Friday, March 11, 2011

I Wanna Know Now


Baby
Everything is going fine..
I am yours girl
and you are mine..
Seems like nothin but good things
are breakin our way...
Still I'm worried and concerned
about the day..
The day when you come across
somebody new..
Who will talk all kind of slick
talk to you....
Lie and tell you he can offer you
more...
and have you walkin out of my door.../

Just remember that I've been here
through thick and thin my dear...
Though the grass may look greener
on the other side...
Just remember how I've never left
your side..../

So will his slick talk make you surrender
That love that's so tender?
I wanna know now..
girl,
I wanna Know now..
Will another Handsome Face
be the cat that takes my place?
I wanna know now..
Girl,
I wanna know now.../

Check this out...
When you're old and gray..
I'll still love you as though
you were 28...
So I wanna know now..
do you feel the same?
I'll be the man that's holdin you down
When the others stop comin around..
So I wanna know now..
Are you worth the pain?/

Because what it all comes down to baby...
Is a strong yes..
Not I don't know
or just maybe...
Either you will or you won't...
Either you do or you don't..
So I gotta know....
girl..
I gotta Know../

Will an old friend of mine
be the one that beats my time?
I wanna Know Now..
baby
I wanna Know now..
Will another Handsome Face
be the cat that takes my place?
I wanna know now..
Girl,
I wanna know now.../

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Washed Up


I didn't want to go to any wedding...I've been in two of my own. Two weddings, Two very expensive weddings...One marriage that lasted nearly 17 years until I found a way to screw it up...
Another marriage that might have lasted longer, but in fact lasted little over a year and I found a way to screw that up...Couldn't leave the same woman, a co-worker of mine, alone...and by the time I did leave her alone...It had cost me two marriages, my job at the time and my home....

You understand if weddings just aint my thing....I've been doing alright the past few years...Got my own law firm now...Live in a very nice condo...Drive a very nice car and up until a few months ago, entertained a bevy of sexy young ladies....Then I got hooked...Kind of sort of....On Bonita Turner, a foxy real estate developer I met while working a case with my friend, Private Detective Kevin Morris.

Me? My name is Robert Foxworth...I'm an Attorney most of the time....a lover! All the time! heh heh heh! It was a Friday Night in Josies....The band was kickin it..Reed Nelson, "88" and the fellas was pitchin a stone bitch....Gus the bartender, Honey Brown, the head barmaid and everybody in sight was clappin they hands to the beat of the band.. Yeahhhh! We was havin a good time... Bonita was sittin her fat tush on my lap and I had one hand around her waist and another hand around a tall glass of henny...Good times....

Until a cute little number , who I'll admit I had been eyeing all night walked over to our table! Don't you just hate it when the object of your lust knows your girl?

"Bonita?? Bonita Turner is that you ?" she squealed....

" Ronette?? Oh my Godddddd, gurllllllll...how long has it been" squealed Bonita..almost making me drop my glass of Henny. They hugged each other and jumped up and down and she showed Bonita her hand.....The size and the shine on that rock made me sit up and take notice...My GOD,that rock was big!!!!

"I'm gettin married girl" said Ronette...

"Oh girl, I'm so happy for you..." said Bonita....

"We gettin married in the Virgin Islands...in a week...You gotta come...you were my best best girlfriend...for years." she said.

"Oh girl, you know I'm comin...wouldn't miss it...I gotta clear my schedule..." said Bonita.

"Girl, I got two airline tickets.....Cause I know your fly ass is seeing somebody." said Ronette.

"Here he is right here....Ronette...This is Robert Foxworth...He's an Attorney, Got his own law firm." she said.

"Ouuuuuuuu...now he's a keeper...." she laughed. "Pleased to meet you Robert." she said and held that hand out with that shiny rock again...It was blinding me.

"Pleased to make your acquaintence" I said with a smile that was a half leer...She was wearing a low cut top that revealed a bra that was struggling mightily with her huge breasts...I couldn't help but stare.

Just then, a man sitting at the bar fell off of his stool and hit the floor...Several people gasped and about three guys helped him up....Ronette looked embarrassed and exasperated and sighed..

"That's the guy I'm gonna marry...That's Lenny....He works for the city...He's the Mayor's Chief of Staff's head administrative assistant." she said with a smile... Oh really? I thought as I chuckled to myself.

