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2024-10-29 19:42:56Next evening:
The next evening, Dreaming was in the studio. They were supposed to be working but all they were doing was sitting in silence.
Louis and Darnell were actually in the studio, sitting on stools with their headphones slung around their necks. Fingers were tapping against the music stand. Staring at the floor, motionless. The music was playing through the headphones. Neither Louis nor Darnell cared. Their fists were clenched against their knees, nails digging into their palms.
Marcus was standing outside the studio in the cold with no jacket on. But he seemed impervious to the wind. The passing cars went by unnoticed. They were invisible to him. Marcus was thinking about the death of his father. It was on November 7, 1993, the police came knocking at his door. He's run to the door because his father was later but when he opened the door, Marcus knew.
Officer Peluso called up Louis on the telephone. He had thought long and hard, but he knew that she would find out who stole their single and hurt their manager.
“Louis, it's Officer Peluso. How are you doing?”
“Fine, Officer. Still waiting to hear about Mark. What can I do for you?”
“Well, I know someone who can help you find out who hurt your manager. I would like for you to meet at The Red Parrot at 6:30 p.m. Can you do that Louis?”
“Sure.”
Next, Peluso called up Darwin.
“Law Office, Darwin speaking.”
“Hello, Darwin, and how's my favorite girl today?”
Laughing she replies, “Hungry. You are feeding me?”“Meet you outside in 10 minutes.”
“Ok.”
In exactly ten minutes she walks outside. Peluso watched her from his cruiser. She always amazed him. At work, Darwin was a paralegal. Dressed in buttoned-up black suites with flesh color stockings and grandma shoes. Her short hair was natural, always covered with a scarf.
Peluso and Darwin meet up. But today, he was preoccupied. This burglary bothered him. Particularly, since neither he nor the other officers could figure out how whoever stabbed Mark and stole the single got in or out of the building. There didn't appear to be any forced entry, all the doors were shut except to the stairwells and no windows were open. As Darwin neared, he looked up, surprised. She said, “Didn't you hear me call your name?” As Darwin looked at him, she could see he was disturbed.
“Lou, what's wrong?”
“Dar, that's what I'm here to discuss with you. Let us walk to the restaurant.”
As the two walked, they walked in tandem. They passed parked cars, mothers walking their children, men on the street corner, and a broken traffic light. Across the street was the Newark Penn Station with the policeman and milling homeless. Up the street, was the “Pink Building” otherwise known as Prudential.They went into the restaurant and were seated. The restaurant was Spanish, and the inside looked better….
During lunch, he brought up the new case they had just received. “Darwin, you know that building on Market Street by the old Macy's building that was recently remodeled and built up?
“Yes.”
“Well on the first floor it has a studio. That group you like, 'Dreaming' used that studio.”
“How do you know that?” Darwin asked.
“Because, two days ago, I was called on out there to check out a burglary on the premises.”
“Was anybody hurt?”
“Yes, the group's manager, Mark. He was slashed pretty badly. He's been in intensive care and it's very touch and go.” He stopped. She waited in silence.
Darwin was good at that. Letting people continue on when they were ready to talk. Peluso continued.
“There was no forced entry. No windows broken. The security system was intact.”
“So, what's the problem? Nothing was taken, was it?”
“Yes, a disc was taken out of the machine.” His voice trailed off.
“Again, with all that you told me; I am still not sure what your problem is,” Darwin stated.
“Here's the thing. How could someone get inside, slash somebody, steal a disc, and leave without tripping the system?” questioned Peluso.
“Simple,” Darwin said, “inside job.”
“Let's go with that. Inside job means someone would have to know who or what was there. The problem is the people don't trust us. We are the outsiders. I need your help on this Darwin.” Peluso stated simply.
“You know, I'll help you but first I have to get back to work.” Said Darwin.
“Okay,” Peluso said, “I'll fill you in more later on tonight. I want you to have dinner with me tonight and meet one of the members of the group.”
