Five on a Secret Trail (2 page)

„When are Julian and Dick coming down?" asked George. „In a few days? Timmy"s ear wil be al right then and we can go back to Kirrin Cottage to welcome the boys, and have some fun there."

„They may not be coming down at all these hols," said Anne, and George"s face fel at once. She stopped and stared at Anne in dismay.

„Not coming! but they always come in the hols - or we go away somewhere together!"

she said. „They must come! I shall be miserable without Ju and Dick."

„Well - they"re stil in France, on a tour or something," said Anne. „We shal hear if they"re staying on there or coming down to Kirrin, when we get back to the cottage. Don"t look so woebegone, George!"

But George felt woebegone. The holidays stretched before her, suddenly seeming long and dreary. Her two boy cousins were always such fun - they had had such wonderful adventures together. And now - now they weren"t coming!

„We shan"t have any adventures at al if the boys don"t come," she said, in a small voice.

„I shan"t mind that," said Anne. „I"m the peaceful one, not always on the look-out for something to happen, like you and the boys! Perhaps these holidays wil be quite unexciting without even the smell of an adventure! Oh George - cheer up! Don"t look so mournful. You"d better send a telegram to Julian and Dick if you feel so badly about it."

„I"ve a good mind to!" said George. „I can"t imagine hols without the boys. Why - we shan"t be the Five - the Famous Five - if they don"t come!"

„Woof!" said Timmy, quite agreeing. He sat down and tried to scratch his ear, but the big collar prevented him. He didn"t seem to mind and ran off after a rabbit quite happily.

„I think you are more upset about that col ar than Timmy," said Anne, as they walked along. „Are we getting near this place of yours, George? It"s a jol y long way."

„We go up this hil in front of us - and then drop down to a little copse," said George.

„There"s a funny old cottage nearby - quite ruined and empty. At first I thought perhaps people lived there, but when I went nearer I saw that it was ruined. There"s a big old rose-rambler climbing al over it, even inside. I suppose the people who used to live there planted it."

They walked up the little hil and down again, following curving rabbit-paths. „Better look out for adders," said Anne. „This is just the kind of place for them. My word, it"s hot, George. Is there anywhere to bathe near here - a pool or anything?"

„I don"t know. We could explore and see," said George. „I did bring my swim-suit just in case. Look - you can see part of the old cottage now. My camp is fairly near there. I thought I"d better camp near the spring."

They were soon at George"s rough little camp. Her tent was up, and she had made a bed inside of the springy heather. A mug, a bag of dog biscuits, a few tins, and a loaf of bread were at one end of the tent. It didn"t seem to Anne as if George had brought very much, and she felt glad that she had managed to pack such a lot of things.

„Aunt Fanny cut dozens and dozens of sandwiches," said Anne. „She said if we kept them in this tin they wouldn"t go stale, and would last us a day or two til we went back. I"m hungry. Shal we have some now?"

They sat out in the sun, munching the ham sandwiches. Anne had brought tomatoes too, and they took a bite at a sandwich and then a bite at a tomato. Timmy had to make do with a handful of dog biscuits and half a sandwich every now and again. After a bit he got up and wandered off.

„Where"s he going?" asked Anne. „To look for a rabbit?"

„No. Probably to get a drink," said George. „The spring is in the direction he"s gone. I"m thirsty too - let"s take the mug and get a drink ourselves."

They went off with the mug, Anne following George through the thick heather. The little spring was a lovely one. It had evidently been used by the people who had once lived in the old cottage, and was built round with big white stones, so that the spring ran through a little stony channel, as clear as crystal.

„Oooh - it"s as cold as ice!" said Anne. „Simply delicious! I could drink gallons of this!"

They lay on the heather out in the sun, talking, when they came back from the spring.

Timmy wandered off by himself again.

„It"s so peaceful here," said Anne. „Nobody near us for miles. Just the birds and the rabbits.

This is what I like!"

„There"s hardly a sound," said George, yawning.

And then, just as she said that, there came a noise in the distance. A sharp sound, like metal on stone. It came again and again and then stopped.

„What"s that, do you suppose?" said George, sitting up.

„I can"t imagine," said Anne. „Anyway, it"s a long way away - everything is so stil that sounds carry from quite a distance."

