Will nodded and looked around at the books in the chairman’s office.
“We have to talk with her about that, Professor,” Rex said. “It’s the only way we can put this man away—if we have evidence of what’s been alleged.”
“Alleged, you say?” Hillier frowned. “I can tell you that Amanda’s little girl was badly treated by that man. Her mother did not go into details with me. She is very protective of the child—as any good mother would be. And I don’t want her further traumatized by endless questions.”
“Professor, do you know what happened—when Professor Dunbar was assaulted?” Will asked.
Greg’s mouth thinned before he spoke. “No one was here in the office when Carlton came in—except Amanda. She likes to work here when the office is quiet. You might want to speak to Ian Berriman about what he saw and heard. He was the one who stayed with Marcus after he was injured.”
“Berriman?” Will asked.
“Historian. A good man. Used to be a firefighter in California before he turned academic. His office is down the hall on this floor—nearly to the end.”
“We’ll talk to him.”
Rex turned when Beatrice knocked on the door. “Amanda’s in her office, Greg. Do you want her to come in here?”
“We’d like to speak with her privately,” Rex stated.
“Use our small conference room. To the left,” Greg said.
Beatrice showed the two men into the conference room and quietly shut the door.
When Amanda entered, both men stood.
“Please sit,” she said. “I know you want to talk with me, but I had to make sure … It was important to me that my classes weren’t interrupted, and that Cecelia wasn’t here.”
“Where is your daughter? Is she at home?” Rex asked.
Amanda shook her head. “No. Her best friend’s mother agreed to pick up the girls after soccer practice this afternoon. She will walk them over here—from the other side of the campus—in about thirty minutes.” She sat down at the end of the table. “What do you want to ask me?”
“Why don’t you tell us what happened on Saturday,” Detective Mahoney began.
Amanda nodded. When she began to describe Marcus’s injury, her eyes filled, and she stopped. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do that.” Her hands shook as she wiped her eyes. “But it’s still very fresh and raw. Not something I’d wish on anyone.”
Detective Park stopped taking notes. “What is your relationship to Professor Dunbar?”
“I—we—we …” She sat up straighter in the chair and met the detective’s eyes. “We are colleagues, and friends.” She ran her fingers along the scab of the cut on her neck, remembering what he had done.
“Winslow alluded to a romantic relationship—between you and Dunbar.”
Amanda was silent as her face flushed. “What has that got to do with the fact that Carlton stabbed and nearly killed Marcus?”
Will Park made a note and then asked, “Winslow seems to think Dunbar wrote a newspaper article to accuse him of something he didn’t do.”
Amanda shook her head.“No. His intent in writing that article was to alert parents to the dangers of sex predators and child abusers. He didn’t mention anyone by name.” She looked at the detective. “And I insisted he take out all references to the local therapist who saw Cecelia. His article included information from a psychiatrist in Seattle—to keep the focus on general issues, not a specific situation.”
“What therapist?” Rex asked.
“Why do you have to talk with her? I don’t want Cecelia mixed up in this—and I will not allow her to be questioned again. It was hard enough before, after she was hit by the car.” She motioned to Will. “Detective Park saw that, when he and the woman police officer tried to talk to her. And she was very upset, seeing Carlton again.”
“We may not need to talk to her. Her therapist’s evaluation may be all we need as evidence against this man, although the DA will be the final judge of that.” Detective Mahoney handed her another tissue. “We don’t want to make things harder for you. You’ve been through a lot.” He handed her his card. “Why don’t you have the therapist call me?”
Amanda nodded.
Detective Park rose. “What do you think made this man pull a knife on you?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t even know he was in the building until he came into my office. Ian and I thought we were the only ones here.”
“Ian?” Rex Mahoney asked.