A Chorus Lineup

by Joelle Charbonneau

  Thank goodness Tom didn’t notice or wasn’t interested in Devlyn’s outburst. Christine hadn’t told me to keep her request to myself, but I didn’t want word to spread about what I was doing. “Look, I don’t like it any more than you do, but the only way I can guarantee our team gets a fair shake from the judges is to help Christine and the competition keep their sponsors from dropping out. Unless, of course, she can be convinced to back off.”

  “Christine McCann is known for doing whatever it takes to get her way. It’s one of the reasons she not only got this job but kept it.”

  “Then I have to find a way to solve her problem, or someone has to talk her out of this.” I smiled. “Maybe someone like a handsome theater teacher I know.”

  “Are you asking me to flirt with Christine?”

  I had been going to say yes, but there was a note of hurt in Devlyn’s voice that made me instead say, “No.” Upsetting Devlyn wasn’t on my agenda, but if he volunteered, I wouldn’t turn down the offer.

  Sadly, he didn’t. Bummer.

  “The thing is,” I said, “Christine seems to think my involvement in the two murder cases means I’m qualified to get the information she needs. It might help if someone reminds her that my lack of investigative skills almost got me killed.” Near-death experiences weren’t good résumé builders.

  “I don’t know if anything I say will help.” Devlyn shoved his hands in his pockets and rocked back on his heels. “But I’ll give it a shot. In the meantime, what are you going to do about Christine’s demands?”

  “What I have to do. If I don’t at least make an effort to do what she wants, the team will suffer. They’ve worked too hard not to be judged on the merits of their work.” I waited for Devlyn to protest. When he didn’t, I let out a sigh of relief and explained, “So far, I’ve learned that LuAnn had a serious run-in with Donna Hilty at a recent competition and that she didn’t even get along with her daughter’s instructors.”

  “Wait.” Devlyn held up a hand. “Are you investigating the damaged costumes or LuAnn’s murder?”

  I wasn’t entirely sure. “LuAnn was the one who discovered the sabotaged costumes, and Donna Hilty’s team was one of the few who didn’t have any damage done to their possessions. I’m not sure if either detail is going to lead me to the person who’s behind it, but I have to start somewhere.”

  “Well, if you’re asking questions about LuAnn, you might want to talk to some of the people who work on this competition. I was walking by the registration office after the kids headed to their master classes, and I overheard one of the staff say that karma had a way of kicking people in the ass and that LuAnn had earned exactly what she got.”

  While I appreciated the sentiment, karma wasn’t the one behind the wheel. But after all that I’d learned about my fellow coaches, I couldn’t help wondering whether one of them was. And since investigating the shredded costumes for Christine McCann seemed to be yielding more information on motives for murder than sabotage, there was a good chance I’d stumble over the answer to that question whether or not I wanted to. If that was the case, I just hoped I didn’t end up on the wrong side of a gun this time. In the movies, dodging bullets looked thrilling. In real life, it sucked.

  Changing the subject, I asked Devlyn to explain the new layout for the lift that Larry had mentioned to me. Devlyn walked downstage to show the change of position. I nodded and tried to pay attention to his reasoning, but in my head I was making a list.

  Donna Hilty.

  Scott Paris.

  The competition’s organizational team.

  And Central Memphis High School’s head show choir director.

  All of them might have reason to want LuAnn dead. So far, the police weren’t ruling the death of LuAnn Freeman a murder, but if they did, those four would top my suspect list.

  Four potential killers. All of whom I had to question if I wanted my team to have a chance to win. And as I heard the shouts and laughter of students telling me the first group of master classes had let out, I realized there was no time like the present to start.

  Chapter 12

  The hallways were filled with excited teenagers as Devlyn and I navigated our way to our staging room. Larry and our students were supposed to be waiting to receive any additional news or instructions before lunch. I started to follow Devlyn through the door to our room but then noticed the director for Central Memphis High School walk by. Since she was headed toward the lobby instead of down the hall to her school’s assigned room, I decided to follow. This might be the only time I’d catch her away from her team.

