THE FAMILY HEIRLOOM

Judy Smith was a young girl, expert in solving the toughest mysteries. Today, she was on her way to help our friend, Lisa, to solve another robbery case. Lisa was her best friend. She was just sitting in the taxi, and her phone rang. The housekeeper, Ms. Helen had called. "Hello, Judy? Did you reach?" Judy said, "No, Helen, not yet. But I will, in 15 minutes." she said. Then, she hung up.

Helen was a very caring housekeeper, and she was just like Judy's mother.

Judy's parents had gone to Paris, to look after a relative. Helen had been working since Judy was just born! She was indeed a trustworthy woman for the family.

The sleuth finally reached Lisa's home. Lisa greeted her happily. "Hello, my dear! That's so kind that you've come here to help me solve a intriguing case!" said the girl. "Oh, no need to thank me! You're my friend, and I would obviously love to help you, my dear. You told me that there was a robbery at your place? Tell me quickly!" replied Judy.

"Yes, our precious family heirloom, a majestic lamp, has been stolen!"

"A lamp?"

"Yes!"

"Tell me when the robbery happened."

"Yesterday. I think around 10pm?"

After questioning Lisa, Judy sat on a chair, and began thinking of the possible consequences. "How precious was the heirloom?" asked Judy. "Oh, it was really precious! It was made by my great-great-great-great grandfather." came the reply. "I'm sure you can describe it....." Judy guessed.

"Yes, I can. It was a copper lamp, and it was studded with diamonds. There was a big "K" drawn on it. The letter "K" is a symbol of reverence for my great-great-great-great grandfather."

"Okay, thanks for the description. I'll notify the police."

"Wait, you're going to tell the police?!" asked Lisa, shocked. "Yes! It's important! We must, in fact." she replied.

"Okay, I believe you. Also, my mother can give you the description about how the thieves looked like. Maybe you'll get some useful information?" said Lisa. "Wow, that's good. You can surely give me the description. It's going to be really supportive, Lisa. " replied Judy.

Lisa called her mother, Mrs. Rosemary, and she greeted Judy. She was ecstatic when she found out that the young sleuth wanted to help bring the precious heirloom back. "Judy, thank you, thank you very much!!! That's so kind of you to help us in this case!" Mrs. Rosemary said. Judy just smiled.

"Okay, so Mrs. Rosemary, can you tell me how the thieves looked like?" asked Judy.

"There were 3 thieves. One of them was obese. I saw him holding the lamp. When I tried to stop him, he ran away. I think he had a gold tooth too..... Oh yes, he wears a black band which reads, 'PEACE AND LOVE!'. The other one was a bit thin. He had a bandanna tied to his forehead. It was blue. But the third one was so frightening! He had huge scars on his face as if his face had been scratched by a cat's sharp claws! That's it. I don't remember much." Mrs. Rosemary commented. 

"I get enough information! Thank you once again! I'll be back!" Judy said. Then, the young girl made her way to the police station. 

After reaching the police station, she met the officer, Mr. Jason. 

Mr. Jason asked her if she needed any help. Then, Judy described the entire case of the robbery. "I see. So, you can identify the real thieves if we find them?" He asked.

 "Not really. But Lisa's mother can do so." Judy replied. 

He nodded in satisfaction and added, "I must really tell you that the thieves are wanted since a long time. Our whole team is trying to find them since 5 years!" 

"I seriously hope that they are found. The lamp is very important to them!" Judy said.

Then, Judy went back to her friend's house, and told her about what Mr. Jason had said. "I hope those robbers are found!" Said Mrs. Rosemary. 

"Did anything else get stolen?" The sleuth asked. 

"No. Only the lamp!" Lisa answered.

 "I'm sure you must've got some jewellery too." Judy asked. 

"Yes. But they are safe and sound!" 

"Then it's certain: The robbers were only interested in the lamp!" Judy concluded. "This lamp must be worth a lot off money! Maybe they want to sell it?" 

