An Island Called St. Martinque

The morning after Kool Kat and I had approached Dell Carson, I came out to get in my car...The door was open, just a bit..but it made me suspicious...I never left my car unlocked...never..I saw a thin wire hanging from the door...

I called Peeping Tom, Lockpick Johnson and my five operatives over to my house immediately..

"That's called a trip wire Kevin...and you were smart not to get in your car...Whoever did this wanted you to see this.." said Peeping Tom, who took a pair of scissors and cut the wire and followed it to a small explosive device, which he easily disarmed...

"This is the bomb they wanted you to discover Kevin." said one of my operatives..

"Yeah, to lull you into thinking you were safe..."said another as he discovered a second bomb in the door and disarmed that and a third bomb on the other side....

Another operative found the fourth and final bomb...They disarmed that one also...

"Wow!  You're clear now....This was a professional job...Someone wanted you dead..."said Lockpick Johnson...

"I'm guessing Dell Carson....He seemed a little shook yesterday after I questioned him about his brother...He fed me that same story about his brother and his girlfriend being in St. Martinque.."I said.

"We do know that Brion and a young woman ,Noble Fontaine, Dell and another man did registar at a hotel there..and of the four...Dell is the only one who returned and Brion hasn't been seen since that week last year in June..."said one of my operatives...

"About this bomber...Could Dell Carson reach out to someone this skilled?" I asked.

"He's a high stakes gambler...plays in the top games...He has the money to do so...He knows a few people in the underworld.." said another of our operatives...

"Get me the name of that hotel in St. Martinique...and get me four tickets....Two rooms..." I said..

"I'm on it."said my operative...

"I'm going there and take a deeper look at just what is going on.."I said.

II-

I met with Sharon Silver and gave her my findings....

"Your car was bobby trapped?  Four bombs??" she said..

"Yeah, the day after he gave me the slip...He's a High stakes gambler...He knows a lot of people...he has money to spread around...He clearly didn't want anymore interference out of me.." I said..

"Maybe you better back off...I didn't think anyone would be getting hurt.." said Sharon...

"No, my interest in piqued now...He's playing a game and I like to see games played to their end...I'm going to St. Martinique...I'll be in touch with you..." I said..

"Okay...Be Easy Kevin. Here's a number where I can be reached...Don't lose it." said Sharon..

"Always "I said..






III-

I went home...

Sepia and Kimberly were there....

"Heyyyy look Kimmie, it's daddy!" said Sepia...

I kissed my daughter and spun her around...She giggled...

"I've got to go out of town form a few days on business...How would you like to go with me?" I asked..

"Where we goin?" asked Sepia..

"An Island called St. Martinque!" I said..

"I'm in..."said Sepia without hesitation...

I smiled..

"That's why you're my girl..."I laughed..

"Ride or Die." said Sepia..

IV-

Sharon Silver met with us at the Airport bar.....

"Don't go to a hotel...I have a friend...He'll meet you at the Airport...He has an Air BNB...You'll be safe there and anonymous.. His name is Bruce, he's a lawyer who was handling our affairs....He'll be expecting you." she said.

"Any reason why I wouldn't be safe in a hotel?" I asked.

"Dell Carson is a high stakes Gambler...He has contacts in the underworld...People owe him money, they do favors for him...He was furious when your car didn't explode like it was supposed to.. The  guy who probably rigged your car...a professional bomber...was found strangled to death yesterday afternoon in an alley in South Philly...Payment for failure.." she said.

"How do you know this?" asked Kool Kat..

"I'm like you...I keep my ear to the streets...."said Sharon..."Dell himself isn't dangerous...but when he's scared and you two put the fear of god in him with your questions and with what you appear to know.. He calls in his markers.." said Sharon..

"What about you?  He may figure out you hired us." I asked.

"I know...I'm leaving town for a few days....Call me at this number...I have a burner phone...I'll return to Philly when you guys return..."said Sharon...

Sepia was talking to our good friend, Eva Carona...She was going to be watching Kimmie Cakes while we were gone..

 "And if you need anything , you can reach Robert and Bonita Foxworth at this number...You can reach Kevin and me at this number..."said Sepia..

