Sure enough, a large, black BMW was parked nearby, the paintwork still covered in dew.
“If he’s been in the water overnight, it ties in with residents’ reports that this car was here last night,” Jack said.
May was trying to piece together what could have happened.
“What’s the cause of death?” she asked, needing to finalize the most important piece of this puzzle.
“He has a head injury. He was struck, or fell, causing a deep injury to the back of his head. From there, he drowned. I can’t see any other injuries, though. He doesn’t seem to have any defensive wounds,” Andy explained.
“Could he have fallen off the pier?” Jack asked. “The victim could have hit his head on an object, or a rock in the water, before he drowned.”
May thought that was a good theory. She wasn’t sure what he could have hit his head on, though. That was the problem. There was nothing obvious in sight.
“It’s unlikely, but it is possible,” Andy agreed. “Cause of death was drowning, but the head injury could have been the cause of that.”
May stepped forward to take a look at the dead body, steadying herself inwardly before she stared down. She didn’t have a lot of experience with murder. Taking a look at a corpse was always a shocking sight.
The victim looked to be in his thirties, with short brown hair. He was dressed in what she thought was a designer suit, with a black shirt and smart black shoes, one of which was placed by the body. She guessed Owen had dived for it. His face was sheet white, his eyes open.
What was it? Murder or misadventure?
Staring at the body, May wished she knew for sure.
Had someone deliberately murdered the architect of a hotel that was already the center of controversy and contention? This would be potentially disastrous. The scenic towns surrounding Eagle Lake were only just beginning to recover from the recent serial killer case that had ripped through the communities. Now, another person had been killed?
With her mind reeling in disbelief, May knew this incident would end up reflecting badly on the town’s policing. If this was not solved immediately, people were going to be looking for a scapegoat, for someone to blame as panic surged. As the recently promoted county deputy, she would have to shoulder the criticism and provide the answers.
“We need to get photos of the body, the scene, and the surroundings,” May said to Jack, as the police photographer got out of his car and hurried down to the scene.
And then her eyes narrowed as she saw something strange. Something that didn’t look right.
“What’s that?” she asked, pointing down to the dead man’s throat.