The Girls in the Snow (Nikki Hunt #1) - Stacy Green Page 0,20
laugh. She’d been otherwise occupied senior year. The initial days after the murders were a blur, including the trial. Once Nikki realized college was the only way to escape her past, she’d thrown herself into school and shut the rest of the world out.
“Shit.” Miller stopped and glared up at the gray sky. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”
“It’s okay.” She didn’t expect people to walk on eggshells around her. Still, a familiar knot formed between her shoulder blades. “I’m going to get a room in town for a few days. Any suggestions for a decently priced place near the sheriff’s station?”
Miller pursed his lips. “There are a couple of places with suites for business travelers right off the interstate. They’re only ten minutes or so to downtown. You’ll have more room and not be so close to the protestors.”
“Good point.” Nikki made a mental note to reserve a room when they were back in the car.
She tried to imagine the trail in the fall. It was paved and wide enough for three or four people to pass through. With the trees shedding leaves, the lake would have been visible. All in all, it was a peaceful place. A safe place, where two teenaged girls could easily be so caught up in conversation that someone could have snuck up on them. But witnesses who saw the girls said the trail had been relatively busy that day because of the nice weather. How did Madison and Kaylee disappear without anyone noticing something was wrong?
“Are we getting close to the Hansons’?”
Miller looked like he wanted to say more, but he only nodded. “It’s the gray one on the left. I called them last night and told them we’d found the girls dead. They’re expecting us.”
When they got inside the house, Mrs. Hanson insisted on making everyone coffee, fluttering around her large kitchen like a nervous bird. Her son and husband sat on the sofa waiting nervously, Miles looked like his mother—both were blond, a bit on the chubby side, with the kind of fair skin that demanded sunscreen year-round. Mr. Hanson’s brown hair and dark eyes made him the odd man out.
Miles eyed Nikki. “You’re not wearing high heels. Female FBI agents always wear heels on television.”
Nikki stuck her foot out. “These babies keep my feet warm in minus thirty-five degrees. And don’t believe everything you see on TV.”
Miles looked down at the cookies his mother had placed in front of him. His round shoulders sagged. “I think it’s my fault they’re dead,” he said, reminding everyone of why they were there.
“Miles.” His mother pressed a kiss to his head. “That’s not true. How could you think that?”
Tears welled in his blue eyes. “They were coming to my house.”
“Miles, that doesn’t make it your fault,” Nikki said. “Madison and Kaylee wanted to hang out with you.”
He scrubbed his eyes and stared at his plate. “No, they didn’t.”
Nikki rested her clasped hands on the table and gave him an encouraging look. “Is there something you haven’t told the police?”
Miles’ chubby fingers trembled. “I didn’t want to lie to the police. That’s why I never said anything.”
“What are you talking about, son?” Drew Hanson said. “You told me they stood you up.”
“Not lying to the police is a good thing.” Nikki’s gut told her the girls never planned on coming to Miles’ house. “Did Kaylee and Madison ask you to lie about something?”
“They wanted me to tell their parents they’d spent the afternoon here,” Miles said. “Maddie wouldn’t say where they were going, but she begged me to cover for them. I said okay. But then they disappeared, and the police wanted to know if they showed up here. I said no, because they hadn’t.”
Drew Hanson sighed. “You did the right thing by not lying to the police. But you should have told them that Maddie asked you to lie.”
Miles stared at his father. “I didn’t want to get in trouble.”
“Miles is a good kid,” his mother spoke up. “He’s never in trouble.”
“It’s okay,” Nikki said. “Did Maddie give you any details about where they were really going?”
“No, I swear. I didn’t want to cover for them, but Maddie always helped me with my math homework, and we’ve been friends for a long time. She’s responsible, too… or she was, anyway.”
“How long have you known Kaylee?”
“I just met her after she started hanging out with Madison.”