II-

Later on at Bonita's place...I was slowly undressing her and kissing her on her neck and licking behind her ears....

''Ouuu Robert stop , you know that gets me hot." she said..

"That's what I'm trying to do." I said as I turned her towards me and slowly kissed her for a good three minutes....I was already nude and erect...She broke our embrace....

"Okay baby...In a minute.....I want to talk to you a minute.." she said while glancing at my raging
erection...

"Baby, we can talk afterwords I said as I finished taking her clothes off and began kissing her breasts...

"No..No, baby..I want to talk about this now....I really want you to think about taking this relationship to the next level." she said.

"That's what I'm tryin to do ." I said as I laid her across the bed....

"No stop silly, I mean, you know...we been kickin it for a minute and sexin it up....don't you ever think about making this , you know...a permanent relationship?" she asked..

"Yeah...sometimes...." I lied.

"You do???Ohhhhh Robert" she said and she began showering me with wet sloppy kisses...and I began kissing her just as sloppily and slowly easing as much of myself into her as humanly possible...

"Ouuuuuuuuuuu...ohhhhhhhhhhhh.ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....ohhhhhhh Robert....take
meeee....ohhhhhhh,I'm all yourrrrrrrrrrrrrrrs bayyy beeeeeeee..." she moaned as I began to stroke her softly at first and then faster and faster and harder....until we both came with a violent eruption.....

"Ohhh, that was good." she moaned.

"It was ,wasn't it?" I said as I reached over and grabbed a now lukewarm bottle of water and began quaffing it down...Good lovin always made me thirsty!

III-

Liquor and sex....They don't match...Liquor and the need for sex...They get a man to say many things...Many things he might have meant at the moment, but doesn't mean now!!!!! Bonita took what I said in the heat before our passion to mean that I was close to asking her to marry me..Nothing was farther from the truth...But if I wanted to continue to have sex with her ,I had to keep pretending and uping the ante so to speak.....

The next Thursday night, We found ourselves flying to Miami and then catching a short flight to the Virgin Islands where this wedding was to take place... I packed light...I took one suit, my brand new pair of $500.00 gators, My IPAD, My ipod of course and my Kindle...Got to have my
play things...I had a couple of bottles of cold water and some Cokes of course and a couple of cigars....I don't know why I bought em...Haven't smoked in years...Just thought they might come in handy. Don't you pass out cigars at weddings?? No, that's when babies are born right?? Oh well!

The wedding was to take place on the beach....There were tents set up and under the tents were some of the best looking food I had ever seen...Our good friend from Philly, "Downtown "Rob Brown and his quartet was providing the music...They were under the second tent....Then there
was the tent where the actual wedding party was going to be seated.

"Isn't this beautiful Robert?" asked Bonita as she held my arm....

"I must admit...It is...but it looks a little overcast." I said.

" Oh that's because we are on the beach...it always looks like this." said Bonita.

I thought I had felt a few raindrops , but what did I know?

The Photographer looked like he had sampled a little too much of the punch.....I saw him pour two bottles of Jamesons into the punch and help himself to a big tall glass of it, but I didn't say anything.

"Okay guys...let's get some photos." he said.

"Aren't you supposed to wait until after they get married ?" I said.

"Naw...Naw..come on man." He said...

Bonita and I posed...There was a huge fountain that had been set up on the beach...He kept backing up and backing up and before he snapped a photo, he tumbled head first into the fountain, splashing water on some of the wedding guests....This was met by several angry screams!!!

"OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...My dress..." "MY HAIR"...."YOU IDIOT!!!"

The party began....Lenny, the groom was totally wasted and collapsed on the beach!!! Ronette and her mother helped him up..

"Lenny, get your drunk ass together....You screw up my daughter's big day and I'll kill ya." said the old woman....I couldn't help but laugh...

We got Lenny and Ronette to the Veranda, along with the groomsmen and the bridesmaids and the service began-

''Dearly Beloved...We are gathered here today....."

I thought I had felt rain....I was right...It started with a few raindrops, then a lot..pretty soon a torrential rainstorm began to pour down.....the wind began to blow....Womens dresses blew completely up, showing me everything and I mean everything....Men's lapels began to blow....
The top of the two tents blew off and rain and wind destroyed the beautiful food spread....People
were now running towards the mainland....screaming and yelling.

