Still Waters

"Heyyy Pretty mama, where have you been all my life?" said Eric Derricote to a lovely young woman at the bar.

"Avoiding guys with tired lines like that...Where'd you hear it, a 70's sitcom?" she replied dryly.

"I like em with sass like you..." replied Eric as he rubbed her arms up and down.

The sister looked at him and then asked him-

"Are you high?"

"Nah, nah baby..if I was high I'd be all over you." he laughed.

" Oh is that right? How you gon come up in my face? I saw you up on the top deck the other night lip locking with some chick and I saw you going in the same chick's cabin the night before so save the tired lines, get your hands off of me and take your little sideshow somewhere else playa." she said.

Eric's whole card had been played...He looked around and saw that Oleg Mboli and I had observed the entire thing..and were both slightly laughing...at him!!

"Yall black women always complain about yall wants a good man and when a brother try to step to you, you get an attitude...that's just why I'm gon start dating white girls."he said.

"Whateva man, now could you just date somewhere else and leave me alone." she said.

"You probably into chicks...aint you?"he asked.

"Well one thing is for sure..I aint into YOU...now beat it." she said.

With his ego bruised..Eric sulked and walked away. A little while later, Lolita entered the bar..she walked over to where Oleg Mboli and I were sitting and asked-

"Have you guys seen Eric?"

I couldn't resist it.....

"No, but she has." pointing to the young lady who had just shot him down. Mboli and I cracked up..Lolita had no idea why we were laughing, it had gone completely over her head. She just walked away and continued her search.

"Mr. Morris, between what you have told me and what one of my men uncovered in the trash can in the ship's bay...we've got to move fast." He said.

"Did you match the prints on the gun?" I asked.

"We don't have the equipment to do that on ship...We have to wait until we get to shore ,which will be soon...only..he might get away by then.." said Oleg.

"We can bluff him...he doesn't have to know that." I said.

"Bluff him, Mr. Morris?" he asked.

"Yeah,I made a career out of it back in Philly ." I said.

"Okay...Then let's move quickly." said Oleg Mboli.

Dr. Leonard Culpepper was searching the trash recepticle in the area where he had been shot the day before...

"You wouldn't happen to be looking for this would you Dr.Culpepper?" said Oleg Mboli, holding the small pistol in a plastic evidence bag.

I walked up to him and shook my head solemly-

"It was you wasn't it Leonard?"

Dr. Culpepper said nothing, he stood there looking surprisingly smug and confident.

"After Eric humiliated you on the deck the other night you were seething with rage...You went to his room with blood in your eye...Only you didn't know that he had switched rooms with Slim Giddings. It was dark, you were in a drunken rage and you beat Slim Giddings to death with your bare hands. You didn't discover you had killed the wrong man until the next morning. Then you shot at Eric three times and you missed....You're a surgeon, not a marksman....and you shot yourself to make it look good, to cover your tracks. You tossed the gun into the trash recepticle..Only it's got your prints on it..and you were coming back to get it when the coast was clear. That sound about how it happened Leonard?" I asked him.

Leonard smiled...

"Yes...that sounds right...only..you can't prove it...You don't have equipment on this ship that could process my fingerprints, whether they are on the gun or not...and that gun only proves that I shot at, but did not kill Eric.....There are no witnesses and no evidence to prove I killed Mr. Giddings..So...you got nothing..you can't detain me and by the time you check that gun on shore..I'll be long gone...It's international waters...What country will I be charged in?"He smirked.

He was right...we didn't have enough to hold him and we had to let him go...Oleg looked at me...I shrugged my shoulders....The most we could contain him for was attempted murder...We couldn't charge him with the murder of Slim Giddings, even though we knew that he had done it.

We stood there as he walked away and then we heard, what he heard coming from Eric's cabin....
A bed sqeaking loudly and moans of pleasure-

"Ohhhhhh, ohhhhh, ohhh my gawd....oh it's so big...it's sooooo hard...ouuuuuuuuuu....
Ohhhhh, ohhhh Eric, give it to me, give it to me daddy..ohhhhhhhh...give mama some more....
ohhhhhh yesssssssss,yesssss..."


"Ohhh baby, am I hittin that thang or what? "

"yesssss...yesssss....oh I like it...ohhhhhhhhh.....I like it....give mama some more....."

"Ohhhh girl, you got me about to blow....ohhhhhh..."

"No not yet..jus a lit bit longer....just a little bit longer...ouuuuuuuuuuuuu..."

