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One of the best-kept secrets on Oahu was that the McGarrett house did in fact have three bedrooms. The master-suite, a generic bedroom that was generally referred to the guest room or Mary's room, and the attic loft. Accessible via ladder in the main upstairs hall (or back window), it was a haven for friends who needed to hide. Danny (who had moved in after Steve left) had no idea the house had an attic. The most recent occupant was none other than our dearly beloved Jack Dalton, whom Danny referred to as “That ghosty turd” or “Little shit” or Jack’s favorite, “KitchenAid.”
Jack had realized early on in his little stint for Uncle Sam that the original Kovacs was in fact dead, and the only way to get to the new copy cat was to trick them into coming out of hiding. So he settled into the long haul, and planned many routes, including four where he faked his death. When it came down to it, he had no choice but to die. So, he shaved his head, broke into a morgue, planted a car bomb, and let it go to shit. God forgive him, because he didn’t think he would forgive himself. Somehow, he had managed to clue Phoenix in, and convince them he was gone. They knew better than to look for something that wasn’t there. He hoped someday Mac would forgive him. Next stop: Oahu.
Jack had called Steve ahead of time and gotten the okay to stay in the attic. What Steve didn’t know was that Danny had taken up residence in the house at Mary’s request. Jack was in the habit of living like a ghost, leaving no trace, cooking silently, all that jazz. So when he realized Danny was staying in the house, he carried on trying to see how long he could hide. The answer was about a month and a half. The great Detective Williams took a month and a half to figure out that there was someone living in the attic. Jack was impressed, considering that he had been doing things like cleaning, or moving the furniture an inch to the left. The best part was that Danny had seen Jack a few times, but he ignored him, assuming he was an actual ghost or something. The great reveal occurred when Steve came home.
Nostalgia hit Steve like a wall as he turned onto his home street. Home. The feeling wrapped around him like a blanket as he headed up the steps, and let himself in. The house looked good for not being lived in for a year. It felt slightly off, but Steve chalked it up to the fact that it was clean, and he didn’t know if Jack was in or not. Also, Jack was probably the reason it was clean. Something clicked in the kitchen. Steve was on “casual alert”: his hand hovered over his gun, and he crept to the kitchen.
Grace wanted to surprise her dad and make muffins. Danno wasn’t due home from work yet, but someone had just come through the front door. She grabbed the biggest cast iron frying pan and hid just around the corner. It was the one that Steve had said was the most defensible with the best view of the kitchen. Grace waited silently, sensing someone was about to come in the kitchen.
Jack was napping. Drifting in a blissful, inattentive haze, on a patch of sunlight that fell perfectly on his attic cot. He registered that there was someone in the kitchen, didn’t think anything of it. Someone came in the front door, he assumed the other guy was home early. The explosion of curse words and the gong-like clatter did catch his attention. Jack sat up, grabbing his go-bag, and listened intently. It sounded like the two knew each other, and one was female? As Jack was trying to figure out who the latter was, his phone buzzed softly in his pocket.
“Hello?” Jack answered.
“Hey, Jack! It’s Steve,” Steve responded.
“Hey, what’s up?”
“Did you ever make it to my place?”
“Yeah, and uh, I’m not the only one here.”
“Are you here right now?”
“Yeah?”
“Oh, come on down! Gracie just made fresh muffins.” With that Steve hung up. Jack shook his head with a chuckle and popped open the floor boards so he could lower the ladder.
Over the last ten years Danny Williams had learned to plan for the unexpected. He had moved into Steve’s house completely hoping and expecting Steve to come back. Danny didn’t know when, he just knew Steve would come home. Steve was a bit of a neat freak, so Danny had done his best to keep the house spotless. Grace and Charlie had been completely understanding, and were huge helpers. Now that Grace was 18 she wasn’t beholden to the custody arrangement, and she came over frequently and it was more common for Danny to open the door to her sitting at the table doing homework or whatever. That would be more than welcome after the shit-show today has been . What shocked him tonight was when he opened the door to three people sitting at the table. Grace he had expected, Steve was finally home, and the house ghost… well, Danny almost passed out. They all got quiet, and looked at him. Danny shook himself, This might as well happen .
