Page 33 of 912321

I’ve seen her. Isn’t she the woman on the rooftop ?

“I’m listening, miss…?”

Her friend sitting next to her nudges her lightly. When she exhales softly, she replies, “Vitelli.”

“Okay, Miss Vitelli, why are you disagreeing with this portrait?”

“I think… I think there's a common method in how the victims were approached. All women, pretty, young too. It’s not about the timing. He selects them maybe by attraction and he’s handsome enough to make them keep their guards down.”

I tilt my head, pretending to consider her answer, “Hmm, not sure I fully agree,” I say flatly.

Be sure, continue.

I let a beat pass, watching her posture change from shy to confident. Most of the other students' fidget, some scribble faster, trying to keep up with everything said.

“But it doesn’t fit the behavior patterns. I don’t think he was old and isolated. I think he was probably younger, fully sociable. A man who could talk to anyone, especially women, but deranged underneath all that confidence.”

“Manipulative?” I ask.

She nods, her cold blue eyes scanning the pictures. “Narcissistic.”

Good.

I let her words sink in; she feels certain about her opinion now. “Interesting.”

I look around before switching to the autopsy reports of the last victim. “This is the kind of thinking you’ll need in this course. Patterns, behaviors, underlying motives. I want you all to see what most people miss. Even professionals.”

I take a look at the marks on the victims’ bodies before continuing, “These wounds are precise. Long chains around the neck. The killer loves to leave a message. Quotes, phrases, a sign of narcissism and control, but also obsession.”

Fingers drum quickly as eyes flick nervously between the screen and their laptops. Miss Vitelli sits still, she doesn't speak again but she’s focused on the pictures.

I continue explaining the meaning of each mark, the subtlety of the killer’s methods, and the way he misled the team who was working on that case years ago.

They all listen and take note but not Miss Vitelli.

After a few other questions, the class ends. Students begin gathering their things, whispering to each other as they file out. I watch them go and nod at them as they tell me goodbye. Then I say, “Miss Vitelli, can you stay a bit longer?”

Her eyes lift, confused for a fraction of a second then she nods, “Yes, sure.”

She murmurs something to her friends as she descends the stairs slowly.

“Professor Caldwell, how can I help you?” She asks now that she’s in front of me.

“Have you ever studied profiling before?” I ask.

“No,” she replies quietly. “But I know how to notice narcissistic behavior.”

“Can I show you something?” I gesture toward the projector.

“Of course,” she replies immediately.

I pull up the remainder of the historical profiler’s file, the full notes and behavioral analysis.

“I want your honest opinion on this.” I speak. “Don’t hold back.”

She studies it, then shakes her head. “I don’t think he was like that at all. This… this profile is weird, they missed everything. He wouldn’t have been old and isolated knowing the victims were not random women leaving work or something like that. Their hair was done, they had makeup on, pretty dresses,” she gestures at the victims' pictures, “he selected them in a way that… It almost looks like he asked them out for a date maybe? I think he was charming, well-spoken and probably cultured. You can see the manipulation in how he ended their lives. The look on their faces… They were confused. He knew how to gain trust. Internally, yes, deranged, narcissistic and all, but socially, he would have been convincing.”

She pauses mid-sentence, unsure, glancing back at me because I've been quiet.