CHAPTER 2

Friday morning, Ohana Greenhouse and Garden Supply:

Steve McGarrett wandered aimlessly through aisles of fertiliser, ventilation systems, tubing, pesticides, pots and bags of soil mixtures. The taxi driver had dropped him off a few minutes ago and Steve found himself wondering if he should've just gone home. Surely his time would have been better spent in his actual garden than perusing the seemingly endless shelves for something he didn't even need.

Steve ran a hand over his face as he sat down on a nearby bench. He stared at all the bottles of pesticide in front of him. He had no idea what he was doing here. He was just following the Governor's orders.

He hated being sidelined.

He hated it so much he was willing his body to heal faster so he could get back to normal. The sooner he could return to work, the better. He would spend less time dwelling on the past if his mind was occupied.

Steve looked down at his wrist, now encased in a fibreglass cast until it healed fully. It was one of the few remaining visible reminders of his ordeal. His broken ribs were healing steadily and he was only aware of them when he breathed too deeply or bent over at the wrong angle. The lacerations on his wrists and ankles were fading. Everything else; the burns from the tasers, the torn ligaments in his shoulder and the last of the bruising, were hidden by his clothing.

The only thing that was really preventing him from regaining his physical condition from before his ordeal was the effect of the heroin that had been forced into him. He had been given so much that his lungs had basically given out and he'd slipped into a coma for nineteen days. After waking up, he had spent another two weeks in the hospital until he was released by Doctor Palamo.

Now, a week later, he was still as weak as he had been when he had left the hospital. His legs struggled to maintain his weight over long distances. Short walks still exhausted him. He didn't have the energy to get up some days, but he guessed that was all part of his recovery. The doctor had said it would take some time for his body to recalibrate itself. He just wasn't very patient.

Steve was roused from his thoughts when he felt something touch his knee. Looking down, he saw a young boy, about ten years old, staring at him. Steve mustered up enough energy to produce a small smile for the boy. The boy grinned back shyly, before scurrying around the corner and disappearing into another aisle.

Steve shook his head. Children were so inquisitive and curious by nature. Sometimes, he wished he could go back to his childhood, when everything was so simple and carefree. He spent the next few minutes reminiscing his favourite moments from when he was young as he watched the boy run past him again, evidently playing a game of hide-and-seek in the store out of boredom.

The boy stopped suddenly at the end of the aisle. He turned back to face Steve, a look of utter fear on his face. It took Steve a moment longer than normal to register the fact it was quiet inside the store. Completely quiet.

Something was wrong.

Very wrong.

Steve stood slowly and listened carefully for any sound that would alert him to the situation. Now that he took the time to be aware of his surroundings, he could hear the quiet sniffles of other patrons from the front of the store.

He approached the end of the aisle and crouched next to the small boy before peering around the corner.

There were two masked men; one standing in front of the door and one talking aggressively to a woman in a green work shirt. Both men were armed.

Steve leaned back and sighed. Somehow, while he had been caught up in his own mind, he had inadvertently become part of a hostage situation. Danny was going to have a field day with this.

He really should have stayed in bed.

Steve reached for his gun before realising that it was missing. He cursed inwardly. After having not been approved for field work, his gun and badge remained on his bedside table. At home. A long way from here.

Instead, Steve reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He quickly dialled HPD.

As soon as dispatch picked up the call, Steve spoke quietly. "This is Commander McGarrett, Five-0. There is a hostage situation at…"

Steve paused. He had no idea where he actually was. He hadn't exactly been paying attention to where the taxi driver was taking him.

Steve leaned over to the boy and whispered, "Where are we?"

The boy looked at him with wide eyes and shrugged. Apparently he hadn't been paying attention either. Steve ran a hand through his hair and tried to think. Normally, he would just draw his weapon and get the men to surrender but there were thirteen people being held hostage and he had a child standing next to him and no back up. This was not a shoot first, ask questions later scenario.

"Dispatch, trace this call. Send SWAT and HPD to my location. There are two armed gunmen, one by the entrance door and one near the registers. There are thirteen hostages, no fourteen, inside the store," Steve whispered urgently.

There was a pause on the other end before the operator spoke. "Is this some kind of joke?"

"Excuse me?" Steve asked in irritation.

"Commander McGarrett, calling for backup?"

Steve grit his teeth. "Just get them here. Now!"

When the operator started laughing, Steve hung up the phone. He glanced at the boy standing next to him and smiled.

"It's going to be okay," Steve whispered with false confidence.

The boy nodded.

"What's your name?" Steve asked.

"Dylan," the boy answered quietly.

