Unless my critic tells me differently, this will be the final chapter of this saga. I hope you find it asenjoyable as I did...

Chapter 22

A million years later, Julie returned. Starsky was sweating with the escape effort he had put forth in vain.

"Ah, baby, what would you do for these?" She swaggered in spinning the keys around on her finger.

"For you, not a damn thing!" Starsky said in a deceivingly calm voice. Anger boiled just beneath the surface. Hutch had passed from a calm, drugged stage into what looked to be a very bad trip. He had been struggling, hitting at things unseen by his friend. He was not responsive to anything Starsky said to try to calm him. It was as if he were lost to this reality. The anger of the helplessness was bitter.

Julie laughed at Starsky, reveling in his vulnerability and defenselessness. She wandered over to stand nearby Hutch. "Fight them, you pig. Fight with everything you have. In the end, they will get you. And when they are done with you, I will have a turn." She smiled as Hutch doubled his useless efforts, fighting and lashing out with everything he had. His wrists were raw and bleeding, but the pain went unfelt.

She turned to Starsky. "He will pay for what he did. You however, are a bit of fun."

"Julie, you are insane." Starsky spat in disgust. He was having a hard time controlling his anger.

"Maybe, but you took from me the one person who ever loved me."

"Love? Are you talking about Rob? He used you, just like he used Michele and everyone else who ever came in contact with him. He was a two bit underling who belonged in the gutter." Starsky said, none too wisely.

"Shut up! He was a master! A genius!"

"He was so dumb; his own family beat him to a pulp and left him for dead! Don't waste your life defending him. He was not worth it."

"I said shut up! You will pay for your insolence, you pig." Julie brought down a whip from the wall and began swinging it at Starsky, his legs, his waist, his face. It cut through his jeans and tore at his shirt. Julie was in a rage, slashing and hitting with wild abandon. The leather of Starsky's jacket provided some protection for his arms and face, but the whip's tip found its mark on more than one occasion. Starsky could hear Hutch's struggles intensifying and more than once he cried out "No!" but he was unsure as to whether it was in response to the beating Starsky was taking, or his own nightmares. Either way Julie ignored Hutch as she concentrated on the object of her anger.

The pain was intense as welts raised up on his body.

As quickly as the beating had started, it stopped. Starsky sagged against the wall, exhausted. The next thing he knew, Julie was on him, kissing him. He jerked away, hitting his head against the wall. Julie laughed, drawing strength from his disgust. She came at him again, and this time Starsky kicked out, landing a solid blow to her abdomen.

Julie was momentarily stunned, and had to fight to catch her breath. A faint sheen broke out across her forehead and a deadly gleam shone in her eye as she slowly smiled. This is what she lived for. The pain, the fight for life. However, this was one fight that she would emerge the victor. She came at him again; only this time as she kissed him, she pinched his nostrils closed. Starsky struggled and fought to break off her deadly advances, but Julie seemed to gather strength from his weakening struggles. Starsky was reminded of a boa, crushing the life out of the prey it hugged so violently. Lights danced around behind his eyelids, and he felt numb from the lack of air. More than once he felt his head crack off of the wall. Julie's body was lean and strong, and with his limited movement from having his hands bound, Starsky was slowly, painfully losing the battle. Julie's face consumed his vision. The anger and frenzied evil danced over her face, contorting what had once been a beautiful face into a beastly image that reminded him of a gargoyle. He knew he was going to die. She was going to deprive him of breath, killing him with her own.

Starsky's oxygen starved brain fought futilely, and began shutting down. His struggles weakened and inwardly he knew he was about to die. Hutch. Oh God. He had sworn he would help his friend, and now, as death approached, he was reluctantly abandoning him to the viciousness of Julie's overwhelming evil. "I'm sorry", he thought, hoping against hope his friend could hear his thoughts.

Starsky felt her jerk against him. Surprise flared in her eyes as she slowly fell away from Starsky. He took a deep, life-giving breath, his chest protesting the sudden influx of air. He coughed and gagged. His eyes watered and ran as he struggled to inhale. He had no idea what had just happened. Horrified, he saw Julie lying at his feet, her eyes were open and aware, but she did not move. Starsky looked up to see his friend standing in front of him. Hutch's hands were still bound by the shackles, but they were no longer attached to the wall. Instead there was a piece of the wall attached to the shackles.

He looked every part the Nordic Viking that had been his heritage. His eyes burned blue and murderous. Hutch's chest rose and fell with uncontrolled rage. He looked at Starsky, and back again to the now helpless Julie on the floor. Hutch had managed to pull free and through his drug induced stupor had known without a doubt that Starsky was dying. He had used the chains Julie had bound him with as a weapon against her. His swing had caught her on her back, between the shoulder blades. Her back was broken, of that Starsky was certain. Later the doctors would report that she had sustained fractures of C6 and C7 and that T 1 through T4 were totally destroyed. That injury alone would leave her paralyzed from the waist down and adversely affect the functioning of both her arms. She would be, in all intents and purposes, a quadriplegic.

Starsky's eyes met his friends. Gratitude and relief flowed unspoken, but heard distinctly by both.

"Keys" Starsky said.

Hutch looked at him in confusion.

"Find the keys." Starsky repeated with a calm he did not feel.

Hutch nodded but stopped to stare at the motionless figure on the floor. Anger and rage danced across her face. She tried to move her head side to side. It was the only part of her body that she had any control over.

"Don't move." Starsky advised.

"Shut up you filthy pig! You should be dead! You killed my father now kill me! Let me go to hell and be with Rob. We'll haunt you from the grave!" Julie struggled helplessly on the cold cement floor, only her face showing any animation.

"Your father? What does he have to do with us?" Starsky asked in confusion.

