The Hidden Jewels Read online

  “Thank you, Lavender and James, that was a most delicious meal – I shan’t need to eat again for days! I’m afraid that the girls and I have got to go now. Arthur offered to give us a full tour of the castle today and we need to pop into the library on the way,” he explained.

  “It’s a pleasure,” replied Lavender. “Good luck with the detective work.”

  “Thank you!” said Daniel. “Girls, are you ready?”

  “I just need to get my bag,” replied Poppy. “I’ll meet you in the hall.”

  She ran to her room and put a notebook and torch in her bag. Cousin Daisy had taught her to always be prepared during any sort of investigation.

  Ten minutes later Poppy, Honey and Daniel arrived at the library, which was in the Village Hall. Daniel led the girls straight to the history section and soon found what he was looking for. He took two books from the shelf: one about medieval history and one called Honeypot Hill Through the Ages. Just then, Honey spotted another book.

  “Dad, look at this one,” she said. “It’s all about medieval English. Should we borrow this too?”

  “Well done, darling!” replied Daniel. “I’m sure that will come in handy. Now let’s check these books out and get to the castle!”

  When they arrived at Cornsilk Castle, they found Arthur pacing up and down in the hallway wearing his guide’s uniform.

  “Hello!” he beamed. “I’m ready for the tour if you are.”

  “We certainly are,” replied Daniel. “The girls haven’t been able to talk about anything but the castle, the jewels and the princess since our last visit.”

  “Um, that’s all you’ve been talking about too, Dad!” laughed Honey.

  “Well, since you’ve all been eagerly anticipating it, let’s get started!” said the old guide, glad to have such an interested audience. “We’ll start at the bottom and work our way up. Follow me to the vaults – these were part of the castle that was here from 1100 AD. Health and Safety say we all have to wear hard hats down there, so here you go,” he continued, dishing out bright yellow hats to everyone.

  They set off on their tour, with Poppy and Honey feeling nervous and excited all at the same time.

  “Are you sure we won’t be imprisoned, just like the princess?” Poppy asked.

  “And it won’t be too dark down there, will it?” asked Honey.

  “I promise we’ll be all right,” said Arthur. “I have keys for every door here and we’ll be able to see just fine. There are lights and I’ve got my torch.”

  “Me too!” said Poppy.

  They went along a maze of corridors, then through a doorway that seemed to separate the newer part of the castle from the original. All of a sudden they were in what remained of the medieval castle.

  “Wow!” gasped Poppy. “This is amazing!”

  Chapter Four

  “THIS WAS THE chapel of St Stephen in the first fortress,” explained Arthur as they looked around the beautiful old room with a painting of St Stephen above the altar. “It’s the only remaining structure from the original medieval castle – besides the vaults, of course. We believe this is where Princess Alyssa would have worshipped every day. Even though the legend says she was held captive, she was apparently still allowed to pray. We don’t normally show it on tours as it wouldn’t stand up to a lot of traffic, but once in a while we bend the rules if visitors are really enthusiastic. Below this are the vaults, and under the altar is the Knights’ Vault, where they say some famous knights were laid to rest.”

  Poppy and Honey couldn’t believe what they were seeing and hearing. They’d had no idea that there was a lovely old chapel right in the heart of the castle.

  Arthur led them behind the altar, where there was a wooden trapdoor in the floor. He lifted it up to reveal a wooden staircase like a ship’s ladder, which led down into the vaults within the deep, dark foundations of the castle.

  “What exactly are the vaults, Arthur?” asked Poppy, peering down the stairwell.

  “They’re a labyrinth of cellar-like rooms, dating from the 1100s,” he explained. “There are definitely some tombs down there. I suppose they might also have been used to hide family secrets from the outside world.”

  “Do you think the jewels might be down there, Arthur?” asked Honey.

  “It’s certainly one of the places they could be,” he replied.

  “Wow!” said Poppy. “That would be so cool!”

  The whole tour party climbed carefully down the wooden ladder.

