Gone Since September

One thing I learned from my friend Lt. Sissy Van Buren

 is that when you're doing an old fashioned police investigation...You develop a 15 block radius from where the crime scene occurred and you fan out...

I didn't have as many detectives as she did at her command or uniformed policemen, but I used what I had..

Peeping Tom and I sat up and developed a grid...

we sent my five investigators out, along with some help from Clerow, Owen Todd and Sean Jackson and of course myself..

We had I.D. , We didn't lie...We told people we were Private Investigators and we were searching for Sui Chef Eddie Vincent, who hadn't been seen since October..  We showed them photos of him, recent and past and stated where he lived and where he worked..

To our surprise...He was well known and well liked...People were just beginning to realize that the last time they saw him was in late August, Early September...

We must have done 400 interviews...over a period of days...and not one person said he looked or appeared to be stressed...Outside of Ralph Scallion and Dollar Bill, they didn't see him with any one else...

So next we scanned Traffic and Street cam footage going back to Late August, early September..We caught him quite a few times...Doing normal stuff...Shopping at the local supermarket...going to the fish market and the produce markets....He was a cook, these are places he would go...Shopping for Wines and spirits...
Driving to and from Bottom Of The C.

Even frequenting Josie's..

I talked to Gus about him...

"He was into somebody for some long green...He never said who, but he was furious about it and the last time I seen him....Come to think about it..It was near Labor day...He said he was done paying..."said Gus..

"You think he was into the locals?" I said..

I can't say kid...Those type of guys don't come in here...You know that.."said Gus..

"Yeah, well thanks.."I said..






II-

I got Kool Kat and we headed to Chinatown to see a "friend"

"What is this? Everytime somebody is into somebody for cash they gotta be into me,huh?"said Eddie Lee, the owner of a very stylish chinese bistro and bar.....that housed a floating crap game above attended by the Russian Mob and several Asian Mobsters.....

Everybody knew about it...but Eddie Lee kept things quiet in Chinatown and the Police mostly turned their backs to him...

He was said to be a loan shark...Because of his reputation...There was not a lot of violence if any in his neck of the woods...If people owed..They paid as far as Eddie Lee was concerned...

"Relax Eddie Lee..You act like I'm the man or somethin."I said..

"YOU act like you're the man.."snarled Eddie Lee..

Kool Kat laughed....He showed him a photo of Eddie Vincent...

"He's got the same last name as you..Know him?" asked Walter..

"Yeah I know him, Eddie V...Eddie Vincent...He's a Sui Chef...He's worked here for me occassionally...Preparing Seafood, Catered Seafood meals that's all..I haven't seen him since August...I called Dollar Bill inquiring about his services.."said Eddie Lee..

"He wasn't into you for any cash?" I asked..

"Him? He don't gamble...He don't play the ponys...He just cooks the best seafood next to Ralph Scallion.That's all...If he's into somebody..It aint me and it aint none of the locals..I would know about it..This is somethin else.." said Eddie Lee.

"He hasn't been seen since September...I stopped by his house yesterday....Mail was piled up, Meat in his frig was rotting...Car was in garage and his license plate and keys were in the drivers seat."I said.

"He's dead!!...I know the guy...He was very fastidious...He'd never leave his home like that..."said Eddie Lee..

"You may be right..Thing is..To find him."I said.

"I don't envy you that."said Eddie Lee.

"See ya Around Eddie."said Kool Kat...

"Not if I see you two first.."said Eddie Lee..

Kool Kat laughed as we walked across the street to the car..

"Ever get the feeling Mr. Lee doesn't like us?" said Kool Kat...

"Ever get the feeling that I couldn't care less? Do you care?" I asked..

"You know I don't" laughed Walter...

III-

At home...I was greeted by my wife and my daughter...

''Tell Daddy hi.."said Sepia to our daughter, Kimberly...

"Hi Baby." I said..and kissed her..

"You've been on this case about a week now...Still no sighting of this guy?" asked Sepia..

"No...Everybody knows him, everybody loved him...but nobody saw him after Labor day...and nobody knows if he was in any trouble..

I put some papers on the table..

Sepia looked at them...

"Charles Crotty .." she said.

"Charles Crotty??" I said..

"The guy with Eddie Vincent in this photo...That's Charles Crotty.."said Sepia.. "He's a noted food critic." she said..

''What is he doing with him?" I asked.

"Honey Bunny..He's a food critic..He rates chefs....He has a column that is syndicated in one of your publications and he has an online television show and pod cast..."said Sepia..

"Wow....I didn't know.."I said..

"Yess..Oh and aren't you forgetting something?"said Sepia..

"Huh? what is that?" I asked..

She kissed me softly for about a minute...

"You forgot to kiss your wifey.." she said and smiled..

"Wow...How could I have forgotten that?" I said and smiled..

"Yes, how could you??" asked Sepia, smiling..

IV-

The next day I went back to work...

But not downstairs at Morris Investigations...but upstairs at Morris Communications..

Sean Jackson brought me information on Food Critic, Charles Crotty..

''So he's been writing a food column in Hype On Line all this time eh?" I asked.

"About six months...He's a free lance writer..Not one of our regulars.."said Sean..

"He has a Podcast through us too."I said..

"Yeah, Free Lance..He produces it himself and leases it through us...Same with his TV show...It's syndicated through us.."said Sean Jackson.

"You ever met him?" I asked.

"|Once or twice he 's stopped by..He likes the ladies.."laughed Sean..

I smiled..

"Nothin wrong with that..." I laughed..

"He dines at uh that rooftop restaurant..Not Mulberry Street, The one Stephan co-owns..."said Sean...

"Yo Harry!" I said ,calling my personal Assistant, Harry Charles..

"Yo Kev." he said.

"Make me a five o'clock reservation at this place...They give you any trouble , ask to speak to the owner..Tell em I know him.."I said..

"I'm on it.." said Harry Charles..

"You goin alone Kev...?" asked Sean Jackson...

"Tonight I am.." I said..

I got in my car and headed out into the Philadelphia afternoon...


(TO BE CONTINUED)