Vulnerable (Morgans of Nashville 4)

Rick noticed the cane to the man’s right. “She was killed. We think over the weekend.”

“My God.” The words rushed out breathlessly. “How?”

Jake ignored the question. “When was the last time you saw her?”

“Last Thursday.”

“Did you notice anything different about her?”

“She was distracted. She wasn’t concentrating on her work. Are you sure you haven’t made a mistake?”

“Very. Why was she distracted?”

“I can’t say. But I can tell you she was acting like a silly girl. Very unlike her. She’s very sensible. That’s what I always appreciated about Elisa. She was no-nonsense. She did her work. And on Thursday in walked a flighty girl. I knew she had met a boy. It’s always a boy.”

“Did she say anything about this boy?”

“Not to me, but I heard her in the hallway talking to someone on her phone.” He shook his head and his gaze drifted as if his thoughts had been tugged away.

“Professor, did you hear what she was saying to this person while she was on the phone?”

Professor Robbins blinked and met Jake’s gaze. “She was talking about playing a game. She said she wasn’t any good at games but that she would try.”

“What kind of game?”

“I don’t know. A lot of the kids in this department are big gamers.” He frowned. “But I don’t think it was that kind of game. Her voice got soft and low, but I think it had to do with sex.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Elisa is, was a smart woman. She works hard and most boys her age don’t appreciate that. One finally looks at her and it’s inevitable that she would be flattered. I told her to be careful before and she would always laugh and tell me not to worry. But I knew it was a matter of time. She is—was too trusting.”

Copies of her cell phone records should be on Jake’s desk later today. “That’s the last time you saw her?”

Old eyes narrowed. “They were going to meet, but I don’t know where.”

“Percy Warner Park?”

“I don’t know.”

“Did she mention a name?”

“If she did, I didn’t catch it.” Heavy gray brows slumped.

“There’s nothing else you can remember?”

“No. No. I’m sorry.”

Frustrations like this were part of the process. Most interviews gave him bits and pieces of the truth that he had to string together like beads on a necklace. He dug his card from his breast pocket and handed it to the old man. “Thank you.”

The old man studied the card. “You never told me how she died.”

“She was strangled.”

His face creased. “Who would do such a thing?”

“That’s what we’re trying to find out.”

“Her parents travel a great deal. They like to go off the grid in the wilderness. They’re often gone for weeks at a time.”

“We’ve spoken to them.”

He moved out from behind his desk and motioned for Jake to follow. The old man walked down the hallway, his posture bent but his gaze burning with purpose. He stopped at an office door at the end of the hallway and opened the door without knocking. A young man glanced up from a computer screen, his look of annoyance fading with he saw Dr. Robbins. “Yes, sir.”

Faded jeans hugged a lean waist and long legs. A Titans T-shirt stretched tightly across his chest. Dark hair skimmed wide shoulders. He was a good-looking guy, much like the man described by the clerk at Blue Note Java.

“This is Detective Jake Bishop. Detective, this is Ray Downs. He’s my teaching assistant. He and Elisa were good friends.” The old man glanced at the younger. “Elisa Spence was killed this past weekend.”

Ray shifted his stance and moved out from behind his desk. “I heard this morning. I was camping for a couple of days and was out of touch with the news until a few hours ago.”

“Why didn’t you tell me when you arrived this morning?” Dr. Robbins demanded.

“You had a Do-Not-Disturb on your door, sir. The last time I knocked when the sign was up you threatened to fire me.”

The old man rested a gnarled fist on his hip. “Not for news like this.”

The young man’s face flushed with frustration. “I knew you’d be out sooner than later. I was planning to tell you.”

Dr. Robbins waved a wrinkled, bent hand in the air as if shooing his words like a pesky fly. “Tell the detective all you know about Elisa.”

The younger man slid a hand into his pocket, his gaze flickering between Jake and the floor. “She was nice. A sweet girl. Always wanted others to be happy. I hear she was strangled. Is that true?”

“Yes.” Jake flipped to a new page in his notebook. After gathering Ray’s contact information, he asked, “Was she dating anyone?”

“No. Elisa was all about her work. She was putting the finishing touches on her senior thesis.”

Dr. Robbins shook his head. “I heard her talking to someone on the phone. Her voice sounded all girlie and soft. Who was that? You seem to know everything that goes on here.”

Ray shifted his stance. “She wasn’t dating anyone, but she did meet a guy a week or two ago that she said was hot. I thought she was making it up. I couldn’t see her with a hot guy.” He glanced at the professor to gauge his reaction. “She was hoping to hook up with him.”

The professor shook his head, regret chasing his words as he whispered, “Such a foolish girl.”

“What do you know about the guy?” Jake asked.

“From what she said, he just arrived in town. Said he wanted to make music.” Ray shook his head. “Everyone wants to make music in this town, and I laughed when she told me. I half expected her to laugh with me but she didn’t. She said he was really talented. She heard him sing and play the guitar.”

“Where was this?” Jake asked.

“She met him at the café, but went to hear him sing on Broadway. You know how singers just find a spot and start singing for tips. That’s what this guy was doing. Playing for tips when she met him. She thought he was amazing.”

“Do you know anything else about this guy?” Jake pressed.

“I snapped a photo of the two of them when I was at the coffee shop.” He reached in his back pocket and fished out his phone. Scrolling through several pictures, he handed the phone to Jake. “She asked me to because she was kinda proud of his attention.”

The image featured a smiling young girl standing next to a tall guy with long dark hair. A black beard covered the lower half of his face and dark sunglasses shielded his eyes. He wore a plain dark T-shirt and his left ear was pierced at least twice.

“Can you send me this photo?”

“Yeah, sure.” Ray took the phone and as Jake rattled off his phone number, the younger man typed the numbers into his phone. A whooshing sound rushed between them as Ray tucked the phone in his back pocket.

“This guy got a name?” Jake asked as he checked his phone for the image.

“Scott. But I didn’t catch a last name. I can tell you I didn’t like the guy. He was nice to Elisa, but she was also paying his tab at the coffee shop. She had a big heart, and he picked right up on it. Did he kill her?”

“We don’t know. I’m chasing as many leads as I can.”

“What about DNA and stuff? Don’t you have DNA? I thought that kind of thing caught bad guys.”

“Not quite the magic bullet everyone thinks it is.”

“I thought when you had a match that was it.”

“Some tests are dead-on matches but enough results land in the gray zone between yes and no. We’ve processed the scene, but it will take time to get the DNA back.”

“What about fingerprints?” Professor Robbins asked.

“We’re analyzing everything as we get it.”

“Shit,” Ray said. “I thought you guys had all this equipment to catch the bad guys. What the hell?”

Jake smiled, unwilling to explain that interv

iews cracked cases faster than forensic testing. “We’re working on it. Do you know if this guy was staying around here?”

“I don’t know. I was hoping to catch up with Elisa today and ask her. I looked for her this morning and then heard the news.”

Professor Robbins raised a hand. “She had a small cubby space if you’d like to look at it.”

“I would.”