Part 3 – Chapter 42

The leather strap slipped from between Starsky's teeth and he lay back limp and pale on the gurney. As Beth checked his vitals again, a nurse gently removed the electrodes from each side of the relaxed face. Hutch could just make out the small burns before the woman dressed them with a little ointment and covered them with identical white bandages. In less than five minutes, the brunet was being wheeled back out of the clinical room and up to his own more comfortable bedroom. The orderlies laid him back on his own bed and Hutch pulled the covers over him and sat down wearily by the side of the bed.

A moment later Beth came into the room, dressed in her normal street clothes again.

'How's he doing?' she asked.

'Dunno. You're the doctor. You tell me' Hutch said. 'He seems quiet enough.'

'He tolerated the treatment well, now we just have to wait to see how he is when he wakes up. His first few minutes are going to be very fuzzy for him, and after that he'll have a…'

'Huge headache, I know' the blond finished.

'You know? How?'

Hutch smiled shyly. 'He isn't the only one who's been through the mill' he said cryptically. How long is he going to be out?'

Beth pursed her lips. 'Difficult to say, but I'd hazard a guess that he'll start waking up in about an hour.'

'Gives me just enough time to phone Dobey and let him know about what's going down tonight.'

'But Dave won't be fit enough to do anything tonight' Beth argued. 'Are you going to ambush Fisher?'

'If we have to, but if I know my partner, and if this treatment works, you can bet your bottom dollar he'll want to be in on the action somewhere.'

The woman smiled. 'I guessed as much, but he isn't superman. He's gonna need some time to adjust. All his memories flooding back – it can be a painful process, not just physically, but mentally too. And as for going near Fisher….'

Hutch's head snapped up. 'Could Fisher put him under again?'

Beth paused, considering. 'No, I don't think so. Or at least he could re-hypnotise him, but the initial trigger word has gone. If this has worked, then his mind will be reset to its normal state and Edgar won't have that pull on him. He'd just need to be careful.'

The blond snickered. 'To Starsky's usual state huh? Tell me Doc. Is there anything I can do to…. Nah, forget it. I like him just as he used to be. I've missed him.'

Beth rose and kissed Hutch on the top of his head. 'You're a good man Ken Hutchinson. Dave is lucky to have you, and Traff as his friends.'

Hutch smiled up at her 'The honour is all ours, but don't tell him I told you that. He's insufferable when he's swell headed.'

After Beth had gone, Hutch stayed for a few minutes, just watching his friend breathe deeply and regularly. He had a good feeling about the treatment, although watching the high voltage being shot through Starsky's head had been like a torture of the worst kind. Hutch had been angry at himself because at the point where Beth threw the switch, he'd looked away, unable to witness the shock treatment himself. Now, he straightened a minute crease on the bedclothes and got up.

'Be right back, buddy. don't go anywhere huh?' he said softly as he padded out of the room.

Hutch headed down the hallway back to the reception desk and asked to use the telephone. He dialled the number for the Metro and waited for the patch through to Dobey. It was ten in the morning and he knew the big black man would be by his desk as that was the time that Ida the catering lady brought him his toast and jelly. The phone picked up on the second ring.

'Dobey.'

'Cap'n it's Hutch. I think we've made some progress.' For the next ten minutes the blond brought Dobey up to speed on what had been happening and the fact that Fisher had once again had his claws into Starsky. He finished by telling the Captain about the final CCTV tape that he and Beth made of Fisher's call, leaving out all but the essential information that Fisher would meet tonight at 10:00pm with Starsky by the pool house so that the evil hypnotists could retrieve his tapes.

'And you think this treatment has worked?' Dobey asked

Hutch shook his head. 'I have no idea Cap'n. Beth seemed to think it was the best option and I have a good feeling about it, but only time will tell.'

'Well, keep me informed. In the meantime, I can have a team up to the clinic by nine tonight. That'll give 'em chance to get into position. Maybe we can even grab Fisher before he meets with you.'

