The men all slept through the night and at a little after eight the next morning Doctor Sayers gave Steve the all-clear to head home...with explicit instructions..."If your headache gets worse or your vision becomes blurry again I need you to call me. I know you're familiar with the symptoms of concussions and how serious this can be..."

Steve interrupted him, "Doc, I'm fine...really I am. Thank you"
Danny then said, "Please excuse my partner Doc. His head is jumbled and he's obviously lost his manners"
Steve threw his hands up in the air, "What are you talking about Daniel? I said thank you"
Doctor Sayers grinned, "You promise you'll behave yourself Commander?"
"Yes sir"
Danny shook his head, "Don't worry Doc, he won't be out of my sight"
Sayers smiled, "Okay. You have a follow up appointment scheduled with Doctor Gonzalez soon right?"
"Yes, in four days"
Danny held up three fingers, "Correction Superman, three days"
"Yeah...three days"
Doctor Sayers nodded "It's okay Steve, confusion is a symptom"
Steve grinned and extended his hand, "I know...thank you Doc"

Before they left the hospital the three men checked in with the HPD unit guarding Wo-Fat.
Steve stood at the foot of his nemesis's bed quietly as Danny asked the attending Nurse questions.
The injured man was unconscious and he was handcuffed to the bed.

The Nurse, Lindsey spoke softly, "His condition is critical but his vitals are stable"
"Has he regained consciousness at all?"
"No, he's heavily medicated"
Danny then asked, "When do you expect him to come around?"
"It will be at least another twenty four hours"

Steve turned to Officer Reed Kapulla, "I need you to call me as soon as he comes to"
"Yes sir"
Without any further words, Steve left the room followed by his men.

Chin drove Steve home while Danny stopped off at Grover's to pick up Gracie.
Steve glanced over at the Asian detective, "How's the arm buddy?"
Chin smiled, "I'm fine Steve, don't worry about me"
"How bad was it Chin? Is it something I need to address?"
Chin sighed softly, "It's like I told him Steve, it's nothing...it's over"
"It might be over, but it's not nothing...you could have been killed"
"He had a lapse Steve, that's all it was. He was upset about Gracie and you and he had a lapse. I trust him with my life, just as I always have and always will"
Steve smiled, "Good...good, it's over"

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When Danny and Gracie arrived at the house they found the men out on the deck.
"UNCLE STEVE!" She raced to his arms and they embraced. "Are you okay Uncle Steve?"
He pulled her to arms length, "I'm fine Gracie. Did you have a good time with Samantha?"
"I had a great time! We watched 'The Notebook' and 'March of the Penguins'"
"Awesome movies! I'm glad you had fun"

Over the next three days, the men laid low around the house leaving only to check in on Wo-Fat. His condition had been upgraded to serious and he wasn't talking. HPD increased their security and he remained cuffed to the bed.

Steve had continued to try to reach Doris and with each passing hour without contact he grew more sullen.
Soon after they returned from Steve's checkup the three men were in the kitchen while Danny fixed Gracie an after school snack and Steve's phone rang, "Doris...where are you?"

He nodded to the men and then stepped out onto the deck to take the call in private.
Gracie asked, "Doesn't Steve know where his Mom is Danno?"
Danny ran a hand across his face, "No he doesn't. You remember how she had to fake her death to stay safe right?"
"Uh huh"
"Well in order to keep her safe, she had to disappear again"
"You told me she went to stay with MaryAnn?"
"She did for a while but now she's hiding with Uncle Joe"
"Okay...and they're safe?"
"Yes Monkey, they're safe now"
The little girl smiled, "Good, I'm glad"

Danny looked outside every few minutes watching his partner on the lawn as he talked to his Mother. About half an hour passed when he looked out to find Steve gone. Moving into the deck he scoured the yard but saw no sign of his partner. Gracie moved to his side, "What's wrong Danno?"

"Nothing's wrong baby. I'm just wondering where your Uncle Steve wandered off to"
"He probably went to the Peak"
"You think so?"
"He told me that he likes to go up there to think"
He leaned over and kissed his daughter's head, "You are very smart my dear. I need to go find him. Why don't you stay here with Chin and work on your homework for me"

"Okay Danno. Will you tell Uncle Steve that I love him?"
"You know I will"
After talking to Chin and grabbing a couple of beers Danny made his way down the beach, towards Steve's place of serenity.

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He found the SEAL sitting on the ground near the edge of the cliff.
Without speaking Danny sat down next to him and handed him a beer.
Cracking them open they both sat quietly for a while.
Eventually, Steve said softly "I feel so empty Danny..."
"What'd she say?"
"Who Doris?"
"Yeah, that's who you were talking to right?"
Steve grinned softly, "Initially"
"What? Did you call Catherine too?"
"Yes"
Danny shook his head slightly as he thought to himself, 'Damn it Steven, why do you torture yourself like this?'

Danny waited a few moments and then he asked, "What did you say to Doris?"
"I told her that we've captured Wo-Fat and that it's finally safe for her to come home"
"So she's coming?"
"She'll be here on Friday"
"Good...did you tell her anything else?"
"No..." Steve chuckled, "If I had told her anything else you know I would never have seen her again"
"That's probably true. So what are you going to do?"
"What needs to be done brother. As much as I love her...she has to pay for what she did"
Danny nodded, "I understand and I'll be there if you need me, you know that"
"Thanks buddy"

Danny sat quietly sipping his beer. He knew that a symptom of concussions was an escalation of emotions and he waited silently hoping that Steve would open up more, and eventually he did.
His voice cracked as he said softly, "I don't think I can go on without Catherine….I miss her so much Danny"
Danny dropped his head, "I know babe, I'm so sorry you're going through this"
"Joe was right..."
"What are you talking about?"
"Years ago he told me that in our line of work it was better to not be in a relationship"
"And that expert advice comes from a man who's been married AND divorced four times"
Steve grinned, "Point taken..."
"Catherine told me in the hotel room in Phuket that you just wanted her to be happy"

"And I do Danny...but God it's hard"
"I know...but you know what Steve? You deserve to be happy too" Danny watched as tears fell down Steve's cheeks and he asked him softly, "Have you changed your mind Steve?"

"What?"
"Do you want to fight for her?"
"Oh God Danny...Billy's my brother and I love him, but I feel so empty and so lost without her"
Danny replied softly, "It's still so new and the pain is so raw Steve. You've been through a hell of a lot emotionally and physically in the last couple of weeks and you know that concussions can increase your feelings of sadness and despair"

Steve ran a hand across his eyes and after several moments of silence he said quietly, "If you love someone, set them free. If they come back they're yours, if they don't they never were"

"You're a great man Steve and you'll be okay"

A short time later the friends stood and embraced before heading back to house.

******** One more chapter to follow and it WILL be up tomorrow. Thank you for reading and as always reviews are greatly appreciated ! I hope you're enjoying ! *********