By
Betty
Kouba
It
was King Kamahamaha week and things were going as planned.
Many of the smaller events of the week had come and gone without any
major problems, only a few of the more minor problems that occur with public
gatherings, i.e., pick-pockets, small injuries from being in large crowds, etc.
Steve
McGarrett was going over the finalized security plans for the Governor for the
day of the parade itself. Steve
McGarrett sat in his office thinking ‘last
year at this time they were running around trying to figure out who the mystery
person was going to be killed {Rest
In Peace – Somebody}.
This year, thank heavens things are
quite and going smoothly,’ Steve thought as he knocked on his desk because
of the old saying ‘knock on wood.’ Steve
laughed at his action of knocking on the wooden desk like a little schoolboy.
Dan
Williams was at his desk doing the daily duty of having his fingers sliced and
diced from all that paper work which had piled up from the last few cases he
worked on. He had his back to the
panel of his office while he put yet another bandage on his finger from the
latest of the paper cuts {this is for all of you that need Danno to be injured
and a touch of revenge for the ‘Be Nice To Danno’ challenge}.
Kono
Kulakaua was at the luncheon doing as Steve requested agreeing to this and not
agreeing with that. “Steve hates
these things and always finds a reason to send someone else.”
Kono said to himself as he left the luncheon still hungry, so he headed
for the nearest McDonalds. He wanted a real man’s lunch.
A Big Mac, large fries and large soda were on his mind as he headed for
the drive through window on the way back to the Palace.
Chin
Ho Kelly had one of those rare days off and was playing with several of his
children in the backyard, while his wife was preparing their lunch.
Ben
Kokua was writing yet another parking ticket for the over-parked cars on
Kalakaua Avenue.
Duke
Lukela was at the academy teaching the latest class of cadets the proper
procedures on of cleaning their service revolvers.
Jenny
was typing up those deadly annual reviews for Steve on the expenses of the
Five-O and why the department spent what it did as dictated by Steve earlier
that morning. Plus she had to
finish up the personal review forms as well {from ‘Evaluation Time
Challenge’}.
They
were all frozen in time, as if someone put a spell on them.
It didn’t matter where any of the team members were, the effect was the
same. They did not move for almost
a minute before passing out. They
were out cold for about thirty seconds before their minds started to clear.
Each member shook their heads to clear them and tried to figure out where
they were. They each looked around
and said, “What happened? How did
I get here? Where was I any way?”
They each passed it off as if it was a bad dream they remembered and they
did not bother to mention it to each other.
On
one of the oldest pineapple plantations on Oahu, a descendent of King Kamahamaha
was working around the house doing little chores that he enjoyed while relaxing.
Kama was one of the last living relatives from King Kamahamaha mother’s
side of the family. He was a
self-made millionaire and in his lifetime managed to bring the old plantation
back to some of its earlier glory days. His
grandfather had lost a good deal of the family money on illegal gambling.
His father had died young trying to rebuild the old family homestead.
Kama
was considered a man among men and was a naturally born leader.
He was fair and giving man. Plus,
he was also highly respected for his rebuilding of the family dynasty without
the destruction of others. For
every dollar Kama made he gave something back to those around him, which built
him a reputation of caring man. He
had given back to the land and his people.
Kama was a full-blooded Hawaiian and believed that Hawaii was for
everyone but the land should be respected.
This
year he had talked the Governor into having the King Kamahamaha week garden
party at his plantation. Now he was
seeing to the finalization of those plans.
In fact, Kama didn’t want the State to pay for the party because he
wanted to repay the State of Hawaii for giving him so much. In his younger days when the plantation almost fell into
bankruptcy he was given the time to find the means to keep it.
He knew the only reason he got the loans he did was because King
Kamahamaha lived on this plantation before he ruled Hawaii and many of the
descendents through the years lived in his plantation home.
His plantation held a historical importance to him and the State of
Hawaii.
He
was told that there was a certain amount of money in the party budget but what
he had planned for the party was way beyond that budget. He planned on donating the money paid him for the garden
party to one the many charities in which he was on the board.
Kama
never heard who came up behind him. He
had been busy working in his private indoor garden, picking up some dead leaves,
when he was hit on the head and knocked out. When Kama came to, his servant and companion was standing
over him as he laid on the couch in the Queen’s study. When Kama come to he looked around the room and noticed the
painting of his great, great, great aunt was gone. It was the only thing in room to be missing at first glance.
