Ricardo Tubbs: The Big Biography

November 7, 2010

70. IN THE GLADESACCORDING TO RICO TUBBS"We returned to the OCB to change SonnyÂ´s car to a rather new van before driving to Rosario Drive. We arranged that I should take care for the backdoor. Sonny should observe the front side where two cars were parking at the side of the street: a Mercedes and a hired car.While hurrying to the backdoor, I let my thoughts travel from Ira to his very angry wife, from there to Dakota, and from the Sergeant to nelly Guerrero.Suddenly, two men left the warehouse. One of them was, unambiguously, Ira Stone, but I didnÂ´t know the other man. Both men hurried to the cars on the front side.A moment later, Sonny picked me up. We followed the Mercedes with the dealer in it. The guy rather put his foot down. Later, we found out that Dakota had grassed us on to the dealer. therefore, he knew from the beginning that we would follow him.As we first had changed cars at the OCB, there had been enough time for the dealer to think about an improvised trap.When racing around a corner, we suddenly saw a garbage truck in front of us that was coming closer. There was no possibility to dodge him. I saw the grabs coming closer to the windshield, and Sonny and I started screaming at the same time before throwing us aside. For a moment I thought, "ThatÂ´s it!"The windshield burst and fragments were falling down on us. Then, we were lifted up and my head slammed against the dash board. I heard Sonny swearing, but in this moment, it was a good sign. It meant that he was OK.When sitting upright again, I saw a man climbing out of the garbage truck. He ran to the Mercedes, and the car disappeared. But for a second or two I had seen the Mercedes driverÂ´s face. I was sure to recognize him when seeing him again.We drove to SonnyÂ´s boat where he showed me some old pictures that had been taken in Vietnam. In fact, I recognized the Mercedes driver on one of the photos. It was Captain Maynard.Sonny told me that he and Maynard often had talked about their future plans. He had thought that Maynad was an honest man. Now, felt disappointed because heÂ´d been mistaken.As it was late we separated, but arranged to drive to Maynard the next morning. But at the villa, we only met Ms. Maynard, who told us that her husband and his friend, Mr. Mang, had gone fishing to the Keys.I disliked this statement.In the past, when Sonny and I had driven to the Glades to search for Joey Bramlett we had also claimed that we wanted to go fishing. But what kind of brait did Maynard wanted to use?Suspectedly Stone!Above all, Maynard knew the area well and he saw clearly that we would come to search for him.We used the boat to drive to the Keys. First, Sonny turned the engine on, later, we only used a stick to hinder that Maynard heard uns coming.I felt rather nervous because Maynard had several adventages: HeÂ´d been in this area very often and could use the luxuriantly grown plants as a cover. He knew THAT we would come and from which direction.The whole time, I watched the banks, even though I was sure that I would neither discover Maynard nor Mr. Mang.Eventually, we found a place where we could berth the boat. We expected to be attcked by someone, but nothing happened.Carefully, we moved through the jungle to the house, expecting every possible things to happen.Then, two shots rang out, and Ira started screaming for help.Even though, we were in a hurry, we didnÂ´t forget the necessary precautions. If youÂ´ve trained something again and again, one could wake you up and ask for it. One reacts without thinking about it.Maynard was an absoute unscrupulous man, and we almost expected him or Mr. Mang awaiting us with raised guns behind the door. But there was only Ira Stone. Maynard and Mang had fled into the jungle.After Sonny had spoken with Ira to calm him down, we left the house to search for Maynard and Mang. I was strained like a steel feather.The main problem was that I had to react immediately after hearing suspicious noises, but I could also kill or injure Sonny.Maynard have laughed up his sleeves if Sonny and I had shot each other by accident.Suddenly, shots rang out and then I heard something behind me. I spun around...and looked into the muzzle of SonnyÂ´s gun and he looked in mine.We both felt relieved because we were alive.Without saying a word, I asked, "Who?"Sony answered the same way, "Mang!"We heard as Maynard switched on the engine of a motorboat and then he escaped. We returned to the house where Sonny took care for Ira who had succeeded to get hold of a bag of the dirty stuff.I called a rescue helicopter for Ira and asked Castillo to alert the coastguard.While searching for evidences, I found a thin golden wedding ring that unambiguously belonged to a woman. Ira told us that this was his wifeÂ´s wedding ring. Maynard had given the order to kill Ms. Stone to steal the manuscript Ira had written about the Sergeant.When we arrived "back in the world", Castillo told me that Ms. StoneÂ´s body had already been found in a container. The murderer had not even taken away her purse or her papers so that it was easy to identify her.Unfortunately, we couldnÂ´t arrest Maynard. His tracks got lost somewhere on the ocean, but we assumed that heÂ´d been prepared in case that a flight would be necessary. Probably, a nice villa had been waiting for his arrival somewhere in South America."IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: A NEW AQUAINTANCE

November 15, 2010

71. A NEW ACQUAINTANCELater, Rico and Sonny had lunch together. While eating, Rico watched the pretty women who were passing by. Again, he thought that his private life came off badly. He could hardly remember when he had had his last date.He urgently needed to change that!After lunch, Rico and Sonny separated. Sonny wanted to visit Ira, Rico returned to the office where Castillo immediately reached a new file to him."Tory Rivers", Rico read aloud."A drug dealer. Very smart. For one and a half years, the drug squad tries to catch him, but heÂ´s more slick than an eel. I want you and Crockett to take care of this case. Take Switek and Zito with you in the boat", Castillo ordered.Rico got himself a cup of coffee, but it tasted bitter because the can had probably been keeping warm since morning. He made faces, turned around, and walked to the washroom to pour it into the washbasin.Rico told, "On the way to the washroom, I met Stan and Larry on the hallway. They were talking about something concerning Stan. Whe I returned to the office, I found Larry standing next to StanÂ´s desk with his right forefinger raised up, and his mouth open as if he wanted to say something. But when I entered the room, he closed his mouth immediately, but that day I didnÂ´t pay attention to it.""Tory Rivers?" Stan replied after Rico had told him and Larry about the new case. "Nobody can catch him.""CastilloÂ´s opinion seems to be different, and I think that itÂ´s a challenge. Everybody makes mistakes", Rico claimed."Not Rivers", Stan replied.Then, Sonny returned. He told Rico that Ira would become healthy again, and iRco gave him some information about their new case.Rico recalled, "During the following two weeks, we spent most of the time with acquainting ourselves with RiversÂ´ favorite places so I could forget taking care about my private life. I only returned home to have a shower, change clothes, and some hours of sleepwhile Stan and Larry were observing Rivers.I was so busy that I almost had forgotten my motherÂ´s birthday because Stan and Larry both had phoned in sick, even though it should have been their job to place a bug into RiversÂ´ Mercedes. Now, Sonny and I had to do the job. (34 - PHIL, THE SHILLSonny suggested that I should distract RiversÂ´ driver while he was placing the bug, but I was convinced that he was much better in distracting someone. We threw a coin and I won.Every Thursday, Rivers visited the BIG SPLASH, a casino. At 8 p.m. the Mercedes arrived, and Rivers and his girlfriend, Sarah, vanished into the building.Then, SonnyÂ´s show started. I really hurried to place the bug because RiversÂ´ driver, Ben, was a muscular man, wo punched Sonny rather hard on the chin.Thereafter, I invited Sonny for a drink. I wanted to cheer him up. So, I told him jokinly that the swollen chin gave character to his face. I was sure that he would have thrown the ice bag on my head if he hadnÂ´t suddenly seen Stan on TV."With his mouth half open, Rico also watched his colleague, Stan, who was playing in a quiz - show for $100,000. It was about Elvis Presley, and Stan, a huge fan of the singer, knew a lot about him.Rico heard Sonny groaning that he would kill Switek as soon as he met him while Rico was remembering some parts of different conversation between Stan and Larry, he had overheard."I know that I can do it, Larry", Stan had said, and a few days later, he had told Larry that he had managed it.Now, Rico knew that it all was because of the casting for the quiz - show.Unfortunately, Castillo had imposed a time - off block because three employees of the department had reported sick, and two were injured during a shoot - out.Nevertheless, Stan had asked for two days off, but Castillo turned his request down... and this morning, Stan and Larry reported sick.Even though, Rico was steamed about his friend, he kept his fingers crossed."IÂ´ll feed that guy with his 100,000 green dead Presidents until his face turnes as green as his bills!", Sonny angrily promised."HeÂ´ll succeeded", Rico insured without taking his look from the screen.Urgently, Sonny pushed him in the arm. "Look at my face, Tubbs! I took the blame and I was thrown across the area by King Kong. I thought that Switek is ill and laying in his bed. Instead, I can admire him on TV!"Rico recalled, "Actually, Stan should have won against the stupid guy, but he didnÂ´t. Sonny was at a boiling point, and he said something like that Stan first had lied to his friends and that he not even had won now.We left the bar. Sonny was grumbling the whole time. He sounded a bit like his alligator, Elvis, when he was discontent."Rico rode with Sonny to his apartment on Sunset Drive. While Sonny was driving off, Rico decided to visit TomÂ´s Bar.When he opened the door, he was welcomed by a lot of smoke, loud music, and the voices of any people. It was crowded. Rico had to push himself through the crowd to the bar.While waiting for his drink, he discovered the young waitress, who was carying a try with filled glasses on it through the crowd. She was laughing and joking with the customers."Rather crowded tonight", Rico shouted when Helen, TomÂ´s wife, reached hm his glass.Helen nodded. "Not only tonight, but for the last weeks. ThatÂ´s the reason why we had employed Amber."Rico squinted at Amber, who was just carrying a try with empty glasses back to the bar. She was slim with a sun tanned skin. Light brown curls were framing her slim face with a small nose and full lips. Amber was wearing a tight, lemon colored dress.Next to Rico, she arrived at the bar, put the tray on it, and shouted her orders to Helen. Then, she looked at Rico, and he found out that her name suited perfectly to her because of her amber colored eyes."Hello", Rico said."Hi", Amber replied smiling while Helen was putting the newly filled glasses on the tray.With a last smile, Amber left te bar.RicoÂ´s look followed her. She was talking and joking with this man and that woman, and she hit a man on his fingers when he cheekingly tried to touch her."YouÂ´ve employed a pretty waitress", Rico said to Tom.Tom smiled. "And sheÂ´s smart, too. SheÂ´s studying medicine to become a pathologist."Tom looked at his wife, who was talking with a customer at the other end of the bar. He leaned towards Rico and betrayed, "When I have a look at Amber, I think about prettier things than beeing cut open by her."Rico smiled. "If youÂ´re laying on her autopsy table, you wouldnÂ´t mind what sheÂ´s doing with your body. But, youÂ´re right, Tom. I also imagine prettier things."When Amber returned to the bar, Rico asked, "What do I have to do for you to pay your attention on me, Amber?"Her eyes were shining as she answered, "Tell me your name and wait until the bar closes at 3 a. m..""My name is Rico, but unfortunately, I canÂ´t wait till three. When do you have your day off?""On Monday", Amber immediately replied."Would you like to meet me on Monday at 5 p.m.?" Rico gave her the address of a little cafÃ© on the beach and she nodded.Unfortunately, there was no more time to speak to each other because the bar got more and more crowded, even though it was late.At midnight, Rico paid the bill. When he pushed himself throught the crowd to leave, Amber passed him. She whispered in his ear, "Till Monday at five. I canÂ´t wait to meet you."Grinning, Rico left the ar.IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: FROM SOMEONE WHO MOVED OUT...

