TO DANNY WITH LOVE

by

Jackie Edwards

Steve McGarrett, head of Hawaii Five-0, looked up as his second in command entered the office.

"Morning, Danno."

"Steve." He approached the desk and stopped, hesitating.

A tentative smile pulled the corner of Steve's mouth as he watched his friend.

"What is it, Danno?"

Williams shrugged.

"Maybe nothing, I don't know."

He took several letters out of his jacket pocket and tossed them on the desk. McGarrett picked one up, slipping a letter out of the envelope.

The message was short and to the point, printed in block letters on lined paper.

-----------------------------------------------------------

IN TWO DAYS YOU'LL BE SORRY

I'LL MAKE YOU PAY

------------------------------------------------------------

Alarm etched McGarrett's features as he looked up.

"When did you get this?" He looked at the envelope. "It was delivered to your apartment?"

William nodded. "In this morning's mail." He gestured to the other two that Steve was already opening. "I've gotten one a day for the last three days."

"Why didn't you tell me this before?" An edge had crept into the older man's voice and Dan braced himself for one of McGarrett's lectures.

"I didn't think it was important, Steve." Williams told him. "I thought it was just a crank."

"And today? What is it about today's letter that made you change your mind?"

Danny drew a yellowed newspaper clipping from his pocket and handed it to McGarrett.

"This was in today's letter. It's from the case I was on just before I started working with Five-0." Williams explained.

"The kidnapping case." Steve nodded, reading the obituary. He glanced up at his companion. "The kidnappers killed their victim, didn't they?"

"Yeah. The brother never got over it I understand. He spent some time in therapy and then moved to the mainland."

"You think it's the brother?"

"It could be, Steve." Danny shrugged again. "I just thought I should let you know, in case anything happened."

McGarrett's smile was deceptively sweet. "Nothing's going to happen, Danno, because from now on you're going to have company wherever you go."

"Steve --" the young detective protested, but McGarrett went on, as if he hadn't spoken.

"You'll have somebody from HPD with you all day and outside your door at night until we find this --" He looked at the clipping, "-- Rhinehart, and find out if he's sending you these love notes."

Danny didn't like it, but knew it would be useless to argue with his boss. He'd known that showing McGarrett the letters would probably give him constant companionship for the next few days, but he'd also known that the Five-0 chief had the right to know. It wasn't just himself at risk -- Danny knew that if someone was after him, anyone he associated with could be killed or injured by mistake unless precautions were taken. With a sigh he nodded and turned to leave the office.

"Danno."

The sandy-haired man turned back.

There was a twinkle in Steve's blue eyes. "Think of it as a steady date."

Williams tried to return the humor. "Only if the HPD officer you get me is Shelly Robbins."

Steve laughed. "I'll see what I an do."

Danny left the office and crossed to his own, nodding to Jenny and Kono as he passed them.

A moment later McGarrett's door opened and Kono and Duke were called inside. Danny wasn't surprised when the two presented themselves as his bodyguards for the day. Reluctant, but resigned, he left the Palace to start his day's work.

*****

The night passed without incident and Dan, accompanied by the two HPD officers who had spelled Duke and Kono, arrived at the Five-0 offices the next morning.

Jenny and Chin breathed audible sighs of relief when he walked through the door.

"Steve in yet?" Danny asked, heading for their superior's office.

"Not yet. Must be caught in traffic."

"Not like Steve." Williams said, detouring to his own cubicle. "Guess I'll wait."

All three turned as a messenger came through the door.

"Delivery for Dan Williams." the young kid said as Jenny signed for an envelope.

By the time he'd gone, Danny was already holding the legal-sized envelope up to the light.

"Seems okay." He slit it open took out the a single sheet of lined notepaper.

As he scanned the note, the blood seemed to drain from his face, leaving it pale, while his fingers tightened on the paper.

"What is it, man?" Kono asked, taking the paper.

"He's got Steve." Danny's voice was a whisper.

"Danny..." Chin took the envelope from Williams' lax fingers. "There's something in here."

He pulled out a Polaroid photo -- of Steve McGarrett on the floor of his apartment -- unconscious, hands bound behind him.

"All those threats." Danny continued, almost to himself, "They weren't for me -- they were for Steve."

Chin handed the photo to Kono who passed it to Danny. Williams' already pale complexion turned chalky.

"Oh my God."

"What is it?" Jenny reached for the picture but Dan pulled it away.

"Danny!"

Realizing there was no way to keep it from her, he handed it over. Her reaction was identical to his.

"What are we going to do?" She asked. "Is it the man that sent you the letters?"

"It has to be, Jenny." Danny turned to the others. "Let's get busy. We've got to find this guy."

Half an hour later everyone had their assignments and HPD had been called in to help with the search. Danny and Chin headed for Steve's apartment.

In the car on the way over, Chin could almost feel his companion's guilt radiate from him.

"Danny, it's not your fault."

"Yeah? How do you figure?"

