"You don't have to worry about the kidnapping charge- on my part, anyway."
"We don't?" Mac asked, flinching as Joe glared at him.
"IF you help me with another problem, Mr. Williams here might be able to convince the local authorities to go easy on you. Isn't that right, Mr. Williams?"
"What problem?" Joe asked at length.
"It seems that the authorities found something- unsettling in our luggage when they searched it. And we have a witness who claims that you two are responsible for putting it there."
"Joe," Mac whispered loudly in a nervous voice.
"Don't know what you're talking about," Joe tried to bluff.
"In fact, there are two witnesses. One from the hotel, and me."
"You?"
"I overheard the two of you talking as I was waking up last night. All about how you had planted the 'stuff' in my things. If you think that whoever pays you to do this is going to come to your aid, think again. He's probably already found two other runners to do the job for him."
Danny, leaning against the door, spoke at last. "And the minute you two walk out of here, you're dead."
Joe paled. "Damn. Okay. So you got us. But we don't know anything."
"How do you get the stuff?"
"We get a call that a shipment's ready, and go pick it up."
"How do you decide who to pick for the mule?" Danny asked.
"From the home addresses of the guests on the fourth floor. We find someone who's going back to Los Angeles so the package can be retrieved."
"And how do the people in Los Angeles know who to look for?"
"I'm supposed to call a number and let them know when the mule- the guests have left the hotel and are heading back."
Laura met Danny Williams' gaze, then turned back to Joe and Mac. "Okay, you're going to make that call- and tell them that Mr. And Mrs. John Robie have left Hawaii early to return home."
"But- the cops said that Mr. Robie had been shot," Mac said.
"You won't make the call til they're gone," Danny informed them. "And until then, you'll be guests of the state."
"But- the people we work for. What if they find out?"
"We'll handle things," Danny assured the two men. He opened the door. "James, take em downtown."
"Book em?" James asked as he handcuffed Joe and Mac.
"Not yet. We'll wait a day. They're our guests til then."
Laura moved to follow them. "I have to get to the hospital," she told the Five-O investigator. "And check on Mr. Steele."
"Miss Holt, how long have you worked for Mr. Steele?"
Laura paused. "Almost- seven years, I guess. Why?"
"Then you don't know where he might have been say- ten years ago?"
"Ten years ago," Laura mused, recalling that Phillipe DeMoray had been convicted of murdering that gem exchange guard. "No, I can't say that I do."
"And had you ever heard of Phillipe DeMoray before you and Mr. Steele arrived here on the island?"
"Never," Laura said truthfully.
Danny looked at her thoughtfully, as if trying to decide how much to tell her. "According to the Australian authorities, DeMoray claimed to have had two accomplices in the jewel theft there."
Laura's smile came easily, the result of having faced these situations before. "You can't seriously think that Mr. Steele was somehow involved, Mr. Williams."
"I can't think of any other reason why DeMoray would have a grudge against Mr. Steele big enough to lead to what happened here. Or how someone like Mr. Steele would be able to lift those stones so easily."
"Mr. Steele has a great many talents," Laura assured the investigator. "And that gem room was a cracker box, I'm sure. When we came in the other evening, there was no sign of a guard on the door- anyone could have walked in there and taken the Royal Lavulite."
"Maybe. But the only one who DID was Remington Steele. I hope he's able to answer my questions before you and he leave."
"I'm sure he'll have all the right answers, Mr. Williams," Laura re-assured him. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I really need to get to the hospital-?"
"I'll have someone escort you," he offered, leading her from the office toward the front desk.
"Oh, that won't be necessary," Laura said quickly.
"I insist," Danny said, his smile belying the seriousness of his eyes. "I don't have to tell you, I hope that I'd rather you and Mr. Steele not leave until he and I have had a chance to talk."
She glanced at the uniformed officer that he signaled toward them. "We wouldn't dream of it. Believe me, Mr. Steele is as anxious to have this cleared up as I am."
