Lilly and The Jewel Of St Petersburg

Lilly and The Jewel Of St Petersburg   (E) This is a competition entry for the curiosity shop.. #1651592 by intheventofire

I thought it would be fun and an interesting challenge to try to include all of the prompts in the story and in some vague context. some may work, some may not, but it was fun... The prompts are all in bold and I think I got them all,,, Enjoy or Endure x Neil D Campbell





Tuesday has never been my favourite day, it's all together too close to Monday and still three fifths away from Saturday. That was before that particular Tuesday however, from that day forth, the weekend couldn't finish fast enough.



My apologies, I'm being ever so rude; my name is Lilly and I live in Bath, England with my mother and my sister Jean. As you have probably guessed from my earlier statement, this tale begins on Tuesday, a very peculiar Tuesday, and one that I'm not ever likely to forget.



Being twelve is fun, but it has its limitations; the world is far too big for twelve year olds and despite my dozen years I still know very little about the city in which I live. Oh I know all about the woods by my house, and I could draw you maps of our neighbours' gardens, but the city itself was an altogether different affair. I'd visited it often with mother, but she always seemed in such a rush and her routines were just that. Tug as I might, I could seldom get her to stray even an inch from her usual march round the shops.



As I said, I hadn't seen much of the city, but I knew it well enough to know that particular shop shouldn't be there. This was my first solo adventure into town; Bath is a lovely place brimming with smiles and pretty parks, even mother had to admit that. so she had donated a few pounds to my quest and had given me the day to myself (after all I am twelve!).



I spotted the shop instantly, it was sandwiched between the butchers and the tea shop and was making a poor attempt at pretending it had always been there. I stood and stared at it suspicously for a moment, knowing full well others would see my gaze and realise, as I had, that the shop was a fraud, but to my amazement no one did!



I'd had enough, I wasn't going to stand there and put up with this trickery so I marched straight over and opened the door.



The affront I had felt as I entered the shop vanished like a rainbow that you would have sworn was there just a second ago.



"Good morning," the shopkeeper said, "I'm Alice, what can I interest you in today?" A black cat tangoed through her legs.



"Good morning Alice," I replied, "I'd like an explanation please."



"A Detective, how exciting! I may have just the thing." At once Alice started furiously rummaging; the shop wasn't a mess as such, not like Jean's room at any rate, but I couldn't honestly say it was tidy either.



A moment later she emerged from behind a stack of books with a deerstalker hat.



"Try this on," she said holding it out towards me, " It once belonged to another fine detective, or so I'm told."



I was hesitant, I'll confess. It was dusty and smelt of mothballs, but then I had marched into the shop demanding Alice explain herself, so I reluctantly donned the hat....... and thats when things got really strange.



I saw the egg instantly. It had been painted up like some Ukrainian tourist tat, but it was clearly Faberge. The Jewel of St Petersburg, no less. The police had been looking for it for weeks. I'd watched it on the news. But how had they snuck it out of the National Museum? Instinctively, I pulled a magnifying glass, which I realised much later I couldn't possibly have possessed, from my bag, and set to work.



Ten minutes later I was done.



"Alice, I need to use your phone if I may," I asked her



"Certainly, " she said handing me an old fashioned bakelite receiver. As soon as I had in my hands I spoke forcefully into the mouthpiece.



"Operator, Inspector Lastrade of the Yard please," I demanded, not at all sure where my instructions were coming from. A moment later to my astonishment a man answered.



"Holmes? This had better not be one of your fancy goose hunts."



"It's Lilly actually," I said, "I have cracked the case of the Jewel Of St Petersburg."



"Are you sure young lady? I've had a dozen men scratching their heads for a week over that particular file."



"I am most certain Lastrade," I answered. "How fast can you get here?"



"I'm already here Holmes," said a voice behind me. I turned round and there was Lastrade, I gawped at him in bewilderment.



"We had the called traced," he offered by way of a poor explanation. None of it made any sense, but I was bursting to disclose my discovery.



"As you know Lastrade, the Jewel of St Petersburg has sat safely in the National Museum for thirty years until this very Sunday night." Lastrade nodded. "So why now?," I asked him rhetorically and had to cut him of as he tried to blurt an answer.



"The Bonsai Tree was my first clue. It's a Japanese elm," I asserted, "they flower only once in thirty years."

"Flowering..... It is not only trees which bloom, Lastrade. Young ladies also flower do they not?" I asked without the faintest idea what I was talking about, but the game was afoot and I had more revelations for the bumbling police man. Lastrade looked as puzzled as I felt, but nevertheless I sat in an old rocking chair adjusted the height with a pillow and carried on.



"Take this small blue glass bottle, " I said, "Could it contain a Genie perhaps?" He nodded.



"I thought then of the Arabian states, the hookah would also suggest their involvement, but alas it was a smokescreen... India then perhaps?"I suggested. "You'll note the cunning placing of the stuffed elephant." Lastrade picked it up and scrutinized it.



"The color, Lastrade?"I asked him.



"Why, its white Holmes, as pale as the porcelain doll in the glass case by the door."



"Precisely, my dear Lastrade... A White Elephant, So once again our trail grows cold." ( Authors note a white elephant in the UK is another term for a useless item and I'm not sure if this translates)



"Sari." I said holding up the robe



"No need to apologize Holmes."

(Lord forgive me for this terrible pun, but I was having real effort sneaking the sari in, lol)



"No, my good man..... it is an Indian garment. Please observe the pattern"



"Why, its covered with scarlet fish."



