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By Terri Whitman © 4-5-03

China Doll

Day 5

Soft tropical breezes returned as full moon began its descent. It signaled the end of the unusual heat wave, which had gripped Honolulu for the last several days. A cooling morning shower left diamond sparkling droplets everywhere. Surfers were even out early to catch the waves. They had been unable to surf during the heat wave because the ocean hadn’t produced waves of any size, and now they had the normal waves back.

Mike Lukela had only been able to sleep on and off for three hours that night. He had tried to rest but his deep concern about his life-long friend and mentor had only allowed him to sleep in spurts. Finally after lying in bed fully awake for an hour he gave up on trying to get any real sleep and got out of bed.

"What I need to do is get out of here for a bit and clear my head," he told himself as he dressed.

The cool trade winds felt refreshing to him as he jogged southeasterly down the deserted beach towards the backside of Diamond Head. As the waves reached their zenith on the beach he deliberately splashed his way through them.

It didn’t take him very long to feel loosened up and that’s when he decided to push himself to his maximum running speed. The muscles of his thighs rippled as he ran effortlessly on the firm sandy beach. With his hands balled up into fists, his arms pumped hard as he increased his speed. His nostrils flared wide as he inhaled deeply with each stride. There were times that he felt that if he pushed himself to go faster that he might take off and sail up into the air to join the terns as they effortlessly glided on the gentle winds.

He kept up this fast pace for almost a mile. The supreme physical effort felt exhilarating to him and it had temporarily lifted the heavy weight of his office from his shoulders. The sweat dripped freely from his body almost as if to cleanse his soul and mind. Finally, almost unwillingly, he slowed down, catching his breath and coming down from his natural high. When he reached his normal turn around spot on the beach he headed back to his home.

The night sky started to lighten by the time he reached the path that led to the back of his home. His muscles still tingled from his five-mile run as he showered. Finally he dried himself off and got dressed in a white shirt and a pair of light blue slacks. Meticulously he combed through his hair and beard for he took great pride in his appearance regardless if he felt good or not. Picking up his matching jacket and a dark blue tie he stepped into his livingroom where he temporarily depositing them onto the back of one of the dinning room chairs.

After fixing himself a cup of coffee he walked over to his recliner and sat down. As it was to early to go to the office he decided to call Katie at the hospital. "Good morning Katie or should I say good evening to you. It looks like you’re putting in some very long hours right now."

"Good morning Michael. I was expecting your call," Katie answered with a smile in her voice.

"I’m calling to see how Steve is," Mike told her with a slight tenseness to his voice. He wasn’t a doctor by any means but he knew that McGarrett was in very bad shape when they finally found him. He hadn’t asked and the paramedics hadn’t offered but he knew the elderly man was as close to death as a person could get.

Katie didn’t reply at first. She could clearly hear the concerned tone of voice in the Five-0 chief’s question. "There have been no significant changes yet Mike," she replied. She had also told him Dan was still at his bedside and when she tried to get her father-in-law to go home how he absolutely refused and threatened to cause a scene in the hospital if she tried to force him to leave. Instead of fighting him she instructed one of the nurses to fix up the other bed in the room and told him could use it.

Mike wasn’t ready to go to the office yet so he opted to visit his parents first. He noticed that the lights in the house, which indicated that his parents were already up as he pulled up to the curb on. He hesitated a moment before he walked up to the door.

"Aloha Mother," Mike said after his mother answered his knock. With her eyes filled with tears she hugged him. "Dad," he said to his father who had come over to greet him. The three of them continued to hug each other each with their own thoughts and best wishes for their fallen friend.

None of them said anything as Mike, with an arm around his mother, followed his father to the kitchen. As her men folk sat along the counter, Deloris poured her son a cup of coffee.

"I called the hospital this morning," Mike said disheartenly as he sat on the bar stool and looked into the mug, "and talked to Katie. There has been no real change in Steve’s conditioned." His thoughts drifted to the many times he had coffee with his mentor and friend.

"We know. We just got off the phone with Dan," Duke told him. Physically and emotionally he was close to exhaustion from all of this but had forced himself to be strong for Dan and his wife.

"I didn’t talk to Dan only Katie. She had told me how upset and gravely concerned Dan was. The other nurses are watching over him too," Mike told his parents. He didn’t tell them that Katie had told him that if McGarrett’s condition didn’t improve soon that she had felt the former Five-0 chief most likely would not survive.

"Did either of the three men you took into custody give you any reason why all this was done to Steve?" Duke asked still unsure of the real reason behind any of this.

"No the only thing we do know is that they apparently were instructed to keep us out of the building," Mike replied with a heavy sigh at remembering that several men had lost their lives doing what that mad woman had instructed.

Duke could see his son was taking this very hard so in his best fatherly tone he said, "Son you did what you needed to do. You gave them several opportunities to surrender. They and they alone chose how they would respond to your orders."

He waited to see if his words held any weight with his son. He knew all too well how it felt to be forced to kill someone having done it himself while he was on the force.

"You knew that this type of thing could very easily happen when you became an officer. I know it doesn’t make the sadness feel any better but you have to learn to deal with it," Duke told his son in a little firmer voice. "And like Steve once told Danny, every time you pull your gun it should hurt deep inside as if your guts are being ripped out and if it doesn’t then you’re in the wrong line of business."

"I know Dad, but this is different. These men weren’t really bad. The only thing I can think of was that they were more scared of that…that ‘woman’, that…that ‘thing’ then they were of us," Mike told him in a bitter tone.

"You’re wrong, Michael," Deloris told her son. "They did have a choice and they chose poorly."

Mike looked over at his mother. He could hardly believe that she could understand the feeling. But when he looked in her eyes he saw that she did understand all too well the torment he was going through.

"I have never personally experienced the pain you’re going through but I’ve seen your father suffer each and every time when he was forced to take someone’s life. And I can tell you that it’s not a feeling that goes away fast. In fact it may never go away and I’m sure Steve’s told you that too," Deloris said in a firm motherly voice.

As Mike listened to what his parents were telling him he knew that they were right. Subconsciously he had sought out his parents for their counsel and reassurances that his emotional feelings were very human. He knew he must now reach deep inside himself to deal with these feelings and push forward so he could finish this case.

"Thanks Mom, Dad. You two have always known what to say," Mike told his parents. "Though I never realized that the pain had hit you too, Mother," he said in a slightly surprised tone but now with a better enlightenment to how close his parents were.

"Your mother always knew how to help me deal with the hurt, Michael," Duke said as he placed his arm around her waist, pulling her close to his side. "There were times I’m sure that I would become unbearable to live with but she always stood next to me. And…I pulled through it as you will."

The three of them chatted for a little while more, mostly about things of the past. During this time Deloris prepared breakfast.

"Well, I’ve got to get back to the office now," Mike said as he took his plate to the sink. "I take it you two will be going to the hospital?"

"Yes," Duke replied sadly. "I thought we’d go there about nine or so."

"I was going to take Danny some clean clothes and something to eat. I know there’s a cafeteria there but I’m positive he’s not left Steve’s side to eat. Hopefully Deana and Katie have been looking after his needs," Deloris said with a light smile.

"Tell Dan I’ll try to get over to the hospital sometime this morning," Mike said as he walked with his parents to the front door. Although the deep regret at having taken someone’s life still bothered him, he now felt as if he could face these feelings better. Just before he got into his car he turned back to wave good-bye to his parents.

*****

In the elevator ride up to his office floor Mike began to lay out in his head the next procedures needed to catch Song Tai Wo. Both the Coast Guard and Navy were still very much available to him in this case and until the ‘China Princess’, as he had nicknamed her, was caught he would need their help.

As Mike walked into the main portion of the office the busy hubbub told him that everyone was already hard at work. Tilda, efficient as ever, already had the files of the three prisoners on his desk. A hot pink post-it-note on the top one informed him the files of the other seven dead men would be completed shortly and that she was still waiting for Deana’s reports on them.

"Deana’s received a lot of work from us over the last few hours. I’m not surprised that she’s late sending her pathology reports to us," Mike said to himself after reading the note.

Not wanting to sit down yet he opened the doors to the lanai and walked out. The cool morning air indicated that the heat wave was finally over. Over the Ko’olau mountain range was a quickly fading remnant of a rainbow. Its semi-brilliant colors stood out vividly in the tranquil blue sky.

His mind raced back to when he first stepped out on this lanai. McGarrett and Williams had helped him move his boxes into the office. He remembered how McGarrett had walked over to the lanai doors, opened them wide and stepped out to peruse the view. He had joined his mentor and had given him a cup of coffee. "I hope it meets with your approval," he asked him.

McGarrett smiled and said that it did. By then Williams had stepped over to the doors and stated it seemed like old times but that the view was a little different.

McGarrett reminded him that their office view had changed a few times.

Mike had never told anyone but it was during one of his discussions with McGarrett out on his lanai that had made him decide to go into law enforcement. From that day on he was never sorry for making that decision. While he knew he could never be another McGarrett he did his best to emulate his mentor’s morals and values.