November 26, 2010

72. FROM SOMEONE WHO MOVED OUT...The ringing of the damn telephone tore Rico off a fantastic dream. More than once during his work with Vice, Rico wished to send Sonny and his calls into the desert."YouÂ´ve got a bloody timing, Crockett", he groaned after picking up the phone."DonÂ´t tell me that, pal. I was also called. WeÂ´ve got two male bodies, hanging headlong from the ceiling of a warehouse like slaughtered chicken", Sonny replied, gave Rico the address, and hung up.Rico had a look at his alarm clock. "Half past six. Damn early", he sighed while getting up.But for the men who got killed it, probably, also had been too early.Rico recalled, "When I arrived at the warehouse, the bodies had already been put into body bags. Sonny told me that someone had identified RiversÂ´ Mercedes, but there was no indication to a business connection between Rivers and the killed men.While driving to the office, I always thought of Amber and my date the day after tomorrow... if it happened and Rivers didnÂ´t put a spike in my wheel.Stan and Larry had also returned, but I was sure that Castillo already knew what had happened. He had his own way to handle such matters. In this case, he decided that Stan and Larry had to work double shifts.Because of our bug, we knew that RiversÂ´ girlfriend, Sarah, made the contacts between Rivers and his privileged customers of doctors, estate agents, and others.While observing RiversÂ´ yacht, we watched RiversÂ´ girlfriend as sheÂ´d been taken home by Phil Mayhew, the host of the TV show, who probably had pulled a fast one on Stan.As Mayhew had connections to Sarah, we thought that it was a good idea to visit Mayhew at home.But there we experienced another surprise because we met Izzy, who revealed that heÂ´d been signed up by Stan. Sonny ws at a boiling point because of this.""I canÂ´t understand Stan", Sonny railed. "He lies to us to go to the quiz - show. I had taken the trashing, but he didnÂ´t even say sorry, and now he endangers 18 moths of police work because of personal revenge. But, OK, letÂ´s see what happens if Izzy works for us."Rico didnÂ´t answer, but he understood SonnyÂ´s anger well.In the evening, Rico visited TomÂ´s Bar again, but there was only a little time to speak with Amber because all hell broke loose. He only could ask her, "Are we still on for Monday?"Amber nodded, but, as always, things ended up differently.Rico admitted, " I was pleased to meet her on Monday and speak about different things such as my job. Of course, I knew that I couldnÂ´t tell her that I was a policeman, not before I was really sure that we were a couple and that I could trust her.In this respect, Sonny and I had the same problems. One is careful when getting to know someone, even if you fall in love with her... usually I was. With some women, I didnÂ´t react muted and it always ended up disappointingly for me.With Amber, Phil Mayhew was responsible for that I couldnÂ´t meet on that special Monday.Mayhew had always been a gangster, who had to leave Britain after he had relieved some wealthy men about 30,000 pounds, but he never had had something to do with drugs and violence. Therefore, I didnÂ´t understand why he had contacted RiversÂ´ girlfriend. Wht did he want from her?On my desk, there was laying the report about what had been said in RiversÂ´ Mercedes, but it was nothing special.One evening when we were following RiversÂ´ car, Sonny and I could hear as Ben, the driver, told his boss that he just had found a bug and that he knew only one person, who could have installed it."After Ben had thrown the bug out of the window, the Mercedes, apparently, drove around in town without destination. Several times, it looked for Rico in the light of the streetlamps as if Rivers was speaking to someone on the phone.Then, they lost the car for about 45 minutes.At two a.m., the Mercedes returned to the marina, and half an hour later, Rico closed his apartment door behind himself, knowing that he couldnÂ´t visit TomÂ´s Bar this Saturday evening to see Amber.At noon, Izzy had called to tell him in his unique way that there would be a party in MayhewÂ´s villa tonight. Therefore, Rico knew that he would have to spend his evening there and not in TomÂ´s Bar.Rico recalled, "It was our chance to get closed to Mayhew and to find out what he wanted from RiversÂ´ girlfriend. Fortunately, Gina and Trudy succeeded in installing several bugs on RiversÂ´ yacht so that we could also eavesdrop him.That evening, we came to business with Sarah and we found out that Mayhew tried to undercut prices. But we, however, had no idea why a swindler suddenly wanted to change into the drug business.Later, Mayhew left his own party to drive to RiversÂ´ yacht. We followed him and talked to our colleagues, Stan and Larry, who were observing Rivers.""I bet that Mayhew tries to push off", Rico said. "ThatÂ´s what heÂ´s done in London in the past and probably also in other cities.""Then, we should speak seriously with him", Sonny replied."Let us do that", Stan asked. He sounded like an angry dog and showed his teeth in the same way as a dog would do.Rico looked at im. "I think itÂ´s much better if Sonny and I do that."Rico told, "We waited for Mayhew in front of his villa. He was in such a hurry that he didnÂ´t close the door. So, it was easy for us to get in. I searched in his bags while Sonny was talking to him. I found several things for which we could have sent him to prison. Therefore, he was willing to help us to catch Rivers.Mayhew called Rivers and made an appointment on Monday evening on a fair. Tha was the moment when I knew that I had to cancel my date with Amber."IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: ... TO ESCAPE AGAIN

December 5, 2010

73. ...TO ESCAPE AGAINAfter locking Mayhew into a cell, Rico told Sonny that he had to drive to TomÂ´s Bar to cancel a date. He wanted to do it personally and not on the phone, but he needed almost 20 minutes before he succeeded to drag Amber aside."Unfortunately, IÂ´ve to cancel our date", Rico regretted. "ItÂ´s business. IÂ´m sorry. But I canÂ´t change it. However, IÂ´d like to meet you on another day.""IÂ´m sure youÂ´d like to", Amber replied. "Business, hm?"Rico could see that she didnÂ´t believe him. "Yes, business. My job is unpredictable."Amber shrugged. "You know where you can find me. You can show up if you want to. IÂ´ve to go."After a last smile, she disappeared in the crowd.Rico returned to the OCB. He felt really sorry that he couldnÂ´t meet Amber, but he was absolutely determined to meet her on another day. If Amber didnÂ´t believe that heÂ´d told her the truth about his job, she could ask Tom. On the other hand... if she distrusted him that much, it would be better not to meet her.Rico told, "When I returned to the OCB, Sonny told me that all the preparations for Monday evening were finished. On my desk, I found a file that hadnÂ´t been laying there when I had left. But when I had a look at it, I was sure that someone had erroneously put it on my desk. It was a missing report. The manÂ´s name was Garry Dobson and it didnÂ´t look as if he had something to do with drugs."The next morning, the team had a discussion about the action that evening. While talking, one of the secretaries came in to tell Castillo about an urgent call about a guy named Clymente. Rico had never heard about him."Everybody has heard the name Sergio Cymente sometime", trudy said.Stan replied while grinning, "Apparently, not all news have penetrated to the north of our country.""Clymente is a gangster boss who had left many bodies before he disappeared", Sonny told.Castillo returned. He listened to SonnyÂ´s explanations, but advised, "LetÂ´s take care of Rivers and Mayhew."Rico recalled, "Actions like the meeting that evening were always an exciting matter because youÂ´ll never know whether it ended up the way you planned it. That evening, the money bag, Sarah opened to show us its content, contained a smoke bomb. After the explosion, I had hardly time to take cover before the bullets were buzzing around us. I could hear as Mayhew started the LamborghiniÂ´s engine, but I couldnÂ´t do anything to stop him.When the shoot - out ended, RIvers and his bodyguards were dead, but Mayhew and Sarah had escaped with $75,000.Stan was steamed about that because he claimed that the money actually belonged to him.But Castillo didnÂ´t care for such personal feelings. Before we reached the OCB again, he had put new files on our desks. That was typical for him.For Sonny and me, however, a hot time was waiting."IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: A NEW CASE

December 21, 2010

74. A NEW CASELater, Rico and Sonny were sitting on the boat. They had something to drink and talked, but Rico always thought on Amber. This could have been such a fantastic evening!Stars were twinkliing, a light, but warm wind was blowing from the ocean, and the boat was softly bumping against the mouring.Elvis was sleeping on his favorite blanket, but maybe, he wasnÂ´t sleeping, but watching him and Sonny.Rico mistrusted the reptile from the beginning and assumably, it would never change. For him, Elvis had too little (in fact no) facial expressions and too many teeth."YouÂ´re date... is it serious?" Sonny wanted to know."I donÂ´t know. Actually, I wanted to find out about it tonight", Rico replied while drinking a sip of beer.The noises of wailing sirens screamed in their ears."There are more Mondays to come. Monday is her day off", Rico explained.For a moment, they kept quiet, drank some sips, and listened to the noises around."Did you ever regret that you came here, Rico?" Sonny wanted to know.Rico didnÂ´t have to think about it. "No, man, it was exactly the right decision. I mean..." He quietly laughed before he continued, "When I decided to stay in Miami in the past, I did it not only because Miami is a great city and because I knew that I would get the best partner in the world, but above all I did it because I wanted to rescue my butt. IÂ´m sure that Lieutenant Jones would have grilled me to feed me to the seagulls. I did the right thing when moving to Miami, and I would always do it again."Sonny raised his bottle of beer. "IÂ´ll drink to that!"Rico recalled, "During the next days, I had a lot to do with reading Sergio ClymenteÂ´s file. Garry DobsonÂ´s file also returned onto my desk. When I asked for the reason, the colleagues of the other department told me that Dobson had been arrested once because of drug offence. But this offence had happend in DobsonÂ´s youth. Now, he was a respected jeweller who took over his fatherÂ´s business a few years ago, and disappeared after a meeting with a diamond trader in Miami. I didnÂ´t know why we should take care for that case."While Rico was reading the file, Castillo left his office to tell him and Sonny that Clymente wanted to appear on the scene again. He gave them the address of a hotel where they should wait for more information at the pool - bar.Rico recalled, "It was terrribly hot and we were sweatting just because we were breathing. Sonny and I were sitting under a sunshade and waiting for Clymente to come. (35 - DEFINITELY MIAMISonny didnÂ´t believe that Clymente appeared, but while waiting, I suddenly saw as Sonny paid his attention to something at the pool. In fact, it was a bout a blond, good - looking woman who was lolling about on a deck chair.She recognized SonnyÂ´s attention and started playing with him. When she discovered the waiter, who was carrying our drinks, she took the tray out of his hands, came up to our table, and put on a fascinating show to attract Sonny. She told us that her name was Calleigh. But as Sonny didnÂ´t react, she left.As weÂ´d been waiting for two hours, I decided to call Castillo. In the meantime, I agreed with Sonny and also didnÂ´t believe that Clymente would appear. I hopd that Castillo would order us to return to the office before we were cooked. But then, I discovered a man, probably from Latin - America, who walked up to our table.When he discovered me, he became nervous and pulled his gun. In a very fast reaction, Sonny kicked it out of his hand. While I was trying to catch him, he fell into the swimming - pool, swam hectically to the other side, left the pool, and escaped.Sonny told me that the man had been ClymenteÂ´s messenger. Clymente urgently wanted to meet with Maria Rochas, but even thogh I had read ClymenteÂ´s file forward and backwards, I couldnÂ´t remember that name.""LetÂ´s return to the office", Rico sighed when they were standing in front of the hotel, and looking into the direction where ClymenteÂ´s messenger had been driven to. "I canÂ´t wait to enter the cool office."But in the office, bad news was awaiting them because the air conditioning didnÂ´t work because of overloading."IÂ´ll try to get a table ventilation if you do me a favor, Trudy", Rico asked while giving her his irresistable smile. "I need information about a woman named Maria Rochas."Rico recalled, "Trudy really found information about Maria, who had a pretty large count of offences in our police computer, but sheÂ´d never been arrested or judged. After a statement in a trial two years ago sheÂ´d been included into the witness protection program. But now an FBI agent was on the way from Washington to Miami because the FBI wanted to release their witness, Maria Rochas."IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: MANY DIFFERENT WOMEN

December 31, 2010

75. MANY DIFFERENT WOMENAfter quitting time, Rico asked Sonny if he wanted to go for a drink with him, but Sonny turned the offer down. Rico assumed that he wanted to meet with Calleigh, even though he had claimed to be immune against her attraction when disovering her first at the pool.Rico decided to visit TomÂ´s Bar, though he couldnÂ´t make a new date with Amber. First, he needed to find out how things with Clymente went.It was early in the evening and most of the people still were on the beach. Therefore, it was quiet in the bar where Amber was washing up glasses. With a smile on her face, she looked at Rico. "Look, whoÂ´s there!" she said."Hello, Amber", Rico replied when standing opposite of her."What can I get you to drink?" Amber asked. "I think that IÂ´d like to have a glass of mineral water. With this heat, alcohol is lethally", Rico replied.Amber filled the glass and put it on the bar. "I want to tell you that I feel very sorry because I had to cancel our date. In fact, it was business. IÂ´m a very busy man, Amber.""I know", Amber countered and looked into his eyes while asking, "What about Monday?""I canÂ´t promise", Rico honestly answered. "Possibly...""...youÂ´re busy", Amber finished the sentence. "What exactly are you doing that you never really have a day off?""Import and export", Rico spontaneously told. "Sometimes, delivery plans suddenly change and then IÂ´ve to be there, even if itÂ´s in the middle of the night. But you could give me your phone number, so that we can date spontaneously."Amber shrugged while scribbling her number on a piece of paper."DonÂ´t wait too long", she advised when reaching it to him.Rico answered while grinning, "I promise."Rico recalled, "The next day, we returned to the hotel to speak with the barkeeper. As Sonny had discovered Calleigh, he let me talk with the man, but unfortunately the barkeeper couldnÂ´t help us.I saw Sonny leaving the hotel with Calleigh. Therefore, I asked the barkeeper about her, but again he couldnÂ´t answer my question.Then, Castillo called to order us to return to the office where we got to know Joe Delwa, the FBI - agent from Washington. I disliked him from the first moment where we met.He was African - American, tended to corpulence, and was chewing gum all the time as if he thought it to be cool, then. Again and again, he emphasized that this case was an absolutely safe thing. He was sure that we only had to show Maria Rochas to Clymente and everything would be OK. The whole time, Delwa was smiling when he told us that. But with me, he lost most of his sympathy points when naming me Rick. I hate this abbreviation of my name!When I visited school, there was a boy, Ron, who had it in for me. He was the only one who ever called me Rick. This guy oppressed me until, at least, I blew my top.Actually, I always try to stay calm because my parents always were against violence. Again and again, they emphasized that violence wasnÂ´t the right solution.After IÂ´d hit Ron a bloody nose and a black eye, I had to do the weeding on all paths around the church... and there were several very long paths. One never forgets something like that. So, if someone calls me Rick, IÂ´m finished with him.What I, at first, didnÂ´t understand was the reason why Clymente so urgently wanted to see Maria Rochas. Then, Delwa told us that she was ClymenteÂ´s sister."Rico called for Sonny who had spoken with Calleigh about her problems."Delwa has invited us for lunch at the Ocean Club", Rico told his friend after telling him about the news in the Clymente case, and ironically he continued, "YouÂ´ll like him."While having lunch, Delwa told them about his great career. Rico wasnÂ´t really interested in it. Sometimes, he made noises as if he was listening, but in fact he thought about Amber.Later, Delwa made himself comfortable on the backseat of the Caddy. He claimed that Rico and Sonny were living an easy life, and that he could imagine to get used to the tropical climate and the beautiful area."Heaven forbid!" Rico mumbled.Rico recalled, "Castillo didnÂ´t want to show Maria Rochas to her brother. SheÂ´d been the witness, who had testified against Clymente after one insured her that she would get protection.Therefore, Castillo searched for a female policeman who looked similar to Maria. She should sit in a policecar and only show herself for a moment after the doors opened.Delwa almost flipped his lid when he found out about that.Unfortunately, Clymente saw through it and disappeared in his Mercedes. Later, he called us to tell that he insisted on seeing his sister."Rico took care of the files on his desk again. There, he found a new file: Dan Robinson, a famous author, disappeared three weeks ago without a trace.Rico called the colleague from the department of missing persons to ask why Vice should take care of the case of Dobson and Robinson."Dobson had had something to do with drugs in the past, and he and Robinson both had rented rooms in the hotel where you and Crockett are investigating at this time. IsnÂ´t that a strange coincidence?" the woman at the other end of the line asked.Rico agreed and the woman continued, "YouÂ´ll get another file soon, Steven White. He was reported missing five weeks ago and heÂ´d also rented a room in this hotel."Rico told, "At this time, there were many things I disliked. The first thing was that Castillo ordered us to give Delwa any support that he needed... and I had a bad feeling when I looked at his self - confident facial expressions.Besides that, we had to take Maria Rochas out of her hiding, and I asked myself if SonnyÂ´s allegedly immunity against womenÂ´s attractions worked with Calleigh... and of course, I disliked that my colleagues of other departments parked their files on my desk.Then, Sonny, whoÂ´d left in a hurry an hour before, returned to tell us that heÂ´d gotten another case to work on."IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: A BAD DAY

