Smooth Operator (1/1)
Title: Smooth Operator
Author: somehowunbroken
Fandom: H50
Characters: Steve/Danny
Word Count: 5,333
Rating: PG-13/slight language, implied sex
Summary: Danny and Steve have to go undercover. On a cruise ship.
Notes: This is for ciaimpala , my recipient in the vacationthon exchange. I hope you like it! Thanks to stormylullabye and padfootthegrim for looking this over.
“Seriously,” Danny hisses through his teeth, “seriously?”
“Pick a new word,” Steve advises as he slips a matching lei over his own head. “Repetition doesn’t suit you.”
“Flowers don’t suit me,” Danny shoots back. “Purple does not suit me, Steven, that’s what doesn’t suit me here. And while we’re at it, Hawaiian shirts-”
Steve makes a face and picks at his own gaudy shirt. “Yeah, that part wasn’t my idea,” he says, and the distaste in his voice is evident enough that Danny drops that particular point.
He sighs. “Okay, so we’re sure that Lewiston is on this boat?”
“Ship,” Steve corrects absently, looking around as they walk on board, pulling a suitcase behind him. With the lei, the shirt, and the sunglasses perched on his head, Steve really does look the part of a tourist. On the other hand, Danny’s pretty sure he just looks irate.
“Ship, whatever,” he replies. “He’s here?”
Steve nods casually as they walk up the ramp and meet the smiling attendant, who introduces himself as Brandon.
“Call me Bree,” he says, way too enthusiastically to be healthy. “Mr. Williams and Mr. McGarrett, Suite 302, very nice!” He flutters his eyelashes at them outrageously as he hands over two keycards and a bag with the cruise ship company’s logo printed on the side. “Welcome aboard, gentlemen, and enjoy your stay!”
“Thanks, Bree,” Steve says, grinning and slipping an arm around Danny’s waist. “What’s in the bag?”
Bree winks. “Just a little bon voyage gift from the crew and captain,” he laughs, waving as they walk away.
Danny opens the bag up as they turn the corner, looks inside, and closes it quickly. He’s sure his face is beet red.
“What is it?” Steve asks again, shuffling closer to Danny as Danny clutches the bag to his chest to keep Steve from looking into it.
“Nothing,” he says in a strangled tone. “Nothing we’re going to be needing, anyway.”
Steve laughs as they approach their suite. “Come on,” he says easily, dropping a kiss to Danny’s temple as he swipes the keycard in the door. “I’m sure it’s not that bad.”
“Right,” Danny says in that same strangled voice, grabbing the suitcase and pulling it inside. He drops the bag on the bed - one bed, huge, but still - and leaves the suitcase by the closet, heading straight for the bathroom, shutting the door firmly behind himself.
Okay, so maybe this wasn’t the best plan they could have come up with, he thinks as he splashes water on his face. Sure, he and Steve have moved past the obvious flirting into the start of a relationship, but it’s not like they just started fucking after a long day at work - Danny is a little more old-fashioned than that, thank you very much. They’ve been making out, doing some exploratory groping, but they haven’t quite worked their way up to the condoms and lube in the bag, let alone the-
“Danny?” Steve calls cautiously from the bedroom. Danny takes a deep breath and pokes his head out, seeing the contents of the bag spread across the bed. Steve is frowning at the object in his hand. “The condoms and the lube I get, but what are we supposed to do with the bullet vibrator?”
Danny shuts the door again with a groan.
-0-
“We want to give a big Hawaiian welcome to all of our guests this evening!” the announcer says with a huge smile. “Aloha and welcome aboard!”
Danny is concentrating very hard on his dinner, which is some sort of crustacean atop some sort of pasta. It’s pretty good, despite the fact that he can’t pronounce the name of it. He’d just pointed at the dish on the menu, and Steve had smiled and ordered it for him effortlessly.
Bastard.
“We have a wonderful itinerary planned for you,” the cruise director is saying. “When you return to your rooms this evening, you’ll find the ship newsletter waiting for you. It has tomorrow’s scheduled activities listed with start times and locations, and if you have any questions, you should feel free to call the information desk for help.”
“We should see what Lewiston is planning on doing tomorrow,” Steve murmurs into Danny’s ear, and Danny jumps and scowls. Steve moves like a damn cat.
“We should eat our dinners and try to blend in,” Danny counters, eyeing Steve’s untouched salmon platter with interest. It looks perfectly grilled, presented on a nice sea of greens. “We have four days to figure things out, babe. Please sit back and enjoy your food before I do it for you.”
A woman at the next table laughs and leans over. “My Angie is a workaholic, too,” she confides, looking adoringly at the tiny woman across the table from her. “Can’t get her to leave her job behind for more than a few hours at a time.”
Danny smiles, nice and wide. “Steve’s the same way,” he agrees. “He just won’t let it go some nights.” He sighs as if he’s put upon.
Steve scowls. “Like you’re any better,” he accuses, leaning back in his chair and definitely pouting.
“First vacation together, boys?” the woman asks. “I’m Marlene, by the way.”
“Danny, and this is Steve,” Danny offers. “Yeah, we, uh - we haven’t been together long.”
Marlene smiles warmly. “Congratulations, then,” she says. “Angie and I have been on a few of these cruises before. The company does such a lovely job, and it’s nice to be on a vacation where you know that nobody is judging you for who you’re with.”
“I can see how that would appeal, yeah,” Danny says, sitting back in his chair. “Do you have any recommendations for tomorrow?”
Angie looks up from her pasta. “They’ll have a swimsuit competition,” she says with a grin. “You could both place, I’m sure of it.”
“Um,” Danny says, feeling his face flush as Marlene laughs. “Thank you, but I don’t think-”
“Oh, come on,” Steve cuts in smoothly, leaning over and grabbing Danny’s wrist with a smile. “That sounds like fun.”
“You think it sounds like fun to have me stand around while other guys take off your swimsuit with their eyes?” Danny asks, raising his eyebrows. “I think not, babe.”
“They’d be doing the same to you,” Steve says mildly, eyeing Danny. “Trust me on this one.”
Marlene laughs. “There’s a murder mystery dinner tomorrow night,” she says. “That’s always fun.”
Danny can see Steve perk up. “Really?” Danny sighs. He turns to Marlene. “That’s too much like our day job for me, but with this goof, we might end up there anyway.”
“She said it was fun,” Steve protests. “Nobody actually gets hurt, Danny. Come on.”
“It’s better than the swimsuit competition, I guess,” Danny says after a minute, turning back to his dinner.
-0-
The string of murders across the islands had been gaining more and more media attention, and when someone in the media had finally put two and two together and come up with the name Paradise Killer, the case had fallen into Five-0’s lap. It had taken some pretty careful investigation, but they’d managed to connect the killings to a Roy Lewiston, and had then connected Lewiston to a ticket on an upcoming cruise around the islands.
It had been Jenna’s idea.
“We don’t have enough to arrest him, not yet,” she’d said. “It just makes sense to follow him around and catch him doing something.”
