Too Many Motives

It was a drive-by, and a messy one at that. Outside a busy hotel in the morning, lots of people checking out and others leaving to go about their business or enjoy their holidays.

Steve McGarrett didn't know this hotel well. It was a mid-price, comfortable place. Tourists and middle-ranking business types mostly, he guessed. Not the kind of place Five-0s' work brought them to often. More usually it was high-end complexes or sleazy downtown rooms-by-the -hour joints.

"What've we got, Duke?" He asked.

Sergeant Lukela looked a little shocked, which said a lot. The veteran HPD cop, who'd worked with Steves' father, had seen just about everything.

"It's a mess, Steve." He said. "Guy just opened up with an SMG all across the forecourt here. We've got three dead and maybe a dozen wounded, from critical to cuts and bruises.

"Also, we've got more witnesses than we can count, but not many of them are making much sense right now. Your best bet is the old English lady sitting on the wall over there. She seems to be holding it together better than most."

"OK." Steve said. "I'm going to need IDs on the victims, not just the dead ones, everyone who caught a bullet. Unless this guy is some kind of terrorist or mass murderer, one of them will be the target."

"Looks like we've got someone who doesn't care about collateral damage." Captain Lou Grover opined. "Gang-bangers or political?"

"Your guess is as good as mine." Steve admitted. "Lou, you and Junior get on the rest of the witnesses. Tani, you take the old lady. Be gentle, she'll be in shock.

"Danny, get back to HQ. there's plenty of cameras around here. I want you, Adam and Jerry looking over the footage, see if it that gives us anything to work with.

"I'm gonna go check the register. Maybe a name will jump out at me."

Officer Tani Rey made her way over to the shady spot where the witness sat on a wall. Not a typical tourist by the look of her. Perhaps in her late fifties, wearing a flowered dress that came well below her knees and flat sandals. Toe- and fingernails unpainted, no jewellery and by the look of it, no make-up. She carried a large, battered-looking purse and wore a wide-brimmed straw hat.

"Excuse me, ma'am?" Tani began politely. "I'm Officer Tani Rey, with the Five-0 Task Force. I need to ask you some questions, if you feel able to talk to me."

The face that was turned to her was strong, and might once have been attractive, if its owner had ever cared about such things. The eyes were another matter, keen and piercing, they seemed to look right through Tani. The woman put her head on one side, and asked in an accent Tani didn't recognise:

"Does your Mum know you're out, pet?" She took a sip from the cup she was holding and grimaced. "They can't make decent tea for love nor money round 'ere!

"Now look, love, I know you've a job to do, but it's better for you and for me if I talk to your boss. So can you go and fetch 'im or 'er, please? Then put some clothes on, pet, or you'll catch your death!"

Tani had half a mind to answer back, but another glance from those eyes crushed that idea. She went to find Steve.

Steve, despite his annoyance at Tanis' casual dismissal, was determined to be polite. Rachel had told him more than once that elderly British people could be eccentric and demanding under stress.

"Ma'am," he said, "I'm Commander Steve McGarrett, Head of Five-0. You asked to talk to me?"

As the woman looked him up and down, Steve understood what Tani had tried to tell him. He'd seen that look before in the eyes of drill sergeants.

"Doesn't look old enough to shave." The woman muttered to herself, then. "Can I see your identification, pet? Only you're not wearing a suit or a tie or anything."

Steve showed his badge. The woman nodded, handed it back, then began to search in her voluminous purse. "'Ang on a minute. I've got it somewhere…. Ah! Here we are, pet."

She handed him a wallet. This proved to contain a silver badge and a card which informed him that it was the 'warrant and authority' for Detective Chief Inspector Vera Stanhope to perform the duties of a police officer in the Northumberland and City Constabulary.

"They tell me I've to keep it with me at all times." She remarked. "Never thought I'd need it on 'oliday, mind!