January 11, 2011

76. A BAD DAYRico angrily listened when Sonny told him that heÂ´d try to call Calleigh in the hotel room she and Charlie, her husband, had rented. As Calleigh had told him that Charlie was a bad husband, heÂ´d been in a worry when she didnÂ´t pick up. So, he drove to the beach house heÂ´d shown to her earlier that day, and he really found her there. Charlie had beaten her up.While speaking with her, she told him about the two kilos of cocaine Charlie wanted to sell. Sonny had offerd to buy it. The deal should happen the next day at 11 a.m.After quitting time, which was late that day because of all the necessary preparations, Rico drove to TomÂ´s Bar. Fortunately, there werenÂ´t many customers in the bar when Rico entered it.Two pretty women, who were sitting at a table, curiously looked him up and down. They spoke in the French language and Rico thought to understand that one of them called him "a cute chocolate - boy".Rico passed them with a smile.Then, Amber came up to him and she whispered in his ear, "Just look! Mojito?"Rico grinned at her. "Actually, I wanted to drink the Mojito, not only look at it", he replied as if he had misunderstood her.Giggling, Amber softly slapped him at he upperarm before she hurried behind the bar.RicoÂ´s look followed her, and contrary to his knowledge, he hoped that the bar closed earlier that night.Amber gave him his Mojito, smiled, and asked, "What are you going to do tomorrow, Mister? Do you have a date?"Rico would have liked to say no and to ask her whether she would have liked to have dinner with him, but he didnÂ´t know how things would go tomorrow.In the office, Rico had overheard that Stan should accompany Joe Delwa to Maria RochasÂ´ hiding place to persuade the woman to a meeting with her brother. Delwa would insist that Maria helped them, so that the meeting could occur as soon as possible.Rico sighed. "I wished that I could tell you about it", he replied.Amber leaned towards him and looked at him with her amber colored eyes. "Will you tell me one day what 24 hours job youÂ´re really working in?""IÂ´m a secret agent", Rico whispered while twinkling at her."Oh, sure", Amber replied while getting upright again. "Do you like to get your Mojito stired or shaken in the future?""Thanks, but I like it as it is", Rico countered.Amber smiled before paying her attention to another customer. Tom also appeared, and so did more and more customers. There was no more time to talk to Amber. Therefore, Rico left, knowing that a strenuous day with "Mr. Chewing Gum" was awaiting him.The next morning, when Rico left the apartment complex where he was living in, it was very hot. No wind was coming from the ocean. Between the houses, it was like in an oven."Hellish", Rico mumbled. "Hopefully, itÂ´s not a bad omen for today."Rico recalled, "In the office, all hell broke lose. Stan and Delwa had succeeded to persuade Maria for a meeting with her brother. It should happen at 11 a.m., the same time when Crockett wanted to meet with Charlie for the two kilos deal.In the meantime, Gina had found out who ClymenteÂ´s messenger was. He was a Nicaraguan refugee, who only told us that Clymente only wanted to see his sister dancing once again. In that moment, we knew that h wanted to shoot her to death."While returning to the office, Rico thought about how Clymente wanted to shoot his sister. Many policemen would be out there, and for Clymente, there was no possibilty to smuggle a gun to the meeting.But probably, he had found someone who needed money and who was willing to do the dirty job. Even some policemen were corruptible like Scott Wheeler or Lieutenant Jones in the past."When we arrived at the meeting point, Clymente and Maria Rochas were already there", Rico recalled, and continued, "Delwa was standing there like an Oscar winner, chewing gum, and grinning all the time.While the siblings were hugging, I asked myself whether IÂ´d been mistaken this time. But then, Maria pulled a knife and stabbed her brother to death just a moment before she was lethally hit by a bullet.Maria was dead, Clymente was dead, and we couldnÂ´t find the hitman. DelwaÂ´s arrogance broke down. The big man came down from Washington to explain his rules to us, but he didnÂ´t understand that things donÂ´t go that way in Miami.When I came to Miami, Sonny had told me that one couldnÂ´t even knew the playerÂ´s names here without owning a program guide.One could say that Delwa had known about the playerÂ´s name, but he expected a tear jerker to happen and not a drama."Only Larry was sitting at his desk and drinking a cup of coffee when Rico returned to the office. he told his friend about the meeting between Maria and her brother and asked about SonnyÂ´s meeting with Charlie."Sonny had had a good nose when ordering me to build a steel plate into the suitcase. It saved his life", Larry told. "But Charlie is dead and under seven heaps of sand, weÂ´ve found four posh cars with killed me in them. ItÂ´s my job now to compare their papers with our database for missing persons..."He startled. "Dan Robinson?""WhereÂ´s Crockett now?" Rico wanted to know."I think he wanted to arrest Calleigh. "Did you ever hear the name Dan Robinson, Rico?" Larry asked. "IÂ´m sure that IÂ´ve heard this name before."Certainly." RIco walked to his desk to have a look at the files he was working on. "Here he is. Da Robinson, 36 years old, thriller author, came to Miami for investigations for his next thriller. he disappeared... ehm... three weeks ago.""Well, weÂ´ve found him", Larry replied.Rico told, "The files of all four men wer laying on my desk. Assumably, Calleigh looked for wealthy looking men to lur them into a trap. There, Charlie killed them, stole the money, and buried them under the sand.But despite of all the bad things that have happened, the day ended up in a positive way for me becaue I could meet with Amber in the evening."IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: AMBER

January 22, 2011

77. AMBERRico made a reservation in a restaurant that was situated close to the beach. Then, he called Amber to tell her that he would call for her at 8 p.m.. He could only hope that Castillo didnÂ´t appear short before quitting time to give him and Sonny an order where they had to sit in the car all night long.Fortunately, it didnÂ´t happen.Rico took Amber to the restaurant where they sat at a table on the deck. A candle was flickering in a balbous glass, a light wind was coming from the ocean, and they could hear the water roaring."I didnÂ´t expect to see you tonight, Rico", Amber admitted after the waiter had taken away the plates."I wasnÂ´t sure either whether it would be possible for me to meet you. In my job, weÂ´re always very busy. Not even when I go home at five, I can be sure that I first return to the office the next morning at nine", Rico recalled.Amber nodded. "Tom and Helen already told me that, but... what is your job?"Rico took a deep breath. "IÂ´m a policeman."While getting himself ready for the date, I had known that Amber would ask him that question. He had thought about the answer, and then he thought on Angelina. He had loved her, had lied to her, and therefore, he lost her. Rico didnÂ´t want that the same happened again."YouÂ´re a policeman?" Amber surprisingly repeated. "ThatÂ´s not what IÂ´d expected you to be.""And I must ask you not to talk with others about it. Do you like to go for a little walk?" Rico asked because, in his opinion, the hotel deck was too crowded to tell Amber more about his job.Amber nodded. Rico jumped up to galantly drag AmberÂ´s deck chair backwards before reaching her his arm."What department are you working for, Rico?" Amber asked when they could be sure that no one overheard their talk. "Robbery? Murder?""Drugs and prostitution", Rico replied. "IÂ´m working with Vice.""ThatÂ´s dangerous, isnÂ´t it?" Amber wanted to know."Sometimes", Rico admitted."ArenÂ´t you afraid?" Amber asked."Sometimes", Rico countered while smiling, but Amber couldnÂ´t see it because of the darkness.Amber softly nudged him in his arm. "WhatÂ´s wrong with you? Did your LP get stuck?"Rico quietly laughed. "I only answered your questions in a honest way", he answered. "Sometimes, my job is very dangerous, and sometimes IÂ´m afraid. But IÂ´ve got a great partner and weÂ´re working together with a fantastic team. We can always count on each other.""So, itÂ´s your partner who calls you in TomÂ´s Bar?" Amber asked."Yeah, thatÂ´s Sonny. Sometime, youÂ´ll get to know him. IÂ´m sure youÂ´ll like him."For a while, they walked along the beach. A full moon sometimes appeared from behind the clouds, and the soft wind was carrying a salty breeze from the ocean. As it was normal, Rico layed his arm around her shoulder, and Amber put her arm around his waist line.Before they returned to the restaurant, Rico took Amber in his arms and kissed her. Then, he asked, "Could you cope with the fact that IÂ´ve to spend many nights with Sonny observing a bad guy? That IÂ´ve to cancel dates because of my job, or that I suddenly have to go?"Amber sighed. "I donÂ´t know, Rico. IÂ´ve never had a relationship with a policeman before, but IÂ´d like to find out about the answers."They walked to the parking lot where Rico had parked his car. Together, they drove to RicoÂ´s apartment because Amber was sharing her apartment with three other students, and the landlady didnÂ´t allow men to visit them.Amber stayed until morning, and Rico took her home before he drove to the office. He was in a fantastic mood and that rarely changed during the following weeks.Only when Sonny lost his new girlfriend, Sarah, because of a ruptured cocaine bag in her stomach, he felt very sorry for his friend, and did everything to find out who was, in the end, responsible for SarahÂ´s death. (36 - Yankee Dollar).One Saturday, Rico and Sonny visited the wedding of state attorney Robert LangÂ´s daughter where Rico, for a while, thought about asking Amber one day if she wanted to marry him. (37 - One Way Ticket). He was sure that she would say yes.But then, what was merely a wedding party changed into a desaster. A killer, Phillippe Sargot, killed Robert Lang and two of the brides - maids, and this dreadful action distracted Rico from his thoughts.Even though, he had to work a lot and got rarely time to meet Amber, she never complaint about it. More than once, Castilllo or Sonny called somewhere at night to order him to come to a particular place.Amber, herself, often took her books with her to use RicoÂ´s absence for her studies.Rico was so happy that he told his mother about Amber, and he promised to visit her with Amber as soon as possible."With her, itÂ´s really serious, isnÂ´t it, pal?" Sonny asked one morning when he and Rico were driving through the city."Yes, it is. Amber is absolutely fantastic. She understands if we canÂ´t meet because of my job, or if I suddenly have to leave. EverythingÂ´s perfect, man", Rico happily replied."With Caroline and me, it was the same at the beginning. I donÂ´t wanna take influence on you, pal, but things change in the course of time.""Not with me and Amber", Rico claimed.When entering the office, Trudy came up to them to reach Rico a piece of paper. "There was a call for you... Jessica so and so. She urgently asks you to call her back", Trudy said.""Thanks, Trudy", Rico countered."Jessica?" Sonny jokingly asked. "DidnÂ´t you tell me, just a minute before, that her name is Amber? Did I miss something? Ricardo Tubbs, the Casanova of Miami?"Rico just stood there and staring at the number on the piece of paper. A very bad feeling spread out in his stomach."No, Sonny", he replied with a rough sounding voice. "This number is from the Biscayne General."And Rico dialed the number.IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: A BAD MESSAGE

January 24, 2011

In principle' date=' yes. ItÂ´s a mix of the things everybody can watch in the series and things that come out of my imagination. If you watch the episodes you can see that Rico isnÂ´t always there and I asked myself what could he be doing while the viewers watch what Sonny or any other Vice detectives are doing.This is the attempt to write the Book of Ricardo TubbsÂ´s life during his five years in Miami.[/quote'] Very creative, Christine. The last post doesn't look like much good news is coming though for poor Tubbs.

