Chapter 7

Hutch drove quickly to the motel on the outskirts of the seedier area of Bay City. He drove mechanically, half of his mind on the road and the other half working out a game plan for when he got a hold of Ricardo Piraglia. His memory of the flake from the time they arrested him was of a tall, well built man, his hair curly and dark just like Starsky's but longer and a little more unkempt. He had startling bright green eyes and a scar that ran from the corner of his right eye to finish by the corner of his mouth. The scar seemed to bisect what would otherwise have been an extraordinarily handsome face and seemed to be something that Piraglia felt acutely aware of. The scar also affected his speech, as though the wound had been deep enough to cut into his soft palate and his S and T sounds were softened to a slight lisp.

Starsky had tried to make a connection with the man while Hutch came in through the back of the small house he was holed up in. The brunet cop had used his background and ancestry to strike up a conversation with Piraglia and when Starsky mentioned his Jewish background (not that he practiced the faith any more) the kidnapper became more animated. He described a sad and lonely childhood brought up with older relatives in an area with no other young company. He went on to tell Starsky that he'd been beaten as a boy and used as cheap farm labour by his cousin and had finally run away at the age of 15. He told the cop that he took the children to keep them from being lonely – that he wanted to protect them and make them happy. He couldn't explain why he killed them other than to say they weren't suffering any more.

When Hutch rushed him from the rear, Piraglia had changed from quiet, lonely man to a squealing, kicking, biting madman. As he was pinned to the ground and handcuffed, he turned a blazing gaze on Starsky and told him that if it was the last thing he did, he would hunt both Starsky and Hutchinson down and make them suffer for what they'd done to him – he was no criminal, just a man making the world a better place.

After the trial both detectives continued to get hate mail from the flake, although he seemed to target Starsky more because of their common ancestry. They'd both ignored the threats – they were commonplace in their line of work and almost every turkey they arrested made death threats to them. This time, although the threats were made with intent, Piraglia was in Cabrillo State in the maximum security wing and was going nowhere for the foreseeable future……until now.

At Hutch's side, Dobey sat quietly, absorbed in his own thoughts. The Captain had had the good fortune to work with some great cops in his long police career, but these two young detectives were amongst the best. With a stunning police career however, came the unenviable record of being the target for every madman and turkey in the city. Most of the minor criminals and a lot of the bigger ones wanted the kudos of saying they'd taken out Starsky and Hutch. For their own part, the two detectives took the threats seriously, but refused to be intimidated by them. The joke that Hutch wouldn't go to see his Mom without his gun was funny, but held a note of truth – both men habitually carried a piece, even off duty, as self protection against those seeking retribution.

So how had Piraglia taken Starsky so easily?

Soon to find out, Hutch drew up outside the door of the seedy motel and switched off the engine.

'Whatever happens Cap'n, he's mine, ok?' Hutch took his big Colt Python from its holster and checked the ammunition. Satisfied, he pushed it down the back waistband of his jeans and watched as Dobey did the same.

'Don't do anythin' stupid. We need information.'

Hutch snorted. 'Believe me, when I've finished with that turkey he'll tell me his life's history. Ready?'

The black man nodded and the two got out of the car and walked purposefully into the motel and up to the grubby reception desk. A women smoking a cigarette looked up from her magazine and squinted through the blue smoke.

'Wadd'ya want?'

Hutch flashed his shield at her. 'Ricardo Piraglia. Which room is he in?'

'Twenny five. Take him…..little shit. He aint paid his rent and he aint been out the room in days. Just talks loud to who ever is in there with him.' the woman went back to her reading and Hutch led Dobey up the stairs to the first floor. They walked down the grey, stained corridor and paused outside the door marked 25. With Dobey on the left and Hutch on the right of the door, the blond rapped on the wood with the muzzle of his gun.

'Piraglia? Open up.'

The command elicited no response and with a nod to the big man opposite, Hutch pivoted on his left leg and kicked at the door with his right. It exploded inwards and as Dobey covered the top of the room with his gun, the flaxen haired cop knelt, covering the lower portion.

As the door flew inwards, they heard from a room down the small hallway a squeak of alarm and a moment later, the tall, Latin looking man appeared at the door. Hutch got to his feet and shot into the room quickly, grabbing Piraglia by the collar and slamming him against the wall.

'Where's my partner? What've ya done with Starsky? Is he here?' the blond demanded, his eyes boring into Piraglia's.

'I….I don't know what you mean.' The tall man looked genuinely confused and made no attempt to fight Hutch off. Instead he stood docilely, his hands at his sides as Hutch kept a hold of his collar. The blond was stunned.

Looking at Piraglia now, he seemed half the man that Starsky and he had arrested three years ago. He was obviously still as tall, but had lost weight, his face now gaunt, his eyes empty and haunted and with a glazed look. Once handsome, Piraglia's face was now unshaven, his clothes hanging from his frame, stained and dirty.

