Matt dragged his unconscious prisoner back to his former position against the bar.  Swearing loudly, he grabbed a handful of towels from under the bar and held them to the wound in Starsky’s thigh.  Ripping a final towel into strips, he knotted the strips together into a makeshift pressure bandage and tied it around the blood soaked towels.

“What the hell was that for!!!????  Now we don’t have a chance in hell of getting out of here alive!” Matt jumped up and grabbed his brother by the collar as he shouted.

“He’s ok.  I just wanted them to know that I mean business.”  Len jerked back out of Matt’s reach and walked over to the unconscious officer.  Raising his booted foot, Len nudged Starsky on the injured leg, an evil grin crossing his features as Starsky moaned in pain.

“That’s right, cop.  I’m in charge here.  No more of your smart remarks.  Those fellow cops of yours outside won’t dare do anything now.  They’re too afraid of getting you hurt worse, or killed.  Funny huh, seeing as how you’re gonna die anyway?”  Len’s voice was full of hateful laughter at Starsky’s plight.

Starsky could feel the pain in his leg radiate up and down his body.  Movement caused the pain to intensify, though he tried to muffle any sounds of pain.  He was determined not to give his tormentors the pleasure of hearing his screams of pain.  He kept his eyes closed and concentrated on his breathing, in and out, slow and regular.  “Hutch,” he whispered in his thoughts, "anytime man, you can come anytime now.”

******************

Outside the diner, Hutch looked at the late afternoon sun and rubbed his hand over his short blond hair.  Starsky’s ordeal had now lasted over three hours, and time was running out.  Hutch could still see the pain and shock on his partner’s face as the bullet had entered his leg.

Hutch stood staring at the front door of the diner, straining to catch a glimpse of his injured partner inside.  He knew the possible damage a close shot like that could do to the nerves and muscles in Starsky’s leg.  Tears formed in his blue eyes and Hutch wiped at them angrily.  Keeping a firm hold on his anger for strength, Hutch made his way over to where Dobey was conferring with Joshua and Evans.

“Give us five minutes to get into position.”  Joshua was saying as Hutch stood up.  “We have two men with tear gas launchers.  We will target the front windows on either side.  Marks will fire first.  Young will fire his five minutes later if nothing happens.  The squad will go in at that point.”  He looked at Evans for his take on the plan.

“As soon as they call all clear, you go in and get your partner, Hutchinson.  I have the paramedics on standby.”  Evans said to Hutch.  His bright green eyes bored into the detective’s blue ones.  Evans was one of the few people in the department who understood the close bond between two men.  Hutchinson would go in, invited or not, to help out his partner.  “Mount up, everyone.”

Drawing his gun, Hutch squatted down behind the door of the lead police unit.  Doing a visual check of his gun, and checking his pocket for extra ammo, Hutch watched as the SWAT team members took up their positions to his right and left.  One by one, the men nodded to Joshua to indicate their readiness.

Evans picked up the mike from his radio and turned on the PA system.  “In the diner!!   This is your last warning.  Toss out your weapons and come out, or we will be forced to come in after you!”

A hail of gunfire answered his call, forcing the assembled officers to duck for cover.   With a nod to Evans and Joshua,   Marks stepped out just long enough to fire his tear gas grenade into the building.  He ducked back down quickly, feeling the wind from the gunshots that answered his challenge.  A grin and a thumbs up to his partner was all he had time for to show that he was
uninjured as the bullets continued to fly.

*******************

“Tear gas!!  Oh man!!”  Matt wiped his streaming eyes as his lungs burned for air.   To his right, he could hear his brother’s voice screaming obscenities at the cops outside as he emptied his clip.  The gas was settling down around them, choking off the oxygen in the room and forcing them to try and dry the tears flooding their eyes.

Pain and rage filled the young man’s head as he grabbed Len’s arm and forcefully spun him around to face him.  “Now what!!  We’re dead man!  I’m getting outta here.  Take the cop’s deal and let’s walk.  It beats being dead.”

