Mr. Thomas got the torch. The men shone it at the back of the cupboard, and gave an exclamation.
‘Look at that! There’s a door here! Where does it lead to?’
Mrs. Sanders, who had been watching everything in surprise and indignation, angry that her door should have been broken down, came up to the cupboard.
‘My!’ she said. ‘I knew there was a false back to that cupboard – but I didn’t know there was another door behind it too! That must be the entrance to the Secret Way that people used in the old days.’
‘Where does it lead to ?’ rapped out Mr. Wilton.
‘Goodness knows!’ said Mrs. Sanders. ‘I never took much interest in such things.’
‘Come on, Thomas – we must go down,’ said Mr. Wilton, shining his torch into the square black hole, and seeing the iron footholds set in the stone. ‘This is where the thief went. He can’t have got far. We’ll go after him. We’ve got to get those papers back!’
It was not long before the two men had swung themselves over the narrow ledge and down into the hole, feeling with their feet for the iron staples. Down they went and down, wondering where they were coming to. There was no sound below them. Clearly the thief had got away!
George had got down at last. Tim almost knocked her over in his joy. She put her hand on his head. ‘You old silly!’ she said. ‘I believe you’ve given our secret away! Quick, Ju – we must go, because those men will be after us in a minute. They could easily hear Tim’s howling!’
Julian took Anne’s hand. ‘Come along, Anne,’ he said. ‘You must run as fast as you can. Hurry now! Dick, keep with George.’
The four of them hurried down the dark, narrow passage. What a long way they had to go home! If only the passage wasn’t such a long one! The children’s hearts were beating painfully as they made haste, stumbling as they went.
Julian shone his light steadily in front of him, and Dick shone his at the back. Half-leading half-dragging Anne, Julian hurried along. Behind them they heard a shout.
‘Look! There’s a light ahead! That’s the thief! Come on, we’ll soon get him!’
Chapter Seventeen GOOD OLD TIM!
‘HURRY, Anne, do hurry!’ shouted Dick, who was just behind.
Poor Anne was finding it very difficult to get along quickly. Pulled by Julian and pushed by Dick, she almost fell two or three times. Her breath came in loud pants, and she felt as if she would burst.
‘Let rne have a rest!’ she panted. But there was no time for that, with the two men hurrying after them! They came to the piece that was widened out, where the rocky bench was, and Anne looked longingly at it. But the boys hurried her on.
Suddenly the little girl caught her foot on a stone and fell heavily, almost dragging Julian down with her. She tried to get up, and began to cry.
‘I’ve hurt my foot! I’ve twisted it! Oh, Julian, it hurts me to walk.’
‘Well, you’ve just got to come along, darling,’ said Julian, sorry for his little sister, but knowing that they would all be caught if he was not firm. ‘Hurry as much as you can.’
But now it was impossible for Anne to go fast. She cried with pain as her foot hurt her, and hobbled along so slowly that Dick almost fell over her. Dick cast a look behind him and saw the light of the men’s torches coming nearer and nearer. Whatever were they to do?
‘I’ll stay here with Tim and keep them off,’ said George, suddenly. ‘Here, take these papers, Dick! I believe they’re the ones we want, but I’m not sure till we get a good light to see them. I found them in a pocket of one of the coats in the cupboard.’
‘Golly!’ said Dick, surprised. He took the sheaf of papers and stuffed them up his jersey, just as George had stuffed them up hers. They were too big to go into his trousers pockets. ‘I’ll stay with you, George, and let the other two go on ahead.’
‘No. I want the papers taken to safety, in case they are my father’s,’ said George. ‘Go on, Dick! I’ll be all right here with Tim. I shall stay here just where the passage curves round this rocky bit. I’ll make Tim bark like mad.’
‘Suppose the men have got revolvers?’ said Dick, doubtfully. ‘They might shoot him.’
‘I bet they haven’t,’ said George. ‘Do go, Dick! The men are almost here. There’s the light of their torch.’
Dick sped after the stumbling Anne. He told Julian what George Jbad suggested. ‘Good for George!’ said Julian. ‘She really is marvellous – not afraid of anything ! She will keep the men off till I get poor old Anne back.’
George was crouching behind the rocky bit, her hand on Tim’s collar, waiting. ‘Now, Tim!’ she whispered. ‘Bark your loudest. Now!’
Timothy had been growling up till now, but at George’s command he opened his big mouth and barked. How he barked! He had a simply enormous voice, and the barks went echoing all down the dark and narrow
passage. The hurrying men, who were near the rocky piece of the passage, stopped.
‘If you come round this bend, I’ll set my dog on you!’ cried George.
‘It’s a child shouting,’ said one man to another. ‘Only a child! Come on!’
Timothy barked again, and pulled at his collar, He was longing to get at the men. The light of their torch shone round the bend. George let Tim go, and the big dog sprang joyfully round the curve to meet his enemies.
They suddenly saw him by the light of their torch, and he was a very terrifying sight! To begin with, he was a big dog, and now that he was angry all the hairs on the back of his neck had risen up, making him look even more enormous. His teeth were bared and glinted in the torch-light.
The men did not like the look of him at all. ‘If you move one step nearer I’ll tell my dog to fly at you!’ shouted George. ‘Wait, Tim, wait! Stand there till I give the word.’
The dog stood in the light of the torch, growling deeply. He looked an extremely fierce animal. The men looked at him doubtfully. One man took a step forward and George heard him. At once she shouted to Tim.
‘Go for him, Tim, go for him!’
Tim leapt at the man’s throat. He took him completely by surprise and the man fell to the ground with a thud, trying to beat off the dog. The other man helped.
‘Call off your dog or we’ll hurt him!5 cried the second man.
‘It’s much more likely he’ll hurt you I’ said George,
coming out from behind the rock and enjoying the fun. ‘Tim, come off.’
Tim came away from the man he was worrying, looking up at his mistress as if to say ‘I was having such a good time! Why did you spoil it ?’
‘Who are you ?’ said the man on the ground.
Tm not answering any of your questions,’ said George. ‘Go back to Kirrin Farmhouse, that’s my advice to you. If you dare to come along this passage I’ll set my dog on to you again – and next time he’ll do a little more damage.’
The men turned and went back the way they had come. They neither of them wanted to face Tim again. George waited until she could no longer see the light of their torch, then she bent down and patted Timothy.
‘Brave, good dog!’ she said. ‘I love you, darling Tim, and you don’t know how proud I am of you! Come along – we’ll hurry after the others now. I expect those two men will explore this passage some time tonight, and won’t they get a shock when they find out where it leads to, and see who is waiting for them!’
George hurried along the rest of the long passage, with Tim running beside her. She had Dick’s torch, and it did not take her long to catch the others up. She panted out to them what had happened, and even poor Anne chuckled in delight when she heard how Tim had flung Mr. Wilton to the ground.
‘Here we are,’ said Julian, as the passage came to a stop below the hole in the study floor, ‘Hallo – what’s this?’
A bright light was shining down the hole, and the
rug and carpet, so carefully pulled over the hole by Julian, were now pulled back again. The children gazed up in surprise.
Uncle Quentin was there, and Aunt Fanny, and when they saw the children’s faces looking up at them from the hole, they were so astonished that they very nearly fell down the hole too!