The sharp noises began again in a little while and then stopped. The girls shut their eyes, and slept. There wasn"t a sound now except the pop-pop-pop of gorse pads exploding in the sun and sending out their little black seeds.

George woke up when Timmy came back. He sat down heavily on her feet and she woke up with a jump.

„Timmy! Don"t!" she said. „Get off my feet, you made me jump!" Timmy obligingly removed himself and then picked up something he had dropped, lay down and began gnawing it.

George looked to see what it was.

„Timmy! That"s a bone! Where did you get it?" she said. „Anne, did you bring a bone for Tim?"

„What? What did you say?" said Anne, half asleep. „A bone. No, I didn"t. Why?"

„Because Timmy"s found one," said George, „and it"s a bone that has had cooked meat on it, so it"s not a rabbit or anything Timmy"s caught. Timmy, where did you get it.”

„Woof," said Timmy, offering the bone to George, thinking that she too might like a gnaw, as she seemed so interested in it.

„Do you suppose anyone else is camping near us?" asked Anne, sitting up and yawning.

„After all, bones don"t grow in the heather. That"s quite a good meaty one, too. Timmy, have you stolen it from another dog?"

Timmy thumped his tail on the ground and went on with his bone. He looked pleased with himself.

„It"s rather an old bone," said George. „It"s smelly. Go away, Tim - take it further off."

The sharp metal ic noises suddenly began again and George frowned. „I believe there is someone camping near us, Anne. Come on - let"s do a bit of exploring and find out. I vote we move our camp if there are other people near. Come on, Timmy - that"s right, bury that horrible bone! This way Anne!"

The two girls, with Timmy at their heels, left their camping-place and set off in the hot sun.

Anne caught sight of the ruined cottage and stopped.

„Let"s have a look at it," she said. „It must be awfully old, George."

They went in at the wide doorway. There was no door left, only the stone archway. Inside was a big room, whose floor had once been paved with slabs of white stone. Now grass and other weeds had grown between the cracks, and had actual y lifted up some of the slabs so that the whole floor was uneven.

Here and there parts of the walls had fal en away, and the daylight came through. One window was stil more or less intact, but the others had fallen out. A small crooked stairway of stone led upwards in one corner.

„To rooms above, I suppose," said Anne. „Oh, here"s another doorway, leading into a second room - a smal one. It"s got an old sink in it, look - and this must be the remains of a pump."

„There"s not much to see, real y," said George, looking round. „The top rooms must be quite ruined, because half the roof is off. Hal o, here"s another door - a back door. It"s actually a door too, not just a doorway."

She gave a push at the stout wood - and the old door promptly fel off its hinges and crashed outwards into an over-grown yard.

„Goodness!" said George, startled. „I didn"t know it was quite so rotten. It made poor Tim jump almost out of his skin!"

„There are out-houses here - or the remains of them," said Anne, exploring the back-yard.

„They must have kept pigs and hens and ducks. Here"s a dried-up pond, look."

Everything was fal ing to pieces. The best preserved corner of the old place was what must have been a smal stable. Rusted mangers were stil there and the floor was of stone.

An old, old piece of harness hung on a big nail.

„It"s got quite a nice „feel" about it, this old place," said Anne. „Sometimes I don"t like the feel of places - they give me an uneasy feeling, a feeling that horrid things may have happened there. But this is quite different. I think people have been happy here, and led peaceful lives. I can almost hear hens clucking and ducks quacking, and pigs gr..."

„Quack, quack, quack! Quack!"

„Cuck-cuk-cuk-cuk-cuk! Cuck-cuk-cuk-cuk-cuk!"

Anne clutched George and the two girls looked extremely startled to hear the sudden loud noise of quacking and clucking. They stood and listened.

„What was it?" said Anne. „It sounded like hens and ducks - though I"m not quite sure. But there aren"t any here, surely. We shall hear a horse whinnying next!"

They didn"t hear a whinny - but they heard the snorting of a horse at once. „Hmrr-umph!

Hrrrrr-umph!"

Both girls were now quite alarmed. They looked for Timmy. He was nowhere to be seen!

Wherever could he have got to?

„Cuck-cuk-cuk-cuk-cuk!"

„This is sil y," said George. „Are we imagining things? Anne, there must be hens near. Come round the back of these stables and look. Timmy, where are you? TIMMY!"

