Chapter Text
….”You abandoned me
Love don't live here anymore
Just a vacancy
Love don't live here anymore
When you lived inside of me
There was nothing I could conceive
That you wouldn't do for me
Trouble seemed so far away
You changed that right away, baby…..’
“He’s been out there long enough. Go get him, Burke.”
“Oh let him enjoy the breeze and the shade. He needs that, having been cooped inside for so long. I’ll give him ten more minutes then I’ll go out, ok?” Burke kissed his wife on her cheek and waved the baby bottle in his hand. “I’ll get Ollie’s formula ready too.”
“Alright. I’m going to make some lunch. What do you think he’d eat? He needs to eat. He doesn’t eat enough.”
“Milly. Shhhhhh. Things will get better. Look at how far he’s come. Danny and the baby are our miracles.”
Danny saw Burke coming with the buggy. He sighed and adjusted the Frolic Lark soft sided baby carrier with his son inside. Myles Oliver Williams McGarrett gurgled happily and wiggled a bit. “I know she’s worried about me!” Danny said evenly. “She should not be. It’s a nice day.”
“It is at that but it’s time for food and this little one has a bottle all ready for him.” Burke took the baby out of the carrier and tucked him inside the buggy, adjusting the hood to make sure the baby would be protected by the late sun. “Let me help you up.”
“Let me… do it.” Danny frowned and used both hands to grip the arms of the chair and hoisted himself so he was standing. He waited until the dizziness passed and relaxed. “Thank you.”
“For what? Reminding you to come eat lunch?” Burke waited until Danny took his arm and then pushed the buggy back to the house with Danny limping along side. “I have it on good authority that we are having tuna melts.”
“Sounds good.” Danny sat down on one of the patio chairs near the door. “Sorry.’ I’ll make it all the way next time.”
“You walked a long way down. I can wait.”
After a few minutes, Danny stood and nodded and they went inside the house to the kitchen.
“There are my two boys!” Milly swooped up the baby and placed him in a versatile chair, bed, carrier. “You can sit right next to him and feed him.”
Danny sat down and carefully tested the temperature of the formula. He knew Milly would never heat it too hot but he liked the routine of doing it. It just felt right. Patiently, he held the bottle so Ollie could drink and when he’d consumed over half of it, Ollie let go of the nipple and turned his head. Danny had learned that the baby had enough of a stubborn streak that when he did that, nothing could make him finish the formula. Danny picked up the baby from his comfy nest and held him up so the baby was leaning over his shoulder, the perfect position to burp him. Milly had put a towel over Danny’s shoulder so anything the baby brought up would be absorbed by the terry cloth fabric. A couple of well aimed taps, just like the nurse had shown him, and Ollie regurgitated some milk in a burp then happily grabbed a strand of Danny’s curls.
“Oh oh a little help!” Danny laughed and it was Burke to the rescue who gently lifted Ollie up and away and back into his little bedsit.
“He’s eaten now how about you?” Milly placed a plate in front of Danny;on it was tuna salad on a croissant with a slice of cheddar cheese and cranberry chutney. A fresh green salad with croutons, black olives and grape tomatoes took up the other half of the plate.
“Looks good.” Danny waited until Burke and Milly sat to start eating.
“I think we should go see that charity ball hockey game with the Maple Leaf players in it. Chin can get us tickets and Kono and Fong should be back from Thailand by then so they can go too. We can ask Ruslan and Kris and see if their boys want to go. What do you think? Wanna go and see Willie Nylander whiff aa he tries to score?” Burke poured some homemade ranch dressing on his salad.
“Yeah we could go. I’ll put the headphones on Ollie do he can’t hear the crowd and stuff.” Danny looked at his son and felt a rush of love for the boy. Miracle baby. He was indeed. So much had happened in the past almost year. Danny ached to see Steve and to show the man his beautiful dark haired little boy. We made this, Danny thought. We made him.
“I’ll get the tickets.” Burke looked pleased and was just about to tell them who was on the roster but the doorbell rang which sent Aki into a barking bonanza. “Here now, Aki. It’s… a friend… I think…. “ Burke paused then opened the door. He stared into the eyes of Commander Joe White, an old friend and part of the Special OPs team Burke had led. “About damn time you got here,” Burke growled. “We need to talk.”
