Liz arrived at the station less than twenty minutes later.
The photograph was still clutched tightly in her hand.
Shane barely waited for her to sit down.
"You got one too?"
Liz stopped.
"What do you mean, too?"
Instead of answering, Shane turned her monitor around.
The university video.
The photographs.
The timestamps.
The evidence.
Liz slowly sat down.
"Oh my God."
Finn nodded grimly.
"That was pretty much our reaction."
The room fell silent.
Everyone stared at the growing collection of evidence.
Years.
Not months.
Not weeks.
Years.
The scope of it was becoming impossible to ignore.
Shane rubbed her temples.
"I've dealt with stalkers before."
"Same," Finn added.
"But this is different."
Liz swallowed.
"How different?"
Neither detective answered immediately.
Finally Shane spoke.
"Most stalkers escalate."
Liz frowned.
"What does that mean?"
"It means they start small."
She pointed toward the photographs.
"Watching."
Then another.
"Following."
Then another.
"Approaching."
Then another.
"Interfering."
Shane's finger stopped.
"But Griffin never followed the normal pattern."
"What pattern did he follow?"
The detective stared at the evidence.
"Patience."
The word settled heavily across the room.
Because it was true.
Griffin had not rushed.
He had waited.
Years.
Quietly.
Carefully.
Watching from the edges of Vinny's life.
Waiting for an opportunity.
The realization was disturbing.
Deeply disturbing.
Finn looked uncomfortable.
"Do we know if he ever actually approached Vinny before the shop?"
"No."
"Do we know if Vinny ever noticed him?"
"No."
"Do we know if Griffin interfered with any of Vinny's relationships?"
Shane froze.
Then slowly looked up.
The room became very quiet.
Because none of them had considered that possibility.
Until now.
…
Across town, Vinny couldn't stop thinking about Madam Grace's reaction.
A little longer than that.
The words repeated endlessly inside his head.
A little longer than that.
How much longer?
Months?
Years?
The uncertainty was eating at him.
He sat on the balcony staring into the evening sky.
The apartment behind him was quiet.
Griffin was cooking dinner.
The scent of garlic and herbs drifted through the air.
Normally it would have comforted him.
Today it didn't.
His thoughts felt louder than usual.
Questions he had been avoiding were becoming harder to ignore.
When exactly had Griffin fallen in love with him?
How much did Griffin actually know about him?
And why did it sometimes feel like Griffin knew things he should not know?
The balcony door opened.
Vinny didn't turn around.
He already knew who it was.
Griffin sat beside him.
For several moments neither spoke.
Then Griffin handed him a cup of tea.
His favorite.
Made exactly how he liked it.
Without asking.
Without being told.
Just knowing.
The realization made Vinny strangely uneasy.
"Something's bothering you."
It wasn't a question.
Vinny sighed.
"Maybe."
Griffin's gaze remained fixed on him.
Patient.
Waiting.
Eventually Vinny spoke.
"How much did you know about me before we met?"
The question hit harder than he expected.
Griffin's expression remained calm.
Too calm.
The silence stretched.
Then:
"More than most people."
Not exactly an answer.
Not exactly a lie.
Vinny frowned.
"That's vague."
A small smile appeared.
"You asked a vague question."
"I asked a normal question."
Griffin laughed softly.
But his eyes remained watchful.
Careful.
Measured.
And suddenly Vinny realized something.
Griffin was choosing every word.
Very carefully.
…
Elsewhere, West was having fun.
For the first time in a long time.
His desk had become completely covered with photographs.
Evidence.
Timelines.
Connections.
The truth.
And the truth was fascinating.
Because everyone was looking at Griffin.
Nobody was asking the right questions yet.
Nobody had reached the important part.
Not yet.
West picked up a photograph.
One of the oldest in his collection.
It showed Vinny during his first year of university.
Laughing with friends.
Young.
Carefree.
Happy.
A second photograph rested beside it.
Taken the same day.
From a completely different angle.
And there was Griffin.
Again.
Watching.
Always watching.
West shook his head.
Almost impressed.
"You're insane."
The statement carried no judgment.
Only observation.
Then his phone buzzed.
A notification.
One of his monitoring programs had detected something.
His smile disappeared.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Because someone else had started digging into university records.
And that someone was Detective Shane.
…
The following morning, Shane received access to several archived university databases.
Student event records.
Photography club archives.
Campus publications.
Social media backups.
Thousands of files.
Thousands.
Finn looked exhausted just thinking about it.
"You realize this is going to take forever."
Shane grinned.
The grin immediately worried Finn.
"Why are you smiling?"
"Because."
"Because why?"
Shane opened a folder.
Then another.
Then another.
Her grin widened.
"Oh no."
"Oh yes."
Finn already hated whatever was happening.
"What did you find?"
Shane turned the screen around.
A photograph appeared.
Then another.
Then another.
Each one showed the same thing.
Vinny.
And somewhere nearby…
Griffin.
Not hidden.
Not lurking.
Just present.
Over and over again.
At events.
Parties.
Campus gatherings.
Public spaces.
Years worth of accidental appearances.
Except they no longer looked accidental.
Finn slowly sat down.
"That's impossible."
"That's what I thought."
"How many?"
Shane checked her notes.
Then looked up.
"Forty seven."
The room went silent.
Forty seven separate appearances.
Documented.
Verified.
Spread across six years.
The evidence spoke for itself.
Because coincidences didn't happen forty seven times.
…
That afternoon, Evelyn received an unexpected visitor.
A knock sounded at her front door.
She wasn't expecting anyone.
Cautiously, she opened it.
Then froze.
Detective Shane stood outside.
Smiling politely.
Holding a folder.
Evelyn immediately knew.
The investigation had finally reached her doorstep.
And judging by the look in Shane's eyes…
The detective already knew far more than she should.
"Mrs. Hale?"
Evelyn swallowed.
"Yes?"
Shane's smile never faltered.
"I think it's time we talked about your son."
For the first time in weeks, genuine fear appeared on Evelyn's face.
Because she had always known this moment would come.
She had just hoped it wouldn't come so soon.