James chuckled before he continued, staring out the front of the vehicle the entire time.
"They were just regular plastic boots.Still, she wore them everywhere, including the house, except when she had just been out in the rain.As soon as they were dried off, or we had dried them off at her request, she had them on again.And then, when the rain came!"James broke into a wide grin."She would be out front on our road, which was really quiet back then, and she would splash in the puddles for hours.Now, I loved that she did that, but it also reminded me that the city was not taking care of our streets and there were numerous potholes in the road."
Derek laughed at the comment.
"It was her smile that did it for me," James continued."I would either be out there with her or watching from the window, but it didn't matter how far I was from her; I could still see her beaming smile.She was always so full of life back then."
James fell silent, still staring out the front window.Derek was silent with him, but the story out of nowhere gave him some motivation to push a little more.
"How about before it happened?"he asked."She would have been an adult.Did that carry over into adulthood?That joy and playfulness."
"Yeah, it did," James said."She always loved the water, and she was an excellent swimmer.She was going places.I remember going to watch her swim meets and practices, and she would always splash around more when I was there.There was always a smile on her face when she was in the water.I like to think…"
James went quiet and looked out of the side window, facing away from Derek.
"It’s okay," Derek said."Take your time.What did you think?"
James took a deep breath but didn’t turn from the window."It’s a silly thing to think, but it was raining on the night she left us.I like to think that she had some happiness at the end.I know she can't have been happy when…when it happened."James wiped his eyes with the back of his sleeve."Before that, maybe.She was running in the rain.Maybe she was happy near the end."
"I hope she was," Derek confirmed.He patted James on the shoulder, but the man still didn’t turn around, staring out of the window for a long time.
Derek watched the house, waiting for Mills to emerge.He had no idea what they were looking for.It was not as if they would catch Mills in the act of trying to kill someone.Perhaps he had a storage box somewhere with trophies he had taken from the young women, and that was how they would get him.Perhaps they would catch him in some lie that would prove he was the killer.
There was a lot resting on hope and time, but Derek didn't care.If he never went back to the office and spent the rest of his life watching people in the hope they were a killer, it would still be worth it.He and Alison had caught a lot of killers over the past two years.They deserved to catch Emma’s killer now.
"He’s leaving," Derek pointed out.
For the first time since talking about his daughter, James looked out the front window again.There was no evidence that he’d been crying.
"No job for another ninety minutes," James pointed out."We stay closer this time and see where he goes."
They followed Mills to a street with cafes and eateries, and watched as he went into one of the cafes and exited with a to-go cup.After that, they followed him to a green space.Derek worried that he would go for a walk and they would have to follow on foot, making them more susceptible to being spotted, but Mills didn't venture far into the park before he sat on a bench.
"Keep an eye on him," James said."I’ll get us some coffee from that kiosk."
"Okay," Derek said, craving a second coffee for the day and also hoping that James had more cookies in his lunch bag.
James exited the vehicle and headed in the opposite direction of the green space to the small coffee kiosk that they had passed when following Mills.Derek watched their suspect as he took his lunch from the bag he carried and set it on the bench beside him.A book came out next.Then Mills opened the book and read as he drank his hot drink and ate his lunch.
A young mother with a stroller walked down the street, followed by an old woman walking a dog.A young family strolled through the park, the two young boys climbing a tree before being called by their parents.An old man met a younger man on a bench close to Mills's.Then a female jogger.
Derek sat up straighter and leaned forward.It was the first time since he sat down that he wasn’t engrossed in his book.He still held his book up as if reading it, but subtly looked over the top of the book as the jogger ran by, turning his head to follow her route.As soon as she was out of view, he went back to the position he’d been in, and read his book again.
James opened the door to the passenger seat and got in, placing the two coffees in the console holders between the seats.
"Did you see that?"James asked.
"Yeah, I did," Derek admitted."He was watching her, right?"
"That’s what I saw."
"I was watching the whole time you were away, and he didn't look away from his book until that woman ran past him.Then, he couldn’t take his eyes off her."
"It might be nothing," James warned."I mean, I hope it is something, but it doesn’t prove anything.He has a wife, but maybe he likes younger women, and after being married for so long, he’s looking at new pastures."
"Yeah, it’s a possibility," Derek admitted."We continue to watch him.He could have gone home between jobs, but he chose to come here with lunch.Maybe that’s what he does.He watches young women out running and gets his fix, keeps himself going until he can't take it any longer, and he goes out and kills someone.We spend a few more days and see if he does the same every lunchtime, see who he pays attention to."
"Yeah," James confirmed, taking a deep breath.
