this guy off Steve," he urged her. "Get that ambulance here, McGarrett is out cold."

End chapter.

I just can't resist leaving a little cliffie. I hope this made sense. Thanks for reading.