by Stacy Green
Madison and Kaylee had gone with their killer willingly, Nikki was certain. Two capable teenaged girls weren’t abducted off a trail right behind several houses. Ricky had an alibi, and if he had somehow been involved, his ego was too big for him to stay quiet. He was the type to skulk around the investigation, getting off on outsmarting the cops. Bobby Vance didn’t have a car, and Miller had already confirmed Mindy was visiting friends in the city that day. Bobby had taken the picture, but that had been several weeks before Madison and Kaylee disappeared. Had Kaylee started dating someone else?
Liam still hadn’t found any suspects with access to industrial freezers other than Drew Hanson, and they didn’t have enough evidence for a warrant. All of the sex offenders he’d found recently released nearby had iron-clad alibis. And Nikki was going to have to tell him that she still didn’t have Kaylee’s phone number—tracking it seemed less and less likely.
Nikki felt like they’d focused a lot on Kaylee, but she couldn’t stop thinking about Madison. Everyone seemed to agree that Kaylee was at the center of everything, but Nikki wondered if Madison was more than just a perfect student.
If her mother had visited Kaylee’s house, she was going to find out why. And Bobby’s comments about John rattled her. Why was he arguing with so many people about her parents’ case?
Her phone vibrated. Dread seeped through her as Miller’s number flashed on the screen. Early-morning calls were never a good sign. “What’s up?”
“We have another body,” he said.
Nikki leapt out of the chair, slopping coffee on her nightshirt. “Do you know who it is?”
“Female in her early twenties. She was left to the elements like the girls, but she’s not as frozen. Medical examiner’s on her way.”
Nikki shoved her coffee aside. Had she been too slow to find Madison and Kaylee’s killer and cost another woman her life? “Text me the address. I’ll leave in ten minutes.”
Rush hour and lane closures made the drive to the scene three times longer than it should have been. Heritage Square Park was a small, quiet park tucked away in one of the newer residential areas on the west side of town.
Nikki scowled as she recognized the two people standing near the swings.
She parked in an illegal zone and jogged across the street to join Miller.
“Why is Newport here?”
Hardin’s bulk eclipsed the reporter’s trim form, and she had to look up when she spoke to him. She was speaking very quickly, hands on her hips as Hardin nodded obediently.
“Hardin called her as soon as the call came in this morning,” Miller said. “He’s trying to play nice with her all of a sudden.”
And Nikki knew why. If Rory was right, Caitlin’s documentary on Mark Todd would expose Hardin’s mistakes—or worse—that night. She hadn’t been able to get Rory’s words out of her mind ever since she left the bar. Was Hardin really capable of putting an innocent man in jail?
“Agent Hunt,” Caitlin called. “What do you think of Frost leaving a victim here in Stillwater at the same time you’re here on a separate case? Seems like a message for you.”
“I haven’t even seen the body,” Nikki snapped. “May I have a moment with the chief?”
“Of course.”
Nikki felt the reporter’s gaze as she led Hardin to the other side of the swings. “Chief, between you and me, I don’t need to see the body to know Frost isn’t involved.”
“Now how do you know that? Besides, she’s got a red ribbon in her hair just like Frost’s girls.”
“I can’t share that information, but I’m asking you to trust me. The red ribbon is common knowledge.”
Hardin hitched up his pants. “That’s some ego, Hunt.”
“It’s not ego,” she said. “It’s simple fact.”
“She’s been left in the snow, in a public place, and she looks to be the same age as the other women he killed.”
“He never leaves two bodies in the same year, let alone three,” Nikki said. “Will you please just tell the media that we’re looking at all angles and leave it at that?”
Hardin glared down at her. “You said that after Madison and Kaylee were found. Now we have another body.”
“Exactly,” Nikki said. “If this is the same killer, he’s made his first real mistake. Excuse me.”
She stalked past him, and Newport closed in.
“No comment.”
“I haven’t even asked you anything yet.”
