The Mystery of Smugglers Cove

by Paul Moxham

  As they reached the top and caught sight of the sparkling jewellery in glass cases, the children were in awe.

  Sarah’s green eyes shone with excitement. “They’re magnificent!”

  The king nodded proudly. “Yes, they certainly are.”

  The children walked from one case to another as they studied the royal crown, the sceptre, a few rings, a necklace and other assorted jewellery.

  “Do you ever wear any of these?” Amy asked.

  King Otto nodded. “I wear them every year when I ride in the royal carriage down the main street of Adler, the capital city of Monrovia.”

  “When will that happen?” Joe asked.

  “At the end of the week,” the king replied.

  After admiring the jewellery, the children walked back down the staircase. As the guard closed and locked the door, the king turned to the children and shook their hands. “Thank you once again for everything you have done for Monrovia and I wish you all the best for whatever lies ahead.”

  As the man walked away, Will turned to Christo. “Is it time for the performance?”

  Christo glanced at his watch. “Not quite. We have just enough time to get a snack.”

  Joe grinned. “Perfect timing.”

  ~

  Before long, all the invited guests crowded into the big tent for the circus performance. Once everyone was seated, the ringmaster, a man with grey hair and a sparkling rainbow striped suit strolled out into the middle of the arena. “Welcome, welcome, all of you, for a special celebration for King Otto’s birthday! Tonight you will see the best we have to offer. We have Mango the Magnificent, Leo the Lion Tamer, The Three Amigos, Clumsy the Clown, and much, much more. So, let’s get this celebration started!”

  It didn’t take long for the children to start enjoying themselves.

  “I normally don’t like circuses,” Sarah admitted as the clowns performed a funny routine, “but this circus doesn’t have many animals in it. Instead it has acrobats, clowns, magicians and so on.”

  Amy nodded. “Yes, I did notice that too. The last circus I went to, which was near London a few years ago had lots of animals in it and they didn’t appear to be too happy. So this circus is much better.”

  The children were delighted with the rest of the circus acts and the evening flew by. When all the performers came out into the ring together, the children clapped along with everyone else, thanking them for the wonderful night.

  However, this joyous scene was soon interrupted as a guard entered the tent and hurried over to speak to the king. It didn’t take long for the children to realize that something was wrong. And, as people began to murmur to one another, it only took another minute or so for the children to learn what the problem was. The crown jewels had been stolen!

  “I can’t believe it!” Amy exclaimed.

  Sarah shook her head in disbelief. “I can’t either. They were there at the start of the performance.”

  Joe nodded. “Which means that the theft occurred between when we saw them and now.”

  Suddenly, the king called out in a loud voice. “I’m sorry for this intrusion, but I must ask everyone to stay where they are for the time being. As you may have heard, the crown jewels have disappeared. So please wait in your seats until a further announcement is made.”

  ~

  After half an hour or so, everyone inside the tent was allowed to leave after being searched from head to toe. Even the children were given a quick search, and so it was quite late in the night when they arrived back at the farmhouse.

  They said goodnight to Christo and Nadia and went to their bedrooms but, after the intriguing event that had just transpired, neither Joe nor Will were able to get to sleep. They decided to go and see if the girls were having the same problem. Like them, Amy and Sarah were both wide awake.

  “I wonder who stole the jewels,” Will said.

  “It must have been someone who was part of the circus,” Amy said. “After all, the king wouldn’t have invited anyone he didn’t know, and if they were friends of the king, why would they steal the jewels?”

  “But how did the theft take place?” Sarah piped up. “After all, there was a guard at the bottom of the tower the whole time.”

  “Well, maybe he had to go to the toilet,” Will replied. “The thief would have only needed a moment or two to slip through the door.”

  “The thief could also have used a ladder to climb up the tower,” Joe suggested. “Though, I’m not sure how he would have got through the window since I’m sure that would have been locked.”

  “Well, maybe it was a prank and the jewels will turn up in the morning,” Will said.

  “I doubt it, but I suppose we may as well try and sleep now and see what the morning brings,” Joe said.

  Chapter 3: The Perfect Theft

  The next morning, Nadia needed to visit the palace to speak to the king on a matter not related to the theft so the children asked if they could accompany her.

  Nadia agreed and so, before long, they were back at the palace. To their surprise, the children discovered that, though the big tent was now packed away, the caravans belonging to Gringo’s Circus were still parked on the front lawn.

  “I’d have thought they would have left by now,” Joe said, gazing at the caravans.

  “Maybe they have the day off,” Will said. “After all, I don’t expect they would perform every night.”

  While Nadia went to speak to the king, the children strolled through the grounds. As they came upon the tower, they saw there was no guard present.

  “They can’t have recovered the jewels yet,” Joe stated.

  “Even if they had, I doubt they would be foolish enough to place them in the same room as before,” Will said. “Look! It’s Leo, the lion tamer. Maybe he knows something we don’t know.”

  Leo, a giant of a man with a brown beard, smiled at the children. “I just fed the lion. Did you want to see him?”

  Joe shook his head. “No thanks. I just wanted to see if you had heard anything about what happened last night.”

