Habit Patterns

Clerow and I drove to the Frankford Transit Center.....It was where all of the Elevated trains and Buses and Trolleys docked in the Northeast section of the city...It was blocks from where Bennie G. says he witnessed the murder of the young girl...Shirley
Richardson..

We were visiting an old codger who worked at the station that I knew ,who was always a wealth of information...Leonard "Hambone" Jenkins, no relation to the sexy Jenkins sisters who ran a soul food joint...

Speaking of which...Clerow and I had brought him a hot tumbler of coffee and some hot piping soul food from Mabel's soul food joint.

We walked into his office...

"Lawdddd today...Fried Chicken, Macaroni and Cheese, Collard Greens and Candied Yams...And Hot Coffee...I aint had a lunch like this in ages...Thanks Kevin."said Hambone..

"Hot Biscuits too!" said Clerow..

The old man looked like he was having an orgasm...He tore into the food...We joined him...

"Ummm, Ummm..Ummmph...This is some good eatin....So what do you need to know Kevin?" he asked.

''Big Chick Mooney!" I said.

"He's bad news Kev....A few days ago...Bennie G. come by here...Told me that when he was riding the El...The 11:45 pm train...He rode past an apartment and saw Big Chick in his drawers stranglin some girl....He was scared...We killed a fifth of liquor...Funny thing though...A few days later..He come by again..He was askin me where Big Chick was and how could he get in touch with him..Big Chick came by here too, askin about the time the train come in...Did I know and see..Bennie G. What was his habit patterns? Did he ride that train all the time? What Bus did he take? They was both big pains in the ass...Lookin for each other.." said Hambone.

"Huh?" I said.

''Habit patterns Kev...Things people do on the regular." explained Hambone...Clerow nodded in agreement!  I smiled.

"Not too many people know where Big Chick actually lays his head..."said Hambone.

''But you do?" I said.

"I usually keep that kind of information to myself...Tellin people that can get you killed." he laughed..

"I won't tell a soul that it was you...You got my word." I said.

"Okay Kev..I don't want no trouble." he said and he wrote down the address...

I gave him $50.00...

"Wow..Good lunch, good coffee and I get duked some cash too." he laughed...

"Your lucky day boss."laughed Clerow..

Hambone Jenkins smiled..

II-

Clerow,Owen Todd and I drove up to the residence that Hambone gave us...We questioned a few people in the neighborhood... This was indeed the residence that Big Chick was staying at...

I touched the door...It was open...I didn't like that....

Clerow, Owen Todd and I all pulled our pistols and flashlights and went inside... The place smelled like hell....

"Is there a light in here?" asked Owen Todd..

"You think one would work? This place look like the electric has been cut off for years!" said Clerow..

I found a  light switch and flicked it on...

What We saw next stunned us all!!

Bernard Gleason....Known as Bennie G. was hanging from the ceiling...and from the looks of him...He had been here for at least 48 hours...

"Ohhhh Helll."said Owen Todd...

"Damnn Kev....Looks like you don't have a client."said Clerow..

"At least not a living one."I said.

II-

Naturally,I called the police... I told Clerow and Owen Todd to go on home...I waited for Sissy and her detectives...

Lt. Sissy Van Buren was there with Detectives Tony Hopkins, Sirena Pile and Forensic Investigator, Dr. Hazel Hunter-Baylor...and her husband, Detective,Edwin "Duke" Baylor.

''Kevin, you know I love you...You know that I do...but I swear....I'm beginning to dread your phone calls ." joked Sissy...Duke cracked up laughing.

"This is your witness...Bennie G. or Bernard Gleason."I said..."I got a tip on Big Chick's whereabouts and I tracked him to here..Only..There is no sign of him...Just Bennie G. My client..."I said shaking my head..

"This house is registered to Todd Drinkwater..."said Detective Tony Hopkins holding an IPAD mini...

"And he won't be of any help...He's been dead for four years." said his partner, Detective Sirena Pile.

"How careful is Big Chick...He stays in a house under an assumed name.."said Duke.

"We'll check with the person he rented this house from."said Sissy...

"If I were to make an educated guess..I'd say this guy has been dead for about two days."said Hazel..

''Which means he died two days after the girl he reported dead." I said.

"We've got two murders and no suspect in either." said Sissy.

''Big Chick!"I said.

"As bad as I want to put him behind bars,I've got no evidence linking him to either murder Kevin...We could pick him up..but we have less than nothing to hold him on right now." she said.

