We waited. It was not unpleasant in the sunny forecourt. A robin flew down and landed a few feet from us, looking up hopefully. It flew off again as a door slammed and Darcy emerged from the building with a determined look on his face.

“We might be onto something here,” he said as he approached us. His eyes were finally bright again, with hope in them. “I asked the young chap at the reception desk and he looked it up for me. There is no University of Southern Nebraska.”

“Aha. An imposter.” Zou Zou clapped her hands in delight. “The plot thickens. He was here to case the joint.”

I had to smile at these words coming from her lips.

“Of course, the graduate students we spoke to might have got the name wrong,” Darcy said. “One doesn’t always take in such things, especially if they were concentrating on their task.”

“But it’s a starting point,” I said. “And we have a description. A big man. Big enough that the girls giggled when he said his name was Peabody. Now, there can’t be too many large Americans in this part of Ireland. It’s not the time of year for tourists. Someone will have spoken to him at the station, or given him directions, or driven him in a taxicab.”

“And if they did, what is any of this going to prove?” Darcy demanded. I could tell his temper was wearing thin. “We have no way of knowing who this Peabody really is or why he might have wanted to visit Timothy Roach. We can really do nothing until someone in America identifies Roach from his photograph and finds out why he came to Ireland.”

“You don’t seem keen on doing anything, Darcy,” I said.

“I agree,” Zou Zou added. “A complete wet blanket, which isn’t at all like you. The Darcy I know and love is a man of action. He wouldn’t give up so easily.”

Darcy shrugged. “I can’t get over the fact that there were no other prints on that club. Or that my father will say nothing in his own defense. He must believe that he is guilty. In which case, what hope do I have of proving his innocence?”

“We must get cracking on finding that barrister,” Zou Zou said. “Why don’t you drive me to a suitable hotel first, since it appears there is nowhere closer to put me up. Where do people stay in Dublin, Darcy? I mean, people like us?”

“That would be the Shelbourne,” Darcy said. “But are you sure you want to stay, Zou Zou?”