AN UNEASY ALLIANCE

Chapter 3

An hour later, Hutch sat with the police artist, describing the kid he'd seen trying to rob the old lady. They knew her now as Gladys Delight Hawkins, a very feisty, determined senior citizen.

"Everybody just calls me Delight." She took the cup of water that Starsky offered, nodding her thanks.

After she introduced herself, Starsky raised his eye brow and beamed a smile at her. She was used to this sort of reaction at her name.

Starsky hunched over the typewriter, scratching out his latest mistake as Delight continued with her statement.

"The girls at the senior center got tired of being scared to walk down the street so we invited an instructor to come and give us self defense lessons. We've only had two but they certainly boosted my confidence, let me tell you!" Delight sat in the steel chair, back straight; ankles crossed and held her purse in her lap. She stared at Starsky, offering advice.

"You know, if you cut your hair and dressed a little nicer, you'd be just right for my granddaughter. She's a nurse."

Starsky rolled his eyes as the woman sat across from him, flashing an innocent grin. His stomach still ached from the punch to his mid-section, delivered by a very determined lady with a heavy purse. He chose to ignore the granddaughter invitation and returned the conversation back to the attempted robbery she'd experienced.

"But Delight, you need to learn to keep your head up. Make sure you're aware of your surroundings. If my partner and I hadn't been there…"

"I know, David. That's what the instructor said we should do. But sometimes that hurts my neck. Oh, it just isn't safe around here anymore. Officer, am I done now? I've got to get back home to feed Stripes… that's my cat. He's probably crying already from lack of attention."

She stood up, dismissing Starsky in her mind and now only focused on getting home to her cat: Stripes got grumpy when left alone too long.

Starsky signaled a uniformed cop that stood by the water cooler. They had spoken earlier and Officer Davidson had agreed to take Mrs. Hawkins home.

Delight had changed her plans since she was tired and had enough excitement for one day.

She didn't seem to take any more notice of her surroundings but headed straight for the exit.

Hutch stood beside his partner, looking at the drawing in his hand.

Starsky settled his butt on the back of the chair, his feet positioned on the seat. He glanced over at the picture in Hutch's hands.

"So that's the kid you saw who tried to steal Delight's purse? Wonder if he's responsible for the other crimes that involved older women and their purses?" Delight told Starsky that two of her friends had also been approached, their purses stolen but they were not hurt, just shaken up.

"Could be. Those other people were all members of the same senior citizen's group." Hutch set the drawing down and leaned against the metal desk, facing Starsky.

"It's not in the best neighborhood. That part of town has really been neglected." Hutch scratched his chin, thinking about the homeless people they encountered every day. Now it seemed that kids were part of that population.

Starsky looked at his friend, recognizing the signs that Hutch was worried. He was sure that Kiko was on his mind and was rewarded with such a comment.

"I'm just really glad Kiko got back on track and is doing well in school. He's content now with his mom and he's on the basketball team. His grades are good too."

Hutch had been Kiko's mentor for several years. The boy had gone through a rough patch, hanging out with the wrong crowd and he'd shut Hutch out of his life. But now, the two were friends again and they often went camping, something Starsky didn't participate in.

He had always admired the relationship but Starsky didn't feel he was capable of the same thing. He liked kids but worried that he couldn't relate enough to make a difference. He often thought about his brother Nicky. He still felt guilty that he was responsible for the problems his younger sibling encountered.

After their father had died, Starsky started to hang out with a rough group of older boys. He got into some minor scrapes but it was more than his mother could handle. During the summer after his father's death, Rachel Starsky sent her oldest son to California to live with her sister and brother-in- law. Al and Rosie didn't have any children but were eager to help the young family in any way they could. Starsky protested but with no luck changing his mother's plans. He spent the first year sullen and withdrawn until he understood that his mother had only been thinking of his well being.

However, that left Nicky without any male influence so he searched outside the home for acceptance and found it in the same group that their mother had wanted to rescue Starsky from. As it turned out, Nicky was the perfect addition to the hard core group. He stayed out all night and continued to get into trouble through out his teen years. By the time he was eighteen, he'd become a member in good standing with this group and was proud of himself for his role within his surrogate family.

Starsky tried to help anyway he could. He worked from the time he got to California and sent money home. He hoped that with more money available, Nicky could go to a private school, but his brother constantly ditched classes and was thrown out of a number of good schools.

Even as adults, Nicky still resented his older brother. Starsky wasn't sure how to help his brother but tried to shield their mother from bad news when Nicky turned up at his door or called asking for money. He was a disappointment to Rachel Starsky and a constant cause of frustration for Starsky.

Doing his best to clear his mind of that life long burden, he set his feet on the floor and stood up. He patted Hutch on the back and silently directed him to follow.

"Let's go check out the senior center." Starsky spoke over his shoulder as he pushed open the double doors out to the hallway.

"Delight said that Wednesday was homemade cookie day at the center." Starsky rubbed his belly in anticipation.

'Is that all you think about, food? We need details man!" Hutch shook his head at his partner's obsession with junk food.

"Well, I think better with food near by."

The two men headed toward the elevator, sharing a laugh and already planning their next steps involving the purse snatching caper.