Will looked at Rex, one eyebrow cocked. “Her kid? What kid? Dunbar never mentioned a kid.”
Carlton put the water glass back on the table. “You’re confusing me. I just wanted to get my things.”
Will slid the glass to the far end of the table with his pencil.
Rex pulled some papers from his inside jacket pocket. “What do you know about these clippings?” He shoved a copy of Marcus’ article on sex predators in front of Carlton.
“He’s lying. He tried to pin that on me. I told you he’s out to get me. It wasn’t me who did that. I liked her, that little girl. She was so pretty. And most of the time, she was nice to me. We would talk—in the office—when her mother wasn’t there. But then she started screaming.” His cheek started to twitch again and he clapped one grimy hand against his face.
Rex leaned forward. “Why would she do that? Girls don’t usually scream unless there’s a reason.What did you do to her?”
“Nothing. I didn’t do anything. I just wanted her to sit next to me, to feel—”
“What did you want to feel, Professor? Her body? Her ass? She’s a little girl.” Rex stood up suddenly, knocking over his chair.
Carlton jerked at the sound and turned toward Will, still seated next to him.
“You don’t understand. She was getting to like me. I just wanted her to sit on my lap, so I could—so I—”
“So you could feel her up—so you could use her like a woman?” Will shouted back at him. “You’re disgusting!”He showed Carlton copies of the articles from the Madison paper that Marcus had given them. “What about these articles?”
After looking them over, Carlton’s face paled. “You’re trying to pin that on me, too. It isn’t fair. Did Marcus tell you about those? That’s why I tried to stop him. He hates me, just because I had to share my office with Amanda, and her little girl came in to see me. She liked me. You know, when her mother wasn’t there. He deserved to die. I didn’t do it! I didn’t want to do it! She wouldn’t stop screaming. I had to make her be quiet, but she wouldn’t stop.”He paused to catch his breath and then he put his head in his hands, refusing to look at either of them.
Will walked out of the room and approached the man who had been observing through the one-way glass. “What do you think?”
The district attorney nodded his head. “I’ve heard enough. What statement do you have from Dunbar? Isn’t he the one in the hospital? The one who almost died?”
“He said he’d file a complaint, but that’s only assault with intent to harm.”
“What about the woman professor? Have you talked with her? What has she said about her daughter?”
“We have an appointment to see her this afternoon.”
“Find out what she can tell you. Ask her about the kid and also what this guy did to her. He’s a head case, if you ask me. The PD may try to get him off on that basis, but if he did what I think he was talking about, I’d like to put him away.”The DA looked through the one-way glass again.Carlton was rocking back and forth and weeping into his hands.
When Rex came out of the interrogation room, the DA asked, “What did the Madison detectives tell you?”
“They’re pretty sure he strangled the victim mentioned in the article, now that they have the evidence Dunbar found. He talked to one of their detectives and sent it on to them. Dunbar was on us months ago about Winslow, but we didn’t have any real evidence, except what he kept telling us. When we went by Winslow’s apartment, he wasn’t there and we didn’t have a search warrant. By the time Dunbar showed us these clippings, Winslow had disappeared and the woman professor refused to press charges because she didn’t want her daughter to have to testify. She’s only ten.” He pointed to the water glass sitting on the table in the interrogation room. “We’ll get the prints off that and check with the Madison detective to be sure we’re talking about the same person.”
“Maybe the girl won’t have to testify if you can get a confession along with this other evidence. Talk to the mother.Let me know what she says. I’ll follow up with the DA in Madison. If the prints match, he may want to extradite him,” the district attorney said.
Rex and Will headed for the campus. When they entered the English department, Beatrice directed them to the chairman’s office.
Gregory Hillier shook hands with them. “Gentlemen, I understand you’re here to see one of my faculty members.”
They nodded.
“She’s had a difficult time of it. I’d appreciate your keeping your interview as short as possible.You know about her previous problems with Mr. Winslow?”