"I believe another of your guests left a package for me?" he asked, his tone revealing his doubt of that.
The clerk smiled. "Yes, Mr. DeMoray. Mr. Robie left a package for you. It's in the safe-" she frowned. "But I'm not supposed to give it to you until he leaves the hotel."
DeMoray's eyes narrowed, and he turned toward the doorway to nod in someone's direction as Remington came into view. "There seems to be a quite a bit of activity around the hotel this morning, Msr. Robie," DeMoray commented.
Remington forced a smile onto his frozen lips, and noticed that there were far fewer police officers within the confines of the lobby. No doubt Williams had told them to back off, he realized gratefully. "I've kept my end of our bargain, DeMoray. Where is Laura?"
"Just entering the hotel, I believe," the Frenchman said smoothly as Remington turned to find Laura running toward him. She looked more than a little worse for wear, Remington thought to himself, but he could see the fire of anger in her eyes as she neared. "If I were you, I should make very certain that she does not create a scene, my friend." DeMoray's hand slid into his jacket pocket, and Remington easily saw the outline of a small handgun through the linen material.
"You!" Laura began, facing DeMoray, but Remington grabbed her arm, dragging her away from the white suited man.
"Enough chit chat, my dear," Remington said quickly, and then continued to keep Laura from getting a word in edgewise. "I was beginning to think that you weren't going to return from your shopping trip in time to catch the flight home."
"Flight home?!" Laura managed. "What are you-?!"
"Laura, love," he said, smiling at the curious faces around them as they moved toward the desk clerk that DeMoray had spoken to moments earlier, "let's not snap at each other like commoners, eh? I know how disappointed you are that business concerns have forced us to cut short our trip. But we'll be back. I promise."
"What are you TALKING about?" Laura asked. "Business concerns?"
He smiled at the clerk. "Shopping puts things right out of her head, isn't that right, dear?" he asked, pulling Laura close to his side. His look was meant to send her a silent message that she was putting both of their lives in danger by her actions. He only hoped she understood it. He punctuated it with a pointed glance at DeMoray's jacket pocket.
Laura's eyes followed his and saw the gun. But she was still confused. They couldn't leave Hawaii yet. They didn't know for sure the heroin had been hidden in the clothes hangers. And the thought of letting DeMoray get away with this went totally against the grain. But the idea of ending up dead was equally distasteful, she decided, smiling up at her "husband". "You know me too well, Johnny," she said.
Relieved, Remington retrieved his credit card and nodded at the clerk. "Wait five mintes after we leave the hotel, then you can give Mr. DeMoray his package."
"Whatever you say, Mr. Robie. Come back soon."
"oh, we shall," Remington assured the young woman, and turned Laura toward the front doors.
"What is going on here?" Laura asked without appearing to say anything from DeMoray's vantage point.
"I'll explain all shortly, Laura," Remington promised. "Right now, we have to at least make it APPEAR that we're leaving the hotel for the airport."
"The drugs might be in the hangers," she informed him.
"They are," he confirmed, eliciting a look of surprise from her. "Play the game, love," he reminded her as they exited the building and went to the sports car.
The valet opened the doors for them, handing Remington the keys as he closed the door. "I hope you enjoyed your stay, Mr. Robie."
"Oh, I think it's safe to say that it's been a holiday neither of us will ever forget, right, Laura?"
"It's indelibly imprinted on my brain," Laura replied in a dead pan voice.
Starting the car, Remington put it into gear and guided it out of the portico- but instead of turning toward the street, he made a right turn back around the hotel's corner. "What are you doing?" Laura asked. "I thought we were-"
Remington gave her a disappointed look as he parked the car and turned off the engine. "Laura. I'm shocked. You'd really leave and let DeMoray get away with it?" He grinned at her angry confusion.
"*I* didn't' want to leave at all, remember?" she asked. "Besides, we have to find those two bellhops that put the drugs into our things for us to transport for them."
