LOVE LIVES ON

By

Tooki

(copyright 2010)

CHAPTER 1

  It was a beautiful fall day; she was on her hands and knees pulling weeds from between her fading hostas when she felt a presence next to her.  She peeked over her shoulder to see two blue tennis shoes and jeans; she knew instantly who it was.  She sat back on her heels and looked up into his face.  “What are you doing here Starsky?” Susan asked.  She wasn’t particularly surprised to see him in fact she was surprised it had taken him this long.

   “Hutch has been kidnapped.” He said his face serious as he looked down at her. He hadn’t seen her in seven years but she hadn’t changed a bit, at least not on the outside.

  Susan got to her feet as she dusted the dirt from her hands.  “What has that got to do with me?”  She hadn’t meant it to sound so callous but she had a new life.

  “He was taken by the same man the kidnapped and killed Jesse.” Starsky said slowly as he ran his hand though his curly dark hair.  

  Susan closed her eyes that had been the darkest day in their lives when they realized that eight year old Jesse had been kidnapped.  She was missing for two weeks with endless taunts from the kidnapper before they finally found her dead on a playground not far from their home.  It had devastated everybody, and their marriage had only lasted a year after that, if that year could have been called a marriage, both she and Hutch had walked around in a daze until she had finally asked for a divorce and moved back east.

  “I need you to come.” Starsky said studying her face.

  “I can’t.”

  “But it’s, Hutch.”

  “I know but I can’t, I have a new life now I can’t go back.” Susan said, her heart breaking again from the memories.   “Hutch will understand.”

  “Maybe but I won’t.” Starsky said, his world had been torn apart too, not only had he lost his god daughter but the other two people he love most in the world might as well of died with the little girl. 

  Susan looked at her ex-partner with pleading eyes.  “Don’t ask me to do this.”

  “I already have.” Starsky countered. She looked at her watch and she was suddenly nervous, Starsky looked at his it was nearly six p.m., he was guessing her husband would be home any moment.  He started shaking his head. “He doesn’t know does he?”  Susan looked at the ground refusing to look Starsky in the face.  “Does he?” Starsky repeated.

  “NO,” She said looking toward the driveway. 

  “How much doesn’t he know?”  Starsky wanted to know.

  “None of it, he doesn’t know any of my past.”  Susan now looked at Starsky, tears in her eyes; she knew that he was not going away.

  “I think it’s about time you tell him don’t you?” Starsky asked.  “This is going to hit national news this time, I’m sure of it.  And you are right smack in the middle assuming he knows your last name was Carlston.”

  “I didn’t change my name.”

  “Just left out the hyphenated part?” Starsky asked grimly, this hadn’t been the reunion he had wanted.  It was his turn to check his watch.  His flight left back to California in six hours and he was hoping Susan would be on that flight with him. 

  A car pulling into the driveway distracted both of them.  They watched as a tall handsome man with dark hair get out carrying his suit jacket over his arm and a briefcase in his hand.  The man lifted his hand toward the two of them then frowned when he realized he didn’t know the gentleman talking to his wife.

  He strolled across the yard, his eyes not leaving his wife’s face; he could tell something was wrong.  He kissed her on the cheek when he reached her side and asked as he extended his hand toward Starsky, “Who do we have here?”  The question wasn’t jealous or suspicious just curious.

  “This is David Starsky.” Susan said. 

  “Nice to meet you, David.” He smiled.

  “Just call me Starsky.” The detective said as he accepted the hand offered to him.

  “Starsk, this is my husband, John Stockton.” 

  “Nice to meet you John,” Starsky said as he looked at Susan. 

  An awkward silence fell between the three adults.  Finally, Susan took a deep breath and said, “John, we need to talk.”

  “Oh that’s never good,” John joked but the smile faded quickly and looked Starsky, wondering just who he was. 

  After settling in the living room, glasses of iced tea in hand, John asked, “What is going on?” 

  “I’m not sure where to began,” Susan said glancing at Starsky; she wished that she could tell her husband in private but she knew that Starsky wasn’t leaving.

  “I think at the beginning is good, you are starting to scare me.” John said taking his wife’s hand.

  Susan gave him a faint smile.  “You don’t have to be scared; there are just some things that you don’t know about me.”

  “Like?”

  “I used to be a police officer; in Los Angeles and Starsky was one my partners.”

  “One, who was the other?”  John said leaning back into the couch a little overwhelmed to find out that his wife had been a cop.

  “I was married before.”  John’s eyebrows shot up but he didn’t say anything waiting for her to go on, “Well my other partner, Ken Hutchinson, was also my husband.”

  “Alright, but that doesn’t explain what David is doing here.”  John looked at the curly headed man sitting across from him. 

 Starsky started to open his mouth to explain but Susan shot him a look, they still had their nonverbal communication down even after all the years that had passed.  “There is more John.”

  “How much more can there be?”

  “Hutch and I had a daughter named Jesse, she was eight years old when she was kidnapped and killed.”  Susan said in a rush of words.  Tears stood in her eyes as she looked at her husband of five years praying he would understand why she hadn’t told him about her past. 

  Susan stood up and nodded to her ex-partner as she left the room giving him permission to tell her new husband the rest, she had to be alone for a few minutes so she headed outside. 

  John started to get up and follow her, “Let her go,” Starsky said, “She needs to be alone.”

  John’s forehead furrowed.  “She does, does she?”  He didn’t like this man that entered their lives and especially didn’t like him telling him how to care for his wife.

  As if reading John’s mind Starsky said, “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to tell you how to care for Susan but there is still more and I can fill you in.”

  “Well by all means, please do.” John turned his attention to the detective.

  “I really am sorry for intruding. I can see Susan has made a new life for herself here with you.  But Hutch has been kidnapped.”

  “And what does this have to do with my wife?” John wanted to know.

  “He was kidnapped by the same man that kidnapped their daughter.   The kidnapper is demanding that Susan be involved in the case.” Starsky explained, he hadn’t told Susan all of it.  “So I need her to come back with me.”

  “And what did Susan say?” John asked as he looked toward the back door.

 “She said no but I hadn’t told her everything, you came home and well…”

 “You had to explain to me what was going on.”

 “Well, yeah.”

 “I think you have your answer detective.” He said.
 “But she doesn’t know all the facts.  This mad man is going to kill Hutch if she doesn’t come back with me.” Starsky was frantic for him to understand.

  “Sounds like to me that he’s going to kill him anyway, the child didn’t survive.” John got to his feet. “I think it’s time you leave. My wife gave you her answer.” 

  Starsky got to his feet; he couldn’t believe that she would turn her back on Hutch.  “Can I at least say good bye.”  But the look on John’s face gave him his answer.  “Tell her it was good to see her again.  And if she changes her mind give her this.” Starsky pulled out an airline ticket putting it on a table by the door. 

  It was nearly thirty minutes before Susan returned to the house, she looked around, John was sitting in the chair where Starsky had been when she left.  “Where is Starsk?”

  “Starsk is gone,” John said sarcastically.  His face softened as he looked at his wife who he could tell was in tremendous pain.  He got up from the chair and held his arms open to her and she melted into them. 

 Susan held John tightly, “I’m so sorry I never told you about my past, it was just so hard and easier for me that nobody knew.”  She sat down on the couch pulling him down next to her. “Hutch and I tried for a year to make it work but it was too painful to even look at each other we eventually divorced and I moved here.  I had to get away from my past. But I should have told you. I never dreamt it would come back to haunt me.”

  “Would you have ever told me if your old partner hadn’t shown up?” John wanted to know.  

  Susan shrugged, “I don’t know, the more time that passed, the easier it got to forget, to pretend it never happened.”

  “That is not healthy,” John said gently.

 “Yes doctor, I know.” Susan smiled slightly.  “Just don’t start analyzing me, leave that for your patients. Because if you open that can of worms you will never get the lid shut again.  I have seen things that you couldn’t even dream in your worst nightmares.” 

  “So the three of you were really close?” John asked but he already knew that answer, he could tell by the way his wife and David acted together.

  “Yes, very close, it just kind of happens when you have a job like that.  We depended on each other for our lives.”  Susan pushed away and looked at her husband.  “I really am sorry for keeping that part of my life from you because it has made me who I am today.”

  Somebody I don’t know, John thought.  “It’s okay, I understand, heck if a psychiatrist can’t understand then nobody could.”

  “I think it’s a little different when it’s your wife.”  Susan sighed; her hands were clinched in fists of worry, “Why would Starsky come here? What can I do, I’m not a cop anymore; I haven’t fired a gun in seven years.  I wouldn’t be much help.”

  “David,” John refused to call him Starsky, “Didn’t tell you the whole story.” He hesitated, he knew what he had to let her go or their marriage wouldn’t make it either.   “The kidnapper asked for you or he is going to kill your former partner.” John got up and went to retrieve the ticket that Starsky had left.  He held it out to Susan.  “You need to go.”

   Starsky sat staring out at the planes landing and departing, he couldn’t believe that she had turned him down.  He had wasted a day to come to her and she had turned her back on them.  How could she have done that, how could she have forgotten everything the three of them had meant to each other, the things they had been through, the pain that Hutch had been in and was still in as she was living her perfect life.  But Starsky knew that Susan’s life was far from perfect and that she was living with the pain also, it was under the surface but it was there he could see it in her eyes. 

  He thought of getting up to find himself something eat, there was still three hours until the plane left, he hoped to find Hutch still alive when he got back.    He was just about to get up when a white paper bag was dangled in front of his face.  Starsky looked up to see Susan standing there.  “You changed your mind.” Starsky said getting up and throwing her arms around her.  Susan wrapped her arms tightly around him as the years they had been apart melted away. 

  “I couldn’t leave you to battle this alone.  You should have told me that the kidnapper was asking for me.”  Susan said releasing Starsky and sitting down, she handed him the bag. 

 “Thanks, how did you know I was starving?” Starsky asked digging into the bag to find a greasy hamburger and fries. 

  “You are always starving; I’ll go get us a couple of drinks.” She smiled watching him dive into the burger. When Susan returned with a drink for each of them she asked “How is Hutch, other than the obvious?”

  Starsky chewed contemplating what to tell her, he decided the truth was the best for she would see for herself soon.  “Not good, he never really recovered.”

  “And I didn’t help by leaving.” Susan said sadly biting on the end of her straw. 

  “You had to do what you had to do for your own sanity.”

  “But I left him when he needed me the most.”  She said mournfully, “I never contacted him or you.”

  Starsky reached over and took her hand squeezing it.  “You’re coming back now and that’s what counts.”

CHAPTER 2

Two Days ago

  Hutch opened the door to his dingy one bed room apartment, Starsky had begged him to move out of the dreary, depressing apartment but Hutch refused.  He had very little in the place that said that anybody really lived there, none of his plants that he had always been so fond of, no books, not even a television to pass the time.  The only sign that someone lived there were pictures, pictures of Jesse, Susan, himself and Starsky, most of the pictures were of Jesse, even one that Hutch had happened to snap the day she disappeared.   It had started out as such a good day; he and Susan were getting ready for work and Jesse for school, the bus stopped at the corner from their house.  Jesse had been proud that at the start of second grade her parents had trusted her to walk the half a block to the bus with her best friend that lived next door.  But she hadn’t made it to the bus that day.  Naomi had been sick when Jesse had knocked on her door that fateful morning and somewhere between Naomi’s and the corner Jesse had disappeared, none of the kids saw her arrive at the bus stop.  She was missing just over an hour when they got the call that Jesse hadn’t arrived at school and the nightmare began.

  Hutch didn’t hear the masked figure enter his apartment; he was too lost in thought.  “Ken Hutchinson?” a voice asked.

  Hutch froze, he knew the voice instantly even though he hadn’t heard it in eight years, it was the voice on the phone that he talked to everyday until they found Jesse dead. He didn’t make a move for his gun which was still strapped to his side, Hutch turned slowly to face the man that had killed his daughter.  A rubber Halloween mask greeted him; somehow Hutch knew the man behind the mask was smiling. “What do you want?”

  “You,” the answer came quickly.  There was a gun pointing at the detective, “You aren’t going to go for your gun?”

  Hutch shook his head as he stared at the mask trying to visualize the face behind it. What kind of monster kidnaps and kills a child? But Hutch knew it happened all the time, he had worked more cases than he wanted to count where children were snatched and either ended up dead or were never seen again. 

  “Well this is no fun.” The mask said.  “I thought there would be at least a struggle, something.”

  “Just tell me what you want me to do.” Hutch said not really caring what happened to him, if he died so be it, but he would take Jesse’s killer with him, somehow he would avenge her death.   He didn’t want it to turn into a gun battle, because he knew he would lose the moment he went for his gun. 

  “Let’s go.” The killer waved his gun toward the door then taunted.  “You know I figured you would live in someplace a little nicer than this but then again, you lost your family so why bother.”

