Page 79 of Did You See Evie

“Yes, Evie is her niece, but they don’t have a relationship,” I say. “She’d never even met her.”

“Evie’s mother mentioned her to me,” she says, eyes fixed on Nadia. “She said she’d been hanging around their house.”

“She went with me, after the prayer circle,” I say, trying to defend her. “Nadia has been trying to help find Evie. She’s the one who made the connection between Kyle and the online profile.”

“She’s been in more recent trouble,” Detective Fields says, watching Nadia closely. “I recall seeing her at the station a few months back. I recognized her then and pulled her file. She must have close to a dozen arrests.” She turns to me, narrowing her eyes. “How much have you told her about Evie’s case?”

“Nadia might have a bad track record, but she wants to help find Evie,” I say, dodging the question. “That’s why she’s here.”

As I say this, I realize I don’t know if that’s true. I have no idea why Nadia would come to the school in the middle of the day. And I didn’t know she’d been arrested only a few months ago. I never even knew she was Evie’s aunt. How do I know she has the right intentions?

“Keep in touch,” Detective Fields says, finally crossing the parking lot to get to her car. I can’t ignore how frustrating her tone is. She’s suspicious of Nadia, and as a result, me.

Nadia is still standing by her car, waving me over. I take a deep breath and march toward her.

“What are you doing here?” I ask.

“You didn’t answer when I called.”

“We were having a meeting with the girls,” I say. “And that still doesn’t explain why you showed up to my work.”

“You’ve been dodging my calls since last night,” she says. “After all the digging I did, I thought I deserved to know what was going on.”

“I forwarded all the information to the police. We warned the girls this morning. Hopefully they’ll come forward about anything else now that they know how serious this is.”

Nadia nods in the direction of Detective Fields’ car. “Is she a cop?”

I exhale in frustration. “Yes. And she said she recognized you.”

“I thought she looked familiar.” Nadia laughs. “Is that the same street cop that picked us up when we were kids?”

“It is, actually,” I say. “But she said you’re still getting in trouble.”

“You already know that much.”

“I didn’t know you were getting caught! She said you were arrested a couple months ago.”

“That was stupid,” Nadia says, looking away quickly. “Total misunderstanding.”

“Why didn’t you tell me? It makes me wonder what else you’re into.”

“It didn’t really come up. A lot has happened in the past week. I didn’t think it mattered.”

“Everything matters! One of my players is missing, and I’m leaning on you to help find her. Now I don’t even know if I can trust you. I don’t know who you are.”

“You know who I am. I’ve made some mistakes but not everyone had it as easy as you.”

“It’s never been easy for me. My childhood was as hard as yours.”

“And then Coach Phillips took you in and you lived happily ever after,” she says. “Funny how you always leave that part out.”

“I don’t?—”

“You do! You had something to help you out of this life. I didn’t. It sounds like Evie didn’t,” she says. “Maybe think about that when you’re judging me for my decisions.”

“I’m not judging you.” I pinch my forehead with my fingers. “My whole world is falling apart, and I don’t need you psychoanalyzing me right now.”

“What do you mean?”