CHAPTER 15
Over the next few days, Hutch and the others stood vigil at Starsky's side as the military took more than their share of blood from the brunet. They held their tongues but they all felt angry at the military for stepping in and taking over the way they had. Their love for Starsky compounded their grief at watching his needlessly suffering at the hands of the military who had no interest but their own in mind. On the fifth day of treatment, Dr. Franklin came in and addressed the gathering,
"The military has finished taking their samples. You are free to remove David from the life support if that is what you still wish to do."
"It's not about what we want," Rachel informed him solemnly "It's about what David wanted."
"Then it is still your wish to go ahead and remove the life support?" the doctor clarified
"Yes, it is." Rachel said firmly, as she reached out to grab Hutch's hand for moral support. Hutch nodded his agreement, unable to speak past the lump in his throat.
"I'll be back with some papers for you to sign and then we can proceed."
As the doctor left the room, Rachel choked back a sob and said,
"I know we're doing the right thing but I'm still not ready to let go."
"None of us are." Hutch told her in shaky voice, smiling through his own tears of pain and grief.
Rachel leaned forward and gently kissed her son's cheek. "I love you, my darling." she said "Soon you'll be at peace and with your father. Watch over each other until I join you and we can all be together again." With a trembling smile, she stepped aside so that Hutch could say his final goodbye to his best friend and partner.
Running his fingers through those thick curls, Hutch smiled fondly and whispered,
"I guess this is it, buddy. It wasn't supposed to end like this but I guess, this time, we're all out of miracles." A tear fell without shame as he continued, "I love you like a brother and I don't know how I'm supposed to go on without you. Just walk slow and wait for me to catch up with you cause I won't be far behind."
Edith Dobey let out a quiet sob and buried her face against her husband's supportive shoulder at the sound of Hutch's heartfelt words. Well aware of the unique connection between Starsky and Hutch, like her husband and anyone else close enough to realize the bond between the two detectives, she also believed that Hutch wouldn't live long after Starsky died. So in a sense, instead of just watching Starsky die, she knew that she was watching Hutch die too.
A heavy silence fell over the room when the doctor came back in. As Starsky closest living relative, Rachel signed the paperwork authorizing the removal of the life support. Everyone watched in silence as he began to remove the equipment that had been keeping Starsky alive. He saved the ventilator for last. As he removed the tube from Starsky's throat, the brunet let out a long, shuddering gasp and then fell silent. Rachel began to cry, burying her face against Hutch's comforting shoulder.
Suddenly, Starsky gave another loud gasp and began to breath again, in a ragged irregular rhythm. Startled by this unexpected turn of events, the doctor hurriedly pressed his stethoscope to the brunet's chest. After listening carefully for several long seconds, he looked at the anxious faces of the others in the room and said in an awed voice,
"He's breathing on his own and his heartbeat is strong and regular. But, I don't want to give you any false hope. His system has been severely damaged by the virus and I still don't believe he'll be able to survive on his own for very long. I'm sorry."
"My son may just surprise you again, doctor." Rachel said confidently. "He may have just been granted another miracle."
"I wish I could believe that, Mrs. Starsky. I like David, I really do." Doctor Franklin said "In all my years as a doctor, I've seen things happen that can't be explained …maybe this will be one of them. I'm going to have some tests ran so I can better evaluate David's present condition." Shaking his head, he turned and slowly walked out of the room.
As the door closed quietly behind him, Rachel gently ran her fingers over her son's face, lingering for a brief moment on the mole beneath his left eye. "I knew you wouldn't give up without a fight…so just keep on fighting. But if you have to leave, we'll understand. Just sleep for now, my darling. We're all still here with you."
The Dobeys and Huggy Bear decided to go to the cafeteria to get a bite to eat, giving Hutch and Rachel some much needed private time with Starsky. They were all exhausted; mentally, emotionally and physically but they were all bound together through their love and respect for each other and for Starsky to see this ordeal through to the end.
As promised, the doctor ordered a series of new tests to be ran on Starsky to evaluate his current physical condition. It was later that evening when he stopped back by to give them the results of those tests. In a subdued voice, he said,
"David's lungs are less congested but his kidneys still aren't functioning on their own. His heartbeat is strong but we can't rule out possible damage from the virus. We also can't rule out the possibly of brain damage from the high fevers that he experienced.
The good news is that the antibodies his body is producing seem to be killing off the virus but it may still be too late for him to recover."
"But there's a chance, there's always a chance." Huggy Bear said, mirroring the exact same words he had said in another hospital as Starsky had lingered near death.
"Maybe God did grant him another miracle after all." Edith Dobey said with an angelic smile.
"Knowing Starsky, he's just too damn stubborn to die." Captain Dobey said with a smirk and an affectionate chuckle that reflected his own relief at this turn of events.
"You may all be right." Doctor Franklin said with a slight smile. "At the moment, David is in a coma and there is no way to predict if or when he will come out of it…that is if he survives the current crisis."
No one spoke as the doctor left the room. They all knew that they had witnessed yet another miracle. There was no other way to describe Starsky's incredible luck at continuing to defy the odds, no matter how great they seemed to be. It appeared that the military's interference and their insistence at putting Starsky on life support may have actually saved his life by giving his body time to produce sufficient enough antibodies to start fighting the virus that was killing him.