The Earl With the Secret Tattoo by Kieran Kramer Read Free Book Online

“It’s all in fun.”
    “I like that about your family. Things are never dull.”
    When Janice handed Eleanor the engraved copper circle, she felt an instant connection
     with it. She remembered now how excited they’d all been that Robert had found it near
     the mouth of the cave in a small recess beneath a rock he’d lifted to examine.
    The disk was cold in her fingers, a dull green color, and on its surface was a primitive
     cat in a pouncing position. A crude hole was bored in the circle’s top, perfect for
     attaching a leather string or chain.
    “It looks somehow familiar to me,” she said slowly. “And not because I saw it five
     years ago. I’m almost sure I recognize—”
    And then she stopped speaking.
    “What?” Janice’s voice was insistent. “What is it, Eleanor?”
    “Nothing,” she said lightly. “It was merely a trick of the light.”
    But it wasn’t. The earl’s tattoo was composed of cat figures just like this one.
    Janice peered at her. “Are you sure you’re all right?”
    Eleanor gave a quick nod. “Simply intrigued, that’s all.”
    She wouldn’t have been able to explain to Janice, even had she wanted to. Eleanor
     had been the only one to see the tattoo on the Earl of Tumbridge’s shoulder during
     the robbery. It had been a circular image of three cats in pouncing positions, their
     tails entwined at the center of the design.
    She turned the talisman over to examine the underside, upon which were etched some
     peculiar marks, almost like Egyptian hieroglyphs or Eastern script.
    “I wonder what it means?” She looked at Janice, who was watching her with interest.
    “Yes, it’s fascinating, isn’t it?”
    “Have you ever wanted to take it to a jeweler or a museum curator?”
    “I thought about it but never bothered. It seems so modest an object in every other
     way.” Janice looked vaguely worried. “Do you think it might be very old?”
    “I don’t know,” said Eleanor. “Perhaps it’s a freemason’s badge, which means it could
     be fairly new.” She still felt shocked at recognizing the cat figure; her mind raced
     with possibilities.
    “Take it,” Janice said out of the blue. “You can return it to me next year when I
     come back from Switzerland. Meanwhile, if you want to get it examined by an expert
     on relics or even a freemason, please feel free.” She laughed. “Wouldn’t it be marvelous
     if it were actually of some importance?”
    “It would be quite ironic.” Eleanor smiled. “Thank you. I will take it. Were you and your brothers and sisters carrying anything of value that day?”
    “No. The carriage holding our trunks went ahead of us. We had only a few small bags,
     as you know, between us, to tide us over until we got to London. And Mother always
     insisted we not travel in a garish manner.”
    “Could the robbers have been after the talisman?”
    Janice let out a small squeak. “What if they were? It never occurred to me. You really
     must get it examined now.”
    “It’s a good thing no one was able to steal it from you,” Eleanor said.
    “Why?” Janice’s eyes were wide.
    “I think you’re right. I believe it’s of some importance—if not to us, to someone
     else, at the very least.”
    What did the cat and the odd symbols mean? And what did the talisman have to do with
     Lord Tumbridge? He must have wanted to procure it that day and had followed the Sherwood
     carriages—him and those robbers. Had they been working together? Or separately?
    Then again, perhaps no one had wanted the talisman at all. Perhaps Eleanor’s imagination
     was running away from her. She’d come today to the Brady mansion hoping for answers,
     and surely, she was deluding herself into thinking she was getting some.
    But Lord Tumbridge must have had a reason for following their carriage—and for wearing
     a mask to protect his identity.
    And that strange code must mean something .
    Eleanor hoped that particular something would bring her closer