Cora Flash and the Diamond of Madagascar (A Cora Flash Children's Mystery, Book 1) by Tommy Davey
Authors: Tommy Davey
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That must be a lot of work for you . "
" It ' s okay, " she said. " I ' m managing. "
" You were in the d ining car early this morning, weren ' t you? "
" I didn ' t sleep very well last night, so I couldn ' t wait for it to open. That guy beat me to it, though . "
" You mean Mr. MacEvoy? "
" Yeah, him, " she said. " The weird guy. He ' s always so nervous. "
If anyone else had been in the car with the i nspector and Abigail, they would have seen an eleven-year- old leg stick out briefly on one side of the cart. Luckily, neither the Inspector nor Abigail appeared to have noticed my extension.
" Did you see anyone else as you made your way to breakfast ? "
" No, " she replied. " Just Willy. He was walking in the hallway as I passed by. "
Dabruzzi was suddenly interested. " In the hallway of the next car? The sleeper car? "
" Yeah, he was making his way up to the front of the car. We had to squeeze by each other in the hallway to get by. People must have been much skinnier when they built these trains. "
" Did he say where he was going? "
" No, but I didn ' t ask. I know Willy from way back when. He has worked for the rails as long as my d ad . He knew me since I was a little girl. When my parents were still together. He came to the wedding, I think. "
" So you just passed by without saying anything? "
" Of course not, " she said, a little insulted. " He said good morning. Good morning, Minnie, he said to me. He always called me Minnie because I used to carry around a Minnie Mouse doll that my d ad got me when we went to Disney World . It was the last family vacation we took together and I carried it around with me for the longest time. "
" When you went to the d ining car, did you say anything to Mr. MacEvoy? "
" No, " she snapped . " I ' m not here to make friends. I just wanted to get my breakfast and be done with it. I have no interest in chit - chatting my way across the country. I wanted to eat and get back to my book. There are enough people talking all the time, I don ' t need to join in. "
" Don ' t you find it helps to pass the time when you can talk with other people? "
" I talk with other people all day. At school, at home, at my part-time job. Sometimes all I think I do is talk, talk, talk. I need some quiet time. "
" Abigail, did you notice if the door t o Mr. Sloane ' s compartment was open when you passed by? "
" I can ' t really say that I noticed one way or the other. No one came into the hallway from any of the compartments, that much I can say. " Abigail paused for a second and then changed her gaze to a n intense stare. " You know , if there was anyone here who I would suspect, it would be Mr. Sloane himself. "
" Mr. Sloane? But it ' s his diamond. Why on earth would he fake a robbery ? "
" Because, " Abigail sneered , almost condescendingly , " n o one would suspect him. An inside job. Why would anyone suspect him if he was the one crying foul? He probably has the diamond stashed somewhere in his compartment. "
" Ah, you are already mistaken there . Don ' t you remember I said I searched his compartment? The diamond was most definitely not there. "
" Oh, " she said in a disappoint ed tone. She clearly thought she had figured it out. " Then he already got rid of it. It ' s somewhere else on this train, or he threw it off to someone else who was waiting for him . "
" I have considered this . Not necessarily in the context of Mr. Sloane, mind you, but as a method of disposing of the gem . However, I think it would be utterly foolish for anyone to throw the diamond out into the farmlands we have been passing through. It would be next to impossible to recover. "
" So you think it ' s still on the train? "
" Yes, I do. "
CHAPTER TWELVE
" I have no reason to steal that diamond , " said Willy.
" As I have said to the others , I am no t accusing or implicating anyone in the crime . I am just trying to figure out where everyone was and if they may have
" It ' s okay, " she said. " I ' m managing. "
" You were in the d ining car early this morning, weren ' t you? "
" I didn ' t sleep very well last night, so I couldn ' t wait for it to open. That guy beat me to it, though . "
" You mean Mr. MacEvoy? "
" Yeah, him, " she said. " The weird guy. He ' s always so nervous. "
If anyone else had been in the car with the i nspector and Abigail, they would have seen an eleven-year- old leg stick out briefly on one side of the cart. Luckily, neither the Inspector nor Abigail appeared to have noticed my extension.
" Did you see anyone else as you made your way to breakfast ? "
" No, " she replied. " Just Willy. He was walking in the hallway as I passed by. "
Dabruzzi was suddenly interested. " In the hallway of the next car? The sleeper car? "
" Yeah, he was making his way up to the front of the car. We had to squeeze by each other in the hallway to get by. People must have been much skinnier when they built these trains. "
" Did he say where he was going? "
" No, but I didn ' t ask. I know Willy from way back when. He has worked for the rails as long as my d ad . He knew me since I was a little girl. When my parents were still together. He came to the wedding, I think. "
" So you just passed by without saying anything? "
" Of course not, " she said, a little insulted. " He said good morning. Good morning, Minnie, he said to me. He always called me Minnie because I used to carry around a Minnie Mouse doll that my d ad got me when we went to Disney World . It was the last family vacation we took together and I carried it around with me for the longest time. "
" When you went to the d ining car, did you say anything to Mr. MacEvoy? "
" No, " she snapped . " I ' m not here to make friends. I just wanted to get my breakfast and be done with it. I have no interest in chit - chatting my way across the country. I wanted to eat and get back to my book. There are enough people talking all the time, I don ' t need to join in. "
" Don ' t you find it helps to pass the time when you can talk with other people? "
" I talk with other people all day. At school, at home, at my part-time job. Sometimes all I think I do is talk, talk, talk. I need some quiet time. "
" Abigail, did you notice if the door t o Mr. Sloane ' s compartment was open when you passed by? "
" I can ' t really say that I noticed one way or the other. No one came into the hallway from any of the compartments, that much I can say. " Abigail paused for a second and then changed her gaze to a n intense stare. " You know , if there was anyone here who I would suspect, it would be Mr. Sloane himself. "
" Mr. Sloane? But it ' s his diamond. Why on earth would he fake a robbery ? "
" Because, " Abigail sneered , almost condescendingly , " n o one would suspect him. An inside job. Why would anyone suspect him if he was the one crying foul? He probably has the diamond stashed somewhere in his compartment. "
" Ah, you are already mistaken there . Don ' t you remember I said I searched his compartment? The diamond was most definitely not there. "
" Oh, " she said in a disappoint ed tone. She clearly thought she had figured it out. " Then he already got rid of it. It ' s somewhere else on this train, or he threw it off to someone else who was waiting for him . "
" I have considered this . Not necessarily in the context of Mr. Sloane, mind you, but as a method of disposing of the gem . However, I think it would be utterly foolish for anyone to throw the diamond out into the farmlands we have been passing through. It would be next to impossible to recover. "
" So you think it ' s still on the train? "
" Yes, I do. "
CHAPTER TWELVE
" I have no reason to steal that diamond , " said Willy.
" As I have said to the others , I am no t accusing or implicating anyone in the crime . I am just trying to figure out where everyone was and if they may have
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