Chin made a face. This wasn't going to be easy. Why should it be? In some ways, Danno was just a younger version of Steve. Unfortunately, in some of the bad ways.

"Even Steve thought those notes were aimed at you. Anybody would have." Chin studied his friend. "There was no way of knowing he was going to snatch Steve --"

"I should have known!" Danny slammed a palm against the steering wheel. "I was there, Chin! I should have known he'd exact the same revenge on me that he thinks I did to him. " Williams swallowed hard. "Kidnapping his brother. Kidnapping Steve."

"Then the sooner we find out where he's taken Steve, the better." The Chinese said.

"That's right." Danny pulled the black sedan into McGarrett's driveway. "Let's do it."

*****

Steve McGarrett sat on an old bed in an abandoned shack on a lonely stretch of beach. He'd been groggy when he was brought in, but he could hear the waves outside the shack's only window. He didn't know how much time had passed since he'd answered the door this morning and found the smiling, grey-haired man in the hallway. The next thing Steve knew, he woke with one hand cuffed to the soiled and smelly bed he now sat on.

The house-like structure hadn't been used in years, McGarrett was sure of that. The air smelled sour and musty and a variety of insects that Steve didn't want to see any closer had taken up permanent residence.

He gingerly touched his temple and came away with blood. He didn't remember much of what had happened, but he did remember a fist in his stomach that threw him backwards into his living room, then a sharp blow to the back of his head. He shifted painfully on the tattered mattress. This was not starting out to be one of his better days.

McGarrett's head came up as the same man he'd seen earlier entered the shack with a bag of groceries.

"Breakfast." He held up a bottle of milk. "Hope you like donuts and milk..." He grinned. "I was pressed for time."

"I'll bet." Steve drolly countered. "You'll be pressed for more than time when my people find you."

"But they won't, Mr. McGarrett." He poured milk into a paper cup and handed it to Steve. "It's not you I'm after, McGarrett, It's that stupid young cop. Your suffering and death is only a by-product of my revenge."

"Oh, thank you very much." McGarrett's voice edged with sarcasm. "I'm glad to know it's nothing personal." His anger suddenly surfacing, he jerked the hand that was fastened to the bedstead.

"You can't get loose, so don't try." Then, as an afterthought, "I should introduce myself. I'm Jonah Rhinehart--"

"I know who you are." McGarrett interrupted. "Perhaps you're not as clever as you think."

The man smiled, delighted. "Oh, I think I am. I know I'm smarter than that stupid cop of yours. How he got into Five-0 beats me."

McGarrett felt his temper flare and fought to control it. Getting angry wouldn't help him at this point. He had to give Danno time to find him.

"You'll never get away with this." McGarrett sat the full glass on the floor beside the bed. "They'll find you."

"It won't matter. I just want to taunt him a little longer, the stupid idiot."

"You can't get away with this." McGarrett argued reasonably. "What happened to your brother was tragic, but it wasn't Dan Williams' fault. It wasn't any of the police force's fault."

"That young whelp killed my brother as sure as if he was the one who..." Jonah stopped for breath, face red, eyes wild with hatred.

"You insisted the money be delivered." McGarrett reminded him. "It was you who killed your brother, not Williams."

"No!"

Steve drew back, but not before the butt of Rhinehart's pistol connected with his cheek. McGarrett felt it crack against the bone and a numbing pain washed over him.

He hardly noticed when Jonah shoved him roughly down, onto the bed.

"Lie still, McGarrett. I don't have to wait until 6:00 to kill you."

Taking a length of rope from his case, Rhinehart firmly bound the detective's ankles to the iron footboard. Then, with a second pair of handcuffs, fastened McGarrett's free hand beside the other.

"Might as well take a nap." The man suggested with a smile. "I'll be back in an hour or so."

*****

Two hours later Che Fong and his lab techs had gone over every inch of Steve's apartment.

"Well?" Dan asked as Che joined him outside.

"Not much, Danny." The Oriental said ruefully. "Fingerprints; mostly Steve's. We got some of yours and an unidentified set from the kitchen, bathroom and bedroom."

"Nothing else?"

Che shrugged. "A vial of perfume and a hair barrette in the medicine cabinet that I doubt are Steve's."

Dan's eyes widened. "What?"

"Hey, even Steve has some kind of private life." Fong grinned.

"Could've fooled me. Anything else?"

"Sorry. Just the note, and it didn't have any prints on it."

"Okay, thanks."

Danny watched him go, then looked at the piece of paper in his hand.

It was printed on the same lined paper with the same block printing that the other notes had been.

--------------------------------------------------------

I'VE GOT HIM. YOU FIND HIM. BEFORE I KILL HIM.

--------------------------------------------------------

Dan had the urge to crumple the paper and hurl it at the sidewalk, but it was evidence, so he passed it to one of Che's people and went back inside Steve's apartment.