  “It’s said that the spirit of a knight haunts the vaults,” explained Arthur as they all made their way down, “but I’ve never seen anything.”

  Just as he said this, Poppy shone her torch into the blackness to reveal a suit of armour.

  “Aaargh!” screamed Honey, grabbing her dad’s hand. “It’s the ghost of a knight. Look!”

  “Don’t worry, Honey, it’s just a suit of armour,” Poppy reassured her best friend. “I think it’s really cool.”

  “It certainly is,” agreed Daniel. “I wonder what else we’re going to find.”

  “I’d forgotten that was down here,” chuckled Arthur. “I remember it gave me quite a fright the first time I saw it too. I was convinced it was moving towards me!”

  “Arthur, do you think Alyssa was a real princess?” asked Honey, changing the subject.

  “I’m sure she was,” replied Arthur. “But because everything we know about her and her jewels has been passed down by word of mouth, most people think it is just a myth. If we could find some real evidence, then we could prove all the doubters wrong.”

  They walked silently along the dark, damp corridors. The vaults lined the main passages. Some had metal-barred doors, which made them look like prison cells.

  “I expect these were cells originally,” observed Daniel.

  “Yes, indeed they were – but as for Princess Alyssa, legend has it she was kept in a circular room at the top of a tower. Unfortunately this tower was demolished when the newer castle was built. But from what I’ve read about the building in the archives, the tower was close to the chapel, so if she did exist, I think Alyssa was imprisoned directly above where we are now,” explained Arthur.

  Poppy shuddered. She simply could not imagine how it must have felt to be trapped in a small room, day after day. Poor Princess Alyssa!

  As they continued along the torch-lit corridor, Poppy tripped over a pile of rubble. When she recovered her balance, she looked down at the ground and shone her torch there.

  “This part of the floor looks like it has been lifted or dug up or something,” she said. “Come and have a look.”

  The others made their way over to where Poppy stood. Arthur began to move the rubble aside with his hands. A plume of dust rose into the air, making Poppy and Honey cough and splutter.

  “Is there anything under there, Arthur?” asked Daniel.

  “Well, I’ll be blowed! I think there is. Can you give me a hand with shifting this debris? I think I can feel something underneath it,” he replied.

  They all got down on their hands and knees in order to clear away the rubble.

  “Nearly there – we just need to shift a few more stones and we’ll be able to see what’s here,” said Arthur.

  Within minutes he had freed an ancient-looking book. The writing inside it was just like the writing in the book on medieval English they had borrowed from the library earlier that day.

  Arthur shone his torch on it to get a better look. Then Honey’s dad took the library book out of his bag and started flicking through it, trying to match up the old-fashioned words and letters with modern ones.

  “I think it says Lucky Charms and Tinctures, by Princess Alyssa of Avalon.”

  Honey gasped. Poppy’s eyes opened wide. “Wow!” she said. “If this was written by the princess, then it’s proof that she was real!”

  “You’re right,” said Arthur. “It certainly looks like the princess was more than a figment of local imaginations down the centuries, doe
sn’t it?”

  “Um, Dad, what are tinctures?” asked Honey.

  “They’re a bit like potions,” explained Daniel.

  The girls pondered on this for a moment.

  “Does that mean she really was a witch?” asked Honey.

  “It doesn’t prove it, but it does tell us that there might be some truth to the stories,” replied Daniel. “I’d like to study this book, with your permission, Arthur, and come back for another look round when we know a bit more about the princess and her potions.”

  Arthur nodded. “Good idea. You’re welcome to borrow it, as long as it comes back in the condition we found it in. I think we’ve all had enough excitement for one day. Good work, everyone!

  Now that they had made one good find, Poppy and Honey were more determined than ever to solve the mystery of Princess Alyssa and the hidden jewels.

  Chapter Five

  THAT NIGHT, AS she fell into bed, exhausted, Poppy imagined that she was the princess waiting in the locked castle, not knowing when she would be released.

