Carolyn Keene - The Clue in the Jewel Box

At the close of the meal Mrs. Alexandra asked Anna to bring the Footman jewel box to her. Tenderly the former queen held the quaint porcelain and enamel figure.

“I shall now open it for you,” she said to Nancy. “Can you guess how it is done?”

“By a secret spring?”

“Yes. First I press the little fellow here.”

Mrs. Alexandra touched the Footman’s left hand. To Nancy’s amazement, the black coat of the figure loosened, enabling the woman to remove it. She pressed another spring and a panel slid open. Inside were a ruby ring, an unset emerald, a necklace of matched pearls, and two diamond bracelets.

“All that remain of my jewels,” Mrs. Alexandra said. “Piece by piece I sold the others.”

“These are exquisite,” Nancy replied. “Did the box ever contain anything except jewelry?”

“No, it has always been used for that purpose. You are disappointed, perhaps?”

“I’m not disappointed, Mrs. Alexandra. I’ll admit, though, that the little nightingale’s words led me to believe this box might contain something else of importance.

“Katherine has told me the people of your country have many secrets,” Nancy went on. “One of them is a process for making noncrackable enamel. I admit I wondered if the Footman might be hiding the lost formula.”

Mrs. Alexandra tried to suppress a smile. “My dear,” she said kindly, “I wonder if the song of the nightingale has not been misinterpreted. The words are so indistinct.”

“Perhaps, but we know the song was added long after the Easter egg was made,” Nancy remarked.

“Until Mr. Faber told you differently, I assumed that the nightingale was exactly as it had been created for me.”

“You have no idea when the addition was made?”

“It must have been during the early days of the Revolution. I was away from the palace when the trouble started. There was such turmoil that I could not get back for some time.”

“Then the song may have been added while you were away,” Nancy suggested. “Perhaps someone tried to provide you with an important clue -a clue meant for no other person. Who besides yourself had access to the Easter egg, Mrs. Alexandra?”

“Only a few trusted servants in the palace.”

“Who in your country was skillful at making music boxes?” Nancy asked eagerly.

“Conrad Nicholas,” Mrs. Alexandra said, “the husband of Nada’s sister. Nada was the nurse of my grandson Michael.”

“Could she have borrowed the Easter egg?”

“Yes.”

“Why, it all fits in beautifully!” Nancy exclaimed. “Mrs. Alexandra, I’m convinced some jewel box contains a vital clue, and it must be this Footman. Maybe it holds a secret greater than all your jewels! The box may have another opening, perhaps in the legs of the Footman.”

“But I have already examined the little statue from his head to the top of his boots! The secret, if there is one, has been cleverly hidden.”

“Mrs. Alexandra, do you mind if I try?”

Smiling, the former queen placed the jewel box in Nancy’s hands. With trembling fingers the young detective began to explore the porcelain and enamel figure inch by inch.

ALTHOUGH Nancy carefully ran her fingers over the Footman figurine, pressing here and there, she did not discover a spring or release mechanism. The only opening appeared to be the one under the black coat.

“I can’t find it.” Sighing, Nancy returned the figurine to her hostess. “Someday, with your permission, I would like to try again.”

“By all means.”

A clock chimed the hour of two-thirty. Reminded that she should leave at once for the fashion show, Nancy hurried away.

A few minutes later, upon reaching the Woman’s Club, she was surprised to see an excited crowd near the main entrance. A policeman had placed someone under arrest.

Approaching closer, Nancy observed that the suspect, who was arguing with the officer, closely resembled David Dorrance. At once the man turned and recognized her.

“Miss Drew, tell this policeman he’s made a mistake!” he pleaded.

“I’m not sure-” she began.

“Sure, you recognize met See!”

He gave the familiar white handkerchief signal. Nancy had but a moment to spare, because she was late now. She did not know what to say. As she hesitated, Dorrance added:

“I came here to see the show.”

Nancy was convinced that he was the man who had come to her home. The policeman knew Nancy and asked her for a definite identification. She hesitated to answer, because she had not forgotten the double handkerchief episode on Main Street. Finally she told the officer she could not identify Dorrance as the wanted pickpocket.

“I don’t believe this is the man you want. At least, he’s not the one who stole Mr. Baum’s wallet.”

“Go on in, then,” he told the man. “Sorry.”

Dorrance would have lingered to chat with Nancy, but she had no time. She hastened to the dressing room and donned the Renaissance gown just as the orchestra began to play.

“I’ll try to do better than yesterday,” she said to Katherine when it was her turn on stage.

With perfect composure and the grace of a professional model, Nancy went through her simple routine. She returned to the wings amid thunderous applause.

“You were a sensation!” Helen exclaimed. “You and that gorgeous gown are the talk of the show!”

During a brief intermission Nancy wandered out into the audience. Before she got all the way down the center aisle, a woman close by uttered a piercing wail.

“My pocketbook! It’s been stolen!”

Immediately the entire room was thrown into confusion. In the resulting excitement, Nancy spied David Dorrance slipping out the exit.

Forgetting her part in the show, Nancy sped after the fleeing man. When she reached the door, he was hurrying toward an alley.

“Wait!” she called.

The man turned, but did not pause. Nancy spied two little boys directly ahead and shouted:

“Stop that man! Don’t let him get away!”

The boys attempted to block his path, but he shoved them away angrily. Nancy ran after him as fast as she could. The long evening gown impeded her progress.

Nevertheless, she began to gain on the thief. At the end of the alley, the man darted around a corner. He saw a long coil of barbed wire lying on the ground. Seizing it, he threw it in such a way that Nancy could not fail to run against the sharp barbs.

Unsuspecting, she ran straight into the wire. Her gown caught in a dozen places, tearing badly. Aghast, she halted.

“Oh, this beautiful gown!” she thought, seeing that it had been torn beyond repair. “I’ve ruined Katherine’s chances completely!”

Out of breath and disheveled, Nancy returned to the clubhouse. It was time for the second half of the fashion show to begin.

Suddenly in the throng Nancy saw David Dor rance!

“Why, Miss Drew, what has happened to you?” he asked, walking over to her.

The man was perfectly composed. There was no indication, either in his breathing or the color of his face, that he had been running.

“I mistook him again for the pickpocket!” Nancy thought, chagrined.

“Just a little accident,” she replied, and dashed to the dressing room. A sudden thought came to her.

“It’s uncanny that Dorrance and the thief are so often in the same place! I’m going to talk to the police about it!”

Nancy found Katherine and Helen waiting for her. When they saw the ruined gown, they were dismayed.

“Oh, Nancy, how did it happen?” Helen managed to say at last.

Nancy told about pursuing the pickpocket. “I ought to stick to sleuthing and give up trying to model in fashion shows,” she concluded grimly. “The two certainly don’t mix.”