"Jenkins, take Miss Holt to General, okay? And hang around for awhile."
"Yes sir." The man smiled warmly at Laura. "This way, miss."
***
Mildred was in the waiting room when Laura entered, Officer Jenkins close by. "Oh, Miss Holt," the older woman said, and then eyed the officer with confusion.
"How is he, Mildred?" she asked, pulling Mildred across the room, their backs to the waiting Jenkins, who remained in the doorway.
"I don't know. They took him into emergency when we got here, and since then- nada. Are you okay, hon?"
Laura nodded, keeping her voice low. "I've been out of touch the last few hours, Mildred. Fill me in on what happened."
"Well, I went to the luau last night, hoping to let you and Mr. Steele know that I'd overheard those two creeps after they planted the drugs. But when I saw Mr. Steele there, alone, I knew something was wrong."
"Where did he say I was?"
"In your room, sick. Said that all the sight seeing had been too much for you. Then he passed me a note. Then he left, and I left to read it. The note explained everything about that louse DeMoray and what he was trying to do. And it told me to go to the police and tell them why we were here, and what was going on. Mr. Steele had a plan, you see…"
"A plan that involved stealing those gems," Laura nodded. "I should have known he'd wind up doing that."
"But he did it, Miss Holt. And he could have gotten clean away with them," Mildred reminded her. "But he didn't."
"And almost got himself shot in the bargain. Not to mention causing the local authorities to ask a LOT of questions."
"They weren't very happy that we were here and hadn't checked in with them about the drug smuggling case," Mildred agreed.
"I was hoping that it wouldn't be necessary," Laura said. "Thought we could keep a low profile. But that's not the questions I'm talking about. What did you tell the police about DeMoray?"
"Just what he put in the note," Mildred told her.
"Do you have that note, Mildred?" Laura asked, her eyes on the corridor, looking for someone who could give her some news on Remington's condition.
Mildred dug inside her handbag for a moment before coming up with the paper. "Here it is."
Laura took it and quickly scanned Remington's almost illegible hand. "You read this?"
"I'm used to reading his writing, Miss Holt. It's really kinda fun deciphering it sometimes."
"Mmm," Laura agreed. "I can't read it." She saw a nurse in the hallway. "Nurse!"
"Yes?"
"I'm curious about one of your emergency patients. A-"
"John Robie," Mildred finished. She shrugged as Laura gave her a confused look.
The nurse smiled, and Laura easily recognized that look. How many women's faces had she seen it on over the years? "Oh, him. Dr. Makia should be out in a moment. But he's fine. REALLY fine," she added.
"yes," Laura agreed, and some mischievous imp caused her to hold up her left hand to show the nurse the ring on her finger. "He is, isn't he?"
The woman's face fell a bit as she turned to leave. Laura turned to see Mildred watching her with a curious expression. Laura shrugged, then began to pace the waiting room. "Why John Robie, Mildred? I would have thought our cover was completely blown."
"not really, Miss Holt. The only ones who know the truth are the police. Mr. Steele insisted we maintain the cover so that we could finish the drug case. He said that an accident would be a good excuse for the Robies to go home early."
"Oh." She heard footsteps and went to the door several times, but every time it was a false alarm. Finally she stopped looking and sat down in a chair.
Mildred gave her a worried look. "You must be exhausted. Did you get any sleep last night?"
"Not much. DeMoray spent all night talking about the good old days with Harry and Daniel," Laura ground out, rubbing her eyes. More footsteps, and Laura ignored them this time. But they didn't pass. They came closer, and she looked up to find a pale Remington standing there, his left arm in a sling. "Are you okay?" she asked, jumping up, wanting to put her arms around him, but was afraid to hurt him.
He nodded, and used his good arm to pull her close. "I am now," he told her. "Let's go home, shall we?"
"They've released you?"
"it was just a scratch," he told her. "Nothing serious."
