AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Upton’s office was on the third floor, on one of two hallways that were dedicated to professors and academic counselors. Knowing that they were coming, Upton’s door was open when they came to her office. All the same, Sullivan nocked softly in the frame.
“Come in, come in,” Upton said.
Kathy Upton looked to be in her late fifties. Though she looked slightly stressed as they greeted her, she offered a bright smile that seemed to shed roughly ten years away from her appearance. She was dressed in a blue button-down and slacks, her black hair straight and ravenlike.
“Thanks for taking the time to speak with us,” Sullivan said. They ran through a quick round of introductions as Rachel and Sullivan sat down in the chairs on the opposite side of the desk.
“I’m happy to do it,” Upton said. “Though honestly, aside from knowing Dr. Willis and Adler on a passing sort of basis, I don’t know how I can help.”
“Well, for now,” Rachel said, “it seems like this killer is striking because of the link between the victims—the link of stem cells and anti-aging studies. I know that protests over this sort of thing is pretty common, but we’re trying to determine what sort of person we might be dealing with: some angry zealot who is just taking his beliefs a little too far, or someone who might feel they’ve been somehow wronged because of these studies. Given your expertise in the field, specifically within this area, would you have any opinion on that?”
“Sadly, no,” Upton answered. “I’ve certainly seen my share of those protestors, though. I’ve even had students walk out of my classes whenever I suggest that stem cell research could both revolutionize medicine and save countless lives. We’re already seeing that all around the world. As to what sort of individual would be driven to kill over this sort of thing…all I can come up with is ignorant or misguided.”
“We now have three victims,” Sullivan said. “Molly Stevens, Jane Adler, and Emma Willis. Were you particularly close to any of them?”
“I knew Emma quite well for a time. When she was working on that project out in Nevada, we would email one another back and forth, just exchanging information and theories. She had me on a few calls while she was over there, just sort of as another brain to pick. But I wouldn’t go so far as to say we were close friends.
"And then, I know I had Jane Adler in one of my classes. I went back and pulled the information up…it was a basic Applied Medicines course from twelve years ago. I don't recall much about her other than the fact that she was an amazing student."
"What's the community of anti-aging personnel like in the city?" Rachel asked. "It seems like it's small enough where pretty much everyone is sort of in the same circles, but not quite small enough so that everyone knows everyone else.”
“That pretty much nails it. If you were to ask me for someone who knew the most about the use of stem cells in cancer research, I could point you immediately to someone. Well…maybe not now, as Jane Adler was the go-to on that. And I think the same would be the case in any lab or research center in the city. Someone would at least always know where to point you.”
“In your experience, have you ever come across someone in any of these circles that maybe had a falling out with someone else? Maybe someone who felt the research was going too far or started to have moral struggles with it all?”
“Honestly…I’ve tried and tried to come up with a name, hoping I’d be able to help find this monster. But really, no one comes to mind.” She stopped, hesitated for a moment, and then sighed. She was clearly troubled about something.
“What is it?” Rachel asked.
“Well, there is one name…a man who once worked here, actually, at the university. His name is Stanley Cooper. He was essentially the same as me…a professor with a medical license who just preferred the classroom to labs and research centers. But about four years ago—give or take a few months—he had a breakdown of some kind. He didn't show up to work for about two weeks, and when he did, it was only to go to the board and complain about what we were doing…how we were teaching our students that it was perfectly okay to destroy human embryos. Which, of course, we don’t actually state. Naturally, he was terminated right away.”
“And was he violent or in any way hostile about it?”
“No, not at all. He expressed his concerns to the board, requested a few meetings with some of the other professors, and that was all. Now, he’s sent some articles and emails to several of us ever since that happened. Nothing to tear us down or insulting us, just things like how stem cells are harvested and how there’s a conspiracy that pregnant women in third world countries are being kidnapped so their embryos can be harvested for stem cells. It's all nonsense, of course. I blocked him a while back…almost a year and a half ago."
“Has anyone else here at the university had contact with him since he was let go?” Sullivan asked.
“Not that I’m aware of.”
“Tell us about him before the breakdown. Did you know him well?”
“Fairly well, actually. And he was a stand-up professor. He was married with three kids, but as I understand it, he left his family following the breakdown. Last I heard, his ex-wife had relocated to California and two of his kids went with her.”
“And the other one?”
“College. I’m not sure where, though I do know Stanley used to talk about his oldest being obsessed with Harvard. And look…I know where you’re going with this. But I can tell you right now that Stanley Cooper did not do this. To think of him murdering women…it’s just inconceivable.”
"Was it inconceivable that he'd have a breakdown and change his stance on something he'd work for over the course of his career?" Rachel asked, point blank.
Upton tilted her head and sighed again. “No. No, I can’t say that I would have ever imagined that.”
“Do you know if he still lives around here?” Sullivan asked.
“I’m pretty sure. An old adjunct professor I once worked with claimed they saw him just a few weeks ago. A random pass-by in the street.”
“Could you please contact HR and have them pull his last known address/” Rachel asked.
Upton still seemed shaken by the mere idea of Cooper having anything to do with the murders. In fact, a look of guilt had stuck to her face ever since she’d mentioned the man’s name. Rachel wondered if she regretted even bringing it up.
