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AvalonReeseFanFics

A/N: Happy Family Day Guys!So guys, I got something special going on this week. This week I'mma update… ONCE A DAY! Why do you ask? Well it's Alex Lover's birthday and because they're one of my frequent updaters and one of my staunchest supporters I figured we'd do something special for their birthday. So in honor of Alex Lover being a whole year older, we're going to have 7 update marathon this week. On top of that we have 5 updates left before we get to the cute first that I hope you guys will enjoy. I also have some 3 update a week postings coming up for milestones we've been reaching. So with any luck I'll get you guys closer to all really cute stuff I have lined up. So Happy birthday Alex Lover, I hope you like your b-day gift and I'll see you guys tomorrow.

P.S. I had a feeling that was you JP, I just wanted to make sure. Glad you're okay and I hope you get Tacos tomorrow!

Chapter 68

They were up at Makapu'u point. Where a man was cheating on his wife. Garter belts, bare flesh, heated kisses and sensual noses. Night goggles and laughter came from the two people watching them, sent there by a suspicious wife. The man came out of nowhere. The man with the gun. The man that shoots John Cutler, the cheating husband.

Billy and Catherine react. They go to help. Together they round the house. Billy goes to stop him but this man in more than prepared. Bullets fly every which way, only Billy and Catherine care which way they go. A bullet hits Catherine's shoulder, but it's the one that tore through Billy's stomach that burned. The one that leaked, and consumed him, whittling him away to nothing in Catherine's arms.

"You're not going to die today, do you hear me? Do you hear me!"

Catherine's cry of his name was mirrored by Rowan's, except Rowan's cry was real and not a dream.

Rowan was sitting up in bed. Beside her Alex groaned, having been awoken by her scream. Not for the first time that week either. At this rate she would have to find somewhere else to sleep.

"Jeeze. Billy, Steve, Chin, Danny," he muttered sleepily. "The only name you don't scream in this room is mine."

Rowan smiled seductively and draped herself over him where she then kissed him solidly on the lips. "I was screaming your name like three hours ago," she whispered.

He murmured in pleasure at the memory, but clearly it didn't do enough to his libido for he was already rolling over to go back to sleep. Rowan took that as a chance to get to the bottom of this. This dream, it was ten times more urgent then any of the others. She knew, without a shadow of a doubt that it was happening tonight.

But it might not have happened yet.

She took her phone, wrapped herself up in a sweater she had stolen from Steve and had long since stopped smelling like him, and made her way out onto Alex's balcony.

She stared at her phone, wondering if she was really going to do this. And decided that Billy deserved a chance to live and that Catherine deserved to live a life without guilt.

So she dialed Catherine's number.

It rang for a long while. Rowan worried that maybe that was because Catherine was already trying to deal with the shooter. But she was probably just screening Rowan's call.

Either way she was very surprised when Catherine actually picked up the phone.

"What do you want?"

Oh well that was rude. Maybe that was because it hadn't happened yet. Maybe Rowan could still save Billy.

"I need you to listen to me," Rowan started, and luckily Catherine didn't interrupt. "I know you don't like me or believe me, but tonight Billy's going to get shot."

"Shot?" Catherine echoed. "Rowan we're on a surveillance job, no one is going to get shot."

"Yes! Yes, both you and Billy get shot. Except you live and he doesn't. Please, Catherine I'm not lying. You guys have enough evidence, please leave. Leave before the killer comes. PLEASE!"

"Rowan, I don't have time for this," Catherine said and then hung up the phone.

Rowan sat down on the chair and sighed. She tried. She could easily just go back inside and go back to sleep. Billy would die, of course, and Catherine would forever be plagued with the guilt of knowing she could have saved him, but that wasn't Rowan's fault. She had tried and Catherine hadn't wanted to listen to her.

But instead of going inside, Rowan dialed a different number. This time when the person picked up they sounded sleepy and concerned, because why else would Rowan be calling if not because she was in trouble again?

"Hey Chin, sorry to wake you, but uhm… can you come get me?"

H5O-H5O-H5O-H5O

Steve woke up to the terrible sound of banging on his front door. His bed was empty, Catherine being at work and all that jazz and his immediate thought went to her having locked herself out. But as he got out of bed and padded softly down the stairs he realized that if Catherine was locked out she would have called him, or broken in. So, this wasn't Catherine this must have been someone else.

Now he wished had had taken his gun with him. He got to the door and just listened to the pounding and the voice that he could now hear practically hidden behind the frantic pounding.

