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Steve found the envelope as he opened the front door to leave for work. He’d been off for just over a week recovering from the wounds he’d sustained in North Korea. Of course he’d argued against the need to stay home for so long, but Danny had thrown such an epic rant that the SEAL decided discretion was the better part of valour and meekly took to his bed.
Now after eight days of sitting on his ass – and sneaking out of the house to go swimming when Danny wasn’t watching – he was finally ready to get back in the game. Although Danny was staying with him and the rest of the team had visited regularly, he still missed being with them at work and he definitely missed the action that came of being the head of Five-0.
The SEAL reached down and picked up the manila, 8 x 10 envelope lying on his front porch. He was suspicious at first about what it contained or who would leave it for him. It reminded him of the regular packages he used to receive from Laura Hills but she was long dead and he had the contents of his father’s tool box back in his possession.
Steve stepped back into his house and put his car keys down on a nearby end table and ripped the envelope open. He stuck his fingers in the envelope and felt the smooth texture of a photograph inside. He tugged it out. It was facing away from him so he turned it over. The Commander felt the air punched from his lungs when he viewed the image. His knees turned to jelly and he stumbled across the room to sink into a nearby chair. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. It couldn’t be. He shut his eyes tightly as if to wipe the image from his mind. He opened his eyes again but it was the same horrible image: Danny. Handing a package to Wo Fat.
**********
Steve sat slumped on a bench under the shade of a palm tree a block from the Five-0 offices. He clutched the envelope in his hands trying to remember how to breathe.
It was a fake. It had to be. There’s no way that Danny was in league with Wo Fat.
Steve swallowed roughly feeling a surge of uncertainty and grief wash over him. If anyone had asked him 16 months ago if Nick Taylor would betray him and his country he would have punched that person in the mouth. Same with Governor Jameson. And Jenna Kaye.
So much betrayal.
Steve was still off kilter after discovering that Jenna had lured him to North Korea ready to trade his life to Wo Fat for that of her fiancé. Was he wrong about Danny too? Was the Jersey detective part of Wo Fat’s scheme? Had Danny been set up to run into Steve in his father’s garage two years ago so that he could feed information to the master criminal?
Steve put the envelope down beside him on the bench and dropped his head into his shaking hands as he struggled to tamp down on his emotions and consider the problem logically. He just…he couldn’t be that wrong about Danny…could he?
He felt his phone vibrate and pulled it out of his pocket to see yet another call from Danny. This was the third time his partner had called this morning, obviously worried about why Steve hadn’t shown up for work. Is that why Danny wanted to know where Steve was all the time? Is that why he acted like a mother hen? Because Wo Fat ordered him to do it?
Steve shivered, suddenly very cold in the hot Hawaiian day. As he looked up and watched the brightly dressed tourists and casually dressed Hawaiians pass by, he felt almost nauseated. He didn’t think he’d ever felt so alone.
With shaking hands Steve pulled out his phone again and called Chin.
“Hey brah, where are you? We’re starting to get worried,” the older Hawaiian detective answered without preamble.
“Chin is Danny nearby? Does he know I’m on the phone with you?”
Steve heard his teammate pause in confusion.
“No he’s in his office why?”
“Chin listen to me, I need you to meet me at the coffee shop around the corner. Please don’t tell Danny or Kono where you’re going or that you’re meeting me. Right away brah, please?”
Steve endured a few seconds of silence until Chin spoke again, uncertainty sounding in his voice.
“Yeah, ok Steve. I’ll be right there.”
**********
“It’s a fake,” hissed Chin, clutching the photo in both hands tempted to tear the offensive image up.
The two friends were sitting in the Five-0’s favourite coffee shop where Steve had handed the photograph to the older detective as soon as he sat down.
“Yeah…” Steve replied uncertainly earning an angry glare from the other man.
“What? You think this is real? You think Danny works for Wo Fat?”
The SEAL scrubbed his hands over his face then dropped them to his sides.
“No…no, I…shit I don’t know what to think any more Chin! I’ve been betrayed so much.”
The Hawaiian detective shook his head dismissively.
“Danny is your best friend Steve. He cares about you. He considers you his brother. He would never betray you.”
Steve leaned forward in his chair and laid his hands flat on the table.
“But, what if he had no choice? Maybe Wo Fat threatened Grace or…”
“No, no way,” snapped Chin earning disapproving looks from the coffee shop’s few customers. He lowered his voice with effort.
“If Danny was in trouble or if Gracie was being threatened he would come to you, he would come to us. He would know better than to try and play ball with a scum bag like Wo Fat. He would know that he could never trust the man.”
Steve nodded slowly and took in a deep breath before blowing it out.
“Yeah. Yes, of course. Danny’s not stupid it’s just...” Steve reached out and clasped Chin’s forearm almost desperately.
“Chin, you know I care about Danny but…goddamn it I’ve been lied to and betrayed so often I can’t even trust my own gut feelings anymore.”
Chin regarded his boss critically for a moment. Part of him was angry with Steve for not immediately laughing at the absurdity of the photograph, but another part understood Steve’s hesitation. The younger man, despite being a SEAL and in military intelligence, trusted people a bit too easily and therefore had his heart broken just as easily. If this photograph was real – and Chin knew in his gut that it wasn’t – it would destroy Steve.
“OK, so we need to prove this photograph is a fake,” announced Chin deciding to take charge of the situation. “We need to have it examined by an expert and prove it’s been Photoshopped or something.”
Steve nodded firmly.
“Yes, you’re right. That’s a good idea. We’ll find someone we can trust to look at it, but I don’t know anyone…” The younger man’s voice faded away in his uncertainty.
It was obvious to Chin that Steve was too rattled to think clearly.
“What about asking Catherine? She must know someone.”
**********
“Steve, are you trying to get me in trouble?”
“Cath, no I…”
“Do you want me to be court-martialed?”
“Cath, I don’t want anything to happen to you, but I’m desperate.”
“You’re always desperate Steve; every time you ask me to use military resources to help you with one of your cases.”
“This isn’t a case this time Cath. This is Danny. Someone is trying to make it look like he’s in league with Wo Fat by manufacturing a picture of him with that bastard. I need to find someone who can examine the picture and tell me it’s a fake.”
Steve heard Catherine’s heavy sigh on the other end of the line. She was on her ship somewhere out in the Pacific and had taken a quick break from her duty station to answer his call.
“Steve…what if it isn’t a fake. What if Danny is working with Wo Fat?”
“He isn’t Cath…he can’t be.”
“Steve…”
“No Cath, not Danny. I can’t…he wouldn’t…he wouldn’t do that to me.”