January 24, 2011

Thanks for your praise, Sonny-Burnett. Actually, I think that everybody knows that poor Tubbs will never marry the woman of his dreams.:cry:

February 4, 2011

78. A BAD MESSAGEThe rest of the day passed for Rico like a bad movie. He immediately forgot about the womanÂ´s name at the other end of the line. She talked about Miss Sullivan, an accident, and that he urgently should come to the Biscayne General because Miss Sullivan was in a very bad condition.Rico hung up. He looked at Sonny while telling, "SheÂ´s in hospital, Sonny. I... have to go to her. Immediately!"Even though, Sonny offered to take him to the hospital, Rico left in a hurry. He ran to his car, jumped in, and put his foot down.Rico drove through a red traffic light and forced the oncoming traffic to brake, but he didnÂ´t hear the angrily sounded horns.Before his eyes, he only saw Amber: on the beach with a beaming smile on her face, joking with him in his apartment, sweatting while working in her books for her studies, and laying in his arms.Rico couldnÂ´t understand what had happend. Everything was OK when heÂ´d taken her home a few hours ago."An accident", he could hear Jessica so and soÂ´s voice in his ear. It always repeated as if it was an echo.Rico stopped the car on the hospitals parking lot. He ran into the building and to the emergency room.On a chair in the waiting area, he discovered a woman with long, blond hair who was crying and blowing her nose in a hanky. Then, she raised her look."Mr. Tubbs?", she asked while getting up. "IÂ´m Jessica Finnegan, AmberÂ´s friend.Rico nodded. "Yes. Ricardo... Rico... thatÂ´s me. WhereÂ´s Amber? What has happened?"Again, Jessica sobbed. "On the way to the university, we... were walking along the sidewalk. Such an... idiot came racing along in his car. He... lost control. My key had fallen to the ground. Therefore... I stoppe to pick it up, but Amber... she didnÂ´t stop, and then..."Jessica violently started crying. "I wished that she would have stopped to wait for me."A door opened and a doctor left the room. Rico recognized her. It was the same doctor he and Sonny had spoken to after Lou Rodriguez had been badly injured by the Argentinian, but she didnÂ´t recognize him."Mr. Tubbs?", she asked.Rico nodded. "Yes, thatÂ´s me. How is she?""Not good", the doctor honestly replied. "SheÂ´s got various fractures, heavy head injuries, and also internal injuries. This guy must have been racing like a lunatic. SheÂ´s still in the operating room."While the doctor was leaving in a hurry, all her information was spinning around in RicoÂ´s mind. He felt very anxious. Every now and then, he looked at Jessica Finnegan who couldnÂ´t stop crying. Rico would have liked to comfort her, but the right words didnÂ´t come to his mind.Without saying a word, he started to pray while walking around, and always having a look at the clock that was hanging above the entrance.Hours later, the doctor returned. She looked very tired. At the same moment, a couple entered the room through another door. Amber and the woman looked so similar to each other that Rico immidiately recognized that this was her mother.The doctor spoke to all of them. She told them that it was very serious, and that she couldnÂ´t tell exactly how things would go on. They would have to see how things went during the next day.After she had left, Mr. Sullivan turned to Rico and gave him his hand. "Andrew Sullivan", he introduced himself, and with a quick look at his wife he added, "My wife, Kate. Amber has told us a lot about you."Rico seriously replied, "Rico Tubbs. Hello."Nice to meet you wouldnÂ´t have been suitable in a moment like this.While walking to AmberÂ´s room, Rico told Mr. and Ms. Sullivan what he knew about the accident.Later, they were sitting at AmberÂ´s bed and listening to the gadgetÂ´s squeaking and hissing noises.Ms. Sullivan talked a lot about Amber... how sheÂ´d been when she was a child, what nonsens she had made, what she had liked, and what she had disliked.Rico listened to her, but he forgot most of it immediately.Several times, a nurse walked into check the gadgets. She always gave them a little smile before she quietly disappeared again.With the beginning of the night shift, another nurse and a new doctor appeared. "Dr. Armstrong", Rico could read on the name plate that was pinned on the left side of her coat.Every time she walked in, she looked into AmberÂ´s eyes and watched the monitors.When the new day was dawning, she said, "I wonÂ´t promise you that much, but after sheÂ´d gotten through the night so well, her survival chances are very good now."The SullivanÂ´s hugged each other, but they didnÂ´t include Rico in their happiness. It didnÂ´t matter to him. He just sat at AmberÂ´s side and held her hand until he had to drive home, change clothes, and drive to the department.Life went on!He didnÂ´t have to neglect his job.But later, bad news was awaitng him.IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: TIME TO SAY GOOD - BYE

February 19, 2011

79. TIME TO SAY GOOD - BYEIn the office, Rico could hardly concentrate on his work. All his thoughts were twisting around Amber. Would she become healthy again? Would she be able to continue her studies to become a pathologist?"HowÂ´s Amber doing?" Sonny asked after entering the office. "The doctor said that sheÂ´s got good chances to survive, but thatÂ´s all she could tell us at this time", Rico tiredly replied. "Her parents had come from Savannah, and theyÂ´re with her now."Sonny comfortingly put his hand on RicoÂ´s shoulder. "She survived the first 24 hours, and IÂ´m sure that sheÂ´ll succeed. Amber is young and strong."Rico only nodded, but didnÂ´t answer.At noon, Rico drove to the hospital. There, Mr. Sullivan told, "WeÂ´ll take her with us to Savannah as soon as sheÂ´s movable."Rico took a deep breath. "I expected something like that", he admitted. "Can you tell me when this, probably, will happen?""If everything goes positive furthermore... in two or three days", Ms. Sullivan answered.When Rico left the Biscayne General, the sun was shining. A light wind was pushing little white clouds over the sky, and everything looked normal. But he knew that the wonderful story with Amber would end after sheÂ´d left Miami.Savannah wasnÂ´t that far away, but he had only little free time. Besides that, he had the feeling that, in opinion of AmberÂ´s parents, an ordinary policeman wasnÂ´t good enough for Amber.Even though, Ms. Sullivan had given him their phone number, Rico knew that they would only spend little time at home. If he reached them, they would snub him with standard sentences.On the way to the office, he always thought on how to make it possible that he could visit Amber two or three times per month. Rico also thought about an application for his transfer to Savannah.With one ear, he listened to "All I Need Is A Miracle" from Mike and the Mechanics, and he thought that he could need such a little miracle from time to time, too.Suddenly, a tomato red convertible raced towards him and got Rico back to reality. He didnÂ´t know if the driver had drank too much alcohol, had used drugs, or if he had lost control because of too much speed. But there was no time to think about it.Rico braked har and tore the steering wheel round to the right. Behind him, other drivers sounded their horns, tires were shreaking, and he coud hear a loud bang. In the rear - view mirror, he could see that someone had hit a streetlamp.Rico concentrated on his own way. He raced over the sidewalk and was very happy that the pedestrians succeeded to jump aside. For a second, Rico looked straight into the convertibleÂ´s driverÂ´s startled face. Then, the woman horrifiedly put her foot down.Rico succeeded to stop the Caddy. He quickly turned around in hope to reveal the convertibleÂ´s liscence plate number."I canÂ´t believe it!" he railed whiel the red convertible was leaving in a hurry.Rico put his foot down and turned the car round in a risky maneuver. Again, several drivers sounded their horns, but Rico didnÂ´t mind. In the radio, Howard Jones sang "Things can only get better.""Would be great", Rico groaned while searching for a way through the mess. This time he would catch her!Rico assumed that the woman had also recognized him and therefore disappeared in a hurry."Jeannie!" he mumbled, and braked hard when a Pick - up appeared from the left and blocked the street.Rico sounded his horn, holding the badge in his hand. The Pick - upÂ´s driver had just raised his left forefiger to his temple when realizing the badge. With an apologizing grin on his face, he scratched his head before he got out of RicoÂ´s way.But Jeannie had used the time to disappear.Rico was angry. He had forgotten about Jeannie because a lot of time had gone by after they had met. In the past, he had tried everything to find the swindler, but as all his investigations had ran to nothing, he had thought that Jeannie had left Miami.The next morning, Mr. Sullivan told him that they would take Amber with them the next day.Rico sat at AmberÂ´s bed, held her hand, and thought about their wonderful, but much too short time together.The whole night, he was sitting next to her, and in the morning, he watched as the nurses prepared Amber for the flight to Savannah.Inside, he felt empty. He couldnÂ´t think, but only stand there and look at her beautiful face. He wished that she opened her wonderful amber - colored eyes and said, " EverythingÂ´s gonna be OK, Rico."But she would never say it to him.He accompanied her to the roof were he stayed until the helicopter had disappeared in the bright blue sky.Rico still felt sad and empty when he drove to the office. To work would be the best that he could do, and fortunately he always had a lot of work to do.Rico thought about the Sullivans. He had given his private umber and the office number to them, and he had asked to call him immediately if something changed.Mr. Sullivan had said yes, but Rico was sure that heÂ´d flushed the piece of paper down the toilette before they had left Miami.Nevertheless, Rico was determined to call AmberÂ´s parents, and if he got the chance he would transfer to Savannah to be close to Amber.But things rarely go the way we would like them to go.IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: DEFINITELY THE END

February 26, 2011

80. DEFINITELY THE ENDDuring the following weeks, Rico often tried to call AmberÂ´s parents, but he only reached Mr. Sullivan for three times."SheÂ´s slowly feeling better", Mr. Sullivan told. "ItÂ´ll take a long time until she can stand on her own feet again, and nobody can tell if she ever can continue her studies.""Is it possible for me to visit her?" Rico wated to know."IÂ´m sorry, but I donÂ´t think that this is a good idea at this moment", Mr. Sullivan countered.Rico thanked him before he hung up in a sad mood.The next time when Rico reached him, Mr. Sullivan told that nothing had changed, that they needed to be patient, and, no, it still wasnÂ´t a good idea to come to Savannah.The third time, Mr. Sullivan told, " ItÂ´s praiseworthy that you feel obliged to stand by Amber, Mr. Tubbs, but you must understand that Amber has to think about herself now and weÂ´re very busy. IÂ´ll tell Amber about your calls and if she feels well enough, she should decide herself whether she wants to call you back."Rico could have contradicted to tell him that he didnÂ´t feel obliged to stand by Amber, but he didnÂ´t do it. He knew that it wouldÂ´ve been senseless, so as he knew that Amber never would call him back. He wasnÂ´t even sure if her parents told her about the calls of an ordinary policeman.Even though, he tried to distract himself with work, he couldnÂ´t exile the thoughts about Amber out of his mind. They had had such a wonderful time together and they had suited so well with each other."Probably, everything had been too perfect", he thought.One evening, Rico received a call from his mother. He had told her about AmberÂ´s accident and the things that had happend thereafter. Now, she wanted to know how he was feeling and to distract him with her little evey day life stories.She told him about Ms. Summer, whoÂ´d broken her foot when falling down the outside stairs, and of Alice ("IÂ´m sure that you remember her, Ricardo. She was always so in love with you!") whoÂ´d given birth to her 5th child. With an indignantly sounding voice, she told him about Jamie Williams, her neighbor to the right, whoÂ´d lost his driverÂ´s liscence because of too much alcohol, and about Uncle Joseph who was feeling fantastic."The next days, I distracted myself with searching for Jeannie again. Now, as I knew that she hadnÂ´t left Miami, I was determined to catch her. Of course, this work helped me not to think about Amber all the time", Rico told, and continued," I couldnÂ´t believe that, in the meantime, nobody had reported Jeannie, but so it was. Apparently, all the men whoÂ´d been taken in by her felt too embarrassed to go to the police. In fact, I couldnÂ´t find anything suitable to Jeannie."When Rico left the computer room a few days later, he overheard a talk between the colleagues Dean Frazer and Adam Barnes."You urgently should come with me, Adam", Frazer, a heavy man in his mid - thirties, urged his friend. "This girl is really worth seeing! SheÂ´s cute! SheÂ´s got fire! If she only looks at you...!" Dean didnÂ´t finish the sentence, but his sighing told Adam what he meant."I donÂ´t know", Adam countered. He looked absolutely opposite of Dean. "I donÂ´tlike clubs like the SEX WORLD. I donÂ´t go for these live shows.""I only visit this club because of her", Dean claimed.RicoÂ´s look followed the colleagues after theyÂ´d turned into another hallway. "Who visits optionally a dive like the SEX WORLD?" he mumbled.The next days, Rico was busy with several reports he urgently had to write and with his search for Jeannie. But he had to admit that the lady reacted in a very smart way, if she still fought her way through with the same trick.On one of the typically hot nights when Rico was with Sonny on the way to keep an eye on Gina and Trudy, Sonny suddenly said, " This morning, two ladies of the game prevention department showed up on the St. Vitus to take Elvis with them.""Why?" RIco startledly wanted to know.Sonny snorted. "You know him. Sometimes, he feels bored, and then he runs away in hope for some adventures. This time, heÂ´d visited a wealthy lady on her yacht. She was almost frightened to death, instituted a complaint, asserted her influence, and brought in the game prevention department.""I assume that you could calm them down and tell them that Elvis never can withstand a beautiful woman", Rico replied.Sonny gave him a quickly sideway glance. "The lady who had complaint was in her seventies and the ladies of the game prevention department had more hair on their teeth as we both have on our heads. I was happy when they left without taking Elvis with them."On the radio, there was rustling and cracking. Then, they could hear CastilloÂ´s voice, " Tubbs, Crockett, drive to the ANCHOR MOTEL. There, a body was found."IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: JACKIE