To make things worse...a huge wave stormed in from off the ocean and knocked Lenny, Ronette, the Preacher, Me, Bonita and several of the guests on the ground....Downtown Rob Brown and his band grabbed their instruments and began running, but the wind and water and waves knocked them down...

People were screaming and yelling and running and knocking things over left and right...The Preacher , who had to be close to eighty was out running everybody...Lenny attempted to run, but fell head over heels into the fountain...The same fountain the photographer had fallen into.....
I helped him get out and then got knocked over myself by the strong wind and the huge waves and the rains...

Epilouge-

Back in our hotel room, Bonita wrapped a towel around her head...She had a terrycloth bathrobe
on.....I was sitting on the bed in my boxers....My suit had been ruined....So had my gators....We looked out the window...It was pouring down rain.....She sat down next to me and laid her head on my shoulders...We saw a bit of lightning in the horizon.....

"Hey Neet...We can get married.....In a church....In Philadelphia....No beach..None of this crap." I said.

"For real Robert?" she said "After this disaster, you still want to?" she said.

''Yeah, what the hell...It can't be no worse than this....Did the pastor ever finish with the vows?"
I asked.

"Yeah he did....then he ran like everyone else." she laughed...

"He sure did...For a guy close to 80, he was running like a twenty year old." I said.

We both laughed at that....

"So they are married?" I asked as I opened her robe and began to fondle her breasts...She stuck her hands gently into my boxers and her eyes grew large...

"My goodness Robert..are you always ....so stiff?" she asked, faking exasperation. We kissed and we fondled and stroked each other for a long while...

"I believe I am" I replied dryly as Bonita laughed....We made sweet love for close to an hour and when we were finally satisfied...we continued our conversation, right where we left off..

"Yeah, they married..." she said and laid her head in the crook of my shoulder....

The rain grew harder and more fierce and then the power went completely out...I heard a man in another room yell-

"DAMN IT! This whole trip was a disaster."

I held Bonita tightly in the bed and I giggled my head off....My name is Robert Foxworth, I'm an Attorney, this is my life!

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Shoulder


I know that your old man is creepin
every night of the week..
I heard that he's been seein that girl
that lives down the street..
Your son wants those fly new Air Jordans
for his feet..
and you recently canceled your cable
and you're wondering how you're gonna make
ends meet../

Baby I understand
the last thing on your mind
is getting with another man..
but if you just need to talk
Come on out of your door
let's take a walk...
and I'll be that
shoulder
you can lean on tonight..
I'll be that
shoulder
until you get your thoughts right../

It's never easy going through a break up
or divorce..
Even harder wondering if you should make up
or stay the course,,,
And it seems like every guy has his own agenda
at the time..
And I guess you're looking at me and wondering
what is mine?/

Baby I'd be lying if I were to say
that I don't want you lying next to me..
but I know you're not ready for that today..
So for now, we'll table that..
and I'll just let you be..
but if you need some time to work things out in your mind...
I'll be that
shoulder
you can lean on tonight..
I'll be that
shoulder
until you get your thoughts right../

Baby I understand
the last thing on your mind
is getting with another man.
My place is where you need to go..
If you just wanna take things slow...
If you just need to talk..
you can call or text me..
Let your fingers do that walk...
and I'll be that
shoulder
you can lean on tonight..
I'll be that
shoulder
until you get your thoughts right../

Thursday, March 3, 2011

The Trouble With Some Girls


I stood in the doorway of my office building....A car I had never seen before pulled up to the curb... I got in ....The car pulled off....Homicide Lt. Sissy Van Buren was driving. We drove to Sam Mother's Diner....A bust out joint if ever there was one. Nobody either of us knew would be there. We both ordered one of his greazy cheeseburgers and a couple of Cokes and began to talk.

"What have you got Kevin?" she asked me in between bites...

"I have a definite DNA match in both dead girls...They were both pregnant by the same man." I said.

"Ummmph, this is sooo good...I really shouldn't be eating all this red meat and all this grease..ummmmp...ummmph...ummmph...Okay, so is that all you got?" she said.

"Guess what? The DNA doesn't belong to Gerald Brown...it belongs to your boss, Haywood Stevens." I said.

"WHAT? " She said incredulously.....

"He was dating both of them.....The manager of the Victoria's Secret where Jennifer Taylor worked positively identified him as the guy Jennifer was dating....The sister of Stacy Lord said that he was sleeping with Stacy and her!!!" I said.

