CHAPTER ELEVEN

Hutch sat back in the booth, lost in thought. He had just finished sorting through the various sightings that had been called into the agency once the sketches of Starsky were posted coast to coast. Some of them were obviously false, such as the one that said Starsky had been abducted by alians. But, some of them sounding promising, especially the one from a truck driver who said he had picked up man fitting Starsky's description just outside of Mesa the night Starsky disappeared from the area. The message said he had dropped the man off in El Paso. The message included the truck drivers name and a contact number. Hutch had called the number but the driver was on the road and wouldn't be back home until the following day.

Hutch also had a detailed report on Rachel and Nick Starsky's murders and what little could be found out about Mitch Conners for the time he had been in Mesa, which wasn't much. Hutch took a sip of the iced tea sitting on the table in front of him. He would much rather have had a beer but he hadn't had a drink in almost two weeks and he wasn't about to fall off the wagon now. Too much depended on him staying sober.

But, the urge was there and it was just as strong as it had ever been.

He glanced up as Huggy approached his table and slid into the seat across from him. The tall thin man was dressed conservatively, at least by his standards, in a pair of lavender slacks and a bright yellow shirt.

"How's it going, my man?" Huggy asked, noting the dark circles under Hutch's eyes and the slight tremor in his hands. Having battled his own demons with the bottle, Huggy knew from experience how hard is was for Hutch to fight those demons alone.

"Slow. I got one lead that sounds promising," Hutch told him "A truck driver based here in California saw one of the sketches and called in to say that he picked up a hitchhiker just outside of Mesa the night Starsky took off. He said that he dropped him off in El Paso."

"That sounds like Curly, heading south where it's warm." Huggy said with a smirk. His expression turned serious, "What are you going to do now?"

"Start following his trail." Hutch replied in a determined voice. "I wanna talk to this truck driver first…see what he has to say…find out what Starsky told him."

"You think you can find him? I know Curly…if he doesn't want to be found, it's not going to be easy following his trail."

"That's why I send those sketches out all over the country." Hutch said, "I'm hoping that people will keep calling in with sightings."

"You sure that was such a good idea?" Huggy asked in a concerned tone. "I mean plastering those sketches up all over the place like that? Suppose the bad guys see them and pick up on his trail too?"

"That's a risk I had to take. It's a big country. I had to have help figuring out which direction he was headed in." Hutch said a bit defensively.

"I know you don't want to hear this, but, what if you don't find him?"

"I have to find him, Hug…" Hutch said, a catch in his voice that betrayed his emotions. "I have to." He swallowed hard to dislodge the sudden lump in his throat. "I have to." He repeated again. "For his sake…"

And for your sake too, Blondie, Huggy thought to himself. He didn't have to say his thoughts out loud. He could see the desperation in Hutch's eyes. He knew if Hutch didn't find Starsky, he would crawl back into the bottle and never come out again. If he made it past the barrel of his gun. He sighed softly as he came to a decision of his own.

"You want some company?"

"What?" Hutch asked, arching one eyebrow at the thin black man questioningly.

"Do you want some company?" Huggy repeated patiently. "I'm due for a vacation from this place. I thought maybe I'd tag along with you…help you find Curly boy before he gets himself into too much trouble."

"I can't ask you to do that."

"Hey, you ain't asking, I'm volunteering." Huggy said with a grin. "Besides, I figure you might need some looking after too."

"I look that bad, huh?" Hutch said with a chuckle. He finished the rest of his iced tea and signaled the waitress for another one. He was only half joking. When he looked in the mirror each morning, he knew that he looked like hell, even with his hair cut and clean shaven.

"I've seen you looking worse than this." Huggy pointed out with a smirk.

"Yeah, I know." Hutch admitted ruefully. He was ashamed at how far down he had allowed himself to fall, how much of his pride and self respect he had sacrificed grieving for the loss of his partner and best friend. The idea of having Huggy Bear accompany him on his journey was appealing and he sure could use the company. Huggy may not be Starsky but he was a close second when it came to being a true friend.

Too many people misjudged Huggy. All they saw was the flashy clothes and the jive talk. But, Huggy was a product of the streets. He knew how to take care of himself when the chips were down and he was loyal to his friends. Hutch couldn't think of a better man to be covering his back on this trip.

"So when do we leave?" Huggy asked, almost as if he had read Hutch's mind the way that Starsky used to do.

"How about as soon as I talk to this truck driver? He's supposed to be home tomorrow." Hutch told him. "So, why don't we plan on taking off Friday morning?"

"Sounds good to me." Huggy said "That'll give me time to go over things with Diane and Anita before I take off. Good thing I trust them not to rob me blind while I'm gone."

"Are you kidding?" Huggy said with a grin "They watch this place as if they owned it when you're gone."

"That they do." Huggy agreed "And since I am the owner of this fine establishment, I'd better get back to work."

"Thanks, Huggy." Hutch said gratefully. Huggy nodded as he rose to his feet. He

knew that Hutch was thanking him for more than just his company and a little conversation.

As Huggy returned to his duties behind the bar, Hutch stood up and left some money on the table to pay his tab. He gathered up the papers scattered across the top of the table, stuffing them in his jacket as he left the bar.

Hutch took a deep breath of the cool night air as he exited through the front door. For the first time in almost ten years, he felt as if he had a sense of direction, a purpose in his life that finally made sense. One way or the other, he was going to find Starsky and bring him home again. Together they would bring Starsky back from the dead.