Daytime Story

Carlotta kissed me , slowly and sensually for a good long time...I smiled...She smiled at me...

"It was many years ago...I was a patrolmen...detailed to Lt. Cantrell's old unit...All Jimmy and I did was fetch coffee and lunch for the detectives...Because we both were so young, so fresh out of the academy...They rarely took us when they went to make an arrest...

Detective Sgt. Miguel Sanchez always looked out for me...He was different then honey bunny....He still had that confident swagger...but he wasn't like he was today...He always had a kind word for me...He always talked to me about my family, about people we both knew in the neighborhood...about the job...I knew he liked me, but he wasn't like the others...leering and plotting ways to get me in the bed..He was just a normal guy...I liked talking to him...He was like the only detective that took me seriously....

He liked the fact that I had an associates degree from community and he had told me on more than one occassion that I should be doing investigative work...It was because of him that I got to work on some plain clothes assignments with the drug unit and with auto theft and robbery-homicide... He was the one who introduced me to two detectives who would have a profound effect on my career...Edwin "Duke" Baylor and Tyriq Pile...

I immediately hit it off with those two and they began to teach me things...Things I would use later on when I became a detective...Miguel loved those two guys..He said that he came through the academy with them...and together they moved through the ranks together...

"You remember Detective Dominick Evans?...We just arrested him and Barbara Dennison for killing ADA Joshua Robinson a few months ago..While she was a great detective...I wonder how this guy passed the test and how he stayed a detective for so long...He had anywhere from four to five open murder cases at any given time...

He had the lowest clearence record of any detective in the unit....Couldn't crack a case if the suspect turned himself in and confessed.


Miguel always said that he was the biggest waste of time that ever put on a gold shield...Anyway...Dominick had this case...a high profile murder that the bosses wanted solved quick...He worked it for days and it was about to go cold...

 I helped him re canvas the area...along with Lt. Cantrell himself ,who really didn't want to be there with him..I found the murder weapon, which Dom had overlooked twice and  a day later, I located a witness that described the shooter.... Dom, along with me and several other uniformed policemen took the shooter down.

Lt. Cantrell and everybody roasted him about being shown up by a lowly uniformed cop and a rookie at that..But Miguel said that it was time for me to take a step forward...he believed in me and gave me confidence in myself in a way no other guy ever had...Not even Mickey Lolo...

This led to me taking the Detectives exam and becoming a Detective...It ended my days of fetching coffee for the detectives.." she said.

I smiled...

"I suppose you owed him your career." I said.
"But there is more...Once I became a detective...I transferred over to Robbery-Homicide and became Tyriq's partner...Miguel began courting me seriously then...Calling me at work and at home, and taking me out on weekends and days when we both had off...He was seperated from his wife...He told me that he wanted to be in a relationship with me...

We used to make sweet ,passionate love all weekend in his apartment...We had a very torrid affair...Tyriq and Sirena were the only ones who knew about it..." she said.

"So what happened?" I asked.

"After a few months...He told me that he wanted to try and make it work with his wife...They had a son....We broke up...I was hurt...I cried and cried for a long time...Sirena helped me get over him...
He and his wife got back together and then divorced anyway...She got the house , the car and custody of his son....

He wanted to get back with me, but I was no longer interested...He quit the force and went to Washington...and in the meanwhile...I met you!" she said and gave me that smile that melted me like butter.

"Wow...that was some story....Hey look Carlotta...You're a beautiful woman....I know that there were guys in your past before you met me...Just like you've met girls from my past." I said.

 

 "And from what I understand,Mister  Smooth Keith...I haven't even scratched the surface." she joked...

"Nah...It wasn't like that." I laughed....

Carlotta punched me playfully...

"Yes it wasssss." she said and we both laughed..

II-

Carlotta and I drove back to CID...Where Sissy was waiting for us...

"Everything okay?" she asked.

"Couldn't be better" I said hugging my wife and kissing her on the cheek....

From the squad room I heard laughing...

Miguel Sanchez was laughing and talking...Duke had Hazel on his lap and Tyriq had Sirena on his lap....

"Mannn Miguel...You are still crazy as hell." said Duke laughing uncontrollably....

"I can't believe all of you guys are all hooked up...Tyriq married to Sirena...I remember when she first made Detective and came to us...Thought she knew everything..." laughed Miguel...