  Hutch gritted his teeth as he left his apartment followed by the masked man who grabbed his gun as he went by, he wanted to lash out, he wanted to scream at the man and beat him to death for what he had done to his family. 

~~~

   Susan sat next to Starsky on the plane, their hands clasp as it taxied down the runway, neither  of them were very good fliers.  She found herself excited at the prospect of seeing old friends and the town that she had come to love, she missed the ocean and she missed her partners.  Susan squeezed Starsky’s hand and he looked at her.  “Are you alright?” 

  Susan nodded, “Yeah, I’m fine. Why don’t you tell me what you know?”

  “I got a call yesterday morning saying that Hutch had been taken and that he was the same person that had taken Jesse.  I already knew that, I’ll never forget that voice, I still hear it in my sleep.”

  “Me too,” Susan said softly. 

  “He demanded to speak to you,” Starsky said, “I told him that you no longer lived in the area, all he said was get her or the cop dies.”

  “If he’s not already dead,” Susan said looking out the tiny window next to her.

  “He kept Jess alive for two weeks.” Starsky said, as soon as the words were out of his mouth he wished he could have taken them back.

 Susan nodded as tears slid down her cheeks.  She realized how much pain she had been hiding over the years.  “We will get Hutch back before he kills him.”

  “I doubt Hutch much cares.”

  Susan looked at Starsky startled.  “He’s really that bad?”

 “He’s that bad.”

  Susan striped off her sweatshirt as they made their way to the long term parking, she had forgotten how warm it was in the fall in Los Angeles.  Starsky was carrying her suitcase, “What have you got in here, bricks?  You didn’t have that much time to pack all this.”

  Susan laughed, “You know I always want to be prepared.” 

  Finally reaching the car Starsky opened the trunk, tossed the suitcase in, then threw the keys to Susan.  “You drive.”

  “I’m honored,” She said as she ran her hand over the red and white paint job of Starsky’s Torino.  “I’ve missed this old car.”

  “Old car?” Starsky hissed, “What do you mean old car?”

  Susan slid behind the wheel and looked around the inside, nothing had changed.  “I have always wanted to drive her you know.”

  “I thought it was about time.” Starsky winked at her.  “I guess we should start at Hutch’s apartment, the crime lab didn’t find anything but I figured you still would like to take a look-see.”

  “Yeah,” Susan said as she started the car, “You will have to tell me where to go.”

  Thirty minutes later Starsky stripped away the yellow police tape that blocked the entrance to Hutch’s apartment.  He opened the door and stepped in with gun drawn, just in case the kidnapper happened to be lurking inside knowing somehow that Susan was back in town.  Susan stepped through the door, she was shocked at the lack of personality the place had, but the first thing that caught her eye was all the photos of their once happy family.  She picked up a picture of Jesse and ran her hand over the glass, “You know she would have been sixteen this year.” There would be no homecomings, proms or football games in Jesse’s future, no first boyfriends, or first heartbreaks.  Tears pricked at the corners of Susan’s eyes but she refused to cry, she placed the photo back where it had been and continued to look at the rest of them.  “This is where he has been living?”

  “Before the house even sold he found this place and moved in.  He didn’t take anything from the house except the pictures and his clothes.” Starsky said with a catch in his voice. 

  Susan sat down on the couch and put her head in her hands.  How could she have left Hutch to deal with all this on his own, a year had not been long enough to get over what had happened, a million years would not be enough but she should have hung in there and not escaped to her perfect life.  All this was making Susan realize that she didn’t have a perfect life, nowhere near it. All she had done was bury her feelings with her daughter and pretend that everything was alright in her new life.  Overwhelmed with guilt she began to sob, not for her own grief but for Hutch and Starsky.

  Starsky sat down next to her and put his arm around her shoulders but before he could say anything the phone rang.  He reached for it, “Yeah.”

  “So, she’s back.”

  Starsky’s body went ridged and he looked around the apartment, he got up and went to the window that looked out over the street.  He didn’t see anybody, craning his neck he looked up and down but no one was on the street.

  “Who is it?” Susan asked wiping her tears away.

  Starsky held up his hand to silence her, “She’s here, now let Hutch go.”

  The only response was laughter.  Then the voice finally said, “Would she like to talk to him?”

  “Let me.” Starsky said.

  “That wasn’t the offer.” 

  Starsky motioned for Susan, he covered the receiver and whispered, “It’s him, and he is going to let you talk to Hutch.”

  Susan held out her hand for the phone.  “This is Carlston.” She said falling back into her old routine quickly,  “What do you want?”

  “Susan?” Hutch’s voice was barely above a whisper.

  “Hutch,” Intense feelings came rushing back at the sound of his voice, the voice she hadn’t heard in seven years.  “Are you alright?”

  “Don’t do anything he says, don’t look for me. I don’t want you or Starsk getting hurt.” Hutch’s voice was fading.

  “Are you hurt? Where are you?”

 “Don’t know, don’t know, just leave it alone please.”

  Susan could hear a grunt like Hutch had been punched; the kidnapper came back on the line. “If you listen to him, he is dead just like your daughter, you understand me?” the voice growled in the phone. “And then I’ll come after you and your other partner got me?”

  “Yes, you bastard. Don’t you worry, we are coming for you,” Susan hissed into the phone.

  Hutch lay on the floor of a windowless room; the only light was a bare bulb that hung in the middle of the room from the ceiling, a cot devoid of any sheets or pillow sat in the corner.  “They will come anyway,” his captor said. “Just like you have stayed on my heels for eight years, EIGHT LONG YEARS!”

  “Did you think I was going to let you get away with killing my daughter?” Hutch wheezed  he was pretty sure he had a few broken ribs.  “Just tell me why, what did I do to you? Was it a case, what?”

  The kidnapper squatted down next to Hutch.  “You think this is about you or your job?” He let out a laugh, “Your job had nothing to do with anything. I didn’t even know she was a cop’s kid until it was on the news.  It was random, totally random.”

  “So you were out trolling for a child and my daughter just happened to be in the right place at the wrong time?” Hutch was incredulous; he had thought all these years that her kidnapping and death had been in retaliation for one of their cases.  “Just how many children have you taken?”

  The man was silent.

  “Answer me! How many?” Hutch demanded. All of Hutch’s suspicions were now confirmed. He was staring into the face of a serial killer.

  “Does it matter?”

  “Yes it matters; it matters to me, my wife, my partner, our friends and all the others out there whose children you have taken.” 

  The man got up, “You know, I have no idea, let me put it this way a lot, more than you want to know about it.”  He walked toward the door.

  “But why are you after us?”

  “Because you wouldn’t let me kill in peace.” The man said calmly as he opened the door and closed it before Hutch could say anymore.

  Starsky took the phone from Susan’s hand.  “What did he say?”

  “Hutch said not to look for him but the kidnapper said if we don’t then he will kill Hutch then come after us.”  Susan sat down on the nearest chair; she had too many emotions swirling around in her. 

  “What do we do, wait until this bastard contacts us again?”

  “I guess so, unless you have any old leads from before as to where we might look.” Susan answered.

  “There is something I need to show you. I have only been in Hutch’s bedroom once and he was furious to find me in there.”  Starsky said as he opened the door to the room. 

  Susan gasped as she stared at the walls. They were covered with notes, crime scene photos and pictures of Jesse.  Stacks of files were piled all over the room.  “How long has he been doing this?”

  “I guess since he moved in seven years ago. I tried to get him to see a counselor but Hutch refused.  He pours over Jesse’s case whenever he isn’t working.  He had a lot of this at work and Dobey finally told him to get rid of it.  I was relieved when Hutch did but I didn’t realize at first that he had just moved it here.”

  Susan walked around the room reading snippets of things that were written, Hutch had lots of notations.  “Have you looked at any of this?”

  “Hutch never let me back in here after that first time.  I just happened to noticed because he had left the bedroom door open, it’s usually closed, I figured out why when I saw this.”

  “Read some of these,” Susan said scanning the pages.  “We always thought that Jesse’s death had something to do with job, but looking at some of these reports from other police stations across the country, I think Hutch is onto a serial killer.”

  “Are you sure?” Starsky squinted at one of the papers. 

  “Look here,” Susan pointed to one report about a number of kids that were abducted then later found dead on the closest playground to their home. There are dozens of them.  Look, this one is in Oregon, this one in Arizona, this one in Texas, and on and on all across the country.” 

  “Maybe this is why he was kidnapped.” Starsky said putting his hand to his head, “Maybe he was getting close to finding out the guy’s identity.”

  “Or maybe he was putting on too much heat and he couldn’t kill like he wanted to.” Susan theorized. “Help me,” Susan started carefully stripping the walls of Hutch’s bedroom. “We need to get this to the station; I think Hutch has done a lot of our work for us.  Some of this stuff is very new.” 

  John Stockton called the hotel where he had reserved his wife a room for the third time. She had been in Los Angeles for nearly twenty-four hours and he hadn’t heard anything from her and as of his last call she had not checked in to the room.

 “I’m sorry sir; I assure you as soon as she checks in Mrs. Stockton will get your messages.”

  John dropped the phone back in the cradle, he started to pick it back up and call the airline to get a flight to Los Angeles.  But he knew that would only distract her and Susan had enough on her plate without him showing up.  But John had a feeling that things weren’t going to go well and it wasn’t the detective he was worried about.

CHAPTER 3

  Starsky nearly dropped the box he was carrying as he reached for the doorknob to Dobey’s office. The detective burst in to the office, Dobey who had been on the phone slammed it down.  “Damn it Starsky, knock, and what is all that mess? I have been trying to find you all day, where have you been?”

  He dropped the box in one of the chairs in front of Dobey’s desk, “Which question do you want me to answer first?”

  Dobey’s face puffed in anger as he blustered.  “Where have you been?”

  “Getting help,” Starsky said as Susan entered carrying another box.

  “What do you mean…” Dobey yelled but the question died on his lips when he saw who was behind the box.  He heaved his girth out of his desk chair and engulfed Susan in a bear hug.  “I don’t believe my eyes.”

  “Hi Cap,” Susan smiled as she hugged her old Captain back. 

  “What are you doing here?”

  “Starsky found me, told me about Hutch and here I am.” Susan answered giving him the simple version.”

  “Cap, what can we do about getting Susan reinstated?” Starsky wanted to know.

  “To the department?” Starsky nodded.  “That is impossible right now, there’s a hiring freeze plus it would take longer than a few hours for her to be reinstated, she would have to test…”

  Starsky interrupted, “I need her on this or we aren’t going to find Hutch.”

  Dobey steepled his fingers together and looked from Starsky to Susan. “How about this, you get yourself down to the gun range, pass and you can have a gun, and I’ll deputize you.”

  “I don’t have a gun and I haven’t shot one in years.” Susan said.

  “Hold on a sec,” Starsky jumped up and left the office.  He quickly returned with something wrapped in a towel, he handed it to Susan.

  She un-wrapped the object in the towel, it was her gun.  “I don’t understand.”

  “Hutch kept it in the bottom drawer of his desk. I think he thought you would come back someday.” Starsky told her.

  Susan looked at the gun; she turned it over and over in her hands feeling the cold steel of it.  She hadn’t held her gun in seven years, she had left it lying on Dobey’s desk along with her badge when she quit.   “I can’t believe he kept it.”

  “Well, let’s go see what you can do with it, so we can find Hutch.”  Starsky said.

  It was as if Susan hadn’t missed a day on the firing range, the target was put in place and she hit dead center all but once.  Starsky looked at her in awe, “Heck, I come down here a few times a month and don’t do that well.”

  Susan shrugged, “I have always had a talent for shooting, don’t ask me how.  I was nearly perfect in the academy.”

  “I know, I know, showoff,” Starsky said taking down the target, he held it out to the officer in charge of the shooting range who signed off on Susan’s paperwork.  

  Back in Dobey’s office he was impressed with Susan’s shooting skills and deputized her on the spot, he admonished her to be careful, even though she had stellar shooting skills she was still rusty at the everyday workings of police work.

  Back out in the squad room they set up all the materials they retrieved from Hutch’s bedroom in hopes they could find something he missed or maybe he didn’t miss and that was why he had been taken.  Officers and other staff came by to greet Susan and lend a hand in their endeavors. 

  Every time the phone would ring, they would all jump thinking it was the kidnapper but no calls came. Exhausted, they decided to call it a night and look at everything with fresh eyes in the morning.  It had been well over twenty-four hours since either of them had slept.

  Susan leaned back in the passenger seat of Starsky’s car and closed her eyes, it had been a long day, her eyes snapped open, “Crap!” She exclaimed, “I haven’t called John, he must be frantic by now.  He got me a hotel room and I promised him that I would call the moment I checked in.”

  “Which one?” Starsky said as he started his car.

