Chapter 7

Starsky started to try to struggle to his feet as Jed and Clyde descended on him again. The two younger men dragged the cop to his feet and started to untie his hands as Starsky continued to fight against them. There was a pillar holding up the roof of the barn and Clyde hauled Starsky over to it and pushed the brunet's back against the hard wood, pulling his arms behind and fastening Starsky's wrists again at the opposite side of the pillar. The tension across his chest took the cop's breath away and once his feet were tied to the base of the pillar, there was nowhere else for Starsky to go. He stood panting, facing Hutch who was still tied to the cartwheel.

'You're making a big mistake' Starsky ground out. 'You have no fuckin' idea.'

'You want fer me to shut him up Pa?' Clyde asked.

Kaleb shook his head. 'Papa Noir will do that soon enough. Let him rant, he'll get tired soon.'

'He's right. You don't know what you're doin'. Kidnappin' a cop is a federal offence. Let us go and we can sort this out' Hutch mumbled.

'Listen to him. You don't wanna do this. You don't want the Feds swimmin' in your soup' Starsky agreed. 'Let us go, or at least give us a fightin' chance.'

'But you raped my Mary Lou. That's gotta be punished' Kaleb snapped.

'Raped... How many times, huh? Unless your definition of rape and mine differ wildly I did nuthin more than talk to her and advise her to get the hell out of the town. Seems like that was pretty good advice. You're crazy...the lot of ya' Starsky snarled.

Until that moment Papa Noir had been content to remain by the door. Now he glided across the barn and came to stand by Starsky's side.

'My good friend Kaleb tells me you violated his daughter. He tells me you dishonoured her and thus him. That sort of behaviour should be punished, n'est pas?'

'And you believe him? Him and the rest of the good townsfolk of Lapetite made it pretty obvious that they didn't want us here. This is just his way to get rid of us' Starsky said. The witchdoctor stood in front of him and this time Starsky resisted the temptation to meet the man's eyes.

'But I don't want to get rid of you Mon Cher. I want to keep you here as my...shall we say mon amour... or maybe my amusement.'

Starsky snorted. 'Yeah? And what exactly does that mean coz there aint a snowball's chance in hell of me stayin' here.'

'No? I think you underestimate me.'

'The feelin's mutual.'

'Are you saying that I couldn't keep you here if I desired it?'

'I'm sayin' over my dead body.'

Papa Noir smiled. 'That could be arranged although I am not the sort of man who gets my amusement from a zombie. I prefer my pets to remain alive, so long as they bend to my will.'

'And you think that's gonna happen? Forget it!' Starsky snapped.

'I think that you will not stand a chance Mon Cher.'

Starsky paused, thinking. 'Ok, so if you want me to stay here, what about Hutch?'

'I think the blond one would be game enough for Jed and Clyde. If he can escape them, he is free to go.'

'He'd just come back for me.'

'Then he'll die trying.' Papa Noir lifted a hand and gently brushed it down Starsky's cheek. The light touch send a shiver of electricity down the brunet's spine and once again Starsky felt that spacey feeling start to invade his consciousness. He shook his head to clear it and took a deep, if shaky breath.

'What would it cost for you to let him go?'

'Starsk, what're you sayin?' Hutch asked sharply.

Starsky looked passed the shaman to his buddy. 'I'm askin' what it'll cost for 'em to let you go free. No use the two of us bein' here. Besides, when it comes down to it, it's usually Me and Thee.'

The added emphasis on the last three words was not lost on Papa Noir. 'You think you have a deep friendship with him?' he asked.

'I know I have.'

Light shone fro he witchdoctor's eyes. 'So if I could break that, you would willingly stay? You would forget your friend?'

Starsky shook his head. 'No, that's not what I said. I asked what it'd cost for you to let him go.'

'And I'm asking whether you think your bond is so strong.'

'Stronger'n you'll ever know' Hutch snarled from the floor.

Papa Noir whirled. 'Really?'

'Uh huh. Really.'

'And you would be willing to put that to the test? I don't think so. He's mine and he'll remain mine.' Again, Papa Noir brushed his hand down Starsky's body, down the brunet's belly and along the line of the cut he'd made earlier and again Hutch saw Starsky's muscles bunch at the touch.

'I'll put that to the test, sure, but I think you overestimate your magic' Hutch said, his voice level and getting stronger by the moment.

Papa Noir whirled and stared at the blond. Hutch evaded his eyes, looking instead directly at the witch doctor's mouth. 'You wish to bet mon ami?'

Hutch pulled himself up against his bonds. From the look on Papa Noir's face he knew he'd peaked the shaman's interest and an idea was forming in his head. It was a long shot and the pains in his head and down the side of his face made it tough to concentrate, but it seemed the only way to get the two of them out and free to make a run for it.

'I'll bet black's white if it gets us outa here. Thing is, I don't think money's your thing, so what'll make it worth your while?'

Papa Noir smiled. The expression was chilling. There was no warmth behind those black within black eyes and the smile showed the red stained teeth giving the impression that the witch doctor had just feasted on something very bloody. Hutch repressed a shudder.

'Vous êtes sérieux? You would place a bet with me that I could make him mine?'

'Hutch, don't do this.' This from Starsky. He had an idea what he blond cop was thinking of but much as Starsky wanted to get out of this mess and away from the flakes of Lapetite he couldn't ignore the pull in Papa Noir's eyes, or the electric current that seemed to shoot through him whenever the witch doctor touched him. However strong his bond with Hutch, the brunet felt it would be the work of a minute for Papa to undo it.

