“And?”
“And she threatened to go above your head.” A hint of irritation entered Kiley’s voice. “That must’ve made you mad.”
“Darn right it did!” Flagel planted his hands on the knees of his black dress slacks. “She had no reason to question my grading. No reason at all.”
“Was she right?” Evan asked.
Flagel jerked back and eyed Evan. “I beg your pardon?”
“Was she right about you downgrading the paper because you didn’t like her opinion on the topic?” Evan clarified.
Flagel rolled his eyes. “No, of course not. Her paper was filled with flaws. It was pedantic and amateurishly written.”
“That’s odd, isn’t it?” Kiley asked. “When all her other professors praised her skills in crafting fine research papers.”
He shrugged, but a trace of worry entered his eyes.
“Did Firuzeh report you to your superiors?” Kiley asked.
He shook his head. “She’s a most difficult student, so I suspect she plans to.”
“Plans to?” Kiley eyed him.
“There’s still plenty of time in the semester for her to lodge a complaint.”
Kiley looked at Evan, and he nodded his understanding. Either this guy still thought Firuzeh was alive or he was a very good actor.
“Firuzeh won’t be reporting you,” Kiley said.
Flagel blew out a breath and sagged in the chair. “Thank goodness.”
“Because she was murdered on Saturday night,” Kiley added.
“Murdered?” Flagel’s eyes widened. “Oh my. How horrible.”
Kiley kept watching him.
He squirmed in his chair. “Wait. You’re here because you thinkIkilled her? That’s absurd. It wasjusta grade.”
“She had firm standing to dispute it,” Kiley said, “and your obvious prejudice could have cost you your job.”
“I’m an open-minded man and would have come through any inquiry with flying colors.” His wavering tone didn’t bear out his statement.
“Where were you on Saturday night around eleven?” Evan asked.
“Here. With my wife.” He cupped his hands around his mouth. “Willa! Come here!”
He tapped his foot until a petite woman with a dark cap of short hair and wrinkles upon wrinkles entered the room. He reached out for her hand and nearly dragged her to his side. “Tell them where I was on Saturday night at eleven.”
“Here. Reading. With me. Like we always do on Saturday nights.” She glanced between Kiley and Evan. “Why?”
Flagel lifted his head higher, that haughty expression returning. “They’re with the FBI and ICE, and they think I might have killed one of my students.”
Her mouth fell open, and she shook her head. “You’re way off here. Yancy can’t even kill a spider, much less a person.”
Kiley stared at the professor. “Since you claim not to be involved in Firuzeh’s death, I’m sure you won’t mind giving our team access to your email, phone, and financial information.”
Flagel let go of his wife’s hand and crossed his arms tightly over a sagging chest. “I don’t understand why.”
