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and it does sound like his work is only tenuously connected to petroleum science. Surely there are many other scientists whose work is far more relevant. Why are you focused on Dad’s research?”
    â€œWe’re not focused on just his work. I have already met with faculty at the University of Minnesota, Cal Tech, MIT, and UCLA. Next week I will be at several more universities in the mid-west.”
    â€œAnd?” prompted Peter.
    Jim sighed. “The reception has not been as universally positive as I had hoped. In general, members of the academic community seem reluctant to believe their lives may be in danger.”
    â€œDo you blame them?” asked Peter.
    Jim dismissed the comment. His team had pieced together a lot of circumstantial evidence that some group, maybe even a foreign government, was systematically eliminating researchers of abiogenic oil formation. But he had not been able to come up with a plausible motive. And without that he didn’t even know where to start looking—whom to begin to suspect. Each of his interviews only tended to make the whole thing more confusing—yet his gut feeling told him he was on the right path.
    â€œSo, you and Professor Sato are trying to develop a process to make oil from rock, correct?” Jim asked, not willing to give up—not yet. There was some clue, some piece of the puzzle there… just waiting to be recognized.
    â€œWell, that’s simplified a bit, but… yes, I suppose it could be interpreted that way. But really, our interest is understanding how hydrocarbons came to be formed in such great quantities on Titan. Probability dictates that the galaxy contains tens of thousands of moons just like Titan.”
    Jim pressed on, “But, if you succeed, it’s conceivable that with the right resources, someone could make petroleum—I mean hydrocarbons—by replicating the process. Is that right?”
    â€œI wouldn’t go that far, but for the sake of argument, I concede that perhaps it could be done. However, as I’ve said, we don’t know yet with certainty what that process is.”
    â€œDad, you said you’re using conditions that replicate those on Titan, correct?”
    Professor Savage nodded.
    â€œWell, Titan is smaller than Earth, and colder. Right?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œThen your reaction conditions are probably not terribly extreme compared to conditions that could be encountered within the Earth’s mantle. And if that were true, then why not adapt the process to yield a synthetic route to petroleum?”
    Professor Savage shook his head. “No. My work is not aimed at understanding novel ways that petroleum may—or may not—be formed on Earth. And it certainly has nothing to do with inventing synthetic routes to petroleum production. That’s the job of the oil companies.”
    Jim stood up and walked to the window, looking out at the park-like setting—lush green lawn punctuated with trees and lined with rhododendrons and azaleas, some still sporting vivid pink and purple blossoms. A concrete ribbon funneled students between classes, and several groups were sprawled on the lawn, no doubt talking about matters far less grave than national security and murder. It was a picture of innocence—and it contrasted sharply with Jim’s line of business.
    Suddenly, he turned and walked back to the table. “Okay. I’ve been trying to figure out the motive… the reason why someone would be systematically killing your colleagues, Professor.”
    â€œI don’t really consider the people you mentioned to be my colleagues. I work in a different field entirely. I’m not even funded by an oil company.” Professor Savage wasn’t following Jim’s reasoning. For that matter, neither was Peter.
    â€œWhat are you getting at, Jim?” Peter asked.
    â€œIt’s like your dad said. A select group already accepts that oil can be