Mystery of the Queen's Jewels (5 page)

“You know, Grandfather could be right,” Henry said, looking around at the others.

Violet looked thoughtful. “It's possible. But there's something about this particular raincoat that looks … different. I just can't quite figure out what it is.” Then she remembered something else. “But that cab was definitely following us.”

“Maybe it was just someone else going to Buckingham Palace,” said Jessie.

“I guess so,” said Violet. But she wasn't convinced.

“Hey!” said Benny all of a sudden. “What about that note we got yesterday: ‘A friend stopped by?' Maybe the ‘friend' is the person following us.”

“Could be,” said Jessie. “We need to ask Mrs. Brown if she talked to her son about that.”

When the Aldens returned to the inn, Mrs. Brown was in the front hallway. “Did you have fun today?” she asked.

“Yes! We saw a palace and guards marching around!” cried Benny.

“We also went to the wax museum,” added Jessie. “And we saw Donna Russo there.”

“She wasn't very friendly, though,” said Benny.

“Don't mind her,” Mrs. Brown said. “She told me she doesn't have time to chat because she's busy with a special project — her secret plan, she called it. Thinks she's going to be a millionaire, she does.”

“Really?” said Henry. “What's her plan?”

“She's planning to—” Mrs. Brown stopped herself. “No. She made me promise not to tell anyone. Her idea seems like stealing to me, but she said it's not really.” Mrs. Brown paused. “But enough about that. Would you all like some hot tea before bed?”

“No, thank you,” Mr. Alden said.

“There is something else we were wondering about,” Jessie said.

“What is it, dear?” Mrs. Brown said.

“Did you have a chance to ask your son about the ‘friend' who stopped by for us yesterday?” Jessie asked.

“Oh, yes,” said Mrs. Brown. “I've been meaning to tell you. My son said it was a man, and he refused to leave his name. He didn't want to leave a message at all, in fact. My son said the man was acting a bit, well, strange.”

“Did your son say anything else, like what the man looked like or anything?” Henry asked.

“No, he didn't,” Mrs. Brown replied.

The Aldens looked at one another and shrugged. They knew little more about the mysterious “friend” than they'd known before.

“I'm not going to worry about it,” said Grandfather as they went upstairs. “If it was anyone important, he'll try us again. See you tomorrow morning.” He and the children went into their rooms.

As they got ready for bed, Jessie asked Violet, “What do you think Donna Russo's ‘secret plan' is all about?”

“I can't imagine!” said Violet. “Sounded pretty strange.”

The girls were brushing their teeth when they heard a noise outside their door.

“Was that a knock?” Jessie asked.

“I don't know. Maybe it was Benny or Henry,” Violet said. “I'll check.” When she opened the door, she saw a man standing at the door across from theirs. He had a key in his hand but seemed to be having trouble unlocking the door. As he turned slightly, Violet got a glimpse of his face, and suddenly she realized it wasn't Andrew. The man in the hall had a beard.

Violet shut the door.

“Who was it?” Jessie asked her sister.

Violet didn't answer. She just stood there, looking thoughtful.

“Violet?” Jessie said.

“Oh, I'm sorry,” said Violet at last. “I was just thinking. Isn't Andrew's room right across from ours?”

“Yes,” said Jessie.

“There's another man at his door, trying to get into his room,” Violet said.

“Trying to get in?” Jessie repeated.

“Yes. He has a key, but he's having trouble getting the door open,” Violet explained.

“These old doors stick sometimes. Maybe he's a friend of Andrew's,” Jessie suggested. “Or maybe Andrew checked out of the inn.”

“But he said he'd be here all week,” said Violet.

Jessie yawned loudly. “I don't know about you, but I'm tired.” She pulled the quilt up around her.

“Me, too,” said Violet, getting into her own bed. “Let's get some sleep.” She turned off the light and lay back against her soft pillow. But for a long time she couldn't sleep. She kept wondering about the mysterious bearded man trying to get into Andrew's room.

T
he next morning, AS the Aldens went down for breakfast, they saw Andrew running out the door.

“Hello!” said Jessie.

“Can't stay and chat. My limo's waiting,” he called over his shoulder.

When they sat at the table, Donna was just leaving. It seemed as if she, too, had somewhere important to go.

Violet buttered a scone and then told the others about the bearded man she'd seen the night before.

“That's funny,” said Benny, helping himself to another serving of scrambled eggs. “I saw an old man coming down the hall the day before yesterday.”

“Sometimes people have friends or relatives visiting them,” Grandfather said. “I wouldn't worry about it.”

When they'd finished eating, the Aldens headed off to the oldest section of London, known as “The City.” Grandfather had a business meeting there. Also, there were a couple of sights in the area that the children wanted to see.

“How about if we take the tube?” Grandfather suggested.

“Did you say the
tube
?” Benny repeated.

Grandfather chuckled.

“Isn't that what they call the subway here?” asked Henry.

“Yes. The official name is the ‘underground,' ” Grandfather said.

Grandfather led the way down the street to a small building like a train station. Inside, there was a ticket booth, and on the wall was a poster covered with colored lines crossing back and forth over one another.

“What's that?” Benny asked, pointing.

“That's a map showing where the tube goes,” Grandfather explained. He pointed to a small circle on one of the colored lines. “This is where we are.” With his finger, Grandfather followed that line to another circle on the other side of the map. “And here's where we're going, Monument Station.”

Grandfather paid their fare and picked up a small folded map from the ticket booth. “Take one of these,” he said, giving it to Jessie. “In case you need it later.”

“Thanks,” said Jessie. She tucked the map into Benny's backpack, which she was carrying over her shoulder. It still had the umbrella, guidebook, and camera inside.