Len gave his brother a cold look.  “Go ahead, leave, see if I care.  But so help me God, if you do, I’ll kill you myself.”  His red eyes and heaving chest gave him an unearthly appearance.  “Grab the cop, then follow me out the back.”

Matt staggered as Len pushed him toward the bar.  Dropping to his hands and knees, Matt felt around for their bound hostage.  Starsky was lying on his side, gasping for air.    No amount of pulling, pushing, or yelling could move the unconscious man.  Finally, Matt gave up and ran for the kitchen.  He had almost found the back door when he heard Len yelling at the cops out front one more time.

“You missed!!!  You pigs think you’re so great!!  You killed your fellow cop in here ya know!!  And I’m still alive.  I’M STILL ALIVE!!!!  Think about that!!”  A fresh burst of gunfire erupted out of Len’s gun, answered by an equally sharp answer from outside the diner.

Matt made it back to the front room in time to see his brother’s bloody body sink to the floor.  His handsome features contorted in rage as he stared at the bloody heap that remained of his only family.  Before he could act, the front door burst open, and several black clad bodies pressed into the room, tearing his weapon out of his hands and forcing him up against the wall.  Matt offered no resistance as he was handcuffed and led out the door.

Hutch made his way into the room with the crowd of SWAT team members and found his wayward partner laying on the floor.  Hutch took in the bloody cuts, the bruises on his jaw, and the sweat on Starsky’s unconscious face.  Bending low over his partner, Hutch reached for his handcuff keys to release Starsky’s restraints.  As he did, he realized that Starsky wasn’t breathing.

“PARAMEDIC!!!”

Hutch gathered his partner up in his arms and moved toward the door.  He knew that he had to get Starsky out of the gas filled room before he could get help.  Coughing, with tears streaming down his own face, Hutch met the paramedics at the door.

“Help me get him outside.  He’s not breathing.”  Hutch reported.  Firmly but gently, Starsky was taken from him and laid down on the curb across the street from the diner.   Hutch stood behind them and ran both hands through his untidy blond hair.  His face was pale and haggard and his blue eyes were dull with worry.  He lost track of everything except the movements of the two paramedics trying to save his best friend’s life.

One of the paramedics immediately checked for a pulse and respirations.

“Bag.” he requested.  The second paramedic handed him a green balloon like bag connected to a face mask that was placed over the unconscious officer’s face before starting to gently pump air into Starsky.   While the first medic was busy with the bag, the second took vital signs and reported to the hospital.  After receiving instructions, he inserted a tube down Starsky’s throat.  The bag was reattached and then an IV was started.  Finally, Starsky was loaded into the ambulance for the trip to
the hospital.

Hutch was aware of words like, “possible allergic reaction”, “no response”, and “prepare for possible trach tube”.  In his worried state, he couldn’t fathom the meanings of the words, but their ominous ring sent chills down his spine.  He jumped when a hand touched his elbow.

“You can ride with us, detective.  He’s stable for now, but we’ve got to go.”  The young black paramedic smiled gently at the blond officer.  “Just jump in the back here.”  Hutch smiled his thanks as he climbed into the waiting ambulance.  The doors closed and the ambulance sped off with it’s precious cargo.

During the seemingly endless ride, Hutch kept one hand on Starsky’s shoulder.  He watched as one medic kept up the constant rhythmic squeezing on the ambu bag.  The second medic busied himself taking another set of vital signs and hooking his patient to a cardiac monitor.  Hutch couldn’t understand what the lines and squiggles on the monitor signified.  All of his attention was focused on his partner.

“How do you do it, Starsk???  I let you out of my sight for five minutes, and look what happens to ya. Dobey isn’t going to let you out the door by yourself for a year.”  A single tear made it’s way down his cheek.  “Just hold on Starsky, just hold on.”

Arriving at the hospital, Starsky was whisked into a room out of sight.  Hutch was steered to the waiting area by a concerned nurse and told to sit quietly.  He sat, eyes glued to door that led to the examination room.    Time ceased to have meaning for him.  Somewhere along the line, Captain Dobey joined him, handing him a steaming cup of coffee to break the silence.