"Yes..but we must stop them from doing so!" Mrs. Rosemary said. 

Judy asked, "Do you have any idea about the estimated price of this precious object?" 

"Oh well, it can be as costly as a crore! The lamp was made by a very popular and talented goldsmith. He was my great-great-great-great grandfather's friend. On his 90th birthday, he gave this lamp to him. Since that day, it's considered as our family's heirloom. " Lisa said. 

Suddenly, Judy's phone rang. Riiiingggg! It was Mr. Jason's call. "Hello? Is this Ms. Judy?" Asked Jason. "Uh, yes." Replied Judy. 

"So we've got some information. The three thieves are named as Nick, Billy and Frank. Rumor has it that they're triplets, possibly. Also, they went to 'Dance nights bar'. I think they might be having a meeting with the person to whom they're going to sell the lamp...." Said the officer.

"Okay, thank you very much! I think I'll visit the Bar myself." Judy said.

"No! It could be dangerous, Ms. Judy. You, my assistant, and I will go together. Just to be safe, you know." He replied. 

Judy agreed. They finalized the timings. It was still daylight. So, they guessed that those three triplets must've planned to go to the bar at night. "So I think we'll reach there by 7pm. What's the address of the place you're staying at?" Jason said. Judy gave the address of her friend's house. Then, they hung up.

"So, Judy, what did Mr. Jason say?" asked Lisa. Judy narrated the whole scenario. "So, we're going to the bar, so that we can catch those robbers," Judy added.

AT THE 'DANCE NIGHTS BAR':

 

At sharp 7 pm, they reached the bar. "Okay, Ms. Judy, we need to pretend as if we're just regular customers. Also, I'll give you a small wireless earphones. You can hear me through that. And also speak. It has a tiny mic attached." Mr. Jason added. "Okay, Mr. Jason, good plan!" Judy nodded in satisfaction.

Mr. Jason's assistant, James Parker, had also reached there. Then, Mr. Jason, James and Judy went towards separate tables. After some time, James Parker said, "Mr. Jason, and, Ms. Judy, don't you think the thieves should've come by now? Something is fishy, I suppose." They both could hear him through the earphone. "Yes, you're right, Mr. Parker. Maybe we can ask the manager? Probably he knows something?" Judy said.

Mr. Jason decided to go and ask the manager. "Uh, hello. I just wanted to know something. Have you noticed any triplets here?" Then, he gave the character sketch of the three boys. "Oh, yes! But, they left 2 hours ago." The manager said. Mr. Jason was shocked! The triplets had left 2 hours ago! It may be possible that the lamp must've been sold! Jason decided to ask more details, "Oh, okay, sir. Also, did they, by any chance, sell something to someone?" "No! They were sitting with a woman. But, they canceled their deal as a big fight occurred between the four. One of the triplets accidentally dropped some juice on the lady's dress. She got furious, and she declined to do the deal." he replied. Phew! Jason was happy that the lamp wasn't sold yet. He thanked the manager and told the news to Judy and Parker.

"So, what should we do now? We don't know where they will strike next!" Parker asked. "Yes, that's a good question. Mr. Jason, I think you should research more on those three. And maybe also try to find out their next destination?" Judy suggested. So, the three left the bar. Mr. Jason and James Parker went towards the police station, and they left Judy at Lisa's house.

LISA'S HOME:

Lisa and her mother were tensed. They were eagerly waiting for Judy. As Judy set her foot inside the house, Lisa asked, "Judy! Have you got the lamp? Where is it? Are the thieves arrested?" "Slow down! One question at a time. Sorry, but we couldn't bring the lamp back. Actually, the thieves had already left. But don't worry, it's not sold yet. We still have hope!" Judy replied.

Lisa sat down slowly. Judy thought of some plans to find the triplets. She called Mr. Jason, but he said that he'd been thinking of ways too. After 2 hours, Parker called. "Hello, Ms. Judy? Yeah, it's me, James, James Parker, and I need to tell you that we've figured out where the triplets are. Our police team helped us. Reach the police station now!" 

