A Body at the Dam

Note: This story was originally published in Black Cat Weekly #36 in May of 2022

On a cloudy Christmas morning, a young boy reports finding a body hidden upriver from a small dam, and Officer Friday is called into action. With a storm brewing and evidence slipping away, she must confront a hidden danger lurking in the isolated fold in the river. Can she uncover the truth before the rain washes it all away? Join Friday as she pieces together a deadly puzzle, where every clue could lead to a killer on the loose or allow a murder to go free.

On a bad day just after Christmas in December of 2021, I hopped in my truck and drove until I got lost. I ended up at a dam off of Jordan Lake and just started walking. The picture above is what I found. I remembered that I hadn't spent any time with Officer Friday Hampton and Detective Ambrose Broyhill since Last Gasp, and I thought, "What a wonderful place to put Friday in a horrible situation."

I am particular fond of this story because so many elements of it are amalgamations of things I encountered on patrol. From the body, to the interaction with the child, to the way a pitbull behaves when you get upset, I have been researching this particular story for most of my adult life. I hope you enjoy it.