"Looks like Steve put up quite a fight." Chin said, surveying the room. "Lamp broken, chair overturned.."

"Are you surprised?" Danny asked. "He'd fight like a banshee if he could." He look was rueful. "As it was, Rhinehart probably got the drop on him, took him by surprise." He gestured to the dark blue suit coat and black tie that hung over the back of a chair. "He wasn't even finished dressing when the guy came."

"What worries me is that." Chin pointed a smear of blood on the edge of the doorframe. "Looks like somebody got a good crack on the head."

"Yeah, well, I'll bet it wasn't Rhinehart." Williams said darkly.

The phone on the kitchen wall rang and Dan moved to answer it.

"Hello?"

"Officer Williams?"

Danno frowned. "This is Williams. Who's this?"

A low chuckle sounded in his ear, sending a quiver down Danny's spine.

"What have you done with McGarrett?" He demanded.

Immediately Chin and Kono came to him, listening to the one-way conversation.

"I have him and there's nothing you can do about it, Cop." Jonah's voice sneered. "Just try and find him. You won't. No more than you found my brother."

"I wasn't in charge of that case. Why are you doing this? I was a beat cop. I had nothing to do with the kidnappers!"

"You were the first one there! You stayed with my sister-in-law during the search! And you found him!"

"I didn't kill him!" Williams almost shouted. Chin's hand on his arm brought him back to the present, returning some of his control. "You're the one who went against the advice of the police and delivered the money. They told you that once you did that--"

"Shut up!" Jonah shouted. "I just called to tell you McGarrett's dead by the end of today. And he's going to suffer the way Tom suffered. And you're going to die for the rest of your life just the way I've died."

The connection went dead in his ear and Danny hung up the phone, anger and fear fighting for supremacy.

"We've got to find him. We've got to find Steve today!"

"What'd he say, Danny?" Kono asked, concerned at his friend's reaction. "Was it Rhinehart?"

Williams nodded. "He said he blamed me for his brother's death and Steve was going to die the same way he did. Before tonight."

Almost afraid to say it, Kono spoke.

"The file on that kidnapping said Tom Rhinehart was killed at about 6:00 in the evening."

"Yeah." Danny glanced at his watch. "If he's keeping to the same timetable, we've got about seven hours."

Chin and Kono watched as Danny left the apartment.

"You read in that file how Tom Rhinehart died?" Kono asked his partner.

"Decapitation." Chin said flatly.

"Yeah. Come on."

*****

Jonah unlocked the door and went into the beach shack. The stretch of sand that surrounded the tiny structure was still deserted. That was why he'd picked this location. Few people patronized it due to the rocky cliffs and killing surf. He glanced at his watch: one-thirty-one. Time to check on his guest.

McGarrett heard the bolt slide and the door open, but he was powerless to react. He'd spent the better part of two hours trying to free himself from his bonds. All he had to show for his efforts were bruised wrists and rope burns on both ankles.

"Well, McGarrett, glad to see you're still here." Jonah cut the ropes that held McGarrett's feet in place and unlocked one of the cuffs. Steve marveled at the man's confidence. Apparently he had no doubt that his prisoner would be unable to escape.

"Time to get on with this." Rhinehart muttered, picking up a small medical kit from the floor. "I can't trust you while I'm gone. But in another minute I won't have to worry about you again." His lip curled as he filled a hypo with a pale, bluish liquid. "Or listen to any more accolades about that punk cop of yours."

Turning back to the bed, Rhinehart shoved Steve onto his side, yanking the tail of the light blue shirt out of his slacks, exposing an area of back. The detective struggled and got Rhinehart's fist in his kidney. With a gasp he lay still, his lower torso aching from the blow.

"Don't fight it, McGarrett." Jonah hissed, pushing him back, onto his side. "This is a nerve serum that I was working on when Tom was kidnapped. I took the formula with me when the lab fired me. Said I wasn't fit to work anymore, said I was working on 'detrimental formulas'! Well, this is the product of five year's work."

Carefully Jonah located the correct spot and injected the blue liquid into McGarrett.

"What--" Steve jerked as the needle pierced his flesh. "What happens now?"

Jonah rolled him onto his back and gazed down at his captive.

"This drug paralyzes the nervous system. You'll still be able to see and hear but not move. Or feel very much." He turned to replace the hypo in his kit. "That will make it a lot easier for all of us."

McGarrett felt himself panicking as Rhinehart picked up the keys to his car from the table. He found it difficult to breathe and he didn't know if it was the drug or his own fear. Whichever, he didn't like it.

"You'll start to feel the effects soon, McGarrett. Within thirty minutes you'll be completely immobilized." He grinned down at the helpless man. "I called your boy."

"I'll bet he was glad to hear from you." Steve quipped, gingerly rubbing his wrist with his free hand.

"Oh, yeah, he was thrilled." Rhinehart cackled, shaking his head. "Incompetent young wimp. I hope you're not planning on being rescued, McGarrett, because that idiot couldn't find you if I sent him a map.

