“Since I arrived. I’ve never been more than polite, maybe a bit friendly.” She thought about last week, when he’d cornered her. And their first meeting. At her interview, he’d spent little time on her curriculum vitae. Then she had welcomed the lack of scrutiny, since Sebastian’s handiwork went untested. Despite the fact that she had finished her doctorate at Callenwolde, the fake diplomas bore the seal of Gorham University in England.

But the worldly Kenneth had been so impressed by her knowledge of Europe, he’d glossed over the paucity of publications and teaching credentials. At the time, she’d chalked it up to necessity. The semester had started and they needed a professor. Now his casual decision seemed like more.

“He asked me for a date a few weeks after I started. I declined.”

“How did he take it?”

“He was cold for a while.” Again his reaction matched the profile. “The man fitting this profile wouldn’t handle rejection well,” she explained. “Especially from women.”

“What is the typical reaction?” Gabriel posed the question, but he knew the answer. “They become angry and sullen. Determined to retaliate.”

“Julian. He asked me out just before Julian was killed.”

“We need to get in touch with Sylvie.” Gabriel punched in her number, fury tangling with alarm. Kenneth worked with his sister. A person he’d pressed into friendship with Erin. He didn’t regret it, but he couldn’t take chances with her life.

“You’re afraid for Genevieve.”

“Of course. Ask her to meet us here. I’ll call Sylvie.”

She gripped his hand. “We won’t let him hurt her, Gabriel. Or anyone else.”

Half an hour later, Erin sat in Gabriel’s office, drinking coffee as Gabriel sparred with Detective Iberville.

“That’s not enough, Gabe, and you know it,” she argued. “Doesn’t come close to probable cause.”

“You want to wait for another body?” Gabriel roared, slapping his hands on the table. He leaned forward, nose to nose with Sylvie. “He matches the damned profile. He’s had motive and opportunity.”

“What motive?” She shot a dubious look at Erin. “Dr. Abbott’s pretty enough, but the first time I saw her, she looked like a maiden aunt.” When Erin flinched, Sylvie muttered, “No offense.”

Erin merely shrugged. “None taken. I realize I wouldn’t seem to be the type to inspire obsession.”

Sylvie heard something beneath the quiet agreement, but she didn’t probe. Instead, she turned back to Gabriel. The boy was ready to breathe fire, she thought, just to protect his women. At his instructions, she’d swung by the university to pick up Genevieve on her way to his offices. She was pestering Peter Cameron next door, shut out by Gabriel. “I need more than an amateur profiler and alphabet soup.”

“How about eight dead bodies? Eight men and women that Kenneth Bernard has killed? Or do you want to make it nine?”