"Everything will be fine Ms. Sepia..I have a lot of fun things planned for Ms. Kimmie Cakes." said Eva.

Kool Kat's wife, Chelsea was excited...

"I can't believe it..We goin to the Carribean….Oh My Goodness.." she kept saying...

"I don't know what we'll find if anything...but his trail ends in St .Martinque… That's the last place I have any activity on his credit and debit cards...and the last time he was seen alive...It's been a year, but maybe somebody is around who saw something." I said.

"I'm appreciative of anything you can find..."said Sharon..

"Well let's go find ourselves an island.." said Kool Kat..

"I love his enthusiasm." said Sharon...

"Yeah, it's intoxicating.." I said..

"Good Luck to you both..."said Sharon as she grabbed her ticket and headed toward her plane...

Kool Kat and I scooped the girls up and we headed for our plane...

We were headed to the Carribean to St. Martinque...The unknown....

V-

ST MARTINIQUE-


Martinique (French pronunciation: ​[maʁtiˈnik]) is an insular region of France located in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of 1,128 square kilometres (436 sq mi) and a population of 376,480 inhabitants as of January 2016.

Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. One of the Windward Islands, it is directly north of Saint Lucia, southeast of Greater Antilles, northwest of Barbados, and south of Dominica.

 As with the other overseas departments, Martinique is one of the eighteen regions of France (being an overseas region) and an integral part of the French Republic. As part of France, Martinique is part of the European Union, and its currency is the euro. The official language is French, and virtually the entire population also speaks Antillean Creole (Créole Martiniquais).

Christopher Columbus landed on 15 June 1502, after a 21-day trade wind passage, his fastest ocean voyage. He spent three days there refilling his water casks, bathing and washing laundry.[5] The island was then called "Jouanacaëra-Matinino", which came from a mythical island described by the Taínos of Hispaniola. According to historian Sydney Daney, the island was called "Jouanacaëra" by the Caribs, which means "the island of iguanas".[citation needed] When Columbus landed on the island in 1502, he christened the island as Martinica; through the influence of the neighboring island of Dominica (La Dominique), it came to be known as Martinique.[vague] The island is called "Madinina" by the locals.

We met Sharon's friend, Bruce at the airport and he drove us to our quarters...A place at the edge of town, but near the beach.

Bruce, the only name we knew him by was a large Black man, larger than Kool Kat...with a warm friendly smile...

"You are Kevin, Walter, Sepia and Chelsea....Sharon told me about you.. I am an Attorney...I was representing both her and her fiancé when he vanished...She told me she had hired you guys to look into this matter.. But hey there will be enough time for shop talk, let's get you to your quarters.." he said..

I'm glad we traveled light...One bag for me and Kool Kat and two for the girls...because there wasn't much room for all five of us in his jeep, but we made due with what we had..

 Chelsea was like a child...Her face filled with wonder...

"Oh My God...It's beautiful...." she said..

Even Sepia was mesmerized....

"Awwwwww this is gorgeous.." she said..

''Wait til you see where we are staying.."said Kool Kat..

"How do you know where we are staying?" I asked , Amused..

"Classy dame like that...She aint putting us up in no  shack.." said Kool Kat...

For once...He was right..

Bruce just chuckled as he drove...

''We are almost there." he said...

It was small, but it had a pool...It was gorgeous, to use Sepia's terms for nearly everything here..

"Oh this can't be for real.." said Chelsea..

"It's for real.." said Kool Kat...

"Wow!" said Sepia..

I was impressed...

We had a common area with a 50 inch TV monitor and complete cable feed...A refrigerator full of fresh fruit and vegatables as well as wine and beer...

Beautiful Bedrooms far enough apart that if we got loud...we wouldn't disturb each other...

"There is a market a few blocks down where you can buy groceries if you like and a full kitchen and dining area as you have seen," said her friend..

"How about renting a car?" I asked..

"Tomorrow I'll stop by and drive you to the airport where you can rent a car.." said Bruce..

"Alright Bruce..." I said..

We were here...In the warm unknown...our adventure was just beginning..

(TO BE CONTINUED)