"One mistake does not have to rule a person's entire life."

- Joyce Meyer

They say that Hawaii is a tropical paradise. A place of enchantment and wonder. What they don't think about is the horrors the island has seen. I'm not talking about Pearl Harbor. I'm talking about the crimes that tear families apart: murders, kidnappings, drug trafficking. The kind of horrors that locals are forced to see while the tourists are out prancing around on a beach sipping on cocktails.

The death of John McGarrett rocked this island to its very core. Maybe people didn't realize how his death had affected the island, but they lost an old school cop who gave his last breath to keep his island and his family safe. The truth of the matter is that it led to the formation of what we so affectionately call, Five-0. An elite task force comprised of some of the best law enforcement officers on the island. I guess the question now is where do I fit into all of this?

I am the reason that John McGarrett is dead, at least that's what I believed...at first anyway. My name is Julia Cherie Koehler. My family calls me Jules. John McGarret called me Jules.

My life went off course when I got tangled up in a twisted web set out by a man named Wo Fat. Now the thing about Wo Fat is that he's the kind of man who can single handedly destroy an entire life without personally involving himself by manipulating those around him into doing all the dirty work. He'll go to any lengths to set people up for murder without even a second thought. I'm sure he's made some mistakes along the way, but even those mistakes would more than likely never track back to him. The Hesse brothers, John, Joe, Steve, and myself are all pawns in this warped game. Pawns with one thing in common, Shelburne.

Through countless betrayals and heartaches I found myself with a badge and a gun designated to help the Five-0 track down Wo Fat. My job was to perform inquires into the whereabouts of this wanted fugitive and by any means necessary bring him in. So in all reality, it was me doing the research and John McGarrett's son, Steve, running out to save the day with his partner Danny Williams. Between tracking down Wo Fat and trying to work out my damaged emotional psyche, I was required to work with the task force on regular cases as well.

And somehow through all of it, we finally got a lock on Shelburne. All of John's investigations, my information, Joe's "help", and Steve's ungodly perseverance, we had finally done it. Steve had arrested Wo Fat not too long ago, and was on his way to bring Shelburne back to the island, but we gave up a lot to get here to this moment. Too much.

The last seven years of my life have led up to this moment. After all of the pain and suffering, I was finally going to meet the one person who I'd been searching for all along. I was finally going to be face to face with Shelburne. I was finally going to meet the person who I went through hell for. It all seemed so surreal as I stood there in the hangar watching the movement on the tarmac carefully.

The grief, the pain, and the loss I had face over the last few years would, after today it would finally mean something. Shelburne had to be kept safe, and I needed answers. We all did. The weight of the pistol and badge on my hip felt more like a weight I couldn't shake opposed to something used to serve and protect. They were made heavier by the weight of my involvement in everything that was about to go down, because in my mind I felt as though I had been standing on the other side of the line with the criminals too often. My hands felt dirty, even though every move I made had been to protect the people I love.

"How are you feeling?" a voice pulled me back to the present.

I looked over at the man standing beside of me. Detective Danny Williams had been there for me since John McGarrett's murder. He was a mainlander, a recent transplant to the island that had been assigned to the case. The thing about Danny was that he had his own set of rules, despite being "stuck" on a tropical island, he always came dressed professionally, tie and all. It was amusing, since most detectives on the island adhered to a more laid back dress code. More recently though, his days of wearing ties had come to an end due to all the criticism he had been getting, especially from Steve. Or maybe he just realized that he was in Hawaii to stay, and that wasn't such a bad place to call home.

He didn't have the laid back attitude most Hawaiians did either. In the time that I'd known him, I've learned that he has an ex-wife named Rachel and a daughter named Grace. His disdain for his ex-wife is clear, especially when his face turns red during any one of his somewhat frequent rants about her. His little girl was a different story, he had nothing but love and devotion for her.

"Shaken," I replied as I leaned against the hood of the silver Camaro. "If Wo Fat gets a hold of Shelburne, I'll be his next target. Double crossing a very powerful criminal isn't the smartest thing to do. I wouldn't recommend doing it."

Did I forget to mention that Wo Fat had escaped? Well, he did. He was loose on our island and most certainly aware of Shelburne's arrival, too. So, we are waiting and hoping we can keep Shelburne safe, because if we can't...I'll be next on Wo Fat's hit list. If I'm being honest I've been hovering towards the top of that list for a while now.

"We won't let Wo Fat get near you," Danny said as he leaned against the hood next to me, his own arms crossed over his chest.

I shook my head looking away from him. We were sitting in an empty hangar at Honolulu International Airport with the best of HPD waiting in the wings. With Wo Fat on the loose again, there would be nothing left to chance.

"This isn't going to end well, Danny."

Danny shook his head, "I know."

"After everything..." I trailed off pushing away from the car. "It all comes down to this moment."

"You did it all to protect him...To protect Steve?" Danny asked still leaning against the car with his blue eyes watching me carefully.

"I had too," I stated softly, but my words got lost in the noise bouncing around the hangar.

Danny just nodded in understanding, and I knew that I was going to have to tell Danny the whole story one day. I just hadn't prepared for that day to be today, but I also knew that Danny wanted to understand, and that he loved Steve, too. In spite of the fact that they bickered like an old married couple.

"I guess I'll start at the beginning," I said feeling nervous about how he would react to all of it.

"I'm not going anywhere." Danny said as he took my hand.

I took a deep breath and stared down at our intertwined fingers smiling at the irony in this very moment. As Danny gave me something to hold onto, I was finally going to let go. Let go of the past, the mistakes I'd made and maybe...just maybe I would be able to let go of the guilt. Someday.

Hello everyone! I hoped you enjoyed this prologue, I promise you there is plenty of awesome plot-line to come. I would like to send a huge shout-out to my beta, livialovesdelena. She is the greatest! Please leave a review and let me know what you think!