The hours of captivity hit his throbbing head straight on and McGarrett exploded in a burst of anger so sudden, Rhinehart stepped back, startled.

"Dan Williams is the finest man I've ever worked with!" Steve almost shouted.

"That's a lie!"

"Williams is a fine officer and a good man." McGarrett goaded his captor. "He didn't kill your brother -- you did!"

"That's a lie! You're lying!"

Rhinehart's fist connected with McGarrett's eye, sending him back against the iron bed rails.

Anger blurred his logic and McGarrett struck wildly, catching Rhinehart in the face with his fist, leaving a long, bloody scratch down one cheek.

Incensed, Jonah look wildly around the room and grabbed up a scrap of wood. Again and again he lashed out at his hapless victim. He struck blindly, without aim and without thought.

McGarrett tried to shield his face with his free arm and the wood hit him repeatedly. He tried to jerk away from the blows and threw himself against the rusty, broken iron bedrails. Over and over Steve hit the unyielding bars with his back, his wrist jerking within the confines of the handcuff.

Repeatedly Jonah struck him over and over with the force of the demented, his sight blinded by his rage and hatred for Dan Williams and his own brother's death.

*****

Danno glanced at his watch as he opened the door to Steve's office. Four o'clock. He realized he was gritting his teeth and made a conscious effort to relax. If Rhinehart kept to his timetable, they only had two hours to find Steve and so far not a clue.

His glance fell to his friend's desk; half-empty coffee cup, the football scores they'd been going over the day before. It all seemed so normal.

In a gesture so like his mentor's, Danno hit the wooden doors that led to the lanai.

He'd kicked himself mentally ever since they'd discovered Steve had been taken and he knew that unless they found the Five-0 chief in time, he always would. McGarrett had always treated him more like a friend and a brother than an employee or co-worker. He'd carefully trained him and taught him the things he thought were important for a man of the elite police force to know. And Williams had always been eager to absorb McGarrett's teachings. He knew that although their backgrounds were oceans apart, their foundations were very similar. Their moral fiber and belief in the law and its due process were almost identical. While Williams had craved someone like Steve in whose footsteps he could follow, Danny knew that McGarrett also needed him. Steve needed someone to make sure he didn't submerge himself too deeply in his law enforcement crusade, to pull him back to himself when he was in danger of losing the essence that was Steve McGarrett. And Danno took that job very seriously. He snorted, disgusted.

"Some watchdog."

"Danny!"

Williams turned to find Kono enter the office with a young, blond surfer in tow.

"What do you have, Kono?" He asked, nodding to the young man.

"This is Johnny Markel. He surfs a deserted stretch of beach as practice for the surf tryouts next month."

Williams nodded, impatient for the big Hawaiian to come to the point.

"This morning he was takin' a breather behind a outcropping of rocks. Saw a guy that matches Rhinehart's description helpin' a guy he thought was hungover into an old beach shack.

"Steve?" Danny felt excitement spark inside him.

"Could be." Kono shrugged. "Worth checkin' out."

"Why'd you come to us?" Danny asked the young man. "Did he seem suspicious?"

"No. But that shack hasn't been used for years. It's falling apart. And nobody even jogs on that stretch of beach but me and a few guys practicing for the big competition." Markel frowned. "But when the guy left, I went over to check, out of curiosity, you know."

Danny nodded. He didn't care why the kid had checked, only that he had.

"And he'd put this big, heavy-duty padlock on the door. I mean, why would he be locking this other guy inside? It didn't make any sense."

Williams slapped the surfer on the back and headed for the door.

"Thanks a lot. Leave your name and number with our secretary. Let's go, Kono."

As he passed through the outer office he leaned in Chin's office.

"Come on. We've finally got a lead."

Jenny stopped him as he passed her desk.

"This just arrived for you, Danny." She handed him a small package. "It's in the same printing..."

With hands that shook, Williams undid the package, unmindful that it might explode.

He lifted the lid. Inside on a bed of cotton lay the tiny figure of a man dressed in dark blue. For half a second Danny couldn't place what was wrong, then the horror of it hit him -- the doll's head was missing. In its place was a lock of what Danno knew had to be Steve's hair.

"Danny? What is it?" Kono reached for the box but Williams quickly replaced the lid and shoved it in his jacket pocket.

"Come on, let's go. We've got to find Steve now!"

*****

McGarrett closed his eyes, willing his body to respond to his commands for the hundredth time. But the drug showed no sign of wearing off. He couldn't remember feeling so helpless and frustrated in his life. Not against Wo Fat, not meshed in one of Vashon's frames. Never had he been so useless to help himself and his team.

And he felt sick. His clothes and the pillow and mattress beneath him were soaked with perspiration. He felt nauseous and dizzy, despite Rhinehart's assurance that only his motor functions would suffer. His mind drifted emptily and he found he had to concentrate to keep it from gliding away from him.