  She sighed and pulled a piece of paper from her purse that had the name of the hotel.  She looked at it a moment then crumpled the paper and put it back in her purse.  “Can I just stay with you?”  Susan looked at Starsky in the darkness. “I don’t want to be alone.”

  “Of course,” Starsky said pointing them in the direction of his apartment.

  Susan was glad to see nothing had change, Starsky lived in the same place and it didn’t look like anything had been moved since the last time she had been there.  “I can always depend on you to be the same.”  She joked, but she didn’t smile, it was hard to feel much of anything except fear as long as Hutch was missing. 

  “We will catch a few hours of sleep then head back.”  Starsky said as he grabbed an extra pillow and blanket from the closet.  “You take the bed; I’ll sleep on the couch.”

  Susan shook her head, “No I’ll sleep out here, I need to call John.”

  “Are you sure? There is a phone in my room.”

  “I’m fine here, really.” Susan said taking the pillow and blanket. 

  “Alright,” Starsky disappeared into his bedroom and shut the door to give her some privacy to make her phone call.

  It was three a.m., nearly two days since his wife had left when John Stockton reached for the ringing phone.  “Susan?”

  “Yeah it’s me; I’m sorry I haven’t called before now, John.”  Susan apologized into the phone.

  “Where the hell have you been, I have been calling and calling the hotel!” He exclaimed as he sat up in bed.  “I have been worried sick. I almost caught a plane out there.”

  “Honey, I’m sorry, it’s just been crazy here.  Lots to do, I had to get certified to use my gun again, and my old captain deputized me.”

  “Excuse me?” John swung his legs over the edge of the bed.  “Deputized? Guns?  I don’t understand what are you doing?  It’s been almost two days since you left and no word.”

  “I’m trying to help find Hutch.”

  “And you have to carry a gun to do that?” John wanted to know.

  “I was a cop remember? I know what I’m doing.” Anger flowed over Susan and got the best of her. “If you didn’t want me here then you shouldn’t have told me to get on the plane.  Just what did you think I was going to do when I got here?”

  “I guess I didn’t really think that far ahead!” John stormed back at her.  He was angry with her and with himself for telling her to go.  “How long are you going to be there?”

  “Until we find Hutch.”

  “And how long is that?”

  “John, I don’t know, it took us two weeks before Jesse turned up,” She choked out hoping they didn’t find Hutch like they found their daughter. 

  “Fine!” He said angrily.  “At least you are getting some rest now.  How is the hotel?”

  “Ah….I’m not at the hotel.”  Susan said as she held her breath for what she knew was probably going to come and it did.

  “What do you mean you aren’t at the hotel? Where the hell are you?” John yelled.

  “I’m at Starsky’s; I can give you the number here and at the station.”  Susan offered.

  “You are at Starsky’s? Just what am I supposed to be thinking here?”

  “That your wife is staying with a friend so that she doesn’t have to be alone at a time like this.”

  “A time like what?  You haven’t seen these people in seven years!” 

  “That doesn’t mean I stopped caring just because I haven’t seen them in a while.”

  “Seen, talked to, had any contact for that matter, not even a lousy Christmas card because they didn’t know where you were until day before yesterday because you didn’t want them to know where you were.”

  “John calm down, this will all be over soon.”

  “You bet it will be,” John slammed down the receiver and regretted it the moment he did.  She was right, he was the one that told her to go, in fact, he had insisted.  “Damn it!”

  “Daddy, swing me!”

  Hutch smiled at his daughter and walked to where she was clutching the chains of the swing.  “Hold on tight Jesse.”

  “I will.”

  He kissed the top of her head then pulled the swing back giving his daughter a push, when the swing came back, it was empty. “Jesse? Where are you?”  Hutch franticly looked around for his daughter.  He finally spotted her lying on her back, arms out stretched, hair fanned out around her.  “NOOOOO!”

  Hutch jolted awake, he was on the floor, it took him a few minutes to realize that he was being held captive by the same man that had killed his daughter.  He pushed himself up to a seated position, he hurt all over.  Had he also dreamt he had spoken to Susan?  He didn’t know where she had gone, just that she had left, only her lawyer knew where she was and had taken care of the divorce, she hadn’t wanted anything so it was easy and over quickly.  He fell back on the floor and put his arm across his eyes, willing himself not to cry.  He couldn’t take much more, it was all he could do to get himself  though each day, only Starsky knew the pain he was in and even then not how much.  Had she really come back to find him?

  Hutch sat up again and looked around, he wasn’t sure what he was expecting to find…a way out?  There was only the door and he was sure it was locked or well guarded.  Thinking that Susan was actually there gave him a reason to get out of his hell but unless he was able to overpower his captor, there wasn’t much else he could do. 

  Starsky jerked awake, only dim light filtered into his bedroom so he knew it had to be early morning.  He was exhausted and wished that he could sleep more but they needed to get back to the station.  They, Starsky smiled, they weren’t a whole they yet, but Susan was here with him.  He still couldn’t believe that she had shown up at the airport.  He wondered how the talk with her husband went; he figured did not go well, he couldn’t think of any husband that would be that understanding.

  He peeked into the living room; Susan was asleep on her side, her hand under her cheek.  Starsky walked over and sat on the coffee table and looked down at her.  He started to reach out and touch her hair but thought better of it, she wasn’t theirs anymore. 

  Just as he started to get up a sleepy voice said, “Hey.”

  “Hey, yourself.”  Starsky smiled at her, “You want some coffee?”

  “Want? I think need is more like it.”

  Starsky wanted to ask about her phone call to her husband but decided against it, if she wanted him to know then she would tell him.  He busied himself in the kitchen getting a pot of coffee on, Susan appeared in the doorway, she was still dressed in her jeans and shirt from the day before, her hair was tousled and make up smudged but she was still the most beautiful woman that he knew.   “You think he will call today?”

  Susan shrugged, “He is pretty mad at me.”   Starsky gave her a questioning look.  “Oh, you mean the kidnapper. I don’t know, let’s hope, he kept in pretty close contact when he took…”

  “Yeah, but I think he is worried that Hutch was on to him.  He has to be a pretty smart guy not to get caught all these years so he has to figure we know what Hutch knows.”  Starsky said getting two mugs from the cabinet.  “Is everything alright with you and John?” He had to ask.

  “Yes…no…oh, I don’t know. He’s pretty upset I’m not staying in the hotel or called him when I got into town. He doesn’t like that I am carrying a gun, I guess the list of things he doesn’t like just goes on and on.”

  “Then why did he tell you to come?”

  “Million dollar question, I guess it was the doctor speaking not the husband, but when the husband started thinking, he didn’t like it.” Susan sipped on the coffee Starsky handed her.

  “You think he will come out?
  Susan sighed, “I sure hope not, that is all I need.”

  Forty minutes later they were showered, dressed and standing in front of The Pits, it hadn’t changed a bit except for a new coat of paint on the façade. Starsky was banging on the door hoping to wake up Huggy Bear, who was asleep in his bed upstairs.

  “Coming!” they heard a voice from inside yelled.  “Who bangs on a brother’s door at this hour?”  Huggy unlocked the door and yanked it open, squinting against the sudden brightness he said, “What do you want?”

  “Let us in Hug,” Starsky said pushing past the tall black man dressed in a silk purple bath robe.

  Huggy rubbed his eyes as he caught sight of Susan, “Am I dreaming?”

  Susan smiled and hugged her friend, “It’s me Huggy, how have you been?”

  “Alright,” He was still looking at her like he had seen a ghost.  “You didn’t tell me Susan was coming into town.”

  “I didn’t tell anybody.” Starsky said sliding onto one of the stools.  “I wanted to make sure she would come.”

  “Like there was a doubt,” Huggy scoffed as he slipped behind the bar. “Is there any news on Hutch?”

  “I was hoping you could tell us something.” Starsky said.

  “Sorry man, I haven’t heard a thing and I have been asking around.” Huggy replied as he put on coffee.  “This guy is like a ghost.”

  “I don’t think he has been hanging around here. From information we found in Hutch’s apartment our kidnapper has been all over the country killing kids.”

CHAPTER 4

   The only way Hutch knew it was morning was because his captor brought him a bowl of cereal.  Cereal he refused to eat, he wouldn’t eat anything that was brought to him.  He wasn’t even sure how long he had been in the room, he had lost track of time, not that he was really keeping track. 

  His mind wandered back to the day when they had found Jesse in the park, the kidnapper had told them right where to find her. He hadn’t said if she were alive or dead just that she was there.  They all raced to the park that was only two blocks from their house, Hutch had been the first one to reach her, Jesse was lying so still he knew instantly that she was dead.  He had dropped to his knees next to his little girl and drug her still warm body into his arms, her neck had been broken, she didn’t even have a chance.  Susan rushed to his side and fell to the ground; they sat and rocked their daughter until the coroner had finally insisted that Jesse be taken away.

  “Are you going to eat?”

  The voice snapped Hutch out of his thoughts.  “No,” Hutch growled, “Get the hell out of here and leave me alone.”

  “Have it your way, but it’s going to be a while before I’m back.”

  Hutch didn’t answer; he turned his back on the masked man.

  As Starsky and Susan were heading back to the car the radio went off, Starsky leaned in the window and grabbed the mic, “Zebra Three.”

  “Zebra Three you have been requested to handle a kidnapping case.”  The operator relayed.

  “Is this some kind of joke?” Starsky wanted to know as he looked at a startled Susan.

  “No, sir,” the operator replied.  She rattled off the address, they were both stunned.

  “That is our old address!” Susan looked at Starsky, “What is going on?”

  “I don’t know but we are going to find out.”

  When they arrived at the more than familiar address all was quiet, Susan looked at the house fondly, they have loved living in that house, loved the neighborhood until it became a nightmare for them.  They walked up the path to the house, Starsky knocked on the door.

  A middle aged woman answered the door, “Yes?”

  “I’m detective Starsky and this is Carlston, we had a report of a kidnapping that took place from this address.” He said flashing his badge

  The woman blinked at them in surprise.  “A kidnapping? I’m sorry but I live alone here.”

  “Do you mind if we look around?” Susan asked.

  “Sure, go ahead,” the woman looked at them quizzically. “But I assure you, nobody has been kidnapped from here, maybe you were giving the wrong address.  My daughter is away at college as well as my son, and my husband died a few years ago.”

  “I’m sorry about your husband,” Susan said.  

 “Thank you, I’m Sharon Masters, look around all you want.”  The woman kept staring at Susan, “You look so familiar,” she finally said.  Suddenly a horrified look came across her face.  “You are that detective who’s daughter was kidnapped, what seven or eight years ago?”

  “Yes, that’s me” Susan said as they entered Sharon’s home. 

  “That was so horrible, it’s my turn to be sorry, I couldn’t imagine losing a child like that.” 

  Susan gave her a small smile, “It was tough.” She didn’t want to tell the woman that the same man had now kidnapped her ex husband.

  Another realization dawned on Sharon, “This was your house wasn’t it?”

  Susan nodded, “Yes, it was.

  “We almost didn’t move in here just because it was so close to the park where you daughter was found and the kids were still in school at that time.”  Sharon said, “And now you said a report of a kidnapping from this house.  What a sick joke.”

  “Thanks for your time,” Starsky said to the woman.

  “I hope you catch whoever called in that prank.”

  They both nodded, as they got back in the car Starsky said.  “It’s him; he is playing some game with us and Hutch.”

  “How are we going to find him?” Susan asked, “If Hutch couldn’t find him after eight years, how are we going to do in a few days?”

  “He must have been getting close enough to freak this guy out or he wouldn’t have taken Hutch.” Starsky pulled out into the street to head to the station.  “We have got to find something in the stuff Hutch compiled.”

  “Hutch could be dead by then.”

 “I don’t think so; this creep is having too much fun playing with us.”

 The station was buzzing with activity when Susan and Starsky arrived.  “What is going on?” Starsky asked an officer that was hurrying by them.

  “It’s crazy, there have been dozens of reports of children being kidnapped but so far they’re all fake.”  The officer said as he rushed on by.

  “What the hell is he doing?” Susan wondered.

  “Keeping the department busy? But why?” Starsky pushed open the door to the squad room.

  “Carlston, your husband is sitting at Starsky’s desk.” Someone called.

  The first thing that flashed through Susan’s mind was that Hutch had either escaped or the kidnapper had released him.  She caught sight of a dark head of perfectly combed hair and realized they were talking about John.  “John, what are you doing here?”

  John jumped up from the chair and spun around.  “There you are, I have been waiting here for hours.”

  “I’m sorry; Starsky and I were out on a call.”

  “A call?” John frowned, “Have you rejoined the police force?”

  “They wouldn’t let me I explained that last night,” Susan said pulling him into Dobey’s office; the door was open and the captain gone. 

  “Well good for them,” John snapped.  He got a good look at Susan, she had dark circles under her eyes, she had on very little makeup unlike what she usually wore and she looked exhausted.  “Are you alright?”

  “I’m fine,” She knew he was talking about the way she looked. “I’ve had very little sleep since I got here.  We have been working to find Hutch. I know that isn’t very important to you but it is to me.”