"One of them is already in custody," he told her as he got out of the car and came around to open her door. "I assume the second one was with you?"
"Yes. You're awfully well informed about all of this, Mr. Steele."
He gave her a cat-who-swallowed-the-canary smile and held out his hand. "Shall we, Miss Holt?"
Laura, still uncertain about the entire matter, followed him into a side door of the hotel. "There are police everywhere," she commented. "Except the lobby."
"There WAS a major jewel theft here last night," Remington reminded her, getting his bearings. "This way…"
The clerk led DeMoray to the hotel safe and opened it, withdrawing the small box. "here you are, Mr. DeMoray."
Phillipe's dark eyes widened as he looked at the package, knowing that the Royal Lavulite was finally within his grasp. "Tres bien," he whispered, accepting the package. He clasped it to his chest as if afraid it might vanish.
"Mr. DeMoray?"
"Oui?" he asked.
"I need you to sign for the package, sir. Just so that Mr. Robie will know that you received it."
DeMoray smiled, and saw the clerk's frown. "OH, don't worry. I will assure my old friend that I have the package in person. I'm checking out of the hotel. Immediately."
He entered the lobby, only to stop as he realized it was filled almost to overflowing with policemen. Where had they all come from? He wondered. A short man with curling graying hair approached him. "Mr. Phillipe DeMoray?" he asked.
"And who is asking?"
A badge was flashed. "Danny Williams. Hawaii Five-O. State police," he indentified. "I need to look inside that box that you're carrying."
"This?" DeMoray asked, holding up the package. "It's nothing. Just something a friend owed to me."
"Then you won't mind letting me see it."
"Non," DeMoray insisted, shaking his head and backing away. "I will not give them up. I have gone through too much trouble-" Felt every officer in the lobby tense, at the ready. Suddenly his eyes fell on a familiar dark head and blue eyes as they peered at him around a corner. "You tricked me!" DeMoray roared, furious that he had been bested by Chalmers' protégé. "You'll live to regret that, Harry!" he charged, and pulled out the gun…
Remington saw the gun leave DeMoray's pocket, saw his hand lift, and started to duck, but realized that HE wasn't the target. The gun was pointed straight at Laura. She didn't see it, however. Her attention was focused elsewhere. There was no time for Remington to yell, so he pushed Laura out of the way as the gun went off.
He felt the hot metal of the bullet enter his shoulder, heard another shot, and another while he shielded Laura from harm. "Someone call the coroner," he heard Danny Williams tell one of his men. "He's dead."
"You can get up now," Laura told Remington. He nodded and moved slowly, using his right hand to help Laura up as well.
"Are you okay, Steele?" Williams asked as he approached with a concerned Mildred at his side.
Laura's eyes were on the doorway again. "Stop that man!" she called out, pointing to Mac, who was edging toward the door. She ran in his direction as he was grabbed by the police. "He was one of DeMoray's henchmen," she informed them.
"I wouldn't have let him hurt you, Mrs. Robie," Mac insisted. "I didn't want to do it all. It was all Joe's idea."
But Laura wasn't listening. She was seeing the spreading red stain on the back of Remington's shirt. "Oh my God," she whispered, rushing to his side. "Someone call an ambulance."
"One's on the way, hon," Mildred assured her employer. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," Laura said. "Just a couple of bruises. A few from being pushed aside," she said, glancing at Remington. "Is there somewhere he can lay down?" she asked no one in particular.
"I'll be fine right here, Laura," Remington told her, and would have collapsed onto the carpeted floor if it weren't for several quick witted police officers coming to his aid. "Thank you, gentlemen," he said as they helped him to a chair.
"Where's your handkerchief?" Laura asked him, digging through is jacket pockets. "Here we go." She applied pressure to the wound with the folded linen square, hoping to staunch some of the flow. "You could have just yelled, you know. You didn't have to-"
"No time," he told her. "I couldn't risk his shooting you."
"So you got shot in my place," Laura decided. "Wonderful plan."
