"He had framed photographs of each of his victims in a locked cabinet in the basement.In the same cabinet, he had mementos from each of the five women, mainly jewelry, including a heart necklace my sister was wearing on the night she was killed."
"The families of the other four victims have been notified that there is an investigation underway and that we know who the killer is.For some families, much like Dr.Payne’s, there have been years, or decades, of not knowing.We can finally offer some closure.Let’s catch him so we can offer justice."
"Okay, this is great work so far," Hartley said."The manhunt has become a federal issue, and we can't rule out that Mills has already crossed state lines.The FBI will be taking the lead on the case, with the US Marshall’s office assisting.We’ll contact local law enforcement as needed.For now, I would ask you both to go home and get some well-deserved rest."
"I’m not going anywhere," Alison said.
"Dr.Payne, I know you and the case well enough to know that this goes beyond stubbornness of professionalism, and I also understand how hard you’ve worked on this case so far.I’m extremely grateful to both of you, and we wouldn’t be here now if it weren’t for you.However, both of you are far too close to the case.We need to decide whether we can capture Howard Mills alive without jeopardizing the case.We can't have a family member of a victim chasing down the killer."
"We will find him," Rodriguez assured them."We have been given unlimited resources, given the nature of the case.Once we have him, we will have some fancy lawyer arguing that there wasn’t due process.We will need to consult with you both, but you’ll need to take a step back from the case.Let us finish what you started."
"I—" Alison stated.
Derek stood with a low groan."Come on, we both need some rest.We can pick up some food on the way home.You know they’re right.We’ll be on hand if they need anything, but we can't be a part of this now."
Alison bit her bottom lip to stay her tongue.She nodded, then quietly left the office, unable to thank the agent and marshal, or out of fear, she would plead her case instead.She knew they were completely right, but still wanted to argue against them.
It was only when she was outside and turned to face Derek, who had followed her out, that she let go.
"I can't just sit around and do nothing," she complained.
"I know, but I’m going to make sure that’s all you do."Derek took her in his arms and held her tight, even though it would have hurt his ribs to do so."Come on, let’s go home."
"What?And wait?"Alison asked.
"That’s all we can do."He continued to hug her."It’s time for the healing to begin.You found him.We found him.After two decades, you know who killed your sister, and he’s currently one of the most wanted men in the country.He doesn’t have the skills or resources to evade capture forever.Soon, you’ll be able to put all of this behind you.It’s time to go home."
"I know," Alison said."It’s just that, if they don't catch him, I won't be able to heal from this."
"They will catch him," Derek said softly."I won’t rest until they do, you have my word."
Sarah took Derek’s hand."I trust you."
"Then you get to heal," he added."I’ll be with you through it all."
CHAPTER TWO
Dr.Richard Langford leaned forward in his chair, arching his shoulders backward and pressing his elbows against the backrest to stretch his back.He let out a welcome groan as he felt the discomfort that hadn’t been there when he was sitting with a straight back.He knew he had been sitting too long and that his back would pay for it in the morning.It was better to stretch a little now and ease the pain that would come.
Richard rubbed his forehead with the back of his hand and chuckled.He might be feeling his age, but he was still alive, and his aching bones and weary muscles were a welcome reminder that he was alive, his heart still beating.
He spread the documents out before him, ensuring there were no silly mistakes with the formatting or spelling.They would be submitted to the court, and even the smallest mistake would give the defense fuel to fight with.If a name was spelled wrong or a detail was not completely correct, all of the evidence he had compiled could be thrown out.
His psychiatric evaluation wasn’t the only evidence they had to show that the defendant should be jailed for his part in the assault of three young women.His psyche evaluation was a large part of the case against Dominic Weaver, and from what he’s seen of the young, brutal man, he was sure of his guilt.
Still, that was not for him to decide.He could reach any conclusion he wanted about the people he assessed, but it was up to the jury, in conjunction with the other evidence and arguments presented in court, to decide whether the defendant was innocent or guilty.
Richard collated the documents and began stapling them together.There were assistants in the office who usually did that sort of thing, but they’d all left for the evening, and he’d wanted the documents separate to peruse on his desk before they were stapled.
It was already late, and he knew the night would go far later.Richard stretched again, looking first toward the window, where darkness resided.He was on the second floor and couldn’t see the street outside, but there were the upper floors of some buildings and the stars in the night sky.He got up and moved to the open doorway leading from his office to the main law offices, which were now empty.
He spent a moment there, his body happy to be standing after sitting for so much of the day.Richard was almost sixty, not as young as he used to be, but he was still the last of them standing that day; literally and metaphorically.
Richard sighed and then went back into his office to work.He was not yet sure whether his written report would be enough or whether he would be called upon to give testimony in court.He didn't mind that, but the sooner he knew, the better he could prepare and move things around if he needed to.
He picked up the first stapled report and read.He was the one who had written it, but when preparing court documents, the information had to be formatted and set out in a specific way.He wanted to know the material inside out before it was sent off to the prosecutor.
Richard stopped reading and cocked his head to the side as his ears pricked.There had been a sound in the main office, as if someonewasstill there, and he hadn’t noticed them when he had looked out.He sat there for a while, listening for a second noise, but none came.He thought about going back to the doorway and checking, but he had work to do.Instead, he cleared his throat.If someone was out there, they would know he was still in his office, and it wouldn’t be awkward; they wouldn’t surprise each other.