"That's because I did." laughed Sirena...

"What can I say....I love her, I can't disagree." said Tyriq...

"She's got you whipped man....Hahahahahahaha..,but if I was gonna be whipped by someone...Sirena is the one I'd be whipped by." he laughed...

"I suppose that's a compliment." laughed Sirena.

Miguel looked at Duke and Hazel...

"And Duke!! You got a fine one there...A real beauty.....And she's in forensics? Looks at dead bodies...???Amazing...When is the big day man?" he asked.

"Soon....Soon man." said Duke..Hazel smiled serenely...

"I want an invite...I'll come back up..." he said.

"You got it man." said Duke.

He saw me and Carlotta just then...I sat down, Carlotta sat on my lap and put her arms around my neck and nuzzled her head next to my chest...

The room got quiet....Miguel looked at us...

"Damn...Now theres one I let get away...Damn....Biggest regret I have in life...If I had any sense,I would have married her...but.....I didn't ...Keith Wallace!!!...My hat is off to you buddy....You got a pearl of a girl there...You're the smartest and luckiest guy of all and I mean that...We kinda got off on the wrong foot at the crime scene...but you're alright with me...No hard feelings?" he said.

I held my hand out and shook it....

"None" I said.

"Don't drop my girl there." he joked..looking at Carlotta, who smiled...

"He never has.." she said.

"I hear that...Hey Sissy...who has snatched you up?" he said looking at Sissy leeringly...

"I have a boyfriend...He's not in law enforcement..." she said.


"Ahhhh smart woman." joked Miguel.

III-

"I thought I heard the mouth of the south." said FBI Special Agent Sharon Ferrell...Who had just walked into the office....

"Sharon....I heard you were back in Philly." he said.

"Yeah...I work here...I'm the FBI Laison to the Philadelphia Police's Criminal Investigative Unit."she said.

"Wow....Great stuff...Great guys....Duke, Rico,Carlotta,Sissy,Sirena,Hazel....Nice line up...You're workin with top notch detectives.." he said.

"There's two more you haven't met....My fiance...Detective Antonio Hopkins...I don't think you ever met him." she said as Hop was coming in the door with Jimmy and Angela Belton...

"You're fiance??You're getting married too Sharon?" he exclaimed....

"Yeah...In about a week...So would you guys hurry up and clear up all these murders? Miguel Sanchez...This is my boo...Detective Antonio Hopkins.." she laughed...

"He is La Raza?" he asked...

"Half, His mother is Afro-Cuban" said Carlotta...

Miguel said something in Spanish...

Both Carlotta and Hop laughed...I forgot that Hop was half Black, Half Latino and spoke fluent spanish..

"Pleased to meet you ." he said.

"Oh My God, Detective Miguel Sanchez..." said Detective Angie Belton...

"No...FBI Special Agent Sanchez" he said.

"Oh Excuseeeee me!" laughed  Detective Angie Belton.

Jimmy smiled...

"Oh my God...The Federali who walked in from the cold..." he laughed...

"Angie Belton?  Jimmmy! What's up boyyyyy?" said Miguel...

"You got the hot hand Miguel." said Jimmy...

He noticed that Jimmy was holding Angie's hand...He did a double take..

"You and Angie Belton??? You two are a couple?" he said.

"Yeah man, don't look so shocked." said Jimmy...

"Yall engaged too?" he asked.

"Not yet...but we are a couple." said Angie...

"Damnnnnnnn...I've missed a lot..All of you in one unit...All of you guys hooked up...wow!" he said.

"I'm not in this unit...I'm in Internal Affairs" said Angie.

"You used to be Homicide didn't you?" he asked.

"Yeah ,I was." she said.

"Don't you want to come back now that all of your friends are here? ...Your man and all?" he asked.

"I think about it sometimes....But I like where I am..." she said.

"You just hang out with these guys when you want to get away huh?" he said.

"That's why you were such a great detective Miguel...So intuitive." said Angie, tongue in cheek.

He peered at all of us and then settled on Carlotta and me..

Carlotta was still on my lap and put her arms around my neck and nuzzled her head next to my chest...kissing my chin softly...

"I might as well talk about the case...because all of the girls are clearly taken." he laughed...

"Yes ,I wondered when you were going to get around to the case." said Sissy....

We all busted out laughing...

(TO BE CONTINUED)