Phil had cut back severely on the jobs he took as private investigator, spinning from one athletic season to another like a drunk making a tour of taverns. The anonymous letter from the graduate student had suggested that there was disenchantment among Petit's current students. One afternoon, Priscilla Dexter, a doctoral candidate, came by Roger's office and asked if they could talk. She had sat in on his F. Marion Crawford seminar. Priscilla closed the door after she had entered and sat when Roger had cleared a chair of books.
Decio offices are the last redoubt of the smoker.
She sniffed the air as she spoke. Her hands seemed nervous as she lit her cigarette. She expelled smoke without inhaling it, as if the cigarette were a prop. I wrote that letter to The Observer . Roger knew at once that she meant the anonymous letter criticizing Petit for his attacks on Doremus.