Another sigh from the other end of the phone.
“Alright, Steve. I have someone in mind that you can speak to. Give me a couple of hours until I get off duty then I’ll send you his name.”
“Thanks sweetheart.”
“You owe me, sailor!”
**********
Steve entered the Five-0 offices almost reluctantly. He couldn’t realistically skip work for the day just to avoid seeing Danny. But now that he was walking through the doors, he felt a wave of nausea roll over him and he had to stop and take several deep breaths, hands held firmly on his hips.
“Hey, Super SEAL, you ok?”
Steve heard Danny’s anxious voice coming from behind him and he needed to pause for a moment to school his features into a neutral expression. He turned around and gave his friend a weak smile.
“Hey, Danny. Yeah, I’m ok.”
“Where you been?”
Steve turned away and began walking to his office talking to Danny over his shoulder.
“Oh, I forgot I had an appointment at Pearl this morning. Sorry I didn’t call.”
Steve entered his office and walked around his desk to boot up his computer. When he looked up again, his partner was standing in the doorway giving him a strange look.
“What?”
“You ok babe? You’re looking a bit peaked. Maybe you came back to work too early?”
The gentle concern in Danny’s voice caused a lump to form in the SEAL’s throat and he had to look down at his computer and pretend to concentrate on logging in to his system.
“Yeah, I’m fine D, nothing to worry about.”
Steve glanced up to see Danny regarding him doubtfully. He had never been able to keep a secret from his partner but then again, he’d never had a secret that could destroy their friendship. Steve forced what he hoped was a more realistic smile to his face as he sat down at his desk and began typing nonsense into his keyboard.
“Gonna stand there blocking the light all day Danny?” he asked looking away from his best friend and staring fixedly at the computer screen.
“No, no!” replied the Jersey native waving his hands in a dismissive gesture. “Sorry to bother you my liege. Just checking to be sure you’re ok.”
“I’m fine,” Steve responded abruptly hoping Danny would take the hint and leave.
The detective paused for another moment watching his friend before shrugging and turning away to go back to his own office. Steve let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding and sank back weakly into his chair.
Steve let his eyes wander to the new framed picture on his desk: Steve, Danny, Grace and the rest of the team on Waikiki Beach enjoying a day of lunch, laughter and surfing. The Commander stared at the image of Danny, his partner and best friend. The brother he never had. The blond man was laughing, his hair a mess from being in the water. A pair of sunglasses pushed up to rest on the sun-bleached mop. He looked young and happy. Steve felt his eyes fill with tears as he reached across the desk to turn the photo away.
**********
Steve knocked on the paint-chipped door of the rundown apartment then glanced over at Chin who’d insisted on accompanying him. The two men lifted their eyebrows at each other in disbelief. Catherine had insisted the man in this apartment was a genius at photo and document interpretation and was world-renowned. Steve couldn’t help thinking that kind of skill couldn’t pay much as he watched a cockroach skitter across the hallway beneath his feet.
The door flew open as if blown by a stiff breeze and Steve and Chin came face-to-face with one of the most bizarre looking people the SEAL had ever seen. Walter Orenko was a Little Person, not more than four and a half feet tall. His scraggly hair was grey, wiry and out of control. He looked a little like Einstein. Orenko peered up at the two men through thick glasses that made his eyes look comically large.
“What?” the man demanded sharply.
“Walter Orenko?”
“Yeah?”
“Catherine Rollins sent me to you,” Steve replied.
The little man’s face was transformed as a beautiful smile spread over it. He seemed to light up from the inside as his eyes took on a faraway look.
“Ahh, Catherine,” he sighed, “The beautiful Lt. Rollins.”
Orenko seemed to snap out of his reverie and looked Steve up and down critically for a moment.
“You must be the boyfriend,” he stated, clearly not impressed.
Steve glanced at Chin who was struggling not to laugh. Steve cleared his throat and nodded giving Orenko a weak smile.
“Yeah, I guess. I mean…I’m Lt. Commander Steve McGarrett. This is my friend Chin Ho Kelly. Catherine said you could help us.”
The small man gave an annoyed huff then nodded his head in exasperation.
“Only because Catherine sent you. If you’d come on your own I would throw you out on your ass.”
The idea of such a tiny man being able to throw a navy SEAL anywhere should have been hilarious but Steve didn’t feel much like laughing today.
Orenko slammed his apartment door after the two men entered the tiny space. He pushed by them and walked quickly over to a large desk located in the centre of what would normally be the living room. The small man had an impressive array of computer equipment, scanners, printers, and a lot of other things that Steve didn’t recognize but that left Chin wide-eyed and open-mouthed with avarice.
“What do you want?” asked Orenko sitting down behind his desk and crossing his arms on his chest in annoyance. “I’m very busy.”
Steve pulled the photograph of Danny and (supposedly) Wo Fat out of the envelope and handed it to the other man.
“I need you to examine this and tell me if it’s fake or not.”
Orenko raised one eyebrow in growing interest. The smaller man first picked up a magnifying glass and examined the image for several minutes. He huffed in annoyance then leaned over his desk and laid the photograph on a nearby scanner. The machine hummed and whirred for a moment until the image popped up on one of the smaller man’s two computer screens. Orenko magnified the image until it was almost distorted then began to slowly examine every inch of it.
Steve stood nearby shifting from foot to foot nervously and trying not to hover over the expert. Just as he opened his mouth to demand the smaller man’s opinion, he looked over at Chin who narrowed his eyes at him and Steve knew that meant he needed to reign himself in until Orenko was ready to speak.
Fifteen long minutes passed before Orenko snorted, lifted the lid on the scanner and snatched the photograph off the glass shoving it towards Steve.
“The photograph is real,” he announced before turning his attention back to the computer screen.
The Commander stood frozen for a moment, mouth gaping open and hands clutching the photograph, almost crushing it between his fingers. Chin looked over in concern as he saw the blood drain from his boss’s face and watched the younger man sway on his feet. Walking over quickly, Chin grabbed Steve by the arm and pushed him towards a nearby chair forcing him to sit. The Hawaiian detective spun around to look at Orenko with blazing eyes.
“You’re wrong. The photograph is a fake. It has to be.”
The small man turned slowly and gave Chin a look of disgust.
“If it’s a fake it’s the best I’ve ever seen!”
“Then it’s the best you’ve ever seen, so what?” snapped Chin, ready to throttle the bastard who just confirmed that Steve’s best friend was a liar and a spy. “That just means there’s someone out there good enough to create a photo like this and fool a genius like you,” sneered Chin, deliberately drawing out the word genius.
Orenko snorted and turned back to his computer screen.