Suzie had seen Mike enter the office but when he walked out onto the lanai she decided to wait before going in. Standing at Frankie’s door she kept an eye on her boss waiting for some sort of signal that indicated he was ready to deal with the next phase of the case.

"What’s he doing?" Frankie asked when she realized Suzie’s mind wasn’t on their conversation.

"Oh, I’m sorry, Frankie. I’m worried about Mike. He’s out on his lanai just standing there."

Hearing that, Frankie got up and joined her at the door. "Do you think he’s received some information about McGarrett’s condition?" she asked.

"No I think if he had he would have already told us. Besides Jeremy hasn’t called in yet. He’s been at the hospital all night and told me he’d keep his ears out for anything," Suzie replied. "I did hear that the Governor asked Annette De La Croix to be Steve’s personal nurse. From what I understand her husband and the Governor attended several of Steve’s lectures while they were with NIS and have been close friends ever since."

"That’s what I’ve heard too. From what I understand her husband’s quick action saved the Governor’s life in that bombing of the American Embassy in Beirut in 1969. It’s unfortunately that her husband died in the blast," Frankie replied as she thought back to the stories her father had told her. Both women continued to watch their superior for a while, their minds drifting to those long ago events and how the world had changed since then.

With a heavy sigh Frankie brought her mind back to the present as she looked up at her contemporary and smiled. "Mike said he wanted to have a meeting this morning to go over the stuff the lab and I had found. Maybe I should remind him?" Frankie asked but before either of them could move Mike had stepped back into his office and was walking down the hall towards them.

"Morning, ladies," Mike said as he walked up to them. "Do you have your files ready Frankie? I’d like to get this meeting going."

"Yeah, I’m ready. Jeremy is still at the hospital, though," she informed her superior.

"We can fill him in when he gets here," Mike said stepping to the side and swinging his arm towards his door indicating for them to go ahead of him. "Ladies." A business like but gentlemanly smile was on his face as he followed them.

"Jasper! Meeting!" he called out as he past his detective’s open door lightly tapping on it to get his attention.

Grabbing his files, Jasper was right behind him as they filed into the meeting room. When everyone was seated Mike brought them up to date on McGarrett’s condition.

"Gentlemen and ladies, this case has now taken a totally new twist. No longer is this a kidnapping and attempted murder case. It’s now one dealing with illegal contraband, drugs and possible counterfeiting. Frankie and the lab boys found some very interesting items in that warehouse," Mike stated.

"We located a large supply of drugs and drug equipment, along with a huge stash of counterfeit bills, some of which were only printed on one side. We also found the press they were using and their supply of paper.

"Sorting through their files we found paperwork on everything imaginable from smuggling people in to illegal animal items like dried tiger and rhino parts. One pile of crates was nothing but pelts of endangered animals.

"We also found a room filled with forbidden exotic birds and reptiles all just waiting to be shipped to various private owners or stores," Frankie explained as the others looked at their copy of her file.

"So this totally changes things then," Suzie said who had wondered how they would be able to keep their prisoners since they weren’t citizens.

"Yes, and if either of them tries to leave by private plane or ship the Coast Guard will assist us," Mike told them. "Contact the Governor’s office, Tilda and inform him that I need to see him immediately. Also contact Admiral Noritz at the Coast Guard office and ask him if he could be there too."

"Right, Mike," she said exiting the room.

"This information fits right along with what we’ve found out about those dead men, Mike," Jasper stated. "None of those men had a green card so that means TWIS deliberately brought them over illegally to work in the warehouse."

"INS will be very interested in our remaining prisoners too," Frankie added.

"Yes, with INS involved we might be able to get one of them to talk. One of them might know where the China Princess or her bodyguard are headed. If we can get our hands on that guy, I’m sure we’ll learn exactly where she’s at and how she intends to make her getaway," Mike said.

"So far HPD hasn’t spotted either of the cars," Jasper added.

At that remark Frankie quickly flipped back through her notes for something. When she found it her eyes danced with joy. "As soon as we found the paperwork on those cars, I contacted HPD about the license numbers so they have a far better idea now what to look for. Get this Mike, the license on the other car, the white Mercedes, is ChinaWo." An equally bright smile appeared on the faces of the rest of the team.

"Excellent," Mike and Suzie both said.

"So at least they know what to specifically look for now," Jasper responded.

"Frankie, I want you to follow up on these private citizens and store owners who are listed as recipients of any TWIS merchandise. Put the heat on them if you have to, but I want each one looked into and charges, if needed, brought against them.

"When Jeremy is back from the hospital, I’ll have him work along with the Mark and the DEA about the drugs and counterfeiting," Mike said as Tilda reentered the room.

"Both the Governor and the Admiral will meet with you as soon as you can get there Mike."

"Thanks, Tilda. Is there anything else pending?" After getting a negative shake of heads, he dismissed the team and walked out behind them.

A five-minute walk brought him to the Governor’s office. Peg told him to go on in.

"It’s good to see you again, Michael," Admiral Noritz said extending his hand to him.

"I’m glad you could make it, Admiral," Mike replied as he took a seat after shaking hands. "The Admiral’s son and I were classmates in college," he said.

For the next half hour Mike brought both men up on the case and how he expected a portion of his plan to go.

"You’ll need to co-ordinate closely with the DEA, the FBI and INS," the Governor reminded the Five-0 chief.

"Yes and with the Admiral here, just in case Ms. Wo decides to leave the Islands by sea or air," Mike replied.

"I can see no problems other than the air portion of this plan. Just how do you expect us to cover that end of it?" Admiral Noritz curiously queried.

"Admiral, I think she’s smart enough not to try to leave by any normal commercial airlines. She’d know we’d have them heavily covered with her picture plastered all over the place. TWIS has several freighters too, so we’re covering their docks," Mike told him with a slight edginess to his voice.

"So you think she already knows you’ve figured out it was her?" the Governor asked.

"If she’s anything like her father was, I think she’s got a good suspicion that we do. But I don’t think she knows is McGarrett is still alive."

"If she knew that, do you think she’d delay her escape?"

Mike smiled broadly now. It was as if he could see a miniature light bulb go off in both men’s heads. "That’s exactly what I’m hoping she does know. I want her to try to finish her job."

"The only thing I’ve heard is that McGarrett was alive when you found him. That bit of news will have to be released soon if you’re going to stop her," the Admiral stated.

"Yes, I’m planning on having another news briefing again at noon today," Mike informed him. "The attending doctors and I will hold it in front of Queens Hospital. This way she’ll know which hospital it is and try to gain access to him."

"I take it you’ve got a security plan set up?" asked the Admiral.

*****

In the old area of Waimanalo was a seldom-used boat dock. Badly in need of major repairs, the government had labeled the dock as unsafe. Because of this no commercial ships tied off there, but it didn’t stop the local inhabitants from securing their smaller crafts to the rickety pillars and planks.

It was at one of these pillars that the Dragon’s Tail was docked. The ratty appearance of the fishing ship cleverly hid the powerful duel diesel engines below. On its deck were two men attending to the last remaining boxes of supplies. The owner of the boat had called stating she would be there within two hours and had instructed them to make ready for cast off.

Neither of the men cared for the boat’s owner but they knew not to mess with her. They knew that people had a habit of disappearing if they angered her. All they cared about was that they were thankful they were not part of the crew who would man this boat.

While they worked they listened to a local radio station broadcasting the fantastic news about Steve McGarrett’s rescue. Five-0 had allowed out only snippets of news on their all-island investigation.

"You’d think that such an organization would have found more by now," the older of the two men said as he stopped to listen to the broadcast more.

"What did you expect, Lee? After all they’re only fancified cops, no better then the rest of those flatfoots," his friend said with bitterness.

They had just finished their jobs when long legged oriental beauty walked over to the dock. Immediately they recognized her as the owner of the boat. Both men quickly walked over to where she was and bowed low.

"All the provisions are aboard, Ms. Wo," Lee told her as he held out his hand to assist her over the slippery area of the small gangplank.

"Have my luggage brought on board. The captain and his men will be here soon and I want to sail as soon as they get here," Song informed them. She hadn’t been for hiring these two men but Chang had assured her they were reliable. All they had to do was to watch over the boat and keep the engines in tiptop shape.

Stepping aside, she allowed them to retrieve her luggage. Impatiently she walked around the deck, taking frequent looks at her watch. The freighter, China Doll, had weighed anchor twenty minutes ago and would soon be in its prearranged spot. Their instructions were to drop anchor and wait until the Dragon’s Tail arrived.

"Where are they?" she muttered under her breath as she watched the two men stow her belongings below. "If I have to, I guess I could instruct these two to take me to the China Doll," she said contemptuously.

Lee was the first to come up from below. He silently watched her for a bit as she nervously looked around. "Classy dame," he shot over his shoulder back to his friend.

The other man’s head was barely over the lip of the cabin when he turned and watched the pacing princess. "She’s way out of your league, Lee."

"Maybe, but it might be fun to try," with a suggestive smile.

Song’s eyes narrowed to mere slits as she waited for the men to approach her. From their expressions, she knew she was the subject of their conversation.

