It was getting dark as George's boat came into Kirrin Bay. It had seemed a very long pull indeed, andeveryone was tired out. The girls had helped in the rowing when the boys had almost collapsed1 fromexhaustion, and Timmy had cheered everyone up by his sudden high spirits.
'Honestly, his tail hasn't stopped wagging since he got into the boat,' said George. 'He's so pleased tobe himself again!'
A small figure was on the beach as they came in, half-lost in the darkness. It was Anne. She calledout to them in a trembling voice.
'Is it really you? I've been watching for you all day long! Are you all right?'
'Rather! And we've got George and Timmy, too!' shouted back Dick, as the boat scraped on theshingle. 'We're fine!'
They jumped out, Timmy too, and hauled the boat up the beach. Anne gave a hand, almost cryingwith joy to have them all again.
'It's bad enough being in the middle of an adventure,' she said, 'but it's much, much worse whenyou're left out. I'll never be left out again!'
'Woof,' said Timmy, wagging his tail in full agreement. He never wanted to be left out of adventureseither!
They all went home - rather slowly, because they were so tired. Joan was on the look-out for them, asshe had been all day. She screamed for joy when she saw George. 'George! You've got George atlast! Oh, you bad children, you've been away all day and I didn't know where and I've been worriedto death. George, are you all right?'
'Yes, thank you,' said George, who felt as if she was about to fall asleep at any moment. 'I just wantsomething to eat before I fall absolutely sound asleep!'
'But where have you been all day? What have you been doing?' cried Joan, as she bustled2 off to getthem a meal.
'I got so worked up I went to the police - and what a silly I felt - I couldn't tell them where you'd goneor anything. All I could say was you'd gone to find a man called Red, and had rowed away inGeorge's boat!'
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'The police have been up and down the coast in a motor-boat ever since,' said Anne. 'Trying to spotyou, but they couldn't.'
'No. Our boat was well hidden,' said Dick. 'And so were we! So well hidden that I began to thinkwe'd stay hidden for the rest of our lives.'
The telephone bell rang. Julian jumped. 'Oh, good - you've had the telephone mended. I'll go andphone the police when you've answered this call, Joan.'
But it was the police themselves on the telephone, very pleased to hear Joan saying excitedly that allthe children were back safely. 'We'll be up in ten minutes,' they said.
In ten minutes' time the five children and Timmy were tucking into a good meal. 'Don't stop,'
said the police sergeant3, when he came into the room with the constable4 the children had seen before.
'Just talk while you're eating.'
So they talked. They told about every single thing. First George told a bit, then Jo, then Dick thenJulian. At first the sergeant was bewildered, but then the bits of information began to piecethemselves together in his mind like a jigsaw5 puzzle.
'Will my father go to prison?' asked Jo.
'I'm afraid so,' said the sergeant.
'Bad luck, Jo,' said Dick.
'I don't mind,' said Jo. 'I'm better off when he's away - I don't have to do things he tells me then.'
'We'll see if we can't fix you up with a nice home,' said the sergeant kindly6. 'You've run wild, Jo -you want looking after.'
'I don't want to go to a Home for Bad Girls,' said Jo, looking scared.
'I shan't let you,' said Dick. 'You're one of the pluckiest kids I've ever known. We'll none of us let yougo to a Home. We'll find someone who'll be kind to you someone like - like...'
'Like me,' said Joan, who was listening, and she put her arm round Jo and gave her a squeeze.
'I've got a cousin who'd like a ragamuffin like you - a bad little girl with a very good heart. Don't youfret. We'll look after you.'
'I wouldn't mind living with somebody like you,' said Jo, in an offhand7 way. 'I wouldn't be mean anymore then, and I daresay I wouldn't be bad. I'd like to see Dick and all of you sometimes, though.'
'You will if you're good,' said Dick, with a grin. 'But mind - if I ever hear you've got in at anyone'spantry window again, or anything like that, I'll never see you again!'
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Jo grinned. She was very happy. She suddenly remembered something and put her hand into the littlerush basket she still carried. She took out an enormous key.
'Here you are,' she said to the sergeant. 'Here's the key to the tower room. I bet Red and the others arestill locked up there, ready for you to catch! My, won't they get a shock when you unlock the doorand walk in!'
'Quite a lot of people are going to get shocks,' said the sergeant, putting away his very full notebook.
'Miss Georgina, you're lucky to get away unharmed, you and your dog. By the way, we got in touchwith a friend of your father's, when we tried to find out about those papers that were stolen. He saysyour father gave him all his important American papers before he went - so this fellow Red hasn'tanything of value at all. He went to all his trouble for nothing.'