  “Excuse me,” I said, hurrying across the expansive red carpet.

  A couple of kids ran past, but I dodged them without losing my balance. At the start of the school year, I would have ended up on my backside. If nothing else, this job had given me new skills. “Excuse me,” I called louder, wishing Larry had remembered the director’s name. When the dark-haired woman stopped in her tracks and turned, I waved and picked up the pace.

  “I was hoping to catch you alone to offer my condolences,” I said as I hurried over. “I’m Paige Marshall.”

  She crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her foot. “I know who you are.”

  From her tone and body language, I guessed she wasn’t interested in being best friends. She and LuAnn had that in common. Now I just had to find out what else they might have shared. “I wanted to tell you how sorry I am about LuAnn and to find out if your kids and, more important, LuAnn’s daughter are doing okay.”

  The director cocked her head to the side and studied me. She must have decided I was sincere because the stiffness in her shoulders eased and she held out her hand. “Nikki Boys. I’m sorry I snapped at you. I’m a little on edge.”

  “I understand.”

  She gave me a sad smile. “I bet you do. I heard you found LuAnn. I can’t imagine what that must have been like.”

  I was thankful Nikki didn’t ask for details, because I didn’t want to relive LuAnn’s death. Letting out a sigh, she said, “The kids are upset. LuAnn started helping with this program long before I became the team’s coach. She showed up to most of our rehearsals and made a point of getting to know each and every student personally. Some stayed at the hotel with LuAnn’s daughter, Kristen. Her aunt wanted to come and drive Kristen home, but Kristen insisted on staying to compete. She said her mother would want it that way. She’s right. LuAnn wouldn’t have wanted her daughter to miss this competition. Although, I doubt she could have ever foreseen this happening.” She laughed. “LuAnn thought she was unbeatable. I guess the driver of that car proved her wrong.”

  Yikes. The satisfaction in Nikki’s tone was scary.

  “I heard you and your aunt were in the theater parking lot when the accident happened and that you watched the car drive away.” When I confirmed that, yes, Aunt Millie and I were almost sideswiped by the car in question, Nikki asked, “Did you happen to see the driver?” When I didn’t answer immediately, she hurried to add, “I was just wondering because knowing why the accident happened and who was behind it would help Kristen and the rest of the kids. A sense of closure would aid the healing process.”

  Closure was a good thing. But the intent look in Nikki’s eyes made me think she had another motive for asking. Too bad I hadn’t a clue what that motive was. “The car was moving really fast,” I said. “I only caught a momentary glimpse of the person behind the wheel, but I did get a good long look at the car.”

  Not good enough to identify the make and model or even the color, but Nikki didn’t need to know that. Nikki spreading the word that I could identify the car used in the accident might panic the guilty party enough to make them turn themselves in to the police. Of course, they’d only do that if the hit-and-run really was an accident. If it was something more, maybe the killer would be made nervous enough by my potential eyewitness account to make a mistake th
at would give away his or her identity.

  Nikki’s eyes widened. “It’s lucky you were around. If you hadn’t been there, who knows how long it would have taken before LuAnn’s body was discovered. I don’t know how well Kristen would have dealt with the idea of her mother lying on the ground alone all night.”

  “I doubt that would have happened,” I said. “Kristen or someone else from Central Memphis would have noticed LuAnn wasn’t back. Right?”

  “I’d like to think so.” Nikki shifted her feet and sighed. “But none of us even knew that LuAnn was gone. LuAnn wasn’t happy with the way yesterday went.”

  “I don’t think the falling lights or the destroyed costumes made anyone very happy.”

  Nikki frowned. “LuAnn was more upset that Christine McCann ignored her demands to have you and your team disqualified. She left Christine dozens of messages after the lights fell insisting that you had something to do with the whole thing, even though we all know you weren’t near the fly rail. Christine had to come to our hotel and talk to LuAnn in order to get her to stop calling.”