"I figured you wanted to stow your own gear away, so we left your luggage on the bed," Lee told her as he sauntered over to her. "While you’re waiting for the others would you like to have something to drink? I’ve got some beer in my cooler if you’d like one," he asked.

Raising her head up a little more, her eyes darkened as her mood changed from contempt to anger. "You do not talk to me in that manner," she reproached him, the hiss in her voice the first telltale sign of her growing rage.

"Oh my, oh my, Miss Prissy. You must think you’re one special bitch. Why don’t you let me show you how to use all this energy you’re showing in a much better way then you’d ever imagine," Lee said to her.

"Ah…Lee, I think you best be quiet," the other man suggested, not liking the expression the woman was exhibiting towards them. "I think this one is a bit pupule, if you know what I mean," he said as he made small circles hear his temple.

Neither man saw her pull out a small nickel-plated .22 revolver. Without so much as a blink she pulled the trigger twice. The shots sounded more like pops then real gun blasts but both where accurate and the men died without a sound.

"You both have now learned where your places are," she said spitting on corpses before stepping on them as she made her way back to the gangplank. Once on the pier, she walked over to her car and waited.

Soon two cars with six men in them arrived. A heavyset short-legged man preceded the men as they walked over to her. Captain Dennis Wong gave a slight bow, then quickly introduced his crew.

Still on edge, Song suspiciously eyed the men. To her, all men were below contempt and hardly worthy of being in her presence. "I have a chore for you before we depart. There are two bodies on the boat. Remove them. I don’t care how you do it, just get it done."

The vindictiveness in her voice sent a shudder down his spine. He had worked with her father, Wo Fat, before and could tell that this one’s temperament was much worse.

"Mike, Kevin, Glen, Tim, take care of them. Make sure they're not easily found. Phil and Jamie, get our gear and stow it away. I want to set sail within the hour," the Captain said bowing again, only a bit lower this time.

"Miss Wo, may I help you back on board?" he asked after the gangway had been cleared.

Refusing his help, Song led the way back to the boat hardly acknowledging any of the men’s existence. To her they were only part of the shabby looking boat. As if to frustrate the Captain more, she didn’t go down to her berth but remained on the bridge. Forty-five minutes later the Dragon’s Tail left the old Waimanalo boat docks

In the attempt to calm his nerves, the Captain turned his attention to the two men who had brought their gear on board. "Jamie, when we get on the China Doll, shift all Miss Wo’s belongings to her cabin. Phil, you help him."

"Aye, Captain," Jamie replied, taking a quick look at the woman who made his insides quiver with fear but also with desire. His imagination allowed him to pretend what he might have, if she’d ever consent to fulfilling his desires. Yet, he was also smart enough to know that such a woman wouldn’t waste her time with him.

"Hey Captain, did you hear about McGarrett, the former Five-0 chief? They found him, and it looks like he’s going to live," Phil asked him. "I guess those stories about him actually being that tough are true."

At the mention of McGarrett’s name, Song spun around and faced the man who had just spoken. "Where did you hear this?" Her voice hissing as she asked.

Momentarily stunned by her question, Phil just stood there. When he didn’t reply immediately, Song asked him again in a louder voice.

"I…it was on the radio," Phil hesitantly informed her taking several fearful steps away from her and the Captain.

"When was this?" Song demanded her eyes narrowing to dark slits in her mounting anger.

"I also heard this on the radio, Miss Wo," the Captain told her, interceding for Phil and positioning himself between the two. While he knew she was giving the orders, he felt it his duty to protect his crew somehow from her.

Song didn’t reply back as she debated what steps she should take next. Her darkened expression took on an evil look as she mentally thought out a way to accomplish her goal.

"Captain, turn this boat around. I’ve got some unfinished business to attend to," she ordered. "I also want to use your radio. I need to make a call."

Acknowledging her instructions, he reached over and set the radio for ship to shore communications. After handing her the microphone, he stepped away from the bridge. He was positive that her plans wouldn’t be legal, and he didn’t want to know what they were. It was a case of the less he knew the safer he and his crew would be from this woman or the law.

*****

Two men and a young boy were fishing off the end of the pier as the Dragon’s Tail tied off to one of the pilings upon its arrival. They watched as a woman disembarked and walked up to a parked car. They noticed that she didn’t get in but stood at the driver’s door talking to the driver for several minutes.

When the young boy’s line tugged, they attention was diverted to the boy’s catch. As they helped him with his catch, the car departed.

*****

When the special request from Governor Hayward came through to have Annette De La Croix assigned as McGarrett’s private nurse, it raised some hackles amongst the ICU staff. They clamored that normal hospital policy didn’t allow for private outside nurses to be in charge of patients at Queens, but when he assured them it was only a temporary assignment, they agreed to Nurse De La Croix’s involvement in this case.

Governor Paul Hayward – now a retired Lieutenant Commander, the late Lieutenant James Isaac De La Croix and retired Commander Steve McGarrett had a common link together in the form of the Navy NIS. It was during Hayward’s and De La Croix’s training, where they listened to several lectures given by McGarrett. A strong bond of friendship soon developed because of their mutual interest, which extended to their extended families.

Shortly after Governor Hayward signed the search warrant, he placed a call to Nurse De La Croix asking her if she would consider over seeing McGarrett’s medical condition should they find him alive. Without hesitation she accepted and quickly phoned both Katie and Deana Williams to let them know she would arrive shortly.

The hectic pace of the hospital kept Katie busy for most of the day. Seldom did she have time for her breaks. Finally finding a few extra minutes free around 4 PM, she decided to stop by McGarrett’s room to check in on her father-in-law.

"Hi Annette," Katie said as she momentarily halted at the ICU Nurses’ Station.

"Oh, hi Katie," Annette replied with a smile handing her McGarrett’s chart. "So far he’s not showing a lot of improvement, but he’s not slipping back either."

Katie quickly looked over the last few readings, which confirmed what Annette said. "How much urine out put has there been?"

"Not enough. Do you think he’ll go into total renal shutdown?" she asked.

"Hard to say, but most likely. How has Dan been?"

"I haven’t been able to get him to eat or rest. He simply refused to leave Steve’s side."

Katie looked at the chart for this bit of information. She could tell that Annette was concerned for both men, and that to her they were ‘both’ her patient. There was something in her eyes that said she was highly interested in the elderly man, something akin to revered adornment.

"Thanks for the info Annette. I’ll go and see if I can change that problem for you," she said as she turned and walked toward McGarrett’s room.

The door’s hydraulic arm gave a faint hiss as she slowly pushed the door open. Pausing, she allowed her eyes get use to the semi-lit room. Walking over to the occupied bed she notice the slumped over position of her father-in-law. His head rested on his arm and his hand was on top of McGarrett’s. ‘Even after all this time they are so close,’ she thought.

The entire day had taxed Dan’s energy reserves. Not wanting to use the extra bed to rest, he fitfully catnapped next to McGarrett’s bed, fearful of leaving his friend’s side even for a moment. The cold cup of coffee and the untouched plate of food on the table was testament to his lack of appetite.

"Dan."

The resting head didn’t move any so she said his name a little louder. "Dan."

A slight movement told Katie that he was waking up. "Dan," she said again but in a softer tone of voice.

"Huh?" Dan replied taking a deeper breath as he woke up. Finally awake he realized who had called his name. "Hi, Katie."

"Hi, yourself. Why haven’t you eaten or used the bed to rest?" she asked her voice filled with concern as she double-checked the IV lines and leads attached to her patient.

Dan stretched a bit in the chair then looked up at his daughter-in-law. She had her dark brown hair pulled back away from her face and her stethoscope hung loosely around her neck. "Look whose talking. You look like you could use a few hours of Z’s yourself."

"I’m use to it but you’re not," came her friendly rebuttal. "Why don’t you join me for some dinner? Annette is watching his monitors closely. If anything happens, she’d let me know immediately."

"I want to be here if something happens," he told her as he gently stroked the withered arm on the bed.

"I understand that, Dan, but running yourself down isn’t going to help Steve. You need to at least eat something and like I said Annette is watching his monitors," she said firmly pulling on his chair to slide him away from the bed.

At first Dan resisted, but then conceded. Standing up he followed her to the door, but before he left, he looked back at his friend. When he glanced over at the stand with his uneaten lunch on it his stomach loudly growled its demand for nourishment.

"See even your body is trying to tell you to take care of yourself," Katie teasingly told him when she couldn’t help but hear the loud gurgle.

Dan smiled back as he silently followed her out of the room and down the hall to the elevator.

"Annette, we’ll be in the cafeteria if you need us," Katie told her as they past the nurses’ station.

Annette didn’t reply but smiled and gave them an okay sign with her hand.

*****

Senior HPD officer Wells-O’Briann had gone home to change into casual clothes before going back to the station. There she met with seven other officers, now dressed in plain clothes. After a briefing with Mike Lukela at his office, they departed for the hospital.

The small two-car caravan parked near the entrance of the hospital parking lot. Since she was the immediate liaison between HPD and Five-0, Mike Lukela had instructed her to replace all the uniformed officers at the hospital with plain-clothes officers.

"Good morning, Officer Wells," greeted Officer Kim Lee having snapped to attention. He was one of six HPD officers stationed within the hospital as part of the original security plan.

