Chapter One

Are you ready for our night of chaperoning the kids?” Mark asked as they prepared to leave to pick up Jennifer and her new boyfriend, Paul.

“As ready as I’ll ever be. I’m looking forward to seeing Bill and the members of his band. I remember when you first started coaching at the high school. I knew they were destined for great things even before they won that talent show in Chicago.”

Rhonda dropped her detective’s shield into her purse. If the kids got too rowdy, she could flash it and remind them she was a police officer and, even off duty, could easily arrest the troublemakers.

Jen and Paul were waiting for them when they pulled up to the apartment house where they’d moved just weeks earlier.

“I can’t believe you were able to get us approved to be chaperones,” Jen said as soon as they got into the car.

“It wasn’t hard. There weren’t many of the teachers who wanted the job. I figured it would be safe enough with two of Clark County’s finest along with me. I did take a lot of flak from the kids, but that’s part of being a member of the faculty. You know how kids are about the older generation horning in on their get-togethers. I had to remind them with the show being held on school property, having chaperones was a must.”

Paul laughed.

“I can understand these kids. Back in the day, I certainly didn’t want adults putting a damper on the things I liked to do with my friends.”

“I can only imagine what you were doing,” Jen teased.

“It’s not as bad as you think. I wasn’t drinking or having sex. When I was in high school, I spent a lot of time learning how to play poker online. I never lost money or anything like that, but I did learn how to play the games. Being a computer geek helped me in learning how to beat the house on the slots and I’ve always been good at Blackjack.”

“Sounds harmless enough,” Mark mused.

“It was until I got to college and started playing for money with my fraternity brothers. I took them for quite a bit until their fathers complained and it got back to my old man. Of course, by that time, I was twenty-one and started investing my winnings at the casinos here in town. The rest, as they say, is history.”

“It sounds like you’re good at what you do, otherwise, you and Jen couldn’t afford that fancy new apartment of yours,” Rhonda commented.

“He is,” Jen replied. “Thanks to your friend Tyson, that’s how he got his job. He’s not at the top of the ladder like Tyson is, but he’s got his foot in the door and the money is good. I’m sure he will go far with that company.”

Rhonda smiled. She knew Paul worked for the same company as Tyson. It didn’t come as a surprise their friend connected him with the owners of the company along with a good recommendation.

~ * ~

Even though they’d arrived early for the performance, the auditorium was filled with teenagers, all talking at once about the upcoming show.

“How do you put up with this every day?” Jen asked.

Mark laughed at her comment. “I might ask you the same thing. How do you put up with murders daily? To answer your question, though, they aren’t always this hyped up. Admit it, you’re as pumped as the kids about the show. Once they start to play, these kids will calm down a bit.”

They were about to take their seats, when Billy’s manager, Rusty Phillips came up to Mark. “Mr. Pohs, it’s good to see you again. You too, Mrs. Phos. I was wondering if the two of you could come backstage with me.”

Rhonda and Mark exchanged anxious glances. Something was wrong. They knew Rusty as well as they did Bill, and something was off about the demeanor of the young man.

“You two get all the luck,” Jen said pretending to pout. “I’d give anything to meet Billy Roller.”

Rusty looked at Jen skeptically. “And you are?”

“I’m sorry, I should have made introductions before this,” Rhonda apologized. This is my partner at the Sheriff’s Office, Jen Sims. Do you think Bill would mind if she came along with us?”

“It might be a good idea, Mrs. Pohs.”

Rhonda knew calling them Mr. and Mrs. was instilled in Rusty. They were all adults now. She would have been more comfortable on a first name basis.

She turned her thoughts back to what had been unspoken up until now. She had a sinking feeling. Something was wrong and the expression on Rusty’s face confirmed her apprehensions.

While the auditorium still buzzed with youthful conversation, both couples followed Rusty out into the hallway and down to the door leading to the backstage dressing rooms.

“I was pleased when they told me you were going to be chaperoning. Both Billy and I were looking forward to seeing you tonight, but not this way.”

“What are you saying, Rusty?” Rhonda questioned.

The young man turned back to face her. The look in his eyes confirmed her earlier apprehensions. Something was terribly wrong.

“We heard you’re working for the Sheriff’s Department, Mrs. Pohs.”

“Please call me Rhonda,” she interrupted.

“I will, Rhonda. After the show, Billy was going to have you brought backstage because of the death threats he’s been getting.”

“Death threats?” Jen echoed. “Who would be sending Billy death threats?”

