The Naturals, #2
Killer Instinct
by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Contents
Chapter 25
Overview
While reviewing social media, Cassie reframes Sterling’s profile: the copycat is a younger, authority-obsessed admirer of Redding who likely knew Emerson and the professor. Sloane cross-references schedules and flags two classmates with overlapping courses. A private profile reveals Gary “Clark” Clarkson posing with a hunting rifle, sharpening suspicion toward him.
Summary
Cassie, working without Dean, combs social media based on Agent Sterling’s parameters: a young male commuter without a father figure, comfortable with firearms. She shifts from box-checking to behavioral inference, reading photos and interactions to build life patterns.
Reasoning through the crimes, Cassie concludes the copycat idolizes Daniel Redding yet craves personal recognition, evidenced by publicly displaying Emerson’s body and using her car antenna. She frames the killer as organized but impulsive, younger, seeking power and authority he has lacked, and possibly resenting figures like the professor.
Linking motive to access, Cassie hypothesizes the UNSUB knew Emerson and the professor, rejecting random victim selection. She asks Sloane to compare class schedules to find overlaps that could explain proximity and fixation.
Sloane, relying on her memory, identifies two students who shared additional classes with Emerson: Bryce Anderson and Gary Clarkson. Michael notes Bryce hadn’t disclosed this.
Cassie searches Gary Clarkson’s private profile and finds only his profile photo: Clark in an orange hunting vest, holding a gun. The image aligns with the firearm comfort in Sterling’s profile and elevates Clark as a prime person of interest.
Who Appears
- CassieNarrator; refines the copycat profile, posits fixation on Emerson, and drives the focus toward classmates with overlapping schedules.
- SloaneCross-references schedules from memory, identifying Bryce Anderson and Gary Clarkson as sharing other classes with Emerson.
- Gary "Clark" ClarksonClassmate flagged by overlap; private profile shows him in a hunting vest with a gun, increasing suspicion.
- Bryce AndersonClassmate with overlapping courses with Emerson; previously downplayed connections, now a person of interest.
- MichaelWorks alongside the team; notes Bryce hadn’t mentioned additional shared classes with Emerson.
- Emerson ColeMurder victim; her relationships and classes guide Cassie’s theory that the killer was a known acquaintance.
- Agent SterlingProvides the initial suspect profile that Cassie tests and refines during the social media review.
- LiaAssists with the group’s online review; present but with minimal direct involvement this chapter.
- Professor FogleDeceased professor; his relationship to Emerson and students informs Cassie’s non-random victim theory.
- DeanAbsent; his absence is felt as Cassie works through profiling and suspects.