Sandy returned his salute as she stopped. "Morning Kim," she replied with one of her ready smiles. "There’s been a change in security plans. Mike wants only plain-clothes officers here so Collins is going to replace you." She then filled him in on what was going down before she went to the other five officers within the building.

*****

The young boy watched with his elders as the ratty looking fishing boat came back to the docks. Totally engrossed with their own fishing, the three fishermen didn’t watch the boat as it was tied up to the pier. It wasn’t uncommon for someone in their small village to take a boat out into deeper waters to try their hand at fishing or that some tourist might have hired them for the same reason. The fact that a beautiful woman disembarked made them think the latter was the reason the boat had left a few hours before. Nor did they paid any attention to the fact that the woman walked up to a parked car. If they had they would have noticed her get into the white Mercedes, whose plates read "ChinaWo", and drive off with the second vehicle following behind her.

*****

Katie was smiling as she stood next to her father-in-law while they waited in line to pay for their food. She noticed that his plate was pretty filled up, indicating that his stomach was telling him to get something more substantial the just a donut or chips.

As the cashier rang up their purchases, she grabbed some flatware and napkins. Following Dan’s lead, they walked over to a secluded table along the wall.

"I bet this wasn’t the homecoming you were expecting?" Katie asked after they had started eating.

"Not by any means," Dan replied disheartenly. "Never in my wildest dreams did I think that Wo Fat had a second daughter."

"From what I was taught back in school, I didn’t think Chinese citizens were allowed to have more then one child," Katie said stealing a catsup covered French fry off his plate, quickly consuming it.

A mock expression of shock appeared on Dan’s face at this impish act as he slide his plate out of her range. "Hey! You’ve got your own," he chidingly told her.

Some nearby patrons could hear some silly giggling from those two as they continued with their meal. Little did they know that underneath the laughter was two very worried people.

"I think they can now, but back then they were only allowed one child. And I suspect that because of Wo Fat’s position and wealth, he probably bribed an official," Dan said after regaining his composure.

"Then there’s no telling how many sons or daughters he might have," Katie stated her eyes squinting a little at the thought of the possibility of other members to that family.

"It’s hard to say Katie. I hope to heaven that she’s the only one," Dan somberly said.

Neither of them said anything for a while. Each of them were thinking of what the future might be, deeply hoping that McGarrett would find some inter strength to pull him through, and praying no other member of the Wo family would try to finish what Song Tai Wo had unsuccessfully started.

Katie watched her father-in-law for a bit. There was a change to his expression that suggested he was mulling over something. "What’s the matter Dan?" she asked after she took a sip of her coffee.

Dan looked at her for a moment then down at his almost empty plate. "Level with me Katie, what are Steve’s chances?" he asked her his blue eyes deepening in intensity as he totally expected to hear the worse news yet.

"I don’t know yet, Dan. He’s not loosing ground, which is good, but he’s not making any progress either," Katie told him. She had expected this question and wished she had a better answer for him.

"How soon do you think it will be before he comes to?"

"That’s hard to say. Maybe sometime today. It’s just too hard to predict such a thing. All we can do is support him and wait and see how he does."

"Doesn’t losing so much fluids cause other problems? Ones that can pop up over time?"

"Yes, there are a few other things that we’re watching for. We’re hoping he won’t go into renal failure…"

"I’ve heard someone talking about that. Exactly what is that?" Dan asked interrupting her.

"When a person becomes this dehydrated, the body isn’t able circulate the blood properly and remove the toxins from it. And because of the lack of fluid, his kidneys start to shut down. When and if this happens he’ll have to go on dialysis," Katie tried to explain in simpler terms.

"How soon will you know if this has happened?"

"Dan, he was probably in the beginning stages before you found him. What we’re hoping is that we’ve stopped it from becoming serious. Only time will tell," she said trying to sound as positive as she could.

Dan didn’t say anything he just looked at her then at his left over food.

"Katie, I need to get back to Steve," he said in a dejected tone. His whole body seemed to sag at this bit of news. Mentally he lambasted himself for not arriving earlier. In his way of thinking, if he had been here earlier all of this might not have happened.

As if reading his thoughts Katie took hold of his arm to stop him. "Dan, even if you had been here sooner, you most likely couldn’t have been able to stop this. It happened just too damn fast for anyone to react. Thankful his neighbor did see the last few seconds of it and called it in immediately," she told him knowing it wouldn’t change how he felt. The one thing she did know about her father-in-law is that he took things very seriously and personally when it had anything to do with McGarrett.

Hanging his head a little, he listened to her. He knew she was right, but it gnawed at his stomach to think that he couldn’t have helped in some way. "I just feel that if I…"

Shaking her head in dismay Katie interrupted him before he could finish. "You feel that all of this is somehow your fault don’t you?"

At that question Dan looked up into her eyes, which were moist with tears. "How did you know?"

"Dan, I think I know you well enough by now to know when you’re trying to blame yourself for something that you had no control over," Katie told him with a smile then gave him a heartfelt hug. "Come on, I’ve got a few things to do right now, but I’ll meet you back in Steve’s room," she said in a cheerier tone placing her hand in the crook of his elbow.

*****

Most of the time the ICU floor was a very quiet area. The muted electronic blips of several monitors were the only things heard over the hushed whispers of the attending nurses. On a regular basis the nurses checked each patient and, if needed, medications administered at prescribed times per the doctor’s orders.

"Connie, can you give Mrs. Harrison her potassium injection? The ER just called and they need a bed for Mr. Opala. He’ll go in room 315," head ICU nurse Patricia Grabble informed her floor nurse who acknowledged her instructions.

"Annette, can you watch the desk for a moment? I need to get a room prepared," Patricia asked as she walked over to the supply cabinet.

"Sure," Annette replied as she took a quick look at McGarrett’s monitor and then the others.

"Thanks. It shouldn’t take very long. They should have Mr. Opala up here in fifteen minutes or so," Patricia informed her as she briskly left, arms laden with supplies.

With everyone busy, no one paid any attention to the woman in a long white doctor’s coat as she stepped out of the elevator. Nor did they see her push open the door to one of the near by rooms.

*****

Before driving to Queen’s Hospital Song Tai Wo had changed into a more casual outfit. The looser clothing effectively hid her slim body. Carefully she backed her white Mercedes into one of the parking places near the front entrance of Queen’s Hospital. She didn’t get out immediately, but watched as a long white limo stopped in a waiting zone a few feet away. When the limo’s driver looked over at her and nodded, she left her vehicle and casually walked toward the hospital.

In as casual of a manner as she could, Song walked into the hospital. None of the uniformed officers even gave her a second look as she walked over to the elevators. Mentally plotting her next few moves she waited to be the only person to enter the elevator. Her intention was to obtain another costume before she made her way to the ER on the third floor.

She kept up her ruse after the elevator doors opened. "If I act like I’m here to see someone, I should be able to move about totally overlooked," she said to herself as she silently proceeded down the hall. "Shit, she’s looking my way," she muttered to herself when a female nurse hesitated at a door, momentarily looking her way. A sigh of relief escaped her when the nurse continued into the room.

Luck was apparently on her side as the door slowly closed.  This gave her a chance to peek inside the room. Smiling with satisfaction, she noticed the room contained several white coats hanging on a rack long the wall.

‘Now if she’ll just leave,’ Song thought to herself as she looked around for some place to hide.

Purely out of chance, a woman’s restroom was directly across the hall. A quick perusal of the room confirmed it was vacant. Keeping the door slightly ajar she waited for the nurse to leave.

"Come on, come on. Get your fat ass out of there," Song muttered to herself as she waited for the door to open. She was about to give up when the other door finally opened. As the door slowly closed she got another good view of the room’s interior. "Good, no one is in there," Song said gleefully to herself as she quickly crossed the hall and entered the now vacant room. What she sought was one of those long white coats hanging along the wall and it didn’t take her very long to find one that would suit her purposes.

*****

"I want to see my father!" demanded the irate red-faced woman.

"I’m sorry, Ms. Opala, but they’ve just brought him up.  You’ll have to wait until we’ve finished getting him situated," Nurse Grabble informed her sternly. "Right now you’re in the way, so please go to the waiting room and I will come and get you myself when we’re done."

Ms. Opala didn’t say anything as she tried to push past the nurse to get into the room she thought her father was in.

"Annette, call security!" Nurse Grabble said loudly as she held her ground, gently pushing the obstinate woman away from the room. "Deary, you’re going to have to wait in the waiting room or I’ll have you escorted out of the hospital. Do you understand?"

‘You’re lying to me!"

Grabble firmly took hold of both of the girl’s arms and shook her a little. "Look! I know you want to see you’re father but right now is not the time."

Absentmindedly Connie set her supplies down on the desk so she could help her co-worker. "Need some help, Patricia?"

"Not unless Ms. Opala insists on being pig headed about this," Nurse Grabble replied as she tried to get the woman to go to the waiting room.

