“It’s one night on a college campus. And why are you so gung ho on the carnival?” She pointed a fry at Riley. “Wait. Are you all into the carnival, or is your alter ego, Jane O’Leary, all into it?”
Riley rolled her eyes. “Neither of us are really into clowns and carnies, but both of us are into getting volunteer hours.”
“So you admit it! You’re one of those kids on a missing poster!”
Riley rolled her eyes. “You know what? I can’t wait until you get a concussion in the dunking booth. Anything to make you stop talking about the birth certificate. You have me freaking out and thinking horrible things about my parents.”
“They have done horrible things.” She made the universal face for “gag.” “Like buying rice chips and seaweed.”
Riley wiped her palms on her jeans and straightened her green and white Hawthorne Hornets bow. “Are you ready to go?”
Shelby leveled the giant hornet head over her own. “I really can’t believe they let you run the change booth and they made me the stupid hornet.”
“Hey!” Riley frowned. “Henry the Hornet is a beloved mascot. And if you didn’t fail math this year, Mr. Rose would trust you to count money. Your stinger is sagging, by the way.”
Shelby grunted inside the giant, fabric-covered hornet head. “Just for that, I’m sending all the creepy clowns to your booth.”
Riley spent the evening making change and nursing a large Coke. Shelby hadn’t made good on her promise, but Riley kept an eye on her anyway, catching Henry’s giant hornet head as Shelby waddled through the crowd, her antennae bobbing with each step. The crowds were starting to die down, and Riley yawned then waved across the midway to where Shelby was hiding out—a little shadowed V underneath the Tilt-A-Whirl.
Riley beckoned her over.
“I can’t believe you’re still in that ridiculous costume. I thought you would have ditched it hours ago.”
Henry the Hornet shrugged.
“Can you watch my booth? I’ve had to pee since we walked in.” Riley edged her way out of the booth and beelined through the crowd, not waiting for Shelby to answer. She was halfway back when Shelby—sans Henry costume—sidled up next to her.
“Hey! Who’s watching my booth?”
Shelby shrugged. “I give up. Who’s watching your booth?”
“It’s not a joke; it’s a question. You were supposed to be watching it.”
Shelby’s eyebrows rose. “Did you find one of those vodka Slurpees?”
“Shelbs, I’m serious! How did you get out of your Henry costume so fast?”
“I’ve been out of that thing for hours. Paid Trevor Gallagher ten bucks to take over.”
Heat snaked up Riley’s spine. She pointed. “Trevor Gallagher is right there.”
“No, he’s—who the hell is wearing the Henry costume?”
Henry’s big head bobbed up and cocked, his enormous bug eyes seeming to pin Riley back. He raised a hand and waved then turned on his heel and disappeared behind a bank of food carts.
Riley yanked her purse out from under the booth and searched through it then pulled out the cash box. “It doesn’t look like he took anything.”
“But who the hell was that? Hey, Trevor!” Shelby yelled.
Trevor trotted over, giving a short nod to Riley.
Shelby put her hands on her hips. “You were paid good money to be Henry. He’s a beloved mascot!”
Trevor shrugged. “You paid me ten bucks to be Henry for an hour.”
“Then who is Henry right now?”
“I don’t know. I took that thing off the minute the hour was up. That head smells like ass. I should have asked for fifty bucks.”
“Well, where did you put it after you took it off?” Riley asked.
“Back in the band box. Geez, lay off.” Trevor turned away, disappearing back into the crowd.
Riley found Henry again.
“There he is. Stay here.” Riley jogged across the fairway, poking her head behind the food carts. She saw Henry’s giant antennae snaking around a taco truck. “Hey!” She followed him around the corner, but it was only Henry’s head, settled over the folded hornet costume.
“So?” Shelby jogged up behind her, Riley’s purse slung over her shoulder, the change in the cash box rattling as she ran.
Riley shrugged. “I don’t know. Whoever it was changed and left the costume right here.”
“OK, so we have a random person who likes to run around in a stolen hornet costume. That is gross on so many levels.”
She handed Riley her purse and the cash box and gathered up the Henry costume.
“I have to go turn this back in. Turn in the cashbox and meet me at the car, OK?”
Riley nodded, even as unease pricked out all over her. She grabbed the back of Shelby’s shirt and followed her out of the food truck shadows and onto the well-lit fairway.
“I just got the chills.”
“I’m thinking someone in a stolen hornet costume will do that to you,” Shelby said with a grin.
Riley dropped off the cashbox and was waiting at Shelby’s car, tapping her foot. “Where the hell are you, Shelby?”