She whistled shril y - and immediately an echo came - or so it seemed!

„Phee-phee-phee-phee-phee!"

„TIMMY!" yelled George, beginning to feel as if she was in a dream.

Timmy appeared, looking rather sheepish. He wagged his tail - and to the girls" enormous amazement, they saw that he had a ribbon tied on it. A ribbon - a bright blue one at that!

„Timmy! Your tail - the ribbon - Timmy, what"s all this about?" said George, really startled.

Timmy went to her, stil looking sheepish, George tore the ribbon off his tail. „Who tied it there?" she demanded. „Who"s here? Timmy, where have you been?"

The two girls searched the old buildings thoroughly, and found nothing and nobody. Not a hen, not a duck, not a pig - and certainly not a horse. Then - what was the explanation?

They stared at one another in bewilderment.

„And where did Timmy get that sil y ribbon?" said George, exasperated. „Someone must have tied it on."

„Perhaps it was a hiker passing by - perhaps he heard us here and saw Timmy and played a joke," said Anne. „But it"s strange that old Tim let him tie on the ribbon. I mean - Timmy"s not overfriendly with strangers, is he?"

The girls gave up the idea of exploring any further and went back to their little camp.

Timmy went with them. He lay down - and then suddenly got up again, making for a thick gorse bush. He tried to squirm underneath.

„Note what"s he after?" said George. „Really, I think Timmy"s gone mad. Timmy, you can"t get under there with that great collar on. TIMMY, do you hear me!"

Timmy backed out reluctantly, the collar all crooked. After him came a peculiar little mongrel dog with one blind eye and one exceedingly bright and lively one. He was half-white and half-black, and had a ridiculously long thin tail, which he waved about merrily.

„Well!" said George, amazed. „What"s that dog doing there? And how did Timmy get so friendly with him? Timmy, I can"t make you out."

„Woof," said Timmy, and brought the mongrel dog over to Anne and George. He then proceeded to dig up the smel y bone he had buried, and actual y offered it to the little dog, who looked away and took no interest in it at all.

„This is all very peculiar," said Anne. „I shal expect to see Timmy bring a cat to us next!"

At once there came a pathetic mewing.

„Mee-ew! Mee-ew-ee-ew-ee-ew!"

Both dogs pricked up their ears, and rushed to the bush. Timmy was once again kept back by his big collar and barked furiously.

George got up and marched to the bush. „If there"s a cat there, it won"t have much chance against two dogs," she cal ed to Anne. Come away, Tim. Hey, you little dog, come away, too."

Timmy backed out, and George pul ed out the smal dog very firmly indeed. „Hold him, Anne!" she called. „He"s quite friendly. He won"t bite. I"m going to find that cat."

Anne held on to the small mongrel, who gazed at her excitedly with his one good eye and wagged his tail violently. He was a most friendly little fellow. George began to crawl into the bare hol ow space under the big gorse bush.

She looked into it, not able to see anything at first, because it was dark there after the bright sunlight. Then she got a tremendous shock.

A round, grinning face stared back at her, a face with very bright eyes and tousled hair falling on to the forehead. The mouth was set in a wide smile, showing very white teeth.

„Mee-ew-ee-ew-ee-ew!" said the face.

George scrambled back at top speed, her heart thumping. „What is it?" cal ed Anne.

„There"s somebody hiding there," said George. „Not a cat. A fathead of a boy who is doing the mewing."

„Mew-ee-ew-ee-ew!"

„Come out!" cal ed Anne. „Come out and let"s see you. You must be crazy!"

There was a scrambling noise and a boy came headforemost from the hol ow space under the bush. He was about twelve or thirteen, short, studily built, and with the cheekiest face Anne had ever seen.

Timmy rushed at him and licked him lovingly. George stared in amazement.

„How does my dog know you?" she demanded.

„Well, he came growling at me yesterday when I was in my own camp," said the boy.

„And I offered him a nice meaty bone. Then he saw my little dog Jet - short for jet-propelled, you know - and made friends with him - and with me too."

„I see," said George, stil not at all friendly. „Wel , I don"t like my dog to take food from strangers."

„Oh, I couldn"t agree more," said the boy. „But I thought I"d rather he ate the bone than ate me. He"s a nice dog, yours. He feels a bit of an idiot wearing that collar, doesn"t he?