by Stacy Green
“Looks like the pillowcases are missing,” Liam said. “The killer probably wrapped them around her head while transporting her.”
Miller picked up the small lamp lying in the corner. “The base is covered with dried blood. Hopefully we’ll get fingerprints.”
Liam nodded. “Our killer hits her with the lamp hard enough to incapacitate her and then takes her to the park to leave her to suffer.”
The room had only one small chest of drawers, and Janelle’s few clothes were folded inside. Her wallet had been left on top of the clothes, her driver’s license and fifty dollars cash still inside.
“Clearly this wasn’t about money,” Nikki said. “It’s almost as though he wanted us to identify her.”
“Condoms, a couple of packs of cigarettes, matches from the strip club.” Courtney had moved on to the bedside table. “Her killer must not be a smoker. No way these are left behind.”
Nikki’s head spun from lack of sleep. “We need to find out if Janelle told anyone about having someone new in her life.”
“I’ll go back to the strip club and talk to the girls who take the morning shifts,” Miller said. “Maybe I’ll get something useful. The Eau Claire police are sending a detective to notify the family in person.”
Courtney finished labeling an evidence bag. “I’ve got plenty of fingerprints from this room to analyze, and I’m hoping to get some off the ribbons in Janelle’s hair. If I could get my hands on the physical evidence from Madison and Kaylee’s remains, I could compare to the trace evidence we’ve found here.”
A familiar weak sensation came over Nikki. “I’ll call the medical examiner and get an ETA on the way back into town. And then we need to get some food.”
Twenty-Two
Nikki sat in a back table at the Main Cafe, a mom-and-pop staple in the commercial historic district. Many of the two- and three-story buildings had endured since the nineteenth century. Nikki’s mother had been on the committee responsible for the commercial historic district being placed on the National Registrar of Historic Places in 1992. The boom since then had been incredible.
“I can’t get over how much Stillwater has changed,” Nikki said. “Downtown looks totally different with all the boutiques and kitschy stores.”
“Tourist trap equals money.” Liam looked around the busy diner. “I’m freaking starving.”
“You’re always starving.” Courtney rolled her eyes. “I’m positive you have a hollow leg.”
“Here comes the server, thank God.”
Main Cafe served breakfast until they closed in the afternoon, so Nikki and Courtney ordered eggs and bacon, while Liam asked for the lunch special that sounded big enough to feed three people.
Nikki tried not to inhale the coffee. She already felt lightheaded from no food and too much caffeine.
“You’ve been up all night?” Courtney asked.
Nikki didn’t mention she hadn’t slept much the night before, either. “I dozed in the jeep while I was waiting for you guys.”
“You look exhausted.”
Nikki shrugged. “I’ll get a nap in.”
“Did you and your friends spend a lot of time downtown back in the day?” Liam asked.
“Sometimes. I was a rural kid, so we usually wound up at someone’s house.”
Liam stared into his coffee, his hands tight around the cup.
“Liam, what are you thinking?” Nikki asked.
He bit his lower lip, his face pink beneath his freckles. “I’ve worked with you long enough to know you can handle whatever’s thrown at you. But the public perception may be different, especially after the newspaper article and Hardin’s press conference.”
“To hell with public perception.” Courtney stirred her coffee.
“Liam’s right. Public perception matters,” Nikki said. “And I’m sure Hardin’s going to try to get me off the case. It’s not really hard since we’re here on invitation.”
“You’re not going to let him tag along, are you?” Liam asked.
Nikki rolled her eyes. “As if he could keep up. I plan to avoid him as much as possible and I really doubt he’s going to push me too far. He just said he was keeping a close eye on me to help his image.” She glanced at her phone. “Miller texted that he’s at the club. He’s getting a list of anyone who came into contact with her since she’s been in town.”
“Eau Claire police called me on the drive here,” Liam said. “Janelle filed a restraining order against the ex, Kendall Jones, a few months ago,” Liam said. “They’ve got a BOLO out on him, and his prints are in the system. He’s got a domestic violence arrest from two years ago, along with a misdemeanor drug charge.”
