Chapter 2: Questions
A man entered the basement wearing a black coat. He was obviously not from the island, because he wore pants too and boots. He pulled a dangling chain Danny hadn't noticed before and a dim glow emitted from a single hanging light bulb overhead. It swung and cast shadows over the man's face. Danny blinked in the sudden light and gazed up at his kidnapper. In that moment his heart stopped. He recognized him, and he also knew 5-0 would not. More bad news. He was a man he helped put away in Jersey. A man who was involved with a previous kidnapping of his. One where he lost his partner Grace, on the day of the 9-11 attack. His heart thudded an odd rhythm, it was a terrible terrible memory. How did he get out?
"Williams" he said inclining his head in mock welcome. "Thirteen years really ages a guy, huh?" Danny glared at him.
"The same to you." He said in a sharp tone that didn't match the panic that clouded his brain.
"Nice to know you had a good nap and now you're ready to play."
"Play? What game are we playing?" Danny said. Though a thrill of fear made his heart race and muscles tense, he knew it was essential to keep face. To act blasé, to shrug it off because if he didn't this guy would tear him apart.
"You've played before and won." He said. Suddenly there were more footsteps. Danny's mouth was dry but he cleared it with a small cough.
"Well, that sounds like me," he said cockily. The man laughed but it was devoid of humor. It was more like an insane laugh from someone who has nothing to lose. It was unnerving. Two burly Hawaiian native men came through the same door. One had a metal folded chair under his arm.
"So what's the game, I'm dying to find out!" he said, forcing his voice to be calm and confident, quite at odds with racing thoughts. One of the men opened the chair, Danny flinched thinking he was about to hit him with it, but he just slammed it down on the floor. The other stepped up and grabbed Danny by the shoulder to yank him up. He struggled, trying to ram him but then he was kneed in the gut. He doubled over spluttering and the thug dragged him by the hair over to the chair. He dodged when Danny tried to slam him in the face with the back of his head. He forced him to sit in the chair and the other man started to duct tape his arms and legs to it. It was a painful déjà vu for him. He writhed some more trying to break free and earned a punch to the jaw. The pain of it made his eyes water and he slumped back in the chair, dazed. He tasted blood and turned to spit it on the floor.
"Can't win the game if it's three to one, not a fair fight," he said a little breathless after the blow to the gut. The two new men spoke to each other in Hawaiian and laughed cruelly. It always made Danny feel nervous when people did that because he had no idea what was being said. One took out a sleek blank phone and turned away to make a call.
"Enough games, I have questions for you" said the boss.
"Shoot" said Danny, keeping up the charade.
"You and 5-0 recently commandeered a fine shipment of coke…taken from a local drug lord you tangled with. Gabriel, was it?"
Danny swallowed as a chill rippled through him. "Now I have a lot of influence you see, and with this new found influence a little birdy told me that it's not at HPD headquarters. It's stashed somewhere…" he broke off and a positively deadly look crossed his face. "Where is it?"
"I don't know," said Danny, trying to sound angry and annoyed to make it more convincing. "Do you think that navy seal tells me everything? No! I can't help you." There was a beat of silence.
"Can't or won't?" he asked. One of the men moved closer and cracked his giant knuckles. Danny cringed mentally. Pain was coming.