FAULT LINE

CHAPTER 6

EPICENTER OF THE SOUL

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Hutch sat for a minute, watching Starsky's retreat from the squad room.

Was he the only one who saw what Kira was doing? Was he the only one who felt so depressed about his crumbling relationships? He felt he was in the Twilight Zone. Things were happening around him that others just seemed to ignore. Maybe he really was invisible or in some sort of time warp but things were happening that he just couldn't control.

He'd have to make an effort to really talk with his friend about Kira. Hutch never meant to hurt the dark haired man's feelings, especially if he was serious about Kira. But Hutch couldn't believe that. The woman was too much of a shark without true loyalty and he was afraid Starsky would get hurt. Sometimes the guy could be pretty naive when it came to his love life.

Hutch didn't take any more time with the daydreaming. He figured he'd better catch up with Starsky and get to the crime scene. The day passed without further harsh words between Starsky and Hutch. He was fascinated and impressed with Kira's professionalism. Her insight into Arlene and her ability to map out the crime was a great addition to how the two men worked the same area. The teasing vixen had been replaced with a competent detective. The differences made Hutch dizzy.

Kira circled the living room again while Starsky talked to a neighbor who had heard yelling but thought it was someone's TV.

Hutch kept glancing at Kira, not able to completely keep his mind on his work. He watched the other officers who were watching Kira. Man, how could Starsky be so dumb? The men in the room were like hungry jackels, waiting for scraps. Kira would occasionally smile at someone or bend over just enough so two or three around her might get a sighting of cleavage. She had them all in the palm of her hand. But as soon as Starsky appeared, she became all business again and deferred to his ideas and asked his opinion. But anytime she caught Hutch's eye, she smiled just enough for him to feel the blush start on his cheeks.

"Hey, Hutch did you notice that the front door wasn't kicked in and the lock wasn't broken?" Kira was standing by the front door looking at the lock and back at the sodden mess of groceries that were now congealing in the entry way. She stepped over the glop and joined Hutch back in the living room. By this time, Starsky was back at the body, looking for any defensive wounds. He stood up as he saw Kira coming toward him. The three of them studied their notes a few minutes then Kira made another observation.

"She must have known him. Felt comfortable with him. With the nut on the loose she wouldn't be so careless as to let a stranger in the house. He must have even helped her in with the groceries."

"What I don't get is why she didn't tell us she was blond in the first place. We coulda protected her too." Starsky closed his eyes briefly and let out a small sigh. His shoulders remained hunched.

Hutch could tell Starsky was feeling this death with a little too much emotion. Normally, Hutch could touch him and help him over that, but not this time. He didn't feel welcome or wanted.

Hutch moved away from the small circle and paced around the living room again. He watched the crime team then walked back over to Starsky.

Kira left the room and went upstairs, looking for Arlene's bedroom. She found the black wig sitting on it's styrofoam model. Arlene felt comfortable without her wig around town. It was weird. A guy could recognize Arlene in daylight without her wig. Pretty good observations when all he had to go on was his imagination. The lighting at The Golden Lady was dim at best giving the clients who came there the chance to be someone else. Apparently the 'working girls' there did the same thing.

'How many other blonds are there' Kira wondered.

Maybe he's good with disguises, got a good eye for detail. Kira wanted to explore that thought but she took the wig back downstairs with her and handed it to Ronnie Edwards. He was packing up his equipment as Kira stood in front of him. He lifted his eyes from his task as he got a whiff of something other than death. He stood up and held out an empty plastic bag so Kira could drop the wig in.

"Ronnie, this is the wig she's been wearing. We'll need it eventually for evidence so get it processed, please." Ronnie stood there, held by her eyes and the faint smile on her lips. He looked around, uncomfortable to be alone with this woman who nobody trusted but everybody wanted.

"Thanks ma'am. I'll get it taken care of." Ronnie cleared his throat and shifted his feet. Kira smiled sweetly at him and waved as she rejoined Starsky and Hutch.

She rejoined the two detectives and shared her observations about the guy they were after. She also told them about finding the wig and offered her opinion about it's significance.

"Plus I gave the wig to Ronnie as future evidencce. It amazes me that this guy can recognize someone from a crowded, smoke filled, dusky atmosphere, determine she's got a wig on and then be able to seek her out and identify her in a totally different place."

Both men listened as Kira thought out loud. Starsky wrote somethng else in his notebook but look up when Hutch began to speak.