'No, don't let 'em do that. I want to catch this slimy bastard in the act, that way he has no way of slipping out of it with some fancy assed excuse. This time, Fisher is all mine, got it?'

Dobey sighed down the line. 'Fine, we'll play it your way. See you tonight then. And Hutchinson? Tell Starsky um…. hi from me.'

Hutch put the phone down with a grin. A "hi" from the Captain was tantamount to a hug from anyone else. The black man was never given to shows of emotion, but all his men knew that Dobey regarded them more as sons than as employees. The blond walked thoughtfully back up to his partner's room and closed the door softly behind him. Walking over to the bay window, he stood with his hands on his hips looking out over the beautifully manicured lawn to the high pine trees beyond and the distant glimmer of sparkling blue from the small trout lake. The place was idyllic and yet he couldn't relax and rest surrounded by its beauty. Maybe in other circumstances, he could appreciate the nature all around him, but with his partner's sanity hanging in the balance, the world seemed shrouded in a black veil. Only now, with this last brutal treatment did there seem to be a chink in that veil and shyly the first rays of sunshine were beginning to poke through.

Hutch must have stayed looking out of the window for some time because he was roused from his reverie by movements from the bed behind him. He turned and walked back to the bed just as one indigo eye fluttered open and peered blearily around. The blond waited, his heart in his mouth as Starsky's eyes opened, closed, opened again and began to focus on him. Unsure whether he should be the one to break the silence, Hutch was on tenterhooks, sitting on the edge of the bed.

Slowly, Starsky pulled one hand from under the covers and laid it over Hutch's.

'Heyyy' he rasped.

'Hey yourself. How's it goin' there partner?'

The brunet closed his eyes. 'Feel like I've done the marathon tequila championships at Huggy's bar. Head's poundin'.'

But you remember Huggy's bar? What's the name of it? What's it called?'

Starsky regarded Hutch as though he'd just grown two heads. 'The Pits. You're Hutch, I'm Starsky.'

'You remember?' Hutch asked, almost afraid of the answer.

'Dunno, no….yeah….it's fuzzy, but I think I know I'm me an' I know you're you. What? What did I say? Are you mockin' the sick?'

Hutch's face cracked into a grin. 'Only you could make a simple sentence sound like you're drunk. I think it worked partner. I think I've got you back. Do you remember coming here?'

'Uh huh. you drove me up from the courthouse. We went to the courthouse and the Judge freed me because…..' Starsky's face fell and he remained silent.

'Because what?' Hutch pressed.

'Because I shot you' Starsky said quietly. 'Oh my God Hutch, I remember it. I remember the calls Fisher made to me an' I remember driving with you to the fairground and he was there. We walked into the fair and he came round the corner. You were a way ahead of me and then Fisher told me…. he made me….I couldn't stop myself. I couldn't stop it. I was….. it was like I raised my gun and loosed off the two shots but it wasn't me. I was there, I was doin' it and it wasn't me. I couldn't stop myself. Fuck. I don't want to remember that. I don't want to have to replay it over in my head all those times. Hutch, I tried to kill ya babe.'

Starsky closed his eyes and turned onto his side in the bed, facing away from Hutch. He curled himself into a ball and covered his eyes with his hands in an attempt to close out the world. Hutch rose and plodded around to the other side of the bed where he could see his partner's face. Gently he pried the strong fingers back and fixed Starsky's indigo eyes with his own crystal blue ones.

'I'm here. You didn't kill me an' I'm right here, not goin' anywhere.'

'But I remember what I did. I can't live with that memory.'

'Yes you can, coz it sits in there with all the good memories too. It's just part of life's pattern. Shit happens, we deal and we move on. Think of something happy and concentrate on that huh?

'Juanita' Starsky said softly.

'The girl in Mexico?'