It wasn't that Starsky was gullible- far from it. He liked to portray that to his friends. Sure, he'd buy a pet stone or get shares in a garlic factory at the mere mention of vampires, but it was a show and Hutch knew it, although some of the guys in the squad room thought he was pretty out there. Starsky liked to play class clown. The front hid his insecurities, but it also worked for him on other levels. The flakes on the street saw a slightly ditsy cop and immediately labelled him a push over. It wasn't until Starsky went for their jugular that they realised that what they'd taken for "simple" was a cover. By then, it was too late and Starsky had his man.

This situation was different though. Putting Starsky's play acting to one side, the brunet actually found Papa Noir to be both intimidating and also...intoxicating. Was that he right word? It was as though when he looked into the shaman's eyes he felt as though he'd been lost all his life and had now found his way home. There was something at the bottom of that gaze that Starsky longed to get to and the pull to drink deeply of Papa's gaze was too much to fight. And yet when the gaze was broken. Starsky's senses returned and he knew he'd been weak. It was only then that he could resolve not to look into the man's eyes again. What Hutch was suggesting scared Starsky, not because he doubted his connection with the blond, but more that he realised how strong Papa Noir really was. Even now, Starsky could feel the pull of the witch doctor even though Papa Noir had his back to him. It scared Starsky and he resolved to fight all the harder. If he could put a distance between himself and Papa, then surely the pull would grow weaker? After all, it was only the shaman's gaze that affected him.

'I will make this a fair bet' Papa was saying. 'I will bet you that I can keep him tied to me and if that is the case, you can go free.'

Hutch shook his head. 'Uh uh. No deal. You may be able to do your mojo on him whilst you're both in the same room, but what'd happen when we put some distance between us and you?'

Papa Noir seemed to consider. 'What are you saying?'

'I'm sayin' that you should let us go. Allow us to make a run for it. If you still have a hold on Starsky and you can call him back, then fine, he's yours.'

'Um...guys...I'm right here' Starsky muttered, hating the fact that the two men were talking about him as though he wasn't there.

Papa Noir nodded. 'It would be a fair trial of power. Your friendship over my, as you put it, mojo.'

'Fine, cut our bonds, let us go and we'll be outa your hair.'

'So that you can bring your federal agents back to Lapetite?'

Hutch shook his head. 'No. No Feds. Believe me, once we're gone from this fuckin' town we don't ever want to come back.'

'What do you say?' Papa Noir turned to Kaleb who had so far been silent.

'If they go, do we get to hunt 'em?'

'If you desire.'

'With dogs?'

'If that is what you want, yes.'

Kaleb considered. 'How much time you gonna give 'em to git away?'

Papa Noir turned back to Hutch. 'Would an hour be fair?'

Hutch nodded finding the whole situation surreal. He was bargaining for their lives...maybe for Starsky's sanity whilst tied to a cartwheel in front of a witch doctor and he was doing it like he was bargaining for an extra buffalo wing at the local deli. 'An hour's good. Let us go, and we can start now.'

'Hutch what're ya doin'?' Starsky snapped. 'You gonna believe this flake?'

'From where I'm sat, we don't have a lot of choice partner.'

'You're as crazy as they are. There's swamp in every direction. They know where they are and we don't. Rethink it and...'

Papa Noir turned slowly so that he could look fully at Starsky. The brunet felt the full weight of the gaze as though a lead weight had landed on his chest. The air around him seemed to get thicker, making breathing difficult and despite fighting not to look into Papa's eyes, Starsky found himself drawn to the witch doctor.

'When I wish you to speak, mon cher, I will allow it. Until then...silence.' Papa Noir clicked his fingers in Starsky's direction and suddenly it was as though the brunet had a gag in his mouth. His tongue seemed to swell and his lips went dry as a bone so that he could neither form words, nor think about what he wanted to say. Starsky shook his head slowly from side to side like a wounded dog and yet the feeling wouldn't go. He looked at Hutch in mute appeal. Whatever deal the blond was going to cut with the men in the barn, Starsky was sure now that it was doomed to fail. The only thing he knew for sure was that he'd rather die than spend the rest of his life as Papa Noir's pet.

The shaman looked satisfied and turned back to Hutch. 'We have agreed terms, but there is still some preparation which means you will be our guests for just a little while longer.'

'Preparation? What preparation? No-one said anything about preparation. The deal was you let us go and we have an hours head start on you.'

'And indeed that is the deal, but I need to complete the bond between myself and my handsome acquisition. You wouldn't stop me from enjoying his company just a little while longer would you?'

'Like hell. The deal's off' Hutch yelled. 'You let us go now or every Fed in the country is gonna be crawling over your little empire like ants and...'

Papa Noir sighed. 'I tire of his voice. Shut him up for me' he told Kaleb. The sheriff grinned, tore off a grimy piece of sacking from a strip on the floor and tied it firmly around Hutch's mouth, firmly gagging the cop. Hutch shook his head and tried not to inhale the dirt and dust from the cloth. It stretched his mouth painfully and he found it difficult to breathe but he could no longer take his eyes away from the witch doctor as he started to open his large leather bag and lay out his props in front of Starsky.

'Now that we have silence, the preparation can begin' Papa Noir said softly, caressing Starsky's cheek once more.