The Aldens decided to return to the festival grounds to talk with Raymond. They wanted to find out if he had gone back to the rehearsal studio the night before, or if he had given the security code to anyone else.
“Alan seems to think Raymond is totally innocent,” Violet said.
“But the others didn’t seem as sure,” Henry reminded her.
When the Aldens got to the stage, they quickly realized Raymond was nowhere to be found. Then the children spotted the tall thin man with the beard and the black beret. He was on his knees, working with some wires.
“Excuse me, sir?” Henry asked. The man didn’t seem to hear at first, so Henry asked him again.
The man looked up and smiled. “Oh, hi. Sorry I didn’t hear you. I get so involved when I’m doing electrical work. Anyway, I’m surprised to see you. I thought you’d left for the day!”
“No, we just had to go over to the Greenfield Four’s rehearsal studio.”
“So I guess you heard about their instruments being taken,” the man said.
“We’re going to try to find them!” Benny said.
“That’s terrific. Can I help?”
“Actually, you can,” Jessie told him. “There was a person here earlier, helping out. His name was Raymond. Have you seen him?”
“He’s their roadie, right?” the bearded man asked.
“Yes, that’s him!” Violet replied.
The man got to his feet and patted his forehead with a handkerchief. It was very hot, and his eyes were blinking from the bright sunlight.
“I saw him go over there about twenty minutes ago,” he said, pointing towards the fairground’s main building. “He hasn’t come back since,” the man added.
“Thanks,” Jessie said.
The children had been in the main building before to see a play.
They went through the glass doors at the front, and they found themselves standing in a huge airy lobby. On one wall, there were old posters from past events. The Greenfield Four was on a few of them, the Aldens noticed. Sometimes they were the first band listed. Other times they were second, always beneath another band called “Danny and the Duotones.”
“I remember hearing Alan talk about that group,” Violet said. “Remember, the other night, while they were practicing?”
Henry nodded. “He said something about how much Danny would love to play for the man from the record company.”
“It seems like they’ve been rivals for a long time,” Violet said.
“What is a ‘rival?’ ” Benny asked.
“A rival is someone who wants the same thing that you do,” Jessie told her brother.
At that moment, they heard a familiar voice—it was Raymond, in a nearby hallway, talking to someone.
The Aldens went over there slowly, and when they peered around the corner they saw him—on a pay phone.
“We shouldn’t be listening to his private conversation,” Jessie said.
Henry agreed. “Let’s wait for him outside.”
But as they turned to go, they couldn’t help overhearing Raymond say, “That’s right, it looks like the Greenfield Four will lose their big chance now.”
Jessie held her breath. Who was Raymond talking to?
“They don’t have anything to play with,” Raymond went on. “No guitars, no keyboards, nothing. They lost it all. Looks like you’re the one who got lucky. Will you be ready to go on in their place if they can’t get their act back together?” Raymond asked. “Yeah? Okay, good. Then I’ll be over to give you a hand in a few minutes. Bye.”
The children hurried back outside before Raymond saw them. They watched from behind some bushes as Raymond hopped onto his bike and rode off.
“Was he talking to someone from another band?” Jessie wondered.
“Maybe we should get on our own bikes and see where he’s going,” Violet suggested.
Henry nodded. “Good idea, Violet,” he replied. “Let’s go.”
The Aldens were careful to follow Raymond from a safe distance—they didn’t want to risk having him notice them. At one point, as they passed through the center of town, he actually stopped, turned around, and waved. But he wasn’t waving at them. It was someone passing by in a car. The Aldens felt very relieved when they saw the driver wave back.
Raymond cut through town and went into one of Greenfield’s quieter areas, with lots of large, beautiful homes. He turned onto Knickerbocker Road. When the Aldens reached the corner, they saw that he had disappeared!
“Where’d he go?” Violet wondered, looking in every direction.
Knickerbocker Road had tall, handsome oak trees on either side. Neighborhood children were playing on the sidewalks, and cars were parked here and there—but there was no sign of Raymond.
“I’m sure he went down this street,” Henry said, scratching his head. “Or did I imagine it?”
“Well, if you did,” Jessie told him, “then we all did!”
“Okay,” Henry replied, “then let’s keep going and see what happens. Keep your eyes and ears open.”
They cycled on, watching and listening very carefully. But there was no sign of Raymond. Did he really just disappear?
“Maybe he did know we were following him and hid somewhere,” Jessie suggested. “Behind a bush or a car or something.”
“I was thinking the same thing,” Henry said. “If he’s sneaky enough to steal all those instruments without anyone knowing, then he’s probably sneaky enough to—”
Henry’s bicycle suddenly squealed to a stop. The other three Aldens stopped right behind him. He had spotted a house with its garage door up.
“Look!” Henry said.
Raymond’s bicycle was parked in the driveway. But what really caught the Aldens’ attention was the open garage. Inside, the garage looked like a rehearsal studio. There was a drum kit, several keyboards, one big piano, a collection of horns, a few guitars—including one that had a very unusual design. Violet gasped when she saw that the body was painted with bright autumn leaves.
“It’s Alan’s guitar!” she whispered in shock.
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