Free Liquid Lies by Lois Lavrisa Page A

us narrow down the time of her death.”
    Detective Wurkowski then asked me about all my friends and anyone one else I recognized at H&K’s. He jotted down their names and information. “Let me make sure I’m clear. Today was the first time in four years you saw the victim?”
    “Correct.” I nodded.
    Detective Wurkowski took notes.
    My heart raced. “This is so nightmarish. I mean finding her in the water. Just horrifying. What happened to her? She was alive one minute, and then… I just don’t understand.” I put my head in my hands, my shoulders slouched.
    “Do you need a break?” he asked.
    “No,” I said.
    Detective Wurkowski continued. “Okay then. Let’s get back to after dinner. Then what did you do?”
    “I went on a boat ride with Ken,” I said. “That’s when we found her.”
    “Okay then, let’s talk about the actual discovery. Are you okay with that?”
    “Not really, but I’ll tell you what I know.” I stretched my legs. I wished I never had to talk about it.
    “What were you doing on the boat?” Detective Wurkowski leaned in.
    “Ken and I were taking it for a spin. You know guys and their new toys. He couldn’t wait to try it out after work. Heck, he even wanted to video tape the maiden voyage.”
    “What time was that?” He asked.
    “A little after ten.”
    Detective Wurkowski glanced down at his notes, flipping through pages. “So, if I’m correct, you were at H&K’s having dinner with Mark right before the boat ride?”
    “Yes.” So far I thought that I was doing a good job at telling him the truth, yet leaving out details that I’d rather not tell. Like the details about the blackmailer who, I hoped, had nothing to do with what happened tonight.
    “When you were out on the boat, were there any other boats on the lake, or activity around the lake that you noticed?”
    “We were the only boat. At least that I could see. It may not be a big deal, but I remember before we found her hhh… Francesca. I noticed someone standing near or by the Pike’s dock.”
    He leaned forward. “Can you describe what you thought you saw at the dock?”
    “Of course it was dark, so I couldn’t make out if it was a man or woman. We were in the middle of the lake. So I wasn’t close enough to get any details, just the shape of a person standing there. We were zipping around the lake so what little I saw was for only a few seconds.”
    “Do you remember what part of the lake you were on when you discovered Francesca?”
    I turned my head and looked at the lake. “We were about a half mile in the middle, heading back to the pavilion. From my mail delivery every summer, I know the lake pretty well. I would say we were a hundred feet or so from the Sara Lee mansion.” I felt a heaviness pull down my body. “That’s when we heard a thud.”
    I continued to tell him what happened on the boat. How we heard the thud, and how Ken then turned the boat’s headlights to see what we hit. Detective Wurkowski continued to take notes.
    Beyond us, several teams of officers were on foot, flashlights darting back and forth like lightning bugs along the shore. In another area, large spotlights shone on the water. Boats circled the lake with lights flitting across the surface of the water. Sitting on the bench, with Detective Wurkowski, I felt insulated from the surrounding chaos.
    They must’ve been looking for the rest of Francesca. My eyes welled up. Then as if emotions from the entire day stretched a balloon to bursting and suddenly exploded, I began shaking uncontrollably. Detective Wurkowski called another officer over. They wrapped a blanket around me. He stayed seated by me while I carried on. Afterward, I felt spent, exhausted, and empty.
    Clearing his throat, Detective Wurkowski offered, “You can go home now. We need to see you tomorrow to get more information. Can you stop by the station or should I come to your house?”
    “I can come to the station,” I said. It was the only station in