I promised I wouldn't leave you hanging so here is the next chapter for you guys!
Thanks for all the reviews on the last one I'm glad you enjoyed the cliffhanger :)
Enjoy!
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Steve ran through the hallways, dodging doctors and nurses.
How could he be so stupid? How did he not realize? She called Danny Detective Williams. She called Steve Commander. She even knew Rachel was Danny's ex-wife! He never told anyone at the hospital any of this information. She shouldn't have known that. How had he not caught on before?
He threw open the stairwell door and climbed as many stairs as he could at a time. He almost ran right into Dr. Kamahi on his way out.
"Mr. McGarrett?" The doctor called after him.
Steve didn't even turn around or slow down.
"GET TO DANNY'S ROOM!" He shouted.
She'd been alone with Danny for a while now... She'd had enough time to... No. He'd get there in time. He had to. Danny hadn't come this far just to die while recovering in the hospital.
Steve finally reached Danny's door. He grabbed the handle but it was locked. Realizing he had no time to pick it, he shoved himself against it as hard as he could. It didn't budge. He shoved at it again, and then again. On the third try, the door burst open.
Steve's heart dropped when he entered the room and rage burned in his veins like fire. She was on top of him, smothering him with a pillow. Fear shot through him when he realized that Danny wasn't fighting back. He was completely still.
No time. There was no time for talking down a revenge seeking psychopath. Steve pulled out his gun and shot Sophia twice. She fell off of Danny and to the floor with a thud.
Steve ran forward, grabbing the pillow from Danny's face.
"Danny!" He shouted, shaking him gently. "DANNY! Wake up!"
He put his fingers to Danny's neck, desperately checking for a pulse.
"Come on Danny please. You can't die. Not now." He begged.
Suddenly there were hands on him. He tried to fight them off but they weren't letting go.
"Steve!" Dr. Kamahi was saying urgently. "Steve you need to let him go! I need to help him now!"
"I can't find a pulse... I can't find a damn pulse!" He shouted.
Dr. Kamahi shoved Steve back forcefully and grabbed Danny's limp body from his arms.
"CODE BLUE!" He shouted. "We've got a code blue, get a crash cart now!"
"DANNO!" Steve shouted.
"Somebody get him out of here!" Dr. Kamahi yelled as nurses and more doctors ran into the room.
Two security guards were suddenly on him, pulling him out of Danny's room.
"NO!" He yelled, trying to pull away, but they continued to drag him towards the hall. "No, Danny!"
The last thing he saw before the door slammed closed in front of him was Dr. Kamahi putting the paddles to Danny's chest in a desperate effort to bring him back.
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An hour later, Chin and Kono found themselves in the same situation as the night before. Steve was sitting, still as a statue just staring at the clock.
They hadn't managed to get much out of him when they first arrived at the hospital, which was now swarming with HPD officers.
"She was smothering him... Pillow... I couldn't find a pulse..." He'd said in a broken whisper.
The look on Steve's face when he said it, combined with the tone they'd never heard the Commander use before and the meaning behind his words, sent the cousins into a state of panic.
"How did this happen?" Kono whispered. "How did she even get in?"
"I don't know but I'm going to find out." Chin replied angrily. "Somebody's going to pay for what happened to Danny."
"He's going to be okay." Kono said, more to reassure herself than Steve and Chin. "He'll be up and complaining about the heat, the pineapples, and Steve in no time."
"Commander McGarrett!"
They all turned as the familiar voice filled the waiting room.
To Chin and Kono's surprise, Steve stood up immediately.
"Rachel." He said.
"Is Daniel awake? Where is he? Why are you all out here?" She asked. Her usually composed demeanor had been dropped and they could all hear the fear in her clipped tone.
"Rachel..." Steve said sadly. "I have to tell you something."
Rachel gasped and took a step backwards, shaking her head rapidly.
"No..." She whispered. "He's not... He can't be..."
"No!" Steve replied loudly. "No! God no. He's not dead Rachel!"
Rachel immediately put her head in her hands. "Then what is it?" She asked.
Steve sighed and started telling Rachel the story he really didn't want to relive. Now or ever again.
By the time he was finished, Rachel was horrified and there were tears falling freely down her face.
"But he was... He was getting better." She whispered.
"Hey, listen to me Rachel. He's still going to get better okay?" Steve replied. "He's going to be fine. You're the only person who knows his stubbornness better than I do."
Rachel gave a small laugh at that one.
"Yes I do." She said. "Thank you Steve... For helping Danny, for everything."
Before Steve could reply, Dr. Kamahi entered the waiting room.
The three Five-0 members and Rachel were on him in a second.
"How is he?" Rachel asked.
"He's stable. I didn't think I'd be saying this, but he's actually breathing on his own now." Dr. Kamahi replied.
"Wait," Steve said in confusion. "No more ventilator?"
"No." The doctor replied. "We were able to revive him, and I realized that he was breathing well enough on his own to require only an oxygen mask this time."
"So..." Kono said. "So that's good?"