“I hardly think so.”
In two steps Chin was looming over the little man. He smashed the flat of his hand down on Orenko’s computer keyboard before the expert could return to his work.
“Who has the knowledge and ability to do something like this?” Chin demanded pinning the smaller man to his seat with an icy stare.
“Lots of people can do Photoshop,” snarled Orenko derisively, “any kid with a home computer.”
The Hawaiian detective leaned down so his nose was inches from Orenko’s face.
“I’m not talking about a kid with a home computer,” he hissed menacingly. “I’m talking about an expert, an artist, someone good enough to fool even you.”
Orenko cleared his throat and looked away from the angry Hawaiian detective.
“There are several people around the world.”
“Names,” barked Chin.
The small man glared back at Chin for a moment then turned back to his keyboard making a sound of disgust deep in his throat. Orenko unlocked a heavily encrypted file and the computer screen popped to life with a list of a half-dozen names and addresses. The small man sent the document to his printer and pointed at it while giving Chin a look filled with hatred.
“Take it and go.”
**********
“We have to tell him,” whispered Kono, her voice cracking. “We have to tell Danny.”
Lori Weston snorted from across the room where she sat at the edge of Steve’s couch, Chin beside her.
“We can’t do that,” snorted the former Homeland Security agent in disbelief. “If we tell him we have proof he’s been working for Wo Fat he’ll bolt, or worse yet, he’ll tell Wo Fat we’re onto him.”
“Wo Fat already knows we’re onto him,” replied Chin testily. “And Kono’s right, we have to tell Danny what’s going on. Maybe he can help us figure out something about this picture.”
Chin looked over at Steve who was sitting behind his desk, hands lying bonelessly in his lap and staring out his office window towards Danny’s office. The Jersey native had left early to spend an evening with his daughter and Chin and Steve decided that it was time to bring the rest of the team in on the case.
“Steve,” Lori sat forward on the couch as she spoke. “Danny could be our conduit to Wo Fat. If we follow him and tap his phone he could lead us right to the bastard.”
“Danny is not guilty!” yelled Kono leaping out of her chair and allowing the offensive photograph to slide to the floor. She stood in the middle of the room with her hands fisted beside her body, her face flushed with rage.
“He’s our friend, our Ohana. He moved to Hawaii to be near his daughter. He’s a decorated cop – a great detective. He wouldn’t do something like this and he sure as hell wouldn’t stab us in the back.”
Chin stood up from the sofa and walked over to his young cousin who was vibrating with rage. He murmured a few soothing words to her and pushed her gently back into the chair before turning to face Lori again.
“You don’t know Danny like we do. He’s been with us every step of the way since Five-0 was created. He was there when Mary got kidnapped. He was there when Steve was accused of murdering the Governor. He always stood by us and we’re going to stand by him. Jesus Christ he almost died of Sarin poisoning last year.”
Lori leaned back against the couch, placing one arm along the back. She looked up at Chin appraisingly for a moment.
“Yes, I heard about the Sarin incident; very frightening. Exactly how did you guys know it was Sarin and get him the right treatment?”
“Jenna recognized…” Chin’s voice faded away, his face going pale as he made the connection.
“Yes, Jenna,” snapped Lori with disgust. “The Jenna Kaye who tricked all of you into taking her into Five-0 then worked with Wo Fat to ambush and almost kill Steve.”
Chin crossed his arms tightly across his chest and shook his head firmly.
“Danny isn’t working for Wo Fat.”
Lori made a dismissive sound as she looked away from the Hawaiian detective and towards a still silent Steve.
“Uh huh. I’m sure you all believed that of Governor Jameson too.”
Steve turned in his chair slowly and regarded each of his friends in turn before he spoke.
“We can’t take any chances,” he spoke quietly but no one missed the hitch in his voice. “I can’t believe that Danny would betray us but we have to know for sure.”
“Steve…” interrupted Kono.
The SEAL raised his palm towards the young police officer and shook his head.
“We have to know, Kono. Tomorrow we’ll show Danny the picture and talk to him about it. In the meantime I want him tailed and a tap put on his phone.”
Chin’s jaw dropped in horror.
“Steve, for Christ’s sake we can’t do that! If Danny finds out that we doubted him, that we didn’t trust him…”
Steve slammed a fist onto his desk and shot out of his chair, his face red with rage.
“Do you think I like doing this Chin? Do you think I’m happy asking for surveillance on my partner? That man is my best friend. I hate feeling like this – even a niggling feeling of doubt is killing me but what else am I supposed to do?”
“You can trust your brother,” spat Kono.
Steve deflated visibly and his team members were shocked to see his eyes fill with tears.
“I…I do trust him Kono. My gut, my heart tell me he’s totally innocent but there’s a little voice in my head – the one that reminds me I’ve been burned over and over again – telling me to be smart this time. To not fall into Wo Fat’s trap.”
Steve lifted his hands to his face and held them there for a moment breathing deeply. Finally he dropped them away and his teammates’ stomachs churned at his wet eyes.
“I need to know for sure. God help me,” he whispered, his voice small and broken.
**********
The next morning Danny stared at the photograph in horror. He was sitting in a visitor chair in front of Steve’s desk. Chin sat beside him in the other chair while Kono and Lori sat on the nearby sofa.
The now pale-faced Jersey native looked up at his partner moving his head from side to side slowly.
“It’s not me, Steve,” he gasped, his voice strangled with emotion. “It’s not me in this picture. Or…it is me but the picture is a fake. I don’t know Wo Fat. I’ve never met the man. I saw him that day on the golf course when we arrested Noshimuri but that’s the only time.”
Steve sat silently for a moment, his eyes fixed on his hands which were clasped tightly on top of his desk.
“We’ve had the photo examined by an expert, Danny,” he replied softly. “He seems to think it’s real.”
Danny shifted in his chair and glanced over at Chin in shock before facing Steve again.
“It’s not real, Steve. You have to believe me. I don’t know Wo Fat. I’ve never spoken to him. I would never work with him. I would never do that to you,” he glanced around at his other team members, “to any of you.”
Steve nodded slowly his lips pulled tight together for a moment. He looked up at his friend.
“I want to believe you, Danny. I…I want to but, I’m scared. I’m terrified of being burned again. It was bad enough with Nick and the Governor and Jenna but if you betrayed me…”
“I wouldn’t Steve.”
“…if you betrayed me,” Steve continued, “I don’t know how I would survive that.”
Danny sat staring at his best friend for a moment almost paralyzed with horror. Did Steve really believe any of this? Could he really think Danny would side with Wo Fat against him? The detective swallowed hard and couldn’t stop a small shiver from coursing through his body.