Steve had just nodded. “Chin and Kono, that’s you,” he’d said, studying the map.
“Um,” Chin had replied, staring at the information on the cruise. “No, I don’t really think it is.”
And so they’d learned about the cruise line and its specific clientele, and Steve had looked at Danny and made You’re Gonna Hate This Face and said, “Okay, so Danny and I will go.”
“No,” Danny had objected, but it had been more of a token protest, a knee-jerk reaction to the face, than anything else.
And so they’d ended up booked and boarded.
-0-
They skip the swimsuit competition but end up going to the murder mystery dinner. Marlene and Angie wave at them from one of the tables, but all the seats are taken, so they look for another space.
“Look, two seats left over there,” Steve says brightly, pointing to the corner table as he puts a hand in the small of Danny’s back and leans in. “Lewiston’s in the second seat from the left with his back to us.”
“Great,” Danny says. “Let’s go make friends, huh?”
The thing about Roy Lewiston is that he’s charming. The guy oozes charm like it’s his job, which is part of why he’s been getting away with things. It’s hard to blame a guy who seems so nice for such grisly crimes. He’s their guy, though, so Danny slides in next to him and smiles.
“Danny,” he says, offering his hand. “Gigantor here is my partner Steve.”
“Dean,” Lewiston says. Lying, Danny thinks. That can’t be a good sign. “Nice to meet you guys.”
“You here with anyone?” Steve asks casually. He’s not, or he shouldn’t be, but Lewiston is smiling and nodding.
“I actually checked into a single,” he says, laughing, as the man next to him suddenly turns and leans into Lewiston’s personal space. “But I met Adam by the pool earlier, and he agreed to see how things went tonight.”
“Best of luck,” Danny says with a smile, hoping that he’s not sending any sort of scary expression with his face, anything that would tip Lewiston off. Adam looks like a nice enough guy - mid-thirties, sandy brown hair, dark eyes, medium complexion. He could be the last victim’s brother.
The night would be fun if Danny wasn’t sitting next to a serial killer. The game is light and easy, and the rest of the table is smiling and laughing as everyone gets into their parts. The murderer in the game ends up being Lewiston’s new friend Adam, which makes Lewiston crack a joke about picking the wrong guy. It sets Danny’s teeth on edge, and when he shoots a glance at Steve, he can tell that he’s not much better off.
They drift apart after the game finishes. Lewiston and Adam leave together, and Danny keeps an eye on them as they make their way out of the room. “We should follow them.”
“Oh, yeah,” Steve agrees, putting his hand in the small of Danny’s back again and propelling him through the crowd. They manage to avoid Marlene and Angie as they slip out the door.
Lewiston and Adam duck into a room just below the deck. It’s technically a lounge, but Danny hears the lock click as they round the corner, and his adrenaline skyrockets as he turns to Steve, who’s already bringing out the crazy eyes.
“He’s not gonna kill him on the ship, or at least not now,” Danny says quietly. “Thirty people just saw them leave together.”
“We need eyes in that room,” Steve replies. “Danny, how are we going to-”
“I have an idea,” Danny says. “You’ll probably love it. Come on.”
Ten minutes later, they’re safely in the lifeboat suspended over the side of the ship. It gives them a clear vantage point into the room, as long as they don’t move around too much.
“I’m impressed, Danny,” Steve whispers into Danny’s ear as they watch inside. Lewiston and Adam are making out on the couch in the lounge. “There’s no way I would have been able to talk you into this if it had been my idea, though. You know that, right?”
“I know that,” Danny snaps irritably. Lewiston and Adam break apart and look around, and Danny and Steve duck down. Danny continues more quietly. “You were right, though. We have to be able to see what’s going on in there.”
Adam says something and Lewiston laughs, and then they’re making out again. It goes on for a while, but nothing of importance to the case comes up, and after a while Lewiston and Adam get off the couch and move towards the door.
“Shit,” Steve swears. There’s no way they can get back on the boat and inside in time to see where the couple is going.
Lewiston stops and looks around the room. “Did you hear something?” he asks Adam, who nods and frowns, looking around.
“It sounded like it came from the window,” he says, and they walk towards the small opening together.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” Steve breathes, and Danny does the first thing he can think of.
”Play along,” he whispers into Steve’s ear, pushing him into the bottom of the lifeboat. He latches his mouth onto Steve’s as he sticks a hand into Steve’s pants.
“Oh, hey,” Adam’s voice says from a few inches away. “You guys might want to try your room for that. What if the boat tips?”
“Shit,” Danny yelps, pulling his hand out of Steve’s pants as if he’s surprised to be caught. “Um.”
Lewiston laughs. “Goodnight, gentlemen,” he says, steering Adam out of the room.
“Well, we don’t know where they went, but we didn’t get made,” Danny says when the other two are out of earshot. Steve doesn’t answer, and when Danny looks down, Steve has his eyes squeezed shut and is trying to fix his pants so his clearly obvious hard-on is less so.
“Oh, for the love of God,” Danny sighs, standing and hauling himself back onto the deck.
-0-
“We should track them down,” Steve insists again.
“No,” Danny retorts for at least the fifth time. “We used our get out of jail free card, Steve. If they catch us again, especially on the same night, Lewiston is going to figure it out and do something terrible.”
Steve scowls, but the effect is ruined by the neon pink towel slung around his hips and the water dripping from his hair. “We’re wasting our time,” he points out. “We’re here to catch the guy, aren’t we?”
Danny glares at him. “We are here to prevent any more innocent bystanders from getting hurt,” he corrects. “Lewiston has probably chosen Adam as his next victim, yes. But,” he adds before Steve can interject, “he’s not going to do anything until we hit land. That gives us time to observe and collect evidence, and to not go forcing him into a split-second decision that will end in shots fired. Understood?”
Steve blinks at him. “I still think we should take him down now,” he says mulishly, but it’s a token protest, nothing more. “We only have two days left-”
“Three,” Danny corrects.
“Two,” Steve stresses. “We have tomorrow and the day after, and we disembark Friday morning. We can’t count on that time for anything useful.”
Danny pinches the bridge of his nose. “Fine, two,” he agrees. “Two days in which we can gather evidence. Evidence is good. Evidence is what will put him away. Running into his room and yelling about how we’re cops is not going to help anything.”
“Fine,” Steve says sullenly, leaning back against the headboard and crossing his arms.
“Fine,” Danny agrees. “Are you going to put clothing on, or-”
“No,” Steve says shortly. “No, I’m going to sleep naked.”
And damn if he doesn’t just crawl into bed like that, dropping the towel on the floor, bare between the sheets.
“You’re impossible,” Danny groans, clicking off the light and climbing into his own side of the bed. “Just - stay on your own side of the bed, you sleep like a big, naked octopus-”
But Steve is already sliding over, scooping his body around Danny’s, fitting them snugly together. “You know you don’t really mind,” he says, and then he’s out like a light, snoring softly into Danny’s ear.
“It’s a good thing you’re attractive,” Danny grumbles, but it’s true, he doesn’t actually mind at all.