"Now I didn't want that little lass of yours to get into trouble if you've some sort of rules about interviewing senior coppers, so I thought I'd best talk to you, Commander.

"You'll be wanting to know about the incident this morning. I'll do a proper statement when you want me to, but I'll just tell you what I saw now.

"I'd just come out and was gettin' used to the sunshine -we don't get much of it at 'ome, I think I need to get some sunglasses -when this car comes roarin' up. There's an IC1 – white, that is - male standin' up out of the sunroof, an' 'e opened fire with an automatic weapon. I was standin' off to the side, so I wasn't in danger, but I huddled down against this wall, just in case.

"'E seemed to be spraying bullets all over the place, and by the look on 'is face, 'e was in a bit of a panic. Then 'e shouts 'I'm out!' and the car takes off again, down that way." She pointed.

"What kind of car?" Steve wanted to know.

"Oh, one o' them big four-by-fours…what d'you lot call 'em? SUVs! Silver, it was. Don't know the make. Not English or Japanese, or I'd've recognised it. I got the registration, just a minute."

She delved into her bag again, coming up with a business card and a ballpoint pen. She scribbled something on the back of the card and handed it to him. "The other side's got me mobile number in case you need to reach me. The car was probably stolen, but you never know, do you? If you want my opinion, the shooter wasn't a professional. 'E was scared and sloppy."

"Thanks, ma'am." Steve said. "If you could stop by Five-0 HQ later and give a written statement, that would be great." He handed her his own card. "The address is on there, and so is my number. If you recall anything else that might help, call me."

Three hours later, Steve came to the conclusion that this was going to be a problem case. The car had been found abandoned a few miles from the scene, no witnesses. Dumped on a suburban residential street just when everyone was at work.

"It was stolen from an office parking lot, about half an hour before the shooting." Junior reported. "Owner didn't know it was missing until we told him. There's trace all over it, fingerprints and everything. We've taken elimination samples from the owner and his family. But so far, none of the foreign prints or DNA has had a hit on the system."

Jerrys' report was even more sobering. "Out of the three dead guys, one was a construction worker on vacation from Chicago with two other guys – the other two are in the hospital, hurt but not critical.

"Another was an accountant from Seattle. His family say he'd come out here for a break after a tough divorce. The corporation he works for is under SEC investigation, but it's a different department and the other people involved are way above his pay-grade.

"The last dead guy was some kind of British gangster, organised crime boss in London. I've contacted Scotland Yard to see if they can tell us anything.

"There are a couple of others, injured but not killed, who popped up. One – she's still in surgery, but they say she'll be OK -is in Witness Protection. Danny took the call from the Marshals, so they must be watching pretty close. She's testifying against a drug ring in Alaska, which is why the Marshals put her here, about as far away as they could get her. Danny has HPD covering her at the hospital.

"The other one is still in Intensive Care, and might not make it, they say. He's a night manager at the hotel, he was just coming off shift. He got flagged up because of a sexual assault charge six months ago. It was dropped due to lack of evidence."

Lou blew out his cheeks. "Seems we got a whole lot of motives, but no suspects!"

"We need to prioritise." Steve decided. "Lou, you stay on the witness. Jerry, do a deep dive on that British gangster. The rest of us can clear up the loose ends."

"I didn't know they had organised crime in England." Tani opined. "At least, not like we have it here!"

"You ever hear of the Kray brothers?" Jerry asked her. "Their gang -they called it 'The Firm' - ruled the East End of London in the 1950s and 60s. They worked with the Mafia, the Yakuza and the Triads and nobody messed with them, not even the IRA!"

"Didn't that British lady say she thought the shooter was an amateur?" Junior asked. "Cause if he was, this might have been personal, not business!"

"That's right, and that's why we're going to look into everyone." Steve said. "But we still have to prioritise the ones with criminal connections."

