I didn’t know it was there at first. My husband likes to cover the pool, rain or shine, every evening before turning in for bed. Protects the liner and helps keep the filtration system from working overtime.

I got up this morning a bit earlier than him and decided, considering the deep red sunburn he’d suffered yesterday, that I’d go out and roll up the cover for him. Give him a little bit of extra sleep. He needed it.

As I peeled the cover back I noticed a dark shadow at the bottom of the deep end, the furthest point away from where I was standing. The details weren’t clear, the sun already high in the sky and reflecting off what little water was already showing.

I pulled more of the cover back and leaned forward. I could almost see it. It was larger than I’d thought, longer and wider.

When I got the whole cover off I gasped and nearly fell in myself. Louise Frand, my next door neighbor. With a rope tied around her neck and hands.

It was the last thing I’d ever expect to find in my swimming pool.