-0-
Steve manages to get Danny into a swimsuit the next day, and they spend a few hours by the pool. Bree, the flirtatious attendant from check-in, is walking around the deck in a Speedo, offering drinks to anyone standing in one place for long enough.
“It’s included,” he says with a pout as Danny turns him down for the third time. “Come on! Relax! Try a strawberry daiquiri!”
“Bree,” Danny says, wondering if he sounds as long-suffering as he feels, “do I really look like the strawberry daiquiri kind of guy?”
Bree smiles widely and leans in. “You look like the kind of guy who would like to lick a strawberry daiquiri off of your partner,” he says, dropping his voice so Steve, who has just pulled himself out of the pool and is heading towards them, can’t hear. Bree winks as he stands. “Think about it,” he tosses off as he moves away.
Steve scowls after him. “I don’t like that guy,” he mutters as he rubs a towel over his head.
“What, seriously?” Danny asks. “What could he possibly have done to offend your delicate sensibilities?”
Steve glares harder after Bree, who is already to the next couple, doing his best to get them to order a drink. “I just don’t like him. Do I have to like everybody?”
“Could you please not be jealous of a twenty-year-old?” Danny sighs, catching on. “Flirting is his job, babe. I’m not gonna hop into bed with the pool boy, okay?”
Steve zeroes his attention in on Danny. “I certainly hope not,” he nearly growls, “considering you won’t even hop into bed with me, and we’ve been together for months-”
“Is that what this is about?” Danny asks, honestly surprised. “You’re upset because we haven’t slept together yet?”
“No,” Steve interjects, instantly contrite. “I just - I don’t know. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”
“Hey,” Danny says softly, tugging on Steve’s hand until Steve drops to the edge of the lounge chair Danny’s been sitting on. “Does it really bother you that much?”
Steve doesn’t say anything, but he doesn’t resist when Danny tugs his chin up. All of his insecurities are right there for the world to see, fear of rejection and worry and hurt, like he’s already bracing himself for Danny to pull away.
“Hey,” Danny repeats, leaning in to brush his lips against Steve’s gently. “Come on, Steve, let’s go.” He stands and pulls Steve up with him, tangling their fingers together and heading towards the elevator that would take them to their room.
Steve seems to shake himself when the elevator doors close. “Danny, I don’t want you to - just because-”
Danny tilts his head. “You know why I’ve been waiting, babe?” he asks, smiling when Steve shakes his head. “I wanted to make sure you wanted this as much as I did.”
“Oh,” Steve says, looking down. The tips of his ears turn red, and Danny bumps their shoulders together. “I, uh. I do.”
“Yeah,” Danny laughs, pulling Steve forward again as the doors slide open. “I figured that out on my own.”
-0-
“You look well rested,” Marlene says when Danny and Steve sit down for breakfast the next morning. “Did you have a good night?”
Danny doesn’t have to turn his head to know that Steve’s blushing just as hard as he is. “Yes, thank you,” he says with as much dignity as he can muster. Marlene is grinning at them; Angie is full-out laughing into her waffles. “What are you doing for our last day at sea?”
Marlene and Angie are planning to sit by the pool for the day; Steve bristles when Danny nods and says they might join them later. Nobody misses it, but nobody calls him on it, either, so it doesn’t take long for Steve to relax and throw a few suggestions into the mix.
“No,” Danny says again, laughing. “I’m not sitting through a class on traditional Hawaiian dances, Steve. It’s not happening.”
Steve pouts, barely covering his smirk, but before he can say anything else, Adam drops into the free seat at their table. “Dean said he was going to check out that dance class,” he says conversationally, digging into his fruit cup. “I was thinking about going with him, but I’m not sure I can handle three hours of the hula without my head spinning.”
Danny sighs internally even as he’s catching Steve’s eye. Steve nods slightly, so Danny reaches over and claps Adam on the shoulder. “You and me, buddy, we’ll suffer through it together,” he says, scowling as Steve makes an entirely too pleased sound and Marlene and Angie start laughing.
The hula class is incredibly boring, and Danny’s only solace is that he knows that Steve was joking when he suggested they go. Steve’s focusing so hard on what Lewiston is doing that he keeps forgetting to do the dance steps, which means that the instructor keeps clapping her hands in his face and demanding that he pay closer attention. Danny sits in the shade with Adam, laughing as they watch.
“So,” Adam says conversationally. “What’s up with Dean?”
Danny very carefully does not choke on his orange juice. “Seems like you should be the one to tell me,” he replies. “I’m not sleeping with him.”
Adam rolls his eyes. “Dean isn’t local,” he says. “I am. I know who you and Steve are.”
“Ah,” Danny says, stalling for time by taking another sip. “We’re just on vacation. Nothing doing.”
“You’re a terrible liar for a cop,” Adam laughs. “Just tell me he isn’t that Paradise Killer so I can go to sleep easy tonight.”
Danny stares at Steve, willing his partner to turn around and catch on and give Danny some sort of hint here. The silence carries on, and Adam sighs after a minute.
“I knew there was something weird about him,” Adam says sadly. “He kept going on and on about how much he loved my hair.”
“You’re not freaked out?” Danny asks in surprise, turning to meet Adam’s eyes. Adam shakes his head.
“I mean, yeah, a little,” he admits. “Mostly I’m wondering what I can do to help you guys catch him.”
“Don’t do anything,” Danny says instantly. “If he senses a change, he’ll split as soon as he can get away. We don’t want him to know we’re on to him.”
Adam nods slowly. “So just keep on keeping on?”
Danny makes a face. “I’m sorry,” he apologizes. “I know it’s not really a great option.”
“Nope,” Adam agrees. “I’d really rather not sleep with him, if he’s really that guy,”
“Just don’t change your habits at this point,” Danny sighs. “If it makes you feel any better, you’re not in any danger.” Adam raises an eyebrow, and Danny hurries to explain. “Steve’s not going to let anything happen to you on the ship, and we’ve got people tailing his every move back on the island. You’re as safe as you can be.” He pauses. “Well, mostly.”
Adam nods after a moment. “I trust you guys to know what you’re doing,” he says slowly. “Just let me know when to duck.”
“You’ll know,” Danny says. “No worries on that one.”
-0-
They call Chin and Kono when they get closer to land, late that night. Steve tells them that Lewiston hasn’t done anything suspect other than giving a false name, and Danny chimes in by telling them that Adam figured it out.
“Do you think he’ll blow your cover?” Chin asks, and Danny can almost see him frowning.
“I doubt it,” Danny says. “I think he’s worried enough about himself to not let on that he knows, and he seems like a pretty levelheaded guy, albeit one with poor taste in companions.”
“We’re armed if he tries anything,” Steve adds casually, and Danny looks over to see Steve peering into the chamber of a handgun he’d pulled out of God only knows where. Danny groans.
“Apparently we’re armed,” he confirms, and Chin makes a sound that can only be him stifling a laugh. “Anyway, we’re docking just before noon tomorrow, so if you guys can arrange for an undercover-”
There’s a loud noise through the phone, followed by excited talking and the sound of movement. After a minute, Kono’s voice comes into focus.
