Ken Hutchinson came to slowly, dimming aware of a girl sobbing. Her head was buried in the cot next to his head and he felt the tears on his face. His hand reached out to touch the blonde head and stroke the hair.
"Kenny?" Mickey raised her head, tears still streaming down her face.
"Mickey? Am I dreaming?" Her brother rubbed his eyes. Ken wasn't sure where he was and the last time he saw Mickey was when he held her tightly in the mental hospital. She had neither moved not let out a sound then.
"I wish you wear dreaming. I wish we both were. Kenny, we're in deep trouble. I'm going to need you to catch up with me fast. It's the bottom of the ninth and we're about one hundred runs behind," Mickey gave him a sad smile.
"Mickey!" Ken sat up suddenly and groaned. "Where are we? Mick, you're outta the hospital. You don't seem sick."
"Sorry, Kenny, I was faking. It had to do with my undercover role. I was so close and I'm sorry, if they thought they had succeeded in causing my breakdown, they would relax, and more important, stop trying to hurt you. At least I hoped so." Mickey saw the betrayal on her brother's face. "I need you to forgive me, Kenny. I chose between having you alive and angry at me rather than hurt or worse – dead. I got the word from one of my snitches that hurting you was next. Also Starsky – possibly killing him to get to you or to stop your investigation." Mickey gave him a quick version of pretending to be a janitor, arresting the two henchmen and handing them off to Jenkins: and confronting Francine York, the black widow. "Red betrayed me. York wanted to kill me then; Red persuaded her to keep me alive for now."
When she stopped, Ken told her of being hit by a car and left in the snow and then his and Starsky's visit to the hospital and getting checked out by Joshua; and going to see Big Ben.
"Ben's in the hospital?"
"Cancer." He saw Mickey bite her lip and lower her eyes. "There was a fire alarm. I had been resting and Big Ben woke me up. He must have suspected a trap. Two fake interns came in. We both fought; one knocked Ben out and I was still weak, and they pinned me and injected me with a sedative, I suppose. That's the last I know. Why take me and not Starsky? Or both of us. I don't understand."
"Starsky isn't Lena's child; you and I are," Mickey said flatly. "Francine York hates Lena. And when she found out that you and I are Lena's children, she decided we both had to die. She told me she loves this "Hans" and Hans never loved her back, just Lena." Mickey was silent as Ken pulled her down into a hug.
"Ken," Mickey's voice broke. "She had a picture of Jed as a little boy. Jed was adopted. Francine York was Jed's mother. She found out just before he died and blames me for his death. Red – Red told us Jed loved me and was going to ask me to marry him; he even had a ring in his locker."
"Oh, Mickey, I'm sorry," Ken said, hugging her tighter, her head leaning on his shoulder.
Mickey held on tightly for a minute, then broke the hold, wiping at her eyes. "We don't have time. I don't know if anyone can find us."
"No, we have to depend on ourselves," Ken said slowly. He tried to stand up, then fell back. "I guess I am still dizzy. Is there any way out?"
"I was kept sedated most of the time, but I've tried everything I can think of. I just wish I had a baseball bat."
Ken was moving his head back and forth, trying to shake off the dizziness. He looked around at the room. "Help me up."
He checked everything he could think of in the room and the small bathroom. "Very thorough. No windows to break. How solid are the walls?"
"I couldn't even make a dent." Mickey pointed to her bed, just a mattress on the floor. "Just the mattress without any board to use."
"My hospital cot." Just then the door was unlocked, and two goons stepped in.
"Both of you, back against the wall. Don't try anything; we have orders we can shoot the girl as long as she stays alive."
Ken and Mickey obeyed. The mattress was taken from the cot and dumped on the floor with the blankets, the rest was hauled out. Two bottles of water were left as well.
"I guess they are not underestimating our intelligence," Ken said firmly.
"No. But that makes it tougher to get out and our time is running out."
TBC