Free Marrying Money: Lady Diana's Story by Glenys O'Connell Page A

be so different?”
    “ Well, for one thing you wear ugly green wellies a lot, even down to the pub.” It was a weak attempt, but more like the Sally I knew and loved. The pain in my chest eased for a second, and returned when I had another thought, one that sent the aching right through my rib cage.
    “Sally ….can I ask you a question.”
    “You would, whether I say yes or not.” She was getting sleepy, and she always got grumpy when she got sleepy.
    “Well , I was just wondering... you know the necklace I lent you, the Ashburnham Emerald? Do you remember what you did with it, you know, at the races?”
    I felt Sally stiffen. The burning in my chest turned into full-fledged inferno as I waited out the silence for her answer.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

CHAPTER NINE
     
    T he police came out in full force early the next morning; barely two hours after Mairead's husband took the telephone out of my trembling hands and took over the conversation with a sleepy-sounding desk sergeant.
    A couple of detectives, both looking world-weary, perched on Mairead's baby-blue leather sofa and tried to look as if they were always alert at 6 :00 a.m .
    They did not arrive so promptly because of my croaked message about a lost necklace. No, it had been Richard's firm, man-of-the-world, I-make-political-party-contributions-and-a-little-something-to-the-police-ball , request for an officer to come to their home right away, that did it, and the announcement that the victim of this possibly heinous crime was a titled lady from the UK.
    “So , the last place you saw this emerald necklace was around your friend, Miss Sally's neck?”
    “Her last name is Barnes and that is correct, Detective. Sally was wearing the necklace because it went well with her red hair and she'd chosen this lovely, emerald green, silk gown – from this little shop on Grafton Street, and she'd added the cutest…”
    His eyes were glazing over. His sergeant's fingers slowly stopped moving over the page. Both men were going into a 'women's chatter' trance.
    “I’m sorry, I'm tired and very stressed and I tend to talk too much when that happens,” I said, trying to graciously prod their consciences. After all, I'm the injured party in all this.
    “I do understand, Miss…Lady Diana.”
    “You’re very good,” I said. Actually, the guy was gorgeous; lots of raven's wing black hair and melting brown eyes, like chocolate… that reminds me, I'm starving. Where was Sally with the tea tray?
    “So what happened then?”
    “Sally won the Ladies’ Day prize at the races, a totally gorgeous diamond and red-gold necklace designed by that well-known designer…what's his name? Anyway, they insisted she wear it straightaway, and of course, she was pretty keen to, who wouldn’t be? So she whipped off the Ashburnham emeralds and they fastened this new necklace around her neck. Very nice looking, but not as classy as the antique emeralds and didn't go with her dress as well.”
    I could see his eyes starting to roll back into his head. He seemed like one of those guys who would snap irritably if his wife asked him how she looks.
    “What happened after that?”
    “That’s the whole point, isn't it?” I pulled myself up and beamed five hundred years of breeding at the man. “If we knew what happened next, we would hardly need your services. The necklace was taken off, and Sally hasn't a clue what happened to it.”
    Silence but for the manic scribbling in the notebook. I think I saw a slight smile flickering around the sergeant's lips as I berated his superior, but I could be wrong.
    “So , what is this necklace worth? The boss cop sniffed. “I assume it has been recently appraised.”
    Assume away, chump, obviously you don’t have to pay English taxes and death duties.
    “Well, most of the Ashburnham jewellery has been appraised at various times. It's difficult to get insurance on such items as they have a value