Episode One

A married woman, Lisa Flowers (Catherine Bell, “JAG”, “The Good Witch”), that Tony is in love with, asks for his help finding her missing sister Destiny, in the most dangerous neighborhood in New York City. Tony recruits his unofficial partner, a champion boxer who moonlights as a private eye, Reggie (Malik Yoba, “Cool Runnings”, “NY Undercover”), to try and find Destiny. It doesn’t take long for them to find themselves on the wrong end of a gun. 

The novel this series is based on has been published and is available on Amazon, here: https://www.amazon.com/Red-Meat-Village-Crime-Thriller/dp/B0DYP2DRJ5/ref=sr_1_1?crid=XXR35BASP3U7&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Uj7dmdgVs7md8Qt3597vMQ.1KGFa38PJMCP5InjoiKJ0D9YJ086g80ajz6Sfh_fGyU&dib_tag=se&keywords=tris+power+red+meat+village&qid=1742329315&s=books&sprefix=tris+power+red+meat+village+%2Cstripbooks%2C83&sr=1-1

Red Meat Village is a production of Voyage Media. The series is produced by Nat Mundel, Robert Mitas, and Dan Benamor. Directed, produced and adapted by Dan Benamor, based on Andrew Bernstein’s novel. 

Starring Ryan Heppe as Tony, Catherine Bell as Lisa, Malik Yoba as Reggie, Rachel Pate as Monjurrie, Abel Soto as Cortez, Kareem Ferguson as Chill, Luca Malacrino as Stevie, and Tracey Leigh as Destiny. Edited, sound designed, and mixed by Nick Messitte. Original music by Derlis Gonzalez.

If you’re enjoying the show, please leave us a five star review in Apple Podcasts or anywhere you’re listening and subscribe now for future episodes.

Episode Transcript

(00:01):
Voyage, meet village age. Youhear three lunatics robbed the cartel dropping Brooklyn

(00:22):
last name. I guess I'm notas blug dead as you are two point
four million worth of cope. Butsomeone's stopping and weigh it. Just what
I heard? What name you're gonnause in the contest? Humphrey van Waiting?
Oh why not? Hu? Butsee horn swimming two cumbers? Yeah,
that Humphrey van Waiting just rolls offthe tongue. You and Gale are

(00:44):
the only ones who know why Ichose that name. You're going down,
Reggie Worston. You did when youfought Big Sleep. How long are you
gonna keep bringing that up? Iwonder the fight didn't not as please you
sat on that man like he justslapped your mom. Lose a fight,
then I'll have something else to beton it. See what odds you co

(01:07):
yet? Yeah right, I don'thave your kind of money, speaking of,
I'm late to make a couple hundredbucks to illuminate the minds of our
youth. Let me know how thattenure works out. Hey, mine was
a backhanded compliment. I sighed andlooked up from the manuscript I was working

(01:29):
on. In a few months,I'd probably be denied tenure. My first
book had been well received. Myonly shot to retaine employment was to finish
the second one quickly and effectively.Even then it was a long shot.
Too many people in the department resentedme, many had reason to. The

(01:49):
truth was I was half in,half out. I had a second career
of sorts. Lisa Flowers. Sheleaned toward me across the desk. I
noticed, there's always the reddish brownshoulder length hair, the dark, intelligent

(02:09):
eyes, and most and worst ofall, the glittering diamond and gold band
on a left hand. My sister'sgone, Tony, how long? Long
enough that I came to tell you? Where was she? Last? Browns
Villain, Red Meat Village, Telly. She was an honor student. She

(02:30):
was going to grad school. Heresounds like she was smart enough to choose
better friends. You're all heart Isee why your students love you. Hey,
I'm a philosophy professor and a writertrying to complete a manuscript, that's
all. You're a do good,part time private investigator, solving cases that
no one else can. May IShe knew she didn't need to ask,

(02:51):
and sat down before I answered Anthony. Internally, I groaned, she never
used my proper name. I knewthe request that was coming, Missus Flowers.
This wasn't her married name. Ineglected the doctor title of this part
time psychology professor and full time psychotherapist. I knew both what she wanted and

