Once Kylie and Stephen were back on the road, she looked at him and said, "The Lamborghini is not the best sports car out there. Why do you like them so much?"

Stephen smiled and said, "One of my friends likes them. I never gave it much thought but, I suppose I drive this car in his honor."

​​

"I get that," Kylie nodded. "I have a friend who turns me on to certain vehicles in much the same way."

"An ex-boyfriend?" Stephen wondered.

"Nope," Kylie laughed. "An online friend."

Stephen asked, "Have you ever met any of your online friends in person?"

Kylie frowned, and she said, "I haven't met my friend in person, but I would really like to. We have been friends for a very long time, and it just seems wrong that we've never met."

"If you met him," Stephen asked, "what would you want to say to him?"

Kylie looked at Stephen curiously. Their talk was casual, but for some reason, he seemed nervous, anxious even. There was a thin sheen of sweat on his forehead, and his hands were shaking a little bit. It was almost as if he had a special interest in Stars. What that could be, though, she couldn't fathom.

"If I could see him in person," she said, "I would thank him for our friendship. There have been moments that, without him as my sounding board and without his advice, I never would have gotten through them."

Without thinking, Stephen put his hand on her knee. He wanted to admit that he was Stars but, after all the time that he passed, he didn't want to risk the friendship that they had.

Kylie put her hand on his and gently moved it off of her knee. "Don't take this the wrong way," she sighed. "I know that you didn't mean anything, but physical touching makes me nervous."

"I'm sorry," Stephen said as he drew back his hand. "I didn't mean anything by it."

Kylie pursed her lips, and she asked Stephen if he would mind if they changed the subject. Stephen nodded, and he said, "Go for it."

Kylie looked at Stephen and said, "Sometimes, Dora makes me nervous. How much do you know about her?"

Stephen looked at her curiously. "Where is this coming from?" he wondered.

Kylie sighed, and she said, "There are some things that I just can't tell you. I can only tell you that Ethan is with Dora now. They have a three-day agreement, and I am worried about him."

"I don't understand," Stephen replied. "What is a three-day agreement? Does that mean that they have to live together for three days? If she needs to be taken care of, I can help her find professional doctors and nurses – there is no need for them to live together, especially since he has you – what will people think if they see the two of them together? It could be a disaster!"

"She's not sick," Kylie muttered as she tried to find the words to best articulate what she was trying to say. "Honestly, I don't understand the purpose of the three-day agreement… Ethan and I spoke today, and he said that he would pick Dora and me up together, but I couldn't get a hold of him after work. I waited and waited and waited, but he just didn't show up…

"I went back into the building," she continued, "and I was told that Dora had left an hour earlier. I called Ethan, but he didn't pick up. I called Nate, but he didn't know where he was either. I called two of his other close affiliates and got the same replies. I'm worried that something happened to him and, some part of me is concerned that Dora did something to him, something nefarious.

"Instead of taking me home, could you take me to Dora's house?"

"I'm sure that he is okay," Stephen said, "but I don't see any reason not to check her house out…"

Stephen and Kylie arrived at Dora's house, and the first thing she noticed was that the light was on in Dora's bedroom window. Once the engine was off, Kylie looked at Stephen and said, "Thanks for the ride. I'll go check things out. Please wait for me in the car."

"It's too dangerous to go up alone," Stephen said as he jumped out of the car and began to follow her.

Kylie nodded and, as they walked up to the door, she thanked him. "I wanted to ask for your help," she admitted, "but I didn't think that I had a right to."

"I'm here for you," Stephen said as he knocked on the door. When no one answered, he knocked again and shouted, "Dora, Dora Hilton! You may as well answer the door. We know that you're home. We saw the light on in your bedroom!"

After knocking for a while, the next-door neighbor opened the door. She looked at Stephen, then at Kylie. "Who are you looking for?" she wondered.

Kylie walked over, introduced herself, and said, "I'm looking for your neighbor, Dora Hilton."

The neighbor thought about it for a few minutes, shrugged, and said, "I saw her leave with a man earlier. They looked pretty chummy. I saw them yesterday, and with how close they were, I assumed that she was his mistress…"

Hearing this, Kylie felt a rage burning up inside her, but she kept it in check.

"That's so weird," Stephen said as he prepared a lie on the fly. "Dora is our friend, and we were supposed to go to the movies together…"

"Why don't you check the theater," the neighbor suggested. "Perhaps she thought she was supposed to meet you guys there…"

"That sounds like a good idea," Stephen replied. "Thank you for your help."

Once the neighbor had the door shut, she went into the dining room and sat down at the table. She looked across it to the man who'd been waiting for her. "I did what you asked. Are we done now? Can I leave now?"

The man threw a stack of bills on the coffee table and stood up. "Wait a half an hour longer," He said, "and then you are free to go."

The woman hurriedly picked up the money and shoved it into her purse. She looked the man in the eyes and said, "I hope this turns out the way that you planned…"

Stephen opened the passenger seat for Kylie and helped her in. She was so lost it thought that she was barely functional. He strapped her seatbelt across her chest, closed the door, and walked around to the driver's side. Once he was inside, he said, "I'll take you home, and then I'll go looking for Ethan."

"I don't want to go home," Kylie replied, with her mouth only half-open. She had her head leaning against the car window, and her eyes were fixed on Dora's bedroom window. "I still think they might be here," she sighed. "Otherwise, why would her bedroom window be open?"

"We could still check out the cinema," Stephen said. "Even if they are here unless they answer the door, there is no way of knowing for sure one way or the other."

"Why not," Kylie agreed. "Let's go check out the cinema. At the very least, it will keep us busy, and our minds occupied. I am sure that, if we put our brains together, even if the theater doesn't pan out, we should be able to think up other places to check out."

Stephen looked at Kylie empathetically and said, "I am glad that you trust me enough to allow me to be of some service to you. I am glad to have you as a friend."

"I am glad to have you as a friend, too," Kylie replied.

Two movies were playing at the cinema, and they had both been directed by Miller, which meant that the theater was extremely busy. To make matters even worse, ever since she had made the papers, random people had begun to approach and accost her wherever she went, and it was even worse here, where her name was associated with Miller's. Once Stephen recognized the problem, though, he found her a mask to cover her identity.

After all that effort, it was unfortunate that they didn't find Ethan or Dora. Already, it was beginning to feel like they never would.

"Is it possible that they are not at the cinema?" Kylie wondered. "Now that I think about it, he doesn't even like going to the movies…"

"Well," Stephen sighed, "don't you think you should have mentioned that earlier?!?!?!?"

"I'm sorry," Kylie cried. "My thoughts are so jumbled up; I am not thinking clearly."

Stephen gave Kylie a big hug, and she clung to him like a drowning man who'd just been thrown a lifeline. "Don't worry," Stephen whispered as he rubbed her back. "Tomorrow is Old Mr. Parker's birthday party. I can't imagine Ethan not showing up. At the very least, the two of you should be able to talk then."