Goldwhiskers by Heather Vogel Frederick Page B

worn by the rulers of England,’ Goldwhiskers retorted. ‘It will fetch an enormous sum.’ He leaned forward in his chair. ‘That’s cold, hard cash, remember? Which you and Piccadilly may share between you for your services. Enough to set you up in that castle you’ve been mooning about. Or perhaps your own island in the Caribbean? The two of you would make marvellous pirates.’
    A flicker of greed ignited in Dupont’s red eyes. He glanced from the Sovereign’s Ring to the Koh-i-Noor. ‘If the ring’s so valuable, how about that? What’s our share of the diamond?’
    Goldwhiskers hesitated. He picked up the Koh-i-Noor in his manicured paws and gazed into its depths. ‘Ah, yes,’ he said. ‘Actually, there’s been a slight change of plan.’

CHAPTER FOURTEEN
DAY TWO – TUESDAY 1145 HOURS
    Click! Click! Click!
    Glory peeked over the top of what looked like a packet of chewing gum – in reality a subminiature spy camera, on loan from MICE-6 – and frowned. Paw prints, plain as day. Mouse paw prints. No – mouseling paw prints, to be exact. A twin trail of them, creeping along the edge of the wall inside the Jewel House at the Tower of London.
    â€˜Check it out,’ she called softly. Bubble and Squeak scampered over as she pointed to her discovery.
    â€˜Fresh?’ asked Squeak.
    Bubble inspected the prints closely. ‘Looks like it,’ he reported.
    â€˜Let’s see where they go, then,’ said Glory, and,clinging carefully to the shadows at the base of the wall, she started to follow the trail. Bubble and Squeak crept along behind her.
    So much for my holiday in London
, thought Glory ruefully. Her Christmas break had quickly turned into a working holiday. Not that she minded – Oz and DB were infinitely more important than touring the city. Glory halted. In front of her, the paw prints suddenly veered off towards the centre of the room – and the glass case.
    â€˜This is as far as we go,’ cautioned Bubble. ‘Mustn’t risk being seen.’
    The exhibit – which was closed to the public pending a full investigation into the jewel heist – was crawling with detectives from Scotland Yard. The three spy mice agents had taken quite a risk getting even this far. Fortunately, their Pigeon Air flights had managed to avoid the security cameras on the roof, but they’d had a couple of close calls inside the building.
    â€˜But we’ve got to see where the trail leads!’ Glory protested. ‘Two of our agents are at stake!’
    â€˜It was probably just a pair of little thrill-seekers, come to see what all the excitement’s about,’ said Squeak.
    â€˜Maybe you’re right,’ replied Glory. ‘But I still need to know for sure. Something smells fishy to me.’
    â€˜How are we going to get from here,’ said Bubble, tapping the wall, ‘to there?’ He pointed at the display case. ‘Without being seen, I mean.’
    Three pairs of bright little eyes scanned the room. Above them, bolted to the ceiling at regular intervals, were security cameras just waiting to catch their every move. Across from them stood a throng of sharp-eyed human investigators. It was hopeless.
    Just then, there was a rumble in the hallway outside, and a guard pushed a cart laden with tea and coffee and snacks into the room.
    â€˜Break time!’ he called out cheerfully, and the humans quickly crowded around.
    â€˜One down,’ said Bubble softly. ‘Bit of luck, that. But there are still the cameras.’
    â€˜Wait a minute – I have an idea,’ said Squeak. She rummaged in her backpack and pulled out a large hankie. ‘A bit low-tech, but sometimes the simplest way is best. I found it in the lobby of the Savoy on the way to work this morning.’ She rubbed at a lipstick smudge in one corner of the fabric and frowned. ‘Just needs a bit of a wash