“Danny,” Chin spoke softly while he reached out and put a warm hand on Danny’s forearm. “You know you can tell us anything don’t you? You know we’ll do anything to help you. If you’re being blackmailed or Grace is being threatened…”
“No!” yelled the Jersey native as he shot to his feet.
“No one is blackmailing me. No one is threatening me. No one owns me.”
“Danny,” snapped Lori rising to her feet. “How exactly do you explain that photograph then? Our expert says it’s not a fake. That’s you in the picture; you and Wo Fat. When was it taken? Why were you meeting with him?”
“I didn’t,” cried Danny again, almost panting with shock and anger. “I don’t know him. I don’t know how the photograph was created but I’m not in with Wo Fat.”
Danny spun on his heel and walked behind Steve’s desk and knelt down in front of his best friend. He reached out a put a hand on each of Steve’s knees.
“Steve…Steve, I know what you’ve been through. I understand how many people have betrayed you. I can’t blame you for having reservations, but please, don’t doubt our partnership. You’re my best friend and I care about you. I would never hurt you. I’d kill myself before I betrayed you.”
Steve felt tears flood his eyes and he reached out and wrapped his hand around the back of Danny’s neck.
“I know, Danny. I know I shouldn’t doubt you for even a moment. You’re the best friend I ever had.”
Lori let out an exasperated huff and walked over to lean on the top of Steve’s desk with her fists. She looked down at Danny, still kneeling at Steve’s feet.
“This is all very touching and dramatic, Danny, but I happen to think you’re lying and I also happen to think if you were any kind of man you’d admit the truth and stop torturing Steve.”
“What’s the matter with you, Lori?” yelled Kono as she scrambled up from the couch and stalked over to stand toe-to-toe with the blonde woman. “Why are you so convinced Danny is guilty?”
“The evidence is pretty damning, Kono,” replied Lori with a sneer. “I know you haven’t been a cop very long but you have to learn to separate your emotions from your work or you’ll never survive.”
The Hawaiian officer pushed her face within inches of Lori’s.
“If it means becoming as cold and emotionless as you I wouldn’t want to be a cop anymore.”
“That’s enough!” shouted Steve climbing to his feet with one hand on Danny’s bicep to pull him up as well. “We’re not going to let this destroy us! This is exactly what Wo Fat wants – to drive a wedge between us.”
Kono and Lori stared at each other angrily for another moment before the Hawaiian police officer turned and stalked to the corner of the room, the farthest she could get away from the other woman without actually leaving the room.
Steve turned to eye Lori critically.
“Look Lori, I know you believe the photograph is genuine and Danny is in league with Wo Fat, but as a police officer you of all people should understand the concept of innocent until proven guilty and that’s the way we’re going to run this investigation. You’re going to assume Danny is innocent, alright?”
The blonde woman rolled her eyes and shook her head in disgust.
“You’re setting yourself up for heartbreak, Steve, but if that’s the way you want to play it, fine.”
“That’s the way I want to play it,” Steve growled between gritted teeth before turning to Kono and Chin. “I want you two to keep trying to contact the names that Orenko gave us. Someone manufactured this photo.”
The two Hawaiian detectives nodded and left the room shooting encouraging smiles to Danny.
Steve turned back to the blonde officer.
“Lori, I want you to finish up our last case. Someone needs to file the documentation and report to the Prosecuting Attorney.”
The female office stared at Steve in disbelief.
“You’re cutting me out of the investigation into Danny’s behaviour? Why? Are you scared I’ll find out the photo is real?”
“Fuck you, Lori,” Danny shouted taking several steps towards the young woman. “I haven’t done anything wrong, why can’t you get that through your thick head?”
Steve grabbed Danny by the bicep and gently pulled him back to stand beside him.
“Danny stop, you’re just making this worse.”
Danny made a desperate sound and pulled away from Steve going to stand in the corner that Kono had retreated to moments earlier. Steve watched him sympathetically for a moment before turning back to Lori.
“I’m not cutting you out but the Hopkins case has to be completed and you were the one that went undercover on it. I will keep you advised on what’s happening on the investigation of Danny, but we can’t afford to have all five of us doing this.”
“Five of us?” snapped Lori looking between Steve and Danny incredulously. “You’re not letting him in on this? You can’t actually believe it’s appropriate for him to be involved in the investigation into his behaviour?”
Steve opened and closed his mouth for a moment before looking sadly over at Danny and shaking his head grimly.
“No. Danny won’t be any part of his investigation.”
The Jersey native spun around as if to argue with his partner then seemed to shrink into himself. He nodded his head reluctantly before turning away again.
Steve turned back to Lori whose face was flushed with indignation.
“You’re making a mistake,” she snapped before striding out of the room.
The two partners stood quietly for a moment before Steve walked over to Danny who was still facing the wall. The SEAL put his hands on his partner’s shoulders and turned him around to face him. He was surprised to see the smaller man’s eyes bright with unshed tears.
“We’ll figure this out, Danno,” whispered Steve, squeezing Danny’s shoulder sympathetically.
“What if we can’t? What if you can’t find the person who created the photo? If I have to leave Five-0…if I lose your friendship, my Ohana…” Danny’s voice broke and he dropped his chin to his chest breathing raggedly.
Steve pulled the smaller man against his chest and wrapped his arms tightly around his friend.
“I know the picture is a fake and I’m going to prove it. Wo Fat is trying to destroy our friendship and Five-0, but he’s not going to get away with it. We are a family and he’s not going to destroy us.”
**********
“I want him out of the Five-0 offices and away from the team right now!”
The Governor glared up at Steve who was standing at parade rest in front of the older man’s desk. The Governor had not invited the Commander to sit down, a clear indication that this conversation would be brief and to the point.
“Governor…”
“He’s colluding with a major, international criminal and you’re allowing him to flit around Five-0 headquarters, have access to police databases and do god knows what with the information he finds.”
“Governor, Detective Williams is doing paperwork on some of our cases and doing a bit of digging on a few of HPD’s cold cases.”
“But he still enjoys full access to our secured system does he not?”
Steve swallowed hard and nodded his head reluctantly.
“I want him out; suspended; fired, I don’t care what!” repeated the Governor turning back towards his computer.
“Governor, I believe Detective Williams is being framed. If I suspend him that will prove to him that I lack confidence…”
“I don’t care if Detective Williams gets his feelings hurt, Commander,” growled the Governor, rising to his feet to meet Steve eye to eye. “I will not have a suspected spy and criminal in my task force. Get him out. Now!”
