Perry thought some. "Not exactly. But in a way. It wasn't us." Death smiled. "Thank you." Perry straightened up. "Looks like you brought down a good crowd," he said. "Lots of friends!" Death nodded. "Lots of friends these days," he said. An attractive young woman came over and squeezed his shoulder. They were such a funny bunch in their DIY goth-frocks, micro-manufactured customized boots, their elaborate tattoos and implants and piercings, but for all that, cuddly and earnest with the shadows visible of the geeks they'd been. Perry felt he was smiling so broadly it almost hurt. "Rides are on me, gang," he said. "In you go. Your money's no good here. Any friend of Death Waits rides for free today." They cheered and patted him on the back as they went through, and Death Waits looked like he'd grown three inches in his wheelchair, and the pretty girl kissed Perry's cheek as she went by, and Death Waits had a smile so big you could hardly tell there was anything wrong with his mouth. They rode it through six times in a row, and as they came back around for another go and another, they talked intently about the story, the story, the story. Perry knew about the story, he'd seen it, and he and Lester had talked it over now and again, but he was still constantly amazed by its ability to inspire riders. Paying customers slipped in and out, too, and seemed to catch some of the infectious intensity of the story group. They went away in pairs, talking about the story, and shopped the market stalls for a while before coming back to ride again, to look for more story. They'd never named the ride. It had always been "the ride." Not even a capital "R." For a second, Perry wondered if they'd end up calling it "The Story" in the end. # Perry got his Disney-in-a-Box through a circuitous route, getting one of the hawkers' brothers to order it to a PO box in Miami, to which Perry would drive down to pick it up and take it back. Lester roused himself from the apartment when Perry told him it had arrived. Lester and Suzanne had been AWOL for days, sleeping in until Perry left, coming back after Perry came back, until it felt like they were just travelers staying in the same hotel. He hadn't heard a peep from Kettlewell or Tjan, either. He guessed that they were off figuring things out with their money people. The network of ride operators had taken the news with equanimity -- Hilda had helped him write the message so that it kind of implied that everything was under control and moving along nicely. But when Perry emailed Lester to say he was going to drive down to the PO box the next morning before opening the ride, Lester emailed back in minutes volunteering to come with him. He had coffee ready by the time Perry got out of the shower. It was still o-dark-hundred outside, the sun not yet risen, and they hardly spoke as they got into the car, but soon they were on the open road.