“Maybe we can help him out with that too,” Missy offered. “But we’re going to have to talk to him. Ava, I promise you I’ll make sure he knows you aren’t in trouble. What you did was wrong, but it was also very brave. You were just trying to take care of your family the only way you knew how. And now you know you can come to me instead of doing that, right?”
“Okay,” Ava said, sounding a little relieved. “I guess I have to admit that I done wrong, but I don’t think you can keep me from getting in trouble. He’s probably going to be pretty mad.”
“Is there anything else you’ve been needing, Ava?” Missy asked. “Anything you haven’t told your dad about, because you don’t want him to worry?”
“My brother and I both have shoes that are pinching our toes,” she admitted.
“How about if Holly takes you and your brother inside to see if we have any shoes in your sizes?” Missy asked as she looked up at Holly. “Is that okay with you, Holly?”
“Fine by me,” Holly said. “I know where they are.” She turned to Ava. “Why don’t we go look for your brother while Missy talks to your dad?”
Ava looked nervously from Holly to Missy. “I’m not supposed to go where he can’t see me,” she explained.
“I’m going over to speak with your dad right now. I can see him from here,” Missy said pointing. “I’ll tell him where you are and that you’re with someone who can be trusted, okay?”
Ava nodded and tugged on Holly’s hand. “Come on. Let’s go get Chris!”
Holly allowed Ava to pull her towards her brother who had climbed off the merry-go-round and was now digging in the sand pit.
“Hey, Chris,” she said as she got closer to him. “I found a way for us to get better shoes.” She looked around to make sure the other kids weren’t paying attention, which they weren’t. Holly’s heart ached. They’d probably been picked on before for talking about things like shoes that didn’t fit or other things they didn’t have.
“Really?” he asked as he looked up at his sister and then at Holly. “How?”
“You’ll have to come with us,” she said waving her hand. “Missy is going to tell Daddy where we are.”
Chris looked apprehensive, but when his sister reached for his hand, he let her take it. She pulled him to his feet and they followed Holly towards the church.
“Why are we getting new shoes?” Chris asked as they walked.
Ava looked conflicted on how to explain it all to her brother. She bit her lip and looked nervous.
“They aren’t going to be brand new,” Holly explained. “But they’ll fit better than what you have on. Missy found out you guys needed them, so she asked me to take you to find some that fit better.”
A family walked in front of them and Chris waved to the little boy who waved back. “Is it kinda’ like the other day when you brought home all that food, Ava? Wow, that was the best day ever,” he exclaimed. “She even brought me a candy bar! It was so good, but to be honest, I wish I had another one.” He looked down at the ground sadly.
“Do you like funnel cake?” Holly asked, getting an idea.
“I love it!” Chris said. “We used to get them all the time before…” He let his sentence trail off.
“Before our mom left,” Ava explained. Both kids looked saddened by the mention of their mom, and Holly once again felt badly for them.
“Well then, how about once we’re finished picking out some shoes, I buy you guys a funnel cake and a slush?” Holly offered.
“Can we both have one?” Chris asked happily as he clapped his hands.
Ava turned quickly toward him. “Shush, don’t be rude,” she chided him.
“Sure, you can both have one, and you can choose whatever color you want,” Holly nodded. “But first we’ll take care of your shoes. Does it hurt when you walk?” she asked.
Ava nodded. “Most of the time we don’t wear them if we can help it.”
“I can understand that,” Holly nodded. “I once had shoes that were so small, they started giving me blisters where they rubbed against my feet. I could hardly walk, and I started getting teased about the way I walked,” she explained.
“Sometimes people can be mean when they don’t understand things.” They were at the church doors, and Holly held them open for the kids. It was nice there was a park so close to the church. Whenever the church put on a gathering like this, the children could play close by.
“You didn’t get to have new shoes either?” Chris asked, surprised.
