Cook was scrubbing the table vigorously. “For certain, miss! The little prince’s crown wasn’t left in here. I would’ve seen it. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to get this cake into the oven.” She picked up the baking tin filled with cake mixture.
“I was only asking because the queen came in here earlier.” Miss Parnell shook her head and sniffed. “If you’re sure, I won’t take up any more of your time.”
“I am sure and there was no need for you to go poking around whilst I was getting sugar from the pantry,” Cook replied tartly. “I hope you haven’t touched anything while I was out of the room.”
Jess, Millie and Jax ran into Jess’s room at the end of the passage just in time. Millie closed the door softly and they heard Miss Parnell marching away along the corridor.
“Take my oldest cloak and bonnet.” Jess pulled them from her wardrobe. “No one will think you’re the princess in these!”
“Thanks, Jess!” Millie put them on, wrapping the cloak over her ball dress and tying the bonnet string under her chin. The cloak had been patched several times and the bonnet string was frayed. They made Millie look very poor indeed.
Jess put on another cloak and opened the chamber door a little. “It’s all clear. C’mon, Jax! You’ll get your walk at last.”
The girls crept down the passageway and out of the back door. Running across the stable yard, they took the path that led to the lake. Jess glanced back. The white-stone palace gleamed in the morning sun.
Jess, Millie and Jax sped round a corner and the lake came into view. A playful breeze was chasing little white clouds across the sky and ruffling the surface of the water. The lake was wide at each end with a narrow stretch in the middle, spanned by a wooden bridge. Jess and Millie sometimes wished they could go out on the water, but the boats were always safely locked inside the wooden boathouse.
Jess glanced round quickly before dashing across the bridge with Millie and Jax close behind her. They ran up to a clump of bushes on the other side and Jax’s lead got tangled on the branches.
“Hold on! I can see where it’s stuck.” Millie took the lead from Jess and untangled it.
Beyond the bushes was a black iron fence that separated the palace grounds from the city of Plumchester. Jess ran her hand along the railings. She needed to find the loose one. Which one was it?
One of the railings tilted sideways. Jess moved it out of the way. “You and Jax go first,” she told Millie.
Millie pushed the spaniel through the gap and squeezed through after him. Jess followed. Then they ran along a narrow lane and stopped at the corner of Peveril Street, the wide road that ran past the palace.
“There he is!” said Jess, spotting Mr Steen’s lanky figure in the distance. “Maybe he’s heading for Halfpenny Square.”
A horse and cart blocked their view for a moment. The girls crossed the street and hurried past a row of shops. They stopped at the entrance to a bustling market. This was Halfpenny Square where the market traders of Plumchester came to sell their goods.
“Where is he?” Jess stared around. “I can’t see him at all.”
“Look! He’s going into Emerald Alley.” Millie pointed at the little side street. “He must be going to a jeweller’s shop.”
Jess’s heart thudded. “Then maybe he really does have the crown in that box. He might be planning to sell it for a lot of money. Quick – we’re going to lose him.”
They pelted down the street, dodging fruit stalls and earning sharp words from a man taking cabbages off a cart. Stopping at the corner, they peered into the side street where Mr Steen had turned.
Emerald Alley was a small lane with four jeweller’s shops in a row. Mr Steen disappeared into the shop on the end – Mr Kinner’s Fine Jewels. Millie and Jess ran to the window and peeped in.
Inside were glass cabinets filled with gold watches, pearl necklaces and diamond rings. Mr Steen spoke to the shopkeeper, a small man with round spectacles, before coming out again. Jess and Millie ducked behind a wall to hide.
“You and Jax follow Mr Steen,” Jess whispered to Millie. “I’ll go inside and find out if he sold that man the crown.”
Millie nodded. “Be careful!”
Jess waited till the butler had walked into the next shop. Then, taking a deep breath, she went in. The shop was dimly lit which made the jewellery look even more dazzling. A ruby necklace caught Jess’s eye. It looked just as expensive as anything she’d seen at the palace.
