Chapter 3.

3.

Maggie hurried over to Errol and Gerry while I hastily tied up the canoe, and then I rushed over to join them. None of the guards objected to my arrival, perhaps because they were focused on a larger problem: the dead woman in the lake and how to bring her ashore.

Her robe had opened at the waist and expanded in the water, giving her figure the white-winged silhouette of an angel. The guards were using paddles to prod and push the body toward the beach. The guests on the lawn were keeping a respectful distance, but I noticed Khalani holding up her iPhone to record the events. Gerry noticed, too, and he sent a guard to speak with her. “Go remind that idiot she’s signed an NDA. Then tell her to remind her friends they all signed NDAs. If I see any glimpse of this on TikTok, I am coming to her first.”

Hugo knelt in the sand, pulled on a pair of thin gloves, and carefully turned the woman onto her back. I’d already recognized the long red hair, but I wasn’t prepared for the shock of seeing Gwendolyn’s face. Her eyes were still open and her lips were darkened and slightly parted; the overall expression was a look of surprise. Water trickled from her mouth and dribbled down the side of her face, like she was a vessel that had been overfilled.

“This doesn’t make any sense,” Maggie said. “My dad and I were just here at eight-thirty. The beach was empty.”

“She was under the dock,” Errol explained. “The landscapers came out to rake the beach and one of them spotted her.”

Hugo pressed a finger to Gwendolyn’s neck, feeling for a pulse. I thought it was a wholly unnecessary precaution. But maybe he did it because so many people on the lawn were watching. He turned to another of his men and said, “Bring us some blankets. Quick, quick, quick.” Then he adjusted the folds of her robe, trying to preserve what remained of her modesty. “We need to talk to the other guests. See what we can determine before the police arrive. Find out if anyone saw her last night.”

“I saw her last night,” Maggie said. “It was around eleven o’clock— no, actually, eleven-thirty.” Hugo encouraged her to continue. “A bunch of us were leaving the beach, heading back to our cabins, but Gwendolyn was walking toward the water. And she was alone. Dressed in the robe she’s wearing now. I told her she was too late, everyone was finished swimming, but either she didn’t hear me or she didn’t care. She just kept walking.”

“Did she appear to be under the influence?”

“I have no idea. She’s never been especially friendly to me, so I didn’t go out of my way to speak with her. But Aidan says she’s done a lot of drugs, so it certainly wouldn’t be…” Her voice trailed off, as if the right word had eluded her.

“It wouldn’t be out of character?” Errol suggested.

“Exactly,” Maggie said.

In fairness, I felt obligated to point out that lots of people were taking drugs the previous evening. I reminded Maggie about Khalani’s gummy bears and the THC with extra wild card, but she responded like I was confused. “I don’t mean microdosing, Dad. Gwendolyn was using street drugs. The real hard-core illegal stuff.”

A guard came running up with a blanket and I worked with him to cover Gwendolyn’s body. Just before lowering the blanket over her face, I noticed two red marks on the side of her neck. Each was about the size of a quarter. “What are these?”

Hugo held up one hand, signaling for everyone to halt. Then he knelt down and leaned over the body, moving so close to her face that I thought he intended to kiss her. Instead, he abruptly stood up and slapped his hands clean. “Those were caused by something in the lake. Like a rock or the tip of a branch.” He pointed his index finger to demonstrate—poke, poke, poke—then motioned for us to finish covering the body. “We’ll call the police, of course, and they’ll bring the medical examiner.” In the meantime, he asked his men to disperse the crowd, because he worried that onlookers might put the police on edge. “And of course someone should find Aidan and deliver the news.”

“Me,” Maggie said. “I’ll do it. He’ll be upset, and I want to be there for him.”

I wanted to warn her to be careful. I had a hunch that Aidan already knew exactly what had happened to Gwendolyn.

“I’ll come with you,” I offered, but Maggie firmly shook her head, making it clear once again that my help was not required.