Stormy State of Mind

Disclaimer: I do not own Hawaii 5-0. I receive no profit from this story, only writer's satisfaction.

Hello, I am back with a new idea. I have decided to see what trouble I could get Steve into on another hiking trail on Oahu. Since I have never been to Hawaii I am writing only from the information that I got on a state park site. From there I am exercising a writer's prerogative to alter the facts to fit what I want in my story. My apologies to any who have actually been on the trail and don't recognize it. This story is set somewhere between the season 4 finale and the premier of season 5. As always, thanks for reading.

Chapter 1

Standing on his lanai, staring out at the ocean, Steve McGarrett felt as unsettled as the cloudy sky above. His mood was dark and the pressure he felt inside was almost a physical pain. He needed to do something to regain some balance in his life, the past few weeks had tilted him into long stretches of brooding.

Ever since he had returned from the botched affair in Afghanistan, he had felt unsettled and his down times had left him pensive. Worked filled his days and kept him busy and on an even keel but the nights and days off were a different story. Knowing that Catherine was alone in that distant country without backup and seeking a boy she might never find ate at him. He felt he needed to be with her no matter what the Navy and CIA had declared. Returning to Oahu had not been his call but he had been in no shape to argue after what he had experienced at the hands of his captors and at least the phone calls and texts from Cath had kept him in touch with her. She had insisted she was okay and he had responsibilities here in the islands to attend to. No matter what she said it had left a bitter taste in his mouth to have her all alone over there.

To make matters worse it had now been three weeks since he had any contact with Catherine and he was running out of reasonable excuses as to her silence. A sick feeling had taken up residence in his gut and Steve was afraid to put his fears for her in words to anyone. And this grey Saturday, he had the urge to do something physical to work off the stress that was building inside him. Taking a long swim had crossed his mind but that didn't appeal to him today and he decided that a demanding hike was a better solution.

Going inside the house he changed into a T-shirt and cargo shorts and put on a pair of sturdy boots. He found a backpack he kept ready for a hike and loaded in a few bottles of water before heading out to his truck. As he drove towards the Nakoa Trail that was his choice for this hike he heard the radio announce that there was a storm system that was approaching the Windward side of the island and expected to hit in around four to five hours. That news didn't worry Steve as he was confident that he could complete his hike and be off the trail before the weather turned for the worse. The impending storm was only one more challenge that he was ready to meet and McGarrett was not in the mood to have his plans changed by over-reactive weather predictors. He continued his drive to the Ahupua'a O Kahana State Park.

Pulling into the parking lot at the Nakoa Trail, Steve shut off the engine and sat silently behind the wheel for a moment. The sky was darker on this side of the island but so far there was no rain. He still felt he could complete the hike since he had been on this trail many times in the past. Perhaps he was overconfident but Steve rarely doubted his physical abilities and he was not going to start today.

Staring at the near empty parking lot, Steve found his thoughts going back to Catherine even though the purpose of this exercise was to clear his mind. He hated how much he let his worries for her to control his moods. He understood her feelings of obligation to Najib and his family…hell he approved of her decision but it didn't completely remove the sting of her choosing to stay behind and not return with him. He had become accustomed to having her around and her absence had left him with a surprising void in his life. He wanted to go back and get her but he knew he had left 5-0 alone, to function without him on other occasions while he pursued his own reasons and couldn't do it again. It wasn't fair to keep asking Danny, Chin, Kono and now Lou to hold the team together while he chased his personal demons even though they would not complain.

Leaning forward, he rested his forehead on the steering wheel and sighed. Internal stress had been building so long he couldn't pretend it didn't exist. Why had he waited until Cath was on the other side of the world before he told her he loved her? He had always assumed she knew and he felt she loved him as well but they had both been too stubborn to say the words out loud. Now she was gone, out of touch and he was as lost as when his father had sent him away from home so long ago.

The loss of Catherine was only magnified by the knowledge that Wo Fat was back and waiting to strike again. And why did his mother remain distant from him but went to visit his enemy in prison? He couldn't look away from the anger he felt towards Doris, she left him with more questions than answers and he hated it. What kind of woman fakes her death and leaves her husband and children to wonder why their lives were torn apart? Steve had reached the point he no longer cared if he restored a mother/son relationship with Doris, he only wanted answers from her.

The issue of Wo Fat concerned Steve the least. He knew the man presented a danger but he was a danger that Steve was trained to deal with. Eventually Wo Fat would make his move and Steve was prepared to deal with him at that time. He would bring the man to justice in the end, of that he was sure.

Letting out a second long sigh, Steve straightened up behind the wheel and prepared to move forward. He needed to shake off these nagging worries and finish what he came here to do. It was unacceptable to let these moods rule him and mire him in self pity. He would feel better after he had pushed his body physically; it had always worked that way in the past.

Exiting the truck, he pulled on his back pack and locked the Silverado. As he headed for the sign-in station, Steve noted there was only one other vehicle in the lot, a late model Honda. It crossed his mind that perhaps he should reconsider this as the sky looked darker out to sea but he stubbornly rejected the idea. It also occurred to him that he should have let someone know where he was going but he shook off that idea as well. The team had other plans for their weekend.