"Starsky, umm- that note Captain Dobey sh- showed you back in his office. Do you th- think our guy was telling us he knew Arlene wore a wig? B-but, why didn't we know that? Kira, you should've pi-picked up on it even if Starsky and me didn't."

Starsky's eyebrows shot up in surprise with Hutch's words. Why was he stuttering? He only did that when he was nervous.

Hutch kept his head averted, not looking at either Starsky or Kira. His eyes were hooded and Hutch just focused on the room around him. He felt it was safer than looking directly in their eyes.

"Well, gee Hutch, it is pretty dark in that dance club. Arlene didn't confide in me. We only talked a few times and I got the feeling she was a little uncomfortable around me. Imagine that!" Kira reached out to touch Hutch's shoulder and he visibly pulled away from her touch.

Hutch walked away. Again, he had a chance to help someone, to protect Arlene and he'd failed. He'd been too damn interested in Kira instead of doing his job. Starsky was right, he was unprofessional.

He felt the nasty feeling of anger grab him again. He really wanted to leave but the work wasn't finished. He needed space. Hutch walked into the kitchen, pretending to look for clues. In reality he had that vague feeling that his whole body was trembling, that the ground underneath him was going to give way. He must be loosing his mind. Either that, or he just needed sleep.

The lab guys picked through the broken nick nacks and swept under the furniture with their hands trying to find anything that would give some answers in this most vexing case.

Johnson crawled on his hands and knees, using his hands in front of him to feel for any foreign objects not easily identifiable. He came across a small black, oddly shaped piece of material that had the feel of rubber. He picked it up and searched the room for his boss.

Not finding his superior, Johnson decided to share what he found with Hutch. He stood off in a corner, checking his notes. Just as Johnson reached the blond detective, Starsky came back through the hallway and headed for Hutch.

"Excuse me, detectives? I found something that doesn't seem to belong to anything in the room." Johnson held up the piece of black rubber for Hutch to see.

"What's that, any idea?" Starsky reached out and set the material flat in his palm so that everyone could look at it.

Hutch glanced sideways at Starsky. Damn, Hutch really wanted to let it go. The fact that Starsky didn't hand him the evidence, grated on Hutch's nerves but he moved in closer for a look. His shoulder brushed against Starsky but it ended up being more of a shove out of the way than just a friendly nudge.

Starsky didn't respond, other than shifting his feet to accomodate the blond's closer inspection.

"Other than it being a piece of rubber, couldn't guess now. Not until we get it to the lab" Johnson shrugged his shoulders and opened an evidence bag to place the nugget of material in.

"I'm on my way there. I can drop it off before I leave. My shift is over shortly and I gotta get to my kid's baseball game." Johnson zipped up the bag and stuck it in his front shirt pocket.

"Can't you start on it tonight man? You know how important this is and you're the best in the department." Starsky tried to reason with the other man. Starsky held on to his forearm, hoping he'd reconsider.

Johnson almost seemed to change his mind but he combed his hand through his thinning hair and offered a tired shrug at the dark haired detective.

"Starsky, my wife'll kill me if I miss another game. Besides the next shift can---" His explanation was cut short by Hutch's irritated voice.

"Cut the crap and just get outta here. If you're not going to do it your self, just make sure you give it to somebody more capable. Better go Johnson, before the little wife comes and drags you away by your ear."

Hutch ended his barbed digs at the retreating man. He turned to see Starsky's nostrils flaring. Before Hutch could apologize again for being such an unfeeling, selfish jerk, Starsky flipped his notebook shut and steered Kira out of the house.

Hutch sighed heavily and rubbed the muscles in the back of his neck. He followed Starsky out the door and mirrored Starsky's glance over the hood of the car. No more words were exchanged. No plans to meet up later. That in itself was so foreign to them both. Neither knew how to resolve what was hanging between them nor did they crave the others company.

Hutch headed back toward town and made his way to The Pits.

As uncomfortable as he felt around Starsky, Hutch wasn't at all sure he'd be welcomed by the skinny, black bar owner. Huggy's friend Lionel had died because Huggy had assured the man that the two detectives would keep him safe in exchange for the information about the federal judge. Like hell he was safe. Hutch felt the weight of that responsibility deep in his gut. They had failed to protect him and Lionel had been killed. Huggy was so angry at them and Hutch had not been around too much at The Pits lately because of it. Well he'd start his apology here and hopefully, Huggy's wisdom could shed some light on Hutch's continued confusion.