March 10, 2011

81. JACKIE According to Rico Tubbs"The story with Jackie was something that touched me a lot. Maybe it was because she was so young, even 18, or because that I, in contrast to her, knew that her dream of a Hollywood career would never come true. Someone whoÂ´s been working in a club like the SEX WORLD in Miami never becomes a star in Hollywood. But maybe it touched me so much because I urgently wanted to rescue her, but I couldnÂ´t.I got to know her during a raid. A young sailor had been found naked and stabbed to death in a room of the ANCHOR MOTEL. The burning clothes in the wastebasket and the macabre and bizarre picture that weÂ´d found at the scene of crime indicated to a murderer whoÂ´d already killed someone. (38 - LITTLE MISS DANGEROUS)We assumed that a hooker killed her johns. While checking the hookerÂ´s papers, I got to know Jackie Mc Seidan. SheÂ´d become 18 at the 21st of June and, as IÂ´d mentioned before, she was working in the SEX WORLD. Probably, she was the girl Dean Frazer had been talking about, but I never asked him about that.Jackie almost sounded shy while talking with me, but only half an hour later, I saw her and a man walking together to the ANCHOR MOTEL.I followed them and her john left the rented room in a hurry after Jackie had named me Detective Tubbs.Jackie thought that I wanted to arrest her. She offered to pay with sex because she claimed that it was a faster way to pay than to stand bail. Besides that, she told me that sex didnÂ´t touch her because she was used to it her whole life long. Therefore, I think that sheÂ´d had very bad experiences during her childhood, but I never could prove it.Her parents died when she was six years old. Since then, sheÂ´d been living in state orphanages. Apparently, she hadnÂ´t had more relatives or they denied to take care for the parentless child. That wasnÂ´t a nice thought.One year ago, she ran away from the orphanage. I assumed that she met Cat soon after that. Cat was her boyfriend, partner in the Live - Show in the SEX WORLD, and he sent her going on the game.At least, that was my point of view in the past. In my imagination, Jackie was the fallen angel and Cat was the devil. We thought that he was the killer, but we had to prove it.I urgently wanted to take her away from him. Therefore, I gave her the key for the safe house in the 95th Street. While she was walking to the house, Sonny and I went to the SEX WORLD to check CatÂ´s alibi, but it was waterproof.Cat was on stage every 30 minutes, and while he was laying there in the bed, bound with handcuffs in front of our eyes, the murderer got in quickly again. He stabbed a man to death in his car and lit it. Maybe, all those little hints should have made me keen of hearing. During the 11 years that JackieÂ´d been living in orphanages theyÂ´d sent her to five families, whoÂ´d sent her back to the orphanage some weeks or months later without telling anyone about their reasons. Besides that, there was her subliminal indication on the abuse in her childhood, and the fact that Jackie had no alibi for the time when the man died in his car.As I urgently wanted to help Jackie, I called Julia Harris, who was working for the Youth Welfare Department. More than once, IÂ´d spoken to her on the phone because of young prostitutes or runaways, but IÂ´d never met her in person.Julia offered that we could meet to talk about JackieÂ´s future the next day. I thought that this was a great idea. But then I found out that Jackie had absolutely misunderstood my offer for help. She thought that I was in love with her and wanted her for myself.I tried to make it clear to her that I only wanted to help her to start a new life. But when she asked me to stay over night, I said yes. Jackie wanted to sleep on the couch and offered me to take the bed. IÂ´d never expected that she had special plans.I thought that she had understood, that she had accepted that I only loved her like... a daughter or a very good friend, but I was mistaken. When she brought me a glass of juice, I didnÂ´t know that she had mixed a sleeping drug in it.I remember that I dreamed that Jackie had lit up a campfire in the middle of the living - room. I asked her what she was doing there. A campfire in a living - room...! What a crazy and dangerous idea!But then, I saw clearly that it wasnÂ´t a dream. In fact, sheÂ´d lit up a fire after binding my hands with handcuffs to the bed and taking my gun.No one can imagine how I felt at that moment. I was laying there in the bed, absolutely helpless. Jackie told me that she loved me and therefore didnÂ´t want to hurt me, but that sheÂ´d learned something.Then, she raised my gun to her temple. Desperately, I shouted at her and tried to tear off the wooden thing where my hands were bound to, but it was in vain. All I could do was to yell and to close my eyes when she pulled the trigger.I had wanted to rescue her, but I failed!"IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: FEELINGS OF GUILT

March 26, 2011

82. FEELINGS OF GUILTCastillo insisted that Rico had to be treated in hospital, even though he protested. Rico was laying on the stretcher and the dreadful pictures were twisting around in his mind. He reproached himself because he hadnÂ´t seen how things were about Jackie, even though he had had all necessary information.After the treatment, Rico insisted to go home."Why donÂ´t you stay with me on the boat for a while?" Sonny asked."Thanks, but I have to think about several things", Rico replied."Rico, you couldnÂ´t have changed anything", Sonny told while they were driving through the city. "You urgently wanted to help her. In such moments, we only see what we want to see. Everybody is sometimes mistaken and we all have made a wrong decision every now and then, but if you donÂ´t stop thinking about what you could have done differently, you go crazy."Rico didnÂ´t answer until Sonny stopped the car in front of the apartment complex on Sunset Drive. At a glance, Rico discovered the Caddy on the parking lot where Stan had driven it to."Thanks, partner, weÂ´ll meet in the office", he said."Like you want it", Sonny replied.Rico couldnÂ´t find sleep. He walked around in his apartment, watched how the sun was rising, and eventually he decided t drive to the beach to jog. But his thoughts were always twisting around Jackie.After noon, Rico drove to the department because he thought that it was much better to work than to sit at home and broad."How are you?" Castillo asked."Much better if I can work", Rico honestly replied."OK, write your report, then. The ladies and gentlemen of the internal affairs revision urgently want to know how it could happen that Jackie Mc Seidan used your gun for the suicide."Rico sat down at his desk, but it was harder to concentrate than he had thought. Again and again, the picutres of Jackie appeared in front of his eyes: Her sad look, her statement that sheÂ´d learned something, and as she raised his gun to her temple.After quitting time, Rico visited the church where he met Glenda. She smiled pleased to meet him."You havenÂ´t been here for a long time, Rico", she said."IÂ´ve been very busy", Rico replied.Glenda looked at him. "You look worried."Rico recalled, "Everything simply poured out. I told her what had happened with Jackie and Glenda listened without interfering me. She was a great listener. After IÂ´d finished, she said that one canÂ´t change or influence on everything. In her opinion, IÂ´d tried my very best to help Jackie."Glenda looked him up and down with a smile on her face. "YouÂ´re a policeman", she told."How do you know that?" Rico suprisingly asked. He was sure that he had never mentioned his job.Glenda smiled. "Maybe, IÂ´ve got an unbelievable rgeat power of deduction...""Or what?" RIco wanted to know. After heÂ´d told Glenda JackieÂ´s story, he felt relieved and GlendaÂ´s tries to cheer him up were very amusing. It reminded him of the time when he and Raphael sometimes had played what they had called "The Or What Game"."Maybe, IÂ´ve got second sight abilities." Glenda grinned from one ear to the other. "But maybe you only forgot to put your badge away. It sticks at your belt."Rico looked down and laughed.Rico admitted," Actually, Glenda had told me the same as Sonny, but it didnÂ´t really comfort me. If you want to do the best, but the result is the worst, nothing can comfort you.Fortunately, I didnÂ´t have much time to think about what had happened because after the case is before the case.Our next case ended up in the racing world. During a car chase between Sonny and me in the Daytona and a guy in a white Porsche, the Porsche driver threw a dead girl out of his car. (39 - FLORENCE ITALY)The car was owned by the racing driver Danny Tapper, but he swore that he hadnÂ´t killed the girl.SheÂ´d named herself Florence Italy, was a 17 year old prostitute who played the virginal school girl, and had been stain.On a very hot day, Sonny and I ran three times around the block in hope to find some evidence. After some hours of futile search, I had the idea to buy cappuchinos for Sonny and me. While waiting, I discovered the surveillance camera in the coffee - shop. I asked NickÂ´s mother, Chloe, about it and she gave us the latest films of the camera.While watching the film that had been made in the night when Florence Italy died, we discovered DannyÂ´s father, Frank, on it. He was driving the white Porsche, and we only could see him because he lit a cigarette after Florence got in his car.But Frank eluded arrest. At high speed, he crashed against a wall. The car was torn apart, and a civilian, who was close to the scene of the accident, got injured."IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: A MESSAGE FROM NEW YORK

April 9, 2011

83. A MESSAGE FROM NEW YORK"Are you OK?" Trudy asked when Rico and Sony returned to the office."Yeah", Rico murmured while hurrying to the coffee machineto getting himself a cup of coffee."IÂ´ve heard that someone got injured", Trudy said.Rico nodded. "Yes, a boy, but IÂ´m not sure if he really was there by accident or if he had tapped the police radio. He was hit by a piece of the wreckage of the car and needed to be taken to hospital."When Rico returned home in the evening, the red light on his answering machine was flashing. He pushed the return button and could hear a male voice, " Hello, Ricardo, this is Ryan Williams..."Ryan was his motherÂ´s neighbor and the father of Jamie who recently had lost his driverÂ´s liscene because of too much alcohol.Ryan cleared his throat as if he was searching for the right words... or for the way how to tell the news.A bad feeling spread out in RicoÂ´s stomach. That Ryan Williams called him couldnÂ´t mean something good."I call you because of your mother. This morning, she had had a heart attack and was taken to hospital. IÂ´ve tried to call you several times, but you werenÂ´t at home. I think that yu had to work. I would have called you in the office, but unfortunately, I couldnÂ´t find your office number.Your motherÂ´s condition is very bad. I donÂ´t know if itÂ´s possible for you, but it would be good if you can come to New York. If you tell me about your arrival time, I would call for you at the airport. My number is..."Immediately, Rico made a note before he called Castillo to ask him for vacation days. Thereafter, he booked a seat on the next flight to New York. Then, he dialed Ryan WilliamsÂ´ number."HereÂ´s Ricardo. What had happend, Mr. Williams?""I only can tell you what others have told me because I hadnÂ´t been with her when it happened. She was on the way by bus...""By bus?" Rico surprisingly interferred. "SheÂ´s got a car!""She sold it some weeks ago. DidnÂ´t you know about that?" Mr. Williams asked."It donÂ´t seems so", Rico murmured."Some weeks ago she changed the gas pedal and the brake pedal. She hit several parked cars and HillerÂ´s fence. She also cut some trash cans that were standing on the sidewalk.Thereafter she told that she was happy that no persons were injured, but he didnÂ´t want to risk that it was different next time. Therefore, she sold the car and rode by bus", Mr. Williams told.Rico was shocked that she hadnÂ´t told him about the accident. Maybe, she felt too embarrassed or she thought that it would make him worry... something that, in fact, would have happened."My plane takes off at 6:30 a.m. tomorrow", he told Mr. Williams."ThatÂ´s good", Mr. Williams countered. "Should I call for you?""Thanks, thatÂ´s a nice offer, but I think that IÂ´ll ride to the hospital immediately. Therefore, itÂ´ll be much better to take a taxi. YouÂ´ve done a lot for my mother. Thanks, Mr. Williams."Ryan repeated how good it was that Rico would come to New York before telling him the name of the hospital where Lilly Tubbs was lying in.After a restless night, Rico drove to the airport where he nervously waited for his flight to be called. He was glad when he could take his seat, but he hardly recognized the good - looking flight attendantÂ´s friendly smile.Then, he exhaustedly fell asleep and woke up again when the flight attendant softly put her hand on his shoulder."Sir, you must fasten your seat - belt now", she advised.Of course, the taxi Rico was riding in got into the usual New York traffic jam."I hope that youÂ´re not in a hurry", the driver said. "Time is what you need here."Rico didnÂ´t have time, but he kept quiet because to complain wouldnÂ´t change the traffic situation.Eventually, they reached the hospital. Rico asked for Lilly Tubbs and was sent to the intensive care unit. There, he was asked to wait for Dr. Linden, a heavy African - American with white hair who only reached Rico to the shoulder."She had a heart attack while riding by bus, broke down, and got several injuries when she fell on her face. So, please donÂ´t get startled when you see her. One of the other passengers recognized the symptoms, and the bus driver called the ambulance by radio", the Dr. told."How are her chances?" Rico wanted to know.Dr. Linden sighed. "Not very good."Even though, Dr. Linden had warned him, Rico got startled when he saw his motherÂ´s heavy swollen and plastered face. Within all the tubes, she seemed to be so little and breakable. In his memories, sheÂ´d never been so little.Rico sat down next to her bed, held her hand, and told her that he was there now, and that everything was going to be OK soon. But only two hours later, the gadgets gave alarm. Immediately, the nurses and several doctors hurried into the room.They pushed Rico aside and he moved back away to the wall. He stood there, listened to the shouted orders and watched as necessary thngs were brought into the room.He felt as if he was stuck in a nightmare. A bad feeling told him that he, again, would lose someone he loved.Suddenly, it was over.Dr. Linden sympathically looked at him. "IÂ´m sorry."Lilly Tubbs was dead.The next days, Rico had a lot of things to do. First, he called Castillo to tell him about his motherÂ´s death. He had to prepare for the burial, and to clear out his parental home that was owned by the church. After George died, they generously allowed Lilly to stay. Now, Rico had to clear out everything. He kept some particular memories, but sold the most things.When he returned to Miami one week later, there was nothing, except of the familyÂ´s burial side, that bound him to New York."Then, I got to know Cindy", Rico recalled.IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: WORSE THAN A BAG OF FLEES

