End Me a Tenor Read Online Free PDF Page A

terrible tragedy, but David Richard would be the first to say the show should go on. It’s my job to make sure it does.”
    With a dramatic huff, Bill hurried down the escape stairs and into the theater in search of a signal and a replacement tenor. That left the rest of us to talk to the officers who were heading in our direction.
    The tall mustached blond hooked a finger at Bill’s back. “Where’s he going?”
    Magdalena brushed a tear off her cheek and stepped forward. “Bill is contacting the producers of the show. They need to be informed of David’s tragic death. It must have been a heart attack, don’t you think?”
    The officers exchanged a look that made the back of my neck tingle. The shorter, gray-haired cop said, “We need to take your statements. If you could all wait in the lobby, we’ll talk to you one by one as well as anyone else who witnessed the deceased’s final moments.”
    Sitting on a hard, metal chair in the back corner of the lobby, I watched as Jonathan comforted Vanessa and Magdalena until they were escorted into the theater to be questioned. When someone finally came to talk to me, it wasn’t one of the uniforms, but a steely-eyed, gray-and-black-haired detective dressed in jeans and a worn navy sport jacket. Instead of going into the theater, he pulled up a folding chair and sat down next to me.
    “Thanks for waiting. I know it’s been a long night.” From the way the detective looked at me, I had a feeling it was going to get even longer. “I’ve already talked to the alto. You must be the soprano.”
    I nodded. “Paige Marshall.”
    “Will you be offended if I say I haven’t heard of you?”
    That made me laugh. “No, but I’m guessing the others were.” His smile said I’d hit the target in one. “I’m still breaking into the business. Singing with David Richard was a career making opportunity for me.”
    “And now he’s dead.” The detective took a notebook out of his pocket and flipped it open. “Could you describe what happened tonight after the deceased took the stage?”
    My throat ached as I walked the detective through David’s belated entrance to holding his hand after he died. Tears pricked the back of my eyes and my chest burned. Talking about David’s death made it feel real.
    The detective flipped a page in his book. “The others mentioned that you and David had an altercation before rehearsal began.”
    Hurt and embarrassment swirled in my stomach. I should have expected Vanessa and Jonathan to mention my encounter with David. “I left my dressing room and ran smack into David. He read me the riot act. I yelled back, and he apologized for his behavior. We sorted out whose water bottle was whose, and he went into his dressing room. End of story. I can’t imagine two minutes of yelling at me triggered his heart attack on stage. From what I can tell, the man was always fighting with someone.”
    “I thought the two of you just met today.”
    “We did.” I took a deep breath and explained. “Vanessa was upset with David when I walked into our dressing room today, and yesterday I saw our conductor smack him in the face.”
    The detective flipped through the pages of his book. “David Richard wasn’t at rehearsal yesterday.”
    “David didn’t sing,” I agreed. “He wasn’t scheduled to be at rehearsal. But he and Magdalena were having an argument in the greenroom before rehearsal. I walked into the room as her fist made contact with his nose, and backed out before either of them noticed I was there.”
    The detective asked a couple more questions about my fight with David and the water bottles. He then took my contact information and handed me his card. “If you think of anyone else who might have had a problem with the victim, please let me know.”
    I nodded as alarm bells jangled in my head. Not deceased. Victim. David Richard wasn’t just dead. He had been murdered.

    “I don’t see why we can’t go home.” Vanessa paced the