Alice-Miranda in the Alps (23 page)

‘Absolutely,' Hugh agreed. ‘Come on, everyone, let's go home.'

Vincenzo Luciano, otherwise known as Signor Grande, was the head of Italy's largest gang of organised criminals. The man had created an empire worth hundreds of millions of dollars. He had stolen gold from all over Europe, which was then melted into bars and transported to various vaults throughout Switzerland. By catching him, the authorities also nabbed hundreds of smaller crooks who were part of his shady network.

The Black Diamonds Ski School was just a front for the gang of young skiers who transported
the gold across the border. Upon hearing of their boss's demise the young men fled from Zermatt and Cervinia. Several of them were caught and charged. Vincenzo himself was sentenced to a maximum term of twenty years in prison. Interpol and the Italian Secret Service still have outstanding cases against him and expect that he will be incarcerated for much longer once they have finished with him.

Delphine Doerflinger was given a two-year home detention order in exchange for testifying against Vincenzo and his gang. She would never forgive herself for allowing greed and ambition to cloud her judgement so badly. After St Moritz had endured a couple of poor snow seasons, she had overextended the hotel finances. She should have told her husband and worked out some other way of getting back on top of things, but when Vincenzo approached her to use the vault with the promise of a huge payday, she thought it was the answer to all her problems. It didn't take her long to realise that she had made a very bad decision indeed.

While Otto was devastated that his wife had deceived him in such a way, he was quick to forgive. He couldn't bear seeing Delphine wearing such an ugly tracking device on her ankle, so he had it
covered in diamantes to match Gertie's new collar (although Gertie's was made of real diamonds, of course). Delphine's confinement within the boundaries of their apartment meant that she and Gertie spent a lot more time together. Otto was thrilled that his girls were finally getting closer – though, never more than three feet – as they sat at opposite ends of the lounge each afternoon to watch their favourite game show,
Winners Are Grinners
.

Otto developed a much greater interest in the hotel's financial affairs and took Hugh up on his generous offer to advance a loan until they could get themselves back on their feet. Hugh and Dolly were interested in the Fanger's chocolate-box technology and decided to buy a small stake in the company. Millie thought this was the best news ever and hoped that meant there would be a lifetime supply of Fanger's Chocolate on hand at Alice-Miranda's place.

Valerie confessed all to the Baron and Baroness von Zwicky, having no idea that her aunt was in cahoots with the most notorious criminal in Italy. The woman resigned immediately, ashamed of her deviousness and misguided ambition. She had evaded their initial suspicions because the first page
of the telephone contact list Valerie had compiled had been cleverly engineered to reflect the truth, while anything after that contained false phone numbers and lies. Cecelia and the Baroness had only called former guests on the first page, so they had no cause to suspect her of any wrongdoing.

The Von Zwickys were hugely disappointed but reasoned that, if Valerie was so good at manipulating guests to stay away, she should be equally good at enticing them back again. They were both thrilled at the prospect of keeping the hotel and determined to restore it to its former glory and have enrolled in a computer course too. Valerie is working extra-hard, on half her previous wage, to make up for her diabolical activities.

Shilly and Dolly had indeed been shocked to hear of all the drama that embroiled the family during their few days away. As Alice-Miranda predicted, they both vowed never to leave the family to their own devices again.

With help from Sebastien and Nina and some of the townsfolk, Lars Dettwiller finished the renovations to the station. The following summer his museum reopened to great fanfare. His health continues to improve and Nina and her father are thrilled
to have him back. Nina's most treasured possession is her silver music box with the tiny fluttering bird.

Alice-Miranda and Nina have been writing regularly, keeping up with each other's news. They can't wait to see each other again next ski season.

Jacqueline Harvey taught for many years in girls' boarding schools. She is the author of the bestselling Alice-Miranda series and the Clementine Rose series, and was awarded Honour Book in the 2006 Australian CBC Awards for her picture book
The Sound of the Sea
. She now writes full-time and is working on more Alice-Miranda and Clementine Rose adventures.

 

www.jacquelineharvey.com.au