She Came in a Flash by Mary Wings

'Calling it a beach was complimentary. It was littered with old tyres, tin cans and the rubble of forgotten real estate. The beach had figured big in a couple of people's plans. It just hadn't figured so good for Lana Flax. What was left of her had been hauled away by the time I made the trip out there... all that was left was the imprint in the sand..'

On holiday and feeling generous, Emma Victor has promised to look up her best friend's sister. Once a high school science whizz-kid, Lana Flax is now a member of a mysterious cult. But all is not what it seems in sunny California. Instead of floating in an ocean of transcendental bliss, Lana's just been found face down in the muddy waters of San Francisco bay....