Kama
was taken to the hospital, the ambulance attendant bandaged the injury to his
head. At the hospital he was
examined and had x-rays taken of his head to make sure everything was fine.
When he was resting in his private room because the doctor wanted to keep
him for observation over night, Steve McGarrett and Dan Williams walked into his
room to discuss what had taken place at his home.
Steve
knew Kama was a major supporter of the Five-O Unit and had helped on several
occasions to balance the Unit’s budget with so-called mystery donations of
money or needed equipment and supplies. “Kama,
it is good to see you again.” Steve
smiled. “What happened to put you
in here?” Steve gestured with
hand.
Kama
took Steve and then Danny’s offered hands and welcomed them to his room.
“It’s good to see both of you.”
“It
is good to see you too, Kama” Danny replied as the hand shake ended.
“What
happened to put me here, I have no idea.”
Kama tried to sit up to his heads regret and fell back onto his pillows,
“I was caring for my plants in Queen’s study and bent over to put the died
leaves in the trash when something hit me in the back of my head.”
He looked at Steve then Danny, “I didn’t know there was anyone else
in the room, and I didn’t hear any thing either.
I was going over the list of things to do before Saturday’s garden
party for the Governor in my head.”
“Your
mind was occupant with other thoughts and you heard nothing?”
Danny’s questioned because he knew Kama had good hearing, good enough
to hear a pin drop across the room on carpeting.
“No
Danny, I heard nothing because I felt secure in Queen’s study and was half
meditating and half going over the garden party agenda.”
“You
know, we have spoken of your lack of security at your plantation.
Today is a perfect example of why you need to put some kind of security
into place there.” Steve had talked on several occasions to Kama about the
openness of his plantation house and that it needed some kinda security
measures.
“I
do have security in place Steve. It
has been in place for the years. But
I just don’t feel right about having bodyguards around me. And as you know the plantation is large and very open and
next to impossible to prevent anyone from come on it.”
Kama was starting to wonder if they found out what else had been taken
from his home. “Steve, the
painting of my great, great, great Aunt Queen Lili’uokalani was missing from
Queen’s study when I woke up, can you tell if there was anything else
missing?”
“Your
companion Kimo is going through the house now to see if there is anything
missing but your home is large and it will take time. The detail and photo inventory listing Kimo gave us a copy of
is helping a great deal. Kimo has
been able to do it a lot faster with the aid of two HPD officers.”
Steve informed Kama.
“Yes,
when I had my insurance policy updated, and the security system upgraded…”
There was a look of a momentary surprise in Steve’s face that Kama saw.
“Yes Steve, I said upgraded. I
was never that much of a fool. Your
lectures to me, did persuade me to update and upgrade the security system and my
various insurance policies.”
“I’m
glad to know that your security has improved but will have to do something about
improving it just a little more.” Steve
teased his friend. He was glad that
his lectures did some good but they did not prevent this friend from getting
hurt.
“May
be I do need to rethink a few things. Since
your team is going to be setting up security for the Governor for Saturday,
perhaps Danny here, can make a few notes of some possible improvements I need to
reconsider.”
Danny
looked to Steve for approval before replying he would do it.
“Sure thing Kama. I’ll make a list for you.
I’m heading over to your place after I leave here to do a reevaluation
of a few things for Saturday.” Danny
smiled at Kama.
“Steve,”
there was a touch of urgency to voice with next statement, “The painting that
is missing, it is important to get it back.
It’s not your normal painting. There
is something special about it and the person or persons handling it will find
that out. You should be able to be
find it easily because the painting is very will known on these Islands.”
“Yes,
Queen Lili’uokalani, was painted November 3, 1850. Queen Lili’uokalani had it hung in her bedroom until her
death. Then it was moved to your
plantation per her request where it has hung until now.
It’s a full length portray of the Queen and her companion.”
Danny stated the facts from memory from his history classes as a youth. Danny remembered seeing a picture of the painting in his
Hawaiian history books. He knew
that she had been a beautiful woman who had been tall, slim, with beautifully
long black hair and black eyes that sparkled, plus she had to be in her late
twenties. Danny recalled there was
man that stood next to her but his face was not clearly visible, “Kama can I
ask you a question about the painting?”
