Yellow Dahlia

I walked up behind Detective Carlotta Rodriguez in a tony little coffee shop and said-

"Fancy Meeting you here "

She turned and smiled at me and hugged me and kissed me on the cheek...

"HOLA Kevin, how are you?" she said.

I smiled...

"I'm great...Just getting back in the streets and getting my wind."I said..

"How is your baby?" she said..

"Carlotta, she just eats and sleeps and you know what?" I said.

Carlotta laughed.....

"Listen though...I heard you and Rico caught a murder about a week ago at the Mermaid club...a player named Gumby Peterson." I said.

"Yes, we did...Can't get anybody to talk to us...and those that do talk to us know very little and have sent us on dead ends.."she said.

"No traffic cam action or survielience footage?" I asked.

"Well, We caught a car leaving the scene...and Jimmy and some uniforms found it...but it had been wiped clean of prints and bleached...This was a professional hit."she said.

"Yeah,I heard the killer dropped a Yellow Dahlia on the body."I said.

"You've been talking to Joe Neptune."she said... "What is your interest?" she asked.

"He had an open contract on my client...A contract my client wanted closed, but is still open because Mr. Peterson unfortunately left this world before they could square things..My client is in hiding right now...but a killer is still out there."I said.

Carlotta shrugged her shoulders...

"Wish I could help you Kevin, but me and Rico and Jimmy have turned this city upside down...We don't know who killed Gumby or why...We are hearing that it was done by an out of towner...A New Yorker...

"I'm hearing that he might have had a guy named "Clip" in his employ..."I said.

"Clip is not a New Yorker...He's a local...Suspect in about six murders...We have never been able to get anything on him though...People think he's from New York because he travels up there a lot..but he's local...There are others we are looking at...a guy named
Drag and another hood that travels with him named Jules...You can look at their rap sheets...Both of them are heavy duty and at present, in the wind.." she said.

"Well if I hear anything...I'll let you know.."I said.

"Same here papi."she said...

I kissed Carlotta on the cheek and said- "Tell Your Boss Lady I said hi and that she'll be hearing from me soon."I said as I left...

"I will...Be easy Kev." she said.

"Always Chica." I said smiling.

II-

I knew that Detectives Carlotta Rodriguez-Wallace, Tyriq Pile and James "Jimmy" Barlow were among Lt. Sissy Van Buren's best....and my equal as far as being an investigator went...but by me not being a cop and some what independent...I was able to get people to talk to me that would not talk to cops...

The next few days...Kool Kat, Owen Todd,Clerow and I turned the underworld upside down asking about Jules Robinson...Richard "Drag" Drago and the hitman known only on the street as "Clip"...Nobody had seen them in days and according to street lore..Drag was the one who dropped a Yellow Dahlia at the scene of each of his hits...I saw what Carlotta meant...These were obviously new playas...People were afraid or hesitant to even talk about these two cats...

I got a hot tip that Jules and Drag hung out a strip club a few blocks from the Mermaid Club....I was thinking that if I could locate them...Maybe they could put me in contact with the hitman...Clip...and I could talk him or bribe him into calling off the hit on Bobby...

III-

The strip club was called "Pussy Galore"of all things...Pretty imaginative.....It smelled like stale beer and body odor....I was sick just walking into the door... In the middle of the floor, several round and supple young women dressed in g-strings and pasties twirled around a pole as drunk and horny guys yelled -"MOREEE...MORRRE" and bammed their fists on the bar top and hurled dollars at them....

In several chairs...even more men received lap dances from even more girls...You could hear the chairs creaking and men moaning....

"OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.."

"Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww...."

"Ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu baby yeahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh."

while emptying their wallets of their hard earned cash...

I peered through the crowd...

''You Dancin or datin?" asked a young lady dressed in a pink string bikini and matching bra.

"Neither...I'm looking for one or both of these guys." I said and showed her two photos....Photos I had pulled from my computer ap of Jules Robinson and Richard Drago.. "Jules and Drag." I said.

"That's Jules and Ricky...My best customers...What they done?" she asked.

"Nothing...I just need to talk with them."I said.

"You know...Three cops come by here looking for them a few days ago..A Puerto Rican woman, A black guy and a white guy...You another cop?" she asked..

"No I aint no cop..."I said, sensing that she already knew that..."I just need to talk to them...Here's my number and my name...I can see that they aren't here...If you see them tell em to call me..."I said...

She took my card...

"You sure you don't want anything else daddy?" she said eyeing me up and down..

I smiled..

"Not Today baby!" I said.

IV-

I got in my car and drove across town...I drove to Clerow's apartment complex where Bobby Staircase was...

"What's the news Kev?" he asked..

"The cops are interested in a pair of cool guys named Richard Drago-"Drag" and Julius
''Jules "Robinson...Ever heard of em?" I asked.

"Yeah...they're young guns...New playas on the block...pretty damn lethal...Is that who's after me?" he asked.

"No...They're suspected of dropping Gumby Peterson....I was thinking maybe they could give me a lead on Clip...That's who has the contract to kill you." I said..

"Damn...I know of him...He's good..." said Bobby..

"Yeah...exactly why I may have to move you out of here to someplace safer..." I said.

"Man this crap just got real." he said.

"Yeah man, it sure did..Sit tight and stay indoors..Only let Clerow or myself in here." I said.

"That goes without saying." he said.

I walked outside the apartment building and I saw a Yellow Dahlia on the ground...I ducked down, pulled out my .38 smokeless and looked around...

I ran over to my car and opened the trunk...I put on my kevlar vest and trauma plate and I aimed my gun in several directions...

This was their calling card....I had been followed!

(TO BE CONTINUED)