The Cinderella Cleaning Caper (7)

As Lilly and Riley made their way towards the principal's office, Riley told Lilly about what he had found out.

"It's...hard to say this, but it is looking more and more like Nina's mother might be the thief we're looking for. She works at Cinderella Cleaning Service, and if I can only confirm her schedule there, we can place her at the scenes of the crimes."

"Then...she had time to poke around and take things," Lilly said. "Little things that can be easily missed, right?"

"Right," Riley said. "And now, this blue diamond ring that's missing...I have a bad feeling that she's behind that too. Thomas told me that it looks like a sapphire to someone who isn't familiar with jewelry."

The door opened to reveal Nina's mother, who was sitting on a folding chair and looking like a punished elementary school student, along with Thomas, Mr. Foley, and another member of the magistrate. Thomas looked up and nodded at Riley.

"Mrs. Palladino," Thomas said, "I would like to ask you a question." Nina's mother barely looked up at him. Then Thomas fished something out of his pocket. It was a black velvet bag—the same bag that Lilly had remembered seeing on the kitchen table of Nina's house yesterday. Thomas pulled the drawstring open, and tipped it out onto the desk. Various earrings, necklaces, and bracelets tumbled out—including not only the silver ring with the yellow jewel, but a ring that was unmistakably the Ocean Diamond.

Before Nina's mother could answer, Riley spoke up. "Mrs. Palladino, I am also investigating a case of missing jewelry. I know of not less than thirteen young women who have had various articles of jewelry taken from them."

"And," Lilly said, "I saw one of the things that was taken. On your table when I went to visit. And there was more stuff, too. You had it in a bag. What did you do with all of it?" She was excited. This was it, the denouement of her very first case.

Nina's mother silently looked down at her feet. "Yes," she said in a low voice. "I took it all. I had to."

"Mrs. Palladino, you realize that the ring that was found with your daughter is extremely valuable?" Thomas said. "You are looking at some very serious charges. Including prison time."

Nina's mother looked up at everyone. Her face was a mask of rage and despair. The temperature in the room seemed to go extremely cold.

"I had to do it. Ever since that good-for-nothing deadbeat of a husband left me. He left me all alone, to fend for myself and my daughter. It wasn't enough. I had to get extra money, just so I could get her clothes, get her school books...Nothing for myself. Everything had to be for her. Everything for her. Everything..." Her clenched fists were in her lap, trembling. "He left me because of her. All because of her..." She snapped upright and grabbed the chair that she was sitting in and slammed it to the ground. "DAMN IT ALL TO HELL! IT'S ALL HER FAULT! SHE'S THE REASON WHY THAT BASTARD LEFT ME! I HATE HER! I HATE HER! I WISH SHE WAS NEVER BORN!"

The door to the nurse's office suddenly creaked open. Everyone turned their heads at once to see that Nina was standing there. She was silently listening. Her eyes were wide. Her hands were trembling. Oh, Nina...did you hear all that? Lilly thought.

Nina's mother suddenly realized where everyone was staring, and looked up from her tirade to meet her daughter's startled eyes. "Nina? Sweetie? I...I didn't...mean to say all these awful things...I'm..." 

Nina's mother collapsed to her knees and crouched into a ball, sobbing loudly. Lilly went over to the nurse's office and took Nina's hand. She led Nina inside and shut the door quietly behind them.

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Later that afternoon, after classes had been let out, Riley was seated on the park bench at the school's playground, with Lilly next to him. They both had faraway looks on their faces.

After her tirade, Nina's mother had been led away by the magistrate. The next step for her was to face the confessors, which hopefully meant that she'd divulge the motive and reveal if she had done anything with the missing jewelry. Thomas came over to the two of them, nodding. "So. How are you two holding up?" he asked. "I'm...sorry you two had to hear that. It was...sad."    

"Yeah," Riley said. "I had thought of her as the type of person who would put her daughter first, but not in that way."

Lilly remained silent, looking at the ground. "So, what's happening with her?"

"Before we could even get her in front of the confessors, she told us everything," Thomas said. He sat down next to Lilly, and put his arm gently on her shoulder. "Her husband left her a few years after Nina was born, and she's pretty much been raising her on her own ever since. She started taking the jewelry a few weeks ago. Turns out, the person she was fencing it to, has been wanted for a very long time by the magistrate for a couple of dangerous crimes. So it's kind of a godsend that we have her in custody. Hopefully, the guy hasn't decided to run off on us after he heard about her arrest."

"What's going to happen to Nina?" Lilly's voice was barely above a whisper. She had spent almost an hour comforting Nina in the nurse's office until the principal came in and told her to go back to her class.

Thomas looked down at Lilly. "Well...her mother's going to have to go to prison for a while. But Nina's grandparents live about an hour or so away, and they're agreed to take her in." Thomas sighed. "As for whether or not Nina's ever going to forgive her mom..."

"If she does, at all," Riley said. "I don't pity her in the least."

He got up and put his hand on Lilly's shoulder. "Lilly...I'm sorry that you had to see that."

"It's okay," Lilly said, quietly.

"And that was a good thing you did. Nina needed someone to be with her." Riley smiled at his younger sister and patted her on the head.

"Anyways. I'd better be off," Thomas said. "After hearing that...all I want to do is go home, give my wife a kiss and hold my little boy." He got up and shook Riley by the hand. "Great work, as always. Your father would be proud."

"Right. I will see you again," Riley said, as Thomas walked off with a wave.

The two of them were left sitting on the bench, watching the lonely playground together.

"Hey, Bro," Lilly said quietly.

"Hmm? What is it, Lilly?" Riley answered.

"My real mom...What was she like? Was she a person like Nina's mother? Why did I--"

A second passed. Riley looked down at Lilly when she realized she had abruptly stopped talking. His eyes widened as he noticed that Lilly wasn't even moving. Her face was frozen mid-word, her hands were completely still, and it didn't even look as if she was breathing.

"Lilly? LILLY!" Riley yelled. He put his hands on Lilly's shoulders and shook them. "Lilly, what's wrong? Wake up!"

Just then, Lilly blinked and looked at Riley in surprise. "Bro, what are you doing?" She looked around. "Were...we talking about something? I can't remember."

Riley figured it would be best to drop the subject. "Nothing. Come on, we've had a long day. Let's head back."