Judy didn't waste any time. She quickly went. Then, she reached the police station.

AT THE POLICE STATION:

Judy tried to find Mr. James and Mr. Jason. Mr. Jason spotted Judy, and he instructed her to come. "So, we've found that the thieves are again going to the same bar. Looks like they've another meeting with another person. And, to be honest, deals won't be canceled every time, like how it did last time. Right? So let's go to the bar!" James said, and Jason nodded.

AT THE BAR AGAIN:

So, they hurried over to the bar. When they entered, the manager spotted them, and said, "Oh! Hello, Sir! You just came yesterday!" Jason stared at the man and replied, "Uh, er, well, your, um, bar is quite good!"

Luckily, the thieves hadn't gone away early, They entered the bar too, after some time. A man wearing a black tuxedo and black pants walked in. The triplets followed him. They talked with each other, and Judy, Parker, and Jason pretended as if they didn't know each other. They just pretended normally.

Then, the triplet who was fat took out the lamp. Judy gasped. Jason instructed her to stay calm. Judy saw that precious object for the first time! It was so glittery and shiny! It really looked precious. The fat guy showed the lamp to the man, whose name was Nathan. "Here, sir, this is the costly lamp. You need to finalize this deal in 75 crores." The man looked at him, and said, "Oh, 75 crores isn't a big deal! Fine! Deal Done!!"

Judy knew something had to be done, so she went there, and said, "Oh hello, young men! I'm Florina. I can pay you 90 crores for this beautiful lamp!" Actually, Judy told a fake name, just to be safe.

The triplets looked impressed. Judy could see the greed in their eyes. "Okay, miss! We're ready to finalize the deal." said the triplets, together. Judy smiled with satisfaction. "Oh, but, actually, I'm a very rich woman, and I absolutely don't love to carry my money around. And anyway, this deal was finalized out of the blue!" Judy boasted. "So, we can come over to your place, and then maybe you can give us the money and buy this?" suggested one of the robbers. Judy agreed, "Oh sure!"

Then, she walked away, ready to leave the place. She winked at Jason and James, who understood Judy's plan. When the triplets weren't looking, Judy whispered to them, " You two reach Lisa's home! And tell her, and her mom, to go out of the house for some time until we catch these men red-handed." The two police men nodded. The triplets began to follow her. Judy took a taxi, and the triplets also sat and went. Then, after some time, the two policemen reached Lisa's home. They did as planned. They hid somewhere in the house.

LISA'S HOME, JUDY'S PLAN COMES INTO ACTION:

Exactly after 30 minutes, Judy and the three men reached. She elegantly sat on a couch. "So, I'll just bring out the payment. Mr. Jason, please bring 90 crores from the vault!" She pretended as if Jason was her assistant. But, the policeman didn't bring any money, instead, he, along with James came out from the hiding place. He held his gun at the men, and ordered, "Don't move!" The triplets tried to sneak away. But, Judy quickly came and caught hold of one. Parker helped her too.

Jason asked them, pointing his gun, "So, why did you steal this object?!" They replied, "We came to know about this. We wanted to sell it and earn money."

James said, "Give us the lamp!"

The three muggers were too scared, so they gave it to them. James grabbed it and handed it over to Judy, who kept it safe until Lisa came, so she could hand it over to her friend. Before they could speak any word, they took them to jail. Judy told Lisa that she had a surprise for her. When Lisa came, she was so surprised to see the precious heirloom of her family!!

"How can I ever thank you, Judy?! You're the best!" she shouted. "Well, you can just give me a little treat! And, go keep this in the vault safely, Don't let it lie around." Judy joked. Lisa's mother also thanked Judy deeply. As suggested, Lisa gave a little treat for her friend, and they enjoyed it.

That's how, Judy finally found the precious object with the help of the two brave policemen, James and Jason.

Author of the story: Reva Saraf.