April 19, 2011

84. WORSE THAN A BAG OF FLEESRico recalled, "We were called because the driver of a company that delivered medicine to hospitals, practices, and pharmacies had been found seriously injured in his van. Later, he died. (40 - FRENCH TWIST)We found out that a cardboard box with three kilos of pharmaceutical morphium was missing. As it had only been declared as medicine, the thief must have known about the real content.The next morning, we discovered the picture of a 17 year old witness, Cindy, who had watched the murder and had taken photos of it on the front page of the MIAMI STANDARD. We had not even known that there was a witness.I got the order to take care for Cindy. At the beginning, I thought that this was an easy job, but I was mistaken. I knew nothing about girls of this age, but maybe, Cindy was particularly naive.I told her that it had been foolish to put her photo and her name in the newspaper, but she saw it differently. In her opinion, the police could use the photo, sheÂ´d taken of the murder to find the murderer in a jiffy, and then everything would be OK. She didnÂ´t waste a thought on going to the police immediately without using the reroute over the newspaper.I took her to a safe house, even though she didnÂ´t want to go there. She told me that her boyfriend, David, got injured when a crazy racing driver died of suicide. David was in hospital and she urgently wanted to visit him.In the meantime, we found out that the murdererÂ´s name was Sirad Bendi. He was very dangerous and wanted in different countries. I told Cindy about that, but it didnÂ´t impress her.When Sonny visited us in hiding to introduce Danielle Hier, an Interpol agent, to us, Cindy took several photos. As a feeling in my stomach told me that something was wrong with Danielle, I waited until Sonny and Danielle had left and used a moment where Cindy wasnÂ´t looking to take the film out of her camera.Unfortunately, I fell asleep after I laid down on the couch for a rest. Cindy used this moment to leave the house... and I woke up when a car left with screeching tires. It was the car of CindyÂ´s friend who had called for her to take her to David.I was steamed when I reached the hospital and I didnÂ´t give her time to say goodbye to David.Unfortunately, Bendi had found out about the relationship between Cindy and David. He knew that she would come to the hospital and waited there for her.When Cindy and I left the hospital, he shot at her and injured her right thigh. Therefore, she had to stay in hospital, and I got time to check Danielle Hier. I asked Trudy for support, but she couldnÂ´t find anything. Nevertheless, I mistrusted Danielle, even though I canÂ´t tell what had caused this feeling.However, I recognized SonnyÂ´s interest in the lady, but I wasnÂ´t sure if it was a good idea.Danielle gave us the indication that Bendi was staying in the rundown BLUE WATERS hotel. This indication had almost cost SonnyÂ´s and my life.She gave me the address of another hotel where Bendi apparently had been seen, but all I found in his room was the body of the young hotel employee whoÂ´d parked my car a few minutes before.I was sure that Danielle wanted to lur us into a trap. Suddenly, I had the idea to check her vice versa. First, weÂ´d checked her as an agent and everythig seemed to be OK, but now I asked Trudy to check her as a criminal... and we found out that her pure white vest was dirty inside. There was an international warrant of arrest from New Zealand where she was wanted as a terrorist.I wanted that she left Sonny alone, that she left us all alone, and disappeared off Miami. Therefore, I visited her in her hotel room. I made it clear to her what she had to expect if she stayed.But Danielle had different plans. Somehow, she found out that we wanted to catch Bendi during a deal, and she must have known that Bendi would prefer to run away than to get caught.I followed Bendi when he fled and saw as Danielle shot him. While coming up to me to give me the gun, she played the harmless woman who just had done me a favor. In fact, she also wanted to shoot me, but let it look as if Bendi and I had shot each other. If Sonny hadnÂ´t intervened, her mean plan, in fact, would have worked and I would be history for a long time."IN THE NEXT CHAPTR: ABOUT DEALERS AND JUDGES

May 8, 2011

85. ABOUT DEALERS AND JUDGES"Is everything OK", Castillo asked the next morning."Yes", Sonny answered, and Rico added, " Very well.""Write your reports until noon, then, and thereafter take care for th Ortega case. HeÂ´s responsible for two murders within five days. I want to get him off the streets", Castillo explained before he vanished into his office.RicoÂ´s look followed him. "HeÂ´s always friendy and correct, but heÂ´s got the charme of a freezer.""You say it", Sonny replied. "Did you ever hear the name Ortega?"Rico filled his cup with coffee. "Concerned to a special person? No, but as a name..." Rico put sugar in the cup and while stirring he added, "South America. Apparently Colombia. Drugdealer. If he sells coffee, his file wouldnÂ´t be lying on our desks at noon."With a big grin on his face Sonny told, "Rico, your power of deduction is a dream.""Ortega was a nightmare", Rico recalled and continued, "For two weeks, we tried everything possible to get close to Ortega to set up business. Two minutes after OrtegaÂ´s men appeared our man was dead. After four minutes Stan found out that Ortega was female. For three further weeks, we collected evidence because we urgently wanted to see Isabella Ortega disappearing behind bars, but after a trial of only ten minutes, she was set free with only paying a ridiculous bail of $5,000. (41 - THE FIX)We were steamed when we returned to the office, and we were sure that there could only be one reason for the quick and much too lenient judgement: Judge Berguson was corruptible.But that didnÂ´t suit to the man who was claimed to be a hard judge and feared with the criminals.Berguson grew up in the slums where the future prospects tend towards the freezing point. But Berguson, who was almost 7 ft tall, had a great talent for basketball. He became a pro, got a stipendium, and studied law. By the way, his son, Matt, got his talent from him.A lawyer, Benedict, was the connection to Berguson. If a wealthy criminal asked him for help, he paid Berguson a special sum. For that, Berguson made the ridiculous lenient judgements.It didnÂ´t take long until we found out that Berguson was a gambler who always lost. Sometime, he borrowed money from Charlie Pagoll, a loan shark. But Pagoll wanted more payback than Berguson was willing to pay: He should sacrifice his sonÂ´s talent and with it his sonÂ´s future.For that reason, Berguson killed Pagoll. Sonny, who wanted to stop Berguson, had to see as the judge raised the gun to his temple and pulled the trigger.""WhereÂ´s Sonny?"Rico asked while he and Stan were leaving BergusonÂ´s house where they had spoken with Matt."On the boat", Stan replied. "At least, I think so. He was shattered. One canÂ´t pack such occurences into a box and put it into the wardrobe. I should give you his regards and tell you that he wants to be alone.""ThatÂ´s not a good idea", Rico contradicted, got in his car, and drove to the marina.Sonny was sitting on the boat, fishing, and next to him there was standing an amazingly filled bottle of whisky.Rico sat down next to him."DonÂ´t you speak with Switek any longer?" Sony asked in an unfriendly way."You shouldnÂ´t be alone now, man", Rico countered."IÂ´m OK. Thanks", Sonny cut him short.Rico looked afar."One tries to forget bad things like that, but one canÂ´t. Sometimes, you suddenly think about what had happened because of a song, a name... Sometimes, I think on Emma Richardson... when I listen to California Dreaming. Possibly itÂ´s because the lines suit so well...All the leaves are brownand the sky is grey...You know what I mean... or if I see a girl with long red hair."For a moment, he stopped. Music was drifting to them. "I had just finished the Police Academy and I felt great. I was a policeman now! It was early in the morning. All bars were closed, and the first people were on the way to their jobs. I saw her standing on a railing...""$ 350", Sonny interferred before he drank a sip of whisky."What do you mean?" Rico surprisingly asked."My hourly wage for psychological consultation, Tubbs."Angrily, Rico jumped up. "Damn, Crockett, one canÂ´t put such an occurence file away. You can get plastered today, but what are you gonna do tomorrow? Next week or next month?""IÂ´m not a greenhorn like youÂ´ve been in the past... whatever had happened then! And now... leave me alone!"Rico left, but his thoughts roamed back to that day in fall 1972...IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: AN OCTOBER MORNING IN 1972

May 21, 2011

86. AN OCTOBER MORNING IN 1972In summer, Rico had left the academy with a fantastic degree. He was proud to be a policeman now, was thirsting for action, convinced to know everything a good policeman should know, and to be well - prepared.The colleague, he close should work with was Graham Masterson, an experienced policeman. Graham was about 6 ft tall and slim with wide shoulders. When he smiled, dimples were formed in his cheeks. If Graham slowly got out of his car, it was very impressive, and with a friendly handshake, one got tears in his eyes."YouÂ´re lucky", Graham told at the beginning of their partnership. "The area that weÂ´ve to take care for is rather silent." He added while grinning, "I brought them all up to behave well.""Hopefully, it isnÂ´t boring", Rico replied while also grinning.Graham laughed. "DonÂ´t worry, Rico. We always find some guys who need to get their memory refreshed in how to behave in our area."Four weeks later, Graham seemed to be very excited. Rico found out that his partner had stopped smoking. Instead, he was chewing gum all the time. He also used another after shave."What has happened?" Rico wanted to know and sniffed while getting into the car. Actually, GrahamÂ´s after shave had a tangy smell, but the one he had used that day smelled more bloomy."ItÂ´s named Adventure", Graham told with a smile on his face. He added, " Carol likes it."It was evening and the darkness was covering the city like a black cloth. Everywhere around, the neonlights of the clubs were shining. Several people were on their way home from work while others were preparing for a long night.Rico let his eyes travel around. That was the adventage if one hadnÂ´t to drive himself. One could have a look at all the pretty girls who were walking along the sidewalk."IÂ´ve got a request, Rico", Graham asked while driving through the streets.Rico looked at him. "WhatÂ´s it about?""ItÂ´s about Carol. You know about our working hours and Carol... sheÂ´s working as a waitress in BAR 13 that closes at 4 a.m..""YouÂ´re in love", Rico told and Graham nodded.Graham stopped at a red traffic light. A homeless was carrying her few personal belongings in a cart. She was unsteady on her feet, and her lips were moving as if she was talking to herself."What kind of favor are you asking for, Graham?" Rico asked.Graham took a deep breath. The traffic lights turned green, and Graham put his foot down. He turned around a corner and left the neonlights behind."Our lat round is always very silent, isnÂ´t it?" Graham asked."Right", Rico conteed. "Nothing ever happens.""Would you take me to BAR 13 at 4 a.m. every now and then, make the last round on your own, and pick me up with Carol, then?" Graham wanted to know. "Carol isnÂ´t working in that job for a long time, and at this time, her working hours arenÂ´t great: from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. and from 10 p.m. till 4 a.m.. You wonÂ´t have to do it every night, but maybe for two or three times per week."Rico didnÂ´t think about it. "WeÂ´ll make it that way. Nothing will happen because weÂ´re working in a silent area, donÂ´t we?"Graham smiled. "Nevertheless, IÂ´ll give you CarolÂ´s phone number for emergencies.""I donÂ´t think that IÂ´ll have to use it", Rico countered.For six weeks everything went well. Three times per week, Graham left the policecar at 4 a.m. in front of BAR 13, and Rico made the last round on his own. Then, he put up with a little reroute to pick Graham up at CarolÂ´s apartment. Together, they arrived a the headquarters, and nobody found out about their little deal......until October 31st.Rico had switched the radio on and was singing aloud, "All the leaves are brown... and the sky is greyIÂ´ve been for a walk... on a winterÂ´s day..."Suddenly, he discovered someone on a little bridge in the lights of his headlights. It was a girl! She was just climbing onto the railing, and her long, red hair was flowing in the wind.Rico stopped the car, switched the music off, and took the radio to tell the colleagues in the head office about his observation. Then, he left the car. The cold wind, harbinger of the approaching winter, hit him.Rio closed the zipper to the top while slowly walking up to the girl. His thoughts were spinning around like the things that were spun around by the wind: candy paper, chewing gum paper, stubs, plastic bags, and other things people thoughtlessly had thrown away.Rico assumed she was just 15 or 16 years old and lean as a rake. She was wearing a light blue skirt and a much too thin yellow pullover. Her hands were clinching the metal rope that was leading from the railing up to the iron ow that towered to the sky."Stay or I jump!" she threated.Rico obeyed her order. What did he learn in the academy?"Try to talk to the person", his trainer had told. "Try to win the personÂ´s trust, and offer your help.""WhatÂ´s your name?" Rico asked."Emma. Emma Richardson", the girl replied."My name is Rico. Why do you wanna do that, Emma?""ThatÂ´s my matter", Emma snottily countered.Rico took a deep breath. "Why donÂ´t you talk with me? IÂ´m a good listener."Emma gave him a quick look before she told him, "I donÂ´t anna talk, certainly not with a man! Leave me alone!""I could call a female colleague if you prefer to talk to a woman", Rico offered."I - donÂ´t - wanna - talk!" Emma angrily shouted. "Get it and leave me alone!"RicoÂ´s brain was working at full speed. What the hell should he do now? "DonÂ´t throw your life away, Emma", he urgently asked. "Sometimes, one thinks that somethingÂ´s very bad, but...""Keep your advice", Emma interrupted. She staggered when a strong gust of wind hit her. While uttering a little cry, her hands were clinching the metal rope. Nevertheless, she ordered, " Stay!""Emma, you donÂ´t wanna do that. Please, let me help you!" Rico implored.From afar, they could hear wailing sirens that were quickly coming closer. Emma seemed to know that they were on the way because of her. She looked at Rico. The wind was dragging at her hair as if he wanted to push her to a decision."IÂ´m sorry, Rico, but I must do it", Emma said before her hands let off the metal rope."Noooooo!" Rico shouted while dashing forward with his hands extended towards Emma.For a moment, he saw her falling. Her body was turning around in the air before she disappeared in the endless blackness. When he reached the place where Emma had been standing, he could hear as the body hit the water.Rico stood at the railing and startledly looked into the darkness. Only at the places where the lights of the streetlamps or the moonlight hit the water, he recognized the moving of the black, winding its way monster that had swallowed Ema."IÂ´ve failed", Rico horrifiedly thought. "The first bad situation, the first possibility to prove that IÂ´m a good policeman, and IÂ´ve failed!"Suddenly, he thought on Graham. In a few minutes, the colleagues he had called himself by the radio would arrive. They would find out that Rico was alone... something that wasnÂ´t allowed. Then, they would find out that Graham had left duty without permission.For Rico, it hadnÂ´t been a problem, above all, heÂ´d been sure that Graham would have done the same for him if heÂ´d been in love. But their boss would see things differently.Graham would have to bear bad consequences, something Rico urgently wanted to hinder.Rico thought about the phone booth not far away, but he knew that he had to hurry. How much time did he have to call Carol and order Graham to come to the bridge?While thinking about what to say to Graham, Rico ran along the road to the phone booth. Again and again, he turned around to find out whether the colleagues are coming.Breathless, he reached the phone booth. With trembling fingers, he took the piece of paper with CarolÂ´s number on it out of his wallet, but it took three tries to put the coin into the damn slot before he could dial CarolÂ´s number.Graham picked up the phone as if he had known that Rico was at the other end of the line. Rico told him where he should come to immediately. "ItÂ´s about a girl, Emma Richardson, who jumped the bridge."Then, he hung up and returned to the bridge.From the other side, the colleagues were arriving while a policeboat was coming closer over the water.The first car stopped next to him and the colleagues jumped out."WhereÂ´s she?" an elderly, heavy serveant asked.RicoÂ´s right hand showed to the river. "She jumped", he replied. "I... couldnÂ´t stop her! She simply... jumped!""And whreÂ´s your colleague?" the man wanted to know while his partner was telling the boat crew by radio that he girl was somewhere in the water.Ricos hand showed into the direction where the policecar had come from. "Somewhere there!"The elderly colleague put his hand on RicoÂ´s shoulder. "Your first case of a suicide?" he sympathetically asked.Rico nodded without taking his look from the water where the floodlights were switched on now to search for EmmaÂ´s body."ItÂ´s never easy to cope with something like that", the colleague said. "And one never gets used to it. DonÂ´t accuse yourself because if someone wants to kill himself heÂ´ll do it."Sometime, Graham arrived. At the same time, the boat crew told that they had found the body.Graham put his arm around RicoÂ´s shoulder. "LetÂ´s drive to the office, Rico.""IÂ´ll never forget what youÂ´ve done for me, Rico", Graham said later while they were leaving the headquarter after quitting time. "IÂ´m really sorry that this had happend and if I had known...""You couldnÂ´t know it", Rico interrupted. "I know that you would have done the same for me, or not?""Yes, in any case", Graham countered.Six months later, they got into a bank robbery with a shoot out. Rico and Graham had driven the gangsters into a dead line behind a company where pallets were piled up and several vehicles were parked.Rico had wanted to change his location to find a better place from where he could fire at the gangsters, but he had overseen one of the guys who had coverd behind an excavator."Rico, look out!" Graham suddenly shouted.Rio spun around while letting himself fall to the ground. He saw as Graham dashed forward and jumped into the line of fire. The bullet that was meant for Rico, hit GrahamÂ´s chest and threw him backwards closer to Rico while GrahamÂ´s bullet fatally hit the gangster."We need an ambulance!" Rico shouted while running up to Graham. He took him in his arms and desperately asked, " What the hell did you think when doing something silly like that, Graham?"Graham looked at him. The red spot on his shirt grew more and more and it was hard for him to breathe. "You... would have... done the ame... for me, wouldnÂ´t you?" he asked.Rico just nodded while holding his friend in his arms. Graham coughed. "Please... tell Carol... that I love her and... that I wished... that we could... have spend more... time together...""YouÂ´ll tell her about that yourself", Rico replied.Graham tried to smile. "I... donÂ´t think... so", he softly whispered before he closed his eyes. A last sigh came out of his mouth. Then, Graham was dead.Rico held him tight until a colleague put his hand on his shoulder to tell Rico that he had to get up now.Graham Masterson had been the first colleague Rico sympathized with who he had lost.IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: CAREN

