These were part ofthe masked ball tradition of 18th century France. We piled inher car and zoomed off to the party.****They had rented a large ballro...m in one of the beachhotels. There must have been a hundred couples there. Thiswas really out of hand. I was quite embarrassed at the way Iwas dressed, and just hoped I didn't run into anyone I knew. Veronica introduced us around, first to her husband, who wasdressed as a vampire, then to her many friends. Most wereincredulous at how. “The roughest week I’ve had since I graduated high school,” Dan said.“You should have called me,” Tom said. It seemed to him that with everyone working that there just wasn’t much time for friends.Shrugging his shoulders, Dan said, “It wasn’t so tough for me, but for everyone around me.”Tom grinned and said, “I might not have been able to help much, but I could have brought over a root beer for you to drink.”Dan laughed and slapped his friend on the back. He said, “I’ll remember that.”“You. ”“But...”“Let me give Paulette LeBlanc’s husband Herb a call. He’s got his own plane. I know he heads up to Kansas City every week or so.”“I don’t know...”“Here lemmie call...”Ezra opened his cell phone and speed dialed LeBlanc.“Herb, Ezra here. Say you going up to KC anytime soon?”Tomorrow? Great. Can I ask a big favor of you?He listened for a moment then said: “My guy here, Mark ... yeah you met him at the party the other night. Well it seems he hasn’t heard from his girlfriend for too long a. The near catastrophe had reinforced that possibilityand given Scott doubts as to whether Zach would even get the chance toput result three into effect if it came to that. The certainty that henow held Zach's life in his hands was brutally reinforced.The old thrift shop near the church had seen better days, but it wasstill well stocked with various odds and ends. The two men entered andwere thankful for the light crowd."What all are we looking for?" Zach whispered before grimacing as.