THE EDGE OF DARKNESS

CHAPTER 9

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Everything was going along nicely. Stone congratulated himself for being able to overpower the two most feared detectives on the streets of Bay City. He moved to view the fallen heroes. Both men were still on the ground, the blond sprawled over the darker man as if to protect him. Stone laughed again and kicked at the man on top. A grunt of pain but no movement followed.

Finally he could look forward to the crowd of onlookers he longed for. Particularly he wanted as many police around as possible to see that Starsky and Hutch were nothing more than blood and flesh. He would be the giant killers! He'd heard about these two detectives for so long. Most of his cronies were scared enough to move out of the detective's district simply because they were afraid of getting caught by them. Most of the troublemakers knew that once Starsky and Hutch found you, then your life was over. But Stone Crawford would show everybody that he was brave. He would save the actual murder of the duo for when he had his sought after audience.

His destiny kept flashing before him and the voices praised him for his actions. He bowed his head as the words grabbed him.

The noises were loud in his head. Blood pumped through his veins and he could feel the energy. He could taste the blood. He longed to see the disbelief and shock on everyone's faces once he finally ended two lives. Killing those women had only been an appetizer for the final feast.

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Hutch slowly became aware of pain. Then the pain grew more insistent and couldn't be ignored. He also realized he was laying on top of Starsky. His eyes still closed, Hutch took stock of what he felt, what he remembered. He knew that Stone was the source of his current position. He could still feel the heavy bat slam against his shoulders and neck. The tingling down his arms told him that the bat had done some sort of damage. But his immediate concern was Starsky. While still getting himself oriented, his body suddenly jerked with awareness.

Hutch still couldn't move but he listened. No moans. No swear words even. No complaints that he was too heavy and to get off of the dark haired man. No sounds. Breathing? He couldn't hear any breath sounds but wait... yes he did notice the slow up and down of Starsky's chest. But that brought another sensation. Blood. Hutch felt it hot on his head and on his shoulder. His or Starsky's, he couldn't be sure.

Tentatively, Hutch slid down Starsky's body until he was able to roll on his back. His eyes began to focus and the room stopped spinning. Hutch rested only a moment before he flopped to his belly again and shifted to his knees. He hunched over, his hands resting on his thighs. He gingerly lifted his head and felt the back of his neck. Tight knots of pain crunched up and down his back. The tingling in his arms continued. He tried fisting his hands but the action sent snakes of pain up to his neck. His right arm hung awkwardly by his side. He was sure the shoulder was dislocated but didn't know what else might be wrong. He rolled his head around as he scanned the room.

But he turned his attention back to Starsky. The injured man lay still, too still. Earlier, even in the panic of his pain, Starsky still made small movements. He continued reaching out to Hutch. He twisted to get away from the relentless pain. He even tried talking but now, the man was just too still, too quiet. His left leg was obviously broken. It stuck out at an odd angle and even through his jeans, there was blood there too. Hutch slid his good hand over the extremity and felt something sharp and sticky. But that action was enough to bring Starsky back around. The man gurgled with a loud intake of breath and his face turned gastly pale.

"Starsky, I'm here but we're in deep shit. I... I don't kn-kn--know what to do! I wasn't paying attention and look what I caused!" Hutch realized that because he took his mind off of his partner, that gave Stone the advantage. While he'd been on the phone with Captain Dobey, it gave Stone the opportunity to cause further harm to Starsky. The grief and guilt consumed him. But he forced himself to hover over the man beside him. He had to concentrate on saving his friend.

"Not your fault... the guy's..." Starsky's words were cut off by another wave of pain. Something was wrong, different. Did the maniac shoot him again? He couldn't move. It felt like hot lava ran through his veins.

Hutch struggled with his emotions as he knelt beside his friend. He tried to ignore his own discomfort in the face of Starsky's added injuries. The bullet wound now was larger and deeper due to the hit from the baseball bat. It bled freely which caused his partner to turn a whiter shade of grey. His hands were cold but the dark curls stuck to his head with sweat. Added to all of this was the bone that stuck out of Starsky's lower leg and the unnatural angle.

Hutch felt helpless and couldn't think. His own condition demanded attention. The tingling in his arms was stronger and he couldn't feel his fingers.

He sat, cradling his elbow in his other hand. The pain was minimal compared to the shame of his offense. He messed up. He should never have turned his back on Stone. His main priority at all times should be Starsky and getting them both to safety. But now, because of his lapse in duty, Starsky was critically wounded, worse than just the single bullet wound. The blond wrestled with his guilt, knowing on the one hand it would do neither of them any good for Hutch to be held back by his fear of doing nothing. But on the other hand, the severity of Starsky's injuries and his own disabled condition left him with very few options. At least if he had been constantly aware of Stone, perhaps the blond could have gotten Starsky to safety. But in their present condition, Hutch knew that rescue was not in his control.

He had to trust that Captain Dobey would find a way to save both of them. This would not be easy since Hutch could not serve as back up or even be a decoy. In that way, not only had he let his partner down, but he was no good to the police department in his present condition. The burden staring at him was heavy in his heart.

Stone walked over to the two men still on the ground. He smiled a slow, satisfied grin at the spectacle of the weak men. He thought back to the time he'd killed those women. At the very end they had the same defeated and beaten look in their eyes.

"So how do you feel now... Still feel like you and your partner can take on the world?" Stone threw his head back and laughed, a deep rumbling noise from deep in his stomach. It echoed around the quiet bar. The implication made Hutch shiver, sending new tingling pains shooting up his back.

"So why don't you just finish us off? What are you waiting for?", the blond ground out between his clenched teeth. His jaw tightened in response to the pain in his body but also because he was damn sick and tired of this game. If the guy wanted them dead, why was he drawing the inevitable conclusion out?

"You still don't get it do ya tough guy? I want everyone to watch as I finally end your stinkin' run of the street. I'm sure by now the whole police department is in an uproar over the mistreatment of their two golden boys. Your captain got an earful awhile ago. I'm sure he heard you and your partner squealing for mercy just like the little pigs you are!" Stone grew agitated and anxious for the ultimate ending he craved.

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The cavalcade of police and rescue vehicles traveled the streets of Bay City with The Pits as their destination. Dobey kept a constant dialogue on the police radio. He reminded each team about the man they were dealing with. They would try to talk him out of the establishment and give up without further bloodshed but if necessary, they were to be cautious and wait till Dobey himself gave any orders to shoot.

A few blocks from their purpose, Dobey gave the order for two police cruisers and one ambulance follow him to the bar. The rest would wait for Captain Dobey's orders before converging on the bar. With those words spoken in a determined command, Dobey led the other vehicles to the back alley of The Pits. The word had gone out earlier to evacuate as many of the surrounding businesses as possible. Once the situation had made the rounds on the streets, most of the closer bars, stores and massage parlors had willingly locked the doors behind them in their haste to avoid being in the crossfire. Even the vagrants, street gangs and assorted dealers and hookers voluntarily gave up their territory. Not only did most of these people respect Starsky and Hutch, rumors had been flying about the Rubber Ducky Man and the killing spree of Stone Crawford.