(03:15):
that I couldn't refuse her. Shesmiled. She knew it too. Find
her Tony please. She's my kid'ssister. She's in trouble, so if
I help your divorce and Nicholas BuenoNikki Good on the street was her Argentine
husband, ne'er do well, neverknown to hold a job, leaching off

(03:37):
his wife hooked on bodybuilding, steroidsand coke. Her dark eyes heated,
as they always did when I disparagedher. Man if he heard that,
he'd bend you in half for thefun of it. Even when annoyed like
now, her diction, her accent, and her alluring eyes always retained the

(03:57):
upscale demeanor of her Upper West Sideupbringing. I stared at her. I
knew she'd run with Hell's kitchen tuftswhen she was a rebellious teenager, but
I never saw a sign of it. Yeah, Reggie might not approve of
my new shape. Why'd you marryhim? Anyway? Smart women, foolish
choices? Why do you stay marriedto him? She got up and walked

(04:23):
to the door. She turned,and now her eyes were serious. Please
find her. Her final words werea plea, the void of any banter
her eyes for an instant, theburrier lord, something warm, radiated something

(04:45):
from an internal locust, and suffusedempathy like sunlight. Then the wall erected
again, but not before I swalloweddeep in my throat. She was halfway
out when I called to her.At least she turned around. Photo description,
distinguishing marks. Anything I can useto idea, I'll get it to

(05:05):
you. I also got questions,friends, contacts, habits, non associates
and such. I've got answers,but I'm in session in an hour.
I gotta get home soon. Thenshe was through the door, and nothing
was left of her in the roombut her scent. It was enough.

(05:29):
I went to Reggie's apartment. Hehad a spare bedroom outfitted exclusively for his
obsessive habit. It featured an oversized, dark brown leather easy chair with standing
reading lamps on I decide. Byhis right hand, there was a small
brown table with a few highlighters andred pens on the surface. There was
no television, moved stereo, nosofa. Reggie didn't drink alcohol, He

(05:54):
didn't smoke. He scorned all formsof drugs, even begrudging an occasional pair
of aspirants he took to he's achingmuscles. He read a lot, constantly,
lighting every wall of his hideaway wraparound bookcases Florida Ceilo, overstuffed with
books alphabetized by author, divided intosections, overwhelmingly literature, also history in

(06:17):
the small section of leading history ofphilosophy, texts carefully mocked up, annotated,
and discussed with me. His alcoholicfather called him a pussy bookworm at
times when he beat him, Reggierefused to hit back. His mother had
been a nurse, support of aRoman child, but descended into hard times

(06:40):
than drug addiction and death. Hewas alone. I turned to him.
I suppose we're not calling the NYPD, notpe. They're hampered by the punctilios
of the law. Punctilios it meansniceties or amenities of conduct. I am
so gonna beat your ass in theessay contest. The university had decided to

(07:02):
hold an essay contest opened to studentsand faculty and their sponsored guests. He
was supposed to foster a sense ofcommunity or some bullshit. Reggie and I
just wanted a chance to beat eachother at something you can try, but
we already know you're not smarter thanme. Yeah, why's that You've been

(07:23):
dragooned against your will into detective workby a fine psychologist you're painting for.
Uh huh, Well, now I'mdragooning you. So if you say yes,
then which one of us is theidiot? We can debate. In
the car, Lisa had given meher sister's name, Destiny. Yeah.

(07:48):
I thought she was screwing with metoo, but now that really was her
name. Reggie went with me tomeet Detective Damian Stacy. Stacy's full had
a white hair, made him lookseventy years old. He was forty six.
I showed him a picture of Destinythat Lisa had given me. She
was twenty one and had this tattooon the left side of her neck of

(08:09):
twin dragons and circling each other.Stacy sent me to hand. Cassidy patrol
Copy worked in Brownsville for years andand I were both vets mech two and
a rack her usmc Persian Gulf one. She had nothing for me, but
promised to look into it at theuniversity. I got Destiny's home address from

(08:30):
my friend in the admissions office,Kate Norris. I circled back up with
Reggie. We met at a parkBetsy Head, near Lisa's sister's address.
Reggie market his Gangland. I tookMolly my nine millimeter, which I kept
in my shoulder harness Destiny. AwaitDestiny's neighbors. At first, Destiny's neighbors.