Plain clothed HPD Officer Ben Lameki, who easily stood 6’9" in his bare feet, had responded to Annette’s call for help. As soon as he stepped out of the elevator he could heard the commotion. He reached the two women just as Ms. Opala broke free of Grabble’s grip. With her arm free she swung her fist at the nurse, but her punch never reached its mark.

Startled, Ms. Opala turned her face to look at this new person. Firmly holding her wrist was Officer Lameki’s formidable hulk as he towered over her.

"Thanks, Ben," Nurse Grabble said with a sigh of relief. She was very thankful for his quick reactions. With both of Ms. Opala’s arms secured by his firm grip, he was able to restrain the woman from any further attacks.

"Madame, I suggest that you follow Nurse Grabble’s suggestion," Officer Lameki told her with a firm voice. While maintaining his grip on her arms he proceeded to escort her away from the nurse’s station. No sooner had they left when an alarm sounded at the nurse’s station.

"It’s Mrs. Owens. She’s coded," Annette called quickly rising from her chair to lend them a hand in whatever way she could.

All three nurses ran to the room at the end of the hall just around the corner from their station. Annette, being closer, was the first to reach the woman in room 311 where she immediately began CPR while the others got the needed drugs and equipment ready.

Officer Lameki and Miss Opala were right behind them having heard the alarms and the shouts.

*****

A soft ding sounded as the elevator stopped at the third floor and a young looking Asian doctor exited after the doors opened. Pausing, she looked down both ways down the hall. A sign on the wall indicated that the ICU was to the right. Smiling, she casually walked in the opposite direction away from the elevator.

As luck would have it, the second door she came to was an unlocked supply room. Without looking around, she quickly stepped inside. Not bothering to turn the light on, she turned around leaving the door slightly ajar so she could watch the activities down the hall.

Her father had taught her, long ago, the value of patience. Waiting within the darkness of the room, she mentally plotted her next moves. "There should be some sort of chart indicating which room he is in. But how do I get pass that nurse to see it?"

All of a sudden an alarm sounded at the other end of the hall. The hidden woman heard several loud voices and saw a flurry of movement as people responded to the alarm.

A gleam of delight lit up her face when she saw the last person leave the area. Hurriedly, she made her way to the now vacant nurses’ station. After a quick perusal of the desk area, she found the information she was after.

Still thinking of how to finish her deed, she started to leave the desk area when she saw the syringe and a vial of potassium. Scooping up the items, she dropped them a pocket as she walked over to McGarrett’s door.

Before entering the room, she glanced down the hall to where the nurses had disappeared. Smiling, she pushed open the door and stepped in.

*****

"It looks like you have a busy day today," Dan said as they entered the elevator.

"This is just about normal for me actually. Steve does give me some extra work, but thankfully Deana is in charge of his case," Katie replied as she studied her father-in-law, noticing how much he had changed over the years.

His eyes still sparkled when he smiled, but his face was starting to show his age, especially with his gleaming white hair. He still held himself confidently though and walked with a sense of pride. It was obvious the hard years with Five-0 had taken a heavy toll on his body. But he didn’t allow it keep him from doing what he wanted.

"I take it that you and Dan are still trying to find a house," Dan asked her as he tried to reacquaint himself with his daughter-in-law.

"Yeah. With Josh growing so fast and this one being due around December 10^th, we thought it would be a good time to find some growing room or the apartment is going to get small real fast," she told him as she patted her enlarged abdomen. "So far we’re not having a lot of luck. Everything is way out of our price range."

"Josh is three now isn’t he? How is he taking to the idea of having a baby brother or sister?" Dan continued his light interrogation of one of his favorite subjects.

A big smile almost broke her face in half as she chuckled at his question. "Yes, he’s three but if you ask him he’ll tell you ‘I’m three and a half’. We’ve told him about the baby and he seems excited about it."

"Do you know if it’s a boy or a girl yet?"

"No, we’ve decided to wait and see what it is when it’s born. Dan is hoping for a little girl though," Katie informed him.

Before they could continue with their conversation the elevator stopped at the second floor. As the doors opened they saw a nurse standing next to a large hospital bed waiting for the elevator. Since the bed would take up most of the room and they were in no real hurry, Dan and Katie stepped out so the others could use it.

"Thanks Katie. We’re finally getting around to transferring Mr. Jeffers up to the cardiology floor," the nurse told them.

"Hey, not a problem. I’ll meet you up there in just a little," Katie replied as she helped push the unruly bed into the elevator.

Fortunately they didn’t have long to wait for the next elevator. When everyone had left it they entered and began their accent to the third floor. After the doors slid open Dan stepped out to head down the hall towards McGarrett’s room.

"I’m just going to be on the 4th floor and shouldn’t be very long. I have to check on a patient and make sure Mr. Jeffers is situated. After I’m done I’ll come down to check in on you and Steve," Katie said as she held the doors open.

"Okay, I’ll see you then," Dan replied as he walked heavy heartedly back to that sterile white room where his life long friend lay fighting for his life.

The empty nurses’ station caught his eye when he reached McGarrett’s door. He was curious yet not as to why it was unmanned. He paused only for a moment more before he silently pushed open the door to his friend’s room.

*****

Precious seconds slipped by as Song nervously waited for her eyes to adjust to the room’s semi-darkness. When she could finally make out the objects in the room she quickly walked over to the bed. Her hatred for this man was almost at a fanatical level.

"I can see that my father’s stories of how you can escape death are true, but I will make sure you will indeed die this time," she told the unconscious form in the bed. "At last I will see my father’s death revenged," she said after retrieving the items from her pocket. Adroitly she pulled all the way back on the plunger to fill it with air then plunged the needle into the top of the vial. An evil smile on her face foretold of the anticipated pleasure she was about to experience as she filled the syringe of its potentially deadly solution. Fingering one of the bags of fluid hanging on the IV stand she contemplated where to inject the contents.

*****

"Thanks for the help, Annette," Nurse Grabble said sadly as the two of them left Mrs. Owens’ room. "I just wished all of our efforts had been successful."

"Some people just insist on dying, Patricia," Annette replied disconsolately.

Nurse Grabble didn’t reply to her statement. She just shook her head in sadness at the undeniable truth and at what every dedicated nurse faced in the course of his or her work.

"I’m going to check in on Mr. McGarrett, then I need to take a break. Can you watch his monitors for me?" Annette asked as she tried to shake off the feeling of death that she got each time a patient died during her shift.

"Yeah, no problem. Why don’t you take a long break?" Nurse Grabble suggested as she watched Annette continue down the hall.

Annette didn’t reply but waved her hand and nodded her head in acknowledgement.

*****

The well-oiled hinges allowed the door to move noiselessly and effortlessly as Dan gently pushed it open. As his eyes adjusted to the semi-darkness of the room, he saw a mysterious woman standing near the head of McGarrett’s bed fiddling with one of the IV lines.

‘What is she doing?’ he thought to himself. Suddenly an icy cold shiver ran down his back when he realized who she might be and that she was either about to or had already injected something into the IV line.

"What the hell are you doing?" Dan demanded as he ran over to her and grabbed the hand that held the syringe.

Startled by the sudden appearance of someone behind her, Song involuntarily squeezed down on the plunger before she had successfully inserted it into the IV. Unseen by Dan, the stream of potassium squirted harmlessly across the head of the bed, hitting the wall behind it.

"How dare you!" Song shouted at him as she attempted to free herself from his grip.

It seemed to him like he was fighting a wild cat as he pulled her away from McGarrett’s bed. Several times her long fingernail racked his face and arms. For several minutes he seemed to have the upper hand on her but his age and weakened right leg began to give out.

Encouraged by the obvious weakening of her opponent, Song increased her attack. A few of her kicks managed to knock Dan down to his knees, but he didn’t stay down for long. Struggling to free herself of his grip, she tried to use the now empty syringe as a weapon. Several times she tried to plunge it into his neck or chest.

Trickles of blood ran down his neck where the needle had scratched him. Thankfully, a well-timed hit to the back of her wrist caused her to drop the syringe, which ended up harmlessly under McGarrett’s bed.

Song’s hand stung from the blow. Enraged that she no longer had her weapon, she managed to get her left hand around his throat. Digging her nails into his flesh, she sought to strangle him.

Breathing now became extremely difficult for Dan. His breath was wheezing as he fought to free himself from her iron talon like grip. Just when Dan thought he might be lose the fight, the room is suddenly flooded with light.

*****

Never being one that readily accepted defeat Annette was taking the death of Mrs. Owens personally. Although she hadn’t been her patient, she felt her loss keenly. Valiantly they had tried every procedure they could to turn her around, but it wasn’t meant to be. An autopsy would determine the actual cause of death she knew, but in her mind she mulled over what else could they have done that could have made the difference.

When she got to McGarrett’s door, she paused and took a deep breath to help settle her nerves. Finally she pushed the door open unprepared for the scene in front of her.

"What’s going on here?" Annette sharply demanded as she stepped into the room her hand still on the light switch.

The distraction had broken Dan’s attention enough to allow Song to break free. With one mighty shove, Song pushed Dan back into the nurse, where they fell into a heap on the floor. Taking the advantage of their plight, she jumped over the flaying arms and legs and dashed out of the room.

