DISCLAIMER: I do not own the show "Hawaii Five-0" or any of it's characters.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thanks everyone for your wonderful comments! I appreciate it! So here is Ch.6! I hope you like it!

As always, thoughts are in italics.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE getting your reviews so please please please keep them coming! I want to know what you think whether it's good or bad!

Thanks,

DivaLola

CHAPTER 6

Steve reached Maddie a split second after she hit the floor, and only shortly before the rest of them got to her. "Maddie!" he called her name. Crouching down next to her on her right, not even caring that shards of glass were digging into his knees, he took in every inch of her. She lay barefoot, crumpled on a million pieces of sharp glass. The hand she'd been holding the water glass in, her left, was covered in blood and resting on her once pristine white shorts. As his eyes moved down her body he noticed her bare legs had some superficial cuts that were bleeding. Maddie's bare feet were another story. In addition to the already bloody gashes, he could see some shards actually sticking out of her feet. "Oh Maddie," Steve mumbled to himself feeling guilty for her current state. He should have given Lori a heads up about everything. As his eyes wandered up her body he wished she'd had a jacket on so her arms and back would have been protected. Because she'd landed on her back and slightly on her right side, her right arm was worse than her left. He bit his lip, his gorgeous blue eyes scanning for any sign she was awake. "Maddie," he repeated his eyes glued to hers hoping they'd open. Nothing. "Maddie, wake up!"

"Was that thump her head hitting the floor?" Danny asked squatting next to Steve. Chin was on Maddie's left side while Pete was near her head. Kono and Lori stood back not wanting to get in the way.

Steve closed his eyes remembering the sound her head had made as it collided with the dark marble floor. "Yeah… dammit! I should've been quicker!" he exclaimed.

"Hey! McG... this is not your fault. She hasn't slept in two days. She was really wobbly on her feet today. I've been watching her, praying she wouldn't faint. I'd hoped I'd get her to you before it happened and that you'd coax her into getting some sleep. It was inevitable with the way she's been going lately," Pete tried to reassure him.

"Maddie, wake up!" Steve said to her, a bit louder this time. Looking up he asked, "Where's Malia? Does she think we need to call 911?" He knew why Maddie wouldn't want them to. The press would have a field day.

"She went to get some supplies. She said to not call until she gets back," Chin disclosed right before Malia appeared with a bag in hand.

Everyone except Steve backed away from Maddie to give her room.

Squatting next to her friend she began to carefully look at her head and neck. "Has she moved at all? Any sign of waking up?"

Noticing that Steve was frozen, his eyes glued to Maddie's face, Danny answered, "No." He'd never seen him like this.

"Chin, can you look in my bag and hand me the smelling salts. Hopefully that wakes her up," Malia said.

Chin rifled through the bag finally finding the salts. He handed the package to her.

Please work. Please, please wake up, Mads, Steve thought to himself. He reached for her "good" hand (her right) although it had a few small scratches. Not wanting to hurt her he carefully held onto it. Malia ripped open the smelling salts packaging releasing an incredibly strong odor. She held it under Maddie's nose.

"Wow, that stinks! That's definitely gonna do the trick, Steve," Danny said to his partner, trying to give him some support.

Everyone stilled, praying it would work. "Come on Maddie… wake up," Steve whispered.

After holding them under Maddie's nose for fifteen seconds, Malia pulled them away. "She needs to go to the hospital and get an MRI. We need to make sure there's no bleeding or swelling. Call 911 and have them come get her."

Just as Chin pulled out his phone to dial Steve said, "Just try it one more time…" Knowing how upset he was she did as he asked. "Come on, baby… open your eyes," he said, not realizing what he'd just called her.

Lori's heart squeezed at the use of the endearment. She knew she shouldn't be jealous at a time like this, but she was. She wondered if she was the one lying on the floor if Steve would react the same way.

"Come on… wake up. Come on, Mads. You can do it," Steve mumbled once more as he lightly squeezed her hand.

"I'm sorry, Steve," Malia whispered as she pulled the smelling salts away from Maddie's nose.

Just then Maddie's eyes began to flutter. Steve perked, moving closer to her. He reached forward gently brushing a strand of her wavy hair from her face. "That's it. Come on, Mads." Her eyes only continued to flutter, so he tried once more. "Look at me." Her face scrunched up in pain as her eyes opened halfway and settled on Steve.

Not understanding what was going on Maddie mumbled, "What…"

Steve smirked as he brushed more hair from her face. "You decided to scare the hell out of me."

Although still fuzzy, and extremely dizzy, bits and pieces came back to her. "I need to…" she began as she looked at Steve. He shook his head at her. She tried again. "You can't be…" she just couldn't seem to finish. Her eyes felt heavy as they slowly opened and closed as if she was fighting the urge to pass out again.