“Yes, miss? Can I help you?” asked the shopkeeper. His forehead wrinkled as if he couldn’t work out what she was doing there.
Jess was suddenly very aware of her plain cloak and mob cap. Maids didn’t have enough money to buy expensive things like this. “Erm … I just wondered … if it’s not too much trouble … if you could tell me whether you have anything new to sell today.”
“Anything new?” The jeweller’s frown deepened.
“Yes, any new jewellery.” Jess’s cheeks flushed but she carried on. “I’m really looking for a crown, actually. A small one.”
“I don’t have any crowns for sale.” He glanced over Jess’s shoulder. “What’s going on, miss?”
Jess spun round. Millie was gesturing frantically from outside the window.
“Um, sorry,” Jess stammered. “I have to go!” And she dashed out of the shop.
Millie caught hold of her arm, saying breathlessly. “You’ll never believe it, Jess! I know what Mr Steen said to the woman in the next shop. It was easy to hear because the window was open! He was asking her whether they could make another crown to replace the one that’s lost. He got a drawing out of that chest and a bag of money.”
“He’s asking them if they can make another Baby Diamond Crown?” said Jess. “Why is he trying to fix everything if he was the one that stole it?”
Millie’s shoulders sank. Jax whined and licked her hand. “Maybe he isn’t the thief after all. The trouble is – the jeweller told him it would take weeks to copy the drawings and make another crown, and the new one still wouldn’t be as good.” She blinked back tears. “What are we going to do, Jess? Edward can’t go to his birthday party without the Baby Diamond Crown. Everyone’s expecting to see him wearing it.”
Jess was silent for a moment. She hated to see Millie so upset. “We should go back to the palace and search again. Maybe the thief left a clue behind when they took the crown. We can’t give up. We just can’t!”
Millie smiled faintly. “You’re right! We’ve still got a whole day to find it.” She held out her little finger. “Double Trouble?”
Jess grinned. This was what she and Millie did when they’d decided something important together. It had begun when Cook called them The Doubles one day. Now it was a secret sign that only they knew. She linked her pinkie with Millie’s. “Double Trouble!”
Chapter Four
Buttons and Bows
Jess and Millie hid behind a wall as Mr Steen went into the last jeweller’s shop. Jess’s heart thumped as they waited for him to reappear. She hoped the royal butler wouldn’t glance in their direction. They weren’t very well hidden and she’d be in so much trouble if he saw her. Spying was scarier than she’d expected!
Mr Steen came out a few minutes later. He left Emerald Alley with the wooden chest under his arm and a deep frown on his face.
“He doesn’t look very happy, does he?” whispered Millie.
“Each of them must have said no to making a new crown,” replied Jess.
Millie twisted the frayed bonnet string around her finger. “We should go back. Someone might notice we’re gone.”
Jess thought quickly. “Let’s go to Buttons and Bows on the way. We can buy the lace for your ball dress. Then if anyone asks, we’ll have a good excuse for being out of the palace.”
The girls and Jax left Emerald Alley and walked up Bodkin Street. The crooked little lane was Jess’s favourite place in Plumchester. She had lived here when she was very young and she knew every shop, house and co
bblestone. She waved at Mr Bibby, who was icing buns in his bakery, and smiled at Miss Clackton, who was cleaning the window of her Pet Emporium. She knew every shopkeeper was her friend – except Mr Heddon in the ironmonger’s who wasn’t very friendly to anyone.
The window of Buttons and Bows, Jess’s parents’ dressmaking shop, was hung with red and gold ribbons. In the centre of the display was a full-size mannequin wearing a dress of pale blue silk with a long skirt edged with white lace. Jess’s father would be out buying supplies of wool and cloth. It was always Jess’s mother who minded the shop.
The bell jangled as the girls opened the door, and Mrs Woolhead, Jess’s mother looked up from her needlework. “Hello girls! I didn’t expect to see you today. Look at you both!” She smiled fondly. “You look just as alike as ever.” She looked more closely at Millie. “That’s not one of your own cloaks though is it, Princess Amelia?”
“I borrowed it from Jess,” Millie admitted.