Steve was busy on some kind of call, so when Vera Stanhope turned up to make her statement, Danny had to deal with it. She had obviously done some shopping, as she now had a pair of sunglasses on some kind of chain around her neck. Dannys' nose told him that she had also applied the sun block with a generous hand.

She gave her statement clearly, professionally, confining herself to the facts of what had happened that morning. But then Danny had to venture out into darker waters.

"Ma'am, I need to ask why you came to Hawaii for your vacation? Most Brits coming to the states go to Florida, to Disneyland or Miami, or to Las Vegas or New York."

Vera shrugged. "Well, I don't see as how it's any of your business, pet, but I've asked enough seemingly daft questions in my time, and always 'ad a reason for it.

"I've 'ad a few difficult cases, lately, and one of my team got killed in the line of duty a while back. Nothing I'd worry about, but they've got this big mental 'ealth thing goin' on at work, and somebody noticed I'd not taken any leave for a good while. So my boss calls me in and 'e says "Vera, if you don't take at least four weeks off in the next month, I'll 'ave to retire you." Bit of a bugger, but I took the leave. Thought I'd go to the seaside, Blackpool or Scarborough or somewhere.

"But when I came to look at me bank account, I 'ad a right shock! What with livin' in me Dads' old 'ouse, and not buyin' a lot except food, I 'ad thousands in there! So I decided to treat meself. I'm a bit old for Disney and nightclubbin', and I don't 'ave a lot of time for one-armed bandits and stuff, so I decided to go to the seaside, anyway. Just a bit further away than Blackpool.

"Now why did you need to know, pet?"

Danny responded with another question. "Do you know a guy called..," he squinted at the tablet in front of him, "Michael Ferris? He was staying at your hotel, he was one of the people who was killed this morning, and he was British, like you."

Vera blinked at him. "That name does ring a bell, pet." She allowed. "Just a minute….Mike Ferris? Now if it's the same one, yes I 'ave 'eard of 'im. East End gangster. They used to call 'im 'Meathook Mike' when 'e was young, now they call 'im Mister Ferris, if they know what's good for 'em!

"Now if it is 'im, I didn't know about it, or I'd 'ave moved hotels. I'm fussy about the company I keep."

"So you only knew him by reputation?" Danny said. "You never had any dealings with him?"

"Do you mean 'was I investigatin' 'im' or 'was 'e paying' me off'?." Vera asked. "The answer to both is no, you cheeky little bugger!"

"Lady," Danny snapped, "I gotta ask these questions! You know that, I know that. So don't bother getting ticked off at me!"

"Oh, if I were mad at you, you'd know, pet!" Vera told him. "If you want to know about Ferris, ask the Met. Not that they'll tell you much, they're a funny lot down in London. But my manor's Northumberland, and 'e doesn't do business up there, or I'd 'ave 'ad 'im already!

"Now, if you're done askin' me daft questions, I'd like to get on with me 'oliday."

"I'm afraid that's not gonna happen for a while, DCI Stanhope." This was Steve, who had appeared at the door. "I've just been talking to the British Consulate. It seems Ferris was here on some kind of business, and his people back home aren't too happy about him getting killed. Scotland Yard wants it wrapped up quick, and so does the Governor. They want to assign one of their Special Branch officers to us."

"Well God 'elp you with that!" Vera said. "Them Special Branch types aren't proper coppers at all, but they don't 'alf 'ave a bob on themselves!"

"That's what I figured." Steve told her. "So I said you were already involved in the case, and I'd prefer it if you were assigned. Scotland Yard talked to your boss, and he said he was OK with it. He did say we might not be, but I'll take a chance.

"Welcome to the Five-O Task Force, Detective Chief Inspector!"

Vera sighed. "Looks like I've got a job on me 'ands." She remarked. "Especially if you're all like that scruffy Herbert who showed me up here! What was 'is name? Jerry?"

"Jerry's our IT guy." Danny said.

"No excuse to go around lookin' like 'e's been dragged through a hedge backwards!" Vera sniffed.