We were stymied in our attempt to contact Izzie’s school friend, the Ukrainian mayor of Skala, Ivan Kowalyszen. Tateh knew him too, and believed in the mayor’s reputation as a decent and reasonable man. Each night when we cased the mayor’s residence, there was a German shepherd on a chain in the front yard. The smallest movement would set the animal to loud barking, and sometimes this would bring a police deputy forth from inside the house to investigate. Clearly the mayor’s house was under police guard, and that prevented us from attempting an approach.