Special Assignment
By LovinFace
Ken Hutchinson had an assignment. Not that having an assignment is unusual, but this assignment was one he had to carry out on his own, without his partner, David Starsky. Easier said than done.
HUTCH
There is so much to do, and so little time. No only am I working on the Pacheco case, but I've got a side assignment that Starsky knows nothing about, and no matter how hard I try, I can't seem to get away from him long enough to focus on that assignment. Believe me, I've tried. I even offered to buy doughnuts if he'd run and get them. I thought that would buy me at least 30 minutes, but he refused to go.
Starsky and I have been running ourselves ragged on the Pacheco case. That's a case that involves drugs, murder, mayhem—the usual stuff. Starsky is sitting across from me now, typing…if you want to call it that…it's really pecking….on a report from a key witness. He's got a pencil clamped between his teeth, and another one behind his ear. The brown leather jacket came off an hour ago, and now the sleeves to his red sweater are pushed up. I know he's really concentrating just by the fact that his burrito is still sitting on the plate, half eaten. We've just about got this case pulled together. He looks up and me with blood shot eyes. He rubs his eyes.
"Hutch, what are you looking at?" Starsky half asked, half yawned.
"Good question. You look tired, Starsk. Why don't you go out and get some fresh air? It's a nice day out. It'll do you some good." I watched Starsky consider it. Something flashed in his eyes. He ran his right hand through his hair and pulled the pencil from behind his ear, then threw it on the desk.
"Fine. I'm going." Starsky grabbed his jacket and walked out the door. Normally, I'd be running after him, making sure he didn't misunderstand my intentions, trying to convince him that I wasn't trying to get rid of him….but that's just it, I WAS trying to get rid of him. I had some phone calls to make and I couldn't very well do that in front of Starsky, not this time.
STARSKY
Today's a pretty nice day in Bay City. The sky is blue and popcorn clouds are scattered around. The breeze is just right. Hutch and I have been working on the Pacheco case for what seems like forever. We're about to get it pulled together. Speaking of my partner, something's up with him. I mean, the guy keeps trying to get rid of me. This morning he tried to send me out for doughnuts. He'd buy. I'm not stupid. The man doesn't eat doughnuts. He was obviously trying to get rid of me so I told him I wasn't hungry. I don't think he believed me, but he didn't push it. Then just a few minutes ago, he told me to get some fresh air, that it'd do me good. What's he talking about? I'm not stupid. He's obviously trying to get rid of me. How many times have we spent hours on reports? He's NEVER told me to go get some fresh air. We just do the reports and THEN we get outta there. So when he suggested I get some fresh air, I got mad. So sue me. But here I am, standing in front of the station, getting some fresh air. Well, fresh air is an understatement. To me fresh air doesn't smell like asphalt, gas, and oil. Like I said, it's a nice day, but the air is doing nothing go help my mood. Doesn't anybody realize what today is? Hell, it doesn't matter any way. Maybe I'll just get out of here for a while. Hutch wants me to get some fresh air. There ain't any here, so I'll have to go find it somewhere else.
I head to the beach. That's the best place to get fresh air, right? At least in Bay City it is. I pull into a public lot. This isn't the prettiest part of the beach, but it's close enough to the department that I'll be able to get back in an hour or so and finish the Pacheco report, whether Hutch wants me to or not. I park the car and just sit here with the windows down. Now THAT'S fresh air. It feels good. I could just lean back and listen to the waves and feel the breeze. It's really kind of hypnotizing. I close my eyes, thinking I won't fall asleep, but just wanting to relax to the sound of the ocean.
HUTCH
Starsky's been gone at least an hour. I guess I should go after him. I mean, I wanted him to leave for a while, but I was able to take care of my phone calls in 30 minutes. I just have a few more ends to tie up. I can't help but worry about Starsky. He looked so angry when he left. He's probably down in the cafeteria cooling his heels, filling his stomach, and just being….well, just being Starsky.
