Kool Kat and I stood in the empty living room of the house, Yvette "Gypsy" Blessings had been renting in West Philadelphia...The murder of Hugh Benet was now three weeks old....The police had not talked to her....They didn't know her name, yet she hadn't been at the Mermaid club or any of her usual haunts...and now, just like her name..She had vanished ,seemingly into thin air.
"Kev, we got that phone...and all of those calls and those text messages are damning enough..." said Kool Kat.
"That's not enough though...it's all circumstantial.." I said.
"You know she's probably ditched the knife by now." he said.
"Yeah..we gotta get her to talking." I said.
"Good luck with that." he snorted...
"I think I know a way to smoke her out." I said.
"How?" he asked.
"She doesn't strike me as a person with means...She's around.....The streets will know." I said with a smile...
"What you got up your sleeve?" asked the big man with a hint of a smile."
II-
We found one of Gypsy's "associates" , a hooker nicknamed "Teardrop" because she broke into tears during sex...Long story...Kool Kat told me about her...Although Gypsy wasn't a hooker, the two knew each other...They had a love hate relationship...Basically hate...Depending on the money...
We didn't have to pay her much for her to tell us where Gypsy was staying....I passed the information on to Peeping Tom, Lockpick Johnson and Sean Jackson...who got photo and video observation of the house... They also got inside and wired the joint for sound and video....But more important they got me the phone number!
After carefully watching the house..It wasn't long before Kool Kat identified her going in and coming out to buy groceries and cigarettes and beer.
"That's her Kev....There's a guy in there named "Pit Bull"..He's somewhat of a low level playa..No big deal...That's it...Just him and her..." he said.
I looked at "Teardrop"..."Okay baby, call the number and do your stuff." I said.
"Got'cha Kev." she said.
"Hello, who is this?" answered Gypsy.
"Heyyyy gurl...what's been up?" said Teardrop.
"Nothin...how did you get this number?" she asked...
"You get deeper things to worry about girlfriend." said Teardrop.
"What? Huh? What is you talkin bout?" asked Gypsy.
"That guy you was tellin me about....The half breed dude that you was ravin about, that had such a big dick and stroked you so good...the one that got stabbed to death..." she said.
Long Pause...
"What about him?" she asked...
"I was in his crib last week......I had this john....He didn't have enough money for a room, but I needed some money, you dig? So we squatted in that house...You know how that neighborhood is...Every other spot is empty...but his spot was the most livable."
"Get to the point Teardrop, what you want?" she snapped.
"Well...guess what I found...That I'm bettin the cops aint find?" she said.
"What?" asked Gypsy...
"A cell phone with blood all over it..but here's where the story get's interesting...it's got about 26 calls from you on the phone and all these pathetic text messages from you, all made on the night he got aced...Come on Yvette...Was it THAT good??? My goodness?" she laughed..
"You're lying?" Gypsy snapped.
"How would I even know about it? I'll bet the cops don't know about it....And if they did ,it might shine a light your way." she laughed.
"You bitch....What do you want?" asked Gypsy.
"Just one G.." said Teardrop....
"One thousand dollars...I don't have that kind of money." she snapped..
"Yeah, but Pit Bull does....Get it from him....I know you screwin him in order to stay there..He'll pay it." she said.
"OUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU." screamed Gypsy...
"Look...just drop the money in that alley....the same alley where dude got stabbed....
The cell phone is in his crib on the sink....I cleaned the blood off of it for you...And just to make sure you don't try nothin funny....I won't tell you where I hid the doorkey until I have the money." said Teardrop.
"How do you have the doorkey?" she asked.
"He wasn't from Philly...Like most out of towners..He left a spare key on the porch under the mat.....What a jumolke..That's some TV crap like a mug aint it? " said Teardrop...
Gypsy laughed.....
"It sure is..." she said.
"I need the money by midnight, tonight.." Teardrop said.
"You fiend..." said Gypsy.
"It's a recession baby...We all gotta get our money anyway we can!"
Click!
Kool Kat looked at me and smiled...
"Kev, you brilliant..You would have made a great criminal." he said.
"That's why he's so good at catching them." said Lockpick Johnson.
"Hold up you guys..there's more talk from that house...She just told her boyfriend, about her predicament." said Peeping Tom.
"Sounds like a trap to me." said Pit Bull.
"Nah, it sounds just like something that trick would do to get money." said Gypsy.
"Oh yeah? Well...Pass me my gun....Tricks are for kids....When she picks up that dough..I'm gonna blow a hole through her head." he laughed..
"What about the key?" asked Gypsy...
"You won't need no key...I'll jimmy the lock and break in there and get that cell phone myself..." said Pit Bull,.
Teardrop began crying upon hearing the transmission...
