 Before she goes to the Cabot Cove carnival with Seth, Jessica notices some jewelry is missing- she was burglarized. Sheriff Mort Metzger gets reports from other victims but is most surprised after 22 years to meet Joanna Sims again, a college girlfriend who ran off with then jock Don Sims; she s now the traveling carnival s assistant manager. Jessica and Seth are surprised to hear from Don s co-owner Carl Dormer that the carnival brought very little money in despite good attendance, according to him people just didn t spend money, but young local grosser Richard Binyon even spends $100 as thank-you for great sales. Juggler Nicodemus  Nicky  Newton accepts someone s order to break in and look at the carnivals books. Toby Grant, who works as the roustabout for a year to finance going to college, meets up with local volunteer Lisa Farrel, who gives Jessica a tally copy confirming the income. Joanna surprises Nicky going trough Dormer s desk in his trailer, according to him looking for his knife-throwing "victim" s partner s engagement ring, but thinks they are in cahoots. Richard and Seth are picked from the audience as reluctant volunteers for magician Dormer s pickpocket act, which embarrassingly includes some of their cloths. Lisa feels for Toby, who was publicly chewed at by Dormer, and agrees to meet up after the show closes at night; in stead she witnesses a masked man stab Dormer and runs. Joanna finds the corps on a ride. When Mort tells Joanna Don has an inheritance motive, she tells she saw Nick, who refuses to give his alibi, claiming to have taken on oath not to tell, but after a tip from Carmen she saw Nick talking with a Lighthouse Motel guest they identify him- it s Sherman Hastings from the IRS, who asked Nick s help to investigate black bookkeeping. Jessica sees that Don watched Toby telling her Lisa refuses to see him, probably fearing he might be the masked killer, and races away; Mort arrests Joanna, thinking they murdered Carl after finding out his scam. Jessica believes the couple s denial, as Don, who is soon apprehended, couldn t be the burglar and the murderer used a stolen antique knife, then realizes the significance of something resembling a wallet...