  That poor princess! she thought as she wondered how old the princess was when she was imprisoned, what she looked like, where she came from, how she got to be a princess in the first place, and what her lucky charms and tinctures were.

  With all these things racing around in her mind Poppy just couldn’t get to sleep. She decided to turn on her light and jot down some notes so that she would remember everything in the morning. She was desperate to get to the bottom of the mystery and find out what had happened to Princess Alyssa. Poppy hoped there was a happy ending to her story.

  Eventually, long past midnight, she fell asleep, her mind still whirring with thoughts of knights, princesses, castles, jewels and witches.

  The next morning, straight after breakfast, Poppy dashed over to Honeypot Cottage to see if Honey’s dad had worked out what was in the charm book. She arrived to find Honey and her father both poring over the book, with Daniel making notes.

  “Hi, Poppy!” they both chimed.

  “Any ideas about the charms yet?” she asked.

  “Well, the book of medieval English we borrowed from the library is really useful. Honey and I have been translating the charms but it’s taking a while,” explained Daniel. “Why don’t you come and help us?”

  Poppy settled down at the table and took out her notebook. She began to copy out some of the charms and then cross-reference them with the library book, almost as if she was doing a puzzle.

  “Here’s what I’ve got so far,” said Poppy after about fifteen minutes.

  “I think it says ‘boiling hot’ at the end there,” said Daniel.

  “That fits,” agreed Poppy. “But what are the other missing words?”

  “I know!” Honey exclaimed suddenly. “I think it says ‘herbs and berries’ and then ‘brewed’!”

  “That makes sense, well done!” agreed Daniel. “Well, well, well. It sounds like she was trying to make her guards dozy with a spell so that she could escape. Poor girl!”

  They carried on with the book and found that it was filled with the princess’s charms to bring her knight back or heal her heart or make time go faster.

  “I don’t think Princess Alyssa was a bad witch, was she?” concluded Poppy.

  “It doesn’t look like it. I think she was just trying to make her life better,” replied Daniel. “But if she was found with ingredients for charms, then they might have thought she was a witch – in those days they thought all witches were bad.”

  “I noticed something else in the book,” said Poppy, carefully picking it up and turning to the back. “Look at this,” she continued. “It could be some sort of secret code.”

  “Wow, that’s so cool!” exclaimed Honey. “I wonder what it means . . .”

  On Monday morning during Circle Time at school Poppy told the rest of the class all about the mystery of the hidden jewels and the imprisoned princess. Everyone was absolutely fascinated, especially Miss Mallow.

  “Do you think she was a witch, Miss Mallow?” asked Poppy.

  “It doesn’t sound like she was, from what you have said. At least, not like the evil witches on broomsticks we imagine,” Miss Mallow replied. “Poor, poor Princess Alyssa. How awful to have been locked up like that.”

  “Me and Honey are going find out the truth about her!” exclaimed Poppy. “And with the help of Honey’s dad and Arthur we’re even hoping to find her jewels too!”

  “Well, we all look forward to hearing how you get on,” said Miss Mallow. “Good luck!”

  After school, Honey’s dad took the girls for a snack at Bumble Bee’s Teashop. Honey’s mum was down at the Beehive Beauty Salon having some treatments done.

  “Three strawberry milkshakes, please, Mum. And three of your best cakes too!” said Daniel.

  “Coming right up!” smiled Granny Bumble, choosing three iced cakes.

  Daniel carefully carried the milkshakes and cakes over to the table where Poppy and Honey were sitting. The girls were chatting non stop and poring over Poppy’s notebook.

  “What are you two plotting?” asked Daniel as he sat down.

  “Nothing, Mr Bumble. Me and Honey were just writing down the things we do know about Princess Alyssa – and some questions about the things we don’t know yet,” explained Poppy.

  “Great!” he replied. “Can I see?”

  Poppy nodded and passed him the notebook.

