“Woof!” Jax sniffed the soap suspiciously.
A loud whinny came from the stables and Jess’s eyes lit up. “I should go!” She held out her little finger to Millie. “I’ll find you after I’ve finished riding, Double Trouble!”
Millie linked her pinkie with Jess’s. Double Trouble was their secret name. The two girls had been born in the same month and they’d known each other since they were little. Jess’s mother was a dressmaker who made clothes for the royal family.
When Jess was old enough she had come to Peveril Palace to work as a maid, and she and Millie had become best friends. This summer they’d even solved their first mystery together when a thief had stolen the baby prince’s diamond crown.
Jess turned to go, her riding cloak flapping.
“Come on, Jax!” Millie lifted the reluctant dog into the tub. “I’m going to get you nice and clean.”
“PRINCESS AMELIA!”
The shout made the girls jump. Millie twisted round so fast that her mob cap nearly fell off. She clutched at it desperately.
Millie’s aunt, Lady Havering, was standing in the doorway, her nose wrinkling at the smell of the stable yard. She was wearing a cream-coloured dress and a wide hat. Her daughters, Veronica and Alice, stood behind her. They had arrived yesterday and were staying at Peveril Palace for a few days.
Millie’s cousins were wearing smart dresses and gold bracelets. With her fair hair and wrinkled nose, Veronica looked like a smaller version of her mother. Alice was shorter and had smooth dark hair that hung just above her shoulders.
At nine years old, she was the same age as Millie and Jess, while Veronica was two years older. Alice stood on tiptoes to try and see over her mother’s shoulder but Veronica nudged her out of the way.
Jess, who was halfway across the yard, scurried back to Millie. “What shall we do?” she whispered.
“Amelia! Did you hear me?” Lady Havering looked sternly at Jess.
Millie murmured out of the corner of her mouth, “Say something, Jess! Remember – you’re supposed to be me!”
“Oh!” Jess turned red and curtsied to Lady Havering. “No, I’m sorry. I didn’t hear what you said at all.”
Lady Havering frowned. “Veronica and Alice need new clothes, so your mother is taking us all to a dressmaker in Plumchester. You need to get ready immediately.” She eyed Jess’s outfit. “There’s mud all over your cloak. Honestly, Amelia. No one would believe you were a royal princess!”
Jess opened her mouth and closed it again.
“It was my fault,” said Millie, wanting to cover for her friend. “I needed a little help with Jax.”
Hearing his name, Jax pulled free and leapt out of the tub. He galloped across the stable yard splashing water everywhere. Lady Havering gave a shriek and retreated indoors with Veronica and Alice. Millie and Jess chased after Jax, trying not to giggle.
Paula Harrison is a best-selling children’s author, with worldwide sales of over one million copies. Her books include The Rescue Princesses series. She wanted to be a writer from a young age but spent many happy years being a primary school teacher first.
Visit her website
www.paulaharrison.jimdo.com
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First published in the UK by Scholastic Ltd, 2017
This electronic edition published by Scholastic Ltd, 2017
Text copyright © Paula Harrison, 2017
Cover copyright © Michelle Ouellette
Inside illustration Michelle Ouellette
represented by The Bright Agency, 2017
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eISBN 978 1407 17393 1
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The Case of the Stolen Crown Page 6