Ruby panicked. Was Maddie going to take her to yet another jewellery shop and make her swoon again? There was only one way to find out, so she folded her hands primly in her lap and waited for Maddie to speak.

‘The thing is . . .’ Maddie had the grace to look slightly uncomfortable. ‘Nell has had a very good tip-off.’

‘A tip-off?’

‘Yes.’ Maddie nodded as she paced up and down. ‘Nell has made friends with a great many of the young maids that live in Birmingham and one of them has told her of a golden opportunity that will happen this evening. But before I tell you what it is, I have to ask you . . . can I trust you, Ruby? And do you intend to stay here?’

Ruby nodded miserably. She had tossed and turned all night as she wrestled with her conscience but she could see no alternative. Had she been a little older she could possibly have found a position as a maid in one of the big houses but she was so small and young-looking that it was unlikely anyone would take her on at present.

‘Good! Then tonight I want you to go out with Nell. There are some very big houses next to the Warstone Lane cemetery and some very wealthy people live there. I happen to know that the owners of one such house are going to the theatre this evening and as they have given their maid the night off the house will be empty for some hours.’

Ruby didn’t like the way this conversation was going at all and she squirmed in her seat as her heart began to race.

Maddie went on, ‘The lady of the house is known to have a substantial amount of very valuable jewellery and the young maid knows where she keeps it. They do have a safe, but the maid has told Nell that the woman rarely uses it and tends to tuck her jewels in the corner of her drawer in her bedroom. This evening you will go with Nell and climb through a back window that the maid will leave on the latch. You will then go upstairs and grab as much jewellery as you can find and bring it back to me.’

‘But why would the maid tell Nell about it?’ Ruby was horrified.

Maddie grinned. ‘For money, my dear. It’s what makes the world go round. I shall make the information very worth her while, never you fear.’

‘B-but what if I get caught?’ Ruby asked, her voice trembling with fear.

‘There’s very little chance of that happening,’ Maddie assured her. ‘And if the maid has given us the right information you can be in and out in no time. This could bring in ten to a dozen times what the ring I stole yesterday is worth when I pass it on to the fence I work with.’