Trial by Fire

By Deanna Jordon

Captain Dobey stormed through the squad room with a stack of files under one arm and a cup of coffee in his other hand. "Starsky, Hutchinson, my office, now." The big
man’s tone left no room for argument. He disappeared into his office and left the door open.

Detective Kenneth Hutchinson, a tall lean man with blond hair and a matching mustache, raised his eyebrows at the curt summons. He cast a questioning look at his partner, Detective David Starsky. Starsky was smaller with dark hair and a quick smile that went well with his blue eyes. The two men had been partners for nearly ten years and that partnership had grown into a strong bond of friendship. Now, Starsky simply raised his eyebrows in response and headed for the open office door. Both men could tell that this wasn’t going to be a quiet Monday morning.

Starsky led the way into the office. He plopped down into a chair as Hutch came in and shut the door behind him. He, too, sat and regarded the dark man behind the desk. Hutch and Starsky had known Captain Harold Dobey too long not to sense that something big was up. Both of them sat quietly waiting for Dobey to break the silence.

"Did you hear about that fire downtown last night?" Dobey asked.

"Sure, some warehouse went up. A fireman was killed when part of a wall came down." Starsky answered with a glance at his partner. "Why?"

"Because that fireman didn’t die from a collapsed wall. Someone shot him when he went back inside. This was found at the scene." Dobey threw a manila envelope across the desk. "The fire department has asked us to find out what happened. They want to keep this under wraps so that some other wacko doesn’t take it into his head to do the same thing!" Dobey had a habit of yelling when he got worked up about a case.

Hutch leaned across the desk and picked up the manila envelope. Inside was an 8"x10" photo of four men in full firefighting turnout gear. One face was marked with a red "X". "I take it that mister “X” is our dead man." he said, passing the photo to Starsky.

"Yes. His name was Dave Roberts. We only have one of the other men in the photo ID’d. His name is John Gage out of Station 51 on the far side of LA in Carson. I want you two to go talk to him and see what you can find out. I want to know if someone was just after Roberts or..."

"Or if we have some nut bent on revenge against firemen?" Starsky finished. He stood up and reached for the door handle. "We’re on it, Captain."

Hutch followed Starsky out the door. "You in a rush or something?"

"Yea. I like fire trucks. When I was a kid back home, my aunt’s house burned down. The firemen saved her and my two baby cousins. This is my chance to pay them back." Starsky gave Hutch one of his lopsided grins as he led the way out of the station.

An hour later, Starsky parked his shiny red and white Ford Torino in front of Los Angeles County Fire station 51. The station was a long, low building of red brick with huge metal-and-glass doors in the middle. The two officers made their way to the smaller entrance on their right. They couldn’t help but notice the freshly cut lawn, the border of flowers, and the flagpole shining in the sun.

"These guys must have a lot of spare time on their hands to do all this," Starsky commented as Hutch opened the door.

"Don’t bet on it." The speaker was a tall, rangy man in his mid forties. His dark eyes crinkled up in a smile as he smoothed down his black hair. He held out his hand and introduced himself. "Hank Stanley, Captain. What can I do for you gentlemen?"

Grinning at Starsky’s embarrassed face, Hutch shook the proffered hand and introduced himself and his partner. "We need to talk to one of your men, a John Gage." he stated as he pulled his badge out of his hip pocket to show to the captain.

"What is this about?" Stanley’s eyes narrowed. The captain was fiercely protective of his men and the expression on his face showed it.

Starsky broke the silence. "We need more information about a firefighter who was killed last night. We think Gage might be able to help us." he said somberly.

Captain Stanley appeared to be thinking. Finally, he motioned the two to join him in his private office, which was just off the far left of the front counter. He saw them inside, then opened a second door that opened into the main garage bay.

Through the door, the detectives could see the engine and the modified pick-up truck that served as the rescue squad. Moments later, Stanley returned with a younger man in tow.

Starsky and Hutch studied the young man, making a basic first impression. The newcomer was tall and lanky and appeared to be in his mid to late twenties. His black hair and dark eyes gave some evidence of his Native American background. The men shook hands as Captain Stanley introduced John Gage, fireman/paramedic. "Johnny here was one of the first paramedics in the county. He and his partner, Roy DeSoto, are the best team around." Now he turned to Johnny. "These men want to ask you some questions about the fireman who died last night. He was a friend of yours, wasn’t he?"

Johnny sat down in the chair at the desk and waved the detectives to the couch. Captain Stanley left and closed the door behind him. "His name was Dave Roberts. He and I went through the fire academy together. Why are you interested? Was it an arson fire?" Johnny’s tone was low and questioning. It was always bad when a fellow firefighter died in the line of duty, but when he was a personal friend, that made the death even harder to bear.

"It wasn’t the fire that killed him." Starsky stated bluntly. Giving John the photo, Starsky went on. "He was shot while inside the building. We believe that the gunman left this, maybe as a warning. What can you tell us about the photo?"

Johnny looked at the photo of himself and his friends with a look of shock on his face. "This is Dave, Lee Boxer, Charlie Coop and myself at the academy. We had just finished our first major disaster drill. A friend of ours took this picture and gave each of us a copy. This was Dave’s copy. You can tell because he initialed each of our hats. We all did that, initialed the hats of the others in the photo, just for a little joke." Johnny fell silent, studying the photo in his hand.

Hutch leaned forward. "What can you tell us about the other men?" he asked gently. He had to know if he was dealing with a single case of murder, or a plot against all four of the men in the picture.

"Not a lot really. Dave was a bachelor, lived with his folks, and kept to himself. We still see...saw...each other now and again for a night out. Lee Boxer is living in Casper, Wyoming. He works with the fire department there and got married about two years ago. I haven’t seen him since the wedding. And Charlie," Johnny paused, "Charlie was killed during a training fire just before graduation. We were burning an old house that had been donated to us. The ceiling gave way and fell in before Charlie could get out. He was trying to rescue a cat that had run inside and gotten trapped. We tried our best to get to him, but we didn’t make it." Johnny gave the photo back and ran his hands through his hair. "That’s all I can really tell you. Does it help any?"

"It might. We’ll check with Dave’s shift mates and see if they can add anything more recent. We’ll keep you updated on what we find." Hutch reached out to shake Johnny’s hand as a deep throated tone sounded out in the bay.

"Squad 51, man down. 3467 Oak street. Three, four, six, seven Oak Street. Cross street 10th. Time out 09:43."

Waving goodbye, Johnny ran from the room and jumped into the squad. Starsky and Hutch could see another man, bigger with broad shoulders and sandy brown hair, jump into the drivers seat. Captain Stanley answered the call from dispatch as he pushed the button for the doors to open. In seconds, the squad was gone.

Captain Stanley walked over to where the detectives were standing in the door. "Was Johnny able to give you any help?"

"A little." Hutch replied. "Would you do us a favor? If Johnny should happen to get any odd phone calls, packages or if something about a rescue doesn’t look right, could you give us a call?" He handed the man one of his business cards. "Here’s the number where we can be reached."

"Are you expecting someone to go after Johnny?" Stanley frowned.

"Not really. We’re just trying to keep all the bases covered," Starsky assured the worried man. "We’ll keep you posted." With that, Starsky and Hutch left the building, discussing the results of the interview as they returned to their car.

Later that afternoon, Hutch hung up the phone and looked at his partner across the desk they shared. "That was the captain at Robert’s station. According to him, Dave had gotten a couple of disturbing phone calls in the last week. He just waved them off as being pranks and didn’t tell anyone but his captain about them." Hutch picked up his coffee mug and headed over to the coffeepot in the corner.

"You think it was our killer?" Starsky put down the taco he was eating and wiped his hands on his jeans.

"Could be. Did you find out anything about the fireman up in Wyoming?"

"Not yet. The battalion office is supposed to be checking on it and calling me back." Starsky took a swig of his cola before continuing. "What do you think about this?"

Hutch sat back down and leaned back in his chair. "I think we have a case of revenge. Whether it’s against one man, or all four of them in that picture is anyone’s guess at this point."

"Three men. The one was killed before he graduated, remember?"

"Who’s to say that something didn’t happen before graduation that pissed off someone at all four of our firemen?" Hutch leaned forward again and picked up a piece of paper. "We really don’t have much to go on yet. I’ll start a background check on the one killed in that academy fire. Charlie Coop right?"

"Yea." Starsky answered. The ringing of the telephone interrupted him. "Detective Starsky here. Yes, sir. I see. When was this? Have the local police come up with any leads? A photo? Can you describe it?" Starsky was writing down notes fast and furious. Finally, he laid down his pen and handed the paper over to Hutch. "Thank you sir. We’ll be in touch."

"What was that all about?" Hutch asked. He tried to puzzle out the notes he had been handed, but had to admit that he couldn’t decipher Starsky’s handwriting when he was in a hurry.

"Seems that someone shot our third firefighter two weeks ago. He had just gotten off duty at the station and was on his way home when someone opened up with a .12 gauge shotgun. The next day, his captain found a duplicate of the same picture taped to the firehouse door. The local police don’t have any leads." Starsky got up and headed for Dobey’s office to report his findings.

"So we really do have some nut out to kill a select group of firemen?" Dobey seemed to sink into his chair. "You two get on back over to 51 and talk to Gage again. He’s the only one left. I want you two to stick to him like glue and catch this turkey."

"Do you want us to move him to a safehouse?" Hutch asked. He watched as Dobey scratched his chin in thought.

"No," the captain said finally. "We can’t be sure that this guy will stop if he can’t find his real target. He may decide to kill the nearest man and then where will we be? I’ll arrange for you two to hang around the station. Keep checking on the backgrounds of Gage and the other three."

"What are we going to do around a fire station, Cap?" Starsky asked. "We don’t know the first thing about fighting fires."

"Let me talk to this Hank Stanley. See what he can come up with. It’ll be up to him to fill in his crew anyway. I’ll call him right now and let him know what you’ve found so far. Why don’t one of you call John Gage and let him know how things stand."

"We’ll get right on it." Starsky gave a half-hearted grin as he and Hutch went back to their desk in the squad room.