Courtney pulled out her phone and started typing. “I’m telling the lab to compare any fingerprints lifted to Jones. Maybe we can rule him out that way—if he didn’t kill her.” She frowned. “But I still don’t get it. Making her look like a Frost victim brings you to the scene. If this is the same killer, you’d think he’d want you doing the opposite.”
“Not if I thought Frost killed her; I’d drop the girls and focus on catching him,” Nikki said. “Which brings us back to the possibility that Janelle didn’t know the girls or their killer at all and was just a sacrificial lamb.”
Courtney leaned out of the booth and made a face. “Newport’s coming into the restaurant with some of the protesters. I recognize the girl in the red coat and the chubby dude with the Vikings jacket.”
Nikki rubbed her temples. “Is Caitlin following us or is this the only decent breakfast place left in town?”
“The special is cheap and supposed to be delicious.” Liam’s double cheeseburger with a massive side of waffle fries looked like a heart attack in progress.
“Surely you’ll need a box?” Nikki asked.
“What for?”
Nikki rolled her eyes and dug into her eggs.
“Newport’s sauntering over here like she owns the place,” Courtney said. “Her buddies are all watching.”
“Agent Hunt, nice to see you.” Caitlin still wore sensible clothes, but her face was suspiciously made-up. “I was shooting some background shots when I noticed your jeep.”
“Spare me,” Nikki said. “We’re working here, Caitlin.”
“Have you identified the victim in the park?”
“No comment,” Nikki said.
“I heard about Amy Banks. The poor woman is going through hell. Did you learn anything new when you visited the school?”
Nikki knew it must have been Jade Eby who’d reported their visit to her mother, who’d gone straight to Newport.
“How’s Connie doing, then?” Nikki asked. “I assume she’s the one who told you we visited the school.”
Caitlin shrugged. “It’s important that I speak to the people in town who lived here when you did, preferably ones who knew both you and Mark Todd.”
“Connie didn’t know me.”
“What about Annmarie?”
Nikki’s blood ran cold. “You called her?”
Annmarie had been Nikki’s best friend since they were little, and she’d picked Nikki up at the party the night her parents were killed. After the murders, Nikki felt like the only way to survive was shutting everyone out and focusing on school so she could get out of Stillwater and forget everything. Annmarie had been the only person Nikki made a valiant attempt to stay in contact with, but Annmarie was a painful memory of Stillwater, so Nikki eventually pushed her away, too. She did at least know that she was a nurse and lived somewhere in Wisconsin.
Caitlin nodded. “She told me to fuck off and to never call her again.”
Nikki drained her coffee, trying to hide the swell of pride she felt. She shouldn’t have been surprised that her oldest friend wanted nothing to do with the documentary, but Annmarie certainly didn’t owe Nikki her loyalty.
“Have you looked at the evidence, yet?”
Liam shoved his plate away. “We’re discussing official police business. Please leave.”
Caitlin looked around. “It’s a diner. I can’t eat?”
“As long as you don’t sit with us,” Nikki said.
“That’s right.” Courtney swung around to face her. “Take your ass to your table before I help you get there.”
“Are you threatening me?”
Courtney stared her down.
“Unprofessional,” Caitlin said as she walked briskly back to the group of protestors sitting around a large table, Bobby Vance among them. Nikki looked over her shoulder long enough to see that he sat quietly with his arms over his chest; he seemed partially separated from the others.
“Sergeant Miller’s just arrived.” Courtney waved him over.
Miller sat down next to Nikki and looked at Liam’s half-eaten cheeseburger. “You going to finish that?”
Nikki laughed at the look on Liam’s face and passed Miller her toast. “You find anything out from the day shift?”
Miller ate the toast in a few bites and then drank the water Courtney offered him. “You won’t believe it.”
“Excuse me.” A man wearing an old peacoat and corduroy pants had slunk over. “Are you Nicole Walsh?”