“Nope,” she said shaking her head. They continued through the church as they spoke. “Like I told Ava, my mom didn’t do a real great job of taking care of me when I was younger. I had to worry about food and sometimes how I was going to pay our bills. I’d have to wear my clothes until they got holes in them.”
“Our daddy pays the bills and stuff, but there isn’t always a whole lot left over. ‘Specially after we go and buy food,” he said sadly.
They reached the door that led to the room where Missy stored the donated clothes, and Holly opened the door. Inside there were multiple plastic bins where all the organized clothing was located. Shirts, pants, shoes, and more were carefully arranged so people could easily find what they were looking for.
“Why don’t you guys take off your shoes, and we’ll look for your newer ones? Let me see your shoes, so I know what size to look for,” Holly instructed.
Both children sat on the ground and began tugging off their shoes. As she watched, Holly noticed that their socks were getting small and thin. She knew Missy kept socks with the shoes and made a mental note to get them both some.
“Here’s mine!” Chris said as he jumped up and handed her his shoes. Holly lifted the tongue and looked closely at the size. After reading the number, she looked along the bins until she found the right one and pulled it out.
“Okay, here are your choices,” she said as she pulled off the lid. There were a few different pairs and just as she knew there would be, there were also pairs of socks. “Why don’t you take your socks off, too? They look like they’ve seen better days. I’ll give each of you a new pair.”
Chris pulled them off as she handed him a fresh pair. He looked down into the bin and smiled. “You mean I can choose any of these?”
“You sure can. Just make sure you try them on and that they fit before you decide on a pair. We can always look at a bigger size if we need to,” she explained. She’d already gone up an extra size from what he’d been wearing, but she knew that it was tough to say for sure what size shoes he needed now. She turned to Ava who had been patiently waiting.
“Here’s mine,” she said softly. She was looking around at all the containers of shoes and seemed a little overwhelmed.
“You okay?” Holly asked.
She gave a curt nod. “Yeah, I’m okay.”
“What are you thinking about?” Holly asked while Chris marveled over the shoes and struggled to decide which pair he should choose.
“Well,” she began. “I was wondering if we might be able to get some clothes before school starts? All of mine are starting to get too small for me,” she explained.
“I’m sure that won’t be a problem,” Holly said. “We’ll talk to Missy about it later. She might be able to find extra stuff that’s your size if you give her some time. She’s got people from all around Cottonwood Springs who donate their old clothes, money, and more to the church. If you need something, she can help.”
Holly took Ava’s shoe and looked at the size before searching for the correct bin. “Here we are,” Holly said as she pulled it down for Ava to look in. “We’ll get you a new pair of socks too.”
Ava quickly tugged hers off and tossed them to the side before taking the new ones from Holly.
“Hey guys, look!” Chris said excitedly. “Aren’t these cool?”
Both girls turned to see that Chris had found a pair of dark blue shoes with orange trim. He seemed extremely pleased with his choice.
“The
y’re awesome,” Holly said excitedly. “Are those the ones you want?”
“Oh yeah,” he said grinning.
Holly’s phone made a noise letting her know she had a message. She pulled it out of her pocket and saw that it was from Missy. She read it and turned to the kids. “Once we’re done here, we’re going to meet your dad and Missy in the chapel. We’ll talk there for a little while before the fireworks begin.”
“We aren’t going to miss them, are we?” Chris asked.
“Nope, you’ll still get to see them,” Holly said. “It shouldn’t take long.” She smiled as Chris went back to jumping and running in place as if he was a superhero. It was amazing what new shoes could do for a child who had gone too long without them.
CHAPTER 19
Ava had chosen her new shoes, a black pair with dark pink details, and they left the old pairs behind. Holly had tossed the socks in the trash when the kids weren’t looking, but left the shoes off to the side. They weren’t worn out, only too small. She hoped Missy could pass them on to someone they might fit after they were cleaned up. If not, she could do what she wanted with them.