“We’ve got him,” she says, satisfied. “Charlie was able to get DNA from the Kahua scene, and it’s a match. We’ll arrest him when you guys land tomorrow.”
Steve laughs, the wild happy kind of laugh he only lets loose when he’s somewhere between excited and relieved. “About time,” he says into the phone. “Tell Charlie I owe him a beer.”
“Will do, boss,” Kono says cheerily.
They spend another half an hour or so going over the details as best they can, ways that they can separate Lewiston from the crowd of innocent bystanders and get him into a squad car without anyone getting hurt. They all agree that Adam shouldn’t be involved any more than he already is.
“Just get him out of there, and we’ll do the rest,” Chin says before they disconnect. “It’s not worth risking him getting hurt.”
“Right,” Danny agrees. “We’ll see you guys tomorrow.”
-0-
Adam seems tense at breakfast the next morning. “Hey,” Danny greets as they sit down. “You look a little seasick there, buddy. Glad to be getting back to terra firma later on?”
Adam grins weakly. “Yeah,” he replies. “I think I ate something weird last night. I haven’t been feeling great.”
Danny shoots a look over at Lewiston, who doesn’t seem overly concerned. “You feeling okay, Dean?”
“Yeah,” Lewiston replies. “Must have been in that weird fruit thing he ate. I feel fine.”
“Good, good,” Danny says, putting a hand on Adam’s arm. “You know what, I had some of that fruit too. Let’s you and me go get ourselves checked out before we get off the boat, huh?”
“Ship,” Steve corrects automatically. “You want me to come?”
Danny waves him off. “We’ll be fine,” he says. “You keep Dean company, babe. We’ll get some Dramamine and be back in a few.”
Danny gets Adam out of the cafeteria and around a corner before he drops his voice. “Are you okay?”
Adam nods. “I told him I wasn’t feeling well so he wouldn’t try anything,” he says, giving a weak grin. “He got me a glass of water, told me to lay down, that we’d make plans on the island before he left, once I was feeling better.”
“Okay, look,” Danny instructs. “I’m gonna take you down to the infirmary and get you a bed there. You just stay put until after we dock, okay?”
Lewiston frowns when Danny gets back. “Is Adam really sick?”
“The doctor said he might be dehydrated,” Danny lies. “He should be fine by the time we dock, but he’s probably going to spend the morning there. He told me to tell you not to worry, and that he’d call you when he gets off the boat so you guys can meet up.”
Lewiston shrugs. “Okay.”
Marlene and Angie stop by their table, and they exchange small talk for a while. Lewiston excuses himself and wanders away, ostensibly to pack up his things. Steve makes his excuses a few minutes later and heads off in the same direction, and Danny has no doubt that Steve will be keeping a close eye on Lewiston for the rest of the morning.
“Dean seems strange this morning,” Angie observes after Steve leaves. “He’s been nice this entire trip, but he just seemed like he wanted nothing to do with any of us just now.”
“Maybe he’s worried about Adam,” Marlene suggests. Angie shrugs.
“I guess so,” she says, but Danny can tell that she doesn’t quite believe that herself.
They part ways soon after, and Danny heads back to his room. Their things are already packed and ready to go, and Steve is nowhere in sight. Danny calls Chin, who assures him that everything is ready on shore, and Danny relays Adam’s faked illness and Lewiston’s strange behavior.
“Maybe he figured it out anyway,” Chin suggests. “Either way, we’re taking him down as soon as he sets foot on land again. We’ll see you all in about half an hour, okay?”
“Looking forward to it,” Danny replies, hanging up the phone. He sends a text to Steve. In the room. What’s going on?
His phone buzzes a minute later. Outside his room. He’s packing. All is well.
“Well that’s good,” Danny says out loud. Don’t let him see you.
Not a rookie, his phone reprimands him a moment later, and Danny grins.
Steve makes his way back to the room about fifteen minutes later. “He’s just waiting for us to make land,” he says. “Everything set with Chin?”
“We’re good,” Danny confirms. “As long as he doesn’t take hostages, everything should be fine.”
Steve groans. “Why would you say that?”
The captain makes an announcement shortly thereafter, and Danny weaves his way to the disembarkation area, scanning the crowd for Lewiston. Marlene waves at him from the line to get off the ship, and Danny waves back with a smile. The smile slips from his face as he notices who’s directly behind Marlene and Angie.
“Steve,” Danny says casually, lifting his hand to rub at his mouth. “He’s here.”
“Copy,” Steve says in his ear. “I’m on my way.”
Steve strolls into the room a moment later, his eyes locking with Danny’s before sweeping towards the exit line. Lewiston is to the door already, and Danny can only think to hope that HPD is in position, or he’s going to get away.
There’s a sudden commotion at the doorway, and Danny’s running before he even registers what’s going on. Lewiston has a hand around Marlene’s wrist and is brandishing a knife, and Danny has about four seconds to wonder what the hell happened before Angie calmly steps to the side, draws her arm back, and lands a solid punch to Lewiston’s cheek. He spins around, dropping both Marlene’s wrist and the knife, and crashes into a table behind him. Steve is on him less than a second later, pinning him to the ground, and Danny arrives in time to hear the cuffs latch around Lewiston’s wrists.
“Roy Lewiston,” Danny says calmly, “you are under arrest.”
-0-
“You are my hero,” Kono says again, grinning at Angie. They’re all back at Five-0 headquarters, taking final statements down after the arrest. “I can’t believe you just hauled off and slugged him.”
Angie shrugs. “He had a knife near Marlene,” she says by way of explanation. “I reacted, plain and simple.”
Marlene is fine - shaken, but otherwise unhurt. She’s sitting on a couch with Adam, who’s likewise feeling much better now that Lewiston is behind bars. “I’m glad you did,” Marlene says resolutely. “Getting stabbed is a terrible end to a vacation.”
“So is almost getting stabbed,” Danny points out.
Adam laughs. “I’d say almost getting stabbed is a lot better than actually getting stabbed.”
“I agree,” Angie says firmly. “I’d say this was more adventurous than our last cruise, but I don’t think it’s even the worst vacation we’ve ever had.”
Marlene laughs. “Heavens, no. Do you remember when we went to Reno?”
Angie smiles. “With the preacher-”
“And the cows!” Marlene is laughing helplessly now, while Adam stares in a kind of confused fascination, like he wants to ask but isn’t sure he wants to know.
“I’d say it was a success all around,” Jenna volunteers before the details can be revealed.
Chin nods. “Lewiston’s in jail, nobody got hurt, and Steve and Danny finally got a vacation out of the deal.”
“And hey,” Kono adds brightly, tugging at the flowers around Danny’s neck, provided by the cruise line as a thank you gift for stopping Lewiston. “You finally got-”
“Do not,” Danny cuts her off as everyone laughs. “Don’t finish that sentence, Kalakaua.”
Kono just grins as Steve slips his arm around Danny’s waist, and Danny’s glare melts as he starts laughing, too.