"You got his DNA?" she asked.

"No...That's where you come in...I need you to get something that has his DNA on it." I said.

"Kevin, I could lose my job....I've already done more than I should have done to help you.." she said. "Besides...All that proves is that he is as big a dog as everybody knows anyway...It doesn't absolve Gerald Brown.." she continued.

"Gerald Brown told me that that was who he saw dumping bodies when he was out at that dump site." I said.

"That's not enough...Who is going to believe him?" she said.


"Okay, Check this out....Clerow ,Kool Kat and I did some checking and we found a storage Hanger that he rented right around the time Jennifer went missing.....With a little help from Lockpick Johnson....We found two small freezers that we think he was keeping the bodies in ,until he could dump them....but we need a team to check them out for DNA." I said.

"I can't do that without a warrant Kevin...and we don't have probable cause...Just because he was screwing around with them is no reason to accuse him of murder..."she said.

"Okay...then there is only one other way we can do this." I said.

"Oh no, I don't know if I like this "said Sissy.

It's cool....Just sit tight..." I said and I pulled out a few dollars and paid our bill.

II-


Walter "Kool Kat " Jones had on a very expensive Italian cut suit....He looked like a banker...He walked down the hallway towards the Deputy Commisioner's office and knocked on the door...
Like the day before there was the sound of a woman moaning.....

"Ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu...weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee....ohhhh Haywood...put it to me....put it to me baby...ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh ...ohhhhhhhhhhhh...ohhhhhhhhhh my godddd...ohhhhhhh my godddddd....ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
HELLO! ....YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS....ohhhhhhh sock it to mama...sock it to mama...."

"I'm tryin baby..ohhhhhhhhhhh goood lawd...I'm tryin.....ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh this is soooo
goood...ummmph..ouuuuuuuuuuuuu..."Haywood moaned....


"Haywood!!! Somebody's at the door....Oh my God, I can't get caught in here..Ohhhh...quick...pass me my bra...ohhhh, my pantyhose....my slip.........Put your pants on.."
came the woman's voice.

"It's kool baby...the door is locked..."said Haywood..

''Wait a minute...My shoes...Let me straighten my hair... Put your shirt in your pants."she said.

Haywood slung the door open....He looked into the imposing eyes of Walter "Kool Kat" Jones...

"Who the hell are you?" he said ,very exasperated...

"I sir am someone you would want to talk to." said Kool Kat...As the young lady,completely different from the one I saw a few days before scampered down the hall.

'Why is that?" he bellowed.

"Come on man...you don't want me talkin about your business out in the hallway."said Kool Kat.

They walked into his office...An office that Lockpick Johnson and Peeping Tom had broken into and wired for sound and video in the wee hours of the morning. We were all sitting outside in the van watching the entire thing.

"Mr Haywood...You had a problem...You have a wife, a career and ambitions toward political office...but you had a problem...You had two young girls pregnant...At the same time and they were making phone calls to you and threatening you....That's the trouble with some girls..What to do? What to do? There was a serial killer on the loose at the time and the whole city was in an uproar.....Why not get rid of your problem and let this serial killer , who had already legitimately killed three women take the
rap for them? You killed them, even kept them in cold storage at a warehouse for awhile and then went to dump them...Only , the serial killer was out there too and he saw you....But gee, who was going to believe him right???" laughed Kool Kat.

"Who are you?" he snapped.

"It's cool..I won't tell a soul what you did...provided you pay me a price...100 g's...by Friday." he laughed.

"You're mad...you can't prove any of that." he said.

Kool Kat dropped a copy of the Medical Examiner's report on the table....

"Look at it boss...Both girls was pregnant and there is a DNA match...yours homes...and the girl's
DNA is all over your warehouse....Something like this is bound to get out and if it does...You're done...." he laughed....

"How did you get that??? I ..." he said before Kool Kat interrupted him

"You destroyed it....Yeah we know....That's why copies are made boss." laughed Kool Kat

Haywood Stevens got as white as a ghost...He sat down..He began sweating.........

