Medium Rare

I did all of the research I could on The Southeastern Pennsylvanian Workers Pension Fund...

It had close to 20 million dollars listed as assets, lots of shareholders and the pensions of thousands of unionized state workers...It was one of  many types of pension funds existing...From what I had researched and looked at with the help of Robert Foxworth's contact in public records and one of Rollie Rollerson's ex-girlfriends who allowed me to veiw some confidential records..The company was legitimate and on the up and up..

I talked to  several people who knew the slain board member , who's body was found in the park...He didn't appear to have an enemy in the world...I checked his bank records...They were stable...He had no more debt than the average person...Was happily married, had two children and no police record...

On the last day of his life..He was seen having lunch with Kenneth Wooten and his driver "Buck" and was never heard from again! At least three people remembred that much!

In the months leading up to his disapearence..James W. Madison had become partners in two businesses...a now defunct restaraunt and a used car  lot...Both companies appeared to lose huge amounts of money and go bankrupt, immediately after he and his buisness partner, one "Thomas Speed" bought them...

A further check of The Southeastern Pennsylvania Pension Fund's records showed that close to two million in loans made by them had gone into default...It looked fishy.

A check of the police records revealed that Thomas Speed was the government name of "Buck"....Silk's vicious Lieutenant and enforcer who as an ex-con ,had no business involved in something like this...

Right after Madison vanished....My friend, Jack Clemmons was installed as the new board member!!...and the company , he and Silk were partners in ,Gottlieb Bottling company was going bankrupt....220G's had just floated out of this company ,just like that...on two occassions and nobody could understand why money was just draining from these companies like a siv!

My guess was that Silk was laundering dirty drug money through these companies and bleeding them dry and sending the money back to his bosses in New York City...But again...This was all speculation...I couldn't prove a thing.

I followed Silk around on a normal day...He got up ran about a mile, showered, shaved and got dressed...He and a young man who I did not know then had breakfast.. He then went to the barber shop..Then he and board members would often meet and talk....He'd head to the Aqua Bar ,spend a few hours and then back to his condo....

Buck would drive by two times a week, pass him an envelope...They'd go and have drinks at a high end Bistro and then would part ways....Nothing!

II-

Sepia and I met with Jack Clemmons and his girlfriend, Marilyn Scott at a very tony steakhouse in center city...

"How would you like your steak sir?" asked the waiter...

''Well done "I said.

"Medium rare" said Jack...

"Well done" said my wife Sepia

"Well done for me also." said Marilyn...

"Well...that puts me in the minority." laughed Jack.

"That's because we are trying to eat healthy and not have all of that blood." I said.

"Would you tell him please?" said Marilyn... She and my wife Sepia had hit it off quite well...They found that they both were from North Jersey..Sepia from West Orange and Marilyn from Jersey City..They even found that they knew some of the same people..

We all laughed and waited for the food to come..

"Would you excuse me...I'm going to the ladies room." said Sepia..

"I'll go with her..." said Marilyn...

After they left...Jack looked at me and winked....

"Wow!  That's some gal you got there Kev....Whoa...She's a keeper.." he said and smiled.  "Four years you been married...that's great." he continued.

"Heyyy, you aint so bad yourself...Marilyn is no slouch." I said.

"Yeah...Looks like we both got lucky with the women." he said..

"What else are you lucky with Jack?" I asked.

"Huh?" he said.

"This business you're in with the pension fund?" I asked.

"Oh it's just business....I work for an insurance company Kev...This is just something for my resume and my portfolio." he said.

"How is the Gottlieb Bottling Company doing?" I asked.

"Good..yeah ,it's doing good." he said.

"Really? I heard it's going broke." I said.

"Come again?" he asked.

"I read the business section of the paper...Gottlieb's is close to bankruptcy.." I said matter of factly...

"Since when do you read the business papers?" he asked.

"I'm a journalist...an investigative journalist...Everything interests me..Like the dead and murdered board member that you replaced...and the two companies he invested in that suddenly went bust! " I said.

"What are you trying to say Kev? I didn't know the guy and neither me or Silk had anything to do with him...." said Jack.

"Relax..relax..I didn't accuse you of anything...Hey what do I know? It's probably a co-incidence.." I said. "Forget about it...the girls are coming and so is our food." I said as we started to eat.

III-

I had Owen Todd locate Buck's SUV and place a GPS tracking unit under it...I wanted to know where he went... Lockpick Johnson and Peeping Tom posing as car wash attendents got into the SUV and placed a micro-listening device... I was certain that while we might not catch Silk talking about anything...Buck more than likely did,He was afterall the street boss, responsible for making sure their street business ran smoothly...

I continued asking people that used to work for the two now defunct companies questions about the business practices and looking through old records...I found a lot of interesting accounts...Robert Foxworth, Chance Howard and I looked at these records...

"Damn Kev....This sure does look fishy...I wonder why the IRS isn't asking questions? Both of these companies were just bleeding money...You think they were used for laundering?" he asked me..

''Laundering and other things...I think they were used as an ATM machine of sorts...but for what ,I don't know?" I said. "Jack says that Kenny Wooten is involved with some guys in New York who are investing in some type of real estate deal." I continued.

"Yeah? like what...a laundromat? You sure do get into the good stuff." he said with a laugh.

"Don't I though? A laundromat!!! That was a good one counselor" I said as I laughed and left his office.

"I thought so." said Robert Foxworth as he continued to look at breifs on his desk.

IV-

I stopped by Josies to have a beer to top my day off..and who did I see? ,but my friend, Jack Clemmons and his girlfriend ,Marilyn...At first they were sitting in a booth alone ,enjoying a drink...I waved and they waved and I sat a few yards from them at the bar...Honey Brown bought me a drink...

''Where's the old man?" I asked.

"Gus? even he takes a night off." she laughed..

"Wow...I better write that down on my calender...a date to remember." I laughed..

Honey brown laughed too..

Suddenly, the conversation behind me got heated...

"Relax Marilyn...we got nothing to worry about...This is just a business arrangement...I have full authority from Silk that his organization is going to pay the loan back." said Jack.

"Jack..wake up...They've taken three loans to date and they haven't paid a thing back....and plus...Gottlieb is going broke...and I did a little research...That dead guy?? He was partners in those other two businesses with Silk's driver, Buck...That guy doesn't look like he could write a sentence, let alone own a business. I looked up that holding company your friend Silk supposedly runs....It doesn't exist!!!  These guys are gangsters Jack...They are laundering money and using the fund as an ATM." she said.

"Ohh you're crazy....Marilyn ,you watch too much damn television...I'm meeting with Silk tomorrow, He's a lawyer for crying out loud. ..and I'm sure he'll clear this whole thing up. Now stop worrying." said Jack.

"Lawyer? Where did he get his degree from? Jack...these are bad people...I don't like it." she said.

"I told you to dummy up and stop talking about business in the bar!Now I said that I'd take care of it." he said.

"You're a fool!" she said and got up abruptly....

"Marilyn....Marilyn...wait..!" he said and got up, running after her as she stormed out of the bar.


Honey Brown looked at me and shrugged her shoulders-

"Lovers Spat?" she asked.

"Uh yeah...I suppose." I said.

Their little spat had now made me know that my suspicions we right on the money...There was some dirty business going on here...Real dirty and I had to get to the bottom of it...and quick!

(To Be Continued...)