(08:50):
Destiny's neighbors sound like a hippie band. We skirted past the park and
ambled a short distance to me Destiny'saddress. The houses were dark and nobody
was in the street. Thick grayclouds had rolled in with a damn cold
looked like snow. I glanced aroundthe stream. We'll wait people whom from

(09:15):
work soon bomy day. We crossedthe street to watch from the other side.
We paced the other side of thestream. We watched ceaselessly. We
talked about the essay contest. Wetalked about the chances of Lisa getting divorced.
We talked about my past engagement toJessica Miranda Reggie had never met,

(09:35):
and about my reasons for breaking itoff. We talked about my next book.
We talked about Reggie's rise to theheavyweight title. A light snow started
to fall. We walked some more. We kept talking. Jessica is a
d E agent now right? Yeah? She is? Are you on speaking
terms? Nope? You broke herheart. I know. I still remember,

(10:03):
all these years later, the strickenlook of her eyes when I ended
it. We were silent for aminute. Then Richie spoke with Comb in
the drug infested sections of Red MeatVillage looking for Destiny Hunter. It would
be additive to have a DA agentfor resource, without a doubt. Is

(10:24):
this a tender topic for me?A little for her? A lot?
For how long ago? Six yearsyour last long term relationship? A car
glided down the street, moving slow, looking for a spot. I watched
it roll past us, then slidearound the corner. It skidded slightly on
the slick pavement. Yeah. Idated different women, but until Lisa,

(10:50):
there's been nobody like Jessica. IsJessica married now? Nah? I would
have heard six years before this dancewith Destiny is done, we might have
to contact her could be He said, no more about it. We kept
walking. We watched relentlessly. Itwas almost six fifteen. A tall,

(11:13):
stout woman started up the stairs toDestiny's building. She wore a navy blue
kerchief, nodded around a bun ofdark hair. She hefted an overstuffed shopping
bag a woman's clothing store. Wedarted across the street. Ma'am. She
turned to face us. She waslight skinned by racial I guessed forty,

(11:37):
wore round, oversized glasses, andlooked surprisingly unperturbed at the large man in
his companion converging on her in thedark street. Can I help you?
Her voice was church goers, sweet, we have questions about Destiny Hunter.
Oh. She fumbled around for thekeys in her bag. The police were
already here, but come on in. She unlocked the outer door and then

(12:03):
the inner one to her apartment.She ushered us in, turned on several
floor lamps. The apartment was comfortable, with large reddish brown area rugs covering
well polished hardwood floors. There wasan overstuffed, well worn sofa in the
living room center, a glass coffeetable with a vase of artificial geraniums,

(12:24):
and an old school console TV acrossfrom the sofa. There was a painting
of Jesus on the wall above thetelevision. The color of the area rugs
reminded me of Lisa's hair and shookmy head. Would you boys like some
tea? Oh? No, thankwould be divine? Thank you. She
served the tea and we sat aroundthe coffee table. Are your friends of

(12:46):
destinies? I had my first chanceto take a good look at her.
Her voice and her eyes were tenderwith mercy. Jesus had taught her to
love everybody, I guessed. Shewore a loose fitting blue ankle length dress
and low black heels. I'm Tony, this is Reggie. Pleasure to meet
you. I'm Manjuri smoke, I'ma private eye. Man. Well,

(13:11):
I'm afraid I haven't seen destiny insome time. How much time must be
a couple of weeks. I've beenin her apartment twice to clean it,
like she asked a couple of yearsago, but there's no sign that she's
been there. You got a key, Yes, we have a key to
each other's place. It's good todo with someone you trust in case of

(13:31):
emergency. She saw the hopeful expressionof my face, but I swore to
the police that I would not letanybody in there. Yeah, look,
mounserie, I I just spoke tothe cops. They're not concerned yet about
Destiny's disappearance. We are times critical. Such a nice girl. You know,
she's a psychology. We know,but there's no telling who might have

(13:54):
gotten their hands on it, especiallyin this neighborhood. I know it's been
going downhill in the last couple ofyears, especially at night. I don't
want to start any trouble with thepolice. You aren't start any trouble with
the cops, but you might saveDestiny Hunter from a mess of trouble.
All right, I'm willing to trustyou boys. She took a key from