"Phillipe- was a crack shot. He was aiming at your head, Laura. One shot- he knew it was all he had."
Laura blinked at that news. "You saved my life."
"All in a days work for Remington Steele," he said, his dark lashes falling over his brilliant blue eyes. "Couldn't lose the most valuable jewel I've ever seen, could I, eh?"
Laura glanced up at Mildred. "Where's that ambulance?"
"Should be here any minute, Miss Holt." Laura looked at the owner of that voice, recognizing him from earlier. "Danny Williams, Miss Holt. Five-0."
"The State Police. I'm surprised you're involved here, Mr. Williams."
"Major jewel theft, kidnapping? Extortion? Why shouldn't we be? Our biggest problem will be keeping the Feds out of it," he told her with a boyish grin that Laura returned. He reminded her a little of Jimmy Jarvis of the Los Angeles Police Department back home. The sound of a siren drew their attention. "There they are. Jenkins, go and lead them in, please."
Laura rushed a lock of dark hair from Remington's forehead. "Help's on the way."
He reached up to cover he hand with his. "You're the only help I need," he told her. "Oh. Mr. Williams. The gems."
Danny Williams held up the box that he had yet to open. "I have them."
Remington's eyes were open now. "You're certain of that?"
Williams quickly opened the package to reveal rocks, wrapped in cotton. "Where are they, then?"
With an effort which caused him to wince and a sheen of perspiration to appear on his forehead, Remington placed a hand into his pocket and brought out a black velvet pouch. "Here."
Mildred's eyes widened as she saw the blue gems that the pouch contained. "You've been carrying them all night, Chief?"
"Couldn't risk DeMoray getting them and disappearing," he said. The paramedics appeared, pushing everyone out of the way.
Laura glanced around as officers were leading Mac and Joe from the hotel in handcuffs. "Mr. Williams," she said quickly, "is taking those two out now what you really want to do?"
Danny Williams frowned, not understanding her question as he followed her gaze. "They were accomplices in your kidnapping, Miss Holt, not to mention DeMoray's extortion attempt. We also have the drugs that were planted in your things, which, according to Miss Krebs, they were responsible for."
"But they're just the lowest rung, Mr. Williams," Laura insisted. "If you take them away now, and it gets out into the papers, the rest will scatter like rats. Let me talk to them. See if I can get them to talk and agree to help us."
"You're talking a deal, Miss Holt. I don't think I can sanction-"
"You're telling me that if they cooperate you won't go ANY easier on them?" Laura asked, pinning her with the same look she often used on Remington while making a point.
"We might. That would be up to a judge, though."
"Williams," Remington said, grimacing as the paramedics strapped him onto a gurney. "Listen to her. She knows what she's talking about."
Laura smiled at Remington. "You just rest," she said gently, glancing at the paramedic closest to her. "Is he going to be okay?"
"He's lost some blood," the young woman explained. "And the bullet's still in there. They'll get it out at the hospital."
"Laura-" Remington began, and reached for her hand.
She knew what was troubling him. He hated hospitals. "You just get well," she said. "So that we can go home and finish this case." Laura looked at Williams. "IF we get the chance to resolve it, that is."
Danny Williams returned her look. "Okay, Miss Holt, you win. We'll let you talk to them. But I can't hold them here for very long. If you're going to do it, it will have to be now."
Laura felt Remington's fingers tighten on hers and looked at him. "Go on. I'll be okay. Do what you have to do. Just be careful, okay?" he asked, and his glance took in Williams in the warning.
"Don't worry, Miss Holt," Mildred assured her boss. "I'll go to the hospital and stay with him til you get there."
"Thank you, Mildred," Laura said gratefully. She brushed Remington's hair from his forehead again. "I won't be long."
She watched the stretcher as it was rolled away toward the ambulance outside, wanting to follow. In fact, she took a step in that direction, only to stop as Danny Williams spoke. "Miss Holt? Coming?"