Author: somehowunbroken
Fandom: H50
Characters: Steve/Danny
Word Count: 5,333
Rating: PG-13/slight language, implied sex
Summary: Danny and Steve have to go undercover. On a cruise ship.
Notes: This is for ciaimpala , my recipient in the vacationthon exchange. I hope you like it! Thanks to stormylullabye and padfootthegrim for looking this over.
“Seriously,” Danny hisses through his teeth, “seriously?”
“Pick a new word,” Steve advises as he slips a matching lei over his own head. “Repetition doesn’t suit you.”
“Flowers don’t suit me,” Danny shoots back. “Purple does not suit me, Steven, that’s what doesn’t suit me here. And while we’re at it, Hawaiian shirts-”
Steve makes a face and picks at his own gaudy shirt. “Yeah, that part wasn’t my idea,” he says, and the distaste in his voice is evident enough that Danny drops that particular point.
He sighs. “Okay, so we’re sure that Lewiston is on this boat?”
“Ship,” Steve corrects absently, looking around as they walk on board, pulling a suitcase behind him. With the lei, the shirt, and the sunglasses perched on his head, Steve really does look the part of a tourist. On the other hand, Danny’s pretty sure he just looks irate.
“Ship, whatever,” he replies. “He’s here?”
Steve nods casually as they walk up the ramp and meet the smiling attendant, who introduces himself as Brandon.
“Call me Bree,” he says, way too enthusiastically to be healthy. “Mr. Williams and Mr. McGarrett, Suite 302, very nice!” He flutters his eyelashes at them outrageously as he hands over two keycards and a bag with the cruise ship company’s logo printed on the side. “Welcome aboard, gentlemen, and enjoy your stay!”
“Thanks, Bree,” Steve says, grinning and slipping an arm around Danny’s waist. “What’s in the bag?”
Bree winks. “Just a little bon voyage gift from the crew and captain,” he laughs, waving as they walk away.
Danny opens the bag up as they turn the corner, looks inside, and closes it quickly. He’s sure his face is beet red.
“What is it?” Steve asks again, shuffling closer to Danny as Danny clutches the bag to his chest to keep Steve from looking into it.
“Nothing,” he says in a strangled tone. “Nothing we’re going to be needing, anyway.”
Steve laughs as they approach their suite. “Come on,” he says easily, dropping a kiss to Danny’s temple as he swipes the keycard in the door. “I’m sure it’s not that bad.”
“Right,” Danny says in that same strangled voice, grabbing the suitcase and pulling it inside. He drops the bag on the bed - one bed, huge, but still - and leaves the suitcase by the closet, heading straight for the bathroom, shutting the door firmly behind himself.
Okay, so maybe this wasn’t the best plan they could have come up with, he thinks as he splashes water on his face. Sure, he and Steve have moved past the obvious flirting into the start of a relationship, but it’s not like they just started fucking after a long day at work - Danny is a little more old-fashioned than that, thank you very much. They’ve been making out, doing some exploratory groping, but they haven’t quite worked their way up to the condoms and lube in the bag, let alone the-
“Danny?” Steve calls cautiously from the bedroom. Danny takes a deep breath and pokes his head out, seeing the contents of the bag spread across the bed. Steve is frowning at the object in his hand. “The condoms and the lube I get, but what are we supposed to do with the bullet vibrator?”
Danny shuts the door again with a groan.
-0-
“We want to give a big Hawaiian welcome to all of our guests this evening!” the announcer says with a huge smile. “Aloha and welcome aboard!”
Danny is concentrating very hard on his dinner, which is some sort of crustacean atop some sort of pasta. It’s pretty good, despite the fact that he can’t pronounce the name of it. He’d just pointed at the dish on the menu, and Steve had smiled and ordered it for him effortlessly.
Bastard.
“We have a wonderful itinerary planned for you,” the cruise director is saying. “When you return to your rooms this evening, you’ll find the ship newsletter waiting for you. It has tomorrow’s scheduled activities listed with start times and locations, and if you have any questions, you should feel free to call the information desk for help.”
“We should see what Lewiston is planning on doing tomorrow,” Steve murmurs into Danny’s ear, and Danny jumps and scowls. Steve moves like a damn cat.
“We should eat our dinners and try to blend in,” Danny counters, eyeing Steve’s untouched salmon platter with interest. It looks perfectly grilled, presented on a nice sea of greens. “We have four days to figure things out, babe. Please sit back and enjoy your food before I do it for you.”
A woman at the next table laughs and leans over. “My Angie is a workaholic, too,” she confides, looking adoringly at the tiny woman across the table from her. “Can’t get her to leave her job behind for more than a few hours at a time.”
Danny smiles, nice and wide. “Steve’s the same way,” he agrees. “He just won’t let it go some nights.” He sighs as if he’s put upon.
Steve scowls. “Like you’re any better,” he accuses, leaning back in his chair and definitely pouting.
“First vacation together, boys?” the woman asks. “I’m Marlene, by the way.”
“Danny, and this is Steve,” Danny offers. “Yeah, we, uh - we haven’t been together long.”
Marlene smiles warmly. “Congratulations, then,” she says. “Angie and I have been on a few of these cruises before. The company does such a lovely job, and it’s nice to be on a vacation where you know that nobody is judging you for who you’re with.”
“I can see how that would appeal, yeah,” Danny says, sitting back in his chair. “Do you have any recommendations for tomorrow?”
Angie looks up from her pasta. “They’ll have a swimsuit competition,” she says with a grin. “You could both place, I’m sure of it.”
“Um,” Danny says, feeling his face flush as Marlene laughs. “Thank you, but I don’t think-”
“Oh, come on,” Steve cuts in smoothly, leaning over and grabbing Danny’s wrist with a smile. “That sounds like fun.”
“You think it sounds like fun to have me stand around while other guys take off your swimsuit with their eyes?” Danny asks, raising his eyebrows. “I think not, babe.”
“They’d be doing the same to you,” Steve says mildly, eyeing Danny. “Trust me on this one.”
Marlene laughs. “There’s a murder mystery dinner tomorrow night,” she says. “That’s always fun.”
Danny can see Steve perk up. “Really?” Danny sighs. He turns to Marlene. “That’s too much like our day job for me, but with this goof, we might end up there anyway.”
“She said it was fun,” Steve protests. “Nobody actually gets hurt, Danny. Come on.”
“It’s better than the swimsuit competition, I guess,” Danny says after a minute, turning back to his dinner.
-0-
The string of murders across the islands had been gaining more and more media attention, and when someone in the media had finally put two and two together and come up with the name Paradise Killer, the case had fallen into Five-0’s lap. It had taken some pretty careful investigation, but they’d managed to connect the killings to a Roy Lewiston, and had then connected Lewiston to a ticket on an upcoming cruise around the islands.
It had been Jenna’s idea.
“We don’t have enough to arrest him, not yet,” she’d said. “It just makes sense to follow him around and catch him doing something.”
Steve had just nodded. “Chin and Kono, that’s you,” he’d said, studying the map.
