Final Lap

Margaret Gaines returns to competitive swimming—not as an athlete, but as head timekeeper for the Valley Regional Masters Swim Championship hosted by Waterford Haven. The event promises to be the highlight of the season, showcasing the region's finest swimmers and bringing prestige to her beloved community. But when championship director Lydia Forrester is found dead in an equipment storage room, clutching evidence of a widespread corruption scheme, Margaret realizes someone has been manipulating results, embezzling funds, and destroying the integrity of the sport she loves. With the championship scheduled to continue despite the tragedy, Margaret must work quickly to expose the truth before a killer escapes justice.

As Margaret investigates, she uncovers a criminal enterprise that spans years and touches everyone from desperate coaches to ambitious administrators. Someone has been selling guaranteed qualifying times, fixing heat assignments, and partnering with betting operations to profit from corrupted outcomes. Lydia Forrester died because she refused to look the other way, and now Margaret must use every skill she's developed as both a competitive swimmer and amateur detective to identify the killer among a pool of suspects who all have secrets to hide. The evidence chain leads through financial fraud, database manipulation, and a web of lies that threatens to drown the truth forever.

In this explosive series finale, Margaret Gaines faces her most calculated and dangerous adversary yet—a killer who has built an empire on corruption and won't hesitate to eliminate anyone who stands in the way.