"Well, McGarrett, you don't look so good."

Steve opened his eyes to see Jonah standing over him.

"Sometimes that happened in the lab, too. Side affects." The man smiled ruefully. "Can't be helped. Some people are more sensitive than others."

Steve's stomach rolled. The fingers of one hand spasmed involuntarily. Convulsions. Fear began to replace McGarrett's original panic. If he was allergic to Rhinehart's drug, it wouldn't matter if Danno and the others found him or not it would probably be too late.

"You'll be interested to know that it won't end here, McGarrett." Jonah told him, rummaging in his jacket pocket. "I called your boy. Freaked him out!" Jonah laughed, delightedly. "He's sorry now. And look at the pretty pictures I took, McGarrett."

Rhinehart held one photo after another up in front of Steve's eyes. Blearily he squinted at the pictures. McGarrett was having trouble seeing. His left eye didn't seem to focus, but he could see well enough to grasp the evil Rhinehart was taunting him with. Each picture made the detective's insides twist. There was a shot of Danny's apartment building, Chin's car and Kono walking down a stretch of beach with his surf board. McGarrett felt about to burst, his anger and frustration at what this man was doing to them totally unacceptable. Where was Danno?!

"And this one, McGarrett. I'm sure you'll be interested in this."

The last photo was of his secretary coming down the steps of the Palace. Rhinehart had obviously used a telephoto lens because while it was a close-up, Jenny obviously had no idea she was being photographed.

"And I believe you have a sister on the Mainland, don't you McGarrett? I saw her picture in your apartment. Pretty girl."

Steve strained with everything he had but couldn't will his body to move. He had to stop Jonah before he wiped out Five-0 and their families.

Sweat poured off him, stinging his eyes, running down his neck to soak the pillow beneath his head. Dammit! He had to do something!

"Another hour, McGarrett, and we'll be finished. You'll be dead and I'll be on my way to the airport." He winked at the helpless man. "I'll lay low for a few weeks, then come back and surprise everybody! But before I go, I'll leave a surprise at your little cop's apartment."

Glancing down at the defenseless man, Jonah laughed, then set about packing up his equipment. An hour later Jonah picked up his small overnight bag and took a last look at his prisoner.

McGarrett lay on his side on the cot, drenched in sweat, muscles twitching uncontrollably as the drug's reaction ran its course. Delirium had claimed McGarrett and he screamed in agony as pain seared through him, doubling him over. His hands gripped the edge of the bed, fingers white as the demons chased him in his drug-induced dreams. Although it was obvious that his nervous system was no longer affected by Jonah's drug, McGarrett was going nowhere.

Rhinehart smiled and tugged the brim of his hat.

"Good-bye, McGarrett." He said, heading for the door. "I don't think I'll bother killing you. My drug seems to be taking care of that just fine."

Jonah left the shack, replacing the heavy padlock, then hurried to his car and headed toward Honolulu's airport.

*****

Forty-five minutes after Rhinehart's departure, two Five-0 cars and HPD unit screeched to a halt beside the ramshackle cabin.

Chin Ho was driving one car and it had barely rolled to a stop before Danny was out and running up the stairs to the door. He gave the padlock a single tug, then drew his revolver. A breath later the lock hung loose and Williams pushed his way into the shack, gun sweeping the room.

He did a slow turn, making sure the room was empty, until his eyes fell to the bed in one corner.

Shoving his gun in its holster, Danno covered the distance to the cot and knelt beside McGarrett. The sight that greeted him sent a tremor through his body, an iron fist tightening in his gut.

McGarrett's back was torn from repeated blows from the iron railings, white shirt stiff with drying, crusted blood.

"Steve..." Danno whispered, the name catching in his throat.

Almost afraid to touch his friend, he reached out and rolled McGarrett onto his back.

A wave of sickness washed over Dan and he turned away for a moment, only to be drawn back to the bruised and battered man.

McGarrett's left eye was swollen shut, his right arm covered in blood, his sleeve in ribbons. Danno could see the angry bruises that had formed on every inch of exposed skin, and he shuddered to think what might lie beneath his clothing.

Gingerly he touched a gash on Steve's forehead. Blood from the wound had matted his dark hair and dried on one side of his face.

He heard Kono and Chin come into the room but it didn't really register. Not until he felt the big Hawaiian's hand on his shoulder.

"Come on, bruddah. Let me take him to the car, get him to the hospital."

Numbly Danny nodded, slowly rising to his feet.

Kono held his gun to the chain of the handcuff that still held Steve captive. The detective didn't even flinch at the explosion. His wrist was raw and bloody from his struggle to escape Rhinehart's tirade.

Forcing his outrage down, Kono gently scooped McGarrett into his arms and headed for the door.

Dan stood looking down at the bloodstained bed, eyes unfocused, mind empty. Finally Chin put a hand on his back.

"Come on, Danno. Ride in with them. I'll take care of things here."

