Here is the third short story about Virgil Tibbs, the famous black detective of "In the Heat of the Night." In this case Virgil Tibbs is a kind of professional onlooker, an innocent bystander lending a helpful hand; but it is Virgil Tibbs from the sidelines who provides the crucial clue . . . A hint to the reader: it is unlikely that this story could have been written, say, twenty years ago . . .