June 7, 2011

87. CARENSonny was in a bad mood when he entered the office the next morning. Despite his efforts to fight against his bad breath, Rico could see that Gina disgustedly pulled faces when Sonny talked to her."No offence, Sonny, but with your breath you could kill parts of a town", she admitted.Sonny didnÂ´t say a word, just grumbled.Rico looked at him, but Sonny ignored his friend. Therefore, Rico took the file that was lying on his desk and switched the radio on. Recently, heÂ´d discovered a new channel, and he loved to listen to "Captain HookÂ´s" cool music. At this time, Tina Turner was singing "We DonÂ´t Need Another Hero.""Switch it off, Tubbs!" Sonny beefed. "This is an office, not a bar!""We donÂ´t need to have a mood as if this is a burial because of your headache", Rico replied.Without saying a word, Sonny grabbed the plug, and pulled it out of the socket.Rico looked at him, shook his head, and paid his attention to the file again. It was about the dealer Ruben Raydolpho, who apparently had connections to the big and very carful dealer Fuente. Vice wanted to get them both.Rico recalled," Fuente was a tough nut to crack who was a headache to the drugsquad for a long time, but there was only little information about him, and we didnÂ´t even own a new photo of Mario Fuente. But there was more infoormation about Raydolpho. He pulled the threads from the mainland while Fuente was living on a giantic yacht that he apprently never left."Sonny followed Rico when he walked to the wash room. "IÂ´m sorry because of yesterday", he said and addd while grinning, "I should have shared the whiskey with you. Probably, my headache would be half that bad, then."Sonny took a tablet, drank a sip of water, and washed his face."ItÂ´s OK", Rico replied. "Generously in consider of your headache, you can keep it."While drying his face, Sonny asked, "The girl youÂ´ve been talking about yesterday... what about her?""Emma Richardson", Rico countered. "She was 16 and head over heels in love with a boy of the same age who had the sensivity of a steam hammer. She wrote him a love letter and he read it aloud in the classroom before telling everybody that he didnÂ´t go for beanpoles without breasts and red hair. That was what EmmaÂ´s best friend had told us.""A nice guy", Sonny ironically replied.Rico nodded. "Emma was so desperate because of the disgrace that she didnÂ´t go to school for three days. On the fourth day, she jumped off a bridge."Rico didnÂ´t talk about Graham and the fact that the colleague wasnÂ´t with him when the thing with Emma happened."YouÂ´ve been right with what you had said yesterday, Rico. No one on the academy can prepare us for things like that. LetÂ´s return to work!"Rico recalled, "The new case was very fiddly because it seemed as if there was no possibility to get close to Fuente. When Jesus Merotto, a criminal Sonny had brought to prison, asked him to come because of some information, we really hoped for a usable indication. Instead, he killed himself in front of SonnyÂ´s eyes with a captive bold pistol.But Vice wasnÂ´t the only department that was behind Fuente. In the office, we got to know Kevin Cates, who was working for Vice South Beach, and Earl Hodges of drug squad New Orleans.I disliked Cates because he seemed to be as slippery as an eel.Sonny wasnÂ´t keen on working with them either, but Castillo was inexorable. So, we asked Cates to accompany us to FRANKIEÂ´S AND JOHNNYÂ´S in the evening. It was a recommended club with walls of mirrors and disco balls under the ceiling. Apparently, the hottest songs were played there.One of the owners was Frank Taylor who knew many Vice detectives because his sister, Amanda, was one of our bug specialists.Cates was a boring man who sat around and stared in his glass the whole time. But before he left, he claimed that he could bring us to Fuente who knew him as the dealer Harmon."Later, the club got more and more crowded. Rico let his look travel around. He saw Sonny with a black- haired woman who even put her arms around his neck. Then he discovered a slim, sun tanned woman with brown hair. She was sitting at the other end of the bar, looked at him, and smiled. Rico also smiled."ItÂ´s really time that you discover her", Frank Taylor told with a big grin on his face. "I bet that sheÂ´s stared some holes into your body.""The main thing is that the drinks stay inside", Rico recalled without taking his look from the woman. "Do you know her?"Frank shook his head. "Not really. SheÂ´s been coming to the bar for three or four evenings, and leaves after drinking two Long - Island - Ice - Teas.""Please make two of them for me", Rico asked.Kate Bush was singign "Running Up That Hill" while Rico was walking up to the brown - haired woman, holding two glasses of Long Island Ice Teas in his hands.He passed Sonny who was still kuddling with the black - haired woman and paid only little attention on him.Rico reachd one of the glasses to the woman. "With the best recommendations", he said.She took the glass, and asked while smiling, "From who?""From me", Rico laughed while raising his glass."Not the wittiest wy to get to know me, but nice. IÂ´m Caren.""Ricardo", Rico replied.CarenÂ´s look travelled around. "A nice club. It reminds me of my favorite club in Youngstown, Ohio. ThatÂ´s where I come from. Have you ever been there?"Rico shook his head. "No, not yet, but maybe, IÂ´ll make up for it one day. So, youÂ´re only on vacation in the beautiful city of Miami?""Business.""The Power Of Love" was booming out of the loudspeaker. Rico and Caren put their glasses on the bar before they walked to the dancefloor. While turning around to the rhythm of the music, Rico asked, "How long do you stay in Miami?""Only for three more days", Caren replied. "I would have returned home already, but IÂ´d to stay longer because of complications.""IÂ´m very thankful to the complications. What are you doing in Youngtown?""IÂ´m working for an authority. Nothing exciting. And you?" Caren asked."IÂ´m also working for an authority", Rico replied while grinning. "Nothing exciting either."It got more and more crowded and it was hard to breath because of all the smoke that was filling the air. As the volume turned louder, Rico and Caren decided to leave sometime. With a taxi, they rode to the motel where Caren had rented a room.The receptionist didnÂ´t pay any attention to them when Caren asked her for the key. She gave it to Caren before she became absorbed in her book again. With another couple who entered the lobby a moment later, they waited for the elevator to come"I think you should have done something", the dressed to kill blond woman railed. She was wearing a much too tight kiwi -colored dress.While they were entering the elevator, her frail partner mumbled, "Should I fight with someone for you?""Which floor?" Rico asked."Third floor", the woman replied while first curiously looking Rico up and down then Caren before her interested look returned to RicoA moment later, the couple left the elevator. Rico and Caren rode to the sixth floor, and walked in the semi - darkness along the hallway to CarenÂ´s room.It was a typical motel room with a queen sized bed with a floral quilt on it, a sitting area, a built - in - cupboard, and a sideboard of light wood.Rico took Caren in his arms, but she mumbled," Please, gimme five minutes.""But not longer", Rico replied and kissed her before he let her go.Caren vanished into the bathroom. Immediately, Rico grabbed her purse Caren carelessly had put onto the sideboard. After the story with Jeannie, Rico became more careful. Somthing like that would never happen to him again.He found her identity card. Her name was Caren Barkley and, in fact, she came from Youngstown. But then, he discovered something else: A badge. Caren was a policeman.Relieved, he put the things back into her purse and put it back onto the sideboard.At the same moment, the bathroom door opened. Rico stopped breathing when Caren appeared only wearing a blow of nothing.IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: MONEY, MONEY, MONEY

June 22, 2011

88.MONEY, MONEY, MONEYThe next morning, Rico left the hotel after a breakfast together with Caren. Even though, it was early, it was rather warm outside. No wind was blowing and only the clouds, that were covering the sky, hindered the sun to shine hotter.Caren had told him that she would stay for three more days in Miami before she had to return to Youngstown where she was working for the drug squad. Rico didnÂ´t reveal that he knew about her job already, but told her that was also a policeman.Before they separated, they exchanged phone numbers. Then, Rico drove to the St. Vitus, but entered the boat carefully because it could have ended up embarrassing if the black haired woman... possibly undressed... still was there.Rico wanted to shout SonnyÂ´s name to tell him that he was there, but then he heard the very familiar noise of the releasing of a safety catch. He was startled. If Sonny wanted to cuddle with the lady furthermore, it was OK! But it would have been enough to tell him: "Rico, youÂ´re disturbing!"Instead, he was looking into the muzzle of SonnyÂ´s gun now!Rico recalled, "A bit later, Sonny told me that someone had burgled the boat, had turned everything upside down, and wrote on the glass top of SonnyÂ´s desk, WHEREÂ´S THE MONEY, CROCKETT?Sonny, of course, had had no idea what the burglar had been talking about, but because of the mess he lost all interest on cuddling with the lady.A few minutes later, Cates told us on the phone that heÂ´d arranged a date for lunch with Raydolpho, and later, while sitting in the restaurant, it suddenly was no problem to meet with Fuente.Raydolpho promised to arrange it, but I was scepical because Raydolpho called Cates, whom he knew as the dealer Luke Harmon "my friend", and, actually, everybody knew that Fuente never met with anyone.""ItÂ´s really nice", Larry told them when Rico and Sonny returned to the office. "ItÂ´s not that big, but itÂ´s big enough for me and Harriet."Stan looked at his partner as if he doubted LarryÂ´s thinking. "Larry, Harriet is a goldfish. All she needs is a place where you can put her glass on.""YouÂ´ve found a new apartment?" Rico asked while sitting down on his desk chair."Yes, I move in on Saturday, and I want to invite you and Sonny to my barbecue on Saturday evening."Later, Rico called Caren, whom he wanted to meet with in the evening. He told her that he would have business to do and didnÂ´t know when it was finished. Therefore, he promised to call her after he returned home.Rico recalled, "In the afternoon, I rode with Sonny to FuenteÂ´s yacht. Actually, Cates should have accompanied us to wear a bug because nobody would have searched with him for it. But Cates had called and told that he had to go to the dentist because of bad toothache.FuenteÂ´s yacht was very impressive. White huge and absolute luxury. Fuente himself looked as different as I had imagined him to look like. He was a black - haired thin man with a long nose. His skin looked unhealthy as if he rarely saw the sun. Vampires are described that way in movies.After about three minutes on his yacht, we knew that we were lured into a trap. Fuente knew that Crockett and Burnett were the same person and he thought that Sonny had stolen his $3,000000. We had to react in a very fast way, kill FuenteÂ´s men and flee with him as a pledge. When the distance between us and the rest of his men was big enough, we ordered him to swim back to his yacht.We were worried and sure that there must be a leak somewhere. Someone had let out that Crockett and Burnett were the same person.In the office, Sonny was ordered to come to CastilloÂ´s office. Cates and Hodges had vanished in there a few minutes before. I was just having a look at some papers on my desk when I could hear as Sonny flipped his lid. Surprised, I waited for him to leave the office. Then, I learned that Hodges wasnÂ´t a detective of drug squad New Orleans, but was put on to Sonny to find out where Sonny had hid the money.Of course, Sonny hadnÂ´t taken the money.We talked about a plan. At the end, we came to an agreement on that Sonny should try to sell Fuente his own money. As I couldnÂ´t help him with that, I called Caren to spend the evening with her."The next day, Rico stayed in the office while Sonny and Cates drove to FuenteÂ´s yacht. Rico was worried because of his mistrust against Cates. Everything seemed to be too easy since Cates appeared. The feeling that something was wrong with the man grew more and more.Rico searched in FuenteÂ´s file for evidence, and suddenly he discovered what heÂ´d overlooked before: Cates was the connection to Fuente!He called CatesÂ´department. The colleague there confirmed that Cates has been hunting after Fuente for a long time. He was with Fuente when Merotto had stolen the money, and he had volunteered to convict Sonny as a thief.Rico recalled, "I moved heaven and earth to follow Sonny, Raydolpho, and Cates.I knew nothing about CatesÂ´ plans, but I was sure that it should have end up fatally for Sonny.First, we discovered RaydolphoÂ´s body drifting on the water, a moment later, we saw a lot of bills, and at the end we found the boat with Sonny and CatesÂ´ body. Sonny had shot him in emergency. Fuente escaped. I donÂ´t know what had warned him, but when we arrived at the place where his yacht had been anchored for a long time, it had disappeared."IN THE NEXT HAPTER: OF POEMS AND PIRATES

