Rock De Ciroc

Downtown Rob Brown finished his set at Josies to wild applause....He and his quintet were really playing their kiesters off tonight...

"Thank you...Thank you...you're too kind everybody.....Remember to tip your waitresses...Okay....Okay...right now...I would like to welcome a fellow trumpet player up the podium to  sit in with us....A cat I met in New Orleans about three years ago....He has recently made Philadelphia his home..." he said.

The audience went crazy with more applause...

"And ....he married a Philly homegirl just a few weeks ago....Show your love for my friend...Mr. Donnie Ray Alexander....!!!" he said.

The audience went wild again as I joined Downtown Rob Brown and his quintet on stage ...We played "My Funny Valentine", trading solos...

I looked down in the crowd, My wife, Attorney Olivia Bennett-Alexander and her niece, Attorney Beverly West and our Administrative Assistant/Office Manager, Ms. Josie Boyd were sitting at a table upfront.

They were waving and clapping just like the rest...How lucky I was to have three fine ladies clapping for me...

After our set was over...we got a standing ovation... Rob Brown said to me....

"I know you got a steady gig...Doin that private investigating thing with your wife's law firm....but if I ever can't make a date here at Josies , you are welcome to sit in for me." he said patting me on the back...

"Why thanks man." I said.

"I can't believe you were a cop, playin the trumpet like that." he said...

"Hey man...I'm from New Orleans." I said.

"True dat....You from Philly now..." he said.

"Indeed." I said.

II-

I went down to my table where Olivia gave me a big sloppy ,wet kiss....

"I'll sure be glad when you two get used to being married to each other.....All this kissin...ewww." joked Beverly...."Come here." she said and grabbed me and kissed me on the cheek.

Josie kissed me on the cheek too...

"It's official...you all love me." I said as we all broke out into laughter...

Honey Brown walked over to our table...She hugged Olivia...
"Congratulations on the wedding you two...." she said and then she put a bottle of Ciroc Vodka on the table and a glass for each of us...A bottle of Orange Juice and Cranberry juice was also brought to our table.

"Wow ,I said...Who is this from?"

"It's from the gentleman over there....You might recognize him....Jamie Mitchell...The football player...That's him and his fiance ..." said Honey Brown...

We all smiled and waved at the "happy" couple...

III-

"He is such a phony.....I saw him out the other night....He was all over this white girl...Didn't think anybody there knew him...He had on dark shades....I went to the ladies room and he and her were in the back foyer just kissing and slobbering all over each other...She had her hand down his pants....He's disgusting...and yet he's always in the paper and all the magazines with his black fiance...." said Josie.

Beverly, Olivia and I all looked at Josie.....
"You saw him out?" I asked.

"Yeah...I remembered him because he's our client...He remembered me too...He sent me a bottle of Ciroc, just like the one he sent us..." said Josie...

"Really?" I said.

"Yeah...We were in this real tony, exclusive club called Stoleys....and the distributor was passing these bottles out...Cause you know what? Another of our clients was there...The rapper, XO...Alan XO was there with one of his boys...Some white dude...Nice lookin guy too...and this distributor gave them a bottle also..."she said.

"You don't say?" I said.

"Yeah...funny thing...Neither of them seemed like they wanted anybody to know that they were in there...Jamie ,I can understand..He was cheating on his woman, but XO doesn't have a girlfriend to my knowledge..." said Josie....

The D.J. began playing  a popular song...a young man stopped by our table....

"Heyy Josie...wanna dance?" he said.

"Sure...Excuse me guys." she said and they got up...

I looked at Beverly and Olivia....

"You guys thinkin what I'm thinking?" I said.

"Oh My God....You think maybe that vodka was posioned?" asked Olivia.

"It's too much of a co-incidence....Both of our clients there incognito, both had a bottle of Ciroc in their care and both wake up with a dead body in their bed..." I said.

"But D.R. You said that neither body looked like any foul play." said Beverly..

"Of course not...No violent foul play...but I don't know if they were poisoned or not..." I said.
"You think these two were murdered?  How come Jamie and XO are still alive?" asked Beverly.

"I can answer that....Since they are both my clients they have one thing in common..." said Olivia...
"Besides skelatons in their closet....Closet being the operative word here." said Beverly....

I cracked up...

"Neither one of them drinks....I know ,I know you've seen all of the videos where XO is drinking Crystal and smoking blunts and all, but I happen to know that he doesn't drink or smoke or get high in real life..a fact that he has kept a secret for a long time....And for the record...Bev..Me and You are more hood than he ever was...We grew up in West Philly....XO was born in Philadelphia, but raised in Lower Merrion , has a bachelors degree in Communications/Journalism from St. Johns University in New York and is about as far from a real gangsta as you can get!" said Olivia...

"Wow! And yet he seems so hard...so raw!" said Beverly....
"Try so Gay." I smirked...

"Now that blows my mind." she said. ''What about Jamie?"She asked.

"He doesn't drink anything but beer...He has been busted for possession of marijuana, but uh..I think his real drug is sex...He can't get enough...He even propositioned me once...Neither of them drank the vodka..."said Olivia.

"I still have those bottles...Those half drank bottles I collected from both of them....I'm going to have them tested and I'm going to find out about the autopsies on those two people." I said.

"Tread lightly dear." said Olivia...
"Oh of course...."I said.

"That's the homicide cop in you isn't it?" joked Beverly..

"Yeah Bev....I smell a rat...a big rat...I just hope I'm wrong..." I said.

IV-

The bodies of both people , the man and the woman had been found two days before...

From what I found out from a policeman I was friendly with....Both deaths looked suspicious, but had not yet been declared homicides...

I was going to do a little digging and find out.

(TO BE CONTINUED)