“That’s what we were hoping to find out. When I went into his dressing room, I found…”

Rusty’s voice cracked and Rhonda noticed tears in the green eyes. “What happened, Rusty?”

“It’s Billy. Maybe you should see for yourself.”

Rhonda’s mind ran crazy with thoughts of what was wrong. She watched as Rusty turned and opened the door to the dressing room. There was a makeshift sign on the door indicating it was to be used by Billy Roller, complete with a giant star and his name written in block letters.

Hoping for the best and anticipating the worst, Rhonda stepped into the room. Immediately, she could smell the odor of spilled blood and death. Billy lay slumped over the dressing table with a knife protruding from his back. On closer inspection, Rhonda could tell the knife had been stuck in his back after he was dead. Before finding its final resting place, the knife had been used to cut Billy’s throat.

“Oh my god,” Mark said, his voice hardly louder than a whisper. “How in the hell did you stay so calm when you came out to get us?”

It took a moment for Rusty to regain his composure. When he did, it was evident, he was using every ounce of strength he had to be able to speak.

“Billy and I have been best friends since kindergarten. Neither of us took the threats seriously. Then-then I found this. What do we do now, Rhonda?”

“I need to call this in and get the coroner over here along with a forensics team. When was the last time you saw Bill alive?”

Rusty lowered his head. “It-it was this afternoon at his wedding.”

“Wedding?” Rhonda and Jen asked in unison.

“Billy has been going at it hot and heavy with Connie Williams. Last week Connie told him she was pregnant. Billy was over the moon about becoming a father. He insisted on getting married as soon as we arrived in Vegas.”

“Didn’t the two of you listen in health class when I emphasized using a condom until you were married and ready to start a family?” Mark asked.

Rhona could hear the anger mounting in his voice.

“He always did, but it must have broken, leaked or something.”

“None of that matters now,” Jen said. “How long has Billy known Connie?”

While Jen asked the necessary questions, Rhonda pulled out her phone and reported the murder.

Mark took over the mundane job of closing and locking the door, so no one else would enter the room.

“He met Connie in Sacramento last year. The two of them hit it off right away. They’ve been tight ever since. To be truthful, if Billy didn’t use a condom, she would have been pregnant long before this.”

“Where can we find Connie?” Rhonda asked, once she hung up the phone.

“She wanted to come, but Billy said no.”

Knowing Connie would not be able to shed any light on what went on here she went on to another line of questioning. “Who has access to this room?” Rhonda probed.

“That’s just it, being at a school, it’s not as secure as when we play at one of the hotels. Oh damn, what about the show? Billy is due on stage in fifteen minutes.”

“For now, only the five of us know what’s happened. The authorities don’t count. Have the band announce Bill’s not feeling well. They can put the show on without him tonight. Until the forensics team finishes with this room, no one is to know Billy was murdered right here at the school.”

~ * ~

Mark decided it was best if he talked to the band and make the announcement to the kids. He recognized several of the band members as kids he’d either taught in health class or coached in high school back in Wisconsin. Tommy Baxter had been a star pitcher as well as an accomplished keyboard player. Mark saw Tommy coming toward him and swallowed the lump in his throat.

“Mr. Pohs, Billy told me you’d be here tonight. It’s good to see you.”

“It’s good to see you too, Tommy. I’m afraid you and the band will have to go on without Bill tonight. Rusty came to let me know Billy isn’t feeling well. It could be he’s caught one of the bugs that’s been going around.”

Tommy looked worried. “Who’s going to break the news to the kids out there? It’s not like we can’t put on the show, but these kids came to see Billy.”

“Let me talk to the kids. Being a teacher here I think I can calm them down.”

The look on Tommy’s face was one of relief.

Taking a deep breath, Mark walked out onto the stage to confront the students who had been looking forward to the concert, “Good evening,” he said into one of the mikes.

Almost immediately the kids became silent.

“I know you came here to see Billy Roller tonight but there has been a bit of a change. The band will still perform, but Billy isn’t feeling well. He thought it was best if he went back to the hotel to rest. If it is something contagious, he doesn’t want to pass it on to any of you. The band is still here to put on the show.”

There were a lot of murmurs from the teenagers. Even so, the kids seemed to take things in their stride and quieted down when the band came on stage. Once they did, Clay Michaels took the mike from Mark.