Jess hugged her mum. “We came to get some decorations for Millie’s party dress – maybe some lace and beads.”
Mrs Woolhead fussed round them, hanging up their cloaks. “Why don’t you take that dog to the back yard and I’ll find him something to eat.”
A few minutes later, Jax was scoffing some leftover sausages in the back yard while the girls were nibbling star-shaped gingerbread and drinking lemonade. Jess’s mum listened solemnly to their story of the missing crown.
“So at first the queen thought she’d lost it,” finished Jess. “But we saw someone running away from her chamber and the crown must be worth an awful lot of money.”
“It’s a sad day when someone steals from their own queen.” Jess’s mum shook her head. “It’s never the people you expect either. Perhaps they’ll be sorry and put it back.”
“I hope they do,” said Millie. “Every royal baby wears the Baby Diamond Crown at their first birthday party!”
“I remember you wearing it yourself,” Mrs Woolhead told Millie. “You looked adorable. Although when I visited the palace to finish sewing your special clothes you kept handing the crown to Jess.”
Millie and Jess looked at each other and grinned.
The dressmaker got out her tape measure and a box of pins. “Now, let me see what I can do to make this party dress perfect.”
Mrs Woolhead was a fast needlewoman and less than half an hour later, Millie’s purple dress was edged with lace and there were pretty flower-shaped beads across the top.
“Thanks so much, Mrs Woolhead.” Millie hugged the dressmaker, before wrapping her cloak over her party dress again.
“You’re welcome, Miss Amelia!” Jess’s mum bundled up some extra lace and beads and put them in a parcel tied up with ribbon. “Take these extras just in case you need them. Now, you girls mind the carts when you’re crossing the street.”
Jess collected Jax from the back yard. The girls said goodbye before hurrying back to the loose railing in the palace fence.
“If the person that we saw running away from the queen’s room really was the thief,” said Jess thoughtfully, “then we know it can’t have been Connie. She was right next to us at the time.”
“We can rule out Cook Walsh too.” Millie held the railing to one side for Jess to climb through. “She was in the kitchen when we went up the back stairs. She’d never make it up the other staircase before us.”
“That’s true!” Jess brightened. “Of course, we know Cook would never have done it anyway.”
Pushing their way through the bushes, the girls reached the gardens. Ahead of them, the lake gleamed with the reflection of the tall white palace.
“Maybe, as well as looking for clues, we should see if anyone’s acting suspiciously,” suggested Millie.
“We can meet up tonight and compare what we’ve found out.” Jess let Jax off the lead and the spaniel galloped straight into the lake. The ducks quacked crossly as Jax splashed around in the water.
“Oh Jax! Now you’ll need a wash,” said Millie, laughing.
When Jess and Millie sneaked through the back door, they could hear Cook Walsh humming to herself in the kitchen. Jax, who had been rinsed under the pump in the stable yard, settled down on a woollen rug by the laundry room where he often slept during the day.
“I’d better go upstairs. Mother might need me.” Millie tucked the little parcel with the beads and lace under her arm. “I’ll find you later.”
Jess went into the kitchen just in time to see Cook taking the prince’s birthday cake out of the oven. “That smells delicious!”
Cook Walsh set the freshly baked cake down on the table. It had risen perfectly and was a mouth-watering golden colour. “Yes, it’s come out well.” She gazed at the cake and gave a huge sigh.
“What’s wrong?” said Jess, alarmed.
“I just don’t know if anyone will have the heart to eat any birthday cake tomorrow. Not with the little prince’s crown going missing like this.” Cook wiped her hands on her apron. “The whole palace has gone topsy-turvy and now people are whispering that it might have been taken on purpose. If I find out who took it I shall give them a piece of my mind!”
Jess thought that if the thief saw Cook in one of her fierce moods they’d definitely stay well away!
After washing up the mixing bowl and spoon for Cook, she hurried upstairs with her feather duster. If anyone saw her, they’d think she was just doing her job but really she would be searching for signs of the missing crown. If there were clues to discover, she would find them!