"Yes." Dr. Kamahi replied. "When he wakes up, we will have to check for any lasting damage due to the oxygen deprivation but-"
"Brain damage?!" Steve spat out.
"BUT," Dr. Kamahi replied more forcefully, "In my professional opinion, I believe you got to him in time Steve."
"But... But what if..." Steve stammered.
"Hey brah." Chin said, patting Steve on the back. "Let's cross that bridge only if we come to it, alright?"
Steve nodded. "Yeah, okay."
He turned back to Dr. Kamahi. "I need to see him. Now. And I am not leaving that room again until he does."
"Steve..." Chin started to say, but shut up when a full scale NAVY SEAL death stare was shot his way. He put his hands up in surrender.
Rachel tried to stifle a laugh behind her hand. How Danny and Steve got along so well together was beyond her. Their personalities were made to clash.
"He's sleeping but I'll take you to him." Dr. Kamahi replied, before turning to Rachel. "Danny's wife I presume?"
"Ex-wife." She replied. "But I'd like to see him if that's alright."
The doctor nodded.
"Come get us when he wakes up boss, we'll be here." Kono said.
Steve nodded and followed Dr. Kamahi back to Danny's room with Rachel in tow.
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Steve gave Rachel the chair by Danny's bed, and chose to stand by the foot of the bed instead. He couldn't have his partner waking up and calling him a Neanderthal for making Rachel stand. Bedsides, it looked like that chair was going to be his home for the next few days. At least until Danny was well enough to be released into Steve's care, which was another conversation with his partner he was not looking forward to having.
They stayed silent for a while, just watching Danny.
Eventually, Steve couldn't take the awkward silence anymore.
"So how's Grace?" He asked.
"She hasn't been doing very well.." Rachel said sadly. "I'm sure you know the relationship she has with her father. I can't imagine what would happen to her if..." She trailed off.
"Well luckily we won't have to find out." Steve replied.
Rachel nodded.
After a few more awkward moments, Rachel spoke again.
"I always worry about something like this happening. We've been divorced for years, but I can't help the fear that I'm going to get a phone call from you, or a knock on the door..."
Steve nodded in understanding. "My dad was a cop." He said. "Every morning when he left, I would pray that he would come home safe."
"I never knew when I kissed Daniel goodbye in the morning, if it would be the last time. There were close calls, and I'd be lying if I said that each one didn't add a strain to our marriage." Rachel told him.
Steve was surprised at the turn their conversation had taken. He'd never really had a serious talk with Danny's ex before.
"The worst was September 11, 2001..." Rachel continued. "Has he ever told you that story?"
Steve nodded. "He lost his partner, Grace."
"He wouldn't talk about it for months. And then one day, when I was 5 months pregnant, we finally found out we were having a girl. He just broke down suddenly. I'd never seen him like that before, it was terrifying." Rachel said sadly. "He blamed himself for what happened and it was really hard for him. I didn't know what to do, so I just held him until he calmed down. It took hours. That was the day we decided on the name Grace."
Steve listened intently. He'd heard the story from Danny but not the aftermath. Danny was a private person when it came to things like that, and Steve wasn't surprised that he hadn't shared. He understood more than anyone why hiding things was better sometimes.
"He's a great person. And he's an amazing father. Even if things didn't work out between us, I'll always care about him and worry." Rachel said. "I'm just glad he found you, Chin and Kono. He was miserable his first six months here. Then he met you guys, and he didn't seem so unhappy anymore."
"Really?" Steve asked. "Sometimes I think he still hates it here."
"Well Daniel has a flare for the dramatic, but I can always tell what he's feeling." Rachel replied. "Comes with the territory. He is much happier now than he was before. I know it's because of you and Five-0."
"We're better with him. This team wouldn't be the same without him. I'll deny this if you ever tell him, but as difficult as he is with his daily rants... I need him." Steve admitted hesitantly.
Rachel laughed.
"Well Grace did say something recently about you blowing up Hawaii using Danno's glove compartment..."
Steve snorted. "It was one grenade!"
"Jersey life wasn't quite so exciting." Rachel told him.
This time Steve laughed. "Yeah, he loves to talk about how peaceful New Jersey was with no crazy ninja SEAL's and grenade fights."
Rachel laughed again before looking at Danny. She sobered instantly.
"Why did they do this to him?" She asked, and Steve could hear the anger in her voice.
He hesitated, but decided that she deserved the truth. "Because of Matt."
"Danny's brother?" She asked, clearly surprised. "But he hasn't seen Matthew in years."
"Somebody wanted revenge on Matt for the money he stole, but they didn't know where he was. So they took Danny, hoping he could lead them to Matt." Steve explained.
"And he couldn't." Rachel finished for him.
"No, he couldn't." Steve replied.
"You sound angry..." Rachel noted.
"You're good." Steve said.
"I have to be. Daniel isn't easy to read at first either. Well?"
Steve sighed. "They threatened Danny before they took him. They sent a... A package and called him. He knew something was wrong." He relayed.
Rachel nodded. "And let me guess. He said nothing?" She asked.