Previous Chapter
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CHAPTER SIX
The group gathered at the restaurant at 6:00 p.m. Tonight Louis was going to introduce Darwin, the private investigator to them. If they remember right, she helped catch the Black Dahlia last year, which had hit all the newspapers from the moment they walked her in handcuffs to the courtroom.Montmartre was a French name, but it served strictly American cuisine. The walls were covered in pictures of the previous owners dating back to 1935. The interior décor had been changed over the years. The tables and booths were placed haphazardly throughout the restaurant. The carpet was muddy brown, with white speckles scattered. The walls were the same muddy brown as the carpet. The space wasn't the place where the up-and-coming holdout, but it served great food.Darwin was the first to arrive as was her way. She has dressed in a pinstripe black and white tailored pantsuit, with five-inch black heels and her afro was on point. Her makeup was sedate and not overstat
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Next evening:The next evening, Dreaming was in the studio. They were supposed to be working but all they were doing was sitting in silence.Louis and Darnell were actually in the studio, sitting on stools with their headphones slung around their necks. Fingers were tapping against the music stand. Staring at the floor, motionless. The music was playing through the headphones. Neither Louis nor Darnell cared. Their fists were clenched against their knees, nails digging into their palms.Marcus was standing outside the studio in the cold with no jacket on. But he seemed impervious to the wind. The passing cars went by unnoticed. They were invisible to him. Marcus was thinking about the death of his father. It was on November 7, 1993, the police came knocking at his door. He's run to the door because his father was later but when he opened the door, Marcus knew.Officer Peluso called up Louis on the telephone. He had thought long and hard, but he knew that
- Dreaming a Music Mystery
CHAPTER FOUR
Later that night…The band met up at the hospital to see Mark. As they walked into the quiet, sanitary-smelling soulless hospital each remembered the last time they were there. A friend had been shot down by the police. He was mistaken for a notorious drug dealer wanted on multiple counts of possession, with the intent to distribute. The friend had tried to explain to the officers they were making a mistake, but they didn't listen. In fact, they told him he was worthless, should off himself to make their job easier. When he reached in his pocket for identification, they all opened fire. The first bullet alone would have killed him, but they shot him 15 times. When they got to the hospital, his mother was not even weeping. She was just staring, with an empty glazed look in her eyes.The band shook off the memories as they wandered into the hospital near the front desk. They asked which room Mark was in and on what floor. They were informed he was still in intensi
- Dreaming a Music Mystery
CHAPTER THREE
The cat was Marcus. He happened to make his way behind the yellow tape. In fact, he actually looked like a cat today. He was dressed all in black, black jeans, a black turtleneck, and black shoes. He was light-skinned with wavy close-shaven hair with light brown eyes. His voice was a deep baritone, with a husky tone that came from smoking.Marcus had managed to get into the building. As he was walking down the hall, he heard footsteps echoing behind him. When he stopped the footsteps stopped. When he walked, they walked? Checking it out he started walking and stopped, listening as he did so. Sure enough, they were mimicking him.Turning around to see who it was he saw no one. Shaking off the feeling, he kept walking towards the studio. All of a sudden, he heard running feet and Officer Peluso shouting, “Stop, you can’t be back here until after the investigation is complete.” Continuing in a softer and quieter tone, Peluso said,
- Dreaming a Music Mystery
CHAPTER TWO
By the time the group got there, the police had already cordoned off the area with yellow tape. In fact, the whole street was blocked off. There were about ten black and whites there plus the lead detective. The first officers on the scene, Officers Jason and Park quickly took pictures of the scene and the outside surrounding area. This was done after the two had completed a walk around the area to see if anyone or perhaps the assailant was around.The ambulance had been called upon the officers finding out Mark was still breathing, although faintly. It had come and gone by the time the group had arrived, to talk with the police.Upon their arrival, the band learned of Mark being hurt when Officer Peluso came outside of the building and started talking to Louis.“We found him lying passed out in the studio. He had a pretty nasty wound. Looked like someone sliced him open. Papers were everywhere. After we searched the studio, we noticed the board was playin
- Dreaming a Music Mystery
CHAPTER ONE
It was late, around nine in the evening Louis, Darnell, Marquis, Marcus, and John better known as Dreaming, were all in the studio listening to a playback of the last recording of their newest single, “Remembrance.” Outside in the hallway, next to the studio, the group's manager, Mark, and the label owner, Joe was having a heated discussion about the cover for the new CD disc. The two had this very same discussion before. Both of their visions on how to market the group differed in ideal and style. The members of the group came from all different backgrounds. Two members came from money; one comes from suburbia and two from the projects. Each brought their own brand of style. “The members should present themselves as one,” said Joe. “No,” said Mark, “Each of the members has their own unique brand. We should showcase that.” “Marcus and Marquis hail from the projects. Their mother shopped with food stamps, was on welfare until they were ten, and worked two
