TILL DEATH DO US PART
On the way back to Bay City from New York, Starsky's plane crashes. There are no survivors. This is one of the first stories I wrote for this fandom. It has been edited and revised so I am reposting it.
CHAPTER 1
Detective Kenneth Hutchinson pulled his battered brown LTD into the vast parking lot at LAX. Cursing softly under his breath, he drove up one row and down another until he finally found a parking space. Shoving open the door that had a tendency to stick, he pocketed his keys as he sprinted across the lot towards the entrance to the terminal. Inside the building, he made his way through the clusters of people either waiting to board an outgoing flight or arriving from other destinations. His crystal blue eyes scanned the overhead signs until he found Gate 23. He walked into the waiting area and slumped down on one of the hard plastic chairs that were molded together into a row and bolted to the floor.
Glancing up at the arrival screen mounted on the wall, he saw that flight 219 from New York City was due to arrive on schedule. He had almost an hour yet to wait. Trying to get comfortable in the uncomfortable chair, he stretched his long legs out in front of him and automatically glanced around the room. Even in his relaxed state, the tall blond gave the impression of being alert and aware of his surroundings, down to the smallest detail. Ten years as a cop on the mean streets of the inner city had taught him to be prepared all times for the unexpected.
"Excuse me. Do you have a light?" said a soft melodious voice to his left. He turned his head to look at a pretty brunette in her mid-twenties who was standing beside him with an expectant smile. She was holding an unlit cigarette in one hand, waiting patiently for him to respond to her question.
"No, I'm sorry." Hutch told her with a faint smile tugging at the corners of his finely chiseled mouth. "I don't smoke."
"Oh, well…" the girl said with a bright smile and a shrug of her shoulders "It's bad for you anyway." She opened the bag slung over her shoulder and took out a cigarette case, putting the unlit cigarette away. Slipping the case back into her bag, she nodded at the empty seat beside him. "Do you mind if I join you?" When he shook his head to indicate that he didn't mind, she gracefully slid into the seat. "I'm Cheryl Madison." She said introducing herself to the handsome man she had spotted from across the room.
"Ken Hutchinson. My friends call me Hutch." He replied with a grin, introducing himself to the woman who had decided to join him. With his Nordic good looks, Hutch was used to women coming on to him. They did it all the time and he had learned to accept their advances with charm and good grace.
"Are you waiting for someone?" she asked, stealing a furtive glance at his hands. She was pleased to note that he wasn't wearing a ring but she knew that didn't mean much these days.
"My partner." Hutch told her "He's coming in on the flight from New York." Cheryl frowned slightly and narrowed her eyes when he said he was waiting for his partner. Hutch hid a snicker; he knew that she had misinterpreted his meaning. "I'm a cop." He explained, "My partner's been in New York visiting his mother."
"Oh…." Cheryl said an embarrassed smile crossing her face. "I'm waiting for my sister. She's coming in on the flight from Miami." She said, quickly changing the subject to cover her discomfort. She looked at Hutch with new interest. "So, you're really a cop, huh?"
"That's right." Hutch said with a chuckle "A homicide detective to be exact."
"I guess that explains why you're not in a uniform."
"Something like that."
"That must be interesting."
"It can be." Hutch said politely, enjoying the casual conversation to pass the time while he waited for Starsky's flight to arrive.
"I'm a hostess at the Apallo Nightclub." Cheryl told him trying to keep the conversation going so she could get to know this attractive man a little bit better. "At least in the evenings I am. During the day I'm a student at U.C.L.A."
"What's your major?"
"Pre-Law."
"Good luck." Hutch told her with a soft chuckle remembering his own college days as a pre-law student. He missed her reply, his attention immediately drawn to the sudden activity in and around the ticket counter. His mind automatically slipped into cop mode, a sixth sense instinctively telling him that something was going on. His instincts were confirmed a few moments later by an announcement over the terminal's loudspeakers.
"Flight 219 from New York has been delayed. Would anyone waiting for passengers on that flight, please contact one of the terminal agents immediately."
Hutch was on his feet even before the announcement ended and heading towards the counter. Excusing himself, he pushed his way to the front of the line and pulled his identification out of his hip pocket. Showing his badge to the girl behind the counter, he said, "I'm Detective Hutchinson with the Bay City Police Department. What's going on?"
"I'm sorry, sir. I'm not at liberty to give you any information." The girl said in an anxious voice, eyeing the tall blond-haired man nervously. "If you'd like to step aside, I'll see if my supervisor is available to talk to you."
"You do that." Hutch said, his tone of voice making it clear that someone had better give him some answers and quickly. He stepped aside, moving away from the counter to stand next to the boarding ramp. Other friends and family members who were waiting for flight 219 crowded around the counter, loud anxious voices demanding to know what was going on.
