Page 140 of The Deadly Shallows

“Oh boy, that could be dangerous.” Noah grinned.

“Don’t you know it.” She winked. “But seriously, Weaver’s fifth-man theory . . . What if Frank or John was the fifth man? They are in the photograph with Scott, Amy Caldwell, and Dwayne. But considering John is still active military and Frank went dark after Scott was arrested, my money’s on Frank.”

Caleb and Austin celebrated the arrests of Braxton Gower, Sid Sawicki, and Hector Valdez with burgers followed by milkshakes from Gracie & Johnny’s, which sat just around the corner from UNC-Wilmington. The ma-and-pa diner catered to the college crowd but had a booming business with the whole town.

“How’s the raspberry shake?” he asked as they stepped outside, the day finally warming into the fifties.

“Delicious,” she said. “And yours, Mr. Vanilla?”

“Vanilla is a perfectly good flavor.” Once he found one he liked, why switch?

“I know what we’re doing for your birthday next month . . .”

“Oh?” He was half-afraid to hear. And how did she even know when it was? No doubt she did a full background check when they first worked a case together. He couldn’t say anything. He’d done the same.

“An ice cream party”—she walked toward his car with a spring in her step—“with twenty different flavors.”

He laughed. “Only you.”

His cell rang, and he fished it out of his jeans pocket. “Eason,” he answered.

“Hey, Caleb,” Emmy said. “Glad to hear the raid went well.”

“Thanks.”

She cleared her throat. “I have some bad news.”

Caleb sighed. That hadn’t lasted long.

“A group of petty officers just found a body washed up on the shore of the base,” Em said.

“Any identification?” he asked, though he feared he already knew who it was.

“No, but it’s a woman, and she’s blond. The petty officers didn’t touch her, just cordoned off the area and called it in.”

“Okay, ETA fifteen.”

Finn was waiting for him when they arrived.

Caleb climbed through the yellow crime-scene tape. Austin waited at the edge, looking on.

“What do we got?” he asked.

“I’ve photographed the body as she was found and started marking the scene,” Finn said.

Caleb knelt by the body.

The woman was dressed in a long white nightgown, her blond hair halfway down her back, matted to her body.

“I think we both have a feeling about who this is,” he said. “Let me know when it’s okay to move the body.”

“I’m ready,” Finn said, crouching down, his camera ready to start shooting.

His muscles coiling, Caleb carefully rolled the body over and sank back on his heels. Just as he suspected. Lieutenant Amy Caldwell. He shook his head as Finn’s flash bounced off her pale face and blue lips.

“Is Hadley on the way?”

“Yes.” Finn nodded.