Chapter 10

Starsky limped along the corridor, his side feeling hot and sore. He suspected the wound had become infected, but that was the least of his worries right now. He wanted a phone and the only one he knew for sure was in Epstein's room. As he got to the half glass half wooden door he prayed that the doctor wasn't one of those men who habitually locked their offices when they were away. With a shaky hand he reached out and grasped the handle, turning it slowly. It gave beneath his touch and with a final look around to make sure no-one saw him, he ducked inside the room and made for the telephone.

He knew it would be pointless ringing Dobey to ask for help. It was the big black man who had signed the forms committing Hutch to Cabrillo State so he was hardly going to agree to get the blond out and he didn't really ant to implicate his Captain in the escape plans.

Huggy, on the other hand, would be more than willing to effect the breakout. The barkeep was not a fan of any sort of facility that messed with bodies or heads and in the past he had helped both Starsky and Hutch with a few small problems. He dialled the number and waited, knowing Huggy would most likely be in bed. The black man was a night owl, never closing his bar before 3 in the morning and would now, more than likely be in the land of nod. The phone rang five or six times before finally it picked up and a sleepy voice sounded.

'Lo'

'Huggy?'

'Starsk? That you? Where've ya been man?'

'I'm with Hutch' the brunet hissed into the phone.

'And how's the Blond Blintz doin'?' Huggy's voice took on a worried note.

'That's why I was phonin'. Need your help Hug'.

'Ya have to ask? What can I do?'

'Need ya to help me break him out'.

'Sure. Ya want a pick an' a shovel or just a taxi?' Huggy asked

'A ride's fine. Can ya be out the back in half an hour?' Starsky asked.

'I'll be there' the barkeep confirmed. 'No problemo. See ya'.

The brunet put the telephone down and thanked his lucky stars for friends like the Bear. Neither one side of the law nor the other, Huggy could be counted on to act as snitch, partner in crime or just a listening ear and right now, Starsky thought he might need at least two of those services, if not all three.

Walking cautiously to the door, Starsky made sure the coast was clear before padding quickly back to Hutch's room. The blond was still sitting where his buddy had left him, although he looked up in fright as the door to his room opened. Starsky grinned at him.

'Wanna go home buddy?' he asked.

'Home?'

'Yeah, home. You're gonna feel so much better then'. Starsky hoped the "I hope" wasn't too evident in his voice.

'Dunno'.

The admission brought the brunet up short. 'You don't know if ya wanna go home?' he asked.

'Dunno'. Hutch was confused. He knew this room. He knew the bare white walls, the grey, greasy patches around the light switch, the lumpy mattress. Did he want to leave? He had no idea what was out there, and no idea where "home" was, although he assumed he had a home. And what if Starsky left him there? That thought terrified him and he fixed his eyes on his partner.

'Will you be there?' he asked softly.

'Aww buddy. Course I will. I'm not leavin' ya. I just want ya to get well an' I don't think ya can do it in here. What d'ya say? Wanna break outa here?'

'Break out. Yeah' Hutch said automatically. If Starsky was going, he'd go too. No problem there. That was an easy decision to make. Follow the brunet. He waited for the next request as Starsky trundled a wheelchair into the room. He'd wanted them both to just walk out the back door, but walking wasn't encouraged in Cabrillo and so he'd snagged the chair from outside another room and now he patted the seat as he looked at his watch. Huggy should be just about there now.

'C'mon babe. Sit down here an' we'll hit the great outdoors huh?'

Hutch got up and limped over to the chair and sat down. No retort. No argument that he could walk. No free will. Just a walking talking blond automaton that left Starsky feeling scared and panicked. Taking a deep breath, he took Hutch's bright orange robe from the hook in the bathroom and handed it to his partner – his one personal possession in the entire place . Hutch took it and held on to it almost like a child would hug a security blanket as Starsky pushed him out of the room and down the corridor. He leaned in to his partner. 'If anyone asks, we're just takin' a walk huh?'

'Takin' a walk' Hutch parroted. 'K'.

They passed several nurses walking the corridors with patients, although none of them challenged the two men and as soon as he could, Starsky wheeled the chair round a corner and pressed the bar on the emergency exit, opening the door to the back of the building. There, like a beautiful painting was Huggy's cream coloured Caddy, parked by the side of the bushes trying to look inconspicuous. The brunet pushed the chair quickly over the gravel path as the lanky man got out of his car.

'Hey hutch my man. How goes it?' Huggy greeted with his usual broad grin.

Hutch looked at him, then twisted round, seeking assurance from Starsky. 'We're takin' a walk' he said quietly, unsure about the circumstances.

'Yeah, well, lets swap those wheel for these' Huggy grinned as he looked around and opened the door.

The blond stayed put until Starsky patted him on the shoulder. 'C'mon buddy. S'ok'.

Huggy gave him a questioning look but the cop shook his head slightly. The look said "not now" and Huggy accepted it. Time for answers would come later. For now, they just needed to make a clean getaway. They managed to bundle Hutch into the back of the car and Starsky got into the back seat beside him. They abandoned the chair by the side of the path and with a squeal of tires and a hail of gravel. Huggy set off around the long semi circle of the drive and out of the big iron gates to freedom.

For the most part, the journey was accomplished in silence. Hutch continued to hold on tightly to his orange bathrobe as though it somehow anchored him to the present, while his partner sat quietly by his side wondering what he'd done and how he though he was going to be able to help. Huggy concentrated on driving and within half an hour, they were pulling into the city limits.

'Your place or his?' he threw over his shoulder.