"What do you want to bet that Dobey makes one of us into a fireman?" Starsky asked Hutch. He was wearing his trademark smirk as he plopped down in his chair to finish off his taco.

"No way. I wouldn’t have the faintest notion how to do anything right." Hutch
shook his blond head. "Maybe we can be reporters or something."

"Why a reporter? You always want to do something easy. Come on, live a little."
Starsky popped the rest of the taco in his mouth and picked up his wrapped
burrito. He had just taken the first bite when Dobey came out of his office.

"OK, you’re all set. The two of you are observers from a station in Oregon. One of you at a time will ride in the squad with Gage and his partner while the other follows behind on calls. I want you on every call. Captain Stanley will decide when and how much to tell the rest of his men. His battalion chief just gave his okay for the plan. You’d better get going." With that, Dobey walked back into his office. He knew that undercover assignments like these were dangerous and he didn’t want his two best detectives to see the new worry lines etched into his brow.

*****

Two hours later, Starsky and Hutch once again entered Station 51. Instead of Captain Stanley, a young man of Latino descent met the two. He welcomed them and took them into the common room to meet the rest of the men. Captain Stanley took over the introductions. John Gage they had met, and the man with the sandy brown man was his partner, Roy DeSoto. The Latino man was Marco Lopez; Chet Kelly was the slightly paunchy fellow with the mustache, and finally, Mike Stoker. Mike was a quiet man with brown hair and shining eyes. His job was engineer for the crew.

"Starsky and Hutchinson here are observers from Oregon. They aren’t firemen but are researching our paramedic program. One of them will ride with the Squad and the other will follow behind." Stanley went on to explain how the crew worked a rotating shift, 24 hours on and 48 hours off. He gave them a tour of the station and assigned them to extra cots in the dorm. They had just exited the locker room when the tones sounded.

"Station 51, Station 110, MVA with injuries. Junction of Crescent and Fallows
Streets. Crescent and Fallows. Time out 16:34."

"Station 51, KMG 365" Stanley responded over the radio. Opening a closet door, he grabbed an extra helmet and turnout coat and threw them at Starsky. "You ride with Gage. Hutchinson you follow us, but at a distance. Lets go!" He hurried to the engine as Starsky slid in beside Gage in the squad. As the two emergency vehicles pulled out into traffic, Hutch ran for the Torino and followed as best he could.

As he reached the accident scene, Hutch whistled softly. A tour bus had been broadsided by a dump truck that had apparently run a red light. The bus was on it’s side and the dump truck was still touching it. Hutch ran up to join Starsky beside the squad as the firefighters swung into action. They couldn’t hear all the commands being given but they could see the danger. Johnny climbed up on the side of the bus and disappeared inside as Roy ran to check on the dump truck
driver. The paramedics from Station 110 set up a tarp and some equipment before heading over to the bus. Roy felt for a pulse on the driver as he noted the massive head injuries. He was
saddened but not surprised at not finding it. He pulled off his turnout coat and draped it over the man’s head. He reported to Stanley, then joined the rescue effort on the bus.

Johnny had sorted out the wounded and was helping them to the emergency door at the back of the bus where Marco and Chet were using a Jaws spreader to open it. As soon as they got it opened, they began assisting the passengers as they climbed out of the bus. Starsky counted nine women and wondered how many more were still inside the wrecked bus. He got his answer when Johnny emerged and helped the tenth woman over to the tarp.

Starsky watched the crowd as intensely as he watched the rescue. He walked away from Hutch and began to circle the area, making sure to give the wreck a wide berth. He could see the ambulances arriving and the local police beginning to divert traffic around the scene. He couldn’t find anyone who looked like a threat or seemed to be paying particular attention to the crew from Station 51.

He had just completed his circuit when Captain Stanley came up to him. "We’re just about finished here. Roy and one of the paramedics from 110 will ride in with the victims. The rest of us will hose down the area some more and help with clean up. Why don’t the two of you meet John and Roy at Rampart Hospital?"

"Sure thing. See ya around." Hutch and Starsky split up again, Hutch to the Torino and Starsky to the squad.

"Man, I have never seen anything like that," Johnny commented as they drove after the ambulance.

"What do you mean?" Starsky asked.

"Those women in that bus. Not a single major injury. In fact, about half of them seemed to be checking out you and your partner. They should all be out of the hospital by this afternoon." Johnny stole a sideways glance at Starsky. "So, did you find anything else out about Dave?"

"Nothing. We’re still checking though. In the meantime, on your day off, why don’t you come and stay with me? That way, you’ll be harder to find and you can relax for a while."

"Sounds good. I just may take you up on that." Johnny fell silent as they pulled into the hospital emergency entrance.

****

"Not bad, not bad at all." Johnny looked around at Starsky’s apartment. He had allowed Starsky and Roy to talk him into hiding out during his time off. He and Starsky had just gotten to the apartment and set Johnny’s overnight kit in the bedroom.

"Maybe I should’ve been a cop instead of a firefighter. You seem to have a better place."

"I don’t know about that. You get bed and breakfast free a third of the time." Starsky grinned to take any sting out of his words.

"Remind me to tell you the meaning of the phrase “Free Lunch” in terms of the fire department some time." Johnny grinned back at Starsky. He really did feel more relaxed here. He hadn’t wanted to worry Roy and his friends about the possibility of someone being out to kill him. Dangerous assignments came with the job of being a firefighter/paramedic, but knowing that someone wanted the chance to kill you was a little unnerving.

"Why don’t you go lie down and get a nap? I cannot believe how busy you guys stay over there. Kelly said you had eight runs yesterday plus the four last night. You’ve gotta be bushed." Starsky looked at Gage in amazement. "What do you do on your days off?"

Johnny smiled broadly. "Sleep." He waved his thanks at Starsky and went to lie down on the double bed. He was asleep in seconds. It was the first time he had allowed himself to relax since hearing of Dave Roberts death.

Starsky busied himself around the apartment doing his routine housework. It gave him a chance to think. Hutch was doing follow ups on the dead firemen while Starsky did the baby-sitting. He knew how his partner loved paperwork. The detectives had also arranged for a patrol unit to stay in the vicinity of the fire station, just in case the killer decided to make a move.

Starsky had finished his housework, eaten a light lunch and grabbed a nap on the sofa by the time Johnny woke up. He was reading the evening the newspaper when Johnny walked out of the bedroom.

"How’d ya sleep?" Starsky gave his watch an exaggerated stare. "You’ve been asleep for the past six hours."

"Six hours! Man I must have been even more tired than I thought." Johnny ran a hand through his hair and sat down in the comfortable chair beside the couch.

"When was the last time you slept?" Starsky asked.

"I don’t really know." Johnny answered slowly. He leaned his head against the back of the chair and looked at the ceiling. "Last week maybe. I have this nagging feeling I can’t get rid of."

"You mean the one in your gut? The one that’s scared of the little shadows behind the bush? That little voice that tells you not to open the door or pick up the phone?" Starsky wasn’t laughing. He leaned forward, forearms resting on his knees, and looked at Johnny.

John straightened up and stared Starsky in the eyes. "That’s the one. I’ve been scared before, God knows I have, but not like this. Just waiting, knowing that some nut out there wants to kill me. I don’t know how long I can take this."

"For as long as it takes.” Starsky replied softly.

“How do you do it?” John asked, not looking at the young detective.

“I just do it because I have to. How do you willingly go into a burning building that you know is going to blow up under you? You see things on a daily basis that would scare the hell out me. I don’t know how you do that." Starsky got up and walked into the kitchen. He came out with two open bottles of beer and handed one to his new friend. He watched him take a long drink before taking a drink of his own.

"It’s not the same. Out there, I have my training, my equipment, my crew, and Roy to back me up. I know that if I get into trouble, he’ll be there to pull me out. He’s saved my life a half a dozen times now. That’s my job, my life. This...this is... is..." Johnny gave up trying to describe the feeling that was clutching his gut.

Starsky nodded. "I’ve been there. Last year, a man whose son I had arrested for drugs put out a contract on me and Hutch. He managed to get someone to poison me. Hutch and I had one day to find him and the antidote. It was sheer hell, knowing that I was dying, feeling my body shutting down, watching Hutch trying to keep up the front. I nearly gave up being a cop after that. I couldn’t bear to think of what the next person down the line might do." Starsky downed the rest of his beer and stood up.

"Change of scenery," he announced. "I’m hungry. Whatta say we go meet up with Hutch, get a good meal, shoot a little pool and have some fun? No one knows you’re with me so..." Starsky spread out his hands.

Johnny let a slow grin spread across his face. The idea thrilled him a lot more than the conversation. Talking had helped tame the icy hand around his heart and action would settle his nerves. "Lets go. I’m starving." After a quick call to Hutch, both men put on their light jackets and walked down the outside stairs to the Torino.

Starsky drove straight over to The Pit’s, a colorful bar and grill owned by one Huggy Bear. Huggy was a very tall and lean black man who was also a close friend to Starsky and Hutch. They met up with Hutch inside and found a corner table to sit at.

"Huggy," Starsky began, "I would like you to meet Johnny Gage. John here’s a fireman."

"How do you do?" Huggy shook hands with Johnny. "How did a self respecting fireman hook up with these two clowns?"

Johnny shot a look at Starsky before he answered. "Just lucky I guess. Starsky here tells me you’ve got the best burgers in California. Got any to spare and maybe a cold beer to wash it down with?"

Huggy eyed Johnny’s lanky frame. "I got just the thing for ya. How about you two gents?" he asked, looking at his friends.

"Same for us, Hug." Hutch answered. Huggy nodded and walked off. He returned moments later with a tray loaded with three icy glasses of beer and deftly served his friends before hurrying off to see to another customer.

"Did you find out anything today?" Johnny finally asked.

Hutch eyed him as he set down his beer. "A little," he admitted. "The only thing in common with you and the men who were killed was the academy. I need you to think back. Did anything, anything at all, happen while you were there, aside from the fire that killed your friend?"

