Cold Hearted

"If I had known this bunch was comin in, I'd have put up a sign to my other customers tellin em to hold on to their wallets ." joked Gus as the group of notables walked into Josies the next night and took a seat in the three booths reserved for them...

Fathead Newton, flanked by Roscoe and Ralph Mole...The newly released Victor Diaz and his nephew, Santana Diaz...Lin Chou and his nephew, Charles Chou, a lawyer and his chief enforcer, known only as "Chops" all sat in the booths...Honey Brown served them all their drinks of choice and hot wings and chips...

Kool Kat stood at my side as I addressed the chief playas of Philadelphia at the moment.....

''Gentlemen...I rarely if ever ask a favor of you.....but I'm asking a favor tonight ." I said and I plopped down two glossies of Ike "Cold Hearted" Stewart on the tables for them to look at.

I continued.....

"If you see him....I want to know....I'll give you a number where you can call me....It's best if I deal with him my way.....He's stolen a great deal of money from a man who has employed me to find him." I said.

''So what has this got to do with us?"asked Victor Diaz..

"He is also wanted by Eric "Shark Dollars" Redding....who now is in Atlantic City and aligned with the New York boys...Now , you all know the mess that was left by another New Yorker, namely Johnny Porter.....He's gone now...You don't want any more New Yorkers on your turfs conducting any business do you?  So it's best if you let me take this guy off of your hands..." I said.

''Sure Kev...I'll put my people on it...If we see him you'll be the first to know." said Fathead...

"I'm in....In fact...if we see him...we'll bring him to you...That skunk killed one of our people." said Victor Diaz.

"We will make sure you are informed ."said Lin Chou.

With that the men all finished their beer and their wings...(Which I paid for !) and began to slowly leave.....Gus breathed a sigh of relief...He looked at me and scowled...

''Couldn't you have invited them to Joe Neptune's joint...The Mermaid Club?  I run a respectable joint here."

"This is a much nicer place Gus...and I couldn't afford Mulberry Street...Not with those guys tastes.." I said.

Kool Kat just laughed and then he added...

"Stroke of genius Kev....You got the streets lookin for him....They'll turn him up..."he said.

I hoped that this plan was correct.

II-

Sepia and I were enjoying a nice lunch the next day at Bottom of the C with Robert Foxworth and his wife, Bonita....

"So Kevin...How is the uh case coming?" he asked. I had a feeling that he hadn't told Bonita, the specifics, like how much money had been taken from his office safe. I hadn't told Sepia either...I'd only told her that the safe had been robbed and that Kool Kat and I were close to catching the thieves.

"Well as I told you...Your former client ,"Ghost Hawkins" is dead....but we, Kool Kat and I, believe that the man who killed him and has your money and his former girlfriend are here in town....I'm pretty sure one or both of them will be turning up sooner or later." I said.

"Come on guys...let's enjoy this meal...no shop talk." said Bonita jokingly.

''Yeah." said my wife Sepia as we enjoyed the delicious meal and continued eating...

We finished our meal and paid the tab and were waiting outside the restaraunt for the girls to come from the ladies room when my phone went off....It was Clerow!

''Hello" I said.

''Boss..I dropped Cora beth off at the hair salon and guess who's in there?  Pony Gardenor...Ghost Hawkins old lady." he said.

"What?" I said.

"It's her...I'm looking at the photo you gave me...That's her alright." I said.

"Okay ....listen...I'm on my way...Don't do anything...Just sit there ...keep an eye on the place..." I said.

"What's up?" asked Robert Foxworth.

"We got a scope on Ghost Hawkin's girl...Pony....If she's gettin her hair done..."Cold Hearted" Stewart can't be far...I'm going over there...Listen..call Kool Kat, tell him I'll be at Bernadette's and take the girls back to work." I said.

"Well damn Kev...I feel like I'm workin for you." he joked.

"You want your money back dont'cha?" I asked.

"Oh yeah...yeah.." he said.

III-

I drove over to the salon as quick as I could...Clerow was parked across the street from it....I drove down the street and parked my car...I came back and casually walked into the salon...Cora beth and Candy Johnson were in there getting there hair done...All three women spoke to me...

''Hey Kevin..."said Cora beth.

"Hey Corrie , how you doin girl?" I said

"Hey Kevin...Where's Sepia?"asked Candy.

''She's around...Workin..." I answered.

"Tell her to come to my shop..I got somethin new in." said Candy.

''I will do that." I said.

"Hey stranger...long time no see. Catch any criminals lately."said Bernadette.

Sure wished she hadn't said that...

"No...but I'm workin on it." I joked.

And there she was....Pony Gardenor...I was certain she didn't know who I was, this was my first time ever seeing her in person...but she looked at me in a peculiar way...I looked at her too!! We stared at each other!!!  I turned and quietly walked out...Something wasn't right and I knew it... Within minutes ,I heard footsteps and I turned slowly...and to my surprise...IT WAS HIM!!!!! Ike ''Cold hearted '' Stewart.
 He was coming to pick up his girl no doubt , who had just got her hair done and was paying Bernadette...
I had to play this very careful...I didn't want anyone to get hurt....

"Cold Hearted " Stewart....I believe you have something that belongs to me." I found myself saying....Where was Kool Kat???

"Nigga ,I aint got nothin that's yours , except trouble." he said...

"Baby, I think he's a cop."said Pony...

"Get in the car gurl...Do I care...I'll shoot a cop just as quick as I will any other nigga...Now what you say again nigga???" he said as he pulled his gun out.....

"That money you stole when you killed "Ghost" Hawkins....It's mine." I said.

"Actually...it's my former boss, Shark Dollars...and I'll kill him too if I see him." he said and fired two rounds at me...I ducked behind a car as the bullets whizzed by my head...and it was on...

I loaded a clip into my Glock....Yes...I had changed guns since I was dealing with such a heavy hitter and returned his fire...He ducked behind a car...Pony...dove into his car and pulled off!.. He came out, dropped and rolled and fired three shots at me...I did the same , dropped, rolled and darted behind another car and returned his fire, putting two rounds right over his head.....

Clerow opened the drivers side of his car, crawled out and fired three rounds from his gun at Cold Hearted Stewart, who returned his fire , while I fired at him from his other side...Realizing he was out numbered and out gunned..He began running and shooting...As Pony wheeled around the corner with one hand and fired a gun of her own with the other, which forced Clerow to duck down...Just then Kool Kat drove up and fired his big .44 magnum, blowing the back window out of the car..."Cold Hearted Stewart fired at the Big man who retreated behind an alley wall...He jumped in the car and the two of them burned rubber and pulled off..

There was an eerie silence and then Bernadette and her customers and other people began to surge out into the streets..

"Clerow are you alright?" said Cora beth as she ran towards her husband...

''Yeah baby...them two people was crazy..they tried to shoot Kevin." he said.

"You alright Kevin." asked Cora beth.

"Yeah...I'm just fine...." I said.

Kool Kat walked up..He had wisely put his gun away...as had I....

"Damn....they got away." he stated to no one in particular.

"They're going to try and make a run for it....We just put too much heat on them." I said.

"We gotta smoke em out and quick ." he said.

"Yeah, I know....right now is a time when we either need luck or a prayer." I said

(Conclusion Next)