"Rob was my father, you bastard!"

Revulsion filled Starsky's face. The true sickness of her mind filled him with disgust. Julie continued to yell obscenities from the floor, but Starsky found he no longer wanted to hear anything she had to say. He tuned her out and focused on his partner who was staring at the figure on the floor like it was vomit.

"Hutch? Keys." Starsky instructed again.

Hutch looked at Starsky for a moment and then nodded. The keys were an easy find. They had fallen on the floor near Starsky's feet. He fumbled with unlocking his first, but was unsuccessful. Finally he listened to Starsky and brought them over to him.

It took a few more minutes for Starsky to find the right key, and once he did he gratefully lowered his arms like an arthritic. He removed the chains from his partner. Stepping over the helpless form on the floor, he walked out of the deadly room to explore the rest of the cabin. He found a phone, but its wires were pulled out from the wall. He doubted if he took the time to rewire it that it would work. It was another of Julie's psychological games. Unfortunately for her, this game was denying her much needed medical help. Hutch sat down and stared at the floor. Starsky looked at him with worry in his eyes. One way or another, he was going to get his friend out of this hellhole.

Starsky grabbed a blanket off of the bed in the back room and took it down to where Julie continued to lay helpless on the cold, damp floor.

"I will get you some help. Tell me, does the phone work?" Starsky said in a frosty but calm voice.

"No." she replied. She was past fighting, and Starsky suspected the true predicament of her plight was just settling in. "The only way out is the car. The keys are on the key chain you took from me." She took a deep breath, realizing it was about the only thing in her body that she had control over right now. "There is a general store about 10 miles down the road if you turn right. They have a phone."

Starsky still had the keys in his back pocket. "We will be back with someone who can help you. I can't move you without help, and whatever you gave my partner has not worn off yet. He won't help me."

"It's PCP. It won't wear off for a long time."

"I see." Starsky's eyes and voice were deadly. He turned and left Julie on the floor where she had fallen. Hutch was still on the couch, staring at the walls. Starsky walked out softly and found the car. He found the right key and turned the car on, just to make sure Julie had been telling the truth. Leaving the car running, he went in to gather his partner. He had not moved.

Starsky slowly approached him to give his friend time to assimilate the fact that Starsky was there. He knew that surprise was the worst thing he could do to Hutch right now. He felt like he was dealing with a human bomb, which in a way he was. He knelt down nearby and said, "It's time to go."

Hutch continued staring at the floor for a few moments as the words slowly penetrated his brain. "We can go?" He mumbled.

"Yeah." Starsky replied with a warm smile. "Come with me."

The feel of the car moving away from the evil that permeated that cabin was something Starsky would reflect upon whenever he had too much to drink. He never could quite put it into words. He never returned to the cabin. Somebody else took care of Julie and the crime scene. All he remembered was that he had survived. Julie had been a formidable foe, and they had emerged alive from her lair. He felt like a knight who had slain the dragon, although technically Hutch was the knight in this drama.

Hutch had his own dragons he was dealing with. He struggled mightily to control the hallucinations that came over him in waves. He struggled to identify what was real and what was not. Hutch found if he focused on the steady stream of encouragement that flowed from his partner's mouth, at least the hallucinations were pleasant.

Starsky found the general store without any difficulty even though it took forever to get there. He was afraid that any moment Hutch would explode in anger or try to get out of the car, so Starsky drove slowly. The grocerywas a mom and pop store and mom and pop were more than willing to help the two strangers with whatever they had when they realized what had happened. They gave Starsky coffee and some homemade cookies that mom was famous for around these parts. Their phone was his, according to pop. Starsky immediately placed a call to Dobey and explained what had happened. He learned an APB had been placed on them this morning when they did not show for work.

An ambulance was not available in this part of the county, but Bill from Morton's Funeral Home was dispatched to assist with transporting Julie to the nearest hospital with an ambulance. She needed more care than the county hospital could provide.

Mom came over with a blanket for Starsky. She did not know the extent of the horrors Starsky had lived through, but she had the instincts of a true mother and Starsky instantly felt a bond with the woman. She made great cookies.

Pop went out and sat with Hutch quietly, his voice a calm in the storm that gave Hutch a peace he so desperately needed. Police were dispatched, and when they arrived, mom patiently explained why they needed to keep their lights off for Detective Hutchinson. Starsky doubted they would have listened to him, but they did her. Obviously, they had deep respect for the woman,and had probably enjoyed her homemade cookies too.

Eventually a transport was sent to take the two detectives back home. Dobey met them at the hospital where, once again, Dr. Anthony met them to treat the injuries. The physical injuries were minimal, but the PCP needed another 24 hours or so for it to work its way through Hutch's system.

Dr. Anthony took Starsky aside to explain his plans. "Many people brought in here on PCP can become violent or suicidal. We make sure they are kept in a calm setting and not left alone until the worst of the drug works its way through the system."

"Ok."

"There is a room set up on the psychiatry floor specifically for this purpose, and I want to send your partner there. It is not because I believe he is mentally unstable, it is because I believe he could benefit from the staff'sexpertise of working with the side effects of the drug."

Denial bubbled up on Starsky's lips, but the logic of what Dr. Anthony was saying made sense to him. Before Starsky could react unfavorably to his statement, Dr Anthony added, "You may not be comfortable with this, but I would like for you to stay with him. The room is comfortable, and quiet. The nurses will monitor him, and will help calm him down if he becomes uncontrollable. I believe he won't have as many bad effects though if you are there to help him through this."

"Damn straight."

"I take it that is agreeable to you then."

"Yes."

"He will remain my patient throughout."

"He'd better."

Dr. Anthony smiled and went to speak to a nurse about the transfer.