"Red herrings, unfortunately." I replied.



"I was at my wits end, old friend, until I saw this," I said, holding up the compass. " Note the direction...East! The land of the Great Bear.” I said, pointing at the bear skin rug by my feet. At that moment, Alice came back from the storeroom carrying a steaming teapot.



“You think it was the Russians, Holmes?” said Lastrade.



“I do indeed. They were careless and thoughtful enough to leave this behind too.” I handed Lastrade the pop up book. He read the title aloud.



“The Popov Dynasty 1840 to 1981…”



“Exactly. Now open the last page if you would be so kind..” He did as I asked, and a great display of paper engineering unfurled in his hands.” The final entry?” I coaxed.



“Princess Eugenie Popov, born 1980, My word Holmes!”



“That’s correct inspector, making her thirty years old,” I announced, “ this very week.”



“I don’t understand Holmes, “ he said, “where is all this leading?”



“Its really very simple, the glass bottle suggested a genie… Eugenie, the pop up book confirms that she is the correct age for coronation. The Jewel of St Petersburg was once used in such a ceremony. Inspector Lastrade, I conclude that Russian sympathizers stole the egg in order to reinstate the Popov royal line.”



“Of course!” said Lastrade. ”Once again Holmes, your genius has excelled itself. There’s just one thing I don’t understand… How was it done?”



“Elementary my dear Lastrade,” I said, ”It is well known that Princess Eugenie is to marry Ferdinand Bonepart this very week.”



“The French jewel thief?”



“The very same.”



“ But how did he do it? The Museum is a fortress Holmes.”



“From the ground I would be forced to agree. But he did not enter from ground level… Look,” I said holding up the gyroscope, “I nearly missed this myself.” Lastrade scratched his chin and mopped his brow, and I knew more explanations were in order.



“This device can stay upright on almost any surface, Inspector, even on a piece of string, much like our culprit. Ferdinand Bonepart is a wire walker.”



“A wire walker Holmes? Why, I’ve never heard of such a thing.”



“Come now Inspector, a man as wise in the ways of the world as you, must have seen the death defying feats of the circus high wire acts. Mr Bonepart is a master, he studied at the Moscow State Circus no less.”



“Intriguing,” he said, “But how did he escape?”

The door opened and a pair of delivery men nodded politely at us both, disturbing the wind chimes as they entered.



“Timing is everything it seems,” I said. “Lastrade, arrest these men.” The pair looked confused but made no attempt to flee. Alice dropped the teapot in panic and rushed to find a broom.



“You pair are under arrest,” Lastrade announced to the men.” They immediately bolted for the door, but Lastrade had his pistol out in a flash and fired a warning shot over their heads. The bullet hit a glass jar which shattered instantly scattering its contents onto the floor. I picked up the tin heart and wound its key and the strange clock began to beat again. The men stood stock still as Lastrade cuffed them.



“As I said Inspector, timing is everything. You asked me how Bonepart made his escape? The simple answer is he did not... Alice?”



“Yes my dear,” The lovely lady replied.



“On occasion you receive the odd item from the museum do you not?”



“Why yes dear,” she repied with a smile, “Only yesterday this fine steamer trunk arrived.”



In that second the trunk flew open and our thief was exposed.



“Well, well, Miss Holmes, you have uncovered my plot, but I am afraid the game is up.” Ferdinand Bonepart was brandishing a revolver and its little barrel was staring at me like my mother’s fiercest glare.



“Put that down at once,“ shouted Lastrade, as he trained his own pistol on the man.



“It's fine inspector,” I said, “ this criminal will get his just desserts another time.”



“Wisely put Miss Holmes,” Ferdinand said, “The egg if you please.”



“Give it to him Alice.” The lady complied and soon the three men were making for the door.



“You’ll never get away with it.” Lastrade called after them, but they had gone.



“You let them get away Holmes,” Lastrade said, ”I must say I am surprised.”



“They may have got away inspector, but not with the crime. Did they Alice?” I looked at the old lady and she seemed a little embarrassed.



“I was going to give it back,” she said, “I really was.”



“I know,” I said smiling back at her. “ A lady of your fine taste must have seen the egg for what it was, and I doubt you’d have let the ruffians walk off with it. I must say I’m a little disappointed. Honestly, to display such an obvious fake!.”



“The egg?“ asked Lastrade.



“No, the shamrock. It is really two leaves of clover glued together, and the paint is the wrong shade of green. The same shade you painted the Ukrainian Egg.”



“The shamrock’s not for sale, silly, “ she said, “ but that’s another story. Here inspector, I think you’d better have this.” She passed Lastrade an ornate box from under the counter.



He opened it with a jeweler’s care and there inside was the fabulous Faberge Egg.



“I’d best get this back to the Museum, “ he said, making his way to the door. “ Good work Holmes. I expect I shall be hearing from you soon?” He tipped his hat as he left the shop.



As the door closed a harrowing thought came to me.



“I can’t come back can I?”



“I’m not sure my dear, the shop is somewhat flighty...... I’m never sure where it will end up next.” The cat purred its way towards me and I knelt to let it sniff my hand. It looked at Alice and meowed.



“Actually,” she said, “I think the shop has enjoyed your little adventure. We’re here on Tuesdays… sometimes.”



I've been back to that street every Tuesday since and so far it has eluded me, but I am young still and as Alice once told me I am something of a detective...









Word count 1900 approx...