Steve stood rigid for a moment feeling his chest tighten with suppressed anger. Finally he nodded once before turning on his heel and striding out of the Governor’s office.
**********
“Why Lori? Why did you run to the Governor?”
Steve stood in the middle of his office his hands clasped tightly behind his back as if struggling to keep them in check in case he punched the blonde woman.
“You’ve lost your perspective on this, Steve,” she replied softly, her tone almost wheedling. “I know Danny’s your partner but I think he’s bad and I think you were wrong to keep him around having access to all of our files and in the perfect position to cover his tracks. Who knows what kind of information he’s fed Wo Fat in the two years he’s been with Five-0.”
Steve drew in a deep, long breath and let it out slowly in an attempt to suppress his growing rage.
“I know Danny’s not guilty but if he were, don’t you think it makes more sense to keep him around where we can keep track of him? Watch what he does?”
The younger woman shook her head decisively.
“No, it’s too dangerous. He’s flown under the radar for too long. He’s obviously smart – he fooled all of us. He has to be gotten rid of.”
Steve stared at his teammate in horror for a moment.
“Gotten rid of? What the hell are you talking about?”
The woman waved her hand dismissively.
“I don’t mean like that, obviously. I mean he has to go before he causes any more damage to this team, maybe to this island.”
Steve scrubbed his hands across his face then dropped them to his sides.
“He’s our friend, Lori. He’s my brother. I care about him. I understand that you don’t like him, but this conviction you have that he’s guilty is hurting all of us.”
Lori stepped forward hurriedly and put a warm hand on Steve’s cheek. Her eyes were moist with emotion.
“I would never hurt you, Steve. I care about you too much. You mean everything to me – everything. I’m trying to protect you, don’t you see? Danny’s betrayal is going to hurt you badly and I just want to help you deal with it.”
The Commander took a step back away from the blonde woman and stared at her in confusion for a moment.
“Lori, look…”
“No, Steve,” she replied giving him a soft, infatuated smile. “We don’t need to talk about this yet. It’s too early. Let’s just deal with the Danny issue and they we’ll have time to figure everything out.”
“The Danny issue?” snapped Steve venomously. “The Danny issue? You’re talking about my best friend. My partner. This isn’t some intellectual exercise, this is Danny’s life. These lies could destroy him.”
Lori sighed and shook her head in obvious frustration.
“You need to stop fooling yourself, Steve. Danny is a criminal. The sooner you accept that, the easier it will be to do what you have to do.”
Steve felt bile rise in his throat as Lori gave him a sad, pitying smile before opening the door to his office and walking out.
**********
Steve shut Danny’s office door and sat down heavily in one of the office chairs facing his partner’s desk. The smaller man looked over at him nervously.
Finally Steve looked up and Danny could see the pain on his friend’s face.
“You need to go home, Danny,” Steve whispered brokenly. “I’m sorry.”
Danny felt his chest tighten in fear.
“You’re not saying you believe…?”
“No, no.” interrupted Steve, hands spread in a placating gesture. “I’m not saying that at all.” The Commander took in a ragged breath before continuing.
“Lori went to the Governor and told him about the photograph and shared her suspicions of you. He wants you suspended and locked out of Five-0’s network and database.”
Danny pulled his bottom lip between his teeth and nodded slowly.
“I see.”
“It’s only until we clear your name, babe,” Steve said hurriedly.
The detective nodded again.
“I guess…I suppose it’s the right thing to do.” He nodded once more and turned to his computer logging out immediately, his hands shaking on the keyboard.
“I’ll umm…I’ll get a hotel room…” the Detective began, his voice strained and shaking.
“No man, you don’t have to do that,” interjected Steve standing up and walking around Danny’s desk putting both hands on his partner’s shoulders.
“You’ve been staying at my house, no need for that to change.”
The smaller man looked up at his friend with worry-filled eyes.
“Aren’t you afraid of leaving me alone in your house? Aren’t you afraid I’ll dig up secrets to share with Wo Fat?”
Steve gave his friend a weak, sad smile.
“You and I don’t have any secrets Danny. Aside from my SEAL missions you know everything about me and no, I’m not worried about you sharing anything with Wo Fat because I know you and I know you have nothing to do with that son of a bitch.”
Danny put his hands on Steve’s forearms and gripped them tightly.
“You’re my best friend, Steve. I would never hurt you. You, Chin, Kono and Max are my Ohana, I would never do anything…”
Steve nodded briskly and gave Danny’s shoulders a gentle shake.
“I know, Danno, I know. You don’t have to keep saying it. I trust you. That hasn’t changed.”
**********
“Chin, anything?”
Steve walked back into the office after walking Danny to his car. His partner had no idea he was under surveillance and his phone calls were being monitored. Steve didn’t know what Danny would do when he found out but he hoped the Jersey native would understand Steve’s reasoning.
“We’ve spoken to three of the six names on the list – the experts in Paris, Toronto and Springfield, Missouri of all places,” replied Chin standing up straight from where he’d been leaning over the tech table. The older man looked tired and drawn, having spent hours trying to track down the people on the list of names given to them by Orenko.
“So far, of course, they all deny making the picture. One of them had a pretty good alibi – he just got out of jail a few hours before I called him. I confirmed that with the Sûreté in Paris.”
“What about the other two?”
“No real alibis but of course since we don’t really know when the picture was made, an alibi wouldn’t help anyway. They both deny making the photo, however.”
Steve gripped the edge of the tech table, leaning heavily on both hands, and dropped his head in disappointment.
“We still have the other three to go, Steve,” said Chin encouragingly. “We’ll find the answer.”
Steve looked up at the older detective and licked his bottom lip nervously.
“What if we don’t Chin? What if we can’t prove the photo is a fake?”
The Hawaiian detective reached out and rubbed his boss’s shoulder comfortingly.
“We will, that’s all there is too it.”
Steve opened his mouth to argue but was interrupted when Kono came striding out of her office.
“I have Mr. Whittaker on the line from Bournemouth, Chin,” she reported to her cousin. The Hawaiian detective nodded and tapped a few keys bringing Kono’s Skype call up on the main Five-0 screens.
“Mr. Whittaker? My name is Lieutenant Chin Ho Kelly and I’m a police officer in Hawaii.”
“Yes, yes, your young woman already explained who you are and the nature of your call,” grumped the 50-something man in a peeved British accent. “It’s early in the bloody morning here Leftenant,” Whittaker continued, “Why are you calling me at this ungodly hour?”
Chin refused to be fazed by the angry man and calmly typed on the tech table’s keyboard before looking up at the screen again.
“I’ve just sent you a photograph that we believe has been Photoshopped by an expert. I want you to look at it and tell me if you created it.”