****************
“So tell me. I need the back story.” Joe sipped his coffee as he relaxed in the den. “By the way, this is some house you got here. It’s very nice!”
“It suits us a lot better than Nome. This past summer we used the pool a lot. It’s been indispensable for helping Danny. We do love it here. The seasons. The people. The small towns with Toronto not far away, Joe, you could try it. Who knows? You might like settling down.”
Joe chuckled and in jest, pointed a finger at Burke. “Don’t be trying to change me. Many tried, and they all failed. Now. The back story?”
“Yes yes ok. Geez, you are always so impatient! Here we go. Danny and Steve saved the world by luring some kind of an alien over the brink of the Falls. To their credit I saw bravery and I saw fear but they did it. Self sacrifice and all. While Danny and Steve were getting checked out in the hospital, Steve left us when 2 big boys wearing green fatigues practically carried him out. He left Danny a final letter. We have heard nothing since then.”
“According to what I know, Lieutenant Commander Steven McGarrett is a brilliant strategist and even better he goes in himself to do the job. I’ve seen the aftermath of his work and I’m impressed.”
“Steve is one of the finest young men I know. He was kicked out from the military once because of friendly fire. It caused him grievous harm and the military gave him a whole lot of money to ease their guilt. How fucking dare they drag him back in.” Burke was angry now, the whole injustice surfacing in front of an old friend who might be able to help them extract Steve and bring him home.
“Obviously he means something to you,” Joe said.
“Well, Joe, he’s like a son to me. And he’s even more than that to Danny. Steve has now been missing almost a year.” Burke paused. He took a deep breath and continued. “Two months after Steve was taken away, Danny discovered he was pregnant. Oh skip the looks, Joe. They are both young and in love. They weren’t going to wait for the right time.” Burke began to pace.
“Did he have the baby? Or?”
“The pregnancy was very difficult. Danny was sick a lot and spent the last three months of the pregnancy on mandatory bed rest.”
“Well, a lot of first time mothers get that,” Joe said. “Or so I’ve heard.”
“Oh we were told exactly that. But what do the doctors here really know about Carriers? We should have gone to Toronto and seen a specialist first thing. But it was not until Danny was so sick that nothing was staying in his stomach that we decided to move his care to TO. We found a very very good doctor, but because of all the stress, the baby decided to come early. Two months early..”
“That couldn’t have been good. It wasn’t was it? Did the baby live?” Joe asked. Ok so he was invested. He knew Steve and could not imagine that the young SEAL had no idea he was a father. At least, Joe hoped Steve was a father. He waited until Burke continued with his story.
“They tried to stop labour but the baby had other ideas. Danny tried to deliver naturally but his hips were too narrow and the baby too big so instead of breaking the baby’s legs, they took him C Section after several hours of hard labour. Halfway through the procedure, Danny had a stroke and died twice on the table. The second time the docs did not think he would be back but bless them, they did not give up.” Just recounting the story had Burke verging on tears and he sat down again. Joe did the same.
“Geezus. Burke. I’m so sorry. Are they both ok, Danny and the baby?”
“He is and will be, thanks to a lot of hard work he’s put in and the wonderful mobile therapists. While the stroke did not thank God affect him mentally, it did affect him physically. He had to do extensive PT just to walk and do ordinary things.. He struggles a lot even now. . Nothing ever comes easy you know. But he made it, and he’s such a good mother to that baby.” Burke decided not to tell Joe the doctors had to take all of Danny’s baby making equipment to save Danny’s life because he was also hemorrhaging blood., which meant Ollie was it unless they wanted to adopt.
“Is he going to be ok?” Joe asked. “I mean, that’s … it must have been awful for you too to go through that.”
“Yes, it was, not gonna lie. From the time he has been home, we have had to monitor his blood pressure, though, thank God, it seems normal enough at all times. The strain of having the baby just affected him. So much.” And, Burke thought, the monster’s hooked flippers. Danny had the risk of Sepsis now if and when he got cut or with anything that drew blood and exposed his system to germs. It might not happen but they were extremely careful.