"Don't let him kid you, ma'am," another voice said, and Laura saw Remington's dismayed frown.
The short, dark man was wearing a white coat, a stethoscope around his neck. "I'm Dr. Makia. You must be Mrs. Robie."
"Um, yes," Laura confirmed. "It's not just a scratch?" she asked the doctor.
"Any gun wound is serious, Mrs. Robie. An inch to the right or down, and he would be in the hospital right now. If not the morgue. We removed the bullet- and he should make a full recovery. Once it starts healing, he'll need to exercise the shoulder to keep it from being stiff."
"Can he travel?"
"I'd prefer he remain here- or in Hawaii for the night, but he's explained to me that it's important that you return to the mainland as soon as possible. As long as he goes to see his personal physician once you arrive-"
"I'll make sure that he does," Laura assured the doctor.
"I'd appreciate not being spoken about as if I weren't here," Remington said.
"I gave him some pills for the pain," Dr. Makia told Laura, continuing as if Remington hadn't spoken. "He refused to take one-"
"He doesn't like pills," she confided.
"Well, I'm sure he's in capable hands," the doctor said. He held out his hand. "Take care of yourself, Mr. Robie."
Remington nodded briefly, still put out at being ignored. The doctor left the waiting area. "Let's get out of here," he said, placing a hand to his shoulder.
"Is it hurting?" Mildred asked.
"A bit. But I'll be all right."
Laura glanced behind him to see Officer Jenkins with his walkie talkie. "Damn," she sighed. "We're not going anywhere until you have a little chat with Danny Williams," Laura told him.
"A chat?"
She nodded. "He wants some answers. And I don't think he's going to let you go until he gets them."
"Speak of the devil," Mildred muttered as Danny Williams entered the waiting area.
"Ah, Mr. Williams," Remington said brightly. "Just the man I was going to find."
"Everything all squared away? Shoulder okay?" Danny asked.
"Oh, okay as can be expected," Remington said. "I wanted to try and explain how I happened to be involved here."
"Good idea, Mr. Steele. I do have some questions. Beginning with where you were ten years ago."
"I'm not sure how much I can tell you, Mr. Williams. You see, a friend of mine used to work for Interpol."
"Interpol?"
"Unofficially, of course. He had another friend who was an operative, sent him out on cases where Interpol itself couldn't get involved. Louis Maycomber. You've probably heard of him."
"Heard the name. He's dead, isn't he?"
"Yes. Well, Louis found out that someone was planning on stealing a fortune in diamonds from the gem exchange in Sydney- but he didn't have any hard evidence. So he called on my friend to check it out. Reggie decided he needed another hand to keep an eye on DeMoray, and sent for me. Well, the plan was to help him steal the gems, then turn him over to the authorities. But, as you're no doubt aware, things went slightly wrong- and DeMoray murdered a guard. Reggie and I contacted Louis, and he got us out of the country." Listening to him talk, Laura could almost believe the story- if she didn't know the truth.
"Why not have you testify against DeMoray?" Danny asked.
"There were enough witnesses already. He was caught red handed. Louis decided it was best for Interpol not to be involved, even unofficially."
"And your friend, this, Reggie? Where is he?"
"In Europe, I believe. Went to ground when Louis was killed a few years ago. Talked about retiring."
"So last night wasn't the first time you've- "
"I believe the term is committed a felony theft? I'm afraid that I'm not at liberty to discuss any other covert operations that I might have been involved in over the course of my career."
Danny Williams glanced at Laura, then at Mildred. "Well, I suppose there's no more reason for me to keep you, then. I believe you have a plane to catch?"
Remington's smile hid his relief well. "Yes, as a matter of fact, I believe we do."
"I had your luggage sent on to the airport. Oh, and Mr. Steele- next time, let the local police know that you're on their turf, okay?"
"First thing," Remington promised. "Shall we, ladies?" he asked Laura and Mildred.
It was time to go home.