Just as I was getting ready to leave, Captain Dobey opened his office door. "Hutch, get in here. I need to speak to you for a minute."
I walk into Dobey's office and wait while he walks around his desk and sits in his chair. He props his arms on his desk and looks at me like something is wrong, and he doesn't know how to tell me. I walk closer to his desk.
"What is it Captain?"
Dobey finally speaks. "I don't know how to tell you this Hutch. I just got a call from Ted Baker. You know he patrols the area by the beach."
My throat tightens. I manage to say, "Yeah."
Dobey leans in. "Well, he said Starsky's car was parked there in one of the lots by the beach. Starsky's nowhere to be found."
I feel my stomach knot. "Well, maybe he went to get some fresh air. We've been killing ourselves on this Pacheco case."
Dobey stands up and walks around to me. "Ken, there was blood on the seat of his car."
Okay, now I'm officially panicked. First, he said there was blood on the seat of Starsky's car. And he called me Ken.
"I'm going down there." I turn and walk out the door. Starsky is obviously hurt and it's all my fault. I'm the one that was trying to get rid of him. Well, I'll find him and then I'll explain everything.
Dobey follows me out of his office. "Hutch, you'll need a car. Take mine." He throws me his keys.
"Thanks Cap'n. I'll let you know what I find."
STARSKY
Oh boy, I guess I fell asleep. I better get back to the station…hey, this isn't my car. Where am I? I reach for my gun. It's gone. Oh, and boy does my head hurt. I feel along the left side of my head and feel blood. Big surprise. Only a hit in the head would make my head pound this badly. Shit, that's what I get for falling asleep in the car. I realize my wallet is gone. And my watch is gone. Terrific. I've got my badge though. And a stick of gum. Well, that's something I guess. I search for a way out of this closet…well, it isn't really a closet, it's an old storage building or something, but it may as well be a closet. Nothin' in here but some empty boxes and a couple of towels. My stomach is churning and I feel sick. I sit down on the floor. Maybe if I rest a bit more I'll be able to get out. But right now I can't keep my eyes open. Just a few minutes…
HUTCH
I pull in and see Starsky's car. Ted Baker is there and so are a couple of lab guys. I run over to them. Baker sees me coming.
He hands me a walkie-talkie. "Hey Hutch. No sign of Starsky yet. I've got men combing the beach. They'll radio in if they see any sign of him. We've had some robberies down here lately, nothing major though…they usually just rough the guy up and steal his wallet. We've been chasing down some leads. I'm sure we'll catch them soon."
"Thanks, Ted." I walk over to Starsky's car and see the blood on the seat. Ted joins me and points to blood spatters on the pavement outside the car as well. Then they stop.
I stand there, looking at the blood, looking at the sand, the ocean….where are you Starsk? What happened?
Ted broke my train of thought, "Looks like maybe he tried to make a run for it and then was picked up."
I nod my head. "Yeah." Brilliant answer, but it's all I can manage at the moment. Here I'd been pushing Starsky away all day and now because of that I might lose him forever. A voice came over the walkie-talkie. "We found an old outbuilding, looks like there's blood on the door. It's about a quarter-mile east of where you are. It's padlocked, but we're gonna bust in. Thought you'd want to know."
I answer as I walk. "I'm on my way." I'm running now, praying that Starsky is in there, praying that he's okay. He's been through so much this year…..a bullet in the back, then the poison. Now this Pacheco case that's been robbing us both of sleep…I don't know how much more he can take.
I arrive just as the lock is being pried off. I pull my gun and Baker pulls his and walks in behind me. I scan the building. Then I see him. Starsky is lying on the floor unconscious, with blood pooling under his head. I run over to him and fall to my knees. He's breathing, thank God. I run my fingers through his hair and feel the gash in the side of his head. Baker pulls a handkerchief out of his back pocket and hands it to me. I press it against Starsky's head. The handkerchief turns from white to red in a matter of seconds.
