Wrong Place, Very Wrong Time V
Disclaimer: I do not own Hawaii 5-0. My only reward for writing is reviews and that is enough.
Thanks for all of you who continue to read and review. It does bring me back to the computer every week to finish this story.
Chapter 5
Kapono Lee exited the building he used to package his product and paused to look around the yard. The sun was beginning to set in the west and he looked toward his home, able to see his nephews through the large, sliding glass doors. Jimmy was caught up in a video game on TV as usual and Paul was sprawled in a chair reading a sports magazine. Kapono took a few steps in the direction of the house but paused and changed his mind and headed towards the shed where the 5-0 cop had been placed.
He unlocked the door and pulled it open with a jerk to discover their prisoner struggling with his bonds. Williams twisted to face the doorway, his face still hidden behind the blindfold. The man cocked his head and stiffened when he heard the door screech open.
"Who's there?" Danny demanded harshly.
"Settle down cop, names aren't important right now," Kapono said roughly.
"What's going on here? Who the hell are you people? What are you thinking, kidnapping a cop instead of just accepting a reckless driving ticket?" Danny panted as he struggled to sit up.
"This was a mistake. A very foolish mistake," Lee mumbled as he stood just inside the doorway. While he had worked, packaging his product, he had tried to plan a way to escape the mess his nephews had created. The cop did present a valid question…..why the hell did James feel the need to grab this man? The pressure to watch over the boys for his sister had Kapono very conflicted since every fiber of his being wanted to be as far away from this mess as possible.
"Well if it is just a mistake then let me go, I'll take care of the fallout," Danny offered quickly.
"I can't!" Kapono exclaimed. "I've promised to protect those boys. Jimmy will never survive in prison. He's a foolish boy but he doesn't deserve to rot in Halawa. You don't understand."
"I've got a daughter…I get it," Danny said urgently. "I want to protect her too but this action is crazy man. You can't take me hostage and hope that it won't come back to bite you."
Silence greeted his words and Danny shifted on the floor uncomfortably. Kapono shook his head in regret, not happy about the situation they were in but unable to alter the course of events taking place. No stranger would make him turn his back on his nephews.
"I cannot help you haole, those boys are ohana, they are my blood," he stated. "I must make sure you don't hurt them."
"No….no…..no, not a good choice," Danny said desperately. "You don't know my partner, McGarrett will hunt you down. If you kill me, I can promise that all three of you will rot in Halawa. Be reasonable man, Steve is ex-Navy and he does not take anyone messing with his team very well. Just how smart are those boys? Did they make sure my car won't be found?" Danny knew he was grasping at straws but he had to make this man see the folly of his decision.
"I know McGarrett's reputation," Lee sighed. "What's your name haole?"
"I'm Det. Danny Williams and I have a daughter…her name is Grace. She needs me. I can understand your obligation to these boys but do you really want to commit murder to protect them? Whatever you are involved in, it can't be bad enough to add murdering a cop to the charges," Danny continued to try reaching the man. He could sense that the older man had no desire to be in the middle of this situation and was not the type to take a life.
Kapono stood over his captive and chewed on his lower lip. His head hurt from trying to plan his way out of the mess his boys had created. The longer he looked at the helpless man on the floor, the more his stomach rebelled and threatened to make him physically ill.
"I'm sorry," he muttered and hurried out of the shed, pulling the door shut and locking it. With a clenched jaw, he marched over to the house to confront the boys.
*H 5-0*
In 5-0's headquarters, Steve took the statement that Ano had given Danny and began to read it thoroughly. The man had witnessed the shooting but from a distance and he had not gotten a clear look at the shooter. His attention had been centered on Tyler Costas, the surfer who had been killed. The shooter had had his back to Ano and once Tyler collapsed all Ano could say was that the shooter was a large Hawaiian native with lots of tattoos. He didn't know the man's name but might be able to pick him out of lineup if he saw him again. A scribbled note in the margin had Danny saying, "Check with Kawika" indicating he thought the Kapu leader could give them a lead. Steve shook his head in amusement that Danny's first thought was that all tattooed surfers would be connected to Kawika's group. Beyond that, Ano could not help and had not even witnessed how the confrontation had begun. Williams' conclusion was that they would need a face for Ano to be any help.