"Hi Dylan. My name is Steve. I'm going to make sure everyone gets out of here safely. Now, I saw you playing a game of hide-and-seek before. Do you think you can find a really good hiding place?"

Dylan nodded again, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Good," Steve said. "I want you to hide and not come out until either myself or someone in a police uniform comes to get you. Do you think you can do that?"

"I think so," the boy whispered back.

Steve peered around the shelving unit again and saw everyone was still where they had been moments before. He briefly wondered why no one had searched the whole store, but decided not to question his luck.

He motioned for the boy to go and hide. Without hesitation, Dylan disappeared in the opposite direction to the hostage takers, presumably to find the ultimate hiding spot.

Steve grabbed his phone again and dialled Danny. He patiently waited for the call to connect, but was surprised when it rang out. He tried again, only to gain the same result.

"Come on, Danny. Answer the damn phone!" Steve muttered angrily.

He was just about to try ringing Chin or Kono when he felt something cold and hard digging into the back of his neck. A gun, he decided.

"Put the phone down. Now!"

The sound of the gun cocking made him drop the phone immediately. He heard a crunching sound, which was undoubtedly his phone being destroyed. Oh well, he probably needed a replacement anyway.

"Stand up. Hands on your head," the gruff voice commanded.

Steve did as asked.

"Move!"

The command was accompanied by a rough shove to his back. Steve stumbled forwards, but remained stubbornly upright. He was brought to the front of the store, where everyone else was lying face down on the ground. Steve searched the room for Dylan, pleased to see he hadn't been found yet. The kid must have found an awesome hiding spot.

"Lay on the ground. Face down."

Steve was shoved down to the ground. He took a moment to scan the hostages, pleased to see that no one appeared to be injured. Definitely scared, but no one was physically hurt. With that small mercy in mind, Steve tried to figure out why two men would hold up a gardening shop with masks and guns.

That question was answered for him a moment later.

"Where is she?" the other man suddenly yelled.

"I already told you, I don't know!" a woman yelled back.

Steve looked up and saw the woman in the green shirt yelling back at one of the masked men. She was red in the face and didn't look like she was backing down anytime soon.

'Good on her,' Steve thought.

"She always works here on Friday's," the masked man insisted.

"Well, she's obviously not working here today. Deal with it."

The man growled in frustration and turned away from the woman. Steve took a moment to read the woman's name badge. Marlene, Manager. No wonder the woman wasn't taking any of the hostage taker's crap.

The two masked men convened in the corner of the shop and had a hurried, whispered conversation. Steve pricked his ears and tried to eavesdrop.

"Let's just get out of here, man. She's not here," the man that had found Steve said.

"No! She'll be here," the other man insisted.

"I didn't sign up for a hostage situation. The cops will be here soon. We can still get out of here."

"I said no!"

Suddenly, there was a loud bang from the back of the store. The two men looked at each other for a moment.

"Go find out what made that noise," the leader said.

Steve watched as the other man grabbed his gun and walked slowly to the back of the shop. He hoped Dylan was still hiding somewhere safe and unseen. If that man found Dylan…

A shrill scream had Steve's stomach filling with dread. He tensed, ready to react to whatever happened next.

The masked man returned, pulling a struggling Dylan along with him.

"Dylan!" the manager yelled.

The leader pointed his gun at the woman, stopping her desperate attempts to reach her son. "Stay right where you are."

"Please let him go," Marlene pleaded.

"Not until you tell me where Claudia is," the man said.

"I already told you, she didn't show up for her shift today. I'm her boss, not her best friend. I don't know where she is!"

Dylan continued to struggle in his captor's grip. When he cried out in pain, Steve stood up suddenly. He was thankful that his body didn't betray him at that moment.

"Hey!" he called. "Let him go."

Both of the masked men turned to Steve.

"Who do you think you are? This has got nothing to do with you," the leader said, aiming his gun at Steve's chest.

"Actually, it does. Allow me to introduce myself. Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett, Five-0 taskforce."

The leader laughed. "I don't see a badge."

Steve shrugged. "It's my day off. Now, I would appreciate it if I could continue my shopping. I don't get time off very often and I have a lot planned for today. Now, if you don't mind…"

Steve turned around and made to walk out the door. The sound of two guns cocking had him stopping and turning back around. What he saw had him immediately rethinking his plan of action.

The leader still had his gun pointed at Steve, but the other man had his gun pointed at Dylan's head. The tears streaming down the child's face were like a physical punch to the gut; incapacitating and painful.

"I don't think so," the leader said with a broad grin.

Steve sighed inwardly. 'So much for a vacation.'

