description of the scene. Three gray boulders jutted out of the water about four feet from shore. Winkler's bloated body had been discovered wedged between two of them. A small red flag marked the spot.
" Shake 'n bake time," she muttered.
She made her way to the water's edge, thankful she'd worn her CFBI-issue steel-toed boots. She moved into the river and even though the boots were waterproof, she flinched from the sudden chill that surrounded her feet.
Holding onto a boulder for support, she crouched over the flag and examined the rocks. Each boulder was polished smooth from years of erosion, and there was no trace evidence. She circled each boulder, prodding beneath the water with her boot. She found nothing but sand and pebbles.
With a sigh, she looked at Ben and shook her head.
"I want to walk further down the beach."
Ben signaled O'Malley. "Make sure we don't have any unexpected visitors while the screen is down."
O'Malley nodded. "Will do, Agent Roberts."
"Wait," Jasi said. "Were there any witnesses?"
"Just a couple of teenagers. They're the ones that found the body."
Jasi blew out a breath. "Did they see anyone else?"
O'Malley shook his head.
Ben followed her as she walked the shoreline, inspecting every bush, every square foot of beach and every piece of driftwood. A few yards ahead, a rickety boat dock jutted out into the water.
"Winkler could've been dumped off the dock," she said.
As they walked the length of the wood contraption, Jasi imagined someone tossing Monty Winkler off the end of it.
"Maybe his body got caught in the beams under the dock," she suggested. "Then brought back to shore by the current."
"Why would someone dump him in the river?" Ben said. "Why not bury him?"
"Animals could dig up a body, which means early discovery. The river might take the body out of range of the dump site, which is what the perp would want."
"Any other reason?"
Another test.
She smiled up at him. "The combination of fresh water and marine life destroys a lot of trace evidence. If it were summer, the river would've sped up decomposition of the body. Still, the river is…convenient." She glanced over her shoulder. "Did I pass?"
He ignored the question. "Who uses the river?"
"Tourists, fishermen, shipping companies…"
A silver speedboat with a blue stripe across the body cruised past, maybe forty yards from shore. In its wake, lapping waves swept up the beach and washed over Jasi's boots.
"And boat owners," she added.
She shielded her eyes and squinted at the boat. There was one person aboard, a man in a hooded maroon-colored jacket and reflective sunglasses. She switched her data-com to camera mode and took a few pictures, although she thought it unlikely that their perp would be so foolish as to come back to the crime scene when it was still under investigation. However, she had captured some really stupid criminals in the past.
She turned back to the task at hand―finding the murderer responsible for putting Monty Winkler in a body bag.
"Voice record off."
"So what are your conclusions?" Ben asked.
"I'm thinking he might have been tossed off the dock, but there's no evidence to prove that theory."
"I'll get some divers to check around the beams."
"Have they done a sweep with an X-Disc yet?"
"Yeah. OPS said they'll send us the data as soon as it's in."
While Ben reset the perimeter beacons, she pocketed her data-com and checked her watch. "It's almost one."
"Let's go back to the hotel, have some lunch. Then we'll figure out what we're gonna do next."
"I think we need to talk to some of Winkler's family. And his associates." She paused. "Why would someone go to all the trouble to drug him, beat him, set him on fire, then dump him in the river?"
"Maybe they didn't like his political policies."
"Or it was someone with a personal score to settle."
She mulled this over in her mind.
"So who had it in for Monty Winkler?" Ben asked.
"And what could anyone hope to gain from his death?"
She
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