“So, for the next nine weeks we’ll be discussing criminology in three-hour segments. We’ll hit the major topics and rather than say I’ll lecture, we’ll say I’ll lead the discussion on the science of forensics and evidence. During the last hour and a half, we’ll have whatever quiz I think is appropriate and then there’ll be a question and answer period. We’ll discuss crime scenes and how to protect them, how to gather evidence and what we do with that evidence when it’s collected. We’ll cover everything from blood spatter patterns to firearms, entomology, and forensic biology, both plant and animal. We’ll talk about cause of death and autopsies.”

One boy, sporting a soul patch and several earrings, shot a hand into the air, “Is there any way we can go to an autopsy?”

That caused a few whispers, some excited, some disgusted.

“Not this term, I’m afraid,” Jay said.

“But how cool would that be?” Soul Patch wasn’t giving up.

“I don’t know, how cool would it be?” Jay asked the class, and some of the kids actually hooted while others groaned. “As I said, it’s not scheduled and this is a pretty large group. There are rules about that kind of thing, contamination issues, timing issues, and as cool as you think it might be to see, the medical examiner is a busy person, as is everyone who works for the examiner’s office.

“However, to make things interesting, each week I’ll discuss a specific case that the department solved, then show you the evidence that was collected, and we’ll see what you can tell me about the crime. Afterward, we’ll compare it to what the police actually discovered.”

He still had their attention. Everyone seemed tuned in. At least for now. He made eye contact with Kristi again, as he did with the other students as he continued to lecture. It was easy for him because he loved his job. Examining evidence and linking it to a crime and a suspect was exhilarating as well as frustrating. He was animated as he talked, though it was difficult not to notice that Kristi still had that same vibrancy about her that had attracted him years before, when she was still in high school and he’d just started taking a few college classes while still working for his dad. Then, Jay had found her to be smart, sassy, stubborn, and tough as nails, sometimes even foolhardy, but Kristi Bentz had never been boring. Athletic and brave almost to the point of idiocy, Kristi exuded a raw energy that had been missing in most of the women he’d dated in his lifetime, including Gayle Hall.