ROAD WORK AHEAD: EXPECT DELAYS
CHAPTER 8
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Captain Dobey headed toward The Pits. Things would make sense once he sorted it all out. Huggy could tell him where the detectives were to meet with Harry and if all other attempts to reach them failed, he would just go there himself. To make a decision gave the captain confidence. Why should he think anything was wrong? But he knew how easily those two men got into trouble. Their curiosity is what made them good detectives but it also was a source of frustration for their superior.
The Captain pulled up in front of The Pits. He breathed deeply as he exited the car. Silently he hoped that maybe Huggy would have heard from them and he'd be told that they were both on their way back and the whole trip was a waste of time. He shook his head as he entered the bar, knowing that his gut feeling meant the opposite.
"Well, well Captain Dobey… what brings you to this part of town?" Huggy slapped the bar towel over his shoulder as he reached out to shake the other man's hand.
Distracted by circumstances, the captain ignored the greeting to ask his own question, fully expecting a quick and precise answer.
"Have you heard from Starsky and Hutch? Do you know where they are?" The big black man parked on the nearest bar stool.
Huggy planted both his hands flat on the bar as he stared back at the man across from him. Captain Dobey did not easily pass the time with idle chatter when it came to Huggy. They had an uneasy understanding between them, connected by their individual relationships with Starsky and Hutch.
"Can't ya just ask 'em? What's got you so uptight,… ain't it alright?" Huggy knocked his cigarette against the ashtray before taking a deep drag.
"Huggy, cut the crap will ya? I need to know how to get in touch with them." The dark eyes that glared back at him, told Huggy more than he wanted to know. He ground out his cigarette as he blew the smoke out his nose. He watched the other man carefully.
"Captain, they in trouble?," Huggy asked in a serious, quiet tone. The grunt from the man in front of him told Huggy that his observation was an understatement.
Huggy blew out a long breath. He reached up to his hat, pulled it off and retrieved a folded up piece of paper. He smoothed it out over the surface of the bar to study it. After he read the words, he turned the paper so that Dobey could read it.
"This is all the contact I got about their rendezvous with Harry." Once before the thin bar owner had helped solve a puzzle that had led them to find Starsky that time in the old zoo. But just like then, Dobey wasn't in the mood to follow this man's words. He just wanted answers.
Dobey studied the paper, realizing that it was pretty vague and not likely to be of help. But maybe he could at least pick up in the direction he knew they'd had to follow and maybe get lucky and find them along the road, in the broken down LTD. If only it could be that simple.
He slapped his hand on the bar, stood up and walked toward the exit without having said anything else to Huggy.
"Just a minute my friend! Where do ya think you're goin?" Huggy slid down to the end of the bar to intercept the other man's exit. He reached out to the captain to stop him.
Gruffly, Dobey shrugged off Huggy's hand but turned to face him.
"They haven't checked in and don't answer their call sign. Now either they've chosen to ignore me which they know wouldn't be smart or…" He left the other choice hanging in the air. Unwilling to say it out loud, he reached in his pocket for the car keys.
Huggy held up his hands, silently asking the captain to stay put. The bar owner quickly made his way to the kitchen, spoke a few words to Diane and threw his apron on the counter as he walked back to join Dobey.
"Let's go, Amigo!" He presented a casual, uncaring attitude when in reality, Huggy was as concerned as Dobey. Huggy pushed the captain toward the door, not giving him time or space to object. Actually, Dobey was glad for the company. He was afraid of what they'd find and he didn't want to deal with it alone. Huggy had a good heart and was always willing to put himself out for his friends. The captain hoped Starsky and Hutch knew just how lucky they were to have such a person in their corner.
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Jimmy slumped down against the wall of the building. It was dark and quiet or at least as quiet as it was gonna get with a chick like Beth. She kept nagging at him, wanting to know what he was gonna do. They'd been there for about a half an hour. An idea was beginning to take shape for Jimmy and he was just about ready to act on it.
"Babe, listen to me. We're gonna go back and pick up your boyfriend. He can help us get to Mexico. He's our ticket to freedom!" Jimmy jumped up, renewed with ideas and adrenaline. He thought about leaving Beth behind, but hell, it would be good once they got to Mexico to settle down with her. Having that body next to him always made him feel like he could do anything. She always believed in him and now that she was having a kid, well, he needed to do right by her.
Having a cop as insurance and the radio to monitor the police as they hunted for him, would give them the advantage. He could stay one step ahead of everybody.
'But Jimmy, you beat him up pretty bad. What if you… what if he's dead?" Beth couldn't handle that. She'd seen what Jimmy was capable of when it came to fighting but that guy never moved once he hit the ground. Too bad 'cause he sure was foxy. She loved guys with muscles and dark curly hair. She studied Jimmy who had that same look but there was something sort of dangerous about him that she found extremely sexy. Maybe her luck would change once they got to Mexico.
"He ain't dead. C'mon, we're goin' back to get him and then we can be on our way. Just keep quiet though. I'm sick of your jabbering." He pulled her toward him for a hard kiss. He might be sick of her chatter, but he'd never get enough of the taste of her.