When Danny and Gracie arrived at the hospital Steve was sleeping.
Chin moved to them and bending down, he embraced Gracie as Danny asked, "How's he doing?"
"Good. He's been sleeping since you left. His temperature is up just a bit but the Nurses say that can just be from moving him" He placed a hand lovingly on top of Gracie's head, "He's going to be so happy to see you honey"
The child smiled and tugging at her Father's hand she pulled him towards the bed. Danny watched her carefully as her eyes scanned over Steve's battered body and her grip grew tighter in his. After several moments she asked quietly, "Can I kiss him Danno?"
"Of course you can. Just a second" He pulled a chair up to the bedside, "Here Monkey, sit on your knees and you can talk to him"
She climbed up onto the chair and he pushed her close. She leaned over and softly kissed the SEAL's cheek and then she said quietly, "Hi Uncle Steve, I'm so sorry you're sick but Danno says you're getting better. I know you're really tired so it's okay that you sleep…it's good for you"
Danny glanced at Chin and they smiled at each other.
Their attention quickly turned back to the bed as Steve spoke softly, "Hey Gracie, how's my girl?"
Gracie was smiling broadly as he lifted his hand and touched her cheek, "I'm good. I missed you Uncle Steve"
"I missed you too sweetheart"
Danny moved closer, "Hey partner, how do you feel?"
"I little better...what's my temp?"
Chin said, "The Nurse checked it about an hour ago and it was 102.6"
"Okay...that's better"
Danny noticed him grimace and he asked, "Do you need any pain meds?"
"No Doctor Danno I don't need any meds"
Gracie giggled and Danny asked, "And what's so funny young lady?"
"Doctor Danno..."
Steve smiled and said softly, "Isn't that a hoot Gracie?"
Danny laughed and said, "A hoot? Since when do you talk like that?"
Steve grinned, "Gracie's been teaching me some new words but I'm still a NooB"
Danny raised his eyebrows as Gracie grinned, saying, "Uncle Steve is real sick Danno"
"I know he's real sick, that's why he's here"
Gracie and Steve laughed and the SEAL replied, "He doesn't get it Gracie does he?"
Looking a bit confused, Danny turned to his daughter who stated, "Uncle Steve is my peep Danno and he's mad fly"
Danny shook his head and turned to Chin, "When did this happen Chin?"
Chin began to laugh hysterically, "I don't know brother, but I'd say you're in trouble!"
Gracie smiled, "I can teach you too Danno"
Shaking his head Danny smiled and said, "No, no you two 'peeps' can have your own language..."
Steve chuckled softly, "Hey partner, can you raise me up a bit?"
Danny smiled, "Sure...what are peeps for right?"
They all laughed and it felt so damn good!
All the tension and fears of the past few days were gone and having Gracie there was a wonderful thing for all of them. They all sat at the bedside as she told them about the school project she was working on about Abraham Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation. Her class was also presenting a play about the historical events and Miss Gracie Williams had been cast as Mary Todd Lincoln. The men all shared in her excitement and promised the girl that they would all be attending her theatrical debut next month.
They had been visiting for almost an hour when Danny noticed Steve grimace as he shifted in bed.
"Monkey, Doctor Danno thinks that his patient needs some sleep now so why don't you tell him goodnight"
Steve then said, "Well I need a hug from my little peep"
Danny lifted her up, setting her on the edge of the bed. She leaned over and Steve embraced her and kissed her forehead, "Thank you for coming Gracie, you're pretty mad fly too"
She chuckled, "I love you too Uncle Steve, you chill now okay?"
"I will sweetheart, goodnight"
Placing Gracie back onto the ground, Danny grasped Steve's hand "Get some sleep buddy. I'll be back soon okay?"
Steve smiled, "You spend some time with Gracie, I'm fine"
"Rachel's got dinner planned for her already so I'll be back soon"
"Okay, thanks partner"
Danny looked back over his shoulder as he left the room with Gracie.
Steve's eyes were closed and there was a smile on his face...
Danny grinned...yes, Gracie was definitely good medicine for him.
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When Danny returned, Steve was sleeping soundly.
"How's he doing?"
"He was asleep before you even made it to the elevator brah"
"Good, he needs sleep. Have they re-checked his temperature?"
"No, they're letting him sleep a bit"
Danny moved to his partner's side and he tenderly placed the back of his hand against Steve's forehead.
The two men then walked to the side of the room, "He's feeling cooler Chin...God, I think he's going to be okay"
Chin smiled, "Danny, I KNOW he's going to be okay"
Danny smiled back, "Yeah"
They decided that they could now take turns staying, so Chin left for the night.