“Um,” Chin had replied, staring at the information on the cruise. “No, I don’t really think it is.”
And so they’d learned about the cruise line and its specific clientele, and Steve had looked at Danny and made You’re Gonna Hate This Face and said, “Okay, so Danny and I will go.”
“No,” Danny had objected, but it had been more of a token protest, a knee-jerk reaction to the face, than anything else.
And so they’d ended up booked and boarded.
-0-
They skip the swimsuit competition but end up going to the murder mystery dinner. Marlene and Angie wave at them from one of the tables, but all the seats are taken, so they look for another space.
“Look, two seats left over there,” Steve says brightly, pointing to the corner table as he puts a hand in the small of Danny’s back and leans in. “Lewiston’s in the second seat from the left with his back to us.”
“Great,” Danny says. “Let’s go make friends, huh?”
The thing about Roy Lewiston is that he’s charming. The guy oozes charm like it’s his job, which is part of why he’s been getting away with things. It’s hard to blame a guy who seems so nice for such grisly crimes. He’s their guy, though, so Danny slides in next to him and smiles.
“Danny,” he says, offering his hand. “Gigantor here is my partner Steve.”
“Dean,” Lewiston says. Lying, Danny thinks. That can’t be a good sign. “Nice to meet you guys.”
“You here with anyone?” Steve asks casually. He’s not, or he shouldn’t be, but Lewiston is smiling and nodding.
“I actually checked into a single,” he says, laughing, as the man next to him suddenly turns and leans into Lewiston’s personal space. “But I met Adam by the pool earlier, and he agreed to see how things went tonight.”
“Best of luck,” Danny says with a smile, hoping that he’s not sending any sort of scary expression with his face, anything that would tip Lewiston off. Adam looks like a nice enough guy - mid-thirties, sandy brown hair, dark eyes, medium complexion. He could be the last victim’s brother.
The night would be fun if Danny wasn’t sitting next to a serial killer. The game is light and easy, and the rest of the table is smiling and laughing as everyone gets into their parts. The murderer in the game ends up being Lewiston’s new friend Adam, which makes Lewiston crack a joke about picking the wrong guy. It sets Danny’s teeth on edge, and when he shoots a glance at Steve, he can tell that he’s not much better off.
They drift apart after the game finishes. Lewiston and Adam leave together, and Danny keeps an eye on them as they make their way out of the room. “We should follow them.”
“Oh, yeah,” Steve agrees, putting his hand in the small of Danny’s back again and propelling him through the crowd. They manage to avoid Marlene and Angie as they slip out the door.
Lewiston and Adam duck into a room just below the deck. It’s technically a lounge, but Danny hears the lock click as they round the corner, and his adrenaline skyrockets as he turns to Steve, who’s already bringing out the crazy eyes.
“He’s not gonna kill him on the ship, or at least not now,” Danny says quietly. “Thirty people just saw them leave together.”
“We need eyes in that room,” Steve replies. “Danny, how are we going to-”
“I have an idea,” Danny says. “You’ll probably love it. Come on.”
Ten minutes later, they’re safely in the lifeboat suspended over the side of the ship. It gives them a clear vantage point into the room, as long as they don’t move around too much.
“I’m impressed, Danny,” Steve whispers into Danny’s ear as they watch inside. Lewiston and Adam are making out on the couch in the lounge. “There’s no way I would have been able to talk you into this if it had been my idea, though. You know that, right?”
“I know that,” Danny snaps irritably. Lewiston and Adam break apart and look around, and Danny and Steve duck down. Danny continues more quietly. “You were right, though. We have to be able to see what’s going on in there.”
Adam says something and Lewiston laughs, and then they’re making out again. It goes on for a while, but nothing of importance to the case comes up, and after a while Lewiston and Adam get off the couch and move towards the door.
“Shit,” Steve swears. There’s no way they can get back on the boat and inside in time to see where the couple is going.
Lewiston stops and looks around the room. “Did you hear something?” he asks Adam, who nods and frowns, looking around.
“It sounded like it came from the window,” he says, and they walk towards the small opening together.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” Steve breathes, and Danny does the first thing he can think of.
”Play along,” he whispers into Steve’s ear, pushing him into the bottom of the lifeboat. He latches his mouth onto Steve’s as he sticks a hand into Steve’s pants.
“Oh, hey,” Adam’s voice says from a few inches away. “You guys might want to try your room for that. What if the boat tips?”
“Shit,” Danny yelps, pulling his hand out of Steve’s pants as if he’s surprised to be caught. “Um.”
Lewiston laughs. “Goodnight, gentlemen,” he says, steering Adam out of the room.
“Well, we don’t know where they went, but we didn’t get made,” Danny says when the other two are out of earshot. Steve doesn’t answer, and when Danny looks down, Steve has his eyes squeezed shut and is trying to fix his pants so his clearly obvious hard-on is less so.
“Oh, for the love of God,” Danny sighs, standing and hauling himself back onto the deck.
-0-
“We should track them down,” Steve insists again.
“No,” Danny retorts for at least the fifth time. “We used our get out of jail free card, Steve. If they catch us again, especially on the same night, Lewiston is going to figure it out and do something terrible.”
Steve scowls, but the effect is ruined by the neon pink towel slung around his hips and the water dripping from his hair. “We’re wasting our time,” he points out. “We’re here to catch the guy, aren’t we?”
Danny glares at him. “We are here to prevent any more innocent bystanders from getting hurt,” he corrects. “Lewiston has probably chosen Adam as his next victim, yes. But,” he adds before Steve can interject, “he’s not going to do anything until we hit land. That gives us time to observe and collect evidence, and to not go forcing him into a split-second decision that will end in shots fired. Understood?”
Steve blinks at him. “I still think we should take him down now,” he says mulishly, but it’s a token protest, nothing more. “We only have two days left-”
“Three,” Danny corrects.
“Two,” Steve stresses. “We have tomorrow and the day after, and we disembark Friday morning. We can’t count on that time for anything useful.”
Danny pinches the bridge of his nose. “Fine, two,” he agrees. “Two days in which we can gather evidence. Evidence is good. Evidence is what will put him away. Running into his room and yelling about how we’re cops is not going to help anything.”
“Fine,” Steve says sullenly, leaning back against the headboard and crossing his arms.
“Fine,” Danny agrees. “Are you going to put clothing on, or-”
“No,” Steve says shortly. “No, I’m going to sleep naked.”
And damn if he doesn’t just crawl into bed like that, dropping the towel on the floor, bare between the sheets.
“You’re impossible,” Danny groans, clicking off the light and climbing into his own side of the bed. “Just - stay on your own side of the bed, you sleep like a big, naked octopus-”
But Steve is already sliding over, scooping his body around Danny’s, fitting them snugly together. “You know you don’t really mind,” he says, and then he’s out like a light, snoring softly into Danny’s ear.
“It’s a good thing you’re attractive,” Danny grumbles, but it’s true, he doesn’t actually mind at all.
