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attorney.”
    “About thirty years ago,” Decker said. “Can you give me a layman’s definition of an eigenvalue?”
    “It’s easier to give you a mathematical explanation. It involves matrices and nonzero vectors, which mean nothing to almost everyone in the universe except weirdos like me. The point is, all of this stuff starts out theoretical but it has very practical applications.” Batra looked up. “Eli had a great, great mind. He could picture complex math like gradients, vectors, and matrices in his head. It was a gift. What happened to him? Was it an accident?”
    “Why would you think it was an accident?”
    “It wasn’t an accident?” This time, Batra seemed genuinely stunned. “He committed
suicide
?”
    “I’m not sure,” Decker said. “Did he seem depressed lately?”
    “Not to me. If anything, he seemed very okay. I know his thesis was going well.”
    “It sounds like you know Eli better than you think.”
    “Everyone in our class knew about Eli. He was … exceptional.”
    “Who was his thesis adviser?” McAdams asked.
    “Theo Rosser—he’s chairman of the department. Eli also worked with Dr. Belfort and Dr. Ferraga. He could have worked with anyone. He had the entire mathematics department in awe.”
    “Would you have phone numbers for any of them?”
    “Uh … hold on, I’ll see if they have something listed in the faculty roster.” It took him a few minutes to find what he was looking for. “Nothing for Rosser beyond office phone number. I have Dr. Belfort’s cell number. She’s my adviser.”
    “First name?” Decker asked.
    “Katrina Belfort.” He recited the digits out loud. “Hope that helps.”
    “It’s a start,” Decker said. “And you have no idea who he might have hung out with?”
    “He didn’t hang out with anyone. He was always in the library working on something that no one else understood.”
    “He had to eat,” McAdams said. “Ever see him in the dining hall?”
    “Sure … sitting alone most of the time. Sometimes he’d be sitting with a group of people, but I think that had more to do with availability of chairs than anything social. Or it could be that they were picking his brain. He was a helpful guy.” He thought for a moment. “You know, you might want to contact Mallon. They sort of hung out.”
    “Is Mallon male or female?”
    “Female … not that it mattered to Eli. Or to Mallon, for that matter. She’s pretty much a loner herself. Katrina Belfort is her adviser as well, so I see her occasionally at meetings.”
    “So you both have the same adviser?”
    “Yes. Mallon, Ari Weissberg, and me.”
    “What is Mallon’s last name?” Decker asked.
    “Euler. Spelled like the mathematician but pronounced You-ler instead of Oi-ler. I think she has a distant relationship to the great one.”
    “Where can we find Mallon?” Decker asked.
    “She’s in Marie Curie. You want her cell number?”
    “That would be helpful.”
    Batra gave it to them. He shook his head. “God, this is horrible. I’ve got to take a minute to absorb it. Is there anything else?”
    “Yes, and this is important,” Decker said. “You have just identified our John Doe as Eli Wolf. Are you sure it’s him?”
    “Almost positive. But if you want further corroboration, keep passing flyers around.”
    “First we’re going to talk to Mallon Euler. If she identifies him as Eli Wolf, then we’ll start doing notification.”
    “His parents. Shit, that’s bad.”
    “I’m asking you to sit on this until we’ve contacted them. Do you happen to know where we can contact Eli’s parents? Maybe there’s a family phone number in the student directory?”
    “I don’t think there’s a family phone number because I don’t think there’s a family phone. I seem to recall that Eli Wolf’s family is Amish.”

CHAPTER 4
    T HIS TIME, THE vehicle sitting in the lobby was a 1970 bronze Cadillac Eldorado convertible. The dummy, again wearing shades, sat behind the wheel,