Page 38 of Steal My Heart

“Yes. They didn’t during COVID, but that’s about it.” Beverly seemed happy, and Hilliard liked when Brian settled hishand on his shoulder. “It’s all for the benefit of the Civic Club. They put this on every year and use the proceeds to help improve the village.”

“I remember going to this when I was a kid. They used to have carnival games, and I remember the year that I won all that candy.” Brian chuckled. “Gran took it and only let me have it a little at a time.”

“Can you blame me? You won at least half a dozen packages of chocolate. It was self-preservation, if you ask me. If you had eaten all that chocolate at one time, I’d have had to peel you off the ceiling.” Beverly seemed so happy. When they approached the carnival, Hilliard showed Beverly’s placard for special parking, and the volunteers directed him to a place near the entrance.

The afternoon sun was making an appearance, so Hilliard left the top down, got Poppy on her leash, and took charge of her. Once Beverly was out of the car, Brian wrangled Gigi.

“What’s the game plan?” Beverly asked.

“You have a good time and leave the questions to Hilliard,” Brian said.

“Poppycock. I want to shake down a suspect and make him crack,” Beverly teased. “I’d love it if I could get Frank in the hot seat. I’d like to see that weasel squirm.”

“Gran….”

She huffed. “Don’t worry. I’ll be good.” She patted Brian on the shoulder. Hilliard had a pretty good idea that if she got the chance, she had every intention of ignoring that promise.

“What do you want to do first?” Brian asked.

“Business before pleasure. I’ll go find Frank and see if we can shake a few leaves off the trees while you and Beverly see if you can find his kids.”

“What do we do if we find them?” Brian asked.

Hilliard smiled. “Scare them a little—and I know just how to do it.” He told Brian and Beverly exactly what he had in mind.

THE BASEBALLteam booth wasn’t quite what Hilliard expected. He thought it would be hot dogs and popcorn, but they were selling raffle tickets and something called sour-cream-and-chive fries. The older boys seemed to know the routine and made up the orders while the others helped customers, and a man nearing fifty oversaw everything. “Can I help you?” he asked Hilliard when he saw him watching.

“It’s like a well-oiled machine.” Hilliard smiled.

“We’ve been doing this for a while now.” He joined Hilliard out front. “I have one of the fathers in back cooking the fries, and the boys take it from there. These are an absolute favorite here.” He looked Hilliard over. “Are you a tourist or new in town?”

“I used to come here when I was a kid. I’m Grace Bauman’s great-nephew. She left me the house in her will, and I’m fixing it up and trying to figure out if I should resettle here. It’s a real nice place.”

“Frank Trainer. And it really is.” He shook Hilliard’s hand. “This is a special sort of place. It’s got a unique history of its own, and whenever you live here, you get immersed in the way this location gets wrapped up in your soul. Once Mendo gets inside, you never really want to leave.” He took a minute to help one of the boys before returning.

“How is the crime here? I’ve heard some rumors about a few burglaries.” Hilliard tilted his head slightly. “Trainer… why is that familiar? Yeah, Ruth was telling me that family was robbed some time ago.”

Frank’s expression didn’t change much, but the redness around his neck slipped upward. “That was my mother, and they caught the guy.” He sounded confident.

“That’s great. Was it recently? Ruth told me that the person they caught didn’t really do it.” He leaned closer. “One thing I found out—she loves to talk. I sat next to her at a church function, and she regaled me with stories.” Maybe he was laying it on thick, but he needed so see Frank’s reaction. “According to her, apparently the man they caught was somewhere else with his grandfather. I really hope they find the real thief. It must be nerve-racking to have that sort of thing happen in a place like this.” He sighed. “I’m very sorry for you and your family’s loss. I hope they find the real thief soon.” He stepped away to place an order for some fries and a raffle ticket before leaving the booth.

He turned like he was going to leave, but instead he settled on a bench under a nearby tree to eat and watch. Frank spoke to a man and his son as they approached the booth, and then Frank was off, striding around the edge of the field like a man on a mission.

Keeping him in sight, Hilliard tossed the empty package into a nearby trash can and followed Frank toward town. There were plenty of people around him as cover. Frank didn’t seem too concerned about being seen or followed, though Hilliard did his best to stay out of sight. As he rounded the corner toward the main street, he paused as Frank stood outside the grocery store and pulled out his phone.

“Where are you?” he asked. “I need to talk to you now.” He waited. “I’m near the pub.” He hung up, and Hilliard stayed across the street and watched through the crowds of people as Frank began pacing. Pretty soon, his two sons hurried up, both looking pale and worried.

“What did you tell Grandma?” one of the boys demanded as soon as they saw their father. “She sent people to talk to Kevin and me. I think she thinks we were the ones who stole her stuff.” He seemed truly upset, and Hilliard drew closer so he could hear better.

“Apparently the guy who was convicted has been proven innocent, and now your grandmother is determined to find out who really stole from her.” The look he gave his boys told Hilliard plenty. Frank thought one or both of the boys could be the culprits.

“But we didn’t do it,” Kendall said. “We’d never steal from Gran.” They each looked at the other, their expressions totally confused. Hilliard lost sight of them for a few seconds as a group of people passed in front of them, talking loudly.

“So help me, if either of you….” He glared at the boys, and Hilliard tried to put together what he was seeing.

“We never did. You should know that.” They seemed affronted and surprised at their father’s questioning.

“Like many people would believe you,” Frank said with a glare. Jesus, these boys had a tough road ahead of them if their father didn’t trust them. Granted, from what Hilliard had seen and gathered from others, these kids weren’t known for their good behavior, but he could only imagine how much it hurt to have your parent doubt you like that.

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