Another curve, another dip in the road. Then a gap in the trees opened up, revealing the bright blue lake glistening in the sunlight. A row of APD and sheriff’s vehicles was parked along the grassy shoulder. The white pickup pulled off the road and parked beside them. Leigh kept going, getting as close to the lake as possible in what was probably a futile effort to save her shoes.

She parked beside a red Suburban with the Austin Fire Department logo emblazoned on the side. Beside the Suburban was a plain black sedan that looked remarkably similar to the one she’d seen at Pura Vida just the other day.

Leigh got out and looked around at the scene. She passed a couple of onlookers—nearby residents, she guessed—some openly gaping and others pretending to be out walking dogs as they watched the action unfolding. Leigh ignored their curious looks, just as she ignored the looks from cops and firefighters as she picked her way down the gravel road toward the lake.

Loblolly pines surrounded her, and she took a deep breath, inhaling the crisp scent that reminded her of trekking out to a big striped tent with her father to pick out their Christmas tree. Leigh felt a jolt of sadness at the memory. Those were the years when they’d been a normal family and her biggest gripe was not having a younger brother or sister to play with. Those were the years before arguments and divorce lawyers and heated phone calls about canceled weekend visits. At twelve, Leigh’s carefree childhood came to a halt and she entered the brave new world of “just the two of us now” with her mother.

At thirty, Leigh didn’t see her dad much anymore, but she knew his wife had a nine-foot blue spruce that she folded up and stored in the attic every year.

Leigh trekked past the towering row of pines and reached the grassy slope, where she scanned the group of cops near the dock. The heels of her Jimmy Choos started to sink, so she stepped back onto the gravel to wait.

A diver on the end of the pier shrugged off his tank and set it on the dock. He unzipped his wet suit and peeled off the top half, revealing a muscular chest and six-pack abs. He was definitely nice-looking, but it was Brandon who commanded Leigh’s attention. He stood at the end of the dock, hands on hips, gun and badge clipped to his lean waist. He talked to the diver, nodding and pointing out at the lake. Brandon’s eyes were covered by mirrored aviators, so she couldn’t see his expression when he turned toward her. But the instant he spotted her, she knew.