“We’re sorry about you not getting to see Billy, but we plan to give you a great show. Since I know all the songs, I’ll be taking Billy’s place for tonight. It’s not the first time I’ve taken over when Billy’s gotten sick. To be truthful, at one time or another we’ve all had to step in and help each other. Now sit back and relax and enjoy the show. We promise we’ll do our best for you.”

By the time Mark returned to the dressing room, the place was buzzing with county deputies as well as a forensics team and the coroner. He glanced at Rhonda, surprised by what he was seeing. “How did you keep this quiet? I never even heard a siren.”

“I told them to come without lights or sirens. It’s not a life and death situation. The death has already happened,” Rhonda replied. “Jen and I will start the investigation as soon as forensics are finished, and the body has been removed. Rusty says he has several of the death threats with him. The ones he can access are on Bill’s laptop. The rest of them are at the office he maintains in Los Angeles. Once we clear him, he can fly out to Los Angeles and bring them back so we can go over them.”

Mark looked around the small room and saw Rusty sitting on one of the two folding chairs set against the wall. Instead of the mature manager for Billy Roller and his band, he saw the young man remembered from high school. For a moment, Rusty was the kid who wasn’t athletic enough to be on the teams but clamored to be accepted. He was the computer nerd who acted as team manager.

“Is there someone you want us to call, Rusty?” Mark asked as he put his hand consolingly on the young man’s shoulder.

“This is something I need to do. I need to go back to the hotel and tell Connie what happened. Oh god, how am I going to tell her this?”

“There isn’t anything else we can do here,” Rhonda said, joining the conversation. “When the show is done, we’ll have to tell the band, then we’ll go with you.”

~ * ~

Rhonda watched from the wings as the band finished the show to a standing ovation from the kids in the auditorium. She ached, knowing in just a matter of minutes she would be telling them the young man who was the cornerstone of their band was dead and his death was far from natural. Someone killed him and until she got further into her investigation, anyone and everyone close to Bill was under suspicion.

“Did you hear us, Mrs. Pohs?” Tommy asked as soon as he saw her standing there.

“I caught a little of it,” she replied. “Can you get the band members together and meet me in the rehearsal room?”

Tommy’s face went white. “What’s wrong? Has something happened to Connie or the baby? Is that why Billy didn’t perform tonight? I mean, they just got married and she wasn’t feeling well.”

“No, Tommy, it’s not Connie. Just get everyone together and I’ll meet you there in a few minutes.”

Rhonda knew she should have confided in Tommy, but it was best to break the news to those closest to Billy at the same time. It was bad enough the man many of them followed from Wisconsin to stardom was dead. As things stood now, every one of them was a suspect and would have to be questioned.

By the time she arrived at the rehearsal room, Mark, Paul, Jenny and Rusty were waiting for her with a young woman who could only be Connie. Rhonda ached for the poor girl. Married for less than twenty-four hours, and now she was a widow with a child growing in her belly who would never know its father.

She was surprised by the number of young men in the room. Beside the band, there were roadies who traveled with Bill. Just seeing the number of people she would need to eliminate as suspects, reminded her of the last case she worked in Wisconsin before relocating to Nevada.

“Thank you for meeting with me. I’m sorry to have to inform you the reason Billy was unable to perform tonight is because he was murdered before the show began.”

“Murdered?” Clay questioned. “How, by who? Why weren’t we told?”

“Because the show needed to go on,” Rusty said, taking the explanation out of her hands.

Behind her Rhonda could hear Connie sobbing, being comforted by Tommy. Taking a deep breath, Rhonda continued. “Billy was stabbed in his dressing room earlier this evening. Rusty found him and came to find us. My partner, Jennifer Sims, and I are homicide detectives with Clark County. This school is in the county and therefore we are the ones who will be investigating Bill’s murder. For now, I must ask you not to leave the county as, beginning tomorrow, we will be interviewing each of you.”

“Are you saying we’re suspects?” Clay asked.

“At this point everyone is a suspect. In an investigation like this one, we need to start with the people who were closest to Bill.”

“Even me?” Connie choked out between sobs.

“I’m afraid so. You have my sympathies, but in order to do my job I have to have contact information for each of you. As I said before, none of you are to leave town.”

“Can I see Billy?” Connie finally managed to ask.

“I’m afraid not. The coroner has taken him to the morgue for an autopsy.”

The statement brought on a fresh onslaught of tears from Connie. The girl wasn’t much over twenty and now she was facing a life as a widow as well as a widow of a man who achieved only to be murdered before his twenty-fifth birthday.