A DARK DAY IN MAY

CHAPTER 3

You soon learn to ignore the background noises in a hospital, the endless pages over the intercom, the quiet murmur of the nurse's voices as they go about their normal routine, the clatter of the medicine carts going from room to room. I was trying to concentrate on a magazine I'd confiscated from the waiting room when a page caught everyone's attention. "Code blue. Station one. Code Blue. Station one." A suddenly flurry of activity in the hallway brought us all to the doorway to see what was going on.

Dobey and I both shoved our way into the hallway when we realized that the nurses and doctors were all heading for Starsky's room. The other officers in the room flowed out into the hallway behind us as we rushed in that direction.

We all gathered around the observation window that looked into Starsky's room. The scene unfolding in front of us was one of frantic activity. The heart monitor beside Starsky's bed displayed a flat green line indicating no heartbeat. An older nurse with gray hair was busy doing chest compressions with a steady rhythm as the rest of the medical staff converged on the room. Starsky's face had taken on the slack, unresponsive appearance of a corpse.

It was difficult to see everything that was happening in the room since there were so many technicians and other medical stuff crammed into the tiny room. Snatches of conversation drifted out into the hallway. I heard words like "Cardiac arrest", "No vital signs", "Defibrillator", and "Epinephrine" I may not know what most of the words meant but I sure as hell knew what cardiac arrest meant. Starsky was dying and Hutch wasn't here like he was supposed to be.

I felt my stomach twist into knots as I watched a nurse slid a large flat board underneath Starsky's shoulders and back, between his body and the mattress. Another nurse was cutting through the bandages on his left side to expose his skin. I watched the scene unfolding in front of me with an overwhelming sense of loss and helplessness. I grimaced when I caught a glimpse of an angry red incision running across Starsky's stomach.

I held my breath, silently praying to a god that I had abandoned long ago.

Dear God, don't let him die! Not now! Not like this! He's a good man. He doesn't deserve this! I knew that my prayers were futile at best but that was all I had left to fall back on. I watched as Starsky's body arched violently when the doctor pressed one paddle of the defibrillator against his left side just under his ribcage and the second paddle against the middle of his mangled chest. I held my breath as the doctor stepped back and everyone's eyes, including mine, darted to the heart monitor. A flat line. No response. A nurse resumed the chest compressions while the doctor recharged the machine to a higher voltage.

Starsky's body jerked violently, arching off the bed again, but there was still no response. I barely noticed the nurse who stepped up to Captain Dobey and said quietly, "Captain Dobey, Sergeant Hutchinson is on the phone for you. Line two." My mind registered Dobey walking away to take the call. Come on, Hutch…get your ass here! Starsky needs you, man! My thoughts raced through my mind erratically. Please, God…don't take him just yet! Give Hutch time to get here!

I felt the jolt of electricity in my own chest as the doctor shocked Starsky again. Still nothing. I knew the doctor couldn't keep shocking him indefinitely. Sooner or later, he would have to give up. For a moment, I thought he had decided to do just that but then I heard him say "One more time."

Come on, Curly…come on! I whispered frantically as I watched the doctor prepare the paddles again. Starsky's skin had started to take on a grayish color as his body shut down. Then two things happened simultaneously. The doctor shocked Starsky's again, his body arching even more violently than before from the jolt of electricity and the doors at the end of the hallway burst open with a loud bang as Hutch came running down the hall like a madman. My eyes darted to the heart monitor as the line on the screen jumped erratically and then fell into a steady rhythm as Starsky's heart began beating on its own again. My knees almost gave out and I felt myself stagger backwards, falling into a chair sitting along the wall. I was overwhelmed with relief and an emotion that could only be described as pure joy.

The tall blond collided with a cart filled with dinner trays, shoving it aside in his desperate need to get to his partner's side. The terrified look in his eyes was plain to see. He skidded to a halt just outside the doorway as the doctor came out of the room. Looking at the worried faces surrounding him, the doctor smiled faintly and said in an awe struck voice, "We got him back. He's alive. He's still not out of it, but I'll be damned if he isn't still alive." A wild cheer went up from some of the officers gathered in the hallway as they slapped hands and shoulders in relief.

Without a word, Hutch shoved his way past the doctor and slipped into Starsky's room. Before leaving the room, a nurse stepped over to the window and pulled the curtain closed but not before I saw Hutch bowing his head, as he slumped down beside Starsky, his shoulders shaking with heart wrenching sobs that drifted into the hallway.

The rest of us returned to the makeshift command center, drained emotionally from the traumatic event we had just witnessed. Soon men began whispering among themselves about the miracle they had just seen. Starsky's heart had started beating the moment Hutch arrived, as if the blond half of the dynamic duo had willed his partner back to life with his very presence. Somehow, I knew that would become part of the legend of these two men and their remarkable partnership and friendship. Now, I'm not the type to believe in miracles but I had no doubt in my own mind that there was no other word to describe what had just happened.

I called The Pits to check in and told Diane to fix a basket of sandwiches to bring it to the hospital. Captain Dobey hadn't eaten anything since I'd been there and neither had a lot of the other men. At least I could do something by providing the hungry men with food. It had become almost a ritual whenever Starsky or Hutch was injured and in the hospital for me to bring them food. Neither one of them liked the hospital fare. I can't say that I blamed them. It always tasted like cardboard to me, even the candy bars in the vending machines didn't seem to have any flavor.

Captain Dobey was slumped at his temporary desk when Hutch came into the room. The deep lines on the taller man's face were evident, along with the dark circles under his eyes. "How is he?" Dobey asked wearily.

"Holding his own." Hutch said flatly, as he brushed a big hand over his face. He was desperately in need of some sleep but I knew he wouldn't rest until this crisis was over or Starsky was out of danger.

"The mechanic who tried to waste you in the hospital garage…" Dobey was saying.

"Yeah, did you get an ID?"

"Nope. They got to him in his cell at the county. Knifed him."

Hutch's eyes widened in alarm at the news as he grabbed a phone on a nearby table and quickly punched in a number. When someone answered on the other end, he said grimly "This is Hutchinson. Listen…Jenny Brown…we booked this afternoon. I want her transferred to maximum security." He listened intently for a moment and then his face darkened, his eyes flashing with anger. "What? Who sprung her?" He demanded. With a disgusted snort, he slammed down the receiver and growled at Dobey. "Jenny Brown was bonded out by some big shot lawyer named Jonathan Wells." He sprang to his feet and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" Dobey yelled after his rapidly retreating figure.

"To find out what the hell is going on!" Hutch yelled back over his shoulder.

"Well, don't just stand there!" Dobey barked, turning his attention to me. "Get out there with him! And try to keep him on a leash!"

Me? I thought to myself as I hurried down the hall after Hutch. Keep Blondie on a leash when he's in full blown avenging mode? Yeah, right! I'll be lucky if he doesn't tear me a new one for tagging along after him.