Law School Murders: Fame and Infamy

Heather Boskin leaned against Kim’s desk in the lecture hall. She wore tan and blue pumps and a matching skirt and blouse. She had red lipsticks that accentuated her plump lips. The flecks of grayness allowed her to know the difference between distinguished and trying too hard. She represented the former.

“We’re going to have an irregular class right now. This is just a safety precaution. You will all be screened and interviewed due to a recent threat against this school. I will not name names to reveal just who is the target. We will begin the process right now.”

Kim was the first just to get her out of the way and not raise suspicions.

“Did you recently grade any papers with the threat on it?”

“No.”

“Have you or do you intend to do harm to yourself or anyone else?”

“No.”

Kim looked at Dean Boskin. The dean shot a glance at the interviewer. Kim was free to go.

She went to the parking lot and opened the door to her Goulding. She was stopped.

“Professor Jergensen!”

“Yes?”

“I just wanted to let you know that whoever is doing this whatever the attempt to attack or threat to attack is, we’re here to help you.”

“Thanks.”

She got into the car and sped off into the day. With the teaching day over before she could even teach, she made it home with just enough time to look at her mail and check her phone for news.

And just like that, her face was on the homepage of the Daily Delaware. They must be used to this by now, she thought acidicly.

Her phone buzzed in her hand. It was Yawquisha.

“I see you can’t escape from the public eye,” Yawquisha said.

“I’m holding onto the fact that my publicist is waiting to knock down my door any minute. It’s good for my book at least,” she said, her sardonic tone shining through it all.

“If you take the time to realize how you have made it possible for me to be the most known unknown videographer in the world, you will see just how much of a value you are to me. Oh, and you’re my friend, too.”

“Thanks for the affirmation,” Kim said.

“If it weren’t for you, I’d still be doing random interviews with people on the corner. My views would be down and I’d have virtually no subscribers. But it’s more than that.” Yawquisha’s tone shifted. “You actually helped me realize my purpose. It is to expose the truth and make it clear that there is no mistaking the positive impact you’ve had on my life.”

“You’ve done the same. You’re the one who says that I can do this to yourself and then you answer yourself. Some people call that crazy. I call it an imperative. You have to big yourself up, because who else is going to do it. If I have played a role in you excelling with your videos, that’s all to the good.”

The conversation turned to the photo on the website. “They said they’d keep it under wraps. That no one would know. I don’t know who to blame. It couldn’t be the dean…no.”

“If you look at the possibilities it could have been a threat to him or herself. That’s what ended up in the news. The fact that someone stepped forward and made accusations about the whole incident. They’re waiting to get caught. They want to be the evil part of the news story. They don’t care who gets hurt or not just as long as they get to the point where they know the difference between notoriety and being known, infamy and fame.”