She laughed then. “Under my wig, of course. I always travel with extra wigs. I’ve a nice little compartment for stowing things—and one little ruby slips in easily.”

“Oh, I see!” I nodded with understanding. “And you threw the extra wigs overboard when you thought they might search your cabin,” I said. “I saw something fall overboard, heard the splash and then saw hair floating on the water. I thought someone was drowning.”

She laughed. “Not someone. Many people. My other identities. The extra wigs, the duplicates of my sister’s dresses. I always travel with those so I can look like her anytime I want. Actually I had my eye on a good diamond brooch and I thought I might help myself to it while everyone was at the costume ball, but I was seen by a real steward trying to get into a cabin. I know he alerted security and I thought I might have been followed. I couldn’t take the risk of my cabin being searched so I bundled everything up and threw it overboard.” She looked at me appraisingly. “You’re quite smart, you know. Too bad you’re a woman. You could be a detective.”

“The man who is following you from Scotland Yard is just as good,” I said.

“I can’t get over that. Scotland Yard bothering to send someone after me.”

“You should realize that you’re quite a celebrity,” I said.

She smiled then, making her look much younger. “Go on.”

“Seriously. You are much admired at Scotland Yard for your daring exploits.”

“But that won’t stop them from putting me in Holloway Prison if they get their hands on me, will it?” She stood there, staring up at the house again and I could feel the tension in her arms as she tried to prevent us from leading her any farther.

“I’m afraid not,” I said.

“They’ll have to catch me first, though.” And she gave me a defiant grin.

Chapter 29

Sheriff Billings looked up in surprise when Belinda and I entered the foyer with Bella Brightwell between us. “What’s going on now?” he said. “Miss Brightwell—who the devil let you out?”

“This isn’t Miss Brightwell,” I said. “The real Stella is still locked up in a bedroom. This is her sister, Bella.”

“Nobody told me about a sister,” he said angrily.

“Nobody knew about her sister,” I said. “I heard from my mother that Stella had a sister and that they had been in show business together. My mother had worked with them when they were little girls. So when people reported seeing Stella and I knew that couldn’t be true I realized that her sister must be on the property too. And that the sister had a distinguished career of her own, as a jewel thief. And she could only be here for one reason—to steal the gold candlesticks Mr. Goldman had brought back with him.”