"So much the better... unless our doughty police chief has Mr. Douglas on his payroll, which I doubt.  Mike bought it through about four links of dummies and Douglas doesn't snoop into why Mike wants things done.  Douglas doesn't despise me quite as much since Os Kilgallen took over my column, I think, but nevertheless he doesn't want to surrender control to me - he does what Mike wants.  The hotel is a sound investment; it makes money but the owner of record is one of our clandestine Ninth Circle.  So the owner decides he wants this floor for the season and the manager can't and doesn't and wouldn't want to inquire into why, or how many guests of his own the owner has coming or going - he likes his job; Mike is paying him more than he's worth.  It's a pretty good hide-out, for the time being. 'Till Mike groks where we will go next."