Page 89 of Cross & Crown

the inside to Nick before he reached in and extracted a folded

piece of paper. He unfolded it carefully, then turned it so

they could see the photocopied object. “The crown jewels of

Ireland.”

“Crown jewels of Ireland?” Kelly said. “Is that real? That

doesn’t sound real.”

Nick lowered his head, rubbing his face with both hands.

“The crown jewels of Ireland disappeared in the early 1900s.

Why are they stealing documents from the Revolutionary

War if that’s what they’re after?”

“Wait, is this real?” Kelly asked again.

Nick nodded. “They were pieces made for the Order of

St. Patrick in seventeen . . . something. I don’t remember.

They disappeared in 1908. After they were stolen, the papers

started cal ing them the Irish Crown Jewels.”

“Jesus.” Kelly gaped at Nick. “Is there any obscure piece

of history that you don’t know off the top of your head?

Seriously!”

“Actually, it was 1907,” Julian said. “But I had to look

up the information, so I’m impressed with your knowledge,

Detective.”

Nick rolled his fingers through the air. “Get to the

important part.”

90

“The order was created in 1783. You’ll notice the

proximity to the end of your country’s Revolution.”

Nick closed his eyes and nodded impatiently. He was still

waiting for any of this to connect to anything they’d found.

“The jewels, however, were not made until 1831 to replace

the original rather plain ones worn by the Order.”

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