“Any word yet?”  Dobey asked softly.

“Not yet.  When did you get here?”  Hutch asked, blinking his eyes to clear them of sand.

“A while ago.  You seemed a little....distracted.”  Dobey said, keeping his voice low.

“Sorry about that.  I just keep seeing Starsk, lying there, not breathing.”  Hutch took a deep breath to steady himself.  “What if he doesn’t make it this time?  I’ve been here too many times, Cap.  I’ve watched him go through those doors and wondered if he would ever come back out.  I don’t know how many more times he can take it.”  Now his head and voice lowered.  “I don’t know how many more times I can take it.”

Dobey put his hand on Hutch’s shoulder, willing him to take strength from his friends.  He knew that Hutch felt responsible for his happy-go-lucky partner and wouldn’t accept that fate dealt the cards.   Dobey also realized Hutch considered himself the “senior” partner and that Starsky was the kid brother Hutch had never had.   Everyone at Metro knew that the partnership was more than friendship, but no one could guess at the depth of feeling between the two.  Dobey himself wasn’t sure he understood it, but he felt blessed to be a small part of it.

“Starsky has been through worse.  He’ll pull through this time too.”  Dobey said, unsure if he was saying it for Hutch’s benefit, or his own.

The two men sat in a strained, yet companionable silence.  Dobey had given up trying to get Hutch to respond to him and just sat, letting Hutch know that he wasn’t alone.  Hutch was distant and uncommunicative, pouring all of his energy into trying to see through the wooden door that stood between him and his partner.

Hours later, a small, petite woman in surgical scrubs approached the two officers.  “Are you waiting on news about Det. Starsky?”

Hutch jumped out of his chair, taking notice of the twinge in his back and the numbness in his backside.  “I’m his partner, Ken Hutchinson.  How is my partner?”

“I’m Dr. Ellis.  Your partner is sleeping peacefully.  He had an allergic reaction to the tear gas.  We got to him in time to prevent his airway from closing up entirely.  I just finished the surgery on his leg.  He’s in recovery now and we’ll move him to a room when he wakes up.  You can see him then.”  The small woman smiled up at the tall detective and his even bigger  companion.  “Go home now.  You both look like you could use the rest.  Mr. Starsky will sleep for at least the next ten to twelve hours.”

Dobey spoke up before Hutch could object.  “Thank you Dr.  I’ll make sure that Hutch here gets cleaned up before he comes back.  You will call us if there is any change?”  The question came out as more of an order, but the doctor just grinned.

“Yes sir.  I’ve been warned about these two gentlemen.  That’s why I am insisting that Det. Hutchinson gets some rest while his partner is asleep.  I’ve been assured that I will not be able to get him out from under foot for the rest of the time that his friend is our guest.”  A broad grin crossed her face as she recalled the exact conversation she had had with the ER nurse.  She watched with an amused smile as the big captain manhandled his protesting detective out the emergency room door to the parking lot.
 

First thing the following morning, Hutch walked into Starsky’s hospital room.  He found his curly haired partner still sleeping peacefully, a single IV in his hand and an oxygen tube passing under his nose.  His injured leg was encased in a brace and a bandage covered one of the many bruises on his face.  The nurse at the desk outside had reported that Starsky had slept peacefully all night and hadn’t shown signs of waking up.

Hutch approached the bed quietly, not wanting to wake his partner, while needing to see his partner wake up.  He recognized the conflicting feelings inside and smiled softly.  Hutch sat down the coffee and newspaper he had brought with him and stood at the side of Starsky’s bed, reaching over the safety rail to lay his hand on his partner’s forehead.

“Time to wake up now, buddy.  You slept all night.”  Hutch stroked the pale forehead as he spoke.  “Not ready yet, huh?  That’s okay.  You just take your time.”  Hutch moved his hand down to take Starsky’s.  “Dobey says I can have the day off.  Like I would be any use to him there anyway.  You, on the other hand, have a whole bunch of reports to finish up.  I did some of them on the drug bust, but this whole hostage thing, you gotta do.”

