Page 44 of The Girls in the Snow

“No way Amy overpowered both girls,” Nikki muttered to herself. Kaylee had at least thirty pounds on the woman.

Grief had been Nikki’s second skin for so long that she could easily spot fake emotion. But was Amy’s grief laced with guilt? Nikki wasn’t leaving the Bankses’ house tomorrow without the truth.

Nikki hadn’t been exaggerating to Newport about the possibility of more murders. While she was certain the girls’ killer had been someone they knew and trusted, Nikki still had to consider that their killer might murder more girls.

The front desk clerk cleared his throat. “Sorry, Agent Hunt. I need to close the building and lock up.”

Nikki flushed and glanced at her watch. She’d waited twenty minutes for Rory, and that was more than she’d intended to wait. She slid her coat on and shouldered her bag, irritated at her own disappointment. Not having to deal with Rory again should have felt like a good thing.

She said goodbye to the night guard and braced for the cold air, ducking her face from the wind. She hadn’t gone more than ten steps when a male voice made her stop short.

“Agent Hunt?”

Nikki’s hand instinctively went to the gun still secured on her hip as a young man appeared between two vehicles.

“Can I help you?”

He took a few steps toward her.

“Stop. You’re close enough.”

A lock of blond hair stuck out from beneath his skull cap. A few days’ scruff dotted his jawline. “My name’s Bobby Vance.”

Nikki’s shoulders relaxed, but she kept her hand on the gun. “You didn’t have to come down here. Approaching a cop in a dark parking lot isn’t exactly a smart decision.”

Bobby’s cheeks turned pink. “Ah. I didn’t think of that. I was already here.” He pointed toward the parking lot exit where the protestors had gathered outside of the gate. “I’m protesting for Mark Todd.”

“I see.”

“I took a few days off classes when I heard about Maddie and Kaylee. Wanted to be here for services and all. But we don’t know when that’s going to be, and I’ve been reading about Todd’s appeal.”

“You don’t have to justify protesting to me. That’s your right,” Nikki said. “It’s freezing. Would you mind going into the station for a few minutes? It’s just right over there.”

He grinned. “Sure. I went there first and they said you were over here.”

Nikki fell into step next to him, still on high alert. He walked with his hands in his pockets, keeping his eyes on the ground. He seemed harmless, but she wasn’t going to take any chances. “What are you majoring in at Mankato State?”

“I haven’t declared yet. Guess I’m afraid of making the wrong choice and then wasting money on school.”

She rang the sheriff’s station’s after-hours bell. “College is never a waste. And you’ll figure it out.”

A front desk officer unlocked the door. “Agent Hunt. Sergeant Miller’s left for the day.”

“I just need to borrow the lobby for a minute,” Nikki said. “He’s a friend of the Banks family, and it’s too cold to chat outside.”

“No problem. Just make sure the door is closed behind you. It automatically locks.” The officer went back to her post behind the bulletproof glass. Nikki sat down on the bench in the lobby, and Bobby perched on the end as though he were afraid to get too close and do something to offend her.

Nikki dug into her bag for the Polaroid she’d found at Madison’s house. She studied his face, hoping the element of surprise worked in her favor. “Have you ever seen this picture?’

“There was some kind of festival in Hudson last September. Maddie talked me into being their chauffeur.”

Nikki had already checked, and the department of transportation only had a handful of cars registered to a Vance in Washington County. The Toyota Camry Mindy had been driving was registered to her, and Nikki had confirmed the other registrations belonged to people with the same last name and no relation to Bobby and Mindy. “It was my understanding that you didn’t have a car.”

Bobby looked surprised. “I don’t. Mom let me borrow hers to take them.”

Nikki nodded. She believed him.

“Were you and Maddie close, then?”