  “I didn’t say it wasn’t important.” John said, “I’m worried about you.  I have checked into the hotel room, why don’t you come back with me and get some rest.”

  “You really don’t get it do you?” Susan said trying not to raise her voice.  “A man’s life is hanging in the balance.  If we can’t figure out where Hutch is being held he is going to die.  This isn’t some game or television show you can turn off when you are tired of it.”

  “What the hell is going on in here Carlston?” Dobey opened his office door.

  John jumped like he had been shot and looked at the plump black man with the angry face.  “I’m sorry, Cap,” Susan said, “This is my husband, John Stockton. He just got into town.”

  “Mr. Stockton,” Dobey held out his hand to the man. “I’m Harold Dobey, who seems to have lost control of his office.”

  Susan smiled at Dobey. “You love me.”

  Dobey grinned back. “Get out of here; you and Starsky have a lot of work to do.”

  As they were leaving the office, “Carlston?” John repeated.

 “Don’t make a big deal of it that is how everybody knows me around here.”  Susan sighed, she was tired and John wasn’t helping. “Why don’t you go back to the hotel and I’ll try to meet you for dinner.”

  Starsky had the phone to his ear and was madly waving for Susan to join him.  When she got to the desk he covered the receiver with his hand.  “It’s him; he wants to make a trade.”

 “For, Hutch.”

 Starsky nodded.  “What do you want, and I expect Hutch to be alive!”

  “It’s simple,” The voice on the phone said. “I want all of Hutchinson’s files on me and then I want you to stop looking for me.” 

  “You know we will never stop looking for you, especially if you harm Hutch.” Starsky breathed into the phone.

  “Got a pen?” The caller asked ignoring what the detective had said.  He rattled off an address, “You have one hour to get all those files together, in boxes, you set them up in the parking lot of the address I gave you and torch them, then you can have your detective back, got me?  Screw up and he’s dead.”

  “How do we know he’s not already dead and this is just a way to get us to destroy all of Hutch’s work?”

  “You don’t, one hour.”  The phone went dead in Starsky’s hand. 

  “We can’t give him those files; Hutch must have been getting close if he is that desperate for us to destroy them.

  John stood staring at his wife and Starsky; it was just like watching a television show. “So what are you doing to go?” John asked.

  “John, you really need to go back to the hotel.” Susan said taking his arm to leading him out of the squad room.

  “Hold up,” Starsky stopped her. “What would you do John?  You after all are a psychiatrist.”

  “I don’t work with the criminally insane.” John shook his arm from Susan’s grasp.

  “We don’t know if this guy is criminally insane or not, I would just like to know what you would do.”

  John thought for a moment.  “He wants you to light the files on fire correct?”

  “That is what he said,” Starsky answered.

  “Then how will he know what is in the boxes?”  John asked, “Maybe copy a few of the documents in case proof is asked for and make the rest blank paper.”

  “You know, that isn’t a half bad idea.” Starsky said surveying the files they had spread around them.  “Somebody get some boxes and as much paper as you can find to fill them.  The clock is ticking.”

  Against her better judgment Susan allowed John to accompany them to the drop sight.  “You stay in the car.” She ordered as both she and Starsky got out. Starsky went to the trunk and started unloading the boxes with the files in them.  Susan glared at Starsky as she came to help with the boxes; he had sided with John in coming.

  “I thought he might like to see what you do.” Starsky defended himself against her glare.

 “What I do? I don’t DO anything anymore. I’m helping you find Hutch then I’m going back to my life if my husband will still have me.” 

  “Who are you trying to convince here, me or yourself?” Starsky said in a low voice so that John couldn’t over hear them.  “You love this life and you know it.  I don’t know how you played suburban housewife this long.”

  “Nobody is playing a suburban housewife,” Susan hissed at him.

  Starsky shot up his eyebrows, “I don’t call crawling around on your hands and knees in a flowerbed exciting.” 

  “Everything doesn’t have to be exciting to be rewarding.” She shot back.

 “Need any help back here?” John asked appearing next to the open trunk lid, “You don’t have much time left.” He glanced at his watch.  Maybe if they got on with it he could have his wife back.

  “We got,” Susan said a little more harshly than she meant to as she hoisted the last box from the trunk. “Let’s get these stacked where that psycho wants them.”

  When all the boxes were stacked Starsky opened the top box and pulled out some paper, “Here are the files,” he yelled as he struck a match and caught the paper in his hand on fire, he dropped the flaming paper back into the box. The box caught on fire and began to burn rapidly; it caught the next box on fire and so on until the whole stack was engulfed.  “WHERE IS HUTCH?”

  Susan surveyed all the openings of the warehouses looking for any kind of movement but there was none, she looked at Starsky.

  “I thought we had a deal,” Starsky yelled.  “We are keeping our end, where is Hutch?”

  It was obvious that Hutch was not there and in all probability neither was the kidnapper.  “So where is he?” John wanted to know.

  “Things don’t always work out the way you want in police work or in life for that matter,” Susan said.

  “He’s not going to keep his end of the deal.” John looked around hoping that this was going to be over.

  “No kidding,” Susan snapped at him, “Get back in the car it’s not safe for you to be out here.”

  “And it is for you?” John looked at the gun she was holding at her side. “Fine.” He stalked back to the car and got into the back seat. 

  “Now what?” Susan asked Starsky.

  “I guess we wait,” he said, “We know from before that he will contact us again.”

  “To tell us where the body is,” Susan said stiffly. 

  Hutch was sitting on the cot when the door to the windowless room opened. The man in the mask came in.  “Your partners must really love you.”

  Hutch just looked at the floor, he wasn’t going to give the man the satisfaction of speaking but his heart leapt, he knew that they had made contact with each other.

  “Don’t you even want to know what they did for you?” the masked man asked, still silence from his captive.  “You know all those files that you have been compiling on me? Well they burned them all.”

  Hutch jumped off the bed and came toward the man. “They burned them?  You know how long I have been working on that? Why?”

 “Because I told them to, and they will do anything in the world to get their partner back.” The man laughed.

  Hutch was furious at Starsky for burning all his hard work, he would have given his life so that they could catch Jesse’s killer

  “It will take months to reconstruct all those files and by then I will have changed my MO and be long gone from here. I will give you a hand for figuring me out though.” The man clapped and he grinned behind the mask.  “You are the only one that has taken time to figure this all out.”

  “So now what?” Hutch asked through clinched teeth.

  “So now you go back to your partners.  All I really wanted was those files. I don’t kill adults.”  He adjusted the mask as he stepped closer to Hutch.  “This will only hurt a moment.”  The man pulled out a syringe from his pocket and uncapped it. 

  They had been back at the station less than an hour when the call came. Starsky grabbed the phone. “Starsky.”

  “You know where he is.”

  The phone went dead; he looked at Susan with terror written on his face. Susan put her hand on his arm, “Was it him?”  Starsky nodded. “Well what did he say?”

  “You know where he is.”

  Susan’s face went white and she grabbed her jacket from the back of the chair, they both bolted for the squad room door. 

  “What’s going on?” John asked rushing after them. “What does that mean?”

  “Get back up to that park!” Dobey barked as he hurried after them.

 “It’s going to be alright,” Starsky told Susan but he was sure they were going to be too late just like last time. 

  John hopped in the elevator just before the doors slid shut, “What is going on?” He repeated.

  “Unless he is just playing with us again, Hutch is in the park where Jesse was found dead.”  Starsky said pointedly, looking John in the eye almost daring him to say something else. 

 John remained silent until the doors slid open on the ground floor.  “I don’t want you going.” He grabbed Susan’s arm, “This is too dangerous, what if this nut is laying in wait for the two of you to show up so that he can kill you all?”

  “That is just the chance we take, it is part of the job.” Susan said jerking her arm away from him.  “I would suggest you stay here, as you said it might be dangerous.”

  “It might be part of the job, but it’s not your job.” John tried to grab her again but Susan was too quick for him stepping off the elevator before he could touch her. 

  She didn’t bother saying anything to her husband, all she could see in her mind’s eye was her daughter laying on the hard ground, her body still, her eyes closed. The last thing she wanted was John to be there to witness her grief over her ex partner and husband. 

  John followed the two out to the parking lot, Starsky held the door open for him, “You coming or not, we have to get moving.”

  John glanced at Susan but she refused to look at him as she got in the front seat of the Torino.  He wondered if their marriage would survivor this, he had never seen this side of his wife before.  In a way he was almost proud of how tough she was but on the other hand, would she be able to go back to their lives of dinner parties and gardening.  He had seen her really come alive for the first time since they had met.  John nodded at Starsky and climbed into the cramped back seat.

  With siren blaring Starsky made it to the park, where Jesse’s body had been found in record time.  Both Starsky and Susan jumped out of the car at the same time racing through the park toward the playground.  As John got out of the back seat he could hear other sirens screaming toward them. 

  Susan was the first one to catch sight of Hutch’s body lying in the same spot they had found Jesse, how cruel could one person be she felt tears pricking her eyes as she ran to Hutch’s body and fell to her knees next to him. 

CHAPTER 5 

   Starsky knelt next to Susan as she gently touched Hutch’s face.  “Hutch,” She whispered trying to hold back a sob.  She felt like it was her fault he was dead, if she hadn’t left maybe this wouldn’t have happened.  Susan put her head on his chest and her eyes opened wide and she jerked up to look at Starsky.

  “What?” He had tears also standing in his eyes; he couldn’t believe his partner was dead; he had nobody left once Susan went back to her life. 

  Susan grabbed Hutch’s wrist and felt for a pulse which she found, “He’s alive.”  Then she called softly, “Hutch?” 

 Starsky, having to see for himself, grabbed Hutch’s other wrist and then put his head to Hutch’s chest to hear the constant thump of his heart.  He jumped to his feet and yelled to approaching officers. “Get an ambulance, Hutch is alive!”

  “Hutch,” Susan said leaning closer to his ear.

  “Hutch!” Starsky said loudly, “It’s time to wake up buddy.” His hands roamed Hutch’s body to see if he was injured anywhere. 

  Hutch stirred but his eyes didn’t open, “Come on Hutch, open your eyes.” Susan coaxed. She grabbed his hand in hers and held it tight; she wanted him to know she was there.  Next thing she knew paramedics were shoving her out of the way so that they could check Hutch out.

  Starsky and Susan clung to each other as the men worked on Hutch, starting an IV of fluids and putting an oxygen mask over his face; they lifted him onto a gurney and wheeled him toward the waiting ambulance.

  He could hear them calling his name but his eyes felt glued shut.  Hutch wanted to respond letting them know he was alive but whatever the masked man had given him wouldn’t allow him to move. 

  “Is he going to be okay?” Susan wanted to know as she climbed into the ambulance with the gurney. 

  “Looks like he has been sedated with something,” the paramedic said as he moved around so that he could monitor the detective’s vitals.   “Move out Tim.” He called to the driver.

  As the ambulance pulled away, John stood numbly watching the truck as it picked up speed and turned it’s siren on. She hadn’t so much as looked his way; Susan had been too focused on the unconscious detective.

  “Come on,” Starsky nudged John; he couldn’t help feeling sorry for the guy and suddenly felt responsible for the way John had to be feeling.  “We can meet them at the hospital.”

  “Yeah, sure,” this time John climbed in the front seat next to Starsky.  “Is she always like this?”

  “Intense?” Starsky smiled, “Yes, she always took her job and her partners very seriously.”

  “I have never seen her like this,” John looked over at Starsky, his profile was strong and he was intent on getting them to the hospital to see his partner.  “There was always something missing in her, I never knew what it was until now.”  John paused and dropped his gaze from Starsky to his hands.  “This is where she belongs.” 

  A red light stopped their progression.  “John, she loves you.” Starsky said looking at the man that he barely knew and he had to wonder if he had just told a lie.  Maybe she loved him but she wasn’t in love, not the way she was in love with Hutch, it was clear on her face as she had held Hutch’s hand.

  “I’m sure she does in her own way, but not the way she loves you two.  I can see it when she looks at you, when she looks at Hutch; you three have too much history together.”

  “Not all that history is good; there is a lot of pain.” Starsky said.  “You would not believe some of the things we have been through and I’m not just talking about the death of their daughter.” 

 “I’m sure being a cop is a very tough job.”  John now stared out the window.  “I sit in a comfy office and listen to people’s problems but I never lived them first hand.”

  “Until now.” Starsky interjected.

  John grunted, “Until now.  I had the perfect life, great family; money was never an issue, breezed through medical school.  Susan was my first wife so I have never been through the divorce thing.” 

  “Don’t forget, she left this life.” Starsky said as he turned into the hospital parking lot.

  “She didn’t leave, she ran from it.” John said sadly.