It was Steve's turn to nod. "He wanted to protect us."
"Daniel is always trying to protect the people he loves. It's one of the things I loved most about him. His loyalty." Rachel said.
"Loyal to a fault." Steve agreed.
"Yes I suppose that is true." she replied.
Rachel looked at Steve and then Danny. She stood up.
"I know you two are going to have a lot to talk about when he wakes up." She said. "Perhaps I should leave and come back tomorrow with Grace if he's feeling up to it?"
"You don't have to leave Rachel..." Steve started to say.
Rachel shook her head. "It's fine Commander. You need time alone to talk to him. Please excuse my bluntness here, but he is more married to you than to anyone else, and you're both going to need this."
Steve scoffed, but bit back his retort when Rachel smiled at him.
He watched her walk towards the door.
"Thank you, Rachel." He said sincerely.
She smiled again before leaving the room.
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Danny was hearing voices. Normally, hearing disembodied voices would concern him, but these voices he recognized.
There was Steve's familiar voice and somebody British... Rachel? What was Rachel doing here with Steve?
They were talking, about him he realized. He caught a few things here and there. He heard the name Grace a few times. Grace. His monkey. Was she here? He missed her and really wanted to see her. Unfortunately he just couldn't get his eyes to open, no matter how hard he tried.
After a while Danny gave up and went back to the familiar darkness.
Panic.
That's what Danny felt the next time he came to awareness. Somebody had been on top of him... Were they still there? He couldn't breathe. Where was Steve? He was going to die!
He started thrashing in his bed and moaning, trying to free himself. He felt strong hands grip his arms.
"No!" He tried to shout. "No!"
"Danny! Danny calm down!" He heard.
He knew that voice. And he knew that as long as the person who that voice belonged to was around, he'd be safe. His partner would never let anybody hurt him.
"Steve." He whispered.
"That's right Danno. It's me, it's Steve. You're safe, I won't let anyone hurt you again, okay? Can you open your eyes for me buddy?"
Danny opened his eyes slowly. He was glad he was actually able to this time.
He blinked at the blurry figure above him until it became clear.
Steve was standing directly over him, smiling like a goof.
"Hey Danny!" He said. "Welcome back partner."
Danny started to talk and realized just how much the oxygen mask was bothering him. He started to pull it off his face. Steve put his hand on top of Danny's.
"Leave it on Danny." He demanded.
Danny pushed Steve's hand away and pulled the mask down.
"I want it off!" Danny replied stubbornly.
Steve rolled his eyes. "So I see you're feeling like yourself." He said. "I'm going to take that as a sign of no brain damage. Well... No more than usual at least."
"Brain damage?!" Danny said, confused. "The only one with brain damage here is you McGarrett. I always said that head of yours took one hit too many! Now that we've cleared that up, what the hell happened?"
"What do you remember?" Steve asked.
"Sean Harris... The house. His sister! She was smothering me!" Danny said, shooting forward in alarm.
Steve placed a hand on Danny's shoulder. "She's dead Danny. She can't hurt you anymore, okay?"
"She's dead?" Danny asked.
"Shot her myself." Steve replied.
"Didn't your mom ever teach you not to shoot a girl?" Danny asked sarcastically.
Steve laughed. "My mom is CIA Danny. Where do you think I got it from?"
"Yes of course. The McGarrett family tree. You're all ninjas." Danny replied.
Steve rolled his eyes again before smiling at Danny. Steve was so glad to see him awake. He was still pale and shaky, but he was alive and he was awake, and that was enough for Steve at the moment.
"Hey Danny..." Steve started. "I'm sorry."
"This ought to be good." Danny replied. "What are you sorry for?"
"I didn't realize the nurse was after you. I should've known. I left the room, and I left her here with you. She could've killed you! She almost did... Dammit I'm sorry Danny!"
"Hey hey hey!" Danny said immediately. "This was not your fault Steven, you hear me? Some people are better at hiding their crazy than others, I mean you hide it pretty well at first. You saved me Steve. I'm not dead and that's all that matters alright?"
Steve didn't say anything. He was staring guiltily at the floor.
"Look at me Steve. " Danny demanded.
Steve hesitated before looking at his partner.
"Not your fault. Alright? Repeat after me: Not. My. Fault." Danny said.
"Not my fault." Steve relayed.
Danny clapped his hands. "Very nice! We may make a scholar out of you yet."
Steve snorted.
"And Steve... Thanks."
"Any time partner." Steve replied. "Any time."
Both of them were distracted by a knock at the door.
Steve immediately jumped up and stood in front on Danny. Nobody was getting to him again.
"Woah! Down seal!" Danny said.
Steve ignored him and walked to the door cautiously, before pulling it open slowly.
"Hey Commander McGarrett... I was wondering if I could talk to Danny."
It was Matt.
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Dun dun dun!
What does Matt want?
I'm nervous about this... I always wanted a Rachel and Steve scene so I thought I'd write one myself. What'd you guys think?
Drop me a review and let me know!
Thanks :D