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“You must be mistaken.” He rose from his desk with a shake of his head.
Norah had felt Simon’s outrage at the man, especially since it matched her own. At times, the director’s attitude bordered on insolence. Simon had calmly asked Norah to wait in his office while he and Stockton returned to the exhibit.
There was no mistake. That much, Norah knew for certain. How could someone have taken it? It had been in a locked display case. There hadn’t been any sign of damage to the case. Besides, the coin had only a moderate value as it was copper rather than gold and just one coin.
But it was precious to Norah and her sisters.
Though she had worried each time she left the artifacts in the possession of museums in the past, she had been less worried here than at any other place.
She wished she’d looked closer earlier when she had stopped at the exhibit, but the visitors had caught her attention rather than the exhibit itself.
The sound of voices echoed in the corridor, and she strode to the doorway to see Simon and Stockton returning. It took only one look at Simon’s face to know the coin was indeed missing.
A lump formed in her throat. The chances of getting it back were slim to none. She knew that from personal experience. The previous year, their father’s journal had been stolen. It had taken weeks of effort to get it back, not to mention the danger they’d encountered.
A coin was different. Far more difficult to trace and far too easy for someone to hide.
“No clues?” she forced herself to ask as she joined them.
“None as of yet.” Simon’s lips tightened, and she could see the muscle flex in his jaw as he glanced at Stockton.
“I will interview the other staff members and see if anyone noticed anything unusual,” the director advised. Then, with a dip of his head, he hurried down the stairs, the strands of his hair that were supposed to cover his bald head flapping in his wake.
Simon glanced at Norah’s servants, then gestured toward his office. “May I have a word?”
“Of course.” She followed him inside but left the door ajar.
“Norah.” He turned to face her only to briefly close his eyes. “Please accept my apologies for the missing coin.” His distraught expression made it clear just how upset he was. “I promise that I will do everything in my power to get to the bottom of this.”
There was no denying his sincerity. Nor could she deny how much she wanted to believe him.
He shook his head. “Nothing like this has ever happened before. The coin was in a locked case.”
“Nothing else is missing?”
“Only a lantern. There is no damage to the exhibit. Not even to the case. It’s still locked.”
“Why would someone take that but not the other items?” she asked. “And how could they remove it while the case remains locked?”
“I don’t know.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Stockton is going to take inventory of the other exhibits, but, at a glance, nothing else seems to be missing.” He stilled, his eyes narrowing as he stared into the distance.
“What is it?”
“I noticed something missing earlier in the month but forgot to mention it to Stockton.” His scowl spoke of his displeasure. “Curse my absentmindedness.”
“Forgive me, but it seems as if it’s Stockton’s job to notice such things since he’s here more often than you.”
“I am the one who hired him. The blame is mine.”
Norah bit back a reply. She appreciated that Simon was taking responsibility since it was his museum, even if she felt Stockton was at least partially to blame.
What truly mattered was finding the coin as quickly as possible. How would she admit to her sisters another failure with regard to their father when she hadn’t told them about the first one?
Chapter Six
Norah knocked onElla’s bedroom door later that afternoon, her stomach in knots. She’d hoped to tell both Lena and Ella the terrible news at the same time, but Lena was out riding. Norah couldn’t stand to wait until her return.
“Yes?” Ella said.