Kono had left early on Friday to go to Maui with Adam. Steve was all too aware how little time the couple had together since they had returned Oahu and he had no desire to disturb them. Chin had stated he had plans with Leilani and McGarrett wasn't inclined to call him either. He knew that Grover would have not minded a call but with his in-laws visiting from Chicago the man's wife would not have liked having their time together interrupted.

And then there was Danny. Steve was tempted but then discarded that as well considering the mood his partner had been in this last week. He just was not ready to listen to the rant that would be forthcoming if he called Williams. Something had happened with Amber during the week and Steve had been party to several tirades on how unreliable women were and why it was better to be single over the course of the last few days. This was not the time to try and explain to Danny that he was feeling worried about Catherine's silence, the response was not likely to make him feel any better about the situation. While he really hoped that Danny was working things out with his lady and would be in a better mood on Monday, Steve was not going to contact him and possibly set his partner off on a long lecture. It was time to deal with his problems on his own in his own way.

Shouldering his pack, he headed up the paved road, around the gate and went straight to the sign-in station. The young man at the station looked up from the game he was playing on his phone in annoyance when Steve walked in.

"I want to sign in," Steve announced brusquely.

"Uh…..sir, you do realize that bad weather is on its way in, don't you?" the kid asked. "This is not a trail to be on in a rain storm."

"The rain isn't due for several hours, I'll be off trail by then," Steve said gruffly. He didn't need some college kid telling him what to do. Picking up the clipboard and a pen from the desk, he scribbled his name quickly. "I've hiked this trail many times," he added.

"Sir, I'm supposed to discourage hikers when the weather is expected to become bad," the young man tried again.

Steve's gaze burned into the kid before he dropped his eyes to the nametag pinned to the boy's polo shirt.

"Do you know who I am Zach? I'm Lt. Commander Steve McGarrett of the 5-0 task force. Believe me, I know this trail and I will be off it before the weather turns," he said firmly, setting the clipboard down on the desk and leaving without waiting for a reply.

Zach watched him go without further comment. He was well aware of 5-0 and Commander McGarrett's reputation and he was not about to argue with the guy. Let him go risk his neck on a trail that got treacherous when wet, that wasn't on Zach's head. If the man didn't check out when Zach's shift was over then he would deal with that then. For now he just wanted to get back to his game.

McGarrett pushed onto the trail with a determined pace. His mood had not improved after the exchange with the young man at the station. He didn't need a kid telling him he couldn't handle this trail no matter what the conditions were. The heavy, humid air pressed on him and he had sweated through his T-shirt in short order. The footing was slick and while he was making good time, he was forced to concentrate on where he was walking. The challenge made Steve feel good, he enjoyed the demands being made on his body and he increased his pace.

He was around the halfway mark on the trail when he paused to catch his breath. He was on the bank of one of the many crossings of the Kahana stream that made up the Nakoa trail and he reached into his backpack to pull out a bottle of water. He drank greedily, saving the final quarter of the bottle to pour over his head and wash away the sweat in his eyes. As his breath slowed, he stuffed the empty bottle back in the pack as he scanned the area. The stream was roughly thirty feet and the water was moving faster than normal. A glance at the sky revealed more dark clouds moving faster than they had been before and looked more ominous. It appeared that the storm system was arriving faster than anticipated and he would have to move faster if he didn't want to be caught in the middle of it.

Wading into the stream, he carefully picked his way over and around the rocks that lined the stream bed. Halfway across he looked up as thunder rumbled in the distance and suddenly a vision of Catherine standing on the opposite bank was in front of him. He swore she was waving and smiling at him and then he remembered that they had hiked this trail six months ago. Blinking that picture away, he hurried forward and his right foot slipped off a rock and wedged between it and another. He twisted it, falling forward and catching himself before he landed face first in the stream. Cursing loudly, he pushed up and wrenched his foot out from between the rocks and limped the rest of the way out of the water. Sitting down on the ground, he checked out his ankle and tried to move it side to side. Tightening the laces on his boot gave him some additional support so he could walk on it.

Steve was not happy to discover there was a two inch gash on his right shin. Aware that there were bacteria in the water, he immediately dug out a second bottle of water and a first aid kit that he always carried. Working quickly, he washed the wound out as best he could and then wiped it with an alcohol wipe before applying antiseptic cream and a large bandage. He knew that he would need to deal with this further once he got home; the risk of infection was high.

A second rumble of thunder reminded him that he had other concerns before he could take care of his leg and he gathered up his garbage and put it in his backpack. Steve got to his feet and glanced back across the stream and then up the trail he had yet travelled. He decided to continue on since it was the same distance either way and he would have less water to cross if he went on. A sore ankle was not going to slow him down but he now had a race to beat the oncoming bad weather and he needed to move.

End chapter.

Thank you for reading. I hope you will continue on with me as we see if Steve can make it off trail.