Hutch watched as a middle-aged man wearing a LAX employee uniform walked behind the counter and paused to speak to the young girl that Hutch had just spoken with. With a quick glance in his direction, she inclined her head towards Hutch. The man nodded and straightened his shoulders as he walked from behind the counter. Planting a phony smile on his sharp features, he headed towards the worried detective.
"I'm William Scott, Airport Security Supervisor." He said, offering Hutch his hand. Hutch took the offered hand and shook it firmly. Showing the man his identification, he said,
"Detective Hutchinson. Bay City P.D. Can you tell me what's going on with flight 219?"
"Are you expecting someone on that flight?" the other man asked cautiously without volunteering any information.
"My partner, Detective David Starsky is on that flight." Hutch told him in the same tone that made the criminals he dealt with cringe. "I want to know what's going on. You wouldn't have made that announcement if the flight was just going to be delayed for a couple of hours."
"Perhaps you'd better come to my office, Detective." The older man said solemnly "So we can talk privately."
Hutch felt an uneasy churning sensation in the pit of his stomach and the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. Bracing himself for bad news, he followed the man down a short hallway directly behind the ticket counter to the last door on the right. As the two men stepped inside, the official for the airlines shut the door behind them and motioned for Hutch to have a seat in one of the lush leather bound chairs facing his desk.
"No, thank you." Hutch said firmly "I think I'd rather stand."
"Very well." The other man said with a sigh of resignation. He sat down on the edge of his desk and looked at the tall blond detective with the fire in his eyes. Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he said "We've received unconfirmed reports that flight 219 has crashed somewhere over Utah."
Hutch's face turned white and he staggered backwards a step. He felt like he'd been punched in the chest with a wreaking ball and his heart started pounding frantically as he fought to maintain his composure in front of this stranger. "But those reports are still unconfirmed, correct?" he asked, his mouth suddenly feeling as if it had been stuffed full of cotton.
"That is correct but all contact with the flight has been lost and it is no longer showing up on the radar screen. I'm sorry but I really can't give you any more information than that right now."
"Well how soon can you give me some more information?" Hutch demanded, his voice turning harsh and cold. He knew that this man was only doing his job. It was up to him to try and keep worried friends and family members of passengers on that flight calm until they knew something more definite, but Hutch wasn't in mood to play his games right now.
"We should know something definite within the next couple of hours. There's a private lounge where friends and family members are being asked to wait."
"I have to make a phone call first." Hutch said flatly giving the other man an icy stare.
"Of course. Feel free to use my phone. Dial nine for an outside line." He slid off the desk. "I really must go now….when you're finished with your call, just ask one of the girls at the counter to direct you to the lounge."
Hutch ignored him as the airline official walked out the door. He was already dialing the number for police headquarters so he could inform his immediate superior of the news. When the switchboard operator's voice came on the line, he said gruffly,
"Captain Dobey, please." He waited impatiently for Dobey to pick up. Finally, Dobey's voice growled in his ear,
"This is Dobey."
"Cap, it's Hutch."
"I thought Starsky's flight wasn't due in until two."
"Cap, there are unconfirmed reports that the flight went down. They think it crashed somewhere in Utah." Hutch said, trying to keep the catch out of his voice as he delivered the news. Saying the words out loud only increased his own fear for his partner's safety.
"Oh, my god…" Dobey said softly "How soon will you know for sure?"
"A couple of hours probably."
"I'm on my way." Dobey hung up without saying another word, grabbing his jacket from the back of his chair as he rushed out of his office at police headquarters.
Hutch hung up the phone and slumped down in one of the chairs facing the desk, his legs giving out beneath him. He knew that he had to keep it together; he couldn't lose control now no matter how much he wanted to. Starsky wasn't just his partner, he was his best friend and Hutch said a silent prayer that somehow he was all right. He had to be all right. If he wasn't, Hutch knew he wouldn't be able to handle it. They were close, almost too close sometimes. If anything happened to Starsky, Hutch knew that he would lose the best part of himself.
Starsky and Hutch had always shared a unique, almost psychic connection. They could say more with just a glance or a touch than most people could say verbally. It was unnerving to be around them when they started communicating with each other non-verbally. And even when they did carry on a regular conversation, it was often hard to follow because of their tendency to finish each other's thoughts or sentences. Hutch had always relied on that bond, that connection, to tell him when Starsky was hurt or in trouble. If he were dead, Hutch believed that he would know he would feel it somehow. But all he could feel at the moment was an overwhelming fear that consumed his mind and his soul. Finally, he shoved himself to his feet and left the office to find the lounge where he could wait for more news on flight 219.