"Stop her! Call security!" they both yelled as the door slowly closed.

*****

Song seemed to have lady luck on her side when the elevator doors opened almost immediately after she pushed the button. To top it off it was unoccupied. Upon reaching the main floor, she slowed pace down so not to attract undue attention to herself as she exited the hospital.

Seeing his mistress exit the building, Chang started the engine so they could make a quick getaway. Almost before Song could slam the car door shut, he floored the accelerator. The squealing tires caught the attention of several people in the parking lot. A few stood and watched as the car turned sharply onto the street, narrowly missing another car.

"To the boat Chang," Song instructed him while trying not to bounce against anything from the force of the speed and the sharp turn, which had caused her tumble onto the floor of the limo. Taking advantage of this minor event, she remained down to conceal herself from any prying eyes.

"Curse him and all who follow him," Song said as she attempted to stay down. "It ‘does’ seem he’s immortal like my father claims."

"No man is immortal, Mistress. You’ll get him some day," Chang replied trying to appease his passenger.

"Oh! Shut up and keep driving," Song ordered him as her temper started to flair.

*****

The nursing staff on the 4^th floor had finished their work by the time Katie arrived. After checking on her two patients, she was now free to go down to McGarrett’s room.

"Hi Don. Just starting your shift?" she greeted the young Asian security officer already in the elevator. Normally he was stationed on the main floor, but Five-0 had assigned him to help patrol the floors above and below the third floor.

"Aloha, Dr. Williams. Yeah, it’s my turn this afternoon. You goina go visit McGarrett?" Don asked giving her a broad smile as he held the elevator door open for her.

"Yeah and to check on my father-in-law."

"The story I hear is tat they were quite a team when Five-0 first started," Don mentioned with a bit of envy, "and da mobs on da mainland didn’t even think about coming here to set up shop."

The big Hawaiian’s accent and slightly broken English made Katie smile. From their past conversations she with him she knew how much he wanted work for Five-0. But there were only just a few positions open in the unit and Mike Lukela had chosen his staff with the greatest of care.

"I wouldn’t doubt it. I know I wouldn’t like to run across either one of them if I were breaking the law," she replied just as the elevator doors opened at their desired floor.

The unusual 4^th floor seemed unusually empty to them as they exited the elevator. "Where’s Officer Lameki? He’s suppose to be on guard," Katie asked as they walked toward the ICU nurse’s station.

"I don’t know," Don replied looking back down the other way before heading that way. "Maybe he’s in the room."

"Might be," Katie said pushing the door open. There at McGarrett’s bedside was Dan watching Annette as she applied a bandage to McGarrett's neck. A few feet away from the bed was the IV stand, whose lines now dangled uselessly onto the floor.

*****

"Oh my God! She must have injected him with something," Dan said after spotting the empty syringe. "We’ve got to pull these needles out of him!" he stated nervously handling the various IV lines, unsure of what to do next.

Both of their thoughts were now only for McGarrett’s welfare. The thought of going after Song hadn’t even entered either of their minds. As soon as Song had left, they both quickly got to their feet and went over to the prone man. The monitors still indicated things were okay but neither of them wanted to take a chance.

Reaching his friend’s side first, Dan was just about to pull out one of the needles when Annette roughly shoved him aside. "Here, let me do that. If you do it, he’ll bleed to death," she said a bit more sternly than she meant.

Staying close to Annette’s side, Dan stepped aside to allow the nurse to do her job. "Do you think she got any into the bags?"

"If she did he’d be reacting to it by now," she told him, her tone still a bit sharp. Taking a second to quickly look in his direction, she gave him a stiff but reassuring smile. "I think he’ll be okay, Mr. Williams. I don’t think she was successful in injecting anything."

The two were so intent on making sure McGarrett was okay that they weren’t aware of the door as it opened.

"What in the hell is going on here?’ Katie demanded upon seeing the IV tree so far from the bed. An IV lines hung down to the floor with the needle still attached. An ever-widening puddle of fluid slowly dripped from the exposed needle still attached to the end of a line. Her eyes went quickly from the tree to the monitor and then to the two people standing next to the bed.

"Song just tried to kill Steve," Dan bitterly replied looking over at his daughter-in-law, his voice cracking a little from the strain and worry. He tried to smile to show he was glad to see her but failed miserably.

"Is he okay?" Katie asked quickly stepping up to the bed to study the monitors.

"Yeah, so far everything looks okay. I removed the IV’s just as a precaution," Annette told her as she finished closing off the IV in McGarrett’s neck.

Katie looked over her work and nodded her head in agreement. "Good thinking, Annette," she said as she looked back over at the various bags of fluid. Any one of them might now contain a deadly potion intended for McGarrett. Stepping over to the leaking bag, she picked up the dangling line and bent it back to stop the leak. "Have the lab check these bags out and be careful around this area for now until housekeeping can get it cleaned up. It’s liable to be slippery."

"I’ll throw a couple of towels over it Katie," Annette told her taking a quick look at the puddle.

"Okay, but be careful. I’m going to give Deana a call and have her check on Steve." She saw a slight attitudinal expression come onto Annette’s face but before the nurse could rebut her decision she held up her hand. "It’s got nothing to do with you abilities, Annette. I just want her to go over him."

Puzzled, Dan looked at them both. In the short time he had gotten to know Annette, he knew she took her duties seriously and that she had become slightly possessive over McGarrett when it came to his care.

"I’d like that too, Annette. My daughter, after all, is in charge of his case," he told her as diplomatically as he could under the circumstances.

Annette gave them both a disgruntled look but said nothing. Finished with her ministrations to McGarrett, she took a few towels from the supply room and placed them over the liquid on the floor. Then, with no further word to either of them, she briskly walked out of the room going back to the nurse’s station.

"Me thinks she’s a bit jealous," Katie said with a smile as she lightly shook her head.

Dan smiled at her summary of the nurse chosen by the Governor to tend to his friend’s needs. He sort of agreed with her, but he also saw the drive, determination and dedication there. Qualities he knew that she would need when dealing with a conscious McGarrett.

"I don’t think so, Katie," he told her. "Every little thing has been taken care of by her. She’s put her all into her job. I think that’s why the Governor asked her to take care of him."

Katie looked at the closed door for a moment after he said that and pondered on his summation of the outside nurse. "She seems sort of short tempered to me."

Dan’s smile broadened at that remark. He could see a lot of McGarrett in this nurse, like how she took over the case right from the start and how she put in some long hours so far without taking any breaks as of yet.

His smile bugged her some then she thought she started to understand what it was he saw in her. "Ah, I think I know where you’re coming from Dan. You’re saying that because Steve has such a strong personality. That it would take a ‘no-nonsense’ type of nurse to take care of him and you think she’s it."

"Exactly," Dan responded. "Steve’s got a powerful personality. He’s use giving the orders, not taking them. Her being ex-Navy, she’ll be use to Steve’s mannerisms and such."

They both jumped a little when door opened suddenly. Without so much as a word to the two of them, Annette quickly walked over to the monitors.

"Something the matter, Annette?" Katie asked her as she looked at the monitor as well.

"Yeah, in a way. The heart rate jumped a little. I wanted to do a visual on him to make sure he was okay," she said as she wrote down some of the information onto McGarrett’s chart.

Dan had walked over to the other side of the bed. He didn’t really understand some of the indicators on the machine above his friend’s head, so he kept quiet. All the lines seemed normal to him, so he looked down at McGarrett. That’s when he thought he saw some facial movements. Studying his friend a bit more, he noticed an eye movement. "Katie, his eyes are moving. Steve! Steve! Open your eyes!" implored Dan as he lightly slapped the back of McGarrett’s right hand.

Both women now concentrated their attentions to their patient’s closed eyelids. Katie looked up for a second at the monitor then back down. She pulled back the sheet a little off his chest. Pressing and rubbing her knuckles hard along the breastbone. she tried to get McGarrett to come to a little faster. "Steve, open your eyes," she said loudly.

McGarrett twisted his face a little at the discomfort as a shallow moan escaped him.

"Steve, wake up," both Dan and Katie shouted as she rubbed a little harder.

McGarrett turned his head back and forth a little at this treatment.

"McGarrett! I order you to wake up," Annette told him firmly in a military manner.

A slight crack appeared between the eyelids as the gaunt man regained more alertness. Unable to speak because of the tube, he knitted his brow in disapproval.

*****

It seemed to McGarrett like he was drifting along on some puffy clouds. The world appeared so far away, yet he could see details of many things with an extreme clarity.

At the docks was a boat who had a tie on one of the sails come loose and it was fluttering in the off shore breeze. That needs to be tied down. Why isn’t it tied more secure?

His next object he seemed to turn his attention to was the front yard of his home. A plant seemed to be too large. He could remember that when the wind blew it would scratch at the windows and would sometimes sound like fingernails screeching across a black board. There’s something about this plant. What is it? But before he could question himself more a stomach retching smell filled his nostrils. What the devil is that? It smells horrible.

That’s when a feeling of fear over took him. It felt as if he couldn’t breath. He felt trapped and he wanted out. Struggle as he might he knew he was trapped. "I want out!" shouted his brain. "God, I want out of here."

