by Hope McLean
“Go, Jewels!” they cheered in a loud whisper.
A creaking sound echoed through the auditorium as the moderator adjusted his microphone. “And now, let’s begin our match between the Martha Washington Jewels and the Maplewood Brain Busters,” he said. “The questions in this round are worth five points each. First question: What natural phenomenon do seismologists study?”
Jasmine quickly hit her buzzer.
“Martha Washington,” the moderator said with a nod to Jasmine.
“Earthquakes!” Jasmine answered, and the crowd in the auditorium clapped. Jasmine grinned at Willow, and they were both thinking the same thing. This was a good start to the match!
Both teams answered quickly. Willow aced a question about prime numbers, and Erin buzzed in on almost every history question.
“What is the name of the schoolmaster protagonist in the story ‘The Legend of Sleepy Hollow’?” the moderator asked.
One of the Brain Busters buzzed in. “Washington Irving.”
“Incorrect,” said the moderator. “Martha Washington?”
Lili buzzed. “Ichabod Crane,” she said, and the moderator nodded.
“Correct.”
The questions kept coming, and the Jewels managed to stay one step ahead of their opponents. In the end, they beat the Brain Busters by a full twenty points. Ms. Keatley was waiting for them when they left the stage.
“Wonderful job, girls!” she congratulated them. “This means you’re in the semifinals.”
Willow held up her hand and high-fived her friends, one by one.
“We did it!” she cheered.
Ms. Keatley glanced at her watch. “We have a few hours until our semifinal match. There’s a free lunch for the teams in the cafeteria here. Afterward we can watch the other teams compete, or take a walk, if you’d like.”
Willow looked at her friends. They had been so caught up in the competition, that they had nearly forgotten Isabel’s plan to go to Fraunces Tavern.
“What are the Rivals doing?” she asked innocently.
“I’m not sure,” Ms. Keatley replied. “They left the auditorium right after your match.”
Isabel’s probably on her way to the museum, Willow thought, and she knew the other Jewels were thinking the same thing.
“Ms. Keatley, I lost my cell phone at Fraunces Tavern the other day,” Erin spoke up. “I was wondering if we could go back and get it.”
Ms. Keatley frowned. “I’d rather not have to take a subway ride. We need to be sure we’re here for our semifinal match. And anyway, how can you be sure it’s there? And why didn’t you say you’d lost it earlier?”
Erin thought quickly. “I called them this morning. They said they have it,” she lied. “It’s not that far, and we have like, three hours.”
Ms. Keatley sighed. “I suppose we must. Let’s go now and eat when we get back.”
She walked ahead of them down the auditorium aisle, shaking her head. Lili quickly sidled up to Erin.
“Lost cell phone? Why’d you use Isabel’s excuse?” she asked.
Erin shrugged. “It worked for her.”
Willow grinned. “So you’re saying that Isabel had a good idea.”
“I am not!” Erin protested. “And anyway, it worked. If Isabel is on her way to steal the diamond, then we’ll be there to stop her!”
The subway ride downtown didn’t take long, and soon they were walking down Pearl Street with Fraunces Tavern in sight.
“When we get in, Erin, you can go right to the front desk and get your cell phone,” Ms. Keatley said. “And then we should head right back.”
Lili turned and looked at her friends, frowning. The cell phone excuse had sounded like a good idea, but if they left right away they wouldn’t be able to find out what Isabel was up to.
Willow was trying to think of a reason to ask Ms. Keatley if they could stay longer when an unexpected encounter saved them.
“Kelly! What are you doing here?”
Mr. Haverford walked toward them, waving.
“Josh!” Ms. Keatley looked surprised. “Erin left her cell phone here, and we came to get it.”
Mr. Haverford shook his head. “What do you know? Isabel did the same thing. These kids and their cell phones, right? They’re always losing things.”
“Yeah, we’re super-absentminded,” Erin agreed, grateful that the advisors weren’t suspicious.
“So Isabel’s inside?” Willow asked.
Mr. Haverford nodded. “Yes, the others are studying with the team from south Jersey. The advisor and I are old friends. So I brought Isabel here.”