"Lolita!!! ,Lolita....she's in there with him now...after all I've done...after all I've done.....I don't believe this....my Lolita..." screamed Leonard....

Before we could stop him....Dr. Leonard Culpepper ran toward the edge of the ship and dove off into the Atlantic Ocean....

"Goodbye cruel world...argggggggghhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!" he said as he leaped overboard and into the ocean. We heard a loud splash! and people came running out of their cabins looking over the side..

Oleg Mboli got on his radio and called the shore police immediately....

"Man overboard!!!! Man Overboard!!" He shouted...

In all the commotion, I saw Lolita Giles, fully clothed running toward the topside of the ship-

"Oh my God...What happened? Kevin ,what happened? Did something happen to Eric?" she screamed!

"No...No....That was Leonard!! Leonard just jumped off the ship into the ocean." I said.

"Oh my God....Oh nooooo, who will pay for the rest of this cruise?? Oh my Goddddddd." she screamed.

"Wait a minute...Wait a minute...You're not with Eric?" I asked, grabbing Lolita.

"No..I'm looking for him." she said.

'Well if you're not with Eric....who is in his room?" said Oleg Mboli.


Just then, Eric emerged from his cabin with just a towell, wrapped around him... A short brown skinned black woman with a short jheri curl type hairstyle came out behind him....She looked dazed...she had on ,only a short nighty that didn't hide her breasts or anything else for that matter. Upon seeing Lolita, Eric was startled...He tried to shove the woman back in the room....

"What is wrong with you....stop pushing me." said the woman.

"Eric, you two timing dog....I can't believe this...." screamed Lolita...

"Aww now baby, I can explain...I was drunk..I thought this was you...Now see, what had happened was..." sputtered Eric.

'Oh save it you dog, we are through." snapped Lolita..

"You can have him honey....I shoulda known that you wasn't nothing but a playa...let me grab
my clothes..." said the other woman.... Just then, the girl in the bar who Eric had initially hit on
walked by and just shook her head...

"So glad I didn't get involved with you....you dog.."

Lolita shook her head.....

"Oh my God...I'm missing for one afternoon and you're trying to stick it in every girl you see!!!
You nasty lowdown dogggg!! ouuuuuuuuu." she said as she stormed off in one direction and the
other woman stormed off in the other direction.

Eric shrugged his shoulders- "What the hell did I do? " He said. I patted him on the shoulders...

"Don't worry about it E. There are plenty of women on this ship." I laughed as Oleg and I walked off.

One week later-

"Wow Kevin, this was ,let's just say a cruise I won't forget.." laughed Sepia.

"Well coming over here was...The beach was nice and that was the best hotel service I've ever
had, wouldn't you say? "I said.

"Yeah....Shame my girl Lolita had to go home before she even got to enjoy the rest of the package." said Sepia.

"Yeah, hahahahahahahahaha...Seems like someone else was enjoying Eric's package..hahahahaha." I laughed as we continued packing and waiting for the Taxi to take us to the airport.

"What about Dr. Culpepper?" she asked.

"Well, The Shore Patrol and The U.S. Coast Guard searched for his body...but they didn't find anything....I doubt if he could have survived those deep waters for long...His body will show up
sooner or later. I did hear from Oleg Mboli..They checked the gun and the prints matched....So he was the one who shot at Eric and he did shoot himself." I said.

"Do you still think he killed Mr. Giddings?" asked Sepia.

"Oh yeah, I'm certain it was him....He didn't know Slim Giddings, but he knew that that was Eric's room...He meant to kill Eric...but it was dark and he beat the wrong man to death. It was a case of mistaken identity..he didn't know that they had switched rooms." I said.

"Will they be able to charge him with murder if in fact he is alive?" she asked.

"Probably not...but who cares? I wasn't really heavily invested in this case anyway." I laughed.

Just then the cab drove up and Sepia and I got in.....Then I heard a familiar voice....

"This is Franklin "Fearless" Fosdick at your service for your transportaion pleasure sir and madam." he said.

"Detective Fosdick???" said Sepia.

"Uh,Ruh....I used to be a detective on the ship..The S.S. Stingray.....Mr.Mboli is the house Detective now...I was let go for firing my weapon into my foot again..That's the third time it's gone off this year..I shot a passenger by accident, I shot the radio the second time and then I accidentally shot myself....They had just had enough...So I'm driving cabs and working the bar
until I can make enough money to get back to the states." He said as he drove us to the Airport.
Sepia looked at me.....I looked at her and we both just started giggling to ourselves!!

For Soloman

Kapow!