“You guys ready to go see your dad?” Holly asked. “You can show him your cool new shoes.”
“Yeah, Avie! Let’s go show Daddy,” Chris said as he dashed out into the hall. Ava wasn’t moving nearly as fast as her brother.
“It’s going to be okay,” Holly reassured her.
“My dad’s not mean or anything,” Ava began. “It’s just… I know he’s going to be upset with me.” She began biting her lip again before looking down at her new shoes. “I knew better and I did something wrong, but I don’t feel bad because all this good stuff is happening,” she said, confused.
“I get it,” Holly said carefully as she paused in the doorway. “You almost feel like you’re getting rewarded for doing something you’ve always been told not to do,” she explained.
“Yeah, kinda’,” Ava admitted.
“You’re right, Ava, you shouldn’t have stolen the food. Stealing is wrong,” Holly began. “But I’ll bet you tried to think of some better way a lot of times, right?”
Ava nodded. “Oh yeah, tons of times.”
“The way I see it, you were doing something wrong for the right reasons. We all make mistakes, and we don’t deserve to have them held over us forever. I’m not saying you won’t end up being grounded or have to help Missy with something. That’s for the grownups to decide, but I think you’ll see that they’ll react to it differently than you might think. Don’t ever do it again, though,” Holly emphasized.
“I won’t,” she said shaking her head. “I felt terrible for doing it. Honest. I’d actually feel better if I did some work for Missy to pay her back. I just didn’t know how to get money.”
“I think you should tell her that,” Holly said as her heart swelled with emotion. Ava wasn’t a bad kid. It was plain to see she didn’t plan on doing this again. She’d learned her lesson. She hadn’t been out looking for a thrill or anything like that. She’d simply acted out of necessity.
The three of them walked down the hall together in silence. Chris was too distracted by the excitement of getting new shoes and the prospect of a funnel cake to worry about much else. He was blissfully unaware of his sister’s unease.
When they entered the chapel, they saw Missy and the kids’ father sitting in the front pew. Holly had seen the man before somewhere, but it was a small town, so that wasn’t unexpected. His eyes were kind, but his eyebrows were pushed together with worry. He didn’t look very old, but from the dark circles under his eyes, it was plain to see that he’d hadn’t been sleeping well.
“Daddy!” cried Chris. “I have something to show you!”
“Oh, do ya’?” the man asked, brightening. “Let’s see what it is.”
The boy put his foot up on the pew beside his dad. “Check these out. Aren’t they cool?” he asked eagerly. “And they don’t hurt my feet like the others did, so I can run really fast again.” He ran in place to show his father just how quick he could move now.
“Whoa there, big guy. You better watch those fast feet,” his dad said quickly. “You might end up catching the carpet on fire.”
Chris stopped immediately, his eyes wide. “You think?” he asked excitedly.
“Hey, Chris,” Missy said, “Why don’t you run a couple of laps around the edge of chapel?”
Chris looked dumbfounded. “You mean, I can run inside the church?” he asked.
“Absolutely,” Missy said, nodding. Chris took off and began to dash around the edge of the chapel as fast as his little feet could take him. He didn’t want to waste any time in case she changed her mind.
“Charlie, this is Holly Lewis. She’s the one that I was telling you I had helping me,” Missy said as she introduced them.
“Before you start, there’s something I’d like to say,” Ava said with her head down. She looked up at Missy with wide eyes. “I know what I did was wrong, and I’d like to repay you by working for you, if that’s okay?”
Missy and Charlie looked dumbfounded. “Where did you come up with that plan?” Charlie asked.
“Holly helped me come up with it,” she explained. “I wouldn’t feel right about it any other way.”
“Yes, that would be great,” Missy said. “I’m certain I can come up with a few ways you can help me out around here. The good news is, your dad is going to come help too,” she said beaming.
“Is that true?” Ava asked her dad.
