Murders in Music City

A group of college age people are going through a Haunted Woods where there is one way in and only one way out. They find themselves trapped inside with a homicidal maniac and deadly traps at every turn. The best chance of survival is to make it through.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Murders in Music CityBy Gary M. GilbertAuthorHouse LLCCopyright © 2014 Gary M. GilbertAll rights reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4918-6932-1CHAPTER 1"Shit Happens!" That's what Pete Johnson's bumper sticker reads as he races to work after oversleeping. That is what the police officer reads before hitting his lights and issuing a ticket for doing 72 in a 55 miles per hour zone. If Pete were superstitious, he would go home, go back to bed and wake up tomorrow. He's not. In fact, he calls superstitious people "stupid-stitious". So he continues his journey down the highway of fate and change. These are the last days of his old self. The good citizens of Nashville will not be prepared when Pete's new self takes over.Pete Johnson is a twenty-four year old electrician with a '01 Buick, seven hundred thirty-four dollars in his checking account, and a two day growth of beard on his face. He has brown eyes that sometimes turn hazel-green in the sunlight. He has ten pounds too much on his 510 frame with a look of impatience that matches his northern brogue. He has been in Music City for six years. Pete doesn't know enough of the back streets to avoid the interstate highways or the radar traps set up to catch those trying to beat the clock to work. He lives in an apartment in Madison, Tennessee. The speeding ticket doesn't matter because he still would have been fifteen minutes late for his job downtown.The day is a crisp autumn day in the latter part of October. The leaves are changing a little late for Tennessee. It is Friday: payday and his BIG DATE DAY. Pete is going on his once in a lifetime chance to get the woman of his dreams date. Pete's mind has been on this day all week and his mood is excellent, especially considering how his morning started. Michelle Monteroy, a slim beautiful blonde, full figured, 5'7", 38-26-34 woman. Pete thinks of her as his own personal M&M. He is concentrating on Michelle instead of his job ... Again.The radio on the job-site is playing the Jake and Ted Show as 8:50 rolls around. The Epitome is liked by almost everybody on the job-site. It makes working here more enjoyable. Pete is working on the sixth floor of a ten floor office building with the first four floors already occupied. The general is pushing all the trades to completion earlier than what the subs agreed to. Pete's hands work deftly as he wires up the last of the 2x4 fluorescent fixtures at 270 volts. He climbs down the eight-foot fiberglass ladder, singing with Linda Ronstadt's "You're No Good". Then he hits the switch and, as if on cue, the painters who are working in the room jump like they have been shot. BANG! POP! POP! POP! POP! POP!"Shit!" One of the painters yells."What did you do now, sparky?" Asks the other one. "With you it's always something.""Yeah, this is the third time this week you screwed up."Pete didn't bother to read the boxes the light fixtures came in or he would have noticed that the helpers put 120 volt fixtures instead of 270 volt fixtures in the room. His boss will fire him before he has a chance to find out. He doesn't care. He is too focused on his plans with her to give a rats ass about his job. Someone else may have put the blame on the helpers and at least try to save their job. Michelle-Michelle-Michelle is going thru his mind at the time his foreman chews a piece out of his ass the size of a piece of pizza. A large slice.He thanks him for the job opportunity, picks up his check and walks out the door with a smile on his face. The foreman has a look of puzzlement on his. Usually the employees would say something like; "I was looking for a job when I found this one". Pete only says one word when he walks out. "Michelle". He is glad to have the extra time today to get ready for her. He was planning on leaving at lunch time.Pete cashes his check and goes to a local bar. It is within a mile from his apartment. It is close enough that he could walk home and not worry about a DUI. He wants to kill some time and brag about his date to Sam. Sam is a career-minded bartender with little desire to do anything else. Sam's dream is to one day own and operate an establishment like the one he is operating now. Pete orders a beer and tells his friend how his day went."Man, you mean all this happened today?" Sam asks."Yeah, maybe karma is telling me to find another line of work or pay a little more attention to details". Pete laughs."You better go back to bed, cancel your date and wait until tomorrow when your luck changes"."No way, Sam. I've been waiting all my life for her. I was going to leave at lunch anyway. Maybe this happened for the better. Did I tell you how I first met Michelle?" Pete asks."I don't think so, Pete". Sam answers."I was at the sports complex at Centennial. You know the one with the Olympic size pool?" Sam nods his head before Pete continues. "I see this goddess come out of the pool and she wipes away the water almost giving me a hard-on. She sees me and smiles: the type of smile that can melt your heart. It takes all my attention on something else to keep from embarrassing myself because I was wearing those tight-ass speedo's. I thought she was going scold me for starring at her but she started talking to me, like she knew me". Pete says with a look of euphoria on his face.Beautiful can't even begin to describe her. It's a start, but she is so much more. Until I met her I could only dream of having someone like her in my life. I'm taking it slow because I'm going marry her, grow old with her, and sit on the front porch waving at the passers-by"."Man, be careful. You could put her on a pedestal even you can't reach. She's the one. I get that, but maybe