The Girls in the Snow (Nikki Hunt #1) - Stacy Green Page 0,57
could leave. I shut out my friends. I learned to compartmentalize—to a fault. Don’t do things my way. Find a grief counselor and a group. There are several in the city. I can give you some referrals.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“Mrs. Banks,” Nikki said. “I want to find out who did this, but I can’t if you don’t tell me everything.”
“I have.” Amy took a deep breath. “Thank you for everything. Will you please send Bailey upstairs?”
“Sure.” Nikki hesitated. “There’s one other thing, and I hate to do it now, but I’m here and I’d hate to bother you again.”
“What is it?”
Nikki told her about the woman found in Heritage Park. “I think there’s a connection to Madison and Kaylee, but we don’t even know this woman’s name. Would you be able to look at a photo?”
“Of her body?” Amy turned green.
“Just her face,” Nikki said. “There’s some frostbite, but it’s not too graphic.”
Amy still looked uncertain, but she nodded.
Nikki opened the photo Liam had texted her earlier and zoomed in so that just the woman’s face showed. She turned her phone to face Amy.
“Thank you. I’ll be in touch.” Nikki headed downstairs. Bailey jumped up from the bottom step and hugged her. “Thanks for helping my mom.”
If something happened to Nikki, she felt sure that Tyler would take care of their daughter. She would be loved and given all the help she needed. Nikki had a gut feeling that Bailey wouldn’t be so lucky if something happened to Amy. She hugged him back, and then handed him one of her cards. “Put this somewhere safe, and if you need anything or want to talk, call me. Any time, okay?”
Bailey looked at the card as though she’d handed him a great treasure.
“Go on and see your mom. Agent Wilson and I will hang around outside for your dad.”
Bailey shot off upstairs.
Liam closed the front door and Nikki shouldered into her coat. Bright sun glinted off the snow and made her eyes hurt.
A burly paramedic was trudging up the sidewalk.
“She overdosed on oxycodone,” Nikki said. “I administered a single dose of naloxone. She seems stable.”
“Nice job,” the medic said. “We’ll check her over and make sure she doesn’t need to go to the hospital.”
“Go easy on her. She’s just lost her daughter, and she didn’t want the paramedics coming in.” Nikki waited until the medic went inside and then turned to Liam. “It was John’s oxycodone. Prescribed a few months ago.”
“I heard her yelling at you,” Liam said. “She sounds like a lovely person.”
“Grief makes a person lash out,” Nikki said. “Thanks for distracting Bailey.”
Liam grinned. “I did more than that. He said his dad had a neon Vikings sign in the garage, and of course I just had to see it. The Bankses have a standard standing freezer that’s stocked full. No way the girls would have fit into it.”
“Thank God. Getting a warrant for their freezer would have put Amy over the edge.” Nikki could see a silver Lexus come to an abrupt stop in front of the house. “That’s John.” Nikki headed down the steps. “Amy apparently told Kaylee to stay away from Madison during her little visit. That’s it.”
“You believe her?”
“For now.”
John jogged down the sidewalk and slipped on a patch of ice. Liam caught his arm before he fell.
“Thanks.” John’s face was ashen, with dark circles around his eyes. “What happened?”
“She’s okay.” Nikki glanced at Liam. John was likely to be more candid if Nikki spoke to him alone. “You mind if I speak with John privately?”
Liam gave her a knowing look. “Sure. I want to talk to the paramedics before we leave anyway.” He headed back into the house.
“Bailey’s with Amy right now, along with the paramedics,” she said. “She overdosed on your oxycodone.”
His eyes widened. “I told her to start with half a pill. She’s never taken painkillers.”
“She wanted to sleep, so she took more than one. Luckily, Liam carries naloxone. I don’t know if the ambulance would have got to her in time.”
“Christ, she’s never done anything like that.”
“She seems vulnerable, John, I can’t imagine what she’s going through,” Nikki said. “Just be there for her. I think she might need to talk to someone.”
“I know,” John said. “It’s just hard to think about breaking down in front of a stranger.”
“Because you were taught to be strong and in control.” Nikki smiled sadly. “But nothing prepares us for a loss like this.”