Danny gripped the steering wheel tightly as he swerved passed multiple cars. Apparently lights and sirens weren't enough to get the idiots to move out of his way. He knew he was being irrational, but he couldn't help wondering if he was going to get there too late.

The last time someone pointed a gun at his partner, he had been kidnapped and tortured. Danny would be damned if he ever let that happen again.

By the time the he had processed what was on the TV screen, he was already in the car, leaving Chin and Kono behind in cloud of dust. Hostage situation, fifteen hostages, two armed men with masks. Those were all the details he needed to get moving. Then came the extra pertinent information; Commander McGarrett was inside.

Danny screeched to a halt in front of Ohana Greenhouse and Garden Supply. He briefly wondered why Steve would come all the way out here, but then he remembered the Governor's suggestion (more like order) to go shopping. He smiled at the thought of his tough-as-nails partner going shopping.

That led him to the current situation. His partner was now inside a shop being held up by armed men. Danny had tried calling Steve back, only to find the calls would not go through. So either Steve's phone was off or…

Danny refused to think about the worst case scenario. Steve would have a plan. He always had a plan for situations like this. If Danny was honest with himself, those plans were often insane. He couldn't deny they generally got the job done. They just tended to increase the amount of paperwork he had to fill out to justify his partner's actions.

He climbed out of the car and groaned when he saw the already large gathering of press and eager onlookers. People who obviously had nothing better to do with their day.

Danny approached the SWAT commander, who was busily analysing blue prints of the building and looking for entry points.

"Captain!" Danny called.

Captain Terry Makala was an intimidating man. He was taller than Steve and made purely of muscle. His tanned skin stood out against the dark blue uniform. He turned to face Danny with a stern look on his face.

"Detective Williams," the captain said. "It's not a good time."

"I know. It never is a good time when there's a hostage situation," Danny quipped.

Makala frowned. "Unless you have some information that will help us get all those hostages out, this is SWAT's jurisdiction."

"McGarrett's in there," Danny said, trying to contain his worry.

Makala's eyebrows rose. "Well then. Our odds just got a whole lot better."

At that moment, Chin and Kono pulled up beside Danny's Camaro. They joined Danny and the captain beside the SWAT van.

"Do we know what these guys want?" Danny asked.

"No. All attempts to make contact have been ignored. All we know is there are two armed men and fifteen hostages, including McGarrett," Captain Makala answered.

"Have we got eyes on?" Chin asked.

"We have snipers in position, but no clear shots yet. The hostages are on the floor, except for the child. McGarrett is in front of the door, basically blocking our view of the other hostage taker."

"Who in their right mind holds up a garden shop?" Danny asked.

"That's what we need to find out," Kono said. "And we need to wrap this up quickly. Every news station is on this now."

The team turned and looked at the crowd positioned behind the barricades. It had grown exponentially in the time since Danny had arrived on the scene. As the news spread, concerned family members flocked to the scene. Not that he could blame them. He was essentially going the same thing.

"If any of those reporters breach the barrier, I will charge every single one of them with trespass, impeding a criminal investigation and anything else I can think of!" Danny growled as he looked around and realised what was missing. "And where is the rest of HPD? They should be keeping those people back."

"Calm down, Danny," Chin muttered.

Danny took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. Chin was right. He needed to be in the moment, concentrating on what was really important here - ending a hostage situation. Just the thought of a child being used as a human shield made him want to be with Grace in that very moment. To hold her, breathe in her scent, feel her heart beating against his.

Right now, his job was to make sure everyone in the shop went home to their families tonight. His partner included.

"Is there any way we can get inside without being seen?" Kono asked Makala.

Makala shook his head. "No. Even if we tried to get in there, they would see us. Those windows are both a blessing and a curse. We can see them, but they can also see us and every move we make."

Danny started to pace, thinking hard. He knew if Steve was here, he'd come up with some harebrained scheme to get the hostages out.

"I think our best option is to let McGarret talk them down and get the hostages released," Danny heard Makala say.

Danny snorted. "That's our best option?"

"Unless you can think of a better one, Detective?" Makala challenged.

Danny opened his mouth to retort before closing it again. Truth be told, he couldn't think of a better idea. At least, not one that didn't involve fatalities.

"If McGarrett can get the hostiles closer to the windows, the snipers can take them out," Makala explained. "We need to find a way to convey that message to McGarrett."

"Can we try calling again? Try Steve's number. Maybe they'll answer this time," Kono suggested.

Danny knew they were pulling at straws. He was about the tell them so when the sound of a gunshot rent the air, followed quickly by a second. Silence descended on the scene as everyone turned their eyes to the garden shop.