  Susan was sitting in the emergency waiting room when John and Starsky came in the doors, Starsky started toward to the desk when he saw Susan waving at them.  “How is he?”

  “Still out,” She said, “They are pretty sure he was giving some kind of sedative but they won’t know until they run some tests.  But he is going to be okay, a little dehydrated, other than that he seems uninjured just some bruises, I guess that bastard knocked him around some.”

  “So he’s going to be okay?” Starsky picked up Susan and spun her around. 

  “Looks like it.”  She beamed at her ex partner.

  “That’s great.” John said without much conviction. 

 Susan crossed the room and hugged her husband.  “It is great.”

  “I’ll make flight reservations for tomorrow morning then,” John put his arm around her.  “I need to get back.”

  She stepped away from him.  “I can’t leave yet. We still have Jesse’s killer to find. We are the closest we have ever been to him. And with all the information Hutch has complied we might be able to find and stop him before he kills anymore children.”

  John’s eyes narrowed, “Need I remind you that you are no longer on the force. You came here to find your ex-partner; you have done that, now it’s time to go home.”

  “You are seriously going to stand there and tell me what I have to do?” Susan glared at John.  “You just don’t understand.”

  “You are right, I don’t understand.” 

  Starsky cleared his throat; the doctor had come into the waiting room.  “I’m looking for the partners of Detective Hutchinson.”

  “That’s us,” Susan said without hesitation.  John walked away and sat in a chair on the other side of the room from his wife and Starsky. 

  “Looks like he is going to be just fine, Detective Hutchinson has come to and he is asking for his partners.”  The doctor said, “He has been moved to the second floor, room 210.”

  “Thank you doctor,” Starsky shook the man’s hand.  Susan had already started down the hall toward the elevator.  Starsky looked over at John, “Just give this to her.”

  John merely shrugged, like he had a choice.  He did have a choice; he could stay and fight for his wife or leave and hope that she came home to him. At this point he wasn’t sure which one he wanted to do.   He didn’t know if he could hang around and watch them anymore, he was sure it would only be worse now that Hutchinson had been found. 

  Susan hesitated in the door, Hutch was still hooked up to an IV but that was all, she wasn’t sure she should go in, maybe John was right, maybe she should just go back home. Susan knew that she had caused Hutch a lot of pain by leaving.  What if he didn’t want to see her? 

  “Susan?”  Hutch had been watching her indecision.

  She put a smile on her face and walked toward the bed.  “Hi ya, Hutch.”

  “How did Starsky find you?”

  “He’s a detective, remember,” Susan joked.

  “I’m glad you came.” Hutch smiled at her and her uncertainties about being there melted away.  It was like nothing had ever happened…well almost.

  Starsky poked his head in before either of them could say more.  “Hey Hutch!”

  “Starsk,” Hutch motioned him in.  “Why did you two burn all the files?”

  Susan and Starsky looked at each other and grinned.  “We didn’t buddy; we just made him think we did.”

  Hutch sat up and swung his leg over the edge of the bed.  “Thank God, we need to get busy and get this guy.”

  “Where you do you think you are going?” Susan asked as she gently pushed Hutch back into bed.  “We have everything set up at the station; it can wait until morning if the doctor says you can get out of here.”

  “I don’t want to waste that kind of time, he’s probably already gone.” Hutch sighed but lay back.  He did still feel a bit out of it. 

  There was a soft knock at the door and a man that Hutch didn’t know was standing there.  “Yes?” Hutch said

  John cleared his throat, “Susan, could I speak to you?”

  Susan looked annoyed as she nodded her head, “I’ll be right back.” Once out in the hall she turned on her husband.  “You couldn’t wait? I would have been back out.”

  “I need to know what you are going to do.” John said looking down at his wife.  “I can’t just stay here, I have patients at home.” 

  Susan wanted to snap at him but she knew that he was only trying to protect what was his…her.  “I’m sorry John, but I can’t leave right now.  This man needs to be caught, then maybe I will finally have some closure, surely you of all people can understand that.”

 “Yes, I understand, I just don’t know why you have to be the one to catch him.  Your ex partners look like they can handle it, and they have a whole police department behind them.”

  Susan just stared at him for a moment.  Then said again, “I’m sorry John I have to stay.  I will be home as soon as I can.”

  “Sure,” John said as he leaned over and kissed her cheek.  “Just give me a call and I’ll pick you up at the airport when you are finished here.”  He turned and walked down the hall sure that the only place he would be seeing his wife again was divorce court. 

  “John!” Susan called after him but he didn’t turn to look at her he only put his hand in the air as a wave.

  While Susan was in the hall Hutch asked Starsky, “Who was that?”

  Starsky hadn’t wanted Hutch to find out this way, he figured that Susan would want to be the one to tell him that she had remarried.  “Her husband.”

  Hutch opened his mouth then closed it again.  He had never in his wildest dreams thought that she would be remarried.  He had barely even dated since their divorce. “Husband? How long?”

  “Hutch, I really think you should be talking to Susan about this.”

  “How long?”

  “Five years.”  Starsky finally said.  “She is living back east.”  He also added knowing that was going to be the next question.

  “Five years,” Hutch echoed.  “She moved on, why couldn’t I?”

  Starsky pulled up a chair close to Hutch’s side, “I don’t think she has moved on, at least not as much as she likes to pretend she has.  Susan nearly didn’t come, but then she arrived at the last minute and flew back with me.”

  “Why did you track her down, bring her back here?”  Hutch shook his head in disbelief.  He would have been overjoyed if it wasn’t for the fact that she was married.

  “I needed help finding you and she was the only one that would understand and be the most help.”  Starsky put his hand over his partner’s. 

   Susan reentered the room looking sullen, she was torn between knowing what she should do, go home with her husband and what she had to do, find her daughter’s killer.

  “Everything okay?” Starsky asked.

  Susan nodded.

  “Where is your husband?” Hutch asked intently watching her face.

  Susan glanced at Starsky who merely shrugged; he wasn’t going to lie to Hutch’s direct question.  “He went home.”

   “I would have like to have met him,” Hutch lied; he really didn’t want to meet the man who had married the women he had loved and still loved. 

  “He needed to get back,” Susan’s tone said she was done talking about it.

  Before more could be said a nurse entered the room, “I’m sorry, but Detective Hutchinson needs his rest, so if you two could leave?”

  Susan looked longingly at Hutch, it had been so long since they had seen each other and she didn’t want to leave.  “Come on,” Starsky looped his arm through hers, “He’ll still be here in the morning.”

  Susan blushed slightly at the thought that Starsky had read her mind, which he had.  “It has been a couple of days since we have really had any sleep.”

 Back at Starsky’s apartment Susan picked up the phone and called the hotel where her husband had been staying.  “Do you have a John Stockton registered?”

  “Yes we did, but he checked out about an hour ago, I’m sorry,” The desk manager responded.

  “He waited for me.” Susan said dropping the receiver back into its cradle.

  “What?” Starsky asked coming out of the kitchen carrying two beers to go with the pizza they had picked up on the way home.

  “John didn’t leave right away, he only checked out of the hotel an hour ago.” Susan accepted the bottle handed to her.

  “He is probably still at the airport if you want to go.” Starsky said knowing what it was like waiting…hoping she would show up. 

  Susan shook her head, “No, I will never be at peace unless we find Jesse’s killer.” Then she added, “I can’t leave Hutch right now either.”

  “I’m sorry I didn’t let you tell him you were remarried but he asked.”

 “It’s okay; he was going to find out sooner or later.”  She looked at the pizza that was turning cold in front of them, neither were very hungry. 

  Finally Starsky picked up the pie and took it to the kitchen, they were exhausted and needed sleep as badly has Hutch had.  “Are you sure you will be okay out here on the couch?”

  “I’m fine, go to bed.” Susan smiled at him as she grabbed a blanket from the back of the couch and lay down.  Sleep wasn’t coming as Susan worked over in her mind the events of the last several days.  She was confused and didn’t know what to do.  But she realized that she was still in love with Hutch which was horribly unfair to John.

  After tossing and turning for over an hour Susan got up and padded to Starsky’s bedroom door, she peeked in; he was laying on his side sound to sleep.  Softly she lay down on top of the covers next to him.

 “Everything okay?” Starsky asked in a sleepy voice.

 “You mind if I sleep here? I don’t want to be alone.”  Susan said.

  “You want to get under?” Starsky offered.

  “I’m fine,” Susan turned her back to him and closed her eyes, she felt him throw a light weight blanket over her. 

CHAPTER 6

   When Starsky awoke the next morning Susan was curled in a ball next to him sleeping soundly.  He pulled the covers up over her that had slipped off during the night then got out of bed, heading for the shower. 

   Susan opened her eyes trying to place where she was, she could hear a shower running, as the room came into focus she realized she was in Starsky’s apartment, she did remembered crawling into bed with him last night.  Before she fully awoke, Starsky came out of the bathroom with a white towel around his waist.  He was humming to himself as he rifled through his drawers for clean underwear, socks and a shirt unaware she was awake.

  “What time is it?” Susan asked softly.

  Starsky jumped and spun around.  “You scared the shit out of me!”  He glanced at his watch.  “It’s just after eight.” 

  “What time did they say we could get Hutch?” She asked swinging her legs over the side of the bed.  She had an old pair of gray sweats on that Starsky had given her to sleep in.  All she had brought from home was night gowns and those didn’t seem appropriate. 

  “After the doctor checks him out one last time, so who knows when that will be.”  Starsky pulled a t-shirt over his head; he sat down on the edge of the bed next to her. “How are you?”

  “Me? I’m fine, why?”

  “You have a lot going on, and I don’t mean just Hutch. What are you going to do about John?”  Starsky looked at Susan. 

  “I know don’t, I…I.” Susan put her head on Starsky’s shoulder.

  He put his arm around her, “It’s going to be okay, you just need to figure out what you really want.”

  “I know and I need to do it without all these emotions running around inside me.” She smiled at Starsky as she gave him a hug. 

  “Honey, I don’t think that is going to happen.”

 When they arrived at the hospital Hutch was sitting up in bed with a tray of scrambled eggs and bacon on a table next to him, he hadn’t touched the food.  “When am I getting out of here?” Hutch wanted to know, the IV was gone, but he still looked a little pale and thin. 

  Starsky pushed the table with the tray on it closer to Hutch.  “When the doctor says you can leave…now eat.”

  Hutch started to push the table away; Susan stopped him as she joined Starsky next to his bed.  She had been standing in the doorway just taking in both her old partners and remembering old times. “Do I need to spoon feed you?”

  “Maybe,” Hutch answered as a grin spread across his face.  He had been rather surprised to still see Susan there; he figured she would follow her husband home. 

  “How do you feel?” Starsky asked watching as Hutch picked up the fork next to his plate.

  Hutch shoveled some eggs in his mouth knowing that if he didn’t, neither of them would leave him alone.  “Pretty good,” He mumbled around the eggs, “Better now.”  He looked pointedly at Susan. But he knew that he couldn’t get his hopes up that she would stay.  It was apparent that she had made a new life for herself.  

  There was a rap on the door and the doctor stepped in the room.  “Well Detective Hutchinson, all your tests look fine you can go home, but you need to take it easy for a few days and make sure you get plenty of liquids.” Hutch pushed the table away from the bed, tossed the covers off and jumped out of bed, his head instantly swam and he sat down on the edge.  “Remember I said take it easy?  You are still a little dehydrated.”

  Hutch nodded and got up slowly; Susan had retrieved his clothes from the closet and held them out to him. 

  “So what do you remember?” Starsky asked when they were settled in his car.  “I didn’t ask you yesterday, you were just too out of it.”

  “We have wasted a lot of time,” Hutch said shaking his head knowing that the kidnapper was long gone and possibly on to his next child.

  “Then we need to get busy don’t we?”  Starsky said, “What did he look like?”

  Hutch sighed, “I don’t know, he had on a mask every time I saw him.”

  “What about the car, did he have you blindfolded?” Susan asked.  She had a pad of paper so she could take notes; she leaned over the seat between the two men.

 “No, I wasn’t blindfolded; it was an old paneled van, white, rusted out round the bottom, the windshield was cracked, sounded like it was on its last leg. I’m sure he has dumped that thing by now.  He probably just used it to take me.”

 “You are probably right but I’m still going to put an APB out on it.”  Starsky grabbed the microphone.

 As Starsky was radioing in the information on the van, Susan put her hand on Hutch’s shoulder, “How are you?”

  Hutch knew she wasn’t talking about the kidnapping.  “Alright.”

  “Hutch, I have seen your apartment, you are anything but alright.” Susan said sadly.  “I’m sorry.”

  “Sorry for what?” Hutch turned in the seat so he could look her in the eye. “For doing what I couldn’t do, to move on?”

  “I shouldn’t have left you to deal with it on your own. You would never have left me.” Sorrow filled her eyes.

  “I was dragging you down with me. I’m not sure your staying here would have changed anything.” Hutch smiled at her, “But look at you, married to a doctor, gardening, a beautiful house. I bet you are the bell of the ball.”

