Mystery of the Queen's Jewels by Gertrude Chandler Warner Page A

“Take your time and stay as long as you like,” he told the Aldens as he put on his wrinkled raincoat. “Bye-bye!”
    â€œGood-bye,” the Aldens called after him.
    â€œHe certainly left in a hurry,” said Jessie.
    â€œYes,’ and just when I was telling him about the person following us around,” said Henry. “All of a sudden he looked very uncomfortable.”
    â€œProbably because he just realized he’d forgotten his appointment,” said Violet.
    â€œI guess so,” said Henry. But he didn’t seem satisfied.
    â€œI know something else he forgot,” said Benny. He reached under the table and pulled something out. “His hat!”
    After tea the Aldens returned to their inn, bringing Charles’s hat with them. They hoped they might be able to return it to him before leaving London. Back at the inn they changed into nice clothes for the theater. Benny and Henry put on khaki slacks, loafers, and clean white shirts. The girls wore flowered dresses and put bows in their hair. Jessie’s bow was red and Violet’s was purple, her favorite color. Grandfather had on a gray suit, with his pocket watch tucked into his vest. They looked so nice that when they passed Donna as they were leaving, she even smiled and told them to enjoy the show.
    The evening was just as wonderful as they had hoped it would be. The theater was old and quite elegant, with an ornately carved ceiling and a thick red velvet curtain. The show was exciting, and all the actors and actresses were very good. The children all liked the beautiful scenery and costumes, but their favorite parts were the songs and dances.
    â€œThank you for taking us to the play, Grandfather,” said Henry as they got into their cab at the end of the night.
    â€œIt was great,” Violet added.
    The Aldens were all quite tired when they reached the inn. They’d had a busy day.
    â€œI can’t wait to go to sleep,” said Benny.
    â€œThat’s a switch,” said Grandfather, chuckling. Usually Benny wanted to stay up as late as possible.
    But when Henry opened the door to their room, the boys were in for a shock. The pillows and blankets had been pulled off their beds and the contents of their drawers had been dumped out on the floor. “Grandfather!” Henry called. “We’ve been robbed!”

CHAPTER 9
A Hidden Package
    T he Aldens gathered in the door of Benny and Henry’s room, looking at the mess inside. The girls had heard the commotion and had come back to see what was going on. “Who would have done such a thing?” asked Violet.
    â€œRun downstairs and see if you can find Mrs. Brown,” Grandfather told Henry. “In the meantime, well check the other rooms and make sure they’re okay.”
    It turned out that only the boys’ room had been broken into. “We’d better not touch anything until the police come,” said Grandfather.

    Mrs. Brown had been down in the kitchen preparing for breakfast the next day. When she saw what had happened to the boys’ room, she gasped and put her hands to her mouth. “Oh, my word!” she said. “Nothing like this has ever happened here before!” She hurried to call the police. In a few minutes, an officer had arrived.
    â€œIs he a policeman?” Benny whispered to Henry. He didn’t look like the police back home. He had on a black uniform and a tall curved hat.
    â€œYes,” said Henry. “He’s a bobby.”
    â€œHow do you know his name is Bobby?” Benny asked.
    â€œThat’s not his name; that’s what police officers are called here,” Henry explained.
    The bobby asked the Aldens some questions and made notes in a small notebook. “Does anything appear to be missing?”
    The boys looked through the piles of things that had been dumped from the drawers.
    â€œI don’t think so,” said Henry. “We didn’t have