“It is,” Charlie agreed. “And Missy is going to help me start my own repair business, so I can be home with you more,” he explained. “But I want you to know that while you did something wrong, I’m proud of you for trying to help. There will be consequences, but I think you chose a good way to start making up for what you did.”
“Okay,” Ava nodded. She was visibly relieved she wasn’t in more trouble.
“Your dad has talked to me about some of your family’s immediate needs. I’m going to make a few calls and see if we can’t get some of it sorted out. In the meantime, you kids can go ahead and play while your dad and I finish talking. Holly, you wouldn’t mind watching them a few more minutes, would you?” Missy asked.
“Not at all,” Holly said as she shook her head. “I actually promised them a funnel cake.”
“Perfect,” Missy said with a smile. “We won’t be that long.”
“Hey, Chris,” Holly called out. “You ready for that funnel cake?”
“You bet I am!” he cried out as he turned around and ran for the front doors.
CHAPTER 20
Missy was true to her word. After Holly had gotten Ava and Chris a funnel cake and their slushes, their dad, Charlie, had come looking for them. They eagerly shared their treats with him, and Holly slipped away. She felt as though she’d done her part. Now it was time to return to her people.
“Hey, beautiful,” she heard someone say as Wade appeared out of the crowd. “Where have you been?”
“I was just finishing something up with Missy,” she shrugged. “But I’m good now. How come you’re here? I thought you had to work tonight.”
“I did, but since there weren’t many guests at the resort, they told me I didn’t have to. So I thought it’d be fun to show up and surprise you,” he said with a grin.
She wrapped her arms around his neck before she kissed him. “Oh, that’s so awesome! I knew I was going to miss you, so the fact that you’re here makes this day so much better.” She took a step back and breathed a huge sigh. It was turning out to be a better evening than she’d ever thought. “Come on, let’s grab something to eat before it’s all gone.”
They walked together to the tables that still held what was left of the food. As they each took a plate, Wade motioned for her to go first before he began to speak. “So how are things going with the investigation? Have you been able to figure out who took the food?”
“I did,” Holly said nodding as she started to help herself to th
e food. “It was this young girl, Ava. Her dad is trying to take care of her and her younger brother by himself, so sometimes things get a little tight financially. She didn’t see any other way to feed them. It just broke my heart that they’re in that position. What’s even worse is the fact they aren’t the only ones. There are a number of people who are struggling to make ends meet and just need a leg up.
“Missy tries to help everyone, but I’m a little worried that helping everyone individually is going to end up being taxing on her.” Holly had been trying to come up with some sort of solution to the problem, but so far, nothing seemed like it was the answer.
They needed something that would mainly help the kids. She knew the adults were struggling too, but maybe if she was able to come up with a solution to feeding the kids over summer vacation, it would also financially help the adults.
“That makes sense,” Wade said. “Giving everyone food to make at home, for example, would cost more than just feeding them.” They continued to make their way down the line as Holly rolled her thoughts around in her mind. It was as if the idea was hiding there in the dark recesses of her mind and all she needed to do was coax it out with the right train of thought.
“So you’re saying, find a way to feed them, like maybe a couple of days a week,” she said as she looked down the table. “I mean, it wouldn’t even have to be as elaborate as this,” she began. “Kids are happy with grilled cheese sandwiches and french fries. At least I sure was.”
“That’s true,” Wade said nodding. “I went through one whole summer where all I wanted to eat was grilled cheese.”
They’d reached the end of the table, so they collected their plastic silverware and napkins before searching for a place to sit. Holly pointed at a nearby bench that was vacant, and they started walking that way.
“So you’re saying to have a summer lunch program for school-aged kids. That could work. After all, Cottonwood Springs isn’t that big of a town, so most of them could walk here or ride their bikes. The little kids would have to have a babysitter anyway, so they could come with their older brothers and sisters,” he said.
Holly Lewis Mystery series Box Set Page 36
