Grey Dawn by Clea Simon Read Free Book Online Page A

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    â€˜She was, well …’ The girl paused. Working on her story, Dulcie figured. ‘She – she was hurt last night. You probably heard.’
    â€˜That was your room-mate?’ Dulcie knew what the student before her had said, but the shock was talking. ‘The girl – the young woman – who was attacked in the Square?’
    A nod of the head, and the student looked away, blinking. Dulcie fumbled in her desk for a box of tissues. ‘Here.’ She pushed them toward her visitor. ‘I’m so sorry.’
    â€˜Thanks.’ The girl took a bunch and wiped at her eyes, and then blew her nose with a surprisingly loud honk. ‘It’s just been crazy. We were close – we
are
close, I mean. Best friends since Freshman Week, and we were supposed to study together last night. When she didn’t come back, I had, well, I had a feeling, you know? So I stayed up, and then I called the police and then – then they found her, and it’s just been non-stop since. The detective, and her mother.’ Another loud honk. ‘So I don’t think I’ll be able to lead the discussion tomorrow.’
    Of course! This was Emily, Emily Trainor, and she was going to present on Wilkie Collins in the English 70 section.
    â€˜Oh, don’t worry about it.’ Dulcie’s response was automatic. ‘I can do it. We just have you present as practice. But next week, or whenever …’ She was stumbling, unsure of what to say. Then it hit her. ‘You said you were supposed to study together last night?’
    â€˜Uh huh.’ Another nod. ‘Mina isn’t in the department. She’s in History and Lit, but that kind of works for us. We’re both basically reading the same books, you know? But we get two perspectives this way. We had – we
have
a lot in common.’ She reached for more tissues, and Dulcie gave her a moment to collect herself.
    â€˜That’s smart. Going at the material from two different disciplines. But …’ She hesitated, unsure how to phrase her question without it sounding like an accusation. All she had were some vaguely matching descriptions … ‘You said she didn’t come home. Was it possible that she, oh, maybe forgot? And that she went to the Tap Room, over at the Commodore Hotel, last night? I heard there was a reception for the first Newman speaker.’
    Dulcie hated herself for even asking. It sounded like she was blaming the victim. She blows off a study date for a party, and ends up in the hospital. But Emily didn’t seem to see it that way.
    â€˜Oh, no.’ She was shaking her head. ‘Mina wouldn’t forget, and I was working. I work at the Dudley Grill till ten. Mina was going over to that reception first. She’s really interested in some of the theoretical stuff that he was into, and she was going to tell me all about it.’
    This didn’t make it easier for Dulcie. ‘Is it possible …’ She bit her lip. ‘I’ve heard that Professor Lukos is a very attractive man. Could she have stayed later than she meant?’ There, she wasn’t blaming the girl. Nor was she actually pointing a finger at the visiting scholar. Just opening up the possibility that she had stayed later than intended.
    To her surprise, the student in front of her laughed. ‘You mean could the professor have picked her up?’ She wiped her eyes again, but this time the tears had been squeezed out by her broad smile. ‘No, not a chance. Mina was used to being hit on. She had that kind of look – the kind that men are drawn to. You know, the wild red hair, the body.’ She squinted across the desk. ‘You two kind of look alike, you know? But, no. She has a serious boyfriend, and he’s really possessive.’
    Dulcie was so flustered by the implied compliment that at first she didn’t hear what her visitor had said. The kind of looks