Chapter 1

Starsky and Hutch were bored. There was no two ways about it, boredom hung in the air in the car like a lead weight. It was 11:00pm on a Friday night and Huggy had invited them to the Pits for free drinks which was an occasion in itself and yet here they were, in the car, watching a plain, stone wall with a wrought iron gate while playing I spy for the sixth time.

'Somethin' beginning with B' the brunet sighed.

'If you say blackness one more time Starsk….'

'Oh gee, ya got it. Let's face it there aint nuthin else to see out here. Delaney aint at home and he hasn't been all night.'

'But he might come back' Hutch pointed out logically.

'And there again he might decide to stay out all night and we're stuck here like two lemons. There should be a law against it.'

The blond snickered. 'I've worked with you for ten years now, an' I'd be rich if I had a dime for every time you said "there should be a law against it". According to you, crimes should only be committed between the hours of 9:00am and 5:00pm, Monday to Friday when the temperature is between 72 and 75 degrees.'

'Well yeah, that's civilised' Starsky agreed, obviously pleased with those arrangements.

'Did it ever strike you that the turkeys we meet are very rarely civilized buddy?'

'Well that's another thing. Maybe we should think about doin' somethin' else. I mean, I don't know about you, but this job has played hell with my love life, it's antisocial an' I'm getting' kinda fed up with bein' target practice for every flake in Bay City.'

Hutch snickered. 'You were complaining a minute ago that this stinks and you were fed up of staring at a stone wall. Now you're saying you don't want excitement. Make your mind up bud.'

'I just mean I'd like a nice, normal job for a change. Like….. I could be a photographer.'

'Uh huh, an' I could be an actor. It aint gonna happen buddy. We're stuck with life as a cop till we're old an' grey and we have a waistline like Dobey's.'

'There aint no way I'll ever have a waistline like Dobey's, I'd shoot myself first' the brunet said defensively. The mic. crackled into life interrupting any further discussion and with a deep sigh, Starsky took it off the cradle and answered.

'This is Zebra three, please tell me we've won the lotto and we don't need to work no more.'

The woman's voice sounded down the line. 'Sorry boys. There's a 219, that's a report of a domestic disturbance at 2051 West Wilshire. Please respond.'

'Report of domestic. Wonderful. Zebra three rolling. Out.' Starsky started the engine and continued his tirade. 'Terrific! After four hours of watching the bugs crawl over Delaney's wall, we get to go an' break up some spoiled couple's fight over whether they have sex before or after the champagne. Beam me up Scotty, please.'

'Who? Beam what? Starsk, are you really on the same planet as the rest of us?'

The brunet looked shocked. 'Beam me up….. that's what Captain Kirk always says. Ya know? Captain Kirk?'

'Is he the new guy in narcotics?' Hutch asked, straight faced.

'Are you havin' me on?'

'I just want a conversation in English buddy, that's all.'

Starsky hauled the car around a sharp left hand corner and pushed the gas pedal down again. 'Don't tell me you've never watched Star Trek? I thought everyone watched Star Trek. It's great. It's ground breakin'.'

'It's drivel.'

'It's Wilshire' the brunet mumbled, slowing the car as he got onto the street in question. 'What number did Mildred say?'

Hutch looked at the number written on the palm of his hand '2051.'

Slowly, the cops cruised down the broad street scanning the numbers on the post boxes, finally pulling up outside 2051 just in time to hear a blood curdling scream come from inside. Quick as a flash, the two cops got out of the car and ran up the steep driveway, walking up the side of the house and round the back. With guns ready, just in case, Hutch knocked on the back door.

'Police, open up' he shouted through the glass window. There was a moment's silence and then the sound of something being thrown across the room.

'Allow me' Starsky grunted, took a step backwards and kicked out at the door, making it swing back heavily on its hinges.

'You could have tried the handle' the blond muttered, leaning his back on the lintel, his gun pointing skywards.

Cautiously they looked into a small corridor leading to what looked like a kitchen. As they both went in, they could hear yelling from the room ahead. At the door to the kitchen, they witnessed a scene of almost total destruction. Pots, pans, crockery and cutlery lay strewn across the floor, a central island unit separating a huge, bull necked man from a cowering woman, her hands over her head as she sobbed and screamed.

'Come here ya fuckin' useless bitch' the man yelled. 'Burn my shirt again woman an' I'll fuckin' kill ya. Now get over here an'….'

'And what?' Hutch said sharply coming up on the big man from behind.

The guy wheeled around, a stunned look on his face, obviously not expecting to have another man in the house.

'Who the hell…..? Who the fuck are you?'

'BCPD. We were alerted to a disturbance. Step away from the wall sir and put your hands where I can see 'em' Hutch said smoothly.

'You don't understand. She…..'

The blond put his hand up. 'You can tell me your side of things in a minute, just calm down huh?'

While Hutch was talking to the man, Starsky walked over to the woman curled up into a ball down by the side of the door. He hunkered down by her side and gently put a hand on her arm. 'Hey, you ok?' he asked.

