KIMBLE'S APARTMENT BUILDNG, LATE AFTERNOON
Kimble is up on a ladder, painting. The woman
in the other corner takes a break and looks his way. “We’ll be done in no
time at this rate.”
Kimble looks down at the young boy behind her. “Your son is a big help.”
The boy looks up and smiles. “Yes, he’ll make a good landlord someday, just like his Dad,” the boy’s mother says, patting him on the head.
Kimble
watches them wistfully, then looks up to see Kim standing in the doorway,
a package in her hand.
"Hi, Mr. Peterson. Your package came
today." She sets it down on a clear spot in the hallway and heads over
to the elevator.
"Thanks, Kim."
The landlady looks at Kimble, seeing him staring at the package. “Why don’t you quit for the day? Timmy and I can finish up.”
Without
arguing, Kimble hastily sets his brush down and climbs down the ladder to
retrieve the package.
A FEW MINUTES LATER
Hastily washing the paint from his hands,
Kimble sits down on a faded chair, opening the package to pull out the copy
of the diary and a letter from Maggie.
Dear Richard,
I copied it all for you. The pictures were
with it. I knew you would want to have them.
Love,
Maggie
He sets the letter aside. Seeing no pictures,
he opens the diary, pausing at the sight of the familiar graceful handwriting.
Forgetting his original purpose, he searches for a specific date.
Today was a wonderful day. I had my first
date with Dr.Kimble. I met him last week, when Becca
twisted her ankle. We went out to dinner – no place special, just a tiny out-of-the
way place. He's very nice, and handsome, too. I felt so comfortable
talking to him about so many silly things. He's not stuffy like Daddy
and his friends. I hope I see him again…
As
he turns the page, a picture flutters to the floor and Richard reaches to
retrieve it, pausing at the sight of it and remembering vividly the day it
was taken. He turns to the diary entry from that day.
I couldn't wait to see Richard again, so I invited him to
the dedication of the new art center. We discovered we share the same opinion
of modern art! I don't think the security guard appreciated our opinions!
Daddy gave a speech as one of the trustees. I could tell by the look on his
face that he was displeased to see me with Richard, but I don't care.
He's a lot more fun to be with than Harold Warner McKenzie III.
Kimble continues reading from the diary, smiling and
frowning alternately. As he turns a page, a second picture falls out. He stoops
to pick it up and his breath catches in his throat as he looks at it. He stares
at it a long time before finally reading the diary entry.
Richard came up to the cottage for the weekend for the annual regatta. Afterwards, we went to this small restaurant by the lake and had supper on the patio, with a view of the water. It was so romantic. And just as the sun was setting, Richard turned to me and whispered in my ear, "Will you marry me?" Even though we only met 3 months ago, I think we both knew after a week that we were meant for each other. Of course, I said 'Yes'. I think he was surprised. He's so wonderful, he actually asked if I would mind living on a doctor's salary. I told him "if that's what you want". He apologized that he hadn't gotten a ring yet, but I told him I could wait. It's probably for the best. I'll need to get Daddy used to the idea before I tell him. I insisted that Richard spend the night and …well, neither one of us got much sleep.
Kimble looks at the picture for a long time. Then, with a look of determination,
he sets the pictures aside and searches for the first entry Jim has marked:
(One week before Helen died)
I went to meet Daddy for lunch today and
the strangest thing happened. I was getting on the elevator when two men got
off. One was well dressed, the other one…just looking at him made my skin
crawl. They both walked past me. The creepy one bumped my left arm with his
right arm as he walked by. It felt funny, like it was a prosthetic arm. I
looked at him strangely and he stopped and stared at me. I swear I looked
in his eyes and there was no soul behind them. The other man said,
Richard skimmed the rest of diary, finally reaching the last entry:
(The morning Helen died)
…I’m meeting Richard for a run. I’ve decided to bring up having a baby. I so want to start a family. Perhaps if Richard and I became a family Daddy might accept Richard better. After all, if he can’t accept the package deal then he’ll just have to live without seeing his grandchild. I love Richard so much. I know he’ll be a wonderful father!
Richard stares at the last words, his vision
blurring with tears as he recalls their last minutes together. Then he resolutely
closes the diary with a determined look. "Damn him, I want him to pay
for what he did to my wife!"
Grabbing his coat, he walks out of the apartment.
A
PAY PHONE, 10 MINUTES LATER
Richard dials a number. When he hears the
phone answer, he starts talking immediately. "Kari, have you found out
anything more about Charnquist?"
"Richard! Thank God you called! I found
a witness!"
Kimble is silent for several seconds, unable
to believe what he is hearing. Finally he responds, "What? Who?!"
"A young girl. Her name is Melissa Herbert.
Remember you told me that Helen befriended a handicapped girl in the building.
She says she saw Charnquist on the fire escape on
the night of the murder. She said his arm was missing and he was carrying
his other arm."
"That must be true. It was never found.
Why didn't she go to the police?"
"Richard remember she would only have
been about 10 years old then. I don't think her mother wanted to get involved.
I don’t think she ever fully believed her. It doesn't matter though. You
can use this to get an appeal."
Kimble
is silent for a moment, overwhelmed by the thought. "I can't begin to
thank you," he says finally.
"You can thank me after they put Charnquist
away. We have him, Richard! This time we have him!"
A look of relief passes over Kimble’s face and he says, “Kari, I have about a hundred things I’d like to say to you right now.”
She says softly, “Me, too.” A noise outside her catches her attention and she looks up to Gerard walking into her office. “I’ve got to go. I hope we can talk again soon.”
Kimble says softly into the phone, “I hope so. I’ll talk to you later!” as Kari hangs up.
Gerard walks up to her but before he can say anything, Kari moves to deflect any curiosity he might have about the phone call. “Capt. Gerard, I guess you’ve heard the rumors.”
“So you really have found a witness?”
“Yes I have,” she answers smugly.
“Where is she? I’d like to talk to her.”
“Sorry, Captain, but not even the Pope could pull this out of me!”
“Agent Holmes, this is still my case!”
“Yeah, well I’m unofficially taking over your operation! Let’s see, I found a witness, I found tampered evidence with the autopsy, everyone at your daughter’s high school confirmed that Charnquist was a real person and Eddie Miles uncovered that he has a federal immunity code which bars him currently from arrest, Eve Hilliard confirmed that Smith 282 was a real person, the diary that was read in the mock trial showed that Charnquist had some business dealings with Ross and aside from the fact that you keep losing Kimble when you try to catch him…how did you even get this promotion and why are you still here?” Gerard is boiling. “Captain, you know what? I don’t really want to know because I really don’t care anymore. All I care about now is solving this case.”
“The case is solved, Agent Holmes, and your immunity from DC will only take you so far,” he snaps. “Watch your back, because if you screw up somewhere down the line, I’ll take you down.”
Kari raises her eyebrows and says, “Well until that happens, kindly get out of my face!” Gerard gets up and walks out, slamming the door behind him.