The children followed Grandfather to a steep escalator that led down into the ground. When they got to the bottom there was a platform beside some train tracks. The tracks emerged from a round dark tunnel and went off into another round dark tunnel at the other end. A few moments later two lights appeared.

“Here comes the train,” said Grandfather.

A train pulled up to the platform and the doors opened. After a couple of people got off, the Aldens boarded and sat down on a soft, cushioned bench. The doors closed, and the train started. It traveled for several minutes before stopping again to let people on and off.

Jessie was studying the map Grandfather had given her when a woman next to her said, “Can I help you find something?”

“No, thanks. I'm just checking to see how many stops there are before ours,” Jessie replied.

“It sounds from your accent as if you're American,” the woman said.

“Yes, I am,” said Jessie. “We're on vacation here.”

“I hope you're planning to go to the theater while you're here,” the woman said. “It's the most wonderful part of London! I see every new play that opens — have for years. The very best actors perform here.”

“Since you're such a fan, you may be interested to know that Andrew Smythe is staying at our inn,” said Jessie.

“Andrew who?” the woman asked.

“Andrew Smythe, the actor,” said Jessie.

“Never heard of him,” said the woman. “Oh, here's my stop. Nice meeting you. Enjoy your visit!”

“That was odd,” said Jessie, turning to the rest of her family. “That woman told me she was a big fan of the theater, but she'd never heard of Andrew.”

“Really?” said Henry. “That does seem strange.”

“Maybe Andrew uses a different name on stage,” suggested Grandfather. “Some actors do, you know.”

“Yes, I suppose that's possible,” said Jessie. “But he never mentioned a stage name.” She looked back at the map she was holding. “We're next, aren't we?”

“Yes,” Mr. Alden said.

After leaving Monument Station, the Aldens walked a short way and then spotted a large river in front of them.

“Is that the Thames?” asked Henry.

“Yes,” Grandfather said. “That's the river that runs through London. And guess what that is.” He pointed straight ahead to a huge bridge.

“Is that … London Bridge?” Violet guessed.

“Yes, it is,” said Grandfather.

“It's not falling down!” said Benny with a smile.

“I have to go this way.” Grandfather pointed up the street. “But if you walk up that way, along the river, you'll get to the Tower of London. I know you'll enjoy seeing that.”

“Great!” said Jessie.

The children said good-bye to Grandfather and then set off. The walk along the river was pleasant, until Violet happened to look behind them. “I hate to say it, but I think we're being followed again.”

The others looked back, just in time to see a person in a long raincoat duck into a bus stop. It seemed strange that the person would be dressed like that, because it was a bright sunny day.

“Not again!” said Henry.

“Let's just hurry up and get to the tower,” said Jessie.

As they got closer, Benny pointed to the high stone walls and turrets. “Wow! It's like a real castle.”

Once inside the outer walls, Jessie told the others what she had read in the guidebook. “The Tower of London was begun by William the Conqueror back in 1078.”

“More than nine hundred years ago!” said Henry. “That's really old!”

“Yes,” said Jessie. “They built it on the river so they could watch for invaders. Other kings added to it over the years. For a long time it was used as a prison.”

“A prison?” asked Benny.

“Yes. When someone committed a really bad crime, often something against the king, they'd be taken here and held in one of the towers,” Jessie explained. She pointed to one of the entryways. “That's Traitor's Gate, where prisoners were brought in and had their last look at the outside world. Some people were even executed here.”

“Wow,” said Benny, his eyes wide.

“What's in there?” asked Henry, pointing to a large building in the center.

Jessie looked in the guidebook. “That's the White Tower. It's full of armor and weapons from hundreds of years ago.”

“Let's go see!” said Benny excitedly, leading the way inside.

The children spent the next hour strolling around inside the stone building. They saw cannons, swords, muskets, and pistols of all sorts. They saw helmets and suits of armor that had belonged to kings, and even armor specially made for the horses.

“Look at this!” cried Benny, pointing to a small suit of armor. “This would fit me.”

“That belonged to one of the young princes,” Henry said after reading the sign on the wall.

As the children walked around, Jessie kept feeling as if someone was watching her. But whenever she turned to see, everyone just seemed to be looking at the armor.

Next the Aldens went to see the crown jewels, the priceless jewelry and crowns that belonged to the kings and queens. As soon as Jessie entered the exhibit, she forgot all about her feeling of being watched. There were shiny, beautiful silver pieces and elegant jewelry that sparkled in the bright light. But everyone's favorites were the crowns, covered with valuable gems.

“These must be worth millions and millions of dollars,” said Benny. “What if someone stole them?”

“That's why they're in these special bulletproof glass cases,” Jessie said.

Henry pointed to one of the most beautiful crowns. “Queen Elizabeth II wore that crown at her coronation, the ceremony when she became queen,” he read from a sign. “One day Prince Charles will wear it when he becomes king.”

“That sign says the coronation crown has 3,733 precious jewels, including 2,800 diamonds!” said Violet.

“I didn't know there were that many diamonds in the whole world!” said Benny

At the end of the exhibit, the Aldens bought postcards in the gift shop to send to Mrs. McGregor, Aunt Jane, and some of their friends back home.

“Let's go get lunch and write our postcards,” suggested Violet.

“Grandfather suggested a place near here,” said Henry, leading the way. “It sells fish and chips, which is one of the most popular meals here in England.”

Jessie looked back as they left the tower, to see if there was anyone following them. There were lots of people, so it was hard to see if the same raincoated stranger was among them.

At the restaurant, Henry went to the counter and ordered the fish and chips special for everyone. Meanwhile, the others settled down at a small table and began writing their postcards. When Henry came back with the tray, they all took their paper plates of food eagerly. On each plate were several pieces of batter-dipped fried fish and a pile of french fries.

“Hey, these aren't potato chips. They're french fries,” said Benny.