Requiem Murder Part 30

"Deathly. Every time he comes to the house, I have to send Robespierre over to Maria's. Not that the cat minds. He has a thing for little Carlos."

"Mrs. M, don't stray from the story." His tone held a warning.

"I went up to the choir room where he has his office. The door was open and the lights were on but he wasn't there. After I checked the music library and the robing room, I headed to the sanctuary. I couldn't see him in the choir loft, but since it was lit, I decided to see if he was working on the organ. Sometimes a

stop will stick. I called and walked down the aisle. Then I saw him. I knelt to check his pulse, saw his head and the blood and knew there was nothing I could do. I ran to the parish office and called you."

"And I told you to stay put."

"But someone could have come in or they could have left."

"And you could have been a second corpse. What would Andrew say to that?" He shook his head. "This

is my fault for putting you in a detective's role." He made a face. "All I said was prove those kids weren't burglars."

"Didn't you want me to be your partner?"

"I was joking." He made a face. "Promise this is your last case."

"Gladly."

"Would you come into the church and sit at the organ bench? Maybe I can get a handle on how it happened."

"Not happily. He removed the back of the bench. Watching him while he played gave me the chills. He threw himself into the music. I've had visions of him falling."

"Then this could have been an accident."

"Anything's possible, but knowing Roger and the way he stirred things --"

He nodded. "After that party and the things that went on, I agree with you. Except, I figured if anyone was offed, Mrs. Simpson would be the victim." He took my arm. "Let's get this done." When we entered the sanctuary, I paused and stared at the nave. Memories arose of the day Roger had given me a private concert, and his reaction to the church and the town. Why had things gone so sour? Why hadn't I sensed the flaw in his character?

Pete tugged on my arm. "The body's gone."

"I was just remembering the first time I heard him play the organ here. A private concert. And I was wondering why such a bright moment went wrong."

"So you think he was murdered?"

My breath rushed out. "Maybe, maybe not and I'm not sure it can be proved he was."

A memory flashed into my thoughts. Judith on the walk. Her attempts to catch the stray cat. How she

had wanted to bring the animal to choir. Her knowledge of Roger's fear. The look in her eyes.

The cat had been in the church and something told me Judith was responsible. What if I mentioned my theory to Pete? Would he believe me? I followed him up the stairs to the choir loft.

"Would you sit at the organ and pretend to play? Show me how he'd act."

I made my way to the organ bench. My legs felt stiff and I almost bolted. I don't like heights. Pete left the

loft.

A moment later, he called, "Show me how he played."

Though I quaked inside, I gave a fair demonstration. I even turned and leaned over the railing as Roger

had often done. Except I kept my eyes closed.

Pete returned. "Thanks, My turn." He sat on the bench and repeated my turning movement. Then he leaned straight back and for I moment I feared he would fall.

He straightened. "The man had guts."

"He once told me he liked to take chances and he had no

fear of heights. So what's your verdict."

"Could have been an accident. I can't see how someone could have pushed him. No room for them to

stand in front of him. He was a big man. All our measurements point to him being about mid-bench when he fell."

"So it was an accident?"

He shrugged. "Maybe someone startled him. Slammed the door. Or appeared at the top of the steps and

shouted and he reacted and went back too far."

Or a cat suddenly appearing on the organ console and he reacted the way he always did to the appearance of one, I thought.

"It's a tough call. Unless we discover who was here, we may never know what happened. Maybe Mary of Rev. Potter saw someone coming in. They're being questioned now."

Unfortunately cats can't talk. Was there a way to prove my theory was right?

Chapter 12.

Benedictus Pete escorted me to the side door. I heard voices from upstairs. "What's going on?" "They're checking his desk and his calendar to see if he had any appointments," Pete said. "Go home." "Yes, sir." He shook his head. "Someday your curiosity is going to put you in the soup."

"Probably. See you."

I stepped outside. The misting rain continued and I was glad the temperature wasn't cold enough to freeze.

My day had been long and filled with an abundance of shocks. Though barely six o'clock, I was ready for bed and not dinner at Sarah's. When I got home, I'd call and apologize, but there were things I had to do before I crashed.

Edward stood on the small porch outside his office. "Katherine, whatever will we do? I can just imagine the publicity this will engender."

I crossed the garden and walked up the steps to the porch. "I'm too tired to solve any problems today.

I'm going home."

"What did Pete say?"

"Very little."

"What am I going to tell people? The Vestry will expect an explanation and there have already been

phone calls from the media."

By media, I suppose he meant the local radio station. "Refer them to the police."

He heaved a sigh. "I've done that. Surely, this was an accident, a tragic accident. I can't bear to think it

was anything but that. Katherine, can you imagine the negative publicity? Churches have had more than their share of that lately."

If the full story of Roger's past and his proclivities reached the media, the publicity would be horrible. Not only the local news would feature the story, but with today's voyeuristic journalism it would hit the national media.

"What should we do?"

The whine in his voice rasped my already abraded nerves. "Handle the matter with dignity. I have to go home. This has been a long and exhausting experience." And he'd only seen the top layer of my day. "It's

raining and I 'm cold."

"Come inside. A gla.s.s of sherry will warm you."

"A gla.s.s of sherry will lay me out cold. Then you'd have another body to explain. I'll talk to you

tomorrow."

"Call me early. I'll let you know what the Vestry says." He reached for the door. "Mary's calling them.

We have to meet this evening to discuss this situation. Oh, Katherine, they'll be so disappointed. Will they blame me?"

"Why should they do that?"

"Because I acted hastily and offered him the job."

"But they also heard the other candidates and he outshone them. I remember hearing that."

He nodded. "Whatever will we do about Christmas?"

"I don't know."

"Could you return and head the search committee?"

"Not on a bet." I left the porch. "Talk to you later."

"I'm sure this was an accident, a tragic accident."

"Maybe, maybe not." There was no comfort to be had for Edward or me. We both bore some guilt for