Ok, Burke was going in for the pitch. He prayed Joe would help him. “Joe. Steve McGarrett is the father of the baby. He has no idea Ollie was born and in November it will mark a year that he’s been gone. Now I don’t know if you know where he is or if you can find out but he needs to come home. He needs to come home to his family. Danny needs him and his son needs to know who his Daddy is. I’ll help you. Chin will also help.”
“Chin Ho Kelly?” Joe looked surprised. “Now that’s someone I have not seen in a while.”
“Please Joe. we gotta find that boy and bring him home.”
“And if I tell you where he is, that is IF I somehow knew?” Joe asked.
“You’d go with me to get him back.”
“Whoa now that sounds like a personal problem!” Joe looked hard at Burke.
“I would not come alone. I can assemble a team of guys all with unique skills. Before you go, you can meet Danny. You will see that child who is the spitting image of his Daddy save for the eye colour. You in? Can you help?”
Joe sighed and shook his head. “Alright. I’ll see what I can do. Give me 24 hours.” Joe got up and paused, hand on the door. “You and Chin be ready to go in 24. It’s gonna be hot. Pack accordingly.”
“Thank you, Joe.
“Save it. I’ll see you tomorrow though.”
“Again. Thank you.”
Danny sat cross legged on the couch and threw the stuffed duck for Aki. Ollie was sleeping in his cradle and Milly was in the kitchen. He was not sure where Burke was but knew the older man could not be far away.
He allowed himself some thoughts about Steve, since he was alone and there was nobody filling his head with negativity about his lover. Kono had been furious and he could not even mention Steve by name around her unless he wanted to face her anger. Nobody understood why Danny still believed in Steve, still missed him, still was sure he would come home one day, walking through that door like he owned the place. . Well, maybe Aki did. The dog was still loyal and slept with Danny in Steve’s bedroom, where none of Steve’s stuff was disturbed.
“Danny? Would you like one of your books to read? Anything I can get for you?”
Danny looked up at Milly and smiled. He loved this woman so much; she had been with him every step of the way during his rehab and recovery and she was one of the 2 people who DID believe in Steve.
“Naw I’m good. Aki and I are just playing with her duck. Did Burke’s company leave?”
“Yes I believe he did. Hmph, trouble comes when you open the door and invite it in. I am not sure I like that man and it makes me more suspicious to know they were talking in the den with the door closed.”
“Maybe it’s about Steve?” Danny said. “Maybe Burke is…… Tracking Steve down. That would be amazing.” Danny laughed as Aki brought her duck up with her to sprawl beside him on the couch.
“I’ll see if I can get some answers,” Milly whispered conspiratorially. They fist bumped and Danny went back to petting Aki.
“Looks like our little angel is taking a good nap. He’s so precious.”
“He reminds me so much of Steve when I look at him. He’s already got the long limbs and the dark hair. Long eyelashes.” Danny took a deep breath. “You know he left the best part of himself with me. Ollie is everything I did not know I wanted. Now I understand so much what my Mom sacrificed for me.”
“Just heard the weather forecast!” Burke said, as he brought a bag of pretzels into the family room. Under his arm there were three bottles of sparkling water, a bottle for each of them. “We are going to get some nasty weather. Cold and a bit of snow.”
“What’s going on?” Milly asked immediately, suspicious. Since they’d moved to Lincoln, they hardly spoke about the weather.
“What? What do you mean?” Burke tried to keep his face blank but then he realized his wife was on to him. “I’m leaving tomorrow. I’m not sure when I’ll be home but I asked Ruslan and Kris to temporarily move in here to keep, to uh, give you help until I get back.”
“And just where are you going?” Milly asked.
“I don’t know. I only know it’s hot there. Chin and I will be leaving together and meet up with a couple of my buddies from work. I will do my best, Danny and Milly…. And Ollie… to bring Steve home.”
*********************
Assassin.
Panther.
Ghost.
Cazador.
If you looked into his icy blue eyes, it would be the last thing you saw.