"Hey Boss," Kono said poking her head in his office. "Has the statement given you any leads?"
"Beyond telling me that Danny's handwriting comes close to requiring a code breaker to decipher it, not much. He felt that Ano wasn't much of a lead and could only identify the shooter if he saw a face or photo. Ano didn't know the man," Steve said wearily. "It's not much help other than Danny thought that with all the tats the shooter might be part of the Kapu."
"Let's not go down that road without more to go on," Kono sighed. "I do have some good news. CSU found something that might help. Our perp may have wiped most of the Camaro down but he couldn't resist playing with the radio. They found a partial print off the radio tuner. We're checking now to see if it's in the system," she reported.
Relief spread over Steve's face as he smiled at Kono.
"That's great news."
"And I have more good news," Chin said joining them in the office. "We have a response to our request for witnesses on Highway 83. A couple called in and said they said there were two cars on the side of the road just below Waimea. They said there were two young men by a bright blue car. The second car was black and had flashing lights in the grill. They thought a plainclothes cop was assisting the younger boy whose car was stuck in a ditch. They didn't see any sign of Danny and the older one waved them on when they slowed down to see if they could help."
"And Danny wasn't anywhere around?" Kono asked in surprise.
"No, they said there were only the two young men. They drove on thinking that the cop had everything under control. Nothing looked suspicious," Chin stated.
Steve stared down at the desk, his forehead resting on one hand. His mind quickly sorted through all the facts they had just been given.
"Danny had to be in the trunk of one of the cars," he said looking up at the others. "Could the witnesses tell you anything more about the blue car?"
"The husband said it was an older model muscle car…a Charger or Challenger or something like it. He said he isn't a car buff but it was definitely an older, jacked up car," Chin replied.
"That's a good beginning," Steve said hopefully. "How many older, bright blue muscle cars are on this island? Together with the print from the radio in the Camaro we should be able to nail this guy."
"I can check the DMV for car registrations on the island that match that description," Kono offered. "And I will check on the print and see if we have match." She quickly hurried out to the smart table and began her search.
Steve and Chin exchanged looks and Kelly was happy to see some of the stress on Steve's face ease up a bit. He knew just how deeply worried McGarrett was about Danny and what he might going through.
"These are good leads," he said.
"They are but none of this makes any sense Chin. What on earth could two young men be up to that would make them grab Danny? How did they get the drop on a seasoned cop? Did Danny interrupt something illegal?" McGarrett wondered aloud. "And what if Danny was all ready gone when these two came upon the car?"
"I don't know Steve but at least once we have a name to go with the car we have a place to start asking questions," Chin replied. "For now it doesn't pay to speculate on if someone else took Danny. Let's find out what these two kids were up to and follow the leads from there."
Letting out a deep sigh, Steve nodded. He knew that he shouldn't complicate things by speculating on more possibilities. Chin was right, they needed to follow the leads they had been given and that would show them what direction they should go. Danny was depending on them to do solid police work and track him down.
Chin could see the stress that had started to drop off reappear on Steve's face. He knew how personally McGarrett took anything that happened to his team. He hoped Kono could quickly find a lead to the car that had been seen on the highway.
"We will find Danny," he stated, trying to reassure Steve. "If these are only kids then they might have panicked and stupidly grabbed Danny."
"And stupid acts can get someone killed," Steve said darkly. "Amateurs are always the most dangerous."
"But if it wasn't planned and they panicked, then maybe they took Danny somewhere while they decide what to do. The fact that they didn't leave Danny's body with the Camaro means there is a good chance that Danny is still alive. We need to work quickly before they do something even more stupid," Steve said shoving the papers aside and standing up. He knew that the clock was ticking and he was anxious to take some action.
"Let's see what Kono is learning. We need answers now," he said curtly and headed out of the office.
End chapter.
We have leads….so now let's see if they help. Thank you so much for reading.