Field of Graves (31 page)

Baldwin finally spoke up. “Susan, we’ll handle your absence from class. I want to know more about Jill. What was she like?”

Susan shrugged. “Well, she was totally gorgeous, but it was like she didn’t really know it. Never got dolled up for class and stuff. She was really natural. Not a granola, but pretty laid-back about her looks. I guess that’s what I noticed in the first place. It’s not like I’m some kind of beauty queen. Then when she gained some weight this year, I guess I felt even more at ease with her, you know? Some of us just aren’t meant to be perfect.”

Susan wasn’t exaggerating. She was plain, with unfashionably large, pink-rimmed glasses and a slight overbite, making her look like an overeager chipmunk. When she smiled, her cheeks puffed out as if she were holding a large store of nuts in her mouth. Baldwin smiled gently, catching Taylor’s eye. The weight gain. That must have been the pregnancy.

“So she was nice to you?”

“Yeah, most of the time. I’d hang around some, asking her to get coffee and stuff. Most of the time she’d come, but sometimes she just blew me off with this look in her eye, like she found me disgusting. But then she’d smile and be really nice, bring me a muffin from Starbucks or something. Anyway, whatever. I liked her.”

Both Baldwin and Taylor were starting to get the idea that Susan may have felt more than “like” for Jill Gates, but neither of them pushed the issue.

Baldwin continued trying to draw a mental picture of Jill. “So what did you guys talk about when you hung out? Class? Professors? Anything you can think of would be helpful.”

Susan teared up. “I don’t know anything else. Do you think Jill is dead? All of us were in class together with Dr. Lucas. And Shelby and Jordan are dead. Am I next?”

65

Taylor’s heart was galloping in her chest. They needed to wrap this up and go investigate who the hell Gabriel Lucas was.

“Susan,” she said soothingly, setting a hand on the girl’s pudgy arm. “I’m sure you’re fine. But we need to get an idea of what Jill was like, to see if there’s anything we need to look into. Did she ever go off like this before, without telling anyone where she was headed?”

“Well, sure, every weekend. She said she had a boyfriend down at Sewanee, and they met there every Friday afternoon, and she stayed until late Sunday night.”

“Did anyone else know about this?”

“No, she swore me to secrecy. She really didn’t talk to anyone else about her personal life, you know?” Susan’s chest had puffed with a small sense of pride, and Taylor felt for the girl. The secret keeper always was made to feel like the most important person in a woman’s world, especially if the person was a shade too nerdy and harboring some more-than-friendly feelings toward her friend. Women could be used that way, and it was starting to look like Jill Gates had been taking advantage of Susan’s affections from the beginning. Taylor realized Susan was still talking.

“...Jill was kind of intense, you know? Like when you’re talking to her, she like leans into you, like she really cares about what you’re saying. There was this time...” Susan reddened, and both of them could understand completely her embarrassment.

“It’s okay, Susan. I think I’m starting to understand how you felt about Jill.” Taylor handed the girl a tissue. She accepted it gratefully and hid behind it for a moment.

“Yeah, well, she wasn’t into me like that, but I didn’t mind. I think she knew, but she was good enough never to mention it, you know. Like she didn’t hold it against me or anything.” Susan’s voice had gotten bitter, but she smiled and went back to her story.

“I don’t really know how to explain it. She was so intense, so interested, that sometimes it was a little creepy, you know? Like she wanted to turn my mind inside out. She just looks right into you. And I told her things I’d never admit to anyone. Dreams, feelings. Not about how I felt for her, but about dealing with life feeling different. And she understood so much. I know she’d never felt like she didn’t fit in, but she made me feel like she understood it completely. So I poured out my deepest darkest secrets, my biggest fears, like about my parents finding out I’m not their perfect little girl. And she understood, you know, she really understood. I know she really cared about me in her own way.”

Baldwin was starting to get the picture. “Susan, think carefully. Was she like that with anyone else?”

“Well, she was like that with a lot of people. I guess I’d like to think that she was special friends with me alone, but she was, you know, kinda
intense
with a lot of people.”

“Was she
intense
with Shelby Kincaid or Jordan Blake?”

