Mari's ANs: Sammy and Ilna, love you to the moon. REAL McRollers and Readers, thanks doesn't seem like enough, but thank you always.

Sammy's ANs: Mari and Ilna-you guys are the best. Thanks for all the love and support McRollers


More Dangerous Than Jaws

Oahu Aquarium

Danny looked into the tank and recoiled. "Okay, I definitely didn't have this on my 'bat shit crazy cases' bingo card."

"Ugh," Kono agreed. "It is way too early in the morning for me to be dealing with something like this." She fake-coughed into her hand. "I think I'm coming down with something. I should probably go home."

"Dream on," Chin told her. "You're stuck here with the rest of us. Besides, if anyone should be going home it's me. After all, you owe me one."

Kono crossed her arms and pinned her cousin with a glare. "How do you figure?"

"When we found that pit with all the decaying bones I had to be the one to go down the ladder and take a look because you claimed you had re-aggravated an old surfing injury," Chin reminded her.

"Sometimes my shoulder hurts." Kono rubbed it for effect. "I never know when it's going to flare up."

"I do." Chin chuckled. "Whenever you come face to face with something you don't want to do."

"Oh, stop whining," she teased. "Those bones turned out to be animal bones."

"True," Chin acknowledged. "But you didn't know that when you sent me down there."

"Well I can tell you one thing for sure," Danny interjected. "I am NOT going in there!" He pointed to the large tank over his shoulder.

"Me either," Chin and Kono said simultaneously.

"Let the SEAL do it," Danny said as he looked up and saw Steve approaching, making his way through the crowd after getting briefed by Jadon and Duke about what the first officers on the scene had encountered when they arrived.

"We need to secure the area around the tank." Steve gestured towards the water, where a large shark swam lazily, oblivious to the turmoil going on on the other side of the glass. She'd felt a bit sick an hour or so earlier but was feeling much better now. "Secure the deck above the tank as well". He turned to a harried looking man in a white lab coat wearing a badge that indicated he worked at the aquarium."Doctor, we need to get that out as soon as possible so we can identify it."

"Right," Doctor Okai, the aquarium's head veterinarian nodded, as a tech approached with what looked like a giant version of a net used in a typical fish tank. "Thanks, Jamari, I've got it. This matter has to be handled with a certain amount of delicacy, Commander. The safety and comfort of the animals is my top priority."

Steve nodded. "Understood."

"It's my job to try and make sure that at the end of the day this animal is safe and unharmed."

Danny snorted. "I know how you feel, Doc."

Duke told Steve that the first officers on the scene were met by half a dozen employees whose emotional states ranged from shock to semi-hysterical tears. But as more officers arrived, followed by the task force members, the workers shifted from shock to urgency. They wanted to get the situation under control before any harm came to the shark, who they affectionately called Hilda.

Dr. Okai wanted his charge kept safe so instructed all of the staff and officers to stand back while he performed the retrieval. As long as the shark didn't become agitated, or react to the unexpectedly early activity on the other side of the glass, everything would be fine. He used his badge to get through the locked door to the left of the tank and ascended a set of narrow stairs until he reached the deck that ran along the top. He focused carefully on the swimming shark as he leaned over the tank and placed the net in the water.

With a precision that only came with years of experience, he guided the underwater drone contained in the rim of the net to the bottom of the tank 20 feet below and began the slow process of removal.

Hilda noticed the drone but, having seen it many times before, it couldn't hold her interest and she continued her leisurely morning swim.

While they waited, Chin and Kono moved to talk to Duke and Jadon to find out which of the staff were direct witnesses to the incident. They would need to be interviewed first. Just as they began, Max arrived with his team and the small area began to feel very congested.

"What a perfect way to start the day," Danny muttered, shaking his head as he watched the drone make its slow movements. "I mean, I've seen some strange stuff float up in the Passaic River back in Jersey, but this takes the cake. Hawaii is every bit as weird as Jersey, maybe weirder. The sunshine just hides it."

"Did you ever consider that maybe the common denominator in all the weirdness is you?" Steve asked.

"No, I haven't," Danny volleyed back.

Steve cocked an eyebrow. "Maybe you should."

"I'm done talking to you now," Danny huffed. "I'm going to fill Max in."


From what we know," Danny told the medical examiner, "It happened like this."

Thirty Minutes Earlier

Inside the marine rehabilitation area of the Honolulu Aquarium, a small crowd of concerned employees were gathered around the tank housing a shark that had recently recovered from a tail injury. She was a very sweet girl that they had all taken an instant liking to.

"She's retching," Doctor Okai said to the veterinary interns. "Likely from the change in atmosphere. We moved her here to the transition tank with a plan to release her in 48 hours. She should work through this on her own but If she doesn't settle in an hour, we'll administer an antiemetic." He leaned closer to the tank, squinting at the shark as it vomited up some fish.

Seconds later his eyes widened.

"What the hell? Oh, Jesus, call the police."

The shark had thrashed in the water, its sleek body cutting through the surface. Suddenly, with a violent gag, it expelled a strange, dark mass that had splashed against the side of the tank as gasps erupted from the interns and vet techs.

"Is that…?" One young man stepped forward, his eyes wide with disbelief.

"It looks like a …" An intern named Cara began, but couldn't finish her sentence as the item floated to the surface, revealing it was a human appendage.

Present time

Danny stood with Max as Jadon as Duke corralled witnesses into the aquarium's conference room.

"Get anything yet?" He asked the young officer who'd been first on the scene.

"Not yet. The vet techs didn't see anything suspicious before the incident. They were prepping for the shark's release until it puked up the arm and Doctor Okai called it in."

TBC