Battle of the Brightest Page 6

  “Yeah, we’re practically all best friends now,” Erin piped up, casting a wicked glance at Isabel, who frowned.

  “Well, enjoy your studying,” Mrs. Albern said. “We close in a couple of hours.”

  Willow led them to the meeting room, and they all took seats at the round table.

  “We should check for bugs before we do anything,” Jasmine said.

  Erin glared at the Rivals. “Oh yeah, that’s right. You guys bugged us once before.”

  “That was my uncle’s idea,” Ryan said defensively.

  “All the more reason to check now,” Willow said, and they all looked through their bags and clothes for anything suspicious — but found nothing.

  “Okay, Lili,” Erin said. “Let’s see that hand.”

  Lili opened her palm and placed it on the table where everyone could see. The symbol she had drawn was three squares of different sizes. Their corners were touching so that the three linked sides of the squares formed a triangle.

  “It’s the Pythagorean theorem!” Willow and Ryan burst out at the same time.

  “Let me guess,” Erin said. “That’s a math thing, right?”

  Willow nodded. “Geometry. It’s, like, a diagram that explains this theory. You see these two squares here? If you add up the areas of these two, they’ll equal the area of the big square.”

  “Wow. My brain hurts just thinking about it,” Aaron quipped. “So what does that have to do with the other clues?”

  “Wait a second, that’s right!” Jasmine said. “We’ve only seen the clue on the back of the diamond. But you guys know the clues on the back of the emerald and the ruby, right?”

  “We do,” Veronica replied. “But they don’t make any sense. We were hoping the clue on the sapphire would shed some light on the first three.”

  Jasmine took out the sketchbook she always carried with her and opened it up. “Whenever we found something written about the jewels, they’re in the same order: ruby, diamond, emerald, sapphire. So we should lay the clues out the same way.”

  “Good idea,” Veronica said. “The first one should be the number one-ten followed by a little circle. That was on the ruby.”

  “And E-fifty was on the diamond,” Willow added.

  “The third clue contains a letter and a number, too,” Ryan added. “It’s N–two hundred.”

  “And then we have the symbol,” Jasmine said, copying it into the book. It felt strange and exciting to see all the clues together after searching for them for so long.

  Willow frowned at the clues. “That doesn’t seem to clear things up at all.”

  “So wait a second,” Erin said. “You mean you guys have had the first three clues for weeks and haven’t figured out anything about them yet?”

  “It is not that easy,” Isabel said defensively.

  “But, guys, that’s a good thing,” Jasmine pointed out. “That means that Arthur Atkinson is as clueless as we are. And if he needed us to find the sapphire for him, then he can’t be that bright. No offense, Ryan.”

  “It’s cool,” Ryan said. “Uncle Arthur is not famous for his brains in my family. Dad says they let him be the director of the school just so he doesn’t mess up the family’s big companies.”

  Erin rolled her eyes. “Nice. Stick him in charge of a bunch of kids.”

  “He might not be smart, but he can hire people who are,” Ryan reminded them all. “So we’d better try to figure the clues out first.”

  “Maybe it’s a mathematical formula,” Willow suggested. She opened up the calculator on her phone and began typing in numbers.

  “The N and E could stand for directions — north and east,” Erin pointed out.

  “We thought of that already,” Isabel said with a sniff. “But it is no good without knowing more about the location.”

  “Maybe they’re addresses,” Lili suggested. “Have you checked addresses in the DC area that match? You know, like one hundred North Street or something like that?”

  Ryan nodded. “There are lots of streets like that. It’s hard to narrow it down.”

  “And that still doesn’t explain the Pythagorean symbol at the end,” Willow added.

  They all sighed at once, followed by an uncomfortable silence. Then Veronica’s wristwatch began to beep.

  “Oh no! We’ve got quiz bowl practice!” she cried.

  “You guys practice on a Sunday?” Erin asked.

  “We practice all the time,” Isabel said. “Which is why we always beat you.”

  “Not always,” Erin shot back. The Jewels had beaten the Rivals the last time they’d gone head-to-head.

