I'd really appreciate your reviews as I post new chapters. This was meant to be only an echo of what's happening in Hutch's mind and it was not meant to be a very long story. I finished writing it, but I feel it could be better. Anyway, it's my first dark one, so I guess I'm still learning... Thanks for your indulgence and comments.

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Chapter 3

One night...a few months after the wedding ceremony...

Anna, Hutch and Starsky had been spending the evening at the ballet. When the show was over, they walked outside, discussing their impressions. Hutch was holding Anna by the waist, close to him, delighted by what he just saw while Anna was explaining in detail all the efforts involved behind an apparently easy performance.

It was raining. Starsky turned to the blondes.

"I'm gonna get the car up front. No use the three of us transforming my car into a pool."

As he was walking away just a few steps from them, someone suddenly shouted and the brunette saw a man waving a gun around, with a mad look in his eyes, obviously ready to shoot at anything without notice. Starsky did not have his gun, nor did his partner. They were on leave.

In a fraction of a second, he assessed the situation. He was too far from the man to attempt to disarm him. And the man seemed ready to lose control any second.

When he heard the first shot, he quickly looked at Hutch and Anna; they were in the line of fire. Without a second thought, he sprang towards them.

... ... ...

Hutch saw Starsky suddenly come to a standstill, he saw the look in his eyes as he slumped to his knees, the rest of his body sliding to the ground. Hutch ran and caught his friend just before he hit the road.

"Starsk, nooooooooo, don't, pleeeease, God noooooo!"

Hutch shouted "Would someone call an ambulance? Quick!!"

"Hu... Huuuutch". Starsky's voice was only a whisper now. "I'm... s... sorry...."

"What for, Buddy? Oh please, hang on, you're gonna be all right. Hang on, you hear me?"

"T... try... trying... hurts... can't move."

"It's normal, Buddy, don't try to move. I'm gonna take care of you."

"Don't.... don't blame... y'self." Starsky managed to whisper with even more difficulty. "I'm cold... can't f... feel... legs..."

"Shhh, 's OK. Don't worry, I'm holding you, Pal. Stay quiet."

Anna had rejoined her husband who was on his knees and holding Starsky's head on his lap. The brunette's body was lifeless. His eyes were almost closed. Hutch tried not to move, panicked at the sight of the blood on his partner's back, now a large spot growing larger by the minute. He felt as if the bullet had touched him too. He was holding his breath, listening and monitoring life signs from Starsky. The brunette suddenly shook with a spasm then seemed to lose consciousness. Hutch started to panic.

"Don't you quit on me, Man. Don't do that! Rescue is on its way. I'm holding you. I'm right here, Starsk. Please stay with me."

Anna took off her long white coat and gently covered Starsky's body with it. Hutch did not react. She softly stroked her husband's hair, in silence. She knew Hutch was not listening to anything else than his friend's breathing. She felt like she would lose him, if anything bad should happen to Starsky.

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Medical assistance had arrived rather fast on site. The paramedics, a young man and a woman in their early thirties, had rushed out the ambulance and had carefully assessed Starsky's condition before trying to move him. They had secured his neck with a neck brace and immobilize his body on the gurney to prevent any further strain on the wound. The young ambulance attendants were already covering the body of the brunette with a warm blanket when Hutch walked with the obvious intention to step into the emergency vehicle with Starsky. The woman stopped his momentum.

"I'm sorry, Sir, but you are not allowed to go in there. He needs to be transported immediately to the Emergency Unit."

"I need to stay with him. He is my partner, my best friend and I will not let him alone!" Hutch was shouting now, obviously panicked at the idea of leaving Starsky by himself.

"Sir, your partner got a bullet in his back; the spine seems to have been hit. The quicker we react with this kind of wound, the more chances we have to prevent irreversible complications."

"But, I need to be with him!"

"No, sir, I'm sorry." was the final reply.

The ambulance woman was already heading to the vehicle which shot off, heading to the Memorial.

Hutch stood frozen for a fraction of second then rushed to a taxi with Anna. During their drive to the hospital, she took his hand in hers and remained silent. She had seen this kind of injury once and hoped that her worst fears were wrong, only for this time.

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One week! And I feel like I am ten years older. It has been only one week since Starsky was brought to the Memorial in a critical condition. His heart gave up once during the ambulance transport. They somehow managed to revive him. One hour after being admitted, he had another heart attack. The doctor who saved him for the second time in less than an hour told me my partner was fighting, but the next few nights would be the road to Hell.

I have been spending hours by his side, as soon as the doctors allowed me to. Holding his hand, talking to him, even if he was in a coma for a few days. I felt like he needed the sound of my voice to find his way back to the land of the living. Sometimes, I could feel his hand so cold that I shivered at the idea he was gone while I was dozing off for a few minutes. But then I heard the breathing support he was connected to and as long as no critical alarm went off, it meant he was holding on.

Anna was coming often to check on him, and I feel I have been suddenly neglecting her a lot lately. I hope she understands that my partner needs me to face this new ordeal. On a few occasions, I even spent an entire night at the hospital, sleeping on a chair, feeling my presence was needed for Starsky to feel he is not alone.

Rachel came from New York. It tore me apart to see her face when she entered the ICU room where her beloved son was lying and fighting for life. But it felt good to have her around. I felt the more love and warmth surrounded Starsk, the quicker he would wake up and get better.

Three days ago, the doctor asked to talk to us all. He had a dark look on his face when he led us to his office.

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"Mrs Starsky... Mr Hutchinson..."

Rachel is sitting next to me, discretely hiding a tissue in her hand. I can see she is trying to hold her tears back.

"Despite former very serious wounds, Detective Starsky is lucky to have been in good physical condition when he was injured this time. But he has taken a very critical hit. So far, we have managed to stabilize all vital functions; he has undergone two operations already, but..."

"But?" I am afraid of what to expect.

"Right now, we have focused on breathing and circulatory response. He lost a lot of blood but we managed to control the hemorrhage. What we are more worried about is the bullet fragment lodged close to his spine, putting pressure on a nerve, at the lumbar level. We have not been able to remove it and, to tell you the truth, we can not perform another operation right now. He is too weak."

"What is it you are saying, Doctor?" Rachel asks in a very soft voice.

The Doctor takes a deep breath and looks at me, with frowning and yet gentle eyes at the same time.

"Your son... is paralyzed, from his waist down to his feet."

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