Something now was touching him. It felt comfortable yet there was a sense of urgency in the air. Something was wrong. What is it? There is danger near. Fight it! Fight it! Danno! Where is he? Is there something wrong with him? There is something that is suppose to happen here. He needs to be picked up, but where?

It made no sense to him but it seemed like he was walking. The trail wasn’t hard to follow. It led to the Waimanalo lookout. It seemed like he knew the person that was standing there. The closer he got the more he was sure.

"Hi, Steve."

"Chin! Chin Ho! Is that you?"

"Yeah."

"What are you doing here? You’re dead."

"I was told to come to meet you and to tell you something."

"Whats’ya got?" The old familiar phrase seemed to just pop out, just like it had so many times in the past.

"In a little bit I’ll tell you but for now I want you to walk with me a bit. Some others are here to see you as well."

Uncharacteristically, McGarrett seemed to adopt an attitude of a happy child who just received a Christmas present. "Who?" he asked with expectancy.

"You’ll see," Chin Ho said as they walked along the trail.

Up above was a group of people. There was an man and woman. He didn’t understand at first but he knew them. "Mom? Dad?"

"Hi, Steven," they both replied as they gave him a hug. "We were told you might come here." They both seemed so young and happy to him now.

"There’s someone else here Steve. Someone who has waited a long time to see you," Chin Ho told him putting his hand upon McGarrett’s arm as he guided him further up the path. The others following close behind.

There at the crest was the form of a young woman. The setting sun was behind her, which made her light clothing almost translucent. The edges of the clothing rippled from the mild breeze as it came off the ocean. He knew the woman, he thought, but he wasn’t sure. He was almost scared in a way.

"It’s okay Steven. You’re safe," his mother told him.

"Go to her Steven," his father urged him giving him a little shove towards her direction.

McGarrett took a few steps away from the group, keeping his eyes on the lone woman at the crest. A cry of recognition rushed out of him as he finally realized who she was.

"Oh Cathi, my Cathi." He accepted her outstretched hand as he took the last step up to the crest to stand next to her. He wanted to hold her, to embrace her. He couldn’t believe it was her. But there she was standing next to him.

"Steve," she replied with the smile he so well remembered. "Yes Steve. I’m here for you."

"I saw you…I mean I remembered you…you and I…we were on the boat."

Cathi smiled at him and lightly laughed. "Yes. I remember."

"But how? You were killed. Oh Cathi, my Cathi, I’ve missed you so," McGarrett cried from his heart. The gladness, yet sadness of seeing her was almost too much for him.

"We’re all here for you Steve. But it’s not your time yet. Song didn’t win her fight, you did. But you’ve got more to do before you finally join us," Cathi told him. How much she wanted him to stay with her forever, yet she knew he couldn’t. It wasn’t his turn according to the boss of bosses. The four of them had been sent there to tell him that and to help him find his way back to the here and now. They knew it wouldn’t be a pain free walk back for him but he had to do it and they would make sure he would.

"We’ve all been watching you Steve," Chin Ho told him. He had his pipe with him and was chewing on the end just like before. Noticing that McGarrett had seen it he smiled. "Yeah, even ‘He’ doesn’t like it much but he puts up with it just like you did."

McGarrett smiled at him again then turned his attention back to his parents and Cathi. "You say it’s not my turn. When will it be?" he asked yet dreaded the answer.

"Someday Steve, but not now," Cathi told him still holding onto his hand.

Her touch felt so great to him. He did want to stay yet something was pulling at him something from below. He realized that something was unfinished, unsaid. Feelings he had never before given into were surfacing, the uncertainty, the lack of confidence he had never allowed himself to feel were rushing at him now from all angles.

He knew this much he didn’t want to let go of Cathi’s hand ever again. She had been his only love. The only one who he ever thought of letting down his protective barrier he had kept so rigidly in place all these many years.

A tear trickled down his face when he realized he, once again, would leave her. With her free hand she wiped it away, but before it could leave his face he grabbed it pressing it firmer along his cheek and jaw line. He then gently kissed it before he released it.

"We never did enjoy that fish you caught," Cathi reminded him smiling radiantly back at him.

"No, we never did. I can’t even remember what happened to it," McGarrett told her as he looked deep into her eyes. A strong puff of wind caught her hair sending a strand of it into her face. Laughingly he reached out and put it back where it belonged. With a heavy sigh of familiarity he thought back to the many times he had done that for her and if he left her now of how long it would be before he could do it again. "I don’t want to leave you Cathi," he voiced his desires almost sounding like a small child.

"You must though. I’ll be here when it’s your time. I promise." Cathi had disengaged her hand from him and had stepped back with the others.

"You’ve got to go back now Steve. All of us will be waiting for you and we’ll keep an eye out over you too." His father and mother were now already headed down the backside of the crest. Chin Ho and Cathi were still standing there.

"We’ll stay here until you are back down," Chin Ho told him. A small fluffy puff of smoke trailed up from the bowl of his pipe. It was the same memory he had kept of the oriental detective all this time.

"Can I ask…will Danno be here waiting too or will I be waiting here for him?" McGarrett asked trying to stall his departure more if he could.

"We’re not allowed to tell you that Steve. Only ‘He’ knows and he doesn’t say much on the subject," Cathi replied as she and Chin Ho watched him start to take the steps back down the trail. "We can only tell you that the four of us will be here."

Pain. Great pain. Whatever was happening to him hurt. It seemed like he could hear loud shouts but yet they seemed so far off.

There was other movement now. Hands, a multitude of hands that seemed to be touching his body all over the place at the same time. He could feel something warm and soft. The touches were reassuring to him. Occasionally there was some discomfort. It seemed to be concentrated on one spot on his back. More touching. Touching. Touching. Now there was real pain but he couldn’t react to it. It really did hurt. ‘What are they doing?’ yelled his brain. Suddenly the pain stopped. It felt cool now where before that spot was very hot. It made no real sense to him.

Movement. Always movement. Can’t it stop? Why won’t it stop? Something is touching him again. Now softness. Oh how nice this feels, his brain told him. A few more hands were touching him now but they were okay. It felt as if he knew the touch of these hands. One in particular was very familiar to him but he couldn’t think of who it was, but he knew that touch.

Something is wrong now. There is a sense of danger in the air. Be alert. She’s there to hurt you. But he couldn’t understand what type of danger his subconscious was trying to warn him about. She mustn’t touch those. But what was it that she was touching? Help! Someone stop her!

*****

"He’s trying to wake up," Katie said as she studied the monitor. Stepping down to the end of the bed she removed the covers. Taking the rounded end of her ink pen. she drew it up firmly against the soles of his feet.

The toes and foot wriggled against the treatment. When she repeated it against the other foot it followed suit. "Come on, Steve, wake up," she said as she firmly slapped the bottoms of McGarrett’s feet trying to get a response from him.

Another moan escaped from the recumbent frail looking man. Instinctively he tried to pull his feet away from the abuse.

"Steve, it’s Danny. Wake up," Dan implored was he slapped the back of the hand again.

*****

Why can they leave me alone? The danger is gone now. She’s left, his subconscious told him. I just want to sleep. Leave me alone.

He moved his head back a forth now. Something was in his mouth so he couldn’t speak. Each time he tried he almost felt like gagging. Whatever it was it was uncomfortable. It also felt like his limbs were tied down. They felt so heavy for some reason.

Why can’t they leave me along? his mind shouted at him. It hurts. When I move my lids they hurt. The light. There is light.

"Steve, wake up!" Dan loudly said to his friend. He could see that his friend was trying to wake up but was having problems. "Katie?"

"It’s okay Dan. He’s coming to but is very weak still. Steve, Come on. It’s time to wake up," Katie said as she stepped back to the side of the bed. Gently she tugged at the skin on the back of McGarrett’s hand. It still tented some but the fill time was much better then it was that morning. "Annette, get another IV started. He still has a long way to go to be rehydrated fully."

"Already got one waiting for him," Annette replied having stepped back up to the bed. She had left only for a second to retrieve the bag of ringers, supplies for the IV and a new tree. Deftly she inserted the new IV line into the still withered arm but this time it was easier to find a good vein.

"You two keep after him. I’m going to call Deana and get her up here," Katie said as she quickly stepped over to the phone near the head of the bed. Her fingers flew as she dialed the familiar number.

"Hi, Deana. Katie. Get up here. Steve’s waking up."

"Great. I’ll be there in a flash," Deana told her before slamming down the receiver in her excitement and it didn’t take long before the door opened again.

"How long has he been doing this?" Deana asked as she looked at the monitor and read the chart that Annette had just handed her.

"About twenty minutes or so now. He’s fighting it though," Annette informed her as she finished with the adjustment to the IV.

Deana glanced over at the other IV tree and the towels on the floor. "What happened there?" she asked nodding her head in the tree’s direction.

"Song tried to attack Steve," Dan told his daughter. Quickly they filled her in on the events that had just taken place and she agreed that the IV removal was a good idea.

"Damn it. And there’s no way of knowing if she did or didn’t get any thing into them," Deana replied.

"I don’t think she did," Annette told her as she checked the monitor again.