“Why
is the man’s face not clear in the painting?”
“Yes,
how did you know?”
“Common
question from anyone who looks at the portrait. Legend has it that the artist started to paint the face but
died before he could complete it. My
great, great, great aunt would not allow any other artist to complete the
portrait because she believe it would bring her bad luck.” Kama looked at Danny, “They say if you stare at the
painting long enough you come to believe you are the man standing next to her
because no one knows who the man was. Then again, it is only a legend.”
Kama thought to himself, ‘it is
no legend it was the truth and the thief who stole the painting will pay for it
with his life. The Queen doesn’t
like her painting touched or moved by the unworthy.’
Kama also knew, ‘that anyone
touching the painting would be blessed or cursed by the Queen, just as the
artist was cursed when he was painting the portrait.’
Kama knew the truth about this because the Queen blessed him years
ago when he touched her face in respect of her position in life.
Three
days later, on a Friday afternoon, the portrait of Queen Lili’uokalani was in
Steve’s office. All of the Five-O
team along with a few HPD officers had something to do with the recovery of the
painting because the Governor had made it a top priority order.
The
man that stole the painting was discovered dead from a knife wound with a knife
sticking out of his back, the second mornings after the portrait was stolen.
The thief was covered in wet paint.
The mystery is how did the man get paint all over him when there was no
paint to be found in the room. In
addition, how could he have bleed to death from a knife wound in his room with
no puddle of blood under the body large enough for the amount of blood he lost.
This was now one of many unsolved mysteries associated of the portrait of
Queen Lili’uokalani.
Steve
looked at the portrait and remembered Tuesday evening after the painting was
stolen and the rare visit from the Governor in his office.
Governor Jameson told him, “That portrait must be recovered and
recovered quickly. It is the most
important thing that you have to do Steve.”
Steve
didn’t understand the insistence from the Governor when he made the request.
Steve had noticed something unusual in the Governor actions and attitude
that evening. Steve thought the
strangest thing was the fact that the Governor came to his office.
The Governor very seldom came to his office to make any kinda request.
Normal procedure would have been a command performance in the
Governor’s office. These facts
were what made Steve push that extra mile to get the painting found.
What
Steve didn’t know was that Governor Jameson was afraid for his future because
he had touched the portrait’s frame years before when he was a young attorney.
He had just started working for the law firm when his assignment was to
handle some legal matters at the Kama’s plantation.
That was his first major assignment with the law firm that he worked for.
Jameson was to draw up some legal papers for Kama’s grandmother before
her death. After touching the frame
of the portrait things starting going right for him.
He had to work for what he got but everything he touched seemed to go his
way. Now that portrait was missing
and the Governor was afraid the blessing from the Queen portrait put upon him
might turn into a curse.
Steve
was going over the lab reports that contained some amazing facts that could not
be right. The paint on the clothing
of the thief was wet and yet it was from 1850.
The note about the time of death was over a week, which was impossible
since the painting was only taken three days ago.
Now
the painting was leaned against the wall of Steve’s office, as he looked it
once again. Steve would have sworn
he saw movement in it. He had to be
over tired to image seeing movement in the portrait.
Steve got up to get a fresh cup of coffee and call his men into the
office for the morning debriefing.
One
by one everyone came into McGarrett’s office to discuss the current caseload
and the recovery of the Queen’s portrait.
At first there was small talk about the conclusion of various cases
Five-O was working. Then Ben the
newest addition to work for the team was being congratulated for doing a good
job for his first assignment with the team.
They
were discussing the mystery of how the paint from 1850 got on the murdered
thief. In addition, they tried to
draw assumptions as to why they could not figure out what the murder weapon was.
The thief died of a knife wound but no known modern day knife could have
made the wound that the thief incurred. They
also figure a reason as to how the body had died seven days before the portrait
was stolen.
…
Who
will be next?
Who
will write the encounter with Queen Lili’uokalani with:
Steve McGarrett
Dan Williams
Kono Kulakaua
Chin Ho Kelly
Ben Kokua
Duke Lukela
Governor Jameson when he was young
Jenny Sherman
The Thief that took the Portrait
Kama {The owner of the Portrait}
Or if you have a mind, solve the mystery of painter himself and how he
died.
Original
content © 2000-2001
Betty's Book Me Danno
Originally Posted December 12, 2000