MIND GAMES

Chapter 20

Starsky lay back in the warm water of the bath and closed his eyes, feeling his muscles relaxing as the water swirled around him. He had to admit that it felt good.

The therapy sessions with Cindy were starting to help. He could feed himself now using his silverware and they had started him on solid foods that morning which was a big relief. At least the food in this place was more appetizing than in most hospitals and institutions but he missed his regular junk food diet. He had finally let Cindy coax him into the wheelchair but he still hated it. The muscles in his legs were getting stronger every day but he still couldn't stand for long periods of time or walk long distances without his knees starting to buckle.

Hutch was still staying with him and he was grateful for his partner's company, especially at night. He still didn't want to be alone although he did start encouraging Hutch to go home sometimes during the day so he could change clothes and have some time for himself. Starsky opened his eyes as the door opened and Cindy came in. She smiled as she reached out to turn off the water and hit the button to let the water drain from the tub. "How was that?" she asked

"Pretty good." Starsky admitted with a crooked smile.

"I figured you'd enjoy it. You're doing really well, Dave. I'm proud of you."

"I have you to thank for that."

"Hey, you did a lot of work once we stopped butting heads over your therapy." Cindy reminded him with a soft laugh.

Starsky chuckled. He knew he hadn't been the most cooperative patient in the beginning. But once he started being able to do more things for himself, he started working harder to improve the skills he did have. His upper body strength had returned and thanks to Cindy's exercises, his lower body was in good shape too. If he continued to improve, he hoped to go home at the end of the week. His muscle tone had been restored and his joints were functional.

After the water had drained from the tub, Cindy handed Starsky a towel so he could dry off as much as possible before she opened the side of the tub that swung open and closed to get patients in and out of the bath. Once she had the side lifted up, she helped him to step out of the tub and back into his wheelchair. She handed him his tee shirt, watching as he pulled it on over his head. She bent down and slid a pair of sweat pants up over his legs, watching carefully as Starsky pushed himself up out of the chair and balanced himself long enough to pull the pants up around his slender waist.

Later that afternoon, Huggy surprised Starsky with a bagful of treats, including a Huggy special with French fries. Starsky grinned as he enthusiastically dug into his food until he couldn't eat another bite.

"You'll be out of here soon, Curly." Huggy told him with a grin "And then you can go back to your old ways."

"I hope so." Starsky said "I'm dying for a pizza with the works and a cold beer."

"At least you ain't so danged skinny anymore." Huggy said with a teasing grin. Starsky had regained the weight he had lost and his face had filled out again softening the contours of his rugged features. "Good stiff wind and you'd have blown away."

Huggy stayed a little longer before he had to return for the evening trade at the Pits. After they were alone, Starsky seemed quiet and withdrawn. Finally, he looked at Hutch and said,

"Hutch, what exactly happened to me?"

"What do you remember?" Hutch asked cautiously. He knew that Starsky's memory of his ordeal was patchy at best. There were parts, Hutch hoped he never remembered. It would be best for him if he didn't.

"I remember those freaks and that chick, Josie. She called herself the Dark Angel and kept calling me the Black Knight. She had some kinda connection to Marcus, didn't she?"

"She was his daughter."

"Oh, man…you mean that freak had a kid? No wonder she was so fucked up." Starsky said slowly. A frowned creased his brow. "I remember them planning to sacrifice me in one of their weird ceremonies." He was silent for several minutes and then looked at his partner for guidance. "Something else happened to me besides what they did to me, didn't it?"

"I'm afraid so. Do you remember being in the hospital?"

"Kinda." Starsky replied in a tone that told Hutch that he didn't really.

Hutch took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He prepared himself to explain to Starsky what had happened to him.

"There was a doctor at the hospital named Ramos. Does that name sound familiar?"

"No. Should it?"

"How about the name Marcella Ramos?"

"I told you I don't know anybody named Ramos." Starsky said in an annoyed voice.

"Okay…calm down." Hutch told him. "Marcella Ramos was the doctor's wife. She committed suicide about four years ago and it apparently sent the doctor over the edge."

"And he was still practicing medicine?"

"Yeah, he was. Apparently, nobody realized how seriously crazy he was." Hutch said ruefully.

"So…what's this got to do with me?" Starsky asked, his eyes narrowing suspiciously.

"Starsky, apparently the wife had a long criminal history…prostitution, theft, a couple of assaults. You busted her for solicitation just before you were promoted to Detective. She killed herself a few weeks later."

"And the doctor blamed me?" Starsky said in a startled voice, filling in the pieces for himself.

"That's about the size of it. So, he cooked up this drug cocktail and gave it to you. It made you go into a coma."

"Did you nail him?"

"He shot himself before we could arrest him." Hutch said quietly.

"So, he's dead too?"

"Afraid so." Hutch watched as Starsky fell silent, lost in his own private thoughts. In a quiet voice, he said, "I almost lost you, pal. First, Marcus' goons and all the shit they did to you and then the doctor trying to get his twisted version of revenge. But, you surprised everybody, buddy. You proved just how strong you are again by pulling through in spite of everything."

"Sometimes I feel like I'm walking around with a big target painted on my back." Starsky said drolly. "And every crazy within a thousand mile radius has a bead on me."

