Chapter Text
Mary Polanski
"Tell him Mary Polanski is here to see him." The rotund woman pushed a stray brown hair back under the scarf she was wearing gypsy- style on her head. She glared at the uniformed officer as he stood behind the desk in the public area of Parker Center.
"I'm not sure that Detective Hutchinson is in the building, Ma'am."
"Well could you check, please? It's important." Her plea persuaded the cop since he knew that Starsky and Hutch often had stray creatures looking for them.
The grey-haired sergeant picked up the phone on his desk and called Hutch's extension. On the tenth ring it was picked up by a voice that snarled, "Hutchinson."
"Hutch, I have a lady here who calls herself Mary Polanski. She wants to see you."
The cop put down the phone and directed the aforementioned Mary Polanski to the detective's room.
Hutch stood up when the woman entered the squad room. "You were looking for me, Miss. - Polanski, was it?"
"You don't remember me, do you?" The woman advanced into the room.
Hutch looked slightly taken back by her last statement and pulled out a chair for her as he tried to cover his unease.
"No, Miss, I can't say that I do. Should I know you?"
"No, I don't suppose I made much of an impact on you, but that partner of yours sure made one on me."
"Starsky?"
"Yes, Starsky. Look I'll put you out of your misery. You came to my place looking for some woman called Belle who used to live there. She was a madam and I gave you her new address."
"Oh, yes You called your self "Madam Yram"- Mary spelled backwards. I remember. You're a fortune teller. How can I help you?"
The woman took the seat offered and Hutch sat on the edge of his desk. She hesitated for a moment then he smiled at her. Mary stammered, - "That's right. Look, this is about your partner. I know you think I'm a phoney, but I do 'see things' sometimes, not often. Usually I just tell people what they want to hear - they'll meet a tall handsome stranger and fall in love - that kind of thing but sometimes things are different, and this is one of those times." She paused and looked uncertainly at Hutch.
"I know that look, Detective; I've seen it a million times, but I assure you I'm not wasting your time."
"Okay, Mary, what did you see?" Hutch smiled at her and a faint blush crossed her cheeks.
"It's about your partner, Dave Starsky, that's his name isn't it. I remember from that day in my place. He moved something in me, and I don't just mean a physical thing. I really felt a connection with him so I guess that's how I was able to hone in on this."
"Mary, my partner is on leave for a few days so if you were hoping to see him I can take a message and pass it on in a few days."
"No! It's nothing like that. He's in trouble and you need to find him before it's too late."
"What?"
"I 'saw' him last night. He's in a cold place and he's hurt; hurt real bad and he called for you, but I 'heard' him."
"Listen, Lady, if this is some kind of sick joke then I don't think it's very funny." Hutch stood up but Mary reached out and grabbed his hand.
"Do you really think I want to be here? It's because of what I saw and I heard; that's the only reason I came down here. Your partner needs you and he hasn't got much time left."
"Look, I can clear this up right now. Starsky went to New York for a few days so I'll just call his Mom's place and speak with him, will that satisfy you?"
The woman nodded and Hutch reached into the top drawer of the desk and took a faded notebook. He thumbed through some pages, reached for the phone and dialed a number. Hutch examined the clock on the wall of the room. It was midday so that would make it around 3 pm New York time. The phone was answered after a few moments.
"Mrs Starsky; Rachel, could I speak to St- David please? I bet it's great having him visit?" Hutch paled as he listened. "Rachel, this is important. You really haven't seen him? He was supposed to fly in yesterday as a surprise for you at your sister's fortieth wedding anniversary party." Hutch paused then twisted the phone cord around his fingers as he spoke. "I'm so sorry Rachael, I didn't mean to upset you, I'm sure there's a perfectly logical explanation for this. You know David - he probably got side tracked. Of course I'll get him to call you. I've got to go, Rachael. We'll talk soon."
"Okay, Mary. What did you see?"