The Girls in the Snow (Nikki Hunt #1) - Stacy Green Page 0,59
was still able to read her so well. But she knew she needed to focus on the case.
“I heard about the documentary,” he said. “That woman is determined. If there’s anything you want to ask me to put your mind at rest, you know you can, Nikki.”
“I think they’re going to question the reliability of my testimony,” Nikki said, unable to stop herself. “Even though I passed Hardin’s sobriety test.”
The crease between John’s eyes deepened. “You’d had some vodka that night, but you also hadn’t eaten. I remember you had a bit of a headache and went to lie down.”
“Was that when I woke with Mark hovering over me?”
“I never heard anyone scream like that.” John’s jaw tightened. “You know I broke the hinges on that door? I wanted to kill him.”
“You and a couple of your friends took him outside, and you beat him up.”
“Kicked his ass.” John’s gaze drifted past her, a flatness in his eyes. “His nose was bleeding—pretty sure I broke it. We got blood everywhere, all over his jeans.”
“When you saw me the next day, after it happened, did I talk about taking a blood test?”
John’s eyebrows knitted together. “That sounds right. Look, Nik, that filmmaker is just using this story for her own gain,” John said. “Mark Todd was caught red-handed.”
“Almost red-handed. If the DNA they’ve found doesn’t match Mark Todd, then I helped put an innocent man in prison.”
John stepped toward her and gently took her shoulders. “Nikki, you were there. I’m sure the DNA evidence will shut him up once and for all. Where’s this DNA even from?” John asked.
Nikki couldn’t bring herself to share the details. “I don’t know.”
He squeezed her shoulders, and for a moment she thought he might pull her in for a hug. “Exactly. This is all a waste of taxpayers’ money.”
John’s voice was so soothing, she almost believed he was right.
Nineteen
Nikki rubbed her eyes and reached for her phone. It was nearly midnight, and the evening news was replaying on the muted television. When had she fallen asleep? She’d spent the rest of the day scouring missing persons cases from the tri-state area. The medical examiner hadn’t been able to get decent fingerprints from the woman in the park, and Nikki didn’t have access to a facial recognition program. By the time she’d checked all the files, her vision seemed like a blur of faces.
Thirty minutes video chatting with Lacey had helped clear Nikki’s head. Her daughter had a vivid imagination and an even more expressive face, and Nikki loved listening to her stories. Lacey missed her mom, but she was having fun with Tyler especially since Daddy tended to be lax about things like healthy snacks and bedtime. Nikki had desperately needed the time with her daughter, especially after seeing yet another young woman’s life cut short.
Tyler had asked if she had any problems with the Todd family or the protestors. Nikki had thought about discussing Rory’s information with him, but something held her back. She wanted to keep Rory to herself for now, and she couldn’t spend time on his brother’s case right now. She’d gone back to work and eventually fallen asleep with her notes scattered over the bed.
Nikki sat up and gathered her notes. Maybe she’d see something she’d missed earlier. A picture of the victim’s tattoo and a composite of her face had been sent to every media outlet in the tri-state area. She hoped the tattoo would catch someone’s attention. Kaylee’s mother and the Bankses didn’t recognize the woman, and both Hanson and Ricky Fillinger had told Miller they’d never seen her before. Yet Nikki couldn’t shake the feeling that this murder had something to do with the two girls.
The victim hadn’t gone into the park on her own two feet, but the blow to her head had stopped bleeding before she was dragged through the snow. They needed to find the crime scene.
At least the autopsy results would be available soon since the woman hadn’t been frozen solid. Madison and Kaylee’s were still a few days away. The medical examiner estimated she’d been outside no more than five to six hours before she’d been found. Given the residential neighborhood, it was unlikely anyone would notice her being dragged out to the park in the middle of the night, unless they worked an odd shift. Miller’s deputies were still canvassing the area around the park, hoping for a break.
A familiar face appeared on the television. The conference had been previously recorded—the