And, as you say, they couldn�t have been Christine�s students here at Baldwin. Far too old.�
�Any other way she might have been connected to them?�
�I�m not sure what you mean.�
�Well,� Brown said, �is it possible they were relatives of one of her students? Or friends? Or in any other way linked to Professor Langston?�
�How would I know that?�
�Can we check your records?� Kling asked. �Get the names of her students for the past several years? See if we come up with a match for either of them? Hendricks? Sobolov?�
�She taught here for the past twelve years,� Knowles said. �She was a tenured professor. Surely you don�t expect to go through all the��
�Grudges sometimes go back a long time,� Brown said.
�Grudges?�
�A student she failed? A student she embarrassed? The kid might�ve told a parent or a friend, might�ve initiated a grudge that
�I see,� Knowles said.
He was thinking.
They both saw him thinking.
�Yes?� Kling said.
�I can recall only one such incident,� Knowles said. �But the student�s name isn�t anything like those you mentioned.�
�That only eliminates a relative,� Brown said.
�What was the incident?�
�Christine threatened to fail this girl. The girl went over her head, came to me. I protected Christine in every way possible, but� you know� we don�t fail students here. We simply don�t.�
�Would you remember who the girl was?� Kling asked.
* * * *
Brown was still annoyed with himself for not having asked Knowles where he�d bought his fancy bow tie.
�You can get them anywhere,� Kling said.
�Yeah? Where? I never saw a tie like that one before.�
�Besides, you�d look lousy in a tie like that,� Kling said.
�I think I�d look real cool in a tie like that.�
�Too big for a big man like you.�
They were walking across campus toward a building where a girl named Marcia Finch was attending a third-period class in Survey of Early American Literature. Marcia was the girl Professor Langston had threatened to flunk last semester.
�Are you suggesting I�m overweight?� Brown asked.
�No. Just large.�
�Like Ollie Weeks?�
�No, he�s obese.�
�Besides, it�s only large men who can entertain wearing big ties like that one.�
�Entertain, huh?�
�I think Caroline might like me in a tie like that one.�
�So go to the Internet, click on bow ties. You�ll find all sorts of silly ties like that one.�
�Nice big tie like that one,� Brown said, nodding, visualizing himself in one.
�What room did Knowles say?� Kling asked.
* * * *
They were waiting in the corridor outside room 307 when Marcia Finch came striding out, books clutched to her chest. Professor Knowles had told them they couldn�t miss her�
�She�s an assertive little girl, blonde, quite confident of her own good looks. She exudes� shall we say� a certain aura of self-assurance?�
� and they spotted her at once now. Twenty-one, twenty-two years old, a senior here at Baldwin, wearing a short blue pleated skirt, a blue sweatshirt lettered with the words BALDWIN U in white, and flat leather sandals to match the blue of the skirt and shirt. She laughed at something a girl companion said, waggled the fingers of her left hand in farewell, and turned to see a big blond guy and a big black guy standing in her path.
�Excuse me?� she said, making it sound like, �Get the fuck out of my way, okay?� and was starting to step around them, when Brown said, �Miss Finch?�
�Yes?�
He flashed the tin.
�Detective Brown,� he said. �My partner, Detective Kling. Few questions we�d like to ask you.�
�My father�s a lawyer,� she said at once.
�You won�t need a lawyer, miss,� Brown said. �Let�s find a place we can sit and chat, shall we?�
�What about?�
�Little fracas you had with Professor Langston last semester.�
�I think I�ll call my
�Any other way she might have been connected to them?�
�I�m not sure what you mean.�
�Well,� Brown said, �is it possible they were relatives of one of her students? Or friends? Or in any other way linked to Professor Langston?�
�How would I know that?�
�Can we check your records?� Kling asked. �Get the names of her students for the past several years? See if we come up with a match for either of them? Hendricks? Sobolov?�
�She taught here for the past twelve years,� Knowles said. �She was a tenured professor. Surely you don�t expect to go through all the��
�Grudges sometimes go back a long time,� Brown said.
�Grudges?�
�A student she failed? A student she embarrassed? The kid might�ve told a parent or a friend, might�ve initiated a grudge that
�I see,� Knowles said.
He was thinking.
They both saw him thinking.
�Yes?� Kling said.
�I can recall only one such incident,� Knowles said. �But the student�s name isn�t anything like those you mentioned.�
�That only eliminates a relative,� Brown said.
�What was the incident?�
�Christine threatened to fail this girl. The girl went over her head, came to me. I protected Christine in every way possible, but� you know� we don�t fail students here. We simply don�t.�
�Would you remember who the girl was?� Kling asked.
* * * *
Brown was still annoyed with himself for not having asked Knowles where he�d bought his fancy bow tie.
�You can get them anywhere,� Kling said.
�Yeah? Where? I never saw a tie like that one before.�
�Besides, you�d look lousy in a tie like that,� Kling said.
�I think I�d look real cool in a tie like that.�
�Too big for a big man like you.�
They were walking across campus toward a building where a girl named Marcia Finch was attending a third-period class in Survey of Early American Literature. Marcia was the girl Professor Langston had threatened to flunk last semester.
�Are you suggesting I�m overweight?� Brown asked.
�No. Just large.�
�Like Ollie Weeks?�
�No, he�s obese.�
�Besides, it�s only large men who can entertain wearing big ties like that one.�
�Entertain, huh?�
�I think Caroline might like me in a tie like that one.�
�So go to the Internet, click on bow ties. You�ll find all sorts of silly ties like that one.�
�Nice big tie like that one,� Brown said, nodding, visualizing himself in one.
�What room did Knowles say?� Kling asked.
* * * *
They were waiting in the corridor outside room 307 when Marcia Finch came striding out, books clutched to her chest. Professor Knowles had told them they couldn�t miss her�
�She�s an assertive little girl, blonde, quite confident of her own good looks. She exudes� shall we say� a certain aura of self-assurance?�
� and they spotted her at once now. Twenty-one, twenty-two years old, a senior here at Baldwin, wearing a short blue pleated skirt, a blue sweatshirt lettered with the words BALDWIN U in white, and flat leather sandals to match the blue of the skirt and shirt. She laughed at something a girl companion said, waggled the fingers of her left hand in farewell, and turned to see a big blond guy and a big black guy standing in her path.
�Excuse me?� she said, making it sound like, �Get the fuck out of my way, okay?� and was starting to step around them, when Brown said, �Miss Finch?�
�Yes?�
He flashed the tin.
�Detective Brown,� he said. �My partner, Detective Kling. Few questions we�d like to ask you.�
�My father�s a lawyer,� she said at once.
�You won�t need a lawyer, miss,� Brown said. �Let�s find a place we can sit and chat, shall we?�
�What about?�
�Little fracas you had with Professor Langston last semester.�
�I think I�ll call my
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