"Wake up, wake up, wake up! Wake up!"

Steve knew that voice. He was frozen at the door, hand to the knob. He shouldn't open it. He shouldn't. But she had come there in the middle of the night, to the person she hated. What if she was in trouble?

Steve opened the door to her and looked down into Rowan's frantic face.

"Where's Catherine?" she asked. Okay that was completely unexpected.

"She's uh… she's on a stake out…"

"Yes, I know that. But if I don't find her now, Billy's going to die and Catherine's going to get shot so WHERE IS SHE?!" she had gradually gotten louder until she practically screamed that last question. There was a lot to take in, but it sounded like Rowan had had another dream.

"Rowan… look… I know you think you're helping but it's almost dawn and Catherine's not here…"

Rowan groaned at him, frustrated, the groan was more of a low roar of rage. Before he could stop her she had lurched forward. Her hands came to his sides and though he was wearing a white wife beater he felt the electricity flow through them. His hands came to her elbows and without a second though he crushed her to his chest. It was like the contact with her had doubled the electric peel of desire that suddenly had control of him. Fuck. Fuck. Rowan and her hands, those fingernails digging into him. He could easily imagine being between her thighs, her legs around his waist, those finger nails biting into his ribs. The noises she'd make for him. The way she'd scream his name.

It wasn't just a secret dream. He could make it reality. All he had to do was kiss her.

"Kalaniana'ole Hwy and Honakua St.," she breathed out and then she let him go, forced herself away from his chest and turned away.

She pulled out her phone and dialed a number. "Hi. Yes. We have shots fired and two GSWs at Kalaniana'ole Hwy and Honakua St., a little cottage just up there." She said quickly he lost the rest of the conversation as she was rushing away from him. She hung up the phone quickly without once looking back.

"Thank you, Steve!" she called as she practically ran down the gravel pathway to the street where he finally noticed Chin Ho awaiting her on his motorcycle. Steve noted that she didn't even look back at him once, though his eyes couldn't be taken off of her until she was literally out of sight. He noted that his body was rock hard in anticipation for her, harder than Catherine had managed to get him in weeks. He also noted that the act of getting a vision didn't make her collapse anymore.

He noted that she was frantic to get to Catherine and Billy. But he refused to believe that anything was wrong because he'd know, Catherine would call him, and both she and Billy were completely competent. No. Rowan was wrong. She had to be, because he couldn't keep losing people. He just couldn't.

Needless to say, Steve did not sleep after Rowan left. He just kept hearing everyone's words bounce back at him, but Danny's words were on loop.

Rowan is always right.

Okay, so she was right about a lot of things, but she could be wrong about the shooting. Even though she was so sure about it that she came to him even though they were on terrible terms at that moment. She was so sure that woke him up in the middle of the night and she had called 911. She wouldn't have done that unless she was certain that she was right, that someone was going to get hurt.

Fuck. He should have gone with her. He should have told her to wait and then gone to get dressed so they could go together. Now he couldn't remember what address she had gotten off of him. He couldn't follow her every if he wanted to

He stopped tinkering with his dad's car and picked up his phone. Chin had not answered his texts, neither had Rowan. Catherine was not picking up, neither was Billy and Danny had no idea what was happening because he had been off with Grace at a cheer leading competition.

He couldn't even go looking for them because Steve didn't know where the cabin was and if they were going to the hospital, he didn't know which one.

Guilt and worry ate at him, so he went to work on his father's car. Simply because it would keep his mind off of everything until someone decided to get back to him.

"Late-night tune up?" a voice called and Steve straightened. He was so in the zone he hadn't even noticed Joe let himself in.

"Hey!" he called in greeting before turning back to the car. "Yeah, I'm just switching out the plugs."

He felt Joe walk past him so that he was on his other side closer to the bumper of the car.

"You know, I hear you can pay somebody to do that for you?" Joe teased. Steve sighed. If he had wanted sass he would have told Danny to home when he offered.

"What are you, crazy? You think I'm gonna let some know-nothing grease monkey get his hands on a classic like this?" Steve asked instead. He didn't want to show his former C.O. how rattled he was by Rowan's visit. He wouldn't have understood.

"Your dad felt the same way about this car," Joe reminded him. Yeah like he needed that right now. Another person he let down, another person he wasn't there for. "And that was before it was a classic, when it was just old."

Steve shook his head, and went back to the monkey wrench in his hands. "Don't overtighten," Joe chided, still as bossy as ever.

