The Long Road

A Set Up

Steve McGarrett hadn't gotten much sleep the night before. He'd tossed and turned, Maddie constantly on his mind as he ran through countless possibilities of what could be going on. She'd said she was protecting him, but what from? What was the threat? Steve was still worrying over it as he grabbed the last thing off the grocery list. He and Danny had spent the last thirty minutes at the store grabbing everything Pete had told him to get. Of course, they got some extra things as they came across them. Steve knew all her favorite foods and drinks, especially snack foods. She'd always been a snacker ever since she was a kid. She'd live on snacks if she could. He remembered how she'd even hide snacks at his house. He'd gotten in trouble several times after his mom found candy in his room. Biting his bottom lip, he softly chuckled.

"What are you smiling about? I've never spent so long in a grocery store in my life. It's a nightmare in here! People driving their carts in to other people because they're not paying attention! How is this funny?" Danny asked.

"It's not," Steve replied, a bit embarrassed Danny had caught him.

"You really care about this girl," Danny said, instinctively knowing Maddie had something to do with Steve's laughter.

"Yeah," he succinctly replied, before he paused, his mind returning to his worry. "I can't let anything happen to her."

Danny clapped his hand on his partner's upper back, "Don't worry, we won't let anything happen to her. We'll help you figure everything out."

"Thanks, Danno," Steve smirked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Really? Here I am being nice and supportive, and you do that? What is wrong with you?" Danny quipped.

Steve chuckled again as the two finished checking out. After loading up his truck, he headed towards Maddie's. Twenty minutes later he pulled the car up to a huge decorative metal gate and aimed a clicker at it causing it to come to life. He drove up a long driveway as Danny glued his face to the window staring out at the beautiful property. "Holy crap! This is amazing! She must have acres of land here. I mean we can't even see the house in the distance. It's just... wow."

Steve shook his head in amusement at his partner. "Yeah, it's beautiful here. Maddie bought the land about... six years ago... It took about a year for her to design the house, and once they began building it took them nearly three years to finish. So, the house itself is only about two years old. It's everything she ever dreamed. In fact, as kids we used to talk about our dream houses. When she designed it she incorporated parts of hers and mine."

"What part of yours did she include?" Danny wondered.

"One of the things I always wanted was a lot of tall windows off the back of the house. I liked the openness of it. She did that."

As McGarrett finished, the house came into view. "Oh... my... God!"Danny gasped, saying each word slowly for effect. "It's bigger than Stan and Rachael's house. Much bigger!" Steve smiled as they got closer.

The two-story Mediterranean style home was huge. The outside was an off-white, smooth stucco, and she'd incorporated a lot of gorgeous organic, light colored natural stone throughout. The long, massive driveway and steps leading to the front door were examples of where she'd utilized the stone.

Steve parked the car and the two got out. Before grabbing the groceries Steve decided it was best to unlock the door and let his partner have a quick look around. He was of no use to him in his current awestruck state. Danny followed him towards the front double doors noticing how intricate and big they were. The frames were made of a sturdy dark wood and the center of each one was a thick frosted pane of glass. Over them were loops and swirls made of iron. "This door is gorgeous," Danny marveled.