'Do you know anything about Red?' asked Julian. 'He seemed a bit mad to me.'
'If he's the fellow we think he is, he's not very sane,' said the sergeant. 'We'll be glad to have himunder lock and key - and that man Markhoff too. He's not as clever as Red, but he's dangerous.'
'I hope he hasn't escaped in that helicopter,' said Dick. 'He meant to go tonight.'
'Well, we'll be there in under an hour or so,' said the sergeant. 'I'll just use your telephone, if I may,and set things going.'
Things were certainly set going that night! Cars roared up to Red's house, and the gate was broken inwhen no one came to open it. The helicopter was still in the yard - but alas8! it was on its side,smashed beyond repair. The children were told afterwards that Markhoff and the other two men hadtried to set off in it, but there was something wrong - and it had risen some way and then fallen backto the yard.
The old woman was trying to look after the three hurt men, who had crawled from their seats andgone to bathe their cuts and bruises9. Markhoff had hurt his head, and showed no fight at all.
'And what about Red?' the sergeant asked Markhoff. 'Is he still locked up?'
'Yes,' said Markhoff, savagely10. 'And a good thing, too. You'll have to break that door down with abattering-ram to get him and the others out.'
'Oh no, we shan't,' said the sergeant, and produced the key. Markhoff stared at it.
'That kid!' he said. 'She gave me the key of the larder11. Wait till I get her - she'll be sorry.'
'It'll be a long wait, Markhoff,' said the sergeant. 'A long, long wait. We'll have to take you off withus, I'm afraid.'
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Red, Simmy and Jake were still locked up, and were mad with rage. But they saw that the game wasup, and it wasn't long before all of them were safely tucked away in police cars.
'A very, very nice little haul,' said the sergeant to one of his men. 'Very neat, too - three of them alllocked up ready for us!'
'What about that kid, Jo?' said the man. 'She seems a bad lot, and as clever as they make them!'
'She's going to have a chance now,' said the sergeant. 'Everybody has a chance sometimes, and this ishers. She's just about half-and-half. I reckon - half bad and half good. But she'll be all right now she'sgot a chance!'
Jo was sleeping in Joan's room again. The rest were in their own bedrooms, getting ready for bed.
They suddenly didn't feel sleepy any more. Timmy especially was very lively, darting12 in and out ofthe rooms, and sending the landing mats sliding about all over the place.
'Timmy! If you jump on my bed again I'll slam the door on you!' threatened Anne. But she didn't, ofcourse. It was so lovely to see old Timmy quite himself once more.
The telephone bell suddenly rang, and made everyone jump.
'Now what's up?' said Julian, and went down in the hall to answer it. A voice spoke13 in his ear.
'Is that Kirrin 011? This is Telegrams. There is a cable for you, with reply prepaid. I am now going toread it.'
'Go ahead,' said Julian.
'It is from Seville in Spain,' said the voice, 'and reads as follows:
''HERE IS OUR ADDRESS. PLEASE CABLE BACK SAYING IF EVERYTHING ALLRIGHT - UNCLE QUENTIN''.'
Julian repeated the message to the others, who had now crowded round him in the hall. 'What replyshall I give?' he asked. 'No good upsetting them now everything is over!'
'Not a bit of good,' said Dick. 'Say what you like!'
'Right!' said Julian, and turned to the telephone again. 'Hallo - here is the reply message, please.
Ready?
''HAVING A MOST EXCITING TIME, WITH LOTS OF FUN AND GAMES, EVERYTHINGOKAY - JULIAN''.'
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'Everything okay,' repeated Anne, as they went upstairs to bed once more. 'That's what I like to hearat the end of an adventure. Everything okay.'
THE END
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collapsed
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| adj.倒塌的 | |
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bustled
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| 闹哄哄地忙乱，奔忙( bustle的过去式和过去分词 )； 催促 | |
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sergeant
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| n.警官，中士 | |
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constable
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| n.(英国)警察，警官 | |
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jigsaw
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| n.缕花锯，竖锯，拼图游戏；vt.用竖锯锯，使互相交错搭接 | |
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kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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offhand
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| adj.临时，无准备的；随便，马虎的 | |
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alas
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| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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bruises
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| n.瘀伤，伤痕，擦伤( bruise的名词复数 ) | |
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savagely
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| adv. 野蛮地，残酷地 | |
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larder
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| n.食物贮藏室，食品橱 | |
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darting
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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