She's Not There

By M. Willow

Chapter Fourteen

The dinner was familiar. Hutch knew the restaurant. Had been there often. He knew Susan had done it deliberately. Still, the fetching redhead had claimed to have cooked every morsel.

"I hope you like it," she said as she spooned heaping spoonfuls of the mashed potatoes on his plate. "It took hours to make. I'm not a vegetarian myself so I have no idea if it taste good."

Starsky, Susan and Hutch were sitting at the kitchen table in Starsky's apartment pretending to enjoy the meal. In reality, they were waiting for Susan to try and kill Hutch.

He took a bite. "It's perfect," he said tightly.

She smiled as Starsky went through a list of the strange foods the blond put into his body. Hutch watched the interplay between the two.

Starsky was sitting next to Susan, his hand touching hers. He was playing it for all it was worth, acting like the loving, attentive boyfriend. If Hutch hadn't known him well, he would have sworn the brunet was actually in love with Susan, but he did know him. Starsky was pretending that Susan was really Jenny. It was the only way he could get through it.

Hutch pretended to be in good spirits, laughing often, eating the familiar food as if it had been prepared by a master chef. But he had every reason to be in good spirits. Before he had arrived, Huggy had called with information on a certain middle aged man who recently sought the help of a close friend of his. This man had been shot in his right arm and needed the doctor to patch him up. Said doctor owed the tall barkeeper a favor and had let him know about the man described as grey haired with intense grey eyes. A man who called himself Johnny. The doctor had visited him several times at his room in a seedy hotel. He'd given the man some highly potent pain killers and the man had babbled endlessly about killing a woman cop. The doctor had heard that Huggy was looking for information and called him.

Huggy was very glad to turn the information over to Hutch who made a stop at the hotel to arrest the man while his partner took a day off to watch Susan.

Picking up the man had been relatively easy, since he had been pretty delirious, and unable to fight. After the grey haired man had been cleaned up, he'd been lucid enough to confess his whole part in the scheme to kill Hutch. He told him about Kira and how he had kidnapped and forced her to call Hutch. He'd even admitted to telling Kira all about who'd set her up.

The man had said his name was actually Carlton Thomas, although Hutch suspected the name was really an alias. At any rate, Carlton had been very frightened, demanding that Hutch lock him up and throw away the key. He was nearly hyperventilating as he begged Hutch to save him from Medusa.

"You got to protect me," the man had pleaded. "She'll get to me somehow. She wants to kill me because I messed up."

And Hutch had watched the tall, muscular man, break down into a whimpering mass of fear.

Carlton had never seen Susan's face, nor did he want to see it. "You should have seen those five guys," he'd said. "She cut out their eyes and carved Medusa on their stomachs."

Then Carlton had begged to be locked up in a maximum security prison where he at least had a chance to live.

"I killed a woman and a maid back in Boston," he had admitted in his thick New York accent. Two people that Medusa hired me to off. That's got to be worth a lot of prison time. Put me in a maximum security facility where she can't get at me. I rather be locked up then dead by her hands."

Carlton had then given details about coming into the house and finding the two women in the living room. He shot both point blank then left them dead on the floor. He didn't know why Susan had ordered the hits, but felt it had to be personal or she would have done it herself instead of paying him to do it.

"Cops never found them," he'd said. "Really bugged me about that."

And Hutch had recalled the lie Susan originally told. When she'd first arrived, Susan had claimed that her only relative had been an aunt who'd recently died. She also said that her sister was deceased, but later explained that she was an only child who'd learned to think of the aunt's daughter as her sister. But as Hutch had listened to Carlton's confession, he'd realized that she most likely had lived with her aunt and the sister was really Jenny. Mrs. Sweet had confirmed this theory by saying that Susan didn't live with Jenny. And that she'd been sent to live in a different part of Boston, safely away from the legitimate daughter.

