Gabriel's Rapture (Gabriel's Inferno #2)(66)

Soraya received the news impassively, but Julia’s eyes flew to Professor Martin’s. It was one quick movement, but he noticed it and stared straight back at her with knitted brows.

Blushing, she looked down at her hands.

David held up two pieces of paper.

“Based upon our preliminary investigation, it seems that Professor Emerson awarded a very high mark to Miss Mitchell in his graduate seminar. She was awarded the M. P. Emerson bursary, which was mysteriously donated by an American foundation after Miss Mitchell began the program. And Professor Martin has provided me with Miss Mitchell’s academic file, in which it shows that Katherine Picton was approached by Professor Emerson last semester to replace him as Miss Mitchell’s thesis supervisor.”

He passed a file over to Soraya.

“As you will see, Miss Harandi, that file contains additional evidence provided by Miss Peterson. It includes a series of photographs and news clippings from a Florentine newspaper showing Miss Mitchell and Professor Emerson at a public event in Italy, where Professor Emerson is quoted as saying that Miss Mitchell is his fiancée.

“And there is a sworn statement by an employee of a local club who claims to possess security videos that show personal interactions between Miss Mitchell and Professor Emerson at that club during the time that she was his student. These interactions appear to be of an intimate nature and certainly go well beyond the appropriate boundaries of a professional relationship.”

He paused for effect. “It’s possible that the evidence provided by the complainant could be proof of more than one infraction. So for this reason, we are eager to hear Miss Mitchell’s side of the story. So I ask you again, did you receive special academic favors from your professor because of your personal relationship with him?”

“Dr. Aras, I am astonished that a man of your stature would be persuaded to give credence to a complaint that not only strains credulity but is supported by the very flimsiest of evidence. Newspaper clippings from an Italian tabloid? Videos that cannot be authenticated? There is no prima facie case. None whatsoever.”

“Don’t question my competency, Miss Harandi.” The Dean’s swift temper got the best of him. “I’ve been working in higher education since you were in kindergarten.”

Soraya raised her eyebrows at him and closed the file ceremoniously, tossing it onto his desk.

“What kind of interest does the complainant have in making such an allegation?”

David glared.

Soraya looked from the Dean to the chair and back again. “Perhaps the complainant’s true target is Professor Emerson. Why am I suddenly getting the impression that my client is collateral damage?”

“Any other matters are outside your purview, Miss Harandi.” The Dean’s chin began to wobble. “Even if this office would prefer to ignore the supporting information filed with the complaint, we can’t. The newspaper article demonstrates that Miss Mitchell and Professor Emerson were romantically linked only days after the end of the semester. It appears to demonstrate the existence of a prior inappropriate relationship, if nothing else.”

“I can’t believe you summoned my client to listen to these bizarre accusations. The complainant is clearly unstable and living in a fantasy world. If she has an issue with Professor Emerson, she needs to pursue a complaint against him, not my client. Given what I have seen here today, I will advise my client that she is well within her rights to file a harassment complaint against Miss Peterson and to see that she is investigated for making a fraudulent and defamatory charge.”

The Dean cleared his throat noisily. “If your position is such that Miss Mitchell and Professor Emerson engaged in a consensual relationship, I will gladly make note of such a declaration and we can dispense with the charade. When did this consensual relationship begin?”

“The only charade is the one your office is performing, in which you attempt to appear to be investigating an academic infraction but rather are engaging in some kind of prurient sexual McCarthyism. This meeting is over.” Soraya closed her briefcase dramatically and stood to her feet.

“Just a minute, Miss Harandi. If you had troubled yourself to take a closer look at Miss Mitchell’s academic file, you’d have seen a form signed by Professor Picton and dated in October, declaring that she would be supervising Miss Mitchell’s thesis because Professor Emerson had a conflict of interest. What reason would he have to approach Professor Picton other than giving Miss Mitchell what she wanted? What kind of conflict of interest could there be, other than an inappropriate relationship?”

Julia opened her mouth to answer him, to reveal the fact that she had known Gabriel since she was a teenager, but Soraya grabbed her forearm in a death grip.

“You sound as if you have already taken a position on the complaint, Dr. Aras. Perhaps your letter would have been less disingenuous if you had stated that your true purpose in this meeting was to poison the well against my client so you could punish her.”

The Dean appeared to swallow his growing anger. He gestured to the paperwork in front of him. “The complaint alleges that academic favors were granted to Miss Mitchell for reasons other than academic performance.

“The complainant testifies that Professor Emerson and Miss Mitchell engaged in a lover’s quarrel in front of a room full of witnesses during one of his seminars. Shortly after that embarrassing public display, Professor Picton signed the paperwork that allowed her to become Miss Mitchell’s thesis advisor. Quid pro quo. Quod erat demonstrandum.”