Page 89 of The Girls in the Snow

“We don’t want you to,” Rory said. “Not long ago, I would have said the opposite. But going through all of this with Mark and his attorneys helped me to understand that Mark was right about you being a victim.”

“Hardin told me this week, when the paper came out, that he had no idea I was under the influence. Shamed me for possibly putting the conviction in jeopardy. But he knew, because he knew what happened at the party. Mark told him what John tried to do to me. And I think he drugged me, just like Mark told Hardin that night.”

Her voice threatened to break as she explained about the noise in her dreams, the fuzzy bits and pieces that flared up after she came back to Stillwater, and the building panic that she’d forgotten something crucial.

“John’s friends did nothing. They never told the truth.” Nikki’s hands balled into fists. “I’m going to contact Mark’s attorney and let him know she can back up his version of events.”

“Thank you,” Rory said.

“I can’t stop thinking about those pictures. If John didn’t destroy them, they’re still out there.”

“He wouldn’t have kept them,” Rory said. “They’re too incriminating.”

Nikki didn’t mention the box of pictures John’s son had found. Those pictures were more than trophies. They helped him relive the moments he craved. Nikki understood why people did terrible things and it meant she couldn’t tell herself the lies that Rory did, the ones that might help her sleep at night.

And Mark’s story fell in perfectly with Brianna’s information. Was there more to John and Amy’s argument? Was Kaylee in the pictures? Or Madison? She felt sick at the thought, but at this point, she had to believe that John was capable of anything. Had Madison somehow found out and that’s why he’d killed the girls?

“I’ve spent almost twenty years pushing people away so that I didn’t get too close. Even my ex-husband. Mark and I had been friends, and after what happened, I felt like I couldn’t trust anyone.” Nikki couldn’t believe how badly she’d misjudged her ex-boyfriend. “How could John have done that? How could I not have known what he was capable of?” She shook her head in disgust. “I was wrong the whole time.”

Rory sighed. “When I started high school, I was so grateful to be just another face in the crowd. But people always asked about Mark, and most either wanted to know more about the murders, or they wanted nothing to do with me at all.”

“That’s my fault,” Nikki said.

“It’s not,” he replied. “Anyone in your position would have thought the same thing. The police failed Mark. You’re a cop—can you imagine being so single-minded that you didn’t look under every rock for evidence?”

Nikki thought about Liam’s accusation that she’d been trying to come up with a reason for John’s possible actions instead of just admitting he was a cold-blooded criminal. “That’s one of the reasons we work cases in teams. Personal agendas cause mistakes.” She couldn’t stop thinking about one of Mark’s initial comments. “Mark talked about how prison gossip travels, and one of the guys I’d locked up called me an ice-cold bitch.”

She’d obsessed over the words the entire drive from the correctional facility. They were nothing special, yet they cut her deeply. They kept running through her mind, only in John’s voice.

You stupid ice-cold bitch. You’ll pay for this.

“I think John Banks killed my parents. And I think he might be the person who killed these girls.”

Thirty-Seven

Running on little sleep, Nikki consumed two energy drinks quickly the next morning. Her entire system felt jittery. She’d spoken with the district attorney and the new information she’d gathered hadn’t shocked Mathews as much as her change of heart. His hands were mostly tied until the DNA results were back, but Nikki now felt like she was doing the right thing for Mark. And for Rory too.

Nikki could barely concentrate on the road. She whipped through traffic at a reckless pace, white-knuckling the steering wheel. How could Hardin live with what he’d done? He’d put an innocent man in jail, and he’d left a killer in Stillwater and now three girls were dead. Marching into his office and accusing him wasn’t the most professional way to handle things, but Nikki wasn’t sure she could remain professional much longer.

She barely acknowledged the front desk officer when he buzzed her in, heading straight for Hardin’s office. “You’re a liar.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’ve been to see Mark and I know everything.”

“Mark Todd’s a liar.” Hardin didn’t look away from his computer.

“No, you lied, and don’t you dare say it’s because you were protecting me.”

“I really don’t like your tone.”

“I really don’t like that my parents’ killer is still out there, and an innocent man is in prison thanks to you.” Nikki made sure her voice carried into the hall. “Tell me, did you consciously decide to fuck Mark Todd over because he’d been with your wife, or did all that happen naturally?”

“You are out of line.”

Nikki slammed a file onto his desk. “You ran a shitty investigation and buried evidence. The district attorney called Patsy Moran this morning, and she happily connected him with Deputy Anderson. Where are the pictures taken of the blood prints in the hall? Or the kitchen chair that Mark held onto when he went in search of a phone? Their disappearance was the last straw for Anderson.”

Hardin’s face turned red, his double chin wobbling. His meaty hands clenched into fists, and the anger simmered in his dark eyes. “I have no idea.”

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