  Susan glanced at Starsky, it was clear he had been talking to his partner about her and her life.  “It’s not as perfect as it sounds.  I’m here, my husband is home.”

  “You should go back,” Hutch said softly, “You don’t want to ruin what you have.” 

  “I can’t until we catch Jesse’s killer.”

  “We have to be realistic, we might never find him.”  Hutch said, “It took me years to compile and put everything together. I’m sure if he hasn’t gone underground that he is going to change him MO and moved on to another city.”

  “You aren’t going give up are you?” Susan’s face was suddenly worried.

  “Hell, NO!” Hutch exclaimed, “I will never give up.  But it could take months before we get another lead.  Your marriage won’t last that long, no matter how understanding your husband is.”

  Susan slumped back into the back seat; she dropped the pad of paper next to her.  Hutch had moved on, at least from her.  Maybe she did need to go home, it was clear he didn’t need her there. 

  Starsky glanced at Hutch, he could see the pained expression on his face that Susan couldn’t, Hutch was only saying those things to her, he didn’t mean any of it.  All Hutch had ever wanted was Susan back, even if he refused to look for her or let Starsky.

  “How about some real food,” Starsky suggested as they pulled up in front of the Pit’s.  “Huggy will be glad to see you.”

  Huggy was behind the bar when the trio entered the darken bar.  He dropped what he was doing rush toward them.  He engulfed Hutch in a hug, “How ya doing?” Huggy asked, delighted to see not only Hutch but the three of them together.

 “Better,” Hutch said, “You know what would make me great?”

 “What’s that?” Huggy asked.

 “Food!”

  “Coming right up.”  Huggy released Hutch, “So what do you want?”

  “Anything!” Hutch said rubbing his stomach.  “The hospital food was almost as bad as that stuff the kidnapper was trying to serve me.”

  Huggy chuckled, “Okay, one steak with the works, what about you two?”

  Susan just shrugged.  “Make it two more, buddy.” Starsky answered for both of them.

  “Sure thing, grab yourselves a seat and I’ll get to work on it.”  Huggy said over his shoulder as he disappeared into the kitchen.

  Susan slid into a booth, Starsky next to her and Hutch across from them.  “So when are you going back?” Hutch looked at Susan.

  When she didn’t answer Starsky nudged her, “I-I don’t know.  I told John I would be back after we caught your kidnapper.”

  “I already told you that could take months…years.”  Hutch said.

  “You know what, if you don’t want me here then just say it and I’ll be on the next plane out of here.”  Susan burst out as she shoved Starsky so she could get out.  “I don’t need this crap!  I didn’t want to come in the first place. Starsk shows up at my home pleading with me to come back and then my husband tells me that I need to do it…for closure.  He didn’t say that, but I know that is what he was thinking.  He had no idea what a can of worms he was opening up!”

  “Susan, calm down.” Starsky said refusing to move.

  “I’m not going to calm down.  I was calm, I had a life; I could finally sleep at night without the body of my dead daughter haunting me.  Now the nightmares are back.”

  Hutch sat with a pained look on his face as he listened to Susan rant.  

  “Was it perfect? No. Did a day go by that I didn’t think of you two and Jesse? No. But the pain was bearable. Now you have drug John into his mess, I have caused him pain, something I never wanted to do to another human being the rest of my life.”

  Starsky motioned for Huggy who was pouring their beers; the bartender put them on a tray and hurried toward the table.  “Is everything alright?”

  “No, everything is not alright.” Susan snapped. 

  “Have a drink, you’ll feel better,” Starsky grabbed one of the mugs and held it out to her. 

  Susan pushed it away sloshing the beer down the front of Starsky’s shirt, “I don’t need a drink and if you don’t let me out of this booth I’m going to start screaming.”

  Starsky slid out, “Listen, let’s just go back to my place, we’re all tired.”

  Susan pulled out her gun from her shoulder holster and laid it on the table then looked at Starsky, “You take care of that, John was right, this isn’t my life anymore!” 

  As she started for the door Hutch called out, “Susan!”

  She didn’t stop, she didn’t even look back but shoved open the door going out into the bright sunlight, she stood there for a moment with her face tilted toward the sun, eyes closed, hoping the heat would burn the memories out of her brain.  She opened her eyes and started down the sidewalk not knowing or caring where she was going.

  Back in the bar, Hutch jumped to his feet and started after her.  Starsky put his palm on Hutch’s chest, let her go.”

  “I can’t just let her go.” Hutch walked around his partner but Starsky grabbed a hand full of shirt. 

  “Why did you act like you didn’t care in the car? Why did you tell her to go home?”

  “I didn’t tell her to go home.”

  “You might as well have, telling her that her marriage wasn’t going to survive, that it might take years to catch this nut.” Starsky said as he tightened his grip on Hutch’s shirt. “What the hell is wrong with you? She is still in love with you or she would have gone back with her husband.”

  “Do you want her here for me or for you?” Hutch wanted to know. 

 “What is that supposed to mean?”  Starsky released Hutch’s shirt and stepped back.

  “I know I have let you down, I haven’t been there,” Hutch spewed, agony in his voice. “I have been obsessed with catching this guy, so obsessed I have thought of little else until I saw her face.”

  “I want her here for both of us. It’s time we all heal and it’s not going to happen if Susan leaves…not like this anyway.”  Starsky sat down on the edge of the booth. He was exhausted, it seemed that he hadn’t really slept for days; both physically and mentally he had had it.  He ran his hands though his hair then let his hands drop to his knees.

  Hutch put his hand on his partner’s back.  “It’s going to be okay.”

  Starsky let out a snort, “Look who that is coming from.”

  “I think we need to go find Susan.”  Hutch said pulling Starsky to his feet.

  “We both know where she is,” Starsky said taking a deep breath and looking at his partner.

CHAPTER 7

   The two detectives walked across the playground, the same playground where Hutch had been found the day before and where they have found Jesse dead. Susan was swinging with her back toward them, as they approached, Starsky cleared his throat but she didn’t turn.

   “What?” Susan said her voice strained.

   “We need to talk, all of us,” Hutch said.

  “About what, I think everything has been said.” Susan jumped off the swing and turned to face her ex-partners ready to tell them she was going home.

  “Let’s give this a week see what we can put together on this guy.” Starsky suggested.  “Then if we don’t find anything you can go home, at least you can say you tried.”

   Susan stood thinking for a moment, then slowly nodded. “I’ll call John; at least I can give him some type of time frame.”

   Hutch sighed, he wasn’t sure if he was relieved he would get to spend a little more time with her or worried it would only make it worse when she left. But he wasn’t planning on saying anything to make her stay; if she did stay, Susan would have to do that on her own not because he asked.

   Starsky shook his head as he started back toward the car, he couldn’t believe how stubborn his partners were being. Well actually he could, they had always been like this, just not to each other. He climbed in behind the steering wheel and started the car, both Hutch and Susan were making their way slowly to the car but neither was speaking to each other.

   When they got to the car Hutch climbed in the backseat to sulk leaving the front for Susan.  He figured she would talk to Starsky, it was clear she wasn’t interested in talking to him at least for the moment.  Susan stood looking at the empty passenger seat; it was either the three of them in the front or her in the back. 

  “You coming?” Starsky wanted to know. He was tired and hungry and wanted to go and didn’t relish the idea of riding in the car with his two partners.  “Open the glove box.”

  Susan did as she was told, her gun was in there, she pulled it out and slid it back in to her holster.  “Don’t do that again, do you hear me?”

  Susan nodded as she stared out the window, she didn’t want to be here anymore, nothing was the same and it wouldn’t ever be again.  Why had she come? 

  “…pizza.”  Was all Susan heard, “What?”  She knew it was Hutch speaking but she didn’t turn around to look at him. 

  “I asked if you cared if we had pizza.” Hutch asked.  Susan had stormed out of Huggy’s before they could eat.

  “I don’t care.” Susan answered without any inflection in her voice. 

  “How about you, Starsk?” Hutch asked his partner ignoring Susan’s monotone answer.

  “You know I’m always up for a pie.” Starsky glanced sideways at Susan who was now looking straight ahead.

  The ride to the pizza joint was quite as well as the one to his apartment.  When he pulled up she nearly bolted from the car and waited for the two men at the door.  Starsky opened the door; she hurried in going straight to Starsky’s bedroom and shut the door.  Starsky looked at Hutch and shrugged, this was all very uncharacteristic for Susan she usually stood and fought. 

  Hutch put the pizza box down on the coffee table and waited for Starsky to retrieve a couple of bottles of beer from the fridge.   “You want to call Susan?”

  Starsky hiked an eyebrow at his friend.  “Seriously?”

  Hutch gave him a small smile and shook his head. “I guess when she gets hungry she will come out.”

  In the bedroom Susan sat on the edge of the bed, she felt like bursting into tears but she refused to let herself cry.  Instead she picked up the phone and dialed her home number; it only rang once before John picked it up.  “John it’s me.”

  “How are you?” John asked, he had just had a night cap and was going to head up for an early bedtime.  There wasn’t much reason to sit around downstairs.  He was surprised to hear his wife on the other end of the line.

  “Okay….terrible.” She sighed as she let out the truth.  “I should have just come home with you.”

  “It’s not too late you know,” John smiled in spite of himself, maybe he would get his wife back after all. 

  “I know and I was ready to get on a plane tonight but they talked me into giving it a week.”  Susan said knowing that it was going to hurt John that she wasn’t coming home.  “That is, if it’s okay with you.  Just say the word John and I’ll be on the next plane.”

  John thought for a moment, he wanted to tell her to call a taxi, go to the airport and get the next plane but he knew that she would regret it and so would he.  “I think I can live with a week.”

  “Can you, can you really?” 

  “Yeah, I think I can as long as you call me a few times, let me know what is going on, if you are making any progress.”  John said as he pulled up a chair and sat down.  “I wish you would have told me you had a daughter, a husband, this exciting life.”

  Susan laughed, “I don’t know how exciting it was.”

  “Take it from a doctor that the most exciting thing that has ever happened to him is having a client throw a glass of pop on  me, your life was exciting.”

  “Yeah, okay there was some excitement,” Susan admitted as she gave another small laugh.

  “It’s like getting to know you all over again.” John said as he leaned back into the chair, this was the most they had talked without screaming at each other since it had all started.

  “What if you don’t like me?” Susan her face serious.

  “I already like what I do know about you and I have to admit, I find your other life fascinating even if it has taken me this long to say so.”  John took a deep breath.  “It’s thrilling.”

  Susan laughed again. “I wouldn’t use the word thrilling; I have seen some things that would, well let’s say, turn you off.  I have seen a lot of death.”

   “Well you are…were a cop, that doesn’t surprise me.” 

  “I’ll have to tell you about some of our cases sometime that is if you want hear it.” she offered.

  “I do.”

  Susan glanced at the clock, “It’s getting late, I had better let you go.”

  “I would rather talk to you.”

   She smiled into the phone, “Isn’t tomorrow your lecture day at the college? You have to get up early.”

  John shook his head, “You remembered?”

  “You have been doing it for over a year, I haven’t forgotten everything."

  “You think she is okay in there?” Hutch asked feeling bad about the things he had said or hadn’t said. 

  Starsky got up and went to the bedroom door and listened for a few minutes.  “She is on the phone.”

  “To John?” Hutch asked as Starsky rejoined him on couch.

  He shrugged, “Who else would she be talking to?”

  “I’m sure she has friends where she lives.” 

  “But we both know she is talking to her husband.” Starsky asked looking at Hutch, “Does that bother you?”

  “I don’t have any right to be bothered, I blew it with her. You only get one chance with somebody like her.” 

  “Maybe two.” Starsky winked at his friend.

  “I don’t know what she told you but after today I doubt I will be getting any second chances, and I don’t deserve it.”  Hutch looked mournfully at the closed door. 

  “You just need to talk to her.”

  “And say what? Leave your husband, come back to me.”  Hutch gave a sad laugh, “I can’t do that. “I bet they were happy before we butted back into their lives.”

  “You mean before I butted back in.”  Starsky stared at his empty beer bottle, then got up and went into the kitchen for another.  “Want another bottle?”

  “Nah, I better not.”  Hutch stifled a yawn, “I’m getting pretty tired.”

  Starsky came back into the living room empty handed, “Me too. I think you should stay here tonight, you can have the couch.”

  “And where you are you going to sleep?”

  “The floor I guess,” Starsky eyed the hard floor then looked at the bedroom door wishing he at least had blankets for them.  But he wasn’t going to disturb Susan.

 It was nearly two a.m. before Susan emerged from the bedroom, she had hung up from talking to John long ago, she had taken a hot shower and was wearing one of Starsky’s t-shirts.  She padded over to the couch where Hutch was sleeping soundly, she nearly tripped over Starsky who was lying on the floor.  Suddenly she felt bad; she had been acting like a spoiled teenager with hurt feelings.  Susan went back into the bedroom and got two blankets from the closet, she covered up both her partners.  She wondered if she could make it a week with her and Hutch at odds with each other. 