-0-
Steve manages to get Danny into a swimsuit the next day, and they spend a few hours by the pool. Bree, the flirtatious attendant from check-in, is walking around the deck in a Speedo, offering drinks to anyone standing in one place for long enough.
“It’s included,” he says with a pout as Danny turns him down for the third time. “Come on! Relax! Try a strawberry daiquiri!”
“Bree,” Danny says, wondering if he sounds as long-suffering as he feels, “do I really look like the strawberry daiquiri kind of guy?”
Bree smiles widely and leans in. “You look like the kind of guy who would like to lick a strawberry daiquiri off of your partner,” he says, dropping his voice so Steve, who has just pulled himself out of the pool and is heading towards them, can’t hear. Bree winks as he stands. “Think about it,” he tosses off as he moves away.
Steve scowls after him. “I don’t like that guy,” he mutters as he rubs a towel over his head.
“What, seriously?” Danny asks. “What could he possibly have done to offend your delicate sensibilities?”
Steve glares harder after Bree, who is already to the next couple, doing his best to get them to order a drink. “I just don’t like him. Do I have to like everybody?”
“Could you please not be jealous of a twenty-year-old?” Danny sighs, catching on. “Flirting is his job, babe. I’m not gonna hop into bed with the pool boy, okay?”
Steve zeroes his attention in on Danny. “I certainly hope not,” he nearly growls, “considering you won’t even hop into bed with me, and we’ve been together for months-”
“Is that what this is about?” Danny asks, honestly surprised. “You’re upset because we haven’t slept together yet?”
“No,” Steve interjects, instantly contrite. “I just - I don’t know. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”
“Hey,” Danny says softly, tugging on Steve’s hand until Steve drops to the edge of the lounge chair Danny’s been sitting on. “Does it really bother you that much?”
Steve doesn’t say anything, but he doesn’t resist when Danny tugs his chin up. All of his insecurities are right there for the world to see, fear of rejection and worry and hurt, like he’s already bracing himself for Danny to pull away.
“Hey,” Danny repeats, leaning in to brush his lips against Steve’s gently. “Come on, Steve, let’s go.” He stands and pulls Steve up with him, tangling their fingers together and heading towards the elevator that would take them to their room.
Steve seems to shake himself when the elevator doors close. “Danny, I don’t want you to - just because-”
Danny tilts his head. “You know why I’ve been waiting, babe?” he asks, smiling when Steve shakes his head. “I wanted to make sure you wanted this as much as I did.”
“Oh,” Steve says, looking down. The tips of his ears turn red, and Danny bumps their shoulders together. “I, uh. I do.”
“Yeah,” Danny laughs, pulling Steve forward again as the doors slide open. “I figured that out on my own.”
-0-
“You look well rested,” Marlene says when Danny and Steve sit down for breakfast the next morning. “Did you have a good night?”
Danny doesn’t have to turn his head to know that Steve’s blushing just as hard as he is. “Yes, thank you,” he says with as much dignity as he can muster. Marlene is grinning at them; Angie is full-out laughing into her waffles. “What are you doing for our last day at sea?”
Marlene and Angie are planning to sit by the pool for the day; Steve bristles when Danny nods and says they might join them later. Nobody misses it, but nobody calls him on it, either, so it doesn’t take long for Steve to relax and throw a few suggestions into the mix.
“No,” Danny says again, laughing. “I’m not sitting through a class on traditional Hawaiian dances, Steve. It’s not happening.”
Steve pouts, barely covering his smirk, but before he can say anything else, Adam drops into the free seat at their table. “Dean said he was going to check out that dance class,” he says conversationally, digging into his fruit cup. “I was thinking about going with him, but I’m not sure I can handle three hours of the hula without my head spinning.”
Danny sighs internally even as he’s catching Steve’s eye. Steve nods slightly, so Danny reaches over and claps Adam on the shoulder. “You and me, buddy, we’ll suffer through it together,” he says, scowling as Steve makes an entirely too pleased sound and Marlene and Angie start laughing.
The hula class is incredibly boring, and Danny’s only solace is that he knows that Steve was joking when he suggested they go. Steve’s focusing so hard on what Lewiston is doing that he keeps forgetting to do the dance steps, which means that the instructor keeps clapping her hands in his face and demanding that he pay closer attention. Danny sits in the shade with Adam, laughing as they watch.
“So,” Adam says conversationally. “What’s up with Dean?”
Danny very carefully does not choke on his orange juice. “Seems like you should be the one to tell me,” he replies. “I’m not sleeping with him.”
Adam rolls his eyes. “Dean isn’t local,” he says. “I am. I know who you and Steve are.”
“Ah,” Danny says, stalling for time by taking another sip. “We’re just on vacation. Nothing doing.”
“You’re a terrible liar for a cop,” Adam laughs. “Just tell me he isn’t that Paradise Killer so I can go to sleep easy tonight.”
Danny stares at Steve, willing his partner to turn around and catch on and give Danny some sort of hint here. The silence carries on, and Adam sighs after a minute.
“I knew there was something weird about him,” Adam says sadly. “He kept going on and on about how much he loved my hair.”
“You’re not freaked out?” Danny asks in surprise, turning to meet Adam’s eyes. Adam shakes his head.
“I mean, yeah, a little,” he admits. “Mostly I’m wondering what I can do to help you guys catch him.”
“Don’t do anything,” Danny says instantly. “If he senses a change, he’ll split as soon as he can get away. We don’t want him to know we’re on to him.”
Adam nods slowly. “So just keep on keeping on?”
Danny makes a face. “I’m sorry,” he apologizes. “I know it’s not really a great option.”
“Nope,” Adam agrees. “I’d really rather not sleep with him, if he’s really that guy,”
“Just don’t change your habits at this point,” Danny sighs. “If it makes you feel any better, you’re not in any danger.” Adam raises an eyebrow, and Danny hurries to explain. “Steve’s not going to let anything happen to you on the ship, and we’ve got people tailing his every move back on the island. You’re as safe as you can be.” He pauses. “Well, mostly.”
Adam nods after a moment. “I trust you guys to know what you’re doing,” he says slowly. “Just let me know when to duck.”
“You’ll know,” Danny says. “No worries on that one.”
-0-
They call Chin and Kono when they get closer to land, late that night. Steve tells them that Lewiston hasn’t done anything suspect other than giving a false name, and Danny chimes in by telling them that Adam figured it out.
“Do you think he’ll blow your cover?” Chin asks, and Danny can almost see him frowning.
“I doubt it,” Danny says. “I think he’s worried enough about himself to not let on that he knows, and he seems like a pretty levelheaded guy, albeit one with poor taste in companions.”
“We’re armed if he tries anything,” Steve adds casually, and Danny looks over to see Steve peering into the chamber of a handgun he’d pulled out of God only knows where. Danny groans.
“Apparently we’re armed,” he confirms, and Chin makes a sound that can only be him stifling a laugh. “Anyway, we’re docking just before noon tomorrow, so if you guys can arrange for an undercover-”
There’s a loud noise through the phone, followed by excited talking and the sound of movement. After a minute, Kono’s voice comes into focus.