“Why don’t you two wait out here while we go get my cell phone?” Erin suggested.
“Oh, I don’t mind coming in,” Ms. Keatley said.
“Stay here with me. I need the fresh air,” Mr. Haverford urged, flashing a grin.
Ms. Keatley shrugged. “Well, I suppose …”
Jasmine rolled her eyes. “How does she not know he’s flirting?” she whispered to Willow.
“Who knows,” Willow whispered back. “Now’s our chance. Let’s go!”
They entered the museum and nodded politely to the woman at the desk. They went straight to the jewelry exhibit, and just as they suspected, Isabel was hovering near the case with the diamond earrings. She was facing away from the door, and the girls hung back so they wouldn’t be noticed.
“It doesn’t look like she’s searching for her cell phone,” Jasmine hissed.
“No, it looks like she’s going to steal the diamond!” Erin said.
“But how?” Willow asked. “The security guard’s right there.”
She nodded at the guard, the same tall, burly man that Erin had spoken to the last time they were there. As if on cue, the radio on his belt began to buzz and beep. He held it up to his mouth, said something, then got a puzzled look on his face. He quickly scanned the room as if to make sure everything was okay. Then he ducked through the door behind him into the next exhibit.
Isabel watched the guard leave. As soon as he was out of sight, she took off a chain that hung around her neck. Dangling from the end was a key!
Willow pulled the girls away from the door.
“Maybe it’s a key that opens the jewelry case,” she said excitedly.
“Arthur Atkinson just got an old key, remember?” Jasmine asked. “What if it’s the same key?”
“You know, it could be,” Willow said. “I’ve been meaning to tell you. Ryan received an overnight package from Mr. Atkinson just this morning.”
Erin peered through the door.
“The security guard’s not in the room, so it’s perfect timing,” she said. “We’ve got to stop her!”
“How?” Lili asked.
Willow looked thoughtful. “Erin, go find the security guard. The rest of you, follow me.”
“Got it!” Erin said.
She raced through the door, and the rest of the Jewels followed Willow into the exhibit. This time, Isabel saw them. She turned around, dangling the key in her fingers.
“The Jewels! What could you possibly be doing here?” she asked, smiling.
“You know what,” Jasmine replied angrily. “You’re trying to steal those diamond earrings, but we won’t let you!”
Erin came back in the room with the security guard behind her.
“That’s her!” she said, pointing to Isabel. “She’s got the key to that jewelry case and she’s going to steal the diamond earrings!”
“That’s a very serious accusation,” the guard said. He sounded stern, but there was a twinkle in his eye that hinted he might have thought the whole situation was amusing. Nevertheless, he nodded to Isabel.
“May I see the key?” he asked.
“Oh, this key?” Isabel asked innocently. “This is the key to my diary.”
She opened her bag and took out a leather-bound diary with a small lock. Then she used the small, silver key to open it.
“See?” she asked. “I must keep it locked, b
ecause I have many secrets in here.”
She looked Willow right in the eyes when she said those words, and Willow knew right then that the Rivals were toying with them.
The security guard put a hand on Erin’s shoulder. “Thank you for your concern, miss. I appreciate your vigilance. But it seems like everything’s fine.”
Erin’s green eyes were blazing with fury. “Right. Fine,” she said, her mouth tight.
Willow grabbed her arm. “Come on, let’s go.”
Angry and embarrassed, they marched down the hallway to the exit. Outside, Ms. Keatley was still talking to Mr. Haverford.
“Did you get your cell phone?” she asked Erin.
“Yeah. Got it. Whatever,” Erin grumbled. “Thanks.”
“What about Isabel?” Mr. Haverford asked.
The sun glinted off Isabel’s blond hair as she bounded past them, grinning happily.
“I found it!” she said.
“Great!” Mr. Haverford exclaimed. “Now we can all take the subway back uptown together.”
“How nice,” Isabel said, flashing an evil grin at the Jewels.
The two teachers began walking toward the subway, and Isabel joined them with a skip in her step.