"Y-You don't understand....Everything I've worked for...Everything ...was about to go down the toilet...because of those two little guttersnipes...I thought they was on birth control.No way....They would've brought my whole show to a stand still...That wasn't going to happen...I had to do it..Who cares about Gerald Brown? He's a murderer...How was I supposed to figure that he'd be out there ,burying yet another one of his victims??? I didn't figure he got a good look at me , but I yelled at him to get out of there....He's going to get Lethal Injection anyway....But me?? I'm on the verge of greatness and you or nobody else is gonna stop that. I started out as a beat cop...worked my way up to Homicide detective....Now look at me, I'm the Deputy Commisioner and I got my eyes on a City Council seat...I aint bout to be blackmailed by the likes of you...I'm going to get my gun...shoot yo ass and say you broke in here and tried to attack me....ohhhh, where is my...where is my gun?" he said.

He went to his drawer, fumbling for something....It was then that I walked in with his .45.

"Looking for this Haywood?" I said. Kool Kat laughed himself silly.

"YOU!!!!!! This guy works for you!!!! You got nothin. Nothin you can prove in court" he screamed...

"Oh I got lots....I got this entire conversation on tape ...including your little romp with that beautiful young lady.. Oh and we got your DNA off of a coffee cup you tossed in the trash and a used condom we found in here last night....If it matches everything else and I'm sure it will, you're cooked." I said.

"You're under arrest." he snapped...

"Only person under arrest is you Stevens....Give me your badge." said Lt. Sissy Van Buren.



''Van Buren!!!...I'll have your job." he yelled. "You're fired!!!!!." he snapped.

"Give her your badge Deputy...You're through." came the voice of the new Assistant D.A. Keith Wallace.


Haywood Stevens held his head down and tossed his badge on the floor like a child...A Detective, Edwin "Duke" Baylor and two  uniformed policemen handcuffed him...


He stomped his foot on the floor and cried like a baby as he was led out of his office and ironically downstairs to one of the holding cells.. Strangely enough, he was in the cell next to serial killer, Gerald Brown, who sensing the irony of it all said sarcastically-
''And you think you know somebody...Damn...can't even trust the Deputy Commisioner...What is the world comin to?"

"Ohhh shut up" grumbled Haywood Stevens.

I wanted to laugh....but I couldn't bring myself to... Sissy Van Buren looked at me and smiled-


"Kevin, that gave me more satisfaction than any other arrest I've made in my career." she said.

"Glad I could help." I said with a wink, while Kool Kat was still in the hallway laughing his head off.

EPILOUGE:

Haywood Stevens was convicted on four counts of first degree murder and sentenced to death by Lethal Injection....He cried like a baby when he heard the conviction read...He is under suicide watch right now...His poor wife divorced him immediately and left the city.

Serial Killer, Gerald Brown was no luckier...He too was sentenced to die for the three murders he committed. He didn't cry though...but he would have the last laugh...Within a year his sentence was commuted to three life sentences without the possibility of parole. He and Haywood Stevens are both at the new state prison...The Pennsylvania Men's Colony in Angel City,PA.

Sepia and I, Clerow,Corrie, Sean and Sheila and Kool Kat and Chelsea all had a delicious meal at Mabel Jenkin's soul food joint a few nights later...

"Man Kevin..Next time you have a hunch I'm a go wit you on that." said Clerow as we all laughed
and ate..

"Yeah man...you was right all the time." laughed Kool Kat..

"My baby knows his business." said Sepia..Who gave me a kiss in the lips...


I looked at her and said- "You didn't believe me either."

"Yes I did...I just didn't say it." said Sepia....

The entire table started laughing as we devoured the good soul food....

(For Carlene)

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Official Indiscretions


Nobody would talk to me , but they could talk to Attorney Robert Foxworth....I know that under strict orders from Lt. Sissy Van Buren...a friend in the M.E.'s office had secretly made a copy of that report and mailed it to my wife...They didn't want Deputy Commisioner Haywood to find out that this information was leaked out. He had apparently personally asked for this information to be given to him. There was no telling where the original was. It was wisely copied and mailed to me. I could investigate things that the Police department couldn't do "officially"

Robert Foxworth met with the "friend" of ours from the coroner's office at Bottom Of The C. I was
not there. I was in fact driving to the other side of town. I was looking for Stacy Lord's people.
Stacy Lord ,at 19 was the youngest of the girls who went missing and the last of the girls to go missing.

I talked to her sister ,Estelle Lord....

"Estelle, have you ever seen this guy?" I said , showing her a photo of Gerald Brown.

"No...Can't say that I have..." she said.

