Free Deception: An Alex Delaware Novel by Jonathan Kellerman

socializing at work," said Milo. "What about after hours?"
    "I wouldn't know about that, Lieutenant."
    "You're not much for socializing?"
    "I have a girlfriend, we plan to move in together at the end of the school year. Between work and hanging out with Emily, my days are pretty full."
    "Emily's a teacher, too?"
    "She's a medical student at the U."
    "You both live by yourselves, at present?"
    Winterthorn blushed. "We both live with our parents. It's not ideal but with the economic situation the way it is, we felt maximizing our savings will give us a leg up on ownership."
    "Where do your parents live?"
    "Encino."
    "South or north of the boulevard?"
    "South," said Winterthorn.
    "Nice."
    "My father's a neurosurgeon."
    "Dad and girlfriend are both doctors," said Milo.
    "My brother and sister, as well."
    "You're the rebel."
    Winterthorn smiled.
    "Premed didn't work for you?"
    The smile vanished. "Why is my educational history important to you?"
    "Just trying to get to know you, Jim. How old are you?"
    "Twenty-nine."
    "How long have you been working at Prep?"
    "Two years."
    "What'd you do between college and work?"
    Frown. "Got a master's and began work on a Ph.D."
    "In..."
    "Physics."
    "Still working on the Ph.D.?"
    "I'll finish the dissertation eventually."
    "Where'd all this education take place?"
    "M.I.T. undergrad, U. Mich for grad school."
    Milo whistled. "You teach anything else at Prep?"
    "Advanced Placement chem, AP physics, and a seminar in the biophysics of ecology offered to students who get A's in the AP classes."
    "The lowdown on global warming?"
    "We're a bit more complex than that."
    Milo edged closer. Winterthorn's startled look said What did I do?
    "Chemistry... you work with dry ice?"
    Winterthorn giggled.
    "Something funny, Jim?"
    "My fifth-grade science teacher brought dry ice into class and did volcano tricks, trying to show us science could be cool. No, Lieutenant, we're a bit beyond that in AP. There's an emphasis on computation, it's basically a college-level curriculum."
    "No volcanoes," said Milo. "Too bad. When my teacher did that I was convinced science was cool."
    Winterthorn turned serious. "Are you saying dry ice had something to do with Elise's... with what happened?"
    "What were your impressions of Elise, Jim?"
    Winterthorn's thin frame pressed against his seat-back, as if trying to will the chair into reverse. "She seemed conscientous."
    "Seemed?"
    "I'm sure she was. Occasionally, I'd see her making herself available after hours."
    "You noticed her after-hours because..."
    "I do the same thing myself."
    "Do the students appreciate that kind of dedication?"
    "I would think so."
    "Did Elise have any particular favorites--students she hung out with more than others?"
    "I wouldn't know--can you tell me what this is about? I'm assuming there's something suspicious about her death, why else would we be talking to police detectives."
    Milo handed Winterthorn his card.
    The young man's eyes widened. "She was definitely murdered?"
    "Definitely?"
    "What I mean is... the immediacy," said Winterthorn. "Something so terrible hitting so close." He sounded more fascinated than horrified, might've been describing a complex molecule.
    "So," said Milo, "no favorites you were aware of."
    "I wasn't paying attention."
    "What about conflict with anyone at Prep? Students, faculty, janitors?"
    "Absolutely nothing like that," said Winterthorn.
    "If she did have problems with someone, would you have known, Jim?"
    "What do you mean?"
    "Being in the math-science tribe."
    "That demarcation applies to socializing," said Winterthorn, shifting his weight and scratching the bridge of his nose. "Prep's an intimate place, significant events can attain broad coverage. If Elise was experiencing significant conflict--something that would lead to... yes, I might know about that. But I never heard a thing."
    "You're saying there's a well-oiled gossip mill operating."
    "Not really, it's just... important facts travel."
    "What did the