  “We’ll have to finish this argument some other time,” Ryan said, standing up. “In the meantime, let’s keep working on the clues. We can text each other if we figure out anything.”

  “And how do we keep your uncle from spying on us in the meantime?” Erin asked.

  Ryan frowned. “I don’t know. Let me check my room at home. Maybe he bugged me there. But our texts should be safe.”

  “My mom’s going to be outside in five minutes to get us,” Veronica said, looking up from her cell phone. “We’d better go.”

  The Rivals left, leaving the Jewels alone in the meeting room.

  “You know what I’m thinking?” Willow asked.

  “That we need to figure out the clues before Arthur Atkinson does?” Jasmine asked.

  Willow shook her head. “No, that we need to study, too. I don’t want to fall behind in quiz bowl just because we’re solving the jewel-thieving mystery of the century!”

  “Achoo!” Erin’s loud sneeze ricocheted through Hallytown High School’s auditorium, causing several people, including Willow and Jasmine, to jump.

  “Hold still!” Lili scolded behind the curtain as she once again patted Erin’s face with a large cosmetics puff. Drifts of powder settled in Erin’s reddish-blond hair, and she shook her head to get it off. Lili sighed. “Honestly, Erin, don’t you want to be camera ready?”

  After two days of marathon study sessions, the Jewels were ready to compete in a quiz bowl tournament that would be broadcast on a local cable channel. They were competing in the local high school’s auditorium because of its A/V capabilities.

  Erin folded her arms in front of her and stuck her tongue out at Lili. “The camera will just have to deal with my face as it is,” she said.

  Lili shot an exasperated look at Erin before hopefully offering up her makeup bag to Willow and Jasmine.

  “No way!” Jasmine said, while Willow fiercely shook her head.

  “At least we’re all wearing my new and improved T-shirts!” Lili said, pointing to her top. It was the same red shirt with the words “Jewels Rule” stenciled on the front that the girls had worn the last time they had beaten the Rivals, but Lili had added brightly colored fake gems to the shirts.

  “They were missing something.” Lili beamed. “Now they’re perfect!”

  “They brought us luck last time we faced the Rivals,” Jasmine added. “It will be weird competing against them today. After getting to know them and all.”

  Willow nodded. “I’m really surprised the Rivals even agreed to do it. It’s only for fun. A win won’t count toward our stats, and the Rivals only play to better their national standing.”

  “It’s the new and improved Rivals,” Erin joked in a fake commercial announcer’s voice. “Now twenty-five percent softer and more likable.”

  The girls erupted into laughter as Ms. Keatley hurried over.

  “Girls,” she said in a loud whisper. “They’re getting ready to start. We have to be quiet. In fact, there’s a classroom we can wait in until it’s our turn.”

  The girls followed Ms. Keatley out of the auditorium.

  “The high school teams will go first,” she explained once they entered the hall and walked toward a classroom door. “Then it will be you versus the Rivals, the top two middle school teams from the entire county.” Ms. Keatley beamed with pride as she said this. “They are goi
ng to film all the matches today, but each one will air as its own episode.”

  Standing in front of the door was Mr. Haverford, the Rivals’ advisor. His eyes lit up when he saw Ms. Keatley.

  “Just the person I was looking for!” he said. “Do you have a second to talk about Nationals?”

  “Sure.” Ms. Keatley smiled at him. “Girls, go inside, find a seat, and relax.”

  They walked into the classroom to find Ryan, Veronica, Isabel, and Aaron, wearing their blue Atkinson uniforms. Willow hurried over to Ryan. “Did you find any bugs in your room?”

  Ryan shook his head. “No. But I’m going to keep looking. My uncle has access to some pretty high-tech gear.”

  Aaron walked up to talk with Ryan and Willow, and the other Jewels took a seat. Erin gave a smile and wave to Veronica, who had her earbuds in. She smiled back, but it was clear that her pre–quiz bowl routine included psyching up with music, not chitchatting.

  Lili held up her makeup bag again and looked at Jasmine with her big brown eyes.

  “Uh-oh! She’s doing puppy dog eyes,” Erin warned Jasmine. “Look away! Look away!”

