“And you plan to prevent that by . . . ?”
Lia paused, thinking. “Maybe,” she said, “by looking at the situation from a different angle than the police are. From the inside out, you might say. I’ve noticed in just about every crime show I’ve seen that people freeze up a little when they’re asked questions by the police. And they hold back things, thinking that the little tidbit they know couldn’t possibly be important enough to mention. But they might share it with someone like me, or you.”
“Me?”
“You’re good at talking to people, Hayley. You always have been. And you said you love Crandalsburg. This could give you a chance to get to know it better. As long as you’re careful, of course, and don’t let on about what you’re going after.
Hayley smiled. “And talking to craft fair vendors might give me some ideas, too. I mean career ideas.” She reached over to Daphne to stroke her soft fur.
“Oh?”
“Right. I’ve been thinking a little about what I might like to do instead of marketing. I used to love making baskets, remember?”
“Hayley, that was back in Girl Scouts.”
“I know, but I could do more with it. Or maybe make cupcakes. That’s a big thing now.”
It wasn’t exactly what Lia had in mind when suggesting Hayley could help out. She’d wanted to keep her active and not moping around the house. Cupcakes? Good heavens! But Lia said, “Talking to the vendors about their own work would be interesting, certainly, but my hope is that it would bring out something useful for clearing Belinda.”
“Sure, Mom. But might as well aim for both, right?”
“Right.” Lia drained her coffee mug and stood. “First things first. I should get a few things started for dinner.”
“Let me take you out. I never did that for Mother’s Day, you know.” When Lia hesitated, she added, “And if we’re out and about, I can start getting to know Crandalsburgers. Ha! Sounds like they come with ketchup and onions! But you know what I mean. We won’t make any progress by staying at home.”
Lia smiled. That was her goal, after all. How much they might learn while sitting in a restaurant was debatable, but with Hayley, one never knew. “Okay. Let’s try Hoffman’s,” she said, naming a family-run place that wasn’t too expensive. “With luck, they’ll have a table available.”
Lia changed from her comfortable at-home clothes to a knee-length skirt and a nice top. Hayley, though, had merely run a brush through her hair and added a touch of pink lip gloss, staying with her jeans and tee. A bit more casual than Lia thought was appropriate before quickly correcting herself. Not appropriate for herself, necessarily. But twentysomethings, she was aware, approached it differently. Clean and/or relatively new was dressing up for them. And she had to admit her daughter looked lovely as usual and relaxed, both very good things.
They walked the few blocks to the town center, where Hoffman’s was located, the number of pedestrians gradually increasing as they closed in. The mild weather and a Friday night had drawn many, like them, from their homes. Lia saw a policeman up ahead, strolling and nodding to greeters, and she noticed Hayley staring at him. As they drew closer, Hayley cried, “I don’t believe it!”
“What?” Lia asked.
Hayley darted forward. “Brady! Brady McCormick. Is that you?”
The officer turned, and Lia saw the stunned look on the officer’s face gradually replaced by a huge grin. “Hayley Geiger! What are you doing here?”
“What am I doing? Never mind that. What are you doing here? And in a police uniform!” Hayley gave the young man a hug, which, Lia noticed, brought a flush to his face that nearly matched his red hair.
Lia caught up with her daughter, who turned to her. “Mom, this is Brady McCormick. We were in drama class together at Mercer,” she said, naming their high school.
“And social studies,” Brady added. “And English.”
“That’s right! So what are you doing here in Crandalsburg?”
“I’m on the police force.”
“Well, obviously! But why here?”
“After high school, I joined the army. When I got out, I took classes at the community college, which helped get me into the police academy. When I graduated, Crandalsburg had an opening, so here I am.”
“Wow! That’s so cool!”
“Your parents must be very proud of you,” Lia said. She’d never met his parents, or Brady, either. But he certainly came across as pride-worthy.
Brady acknowledged Lia’s comment with a modest smile and asked Hayley, “So what are you doing here? Do you live in Crandalsburg?” Lia thought he looked hopeful.
“No, my mom does. I live in Philly, but that might change. Who knows, I might end up here! Hey, Brady, it’s so neat running into you like this. We have to keep in touch.” Hayley whipped out her cell phone, and they exchanged numbers, Brady taking great pains to get hers right.
Hayley and Lia left him to his police duties, which, as far as Lia could tell, consisted at the moment of strolling the very well-behaved beat of Crandalsburg’s town center. If she were his mother, she would hope that would be the worst he’d be called on to do.
* * *
* * *
I don’t remember you mentioning Brady before,” Lia said as she scanned the menu at Hoffman’s. “Did you know each other well?” The German-themed restaurant, she found, offered dishes like sauerbraten and bratwurst along with lighter fare.
“Hardly at all.” Hayley flipped a page in her menu.
“Then why so eager to reconnect?”
Hayley looked up, her lip pulled to one side. “Maybe a little bit of guilt?”
“Guilt?”
“I think I was a bit of a snobby brat back in high school. Brady was a nice guy, but kind of quiet, and he didn’t fit in with my group of friends, my clique.” Hayley made air quotes along with an eye roll. “I’d like to make up for that.”
Lia nodded. “The teen years tend to be self-centered ones. Not everyone gets an opportunity to make things right. So you’re not interested in Brady other than that?”
“Mom, it’s not like back in your day. Not every boy-girl thing has to be a romance. Now girls have guy friends all the time and vice versa.”
“My day wasn’t exactly in the Victorian age,” Lia said with a laugh, “but, yes, I realize that some things have changed.” Lia was pretty sure that the look she’d seen on Brady’s face when Hayley hugged him was not “guy friend,” but she let it drop. “So you’ll come to the craft fair tomorrow?”