Chapter Five
The Footprint
in the Gallery
Millie thought hard as she climbed the grand staircase. She was trying to remember what the dark figure running away from her mother’s chamber had looked like. Had they been tall? Had they taken big strides or little steps? No matter how hard she tried, all she could remember was the swirl of their cloak as they rushed round the corner.
Of course, she didn’t know for sure that the figure was the thief, but why else would they be running away?
Millie changed out of her party clothes into the green satin dress that Jess had borrowed earlier. She tied up her hair with a ribbon before going to knock on her mother’s door. There was no answer so she went to look in Edward’s room. The queen was standing beside Edward’s cot and watching him while he slept. She didn’t turn round as Millie came in.
“I have beads and lace for my party dress now,” said Millie. “It looks really nice.” The queen still didn’t turn round so she tried again. “Mother? Is everything all right?”
Queen Belinda tried to smile but her eyes were sad. “Yes, darling! Could you watch Edward for a little while? I must speak to your father and the Lord Chamberlain.”
“Yes, I don’t mind.” Millie sat down beside Edward’s cot.
As soon as her mother had left the room, Edward woke up and kicked his chubby little legs. Then he rolled on to his tummy and smiled at Millie.
“I suppose you want to come out.” Millie lifted him out of the cot and gave him his little wooden horse. “How would you like to come and help me look for clues?”
Edward gurgled and chewed the ear of his toy.
“Good, that’s settled!” Millie tucked him in the crook of her arm and crept up the passageway to her mother’s chamber. Once inside, she set Edward down safely in the middle of the large four-poster bed.
Where should she start looking for clues? Her mother had said she’d left the crown on her dressing table, so it made sense to begin there.
Millie examined everything – her mother’s perfume, hairbrushes and face powder. Nothing looked odd or out of place. Finally she looked under the bed, just in case the thief had dropped something by mistake.
Edward giggled and threw his wooden horse on the floor. Millie picked it up and pulled a funny face to make him laugh again. She gave him the horse back and sat down to think. Maybe if she found out where everyone was when the crown got stolen, that would prove who’d taken it. Whoever it
was had to have been in the right place at exactly the right time!
Picking up Edward, Millie hurried out of the bedroom, down the corridor and along the gallery. She took the stairs to the top floor of the palace and went into the schoolroom.
Mr Larum was sitting at his desk, writing in a large leather-bound book. He looked at Millie over the top of his dark-rimmed glasses. “Princess Amelia, have you brought the little prince for a mathematics lesson?” He chuckled.
“Er, no!” Millie realized Mr Larum was trying to be funny. She never really understood his jokes. “I just wanted to ask you something.”
“I see. And what might that be?” said Mr Larum.
Millie hesitated. Asking people where they were at a particular time might seem a bit strange and rather nosy, but she really had to know. “I wondered where you were this morning when the crown went missing.” Her cheeks reddened. “I’m … er … trying to discover if anyone saw something that’ll help us find it.”
“A curious question!” Mr Larum pushed his glasses on more firmly. “I’m afraid I didn’t see anything at all. I was in my room reading a scientific encyclopaedia when I heard raised voices. I opened my door, and there was Miss Parnell, also looking out of her chamber. We walked along the passage together to see what was amiss.”
Millie held on to Edward firmly as he started to wriggle. “And you didn’t see anyone else in the corridor?”
“No, indeed!” The teacher frowned. “And I do think you should leave these matters to the grown-ups, Princess Amelia. It is hardly suitable for you to roam the palace quizzing people!”
Millie stifled a sigh. If she only did suitable things, then she wouldn’t have baked her brother’s birthday cake that morning. It had been so much fun! Suitable things were hardly ever as nice as that.
She decided she’d better not say all that to Mr Larum. “Sorry, Mr Larum!” she said cheerfully.
“I suppose you meant no harm.” Mr Larum sniffed. “But this has been a most alarming day. After the crown disappeared, Mr Steen ordered the guards to inspect everyone leaving the palace grounds. I went for a walk earlier and had my pockets thoroughly searched at the gate.”
The Case of the Stolen Crown Page 2
