Murder for Choir by Joelle Charbonneau Read Free Book Online Page A

Romeo and friends was more than my nerves could take.
    Killer whined again. I couldn’t blame him. Seeing what would become of me after I died would creep me out, too.
    Millie leaned over and scratched him. “I’ve had all my dogs in cold storage along with my furs. I figured it was time to trot them out. They liven up the place, don’t you think?”
    My aunt really didn’t want to know what I thought. “I remember Romeo and Bonnie and Clyde.” The two pugs had loved running in circles when I came home from college to visit. “But who are the poodles?”
    “Those are LouAnne Gill’s dogs. She loved the idea of keeping her friends with her after they passed, but she got heart palpitations when they were delivered to the house. I had to rescue them before LouAnne threw them in the garbage. You don’t throw two grand champion dogs away like that.”
    I would argue that you don’t sit them in your living room to collect dust, either, but what did I know?
    Aunt Millie squinted behind her pink glasses. “Now, I need to find the best rooms to put them in. Do you want to help?”
    My cell rang. I dove into my purse for it and flipped it open as Millie picked up one of the poodles.
    “Hi, Paige,” Devlyn’s rich voice greeted me. “You left in such a hurry. I wanted to make sure everything was okay.”
    The combo of Eric’s impending doom, Devlyn’s preferreddating choice, and the tacky décor had me up and out of the coffee shop moments after Felicia’s departure. “Thinking about Eric got me down,” I said, watching my aunt haul the poodle up the stairs to the second floor. “But I’m fine. Honest.”
    “Glad to hear it. So, I was wondering if you’d like to get together today. We could start setting the choreography. The more we do, the less chance there is of Larry trying to help. His help might not be the kind we’re looking for.”
    “You don’t like Larry?”
    He chuckled. “Larry’s a great guy, but have you seen him dance?”
    “Gotcha.” I laughed and felt the need to confess, “Dance isn’t my strongest area, either.”
    My aunt trotted down the stairs without the poodle as Devlyn said, “I’ve seen some of the shows you were in. Trust me, you’ll do just fine. So what do you say? Do you have some time this afternoon?”
    My aunt picked up the second poodle and headed for the kitchen as I asked, “Can you do it now?”

    I walked into the Prospect Glen High School choir room trying to ignore the icky feeling in my stomach. Just down the hall was the auditorium. A place filled with dead-guy cooties.
    “Are you sure you’re okay?” Devlyn appeared from the storage closet. He’d changed clothes. Now he was wearing a fitted pink T-shirt and a pair of off-white workout shorts. In one hand, he held a CD player. A top hat was in the other.
    I nodded, trying not to notice how sexy Devlyn looked in pink. “I thought the cops had shut down the school.”
    “They did.” Devlyn plugged the CD player into the backwall. “After searching the entire building, they decided the only thing off-limits is the auditorium—including the backstage, the dressing rooms, and my office.” He grimaced. “I’m hoping the fingerprint dust cleans up easily. They let me take a quick look, and you wouldn’t believe the mess they made.”
    “They fingerprinted your office?”
    “And the piano, the microphone cord, and the door handles. I doubt they find anything useful, though. Hundreds of kids and a bunch of teachers touch those things every semester, and the janitorial staff doesn’t get paid well enough to polish doors.”
    Fair point.
    Putting down my bag, I pulled out the CD I’d burned of this year’s music choices. “You said you worked with Greg, right?”
    He took the CD and nodded.
    “I don’t mean to be nosy, but you don’t seem that upset by his death. No one does.” Except me and poor Eric.
    Devlyn clenched his jaw. “Greg Lucas was a hard man to work with. He was an even harder man