Whitaker rolled his eyes and sighed then looked off to the side of his screen where he could see the picture of Danny and Wo Fat that Chin had sent him.
“Never seen the buggers before,” snapped Whitaker crossing his arms insolently over his chest.
“Are you sure, Mr. Whitaker?” interrupted Steve, a note of desperation in his voice. “We aren’t interested in causing you any trouble and if you created the photograph, you didn’t do anything illegal. We just need to know if it’s a fake.”
Whitaker leaned forward slightly as if to take a better look at the image.
“As I said, I’ve never seen those men before. I didn’t create the photo.”
Steve swore softly under his breath and began to turn away from the screen.
“However,” continued Whitaker, “I may know who did.”
Steve swiveled back to stare at the Brit, feeling a sense of hope blooming in his chest.
“What? You know who did this? Who are they? Where can I find them?”
The British man raised a hand to interrupt Steve.
“It’s not quite that simple, young man. I don’t know the person’s name or where they live. I just recognize their work.”
Steve’s shoulders slumped in defeat.
“How do you recognize their work?” prompted Kono as she came to stand between Steve and Chin.
“It’s signed,” replied the older man, a smug smile forming on his lips.
The three Five-0 officers looked at each other in confusion, then back at the screen.
“What?” asked Chin in disbelief, “What do you mean? There’s no signature.”
The British man huffed in annoyance.
“Not an actual signature you git,” he grumbled at the Hawaiian detective. “Nothing so obvious as that. I mean he’s put a mark on it that identifies it as his work – or her work as the case may be. Pure ego.”
All three Five-0 team members leaned forward unconsciously to look closer at the photograph on their screen.
“Where?” demanded Kono becoming testy with the arrogant man. “What are we looking for?”
Whitaker smirked at the three faces in his screen.
“Do you see that small creature sitting on the power line behind the two men?”
The three friends squinted slightly.
“Yeah?” replied Chin doubtfully. “It’s a bird.”
“Not just any bird. That is a California Acorn Woodpecker, indigenous only to the western United States and parts of Mexico. It appears in every photo created by someone who calls himself Pieni Mies.”
The British man sat back in his chair with a self-satisfied smile.
Steve looked up at him on the screen.
“How do you know all this?”
The older man on the screen scrunched his nose in distaste.
“Let’s just say we’ve had run-ins in the past. A vile, lamentable human being is Pieni Mies.”
“And you don’t have any idea how we can find this…” Steve looked down at the name Chin was typing into the international police database. “Pieni Mies?”
“Not a clue I’m afraid. I can’t be expected to do all of your work for you can I?” The older man’s hand hovered over his keyboard. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I could use a little more kip. Have a nice day gentlemen – and lady.”
With that Whitaker‘s hand dropped to the keyboard and the Skype screen went black.
Steve looked over at Chin excitedly.
“Well, anything on that name?”
The Hawaiian detective shook his head regretfully.
“No. I can’t find anyone with that name – or any variation of it – in the law enforcement databases. Maybe he or she has never been arrested.”
“Or it’s an alias,” replied Steve sighing wearily.
“Try Googling it,” suggested Kono.
Chin typed in the name he’d been given by Whitaker and frowned at the over 6 million hits he got in return.
“Looks like there’s a song with that name in it,” announced Kono weakly with a slight shrug.
“So maybe it’s not a proper name. Go into one of the sites about the song and see if it translates, what it means,” directed Steve.
Chin did so then looked up at Steve, his eyes wide in sudden understanding.
“It’s a Finnish word, it means Little Man,” he whispered.
“Orenko,” Steve hissed smashing his fist down on the edge of the table. “That little bastard made the picture. He stood there and lied to us and I didn’t see it.”
“Neither did I, Steve,” responded Chin briskly. “But we haven’t got time to kick ourselves. Let’s go talk to him.”
**********
It was after 10 o’clock at night and Steve wasn’t in any mood to fuck around. He kicked the door in. Orenko, still sitting at his computer, let out a yelp of alarm and picked up his computer mouse as if to defend himself with it. Steve stalked over to the man, his face hard with rage. He grabbed the small man under the arms and lifted him off the chair, Orenko’s small feet dangling uselessly in the air.
“You made the picture,” Steve growled menacingly.
“Ha! You figured it out!” replied Orenko with a smirk.
“Why the fuck did you lie to us?” snarled Steve, his face inches from the smaller man’s.
“I didn’t lie. You never asked me if I made the picture you just asked who else in the world is almost as good as I am.”
Chin walked up behind Steve and put a calming hand on Steve’s shoulder.
“Who did you make the photograph for?” asked Chin, forcing himself to keep his voice even.
“My clients have a right to their privacy,” announced Orenko condescendingly.
“And I have a right to build a catapult and send you flying over the Pacific,” snarled Steve shaking the smaller man slightly. “Did Wo Fat have you make that picture?”
Orenko rolled his eyes to the ceiling.
“I don’t know anyone named Wo Fat.”
“The Asian man in the picture,” prompted Chin who was beginning to worry about what Steve would do to Orenko if he didn’t start providing information.
“Oh,” the small man replied dropping his eyes to Chin’s face. “No. I’ve never seen him before.”
“Then who hired you?” repeated Steve, his temper barely in check.
With difficulty, since Steve was still holding him under the arms and dangling him in space, Orenko crossed his arms on his chest and favoured the SEAL with a disgusted look.
“I repeat, my clients value their anonymity.”
Steve went deadly quiet for a moment and Chin felt his heart lurch in his chest. This was never a good sign and Danny wasn’t here to control his partner. The SEAL gave Orenko a twisted grin and carried the small man over to an open window. He pushed the computer expert out through the window, still holding him under the arms, and dangled the little man above the pavement four floors below.
Orenko let out a particularly ear-piercing scream and began struggling against Steve’s iron grip.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” said Steve, his voice almost light-hearted. “You’re slippery. I might drop you.”
“Let me in!” screamed Orenko, sweat now pouring down his face.
“Tell me who hired you,” repeated Steve with deadly calm.
“I…I don’t know her name,” screamed Orenko, still struggling.
“Her?” promoted Chin as he leaned around from behind Steve. “What can you tell us about her? What does she look like?”
“I don’t…” the little man began to blubber pitifully, “a blonde woman with shoulder-length hair. Tall, thin. Very beautiful.”
Steve glanced at Chin then pulled the little man back into the apartment allowing him to drop to the floor like a rag doll.
With his heart in his throat, Steve pulled out his phone and began scrolling through the stored images until he reached the shots of the team on Waikiki beach from a few weeks before. He leaned over and showed a particular image to Orenko.