Slowly McGarrett again tried to open his eyes. This time the light didn’t hurt them as much. There were fuzzy forms near him and he could hear their voices. It took several more minutes before his vision to start to clear.

"Good evening sleepy head," Dan told his friend when he had finally turned to his direction.

A funny looking smile appeared on McGarrett’s face when he saw his friend standing next to the bed. Boy is this an all to familiar sight, he thought to himself.

"Steve, we had to put a breathing tube down your throat. I’m going to remove it now. When I tell you, I want you to take a deep breath and then exhale hard through your mouth," Deana said as she gentle removed the tape that had held it in place. "Okay, Steve, take a deep breath…and…exhale."

McGarrett tried to do just that as the tube was removed. Coughing and sputtering he gasped as the end of tube was finally removed. After a few more coughs it was over. Annette put an oxygen line under his nose and carefully fitted it around his ears. He kept his eyes on her as she tended to this simple need. Who is she? he wondered.

She knew he was watching her and as if reading his mine Annette smiled back at him. "My name is Annette De Le Croix. The Governor asked me to take care of you, Mr. McGarrett, until you are better. All you have to do is to follow my instructions and we’ll get along just fine," she told him as she repositioned the covers around him.

A sparkle of amusement flickered in McGarrett’s eyes at her statement. It was obvious to him that she had never heard of who he was and how he behaved in hospitals before. Giving her a smile, he voicelessly mouthed the words thank you.

The others in the room were fighting to contain their laughter at this little scene unfolding before them. Dan, more so then the others, knew now that here was a strong enough of a personality to take care of the great Steve McGarrett. It would be interesting to see who would win the battle of the wills here.

All the indicators on the monitors now showed a much better, stronger rate. McGarrett’s blood pressure was still a bit low, but it was steadily improving. His heart rate was almost back to normal with no signs of any abnormalities to its rhythm.

"Okay people. I know you’d all like to stay, but my patient needs his rest. Out with you. You too, Mr. Williams," Annette told everyone as she began to push the others out into the hall.

The great news had quickly spread throughout the hospital. Slowly the room had begun to fill up with expectant friends, other nurses and doctors. Each wanting to see with his or her own eyes, the remarkable recovery he had made that evening.

Dan had deliberately hung back. He wasn’t about to leave until he knew his friend was really stable.

"You best leave too, Danno. Get some rest. You look beat," McGarrett told him, his voice still very weak.

"Are you sure?" Dan asked reluctant to leave but the exhaustion was starting to over take him now that the crisis was over.

"I said out, Mr. Williams," ordered Annette, her balled up fists resting on her hips.

Smiling at his friend, Dan gave a mighty yawn. "Okay. But I’ll be here first thing tomorrow morning," he told McGarrett as he walked around the bed to head for the open door. "I’ll expect you to let me know if there is any type of change in his condition, no matter how small or trivial," he told the nurse as he stopped in front of her.

"I don’t expect any changes," Annette replied sternly, but then changed the tone as she ended, "but I’ll call you if there is. Have a good night’s sleep Mr. Williams." The door silently closed behind the two of them as they left.

Snuggling back down into his bed, McGarrett let out a sigh of relief. Everything was once again okay with his world. The memories of his four special visitors slowly faded away. But somehow he knew he was being watching over by those who loved and cared about his existence. With this thought, he once again slipped into a deep but now very restful slumber.

*****

Deloris had out done herself that night with some fresh mahi mahi. Instructing her husband to take everyone outside, she began to clean up. Both Suzie and Frankie insisted on helping her, but she put her foot down and told them to relax that it wouldn’t take all that long for her to finish.

Deana and Katie had joined them for dinner and were fielding questions about McGarrett’s condition as best they could. They also shot back their own questions as to who Song was and what was her underlying reasoning for doing what she had. It was still hard for any of them to realize that she was the daughter of Wo Fat, and they wondered if there might be more to that family. Hopefully, if there were, that none of them had the same desire to get some sort of perverted revenge out for their father’s death.

"Does anyone know where she might have gone?" Deana asked.

"No, but HPD is keeping an eye out for her or her giant of a bodyguard," Mike informed her. "We know it was her though.  We found her car in the hospital parking log. I've got men positioned at all the airports, large and small and all of the docks. She won’t find it very easy to escape off this rock," he said resolutely.

"Both the Coast Guard and the Navy are on the alert too," Governor Hayward reminded them after taking a sip of the flavorful tea Deloris had made.

The group continued on discussing the various theories as to Song’s motives and her where abouts. They talked about what might lay ahead now for the former Five-0 chief and of any complications that could still pop up.

"We’re closely watching his kidneys," Deana told them. "If they don’t recover soon, he’ll have to go on dialysis."

"How long would that be for?" Dan asked her, knowing that prolonged dependency could mean the need for a transplant.

"That’s hard to say, Dad. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be for very long, but his condition is still very serious. Just because he's awake doesn’t mean he’s out of the woods yet," Deana replied with a professional type of tone. Her long experience in medicine had taught her how to remove herself from the emotional part of medicine, especially when it was a serious case.

"We’ll just have to try to keep an upper hand on his condition and hope for the best," Katie told him trying to alleviate any of his worries. She could tell he wouldn’t be totally satisfied, nor would she, until McGarrett was finally released from the hospital.

"I heard that McGarrett ran these Islands with an iron hand," Jasper asked with a grunt as young Joshua planted himself onto his lap. Smiling at the young boy, he tickled his sides for a moment, sending the child into hysterical laughter .

"I see Josh has made a new friend," Dan stated with a smile. "I wouldn’t say he held an iron hand over the Islands. But he did make it very clear to people that he took his oath of office very seriously and that he wouldn’t tolerate having any criminals or mobs trying to ruin Paradise for the rest of the citizens."

"What was he like to work for?" Jasper asked wanting to sort of compare his own boss with the former chief.

"He could be hard at times to deal with, but he never expected anything from his people that he couldn’t or wouldn’t do himself. He was honest with you too. You knew exactly where you stood with him," Dan replied thinking back to when he was with the unit.

"He was someone you could trust explicitly," Duke chipped in. "If one of his people were in any form of trouble, he was there at their side, fighting tooth and nail to help them."

"I heard you two did the same for him on several occasions," Hayward added thinking back to some of the stories he had been told from the former Governors.

Dan, Duke and Ben Lukela, Sr. laughed at that as they remembered how many times someone had tried to frame someone within Five-0. "Yes, several times in fact Governor," Duke replied.

"Dan could you answer a question for me?" Jasper asked.

"Sure Jasper, if I can."

"Why did you leave Five-0? I thought you were going to take it over once Steve had retired."

A hush descended upon the group. This was the one question no one had ever put to him. Everyone had his or her own ideas why he had left so suddenly.

"Not to be rude to you Jasper, I’m going to decline to answer that as I consider that a private matter between Steve and myself," Dan answered in a low voice. "The only thing that matters now is that I’m back, back to the Islands where I was born and to my family."

"I was just wondering is all. There are so many stories going around about it that I thought I’d ask you," the Five-0 detective said.

"Many have wondered as to why, but we’ve all sort of agreed that it’s only his business," Ben, Jr. told him.

"What are your plans now?" Suzie asked, enjoying that fact that her adopted uncle was going to stay. "Are you still planning on staying with the Lukela’s?"

"For now, if they will have me. But once Steve is ready to be released I’ll stay with him until I can find my own place," Dan informed her.

"You know you’re more then welcome to stay as long as you want," Deloris told him as she seated her self next to her husband.

Joshua, still on Jasper’s lap, had started to yawn. Allowed to stay up later than normal he was now starting to fall asleep. "I think that’s our cue to get this rough neck to bed," Dan, Jr. said as he picked up the now sleeping boy, gently lifting him to his shoulder. "Dad, I’ll see you tomorrow sometime," he said as he followed Katie out to the front.

"Don’t worry, Dan. Annette will let you know if anything has changed. Sleep tight and I’ll see you at the hospital," Katie told her father-in-law.

This seemed to break up the party as everyone now decided it was a good time to leave. Thanking the Lukela’s again for the great meal, each person said his or her goodbyes and left. Soon the tidy little home was devoid of the crowd. Settling into the comfortable livingroom chairs, the Lukela’s and Dan sat down to chat a bit more before saying their own goodnights.

*****

Dan’s head barely had hit the pillow before he was out. No dreams permeated his subconscious. His sleep was deep and restful. The full moon lightly lit the room but it didn’t bother the occupant.

It seemed like he hadn’t been to sleep that long when a hand jostled him awake.

"Uh? Who? What time is it?" Dan asked as he slowly awakened.

"It’s 5 AM and Mike’s on the phone. The Coast Guard thinks they’ve spotted Song. He’ll be here in 30 minutes to pick us up," Duke informed him as he finished buttoning his shirt.

"What? Great, let’s get going," Dan said as he hurriedly dressed.

"The Cape Town is waiting for us," Duke told him as he quickly wrote a note to his wife as to where they would be.

Right one the dot, Mike was out in front waiting for them. Quickly they piled into the car just before it sped away at a high rate of speed.

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