Mysterious box in the Garden

My name is Nithin . This happened five years ago when I was twelve years old and studying in the eighth standard  in the Maharishi public school in Mysore. My father works for the state electricity board. We have been living in our traditional ancestral home for generations. School students were having summer vacation at that time. I was sitting on the doorstep in front of our house reading a new adventure book written by Enid Blyton. Although most of my friends loved Harry Porter, I somehow liked the Enid Blyton books to which my father had introduced me.   

Then it happened. Timmy, our desi mongrel started barking excitedly. He was scratching at a freshly dug pit. Perhaps the gardener who visits us once a week had not completed his work, when he left the prevous sunday. I kept my book aside and ran to Tim. He continued with his excitement and pulled out part of  what looked like a medium sized box. Mother was busy in the kitchen, father had gone to work and sister to visit her friend. I was the only one around. I picked up the box which had already attracted my interest due to the intricate design on the top that glowed through the mud all over. As I opened the box, I was blinded by the gleaming jewels that included beautiful stones like gems, rubies, daimonds apart from gold! 

It took me a while to get over the shock and surprise. I decided to put it back in the pit and cover it with some waste materials. I would need to consult father as to what to do next. I went back to my place at the door step and picked up the book again. But now, I was not able to concentrate. My mind was racing away with all kinds of thoughts. I was wondering to myself. Our ancestral house has  existed for long, with years of history. Perhaps it was previously a part of the huge palace grounds of yore. I tried to imagine what the owner of this lovely jewel box looked like. 

My mind soon travelled to the interiors of the palace and the chamber of a 20 year old young, delicate princess. There she was standing before the mirror trying out various combinations of her dazzling jewelry. Oh how lovely she looked! She was admiring her own beauty and lovliness in the mirror when a masked man entered the room . He had a scarf which he used to quickly cover her face from behind. It all happened in split seconds. The princess was smothered and roughly pushed on to the bed. The masked man quickly picked up the box and ran outside. 

In his hurry and excitement, he seems to have stumbled attracting the attention of the guards. The guards noticed and started chasing the masked man who fled with a fluency as if he was familiar with the turf of the palace. He quickly disappeared at a curve and resurfaced at the corner of the huge garden. Perhaps, he had planned it in advance. He quickly dropped the box, covered it unnoticed and ran to the posterior side of the palace. He has run backside! Get him! Get him, Get him! my mind screamed to the guards. 

"Being holidays I have been letting you sleep a little longer. But 9.30 in the morning and still sleeping!" I heard my mother's chiding voice from far away and felt the pain of the cane on my body. "Go brush your teeth. Everyone has had their breakfast and left for the day" she said.    

• NB: This post is a part of Blogchatter Blog Hop www.theblogchatter.com . The prompt was "You found a mysterious jewel box while gardening".