The Case of the Disappearing Drummer
Joe Smith walked into the Brunch Café on a sunny Monday. The café was not as busy as when he came for breakfast on the weekends. He looked around and saw who he was looking for. He gave a quick wave to the blond woman at one of the booths and nodded to the hostess.
“Hi Susan” Joe said as he sat down.
“Thanks for meeting me” she responded.
The waitress came by and filled Joe’s cup with an aromatic coffee.
“What can I do for you? You sounded scared on the phone.” Joe asked.
“I’m worried. Gus is missing, and the police are looking into it but it is not a top priority for them. ‘Itinerant musician has gone off the grid.’ There can be a lot of reasons he is gone, but I think something happened. I thought you could use your private detective skills and see if you can discover where he is and if he is okay.”
Joe had met Gus a few times when he came out to see Susan in her band the “The Cat-tails”. Susan played bass in the classic rock band. The drummer, Gus was a friendly guy. He always took the time to talk to the fans when the band was on break.
“I can look into it for you. It is probably nothing. Maybe he met a girl and they took a bit of time to get to know each other.”
“That is what I thought but he missed our gig on this past Saturday. He has never done that. At the very least he would have called.” Susan said.
“Okay. If I can’t use my PI license to help my friends what good is it. Let’s see what we can find.”
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Part 2
Gus, the drummer in Susan’s band missed the show this past weekend. Susan was worried and asked her private detective friend Joe to look into it.
After talking with the band members, Joe determined that Gus was last seen leaving the gig on Thursday night.
“Did he have any problems with anyone or owe anyone a lot of money?” Joe asked Susan.
“Everyone loved Gus! But wait… There was this one woman. She is like a groupie for our band. Where ever we go she is there in the front row. “ Susan replied.
“Has she ever caused a problem?” Joe inquired.
“There was one time a couple of weeks ago. I saw her and Gus arguing during one of our breaks” she remembered.
“Do you know what it was about or what her name is?” Joe wanted to know.
“No sorry. But Teri the waitress might know. We play at the Twisted Cow a lot so the audience is made up of a lot of regulars.”
Joe’s next stop was the Twisted Cow, a bar on Route 59 in West Chicago. It was still early when Joe entered, the bar was decorated in black and white with a definite cow theme happening. Teri had heard that Gus was missing.
“Anything I can do to help” said the small framed woman with a blond French braid.
Joe gave Teri the description that Susan had given him. He was looking for a tall brunette with a dragon tattoo on her shoulder.
“Oh yes! That’s Gina Pizzarelle she lives in the apartments just south of the bar. She has been coming here for years. I can’t believe she would have anything to do with his disappearance.”
“Did you see them argueing in the last couple of weeks?” asked Joe.
“I did. Let me think. “ Teri mused.
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Part 3
Joe’s search for the missing drummer, Gus had taken him to a bar and a helpful waitress named Teri.
“I wouldn’t say they were arguing but more of an intense conversation. I overheard bits and pieces throughout the night. Words like – forever, not now, no better time than now. “ Teri told Joe.
Joe’s phone rang. Susan was calling to see if Joe had found Gus. Joe told her no luck yet. Susan said “I know this is a big ask but we are playing at the Twisted Cow tonight and we need a drummer. Can you sit in with us tonight?”
Joe had not picked up sticks in a long time and made sure Susan knew that.
“I know but we need you!”
Joe relented and told Susan he was already at the Twisted Cow talking with Teri.
Later that night the band was set up and Joe was ready to make his debut. They were going over the playlist when suddenly they heard “Hey Guys! Guess what!”
Everyone looked around and a tall man with a blond pony tail was standing next to a tall brunette with a dragon tattoo.
“Gus, where have you been! We have been so worried!” Susan cried out.
“Gina and I went to Vegas and got married!” Gina showed off her new ring.
Everyone was hugging everyone. Teri opened a bottle of champagne and Joe hand Gus his sticks. It was a great show that night!