AN: I Hope you are enjoying the continuation of this little saga that I started with Jan In Va. Would Love to hear your thoughts on this story.

Chapter 5

Captain Dobey watched the big blond pacing back and forth in his office. Starsky had been missing for 4 days and without any leads on his whereabouts, Hutch was like a powder keg ready to blow. Dobey knew just how close his best team of detectives were and he worried about both of them, sometimes more than he should. Over the years, they had become almost like an extended part of his family. His seven year old daughter, Rosie, even called them Uncle Ken and Uncle Dave.

Hutch stopped his pacing and turned to look at Dobey with a glum expression on his face. "There's nothing! Nobody seems to know anything!" He sat down heavily in one of the chairs facing Dobey's desk, his shoulders sagging in defeat. He buried his face in his hands and mumbled "He's out there somewhere…I know he is. I just have to find him."

"Hutch, I want you to go home and get some sleep." Dobey said gruffly "And that's an order. You're not going to be any good to Starsky if you end up in the hospital because you're not taking care of yourself."

"He's out there somewhere, Cap…and he's depending on me to find him," Hutch said plaintively. He looked at the Captain, his eyes mirroring the depth of his fear and his concern for his partner's welfare. Dobey knew how Hutch felt. He had a lost a partner when he was working the streets and he had never fully gotten over that loss. Unable to work the streets any longer, he had moved up in the ranks to his present position as Captain of Homicide and commanding officer of the elite Zebra units.

"Go home, Hutch. Get some rest." Dobey repeated in a soft gentle voice unlike his usual gruff manner.

Hutch hesitated and then lumbered to his feet. With heavy steps he left the Captain's office and exited the squad room. As he strode down the hallway, several of his co-workers hurried by him without a greeting. Everyone knew to give Hutch a wide berth when his partner was missing or in danger.

Hutch left the building by the rear exit and crossed the parking lot to where he had parked the Torino. Not only was the Torino a more reliable vehicle than his car (a fact that he would never have admitted to his partner) but driving it helped him feel closer to his missing partner.

He started the powerful engine and pulled out of the parking lot, merging with the late afternoon traffic. Without even thinking about it, he automatically headed towards Starsky's apartment. As he drove he thought about calling Lizzie but he wasn't really in the mood for her company. He knew that he had been neglecting her since Starsky went missing and he felt guilty about that. Luckily, she seemed to understand and for that he would always be grateful.

Reaching Starsky's apartment, he parked in the drive and climbed out of the Torino. His own car was parked haphazardly at the curb. He walked up the steps to the deck and unlocked the front door. Wearily, he removed his leather jacket and tossed it over the back of the sofa. He sighed heavily as his exhaustion finally caught up with him. His stomach growled with hunger but the thought of eating made him feel nauseated.

Still, he knew he needed to keep his strength up so he trudged into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator peering disinterestedly at the contents. He finally decided to scramble some eggs. That would make a nutritious but light meal. He reached down and pulled a skillet out of the cabinet and sat it on the stove. Turning the heat on low, he melted some butter then added the beaten eggs, stirring them gently as they cooked. His eyes suddenly filled with unshed tears as he thought about all the nights he had made this same meal for himself and Starsky after a long, hard day.

When the eggs were done he scrapped them onto a plate, adding two pieces of lightly buttered toast, and sat down at the table. He forced himself to eat half of the meal before he pushed the plate away and stood up.

He wandered into the living room, absently running his fingers over some of Starsky's cherished possessions: one of his model ships that he painstakingly built by hand, some of the Mexican pottery he collected, a picture of the two of them standing with their arms around each other. Everything in the apartment held a special memory and made the absence of his partner hurt even more. He went into the single bedroom and flopped down across the bed. Surrounded by the familiar scent of his partner that clung to the bedding, he fell into an exhausted slumber.

The sun was shining brightly when he opened his eyes. Glancing at the clock on the nightstand, he was startled to find that he had slept for almost twenty-four hours. Shoving himself to his feet, he searched through Starsky's dresser until he found a pair of his jeans that he had left there and one of his shirts that Starsky had borrowed but never returned.

He went into the adjoining bathroom and reached into the tub to turn on the shower. He adjusted the water to a comfortable level then stripped off the clothes he had been wearing for the past two days. Stepping beneath the spray of the shower he let the water pound down on his shoulders and back relieving some of his tension. He stood there until the water started to chill, then he quickly lathered up his body and then rinsed off. He finished by washing his hair with Starsky's shampoo.

Climbing out of the tub, he grabbed a towel and briskly dried off, wrapping the towel securely around his waist while he used Starsky's razor to shave off his week's growth of beard. He had to admit that he did feel refreshed and more alert when he was done with his grooming. Dressing quickly, he left the apartment and headed out to spend another day chasing down possible leads and questioning anyone who might be able to help him find Starsky.

After another day with no success at locating the missing half of his soul, he found himself driving to Lizzie's downtown apartment. She answered his knock with a pleased smile on her face.

"Ken!" she said happily "I'm so glad to see you. Come in."

She stepped aside to let Hutch step through the doorway. Shutting the door behind him, she turned to him and said,

"Any word on David?" The genuine concern in her voice was obvious. Hutch smiled faintly and slowly shook his head. Lizzie put a hand on his arm and led him over to the sofa. "Sit down. I'll get you some wine and I have a couple of steaks in the freezer." She eyed Hutch critically. "When was the last time you ate?"

"Yesterday." He told her truthfully not mentioning that it was only a few bites.

"I meant when is the last time you actually sat down and ate a meal." Lizzie chided him affectionately. Hutch smiled thinly. He knew that he had been busted. Lizzie brushed a soft kiss over his lips and said, "You just sit there and relax while I put the steaks under the broiler and get you that glass of wine."

Hutch knew he was lucky to have a woman like Lizzie in his life. She was smart, compassionate, and a good lover. Everything Hutch could want in a woman. And best of all, she accepted Starsky as part of the package. It had been Hutch's experience that not many women felt confident enough to do that in a relationship. Most women didn't want to feel like they were number two in their man's life. The only other woman that Hutch had ever met who had been that accepting and understanding had been Starsky's fiancé, Terry, who had been tragically killed by a man out for revenge against Starsky. The only other woman Hutch had ever dated who even came close to understanding his relationship with Starsky had been Gillian and she had died too because she had loved Hutch.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by Lizzie's return. Smiling, she handed him a glass of white wine and gracefully sank down on the sofa beside him. "You look tired." She said

"I shouldn't be. I just slept for almost twenty-four hours," Hutch told her with a faint smile.

"You need to take care of yourself…for Starsky. He needs you to be rested and strong enough to keep going." Lizzie told him quietly.

"I'm trying," Hutch said "But, no matter how hard I try nobody seems to know anything. It's like Starsky just dropped off the face of the earth." He sighed wearily "He's still alive…I know he is…I can feel it. And I won't give up until I find him."

"I know you won't and so does he."

He spent a pleasant evening with Lizzie enjoying her company and letting her help him to stop worrying for a little while. He spent the night making love to her for hours and then fell asleep in her arms. The next morning, he was ready to continue his search.