“No, not Shelby. That girl was a little mouse. But she did hang out with Jordan, partied with her some. They went their own way after a while. Jordan got picked up by Tri-Delt, and Jill just wasn’t into the sorority scene. Me neither.”

Taylor gave the girl’s hand a quick squeeze. “Susan, you’ve been a huge help. Thank you so much for your time and for being so honest with us.” They stood to leave. Susan looked back.

“Will you let me know if you find Jill? I just want to make sure she’s okay, you know?”

Baldwin gave her a long look. “We’ll do our best.”

She smiled sadly and hoisted her backpack on her shoulder, half waved good-bye, and wandered off toward the food court.

Taylor and Baldwin sat back down.

Taylor spoke first. “What do you think?”

Baldwin was running his hands through his hair. “I don’t know. There’s definitely a link with all the girls through this Gabriel Lucas character. Mary Margaret audited the same classics class Susan was talking about. But Lucas isn’t on our list, right?”

Taylor was already dialing Fitz’s cell. He picked up quickly.

“Hey, it’s me. I need you to check a name for me. Gabriel Lucas.” She was quiet for a moment, listening. “Okay. Find him. We’ll check it out.”

She hung up and pulled out a cigarette. Baldwin gave her a look that she waved off. She lit it and stared off into space, coughing a little.

Baldwin was getting impatient. “Well?”

“Gabriel Lucas wasn’t on their list because he’s taking a sabbatical this semester. He’s taken some time off to write a book of his experiences with the Greco-Roman culture.”

“You’re kidding.”

Taylor took another drag, then squashed the butt under her shoe. She raised an eyebrow at him.

“An expertise in Greco-Roman culture fits our profile about a person intimately familiar with the ancient customs,” he said.

“It sure does. The way Susan talked about him, and the connection he had with Jill...we need to find this guy and have a nice long talk with him. Fitz is tracking him down. Also, Sam called in to tell us there was aconite in the teacups found at the church. Definitely the same killer, Baldwin.”

Baldwin’s mind was spinning. Shelby, date-raped. Jordan, pregnant with another man’s child. Jill, at least seven months gone and having a secret affair. So where did Mary Margaret, the priest, and Tammy/Mona Lisa fit into all of this? He didn’t know the answer, only knew they had to find Jill.

66

Their interviews with Professor Lear and Professor James yielded nothing. Professor Lear was physically incapable of committing the crimes. A paraplegic since birth, his wheelchair would have made it difficult to manage the stairs at the Parthenon, at the very least. Though he did remember all of the students, he couldn’t say he knew anything about them outside of his classes.

Their interview with Professor James hadn’t gone any better. Though young and physically fit, he was openly gay. Much to Taylor’s amusement, he had flirted his way through the entire interview, going so far as to ask Baldwin for his phone number, which Baldwin genially declined.

They asked both men about Gabriel Lucas. Lear had nothing but kind words for the man. James, on the other hand, made his dislike clear, but couldn’t give any solid reasons for it. Taylor couldn’t help but wonder if he’d been turned down and was harboring a grudge.

Taylor and Baldwin sat on the grass under a huge oak tree and talked it through. Either man could have hired a killer, but that scenario didn’t make sense. Baldwin was sure their suspect was on a personal quest; the murders were too intricately woven, too symbolic to have been committed on contract. Between Professor Lear’s infirmities and Professor James’s sexual orientation, neither man fit what Baldwin was looking for in their suspects.

Taylor’s cell rang. It was Fitz, eager to share their latest discovery.

“Taylor, we just ran back through Mary Margaret’s records. Two of the classes she audited were taught by...ready for it? One Professor Gabriel Lucas.”

Her heart was pounding. “Excellent. This has to be our guy. But where the hell is he?”

“I’m looking. Got one more little morsel for you. Our priest, Father Xavier? The rector at St. Catherine’s called. Didn’t know if it would help the investigation at all, but since it was related to Vanderbilt, he thought we should know that Father X conducted the community breakfast there last month.”

“There’s our last link. We’re on it. Thanks, Fitz!”

She gave Baldwin a huge smile, her teeth flashing in the sunlight. “Check this out...”

