The Mind Virus

Chapter 11 - Part 2

Jim threw his dress shirt and tie onto the back seat of the Camry. He was wearing a plain-colored tee shirt underneath with a pair of sunglasses tucked into the neckline. He pulled them out and put them on. He couldn't help but feel a little silly. Sunglasses as a disguise was like something out of a cartoon or bad movie. Sunglasses in the evening was equally, if not more, stupid. Jim now wondered how long he'd be tracking Miller. The sun was still out, but if he tracked him until after sunset, the sunglasses would have to come off. At that point they'd be attracting more attention than they'd diffuse.

He'd have to cross that bridge when he came to it. Miller was leaving the station. As Jim predicted, he was exiting out of the back of the station, going through the fleet parking, and through the back gate into the open parking.

The Camry's engine came to life as Jim turned the key and slowly crawled toward the sliding gate that separated the two parking lots, careful not to be too eager and get too close. As Detective Miller was entering his own car, Jim passed through the gate and circled around the back of the parking lot. There he sat still, hoping that the bushes between the two men would be enough concealment for Jim and the Camry.

As Miller pulled out of the parking lot and took a left on the small boulevard, Jim drove out from behind the foliage and followed suit. Cedar Grove wasn't exactly a bustling city, and even though Jim kept a fair distance between himself and Miller, with no other cars on the road, he wondered how long he'd be able to follow the detective without him noticing. He couldn't help but laugh to himself – a detective not noticing the only other car on the road that would be following him all evening – it was a ludicrous thought. Should he turn back now, drop off the Camry, and just go home? No, he'd gotten this far. If Miller shows signs of suspicion or attempts a confrontation, then he could leave. Hopefully with enough distance and Jim's oversized sunglasses, Miller wouldn't recognize it's him, even if he does realize he's being followed.

Miller circled the roundabout at the next intersection and turned right. Jim mused over how much he disliked this roundabout. He wondered why the city had bothered to build one at all. It was the only roundabout in Cedar Grove – and probably the only one in this part of the state – and no one knew how to use it. No, focus. Jim's mind was wandering. He'd only been following Miller for two minutes, and he was already bored. He'd hyped up this moment for days, and now here he was, struck by how dull it all was. This was going to be a long evening.