"I'm sorry?" The bellhop leaned in close and lowered his voice to minimize the chance of others hearing him.

Perry, still catching his breath, looked around the lobby in a panic. Clearly not wanting to alert anyone else, he spoke through gritted teeth. "There's been a murder out at the pool."

The bright, wide smile slowly faded into immense concern. "Did you just say what I think you said?" Complete bewilderment cursed the young man's face. Clearly, dealing with homicide was not on his list of expectations for the day.

Perry softly nudged the employee toward the hall, leading to the pool area, and motioned that he'd follow. They quietly walked past a few other guests and no one seemed aware of the tragedy that was lying facedown in the deep. With each step, Perry looked around and over his shoulder, expecting to see a suspicious character, guilty of the crime. Still, to his amazement, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. As they approached the door leading out to the pool, Perry could feel his heartbeat increase. He'd never seen a dead body like this before. Sure, he could recall his father's viewing and a few funerals of unfortunate friends along the way, but a corpse that was peacefully prepared was one thing. This, on the other hand, was something else entirely. They pushed through the door and out onto the concrete. There, slowly bobbing in the water like an ocean buoy, was the victim. You could barely make out anything else in the water from all the blood. Perry barely noticed the man's glasses drifting now by the steps in the shallow end.

"Good God." The bellhop's voice was merely a whisper but the silence outside was more like an amplifier.

Perry, without looking away from the scene, repeated himself. "You need to call the police."

The young man retrieved a cell phone from his jacket pocket and dialed 9-1-1. His eyes were wide and it'd been a long time since he'd even blinked. As both men stood in silence, they could hear the ring on the other end.

"9-1-1, what's your emergency?" A female voice answered, calm and collected.

"Um." There was an awkward silence. "This is the Canyon Jewel Hotel." He paused again, unsure how to continue. "And we have a dead body in our pool."

Perry watched as the words struggled to the surface. The police operator jumped acted quickly to fill in the blanks. "We'll dispatch troopers right away, sir. Who am I speaking with?"

"Um. My name is Peter." He looked down at his chest pocket, almost as if he wasn't sure who he really was. Noticing his name badge was missing, he quickly pulled it from his pants pocket and fastened it to his uniform. At that moment, Perry realized he'd never new the man's name before now. He was surprised he never thought to ask it and even more surprised that it hadn't been offered.

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"We have two officers in route now. Can you describe what happened?" The woman continued to keep Peter engaged, despite the obvious shock taking over. He attempted to paint a picture of what he saw before stopping and turning to Perry. His eyes locked on to Perry's as he spoke into the phone. "I didn't see it happen, actually. But I think Mr. Stone did."

"Mr. Stone?" The 9-1-1 dispatch changed gears. "And is Mr. Stone there?"

"Yes, he is standing with me now. We are both by the pool." Peter slowly held the phone out for Perry.

Reluctant, feeling like he was being drug into something he didn't want to be, Perry took the phone and held it to his ear. "This is Perry."

"Am I speaking with Mr. Stone?" Perry could hear the clicking of a keyboard in the background as she collected as much information as possible.

"Yes, Perry Stone." A gust of wind blew through the pool area and the phone began to cut in and out. The clouds overhead were getting darker and a few drops of rain began to spot the concrete. Perry furrowed his brow and cocked his head slightly to the side, like a dog trying to decipher his master. "Say that again? You're breaking up."

The woman's voice was muffled and only a few words managed to make it through. "Sir, did you --- we need --- because --- with the storm."

Perry pulled the phone away from his ear to inspect it. The call had dropped and the cell reception was out. The phone was an older model, originally made for landline connections and had a short antenna with duct tape holding it in place. He looked back to Peter.

"There must be a storm rolling in. The phone lines get real spotty with bad weather." Peter took the phone and placed it back in his pocket. He sighed deep and stared at the dead body in the water. A few more drops of rain rippled the water. "We should probably do something?" Peter's eyes went back to Perry, who was searching for a cigarette.

"No, we shouldn't." With a cigarette in his lips while he dug for his lighter, he quickly added, "Don't fucking touch anything!" Agitated, he began scanning the area, more aware of his surroundings now. "Christ, what a mess."

Peter waved his hand in front of his face, moving the smoke away. "Who would do such a thing?"

Perry looked back at Peter with a jolt. "Shit! That's the thing!" Perry pointed to the doors leading back into the hotel. "I didn't see anyone leave." Perry watched as the shock faded into confusion on Peter's face. "Listen, Pete. I didn't get a look at much from my window. The reason I rushed down to the lobby is to try and find someone. You'd think if someone just committed a murder, they'd be in a hell of a hurry to leave. Did you see anyone rush out before I got there?"

Peter's eyes moved back and forth as he tried to access his recent memories. "No." He paused, thinking hard. "No one has left." The confusion was now fading into concern. "Mr. Stone, does that mean the... um."

Clearly, Peter didn't like coming to terms with the situation, let alone actually saying the words. Perry offered to complete his thought. "Yes, Pete. There's a killer in the hotel."