"Maddie, whatever's going on we'll deal with it later. Let's first get you cleaned up and feeling better," Steve stated. His tone, and the look on his face, left no room for argument. Not that she was in any state to argue.

Maddie started to try and sit up. "Ow," she groaned closing her eyes and scrunching her face in pain.

"Careful," Steve softly instructed as he reached for her and gently helped her sit. As she moved, bits of glass could be heard falling from her body and scraping against the marble floor. "You okay?" he hesitantly questioned as he leaned back to look at her. Carefully he took his hands away but left them hovering next to her as he bit his lip and stared at her.

Trying her best to stay awake Maddie gazed back at him through half open sleepy eyes. "Hmmmm," she groaned right before her eyes closed and she slumped forward against his chest.

"Woah… I got ya," Steve sighed holding her tightly to his chest. Although the circumstances weren't great, it felt so good to have her in his arms. He'd missed her. She grabbed his shirt, balling it into her fists.

"Ow," she moaned and loosened the grip of her left hand.

"I got ya," Steve whispered in her ear before kissing the top of her head, a gesture that did not go unnoticed by anyone. Danny and Chin's eyes met. Lori caught the shared look.

She knew it was selfish, but Lori wished she could find a way to get Steve's attention. "Don't you think you should have Pete," she paused, turning towards Maddie's bodyguard. "That's your name, right?" Pete nodded. "We didn't get an introduction. I'm Lori… Anyway, don't you think Pete should take her to the hospital?"

Maddie started vigorously shaking her head causing her to cry out in pain. "No," she mumbled into Steve's chest. "Please… don't."

Hearing her cry out Steve placed his hand on the back of her head. "It's okay." He was torn. He knew why she didn't want to be taken to the hospital. The press would hound her and it'd be all over the news. Given her state of mind lately he didn't think she could handle it right now. But, at the same time, he knew she needed to have tests run. "Is there another option? I know she needs to get checked out, but can we avoid taking her to the hospital?"

"Yeah… I can take blood here and have my lab run it. In the meantime, I can rent a portable MRI machine and get it to her house. If her MRI checks out, we treat her at home," Malia replied. "The machine will be expensive."

"Yes, that," Maddie mumbled against his chest.

"Let's do that," Steve told her decisively as he continued to hold Maddie to his chest.

Lori loved that Steve had a gentle and caring side to him, but it was hard to watch when it was directed at another woman. There was an intimacy between them. She wasn't sure it was of a romantic nature, but it was still tough to see. She knew it was ridiculous, but she had to get out of there. She couldn't watch it anymore. Knowing she needed to come up with an excuse to leave that didn't paint her in a bad light, she started running through scenarios. Quickly coming up with a plan she grabbed her phone and looked at it before mumbling, "I'm so sorry, but the governor's calling. I better take this! I'll be right back." As she walked down the hall towards the exit she pretended to answer and talk on the phone, "Hello?... Hi … yes, sir…" Once she was sure she was out of eyesight, and earshot, she hung up her phone, exited the building and jogged to her car.

Chin and Danny looked at one another again, having their suspicions that Lori had just lied to them. Realizing Steve hadn't even noticed she'd said anything, let alone left, they shook their heads hoping his actions with Lori the other night wouldn't lead to drama in Five-O.

"I want to get her standing." Steve looked to Pete, Danny, and Chin. The three gently pulled her away from Steve, supporting her when she wanted to slump over like a ragdoll. She winced when her head moved. They helped Maddie stand as Steve began brushing small pieces of glass from her clothes. You could hear each hit the ground surrounding her bare feet, which were throbbing and stinging. Pete and Danny each moved to a side of Maddie to let Steve brush off the back of her. No longer needed, Chin went to help Malia make plans with the hospital for the MRI machine.

As Steve came around to the back of Maddie he discovered cuts on her upper back and shoulders. Because her tank top was so thin the shards had gone right through the material poking into her skin. However, he was unable to see the damage they'd left except for small spots of blood on the material. Working his way down her body he came to her butt. Sliding his hand over her small bubble butt he felt his cheeks flush slightly. He wasn't sure why. Afterall, it was just Maddie. Finishing the back of her shorts he carefully brushed some pieces off her bare legs. He didn't want to focus too much on them because he knew there were a lot of pieces still sticking into her skin. He'd use tweezers to get them out later. Carefully Steve laced his hands in her soft long hair jostling the waves. They all heard the glass plummet to the ground. "Man, that cup and vase broke into a million pieces. These little suckers are everywhere," he mumbled. Standing back as he looked for more pieces he told her, "I got most of it. We'll get the rest off at home."