"I have been racking my brain all day and I can’t come up with anything. We were just a group of guys who liked to have fun and worked hard to get out of the academy. After Charlie died, we just sorta drifted apart. Charlie didn’t really have much family so we all went to the funeral. I met his mom there. His dad took off years before that and his brother was somewhere else. Charlie never talked about him. Dave and Lee both came from big families with firefighters in the family. I moved down here from Montana just to have something different to do. I can’t think of a single thing that would make someone try to kill us."

Johnny stared into his untouched beer. He started to say something more when a shout came from across the bar.

"Help! I think he’s having a heart attack! Call an ambulance!" Johnny was on his feet and running over before Starsky or Hutch could stop him. He found a large man slumped over in his booth clutching at his left arm. He was sweating and having trouble breathing. Johnny knelt down next to him and placed a hand on his abdomen.

"Sir, can you hear me? My name’s John Gage. I’m a paramedic. Just let me look at you for a second." Johnny counted the man’s pulse as he watched his labored breathing. Finished, he turned to Starsky and Hutch and waved them over. "Help me get him seated on the ground. Make sure someone calls the fire department. Tell them we have a possible cardiac case." Johnny turned back to his patient. "Can you tell me where you hurt?"

"My chest...feels like it’s being squeezed. My arm...hurts. Hard to breathe..." the man gasped.

Johnny took out a penlight from the scissors kit he wore on his belt and shone it in the victim’s eyes. He then laid his ear on the man’s chest to listen for any abnormalities in the heartbeat. He had turned to speak to Hutch when the man stiffened and began to slump down. Johnny felt again for a pulse.

"Full arrest!" he yelled as he laid the man down on the floor. Calmly but quickly, he began CPR.

Hutch and his partner could only stare as they watched Johnny work. They wanted to help, but were powerless to do anything more than keep the bystanders away and wait for the ambulance. They didn’t have long to wait before the doors flew open and another pair of paramedics entered the bar, laden with equipment. They and Johnny began to trade identification and information as the newcomers unpacked their equipment.

"Stop CPR." Johnny paused as one man inserted an airway and affixed a blue squeeze bag. "Begin compressions." Johnny resumed pressing down on the patient’s chest as the newcomer squeezed the bag, sending air into the man’s lungs. The second paramedic had ripped open the chest patches for the cardiac monitor and affixed them to the patient’s chest.

"V-fib!" he called out as he grabbed a pair of paddles from a compartment on the top of the monitor. "Charging...clear!" He positioned the paddles on the man’s chest and administered a jolt of electricity. "We got him back." He replaced the paddles and called the local hospital on the orange bio-phone. Johnny sat back and watched as the paramedics stabilized their patient. The ambulance arrived and the man was expertly loaded onto the gurney. Hutch and Starsky helped to guide the stretcher out to the ambulance and load it in.

After the ambulance and the rescue squad had left, the detectives went back inside the bar. They found Johnny leaning on the pool table, breathing heavily.

Starsky put his hand on Johnny’s shoulder. "You okay?"

Johnny stood up and clapped his hand over Starsky’s. "I’m fine. These kinds of cases just take a bit out of you."

"You saved that man’s life. Without any equipment at all, you saved that man’s life." Starsky’s voice held a tone of awe as he guided his new friend back to their table.

"We need to learn that little trick. I’ve seen people do CPR but I never learned it. I guess I will now." Hutch slid into his seat at the table.

"It’s easy to learn. I’ll find you a class. We’ve been pushing for all firefighters and police officers to be certified in CPR. It makes a big difference when help is started immediately." Johnny picked up his beer again and drank as Huggy brought out their meal.

“Here ya go, gents. One heroic sized burger for one heroic paramedic. You need anything else, you just let me know.” Huggy slid the plate in front of Johnny then served Starsky and Hutch.

After the meal and a game of pool, the men decided to call it a night. They said their good-byes to Huggy and walked out. Hutch began walking to his own car as Johnny stood by the passenger door of the Torino. Starsky had just inserted his key in the passenger door lock when shots rang out.

"Johnny, get down!" Starsky screamed as he pushed the young paramedic out of harm’s way. He looked out into the night with his gun drawn, trying to find the source of the gunshots. Hutch, with his gun out as well, come scuttling over to Starsky’s side. Tense moments passed as they scanned the darkness. When no more shots were forthcoming, both men lowered their guns and looked around for Johnny. They found him, lying face down on the pavement beside the car.

"Oh my God." Starsky breathed.

Starsky ran over to the prone form and reached down and felt Johnny's neck for a pulse. He let out a sigh of relief when he felt it beating, slow and steady. He looked his new friend over for signs of injury and found a gash in his hairline just above the left ear.

Starsky turned to Hutch, "Call an ambulance. He's got a pretty good gash here. I can't tell if the bullet grazed him or if he hit his head on the sidewalk."

Hutch nodded and ran over to his won car to use the radio. "Zebra 3 to control." When the dispatcher answered, Hutch put in his request for an ambulance and an additional squad car. Signing off, he hung up the mike and rejoined Starsky. He found that Gage was just waking up.

"Take it easy, John. We've got an ambulance coming." Starsky laid his hand on Johnny's back and helped him to roll over. "Don't try to sit up, you've got a nasty gash on the side of your head."

John groaned and lay back. He grinned weakly at Starsky, "What was that you said about me being safer with the two of you?" He touched the gash above his ear and studied the blood on his fingertips. "I think I hit the car when you shoved me out of the way. Thanks for that by the way. What are the odds that our friend was after you and not me?"

Starsky looked at him and considered lying, but decided honesty was best. "I wouldn't take that bet. Our friend must've followed us. He's good. I never saw him and Hutch would have said something if he'd seen him." The sound of
sirens announced the arrival of the rescue squad and the ambulance.

John was quickly patched up and loaded into the ambulance. He traded small talk with the paramedics who were acquaintances of his and asked them not to spread word of his injury around the department. He didn’t want Roy to learn of the attack. The ambulance took off with Starsky following behind. Hutch stayed at the bar to help with the investigation.

At the hospital, John was taken into the examining room while Starsky waited outside in the hallway. He had put in a call to Dobey and was waiting for Hutch to join him. He was still standing by the door half an hour later when Hutch arrived.

"How is he?" Hutch asked.

"I haven't heard yet. This isn't Rampart so the docs here don't have his medical history. The paramedics said he might have a concussion. He was pretty dazed." Starsky broke off when he heard the exam room door opening. A man in a white coat emerged and stopped when he saw the two detectives.

"Are you here with Mr. Gage?"

"Yes. I'm Detective Hutchinson and this is my partner, Detective Starsky. How is John?"

"Not bad at all. He took five stitches to close up the cut and he has a mild concussion. I would like him to stay here tonight but he insists on leaving. Does he have a place to stay where someone could stay with him? I don't want him to be alone in case complications arise."

"He's staying at my place." Starsky spoke up. "I've watched Hutch here for concussion a time or two in the past, so he's okay with us." Hutch glared at his partner. Starsky went on. "Can we see him now?"

"Of course. I'll just have the nurse bring in the discharge papers. Bring him back if anything changes." The doctor left as Starsky and Hutch entered the room.

They found John sitting up on the table buttoning his shirt. "Hi guys. We ready to go yet?"

Starsky grinned. "Don't tell me, you don't like hospitals?"

"They're okay as long as I'm not the patient." John stood up and wobbled unsteadily. Starsky put out a hand to steady him but John waved him off. "I've got it. This isn't the first time I've had a concussion. Roy can tell you a couple of stories." Further discussion was cut off as the nurse walked in with the discharge papers. John signed them and led the way out of the room.

Starsky and John walked to the car in the parking lot. As John got in, Hutch pulled Starsky to one side. "You know our suspect has got to be watching. You go ahead. I'll follow and set up with Dobey to have a couple of new faces watch outside your place tonight. I'll be back in the morning. Day after tomorrow John goes back on shift and so do we."

"Think we ought to call his captain and tell him about the attack?"

"I'm leaving that up to John. I think we ought to warn his crew to be on their guard. At the very least, we should tell his partner." Hutch stole a glance at the car where Johnny was resting his head against the back of the seat.

"He doesn't want Roy to know. I heard him talking to the paramedics." Starsky burrowed his brow in thought. "I'll convince him to at least call Captain Stanley in the morning. We can fix up how we plan to play fireman after that."

The ride back to Starsky's was uneventful, as was the rest of the night. Starsky got up a couple of times during the night to check on John and to peek outside. He saw the men that Hutch had arranged for and felt a little easier. Starsky got up first the next morning and had just gotten out of the shower when Hutch arrived.

"How's Johnny this morning?" Hutch asked.

"He's still asleep. I'll wake him after you fix breakfast." Starsky said with a grin. It was no secret that he liked Hutch's eggs better than his own.

Hutch had just finished making a big breakfast of bacon, eggs, and biscuit’s when a knock sounded at the door. Starsky, who had been sitting on the couch watching the news, got up and went to answer it, one hand on the butt of his gun. He looked at Hutch who nodded as he readied his own gun for possible trouble. Starsky reached for the doorknob as he called out, "Who's there?"

"Hank Stanley. I'm Gage's captain," a familiar baritone replied. Starsky pushed his gun back into his holster and grimaced.

He looked at Hutch and mouthed, 'Oh shit!', as he opened the door to the tall fire captain. An unsmiling Hank Stanley entered the door and fixed both men with a look he usually reserved for erring firemen. Inwardly, he was pleased to see both detectives flinch.

"Where's Johnny?" A world of meaning made it’self felt with that simple question.

"I'm right here, Cap." None of the men had seen Johnny come out of the bedroom. He walked into the living room and collapsed bonelessly on the couch.

Stanley took in the rumpled clothes, pale complexion, and the bandage on John's head. He nodded knowingly. "How do you feel?"

Knowing that it was no use playing innocent, John answered, "I'm fine. I've just got a little headache and a couple of stitches. How did you find out so fast?"

Starsky answered before Stanley could. "Breakfast is ready. Let's talk about this while we eat." He led the way into the kitchen as Hutch set another place.

