To the Ends of the Earth

Chapter Fifteen: Unfair

Who knew surveillance would be so boring?

I was regretting asking Camilla to let me join her private investigator, Tom, for the morning. But, in my defense, Alex was driving me crazy with his worrying. I loved my brother, but he had been staying with me for almost a week and I already wanted my space back. I was always a private person, and I needed my apartment to be my own personal sanctuary.

Alex had been in contact with Camilla, and he was trying to provide his own input on the case. He wanted Virginia and Jeffrey arrested as soon as possible, but I couldn't let him take things into his own hands. I had to tell him to back off and support me in silence while Camilla did her thing. I trusted her expertise and Alex's knowledge in corporate law was not going to provide much assistance to her.

Honestly, I was beginning to get concerned too. I wished my case could be a simple open-and-shut scenario, but it was slightly more complicated than that. I didn't want Vivi to only be charged with harassment. I needed to find a way to prove she was involved in my rape. So far, Camilla and Tom had been able to track the phone numbers she was using to send me the messages, which is why Tom was trying to gain further evidence that Vivi was residing at the address the phones were traced to.

I wasn't sure why I insisted on joining him during his surveillance. Maybe, I needed to gain back some control of my situation. It was starting to feel like everything depended on others, and I was getting unsettled by it all. I thought that by joining Tom I would be contributing to something, but I didn't expect to be bored out of my mind. We had been sitting in a parked car for over an hour and —so far— nothing had happened.

Groaning with annoyance, I turned to face Tom."So, how long do you just sit here in your car?"

"However long it takes," he grunted, continuing to stare out the windshield.

"Do you think we can spice things up?" I asked, hopefully. "Maybe do some reconnaissance."

"No."

"Well, don't rush to give me an answer. I don't mind if you take your time to think about it."

"The answer is still a no," he replied in a gruff voice.

"Okay, Selleck."

"Who?"

"Oh, don't tell me no one else has ever compared you to him," I huffed. "You're the spitting image of him and you have the same name."

"No."

"Hmm, your conversation skills are really incredible. Did you major in communication studies in college?"

"No," he growled again, trying to ignore me as he carefully watched the building we were parked by.

Rolling my eyes, I decided to stop bothering him and pulled out my phone. I opened my notes application and contemplated a story that had been living in my head for a few weeks. Liam had actually been the one who inspired the idea. I felt like everyone, especially people whose pasts were similar to mine, deserved someone like Liam. And so, I started to write a story about a rape victim finding love.

Half an hour later, I was finishing up my first chapter when Tom interrupted my concentration. "There they are," he mumbled.

I quickly looked up and through the window, and I saw Vivi with a man —who I assumed was Jeffrey. They were walking onto the street, laughing at each other. Jeffrey's reddish blonde locks were blowing in the wind, taunting me with painful reminders. I watched them stunned as they walked away, and Tom rapidly snapped photos of the cozy duo. Why did I think that it would be a good idea to see them with my own eyes?