August 15, 2011

89. OF POEMS AND PIRATESOn the way to the office, Sonny had told Rico that Cates had stolen the money to enhance his pension. But Sonny hoped that Fuente didnÂ´t send him a new demand for payment."I donÂ´t think so", Rico calmed him down. "Tonight, the News will send a report with pictures of the in the water drifting bills and an indication to the corrupt and now dead policeman."In the evening Rico met with Caren for the last time and the next morning he took her to the airport."If you ever come to Youngstown, donÂ´t forget to visit me", Caren told while they were hugging each other."And if you ever come to Miami again, donÂ´t forget to get in touch with me. YouÂ´ve got my address and my phone number", Rico replied, but he didnÂ´t believe to see her again..In the evening, Rico visited LarryÂ´s barbecue. They drank to the new house with the little garden Larry was living in now.The goldfish glass with Harriet in it was standing on the window bench in the living - room from where Harriet had a fantastic view over the garden. But, in fact, Rico thought that Harriet wasnÂ´t really interested in the view."DonÂ´t irritate the employees of the gas supply again", Rico was kidding."IÂ´ll do my very best", Larry replied with a big grin on his face.While having something to drink Sonny said to Rico, "IÂ´ll hope to get some days off next week. BillyÂ´s got his birthday and IÂ´d like to fly to Atlanta to surprise him."Rico recalled, "Then, it seemed as if Sonny couldnÂ´t surprise his son. The poet, Hector Sandoval, should visit Miami to read aloud some of his poems and to receive several prizes. (43 - FREE VERSE) His work had been a thorn in the flesh of different Columbian organisations for a long time because he didnÂ´t mince his words. They had tried to kill Sandoval by shooting in the back. They didnÂ´t succeed, but since then he was sitting in a wheelchair. Nevertheless, he didnÂ´t keep quiet.Hector was about seventy years old and very headstrong. Actually, he turned it down to stay in a hiding place, but his lively and also headstrong daughter, Blanca, pushed through."Blanca was a woman of RicoÂ´s taste: 22 years old, black haired, and slim with almost black eyes. A look into her eyes reminded him to another woman: Angelina!Rico squinted. It was time to bury his thoughts about Angelina. He had disappointed her, she left him and would never return.But then, Sandoval was to blame that Rico had no time to think about anything else but him. The poet urgently wanted to meet with his fans, and even though he almost had gotten killed by a fanatic Columbian called La Muerta, he didnÂ´t want to hide himself.Rico recalled, "I thought about asking Blanca for a date somewhere in the future when her father was safe, but then Manuel Guerrero appeared. From that moment, Blanca only paid her attention on him. Hector was also enthusiastic to meet with his old pupil, but then everything came thick and fast. First, Manuel was kidnapped, but when we found him he claimed that nobody had asked him about Sandoval or the hiding.Then, Gina found out that Manuel had obtained SandovalÂ´s trust in an underhanded way, but gave support to SandovalÂ´s enemies at the same time.A few hours later, Sandoval escaped off the hotel weÂ´d taken him to because we had thought that the hiding wasnÂ´t safe after ManuelÂ´s kidnapping.After weÂ´d found Sandoval, we received the message that someone had kidnapped Blanca."Rico laughed. "You see, there was no time to think about anything. We were very happy to get some hours of sleep. What e, of course, didnÂ´t know was that SandovalÂ´s biggest enemies was one of his closest friends: Manuel Guerrero. In the last moment, we could shoot him to death to hinder that he shot Sandoval."Sobbing, Blanca was lying in RicoÂ´s arms after Manuel got killed."Take the Sandovals to the beach house and stay with them, Tubbs", Castillo ordered.While Sandoval was vanishing into his bedroom immediately, Blanca nervously ran around in the living - room. Rico watched her.She filled a glass wth orange juice, took it to the table in the living - room... and forgot it there. She heated water up to make tea, but didnÂ´t react when it started boiling. Instead, she took a pack of cookies out of the cupboard, but didnÂ´t eat one cookie."I donÂ´t understand it. We trusted him. Manuel was like a son for my father, and for me, he was like a brother", Blanca admitted. "Why did he do that, Rico?"It was the first time that she used his first name instead of calling him Detective Tubbs."He wanted to make your father become a marthyr", Rio repliedBlanca didnÂ´t answer, but a moment later, she wished him a good night and disappeared into her bedroom. She neither had drunk the tea nor the juice.Rico was too excited to find sleep. Therefore, he switched the TV on and watched the News."...at 11 p.m. the BELLE EPOCHE was found", the slim blonde reporter told. "A shrimp fisherman paid attention to the yacht as it was drifting on the water for the second evening, but nobody seemed to be on board. He found out that the crew got killed. What exactly had happened on the BELLE EPOCHE and when the action had happened needs to be investigated now. ItÂ´s rumored that it had been a pirate attack!""Pirates!" Rico murmured. "Where are we living? The only pirate I know is Captain Hook and he only fires with damn good music."Two days later the Sandovals left Miami. On the way from the airport to the office, Rico switched his favorite radio channel on. Immediately, he could hear Captain HookÂ´s voice, "ItÂ´s hot! Hellish hot, but not as hot as the music that I play for you. I play oldies and new songs... Some like it hot..."Rico listened to the rough voice of the singer of the band Power Station. He realized how much he had missed to listen to that radio channel.In the office, he asked Trudy about the action on the BELLE EPOCHE."IÂ´ve watched a report about the murder on that yacht, but then, the big poet, Sandoval, decided that TV and radio are bad guys who take too much influence on peopleÂ´s minds", he told.Rico recalled, "Trudy told me that five young people aged between 20 and 24 had been killed on the yacht.Two weeks later, the SANDRINE was found. She was also drifting on the ocean, and the bodies of the three young men on it were really lacerated.Only ten days later, the CHALLENGE OF THE SEA had been found. Everything was always the same. Therefore, we assumed that it all was about drugs.We found out that the CHALLENGE OF THE SEA had anchored in the Columbian city of Barranquila before the crew was killed on her way back to Miami. The SANDRINE and the BELLE EPOCHE had come from Saint Marta. The yachts were stolen, but as there was no real evidence that it all was about drugs, it wasnÂ´t our case... and my favorite radio channel wasnÂ´t SonnyÂ´s case.But then, Castillo ordered Sonny and me to come to the darkroom. A further boat, the MAS O MENOS, had been found drifting on the ocean, indications led to that it really was about drugs... and I didnÂ´t know that a surprise was awaiting me."IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: THE END OF A STORY

September 5, 2011

90. THE END OF A STORYRico recalled, "Four people had been on board of the MAS O MENOS, that was owned by a man named Carlos Morales. HeÂ´d been on the boat with his friends Antonio Bertolo, Elena La Rosa, and Gianna Martinez. The difference with the other attacks was that some very expensive gadgets were missing and that the yacht hadnÂ´t been stolen.At the time, the MAS O MENOS had been attacked a customs boat was reported missing, but in the meantime it was found somewhere in the Glades. We assumed that the theft had had something to do with the occurences on the MAS O MENOS. Besides that, Morales, the boat owner, had been arrested once because of drug owning, and we found out that he had problems to paying his bills. He wouldnÂ´t have been the first one who tried to earn money by smuggling drugs."Rico and Sony drove to the yacht where Rico curiously let his eyes travel around.Obviously, the pirates had owned M 60 machine guns that they furiously had fired. Blood was spread on everything and the ripped open ceiling let them infer that it all was because of drugs."These guys know on which yacht theyÂ´ve to search for the smuggled goods", Rico told on their way back to the office. "Maybe, the pirates steal the yacht for the smugglers. So, they know on what yacht they have to pay attention and when.""Possible", Sonny replied. "But what about Morales? He doesnÂ´t suit to that.""Maybe, an intermediary is the leak. Maybe, itÂ´s not the pirates that steal the yachts, but someone else. He gets a nice sum of money from the smugglers, but also from the pirates who he tells on what yacht an attack is rewarding."Rico fiddled with the radio to find his favorite channel."What do you like on this channel?" Sonny railed. "ItÂ´s illegal and this guy only talks rubbish..." He tried to imitate HookÂ´s voice, "...the sky is blue, the sand and the love are hot, and Jackson..."SonnyÂ´s voice got itÂ´s normal sound again. "I donÂ´t know who Jackson is, but it sounds as if he loves Jackson!"Rico hardly had made himself comfortable at the desk when Trudy entered the room. With an angry move, she threw a file onto RicoÂ´s desk. "Therse pirates arenÂ´t humans, but monsters!" she railed. "Did you already have a look at these photos, Rico?""No", Rico admitted."You should do it. The pathologists removed 35 bullets out of MoralesÂ´ body.." Trudy searched for the photos in the file. "The other man, Antonio so and so... here it is... Bertolo is lying on the autopsy table now, and the woman...?" Trudy angrily snorted. "The pathologist removed 42 bullets out of Elena La RosaÂ´s body, whoÂ´d turned 22 a few weeks ago. With Gianna Martinez, theyÂ´ve found 26 bullets."She put the photos in front of RicoÂ´s nose. He stared at them before pointing on one of the photos. "What did you say was her name, Trudy?" he asked."Gianna Martinez", Trudy replied.Rico recalled, "There was no doubt that it was Jeannie. After I had a clue now, I found out many things about Jeannie. Of course, her name was neither Gianna Martinez nor Jeannie Smith, but Sophie Jeannette Ballard. She had come from New Orleans to Miami and died aged 24. Her mother had shot her husband who wasnÂ´t SophieÂ´s father when the girl was 16. Sophie should go to an orphanage, then, but she never arrived there. I couldnÂ´t find out when and where sheÂ´d developed the trick IÂ´d been taken in by, but now she was dead. IÂ´d been steamed about her, but I regretted the way she died.With StanÂ´s and LarryÂ´s help we found out the name of the receiver for stolen goods whoÂ´d bought the stolen gadgets. His name was Jumbo and he and his wife, Fluffy, were living on the ground of an airplane salvage yard. He knew Captain Hook who was a good friend of the pilot, Jackson, who actually received the drugs from the boat crews.In the past, Jackson hadnÂ´t been an unknown quantity, but he claimed that heÂ´d changed himself now because heÂ´d met the woman of his dreams. We got to know this woman, Lenny. She was a horrible, conceited, and naive woman. At 22, she would herit about $13 million. ThatÂ´s what sheÂ´d told us.In reality, her brother was the boss of the pirates and Lenny was also involved. For Jackson, it was hard to find out that sheÂ´d only used him."After Rico returned to the office to write his report, he thought on Jackson and Lenny. Lenny had reacted arrogant even when she was arrested. "IÂ´ll pay a fantastic lawyer and IÂ´ve got enough money to pay the bail. IÂ´m sure to be at home at dinner - time."For Jackson, she didnÂ´t even have a quick look.While Rico was searching for a pencil in the first drawer, he suddenly held a photo in his hand. It was showing AngelinaÂ´s smiling face. About 14 months ago, she disappeared out of his life after her father died on St. Andrews Island. Where was she now? Did she feel good? Did she sometimes thik about him?He wished to know about the answers and to talk with her about the reasons why he had to react that way in the past.With a sigh, Rico put the photo back into the drawer not knowing what surprise was awaiting him.IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: A PRIZE ON RICOÂ´S HEAD

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