"Oh my god....they gonna kill me." she said.
"Relax....they aint killin nobody....They about to get the surprise of they life." laughed
Kool Kat.
III-
Midnight! The so called witching hour...The hour I was about to make something happen. Like clockwork, Pit Bull and Gypsy showed up at the very place that Hugh Benet had met his end...They dropped a bag containing $1000.00 in it right where Teardrop instructed them to. Then they drove off...Clerow follwed them..They parked about a block from the drop site...Pit Bull cocked his gun...and then traveled by foot back to the alley just in time to see Teardrop pick up the dough...He aimed , smiled and then heard the click of a much larger gun to his back....
''Drop that heater Bull." came the voice of Kool Kat , who had a .357 magnum aimed at the back of his head... Pit Bull was no fool...He dropped the gun and Clerow , disarmed him of any other weapons he had, blindfolded him with a tampon and tied him up! For the record...We gave him his money back...Which he would discover whenever he got out of his ropes which weren't tied that tight...We moved him farther down the alley out of sight.
We had Teardrop call Gypsy's cell phone.
"Hello."
"Thought you was slick huh? Sendin your man around here with a gun to kill me huh? I figured as much, so I brought somebody to watch my back...." she said and began bawling like a child...."Why can't- you be trusted?Huh?" she wailed.
''Oh stop cryin..you got your money...Now where is the key?"asked Gypsy...
"It's under the mat. Don't you even care about what happened to Pit Bull...you heartless husssy...." cried Teardrop...At this point, even I was getting tired of all her crying and wailing...
"Did you kill him?" asked Gypsy.
"I'm not like you....He's alive...He's sleepin..." she said....Gypsy hung the phone up.....
Now we watched as Gypsy walked up Hugh's steps, fumbled around for the key and entered the house. The cell phone was right where Teardrop said it would be....She picked it up and immediately went to erase the numbers and text messages on it only to find...
''There's nothing on this cell phone."she balked.
It was then I turned the lights on....
"No, but there are plenty of numbers and texts on THIS one!" I said, Holding Hugh Benet's real cell phone in my hand....
"Who are you? This was a trick!" she said.
Clerow, Kool Kat,Sean Jackson, Minay, Teardrop and Lt. Sissy Van Buren, three detectives and three uniformed Philadelphia Police Officers stood behind me...
"Yeah Yvette, I suppose it was....Why did you do it?" I asked.
"Don't say anything else until you are advised of your rights." said Sissy Van Buren, but Gypsy just waived her off...
''I've been arrested enough times to know em... I don't care at this point.... I did it....I stabbed Hugh Benet..because I was tired of guys just using me , saying anything to get me in the bed and then afterwords just discarding me , like I wasn't nothin.....NOTHIN....That man made me feel things in the bed that I'd never felt before or since....I called and called and called him....He never returned my calls...He just tossed me aside ,like a used condom..." she said.
"Ah know that feelin gurlllllllll." wailed Teardrop....The cops,Gypsy, Kool Kat,Clerow, Minay and Sean Jackson all turned and gave the crying Prostitute the side eye...I wanted to laugh, but now was not the time... They handcuffed Yvette "Gypsy" Blessings and hauled her off to the paddy wagon....
''Wow Kev...You was right....Looks like you cracked another one man." said Kool Kat....
There was more wailing from Teardrop....
"She was my closest friend....awllllllllllllllll...Ah knew her since second grade....We lost our virginity to the same playa...ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...!"
Kool Kat shook his head , exasperatingly...Clerow,Sean and I just laughed...Minay ,understandably looked
bewildered!
EPILOUGE:
Yvette "Gypsy" Blessings was convicted of Manslaughter in the stabbing death of Hugh Benet and sentenced to 5-15 years. Her new home is the Muncy Correctional Facility for Women for the time being...
Pit Bull woke up with his $1000.00 in tow...He untied himself and went home, unharmed and only short a girlfriend and oh yeah, two guns...All in all, he didn't make out that bad! Coulda been a lot worse.
Kool Kat, Minay and I sat inside Jake's Hot Dog joint enjoying his delicious Hot Dogs and some Cokes...
"Kevin, Walter, I can't thank you enough for solving Hugh's murder." she said as she chowed down on the Hot Dog..."Oh my God , this is delicious." she said.
''So what's next for you Minay?" I asked.
''Guess it's back to London for you huh?"asked Kool Kat.
"No....I see what Hugh found so fascinating about this place.....I might just stay here...I already have a job...and I just put a down payment down on an apartment....and I met a nice guy...a cook named Ralph..Ralph Scallion.." she said.
I nearly spit my coke out....Kool Kat burst into laughter...Minay smiled ....
"You Philadelphians and your private jokes..." she laughed...
(For Carleen)