Nikki took out her badge. “Nikki Hunt, Special Agent, FBI.”
He smirked. “Is that supposed to scare me?”
“Do you want me to scare you?” Her temper threatened to boil over.
“You put an innocent man in prison. For twenty years,” he began to say.
“Enough,” Miller interrupted.
“Leave it alone, Doug.” Bobby Vance appeared at his side and tugged on the other man’s arm. He was a couple of inches shorter than Doug but far more lean and muscular. “She’s working. And this isn’t helpful to Mark’s case.”
“Listen,” Nikki snapped. She appreciated Bobby stepping in, but she could stand up for herself. “I don’t have to answer to you or anyone else. You have a problem with the conviction, talk to Sheriff Hardin.”
Caitlin’s eyes lit up like a predator’s as she walked over. “Are you saying Hardin deliberately mishandled the case?”
“I’m saying that I was a sixteen-year-old kid. My statement alone didn’t convict Mark Todd. Go bark up the right tree.”
Doug pointed his finger at Nikki. “You need to admit you were wrong before shit gets out of control. People are angry.”
Bobby moved toward him, but Miller blocked his path. “Are you threatening a law enforcement officer, Doug?” Miller’s tone sounded even more threatening than his physical stature.
Doug held up his hands. “Everyone just wants to hear from her.”
“I already gave Ms. Newport my statement,” Nikki said. “My team and I are one hundred percent focused on these active murder investigations.”
“We have a right to protest,” Doug said. “First Amendment.”
Nikki struggled to keep her tone steady. “I respect that right. You do not, however, have the right to impede my investigations.”
Bobby rolled his eyes. “He just wants to be included in her stupid documentary.”
“Doug, you aren’t helping Mark’s case at all.” Newport turned to leave and then glanced at Nikki. “Agent Hunt, if you ever want to discuss your feelings about Sheriff Hardin, give me a call.”
Why couldn’t Nikki control her big mouth?
Newport dropped a couple of bills onto the protesters’ table on her way out of the restaurant.
Doug glared at Nikki, obviously torn between pride and common sense as Bobby lingered behind him.
“Go on back to your table, or I will take you down to the station,” Miller said.
“I almost forgot. The FBI does whatever it wants and gets a free pass.” Doug puffed out his chest, emboldened once again. “Is that why you joined, Agent Hunt? To hide behind the badge?”
Liam stood, red-faced. “Do you know anything about respect?”
“Big guy finally stands up for his girlfriend.” Doug smirked at her. “How are we supposed to count on you to catch those poor girls’ killer? You can’t even see what’s right in front of you.”
“Oh, I see what’s in front of me.” Nikki stepped around Miller and glanced at the rest of the protestors. She lowered her voice. “Which girl over there are you trying to impress?”
Doug shoved Nikki out of his face. “Fuck you.”
Bobby grabbed Doug’s coat collar and threw him into a nearby table. Doug got to his feet and lunged, but Miller caught him by the arm.
“You were warned.” He snapped cuffs around Doug’s wrists. “How stupid are you?”
“No fighting in my restaurant.” Main Street’s owner had come out of the kitchen.
“It’s under control,” Miller said. “Doug’s going to the station with me.”
Nikki mouthed a “thank you” to Bobby and then glanced at the frazzled owner. “Sir, do you mind if I use the back door to exit? I won’t be setting the alarm off?”
“No, you come through the kitchen,” he replied, holding the door open for her.
Nikki followed him, head down, hands clenched. She hated walking away and leaving the mess for Miller and Liam, but she wasn’t sure how much longer she could control her temper. Why did these people think that berating her would help Mark Todd? Didn’t they care about justice for Maddie and Kaylee, too? At least Bobby had the guts to stand up for the girls. Newport should have stepped in from the beginning instead of waiting for Nikki to say something worth pouncing on.
Why had she engaged? Nothing had changed except Caitlin had fodder for her documentary.