today isn't the day?" Sam takes a drink of coke. "Tomorrow's another day. Tell her you're sick or something". Sam says trying to talk sense to Pete."Sam, you sound like an old movie and these are bad omens or some other kind of shit like that. I believe we make our own luck. We control our own destinies." Pete says hoping Sam gets the point. "The more we see each other and get to really know one another, the more I'm convinced that she is the one. We like the same movies, same foods, music. I mean she is perfect for me. She says that I'm her soul-mate, her missing half. Can you believe that". Pete rolls his eyes toward the ceiling. "She once asked if I was GAY. ME! GAY! I wanted to take my time, wanting to prove I wasn't like everybody else, so I didn't try to get in her pants right away". Sam grins like an idiot, picturing Pete being accused of being gay. "Can you imagine that? I was so embarrassed.She must have been used to all the guys hitting on her for sex, I don't know. I told her I was scared and didn't want to run her off. She leaned over, grabbed my face and kissed me". A sigh escapes from his lips.Sam thinks to himself. "Man he's got it BAD".Pete bares his soul to Sam, something he rarely does with anyone. "I've been thinking of getting out of the electrician business".Sam shakes his head and asks. "Are you sure? You make good money and you have great health insurance".Had. I got fired this morning, remember?" Pete questions Sam. "I'm young still and I always wanted to go to college. I figure I'll get some grants or loans and be an Electrical Engineer or something." Pete takes a breath of air and stares across the room. Sam sees the faraway look in his friend's eyes. "You know when a bunch of electricians get together and shoot the crap, the subject always goes back to a job. They tell stories about the last time they got bit. You know what bit is?" Pete queries Sam. Sam shakes his head, No."Bit is shocked, zapped, fried, whatever you want to call it ... It can be deadly".Pete takes another sip of his drink. He isn't used to talking this much, it makes him thirsty. Sam remains silent, a trait that is standard for bar tending. Pete still has that glazed look in his eyes. "I want Michelle to be the mother of my children. I never thought of marriage until now. Michelle is the one I have dreamed about since Junior High. You know when you dream about the ONE? Well, Michelle is it. I don't want my kids to visit me in the hospital seeing their daddy burnt to a crisp because of some transformer. I knew someone like that. Hell, I had a friend die on a 120 volt circuit because no one knew it until it was too late. I don't want to put Michelle or our kids through that. I looked into being a real estate agent but I want to be home nights. I've checked into being an appraiser and thought about that. If engineering school is too tough that's probably what I'll end up doing.Sam just looks at Pete. He would never give up his livelihood for a woman who may or may not love him. Sam does see some logic in Pete's reasoning. He will wait until later before making any comments.Pete takes another sip, glances at his drink and tells Sam. "I'll kill to protect her or die trying. I love her that much. I want that house with the white picket fence and a dog in the yard. I want to teach our children about life, take them to practice, watch them grow up. I want to be the kind of father I never had. If Michelle isn't in the picture then I'd be settling for something I don't really want and probably be miserable the rest of my life. I'd rather be dead than not have the kind of life I've always dreamed of".Sam rocks back from his stance holding up the bar. He blinks his eyes, wondering how to break the news to his friend. Life doesn't always go the way you want it to. Sometimes unforeseeable events occur to throw monkey wrenches in our plans. "Pete, maybe you should wait until she says yes, before you make all these plans?"The conversation dies after that because other patrons enter the bar. The two men play the roles of bartender and customer as Pete reflects about Michelle.Pete walks up to his apartment and lies down on his couch to take a nap. It is only one p.m. and he isn't set to pick up Michelle until six o'clock. He sets his alarm and the alarm on his T.V. to four o'clock. He doesn't want a repeat of this morning. He wants everything to be perfect.* * *At 5:30 in her apartment, Michelle is getting dressed as her friend, Brittany, watches. Brittany is having a hard time accepting Michelle's choice of Pete. Brittany and Michelle live in an upscale apartment in Brentwood, Tennessee, an outlying area of Nashville.Brittany has been trying to educate her friend about the finer points of choosing a date. Without her make-up and wonder-bra, Brittany is hamburger next to Michelle's prime rib."You're so beautiful! You can have any date or any man you want. Bill is an airline pilot and would take you anywhere you wanted to go. Jeff is a fine young executive with a BMW and he's on his way to the top of the corporate ladder. Don't forget Dave with that cute ass of his."Just look at you! If I had your natural beauty, 38-inch chest, with those long legs, I'd be in Playboy or Penthouse making all the men drool over my centerfold, beckoning to my every wish and command. I'd be sunbathing at the Mansion, soaking up the rays, getting a tan all over and choosing which millionaire to marry. Get a divorce and do it all over again, after taking half the assets of course".Michelle laughed, remembering a favorite saying of her Grandma's. "Let's just say she isn't what she ought to be. She's anybody's dog that will hunt with her". It fit Brittany like a sweater. Michelle went about her business picking out her clothes.Michelle likes her friend most of the time, but sometimes she really irritates her.This is one of those times. "If I wanted to be in Playboy, let the world see me naked, I could have a dozen men take my pictures and send them in. If I wanted a man