(14:16):
a desk drawer in the next room. She lives upstairs. She flicked on
a light and led us up thestairs. At the landing stood one door,
brown, unmarked, nondescript. Monserieundid the lock and we followed her
in. She turned on an overheadlight. Do you want me to leave

(14:37):
you to your sleuthing? I cango back downstairs rather than get in your
way. No, no, no, please stay, Monserie. We may
have questions. It was one largeroom like a dorm room of a college
kid, with a small bathroom offto one side. Textbooks were piled on
a card table adjacent to a doublebed. A reading lamp hung from the

(14:58):
top of the bedboard. A computerand various pins and pads occupied a desk
by the room soule window. Therewas a small metallic filing cabinet across from
the bed. On top was ahard blue paper weight in the shape of
a swallowtail humming bird the Jamaican NationalBurden. On the wall above it hung
a single photograph. It was ofa young pretty girl on the ground,

(15:22):
smiling, her arms around the neckof a golden retriever. If dogs could
smile, the retriever was Reggie.Immediately went to the filing cabinet, got
on his knees and pulled open thebottom drawer. I switched on Destiny's computer,
hoping I could hack into a personalemail account. I couldn't. I

(15:43):
opened the desk drawer and went throughits contents. Just a bunch of pins,
a memo pad, a chief ofloose paper. Then I stopped.
There was a faded photograph of ayoung girl, maybe ten, standing ankle
deep in water. So blue.It resembled a painting more than photograph.
In the distant background were hills anda cliff with a lighthouse perched the top.

(16:06):
I stared at it the Caribbean.I bed. Several minutes went by,
and then I noticed a stain onthe wall behind the desk and computer
near the floor. Was it blood? I stooped to examine it. Reggie
banged through the file cabinet's metallic drawers. We were so absorbed we didn't hear
the door quietly latch shut and lock. She was such a nice girl.

(16:32):
The sweetness of Monsourie's voice matched thescene. I think you need to look
at this, Reggie and I turnedaround. She reached into the folds of
a blue dress and withdrew a pairof slim line automatic pistols. They looked
black as a striking cobra and justas friendly. She pointed one at Reggie's

(16:52):
chest, the other of mine.Do you think you're going to find destiny?
Hunter? Aiming guns in my directionis a quick way to shore your
life expectancy. Man, Your lifeexpectancy is about thirty seconds the both of
you. Her head jerked slightly atme, this time her voice didn't sound
quite as sweet, monsieur, Please, we're just trying to find Destiny.

(17:18):
Maybe there are people who don't wanther found, maybe Destiny herself. She
helped the gun steady, not wavingthem around like an amateur. Reggie was
crouched and still a tiger poised tostrike. I sat motionless, right hand
shielded from view, getting a gripon the chair. Her view was split

(17:38):
in two directions. She blamed.I overturned Destiny's chair, flinging it aside,
and lunched sidewas Reggie, whose handsemotion could not be seen, left
handed, grabbed a heavy hummingbird paperwayand flung it in Manchet's face. He
plunged to the deck. Instinctively,she threw up her right hand hand to

(18:00):
block the projectile. She missed anddropped. The gun of metallic object struck
her flush on the two, stunningand driving her back against the lockdoor.
I dived behind the foot of Destiny'sbed, and Mama was in my right
hand. I coined the nine ofa chest. She pushed off the door
and shook her head, trying toclear the vision. Two handed, she
lined up her gun sights on me, dropped the gun Redmead Village as a

(18:33):
production of Voyage Media. The seriesis produced by nat Mondel, Robert Midas,
and Dan Benimore, directed, produced, and adapted by Dan Bennimore,
based on Andrew Bernstein's upcoming novel ofthe same name. When a link to
the novel is available, it willbe listed in the show notes. Starring
Catherine Bell as Lisa, Malik Yobaas Reggie, and Ryan Heavy as Tony.
Additional cast credits are available in shownotes. Edited sound designed and mixed

(18:59):
by Nick Miss, original music byDerlis Gonzalez. If you're enjoying the show,
please leave us a five star reviewand opp podcasts n any where you're
listening, and subscribe now for futureepisodes.