Sepia and I slept very good that night...We felt the cool breeze blow across our naked bodies and we barely moved....It was just a nice peaceful sleep...That sleep was punctuated by the sounds of gunshots!...Four in sucession and then a loud yell!

"Owwwwwwww!...ohhhhhhhhhhh...."

I leaped out of bed and headed for the door...

"Kevin....Kevin!!!! You can't go out in the hall like that!!" yelled Sepia.

"Huh? What??" I yelled....

" You don't have any clothes on." she said with a laugh...

"Oh" I said, a little embarrassed, as I threw on some boxers and some khaki pants and a white
linen shirt... Sepia tossed on a sundress and continued to giggle as I rushed into the hallway with her on my heels....

Eric Derricote lay on the floor, near his cabin, shaking...but unhurt...four nice round bullet holes
were in the door to his cabin, just where his head would've been..

"Oh my God....Oh My God...first someone tries to set me up, then someone tries to kill me..I'm
a marked man...it's haters..they jealous of my football contract..they tryin to get me..." he said,visibly scared...Sepia looked at him with a disdain she only reserved for another football player, namely Cock Robbins.

"BACK IT UP...BACK IT UP...NOTHIN TO SEE HERE, FRANKLIN "FEARLESS' FOSDICK IS ON THE CASE..BACK IT UPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!" came the all too familiar voice... Eric,Sepia and I had that "What the hell " look on our faces..Did he always have to introduce himself everytime he appeared? He knew nothing about the object of surprise.

"APPARENTLY,SOMEONE HAS TRIED TO SHOOT YOU!" He announced!

I could see that he was at the head of his class in school. Oleg Mboli and about five men ,all dressed in dark suits with white shirts and black ties, sunglasses and black wingtips examined the shell casings, dusted for possible prints and interviewed people near the scene. The day before , he had interviewed Sepia,Lolita,Leonard and Eric..extensively. He and I had talked a little bit and were supposed to talk again today...but now this had happened.

"Did you see anything or anyone Mr. Derricote?" asked Oleg Mboli.

"Naw...only heard the click....When you grow up in Jersey City, you know what the click of a heater sounds like.." he said.

"Oh Eric...Eric....are you alright?? Oh my God...you could've been killed." screamed Lolita ,who
was visibly upset.

"Yeah and what a loss to humanity THAT would be ." said Leonard who ,still clad in his pajamas
walked up on the scene.

"Leonard...stop it....somebody just tried to kill Eric...we all could be in danger." she said.

"Yeah,we could be..I just wish whoever did it had better aim." he said as he walked back down the hallway.

Oleg Mboli turned to his men and said-

"I think we should take everybody's hands and test them for powder residue..and we've got to do it quick,before anyone can wash their hands." he said.

'EXCELLENT SUGGESTION, I WAS JUST GOING TO SAY THAT....ALRIGHT MEN, GO FROM ROOM TO ROOM AND CHECK HANDS FOR POWDER RESIDUE......DON'T WORRY FOLKS FRANKLIN FEARLESS FOSDICK IS ON THE CASE!!!" he said as he strutted off.

I looked at Oleg Mboli...He looked disgusted...I couldn't help but smile. It must be hell working for an idiot like that and being smarter ,yet having to take orders from that guy..it couldn't be me. Sepia,Lolita, the visibly shaken Eric and I all adjourned to the dining area where we ordered
Mimosas and had Scrambled Eggs and Bacon and a couple of tumblers of Hot coffee...We hadn't finished breakfast good when another shot was heard!

Everybody jumped up and ran into the hallway.....Detective "Fearless" Fosdick was already on the scene...

"This man has been shot in the arm....he needs medical attention." he said,looking a little shaken
himself... It was Dr. Leonard Culpepper!!!!!

"Hey man, you alright??? Who done this to you? " I asked as I bent down over him...

"I didn't see anyone..Didn't hear nothing....uhhhhhh,I'm shot...."

Lolita and Eric came out of the dining area and walked over to where Leonard was lying...

"Leonard....are you going to be alright?? I was just walking Eric back to his room, he's still shaken from the attempt on his life this morning." she said.


"ATTEMPT ON HIS LIFE? ATTEMPT ON HIS LIFE???? ATTEMPT??? MY GOD WOMAN,
I'VE BEEN SHOT...I'VE BEEN SHOT...SOMEBODY TRIED TO KILL ME AND ALL YOU CANTHINK ABOUT IS THIS ASSWIPE??? " SCREAMED Leonard to the top of his lungs as he righted himself and stood up....