"I got this," Steve said because it was true and he wanted the man off his back. "Thanks for coming by."

"Sounded like it might be important," he said. That was true. He had called him a few days back and requested a meet. Joe hadn't gotten back to him, apparently going for the pop-by-surprise method.

"Kinda hoping you could tell me," Steve said and then the two exited the garage and went towards his lanai and the two chairs out by the beach he loved to sit in. "I'm having trouble getting a hold of my mom."

Just like Rowan said he would.

Rowan is always right.

"Well, how long have you been trying to reach her?" Joe asked.

"A couple of weeks. No luck," Steve answered.

"Well, your mother is a difficult person to pin down," Joe said as he folded his arms over his chest. He looked squirrelly, the kind of look he gave when he was hiding something but didn't really want to hide it.

And his mother shouldn't want to avoid him.

"I really need to speak with her," Steve urged. "I was kind of hoping… maybe… you could get in touch with her?"

"What makes you think she'll answer my call?" Joe shot back. Which was a fair point.

"Because you're not asking her any difficult questions," Steve explained.

"Steve, if Doris knows you're looking for information about her relationship with Wo Fat…" he started.

"She's going to avoid me as long as she can," Steve finished for him.

Joe nodded. "But if she's off the grid, it could also be for reasons that have nothing to do with you."

Suddenly Steve's interest was piqued. That was a hint, wasn't it? Why was he being so cryptic all of a sudden?

"I mean… you know something you're not telling me here, Joe?" he probed.

"No, I'm just reminding you that your mother's a complicated woman," he said with a smile. Why was he smiling? This wasn't funny, nor was this a happy moment. His mother should answer her son's fucking phone calls.

"But I will reach out," he assured him when Steve's face twisted into something that clearly made Joe uncomfortable. "I will see what I can find."

Steve nodded. Kay that was fair. Joe looked serious about the undertaking so he believed he'd actually do it.

"Since I'm here… uh… tell me about Rowan Pierce," Joe suddenly ordered.

Steve tried to hide the wince, the automatic frown that creased his face when her name came up. "Why do you care about her?"

"Because her name's come up a lot recently," he said. "A lot of parties are interested in her."

Steve shouldn't have been worried, but he was. What did that mean? "What are you talking about?"

"Her name went out on all frequencies a couple of weeks ago," Joe told him. "Her name and an app. An app that no one can crack. Its voice activated. But not by Fat's voice and not by hers. No one can figure out what it is or what it means. But since then everyone, and I mean everyone, has been giving her a wide berth. One faction fully pulled out of Hawaii, a Spanish one, and they refuse to come back."

Steve inwardly swore. Wo Fat's safety net. The Navy knew about that?

"It's not what you think. It's just… it's a network," he said. "It was set up to protect her."

Joe stared at him… hard. "Do you know who set it up?" he asked. Yes, yes, he did and this was a test because obviously Joe knew too and he saw it on Steve's face.

"How does she access a network that her voice can't open? She got a code or something?"

"I don't know, I think you need her voice and her codes," Steve explained. "It's really not… it's not that big of a deal."

"A dangerous terrorist who has no emotions and no cares for anyone other than himself has set up a safety network for a girl you have close ties to," Joe snapped. "That may be part of the reason Doris ain't answering your calls."

Steve wanted to argue but he couldn't. Firstly, because Joe had a point. Rowan and Doris had bad blood, and while Steve knew the network Wo Fat had put in place was meant as a reactionary system and not precautionary, Doris did not. And secondly, because his phone was ringing.

Finally, someone was getting back to him. But it was a number Steve didn't recognize flashing on his screen.

Steve answered the phone and listened to the woman on the other side. That worry and guilt built up into a whirlpool in his stomach as everything was carefully explained to him. Once again Danny's words burned through his ears as he pushed past Joe and into his house.

Rowan is always right.

H5O-H5O-H5O-H5O

Catherine came to.

White blinding lights. Slow beeping. A dull pain in her body, a hot fire in her arm. Head fuzzy, mouth dry and completely disoriented.

But out of every unfamiliar and painful aspect there was one thing that stood out bright against the white backdrop. Something familiar.

Steve.

"Hey," he said to her.

"Hey" she echoed back and then looked around. "Where am I?"

"You're in the hospital," he answered. She was? Why was she in a hospital? Mmm, yes, because she had been shot. She tried to shift, to force herself to sit up but she was too tired and it hurt too much. Steve put a hand to her restless feet. "Just take it easy," he whispered.