  “How about just a smidge of lip gloss?” Lili pleaded.

  Jasmine sighed as she gave in. “Fine.”

  “There is no resisting Lili when she does that,” Erin said as Lili eagerly dug through her bag.

  Erin riffled through her own backpack and pulled out some Martha Washington books that she had checked out from the school library weeks ago. She flipped through them one more time, hoping to find something — anything — that might shed light on the clues that were etched into the gems. As she began to read, she felt someone sit down in the seat next to her. She looked up from her book — it was Isabel!

  “I’ve been meaning to get this one,” Isabel said, her green eyes devouring the cover eagerly. “May I see it?”

  “Sure,” Erin said in surprise. She still felt on guard when it came to Isabel, but she handed the book over.

  Isabel studied it carefully. “I love how Martha is portrayed as young and beautiful here. So many people know her only as a frumpy old lady.”

  “If you like this book, you should see the others I have.” Erin couldn’t help sharing. She loved history and loved to talk to other history enthusiasts, although she never in a million years thought she’d be talking with Isabel like this. She reached into her backpack and pulled out some of the older and rarer books about Martha. “Our library has an amazing collection of books about her.”

  Isabel pulled a folder from her own backpack and took from it a photocopy of an old letter. “This is a letter written from George Washington to Martha. It’s one of only five letters between them that survived. Martha burned all of their correspondence after George’s death.”

  Erin nodded. “She wanted to keep things private. Who could blame her? They were the equivalent of movie stars back then. Everyone wanted to know all their personal business. When I found an original letter she wrote, I was so totally excited!”

  Isabel’s eyes grew wide. “An original letter?”

  Erin found herself telling Isabel the story of how the Jewels discovered a letter from Martha to a person they thought might be Abigail Adams — and how Martha described the four jewels.

  “That’s what first made us realize the ruby was part of something bigger,” Erin explained, despite it feeling really weird to talk to Isabel like this. “Then we found Martha’s diary, and that’s what led us to the Townsend desk at the Met and the diamond.”

  Isabel clasped her hands and stared into space, looking thoughtful. “You know, we have a letter, too. But it’s not from Martha Washington. It’s to her.”

  “Do you have it with you?” Erin asked excitedly.

  Isabel reached into her bag again. “Yes, I have a copy on my tablet.” But before she could pull it out, Ms. Keatley stuck her head in the room. “It’s showtime, girls! Are you ready?”

  The Jewels and the Rivals stood up at the same time. Ryan looked at Willow and gave her an awkward grin, not his usual smug smile. Willow felt a momentary feeling of surprise, but she understood how he was feeling. This would be the first time they’d be competing as friends and not enemies — but only one team could win.

  “This match goes to the Atkinson Prep Rivals!” announced the quiz bowl moderator.

  The audience applauded. The Rivals high-fived, while the Jewels huddled together on the side of the stage. It was hard not to be disappointed. Nationals was only weeks away, and losing to the Rivals now seemed like a bad omen — and a step backward.

  “We may have lost, but we played great,” Willow consoled them. Normally she hated losing, but it had been a close contest, and they had performed well. “The match had to go into a tiebreaker and everything. We lost by only one question.”

  They shook hands with the Rivals and rushed off the stage. For the first time ever, the Rivals didn’t smirk or tease them. In fact, they only had one thing on their minds.

  “We need to get together and figure out our next move,” Aaron whispered to Jasmine as they left the stage.

  “Agreed,” Jasmine said. Erin overheard them and jumped in. “Isabel needs to show me something. It could be important.”

  When they got offstage, they found Principal Frederickson waiting to be the first to greet them. As usual, she was dressed smartly: this time in a navy-blue suit jacket and matching skirt with a crisp white blouse.

  “You performed magnificently,” she said. “Such a credit to our school.”

  Willow beamed with pride. “Thanks,” she said.

  “I can tell that you’ve been concentrating on your studies … and not on other things,” the principal said, giving them a stern look.

  Jasmine cast a nervous glance at Willow. Did Principal Frederickson know that they were still searching for the treasure?