Two hours later a Nurse came in and woke Steve, checking his temperature and vitals.
"You're doing well Steve, how do you feel?"
"Pretty good but I'm really tired"
"Yes, I'm sure you are"
"What's my temperature?"
She smiled, "It's dropping Commander. It's down to 101.4 and your vitals are good"
He smiled up at the young Nurse, "Please...Teresa...call me Steve"
"Okay Steve. Do you need any pain medication?"
"No, I'm good. Thank You"
After she left the room Danny pulled a chair up close.
Steve asked, "Did Chin head home for the night?"
"Yeah, we're going to take turns staying with you"
"You can go too Danny, I'm good really"
"Don't even go there babe, you know better than that"
Steve grinned, "Thanks buddy"
"Gracie was so happy to see you"
"God I love that girl"
"You mean the world to her. She's been very worried about you...we all have been"
The emotion in Danny's voice was evident and Steve said, "Hey, I told you partner I'm good now, I promise"
"I know and I'm so relieved Steve but now the real work starts. This is not going to be a fast recovery, your body's been through a lot and you can't push this. You may laugh at Doctor Danno, but you're going to listen to him!"
Steve smiled, "Yes Sir, I will"
Danny grinned back, "Good. Doctor Gonzales told me that tomorrow she's going to remove your catheter, the chest and feeding tubes and reverse the colostomy"
"So when am I getting out of here?"
"I don't know Steve. Remember, you can't push this okay?"
Steve nodded, "Okay 'D..."
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Steve closed his eyes and they sat quietly for a few minutes.
Danny was surprised when Steve said softly, "My Mother killed a CIA agent allowing Wo-Fat to evade capture"
"What?"
"He told me that he had witnessed his Father's death and years later when he was attempting to establish a stronghold in the Hawaiian drug market and the CIA had put Doris undercover to stop him...he recognized her. He vowed to leave her and her family in peace if she helped him escape"
Danny leaned forward and reaching out he placed a hand on Steve's arm, "Steve...this is Wo-Fat man...do you really believe him?"
Tears slid down the SEAL's cheeks as he said, "God knows I don't want to believe him Danny, but why would he lie about this?"
"WHY? Why would he lie Steven? Are you serious? He would lie for many reasons partner. Hell he would lie simply to fuck with you!"
Steve's eyes had again closed and his jaw was clenched tightly. Beads of sweat dotted his forehead and Danny stood, taking a cloth from the nearby table he wet it and dabbed it to Steve's head.
"Relax Steve...we can talk about this later. You need to rest"
"No...no, I'm fine...I need to tell you everything"
"So you're disobeying Doctor Danno's orders already?"
"This is no time for jokes Danny"
"I'm not joking buddy...you need to try to stay calm"
Steve lifted his arm up, lying it across his eyes as he continued "I believe him Danny. My Mom and Joe are still lying to me...my Mother MURDERED a CIA agent...her partener...her friend"
"So she did it to keep you safe?"
"That's what he said but does it matter Danny? My God...she shot him in cold blood so Wo-Fat could escape"
"So what else did he say?"
"He told me that she kept him a step ahead of the CIA and when they met to finalize the terms of their 'drug deal', she used his weapon to kill her partner. She shot him in the chest and then they staged the scene. He shot her in the shoulder as part of their cover and he escaped. I was only a toddler Danny, but I remember seeing pictures of her in a sling years later" He sighed and his voice cracked, "I asked her what had happened and she told me that she had broken her shoulder"
"Steve, this doesn't make sense. Why didn't he just kill Doris then? He could have killed both of them. Why did he let her go?"
"He was only nineteen then and trying to prove to the organization's elders that he could run the business. If he had killed her he would have brought additional unwanted attention to them. Years later, after he had established the business as his own he decided that she needed to die"
"So you figure that Doris told the CIA he had recognized her?"
"That's my guess. And years later when they caught word of his intentions they notified Joe and faked her death"
"Okay, he has your Dad killed to get to her and he tortures you...so when he had her cornered in that bedroom, why did he let her go?"
"He said she fired into the ground and begged for him to kill her. She said her life was over and that he had won. He's a sociopath Danno...this is a game to him. He heard Catherine coming and he decided the game wasn't over yet. He told me that last month on her deathbed, his Mother made him promise that he would find the person responsible for killing her husband...he's not going to stop until she's dead now Danny..."
Danny watched as his partner's eyes closed, and exhausted he was asleep in minutes.
****** So, I hope you're still enjoying...more to follow ******