''Yeah..you're right."I said.

Sissy put her arms around me...

"It's not your fault!...Hey how is that wife of yours?" she asked...

"Just as happy as a lark.."I smiled...

"Good,Good...You should make sure she's happy and stay off these mean streets for awhile anyway" said Sissy as she turned and began talking to some uniformed patrolmen and CSI guys who had joined the crime scene photographers in the building...Hop was instructing one of the policemen to cut the body down and release it...

I walked over to Detective Sirena Pile...Tyriq's wife..

''Sirena..Could I ask you something in private?" I said.

She looked surprised...

"Sure Kev...What?" she said.

We walked over to a corner..

"You and Tyriq...you have three children...Uh...When you were pregnant were you uh,you know...extra....uh..?" I said.

"Horny?  Yesssss lord...I wanted it more  it seemed like...Tyriq loved it though..He didn't complain.."she said.

"Okay...So this is normal?" I said.

"Yeahhhh...You aint got a problem with it,I know?" she said and smiled..

"Nooo..Nooo,I rather find it enjoyable..I was just worried.."I said.

"Tyriq was the same way...I was just fine...Sepia is just fine...When she can't do it anymore..She'll let you know..but enjoy it for now."said Sirena smiling..

"Thanks." I said.

Tyriq's wife and I had developed a close friendship, just like the one I shared with Sissy and Carlotta and Sharon...We found ourselves talking more when we ran into each other..I remember when she was little Sirena Harris, when we were growing up in West Philly...She was about a year younger than me..Always hip,always tough and sexy as hell even then...But she didn't take any crap off of anybody..You had to come correct with her...Even then...We knew each other only in passing then...I wasn't surprised when I found out that she was a detective...One of Sissy's best.

The body was released and Sissy and her detectives prepared to leave..I looked at Sissy one last time..

"We'll crack this.." I said.

"Oh I'm not worried."said Sissy, who smiled at me.

III-

Sepia and I lie in our bed after enjoying a nice meal and then eventually each other..

"So you're saying this Hambone fella told you that a few days later...Your client, Bennie G. came back to him and asked him how he could get in touch with this Big Chick?"she asked.

"Yeah..Weird isn't it? He was scared to death of Big Chick." I said.

''Sounds like he was working another angle, which is why he didn't call you back..He didn't need you anymore." said my wife..

I smiled...I sat up...I cupped her face in my hands and kissed her long and hard for a few minutes...

"You are absolutely right babes...It was right there in my face...right in my face all the time.. He was probably going to blackmail Big Chick...Only thing is...He was a little too lightweight to do that to a guy like him."I said.

"Big Chick probably killed him."said Sepia..

"Oh Most definitely he did.." I said.

"So you kind of have no more case."said Sepia..

"Oh but I do...and I don't have to look for Big Chick anymore..."I said.

"You don't?" she said.

"No..I've got a plan that's going to make him come to me.." I said.

"Kevin!" she said.

''Relax...when he shows up...My favorite Murder police will be there to nab him."I said.

Sepia smiled and kissed me...

She slipped her panties off and climbed on top of me and eased herself down on me.....

She was so warm, soo moist.....

"Ahhhhh, again?" I asked..

"Any complaints?" she said as she slowly moved up and down...

"Not at allllllllllllll...ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.." I moaned...

"Talking to you and watching your facial expressions when you're cracking a case makes me incredibly horny.."she said...

"And it makes me feel incredibly fortunate.."I said smiling...

She moved up and down slowly....I was in a state of pure joy, for want of a better word.......

''Ouuuu mama has been missing youuuu." she cooed..

"Ohhhh...", I groaned as she continued... and I laid flat just enjoying what she was doing...

We made slow ,sweet love like that , for about an hour and a half......Sepia began to shake.....

''You alright?" I asked..

''Yesss...YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!! Ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu. I'm finnnne,,,Stop worrying about me...ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu..ohhhhhhhhh my goodness...ohhhh" she moaned...

As if on cue, I exploded like a gusher...

''OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH..." I said...

"Ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu.." she moaned and kissed me for a long while....She rolled off of me...

"I'm fine lover..just a habit pattern."she said.

''A what?" I said.

''A habit pattern of being pregnant..."she said.

That was the second time today I had heard that term... It made sense..

In the larger scheme of things,It all made sense I mused.

(CONCLUSION NEXT)