"Did Stacy have a boyfriend?" I asked.

"Well,I wouldn't call him that....He was married...He told her that he and his wife were getting a divorce." she said.

"But you didn't believe that, did you?" I asked.

"Doesn't matter whether I believed it or not...Stacy went for him though...He had money, Had a nice car....Couple of cars...a city car and his own car, a Bently..." she laughed.

"So for Stacy it was about his money." I said.

"Yeah...and for him, it was about sex....He saw a hot young thing in a short mini skirt and he went for it..." she said with a smirk.

"You didn't like him much did you?" I said.

"No....A month before he met Stacy, he was all up in my face...all up in my bedroom..." she said pouting.

"You had a sexual relationship with this man?" I asked.

"I wouldn't call it a relationship..I had sex with him....once, maybe twice...He didn't know Stacy was my sister until I saw them together here and it came out...." she said.

"Oh my God...Well when it came out, did Stacy break it off?" I said.

"I don't think she did." said Estelle.

"Okay, let me run something by you...Did you know that Stacy was pregnant at the time she died?" I asked.

''She was?" said Estelle incredulously...

"Yes...She was.....One month." I said.

"That dirty dog....That dirty married dog." she spat....

Suddenly ,I remembered something......

"You said he had a city car.....You slept with this man...What is his name?" I asked.

"He's a big wig in the Police Department...His name is Haywood, Haywood Stevens....He was on the television...He's the one who caught the guy who killed my sister and those other girls." she said.

" Well, he caught something....Thanks for talking with me Estelle." I said.

"Don't mention it....You a private Detective right?" she said with a leering smile.

"Well uh yeah somewhat." I said.

"You workin for his wife? It's cool ,you aint gotta tell me....I hope she takes him for all he's got."
she laughed.

"Oh he's gonna get took." I laughed.

II-


I met with Attorney Robert Foxworth in Josie's that afternoon....He had a mouthful to tell me.

"Mann Kev..check it out...Both of them girls was pregnant by the same person...They got a DNA
match..." he said.

"I figured....It's not Gerald Brown's DNA is it?" I laughed.

"Right again....but we don't know who's DNA it is...They ran it through the FBI VICAP Files and through the States and nothing came up." he said.

"That's because they are looking for a criminal...This guy aint a criminal...Not in the normal sense." I said.

"Well just cause they was both seeing the same man doesn't mean that that guy killed them." said Robert Foxworth.

"No...but if that same man is married, has everything to lose and is purposely shutting down the investigation...it means a lot." I said.

"You think you know who it is?" asked Robert Foxworth.

I smiled and winked at him and was on my way.


III-


I met with Gerald Brown at the correctional center that night....I had a videotape of Haywood Stevens's press conference after his capture...I played it for him....His eyes lit up and he smiled...

"That's him boss...That's the other guy that was out there....I know that voice anywhere... I looked right in his face....but nobody's gonna believe me....and you can't prove it." he said.

"I think maybe I can." I said.

"Hey ,remember...I helped you catch him." he said.

"Yeah...that will go a long way." I smirked!

(Conclusion Next)

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

No Return Address


Jennifer Taylor was the fourth girl to go missing. She lived about six blocks from the apartment complex where Gerald Brown and the other three missing girls lived. She didn't work at the same place they all had worked and there was no indication that their paths had ever crossed. What she had in common with the other women was that she was shapely and attractive and young, though a little older than the rest. At 36 ,she was the oldest of the missing girls. She also ,unlike the others had been married. She was seperated from her husband at the time of her death.

Her estranged husband's name was Drake Taylor. I did a quick check on him and found that he was doing a 3 year sentence at the State Correctional Center in Happy Valley,Pa. He had been in prison since last May....So that cut him out of the equation. Jennifer's last known place of employment was the Victoria's Secret in Chess and Chris's shopping center. Cherry Johnson was the manager there, so that was my next destination.

"Jen was good people Kev...She started working here right after her husband went to jail...They were in the process of a divorce. They hadn't actually lived together for a year. She was starting over...Had moved to a new place...Was even seein somebody....I feel bad for her...That she's dead and all." said Cherry.

"You say she was seeing somebody...It wouldn't have happened to be this guy would it?" I said showing her a photo of Gerald Brown.

"Crazy ass Gerald??? Hell to the no.....That's that kid that killed those girls huh? He the one that killed Jennifer too right?" she said.