“I’d rather walk a hundred blocks than ride the subway with her,” Erin moaned.
“They’ve tricked us again!” Jasmine said.
“So if Isabel didn’t steal the earrings, then maybe the diamond is in the desk after all,” Willow said thoughtfully.
Jasmine grumbled. “You know what that means. The other Rivals could be stealing it right now!”
The girls huddled together in a subway car, frantically trying to figure out what to do.
“Mr. Haverford said that the other Rivals were studying with another team,” Willow pointed out. “So they couldn’t be stealing the diamond.”
“Unless Mr. Haverford is lying!” Jasmine accused. “Maybe he’s in on it, too. The other Rivals are probably at the Met right now, stealing the diamond in the desk!”
She put her head in her hands. “Once again, we’ve messed up.”
Erin nudged her. “Don’t let Isabel see you like that. We’ve got to be cool. Act like it doesn’t bother us.”
“Erin’s right,” Willow said. “Maybe this was a plan to distract us. Or they might just be trying to discourage us from figuring out their real plan. If that’s true, then we need to show them they didn’t get to us.”
“Right!” Lili agreed. “But maybe we should go to the Met as soon as we get back. You know, just in case.”
Willow nodded. “Let’s ask Ms. Keatley. But we should wait until we get off the subway. I don’t want Isabel to hear us.”
They exited the subway just a few blocks from the college. The girls waited until Mr. Haverford and Isabel waved good-bye and walked away, and then approached Ms. Keatley.
“Ms. Keatley, could we go back to the Met for the rest of the break?” Jasmine asked. “After all, we’ll be busy with quiz bowl all day tomorrow, and then we have to leave.”
Ms. Keatley shook her head. “Absolutely not. I want you girls to be focused and ready for the semifinals. Right now we’re going to the school’s cafeteria to eat, and then I want everyone to either relax or study.”
The teacher’s voice was firm, and the girls knew there was no use arguing. They reluctantly followed her to the cafeteria for lunch. But their mood improved after plates of salad from the salad bar.
“That was delicious,” Ms. Keatley said, wiping her mouth with a paper napkin. “Now I think we all need to relax for a bit. Some of the advisors were talking about getting together in the auditorium for a little while to trade stories. But if you’d rather go back to the hotel …”
“That’s fine,” Willow said quickly. “We’ll hang out in the auditorium. I can look up some quiz questions on my phone and we’ll practice.”
“Wonderful!” said the teacher, glancing at her watch. “Let’s head there, then. The first semifinal match starts in about an hour. It should be interesting to watch.”
Back in the auditorium, the girls found a quiet corner and sat cross-legged on the carpet, in a circle. Jasmine was still glum.
“It’s like we’re trapped here,” she said. “The Rivals have beaten us again.”
“Maybe,” Willow admitted. “But maybe not. I think we should look at the clues. We need to figure out what’s really happening.”
“Okay,” Jasmine said, taking a deep breath. “First, Lili got a message saying that the Rivals were going to steal the diamond, one of the four Martha Washington jewels. It said the diamond was in New York.”
Willow nodded. “So then we researched,” she said. “And you found out about the exhibit, Jasmine. It looked like the diamond earrings might be the ones. But we got a message saying that we could be wrong.”
“And then I found the diary entry from Martha that said she gave the most valuable jewel to John Townsend, a furniture maker,” Erin added. “And we found a desk made by him in the Met.”
“And then Eli sent me a text that Arthur Atkinson got a key for an eighteenth-century desk,” Lili continued. “And then Ryan got a package from Arthur this morning. And chances are it’s the key.”
Willow took a piece of yellow paper from her bag. “We forgot this message. The map.”
She placed the paper on the floor in the middle of them.
“We’re pretty sure it’s a map of Central Park,” Willow said.
Lili rummaged through her bag. “There’s one in my guidebook. Let’s compare them.”
Lili quickly found the map in the book. “Okay, it’s definitely the park. See that square on the map we found? That’s the Met, over on Eighty-second Street.”
The girls leaned in to get a better look.