“Saving you the energy.”
“She’s not one of Frost’s.” Newport lowered her voice. “She’s frostbitten. That means she died out here. Frost’s girls are already dead when they’re put on ice, right?”
“How do you know she’s frostbitten?”
“I overheard your people talking,” Caitlin said.
“Of course you did.” Nikki turned to Miller, who’d trudged through the heavy snow to join them. “Would you have one of your deputies escort Ms. Newport to her vehicle?”
“No need. I’m sure I’ll see you later.” She sauntered toward the street.
Nikki followed Miller past the snow-covered gazebo. “Newport claims she overheard the medical examiner say the victim was frostbitten.”
Miller scowled. “I don’t trust her as far as I can throw her.”
“But the woman did have frostbite?”
“Quite a bit,” Miller said. “Poor woman died out here. I just hope she wasn’t conscious.”
Nikki and Miller quickly reached Liam and Courtney, who were standing in the middle of the small park, examining the area between a swing set and a large tree. “Where’s the body?”
“Hardin had the jurisdiction to have the medical guys bag her and take her in. She’s been out here for a while, and this is a family park. Liam and Courtney were already here, and you were stuck in traffic.”
“It was Hardin’s call, anyway. I can’t fault him for wanting to get her out of here. What do you guys have so far?”
“Hispanic female, approximately five foot seven, about one-hundred thirty, one-hundred forty pounds. Frostbite means blood still flowing, so she was left out here alive.” Liam handed her his phone, and she scrolled through the pictures he’d taken of the body.
At first glance, it was easy to see why someone without intimate knowledge of Frost’s methods would think the victim belonged to him. She lay flat on her back, arms and legs spread like a snow angel. The true position of Frost’s girls—flat on their backs, arms folded over their midsection—had never been made public. Her dark hair had been pulled to the side and tied with a red silk ribbon. But Frost’s ribbons were red velvet—another detail they’d kept out of the media.
“We might be able to get a fingerprint from the ribbon,” Courtney said. “I think we all know it won’t match Frost’s.”
The victim had been wearing makeup, including false eyelashes. Her skimpy dress and heels suggested she hadn’t intended to be in the cold for more than a few minutes. The fishnets she wore certainly weren’t going to keep her legs warm.
“Every finger is significantly frostbitten,” Nikki said. “What did the medical examiner say about getting prints?”
“It doesn’t look like her fingers got to the point of splitting open, so she’s hoping they can warm her up and peel the skin off with tweezers to get prints.”
Close-up photos of the back of the woman’s head showed possible blunt force trauma. Blood caked her dark hair. The fishnets had been torn in the front, exposing both thighs, which also had black patches of frostbite. A small bird tattoo on her left ankle might be their quickest way to identify her.
“Something hit her hard in the head,” Nikki said. “Had her bleeding been stopped before she came out here?”
“The medical examiner thinks so,” Liam said. “Which means she was hit and then left to die hours later. We won’t know without the autopsy.”
“The medical examiner was able to move her limbs,” Courtney said. “She doesn’t think she was out h
ere for more than a few hours. But Frost’s victim’s being frozen solid isn’t public knowledge.”
Bits of red dotted the area where the body had been. “Frost’s girls never bleed. Did the wind blow very hard this morning?”
“Nope,” Courtney said. “I checked as soon as we got here. The wind was light, and the snow looks like it’s been rolled around in.”
“That means whoever dumped her waited and came back to stage her body.”
“Exactly.” Courtney pointed to the impressions in the snow. “She was dragged out here. And whoever left her tried to cover their tracks. No good impressions of the footwear. Looks like they basically shuffled. It’s impossible to tell if they made more than one trip, but I can’t rule it out, either.”
“From a parked car, or was she attacked walking down the street?”
“I found a fairly fresh oil spot along the street, but I can’t say for sure when it was left.”