"Hey..Hey..Heyyyyy , you've been shot, you've got to lie still sir, don't get yourself all riled up...
a doctor is coming." said Oleg Mboli. Leonard wasn't listening...He was staring daggers at Lolita and directing his comments at her-

'OH TO HELL WITH A DOCTOR, I AM A DOCTOR...THIS IS JUST A FLESH WOUND...I CAN
TAKE CARE OF IT MYSELF......BUT AS FOR YOU!!!! YOUUUU!! LOLITA, YOU MISS HIGH MAINTENANCE , YOU AND ME, WE ARE FINISHED......LET YOUR BOYFRIEND ERIC PAY FOR THE REST OF THIS CRUISE...AS SOON AS WE GET TO SHORE, I'M FLYING BACK HOME....I NEVER WANT TO SEE EITHER OF YOU AGAIN..AND I HOPE WHOEVER IS DOING THIS KILLS YOU BOTH!!" He Screamed!

"Dang Man..that wasn't nice" whimpered Eric...suddenly looking as if he feared Leonard for the

first time.

"SHUT UP!" said Leonard coldly...and Eric did too...Didn't say another word!

Sepia,Lolita,Eric and I looked in amazement...Never had we seen this kind of rage coming from Leonard. He walked off...I walked over to Oleg Mboli. I looked at him and he looked at me...We both kind of understood something...We understood that we both knew who our killer might be and we had to work together and fast to catch him.

Sepia and I stood along the ship's topside looking out at the sea later on that afternoon.

"Wow, what a crusie this has been....never a dull moment with you Kevin.." she said.

"That's why you stay with me isn't it?" I laughed.

"I guess....I must admit...in the beginning,I thought we were just going to have a fling." she said.

"Because ,Because...I'm not the kind of guy, a girl like you is usually with right?" I said.

She looked at me, then smiled, then placed her hand on my face.....

"No...you're not the kind of guy I usually wound up with....I ran with guys like Cock Robbins,Sam Rasulala , Eric Derricote....but after awhile with you, I realized that while they might have been the kind of guys I wanted..guys like you were the kind of guy I needed and that was more important...that's why I married you."

I smiled at her and held her close to me....just as I was about to kiss her, yet another shot rang out!!!

Sepia, myself and a crowd of people ran into the lower deck , where Franklin "Fearless" Fosdick
lay on the ground writhing in pain...

"IT ALRIGHT...IT'S UGHHHHH ALRIGHT, MY FIREARM ACCIDENTALLY WENT OFF...
UGGGGGHHHH, I SHOT MYSELF IN THE FOOT...I'M IN NEED OF UGHHHHH, MEDICAL
ATTENTION.....UGGHHHHHHH.OHHHHHHHHHHH..." He wailed...I just shook my head.


(Conclusion Next......)

You Don't Know What Love Is

"You Love Her don't you?" I asked Leonard Culpepper as we both sat at the bar on the Ship later on that day...We were in the exact same seats that the now late Slim Giddings and I sat in the night before...

"Yes I do Kevin...very much..I wish I didn't." he said as he drank his drink and avoided looking at me. He had very big ,powerful hands...a little too big to be a surgeon. He was tall, about six feet four and had very powerful shoulders. He walked and carried himself in a very purposeful way. I couldn't believe that a man such as this had become putty before a woman...but I knew more than most that a good looking woman can turn any man into putty..if he thinks she is the right woman.

"I didn't tell you this Kevin, but Lolita is a Physical Therapist...We were having a seminar at the hospital when I met her....The first time I saw her ,it was as if the wind just got sucked out of the room...as if time itself stopped and everything was in slow motion....She was late for the seminar,but she walked in the room and that was it for me...I couldn't take my eyes off of her, I just couldn't. I found out what her name was, because I heard one of the nurses call her name.
I made it my business to speak to her everytime I saw her..I know she had no idea, who I was.
Finnally..there was a bar , about a block from the Hospital called "Sherlock Holmes Pub" ,where all of us hung out, Doctors, Nurses, Therapists, Administrative Assistants...whoever..we were all
equals there...there you could let it all hang out.....I saw her in there and I introduced myself..I asked her if i could take a photo of her...I had one of those cheap cameras that you buy from Rite
Aid, that you take some photos with, then turn it in and have em developed and they toss the camera afterwords...She seemed easy to talk to and nice and easy going...You ,uh, er probably don't want to hear this crap do you." he said. It was the most that I'd heard him talk since I knew him.