"You know Gerald?" I asked ,ignoring her question.

"Yeah...He used to come in here." she said.

"So, that's the connection? He knew her from here!" I said.

"No...I don't think their paths ever crossed...She worked in the morning...She had another job she went to after she left here....He would come in ,after he got off work....Pain in my ass Kev..Always asking me for my phone number, asking if he could take me out...Asking me personal questions...Oh....He was a pest...One night, I did go to Josie's with him...Had a few drinks...I guess he thought I was drunk....He was feelin my boobs, trying to slip his hand up my skirt...I slapped him in his face...hard! He never came back this way...I aint the one Kev." she laughed.

"So you never saw the two of them together? Not talking, Not anything?" I asked.

"Nope...I don't think they ever met...Least not in here....And She didn't hang out in Josies." said
Cherry.

"Okay...Thanks Cherry...Oh...by the way...Where was her second job?" I asked.

''She was a barmaid over at Ciros....Chick's joint." said Cherry.

"Yeah, I know the place.....You said she was seeing someone?"I asked.

"Yeah....a real snazzy dresser...Nice looking man....He's some big wig...I've seen him on the news, but I can't remember his name...He was married though, but he told her that he was in the process of getting a divorce...you know, the same jive ass line all married men run on their mistresses." she said.

"Hmmmm...interesting." I said.

"He was a stone dog too....I never got to tell Jen, but he made a pass at me once. He came in here
about a month before Jen went missing...I told him that she was off...He asked me if I wouldn't mind havin a drink with him....and the fool ran his hand across my breasts....He said -"I uh just had to know if they was real or not." A real smooth operator....I couldn't stand him..He made me very uncomfortable." she said.

"You can't remember his name?" I asked.

"Nah...She told me once, but I forgot..Sorry Kev." she said.

"That's okay...you were very helpful." I said.

I next drove over to Ciros and sat at the bar, having a few drinks with Chick.....The last time I had been in here, I had rousted Big Chicken's boys, Rollo and company....I showed Chick a photo of Gerald Brown.

"Nah Kev...Never saw him....but yeah, Jennifer Taylor worked here...She was a damn good barmaid. Everybody loved her..." he said.

"Chick, did you ever see her boyfriend?" I asked.

"Once...Nice lookin dude..Well dressed...He came in here lookin for her...He had a car and a driver waitin for her outside...She was angry at him about something and she wouldn't leave with him...He kept saying that he could explain...but she wasn't havin it...She wouldn't leave with him..So he threw up both hands and just left...That was two days before she went missin."said
Chick.

"Thanks Chick and thanks for the beer." I said as I quaffed down the Corona... From what I had learned....There was absolutely no connection between Gerald and Jennifer Taylor what soever.
She didn't hang out at Josies, He didn't hang out at Ciros....She lived six blocks from him and their paths never crossed at work.....Yet their paths might have crossed somewhere...but where?

On the other hand...There was this boyfriend...Whoever he was , He had money and position and power...Could he have been the one that Gerald saw? , That Cherry and Chick saw?? Hmmmm.
Just then...My Blackberry went off! It was my wife Sepia.

"Hey Kev...I think you'd better come home quick." she said.

"What's goin on?" I asked.

"Something came for you in the mail that I think you'd want to see." she said.

I drove home...When I got there, Sepia gave me a large envelope...It was addressed to her!!! and it had been opened already.

"This is for you..It says Mrs. JoAnne C. Morris." I said.

"Yeah,it was addressed to me...but I think you ought to look at it." she said.

It was an obvious duplication from the coroners office.....It had been marked confidential!!! There was no return address!!! It was the Medical examiners findings in the deaths of Jennifer Taylor and Stacy Lord......Both women were strangled....and both women were pregnant at the time of their deaths....Jennifer was three months pregnant and Stacy was one month pregnant!!

"Oh my God.....They were both pregnant!" I said.

"Yeah Kevin...pregnant....Does that change anything?" asked Sepia.

"It could be a motive for someone else to kill them." I said.

"You still don't think Gerald killed these two do you?" she asked.

"Not now I don't....This was someone else....Something else may link these girls...But I don't think it's Gerald Brown." I said.

"How are you going to prove it? No one will talk to you." said Sepia.

"Yeah...that is gonna be a problem." I said.

(Definitely To Be Continued...)