"You wanna tell me about it now?" Stanley asked as he helped himself to the bacon.

Johnny spooned out a helping of scrambled eggs before he answered. "There's nothing to tell. Someone took a couple of shots at me last night. Starsky pushed me out of the way and I hit the side of his car. No big deal." Johnny shoveled a forkful of food into his mouth and became very busy chewing. He kept his eyes on his plate so he wouldn't have to face his captain. "Who told you? Len and Tim said they'd keep it to themselves."

Stanley put down his coffee cup and looked hard at his injured paramedic. "You forget. I went through the academy with their captain. He called me first thing this morning and let me know. When were you going to call me?"

"First thing this morning, Cap," Starsky answered quickly. He ignored the look that Johnny threw him. "Hutch and I have a plan. One of us needs to ride along with your paramedics on every call. We don't have to tell the rest of the crew about the threats if you don't want to, but we need to keep close to John here to catch this lunatic."

Stanley finished the piece of bacon he was holding and sat back. "I'll tell the rest of the shift in the morning. I will not have my men going in blind. As far as you riding along, that's easy. We have a standing program for police officers to ride with us for familiarization trips. I can do the paperwork today." He took another drink of his coffee. "What else are you doing?"

Hutch pushed his plate to the center of the table before answering. "We’ll have Starsky inside and me outside on all of John's runs. We also have an additional plainclothes unit staking out the station at all times. Research is doing it's best to find the missing link. We will catch this guy, Captain."

Captain Stanley leveled a hard look at Hutch. "Will you catch him before or after he tries something else?"

Hutch met the mans gaze. "I don’t know but we’ll sure as hell try to catch him before he tries anything else." He took a drink of his coffee and then spoke up again. "Right now your crew thinks we’re observers from Oregon. That worked fine for one day but now we need to go ahead and tell them the truth.”

Johnny swallowed the last of his bacon and pushed his chair back. "We really don’t have much of a choice one way or the other. If this guy is determined to get me, we might as well let him try. I don’t want anyone else to get hurt."

"If you’re sure about this, it’s okay by me. We’ll lay the whole thing out to the guys in the morning." Stanley stood up to leave. "I’ll see you in the morning then. If you need anything before then, give me a call." He said goodbye and let himself out.

The rest of the day was spent in gloomy silence with only occasional comments to each other. Hutch went to the station to retrieve the information that Research and Information had collected while John and Starsky cleaned up the breakfast dishes. Afterwards, Johnny watched TV or read while the officers went over the mound of files that Hutch had returned with. Periodically, they would ask John questions about this person or that event but found that he wasn’t able to shed any light on their mystery attacker. After a quiet dinner, Starsky picked up a new file and once more started to read. Hutch watched as his partner’s face became more animated. He knew that Starsky had found something.

"Johnny, come here. I want you to look at something." Starsky waved his hand to catch Johnny’s attention. John got up from the couch and walked over to the table.

"Whatcha got?" John asked quizzically.

"Take a look. Isn’t this your friend Charlie?" Starsky gave the file to the paramedic, pointing out the picture in the right hand corner.

"That’s him. What is this?" John tried to make sense out of the folder’s contents.

"Your friend had a juvenile arrest record. Dobey must have really pulled a few strings to let us get this. According to this, Charlie and his big brother, Brandon, got in trouble for shoplifting. Both spent time on parole. Looks like Charlie kept clean after that. Where’s the file on his brother?" Starsky took the file back from John and closed it. He began to dig through the pile for a folder on Brandon Coop.

"Nothing here," Hutch declared. "I’m going back to the station. I’ll run a search and see what I can find. I’ll meet you both at the fire station in the morning. Call me if you need me." With that, Hutch took the stack of files with him and left.

After Hutch had left, Johnny went back to the couch and sat down, throwing his head back and looking at the ceiling. A long sigh escaped him as he shook his head ever so slightly. Starsky sat down in the chair next to the couch and looked at Johnny long and hard. "Want to talk about it?" he asked finally.

"Nothing to talk about. I just do my job and wait for some nut to kill me. It’s as simple as that." Johnny didn’t raise his head to meet Starsky’s gaze.

"It’s never that simple. I know exactly what you’re feeling. Hutch and I both do. Keeping it bottled inside isn’t going to help. You have every right to be scared, angry..."

"And that’s gonna help?" Johnny jumped up and began to pace the floor. "I put my life on the line everyday to help people. That’s my job, it’s what I do. This is something else entirely! Somebody wants me dead and I can’t do a damn thing about it!"

Starsky remained calm. "It’s called loss of control and it’s got to be the worst feeling in the world. You’re right. There’s not a thing you or I or Hutch can do about it. But what you do have to do is believe."

Johnny snorted, "Believe in what?" He turned to face Starsky with fire dancing in his dark eyes. "Believe that everything is going to be just fine? Believe that this nutcase is just gonna give up since he missed me once? Believe in the impossible?"

"No, believe that Hutch and I will catch this guy. You just take care of your job and your patients. Hutch and I will cover your back. If he tries anything, we’ll be there to catch him. I give you my promise on that." Starsky knew he was treading on shaky ground, but he had to give John whatever support he could. He could see how badly John wanted, needed, to believe that everything would turn out for the best. He also knew, as did the young paramedic, that nothing was ever certain.

Johnny stopped his pacing and looked out the window at the gathering twilight. He forced himself to slow down his breathing and relax his neck and shoulder muscles. With a deep sigh, he turned back to the worried police officer. "Okay, I’ll believe you. I’ll just do my job and let you do your’s. All I ask is that you DO your job. I don’t want anyone else to get hurt, especially Roy or the other guys from the station."

"Deal." Starsky walked over to Johnny and held out his hand. After a long moment, Johnny took it and shook, hoping with all his might that Starsky would be able to keep the promise he had just made.

The next morning, Starsky and Johnny arrived at the station well before the eight o’clock shift change. Starsky wanted time to go over the daily routines and any scheduling changes that may have come up. He also wanted to be at the station before their suspect came calling.

While Johnny changed and shared coffee with the "C" shift crew, Starsky met Hutch in the back parking lot. Hutch was driving his own car since Starsky’s red and white Torino tended to draw a lot of attention. The two mapped out their strategy for the day. Starsky would wear a wire so that Hutch could hear everything that was happening and Starsky wouldn’t have to worry about keeping up with a walkie-talkie.

*****

The two detectives watched as the rest of the shift members pulled in and exchanged greetings with them. Captain Stanley asked them to join the rest of the crew inside so they could get the day started.

After roll call and duty assignments, the captain asked everybody into the day room for a special briefing. Once everyone was inside and seated, Stanley stood up and faced his crew. "I’m sure that everybody here remembers Dave Starsky and Ken Hutchinson, but they’re not observers. They are police detectives here on official business. You all remember Dave Roberts who was killed last week?" He looked around at the nodding heads that answered his question. "Turns out, it wasn’t an accident. Someone shot him. Now the police here think that the same man may be after Gage." He held up his hands to forestall the amazed outbursts from around the table. "Settle down. I’m gonna let Hutchinson give you all the details." The captain sat down and folded his long fingers over his flat abdomen. The rest of the crew gave their undivided attention to the blond officer.

"As you know, Johnny went to the academy with Dave Roberts.. We have since found out that another man, Lee Boxer, who was also a friend of theirs in the academy, was murdered three weeks ago."

"So who’s doing this and why are they going after Gage?" Chet spoke up, fingering his mustache.

"We think the man behind all this is named Brandon Coop. His brother Charlie died in an accident at the fire academy. Johnny, Charlie, Lee, and Dave were all friends. Starsky and I just found out that Brandon Coop suffered a mental breakdown after the death of his brother. He was hospitalized for several years but managed to escape just last month. Papers were found in his room detailing his plans to kill the men he held responsible for the death of his brother.
“Heres a photo of him that was taken a few years ago." Hutch passed the 5x7 photo to Mike who was sitting closest to him. While Mike looked at the picture and passed it on, Hutch sipped at his coffee, peering over the rim at Johnny.

Johnny sat quietly, the cup of coffee in front of him untouched as he listened. The normally outspoken, self-confident demeanor was gone, replaced by a stoic, almost sullen silence. His fellow crew members shook their heads in disbelief at the story. His partner, Roy, reached over and laid a hand on Johnny’s shoulder. The whole thing was just too incredible to believe.

Now Starsky stood up next to Hutch. "We know that Coop is after John here. He took a shot at him over the weekend but missed so we’re fairly certain he will try again and soon. Now Hutch and I will be along on any and all calls until this guy is caught."

Now Stoker, the crew’s engineer raised his hand. "What do you want us to do?"

"Nothing. Just keep your eyes open. If you see or hear anything that doesn’t feel right, let us know. We will check it out. We have the local police involved so a car will accompany you on all of your runs as well. We hope..." Hutch was interrupted by the sound of the call-out tones.

"Station 51, engine 10, structure fire, 876 West Ash street, 8-7-6 West Ash Street, cross street Majestic, Time out 08:39."

"LA, Station 51, KMG 365" Captain Stanley radioed in and gave the address to Roy as he ran by headed for the driver’s side of the squad. Starsky and Johnny climbed in the passenger side as the rest of the crew donned turnout gear before climbing aboard the engine. Hutch ran for his car in the parking lot and pulled out only seconds behind the fire truck.

Reaching the scene, Cap surveyed the house in front of him. It looked like it had been abandoned for some time and now was fully engulfed in flame. He hopped out of the truck as it came to a stop and watched as his men began to pull out hoses and attach them to the fire hydrant. John and Roy came up dressed in turnout gear and air masks.

"You two go in with an inch and a half. Make sure we don’t have anyone in there. The place looks like it’s been deserted for awhile but you never know."

John and Roy just nodded as they ran off to grab the hose. Cautiously, they began making their way inside the burning building. Starsky, who had donned his extra coat and hat, watched in fascinated terror as the two men disappeared inside the flame filled house. He walked around the exterior, keeping up a monologue about what he could see. He was looking for places where a sniper might set up to take a shot at an unsuspecting fireman.