Steve walked around to the front of Maddie. Seeing a bunch of pieces on the front of her shirt, he began lightly brushing her stomach. Making his way up her torso, his hands slowed as they gently brushed against her breasts. He felt weird about the action, but was too worried about her to dwell on it. He looked around before asking, "Where'd Malia go?"

"She and Chin went to grab some stuff," Danny told him.

With Steve's hands no longer on her Maddie opened her eyes curious to see what was going on. The light caused her to squint and she suddenly felt a wave of nausea and intense dizziness. As she tried to fight the impending darkness she began to sway. Danny and Pete were still on either side of her lightly holding on in case she collapsed. Noticing her begin to sway Danny yelled, "Steve!"

"What?" Steve asked. Looking back to Maddie he immediately saw her waver. Before she could pass out he placed one arm around her back, the other under her knees, and then swiftly lifted her. Carrying her, he slowly walked towards his office to minimize jostling her. Steve had noticed movement was causing her more pain. With Maddie still in his arms, he took a seat on his couch and waited for Malia and Chin to return.

As soon as she felt Steve lift her, she nuzzled her face into his chest and neck while once again wrapping her hands in his shirt. In that moment she felt so safe. Gone were thoughts of "unknown sender" and his threats. As he sat down on the couch she curled in closer, breathing in his scent. God, she'd missed him so much. Although she felt terrible she hadn't felt this relaxed in… she didn't know how long. As Maddie began to doze she felt Steve kiss her forehead and then lean his cheek against it.

Ten minutes later Chin and Malia returned. Pete and Danny were busy sweeping and picking the glass up off the marbled floor. Walking into Steve's office Chin smiled slightly at how Steve lightly kissed her head every so often. This was his first time ever seeing them together or interacting. However, he'd heard stories from Steve's dad. John had always told him he thought they were in love and just hadn't realized it yet. "Is she awake?" Chin whispered.

"I don't think so," Kono answered from the floor next to Maddie. Using tweezers she was carefully removing glass shards from Maddie's hand.

Chin pulled a chair up in front of Steve and Maddie for Malia. Sitting down she said, "You're gonna need to wake her up every 30 minutes, Steve. Given how hard she hit her head, I'm sure she has a concussion. The question is how bad. Because she's been so stressed and hasn't been taking care of herself I wanna draw some blood. At lunch I noticed a lot of outward signs of exhaustion. Once I'm finished, you can take her home."

"Okay. Do you need to wake her up for this?" he quietly asked. He really didn't want to wake her until it was absolutely necessary.

"No… but Kono, I'm gonna need that arm."

"No problem," she smiled at her as she relinquished her hand. "I'll work on her legs."

Malia gently took Maddie's arm and looked for a vein. She was having a difficult time. "She must be more dehydrated than I suspected because I'm not seeing one."

She continued looking and, luckily, after a few minutes found one. Although Maddie didn't wake, she snuggled in closer to Steve as the needle went in. After collecting 8 vials of blood Malia pulled the needle out and placed a cotton ball on the puncture wound. Once she'd placed a piece of tape on it she said, "Okay, you can take her home now. I'll be there as soon as possible. I'm going to run to the hospital and grab some supplies. I'll be over by the time the portable MRI machine gets there."

"I'll go with you and help," Chin told Malia.

"Thank you, Chin Ho," she smiled.

"Boss, I'll come with you in case you need some help," Kono looked at McGarrett.

"That'd be great, Kono." Carefully he stood and walked out of his office carrying Maddie.

"You ready?" Pete asked. Seeing glass on Maddie's bare feet he delicately brushed off the loose pieces.

"Hey! We just finished sweeping it all up!" Danny laughed. Looking at his partner he asked, "How is she?"

"I don't know… asleep for now. We'll see."

"She seems to be happy to see you. And you thought she was going to shut you out," Danny said.

"We'll see how she reacts when she's feeling better," Steve replied biting his lip. She'd probably put up a serious fight. She was going to be mad they set her up.

"Alright, Mo is outside waiting in the car. He says there's some press outside the gate with telephoto lenses, so here's a blanket to cover her up with. She won't want any photos taken of this," Pete relayed as he opened a grey blanket and started placing it over Maddie with Kono's assistance.

"Great! Thank you! Yeah, she'd be really upset if the press got wind of this."

Pete and Kono walked on either side of Steve as he carried Maddie out of the building and to the car. They helped hold the blanket over her so she was completely obstructed from view. Once they'd helped him into the back seat of the black SUV, Kono climbed in. "Let's go home," Pete looked at Mo from the passenger seat.

"Sure thing," Mo said, as he drove towards Maddie's house.

Glancing behind him Pete couldn't help but smile at Steve holding Maddie. He'd done the right thing bringing her home to Steve. Hopefully he'd be able to figure out what she was hiding. However, instinct told him this was the calm before the storm.