He sniggered, “No, of course not, but I’m going to give it to you as protection against the Warwicks,” and placed it down on the desk. “It’s yours, if you want it, but I suggest that you don’t tell anyone where you got it from.”
“Sure,” I said, taking it and slipping it quickly into my bag.
“I understand your predicament, Adina, that you probably can’t go to the campus police when the Warwicks are harassing you, would that be correct?” he asked, placing the safe back in the cupboard and then locking it.
“Yes,” I answered meekly. “They are concerned…” I paused to consider whether it was wise to finish my sentence, but I owed Ezrah Warwick and Lev Ashthorn nothing. “They are concerned about the police investigation here, among other things, and of course, because they are a renowned crime family, like my family, I guess. Except there are more of them, and you know, my dad isn’t alive anymore.”
His eyebrows cocked as he furrowed his brow, fascinated. “In what way are they concerned about the police investigation?”
“In like, they, well, specifically, Ezrah might have something to do with the man’s death,” I said vaguely. “Obviously, I have no proof, but they are eager for me to remain tight-lipped about it.”
He narrowed his eyes at me, and immediately, I knew I stuffed up. “Tight-lipped about what exactly, Adina? Did you see something on the train?” he compelled me.
“No, but I was there,” I argued, stepping closer to the door, letting him know that I needed to leave.
He made a face, “Many students shared the same carriage as the victim, but the Warwicks aren’t trying to gag all of them. So why are they keeping you quiet?”
I shook my head, playing dumb was the only way to get out of this predicament, “I don’t know.”
“Adina, if there’s something you know about what happened to Theo-
“Theo?” I interrupted. “Theo Abbott? The same student who painted that pink mural over by the Business School. It was him, wasn’t it?”
“If you know something,” his voice was stern, “tell the detective, or if you’re uncomfortable doing that, tell me, and I’ll pass the information on anonymously,” he asserted. When he was met with hesitation, he added, “It’s important to find out who did that to Theo.”
I swallowed over a lump in my throat, “So someone did kill him. That’s very sad, but I have to go because I’m meeting a friend in the library.”
“Think about it, Adina. Theo’s parents deserve a resolution,” he said as I left his office, breathing through the rapidly beating heart. “As I said, come to me first if you know something.”
“Okay,” I breathed, and as I stepped out into his classroom, he called after me, “You can trust me, Adina.” He almost had me until he said that,You can trust me, Adina.
Maybe it’s because I was my father’s daughter, but alarm bells went off in my head. There’s something off-putting about people who say they are trustworthy, because it should be obvious in their actions where they don’t need to say it aloud. With Dean, the Finance lecturer, I was just unsure.
“I’ll think about it, and thanks for the pepper spray,” I said calmly and watched my back as I walked through his classroom, then out into the hallway.