'Uh huh' Starsky levered himself up in the bed and wedged a pillow against his back. 'We never really talked about her did we? She was sweet and intelligent and loving….'

'She sounds perfect' Hutch said softly.

'Maybe not perfect, but I think maybe if I hadn't have been brought back here, she and I could have had something sweet goin' the brunet said shyly.

'Would you have preferred to stay there?'

'No. My life is here, although I'm not too sure about the whole cop thing any more. But if I hadn't have come back, I'd never have remembered about you an' Traff' Starsky said thoughtfully. 'Speaking of which….'

'He had to go back to the base, but he has time off next weekend. He told me he'll be back. Is everything coming back now? Do you remember?'

The brunet closed his eyes and for a long time he lay with his head resting n the pillow. Sometimes his face would crease as if in pain and at other times a shy smiled would play across his handsome features. 'I remember a lot more'n I did. Some of it's still fuzzy, but I remember Fisher an' I remember what he did to me.'

'All of it?' Hutch asked.

A scowl of concentration rippled over Starsky's face. 'Yeah, all of it. But, how'd ya…?'

'I found the audio tapes buddy. He taped all your conversations. That's how we got onto him.'

'All of the conversations?' Starsky asked quietly.

'Hey, buddy, what he did to you was assault. Just because he didn't lay a finger on you don't mean he didn't violate you.'

Starsky's face creased in pain at the memory. 'How many others have heard 'em?' he asked.

'The three conversations to begin with have been used at the courthouse. They were the general ones.'

'But the fourth? The time he…..God Hutch, how could I have been so weak? How could I have just sat there listening to him and let him tell me to do that?'

'No one's heard that one but me buddy, I promise. After I heard it I…. well I threw it in the ocean. I was so damned sure no one else would get a hold of it.'

For a moment Starsky processed the information and then he chuckled grimly. 'Lets hope the fish don't have tape players huh? I'd hate to see a shark swimmin' round with a boner. But um….what about…. He telephoned me here didn't he? Twice.'

'Uh huh. Beth called me coz she was worried about you. They had to sedate you but after she'd dosed you up with the Thorazine you started to make sense. In a way, he did you a favour. If she hadn't have done that, she'd never have had the idea to use the EST.'

'But I remember him tellin' me to…..again. Fuck, he was still in my head!'

'We had to let him think he still owned you so that we could get him to tell you where he needed to meet ya. I'm sorry Buddy, we kinda used you, but we've got him now. he's gonna get what he wants alright, accompanied by and arrest warrant and life in Folsom.'

'Uh huh. An' I'm gonna be the one to put him there' Starsky said decisively.

'You? I don't think so Pal. you've only just had your treatment. From memory you'll be feelin' like you've been kicked in the head by a mule and then a herd of elephants have walked over your body' Hutch said wryly.

'Yup, and more. But don't stop me doin' this Hutch. After all he's done to me. After the hold Fisher has had on me all this time, an' after what he made me do to you, do ya think I'd really just let someone else have the pleasure of stickin' the cuffs on him?'

Hutch grinned. 'Somehow I thought that's what you'd say' the blond took his half hunter watch from his pocket and checked it. 'Ok well, it's 12:30 now. He wants to meet you at the pool house tonight at 10:00. At least sleep for a while huh? I'll let Beth know that the treatment worked and that you're you again. Be right back buddy.'

The brunet grabbed for Hutch's hand and held onto it. He looked up into his partner's golden face shyly. 'T'hell with soapy. I lost ya once before. I don't like the feelin'. Will ya…..um. Will ya stay with me 'till I go to sleep huh?'

The blond man smiled. 'Course I will ya dope! Here, shift over.' As the smaller man scooted over on the bed, Hutch lay down beside his partner, turned on his side so that he could see Starsky.

'Don't wanna make a habit of this Blondie' the sleepy voice said indistinctly.

Hutch snickered. 'Don't flatter yourself. I prefer blonds anyway.'