"No...No, tell me more" I said.

"Well, from that night on..everytime I saw her,I bought her drinks and I bought drinks for her girlfriend....and if she ordered food, I took the check from her and paid for everything. That's how it started...Then I started going to her house and drinking with her and taking her to Breakfast, Lunch and many dinners. We went to Football games, went to the casino, went to movies, you name it....we did it and I helped her get financing for her Lexus..I didn't buy it for her...that idiot Eric doesn't know what he's talking about. I bought the tickets for this cruise...
I've asked her to marry me about half a dozen times...She's never said no...but she's never said yes either." He said.

"And all this time, you've been a perfect gentlemen huh? I mean you two have never....uh.."
I asked, regretting that I was getting so personal, but it's what I do..

"Never slept together? No, not that I haven't tried...I'm a man....We may have kissed once..but that's about it..She has rebuffed me everytime I've tried to go there...Even on this cruise..We are sleeping in seperate cabins." he said , very embarrassed.

"Oh...she's an old fashioned girl huh? saving herself for marriage." I said...knowing all along that that was a lie.

"Hmmmmph, she's not saving herself for anyone....Eric has knocked the bottom out of it and before that, some semi-pro football player from Philly named Cock Roberts, Cock Robbins something or other was knocking her bottom out...You may have heard of him?" he said contemptously....

"Cock Robbins?? Yeah,I've heard of him." I said weakly, thinking...my god..Who hasn't Cock Robbins slept with? And smiling to myself.

"Where you guys from Doc?" I asked.

'We are from Jersey City, New Jersey..We are east coasters like you..but we work in New York City." He said.

"Ahhh, you take the IRT,huh?" I said.

'Well Mr. Kevin....you must have spent some time in North Jersey ."Dr. Culpepper laughed.

"My Wife is from East Orange." I said.

"Oh Really? Wow, small world." He said.

"Leonard....You gotta explain this to me, if you know that she's sexin all these guys...then why do you continue to spend money on her? Why do you chase after heer?She's using you...If she wanted you..it would've happened...Why don't you cut your losses and just find you somebody for you...You're a Doctor for godsakes..You're tall and good looking....Why the women must be clawing at your door..." I said.

"You don't know what love is Kevin....I love Lolita...and she has a sweetness about her..She's cooked for me, when I was sick,she's come over and nursed me back to health...She's not all bad." He said.

"But she doesn't love you....If she did , it would be deeper than it is..right now. It is what it is...and I'm telling you the truth ,because you need to know the truth." I said.

I got up ,paid for my drink and left him sitting at the bar to ponder what I had just said...I know that it didn't do any good. People who think they are in love can't be convinced otherwise , not by
other people..They have to find out for themselves.

I walked down the corrider towards my cabin...I saw the door to Lolita Gile's cabin slightly ajar..
and I heard the sound of kissing....

"Ohhhhh baby....ummmmmmph..."

"Oh Eric...mmmmmph, I was so worried about you..mmmmmph..."

"They questioned me and they didn't have any evidence, so they had to let me go..
being cooped up in there made me sooo horny...come on girl, let me hit that thang..."

"Eric....Leonard's around here somewhere, I don't want him walking up on us..."

"Girl,I'm as hard as a baseball bat, now come on ..I can't wait.."

"Ohhhhhh Eric, you've got me ...you've got me sooo moist.ouuuuuuu..."

"Close that door girl and take off your clothes.."

"Okay....ouuuuuu...Ericcccc..."

The door slammed shut ...Yeah...I didn't know what love was....

(To be continued........)

The House Dick!

"Alright...alright...everybody back up..nothing to see, there is nothing to see..just back it uppppp!!" said the man in the trenchcoat. It was all I could do not to laugh..Here we were on a ship at sea...Damn near 102 degree weather and this clown had on a trenhcoat..with shorts no doubt and deck sneakers...He looked ridiculous!

"I'm Franklin Fosdick....my friends call me "Fearless Fosdick" and I'm the house detective on this boat....I'll be in charge of the investigation of this homicide until we get to shore.." he proclaimed.

He looked like comedian Martin Lawrence in one of his many disguises...I couldn't take him seriously. If this was the man they had investigating Slim Giddings murder..The killer didn't have a damn thing to worry about. Fearless Fosdick didn't look like he could find his way around the block,let alone solve a murder. As I stood there,another man, a short black man with an african accent and dark shades and a nicely tailored dark suit walked into the cabin where Slim Giddings badly beaten body lie.