  Leo shook his head. “It’s a great mystery. From what I’ve heard, the guard on duty didn’t hear anything out of the ordinary and it was only when he accompanied one of the invited guests up the stairs that he realised the crown jewels were missing.”

  “That really does sound like a mystery,” Will said. “I mean, the crown jewels couldn’t have just vanished into thin air. Maybe the guard was lying.”

  “That’s a possibility,” Leo replied, “but I also heard he’s one of the king’s most trusted guards and has been working at the palace for the past ten years.”

  “Then it doesn’t seem as though he would have had a part in the theft,” Amy said. “But what I can’t understand is how the thief got the jewels out of the palace grounds? After all, the guards searched everyone from head to toe last night.”

  “Yes, they did. They even searched me,” Leo stated. “It’s a good thing—”

  “Leo! Get to your caravan! We need to get going,” the ringmaster suddenly yelled out.

  “Okay, be right there.” Leo turned to the children. “The palace guards have been searching all the caravans which is why we haven’t left yet. Luckily, though, we’re not travelling too far for our next performance. Goodbye!”

  The children waved goodbye and then spent the next five minutes watching the procession of caravans trundling out of the palace grounds.

  As they did so, Joe suddenly turned to the others. “I just thought of one place that the guards wouldn’t have searched.”

  “I’m sure they would have searched everywhere,” Will replied.

  “No, I’m certain they wouldn’t have searched this place,” Joe stated.

  “What place are you thinking of?” Amy asked.

  “The lion cage,” Joe replied.

  “But why would they search that?” Sarah questioned. “It’s not as though the lion could have stolen the jewels.”

  “Of course not, silly,” Jo
e argued, “but what if someone hid the jewels in the lion cage?”

  “But the only person who could do that would be the lion tamer since he would be the only one able to get close enough to the lion without the animal attacking,” Amy pointed out.

  “Or the jewels could have been placed in the cage while the lion was performing,” Will suggested.

  “Well, isn’t it possible that Leo could be involved?” Joe questioned.

  “But why would he be involved?” Amy asked. “And how could he have stolen the jewels?”

  Joe frowned. “I’m not sure.”

  Just then, Nadia came out of the palace and walked over to them. “All ready to go?”

  Joe hesitated for a moment before he answered. “Does the king have a list of everyone who saw the crown jewels last night?”

  Nadia nodded. “Yes, in fact, I just saw the list myself.”

  “But I thought you wanted to talk to the king about another matter not relating to the theft,” Amy said.

  “I was going to,” Nadia admitted. “But the king was extremely agitated and couldn’t think of anything else except the jewels, so I’ve just spent the last thirty minutes trying to think of how they were stolen and how we could find them again.”

  “And what did you come up with?” Will questioned.

  Nadia shrugged her shoulders. “Nothing. I haven’t got any idea who stole them or why they were stolen. After all, these are the crown jewels of Monrovia we’re talking about. It’s not as though you can sell something as recognisable as these.”

  “So can you remember who was on the list?” Joe asked.

  “Why do you ask?” Nadia questioned.

  “I was wondering if any of the circus folk could have been involved in the theft,” Joe replied.

  “There’s a simple answer to that, and it’s no,” Nadia said.

  “Why do you say that?” Will asked.

  “Because the only person from the circus who took a look at the jewels was Mango the Magnificent,” Nadia replied.

  “So why couldn’t he have stolen the jewels?” Joe questioned.

  “Because he took a look at the jewels directly before we did,” Nadia replied. “And, since we saw the jewels, it was impossible for him, or anyone earlier in the night, to have played a part in the theft.”

  Joe sighed. “Well, that destroys my theory.”

  “Who was the last person to see the jewels?” Amy asked.

  “Queen Saline,” Nadia replied. “She saw them five minutes after we did, and then there was a gap of over two hours while the circus performance took place in the big tent.”

  “I don’t suppose the queen could have been involved in the theft, could she?” Will asked.

  Nadia shook her head. “Queen Saline rules the neighbouring country of Sukova and is one of our closest allies.” She sighed. “I’m afraid it’s the perfect theft. One which even you will find impossible to solve.”

  ~

  Since Christo and Nadia had moved since they had last visited them, the children decided to spend the following morning exploring their new surroundings. Fortunately, Nadia and Christo owned several old bicycles which meant that they were able to ride to the local village and look at the shops.

  As they gazed at one of the windows, Will pointed to a poster. “Look! Gringo’s Circus will perform in Adler tomorrow.”

  “Let me see.” Joe studied the poster. “I remember the ringmaster saying something about performing one more time before leaving Monrovia. However, I didn’t think it would be this close to us. From memory, Adler is only half an hour’s ride from here.”

  On the way back to the farmhouse, Joe couldn’t stop thinking about the circus and, as soon as they got back and put away the bicycles, he turned to the others. “I think it’s more than likely that the crown jewels were somehow stolen by one of the circus folk. For instance, if the acrobats had teamed up together, they may have been able to scale the tower without even needing a ladder.”

  “But what about the window?” Will questioned. “I’m sure if had been broken we would have heard about it.”