Johnny had also mentioned a bag lady and told him that Medusa had most likely killed her for the clothes the woman wore. Hutch remembered hearing about a bag lady found strangled in an alley a little over a week ago. Still, the information wasn't enough. Susan had left no clues. So, now he was sitting in his partner's apartment, listening to murderess prattle on about food and how she prepared it.

Hutch shoved mouthfuls of food into his mouth, chewing cheerfully, the thought that it may be poisonous nagging at him. But they had to make it look good. And poison wasn't part of her M.O. No, when she came after him, it would be when he was alone.

Susan was dipping heaping loads of his favorite ice cream into bowls. Honestly, Hutch didn't want it. He ate slowly, then pushed the bowl to the side. "That was delicious; Susan, but I can't eat another bite."

Then they retired to the living room where Susan supplied him with a can of beer and an empty glass. The beer can was unopened. He put the glass on the table and opened the can, swigging the amber liquid gratefully. He didn't bother to use the glass.

"Susan likes to build model planes like me, Hutch," The brunet said, pretending to be proud of her accomplishment. Hutch was reading his partner's eyes, listening to the conversation just beneath the words, silently communicating their day without a single word being exchanged between them.

Without words, Hutch told him he had a breakthrough and Starsky told him that everything was going as planned.

The evening went by quickly, conversation flowing with ease. Susan was a consummate actress, joining in on the light banter between the partners, never knowing they were talking to each other between words. Even Kira didn't know that about them. She'd probably provided a detailed report, but she'd mostly seen them separately, and when they had been butting heads. She'd never been around when they were functioning as a cohesive unit.

Starsky raised an eyebrow at one point and Hutch signaled he was alright with one look. Both men had been worried about the possibility of drugs.

Then Susan brought another beer which Hutch drank slowly. And then, she made her move.

She was sitting on the sofa. Every now and then, she would open her legs a tiny bit. Since Hutch was sitting directly across from her, he could see she wore no panties.

"David," she purred. "We got anymore beer in the fridge? Hutch needs another one."

Hutch wanted to decline. He'd just finished his third beer and wanted to remain alert, but he knew this was a pivotal moment. She needed to know that they were not suspicious of her, so he nodded his head, requesting another beer.

"Starsky shot him a look, then rose from the sofa. "I'll get it."

But his partner returned shortly. "Nothin' in the fridge. I'll have to go out and get some more." Starsky looked at him levelly, the eyes saying this is it. Then he went into the bedroom and came back with his jacket on. He gave Hutch one more look, then opened the door and headed out. And Hutch watched her change.

First came the cat-like smile. Then she moved her legs further apart, pushing her chest out, displaying full cleavage in the low-cut red blouse. "Alone at last. Tell me you don't want me."

He couldn't believe she was trying to seduce him. He'd expected any number of things from her, but not this. She had to know it wouldn't work on him. "I don't want you," he said simply.

"I thought so."

Hutch heard the engine start and Starsky's car driving away. He spoke quickly, "I agreed to be here to give you another chance. Are you trying to seduce me?"

"Thought it might be fun, but I really didn't think my little seduction would work."

Hutch shrugged.

Susan stood up and started unbuttoning her blouse. "You know, if it hadn't been for David, I might have gone for you in a big way. All that blond hair. I bet you're blond all over."

She started walking toward him and he stood quickly. He thought of reaching for his gun, but she was hardly a threat. She was a small in comparison to him. Nevertheless, he remained guarded.

"I would advise you to stay where you are," Hutch warned, backing away from her. "You know, it doesn't have to be this way. Why do you hate me so much?"

"Because he loves you so much."

"I'm no threat to you."

"But you are. I see the way he looks at you. The way you look at him."

"You're not suggesting we're lovers?"

"Of course not. I know him better than that." Her voice was devoid of emotions. She was reciting facts. Nothing else.

She slowly slipped off the blouse. "Are you sure you don't want me?"

"Lady, I wouldn't touch you for anything."

"That's too bad. If you had, it would have saved me from having to set you up. In either case, you're done for. You see, he wants me. He loves me and he doesn't trust you anymore. He's mine now."