"This man,ladies and gentlemen is my asistant investigator, Oleg Mboli...get out of his way and step back." announced Fosdick , who didn't seem to be doing anything except talking. Oleg Mboli seemed to be about his business...He dusted the room for prints...he took samples of blood
and tissue and bagged them, tagged them and gave to his men to have examined once on shore and then he quietly and politely began interviewing people near the scene of the crime..If I knew right..Oleg Mboli would probably solve this crime while "Fearless Fosdick" would loudly take all of the credit.

For once,I was not inclined to get myself involved...The way I saw it...whoever killed Slim Giddings deserved an award..he had probably said something insensitive out of his mouth and pissed somebody off, I reasoned. I grabbed a hold of Sepia's waist and allowed her to lead me into the dining area..

They had all kinds of breakfast food...Eggs cooked to order, Pancakes,Waffles,French Toast,Bacon,sausage and Hot Oatmeal....Iwasn't that hungry, but I ate it all....As Sepia and I enjoyed our meal..We looked over and saw Leonard holding Lolita's hand and sitting down at the
table right next to ours.

"Hey how you doing Sepia? You think we'll get lucky on the crap tables today?" asked Lolita.

"I think so girl...I got a good feeling about today." laughed Sepia.

"Hi Kevin...excuse my rudeness" laughed Lolita , showing no shame for what I had witnessed the
night before.

"Hey girl,how you doing?" I said with a phony laugh. I peered at Leonard sympathetically..He had been humiliated and exposed verbally by Eric last night...I imagined he must have felt like less of a man around me...I tried to look at him as sympathetically as I could...I wished I could have found the words to tell him that it was okay..that I at least partially understood. Lolita was a very attractive lady..she made heads turn and I'm sure she had turned his head and opened his nose. The Doc had laid down some cash for this trip alone and he seemed to be in the "friend zone" perpetually as Chris Rock would have said.

He didn't say much, he just sat playing with his fork and brooding....Sepia and Lolita went on jabbering away...as I continued to stuff myself. If things weren't bad enough...Eric Derricote walked in and stopped by their table.

"Hey everybody.....I guess you guys heard about the murder of that poor guy last night..." he
said.

'Yes..it's such a shame" said Lolita.

"I had just switched rooms with him....that could have been me...." said Eric.

"It SHOULD HAVE been you!" said Leonard with a cool detached rage that was chilling to watch.

"Oh Leonard...what a horrible thing to say?" said Lolita.

"It's okay baby....Haters like your boy here don't faze me none....Hey doc..How'd you sleep last night,huh....??? KAPOWWWW!!!! Nah...you wasn't hittin it like that...But I might have...heh,heh,heh...But it's cool..I didn't..If I had of..you'd of heard her singing..."Touch me in the mornnnnnninn...then just walk away...hooooo lawd...KAPOW!!" jeered Eric..

At that Leonard leaped up and grabbed Eric , slamming him against the wall...Eric grabbed him and the two men spun around as everyone looked stunned...

"THAT'S ENOUGH....unhand each other..that's enough!!!! Oleg...cuff the pretty boy.." said Franklin "Fearless" Fosdick.

"Cuffs...what did I do?" said Eric.

"You switched rooms with him just before midnight....was this a set up??" said Fosdick as loud as
he could ,forcing heads to turn.

"What? I was down the hall... why would I kill him?"asked Eric.

"THAT's WHAT WE ARE GOING TO FIND OUT!" screamed Fosdick.

"Mr. Fosdick...if we are only questioning him, I don't think we should be hand cuffing him and screaming all of the facts out like this." cautioned Oleg Mboli.

"I'LL DO THA THINKIN AROUND HERE MBOLI AND DON'T YOUUUUU FORGET IT.' screamed Fosdick as they took Eric away in handcuffs...

"ENJOY YOUR MEAL FOLKS...FRANKLIN "FEARLESS " FOSDICK IS ON THE CASE." he loudly proclaimed.

Leonard smiled for the first time...in fact he guffawed and slapped his knees as he enjoyed a hearty soul releasing laugh...I couldn't help it, but I laughed too..I didn't like Eric and I didn't like
the deceased either...so much so that I really didn't care that an innocent man had just been detained by what was probably the stupidest detective I have ever seen...

"Kevin, stop that....I can't believe you are laughing at something like this." said Sepia...

"Leonard...I know you don't like Eric ,but he's in trouble...You know he didn't kill that guy..he's no killer." said Lolita.

"I don't know a damn thing...maybe he did.." laughed Leonard.