“We’ve got him,” she says, satisfied. “Charlie was able to get DNA from the Kahua scene, and it’s a match. We’ll arrest him when you guys land tomorrow.”
Steve laughs, the wild happy kind of laugh he only lets loose when he’s somewhere between excited and relieved. “About time,” he says into the phone. “Tell Charlie I owe him a beer.”
“Will do, boss,” Kono says cheerily.
They spend another half an hour or so going over the details as best they can, ways that they can separate Lewiston from the crowd of innocent bystanders and get him into a squad car without anyone getting hurt. They all agree that Adam shouldn’t be involved any more than he already is.
“Just get him out of there, and we’ll do the rest,” Chin says before they disconnect. “It’s not worth risking him getting hurt.”
“Right,” Danny agrees. “We’ll see you guys tomorrow.”
-0-
Adam seems tense at breakfast the next morning. “Hey,” Danny greets as they sit down. “You look a little seasick there, buddy. Glad to be getting back to terra firma later on?”
Adam grins weakly. “Yeah,” he replies. “I think I ate something weird last night. I haven’t been feeling great.”
Danny shoots a look over at Lewiston, who doesn’t seem overly concerned. “You feeling okay, Dean?”
“Yeah,” Lewiston replies. “Must have been in that weird fruit thing he ate. I feel fine.”
“Good, good,” Danny says, putting a hand on Adam’s arm. “You know what, I had some of that fruit too. Let’s you and me go get ourselves checked out before we get off the boat, huh?”
“Ship,” Steve corrects automatically. “You want me to come?”
Danny waves him off. “We’ll be fine,” he says. “You keep Dean company, babe. We’ll get some Dramamine and be back in a few.”
Danny gets Adam out of the cafeteria and around a corner before he drops his voice. “Are you okay?”
Adam nods. “I told him I wasn’t feeling well so he wouldn’t try anything,” he says, giving a weak grin. “He got me a glass of water, told me to lay down, that we’d make plans on the island before he left, once I was feeling better.”
“Okay, look,” Danny instructs. “I’m gonna take you down to the infirmary and get you a bed there. You just stay put until after we dock, okay?”
Lewiston frowns when Danny gets back. “Is Adam really sick?”
“The doctor said he might be dehydrated,” Danny lies. “He should be fine by the time we dock, but he’s probably going to spend the morning there. He told me to tell you not to worry, and that he’d call you when he gets off the boat so you guys can meet up.”
Lewiston shrugs. “Okay.”
Marlene and Angie stop by their table, and they exchange small talk for a while. Lewiston excuses himself and wanders away, ostensibly to pack up his things. Steve makes his excuses a few minutes later and heads off in the same direction, and Danny has no doubt that Steve will be keeping a close eye on Lewiston for the rest of the morning.
“Dean seems strange this morning,” Angie observes after Steve leaves. “He’s been nice this entire trip, but he just seemed like he wanted nothing to do with any of us just now.”
“Maybe he’s worried about Adam,” Marlene suggests. Angie shrugs.
“I guess so,” she says, but Danny can tell that she doesn’t quite believe that herself.
They part ways soon after, and Danny heads back to his room. Their things are already packed and ready to go, and Steve is nowhere in sight. Danny calls Chin, who assures him that everything is ready on shore, and Danny relays Adam’s faked illness and Lewiston’s strange behavior.
“Maybe he figured it out anyway,” Chin suggests. “Either way, we’re taking him down as soon as he sets foot on land again. We’ll see you all in about half an hour, okay?”
“Looking forward to it,” Danny replies, hanging up the phone. He sends a text to Steve. In the room. What’s going on?
His phone buzzes a minute later. Outside his room. He’s packing. All is well.
“Well that’s good,” Danny says out loud. Don’t let him see you.
Not a rookie, his phone reprimands him a moment later, and Danny grins.
Steve makes his way back to the room about fifteen minutes later. “He’s just waiting for us to make land,” he says. “Everything set with Chin?”
“We’re good,” Danny confirms. “As long as he doesn’t take hostages, everything should be fine.”
Steve groans. “Why would you say that?”
The captain makes an announcement shortly thereafter, and Danny weaves his way to the disembarkation area, scanning the crowd for Lewiston. Marlene waves at him from the line to get off the ship, and Danny waves back with a smile. The smile slips from his face as he notices who’s directly behind Marlene and Angie.
“Steve,” Danny says casually, lifting his hand to rub at his mouth. “He’s here.”
“Copy,” Steve says in his ear. “I’m on my way.”
Steve strolls into the room a moment later, his eyes locking with Danny’s before sweeping towards the exit line. Lewiston is to the door already, and Danny can only think to hope that HPD is in position, or he’s going to get away.
There’s a sudden commotion at the doorway, and Danny’s running before he even registers what’s going on. Lewiston has a hand around Marlene’s wrist and is brandishing a knife, and Danny has about four seconds to wonder what the hell happened before Angie calmly steps to the side, draws her arm back, and lands a solid punch to Lewiston’s cheek. He spins around, dropping both Marlene’s wrist and the knife, and crashes into a table behind him. Steve is on him less than a second later, pinning him to the ground, and Danny arrives in time to hear the cuffs latch around Lewiston’s wrists.
“Roy Lewiston,” Danny says calmly, “you are under arrest.”
-0-
“You are my hero,” Kono says again, grinning at Angie. They’re all back at Five-0 headquarters, taking final statements down after the arrest. “I can’t believe you just hauled off and slugged him.”
Angie shrugs. “He had a knife near Marlene,” she says by way of explanation. “I reacted, plain and simple.”
Marlene is fine - shaken, but otherwise unhurt. She’s sitting on a couch with Adam, who’s likewise feeling much better now that Lewiston is behind bars. “I’m glad you did,” Marlene says resolutely. “Getting stabbed is a terrible end to a vacation.”
“So is almost getting stabbed,” Danny points out.
Adam laughs. “I’d say almost getting stabbed is a lot better than actually getting stabbed.”
“I agree,” Angie says firmly. “I’d say this was more adventurous than our last cruise, but I don’t think it’s even the worst vacation we’ve ever had.”
Marlene laughs. “Heavens, no. Do you remember when we went to Reno?”
Angie smiles. “With the preacher-”
“And the cows!” Marlene is laughing helplessly now, while Adam stares in a kind of confused fascination, like he wants to ask but isn’t sure he wants to know.
“I’d say it was a success all around,” Jenna volunteers before the details can be revealed.
Chin nods. “Lewiston’s in jail, nobody got hurt, and Steve and Danny finally got a vacation out of the deal.”
“And hey,” Kono adds brightly, tugging at the flowers around Danny’s neck, provided by the cruise line as a thank you gift for stopping Lewiston. “You finally got-”
“Do not,” Danny cuts her off as everyone laughs. “Don’t finish that sentence, Kalakaua.”
Kono just grins as Steve slips his arm around Danny’s waist, and Danny’s glare melts as he starts laughing, too.