Slowly, the woman lifted her head and stared at him from a tear streaked face. Her lip was split and she had a large gash on her forehead that was bleeding in a steady trickle down her cheek. She sniffed. 'Yeah, m'ok' she whispered.

'C'mon, let me help you up. We can go sit down in there and you can tell me what's been goin' on.'

'Nothing went on' she said, looking over her shoulder at her husband. 'I'm clumsy, I just fell. Manny was just gonna help me up.'

'Uh huh. Where did ya fall honey?' the brunet said, looking around.

'I just fell' she said simply, but she managed to get herself to her feet and followed Starsky into a large and well appointed living room. Like a little girl lost, she perched on the edge of one of the sofas while the brunet went in search of a bathroom, returning a moment later with a washcloth soaked in cold water. Gently he lifted her chin and dabbed at the bloody wound. She hissed and flinched away and without a word, Starsky handed her the cloth.

'Thank you' she mumbled.

'What's your name?' Starsky asked softly. Now that she had stopped trying to hide herself away, he could see that she was a pretty girl. Maybe 21 or 22, she seemed a lot younger than her husband. She had short, brown hair, a small, elfin face and large brown eyes. While not classically beautiful, she was pretty in a homely sort of way, her slim frame tiny against the huge furniture in the room. Not the sort he usually went for, but there was something about the waif of a girl that attracted the brunet.

'Melanie' she said quietly, as though scared to make a noise.

'Hi Melanie, I'm Dave, and my partner in there is Hutch. We want to help, but we can't unless you tell us what happened.

She looked over her shoulder as though her husband was coming into the room. 'Like I said, I fell. I'm just clumsy' she said.

Starsky sat back on his heels. 'Are ya sure honey? I mean, it's ok, you can tell me if sumthin else was happenin'. We're here to help.'

'I just get so….. my Mom used to say I was a klutz. I'm clumsy, I guess that's all there is to it.'

'Does he hit you?' the brunet asked gently.

Melanie shook her head. 'No' she said, although the answer in no way convinced the cop.

'Honey just tell us what happened and we can have him arrested for the night. This don't look like a fall to me.'

'No, I fell, really that's all that happened' she said and shrank back as from the other room Manny yelled at her 'Tell 'em, you little bitch, tell 'em how you fell. Tell 'em I never laid a hand on ya.'

Melanie shivered and put her hand up to her head. 'He didn't hit me' she said softly. 'He loves me…..and I love him. He's my husband.'

Starsky got up and walked into the kitchen to stand by Hutch. He pulled the blond to one side, away from the huge man.

'She's scared out of her wits an' you can't tell me that was just a fall.'

Hutch nodded in agreement. 'He says she's clumsy and falls all the time. This was just one of those things.'

'And you believe him?' the brunet's eyebrows rose.

'Looking at the size of her, and comparing her to Raging Bull over there, would you believe him?' Hutch asked.

'Hey, Abbot and Costello, didn't your Mom's never tell you it's rude to whisper? 'Specially in another man's house.'

'I don't call it manly when a guy beats up on his wife. Shuddup' Starsky snapped, his finger pointing at Manny.

'I never laid a finger on her' the big man sneered. 'An' you can't prove otherwise if she won't say nothin' against me. She won't ya know. She loves me, that's why.'

'What d'you want to do?' Hutch asked quietly, keeping one eye on the man.

'I want to take him in, that's what I want to do.'

'Well we can't if she won't press charges.'

'I know that' the brunet said desperately, 'but she needs help.'

'They all do Starsk, but how many times have we heard "he only beats me coz he loves me officer"? Our hands are tied.'

Manny was getting impatient. 'Yo, when are you two gonna leave? It's getting kinda crowded in here. Me an' my wife want some time alone.'

'We'll go when we're convinced she's safe' Starsky muttered.

'Safe from who? Me, or two low life cops like you, comin' round here, throwin' your weight around. I know your type. Always take the woman's side. I bet you've got a woman in every street don't ya cop? Like a little afternoon delight do ya?'

Starsky took a deep breath, Hutch's calming hand on his shoulder. 'Not now partner' he heard the blond hiss.

The brunet ignored Manny and walked past the big man, making towards the living room. As he passed, Manny shot out a hand and spun the brunet round, slamming him into the wall so that Starsky's teeth rattled in his head. Hutch immediately took a hold of Manny's arm and Starsky grabbed a hold of the other, pushing the big man round and down over the island in the middle of the kitchen. With his free hand Starsky got his cuffs from his back pocket and slapped them on Manny's wrists before hauling him upright and glaring up into his red face.

'That's it punk, you're going in. You can make any complaints down at the Metro. C'mon bozo.'

The two cops started to pull the big man from his kitchen whilst all the time Manny was yelling over his shoulder to the woman still sitting in the living room

'Mel, you get on that phone woman. You call my lawyer and tell him to get his ass down town and sort out my bail. Ya hear me woman? Mel? You tell him to get me out.'