I was pretty sure that he didn't...I had finished laughing now and I remembered the crime scene.
Slim Giddings had been beaten very badly...I can't imagine anything he could have said that would have inspired that kind of violence..This had been a crime of passion..rage...I had to do some thinking about everything I saw and heard that night.. Thing is...How could I get past Fearless Fosdick?

To Be Continued.....

Stingray

When Sepia and I got married, we never actually went on a proper honeymoon. I had some time off from work and a little money saved, so I signed up for this cruise. Gus drove us to the Airport
and we flew to Miami, where we boarded a ship, aptly titled "The SS STINGRAY" and took off on the high seas. My name is Kevin Morris..This is another one of my stories.

Sepia, always a fashion goddess, went to the King of Prussia Mall the week before we left with Cock Robbin's wife and The Jenkin's sisters, Mabel, Corabeth (Clerow's wife) ,Victoria (Deacon
Weatherford's wife) and young Anita, who had just recently moved to Philly from New Orleans. She must have bought every bathing suit and every peice of lingerie in Victoria's Secret that could be bought. Of course I didn't mind...

I sat in the bar on the ship and drank a Corona. My wife Sepia was in the ship's casino ,trying her luck on the crap table. Slim Giddings was an annoying little man in a white linen suit...The kind of guy who said all of the wrong things at all of the wrong times. The fact that he was annoying seemed to go right over his head. We had stayed at a hotel in Miami for two nights before we boarded the ship and I had seen the annoying little man in our hotel...Now here he was on the ship with us, headed for the same location...Maybe we could leave him there.

"Hey ,how you doing man...I remember you from the hotel in Miami...The names Slim...Slim Giddings....and you are? " he said tossing his hand out...

"Kevin, Kevin Morris." I said.

"You sound like you're from up North...I'm from New Orleans myself." he said.

"I'm from Philadelphia." I said.

He pointed to Sepia ,who was having a spirited conversation with another Black woman at the crap table..

"Ummmmph,Ummph, Ummmmph......that your girl?" he asked.

"That's my wife." I said.

"Your wife? Mannn give me some dap...you got yourself a fine motor scooter there..Lawdd jesus.. No offense, but how did a square guy like you get somebody like that?? Again, no offense,but you aint the type of guy I expect to see with a fine ass woman like that.....Me neither,
they usually go for , you know...athletes, pretty boys, you know what I'm sayin....??" he laughed.

The nerve of this little runt to try and lump me in with himself...

"I guess I made her an offer she couldn't refuse " I said tersely wanting to end the conversation.

"You must be hung like a horse then..or maybe you got a long tongue....I walked past you all's room one night at the hotel....I heard her screamin.....I thought, old boy must be laying some pipe...heh..heh..heh..heh..." he laughed.

At this point...I had heard about as much as I cared to hear....I got up without excusing myself and walked into the casino where Sepia was. The woman she had been talking to was drop dead
gorgeous...I would much rather be with these two women than that ignoramus at the bar.

"Oh hi Kevin...Kevin...this is Lolita Giles...Lolita, this is my husband,Kevin" said Sepia.

"Pleased to meet you Kevin" she said with a nice smile. I returned her smile.

Just then , a tall brown skinned, well dressed brother with a nice suit walked over to us.. Lolita
smiled and introduced him to us.

"This is my friend,Leonard..Leonard, this is Kevin and Sepia...from Philly...they just got married." she said.

"Oh, well congradulations....I hope to get married one day." he said.

"Alright Leonard, that's enough" Lolita laughed nervously.

"What do you mean that's enough? I 've only asked you three times the past four years....what's
the problem?? I'm a Doctor, I make a good living...you know I'm crazy about you....I give you everything you want..including this cruise..." he said.

" Slow it down Leonard..slow it down...must you tell your life story to everybody....Just slow it down okay...Let's enjoy the trip" she said, still smiling, yet obviously annoyed at Leonard.

Sepia and I felt a little uncomfortable being around this couple..but we had no idea how uncomfortable it was about to get... We played some poker with them for about an hour, then
Sepia and I bid them good night and returned to our cabin.

"Kevin, I would like to get some sleep tonight....you've been pawing me and doing other things every night since we left Philly." Sepia said playfully.

"Well nobody told you to buy every damn thing in Victoria's Secret, did they? What am I supposed to do?" I laughed, playfully smacking her bottom.

'Kevin...people will see, not out here.." she laughed,as I chased her back into our cabin.

"Kevin , why don't you go to bar and get me an Apple Martini....I'll have a nice surprise for you
when you get back." said Sepia.