Hutch was doing the same thing on the other side of the house. He was glad for Starsky’s small talk and wished that Starsky could hear his answers. He had just completed half of his circuit around the house when he spotted his suspect. The man was crouched down behind a bush, watching the burning house and chuckling to himself. Hutch could see a silver box sitting on the ground in front of him.

Hutch drew his gun and ran towards the suspect. He was only feet away from the suspect when a barking dog in the neighbors yard gave him away. The suspect turned and threw the box at Hutch, catching him in the face. Hutch went down, clutching at his mouth, trying to keep the fleeing man in sight. He gave up when he saw what it was he held. A detonator box. Hutch ran for the Captain.

"It’s A TRAP! GET THEM OUT NOW!" he yelled as loudly as he could. He skidded to a stop in front of Stanley. "There’s a bomb! Get your people out NOW!"

Hank Stanley wasted no time. He raised the handie-talkie to his mouth. "Everybody out! This place is rigged. Get out, Now!" He and Hutch watched anxiously as first Chet and Marco with the one hose drew back from the scene, followed by the crew from station 10. "Come on you two, get outta there," he muttered under his breath as seconds passed with no sight of Gage and DeSoto. After what seemed like hours, the two paramedics came running out of the building. They had barely cleared the door when an earthshaking explosion rocked the building behind them. The hapless men were tossed forward, landing on the hard ground a full thirty feet away from the front of the house. As the fire crews of both stations ran to render aid, Hutch looked for Starsky. He was nowhere in sight.

Hutch turned his eyes back to what remained of the burnt out building. Nothing stirred. Where was Starsky? A feeling of panic began clutching at his heart and throat. "STARSKY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Hutch stood rooted to his spot by the fear in his guts. He watched helplessly as the firemen from 51s picked up their fallen comrades and carried them back to the relative safety of the squad. It was only then that he became aware of the sounds coming from his walkie-talkie.

"You’re lucky. It just wasn’t your day to die, was it?" A stranger’s voice was coming over Starsky’s wire. With one more look at the injured paramedics, Hutch ran across the lawn of the bombed out house and found his way to the far side.

He searched through the overgrown blackberry brambles until he saw a leather jacket through a break in the weeds. Pushing his way through the thorny growth, he found his partner face down on the ground. Starsky was unconscious, but alive. After checking quickly for broken bones, Hutch picked up his friend and carried him over to where Johnny and Roy were being treated.

As soon as he saw Starsky, Roy jumped up from where Marco had been applying a dressing to the wound on his forehead. He helped ease Starsky to the ground and began to check him out. Johnny followed suit, after grabbing Chet’s hands and physically moving him backwards. Roy was still taking his pulse when Starsky groaned and opened his eyes.

"What happened?" Starsky tried to sit up, but was pushed down flat by Roy and Johnny.

Hutch answered. "A bomb was rigged to go off in the house. I found Coop on the east side with the detonator. He got away from me." Hutch ran a hand down the back of his head and tried to massage his neck muscles. "At least we know we have the right person. He found you too, by the way. He seemed almost relieved that you were still alive."

"I’m glad he’s happy." Starsky rolled his eyes and sat up, grasping Hutch’s outstretched hand for support.

"Just lie back down and let us finish checking you out. You’ve got a pretty good bump on your head there. We’ll take you into Rampart and let the doctors there check you over," Roy told him as he held the BP cuff in his hand.

"I don’t need a doctor. I’ve been knocked out before. I’ll be fine in a few minutes."

"All three of you are going in." Captain Stanley insisted. He held up his portable radio. "I just called in and requested an ambulance. I want all three of you checked out." Now he turned to Hutch, "The police are on their way here as well. You can stay here and talk to them. Since the bomb blew out the fire, 10s will clean up here. Marco, you drive the squad in." Stanley looked up the road as he heard the sound of the ambulances siren getting closer.

"But Cap . . . " Johnny began.

"No buts. All three of you took a pretty good fall. I want the docs at Rampart to look at you. No arguments, from any of you." Stanley’s stern gaze took in the injured officer as well as his two paramedics. Johnny and Roy knew better than to argue the point. Roy made the call into Rampart and advised them that the three of them would be coming in. Then, he and the others climbed into the back of the ambulance and were on their way to the hospital.

At Rampart, Dr. Brackett quickly examined all three men. He concluded that none had suffered a serious wound but he wanted Johnny to stay, citing the stitches as evidence of a prior head wound.

"Gotta go back to work, Doc. I can’t stay here." Johnny insisted. "Why not? I’ve kept you here before with less serious injuries. Besides, I heard from my old friend, Dr. Erikson over at Memorial. He told me what happened. I see the good work on those stitches and, I know he told you to take it easy for a few days." Brackett crossed his arms over his chest and stared at Johnny, waiting for an answer.

"He promised not to tell anyone! Does everyone around here know I got shot at?" Johnny was indignant.

"Not everyone, just me. The cops asked him to tell me since you work indirectly under my supervision." Brackett replied, brushing aside the bangs of his dark hair.

Starsky stepped forward. "I asked them to, John." He held up a hand to forestall Johnny’s reply. Now Starsky turned to Dr. Brackett. "Look Doc, you know what’s going on. If Johnny feels up to it, we need him to stay on the job. It sounds really callous but, we need him to get this nut out into the open where Hutch and I can catch him. I don’t want him getting frustrated and taking it out on the first fireman he sees. And, I don’t think you want that either." Starsky looked from Dr. Brackett to Johnny. He avoided Roy’s eyes. The detective knew what he would feel like if their places were changed. He couldn’t stand for Hutch to be in danger and knew that Roy liked it even less when it came to Johnny. Their job was hazardous enough without playing cops and robbers.

Brackett thought for a moment. "Very well. I’ll release you on one condition. If Roy thinks you are having any problems, you get back in here on the double. That okay with you, Roy?" The doctor turned to the somber-faced man who had been keeping way too quiet.

"I’ll keep an eye on him," Roy promised. He fixed Starsky with a look that added, "and you had damn well better take good care of him too."

The three left and headed back to the station. The engine crew had picked up Marco earlier after he had left the squad at the emergency entrance. Riding back to the station was very quiet with each man wrapped up in his own thoughts. Johnny wanted to talk to Roy, assure him that everything would work out, but deep in his own mind, he was having trouble convincing himself.

At the station, Roy headed off to the captain’s office to update the logbook. He didn’t trust himself not to say something that would only make a bad situation even worse. Johnny was the kid brother he’d never had and now there wasn’t a thing he could do to help. The complete loss of control over the current situation wasn’t helping his nerves at all.

Johnny signed mentally as he walked into the common room and saw Roy go off by himself. He knew how hard this had to be on his partner. Roy was Johnny’s idea of the perfect paramedic. Calm, poised, able to face anything, but this was out of his control. Johnny longed to talk to him, make him understand that Hutch and Starsky would be gone soon and life would get back to normal. The only thing stopping him was the nagging feeling that life would never be normal again.

The next few hours at the station went by quietly. Hutch had returned from the fire with the report that the bomb was a homemade pipe bomb with a simple radio-controlled detonator. Johnny busied himself with cleaning the dorm, changing the beds, sweeping, anything to get his mind off of his dead friends. He knew he would have to write to Lee Boxer's wife and to Dave Roberts' family. He had missed the funeral but felt obligated to do something.

Just before lunch, Roy found him sitting on his bunk writing a letter. Johnny looked up when he heard Roy call his name. He tried hiding the letter by stuffing it in the drawer of his nightstand, but Roy caught a glimpse of the salutation. Johnny was writing to his parents and Roy was sure it was a goodbye letter."Chow’s on. Looks like we might actually get to eat lunch for a change," Roy
said, forcing a smile. He had worked out most of his anger on the logbook entries and now was ready to face Johnny. He couldn’t stand to see his happy-go-lucky partner moping about like a broken puppet.

"I’m not hungry. You guys go ahead." Johnny lay on his bunk, hands clasped behind his head, staring into space.

"You’re the one who’s always complaining you’re gonna starve to death. Come on, Marco made burritos and chili." Roy stood by the bed with his hands in his pockets.

"The way things are going, Coop’ll kill me before that happens," Johnny stated simply.

Roy sat down on foot of the bunk. He fixed Johnny with a long gaze and said simply, "I know you’re scared. I’m scared too. We just have to believe that Starsky and Hutch can catch this guy."

"They’ve had two tries already! This guy is gonna win. I’m scared to walk out that door because I know the next run is gonna kill me! You have no idea what it’s like knowing that someone wants you dead!" Johnny laid his arm over his eyes.

"Johnny, we put our lives on the line everyday. You have people here who watch your back just the same as they know you watch theirs. This guy can’t think that he’s beaten you. You have to show him that you can handle him." Roy put as much conviction as he could into his words, but deep down, he knew that Johnny was right. The police hadn’t been able to catch Brandon Coop. He knew they were trying as hard as they could, but Coop was winning. "Johnny, I don’t know what else to say or do. I don’t know how you feel, but I know how I feel. Angry. Angry at this Coop nut, angry at Starsky and Hutch, and angry at you." Roy stood up.

"Me? What did I do?" Johnny was incredulous.

"Nothing. You’re doing nothing but giving up. If you do that, become so scared you can’t do your job or live your life, then this Coop has already won. He doesn’t have to do

damn thing. He’s already won. And you’re letting it happen."

"There’s nothing I can do!" Johnny shouted. "I see him behind every bush, I see Charlie’s face every time I look at a stranger. I. . . "

"You let down Lee and Dave. Instead of helping to catch this guy for them, you just give up and let him get you without a fight." Roy hated what he was saying. He knew he had to get Johnny up and running again and anger was the only tool he had right now.

"He’s right you know." Both paramedics looked up at the new voice. Hutch was standing at the door, watching them.

"Go away. This is between us," Johnny said, sitting up on the bed.

