Does anyone know of a way to view deleted messages or the last few messages sent on this model of phone?

Unless your service provider stores a copy of the messages, which is not very likely, once the messages are erased, they are pretty much gone. There is software and SIM readers available that may be able to retrieve some of the text after it has been erased, but just like your hard drive, another file is written over it once erased and the original is lost.

As for recently received messages, they can be found in the Inbox. On Motorola phones press <Menu> go to <Messages> and select it, then go to the <Inbox> and select again. Once a message is highlighted, selecting it will open it so it can be read. Sent messages are accessed the same way, except that they are found in the <Outbox> instead.

If nothing is there, you aren't going to retrieve anything without special software. Picture the memory used for messages as a blackboard. Once it has been erased, it is pretty much gone, especially after it has been overwritten.

A detailed list of who sent messages to or received messages from a phone can usually be had from the provider. It doesn't give the contents of the message, but can show a pattern of use that can imply the type of message being sent. In my case, this list is part of my normal bill as a part of the "Data Detail."

Mark