"Did you receive any complaints from students? Any feedback from them at all, regarding Coach Adamson, or anything else of concern?" she then checked.
"No, not from students. I personally thought everyone did their best to keep the toxic dynamic from the students, even though some of them probably picked up on it."
"Thank you so much for this," May said gratefully, as Sam nodded before standing up and walking out.
This gave her a lot of food for thought.
Something had happened in the last six months that she guessed might have triggered Coach Adamson to change into what he had become - a brutal killer.
This gave them an additional reason to relook at his life. May knew that sometimes even small things could precipitate a psychopath to start killing.
A minor incident, a fight, another crime. Perhaps a relationship had broken up, or someone that had been close to him or a stabilizing influence had died, or parted ways with him. There were a myriad of factors that could precipitate a serial killing spree in somebody who had always had the potential to become a killer.
But the six-month mark was interesting. With one more interview to conduct, May wondered if other testimonies would add to this compelling weight of evidence.
Perhaps this next teacher would be able to offer more facts, May wondered, as her final interviewee stepped inside the room.
CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT
The final teacher to walk into May's interview room was a shy-looking man, with short, brown hair and an anxious expression. He looked to be in his mid-thirties, May thought.
"Good morning. I’m Deputy Moore. Thank you for coming forward," she said.
"Good morning. I'm Mr. York, and I'm a math and science teacher. I teach students from sixth to twelfth grade."
"Please, sit," May said. "What information would you like to share?"
York sat. He looked uncomfortable and worried.
"Please understand that I am not a very brave man," York said with a rueful smile. He was clearly uncomfortable speaking in front of a police officer. "I apologize for being nervous. But this is a very big deal for the school. And it's a very big deal for me. I don't really like coming forward this way, but I felt I needed to, to support the school and the students."
"I appreciate that," May said.
"I personally noticed Coach Adamson on a few occasions, displaying what I thought was inappropriate behavior toward students. Taking photos of them. Speaking in a flirtatious manner."
"Any particular students?"
"I noticed him - well, I can only describe it as stalking - Alyssa. I didn't notice him stalking Sadie, but she was less involved in school activities and more of a loner, I think."
"When was this?" May asked.
"I've been noticing it for a couple of weeks now. I think what intrigued me was that he seemed to be using a different phone to take the photos."
"Is that so?" May asked, her adrenaline spiking. This would explain the absence of them on the camera gallery.
"Yes. I watched him one day, taking a different phone out of his pocket, and I thought how strange that was. But then, you know, I sadly thought no more of it. How I wish now that I'd spoken up and said something at the time."
"I'm glad we have this information now," May said. She felt a huge relief. A piece of the puzzle - an important piece - had been filled in.
"Did you have any testimonies from any students?" May asked. "Did anyone reach out to you and say they felt uneasy?"
"No, nobody did. I think the way he did things was too discreet. But there is one thing troubling me," York said.
"What is that?" May asked, now feeling concerned.
"I'm sure I saw him taking photos of one of the other girls."
"Which girl was that?"