Hutch’s voice started shaking with remembered emotion.  “I am so sorry, buddy.  I couldn’t do anything to help.  I just sat there.  I didn’t even know you where in trouble.  If only I’d not made you mad enough to run off, I could have been there for you.”  Tears made their silent way down the handsome face, shining in the bright blue eyes.  “Come on, Starsky.  Do something here.  The doc says you’re gonna be fine, but you’ve gotta wake up.”

A warm feeling encased him, making him feel safe and comfortable.  Starsky floated in between sleep and wakefulness, not wanting to lose the warmth he felt for the unknown.  A voice intruded on his peace, a voice that he should know, but wasn’t quite able to make out.  Memories began to filter in through the dark, memories that he didn’t want to face.  Pain, fear, choking, he tried to push them away, tried to run, to escape back to the safe place he had found.

Hutch noticed the small movements under his hand and smiled, knowing that Starsky was beginning to wake up.  He continued gently stroking the dark head, murmuring words of encouragement.  Relief turned to fright as Starsky’s movements became more frantic and he began to fight for breath.  Starsky’s eyes popped open, wide and unseeing.

“Hutch!  Help me!!  It hurts, oh man it hurts.  Where are you, Hutch?” his frantic cries slowly gave way to a whimper of pain and abandonment.  “I’m sorry, Hutch.  I shouldn’t have run off like that.  Please find me now.”

Hutch lowered the side rail and sat on the edge of the bed, gathering Starsky up into his arms and holding him tightly.  “It’s ok, Starsky.  You’re safe now.  Wake up for me.  It’s Hutch, I’m here and I’ve got you.”  Hutch fought to keep the tears out of his voice as he held tightly to his friend.  Slowly, he felt Starsky’s body begin to relax as he pulled himself to wakefulness.  Gently, Hutch laid Starsky back down and smiled at the pain filled man who meant so much to him.

“Welcome back.  Sounded like one hell of a nightmare.”  Hutch commented, keeping his voice light.

“No kidding.”  Starsky turned his head to face the wall, not wanting his friend to see the terror that he knew lingered in his eyes.  “It’s over huh?”

“Yea, it’s over.  One guy got out alive.  He’s in custody.” the blond man confirmed.  He sat back down in the small visitor’s chair.  “How are you feeling?”

“Tired.” was the simple answer.  “I’m so very tired.”  Starsky turned back to look at Hutch.  “I guess a ‘Thank you’ is in order?”

“Not this time.  I think, I know I owe you an apology.  If I hadn’t been so....”

“Annoying?” A sparkle hinted in the blue eyes.

Hutch nodded, accepting the label.  “Annoying, you wouldn’t have felt the need to run off.  You wouldn’t have been in there alone.”  Some of the guilt he was feeling made it’s unwelcome way into his voice.

“And those people would have all died.”  It was a flat statement, not a question.  “At least Lyn got out alive.”

The blonde detective grabbed Starsky’s hand in his own.  “She’s alive, because you cared enough to save her.  Just remember that, she’s alive because of you.”

“No, Hutch.  She’s alive because Sid stood up to those psychos.  All I did was shoot my mouth off and get into trouble again.  I think....”  His voice trailed off and he stared, unblinking at the ceiling.  “I think it’s time to quit.”

“Quit??”  Hutch asked, puzzled.

“Yea. Quit as in leave the force.  I’m no good to anyone if all I can manage to do is get shot up every time I leave the station.  It’s happening more and more.  I feel it everyday.  The next time, I won’t make it, or worse yet, I’ll screw up and get you killed.  I won’t do it, not anymore.”  Starsky tightened his hold on Hutch’s hand.  “Tell Dobey, I quit.”

“Starsky, you can’t just quit.  A lot of people count on you.  I count on you.”  Hutch struggled to make Starsky see the truth in his words.  He started to say more when a gentle knock sounded on the door.

The door was pushed open slowly and Lyn walked into the room.  She was holding a small bunch of flowers in one hand and her red hair was pulled back into a long ponytail.  “I heard you were here and I wanted to stop by and give you these.  I also wanted to say thank you.”

