Have you ever found yourself in a predicament you couldn’t get out of? In trying to extricate yourself, you made all the wrong assumptions and blamed the wrong people.

 

The more you tried to find an explanation for what was happening, the more confusing it got. This is what occurred in the . . .

 

 

Jewel In The Crown

 

     “It’s missing,” I screamed, my face showing signs of pain and confusion. “It’s nowhere to be found, nowhere.”

     “What are you talking about?” Crystal asked.

     “My mother’s beautiful ring, the one with the irreplaceable stone. It’s missing. Gone!”

     “What do you mean, gone? I saw you put it in the top drawer of the dresser in our bedroom.” 

     “No, not the ring. It’s the stone I’m talking about. It’s missing. The setting is in the dresser, but the space that held the jewel is empty.”

     “Josh, that stone is so small. For a few dollars, we can replace it.”

     “You don’t understand. That stone may be small, but it’s quite rare. As far as I know, there are only three of its size and kind in the world. Collectors would do anything to get their hands on it.”

     “And you, you dolt, kept such a valuable gem in the top drawer of our dresser. What kind of an idiot are you? We have a safe deposit box at the bank. Why didn’t you use it?”

     “My mother’s been gone about a month. You know my sister and I just finished settling her estate last week. I didn’t think much about the stone. It’s tiny. I didn’t think anybody would believe it had any value. And now it’s gone.”

     Crystal gasped, “Well, call the police.”

     “And say what?” I groaned. “Tell them I have this inexpensive ring setting that had a precious gem in it? They’d think I’d gone mad.”

     “And they’d be right. If not the police, then what is your plan?”

     “I don’t know. Who could’ve taken it? Who had the opportunity? And when did they do it?”

     Crystal spoke in a somewhat condescending manner, “Maybe it fell out in the drawer. It must be mixed in with your underwear.”

     “No, it’s not there. I turned the drawer upside down. I checked under and all around the dresser. I found nothing.”

     “Josh, calm down. Did you check other places in the house where you had the ring? Remember, you showed it to me in the kitchen when I was preparing the finger food and apple pie for my Mahjong group.”

     “Yeah, I did. I looked everywhere, but there was no sign of it.”

     “Could it have fallen into the food, when you reached in to get a bite?”

     “No way, Crystal. You’re grasping at straws. The next thing you’re going to tell me is somebody must have eaten it.”

     “Oh, come on now. Don’t be foolish.”

     “All right. What do you suggest?”

     “Uh, Josh,” she stammered.

     “Yes.”

     “Saturday, when you attended our grandson’s ballgame, I did have seven women over to play Mahjong.”

     “So, what does that have to do with what we’re talking about?”

     “Well, two of them, I didn’t know—Irena’s friends. And they had free run of the house. Maybe . . .”

     “Maybe what?” She seemed deep in thought. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying? One of them took the stone. But, why would they want to rip us off? And how would they have known about the ring and that I’d put it in the chest of drawers in our bedroom?”

     “I don’t know. But one, I think her name was Kieran, asked many questions about the kinds of jewelry we women had and if any of it was of significant value. She pointed out her husband was in the business.”

     “Yeah, that’s interesting. But you didn’t even know the ring contained an expensive stone. Why would you even mention it?”

     “I didn’t. But, you know how I like to come across as having money so I’m accepted as part of the social elite. It’s possible I led them to believe we had stuff that was worth something, ah . . . well, worth more than something. I believe Kieran’s ears perked up at the time. The other woman, Kieran’s sister-in-law, Angela, also seemed very interested. Both left the Mahjong tables a couple of times for potty breaks, so they did have time to search the house.”

     “Is Angela or her husband in the jewelry business?”

     “I don’t believe so. I think she said her husband, Kieran’s brother, was a dentist.”

     “If they took the stone, they’ve had it two days now. Assuming Kieran’s jeweler husband knows its worth and is aware of the collectors who would like to get their hands on it, he would have to hide it until he could put a possible deal together. And that may take some time.”

