Free The Redeemed by M.R. Hall Page B

the blessing of the Rapture! A-men. A-men.'
    A buzz of excitement shot through the crowd as pictures
appeared on the big screens of a middle-aged woman and two young men who lay
convulsing on the floor at the foot of the stage.
    'Praise be. Praise be for your gifts of the spirit. Praise be
to Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour. Welcome him into your hearts,' Bobby
cried out as the slow-moving wave spread upwards through the rows towards
Jenny's. A vast ox of a man sitting immediately in front of her sank to his
knees, then fell prostrate in the aisle. A teenage girl tumbled out of her seat
and collapsed next to him. Jenny heard herself dismissing the spectacle as
collective hysteria even as she felt the wave breaking over her; a warm
sensation spread downwards from the crown of her head through her shoulders and
chest; her hands trembled and the strength bled from her legs.
    On the brink of collapse and fighting the heaviness in her
limbs, Jenny forced one leg in front of the other and headed towards the exit.
Stepping between the fallen, she noticed Freddy among them. Lying perfectly
still, his eyes shone like a child's, and for a moment she thought him the
closest thing she had ever seen to an angel.

Jenny sat out the rest of the service in MCG's, drinking
lukewarm coffee and watching a live feed from inside the auditorium on one of
the several screens arranged around the deserted restaurant. Bobby brought
worshippers who had just experienced the Rapture up onto the stage and urged
them to testify. One after another they all described the same feeling: like
swimming in a river of love; an overwhelming sense of happiness followed by
peace beyond all description as they felt themselves floating upwards.
    A waitress who had been wiping tables said, 'It started in
America. First it was only a few people, now it's hundreds and thousands. It's
just awesome.'
    'What do you think's going on?' Jenny said.
    'A new wave of the spirit. What else could it be?'
    'People scream and faint at rock concerts.'
    'Yes, but do they go out afterwards and change the world?'
    Jenny handed the waitress her empty cup. There was no answer
to that.

The church offices were situated behind a locked door at the
far side of the shop. Jenny pressed the intercom and was answered by a male
voice. 'Hello, how can I help you?'
    Jenny looked into the lens of the built-in security camera.
'Jenny Cooper. Severn Vale District Coroner. I'd like to talk to the church
administrator.'
    'That would be me,' the voice replied. 'Come on in.'
    She pushed open the door at the sound of the buzzer, and was
met in a spacious reception area by a wholesome- looking young man in a neatly
pressed shirt and tie.
    He shook her hand. 'Good evening. Joel Nelson. What can I do
for you?'
    'I'm conducting an inquiry into the death of Eva Donaldson,'
Jenny said, almost without realizing that she had just made her decision. 'I'll
need statements from anyone here who had dealings with her. I thought you'd be
the best person to ask who they might be.'
    'Right,' Nelson said, his face devoid of any trace of alarm.
'The first thing you should know is that Miss Donaldson didn't actually work
for the church. She was retained by the Decency campaign, which is an entirely
separate body.'
    'But she spent a lot of time here.'
    'That's true, but she wasn't part of the management, so to
speak.'
    'A boy in the shop told me she was the leader of his study
group.'
    'That's a purely voluntary role.'
    'I see.' Jenny cast her eyes around the comfortably decorated
room. There were pastel-coloured sofas, two top-of- the-range plasma screens,
and several modern private offices separated from the reception area by
plate-glass walls screened with sleek Venetian blinds. The largest office was
signed 'Boardroom'. 'I'd be grateful if you could at least give me a list of
your employed staff so I can contact them.'
    'Certainly,' Nelson said, and moved over to a computer
sitting on the receptionist's desk.
    'Were you