* * *

Taylor and Baldwin barged into the office of Vanderbilt’s dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. His secretary hedged when they walked in the door, telling them that the dean was out of the office on business, but she didn’t know exactly where he was. She was trying to talk them into an appointment much later in the afternoon when the dean walked through the door. He had two men with him, both dressed elegantly and wearing grimaces on their faces. Taylor could tell they were simply being polite while he jovially tried to amuse them. He stopped short when he saw Taylor and Baldwin.

Taylor stuck out her hand. “Dean Royce? Lieutenant Taylor Jackson and Dr. John Baldwin. We need to speak to you about—”

He cut her off. “Oh yes, my dear, I know all about it. If you would give me a minute here.” He addressed his secretary. “Janet, please see Ms. Jackson and Mr. Baldwin into my office and get them something to drink. I won’t be a moment.”

He turned and put his arms around the shoulders of his reluctant companions. “Gentlemen, I can’t tell you how much we appreciate all you’ve done for Vanderbilt. I’ll be in touch as soon as I can. If there’s...”

Taylor lost the conversation as she entered the dean’s office.

He came through the door a moment later, mopping his brow with a handkerchief. Taylor had taken an instant dislike to the man. He was all smiles and handshakes. He politely offered to pour the tea, prattling about the overwhelming support the college was receiving from their donors, segueing into his distress over the fate of his students. But Taylor read the look in his eyes as he got himself settled behind his desk. He was not happy to see them. Homicide detectives and FBI agents combing his campus for murder suspects was not good publicity for the school.

Taylor started fidgeting in her chair, trying to find a good place to interrupt. Baldwin wasn’t as polite.

“Dean Royce, please. We need to speak with you about one of your professors. What can you tell us about Gabriel Lucas?”

“Gabriel? Great man. Entirely devoted to the school. Came to us several years ago from New Mexico, I believe. He’d finished his doctorate in ancient and modern Hellenistic and Greco-Roman cultures. Had a stunning dissertation on Plato, argued that Plato’s philosophy was the first true divine revelation. Made an excellent case for Hellenistic philosophy as the basis for the Bible. Absolutely amazing work. I read all the dissertations of our professors personally, you know,” he puffed. “Something of a hobby for me, that’s why I remember it so well. We grabbed him up as soon as we talked with him. Took him after the first interview. Brilliant man, Gabriel, simply brilliant. Why, he was—”

Baldwin cut him off again. “We understand he’s taking a sabbatical this semester?”

The dean sat back in his chair for a moment. “Certainly you don’t think he had anything to do with these murders? That’s preposterous. Gabriel is a gentle soul. And I know how much he loves his students.”

Taylor raised an eyebrow at him. “Any students that he loved in particular?”

Royce started sputtering. “Ms. Jackson...”

“You can call me Lieutenant, Dean Royce.”

He flushed and took a deep breath. “Lieutenant. Vanderbilt University holds its students and faculty to the highest standards of conduct. Dating a student here isn’t simply frowned upon, it is grounds for dismissal. So to answer your little insinuation, no. Gabriel was not involved with any of his students. It simply wouldn’t be allowed.”

Baldwin smiled. “You’ve never seen anyone break the rules, Dean? I mean, really, in this day and age? A bright young professor, whom we’ve heard was quite handsome, wouldn’t have any social contact with any of his female students?”

“No, Mr. Baldwin, he wouldn’t. Especially not in the past months.”

“Oh? Why’s that?”

“Because Gabriel is ill. Very ill. He’s taken the semester to...recuperate.”

67

Taylor stood and went to his window. “Dean Royce, we talked with two of your professors, Edward Lear and Barry James, from the classics department. They weren’t aware Professor Lucas had any physical problems. They were under the impression that he was taking a sabbatical to work on a book.”

“No, they wouldn’t know the whole story. Gabriel and I decided to keep it from as many people as we could. It was such a shattering blow to him, and he wanted time to sort things out. Such a shame. Incredibly bright man. Though he was starting to act a little erratic. He’d had a revelation, he said. Kept talking about the revelation that was changing his life. Wouldn’t tell me what it was, though. I told him to write it down. You know how it is, publish or perish,” he chortled. “That’s why we decided it was best for him to simply take a sabbatical. Didn’t want the students to see him that way, see him acting different, if you know what I mean.”

Baldwin was getting a little fed up by the dean’s dance. “Dean, what exactly is the nature of Professor Lucas’s illness?”