“There’s a letter R right by the square,” Willow pointed out. “And then the I is next to the obelisk, and the V is by the Alice statue, and the A is over near Strawberry Fields.”
“Maybe the letters form a word,” Erin suggested. She wrinkled her nose as she thought. “Riva? Avir? Doesn’t make sense.”
“Maybe the letters stand for initials,” Lili said.
“Then wouldn’t there be a D by the museum?” Willow asked. “D for diamond?”
Jasmine’s eyes lit up. “Unless it’s a person. R — for Ryan!”
The friends exchanged excited looks. Jasmine was on to something!
“That’s it!” Erin exclaimed in a loud whisper. “And the I is for Isabel, the V is for Veronica, and the A is for Aaron!”
“So why are they scattered all over the map like that?” Lili asked.
“I think I know,” Willow said. “Remember at the Smithsonian, when Aaron took the ruby from me? Well, he ran through the museum and handed it to Isabel, and then she gave it to Ryan, and he ran out of the building.”
Erin nodded. “I get it. They like to hand it off, to confuse whoever might be on to them. So do you think this is the same kind of plan?”
“It makes sense,” Willow said. She put her finger on the R. “Ryan steals the diamond at the Met. He goes outside and meets Isabel at the obelisk.”
“Oh, I know the obelisk,” Lili interrupted. “It’s from Egypt. It’s really tall and skinny with a point on top. That’s why they nicknamed it Cleopatra’s Needle.”
Willow nodded. “Right. It’s a pretty obvious meeting spot. Then, check it out. Isabel runs down this path and hands it off to Veronica at the Alice statue. Then she goes across the park and gives it to Aaron, who takes it right to the hotel.”
Jasmine looked worried. “That’s got to be it. But what if they’ve done it already?”
Lili and Erin frowned. They hadn’t thought of that. But Willow shook her head. “We forgot about this.”
She pointed to the writing across the top of the map: Saturday 1900.
“We figured out that it’s military time again, right? So that’s seven p.m.,” Willow said.
“Then they’re going to do it tonight!” Erin yel
led, and Willow motioned for her to be quiet. Erin lowered her voice to a whisper. “So what do we do? Steal the diamond before they can?”
Jasmine moaned. “That would be way too stressful. Besides, they have the key, and we don’t.”
Lili leaned in, her eyes wide with excitement. “We could hide in the museum and take a video of Ryan stealing it,” she suggested. “Then we could show Principal Frederickson when we get home. She’d have to believe it if she saw a video.”
“That’s a pretty good idea,” Willow said, and Lili smiled.
“It is,” Erin agreed. “But we’re forgetting one thing. These jewels are important somehow. Martha Washington said so. She even called them ‘clues,’ right? So if the Rivals get the diamond, even for a little while, they might be able to figure out the clues. And I don’t want them to do that.”
“Maybe, but there’s no other way,” Jasmine pointed out.
Erin grinned. “The Rivals fool us all the time,” she said. “But I think I know a way we can finally fool them.”
Jasmine tilted her head. “I like the sound of that.”
“We’ll need Eli’s help,” Erin said. “And Lili, I need to borrow some of your clothes… .”
* * *
The girls huddled together, whispering, until the competition started up once again. They tried to focus and relax while the first two teams went head to head, but each of them kept thinking about their plan. Would it work?
Then they heard applause, and the moderator’s voice.
“Will the Martha Washington team and the Allentown All-Stars please join us onstage?”
“The Allentown All-Stars?” Erin asked. “Wait, that’s George and Lauren’s team!”
The girls’ new friends from Pennsylvania waved as they headed up onstage. They were joined by their other two teammates.
Lili sighed and put on her tiara. “They’re so nice. I’ll feel bad if we beat them.”
“There are no feelings in quiz bowl!” Willow reminded her. “Just victory. Let’s do this!”
Each of the other Jewels put on her tiara and ran up to the stage to take her place. This time, they didn’t start out as strong. Erin guessed that the capital of Washington was Seattle (instead of Olympia), and Jasmine said that the fibula bone in the leg was bigger than the tibia (instead of the other way around).