“For what??  I didn’t do anything?”  Starsky said as he pulled himself up higher in the bed.

“Yes you did.  You kept me from getting too scared.  Sid was proud to call you his friend.”

“Sid’s dead and I did nothing to help him.”  Bitterness tinged the patient’s words.

“Sid’s dead, but you helped him.  Sid told me how you came last year and helped run the place when he had that heart attack.  And how about the softball team last summer?  You stepped in to umpire when Sid came down with the flu?  Sid told me that people like you are treasures to hold on to.  You have so much to give, that you can’t help but be there when things go wrong.”  Lyn bent down and kissed Starsky on the forehead.  “I heard what you were just saying to Hutch.  Please don’t quit.  Too many people need you, and they don’t even realize it yet.”  Her green eyes shone with unshed tears. Starsky smiled back at her, some of his boyish charm shining in his smile.    “I’ll think about it.  You just take care of yourself.”

After Lyn had left, Starsky hunched down in the thin blanket and curled up as much as he was able.  Hutch leaned in close to him, laying his hand on Starsky’s shoulder.

“You need to go home, Hutch.”  Starsky’s voice was quiet.  “You need your rest and all I’m gonna do is sleep.  I’ll see ya tomorrow morning.”  The dismissal was plain.

Hutch stood up, trying to find the words to comfort his partner.  Starsky’s life and well-being meant everything to Hutch, he couldn’t bear to see the frail man that the “overgrown kid” had become.  “I’ll stay with you till you fall asleep, then I’ll go.” Hutch said gently.  He waited for the answer that he knew wouldn’t come.   Heaving a heavy sigh, Hutch settled himself in the plastic chair at the edge of the bed and stared at his hands.  His thoughts chased each other around in his head.  Did he really
have the right to demand that Starsky stay on the force?  How many times had Starsky been hurt?  He tried to think of all the times and came up with a number that was unbeliveable.  It was no wonder that Starsky was tired.  Maybe things would look different tomorrow.  Maybe Starsk would see that quitting wasn’t the only option.  There were different jobs in the department, jobs that wouldn’t make him a target.  But would Starsky be happy behind a desk??

Soft snoring from the bed interrupted his musings.  Hutch rose quietly and stood at the bedside.  Lines of pain were etched around his partner’s mouth and eyes.  Even in his sleep, Starsky was in pain.  Hutch just wished he could be sure the pain was only from his injuries, and not a deeper ache in his soul.  A hand reached out to smooth Starsky’s brow, willing the pain away and leaving behind a feeling of peace and security.  “Whatever you decide, buddy.  I’m with you all the way.” he whispered before leaving the room.

He never heard Starsky’s whispered response, “Thank you, Hutch.”

The rest of the day passed fitfully for the injured detective.  Around 6:00 that evening, he gave up trying to sleep when the nurse came in for the fourth time to check his vitals and IV.   An orderly came in with his supper tray and fixed up the bed so that Starsky was sitting more or less upright.  After promising to return in half an hour, the orderly left.  Starsky was looking at the beef and noodles when his door opened again.

Jim Reed and his partner, Pete Malloy entered the room slowly.  Reed was on crutches and Malloy was standing behind him, giving every impression that he was ready to catch his partner if he fell.  Starsky grinned slightly, remembering how many times Hutch had done that for him.

“We just came by to see how you were doing.”  Reed said as he stuck out his hand, “Jim Reed, we met a few months ago at the technology seminar.  This is my partner, Pete Malloy.  We were at the diner yesterday.”

“I remember you.  You had some really good ideas at that seminar.  Did you get your fancy crutches yesterday?”  Starsky knew he wasn’t being very subtle, but needed to hear the truth.

“Yea, I did.  I was so busy trying to keep up with your partner that I lost my footing.  You did a hell of a job in there by the way.  It had to have been rough, but you did a great job keeping those guys talking.   You had your partner really worried.  That’s how I got shot, trying to watch his back.”  Jim looked down around for a place to sit.