Susan dropped the blouse to the floor and started on the skirt, slowly inching it down over her hips. He wasn't in the least bit turned on.

"Who do you think you are?" he asked.

"I'm your worse nightmare, Kenneth," she said, her voice low, seductive. "I'm the devil. I'm the woman who haunts your nightmares. On your death bed I'm the last face you'll see."

"Is that a threat?"

"I don't make threats, Kenneth. I think you know that about me already."

"You won't get away with it. You kill a cop, everybody will come after you."

"Kenneth, Kenneth, Kenneth," she said mockingly, letting the skirt fall to the floor. "Why do you always think I want you dead? Maybe I just want you in my bed."

Now it was clear. Susan intended to make it look like they'd had sex. Most likely nonconsensual.

"He won't believe this crap," he said. "He'll know it's a set-up."

"Is it?" Hutch noticed her voice had deepened. "I guess fucking that little blonde detective made David trust you. What do you think would happen if you did it again? He'll never forgive you this time."

Now she wore only the bra and stood there as if it were normal. She had to see her little plan wasn't working, yet she continued with her little seduction.

"You manipulated me into your bed, Kenneth," Susan said slowly, touching her breast through the nearly see-through black bra. "You see, I'm a willing participant because I'm weak. I do what people tell me. And you took advantage of poor little Susan."

He wanted to arrest her there and then, but he still didn't have enough. Worse yet, she was standing there, nearly nude. What kind of arrest could he get out of that?

Hutch made his voice cold when he spoke. "He'll never believe you. He'll throw you out on your sweet little ass."

"Mmm. I don't think so. You see he loves me. Loves what I do to him. He doesn't need you anymore. He'll believe what he sees."

Susan fingered the lace on the bra seductively, then she reached behind her back and Hutch prepared to see the bra come off next. He didn't see her real intentions until it was too late. She moved quickly, almost in a flash. He saw the tiny spray bottle and then the burning sensation followed. He dropped to the floor, gasping for breath, his eyes feeling like they were on fire.

Reaching into his jacket for his gun, he felt surprisingly strong hands clamp down on his, but he manage to reach his weapon and held firm. All the while his eyes burned as if acid had been thrown into them. Susan grabbed his hand, her sharp teeth biting through flesh. He slammed his arm backwards and sent her spiraling, the gun slipping from his hand. In seconds she was on him again, slapping his face, biting his arm, using her whole body to attack him. It was like fighting a tiger.

They rolled across the floor, Hutch blindly searching for the gun. And then he felt hot pain slash through him as her knee slammed into his groin. Time seemed to stand still as he lay on the floor, curled in a ball, gasping for breath. The pain was excruciating, immobilizing him in spite of the danger. And a spilt second later her foot slammed into his groin yet again. He writhed in unimaginable pain, unable to speak. He forced his eyes open, saw through the searing fire as she casually walked over and picked something up off the floor. He realized with growing dread that it had to be the gun. He knew he needed to get up before she got a shot off. .

Hutch moaned as he moved, dragging himself to the sofa, trying in vain to pull himself from the floor, hot pain searing through his groin and eyes. Then she was standing there.

"I've got something for you," Susan said, her voice childlike.

And then she grabbed him by the hair, pulling his head back painfully. Hutch felt something sharp plunge into his upper arm then she let him go and stood back watching. In seconds the room seemed to sway and he fell back to the floor. He looked up and saw her standing completely nude, gun in her hand. He could only imagine what she would do next.

Now, his only hope was that somehow his partner had heard the commotion. He knew the dark-haired detective hadn't really gone to the store. He pictured him outside, looking up at the window, waiting for a sign that something was wrong. But he knew the struggle hadn't been loud enough for Starsky to hear. And if he shouted out for him, she might decide to kill them both. He was at the mercy of Susan now. He had only one recourse.

"Don't hurt Starsky," he murmured.

"Don't worry about that. I love him. It's you I want to hurt."

And then Hutch plunged into darkness.

TBC