CHAPTER 16

Hutch struggled to open his heavy eyes. It felt like his eyelids were glued shut. He could hear the sound of machines beeping close by and the drone of the intercom in the hallway, so he knew that he was in the hospital. As he became more alert, he became aware of the pain in his left side, a sharp pain that cut through his entire torso when he moved. As long as he lay still, the pain was manageable. He also became aware of the detached, floaty feeling that accompanied a dose of some heavy duty pain medication. With a sudden burst of clarity, he remembered finding Lonnie bent over Starsky's bed, preparing to inject something into one of his IVs. He also remembered the fight and the pain of being stabbed, then losing consciousness.

"Starsky!" He cried out frantically as he forced his eyes open. He tried to sit up, collapsing back on the bed with a gasp as the pain threatened to drag him back into unconsciousness.

"Shhhh…" a soothing voice said close by. "It's okay. Everything's fine. You're going to be okay."

"Starsk?" he whimpered forcing his eyes to focus on the face of Lacy, one of Starsky's nurses. An older woman in her late fifties with gray hair and a grandmotherly attitude, she was adept at making her patients comfortable.

"It's all right, love. He's right here in the other bed beside you. Your Captain Dobey advised the doctor that it would be in his best interest to put you both in the same room. He said you would both heal faster that way."

Hutch let out a sigh of relief as he looked past her and saw Starsky resting quietly in the second bed.

"You certainly caused quite a ruckus," Lacy told him. "Luckily. One of the security guards heard all the yelling and burst into the room just as another man ran out. The guard found you lying on the floor. He also found the body of a poor policeman in the bathroom with his throat cut. The poor boy. It was too late to do anything for him."

Hutch's eyes automatically darted to the closed door to the room he was sharing with Starsky.

As if reading his mind, Lacy continued, "Your Captain Dobey assigned two men to watch your door and told them not to let anyone in unless he had personally approved them."

The update relieved Hutch somewhat, but Lonnie was still out there, and as long as he was, he posed a threat to them both. Lacy finished her duties and left the room, leaving her two patients to rest.

That evening Captain Dobey stopped by to see his two injured men. Hutch was just finishing his bland supper and was glad to have the diversion of a visit. He pushed his half eaten meal away as Dobey sank down in one of the chairs between the two beds.

Starsky was still asleep, so he turned his attention to Hutch.

"Lonnie's dead. Two uniformed officers cornered him in an alley on forty-second street and he opened fire on them. Stood right out in the open, left himself wide open for them to return fire."

"Suicide by cop," Hutch muttered

"Suicide by cop," Dobey repeated with a nod of agreement. "So it looks like that wraps up this case. And I got word just before I left the office that the police in Jimmy's hometown are charging him with the murder of his parents. It looks like Lonnie may have actually had a hand in that, too."

"So they were more than just passing acquaintances from the same town."

"Distant cousins to be exact." Dobey told him "And it turns out that Jessica was another one of Jimmy's ex-girlfriends."

"Joys of a small town," Hutch said with a snort.

"Well, I need to be going. Edith will have supper on the table when I get home." Dobey lumbered to his feet and left the room. Hutch relaxed back against his pillow and closed his eyes.

"About time he left. How's a man supposed to get any rest around here?''

Hutch's eyes flew open at the sound of the familiar voice. He ignored the painful cramp in his neck as he twisted his head towards the other bed.

"Starsky! You're awake!" he cried in a joyful tone.

'Who could sleep with all the racket going on around here?" the brunet grumbled. One eye opened a slit and glared at Hutch accusingly. "How'd we end up roomies? The last I remember you were coming to my rescue. What'd I miss?"

"Lonnie snuck in here and was trying to give you something in your IV. I caught him and we had a little tussle. I didn't know he had a knife until it was too late."

"You Ok?" Starsky asked as his natural concern for his partner's well-being over- shadowed his own.

"I'm fine.'' Hutch reassured him "Just sore as hell, that's all."

'Good. Gonna get some sleep now."

Hutch smiled as Starsky's voice faded and his eyes closed. Hutch closed his own eyes and fell into a deep sleep.

Starsky was alert enough the next morning to complain about his liquid breakfast. In Hutch's eyes that was a sure sign that his partner was out of danger and on the mend.

After breakfast, Hutch was taken to physical therapy to be evaluated for exercises to help him regain his endurance and strength as soon as possible. Lonnie had stabbed him twice with a long bladed knife. Luckily, the blade had missed all his vital organs, but it had nicked an artery causing some internal bleeding.

When he returned to his room, he was stunned to find Starsky's bed empty. The brunet was not scheduled for any physical therapy yet so he shouldn't have been anywhere but lying in his bed.

"Where's my partner?" Hutch demanded in a concerned voice that was edged with anxiety.

"I'm sorry, sir. They had to take him back into surgery." The young nurse pushing his wheelchair informed him. "That's all I know. I'm sure someone will tell you more when it's over."

"Tell the doctor I want to talk to him as soon as he's available," Hutch said firmly.

"Yes, sir," She said meekly as she helped Hutch get settled back in his bed. She scurried from the room. Hutch sighed as he laid back and closed his eyes. He hadn't meant to intimidate or frighten the young girl, but his worry and concern for Starsky overshadowed his manners.

Unable to sleep, or even rest comfortably, Hutch waited anxiously for news about his best friend. Finally, over five hours after Hutch had returned from therapy, Starsky's doctor came into the room.

"Where's Starsky? What happened?" Hutch demanded before the man had the opportunity to speak.

The doctor held up his hand to ward off Hutch's questions. "As you already know we had to take David back into surgery a little while ago. If you remember, I told you that one of the injuries he sustained was a rip in the bowel which caused the contents of his bowel to seep into his abdomen. Unfortunately, that caused him to develop peritonitis which is basically a very serious infection. We had to remove the infected portion of his bowel." The doctor paused to give Hutch time to absorb that information before continuing "My biggest concern is that David may not be strong enough to survive another major surgery this soon. And if he does survive….there could very well be further complications."

"Like what?" Hutch demanded as he tried to choke back the lump that rose in his throat

"He's back in the I.C.U. He made it through the surgery, but it's too soon to tell how his body is going to handle the shock of another surgery this soon. His vital signs are erratic and we are having trouble getting his heart rate to stabilize. I've ordered some medication that hopefully will help with that. There is a possibility that we may have to put in a temporary pacemaker to take some of the strain off his heart, at least for now." The doctor paused and then added, "At this time, there is still brain activity…so by law he is still considered medically alive. But if at some point, the brain activity should stop and he becomes brain dead, then the best medical advice I could give the family would be to remove the life support."

"I have medical power of attorney," Hutch said fiercely. "And I will never allow that."

"If he becomes brain dead, you might want to change your mind. Essentially, he will be nothing more than a human vegetable."

Annoyed by the doctor's attitude and negative predictions, Hutch abruptly said "You're fired, doctor. I will be bringing in someone else to take over Starsky's case."

"As you wish, but I'm sure that another doctor will tell you the same thing." The doctor turned and left the room.