     Crystal sighed, “Hiding it wouldn’t be hard. It’s so small. You could hide it anywhere.”

     “Maybe not. It would have to be easy to access so potential buyers could see it on demand.”

     “Couldn’t we find out who the buyers are and call and ask if they’ve been approached?”

     “No, that’s not the way it’s done in the high end, quite secret, stolen jewelry business.”

     “Then, how?” she asked, somewhat frustrated.

     “By placing an obscure ad in the newspapers where these dealers live. This is the only way they trust. They don’t want to do it by phone or the Internet. These ways can be tapped into.”

     “How do you know all this?”

     “I saw a documentary on it a couple of months ago.”

     “Wow! A documentary. No wonder you’re so smart and don’t want to bring the police into it.”

     “Crystal, cut the sarcastic crap. The police wouldn’t know where to start.”

     “And you do?” she questioned, with more than a hint of sarcasm.

     “Well, I might.”

     “Okay, spill it.”

     “Let’s reconstruct the scene on Saturday. Seven women played Mahjong at our house. Five of these women you know very well. Therefore, we can rule them out as suspects. Right?”

     “Yes, that’s right.”

     “Two of the women you didn’t know. Both of these women seemed very interested in our jewelry and they did leave the game tables on a few occasions. Therefore, they had the opportunity to find and pocket the jewel.”

     “Yeah, you could say that.”

     “There, you have it.”

     “Have what?” she screamed, quite exasperated.

     “Both motive and opportunity,” I replied, my eyes gleaming in delight over my discovery.

      “So we know one or both women played a part in stealing the stone. But where is it now?” she queried.

     “Hmm. Let’s see,” I pondered. “The two women stole the stone. However, while they are the thieves, they are not the ones with the contacts or the know-how to dispose of the gem and reap the profits. Aha, that’s the role their husbands play.”

     “So what do they do with the jewel until they can secure a buyer?”

     “Well. Hmm. We have two men, one a jeweler, the other a dentist.” I became silent, as I thought this through.

     “Josh, did you fall asleep?” More silence and then . . .

     “Oh my! It all makes sense now.”

     “Huh, what makes sense? You’ve lost me.”

     “Don’t you see, it’s the old ‘Jewel in the Crown’ caper.”

     “What crown? What are you talking about, Josh?”

     “See, Crystal, the jeweler knows the value of the gemstone. However, he needs to keep it hidden until a buy can be arranged. That’s where the dentist comes in.”

     “Comes in?  Comes in from where?”

     “No, you’re not following me. Dentists repair teeth. They put crowns on very bad teeth. They shave the underlying tooth down to a nub and glue the crown to it. Since the crown is hollow, the jewel can be kept hidden within it until it needs to be removed for sale.”

     “Okay, that’s where the stone is. But in whose mouth?”

     “Well, it can’t be the dentist’s, so it must be the jeweler’s.”

     “Josh, you’ve got to call the police.”

     “All in good time, Crystal. All in good time.”

     “What do we do now?”

     “Do you still have some of the wonderful apple pie you served the women Saturday afternoon?”

     “Why, yes, but how can you think about pie at a time like this?”

     “Because I’m hungry. Why must you ask all these questions?”

     “All right, I’ll get it. Go sit at the table.”

     “Okay, give me a big piece.”

     “Yes, yes. Your wish is my command, your majesty.”

     “That looks so good.”

     “Eat slow. Your acid reflux will act up, if you eat too fast.”

     “Yum. Ow! Ow! Ptooey. Oh, God, I need a dentist.”

     “What are you talking about? I didn’t think we were going after the dentist right now.”

     “No, no, I bit into something hard. I think I broke my tooth.”

     “You what?” she asked in amazement. Staring at me, she blurted, “Josh, what did you spit out of your mouth? Is that the missing jewel on your plate?”

     “Oh, Crystal, stop it. My tooth hurts like hell. I’m probably going to need a crown.”

     Now quite perturbed with all I had put her through, she quipped, “You do deserve one, honey. And by the way, why don’t you stick the jewel in it.”

 

 

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