'His I think. Sumthin familiar' Starsky said decisively.

'Venice Place it is' Huggy agreed and turned off the freeway to drive through the smaller streets. He pulled up outside the apartment block and almost in a whisper Hutch mumbled 'Chez Helene'.

'What?' Starsky asked.

Hutch looked at him. 'Dunno' he said automatically.

'You said sumthin Hutch. What did ya say?' the brunet persisted.

'Chez Helene'

'Yeah, you remembered!' Starsky said excitedly, pointing to the sign over the store next door to Hutch's place. 'You're home buddy. Remember?'

Hutch stared blankly at him. 'Dunno' he said again, suddenly feeling panic rising in his chest. Shit! He was remembering. He didn't want to. It hurt to remember. It hurt to think about anything other than Starsky. Swiftly, he closed his mind down. Don't. Don't think. Don't reply. Just do what Starsky wants.

With a sigh, the smaller cop got out of the car and held the door open. The excitement of those couple of mumbled words dissipated rapidly. He waited, but Hutch didn't move. 'C'mon buddy. You're home' he said. 'Ya have to get out the car Hutch'.

At the direction, the blond moved, shuffling painfully over and getting out to stand by the side of his friend. The white scrubs he was wearing looked bright in the morning sunshine and sapped the colour from his too pale face. He swayed a little and Starsky caught him. 'S'ok. We'll just go inside' he said and pushed gently, ushering his buddy to the front door. Painfully Hutch limped up the steps, the cast on his foot making it awkward for him, but he made it and without thinking, he reached up and took the key from the lintel of the door, inserted it into the lock and pushed open his door.

Starsky watched, open mouthed. So, Ken Hutchinson was still at home, just hiding inside that blond body somewhere. He smiled encouragingly. 'Go on. It's your house. Make yourself at home'.

But Hutch had once again retreated inside himself. He stood just inside the doorway and looked around. It seemed somehow familiar, and yet….. The pain and the anxiety started to flow again, his mind full of images. A farmhouse and women and children. Running, shouting, the dog. Always the dog barking. He commanded himself not to think and slowly the imaged faded away taking the panic with them. He breathed once more and walked into the room when he felt Starsky's hand on his shoulder.

'Go make yourself at home buddy. Want a shower? Maybe that'd make you feel better huh?'

'Dunno'.

Starsky sighed, making the decision for his partner. 'Ok, I'll go turn it on an' you go get some fresh clothes huh? Maybe you'll feel better with sumthin different to wear?' his raised his eyebrows in question as Hutch started blankly at him.

'Dunno'.

As Huggy steered the blond towards his bedroom, Starsky walked to the bathroom and turned on the shower, turning it off a moment later when he remembered the cast and the injury on Hutch's side. He cursed under his breath, feeling exhausted, useless and out of his depth. What was he doing here? What made him think he could deal with this? He trudged out and through into Hutch's bedroom where the blond was staring at his wardrobe completely at a loss. Gently Starsky pushed past him and grabbed sweat pants and a green tee shirt. He pushed them at his buddy.

'Get changed and then come out into the living room' he ordered as Huggy watched open mouthed. The black man followed Starsky outside and sat on the chair as the brunet eased himself onto the sofa.

'How long's he been like that?' Huggy asked.

'Since yesterday. When I got to Cabrillo he wasn't too bad. He was agitated an' he seemed scared almost. But he was rememberin' some of the stuff an' I thought he was doin' ok, although he kept talkin' about a dog. Then he went crazy. He told me he'd killed the dog an' he got mad at me for makin' him remember. He went for me. Knocked me down an' he was punchin' out' Starsky lifted pain filled eyes to his friend. 'It wasn't him Hug. That wasn't Hutch. He was wild, crazy' he snickered at the word.

'And what about the dog? Was there one? Did he kill it?' Huggy asked quietly

'No, he didn't kill no dog' Starsky said softly. 'Anyhow, the Doc decided to use a different sort of treatment an' they shocked him. They used ECT an' they zapped him. An' I couldn't stop 'em' The brunet put his head in his hands. 'What'm I doin' Hug? How the hell can I help him?'

Huggy cake to sit by his friend and rested his arm over Starsky's shoulders. 'First off, you need to get yourself sorted. You're hurtin' aren't ya?' he asked.

'Yeah, some'.

'Let me take a look' Huggy said.

'No. S'ok'.

'Uh huh. You asked the Bear for help. Well the Bear don't give up that easy. Let me look'.

The cop looked up with a sheepish grin. 'You're cute when you're masterful' he muttered as he pulled his shirt off over his head.

'Aww fuck man. Why didn't ya say?' Huggy exclaimed as he saw the blood soaked dressing taped to Starsky's side. The brunet looked down and hissed.

'Didn't know it was that bad' he muttered. 'Fix it?'

'Sure thing' he said as Hutch walked into the living room and looked at his partner.

'You're hurt' he said, a note of fear in his voice.

'Yeah, but I'm ok buddy. Its nuthin' Starsky lied as Huggy went to get his first aid tin. As he came back, Hutch sat by his side and without a word accepted the tin from the black man and opened it. The two men looked on as competently Hutch took off the dirty dressing, cleaned the wound and taped it again. He did it without a word, mechanically and carefully. But he did it nonetheless and at the end, he handed the tin back to Huggy and sat looking expectantly at his partner.

'Thanks buddy' Starsky said softly. 'Ya remembered how to do that?' There was such hope in the voice that Huggy turned away from the disappointment in those indigo eyes as Hutch stared blankly back at him and muttered

'Dunno'.