"No it’s not. Starsky and I have had this same conversation about a hundred times. When you go on a run, you know that something could happen. You’re prepared for trouble and you have a whole arsenal to help you stay alive. When Starsky and I answer a call, all we have is each other and a gun. We don’t have four other guys right there with a whole truck full of stuff to help. We might not get a chance for help to arrive. We’ve both had days where we didn’t have any warning about what was about to happen." Hutch walked over to the bunk opposite John’s.

"Starsky has been shot a few times so badly all I could do was stand and watch him try not to die. I’ve held him, with his blood all over my hands and I couldn’t do a damn thing to help except hold him." Hutch looked at his hands, almost as if he expected them to be covered in blood. "He’s done the same for me. And I know that whatever happens, Starsky would move heaven and hell to get to me. You have to trust that he’ll do the same for you, John. We will get this
guy. He’s getting sloppy, careless, and that will work for us. But you have to show him that you haven’t given up." Hutch got off the bed and squatted down in front of Johnny, putting both hands on the paramedic’s knees. "Don’t give up. Fight. Listen to your partner. Listen to me. This guy is nothing. Too many people here depend on you for their lives. You can’t just throw that away. I promise, we will get this guy."

Johnny stared at him hard. "Before or after he gets me?" With that, Johnny stood and left the room, leaving Roy and Hutch to think. Johnny walked out of the dorm and into the vehicle bay. He went to stand by the squad, leaning on the side doors and thought about what Roy and Hutch had told him. He tried to convince himself that they were right, that he was just giving up and letting Coop win. As much as his heart wanted to believe they were right, his head was telling him they were wrong. He gave up trying to reason out the impossible and went in to lunch. He knew that he had to put up a good face for the rest of the crew. They were his family, and he had to put his own troubles second to their well being. That went for their morale and emotional well being
as well as their physical safety.

As he entered the day room, he could hear Starsky. "Man, that smells wonderful! Did you do this, Marco?" Johnny grinned at the tone of Starsky’s voice. Marco’s chili was almost as good
as Cap’s and his burritos were second to none. Marco had found a new fan in Dave
Starsky.

"Come and get it!" Marco told Johnny when he caught sight of him. Roy and Hutch entered the room on Johnny’s heels and all eight men sat down. Starsky had just popped half a burrito in his mouth when the call-out tone sounded. Johnny and Roy were up and moving before the dispatchers words came over the intercom. Starsky looked mournfully at the rest of his burrito before joining the paramedics in the bay.

"Squad 51, Man down. 9567 West Vermont. Nine, five, six, seven West Vermont. Cross street Jackson. Time out 12:35."

"Squad 51, KMG 365" Captain Stanley hung up the microphone and passed Roy the slip of paper with the address listed. Roy put the squad in gear and pulled out of the bay, noticing as he did that Hutch’s car pulled out from behind the station right behind them.

Arriving at the house, Roy and Johnny gave Starsky the bio-phone to carry as they went up the walk. Roy knocked and was admitted by a slim black woman. "It’s my husband. He’s out back. He was trying to cut down an old tree and it fell on him. He can’t get out." She led them through the house to her backyard. Her husband lay face up on the ground under the trunk of a fairly large oak tree. His face lit up when he saw the firemen.

"Man, am I glad to see you! My chain saw got stuck and when I went to pull it out, the whole tree came down on me!" he explained.

Johnny took off his helmet and sat the drug box down a little way from the tree. "Are you hurt anywhere?" he asked as he knelt down to examine him.

"Not really. I’m a little sore but this thing is too heavy to move. Can you get it off me please?"
Johnny turned to Roy. "It’s too heavy to move. I’m gonna go get the jack. I think we can jack it up enough to pull him out without rolling it over on him."

"Okay. I’ll get the vitals and call Rampart." Roy took the bio-phone from Starsky and knelt down beside the trapped homeowner.

Starsky followed Johnny out to the squad. He saw Hutch parked at the curb and, after a quick look around, he went over to him. "Nothing here. Just some guy trapped under a tree. Why don’t you go on back and give Roy a hand. Johnny and I will get the tools he needs and meet you back there."

"Sounds good to me. I’ll see ya in a minute." Hutch got out of his car and strode to the backyard.

At the squad, Johnny climbed up into the back to unpack the gear he needed. He had just finished pulling out the jack and some rope when he heard Starsky yell. "Gage!"

Johnny looked down from the center of the truck to see a man with a gun standing over an unconscious Starsky. Without a word, he put up his hands and stood very still, waiting for the shot that would end his life.

The man spoke. "Come down here. Be really careful or I’ll shoot your cop friend." Brandon Coop held the gun to Starsky’s head. Johnny climbed down from the equipment rack in the back of the squad and stood just outside of the gunmen’s reach. "Good job, hero." The way he said it made the word an insult.

"See that blue car down the street? Just walk over and get in. You’re driving. No funny moves or your friend here dies." His eyes narrowed as he watched Johnny walk to the car parked at the next house. Johnny climbed into the driver’s seat and waited. Coop ran over to the car and climbed into the back. Johnny could feel the muzzle of the gun against his neck. "Now drive. I’ll tell you where."

The young paramedic started the car and drove off, mentally saying goodbye to Roy.

In the backyard, Roy put Hutch to work clearing branches away from the tree trunk. He looked up and frowned when he realized that Johnny still hadn’t returned. "Hutch, I’ll go give Johnny a hand with the equipment." Instantly, all of Hutch’s alarms went off.

"I’ll go. You should stay here." With that Hutch was off like a shot. When he saw Starsky on the ground, Hutch knew that Johnny was gone. He heard Roy behind him.

"Johnny?" Roy’s simple question made Hutch wince. He couldn’t face the paramedic and concentrated on his partner as Roy called the dispatcher on the squad’s radio for an engine crew to assist. After arranging that, Roy bent down and quickly examined Starsky. "Stay with him," Roy commanded. "I’ll be right back." Roy grabbed the jack and the rope and went back to his first patient.

His face showed no signs of the stress he was feeling as he turned back to his victim. "I’ve got the engine crew coming to give us a hand. My partner ran into a little trouble. Now let’s just tie this tree off to steady it." Roy worked mechanically, letting his training take over so he wouldn’t have to think.

Out front, Starsky had regained consciousness and was sitting on the bumper of the squad when Engine 51 pulled up. Captain Stanley was the first one out and ran over to the two detectives. "Where’s Johnny and Roy?"

Hutch answered. "Roy’s in back with the victim. He’s caught under a tree. You need to help him lift it off of him." Hutch refused to meet Stanley’s eyes.

"And Johnny?" Cap’s voice was low and hard. The rest of the engine crew had gathered to hear Hutch’s answer.

"Gone. Coop attacked Starsk here and took him. That’s all I know." Hutch met Stanley’s eyes and saw the pain and betrayal the fireman felt. "I’ve already called it in. Policemen all over the county are looking for him right now."

"We’ll talk later." Captain Stanley promised Hutch. He turned to the rest of the engine crew and gave Marco and Chet orders to go help Roy in the backyard. He had Mike examine Starsky and dress the wound on the back of his head. He turned to Hutch and was about to say more when the ambulance arrived.

Cap led them back to where Roy and the rest of the crew had just finished extricating the man. Roy contacted Rampart and was advised to send the man in as a precaution. Permission was granted for no paramedic escort. After the ambulance had left, Captain Stanley reported the squad out of service with an explanation to be called in later. He then ordered the crew back to the station, including a very downcast Starsky and Hutch.

On the way back, Starsky was very quiet. Hutch knew that his dark haired partner was feeling guilty about losing Johnny. He spoke up.

"It wasn’t your fault you know. Coop probably had a scanner and just got there before we did. He waited for his shot and then took it. You know as well as I do that Johnny is still alive. If he only wanted him dead, he could have done that back there. We still have a chance to catch this turkey. R and I are looking for more info on Coop. Something will turn." Hutch stole a glance at Starsky, hoping to see his words take effect.

"So we tell his crewmates don’t worry, Johnny’s not dead yet but we don’t have any leads as to where he is so he’ll just die later?" Starsky’s voice was heavy with guilt. "I promised to look out for him. He was...is" he let the sentence drop, unsure of what to say. Johnny was like the youngest brother of a big family, brass, cocky, daring, and willing to believe in those around him. He had trusted his life to Starsky, and Starsky had let him down.

*****

Johnny drove the car to a run down section of town and parked in front of an abandoned office building. The wood and brick structure was four stories tall with lots of windows. Coop crawled out of the back seat and then ordered Johnny out of the car. Slowly, Johnny climbed out and stood by the car with his hands stretched out to his sides. His eyes were full of anger as he studied the man in front of him.

"So you’re Charlie’s big brother, Brandon right?" Johnny asked. "Charlie was a good friend of mine back at the academy. He told me a little bit about you. Said you were a great brother."

"We were very close, until I went to jail. He would come and see me though, in the jail. I didn’t want him to be a fireman. I told him that he’d just get himself killed. And you proved that." Coop aimed the gun at Johnny’s head and tightened his grip on the trigger.

"I didn’t kill him! He ran back into an unstable house fire to save a cat! The building collapsed on him. I was the first one inside to try and dig him out." Johnny was sweating in the afternoon sun. He wanted to wipe the sweat from his brow, but didn’t dare move his hands.

"You let him die!" Coop screamed. "You let him die and now it’s your turn, hero." Coop jerked the gun to indicate the building. "Inside. Lets see how you like roasting in a fire. Maybe I’ll even call your firemen friends to watch you burn." Coop maneuvered around to get behind Johnny as he started slowly to the front door. Halfway there, Coop brought his gun down hard on Johnny’s head, sending the hapless paramedic down in a crumpled heap.

*****

Back at the station, the crew of 51 stared sullenly at Starsky and Hutch. Roy had turned professional enough to look at the wound on Starsky’s head and offered to have him transported to the hospital. Starsky had refused the offer and Roy had retreated back into his shell. Captain Stanley had called the battalion headquarters and reported Johnny’s abduction. Though the squad was out of service, he hadn’t taken the engine out of service due to the threat of brush fires. At the end of summer, every engine would be needed if one broke out.