“Is she in this picture?”
Orenko wiped the tears and sweat from his eyes before looking up at the phone blearily. He examined the photo then nodded.
“That’s her,” he pointed at the screen indicating Lori. “That’s the woman who hired me to make the photograph.”
**********
“Five-0, Officer Kalakua.”
“Oh, Kono, it’s Lori, I’m looking for Steve. He’s not answering his cell.”
“He’s not here, Lori,” responded the Hawaiian officer putting as much chill in her words as she could muster.
“Can you tell me where he is?” asked the blonde woman with exaggerated patience.
“Actually he and Chin are running down a lead on the person who created the fake photo of Danny. We’re pretty sure this person did it.”
Lori paused for a moment and Kono thought perhaps she’d hung up.
“Lori?”
“Yes, I’m here. If um…if you hear from Steve, tell him I’m going to be in late tomorrow.”
“I’m not your secretary, Lori. Why don’t you just leave him a voice mail?”
With that Kono disconnected the call. She had liked Lori when other woman joined the team and certainly respected her skills, but she didn’t know if she could ever forgive Lori for thinking Danny was guilty.
**********
Danny stretched out on the Adirondack chair and listen to the surf gently lap against the beach in front of Steve’s house. Super SEAL kept saying how soothing the sound of the waves was. Danny hoped he would start to experience some of that comfort soon. He’d tossed and turned on the couch unable to sleep, his mind filled with images of Steve kicking him out of Five-0, kicking him off the island and worst of all, telling Danny he hated his guts.
The detective took another pull from his beer. He felt so goddamned helpless. He wanted to be part of the investigation into the photo so he could clear himself, but he understood that having him anywhere nearby could compromise the investigation and cast doubt on any information they would find.
No, he had to trust Steve, Chin, Kono and Lori to find the answers and he couldn’t think of a better team to do it.
Danny shifted on the chair to tuck his feet up next to himself on the seat. Speaking of Lori, what the fuck was her problem? Why was she so determined to see Danny hung out to dry? Danny knew they weren’t great friends, but they got along ok and he thought they at least trusted each other.
He glanced at the chair next to him where Steve would normally be sitting. Danny knew Lori had a thing for Steve; it was pretty obvious the way she hung on his every word and watched him when she thought no one else could see her. Steve, of course, was oblivious to her behaviour. That was one of the most annoying and somehow must endearing things about Steve. Despite being male model gorgeous, he was largely unaware of his effect on people and was often surprised when a beautiful woman (or man for that matter) took an interest in him.
Danny snickered into his beer bottle and shook his head incredulously before taking another swig. Sometimes Steve was such a doofus.
The detective heard the soft crunching of sand from behind him and turned around in the chair to see if Steve had finally returned home. He was surprised to see Lori silhouetted in the murky light coming from Steve’s back porch.
“Hello, Danny,” Lori called softly.
“Oh…hi, Lori. Steve’s not here if you’re looking for him.”
The blonde agent shook her head and took a few steps closer to the detective.
“No, I’m not looking for Steve. I was looking for you.”
“Oh yeah? Did you find something out about the photograph? Do you know who made it?”
Lori wandered casually over to the shore, her back to Danny. She walked into the water until her toes were covered then stood staring at the waves for a moment before turning back to face Danny once more.
“I’m sorry, Danny,” she murmured quietly.
The detective knit his eyebrows in confusion for a moment as he put the beer on the arm of the chair and dropped his feet back into the sand.
“Sorry for what? Not believing me?”
The agent smiled strangely. Something about her behaviour was sending chills up Danny’s spine.
“No, not for that. For doing what I did.”
Danny gripped the arms of the chair in annoyance.
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about, Lori. What did you do?”
Lori shifted her position slightly and Danny saw the glint of metal in her right hand.
The detective took a deep, calming breath and observed the obviously disturbed woman speculatively for a moment.
“You had the picture created,” he stated flatly.
Lori nodded slightly and ran her left hand through her hair in a strange, jerky motion.
“Why, Lori?” the detective asked softly.
Lori slowly sank to her knees a few feet from Danny then sat back on her heels. She was oblivious to the waves washing over her jeans and the gun was pointing at Danny now.
“I love Steve,” she responded in a hoarse whisper that Danny had to strain to hear. “I need him in my life but he only has time for you. You work with him all day and live here in the house with him. I could never get him alone. You were always around.”
“So you decided to plant evidence that would make it look like I work for Wo Fat so that Steve would get rid of me.”
Lori smiled again, brighter this time.
“Don’t you see it was the best way? I didn’t want to kill you because you have a daughter. This way you’d only be kicked out of Five-0 and out of Steve’s life and I would step into the void. I would be his partner and when he was upset and hurt, I would be there to comfort him.”
Danny nodded slowly and slid forward on the chair until he was just perched on the edge of it.
“And now you’re pointing a gun at me. Why?”
The blonde agent shrugged her shoulders regretfully.
“Steve and Chin found the person who created the photograph for me. Orenko doesn’t know my name but he can describe me.”
“Then why kill me?” prompted Danny, steeling himself to lunge at the woman. “If Steve finds out you framed me he’s definitely not going to want you whether I live or die.”
The light from the porch caught the glimmer of one tear rolling down Lori’s cheek.
“I know he isn’t,” she replied regretfully, her left hand scooping up handfuls of sand and filtering it absent mindedly through her fingers.
“He won’t want me anymore. He won’t be able to love me the way I love him. But it doesn’t seem fair to just let you go on with your life with Steve; still partnered with him, still living with him, you and Steve and Grace hanging out and having fun. Why should you have that if I can’t? It’s not fair.”
The blonde agent looked up at Danny almost questioningly as if he could provide her with the answers she needed.
“Lori, even if you hadn’t done this – even if you hadn’t tried to destroy me – Steve wouldn’t go out with you.”
She nodded her head forcefully.
“Yes, he would have. Yes he would. I saw the way he looked at me when I first started. He was attracted to me. He wanted me but you kept getting in the way – your problems, your issues, your needs. Those always came first with Steve.”
“Because Steve and I are friends and Steve is protective of his friends. That’s why he would never go out with you. He’s a naval officer; he would never date anyone under his command. He just wouldn’t. Besides…” Danny paused awkwardly, “there’s Catherine.”
“That Navy bitch?” Lori suddenly hissed and scrambled to her feet, pointing her gun at Danny’s head with a shaking hand. “I’ve seen her. He doesn’t want her. That’s why he keeps letting her go…”
“She has a career in the Navy...” Danny reasoned.