She thanked the owner and stepped out into the alley. Cold wind sliced through her sweater. Nikki inhaled the freezing air, trying to clear her head and focus on the present. There were still so many threads that didn’t make sense to Nikki and she was getting impatient. She should have the results from Janelle’s autopsy within the next few hours, but it wasn’t quick enough for her. She needed to ask Brianna more questions and find out if Madison and Kaylee had other friends with vehicles, as well as locate Kaylee’s phone. The killer’s efforts at distracting her hadn’t completely failed. Her workload had doubled, and so had her frustration.
She hadn’t had an opportunity yet to ask Miller if he’d found anything out from his interviews at the strip club. She was getting more and more irritated that Mark’s retrial was getting in her way and every moment considering that he wasn’t her parents’ killer was a moment not spent investigating her case. Her ability to compartmentalize was a skill she’d long prided herself on.
Her devotion to her job was one of the many things that had come between Nikki and Tyler. She had a tendency to become hyper focused and forget everything—and everyone else—in her life until Lacey came along. Finding out she was pregnant had sent her life into a brief tailspin. Nikki had been terrified that if she couldn’t balance her job and a husband, she’d fare even worse with a child. She’d never been so grateful to be wrong. Lacey had brought a sense of clarity to her life and a purpose beyond chasing bad guys. Nikki had become even more compartmentalized, determined not to let the darkness of her job interfere with being a mother.
This case had changed everything. What if she couldn’t keep her focus together enough to find the killer?
Nikki wrapped her arms around her chest, shivering with cold. “Damn it.” She’d left her coat inside. Nikki tried the door, but it must have automatically locked from inside. She found her phone and texted Courtney. The last thing Nikki wanted to do was walk around front. Caitlin and the protesters were no doubt lingering, waiting to pounce again. Nikki would freeze first.
Tires crunched through the snow. Nikki’s stomach lurched into her throat as a familiar pickup half-slid around the corner.
Rory Todd rolled down his window. “Need a ride to the sheriff’s office?”
“Are you following me?”
“I eat here every day.”
She tightened her sweater against the icy wind. “I’m just waiting for Courtney to bring me my coat.”
“You
have a knack for leaving it behind. At least get into the truck and wait so you don’t freeze,” he said. “Your lips are already turning blue. I won’t bring up my brother’s case. Scout’s honor.”
Nikki’s fingers ached with cold. It could be several more minutes before someone came with her coat. She sent Courtney a second text, telling her she had a ride and asked her to bring her coat to the station.
Her heart fluttering with nerves. Nikki grabbed the door and climbed into the big truck. “I need to get to work, so we can head to the station now, if you don’t mind.”
Rory smiled at her. “I don’t mind at all.”
Twenty-Three
Rory’s truck was surprisingly clean for a contractor, save for the floor mats. Trying to keep them clean during a Minnesota winter was futile.
Rory drove in silence, staring straight ahead. His wool hat lay on the seat between them, his dark curls held back by sunglasses.
“What?” His green eyes caught hers as he stopped for a yellow light.
Nikki flushed. “Nothing. I was just thinking…”
“About what?”
She wasn’t about to tell him she’d been admiring his hair. “Just about how awkward this is.”
He laughed and then cleared his throat. “I saw your jeep and then noticed Newport’s truck. I planned on laying into her, but when I saw Miller exit the diner with someone in handcuffs, I knew something was going down.”
“How’d you know I was out back?”
“Didn’t see you inside or in the car. Figured you made a quick escape.”
“Thanks for the ride,” Nikki said. “One of the protestors had a few things to say to me and it got out of hand.”
Rory glanced at her. “That kid from the other night?”
“No,” Nikki said. “He actually tried to defuse the situation. It was someone else who thinks they know better than the police.”
Rory didn’t say anything, and Nikki hurried to clarify.
“It’s not that I don’t support what the Innocence Project lawyers are doing. There are wrongful convictions that need to be overturned. And if this guy was serious and not trying to impress someone, then I respect his passion. But he doesn’t get to talk to me the way he did. What happened to respecting the badge?”