  Her next stop was the kitchen, her stomach was growling and she hoped the guys had left her some food, even a slice of cold pizza sounded good.  Susan flipped the lid to the box open and found two slices left, she knew they were there for her.   She boosted herself up onto the counter, reached in the cabinet for a glass which she filled with water from the sink and munched on the pizza.  It tasted a bit like the cardboard box but it was something. 

  She didn’t see Hutch in the kitchen doorway until he spoke, “I’m really sorry, Susan.”

  Susan jumped nearly dropping the pizza.  She slid down from the counter and looked up at him.  “I’m sorry too, this all has been so hard.”

  “I’m sure it’s much harder on you.” Hutch said, “Starsky had no right to uproot your life.”

  “Maybe I needed a little uprooting, I was living a lie.  I probably would have never told John the truth if Starsky hadn’t shown up and he really deserved to hear it.”

  “How did your talk go?”  Hutch asked not sure he really wanted to know.

  “He said a week would be fine, if he had asked me to come home I would have.”  Susan answered. 

  “I’m glad you didn’t go,” Hutch mumbled but Susan heard him. 

  “Me too, I was very close to calling a cab but there are some things that the two of us need to work out.” 

  Hutch nodded in agreement, “If it’s possible I would like to stay in some sort of contact when you go back if that would be okay with John.”

  “I’m sure it would be.  We had a nice talk this evening.  He wants to try and understand.” 

  “He sounds like a great guy.” Hutch had to confess.

  “He is, you both would like him a lot if the circumstances were different.”

  “I’m sure we would.” An awkward silence fell between them, Susan chewed on the last slice of pizza, and Hutch stared at the floor.  

  “You guys having a party without inviting me.” Starsky stood next to Hutch rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he stretched the kink out of his back. 

   “We were just talking.” Hutch said.

   “Good, everything settled?”  They both nodded, “Good,” he said again. “I couldn’t take much more of you two.”

   “Funny,” Susan smiled.  “We have a week, I guess we better get started in the morning.” 

  “How about right now?” Hutch asked, “We are all up.”

  Susan thought for a moment then shook her head, “I think I need sleep.” 

  “I think I could too.” Starsky agreed, “We didn’t get the luxury of lying in the hospital bed.”

  “I would have traded with you,” Hutch retorted as he punched his partner in the arm. 

  It was like old times, watching the two of them joke again, Susan couldn’t help but laugh, she had truly missed the both of them and she told them so. “I really missed you guys, you know that.  I won’t ever be sorry you found me Starsk.”

  Starsky reached over and hugged Susan lifting her off her feet.  “I’m not sorry either.”

  The next morning the trio entered the squad room with their morning coffee, Starsky carried a bag of donuts which he tossed on his desk.  Hutch stood looking at the board that had been started in his absences.  “Not bad.” He sipped on his coffee.  “You have been in my bedroom partner.” 

  “Sorry, but Susan found your common link and we thought the information would be helpful.”  

  Hutch nodded as he studied the board.  “I am betting he has moved on though, he would be an idiot if he stuck around.”

  “But he thinks all the files were burned and we are starting from scratch. Maybe he is bold enough to try something.”  Susan said.

  “Maybe, but it would be risky knowing that the whole police force is looking for him.”

  “Hutch, Starsky,” A uniformed officer stuck his head into the squad room.  “I think we found something you all would like to see.”

  “What is it Don?”  Starsky asked.

  “A white van, it matches the description that Hutch gave us.” 

CHAPTER 8

   Twenty minutes later, they stood looking at the van that Hutch described to a T.  The crime lab was only minutes behind them, the detectives waited for them to arrive, fearful that something important might be disturbed if they started poking around .Unfortunately the van held nothing, it had been wiped clean, not even Hutch’s fingerprints were found inside.  “Damn,” Hutch yelled as he kicked the tire of the van.  “He’s gone.”

  “You don’t know that,” Susan laid her hand on his shoulder.  “This guy seems rather full of himself. He was pretty bold coming here and kidnapping you then letting you go.” 

  Hutch looked in the empty van again, not so much as a receipt or gum wrapper lay on the floorboards, “Maybe he is taunting me…us.”

  “He is a game player that is for sure,” Starsky said.

  “But why? He’s taking the chance of getting caught.” Susan rubbed her temple where a headache was starting to form. She only had a couple of days left; she would be leaving early Saturday morning for home and her husband.  She wondered what John would say if there was suddenly a break in the case. 

  Hutch was walking circles around the van as if he could make it produce something, anything that would lead them to the identity of the man they were looking for. 

  “Come on buddy, there isn’t anything here, we are wasting time.” Starsky said as he tugged on the back of Hutch’s shirt to keep him from making another circle around the van. 

  “Wasting time, maybe that is what he wants us to do…waste time, instead of looking for him.  What if he is looking for his next victim?” Susan suggested. 

  “Here?” Hutch looked at her, “That would be crazy.”

  “And you don’t think that a man that goes around killing children isn’t crazy?”  Susan headed toward the car and climbed the front seat sliding over so that Hutch could get in next to her.  “Come on. I have an idea.”

  Starsky jumped behind the wheel, “Where too?”

 “Our place,” Susan said without thinking, then said, “The house.”

 Hutch hadn’t been back there since the day he had packed up his belongs and left.  A pained look spread across his face. “Why there? What are you thinking?”

  “While you were missing we had a call to go there, that a child was missing, when we got there it was a false alarm, there weren’t even any children in the house.” Susan explained to Hutch. “And you were left where…where…” she swallowed hard, “..where we found Jesse. I think this guy is starting to lose it.”

  “Or maybe he wants to get caught.” Starsky said pointing the car in direction of their old house.

  “Or maybe he is obsessed with me since I was closing in on him.” Hutch offered up.

  There were so many maybes and they all needed answers.  This could be the closure that the three of them had needed so badly for the last nine years.

  Susan knocked on the front door of their old home; she stepped back and looked up wondering who had Jesse’s old room.  She knew the woman had a daughter and son that were both away at school.  Susan was still staring up at the house when the front door opened, she jumped and smiled at the woman, “Mrs. Masters do you remember me?”

  “Of course, Detective Carlston,” the woman nodded, then admitted, “After you came to the house I did a little research.”

  “I understand, I would have done the same thing.” 

  “What can I do for you?”  She asked as she fussed with the ends of her hair nervously.

  “Have you noticed anybody hanging around?”  Susan asked.  “We have reason to believe that the man that kidnapped and killed Jesse is back.”

  “We?”

  “My partners and I, he kidnapped Hutch, Jesse’s father but we got him back safely, Hutch was found in the park the same place Jesse had been found.” 

  Mrs. Masters looked horrified, “That is terrible, you don’t think this man was the one that called in the fake kidnapping to this address do you?”

  “It is looking that way and we are afraid that he might be cruising this area looking for another child.”  Susan explained.
  “What a monster!” she exclaimed.  “How could somebody do that?”

  “I don’t understand it either Mrs. Masters but he has killed many, many children all over the country and we need to stop him.”

  “So you haven’t noticed any strangers lurking around, anybody driving a white van that doesn’t belong here?” 

  A strange look crossed Mrs. Masters face then she shook her head, “No nothing like that,” she said hesitantly.

  “Is everything alright?” Susan asked noticing the look on the woman’s face.

  “Yes, of course.”

  “If you do see anything please call the police department and ask for one of us.” Susan handed her one of Starsky’s cards. 

  “I-I will,” Sharon Masters said as she glanced back into her home.

  “Are you sure that everything is alright?”

  “I just have something in the oven, I’m afraid it might be burning.”  She started to shut the door.

  “You know if there is anything wrong you can tell me.” Susan persisted; she was getting a bad vibe.

  “I really need to check my oven,” Mrs. Masters closed the door and left Susan standing on the door step.  She cocked her head to listen for any noise coming from inside but she heard nothing, shrugging Susan went back out to the car.

  “Well?” Hutch asked as he got out allowing Susan to slide in.

  “Something isn’t right.”

  Starsky peered at the house, “What do you mean?”

  “She seemed nervous and after a few minutes of talking was very anxious to get rid of me.”

  “I think it would make me nervous too knowing what went on around here.”  Hutch said.

  “No this was different, I think something is wrong, I kept asking her and she kept saying no but there wasn’t much conviction in her voice, I just have a bad feeling.”  Susan wanted to go back and knock on the door again. 

  “Let’s cruise the neighborhood for a while and see what we can come up with, maybe we can talk to some others.”  Starsky said as he started the car.

   As they drove away a face appeared in the window of the house, “They’re gone.”  Sharon barely got the words out of her mouth before she was shoved into a living room chair.

  “You did real good.” the masked man said as stuck the gun he had aimed on her in the waistband of his jeans. 

  “What do you want?” she said as her voice trembled.  The man had come in through the back door several hours ago, he had said very little and had been holding the gun on her ever since.  “How did you know they would come here?”

  He didn’t answer, instead he paced the room rubbing the butt of the gun, he knew they would be back; they would never stop hunting him unless he got them first.  He should have just killed the cop when he had had the chance.

  “How long are you going to hold me?” She wanted to know.

  “Will you shut up!” He turned on her, she couldn’t see that anger on his face but could hear it in his voice.

  “I’m sorry, stay as long as you like but please don’t hurt me.”  Sharon begged.

  He glanced at the watch on his arm, it was nearly noon and he was growing hungry.  “Why don’t you make us something to eat, uh?” He picked up a photo of her children, “If you try anything I’ll kill you then I will hunt down your kids and kill them too…you got that?”

  “Ye-s-s,” Sharon with tears running down her face, she got to her feet and made her way to the kitchen. “What do you want?”

  “I don’t care, surprise me!”

  As she was making a sandwich she noticed movement in the backyard, it was that female detective and her partners, Sharon didn’t know what to do, she was relieved that they had come back but frightened that if they didn’t get the man he would harm her children.  She pulled a napkin from the holder on the counter and wrote HELP with a black marker, she was planning on trying to toss it out the back door.

  “Hurry up! I’m starving, I don’t need a three course meal.” His voice boomed from the dining room. 

  “I’m coming,” Sharon tried to keep her voice from shaking. “What would you like to drink?”

  “Got any soda?”

  “Sure, what kind?”

  “I don’t care just grab something and bring me my food.”  He was starting to get agitated and that was the last thing she wanted.

  Sharon wadded the napkin up and stuffed it in her pocket then carried the sandwich and drink to the man sitting at her dining table. 

  “We have  to go back,” Susan said. “Something isn’t right.”

  “You said that she said everything was alright.”  Starsky said

  “It’s just a gut feeling.  Park around the corner, we’ll go through the yards to the house.”

  “Guess you haven’t lost your cop instincts.” Hutch commented. Susan cut her eyes at him, he smiled at her. “You can retract the claws it was a compliment.”

  “Maybe I’m being paranoid, just being back at the house brings back a lot of bad memories.”

  “And good ones.” Hutch said taking her hand. “We had a lot of good times in that house.”

  Susan nodded, she felt tears pricking at the corners of her eyes.

  Starsky parked around the corner and they made their way through several backyards before they came to the one now owned by Sharon Masters.  They crept into the yard keeping low in case Susan was right. 

  “Look she is making lunch for herself,” Starsky hissed in Susan’s ear.  “Let’s get out of here.”

  Susan watched as Sharon finished making the sandwich then she was sure she saw Sharon mouth she was coming.  “Who is she talking too?”

  “What do you mean I didn’t hear anything?”  Hutch said crouching next to Susan.

  “I read her lips, she said I’m coming.”  Susan moved closer to the back door.  “Somebody is in there with her, I just know it.”

  “Maybe it’s one of her kids, didn’t you say she had children?” Starsky asked.

  “They are in college,” Susan informed him.  “She was uneasy when I was talking to her, she wasn’t when we were here before.” 

  “Do you think it could be him?”  Hutch wanted to know.

  “You got a better answer? He already used this address once to for a false report, I’m almost betting he broke in, who knows why, he is sick and twisted.”  Susan was now at the sliding glass door.  “If I’m wrong we scare the crap out of Mrs. Masters, if I’m right we might be saving her life.”

  They drew their guns and Starsky tried the door, it was unlocked, gently he slid the door open hoping that it would not make a noise.  The door slid silently open and they snuck in, he put his finger to his lips, they could hear voices coming from the dining room, one was Mrs. Masters the other male.

  Hutch poked Starsky, “It’s him, I know that voice.”

  Susan suppressed the urge to rush into the room and a shoot the man dead. Instead she whispered “How do you want to handle this?”

  “He has a gun, or had when he took me.” Hutch informed them.

  “Get over there,” Starsky motioned for Susan to move across from him.   “Hutch make a noise, nothing too loud just enough to catch their attention.”

  A loaf of bread was lying near the edge of the counter, Hutch reached up and pulled it off, it made a dull thud on the floor.  Starsky looked at him and threw his hands up in the air.