“If she loved him she’d be here taking care of him like I want to do. She wouldn’t be gallivanting around the world. She doesn’t love him and he doesn’t love her. They’re just an easy fuck for each other. I want so much more with him. I want his heart and his soul and his life.”
Lori was now vibrating with emotion, drops of spittle lining her lips, her eyes wild. Danny felt another chill climb up his spine.
“Lori,” Danny spoke gently as he slowly climbed to his feet, hands held out to his sides. “You don’t want to do this. Killing me won’t fix anything.”
Danny took a slow step closer to the disturbed woman.
“You say you love Steve and you care about his heart and mind. Well killing me will devastate Steve. He’s lost so many people he loves. If he loses me he could be damaged beyond repair. Is that what you want to see happen? Do you want to destroy Steve’s life?”
The younger woman smirked and used her left hand to roughly rub the tears from her face leaving streaks of sand behind.
“You think highly of yourself don’t you?”
Danny shook his head as he took another step closer.
“No, it’s not ego. I just know how devastated I would be if something happened to Steve. And I know it’s the same way he would feel.”
Lori sniffled then grunted dismissively.
“It doesn’t matter. Nothing matters anymore. I’m tired of losing out. I’m tired of being the one left broken-hearted. It’s time someone else felt like that.”
“Is that what happened to your fiancé, Lori?” Steve’s quiet voice came from behind Danny causing both her and Danny to jump slightly. Ninja skills on display again.
Lori swallowed hard and swung her gun back and forth between Danny and Steve.
“You told me you left him at the altar but it was the other way around wasn’t it?” Steve queried moving closer and closer to the distraught woman.
“Steve,” Lori said his name in a voice laced with pain. Tears were now coursing down her face. “I just…I never wanted to hurt you. I just wanted to take care of you. To love you. To make you love me.”
“I know Lori, I understand,” replied Steve with a gentle smile. “I know why you did all of this and I’m flattered, but you have to let Danny go. If Danny gets hurt or dies I will never be able to love you. I’ll hate you forever.”
Lori shook her head, locks of her blonde hair now stuck to her sweat-stained face.
“No, it’s too late. I’ve lost everything – again. You hate me and I hate myself. I have to end this thing now. I should have ended it the night Michael left me.”
With a gentle smile, Lori lifted the gun and pointed it at her own right temple.
“Lori, NO!” screamed Steve and Danny simultaneously.
“I’m sorry,” the blonde woman mouthed the words and closed her eyes, her finger tightening on the trigger.
A shape rose quietly and gracefully from the water behind Lori and grabbed the agent around her ankles and pulled her roughly off her feet. The gun fired, grazing the very top of Lori’s skull as she fell, face first into the waves. Kono climbed the rest of the way out of the water and threw herself on the blonde agent wrenching the gun from her hand and throwing it up on the beach.
Steve splashed into the water and helped Kono pull Lori to her feet as Danny ran over to pick up the gun. As he straightened up he watched Chin materialize out of the shadows of the trees surrounding Steve’s property, Kono’s sharp shooter rifle in his hands.
Lori shrieked hysterically and struggled in Steve and Kono’s grip until Kono hauled off and slugged her across the jaw. The blonde woman sank limply to her knees saved from face planting in the water only by Steve’s strong grip on her arm.
Kono gave Steve an unrepentant smirk.
“I’ve wanted to do that for two days.”
Steve shook his head at the young officer then lifted Weston in his arms and carried her out of the surf depositing her limp body onto the beach. He straightened up to see Danny several feet away staring down at the young woman regretfully.
“You ok, babe?” Steve asked worriedly.
Danny looked up at him and smiled and nodded.
“You got here just in time, Superman, you and Wonder Woman and The Flash.”
The four friends drew together as if seeking strength from each other.
“I can’t help feeling sorry for her,” murmured Chin gently. “She’s obviously pretty messed up.”
Steve pulled his cell phone from one of his numerous cargo pant pockets and began to dial.
“Who are you calling?” asked Danny putting a hand on Steve’s arm.
The SEAL looked over at his partner as if he were nuts.
“Who do you think? I’m calling HPD to come and get her.”
“No,” replied Danny pushing Steve’s hand down gently until the Commander pushed the button to end the call. “I don’t want her to go to jail. She won’t get the help she needs there. We need to have her committed to a psychiatric hospital for treatment.”
Chin, Kono and Steve looked at each other incredulously before looking back at Danny.
“Danny, she tried to frame you. She wanted to destroy you. She could have killed you!” snapped Kono.
The blond man nodded his head and carded his fingers through his hair before replying.
“I don’t think she knew what she was doing. I’ve read her personnel file. She’s been through some horrible traumas, that’s why she keeps switching jobs. I think she’s trying to find somewhere to belong, with people who care about her and want to help her. I…I want to help her.” Danny let his voice fade away on the last words and dropped his eyes to the sand. As he shyly looked up again he saw Steve watching him with a proud smile.
“What?” Danny demanded.
Steve shook his head and replaced his phone in his pocket before replying.
“You’re such a loud mouth most of the time I forget that you’re actually a pretty decent guy.”
Danny narrowed his eyes at his partner and huffed in mock offense.
“Gee, thanks.”
Steve smiled brightly at the smaller man before raising the phone again.
“I’ll call the Governor and see if he can help.”
**********
Danny put his refillable mug of coffee in the beverage holder between the seats and slammed the car door.
“Can you please try to get us to work without the usual high speed chase or Evel Knievel gorge jumps, Steven?”
The SEAL smirked at his partner as he pulled away from his driveway and steered the Camaro out onto the main road.
“I’ll try, Danno,” he replied dryly.
The two friends sat quietly for a moment enjoying the calm drive to work, a calm that Danny knew, to his cost, wouldn’t last long. Something in the passenger side mirror caught Danny’s eye. He watched for a moment as Steve made several turns as he drove toward the palace. Danny lifted his coffee cup and took several swallows before regarding Steve with one eyebrow raised.
“Steven?”
“Yes Daniel?” Steve replied with a bit too much chirpiness for the ungodly hour.
“Don’t you think it’s time to have the surveillance taken off me? Oh and perhaps Chin could stop monitoring my phone calls at the same time,” the Jersey native suggested blandly.
Steve’s face flushed and he opened and closed his mouth uselessly several times. Finally he cleared his throat and shifted nervously in his seat.
“Umm…look Danno. It’s just that…”
“It’s alright, babe,” Danny placated softly. “I would have done the same thing, however; I think I would have tried to find cops who were a bit better at running a tail. Yesterday one of the cars ran out of gas and I had to wait for them to fill up then catch up to me.”
The end.