“Finally, Steven,” he said, failing to act grumpy. “Now I can tell you, your house is haunted.” Grace looked at Steve hopefully. Steve muttered and fished a ten out of his pocket, and handed it to her. Danny gaped in offence, “What, you can't see the guy sitting there?!” Danny pointed at Jack, who was sniggering in his seat. This only pissed off Danny more. “Shut up, you turd!” he said and lobbed a shoe at Jack. It bounced off his shoulder and thudded to the floor.
“Well hello to you too, Jersey,” Jack said with as much southern charm as he could muster.
Danny gaped, waved his arms, and sputtered before managing a classic, “What the hell is the matter with you?! HUH?!” Steve and Grace sat back as Jack became the victim of a livid Danny-rant about why rude it was to “Creep in people's attics” and how “I should arrest your ass” completed with “Steve, do you know this little shit?!”
“Yes,” Steve said calmly. “Danno, this is Jack Dalton. He had to fake his death for reasons of national security, so he has been laying low in my attic so his kids can’t find him.”
Danny, whose face had just lost its blue tinge, looked at Jack incredulously. “YOUSONOFAB–” Danny began again making his way toward Jack. Steve jumped up and dragged Danny to the other room ignoring his shouts of protest. Grace smiled smugly, and put her money away.
“So, are you gonna get the dishes?” she asked Jack sweetly. Jack got up with a huff, and began to clear the table.
In the other room, Danny was having a cow. “How long has that guy been here, and where has he been this whole time?!”
“Jack has been in the attic bedroom for about a month and a half.”
“A month and a half.” Steve nodded. “Why?” Danny asked, making it sound more like a statement.
“Danny, Jack is with Delta Force.”
“So you met in the army?”
“Kinda yeah,” Steve said ignoring the need to say ‘Navy’. “Jack has been working with a think tank where his kids are employed.”
“How many kids did he just crush after faking his death?” Danny asked, smacking his fist into his hand.
“That… Danno, I already chewed him out for it.”
“You chewed him out for faking his death or for ditching his kids?”
“Both,” Grace interjected, rounding the corner. Danny and Steve looked at her. “You’d been proud of him Danno, Uncle Steve was practically parroting you.” Steve smiled, and Danny caved. “Plus, you gave him round two for staying in the attic,” Grace added.
“What? Monkey, did you give him round one?”
“And she sounded just like you,” Steve said proudly. Danny nodded, impressed by his daughter.
“I also got him to do the dishes. And your dinner is in the oven, Danno,” Grace added.
“You are amazing, I will eat it in a minute. So Jack is with the Force, and let me guess; his was in some super classified mumbo-jumbo, and it went so far south, he had to fake his death for the safety of him and his team, and he has all this guilt, and hiding in Hawaii isn’t helping, and he can’t square up enough to go set the story straight?” Danny rattled off, doing his ‘I’m-solving-a-case” arm-waving routine.
“Pretty much, yeah,” Steve nodded.
Danny made his ‘okay’ face and nodded, “So, who knows he is here?”
“Me, you, the gal who helped him fake his death, Matilda Webber, and Grace,” Steve rattled off.
“Okay, so who is Matilda Webber, and when should we be expecting her?”
“She asked me to call her in about a few days after his kids get here.”
“Is she sending people to get him?”
“No, Matty oversees a think tank, the one where his kids work. She is trying to find a way to get them over here for a reunion.” Danny nodded, both he and Steve sensing a potential disaster in the making.
“And, Jack is to be kept in the dark about Matty and the kids?” Danny threw out a wild guess. Steve nodded. “Okay, I know nothing about it, and that's your job now. Also come here,” Danny said, pulling Steve in for a hug. Ah, ohana, faked deaths, surprise reunions. Glad to see home hasn’t changed, Steve thought as they headed back into the kitchen.