  “What?” Hutch hissed.

  “A little louder than that!”

  Within moments they heard the man say “What was that?”

  “I’ll check.”  Sharon got to her feet, “Sounds like something just fell.”

  “You remember how dead your kids will be if you do anything stupid.” He commented as she left the room.

  Starsky waited until she was totally into the kitchen and out of the line of sight.  “Mrs. Masters.”

  Sharon didn’t even jump, since she had seen them in the backyard.  “Thank god.” she whispered as relief rush across her face.  “That is him isn’t? The man that killed your daughter?”

  Susan nodded.

  “What was it?” He yelled from the next room.

  Before they could suggest anything to her, Sharon called out, “It was just the cat, she wants out.  Would you like some dessert, I made cookies yesterday.”

  “Just get your ass back in here.”

  Now she looked to them for help, “What do I do?”

  “Is the front door unlocked?”  Hutch asked.

  “I think so, unless he locked it, I thought it would be easier to escape if I left it unlocked.”  Sharon answered.

  “You are one smart cookie,” Starsky said in his best Bogart.

  “HEY!” Another shout came, “Don’t make me come in there.”

  Sharon threw a few cookies on a plate and returned to the dining room before they could stop her.  “Sorry, I thought I would bring a few anyway.’

  “Sit down.” He ordered as he reached for a cookie, it disappeared under the mask. 

CHAPTER 9

   Hutch held up his hand with his fingers spread then tapped his watch to indicate to give him five minutes to get around the house and to get into position at the front door.  There was the chance that the front door had been locked so Starsky and Susan were also prepared for that.  They crouched together in the kitchen, Starsky keeping his eye on his watch, waiting for the five minute mark.  They could hear Sharon and her captor talking in the dining room, it was mostly Sharon talking and he grunted a few answers at her.

  The scream startled all of them and the loud sound of a shot chilled the detectives to the bone.  Hutch burst in through the front door that was thankfully still unlocked as Susan and Starsky entered the dining room from the kitchen.  All three of them stopped in their tracks fearing the worst, but it was the masked kidnapper who was lying on the floor bleeding profusely from the head.  The chair he had been sitting in had tipped over backward and he was sprawled on the floor, the gun still clutched in his hand.

  Hutch kicked the gun away then felt for a pulse, just as he suspected there was none.  Susan went to Sharon Masters and pulled the woman, who had leapt from the table the moment the gun went off, into her arms.  “It’s going to be alright.”

  “He just put the gun to his head and pulled the trigger.” She stammered.

  “He didn’t say anything?” Starsky asked as he bent down and pulled the mask from the man’s head.  Neither he nor Hutch recognized the face under the mask, “I’ll go call it in.”

  “There is a phone in the kitchen.”  Sharon gave the detective a weak smile, “I guess you know that though.”

  Starsky patted her on the shoulder as he passed by, “Are you okay Susan?” he asked.  She looked as shook up as Sharon.

  “Yeah, I’m fine.” Susan answered, but there was a whirl of emotions in her. It was over, after all the years of pain, the man that had killed Jesse was now dead, but there was no satisfaction, there would be no questions asked and answered. 

  Hutch walked over to the two women, “Why don’t we go out in the backyard?”

  They passed by Starsky who was on the phone, even with the man dead there would still be an intensive investigation, maybe they could give other families closure.

  Three hours later and what seemed like miles of paperwork they were back at Starsky’s apartment, Susan was packing her suitcase, it was time to go home.  She had done what she had come for, Susan sat down on the edge of the bed, she needed to call John to let him know she would be coming the next day.  It was only Thursday but there was nothing left for her do here and the sooner that she got home and could forget her past again the better it would be for her and John.  Susan picked up and dialed her home number.

   In the living room the guys were knocking back a couple of beers, “Are you going to talk to her?” Starsky asked his partner.

  Hutch shook his head no, “She is packing, she has a life waiting for her, it’s not fair for me to try to step in now after all these years.”

  Starsky felt frustrated, he knew that they were still in love with each other; a blind man could see it.  But as usual they were both being stubborn.  He pushed himself off the couch and stood looking at Hutch “You are just going to let her walk out of your life again?”

  “It’s different this time, she is married, she has made a life for herself. I can’t ask her to give that all up. Who knows if we could get past all this, we couldn’t before.”  Hutch looked sad as he polished off  the last of his beer.  “I better get going buddy.  We will have plenty to do tomorrow.”

  “Just talk to her,” Starsky pleaded.

  “What am I supposed to say to her, huh?” 

  Starsky shrugged as he looked at the closed bedroom door.  “Maybe now at least we will get to see her once in a while.”

  “I’m sure Susan will come back to visit and we can go see her.”  Hutch’s voice didn’t have much conviction, he was sure that once she got back to her life she wouldn’t have time for them.  “I’ll see you in the morning.”

  When Susan finally emerged from the bedroom after talking to John she was surprised to see that Hutch had left.  “Where’s Hutch?”

   “He was tired.” Starsky said without looking at her, he was afraid if he did he would beg her to stay, tell her that Hutch still was in love her and that he didn’t want to lose his friend again.

  “I was hoping he would still be here, I wanted to tell you both that I’m leaving tomorrow.” 
  “What?” Starsky now looked at her in shock, he was hoping they would have at least one more today together.

  “James Scott Allen is dead and it’s time for me to go.”  Susan said, they had found out the man’s name once they had gotten his prints.  The man’s record had been clean, he would have been nearly impossible to have caught. 

  “But I thought we’d do something tomorrow, just the three of us.”

  Susan smiled at Starsky and ruffled his hair, “I think it’s just best if I get home.”

  “Will you come back?”

  “Sure, maybe I can get John to come back with me and we can show him the city.”

  Starsky just nodded, it wasn’t what he had in mind but he would take what you could get.  “I’m sorry for just showing up at your place like that, I should have called but I didn’t’ really think you would come if I did that.”

  “It’s alright, I’m glad you did. I haven’t felt this good in years.”  Susan sat down next to him.  “It’s like a weight has been lifted.” 

   Dobey looked up when his office door opened, he was getting ready to yell when he saw Susan stick her head in.  “Hi, Cap.”

  “Come in,” Dobey heaved his girth out of his chair.  “You three did a fine job.”

  “Thanks Cap, it was good to come back. I have missed it.”  Susan hugged her former captain.  “I came to say goodbye, I’m leaving in a couple of hours.”

  “You will be missed,” Dobey said as he hugged her back.  “Those boys haven’t been the same.”

  “Maybe things will be better now.”  Susan gave the captain one final hug.

  “Why didn’t you call me last night and tell me she was leaving today.” Hutch asked, he had been stunned when he had arrived at Starsky’s that morning to find Susan toting her suitcase to the car. 

  “What would it have changed?” Starsky put his feet up on his desk.  “Are you going to talk to her now?”

  “You know I can’t. If she wanted to stay she would.” 

  “She doesn’t know you want her to stay.”  Starsky persisted.

  “Would you?”

  “Would I what?”

  “Ask her to stay?”  Hutch wanted to know. “Do you want to break up her marriage or even worse, have her turn you down?”

  “Is that what you are afraid of?  That she will turn you down?” 

  Before Hutch could answer Susan came out of Dobey’s office.  She took off her shoulder holster and gun and handed it Hutch, “You kept this for me once before, will you hang on to it again?”

  “Sure, I would be glad to.”  Hutch took the gun.  “You think you will come back for it?”

  Susan didn’t answer she only smiled at him.  She surveyed the room, it all seemed the same from the coffee pot to the chipped mugs and dented filing cabinets.  “Well I guess I had better get to the airport.”

  As they were getting in the car, Susan said, “There is a stop I would like to make first.”

  Hutch winched when she said she wanted to stop at the cemetery.  He hadn’t been there since the day they had buried Jesse, he hadn’t been able to bring himself to visit. It had been Starsky who had gone every week to put flowers on the little girl’s grave.

  Arriving near Jesse’s grave Hutch reluctantly got out of the car.  Susan, clutching a dozen pink roses, clasped his hand and pulled him along with her, Starsky followed behind.  Both Susan and Hutch were surprised to see flowers already on the grave and they looked at Starsky who nodded.  Tears were standing in all their eyes as they remembered the little girl that had been the light of all their lives. 

  Hutch pulled a single rose from the bunch that Susan held and put it on the top of the stone.  “Hi baby, I’m sorry it took me so long to come.”

  Susan knelt down putting the rest of the flowers in front of the stone, it broke her heart to see her daughter’s name etched in the marble.  She stood and wrapped her arms around Hutch and he held her until Starsky interrupted them to say it was time to leave for the airport.

   “Well I guess this is it,” Hutch said as he looked longingly into Susan’s eyes. She wasn’t oblivious to his feelings for she was feeling them too. 

  “I’m going to miss you Hutch,” Susan said taking his hand.  “You too, Starsk.  Come visit me anytime. I mean that.” 

  “We will, promise,” Starsky took her in his arms and hugged her tightly.  “It was like old times.” 

  “Yeah, I didn’t realize how much I missed it.”  Susan said as she released him.  She grabbed her suitcase and started to head toward her gate, that was when she saw John. He raised his hand tentatively.  “John, what are you doing here?”

  “I thought I would come and we could fly home together.”  But he wasn’t so sure it was the right thing.  He saw how the three of them were together and the looks between Hutch and his wife didn’t escape him. He shook hands with the two detectives.  “Susan said you got your man.”

  “Yes, not many answers but I think I can live with that knowing that he can’t hurt another child.”  Hutch said.

  “We will keep digging though,” Starsky added. 

  “I guess we had better get to the gate,” Susan said as she tried to hold back her tears but they slowly ran down her cheeks.  “I’ll miss you both.”  She hugged each one of them again.

  John took her suitcase, Susan followed him but kept looking back, she waggled her fingers at them one last time before she finally turned and disappeared with her husband.

  He stopped so quickly Susan nearly walked into him. “What is it?”

  “I can’t do this.”  John said setting her suitcase on the floor.

  “Do what?” Susan was confused.

  “Do you love me?”

  “Yes.” Susan said without hesitation.

  “What about Hutch, do you love him?” John asked but he knew the answer already.

  Again without hesitation, “Yes, I always will, he was my first love, the father of my daughter.”

  “There is a difference between loving somebody and being in love.  So which is it?  Are you in love with Hutch?”

  Susan stood looking up at her husband, she dropped her head as more tears spilled down her cheeks, “Yes,” she whispered.

  John hooked his finger under her chin and brought her eyes up to meet his.  “It’s okay, it really is, I understand.”

  “I don’t want to hurt you. There has been enough hurt.”  Susan took John’s hand.

  “You belong here, I have watched you work, watched you with your partners, watched you with Hutch. This is your life. I couldn’t live with myself if I took you away from this.”  John kissed her forehead.

  “John!”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  “I can’t do this to you, I just can’t. I said I was coming home and I’m keeping my word.” Susan said grabbing her suitcase.

  “I don’t want your word.”  John took the suitcase from her. “Do you really think you can come back home and everything be the same?  You were never totally there anyway and now I understand why.”

  “But it’s not fair to you.”

  “And it’s not fair to you either.  We both deserve to be happy.  And you coming back and being unhappy won’t make me happy.”

  Hutch stood and watched long after Susan and John were gone from sight.  “Come on buddy, we got work to do still, I want to find out who that bastard really was and how many children he killed if we can.”

  Hutch nodded wordlessly but still didn’t move.  It was as if he left he would lose her forever.  Starsky put his hand on his friend’s shoulder and squeezed, “I know I can’t stand here forever.”  He started to turn.

  “Look,” Starsky pointed in the direction Susan had gone.

  Hutch turned back and looked to where Starsky was pointing.  It was Susan, she was walking slowly toward them, then she dropped her suitcase can ran toward them throwing herself into their arms.

  “Where is John?” Starsky asked.

  “On the plane.”  She cried.  “I’m staying.”

  “But what about John?” Hutch was shocked.

  “He told me I belong here and he’s right.” Susan hugged Hutch.  “I belong to you.”

  For the first time in a long time Hutch kissed the woman he loved.  “I love you.”

  “I love you too.” Susan answered

  “Do you think we can get out of here?” Starsky had gone and picked up her suitcase, “People are starting to stare.”

  Hutch put his arm around Susan, Starsky came around the other side and placed his arm around her too.  “I guess we have work to do.” Susan smiled at them.  “You think that I can get back on at the department?”

  “I’m sure Dobey can pull some strings.”  Hutch said. 

  “I sure hope so, I don’t want to have to spend my days baking cookies.”

  “What’s wrong with cookies? I love cookies!” Starsky teased. 

  Susan laughed, “Like you said let’s get out of here.”  Susan took a deep breath as they stepped out the doors of the terminal.  It sounded corny but it was the first day of the rest of her life…their lives.

                                               The End

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