When the younger man didn't move, Chin Ho drew him toward the door. Williams stopped in his tracks, shaking his head, slowly refocusing.

"I'm okay, Chin." He tried a smile and failed. "Really."

Chin watched him hurry after Kono, helping the officer load their boss into the back of the Five-0 car. Then he motioned to the HPD men.

*****

The hours dragged on into the night before the doctor came out to the waiting room.

Kono rose from where he'd been sitting on the couch. Danny stopped his pacing and hurried to the older man.

"Doc, how is he?"

The grey haired physician sighed. "It's bad this time, Danny." He said frankly. "He's got a concussion, a serious abrasion over his left temple, his left wrist is lacerated to the point I may have to immobilize it." He took a breath. "And that's not mentioning the cuts, bruises and other superficial injuries."

"But he's going to make it?" Kono prompted.

"There's one other problem." The doctor began.

"What?" Alarm shone anew in Williams' blue eyes.

"The guy gave Steve some kind of drug that's affected his nervous system. When he first came to, he couldn't move at all and he could barely speak. We found a drug to counteract it..."

"But?" Danny demanded.

"But he was allergic to the original drug and his reaction was extreme. Convulsions, fever, shakes. I'm hoping we caught it in time, but --"

"Can I see him?"

"He's asleep in intensive care."

The look in the young man's eyes told Bergman it didn't matter whether McGarrett was awake or not. Danny just wanted to see for himself that his friend was alive.

"Okay. Ten minutes."

"Thanks."

He hurried down the corridor to the windowed-off section of intensive care. He stood there for a long moment, watching Steve through the glass. The tension inside him built as he took in the ugly, black bruising against the starkness of the white pillowcase. He nodded to the uniformed guard and went inside.

McGarrett lay still, his breathing easy now, body relaxed in a drugged slumber.

As he stood there, all the guilt and self-recrimination came to the surface, forcing itself out in the form of a single tear. Angrily he wiped it away, jaw set in determination. How could he tell Steve that they hadn't gotten Rhinehart? That they didn't know where he was or if he'd be back?

He took a last look at Steve and left the unit.

Kono still talked with the doctor as Danny passed them.

"I'll be at the office." He called over his shoulder. "Make sure somebody's with Steve at all times."

All he wanted was to be left alone for awhile, just until he could regain control. That was one talent Steve hadn't been able to instill, Williams thought bitterly, when the chips were down and he was stressed out, his control crumbled.

Danno sprinted down the hospital stairs, hailing a taxi that had just pulled up to the curb.

*****

It was less than eight hours later that Danno reappeared at the hospital for his shift. He'd checked with HPD and Chin about their progress in locating Rhinehart, but the maniac had gotten away.

Danny hadn't gone home, he'd stayed at the office, catching a nap before he returned to the hospital. Somehow he'd felt more in control, somehow closer to McGarrett, than he would have at his apartment.

He joined Kono at the nurse's station.

"They moved Steve to a private room about an hour ago." Kono told him.

Danny's face brightened.

"He's improved?"

"Doc says so. He came to twice during the night, but he's still delirious. Nurse says he was babbling about some kind of trap. About you not going home."

Williams nodded. "Probably meant for us to keep looking for Rhinehart."

The fact that he'd gotten away from him still grated on the young detective's nerves.

There were two armed HPD men outside McGarrett's door. Dan and Kono went inside, each pulling up a chair.

"Chin find anything on Rhinehart?" Kono asked, his gaze resting on Steve. Every time he saw the battered boss he wanted to wring Rhinehart's neck with his bare hands. That was one reason he'd volunteered for the first watch. He was afraid to be the one who caught up with the criminal.

Williams shook his head, dejected.

"No. Looks like he's gotten clear."

Kono watched his friend for a long moment. He wanted to say something to ease Danny's guilt, but couldn't think of anything.

They spent the next six hours spelling each other, one sitting by Steve's bed while the other made phone calls and collected information from Chin and the HPD officers that were still searching for a lead to Rhinehart.

At six AM Kono slipped into the hospital room to relieve Danny. He found him, as he had before, sitting by McGarrett's bed, eyes fixed on the sleeping detective, face racked with guilt and pain.

Deciding that Williams had had enough, Kono patted his shoulder. "Time to go home, Danno."

"What?" The sandy-haired officer looked up, disoriented. "Oh, Kono. Anything?" Suddenly the lack of sleep and strain on his nerves felt like a leaden net.

"Nope. Why don't you go home, Danny? I'll stay with him until Duke gets here."

Williams hesitated. He knew he was tired, but he didn't want to leave McGarrett until he was sure he was all right.

"Come on, bruddah. You look wiped." He paused. "I'll call and sic Jenny on you."

Danno held up his hands in defeat. "Anything but that. I'll go quietly." He glanced at McGarrett. "Call me at home if he wakes up, will you?"

"You know it." Kono assured his friend. "You still got your shadow?"