Chet broke the silence. "Now what? Johnny’s gone and you two are sitting here like bumps on a log. What to we do now?" His eyes were black with anger as he regarded the officers.

"We wait." Hutch held up a hand for silence. "I know you don’t want to hear that, but it’s true. If Coop just wanted to kill Gage, he wouldn’t have bothered to kidnap him. He wants something else. That gives us a chance to figure out where he is. I have a call into our Captain. He’ll let us know the second anything turns up."

"We do have one lead." Starsky added. "We know what kind of car Coop drives as well as the license plate number. Research turned it up right before we got here. By now, every cop in the state is looking for that car." Starsky met the eyes of each fireman in the room. "We are not giving up. Johnny knows that we WILL NOT stop searching until we find him." Starsky turned to Roy. "I promised him and you that I would protect him and I damned well intend to keep that
promise."

"We both do," Hutch added. He began to pace around the room, seemingly oblivious to the five pairs of worried eyes trained on him. "We do know that Coop is an escaped mental patient. His brother died in a fire that he blames Gage and the others for. My guess is that’s how he’ll make his move."

"You mean, he’s gonna start a fire somewhere and feed Johnny to it?" Mike asked. He had been silent, as was his custom, but this was beyond belief.

"I think so. If he does, we still have a chance to get to him. He’s just sick enough to keep Johnny alive to see it happen." Hutch couldn’t bring himself to look at Roy.

Roy had gone very pale under his tan and held on the tabletop to keep from passing out. Marco and Chet sat on either side of him and both grabbed his arms to support their friend. They knew that what Hutch was saying was the truth, but it hurt them to see the effect on Roy. Roy and Johnny were more than partners and friends, they were more like brothers and each would willingly give up his life for the other’s safety.

Hutch could understand Roy’s reaction. He had felt the same way himself a number of times. Roy’s partnership with Johnny mirrored his own with Starsky in many ways. Many years ago, Hutch had made the simple vow to himself to keep Starsky from harm. He had done his best and so far, Starsky was still alive. He didn’t know how many more times he would be able to defeat the beast that was determined to take his partner’s life. A madman had tried, a father bent on
revenge, an international crime boss, an ex-con, all had tried and nearly succeeded.

The ringing of the telephone broke the silence. Captain Stanley got up to answer it. "Fire Department, Station 51, Captain Stanley speaking. Yes, he’s here. One minute." Cap turned to Hutch. "It’s for you, your Captain Dobey."

Hutch hurried over to the phone. "Yes Capt? Great! They’re sure it’s his? On our way. Have backup sent over but tell them NOT to move in. Have ‘em stay outta sight. Starsky and I’ll be right there." Hutch hung up the phone and turned to the assembled men. "We got him. Sheriff’s patrol found his car at an old office building about three miles from here on Anderson road. Let’s go Starsk."

As they left, Hutch wrote down the address on a sheet of notepaper and handed it to the captain. "Just so you know where we are. Don’t worry, we’ll get him." Hutch paused for a long moment, looking at each man in turn in silent promise before following his partner out the door.

They reached the address in record time and met up with the deputy across the street from the building. The four story building was set back from the road and had a large dirt mound nearby. A crane and other construction vehicles also sat on the huge lot. "Have you seen anything?" Starsky asked, impatiently.

"No sir. A witness reported seeing two men getting out of the car and start
towards the door. My guess is that they’re still inside somewhere." The deputy gestured toward the building’s hulk. "It’s a big place to search."

Hutch turned to Starsky. "I’ll take the east side and you find a way in around back. Be careful. This guy just might like taking out a couple of smart aleck
cops to go with his fireman." He turned back to the deputy. "You stay here. Back up is on the way. We think this guy might try to burn the building so be ready to call the fire department." The deputy just nodded as the two officers separated and headed across the large expanse of dirt that served as an open courtyard.

Starsky eased his way inside a broken back window and paused on the step. He listened carefully for any sounds that would tell him where his suspect and the hostage were. Carefully, he inched his way down the hall and found a staircase leading up. He checked all of the offices he could find before starting up the stairs. He had taken only a few steps when he heard voices from above him.

"Welcome back, hero. Might as well make yourself comfortable. This won’t take long." Starsky knew the voice had to belong to Coop. He strained to hear Gage’s answer.

"Just shoot me and get it over with." Johnny sounded tired.

"Oh no. My brother had to see what happened to him and so do you. I’m sorry I can’t arrange for the ceiling to trap you in here, but the ropes should work nicely. The smoke may even kill you before the flames come up the stairwell. You know how well air travels up stairs in these old buildings."

"Go to hell," Johnny said evenly. The sound of a vicious slap rang down the stairs to Starsky.

"Hang on John. I’m almost there," he thought to himself.

"I’ll leave you now. I want a front row seat for this one." Coop began to descend the stairs. Starsky moved quickly to get back down and concealed himself around a corner.

The anxious detective watched as Coop made his way to the east side of the building. Starsky tried to convince himself that Hutch would catch him. He had to get Johnny out. Swiftly, he ran up the stairs, wishing he dared to call out to John that help was on the way. Halfway up the stairs, Starsky’s luck ran out.

An explosion rocked the floor beneath his feet, sending him reeling. He lost his gun as he held on to the banister. Searing heat and flames began making their way towards him. Already, the smoke was making it hard to breathe. Starsky covered his mouth with a corner of his jacket and continued his climb.

Outside the building, the deputy saw the blast. He called it in and watched helplessly as the entire first floor broke out in flames. He held little hope for the men trapped inside.

Back at Station 51, Captain Stanley opened his mouth to say something but was cut off by the call-out tones of LA dispatch.

"Engine 51, Station 16, structure fire, 1198 Anderson Road. One one nine eight Anderson. Cross street Lancaster. Time out 13:45."

Stanley looked at the address on the sheet of paper that Hutch had given him. "Oh my God!" was all he could say.

Inside the east wing of the building, Hutch was carefully checking offices and the back stairwell. He had just gone into another office when the hallway erupted into smoke and flames. The blast knocked him off his feet and into the wall behind him. He jumped up, unhurt and ran to the door. He was able to make his way down the hall just in time to see Coop running out the front door. With a quick prayer for Starsky’s safety, Hutch followed the man out.

He caught up with him in the parking lot, just as the fugitive reached his car. Hutch grabbed him, swinging him around and trying to get an armlock on his opponent. He had underestimated Coop’s agility, and the man managed to get away, knocking Hutch down as he did. Coop ran toward the street, but stopped when he saw the deputy and the two other police cars that had arrived. All five uniformed officers drew their guns and yelled at him to stop. Instead, Coop spun
and ran for the burning building, laughing gleefully as he saw Hutch running after him.

Inside the building, Starsky had climbed the stairs and found Johnny, who was sitting on the floor, tied to the banister. One of his eyes was swollen shut, and blood streaked down the corner of his mouth. Starsky squatted down beside him and reached for his pocketknife to cut the ropes.

"Hey, Johnny. Whatcha say we get out of here?" Starsky flashed one of his biggest grins at the injured paramedic.

Johnny opened his mouth to answer but was overcome by a coughing spasm that made his ribs ache. He worked hard to stifle the cough and answer. "I’m with you. Follow me down. Stay on your hands and knees. The smoke will rise above you. We’ve got to get lower." Johnny demonstrated by lying on his belly and used his hands to make his way down the stairs. He looked back once to make sure that Starsky was following.

Starsky lay on his stomach and followed the fireman. His lungs were burning from the acrid smoke rising around him and the stairs hurt his abused lungs. He tried to call out for Johnny to stop, but words failed him. He began coughing again, the pain forcing him to stop and curl up on his side. The world began to darken as he passed out from lack of oxygen. His last thought was that at least he hadn’t broken his promise to keep John safe.

Johnny reached the second floor landing and turned to check on Starsky’s progress. He was alarmed when he saw no one behind him. Reversing his direction, Johnny climbed back up the stairs and found Starsky, unconscious on the third floor stairway. Johnny could hear sirens in the distance and knew that help was on the way. He leaned over the fallen officer and found that he was still breathing. Thankfully, Johnny stood up and picked up Starsky. He hoisted him over his shoulder in a firemen’s carry and slowly made his way down the stairs.

The smoke was getting thicker and more acrid. His eyes and lungs were on fire. He knew he was close to passing out. On the second floor landing, Johnny had to stop. He put his burden down and checked again for signs of breathing. Nothing. His instincts took over as he forced Starsky’s mouth open and began administering rescue breathing. If he could get enough air into his lungs, the heart would keep on beating, and maybe both of them would live long enough to escape the nightmare.

Hutch ran back inside the inferno, shielding his face with one upturned arm and covering his mouth with the other. He spotted his quarry just down the hall and ran after him, as much as to save his live as to arrest him. With one final leap, Hutch tackled his suspect. While the man was still down, Hutch hit him hard on the jaw, rendering him unconscious. He heard the wail of sirens in the distance as he picked up Coop and staggered outside.

The other officers at the scene ran over to relieve him of his burden and helped him over to the relative safety of the curb. Hutch sat, exhausted, and watched the engine and the squad from Station 51 pull into the parking lot. He began looking around for Starsky. As Roy came running over, Hutch jumped up and began to run for the building again. Roy caught him around the waist and held him back.

"Let me go! My partners in there!" Hutch’s strength was almost gone and he was no match for the paramedic. Roy shook him and made Hutch face him.

"So is mine." Roy’s face was a grim mask. He held on tightly to Hutch as Captain Stanley jogged over.

"Hutch, where are Gage and your partner?"

"I don’t know. Starsky entered from the back. We couldn’t see each other in there. When the explosion occurred, I ran after Coop. I got him out but Starsky and Johnny are still in there. I gotta go in after him!" Hutch’s tone was almost pleading.

"No, you stay here and let Roy check you out." Stanley turned as another fire engine and squad pulled in. "Chet, Marco! Take an inch and a half inside. Gage and Starsky are still in there. I’ll have 16s paramedics back you up." Chet and Marco were already in their turnout gear and just waved at the Captain as they grabbed a length of hose from the engine and ran inside.