“I canvassed that side of the park,” Miller said. “No one saw anything, and no one has security cameras with the right angle. I’ve got a deputy going to door-to-door to make sure we cover every side of the park.”
“At least we can rule out her passing out drunk and freezing to death.” Nikki went back to the first picture of the woman. “We’ve let the public believe that Frost is still a suspect in Madison and Kaylee’s murders. And this is a pretty clear attempt at copying his methods.”
“But Madison and Kaylee were too frozen to be manipulated into a specific position,” Liam said. “And why weren’t there red ribbons on their bodies?”
“Because I don’t think the killer initially meant for them to be considered Frost victims,” Nikki said. “Remember, that field is remote. He meant for them to be found in the spring. But fate intervenes and our public statement is that we aren’t ruling Frost out yet. So, when he dumps this woman, he makes an attempt at Frost’s methods, but he doesn’t get the body position right.”
Courtney’s eyes widened. “Meaning he thinks that adding another body to the mix will push you further toward Frost and farther away from him? But a basic internet search should have told him enough about Frost to realize you’d never buy it.”
“He’s not a planner,” Liam said. “This poor woman was killed out of desperation.”
“Exactly,” Nikki said. “We need to find out who she is. Liam, get her description on the news, along with a picture of her tattoo. Make sure the information goes to both Wisconsin and Minnesota media.” She turned to Miller. “Did your deputies turn up anything at Hanson’s house this morning?”
“Uneventful. He doesn’t have a freezer, and there’s no sign of one recently being moved,” Miller said. “His wife wasn’t surprised when we showed up with the warrant.”
“He probably gave her a sterilized version of events,” Nikki said. “Did you get my message about Amy on the security video of Kaylee’s?”
Miller’s mouth tightened. “I can’t believe she didn’t tell me that. Do you think she could be involved?”
“Anything is possible, although I have a hard time believing she killed her own child. I need to brief Hardin. Walk with me?”
“Absolutely. I stopped by Brianna’s place last night,” Miller said. “Her dad and I played football together, so I’d hoped that would be my in to talking with her. But her father’s out of town on business, and Brianna told her mother she’s got nothing else to say and that we needed to leave her alone. Apparently, she’s got anxiety issues as it is.”
“She definitely knows something more,” Nikki said. “But pressing her mother doesn’t sound like a good idea. She works at the library, right?”
Miller nodded. “I think her next shift is in a couple of days.”
“I gave her my card. If she does know anything relevant, maybe a third victim will convince her to call.” Nikki was determined that no one else was going to be killed on her watch. This case had to be solved as soon as possible.
Hardin had retreated to his vehicle, his big belly pressed against the steering wheel. Nikki rolled her eyes. If he got in an accident, that steering wheel would be coming out of his ass, she thought to herself.
Hardin rolled down his window. “Well?”
“Zero chance Frost did this,” Nikki said. “Good chance it’s somehow related to Madison and Kaylee’s murders.”
“How in the world do you get that?” Hardin asked.
Nikki explained her theory to Hardin. “From the disturbance to the snow, it’s likely she rolled around in the snow, probably fighting to get up, before she died. He came back and arranged her and probably put the ribbon on her.”
“Then why couldn’t this be Frost?”
“Frost immediately freezes his victims after they’re dead,” Nikki said. “Their bodies are pristine. He wouldn’t deviate from his routine and allow a victim to get frostbite. That mars the beauty of it to him.”
Hardin sighed. “You’ve already said Madison and Kaylee aren’t Frost victims, either.”
“To you,” Nikki said. “But not to the public. He’s still in play. The girls’ killer didn’t expect us to find their bodies, and when we did, he started to panic. Frost gives him a lifeline. I think this woman’s death may have been an attempt to push us towards Frost again.”
Hardin chewed his lower lip. Nikki didn’t remind Hardin of his earlier certainty that Frost had struck in Stillwater.