solely for his money, I've had a few opportunities to do so already. I want a man to love me for me. I want a man to respect me, not parade me around as a trophy. I once heard a woman call herself Dr. so and so's wife. That's not me and never will be. Bill is a pilot and could take me anywhere, I agree. He uses that line to pick up women, get in their panties and discards them when he's done. He isn't to discreet about it and could give you something a penicillin shot can't get rid of. I want me to be the center of my love's interest. If that is selfish, so be it. Jeff is climbing up the ladder of success but he isn't taking any one with him. He doesn't care who he hurts or leaves behind to get there. Jeff is the type who will sacrifice everyone and everything to get to the top. I want a man who cherishes me. Dave, cute-ass and all is so conceited, he can't pass a mirror without looking at himself. He spends almost all his time working out, building up that body of his than he does at work. I want a man who wants to spend his time with me. I want a man I can enjoy sex with and after that, snuggle, or maybe go for a quiet walk. Is that too much to ask? Pete gives me that, he is honest and fun"."So you have fun with Pete. But can he give you the type of life or security that you deserve? I saw that picture of your High-School sweetheart. The one who died, in a motorcycle wreck, weeks before your wedding. Pete looks like a twin. Could your feelings for him being transferred over to Pete?" Brittany states more than asks."Maybe, at first, Britt, but after talking to him and really getting to know him ..., No. We've been dating for months and he's more interested in me and not what's inside my pants.I even asked if he was gay because I wasn't used to someone being more interested in me. He told me he wanted to grow old with me and that sex could wait. He wanted to be sure we were meant for each other. Can you believe that?""My money's on him being gay. What normal man could resist those charms".She says pointing to Michelle's chest."Yeah, I practically had to put them in his hands before he touched them. He acted like they were glass and might break or something. I assured him otherwise. I actually had to show him otherwise". Michelle said laughing."That's more information than I want, thank you. Maybe Pete is putting on an act. Maybe he's a serial killer in disguise. All of this is an illusion, not wanting to reveal his true persona. Did you ever think of that?" Brittany asks smiling."You're just being ridiculous, trying to scare me, or change how I feel towards the man you don't approve of because of his lack of wealth". Michelle retorts.Brittany looks away from Michelle's stare and starts looking at the floor.She knows Michelle is right. Michelle doesn't care about the right image. Image is important for a single girl who wants to marry the right man with the right career and money. Brittany is bound and determined to educate her friend on such matters. Her mother taught her. Now it's her turn to pass it along. It doesn't hurt her that she will get the leftovers from Michelle's scraps.Pete is not one of those leftovers. Brittany is looking after her own best interests as well as her friend's. A friend who looked like Michelle was a gold mine for those who don't. Brittany is very pretty but Michelle is very beautiful, a fact Brittany is well aware of.Michelle continues to daydream.Pete is so much like her old love, it is scary. He comes from the same part of the country: upstate N.Y. Pete makes her feel like a teenager all over again. Michelle thinks that maybe Pete and her old love had the same father and she sometimes feels awkward that maybe they could be half-brothers. Pete brought back old memories of what might have been. She tells herself that Pete isn't Bobby, and he makes her feel special. When she is with him, he has the ability to make her believe that they're the only ones left in the world. After all, isn't that what every girl wants in a relationship."Where are you going tonight, Shelly?" Brittany asks, breaking Michelle's train of thought."I don't know, maybe, dinner, a movie or both. I told Pete to surprise me". Michelle answers with a slight smile on her face. Brittany just shrugs her shoulders. Brittany stays until Pete arrives. He has a single yellow rose in his hand when Michelle answers the door. Pete says hello to Brittany and she grunts a reply before leaving."What's wrong with her? ... Cramps?" He asks, making a fake grimace. Michelle laughs at his funny expression, knowing he will never know how that feels."Something like that. Thank you for the rose. It's beautiful". She smiles."Not half as beautiful as you. The rose is a beautiful flower for a beautiful lady".He whispers as he bows his head to kiss her hand."I've got to watch myself with you ... You silver-tongue devil. I bet you say that to all the pretty girls. If you keep this up, you'll spoil me. I like being spoiled". She giggles. She feels old memories pouring in. Pete sees the faraway look come over her face, but thinks it is because she is used to flattery."That is my plan. Someone as pretty as you deserves to be spoiled, just don't get the big head. Okay?" He replies, grinning like a seventh-grader after his first real kiss.Michelle agrees with a smile covering her face as well. She likes Pete and has to keep him at a distance for her own self-preservation. She knows it is only a matter of time before she falls head over heels. She doesn't know that Pete already has. Who knows maybe tonight? Pete is thinking along those same lines, but he is only hoping. If the two could read minds, they wouldn't go out, they would stay in and just enjoy each other. Pete's day has started off all wrong, but he doesn't know it is about to get worse. (Continues...)Excerpted from Murders in Music City by Gary M. Gilbert. Copyright © 2014 Gary M. Gilbert. Excerpted by permission of AuthorHouse LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

Reviews

News