“Yes, and we’ve checked out Mr. Bartlett. He’s from Minneapolis, as he said, and he did sell his design firm last year.”

“Oh,” Stone said. “I guess that lets him out.”

“Not necessarily,” Griggs said. “He had owned the firm for only two years when he sold it, and I haven’t been able to find out anything about him before that, which is unusual.”

“I thought I’d take Mrs. Harding over to his hotel this morning and see if we can spot him. She thinks she can identify Paul Manning.”

“It’s a nice thought, but he checked out this morning; said he was going back to Minneapolis on business.”

“He doesn’t have a business,” Stone pointed out.

“I’m checking with the airlines to see if he was on any outbound flight this morning,” Griggs said. “I’ll let you know if I come up with anything.”

“Thanks, Dan,” Stone said, and hung up.

Liz was still going through the guest list. “I haven’t come across anything else yet,” she said.

“Paul Bartlett has checked out of his hotel,” Stone said. “Said he was returning to Minneapolis on business. Did Paul Manning have any connection with Minneapolis?”

“No, but he wouldn’t have settled in a place where anybody knew him.”

“How recognizable would he have been to his readers? Did he do a lot of book signings? Have his photograph on the book jackets?”

“The only photograph of Paul that ever appeared on a book jacket or in a press release from his publishers would have been one taken when he was very heavy and had a full beard. He would be completely unrecognizable to any reader now.”

“Bartlett recently sold a graphic design business. Did Paul have any design inclinations?”

“He was a fine arts major at Syracuse,” Liz said. “He drew and painted quite well.”

“Did he take any design courses? Anything that would give him the skills he would need for graphic design?”

“I don’t really know,” she said. “He didn’t talk about college all that much.”

Callie appeared on deck. “What are you two doing?” she asked.

Stone explained the stack of paper.

“And how did you get the guest list of a New York hotel?”

“You don’t want to know.”

Juanito came back with the phone for Stone.

“Hello.”

“It’s Dan Griggs. Paul Bartlett didn’t take any flight out this morning, and he didn’t charter any aircraft on the field, but he did turn in his rental car at Hertz, at the airport.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Stone said. “Why would he drive to the airport and turn in his car, then not fly out? How would he leave the airport without transportation?”

“I’ll check the local cab companies and see if a driver picked up anyone answering his description,” Griggs said.