  “Wow! I’m impressed, girls,” said Daniel. “You are asking all the right questions. I think we need to go back to the castle next Saturday and carry on looking for some answers.”

  “Yippee!” chorused the girls. The weekend could not come soon enough.

  On Saturday morning, on her way to the kitchen to make breakfast for everyone, Granny Bumble noticed an envelope lying in the hall.

  “It’s too early for the post,” she muttered as she picked it up. She saw that it was addressed to her son and that it had been delivered by hand.

  She laid the table and propped up the letter by Daniel’s place, then set about making porridge.

  Honey was the first one down and spotted the envelope right away. “Dad, there’s a letter for you,” she called. “Come down and open it – I want to know who it’s from!”

  “Morning to you too,” said Daniel as he came into the kitchen rubbing his sleepy eyes. “You are a nosy parker, Honey. It’s not even addressed to you! Mum, did this arrive this morning?”

  “Yes, dear, it was lying in the hall when I came down,” replied Granny Bumble. “Whoever delivered it is certainly an early bird.”

  “Come on then, open it. What if it’s a letter from an admirer – I’ve got a right to know!” laughed Honey’s mum.

  Daniel opened the envelope and read the letter, looking more and more confused as he did so.

  “Well, what does it say, Dad?” asked Honey.

  All eyes were on Daniel.

  “Um, I think it’s a sort of riddle. Listen:

  “Who on earth could have sent that?” asked Granny Bumble.

  “I don’t know, but it’s someone who’s trying to help you guys solve the mystery,” said Jasmine.

  “Or send us off in the wrong direction, perhaps?” suggested Daniel.

  “People round these parts don’t act that way,” said Granny Bumble. “I think it’s genuine help all right – but from whom? That’s what I’d like to know.”

  The letter was printed from a computer so there was no handwriting to give them any idea who wrote it.

  “I think the first thing to do is check out this clue – we can work out who sent the letter afterwards,” said Daniel. “Honey, phone Poppy and tell her to be ready in half an hour – and her dad too, if he’s around. I’ll ring Arthur and let him know that we’ll be there at ten – oh, and that he should bring spades, tools and a wheelbarrow! That will have him guessing!”

  Chapter Six

  POPPY AND HER dad were very excited when Honey told them about the new clue, and they were over at
Honeypot Cottage in a flash. Poppy simply could not believe this exciting and romantic story had happened right here in her own village. She was used to playing in the courtyard, visiting her friend Sweetpea, who lived in a cottage in the grounds, and going to lots of local events and parties at the castle. The story and the new clue made shivers run down her spine – she was desperate to find out the truth.

  “What I want to know,” announced Poppy, “is whether or not the knight returned and if Princess Alyssa lived happily ever after. Oh, and where the jewels are hidden, of course!”

  “Me too,” said Honey.

  The girls wore jeans and wellies as they knew that digging in the grounds was likely to be a mucky job. They walked through the village, following their dads, who were deep in conversation about the riddle. Before long they arrived at the fountain in front of the castle, where Arthur was waiting for them. He was ready with spades and a wheelbarrow and was keen to hear all about the mysterious clue.

  “Well, it says here that we must go to the Keep Tower by the lake and look for an oak tree,” explained Daniel. “But where is the Keep Tower?”

  “We know!” cried Poppy, before Arthur could explain. “Don’t we, Honey?”

  “Yes, follow us!”

  The girls had often played near the tower and knew the area around it well, so they led the group down to the edge of the small lake behind the castle, where the old keep tower stood.

  “This is the tree here,” said Arthur, pointing to a vast old oak. “What next?”

  “It says here that we must take five steps to the east and then turn to the left,” said Daniel, re-reading the riddle and following the instructions.

  They each grabbed a spade – Arthur had kindly found a couple of smaller ones for the girls. Five steps to the east of the tree, Daniel marked out a circle with some big stones. They started to dig. It was hard work and Poppy was turning over nothing but earth. It seemed as if they were getting nowhere. Daniel was starting to think that someone was playing a mean trick on them.