  Wait. “Christine saw LuAnn last night?” Christine mentioned talking to LuAnn after the police gave the all clear at the theater, but she didn’t say that she went to LuAnn’s hotel to deliver the news. Or that she made the trip because LuAnn was pushing her to oust me and Music in Motion.

  “Yeah. When LuAnn snapped her fingers, Christine came running. Had Christine known that LuAnn’s offers of assistance came with strings, she might have decided to seek help elsewhere. Nothing LuAnn did was out of the goodness of her heart. There was always a price to be paid. And more often than not it was a lot higher than anyone expected it to be. I think Christine finally figured that out.”

  “Why do you say that?” I asked.

  “Because last night I heard Christine tell LuAnn that she was through living with LuAnn’s threats. That she wouldn’t give in to LuAnn’s demands anymore. When LuAnn started screaming about going to the sponsors and the press and ruining Christine and the competition, Christine told LuAnn to do her worst because it would be the last thing she’d ever do.” Nikki lowered her voice. “To tell you the truth, when I heard that LuAnn was dead, I assumed Christine was involved.”

  Wow. “You really think Christine McCann wanted LuAnn dead?”

  She shrugged. “I know she wanted to remove LuAnn’s involvement in this competition. I appreciated that sentiment since I felt the same about LuAnn’s involvement in my program. Especially since LuAnn put in an application to be the assistant coach for our show choir. If she’d gotten the position, I would have had to turn in my resignation. As a volunteer, LuAnn was a pain in the ass. Worse, she thought she and her kids had more talent than they did and insisted I didn’t know how to coach them to their fullest potential. She tried to have me fired at least three times that I know of. There was no way in hell I’d work with her in an official capacity.” Nikki laughed. “And now it sounds as if I had a reason to kill her. Thank God this whole thing was an accident or most of the coaches in this building, myself included, would be at the police station instead of in the audience tomorrow. She had that kind of effect on people. Hell, even you had a reason to kill her.”

  “I’m not the killing kind,” I said. Then I steered the conversation to the true puzzle I had to solve. “I’m also not the ripping-up-costumes or dropping-lights-from-the-rafters kind. Do you have any idea why LuAnn pointed the finger at me?”

  Nikki waved at a blond-haired woman across the theater. “With LuAnn it’s hard to say. I know she was threatened by you and your team. The videos we’ve seen are impressive. And Christine’s press release for the competition mentioned you by name. When LuAnn found the damaged dresses, she probably thought making an accusation was her best chance of getting rid of your team and the threat they pose.” The blond woman pointed at her watch and Nikki nodded. “I have to get going.”

  She started to walk away and I called, “Wait! This might sound strange, but after everything you’ve said about LuAnn I was wondering . . . Is it possible LuAnn was behind the ruined costumes and damaged instruments?”

  Nikki stopped and turned. “With LuAnn, anything was possible.”

  With that pronouncement, Nikki strode away, leaving me thinking about what I’d learned. As one of the volunteers for the competition, LuAnn could enter any of the staging rooms without raising suspicion. By pointing the finger at me, LuAnn might have been trying to deflect attention away from the real reason she was in Scott’s staging room.

  My gut told me I was on to something. Now I just had to find people who saw LuAnn going into other rooms yesterday morning. While that wouldn’t be definitive proof of wrongdoing, this wasn’t a court of law and I wasn’t a police detective. I just needed to show Christine there was a strong chance LuAnn was behind the sabotage. Christine could take it from there. My team would be able to compete free of Christine’s threat and things could return to normal. Three guys walked by in bright blue tights and puffy white sequined shirts. Okay, maybe normal was pushing it, but at least things could go back to the way they were supposed to be.

  With my plan in place, I headed back to Prospect Glen’s staging room to remind my students we had two hours for lunch. Then we had rehearsal onstage. I was hopeful that, during those two hours, Devlyn would help me find enough evidence to show that LuAnn was to blame for the costumes.

