Cora Flash and the Diamond of Madagascar (A Cora Flash Children's Mystery, Book 1) Read Free Page A

us and sat down on a chair next to the window. He picked up a small paperback book that had been resting on the table beside the chair and thumb ed through it. Mr. Sloane, on the other hand, stayed near the door of the car, still clutching his silver briefcase.
    " So much responsibility he has, transporting that diamond to Topaz Mountain . I don ' t know how he does it . I would be a nervous wreck! " said Sheila.
    " I have to agree with you there, " added Mrs. Bronwyn. " I can ' t say I would like to take on that responsibility. If it w ere ever lost on the trip, I don ' t know what I would do. "
    " Big companies like that have insurance . T hey would cover anything that might happen , " advised Ted. " He wouldn ' t be responsible for the loss. "
    " But his company would still hold him responsible, " I pointed out . " I don ' t think his bosses would be very please d with him. "
    " No . " Mrs. Bronwyn reached over and scratched Calvin behind the ears . " They certainly wouldn ' t. "
    I sat with my new companions and watched the sun set as we sped to ward our destination . I couldn ' t believe how quickly t he first day had ended . I t wouldn ' t be long before I joined my u ncle in the mountains.
    " Well, " said Mrs. Bronwyn , " I ' m afraid it ' s time for me to go to sleep. It is past Calvin ' s bedtime! "
    Everyone looked down at Calvin, who was comfortably nestled in my lap, content and sound asleep.
    " Oh, please, don ' t disturb him, " I pleaded.
    She smiled at me . " I ' m afraid I must, Cora, darling. I can ' t fall asleep without my little Calvin next to me. It just wouldn ' t be the same without him. "
    Mrs. Bronwyn bent down and gently scoop ed up her slumbering dog and cradled him in her arms. Her tender motion did not disturb Calvin one bit.
    " Well, goodnight , everyone, " she said . And with that, she t urned and walked out of the l ounge car, slamming the door just as loudly as she had when she came in.
    The crash of the door was loud enough to wake the man with dark glasses, who had fallen asleep reading. " What the …? " H e looked around, startled. " Oh, " he said, realizing he had dozed off. " Pardon me. "
    Although he had only spoken a few words, I thought I heard a trace of an accent in his voice. He sounded Italian, much like my grade five teacher, Mr. Giordano. The man with dark glasses put his book down and rose from the chair before turning to address the group.
    " Excuse me; I will be retiring for the night. Pleasant dreams, " he said.
    " Good night, " I said.
    " Good evening, " added Sheila.
    After the man left, Ted couldn ' t help but make an observation. " It was nice of him to say goodnight to people who haven ' t even said a word to him all evening. "
    " Yes, it was, " I agreed .
    " We must make a point of talking to him in the morning, " suggested Sheila. " Perhaps he can join us for breakfast. "
    " Yes, " said Ted. " Perhaps. Well, Cora, I ' m afraid we must be off to bed ourselves. I don ' t imagine it will be easy to fall asleep in those seats tonight. I want to try and get as much rest as I can! "
    " I guess I should , too . " I yawned . " It is quite late. "
    I made my way out of the car accompanied by the honeymooners , leaving Mr. Sloane alone. I said , “G ood night ,” to Ted and Sheila at their seats and continued to my seat before grabbing the little bag of toiletries my mother had packed for the trip. I made my way to the washrooms at the front of the sleeper car and proceeded to get ready for bed.
    As I returned from the washroom, I couldn ' t help but notice Mrs. Bronwyn was not at her seat.
    Perhaps she ' s in the other washroom , I thought. I picked up my cell phone to call my mother before bed and noticed right away a message on the screen that read, " NO SIGNAL " . It must be difficult, I supposed, to get a signal in the country. I decided to text her instead, as I knew the text message would send once we had a signal. My text read, " Mom , ther is no sgnl nw. will call u