“Five years on the force and the kid hasn’t learned how to duck yet.”  Malloy said, smiling at his younger partner as he sat down in the visitor’s chair beside the bed.  “We were backing up Sgt. Hutchinson.  He had a key to the back door, but the perps had rigged the alarm.  We barely got out of the way in time.  Jim went down and I covered him and your partner.”  Malloy crossed his arms over his chest and looked at his slightly embarrassed partner.  “I’ve got a question for you.  Is Hutchinson always that focused?  How do you keep him under control?”  Malloy asked.

“What do you mean?”  Starsky leaned forward, his dinner forgotten.

“Maybe I shouldn’t say anything, but he was out of it for a while there.  I have never seen a man so focused on one thing.  He didn’t even notice when Jim went down.  If he hadn’t of run out of ammo, he would have stayed right there.  I thought I was going to have to drag him out.”  Malloy stopped speaking and looked at his partner for confirmation.

“He’s right, Starsky.  We didn’t report his actions to your captain, but you really need to keep an eye on him.”  Jim stood up awkwardly and leaned on his crutches.  “We’ve got to go.  Take care of yourself, and your partner.”

“Thanks for coming.  It means a lot to me.  And thanks for taking care of Hutch for me.”  Starsky’s eyes said more to Malloy, who just nodded in acknowledgment.

After the two had left, Starsky pushed away the cold remains of his dinner and used the control to lower the head of his bed back down to a more reclined position.  He stared at the ceiling, not caring about the tears that leaked down the sides of his face.  He knew that he couldn’t quit the force now.  Hutch needed him, needed him to watch his back, and keep him on an even keel.  Hutch was the emotional one, the one who couldn’t help but show everything he was feeling.  His mother hen
routine was only one of the moods that Starsky had dealt with.

He looked back over his long partnership with Hutch.  How many times had Hutch gotten mad, or torn up, or depressed over one of their cases.  It happened more often than either one of them was willing to admit.  Taking the objective view, Starsky found himself as the non-emotional one, giving Hutch the freedom to feel for both of them.   “Fine then,” he whispered to the fading sunlight, “I’ll make you a deal.  I’ll keep Hutch and his emotions in check and he can watch my back.”

“I’ll take it.”  Starsky looked up in shock at Hutch framed in the door.  Hutch came in and shut the door behind him.  In one hand, he held a paper bag that smelled delicious.

“What are you doing here?  I thought I told you to go home and get some rest.”  Starsky said, trying to hide the fact that he had been crying.

“I couldn’t rest.  And I knew that you wouldn’t eat the stuff the hospital calls food around here.  Huggy fixed you up a care package.”  Hutch set the bag on the tray table and seated himself on the edge of the bed.  “You wanna tell me about it?”

“There’s nothing to tell.  I had a couple of visitors earlier.  They told me what happened with you at the diner.  I’ll bet Dobey has already pinned your ears back for you.”

“He had a few words to say.  Something to the effect that I need to learn a little patience.” Hutch smiled as he lifted the wrapped hamburger out of the bag and raised the head of the bed.  “Now, what where you talking about?”

“Us.  I guess I’ll have to stay on now.  Someone has to watch your back and keep you under control.  I heard how you reacted at the diner.  You nearly got yourself shot.”  Starsky stared at his partner.  “I can’t quit until you do.  I’d never forgive myself if something happened to you because I wasn’t there.”

Hutch grasped one of Starsky’s hands in both of his.  “I can’t promise that nothing will ever happen again.  But I can promise to be there for you, if you’ll let me.  That’s our agreement, right?  Thee and me, trusting in each other, being there for each other?”   Hutch’s eyes were searching for the answer in Starsky’s.

A broad grin broke over Starsky’s face as his decision was made.  “Yeah.  That works for me.  Just back off on the mother hen mode, will ya??”

Hutch’s face lit up with a matching grin.   “I’ll promise to back off, if you promise to stop volunteering for target practice.”

“Deal.  Now, l’m starving!  Let’s eat.”

 THE END
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