"Ohhh,I thought you wanted to get some sleep?" I laughed.

"I changed my mind...I can sleep any old time." she said playfully.

I walked up to the deck and there was Lolita Giles, passionately kissing a man.....It was NOT Dr.
Leonard Culpepper, who we had met earlier in the casino. This was a pretty boy...Skin the color
of brown maple syrup, a well tapered short hair cut and a very fashionable white linen suit, and
very expensive aviator shades.

"mmmph, stop..come on Eric...stop...If Leonard catches us up here, he'll blow a gasket." she said.

"Who cares what Leonard does? When you gonna tell him about us?" said Eric.

"I don't know....I will....in time..." she said.

"Yeah,after this cruise, right?hahahahahahahahahahahaha...What a sap...this guy paid for this cruise didn't he? And he bought you your Lexus too right? Man.....all that and he aint even got a
glimpse of the panties yet has he?" laughed Eric.

"Stop it Eric...Leonard's a good man..he just...he just.." she said.

"He's just a boring ass square...He don't hit that thang like I hits it..KAPOW!!! Have you screaming all kinds of things don't I baby...and I aint spent a damn dollar on your ass." he sneered.

I hated guys like Eric Derricote. I didn't recognize him at first..but after hearing him talk,I knew
exactly who he was...He was a wide receiver for The New York Giants. He had gone number two in the draft...Sean Jackson and I had done a story on him for the magazine ,the week after we did the spread on Reed Nelson and his band. He was a egotistical little jerk.

"Kevin right? What are you doing here? Come on ,let's go get a drink." came the voice..It was Leonard!!!! Now, Lolita and eric turned around and it was obvious that we,Leonard and I had walked into something.

'WHAT IS HE DOING HERE?" said Leonard. Before Lolita could say anything, Eric spoke up-

"Can't I come on a cruise too Doc? You aint the only one ,got money,you know?"

"Screw you......Lolita....did you invite him?? I bet you told him we was goin on this trip didn't you?" said Leonard....I wanted to be invisible right about now...

"Oh Leonard, I didn't tell him, it's just a co-incidence, will you stop accusing me of stuff?"she said.

"Hey Leonard...I bet you and her aint even stayin in the same room are you? You paid for the whole trip and you're stayin in seperate rooms...It wouldn't be me...I'd be hittin that thang-
KAPOWWWW! But you, you just spendin money and you can't even get a peek at her bra strap!
Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha.." he laughed...

Leonard looked at both of them and then turned around and cooly walked away..I felt sorry for
him..

"Say, don't I know you?" Laughed Eric to me.

"No, I don't think so." I said as I ordered a drink and walked away..Just then, Slim Giddings ,the
annoying little man from the bar ran into me...

"Hey Kevin...how you doin man? Say, did you see the Football player..Eric Derricote, from the
Giants?" he yelled.

"Yeah, he's up on deck..with a woman." I said.

"It's cool...we switched rooms..He wanted one with a better view of the sea....I just want to run up and give him the keys..." said Slim.

I just smiled and kept going.

The next morning, when we woke up....Sepia and I were making our way to the dining area for breakfast, when we heard a scream....

There was a man in an open room lying in a pool of blood...His entire head had been caved in and
the room was a bloody mess......it was Slim Giddings!!!!!!


To Be Continued!!!!

Chasing Rainbows

"I feel like I've been chasing you all my life..
come here baby, turn the lights down low
and check this out."

I've been chasing rainbows
lookin for the fabled pot of gold
anxious to have and to hold..
I've been chasing rainbows
looking beyond just a good time-
waiting for the chance to get down for mine!!/

"Tired of chasing you"

Fantasizing about girls like you
used to fill most of my days
when I was young and still learnin how to play
the game..
Trying to think of clever lines to say
and still plotting and scheming and trying to find different ways...
but if it's all the same...
by now I'd hope that you'd be seeing me in a different way./

"Tired of chasing you"

No more running on treadmills
I'm ready to end the chase and just get next to you..
Ready to kiss and caress you
and anything else you'd be willing to
let me do..
what are you afraid of?
Let me put your mind at ease...
I've been known to love women tenderly...
you gotta learn to trust in me.../


I've been chasing rainbows
searching for that fabled pot of gold..
anxious ,really anxious
to have and to hold...
I'm so tired of chasing rainbows...
You've got me acting like a fool girl...
I'm so tired of chasing you..
You're a grown woman, stop acting like
a silly school girl.../