  Or maybe not.

  “Christine isn’t going to be happy if you find out LuAnn was behind the problems,” Devlyn said after the students went in search of the nearby Subway for lunch. “Have you thought about what the sponsors will say when they hear that the person who convinced them to support this contest was working to sabotage it?”

  No, but now that Devlyn had asked the question, I was concerned. The last thing Christine would want was for LuAnn to be behind the contest’s troubles. Even if I could prove it, I doubted she would be grateful and Music in Motion could still suffer. Crap.

  “Well, what do you suggest I do now?” I asked. “I can’t accuse someone else just to make Christine happy.” How icky would that be?

  Devlyn shoved his hands in his pockets and frowned. “I guess the only way to really find out what happened is to keep asking questions. Maybe we should be asking how damaged the costumes were for LuAnn’s team. With the number of people she upset and what happened to her last night, there’s a good chance someone she ticked off was behind the whole thing.”

  If so, whoever was behind the ruined costumes was smart. Targeting so many teams made it almost impossible to tell which one was the true focus of the attack. Or if they were all targeted equally.

  Since I’d already had a heart-to-heart with the head coach from LuAnn’s high school, I asked Devlyn to take a whack at finding the extent of the costuming issues. “Maybe you can flash a couple of smiles and offer to help with repairs. Nikki didn’t look like she was headed back to her staging room, but maybe someone else is there now.”

  “You want me to do this now?”

  “There isn’t a lot of time to waste. Tomorrow is the preliminaries.”

  “Okay,” he sighed. “But as soon as I get back you owe me lunch. Deal?”

  I smiled. “Deal.”

  With a wink, Devlyn disappeared out of the door and I sat down to try to decide what I should do next.

  “Hey, Paige. Do you have a minute?”

  Scott Paris stood in the doorway.

  “Sure. How did the master class with Donna go?” I asked.

  “Not bad. We weren’t able to pull off some of the special surprises I was hoping for, but the kids seemed to enjoy the experience.” Scott strolled into the room and closed the door.

  With everything that had happened at this competition thus far, I’d rather have had the door open. But Scott clearly wanted privacy. I guessed I would just have to wait for him to tell me why.

  “You have som
e very talented students. One of yours—I think her name was Chessie—has a real star quality.”

  “Chessie has a powerful instrument,” I agreed. “We’ve been working to improve her technique so she has a better control of dynamics.” Chessie often confused being loud with sounding good. Unfortunately, the louder she sang, the less pitch control she had. Off-key singing wasn’t exactly the stuff successful careers were made out of.

  “Well, I was impressed. I just wish we would have had time to have some of your other singers perform.” Scott shrugged. “Donna was pretty intent on showcasing a lot of her own students, especially when a couple of the judges snuck into the back to watch. If you haven’t figured it out, Donna’s incredibly competitive.”

  “And yet she’s friends with you.” At least, that was the impression he’d given me when we first spoke about my stepping up to cover the master class.

  The wide, bright white grin against the tanned face made him look a deranged game-show host. “Donna’s one of my best friends in the business. I can’t imagine what I’d do or how this competition would continue if anything like what happened to LuAnn Freeman happened to her.”

  If this was “Let’s Make a Deal,” I wasn’t trading the money in my purse for whatever Scott was offering behind door number two. Otherwise, I was pretty sure I was going to get zonked.

  “I thought LuAnn was the one who saved this competition from financial ruin. She’s the one who lined up the sponsors. Right?”

  “LuAnn made an incredible contribution by bringing together Christine and some of the state’s best patrons of the arts.” Scott’s smile grew even wider, which I hadn’t thought possible. Now he resembled the clown doll my grandmother gave me when I was six. The thing scared the hell out of me. I was forced to put it in a place of honor on my bed whenever my grandmother came to visit and had nightmares for days after she left. Until, of course, I realized that despite what the movies claimed, a doll couldn’t come to life and attack me. Unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said for Scott. The man was alive and taking a step in my direction.