Murder in the Choir Room - Chapter One

Murder in the Choir Room 

A Megan O'Reilley Off Key Mystery 

by Toni Walker 

CHAPTER ONE

"It's not like you're going to find a dead body," Tara Doreen joked.  "I mean, what are the odds?" 

I don't know why I was so nervous. It was only church choir for goodness sake. Nothing too scary about that, right? I clutched my messenger bag to my chest as if it alone was going to keep me out of harms way. I tried not to recall the last dead body that seemed to find its way onto my path. As far as I can remember, that didn't turn out too well either. 

Tara Doreen Goodall, my newest friend, scratch that, only friend, had gone behind my back and conspired with my creative writing teacher at Harper Lake Community College. Apparently, the two of them went way back. I image they went so far back that they were fondly recalling a high school encounter in the backseat of a '57 Chevy. How they managed to come up with this nutty plan with all that on their mind is beyond me. 

"You're better than all those yahoos put together," Tara Doreen said with a slight smile. "I doubt Geoffrey Greenwalt would have agreed to such an arrangement if he hadn't checked you out thoroughly." 

I shivered at the thought. Geoffrey had been a B-movie icon back when I was in high school. But today he was a barely recognizable version of himself. Sun tanning, stage makeup and alcohol not to mention the supposed drug problem the media could never confirm had done a number on his skin and waistline. He wasn't ugly by any stretch of the imagination, but he could definitely use a tune-up. 

"It's not like I'm being paid for this gig, Tara. It's basically a glorified internship, little better than a volunteer." 

"Your creative writing teacher is a genius!" 

"I think my creative writing teacher had a bit of a bug in his ear from some pesky ex-girlfriend." 

"Technically, we never officially dated. Dangerous liaisons, you know." Tara's eyes glittered with an intriguing mix of  danger and pure giddiness.  

I appreciated Tara's enthusiasm. It was a rare friend who would go out of her way to let someone else live their dreams. My dream was a mixture of one part singing and two parts creative writing. This would definitely fit the bill in my book. So as to why I was so apprehensive, I haven't a clue. 

Or maybe it was just my psychic intuition niggling at the back of my mind yelling, DANGER WILL ROBINSON! 

The area around Cedar Point Baptist Church was dark and foreboding. Not exactly the atmosphere for a local gathering of a church choir. The light from one window winked at us. Tara shoved me from behind, already frustrated with my lack of initiative. She had her own business here tonight. They had somehow conned her into  updating the church's books, budges and accounts. Delilah McQuade, the previous financial secretary, had gone missing. Popular theory has her attending the Church of the Godly Light in a neighboring town. But basically, no one has seen the woman since she vacated the church office over three weeks ago. 

Tara shoved me a little harder. "I'm going. I'm going. Give a girl a moment to get over the terrified uneasiness. I gulped in the humid July air and pushed forward toward a building that looked more like a haunted mansion than a church. A church that looked like that had to hold a dangerous spirit. At least, that was the thought running through my mind when I walked into the joint.