Burke and Joe sat together in the back of the army issue JEEP as they made their way to the capital city of Algiers from the airstrip where they’d landed. Up front sat Chin beside the driver, and following in the back in a second vehicle were Harry Langford, ex M16 Agent; Commander Wade Gutches SEAL UNIT 9 head; and Brad Jacks and Clay Garcia from that unit rounded out the team.
“The latest intel indicates Steve is operating out of Algiers at the request of CIA. The last known address I got is at a hostel in the north side of the city. We will see if he is there.” Joe wiped his face with the bandana around his neck. It was blazing in the sun.
“I hope he isn’t totally brainwashed. I know guys who just never came home again after doing deep ops!” Chin said.
“Well I might have the best persuasion of all. I brought a photo of Ollie and Danny. I’m hoping there’s enough sense in his head to realize all he has to do at this point is walk away and come with us!” Burke patted the pocket of his shirt.
“You’d best hope that’s what it takes!” Joe grumbled.
It was not long before the men stood in front of a white washed multi floored building with shutters the same colour as the edifice.
“Who wants to volunteer to ring his bell?” Joe asked.
“I’ll go.” Burke started out, with Chin close behind.
“I got your back, Brother.”
“I appreciate that.” Burke cocked his rifle and pushed open the door on the front of the unit.
“I should go first!”
Burke was pushed out of the way as Harry took over the lead. The charming roguish Brit looked back over his shoulder and grinned at Burke and Chin. Then he disappeared inside.
“That’s a hard act to follow,” Chin joked. “What the hell?”
“Shall we?” Burke pushed the door open and they walked into the lobby where Harry already had a man dangling from the fan/light fixture.
“Oh hello gents. My friend Omar was just about to tell me about the American soldier who lives here!”
“Je n'ai pas vu l'homme que tu cherches!! Il n'est pas revenu depuis deux jours!!! “ the man began to sob because the fan movements were tightening the strap around his neck.
“You haven’t seen him in 2 days or he has not been here in two days? Which is it?” Harry growled.
“S'il te plaît!! J'ai des enfants!!! Laisse-moi aller et je te dirai tout ce que je sais!!”
“Let him loose.” Burke pointed with his rifle at the tether.
“Just when it was getting interesting!” Harry said. He cut the tether and the man dropped to the floor, coughing and pulling off the loop around his neck. “Talk!” Harry prodded him with the toe of his boot.
“Il va et vient. Soldat américain très effrayant!! Il est parti il y a deux jours et n'est pas revenu. J'ai entendu dire qu'il est allé sur le front de mer pour y trouver un marchand d'armes. Quai 211. C'est tout ! S'il te plaît!! “
“The waterfront? If you are wrong, my weasel-y friend, I’ll be back to kill you.” Harry joined Burke and Chin on the other side of the railing and the three left the building.
“Gotta go to Pier 211. Damn arms dealer,” Harry muttered.
“Francois Vickary is the only arms dealer who frequents Algeria,” Joe said as they told the rest of their team what the clerk had said.
“Then let’s get to him first so we can get to Steve,” Wade said.
****************
“Oh Ollie you are adorable!” Kono said as she picked up the baby and cuddled him close. Danny watched from his perch on one of the stools at the kitchen island. “Tell me why you do not call him Myles. That’s his first name.”
“Ollie just sounds cuter. We will leave it up to him when he gets older as to which name he wants us to call him. You did not have to cut your trip short to babysit. Ruslan and Kris would have moved in.”
“With their kids. No it’s just easier for me and Fong. Besides, I love this house!”
“Thank you. I worry that I’m a huge burden to Milly. The poor woman has suffered enough.” Danny sighed and slid off the stool to walk to the sofa where Ollie was entertaining Kono.
“Stop. That woman loves to help people. You’re her son. She’s not going to complain ever about helping you.” Kono sniffed towards the baby. “Ew.”
“I’ll get him!” Danny laughed and scooped Ollie up to take him into the bathroom where they had a changing table set up. He expertly pulled off the offensive diaper, cleaned the baby up and put on a new diaper, all in less than 5 minutes. Ollie giggled and tried to reach for his foot but Dsnny resealed him in his blanket and took him back out to the couch. “All set.”