“You know as well as I do that most killers aren’t as smart as they’re portrayed on television. If this is someone who killed the girls and didn’t expect them to be found, he’s in a panic right now. He most likely believes killing this woman leads us away from him, and we need to let him believe that.”
“I can keep the press information brief,” Hardin said.
“You have to walk a fine line,” Nikki said. “Don’t commit one way or the other.”
Hardin’s chin jutted out. “I know how to deal with the media, Agent.”
“And I know Frost,” she replied. “He’s methodical, and he’s ruled by his ego. If you push the narrative too far, he will do something that very clearly proves he’s not responsible. That blows our strategy, not to mention possibly getting someone else killed.”
“Fine,” he said. “You think our victim knew something about the murders or was she just a decoy?”
“That’s the million-dollar question. We’ll know more after she’s identified and autopsied.” Nikki smiled sweetly. “Why did you call Newport?”
Hardin scowled. “I’m just trying to get her attention off us.”
Miller had walked over to speak with a deputy. Hardin already seemed off his game. If she asked about the blood test now, she might get an honest reaction.
“Where’s the blood test I took that night? To check my blood alcohol level.”
Hardin’s expression didn’t change, but he stiffened, his hands gripping the steering wheel. “What are you talking about?”
“A paramedic took my blood the night my parents died. You knew I’d been drinking.”
“I gave you a sobriety test,” Hardin said. “You passed easily.”
“I remember the paramedic and the needle.”
“You were in shock and dehydrated,” he said. “They put an IV in. They wanted to take you to the hospital, but you refused.”
Nikki vaguely remembered the argument about the hospital. She’d arrived on the neighbor’s doorstep, screaming and pounding on the door. The neighbor called the police. At some point, the police had left the crime scene to speak with Nikki, and the paramedics had shown up.
“They took my blood,” she said, wanting to feel certain, as doubt crept through her.
Hardin rolled his eyes as though she were an irritating toddler. “That never happened. You told me you only had a few drinks and hadn’t had anything for at least three hours. You passed the sobriety test. But evidently you weren’t honest about how drunk you were.”
“That’s not true,” she said. “I had sobered up.”
; “The facts don’t matter. It’s perception.” Beads of sweat dotted Hardin’s forehead.
Nikki tried to keep her voice calm. “At least now I know exactly what I’m dealing with.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Hardin’s face had gone red.
“What do you think it means?”
“That you’re a cocky FBI star who is worried about her reputation,” he said. “If your testimony is ultimately thrown out, you’re going to look like a pariah who lied.”
“Or a traumatized teenager who was a victim of a poorly run investigation,” she snapped.
His dark eyes narrowed. “You’d better watch out who you cross, Hunt.”
“Then don’t try to manipulate me. You’re not nearly as good at it as you think.”
“You should be focused on these murders instead of wasting time in the past.”
Nikki’s hands balled into fists. “I’m completely focused.”
“Tell Miller to keep me up to date.” Hardin gunned the engine and peeled away from the curb.
Nikki’s body trembled with anger. How could he accuse her of lying about the tox report, much less her sobriety? He knew she’d been drinking that night because she’d admitted to it, and he performed the field sobriety test himself. She’d been a traumatized sixteen-year-old kid, and she’d trusted Hardin when he said she had passed the test. What else had Hardin lied about? What if Rory was right?
Miller headed towards Nikki. “What the hell’s going on?” he said, reaching her.
Nikki had to focus on the murders, and Hardin was Miller’s boss. He didn’t need her emotional baggage. “We need to get this woman identified as soon as possible.”
“We will,” Miller said. “Your theory makes sense. But what if this woman has no connection to the girls?”
“Obviously we need to hear what the medical examiner finds during autopsy,” Nikki said. “But at this point, I’m certain this is our killer trying to distract us. And Liam’s right, it stinks of desperation. Someone waited for her to die and then staged her body so she looked like Frost had killed her. That action alone suggests we’re dealing with the same person who killed Madison and Kaylee.”