News Report

“OK – places everybody. One minute.”

Sharon checked her appearance in a small mirror and straightened her hair. She gave Greg, the cameraman, a nod to show she was ready, trying not to shiver in the snow. Greg raised five fingers, then lowered them one-by-one. When there were two fingers left, Sharon looked into the camera, gave a smile, and raised her microphone to her mouth.

“Thank you, Roland,” Sharon began. “We’re here at the old lake where a strange story has been emerging all day.” She turned to face the frozen pond behind her where a crowd had gathered, and the camera focussed on it as well. They started to walk towards the crowd as she began to speak again.

“For those of you that don’t know the area, this pond is referred to as the old lake. It’s a popular spot for the teens of the area, especially during the summer where they come to swim and, in weather like this, where many come to skate. When it freezes, it freezes thick, and so is one of the safest places in the county. Or so we thought.”

They’d reached the pond where the crowd still watched, but the people still hid the ice from the camera. However, the sound of somebody trying to cut through the ice with a pickaxe could easily be heard.

“Two teens who came to skate this morning were surprised by a dark shape in the pond, under the ice. As they moved closer to the centre, it became clear that the shape was, in fact, a body. Of course, this created a question. Whose body is it?”

The crowd parted, allowing the camera to get a better view. The dark shape could still be seen and, towards the far edge, the men swinging their pickaxes. Everybody’s eyes were on the body under the ice.

Sharon approached a man in a police uniform. “Officer Clapham – have you been able to shed any light on this mystery?”

The policeman looked into the camera. “Well, Sharon, we have some theories. Obviously, the old lake has been frozen solid for a couple of weeks now, and there haven’t been any recent missing persons. However, from what we can make out through the ice, the body is remarkably well preserved, so once we get it out we should be able to identify it.”

Sharon alternated between looking at the camera, the pond, and the officer. “Do you have any theories on why it appeared this morning?”

Officer Clapham nodded. “We have some ideas. Our current idea is that it is an unsolved murder case, though we don’t know from how long ago. The theory is that the murderer weighted the body down and, over time, the ropes that were used have degraded, allowing the body to float up to the surface.”

“So,” continued Sharon, “you think that somebody was murdered, and the police at the time wouldn’t have searched the old lake?”

Officer Clapham shrugged. “As I say, it’s just a theory at this point. It’s possible that this was somebody homeless, or who’d travelled here from a distance away and so nobody knew to look for them. Or the lake might have frozen over between a murderer hiding the body and a search beginning. At this stage, we don’t know how long it has been down there, so we’re really just guessing.”

“Thank you, Officer,” Sharon replied. “And so, the mystery…” Her voice was drowned out by the shouts of excitement and the crack of the ice. Sharon glanced over and then turned back to the camera. “Viewers – it looks like the police have managed to break through the ice – we might soon have an answer to this mystery.” Behind her, people in wetsuits and with ropes were lowering themselves into the water. “We’ll keep you informed when we have any answers but, for now, it’s back to the studio.”

Greg turned off the camera and Sharon turned to watch the extraction. She had to admit that she was vaguely curious – it was local news, and probably too old to be of any relevance anymore, but it was better than the usual local vegetable competitions or church fetes. It certainly wasn’t going to progress her career.

It took another half an hour until the body was out and, as soon as it was turned over, Greg’s eyes widened, and his face went white. Sharon looked at him in surprise. “What is it?” she asked.

Greg watched the body for a few more moments before he looked at Sharon. “I think I recognise her,” he answered. “It’s one of your predecessors, Lillian. She was supposed to have moved overseas for a new job – seven years ago.”

Sharon perked up and looked again at the body. Whilst the corpse itself was well preserved, the clothes weren’t, but she could see how it might have been a suit. She looked at Greg with a smile. “Roll the camera, Greg. This story just got big.”