“How are you doing?” Kono asked casting an eye to Danny’s thin frame. “Are you eating?”
“Look who is talking!” Danny answered.
“Don’t you deflect, Danny Williams! You need to eat if you’re going to get strong and buff again.” When she saw the flash of guilt across his face, Kono backed off. “I worry about you. You’ve come a long way. Let’s just keep going.”
“Burke is bringing Steve home,” Danny said. “I know he is.”
“I hope so. Really.” She squeezed his hand. “So what kind of pizza are we getting tonight?”
“Mmmmm an extra cheese, mushroom, artichoke, black olive za?!” Danny decided that sounded good. His stomach growled in response.
“Perfect! I’ll also ask Milly what she wants. Fong can pick them up in his way here with our stuff.”
Danny was just going to tease Kono about being a pushy wife when he was interrupted by the ring of his cell. There was no number associated with it. He pushed ACCEPT and held the phone to his ear. “Yes?”
“Are you alone?”
“Jerry! Hey! How are you?”
“I need to see you. Can I come to the house?”
“Of course. Do you want to stay here? There’s a guest bedroom.”
“I’ll take you up on that offer. I’ll see you soon.”
Danny frowned and stared at his phone. He had not heard from or seen Jerry since the monster take down, although Jerry had sent a Bigfoot doll for the baby after Milly had told him about Ollie. Well, it would be good to see what was going on. Danny just hoped it had nothing to do with monsters.
**************
“Fuck. Looks like we are too late.”
Burke stood over the still warm body of one Francois Vickary, whose neck was broken, the look of surprise and terror still reflected in his wide open eyes.
“Steve has got to be working for someone,” Wade said. “If we can find that person we can find Steve.”
“I’ve got an idea!” Joe suddenly started towards the railing where they’d jumped from the roof of the van they drove. “Let’s go!”
“Gladly. This ship is giving me vibes of Ghost Ship.” When Burke saw them all looking at him he shrugged. “What? It feels spooky.”
Once they were inside the van, Joe directed their driver to travel to a bar near the waterfront. He swore that when he was in Algiers the last time, it was a hotbed of subversive activity. Money talked and with cash in hand, they could get what they needed to find Steve.
**************
A villa in the foothills of Algeria
“Honestly. You bore me with your endless exercise. Trust me. You’re ripped enough.” Sam Alexander, the mastermind behind the Mission Algeria Apocalypse, stretched and reached for his whiskey. “Hey! McGarrett! Did you hear what I said?”
Suddenly, he was airborne, Steve gripping the lapels of Sam ‘s shirt. With Steve’s impassive emotionless face inches from his own, Steve issued a stern warning.
“Shut the fuck up.”
“Yeah yeah ok!” Sam hit the floor hard because Steve chose to just release him. As he scrambled to stand, he pointed to his laptop which was set up on the counter. “I have your next target.”
“I need a couple of days.” Steve walked out the open French doors and stood by the balcony. He’d never felt so alone in his entire life.
“Ok you can have them. Go sight seeing or find a hooker. The world is your oyster.”
“I don’t want a fucking hooker.” Steve clenched his jaw so hard it hurt and he welcomed the pain. Oh to feel something again. Anything.
“Look, you’re young. You have needs. I’m really sorry your… well.. that Danny… “
“Died. Just say it. He’s dead. And where was I? Here in this lousy pissing fucking bowl of shit.”
“It was so sad that he died on the street when that car hit him. God. It’s not fair.”
“I can do without your histrionic platitudes. I’ll be outside. Tell them I want something besides fucking pork for dinner.” Steve slammed outside where the humidity and heat seemed to swallow him up. He had been living here since he’d left the hostel in the middle of the city and he could not say it was any better. In fact, being around the operative 24/7 was making him antsy in a way that felt dangerous.