Williams grimaced. "Yes. The Governor said that until Rhinehart is caught, Steve and I have HPD protection." He turned to leave. "See you in the morning."

"Right."

Kono settled back in the chair and picked up the magazine Danno had been reading. "SURFING NEWS." Excellent! He hadn't had time to read the most recent issue.

*****

Outside Danny got into the squad car that waited.

"Home, sir?" The officer asked.

Williams sighed. "Yeah, Kenny. Might as well."

The two policemen drove in silence for most of the trip. Finally Officer Stephens spoke.

"If I can ask, sir, how is Mr. McGarrett?"

"Still unconscious, but it looks like he'll make it."

When the other man didn't respond, Danno glanced at him.

"Why?"

"Just curious. I mean, we're all concerned. McGarrett's like -- I don't know, a figurehead, I guess. You know, the way a cop should be." He cast Danny a sheepish look. "Articulation was never my strong suit, sir."

Williams grinned at the native cop. "I think you do just fine, Kenny."

*****

Kono looked up with a start when he felt a hand on his knee. He saw that Steve was awake and coherent, a somewhat weakened smile on his lips.

"Boss!" The Hawaiian exclaimed. "You're awake!"

"That I am, Kono." His voice was faint and rasping. "What's been happening?"

"Not a lot." the big cop said, disgusted. "Looks like Rhinehart got away for now. But we'll get him."

Steve patted the black-clad knee. "I know you will, Kono."

McGarrett's eyes closed briefly, then flew open. He grasped the guardrail and tried in vain to sit up.

"Whoa, Boss!" Kono jumped to his feet, loosening Steve's grip on the polished bar. "Lay still, Steve. You've had a hard time."

"Danno! Where's Danno?" There was a desperate note in McGarrett's voice and the light in the blue eyes was panicked.

"I just sent him home. He's been hanging around here since you were brought in, practically. I thought he could use some rest."

"No!" Steve gripped Kono's hand with surprising strength. "Get him back, Kono. There's a bomb or something else waiting for him at his apartment."

Kono tried to reason with the distraught boss. "You've been dreamin', Steve. Danny's fine. He was here just 15 minutes --"

"Call him!" McGarrett shouted, teeth gritted, fingers biting into the other policeman's hand. "You're got to stop him from going home! Use the radio!"

Kono looked up as Dr. Bergman pushed into the room.

"What the hell is going on in here?" He demanded, then relief spread through him as he realized McGarrett was awake. "Steve! I might have known you'd make a ruckus the minute you opened your eyes."

"He thinks Danny's in trouble." Kono told him. "I'm going to radio the squad car that took him home." He shrugged at the doctor's skeptical look. "It can't hurt to check."

"Thank you, Kono." McGarrett breathed, relaxing onto his pillows. "The last thing I remember is Rhinehart saying he was going to leave a little 'surprise' for Danno at his apartment."

"I'll call right now, Steve." Kono promised and hurried out.

"Now, I want you to lay there and relax." Bergman said sternly. "I'm going to check you over and I don't want you to worry about anything."

*****

Stephens pulled the car in front of Williams' apartment building.

"Want to come up and wait?" Danny asked.

"No. I think I'll wait down here until my backup gets here. Then I'll be in the hallway."

"Okay." He opened the car door. "Thanks for the ride."

"My pleasure."

Danny went up to his apartment. He was exhausted, mentally and physically, but still his mind churned with self-doubt and anger. He knew he'd never be able to face McGarrett -- not until he'd brought in the savage who'd hurt him.

"Maybe a shower." He decided, stripping off his shirt. He had to ease the knot in his chest if he was going to think straight.

He emerged half an hour later having cleansed his body but not the aching tension inside.

*****

On the street below, Officer Stephens sat in his patrol car, watchful of anything out of the ordinary. He reached for the radio mic as it crackled to life.

"Stephens."

"I have a patch from Five-0."

"But it through."

"This is Kono from Five-0. Who's this?"

"Hey, Kono, it's Ken Stephens."

"Kenny! Listen, this could be a false alarm, but I don't think so. McGarrett thinks Dan Williams' apartment is booby trapped. I'll send the bomb squad over, but go up and get him out of there, just in case."

"Right."

Stephens raced up the stairs to Danny's apartment and knocked loudly.

The door was opened by a surprised Danno.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"We're not sure." The officer said, a hand on the other man's arm. "Kono just called me. McGarrett's conscious and he insists there's some kind of booby trap in here."

"My apartment?" Danny asked, glancing around.

"Bomb squad's on the way, but he wants you to wait outside."

"I was just going to grab a glass of iced tea..." He started for the refrigerator, calling over his shoulder. "You want one."

"No, sir. I really think we should wait--"

The sound of sirens on the street below stopped Danny in his tracks, turning him around.

"They're here."

To Stephens' relief, Williams preceded him out the door and down the steps to the street.

The head of HPD's bomb squad led his team up to the apartment.

