It was one of the things visitors to Cornwall said often; that the light there was unique, inspiring, even, and a tickle of pride invaded her abdomen that this was her home. There was something almost magical about the landscape, as though when she wasn’t looking a whole host of elves and fairies and hobbits sprang from their hiding places to frolic amongst the wildflower meadows and shady glades. Myths and legends had been born there, fact merging with fiction, and she could truly see the mighty King Arthur setting out on a quest with the knights of his round table, or Merlin and his friends whipping up a few magical potions from the plants and herbs that grew in abundance in the warm climate.
Theo came to stand at her side, equally taken with the panorama.
‘I love Cornwall – we used to holiday here when I was child. I would spend every minute I could chasing kites, fishing for crabs in the rock pools, and building not just sandcastles but whole villages. It was like a scene from Swallows and Amazons. Simpler times.’
‘Sounds like me and Freya, except ours were Cinderella’s castle and Barbie’s beach buggy.’
‘Okay, so tell me what we’re looking for exactly?’
‘You don’t know what a shoe looks like?’
‘Of course I know what an ordinary shoe looks like, but these are no ordinary shoes, these are Jimmy Choo shoes! I mean, seven hundred pounds? Are they made from twenty-four carat gold or something? Do they have diamond-encrusted buckles?’
Lexie laughed as she dropped down onto her knees to search under the bed.
‘No, but like any item of designer clothing, they are works of art in their own right.’
‘Do you think someone might have stolen them?’
Until that very moment that possibility hadn’t occurred to her.
‘No, I think Zara has just misplaced them. Who would want to steal her wedding shoes? It doesn’t make any sense.’
‘You know, it’s an Indian tradition to hide the bride’s wedding shoes – it’s called Joota Chupai.’
‘How do you know that?’
‘Just one of those random facts I’ve gathered during my research for my temporary stint as an intrepid wedding columnist. If there’s one thing Bill taught me all those years back it’s that there are three essential ingredients to being a top investigative reporter.’
‘And they are?’ asked Lexie as she stuck her head into the wardrobe and scoured all four corners, then searched through the two drawers underneath.
‘Preparation, preparation, preparation.’
‘Good advice. So you think someone is invoking the Indian traditions?’
‘It’s a possibility because those pesky, exorbitantly priced shoes are definitely not in this room!’
‘True,’ sighed Lexie, deciding against admitting that she hadn’t thought they would find them there anyway.
‘Where do you want to try next?’
Lexie followed Theo out of the wedding suite and sauntered down the corridor towards the galleried landing.
‘Hey, fancy a race down that banister?’ challenged Theo, his eyes sparkling.
‘I…’
Before she could refuse, one of the doors to the bedrooms at the end of the hallway cracked open and a tiny nose poked out.
‘Hello?’ smiled Lexie, striding away from a disappointed Theo.
‘Hi, are you the wedding planner lady?’
‘I am, yes, I’m Lexie and this is Theo – he’s a writer.’
‘Ooo, do you write children’s books? I like the ones about princesses and unicorns the best.’
‘I’m not that kind of writer. I’m a…’
‘Did you want to see me about something?’ asked Lexie, taking in the young girl’s pretty pink dress, matching glitter shoes and the profusion of blonde curls. She had the face of an angel, but there was an unmistakeable glint of mischief in her bright blue eyes and Lexie knew who this was. ‘Are you Jasmine, Dan’s sister?’
‘Yes! How did you know?’
‘A lucky guess. So, what can I do for you, Jasmine?’
‘I need your help.’
‘Okay, but can you wait a little while? Theo and I are in the middle of a… a treasure hunt.’ Lexie heard an unmistakable guffaw from behind her, but chose to ignore it. ‘When we’ve finished, we’ll come back and see you, okay?’
Jasmine face lit up. ‘A treasure hunt? Can I join in? I’m really good at treasure hunts!’
Lexie groaned. She should have predicted that.
‘It’s a bit boring really…’
‘A treasure hunt – that’s not boring!’
Jasmine was now po-going up and down on the spot, clapping her hands with glee.
Theo stepped forward, sending Lexie a look that said trust me.
‘I think that’s an excellent idea. You are exactly the person we need!’
‘Yay! What sort of treasure are we looking for? Jewels?’
‘I told you it was boring – it’s shoes – wedding shoes to be exact.’
And the exuberant excitement disappeared from Jasmine’s face in a heartbeat.
‘What’s going on, Jasmine?’
‘I, well, I…’
‘What?’
‘Promise you won’t be cross?’
‘Of course we won’t be cross,’ Lexie assured her, crouching down so that she was on the same level as Jasmine whose eyes were now filled with panic. ‘But if you know something about Zara’s wedding shoes, you have to tell me and Theo about it straight away. It’s really important.’
‘I didn’t mean to worry anyone…’
‘I know you didn’t. Did you just borrow them?’
Lexie’s heart gave a nip of empathy. This little girl was as cute as a cupcake, her hair held in check by a unicorn Alice band and wearing her best dress for the wedding weekend, but she was also shifting from one foot to the other with obvious anxiety. An image of Jasmine marching around her hotel room in Zara’s wedding shoes that were five sizes too big for her brought tears to Lexie’s eyes as she slipped her hand into Jasmine’s and gave it a gentle squeeze of reassurance.
‘They are sooo pretty…’ muttered Jasmine, staring at the floor.
‘I agree. Are they in your room?’
‘Yes, but…’
‘But?’
‘You’re going to be so cross with me. I was going to put them back, you know.’
‘Well, you don’t need to. I’ll do that for you, don’t worry.’
‘Okay.’
Jasmine led them into the room she shared with her brother and skipped over to the window seat, identical to the one in Zara and Jason’s room, where the shoes were resting and picked them up, hugging them to her chest like a beloved soft toy, her eyes still filled with uncertainty.
‘Thank you, Jasmine. I’ll take them back to Zara and you can forget all about it, sweetheart.’
But Jasmine didn’t move, she remained rooted to the spot.
‘Jasmine?’
‘Sorry, I just…’
She sheepishly approached Theo and held out the shoes. He took them, turned them over and gasped with surprise before letting out a chuckle.
‘A girl after my own heart!’