  Luckily, Ms. Keatley walked up, and Principal Frederickson politely stepped aside. “Great job, girls,” she said as she hugged them. “You have a shot at the Nationals, that’s for sure!”

  Erin agreed, “You’re right, Ms. Keatley, but I’m still bummed. Why don’t we invite the Rivals out for pizza to cheer us up?”

  Ms. Keatley raised her eyebrows. “Really?” she asked as she looked at each girl. They all smiled and nodded.

  “I already made arrangements with your parents to take you out for pizza after the match. I’m just surprised you want the Rivals to come along with us, but if that’s what you want,” she said, “then I’ll ask Josh — I mean, Mr. Haverford.”

  They crowded into Ms. Keatley’s VW Bug and followed Mr. Haverford, who drove the Rivals to Pizza Paradise. It was only a few minutes away from the high school, and soon they were all inside, breathing in the aroma of freshly baked pizza.

  “Yum!” Lili said as she sniffed the air.

  “Double yum!” Erin cried. “Competing at quiz bowl always makes me hungry.”

  After ordering, they began to look for somewhere to sit. There was a table for eight in the back of the room.

  “Ms. Keatley, may we sit here?” Willow asked. “This is the biggest table.”

  Ms. Keatley nodded. “Sure, Mr. Haverford and I will sit at this table next to you.” She pointed to a two-person booth. Mr. Haverford smiled at Ms. Keatley, and Ms. Keatley blushed.

  Jasmine exchanged amused glances with Aaron. Both the Rivals and the Jewels had noticed Mr. Haverford had a huge crush on Ms. Keatley for a while now. She had been completely oblivious, but it looked like she finally might be figuring it out. Ryan laughed as he sat down.

  “If they get married and have a family, they can start their own toddler quiz bowl team,” Erin joked. “They’ll be hard to beat!”

  “Maybe for you,” Isabel sniffed. Erin felt her cheeks flush, but Isabel quickly apologized. “I’m sorry,” she gave a genuine smile. “It’s just a bad reflex. You guys almost beat us, I’ll admit it.”

  Veronica, happy over her team’s win, wasn’t about to count out the Jewels, either. “It w
as a close match. We’re going to have to study extra hard for Nationals if we want to beat you!”

  They dug into slices of hot, cheesy pizza, munching away as they talked. Ms. Keatley and Mr. Haverford were deep in conversation at the next table, so the two teams could speak freely.

  Isabel began to fill them in on the letter as she got her tablet out. “It’s from a Samuel Lindley to Martha Washington. He was a silversmith and he definitely helped her with something. But we haven’t been able to get anything useful out of it.”

  The Jewels exchanged excited glances before Erin spoke up. “Martha mentioned a ‘trustworthy jeweler’ in her letter to Abigail. Silversmiths and jewelers were the same thing back then, right? Maybe it’s the same jeweler?”

  Isabel shrugged. “I’ll read it to you. Maybe you can find something in it that we missed.” She tapped the screen on her tablet and began to read aloud:

  “‘To Mrs. Martha Washington

  Dear Madam:

  It gives me particular pleasure to hear that both you and General Washington are in good health. I am exceedingly obliged to you for your trust in me and promise the items have been set and are well dispersed.

  Moreover, I want to assure you of my dedication to the peace and liberty for which we have so long contended. Over time our cause will be victorious. Understandably the strain of war leaves much sorrow. Now is the time to remain ever hopeful. The tumultuous days ahead cannot be avoided, but know I have done everything possible to aid you. Virginia has no British troops upon its soil at this time. Everything points to triumph. Report back when you are able, as I am most eager to hear any news. Night is falling and I bid you good evening. Our only course is to bear our burdens patiently. Never forget that I am your dutiful servant, always.

  With great esteem,

  Samuel Lindley

  Silversmith’”

  Jasmine gasped. “It must be the same jeweler from Martha’s letter! Remember, she asked the jeweler to set the ruby, diamond, emerald, and sapphire for her. I think Lindley not only set them, but made sure they were separated. Maybe that’s what he meant by ‘well dispersed.’ Martha didn’t want all the jewels found together, remember?”