Less than half an hour later they reported that Danny's refrigerator door had been wired with enough explosives to level most of the building.

*****

Late the next afternoon Steve was moved to a private room. While Danny checked with Bergman, Chin and Kono about his condition, he couldn't make himself visit his friend. Somehow, after all that had happened, most of which he felt responsible for, he couldn't face McGarrett. Be he disappointed or forgiving, Williams knew he wouldn't be able to take whatever Steve offered. Instead he threw himself into the work that had piled up while they'd searched for Rhinehart.

The afternoon of the second day Steve cornered Kono on one of his visits.

"Where's Danno?"

Immediately the big Hawaiian looked uncomfortable, eyes on his shoes.

"Uh, well, he's at the office, Boss. A lotta work piled up while you've been out."

Steve frowned.

"It hasn't kept you or Chin or Jenny or Duke away. Is something wrong?" Alarm made him sit up straighter. "Did something happen to Danno? Did Rhinehart make good on his threat?"

"No!" Kono hastened to assure his superior. "Danny's fine."

McGarrett fixed him with a hard gaze and the other person caved in.

"I think he's feelin' guilty about what happened. About the kidnapping and, and what Rhinehart did to you and then not bein' able to find him." He shrugged. "I don't think he can face you."

A sinking feeling filled Steve, features sagging.

"I thought we were better friends than that."

Kono tried to make the chief understand. He didn't want anything to happen to the special relationship the two men had, but he didn't know if even he understood how Williams felt.

"I think Danny fells like he failed you, that he didn't measure up." He tried again. "Danny tries so hard to please you, no that's not right -- he just tries too hard to be perfect in your eyes. He thinks he's failed and he can't face it, or you."

McGarrett ran a hand over his face. Wearily he leaned back against the pillows. His face still hurt and his body ached, but at least the feelings were back and he could move and talk and think again. All he needed was a crisis and with the one person who could never fail for him.

"Kono, get him in here. Make it an order from me if you have to. We need to talk."

"Right, Boss."

*****

That evening Danny approached McGarrett's hospital room with more than a slight trepidation. Kono had relayed Steve's request for a visit and the younger officer had spent the rest of the afternoon screwing up his nerve.

He stood in the hallway outside McGarrett's door for a long time before he finally raised a hand to knock.

"Come in."

Steeling himself for the worst, Williams opened the door and went inside.

Steve sat up in bed, clad in pajamas and a blue terry cloth robe. The swelling in his face had gone down, but the bruises still told their violent story. When he saw his second in command, McGarrett smiled.

"Hello, Danno."

"Steve." Danny hesitated, then came to stand by the bed. "How you feeling?"

"I'll feel a lot better when I find out why you haven't been to see me in two days."

Steve could see him groping for reasons -- excuses.

"Doc says he had to throw you out before I woke up." Steve grinned crookedly. "I know I'm less of a pain in the ass when I'm asleep, Danno, but..."

"It's not that, Steve." Williams dropped into the chair beside the bed. "I just couldn't face you. Not after what happened. Not after I let you be kidnapped and..."

McGarrett saw the pain in his friend's eyes and it tore at his heart.

"You didn't 'let' them kidnap me, Danno. Rhinehart never had any intention of taking you. He wanted you to suffer the way he did, by hurting the person closest to you."

"And I should have known that, Steve!" Danny exclaimed. "I was there, I should have known."

"No." Steve disagreed. "We did what we thought was right. That's the most a man can ever do."

"But, Steve, the things he did --"

"It's over, Danno. I'll heal." He leaned forward, his hand on Williams'. "But if we let this break us apart -- as a team or as friends -- then Rhinehart's accomplished what he set out to do, Danno! He wins! We can't let him win!"

With the last of his strength, Steve reached up, cupping his hand around his friend's head, bringing his closer to the bed. Then he lay back, exhausted.

Danny leaned over the bed, his face inches from Steve's.

"Don't let him win, Danno." McGarrett patted the side of his face and Dan sat on the edge of the bed. "We need each other and Hawaii needs both of us." He grimaced as he shifted sore muscles. "Together."

Danny swallowed hard, eyes misting.

"Don't worry, Steve. I'm not going anywhere." He grinned, "And neither are you."

"It'll take more than Rhinehart to put me out of commission, Danno." He drew a breath, squeezing Danny's arm. "Suppose you see if you can rustle us up some real coffee and we'll talk about it. Maybe we can come up with an idea about what happened to him."

"Right." Williams rose and headed for the door. "Be right back."

Dan Williams walked down the corridor to the elevators feeling as though a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. The bottom line was Steve was okay and life would go on. They couldn't get ever bad guy every time -- Danny frowned at that thought -- but eventually they would get Rhinehart.

The elevator doors opened and he stepped inside, hitting the button marked 'CAFETERIA'.

He only hoped they could get him before Rhinehart did any more damage. Then he smiled. Steve was going to be all right and for now that was the most important thing.

PAU