SHAKESPEARE’ SECRET Read Online Free Page A

answered. “They were more interested to find out that one of the kids in the class has a dog named Hero.”
    Mrs. Roth appeared at the door, frowning. “Oh, heavens. What an unfortunate coincidence.” She sat down next to Hero. “But you know, people always choose the best names for their dogs. No one names a dog Miriam, I can assure you.”
    Hero laughed. “No, I guess not. Anyway, tell me about the diamond.”
    Mrs. Roth leaned her head against the wood post. She gazed across the garden at the weathered gray shingles of the Netherfields’ house.
    â€œThe diamond,” she said. “Well, let’s see. It was very large, almost the size of a walnut. Seventeen carats is enormous for a diamond, did you know that? It was yellowish, and not a particularly good cut, but that’s because it was so old. An antique. I only saw it once, actually. It was part of a necklace, a very beautiful jeweled necklace that had been in Eleanor’s family for centuries.”
    Hero cupped her hand, trying to picture a diamondbig enough to fill her palm. Even the diamond rings of millionaires and movie stars weren’t that big. They certainly weren’t that old. “Centuries?” she asked.
    â€œIsn’t that remarkable? Her family was English, as I told you, and this was an heirloom piece that Eleanor had inherited from a reclusive aunt on the Vere side. That was her maiden name—Vere.”
    Hero nodded impatiently. “So what happened to the diamond?”
    â€œWell, the Murphys knew the necklace was so valuable they couldn’t possibly afford the insurance. But they had the diamond itself appraised and got coverage for that. It was valued at almost a million dollars.”
    â€œReally?” Hero couldn’t imagine owning anything worth so much money. “Did they put it in a safe or lock it up somewhere?”
    Mrs. Roth smiled faintly. “That wasn’t their style. They were very modest, private people. I don’t think anyone but me knew about the necklace.”
    Hero clasped her hands around her knees. “But where is it now?”
    Mrs. Roth sighed, still staring at the Netherfields’ house. “One Saturday afternoon last year, while they were out, their house was broken into. They’d left the kitchen window open, and the thief supposedlyclimbed in. He didn’t take much, just some cash from the kitchen drawer and the diamond. It was all very odd. Didn’t take the necklace—just the diamond, removed it from the setting.”
    Hero turned to her, puzzled. “But I thought you said the necklace had jewels on it. Why didn’t the thief steal the necklace?”
    â€œThat’s just it. It didn’t make sense. The necklace was an antique, worth a fortune. And the thief didn’t take anything else of the Murphys’ either, not the sterling silver, nor the electronics, not any of Eleanor’s other jewelry. There were no fingerprints in the house except Arthur’s and Eleanor’s. There had been no other break-ins in the neighborhood. And the police found it strange that someone climbed through the window. I guess the back door was so old, it would have been easy to force open.”
    Hero rested her chin on her knees. “Did the police think they’d faked the whole thing?”
    â€œWell, yes,” Mrs. Roth said. “I suppose they did. As did the insurance company, of course. There were detectives prowling around for months. They even interviewed me.” She looked at Hero more closely. “Are you sure you haven’t heard any of this? It’s common knowledge in town.”
    â€œMy parents may have heard about it. But theydidn’t say anything. Why would the Murphys do that? Just for the money?”
    Mrs. Roth didn’t answer. She smoothed her trousers, and Hero noticed how old her hands looked, the skin thin and white, a network of blue veins near the surface.
    Hero asked