Captain Stanley turned back to Roy. "Remind me later to tell you how many regs you broke by bringing the squad on your own." Stanley clapped the silent paramedic on the shoulder before walking over to 16s captain.

Roy and Hutch could only sit and watch as the firemen from 51 and 16 entered the building and began to pour streams of water on it. Vaguely, Roy heard his captain call for in for a second alarm assignment. A fit of coughing broke the spell and Roy turned to Hutch again. He insisted on getting out the O2 and putting it on Hutch to help his breathing. He began to collect information and contacted Rampart.

Inside the building, Johnny concentrated on breathing for Starsky. He didn’t notice the arrival of his fellow firefighters until he felt hands picking him up from the floor. He tried to fight them off until he heard Chet’s voice.

"Johnny, it’s me. We’ve got you. Calm down." A mask was fitted over his face and fresh air filled his lungs. Almost gratefully, Johnny sank into unconsciousness, secure in the knowledge that his friends had found him.

With help from 16s paramedics, Chet and Marco carried their victims out the door and walked quickly over to where Roy and Hutch where waiting. Johnny and Starsky were gently deposited on the ground and 16s took over their care. Chet and Marco stopped long enough to exchange a brief word of encouragement with Roy before going back to the fire. Roy turned all of his attention to his friends.

Roy moved in closer to Johnny to offer his help. Thompson, a short and stout Asian man, had just finished making his first check on Johnny and was trying to get a BP on him. He looked up at Roy, his face grim. "Pulse is 110, respirations are 28 and labored, pupils are sluggish. We may have to intubate him. Get ready to . . ." he was interrupted by a call from his partner.

"Full arrest!" Thompson whirled around to find Evans beginning CPR on Starsky. He reached for the defibrillator and placed the twin paddles on Starsky’s bare chest. "V-fib!" Evans grabbed the tube of conductive gel and spread it on the paddles. He hit the charging button of the defibrillator. "One, two, three, four."

"Clear!" Starsky’s body jumped as the electricity coursed through him.

"No conversion."

Hutch sat on the ground by his partners head, numb and speechless. "Come on Starsky. Come back to me." He watched helplessly as the electricity arched through his partner a second time.

"Sinus rhythm." Evans shouted and picked up the bio-phone to call Rampart. "

Rampart, this is Squad 16. We have a male, aged 28, victim of smoke inhalation. He was in V-Fib, we defibrillated times 2, now in Sinus rhythm. BP is 100/60, pulse is 85, respirations are 14 and labored. We have him on six liters of O2."

"Ten-Four. Begin IV, D5W, TKO, insert oral airway if needed. Transport immediately."

Hutch listened to the list of instructions and watched the flurry of activity. He hadn’t been able to follow what was being said but he did know that once again, Starsky had cheated death. He said a silent prayer of thanks behind the oxygen mask he still wore.

Beside Starsky, Roy was having problems with Johnny. The repeated head trauma combined with the massive smoke inhalation was taking its toll on the young paramedic. He had already gone into respiratory arrest, necessitating the insertion of a breathing tube down his throat. Roy had gotten Captain Stanley to assist with the green plastic ambu bag to keep Johnny’s breathing regular while he contacted Rampart Emergency for further instructions. He had started the IV and dressed the wound on the back of Johnny’s head. Now he was ready to put John on the gurney for the trip to the hospital. Both of the ambulances had arrived and the attendants rushed out to help load
their passengers. Evans and Hutch rode in with Starsky while Roy rode with Johnny. Captain Stanley saw them off and wondered if he would see Starsky or Johnny alive again. He had worked with the paramedics long enough to know when fate was against survival. Unfortunately, this time it looked as if fate would claim two more lives.

At the hospital, Nurse Dixie McCall was waiting at the entrance for the ambulance’s arrival. She directed the team with Starsky into Treatment Room 2 while Johnny was sent to 4. Though she let Roy accompany John into the room, she firmly directed Hutch to a third room. Dr. Morton, one of the few black members of the staff, was waiting for him.

Morton listened to Hutch’s lungs and issued orders for chest x-rays to be taken. He then turned to Hutch. "How are you feeling now?"

"Better. At least the coughing’s stopped. I want to see my partner," Hutch answered.

"I’ll check on him for you. I want you to lie back and take it easy for awhile. You breathed in a lot of smoke and we need to make sure there isn’t any damage to your lung tissues," Morton said firmly.

"You don’t understand. Starsky needs me right now," Hutch said, grabbing the doctor’s arm for emphasis.

"I know. But he needs you healthy. If you’re gonna be there for him, you have to take care of yourself. We won’t know anything for a while yet, so just rest. As soon as I hear any news, I’ll tell you," Morton promised.

"How about Gage? Find out how he’s doing, will ya?" Hutch lay back on the table, knowing that Morton was right.

"I’ll go check on both of them right now." Morton left the room, giving instructions to the nurse that Hutch wasn’t to be left alone.

Hutch closed his eyes, feeling the hot tears running down his cheeks. "Starsky, just hang on pal. You can’t let this happen. I’m here for ya buddy. Just hold on." The tears fell unchecked, wetting the collar of his shirt. He put his arm over his eyes, trying to shut out the sight of his partners lifeless body lying on the ground.

In Treatment Room 4, Roy was having a few of the same thoughts. Dr. Brackett had ordered numerous tests and x-rays of Johnny’s head and lungs, more IV fluids had been started, and still Roy knew that Johnny wasn’t doing well. Brackett had been concerned by the third head wound, especially in conjunction with the facial wounds. He was worried about the swelling that was most certainly taking place in Johnny’s brain. He made the decision to send Johnny up to surgery to
insert a temporary shunt to help relieve the pressure. Roy stood aside as Johnny was wheeled out. He found himself walking down the hall to Treatment room 2.

Quietly, Roy let himself inside and listened to the sound of the heart monitor over the quiet tones of Dr. Early and the nurses. Dr. Early was a kindly white-headed man who looked more like a country doctor than a top-notch trauma doctor. Right now, he seemed almost satisfied with what he was seeing. Early noticed Roy standing by the door and walked over to him.

"How’s he doing?" Roy asked.

"He’s gonna be just fine. It’s a good thing 16 got to him when they did. He should be up and around in a week or so." Early smiled at the paramedic. "He’d be in a lot more trouble if he hadn’t gotten help so quickly."

Roy flashed a nervous grin at the doctor. "Johnny started the work. Even hurt the way he was. Chet told me that John tried to carry him down a flight of stairs. He couldn’t make it, but he was able to start rescue breathing for him. Chet said Johnny was practically unconscious but was still working." Roy shook his head as he related the story that Chet and Marco had told him.

"Sounds like Johnny. I’ve never known anyone who could get into more trouble than him." Early checked his watch. "I’ve gotta go and check on another patient. You wanna tell Starsky’s partner the good news?" Early smiled and left when Roy agreed.

Roy went down the hall to the room where Hutch was being treated. He nodded to the nurse inside as he held the door open for the x-ray technician to leave. He walked over to the blond man on the table and put hand on his arm. Hutch jumped at the contact.

"How are you doing?" Roy asked, his voice low but pleasant.

Hutch ignored the question. "How’s Starsky?"

"Dr. Early says Starsky is gonna be just fine. He’ll have to stay here for a few days but there shouldn’t be any lasting effects." Roy grinned at the relief on Hutch’s face. Inside, he marveled at the strong bond between the two friends.

Hutch felt his body relax and a sigh escaped his lips. "You’re sure. He’s gonna be okay? When can I see him?"

"As soon as he’s settled in a room. They’ll probably send him up to ICU for a day or two just to be on the safe side. You can see him then, or whenever you get released. Ill be seeing ya." Roy said as he turned to go. Hutch saw his shoulders sag and realized that Roy hadn’t said anything about his own partner.

"How’s Johnny?" Hutch sat up and asked. He could see Roy clench his fists as he struggled to remain composed.

"He’s in surgery. He’s got a severe concussion that is causing swelling in the brain. If the pressure isn’t relieved soon, it could cause a stroke and kill him." Roy stopped talking and looked up at the ceiling in a silent prayer. He left the room without a backward look.

Roy went to the doctor’s lounge. He looked at the simple arrangement of furniture and thought about all the times he had done the same thing. Sit, wait, and worry about the overgrown kid he called his partner. He poured himself a cup of coffee and sat down at the table.

Two hours later, Dr. Brackett walked in and sat down beside him. "I don’t know how he does it, but he did it again. Johnny’s gonna be fine. He’s going to recovery now and well move him to ICU for observation in a few hours. The pressure is down and his vitals have stabilized. There’s no sign of lung damage and we’ve started him on antibiotics to ward off pneumonia."

Roy’s face was shining as he listened to Brackett’s report. He thanked the doctor and hurried off to make a few very important phone calls.

*****

A week later, a celebration was held in Room 210. Starsky and Johnny had been moved out of ICU and were recovering nicely. Starsky would be released in a couple of days and Johnny would be released shortly after that. The room was crowded with well wishers. The "A" shift crew from the station was there, as was Captain Dobey and Huggy Bear. Huggy had brought along a basket of food from his bar since he knew how well Starsky liked hospital food. Over the course of the
party, Dixie had managed to find time to stop by as had Drs. Early, Morton and Brackett. Roy faded back from his place by Johnny’s bed and motioned to Hutch to meet him out in the hall.

"What’s up, Roy?" Hutch asked puzzled.

"I wanted to say I’m sorry," Roy said simply.

"Sorry? For what?" Hutch was dumbfounded.

"For not believing you. For being angry at you for doing your job. I know you did what you had too, but..."

"But it’s not easy when it’s a friend of yours?" Hutch rubbed the side of his nose. "I understand. Our jobs are a lot alike. We have to trust the people we work with, and it’s hard to trust others, even when were all on the same team."

Hutch held out his hand. Roy grabbed it and shook hands gravely. "To trust and friendship."

"To trust and friendship and partners." Roy amended. The two men shared a knowing smile and re-entered the room, glad to have things back to normal.

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