"It's okay, buddy…" Hutch said, throwing his arm around the smaller man's shoulders. "You're okay now."

"Yeah, I am…as long as I have you to watch my back." Starsky said with a smile.

"Let's get some sleep." Hutch suggested. Starsky quietly agreed and the two men got ready for bed.

Starsky awake with a start. He lay there staring into the darkness, tears burning his eyes, as he remembered the terror of the dream that had awakened him. He turned his head and glanced at the other bed. Hutch was still sleeping soundly, undisturbed by Starsky's dream. Starsky sighed and turned his head to stare back at the ceiling. He knew he was safe but the lingering memories of what the twisted disciples of Simon Marcus had done to him were starting to come back to him. This was the second time they had captured and tortured him, and each event had left separate scars on his psyche that could never be erased. The fear of falling victim to them again was almost overwhelming. It was long time before he finally slept.

When he awoke again, in the early morning hours, it was because of a severe cramp in his left leg. He moaned softly and tried to straighten out his leg to work the cramp out but he couldn't quite manage it. Hutch was immediately there, at his side, kneeling over him with a concerned expression on his face.

"What's wrong, Starsk?"

"Cramp…my leg." Starsky told him through tightly clenched teeth

"Which one?" Hutch asked.

"The left one."

Hutch gently began to massage the bunched up calf muscle in Starsky's leg, trying to work out the cramp. "How's that? Better?"

"It's getting there." Starsky hissed "Keep rubbing it, will ya? It really hurts."

"Oh, yeah…sorry." Hutch said self-consciously, returning to his deep massage of the cramped muscle until he felt it loosening up and relaxing.

"Thanks, that's good." Starsky said with a grateful sigh of relief. He settled back down against his pillow and drifted off to sleep. Hutch smiled down at his sleeping partner. He had always admired Starsky spirit and his resilience. Hutch hoped that was one thing that Starsky would never lose.

Later that day, Starsky took his first faltering steps using the parallel bars. These sessions were more taxing and tiring than any of the therapy sessions had been. But, within two days, Starsky was taking his first steps alone with Hutch walking by his side for support. Starsky was confident that he would be able to go home at the end of the end as anticipated.

Starsky continued to experience severe cramps in his legs during the night which Hutch skillfully massaged away. Cindy had told the two friends that Starsky would continue to get the cramps for a while as his muscles adjusted to being active again. Starsky understood that, but the cramps still hurt like hell and disrupted his sleep. Starsky still got frustrated easily but not as much as he had in the beginning. He knew that he had come a long way in a relatively short period. He also knew that he was lucky to be alive. Slowly, he was recovering from his ordeal and soon he would going home.

EPILOGUE

Starsky rocked anxiously back and forth from one foot to the other. He was finally going home. He glanced up and smiled when Cindy came into the room. He was pleased to see the therapist that he owed his recovery to.

"I couldn't let you leave without saying goodbye." Cindy told him with a grin and a hug. "I'm gonna miss my favorite patient."

"I'm gonna miss you too." Starsky told her with a wicked grin.

"There's that smile again." She teased him "I'll bet you're got the girls lined up just waiting for you to ask them out."

"I'd rather ask you out some time." He told her

"I'd really like that but it's against the rules." She told him regretfully. She leaned closer and whispered "But I can still give you a kiss goodbye as long as you don't tell anybody." She gently kissed his lips, startled only momentarily when he suddenly wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close, returning the kiss with a fierce intensity. When he released her, she blushed and felt the butterflies in her stomach. "Goodbye, David Starsky." She said, hurrying out of the room before she forgot that she was a professional and he was her patient.

Hutch came into the room as Cindy was leaving. He looked at his partner and grinned widely. "You ready to go?"

"You bet." Starsky said, grinning back. Hutch took his arm and helped Starsky to his feet. Even though he no longer needed the assistance to walk, he still had to take his time and concentrate so he wouldn't stumble and fall. But Cindy had assured him that would go away as he got stronger and gained more confidence in his ability to walk again.

Starsky smiled happily as the two men crossed the parking lot to where Hutch had parked his battered vehicle. There had been days when Starsky thought this day would never come and now that it was finally here, he was overwhelmed with emotion. As Hutch headed towards Starsky's apartment, Starsky's eyes drank in the familiar scenery that spelled home. He felt as if he had been gone for a lifetime.

As the two detectives walked through the door and into his apartment, a chorus of voices yelled "Surprise" and "Welcome home!" Starsky grinned, ignoring the tears that started running down his cheeks. All of his friends were there to welcome his return; Huggy, two of his waitresses, the Dobeys and their two children, and several friends and colleagues from headquarters. It was good to be home.

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Across town, deep in the bowels of the prison, kept safely isolated from the other inmates, the tall man with the long dark hair and beard sat silently in a corner of his cell. His cold, dead eyes stared straight ahead, seeing images in his mind that only he could see. Under his breath, he whispered, "The Dark Angel is gone. She failed in her mission. The Black Knight and his counterpart must pay. My dreams will show me the way to seek my revenge when the time is right….when the time is right. He closed his eyes, a ghost of smile lingering on his lips as he began to hum quietly under his breathe.

THE END?