How long had he been away from his Danny? Almost a year now. In three weeks, it would be. He remembered that last night together and shut his eyes trying to feel how magical it was to actually be a part of the blonde as they made love. And now, he would never have it again. Steve had seen the photos and read the autopsy results. He saw photos of the funeral, everyone’s head bowed and grieving. So he might as well continue mindless assignments and help his country since they’d asked him. (Well, actually, if he was honest, they had given him no choice. He remembered being manhandled out of the hospital)
He hated Algeria. Hated the heat and the spiders and relentless flies. He hated Alexander most of all. He was an insufferable fat assed lazy uncouth slob. How he’d managed to kiss enough asses on his way up always astounded Steve.
The only good thing about the villa was the pool, which was meticulously maintained. He stripped and dove in,the cool water sluicing over his skin and for a few seconds anyways, the water took away the tears over losing his Danny.
At a bar near the harbour, Joe negotiated with the hostess for a table. As soon as he showed her money she led them to a back patio area and indicated a long table with plenty of chairs. Everyone sat and waited for Joe to give them a heads up.
“So we know this place is gossip central. Well, maybe you don’t but me and Wade know. I’ve put out some feelers so we will wait until some fine gentleman comes forward and confesses he knows where Steve might be.”
“Steve has been at this a while,” Harry said. “Are you sure you can convince him to come back home? What if he wants to keep doing what he’s doing?”
“That’s not the Steve I know,” Burke said. “At any rate, like I said, I have the persuasion.”
“Let’s order some sealed bottles while we wait,” Wade suggested. “I actually hope they have some cold water here.” That suggestion was met by many agreeing voices do they ordered waters and waited for some intel.
***************
Jerry sat opposite Danny at the dining room table and opened his laptop. He was busy typing something so Danny waited patiently, wondering what was going on. After a minute or so, Jerry twirled the screen around to show Danny.
Dsnny gasped and clutched his chest. He had forgotten how to breathe. The room spun as he recognized that gait, those legs, the tats and most of all that handsome face.
“Danny? Hey… oh man here sit down again. Sorry.” Jerry hovered over Dsnny who could not quite catch his breath. He remembered his anxiety reducing exercises and began to use them, breathing deeply and then expelling the air.
“Steve!” Danny ran his fingertips over the image on the screen. “Where is this?”
“I don’t want to say,” Jerry hesitated.
“Please! Please tell me, Jerry!” Danny began, eyes bright with tears.
“Ok ok, just stop crying. Don’t cry ok? It’s in Algeria. At the airport 2 months ago.”
“Algeria?! What’s he doing there?” Danny mused. He was better, or at least his thoughts were coherent again. “Where IS Algeria anyways?”
“I can answer that,” Jerry said. “Algeria is a country located in North Africa. It is situated between Morocco and Tunisia. More specifically, it is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Tunisia and Libya to the east, Niger to the southeast, Mali, Mauritania, and Western Sahara to the southwest, and Morocco to the west.”
“Ah ok. Don’t they speak French there?” Danny asked, trying to recall from geography class.
“Arabic and French yes. There are a lot of Muslims there too.”
“What’s he doing in Algeria?” Danny asked, still staring at the screen. Steve had a bit of day old scruff on his face and his hair was almost buzz cut.
“He’s working for this guy,” Jerry turned the screen and typed on something else then spun the screen again so Danny could see the image. The man looked to be in his 40’s, and he had curly hair with a receding hairline and a very doughy face.
“Is he some sort of… what?”
“Sam Alexander,” Jerry tapped the screen, “a real first class prick. I can’t imagine Steve working for him out of loyalty or anything. My guess is they are either keeping him medicated to obey or… “ Jerry stared at Dsnny, “they lied about you.”
“What could they possibly say? Steve and I were on nothing but good terms when he was here. I mean, we created Ollie!”
“Call it a well educated hunch,” Jerry said.
“Well then I have to go to Algeria,” Danny said as he stood up. “Are you in? I’m rich. I’ll get us plane tickets in first class.”
“Wait who is going to watch your baby?”
“Kono and Milly. I need you to figure out where Steve is. Please. This means my world!”
Jerry had 99 reasons why this was a very bad idea but the one good thing was perhaps they could convince Steve to return and Danny and Steve could be a family. As much as Jerry wanted to say no, he nodded. “You get the tickets, I’ll find out where we need to go.”