I hear Baker call for an ambulance. Then he and the other men are searching the building inside and out.
I'm holding Starsky's head in my lap now, pressing against the wound with my left hand, running my right hand through his hair. "Hang on Buddy. Help's on its way." He's so still that it frightens me. Anybody who knows Starsky knows that for him to be this still isn't natural.
STARSKY
My head hurts bad enough, and now somebody's pressing against it. How nice. After a battle, my eyes finally open…well, they sort of open. They open enough for me to see Hutch looking down at me. He's the one pressing against my head.
He's saying something to me, but I couldn't tell you what it was. Not only does my head hurt, but now my ears are ringing, and I think I'm gonna be sick. I guess I don't look so good 'cuz Hutch is trying to turn me on my side now. Guess he doesn't want me to puke on his clothes. It'd serve him right though, the way he's been treating me today.
HUTCH
"C'mon Buddy, wake up. The ambulance is just a couple of minutes away." Starsky's eyes flutter and he barely opens them. Then he looks at me with THAT look, the one where he's about to lose his lunch. I turn him on his side just as he starts retching.
The paramedics arrive and politely but firmly ask me to get out of the way. I reluctantly stand up slowly, careful not to jostle Starsky. The paramedics start doing their thing.
Baker comes in and hands me Starsky's empty wallet. "We found his wallet a little further up the beach. No gun though. Five will get you ten it shows up in a pawn shop."
I put Starsky's wallet in my back pocket. The paramedics come out with Starsky on a gurney. He's unconscious again. They tell me they're taking him to Memorial Hospital and that I can follow. I get in Dobey's car and do just that.
STARSKY
Okay. This is really getting old. I'm obviously in a hospital. Again. I feel terrible. Again. I look around the room. I'm alone. I figured Hutch would be here, waiting for me to wake up, but I guess I'm wrong. Oh well. He's probably enjoying his chance to be rid of me for a while, whatever the reason. Don't get me wrong. If the guy wants some alone time, all he has to do is say. We've always been up front and honest with each other. I guess that's the part I don't understand.
HUTCH
The doctor says Starsky's going to be fine. Head wounds tend to bleed heavily. I know that of course, but it always scares me to see that much blood pouring out of my partner. The doctor tells me that Starsky will be awake soon. I explain to him that I'm working on something important and ask if I can check on Starsky in about an hour. He assures me it'll be fine. That's all I need to know.
STARSKY
I hear something outside the door. Footsteps and whispers. That can't be good, can it? What if it's Pacheco's men, coming to settle a score. I close my eyes. I hear the door to my room open. More whispers. More footsteps. Well, I may not have any strength left right now, but I won't go without a fight. I open my eyes and can't believe what I see.
HUTCH
After his little injury, the parameters of my assignment changed as well. Slowly and carefully, Dobey, Huggy, Lisa and her mom, and Cheryl followed me into Starsky's room. Lisa held on tightly to the red and white balloons. She counts to three and we all yell, "SURPRISE!" Starsky's eyes fly open and the look on his face is priceless.
I walk over to him. His mouth is still hanging open, like he can't believe what he's seeing. I reach over and push it closed. "Happy Birthday Buddy. It would've been a bigger party if you hadn't been robbed. The doc put a limit on the number of people you could have in your room, but we'll have a belated party back at the station as soon as you're up to it."
He looks at me with that lop-sided grin.
STARSKY
Wow. You know, I've never had anybody throw me a surprise party before. That explains all the secrets, why Hutch was trying to get rid of me. Boy do I feel dumb. Lisa hands me some red and white balloons to match my car. She's a good kid. Hutch tells me that I'll have a bigger party when I'm able to get back to work. That's terrific. No, I mean it. Hutch looks happy and relieved at the same time. He knows I'm genuinely surprised. I can't help but grin at him.
The End