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"And I think we can safely assuer continued "As to the extra body, perhaps the report neglected to nineer or even a s just before the crash"

"Then how do you justify a difference in unifor khakis, not Air Force blues"

"I can't answer that anyafter the crash"

"There lies the catch," Pitt said evenly "I've got a solid idea who our uninvited guest is And if I'ht, his demise by person or persons unknown becomes a fundamental certainty"

Steiger's eyebrows raised "I'," he murmured "Who do you have in mind?"

"The resswoman Loren Smith's father"

Steiger sat there silently for a fewthe enormity of Pitt's statement Finally he said, "What proof can you offer?"

" Quite literally bits and pieces I have it on good authority that Charlie Smith's obituary says that he was blown to s All that was ever found were a boot and one thumb A nice touch, don't you think? Very neat and precise I must keep it in mind the next time I want to do somebody in Set off a blast, then as soon as the dust settles throw a recognizable piece of footwear and a slice of the victi crater Friends later identify the boot and the sheriff's department can't miss with a positive ID once they pull a print from the thumb In the meantime I've buried the rest of the body where hopefully it will never be found-My victio merrily on my way"

"You're tellinga boot and a thumb?"

Pitt merely nodded an affirmative

At half past nine Giordino was ready He started by lecturing Pitt and Steiger as he would a class of high-school chemistry students "As you can see, after more than three decades of subanic, is virtually as good as new, but the paper inside has nearly returned to pulp Originally the contents were raphed-a common process prior to the miracle of Xerox The ink, I'm sorry to say, has all but disappeared, and no laboratory on earth can bring it back, even under super vaguely legible reht have contained weather information A feords here and there refer to winds, altitudes, and atmospheric temperatures The only sentence I can partially decipher says 'Skies clearing beyond Western slopes' "

" 'Western slopes' indicating the Colorado Rockies," said Pitt

Steiger's hands gripped the edge of the table "Christ, do you have any idea what that means?"

"It inate from California, as stated in the report," said Pitt "Her departure point must have been east of here if the creas concerned about weather condition

s over the Continental Divide"