Chapter Text
Steve made the signal, then led the breach of five-0 and HPD into the clubhouse. The teams fanned out and cleared the rooms as they went, but most were empty. As they’d expected, most of the patrons were hustled in two rooms; one for drinking, drugs and general entertainment and one for more private entertainment.
The teams started rounding up the patrons and placing them in flexi-cuffs. There had been minimal protest at the intrusion, which was welcome but unexpected.
“Get down! Drop it!” Danny heard Steve suddenly shout at one of the guys, “What’s in your hand? I said drop it!”
Then Steve tackled the guy to the ground and Danny moved in to help. He couldn’t understand why some people just didn’t seem to realise that the fight was over.
“Book ‘em Danno” Steve muttered as he quickly got off the guy and wiped his face against his shoulder.
“You okay?” Danny asked Steve as he put the other guy in handcuffs. When he was done reciting the guy’s Miranda rights to him, he turned to Steve and realised his partner was in trouble.
Steve was leaning against the far wall of the room and had his face in his hands – one of which was still holding his pistol.
“Steve babe, you okay?” Danny asked as he moved towards his partner and put away his sidearm. Steve didn’t respond, but Danny didn’t expect him to, “Babe, can you give me your pistol?”
The question seemed to get through to Steve and he withdrew his hands from his face, then looked around the room in confusion. He eyes glazed over where Danny was standing, unseeingly, which was Danny’s second warning that his partner was in trouble.
Then Steve ducked, watching something only he could see pass him by – which was Danny’s third and final warning. Danny quickly and cautiously closed the distance between them, and not a moment too soon, as Steve apparently identified a threat somewhere on the ceiling above them. Steve shot two rounds before Danny was on him, knocking him to the floor.
They wrestled for the weapon and Danny was afraid that Steve would win control, then who knew what would happen. Then Steve abandoned his quest to get his pistol back and instead began hitting Danny. But thankfully, Lou had noticed what was happening and helped him get Steve onto his stomach and get Steve’s hands behind his back enough to put him in some flexi-cuffs for his safety, as well as everyone else’s.
“Call EMS, I think he’s been dosed with something” Danny told Lou.
“Be careful with him, just because he’d restrained, doesn’t mean he can’t – ”
“I know, Lou” Danny interrupted, then made shooing motions at him. And as if he’d heard him, Steve renewed his struggling, and Danny nearly got hit in the face by a stray flying leg. “Dammit, Steve! Just relax! Help is on the way”
“There’s no helping him now, man, he’s in the clutches of the mad demon” the guy that Steve had tackled earlier piped up, with a laugh.
“What did you give him?” Danny asked, but the guy just laughed at him.
“Let me go!” Steve suddenly shouted, the veins on his neck stuck out as he strained himself.
“I can’t do that, babe” Danny tried to reason with him.
But Steve wasn’t listening, his focus was constantly shifting, watching something or someone that only he could see. His breaths were coming in short, sharp pants, and it made Danny wonder how he hadn’t passed out from hyperventilation.
“NO! Let me GO!!!” Steve roared as he renewed his efforts to get free, “STOP! What are you doing?!”
“Steve – ” Danny tried, but Steve interrupted him, apparently not hearing him.
“What is – !” Steve abruptly stopped talking and flinched dramatically, “LEAVE ME ALONE!!!”
The guy responsible for drugging Steve started laughing, “Man, he’s having a bad trip, I would – ”
“If you don’t shut up, I’m going to make sure your life is a living hell” Danny snarled at him.
“NOOO!!!!” Steve roared again, his body bucking to try to get free.
“Fuck” Danny muttered, his worry for his partner outweighing everything else. Where was EMS? He quickly felt for a pulse, and he didn’t need to a medical degree to see that Steve’s heart was beating too rapidly.
“No!” Steve shouted again, then he flinched back again before he asked softly, in a fearful voice that Danny had never heard him use before, “What is that? What is that? What is – ?”
Steve choked back a sob, then his eyes rolled back and his body started seizing. And not a moment too soon, EMS arrived and pushed Danny out of the way.