Slowly Hutch's hands fell from the collar and he took a step backwards.

'I'm gonna ask again – politely. Where's Detective Starsky?' The blond's ice cold eyes fixed unwaveringly on the other man, looking for any signs to give away Piraglia's frame of mind.

'I don't know what you're talking about.'

'Don't gimme that. There's someone here with ya, the woman on the front desk hears ya talkin'. You got him here, don't ya?'

Without waiting for an answer, Hutch pushed past the man and frantically searched the small apartment. Containing only four rooms, it didn't take long and the blond cop's heart sank as each room came up empty. The only sign of life was a budgie in a cage in the living room, its head cocked inquisitively on one side as it watched Hutch's search.

Falteringly, Piraglia shuffled into the room. 'He's mine. The hospital said it would be good for me to have company.'

'Don't come the innocent with me Ricardo. I kept all the letters you sent us an' I know how much you want to get back at us, so I'm gonna ask you one more time, what have you done with Dave Starsky? Where is he?'

Slowly a grin spread across Piraglia's face. 'Is he gone? Has he disappeared? Damned shame huh? I wish I'd been the one to do it, but as ya can see…..he aint here.'

Hutch's hands balled into fists and he would have swung for the tall man had Dobey not caught Hutch's hand in his own. 'Not now' the black man said quietly.

Hutch fought for some composure. 'Ricardo Piraglia, I'm arresting you for the suspected kidnapping of…..'

'Hutchinson, what're ya doin'?' Dobey's voice was a little louder as he interrupted the recitation.

'I'm takin' him in. He knows where Starsky is…..he has him holed up somewhere.'

Dobey drew the blond away from Piraglia and put a hand on his shoulder. 'You're not thinkin' clear. What evidence d'ya have? There's nothin' here to indicate he has Starsky.'

'But he…..'

'But he nothin'. You're too close to this son. We can't arrest him coz we haven't a scrap of evidence to support it.' Dobey's eyes drilled into Hutch's and slowly the blond nodded.

'Fine. But I'm gonna have a watch put on him. I'm gonna have his every move documented. He aint gonna be able to blow his nose without I know about it.'

'Whatever. We can do that – we can watch him….' Dobey drew Hutch to one side and lowered his voice as Piraglia shuffled over to the bird cage and started talking to the budgie. '…..but look at him. Take a good look. He was either a good actor or genuinely stunned when you said Starsky was missing. Right now he looks so doped up, he wouldn't be able to kidnap a baby, let alone a cop like your partner.'

Hutch was adamant. 'He's our best lead. You didn't know him like we did through his arrest. He's slippery as an eel Cap'n.' There was a hint of desperation in his eyes and Dobey nodded.

'Fine. We watch the apartment block and we sit and wait. If your hunch is right, he's gonna have to make a move some time. When he does we'll be ready and we can follow him. Even the most clever of 'em make mistakes.'

'He'd better make one soon. Starsky's been gone four days now an' I'm getting' a real bad feelin'.'

Dobey grimaced. 'You an' me both, but there's nothin' more we can do here.'

Reluctantly, the blond cop nodded his head, gave Piraglia a menacing look and left Dobey to tell the vacant looking man that they were leaving now and would be around. Ricardo seemed hardly to take it in. He continued to talk to the small blue bird in the cage and nodded a couple of times before the Captain joined Hutch outside in the hallway.

'You still think he's our man?'

'I'd stake my crummy police pension on it. He's clever – he's actin'. He has Starsky, I'm sure of it, especially after all the threats he made over the last couple've years.'

'Well he's a damned good actor' Dobey said thoughtfully. 'But we'll have a black and white posted outside as much as we can spare one. He won't be able to go anywhere without we know about it.'

Hutch nodded briefly. 'Good as it's gonna get. Meantime, I'm gonna get back home and wash up. I'll be back downtown later.'

The big black man took in the rings under Hutch's eyes and the grey cast to his face. 'Uh uh. You stay put an' rest. You aren't gonna be any good to your partner if you're dead on your feet. I don't want to see you till tomorrow, got that?'

'Is that an order?'

'Seemed like one to me. Now go. I can handle things here.'

Gratefully. The flaxen haired cop turned and walked swiftly down the hallway. His brief time with Piraglia made his skin crawl and he rushed to distance himself from the man. Certain that the flake knew the whereabouts of his buddy, Hutch had to fight with himself not to go back inside and beat the information out of him. But police rules were rules and especially when Dobey was with him. Given time away from his Captain, however, and if Piraglia didn't make a move, the cop knew he'd be back at the seedy motel sooner rather than later, and then he wouldn't be quite so congenial with Ricardo.