  “I don’t know,” Joe admitted. “But I think we should pay another visit to the circus and have a look around. However, there’s no need to wait until tomorrow. They’ll be setting up today in preparation for the performance. So why don’t we ask Nadia if we can ride over to Adler and see if we can see anyone acting suspiciously?”

  “But if someone had stolen the crown jewels, would they still be with the circus?” Amy asked.

  “Why wouldn’t they?” Joe replied. “After all, if they are part of the circus, it would look suspicious if they suddenly left.”

  After telling Nadia about their plans, she insisted on making them a packed lunch and so, a short time later, they were once again pedalling along the road. When they arrived at Adler, they easily found the field where the circus folk were setting up their tent.

  As they walked around, they said hello to a few of the circus performers, including Mango the magician, who even performed a card trick for them. This was in stark contrast to the lion tamer who only nodded his head and gazed forlornly at the ground as he passed by. Unlike earlier, he seemed preoccupied.

  As Joe watched the man disappear from view, he frowned. “You know, I can’t shake this feeling that he’s involved somehow. Especially since the lion cage would be the perfect place to hide the crown jewels.”

  “Let’s find somewhere to sit down and eat,” Amy said. “I’m getting hungry.”

  “So am I. Let’s go and sit up on that hill over there.” Joe pointed to a hill on the other side of the field. “From there we’ll have a good view of the entire circus.”

  Pushing their bicycles, the children walked over to the hill. Once they reached the top, they lay their bicycles down on the grass and began eating.

  A few minutes later, as Joe tucked into a salad sandwich, he paused as he gazed towards the circus. “The lion tamer is heading for the woods.”

  “I wonder where he’s going,” Will said.

  Joe stood up. “Let’s follow him.”

  “Why?” Amy questioned. “I doubt he’ll be doing anything suspicious now. It’s the middle of the day.”

  “But that’s when you would least expect something underhand to be happening,” Joe stated. “And, if I’m not mistaken, it looks as though he’s carrying a rucksack. Quickly, before we lose sight of him.”

  Chapter 4: On The Trail

  Leaving their bicycles on the hill, the children hurried towards the woods. After walking for five or so minutes, Joe suddenly came to a stop as he caught sight of Leo. He had stopped in front of them and was peering around. “Duck!”

  Everyone quickly ducked behind a bush. They scarcely dared to breathe for the next few moments as the lion tamer continued to stand still. Then, as he resumed walking, the children relaxed and continued to follow him.

  This lasted for another few minutes before Leo paused again. As the children approached, they hid behind the trunk of a tall oak tree. As the man began talking to someone, Joe peered around and spotted another man who was dressed in a coat and wearing a hat which was pulled down over his eyes.

  Leo handed the rucksack to the man and, after saying a few more words, which were unrecognizable since the men were speaking in low voices, walked away.

  Joe was eager to follow the stranger but needed to wait until Leo was out of sight. Unfortunately, by this time, the stranger was nowhere to be found.

  “Who do you think he was?” Will asked.

  Joe frowned. “I have no idea. Whoever he was, something weird is certainly going on.”

  “Do you think it’s connected with the missing jewels?” Amy asked.

  “Well, it’s possible that the rucksack Leo handed the man had the crown jewels in it,” Joe replied. “But even if it did, there’s nothing we can do about it because we don’t know where the man has gone.”

  “Well, can we please go back and finish our lunch then?” Sarah pleaded.
“I’m hungry.”

  Disheartened, Joe nodded. “We may as well.”

  The children walked back to the hill and resumed eating. Once they had finished doing so, they cycled back to the farmhouse.

  That afternoon, Nadia invited them to accompany her to several places that she thought they might find interesting, including the old cottage in which she grew up.

  They didn’t return to the farmhouse until evening and, after eating a delicious Monrovian specialty consisting of potatoes, tomatoes and cabbage, they played a board game with Nadia and Christo until they began to get tired. And so, after saying goodnight, they left the living room and made their way to their bedrooms.

  ~

  In the middle of the night, Joe was awakened by an owl hooting nearby. Hoping to see the bird, he walked over to the window and pushed aside the curtains.

  As there was a full moon, there was enough light for him to see the owl on the branch of a nearby tree. As he studied the bird, it hooted once more before flying away.

  Just as Joe was about to close the curtain, he caught sight of a light in the distance. He frowned. It seemed to be coming from the woods. Could it be a fire that had been started by accident or was someone camping there?

  Joe looked at his watch. It was twelve thirty, which was quite late for someone to be awake. He decided this needed investigating and so he switched on the bed lamp and proceeded to get dressed.

  A few moments later, awoken by the light, Will stirred. He frowned as he saw that Joe was half dressed. “Is it morning already?”

  Joe shook his head. “No, there’s a light on the hillside. I’m going to see what’s going on.”

  Will climbed out of bed and walked over to the window to have a look. “Maybe there’s a cabin up there.”

  “No, I don’t think so,” Joe said.

  “Maybe we should tell Christo,” Will suggested.

  Joe shook his head. “No, not until we know what it is. Come on, let’s find out.” He quickly put on the rest of his clothes and patiently waited for Will to do the same. Then, after grabbing his torch, he led the way outside.