“I’m almost sure it isn’t,” Judy exclaimed. “When Penny was talking about it, she kept referring to the dolly as ‘she,’ and this little idol is the figure of a young man. Besides, Peter,” she added excitedly, “when I was trying to think of the name of the Destroyer, Penny said the name was Sita. Then she said, ‘Oh, no, that was the name of the—’ and her mother made her be quiet. Oh dear,” she finished mournfully, “we found Rama and lost Sita, and they should always be together.”
“Perhaps they will be, Angel, soon,” Peter promised mysteriously.
Judy eyed him curiously. “Don’t answer this if it’s confidential information,” she began carefully, “but I’m just dying to know why it makes a difference whether this green doll is the one Helen Riker had, or not.”
“I can’t answer your question specifically, Angel,” Peter said slowly. “But I can tell you one thing, because it will be released to the papers tomorrow anyway. There may not have been a robbery at all.”
“Peter!” Judy stared. “What do you mean? The art treasures are gone, aren’t they?”
“They were,” Peter said. “But we learned today that the Montrose Moving and Storage Company received an order to move the stuff to their warehouse on Thursday evening. The order is supposed to have come from Paul Riker. My theory is that the old man saw the forest fire spreading in the direction of his house, and wanted to save his treasures. However, the insurance people take a different view. They point out that although the house did burn down, the forest fire was not the cause. In fact, the burned area around the site of the Riker mansion was what stopped the spread of the forest fire in that direction. They think Mr. Riker wanted to ‘have his cake and eat it too,’ as the saying goes.”
“Peter!” Judy’s eyes were snapping with excitement. “Do you mean to tell me all those things have been sitting in a warehouse while everyone has been trying to catch the robbers? But you yourself said only this evening that you are on the trail of a number of green dolls. Oh,” she gasped, as the thought struck her, “that must mean the jade collection isn’t—”
She stopped suddenly as Peter put a gentle hand over her mouth.
“I wouldn’t have been able to answer your next question, Angel,” he said, laughing at her startled expression, “so let’s change the subject.”
“All right, Peter,” Judy laughed too, “at least we have one real robbery left—those men who held up Helen Riker. Peter, they must have been the moving men! Honey recognized one of them.”