Nikki had just straightened up when Josh crashed around the corner. With his eyes wide and arms flailing he startled her and she let out a yelp. The dry, croaking sound that escaped her lips echoed through the hallway and brought Josh to a standstill.

"Nikki, you... ?"

In her mind, Ezekius was frantically ploughing through the events he'd been shut out of, the speed at which his inquiring thoughts hijacked her, rendering Nikki speechless.

"Nikki?" Josh held back, eying her warily.

Eyes closed and inhaling a deep therapeutic breath, Nikki tried to loosen the tension in her jaw.

"Zeke, slow down, I can't handle you both at once. I'm coming down with Josh now, let me answer his questions first!"

Squeezing the air from her lungs, Nikki forced the first word from her mouth in over two years.

"Josh."

It was horse and broken but it was her voice.

"Nikki, you can talk?"

She stared ready to reach out and touch his hand, a habit that she no longer had to rely upon. Realising this brought a smile to her lips as she readied herself to test out her vocal cords.

"Josh." Nikki's smile widened. How appropriate that her first word was his name.

"You... You can talk?"

Automatically she nodded her head before laughing loudly. "Yes!" She croaked, stepping towards him.

"But I-- I don't understand, you said-- You said that to get your voice back-"

"No, Josh, no. It's not what you think! I didn't kill anyone. I--" Suddenly Nikki found herself mute again as the explanation died on her lips. "It's not what you think, I swear, I didn't..."

She watched his eyes darken. "I'd better get back to Joanne."

"No wait!" Without watching her footing, Nikki lunged forward. She had to make him understand. "Something strange just happened. Something I don't think I can explain. Josh, I was just given my voi-"

Before she could finish, the rotten floorboard beneath her gave way and she plummeted down, through the opening hole to the rubble and decimation below.

As she fell, a scream tore from her body but the sound was only just audible above the creaking of the house as it partially collapsed.

"Nikki!" Josh jerked forward, scrambling for her hand but it was too late, she had already dropped too far. He watched in horror as her body landed in a cloud of dust and debris before being buried by shards of floorboard and lumps of brick.

"NIKKI!"