So, I have had chapter 1 written since January 2012, but I had no idea where chapter 2 was going and then Stormy Weather used up most of my rescue scenarios. I debated just leaving Chapter 1 as a one-shot, but it wanted to be more. So it waited while I finished Stormy and What If I Was Wrong? and assorted one-shots. Now, finally, Chapter 2!

Chapter 2 – Earth-Shaking

The aftershock had a different feeling. The ground jolted several times as if the island was falling down stairs. The Five-0 fivesome heard a loud crack resounding through the building's walls and a noise like rocks falling, accompanied by yelps of fright that would have been inaudible if the side windows had been intact.

After a few seconds that seemed like forever, the quake tapered off into shudders and rolled to an almost-stop.

"I see what you mean," Kono said, as she rolled briskly out from under the smart table. "It still feels like it's going."

"I don't know whether the earth is still moving or if it's all in my head," Danny complained. He winced a bit as the bandages on his side pulled, but was satisfied he hadn't started bleeding again.

"Like getting your land legs back after being at sea," Steve commented.

He and Chin were pulling out two backpacks of emergency gear, stuffing in two satellite phones and a handful of extra batteries from the rotating supply drawer.

"Come on, we'd better check out that noise," he ordered.

The officers could still hear distressed sounds coming from what must be the front of the historic building but they didn't hear any screams of pain, so they hoped whatever happened wasn't too bad.

"Chin, you and Kono take this list. You've got all the historic sites in this neighborhood, including this one," Steve said, handing over one of the laminated cards. "Old buildings. Lots of tourists."

"Potential for disaster," Kono commented. "Thanks, boss."

Steve grinned. "At least you don't have the capitol building. The staff there is responsible."

"Of course, it's the newest building in the block. All the latest earthquake safety features," Chin grumbled humorously.

"Danny and I will take the other list. Lori, you stay here and serve as command center," Steve said kindly. "We can't leave headquarters unguarded with half the windows broken."

The East Coast woman was still visibly shaken, but she pulled herself together valiantly. "Maybe Danny should stay here. He's hurt."

All eyes went to the detective.

"Your call, partner," Steve said.

Danny pulled a windbreaker over his T-shirt, worked his arms back and forth and twisted his torso experimentally. "Just twinges," he announced. "I'm good. And Lori's better with the techie stuff," he pointed out.

"You're not as bad as you like to pretend," Kono accused as the original four trotted toward the stairs. "You just like to get out of the computer work."

"Why should I do it when I have people to do it for me," Danny said in the snootiest voice he could manage.

Laughing the group exited, cautiously checking for more broken glass or other damage.

Lori felt a little left out, yet glad she didn't have to venture outside just yet. "At least we still have power," she said to the smart table.

So of course the lights went out. The room was lit only by the ready lights of the computers, which had their own emergency power.

"Oh, come on!" the woman said, exasperation driving away the last of her fear.

Steve scanned the front entrance — side to side, up and down — as if he expected a perp to leap at him. Satisfied nothing looked dangerous he moved quickly outside. A section of bricks had cracked and fallen — just like a landslide — on the front steps. A woman tourist was crying with a group gathered around her, comforting her. But no one appeared to be hurt.

"Everyone all right?" Steve asked, flashing his badge.

"It almost hit me!" the woman sobbed. "If he hadn't grabbed me!" She pointed at a man standing nearby.

"I'm from California," he explained. "I know it's safer to be out in the open during an earthquake than to be next to a building in case stuff like that happens." He pointed at the pile of rubble. "So when she started to run that way, I grabbed her arm."

"And then crash!" another tourist said.

"So you're all right?" Kono double-checked with the crying woman.

She nodded, wiping her tears. "I'm sorry. I was just scared. I've never been in an earthquake before."

"You should feel honored. We don't hold them for all the tourists," Chin said, tongue-in-cheek, which made the victim smile.

"If everyone's OK here, we're heading out," Steve told Chin.

"Right, we'll check the rest of the building, then head over to the palace," the lieutenant answered.

Steve automatically moved toward the Camaro then changed his mind. "No, we'd better take my truck. It's be better if we run into a rock slide or fallen trees."

"So this is what it takes," Danny commented as he climbed into the Silverado.

"What?" Steve tossed the bag in the backseat, then slid behind the wheel.

"It takes an earth-shaking event for you to drive your own truck," Danny said.

Steve answered by stomping on the accelerator, throwing Danny back in the seat harder than necessary.

The detective grabbed for the safety bar and winced. "Hey. Injured man here," he protested.

Steve slowed in apology, reducing to a bat-out-of-heck speed instead of bat-out-of-hell. He wanted to make up for their delay in leaving the office.

"When we were researching earthquakes for Grace's project, we came across a sad story," Danny said conversationally, projecting over the sound of the siren. "After one of the L.A earthquakes, a motorcycle officer was rushing to report in and, because of the dust shaken up by the quake, he didn't see that a freeway overpass had collapsed. He flew right off the edge. Witnesses below said he looked like a comet with all the lights flashing as he fell to his death. That story scared my baby to death."

Steve didn't answer directly, but he did reduce their rate of travel to below freeway speeds, so Danny counted that as a win. A double win when they turned a corner and found a fallen tree in the street. Steve slammed on the brakes and the Silverado slid to a stop inches from a branch that could have gone straight through their windshield.

"If you say 'I told you so,' you will be walking back to HQ," Steve warned.

"Would I do that?" Danny smirked.

After checking for downed power lines, Steve looped a tow chain around the tree trunk and Danny towed it to the side of the street. Then, refusing the give up the wheel, Danny drove to their first "target," as the Navy SEAL called the businesses on the list. Their checklist focused on an industrial area set apart from the residential areas. Two chemical laboratories, a pharmaceutical manufacturing company and a fireworks warehouse were in the area.

Automatic cutoffs had worked perfectly at their first stop, a chemical laboratory. The only hazardous materials spill was a bottle of bleach dropped by the janitor during the shaking. A three-inch puddle, quickly diluted and mopped, fell within safety parameters, the lab safety officer and McGarrett agreed seriously, while Danny and the janitor rolled their eyes. Steve signed off on the lab and, reclaiming the driver's seat, he headed toward the next target.

After checking the rest of the Five-0 building, Chin and Kono jogged across King Street to the Iolani Palace. Visitors were milling around outside in the large park surrounding the historic building, which had been home to the last king and queen of Hawaii.

"Everyone all right here?" Kono called, showing her badge.

"Oh, officer! Thank heavens!" a woman exclaimed. "There's a crazy man holding people hostage on the second floor."

"Crazy? What are the docents doing about it?" Chin asked.

"He is a docent!"

TBC