They were silent for a minute. She took him in, and how tired her looked. Big dark circles under his eyes, a soft grey sweater with a white teeshirt's neck sticking out awkwardly, signalling tha the had either worried it away from the sweater or he had gotten dressed in a rush. It was also sweater she swore he never wore. But even that unkempt she bet he was still the hottest guy on the ward. And he was all hers.

"Do you remember what happened Catherine?" he asked.

Actually no… she didn't… but as soon as she put her mind to it, it all came back. The shooting, the blood, Billy's body writhing with agony, her fingers trying to stop the blood and then the flashing of the red lights.

"Billy… God… how is Billy…" Catherine asked. She searched Steve's face and felt dread sink in her stomach at the look she saw there. "Steve?"

"He… well… they think he's going to pull through," Steve told her. "They say… they say the ambulance got to him in time. Any longer and well…"

The ambulance. The ambulance she never called. The ambulance Rowan must have called. Rowan had ignored her and sent an ambulance anyway. Rowan had saved him. Not her and the pressure she had been putting on his wound. Just Rowan.

Steve tried to smile at her. "It's okay Catherine, it's okay. He's okay, you're okay…"

"Rowan tried to tell me," she whispered. "Did she… did she…"

Steve lowered his head. "Yes, she uh, she sent the ambulance. She showed up at the house and demanded to know where you were and then… you know… I wouldn't tell her… and she… she got a vision off of me, for the address, and ran off. Heard her on the phone with dispatch."

"She woke you up in the middle of the night to get the address so she could send an ambulance?" she asked.

"Yeah, round 2:15," he said.

"2:15… are you sure?" she asked.

"Yeah, pretty sure," he said with a shrug. "Why?"

"Because none of it had gone down yet, I didn't even clock the shooter driving up until 2:20. I know for sure, it's burned into my brain," she said. "She called an ambulance before the situation even happened."

"Okay… well that's just Rowan, she's super prepared, she probably just knew you'd need the help right away," he said.

Catherine shook her head. She had a feeling that Rowan sent that ambulance because she knew Catherine wouldn't be able to save him. She did it because she knew Catherine would try and save the other man before she attended to Billy and the bullet in his gut.

Which had been where she had been found. Coming out of the house, dizzy and out of sorts. She didn't even get to tell them…

"The body!" Catherine suddenly shouted sitting straight up in bed. "Did she call HPD? Did she tell them about the body?"

"I… uh... no? I don't know," Steve said. "I haven't heard anything about another body."

"Then Rowan didn't tell them. Rowan called an ambulance for Billy, she didn't tell anyone about the body, maybe she forgot, maybe she didn't know… We need to get back there now, we need to get to the cabin," she ordered, already she was tearing out her IV and trying to stand.

Steve scrambled to stop her but couldn't.

"Listen to me, stop, stop, you need to stay here and you need to rest," Steve said but she wouldn't stay still. "I'll call Duke and get a CSU out to the cabin, alright?"

"Steve, where is Rowan?" Catherine asked. "She came to your house, she got the vision and then what? She just went home?"

"I don't know Catherine, she's not my concern," he argued. She almost scoffed. It wasn't like Steve to just not know where Rowan was, especially if there was a shooter involved. Catherine didn't believe that for a minute. "What does it matter where Rowan went?"

"What if she's at that cabin with the dead body?" Catherine snapped back. "Okay that didn't make sense, but what if she went to check on us and the shooter got her?"

"Well when she took off she was on the back of Chin's motorcycle so… I think if a shooter was gonna go for her she'd be okay."

"She's talking to Chin again?" Catherine asked in a small voice. Like she was surprised. Why would she be surprised?

"I don't know? Alex won't drive her places if he's been out for the night and they had a gig last night. So she probably needed someone to give her a ride and she roped Chin into it," Steve answered with a shrug. "You know how persuasive she can be."

Catherine stared at him. Why did he know that Rowan's boyfriend's band had a gig last night? Why did he know those specifics? She shook her head she had bigger fish to fry.

"Okay, I'm going with you," she said.

"No, Catherine, you're not going anywhere, you just got shot."

"Steve, I need to go. The guy who shot me, who shot Billy and killed Jason Culter is still out there. And I can't be in here. You of all people should understand that," she cried.

She saw it on Steve's face. Right then and there. She knew the second he turned those guilt laden baby blue eyes to her that she had won.