Puzzle for the Secret Seven
Enid Blyton
language
(, March 11, 2012)
Blyton, Enid - Secret Seven 10 - Puzzle for the Secret Seven(1958)Enid BlytonPuzzle for the Secret SevenOneOff to the fair‘HALLO!’ shouted a voice over the wall, and Scamper barked loudly at once. Peter and Janet looked up from their gardening.‘Oh, hallo, Jack!’ said Peter, pleased. ‘Stop barking, Scamper! Anyone would think you hadn’t seen Jack for a month. Come on in, Jack. Any news?’‘Yes. Rather nice news,’ said Jack, wheeling his bicycle in at the front gate. ‘My mother won a pound at the whist drive last night — and she’s given it to me to take all the Secret Seven over to the fair at Hilly-Down today. Can you and Janet come?’‘I say — how decent of your mother,’ said Peter, and Janet beamed. She had so badly wanted to go to the fair, but she and Peter were saving up for their father’s birthday.‘There’s just one thing, though,’ said Jack, seriously. ‘Susie will have to come too — and she’s got an awful friend staying with her, called Binkie. Mother says the money’s for them too.’‘Oh well — we can put up with Susie for once in a way,’ said Peter. ‘After all, it’s not as if we were going out to solve some mystery, or are in the middle of an adventure. You tell your mother we’re very, very grateful. What time shall we meet?’‘Let’s go after tea, when there are crowds of people at the fair,’ said Jack. ‘And stay till the lights are on. I love those great flaring lights they have. Let’s meet at about five o’clock at the bus-stop in the High Street. And don’t pay any attention to Susie and Binkie if they giggle all the time!’‘We certainly won’t,’ said Peter. ‘Righto, then — meet you at five o’clock. Are all the others coming?’‘Yes. I’ve been round to them,’ said Jack, getting on his bicycle. ‘We’ll have at least ten pence each to spend, and some of the others are bringing a bit more too. See you at five, then!’He rode off, ringing his bell in farewell. Peter and Janet were pleased. ‘We’d better ask Mother,’ said Janet. ‘Though I’m sure she’ll say we can go — especially as we’ve promised to garden all day!’Mother said of course they could go, and she would add twenty-five pence to the money Jack’s mother had given. Scamper listened to it all, wagging his tail. He looked up at Peter and gave a little whine.‘He wants to know if he can go too,’ said Peter, with a laugh. ‘Yes, if you can keep up with our bikes, Scamper, old thing. You’re getting a bit fat, you know!’Scamper barked joyfully. There was nothing he liked better than an outing with the Secret Seven.‘You haven’t had many meetings lately, down in your shed,’ said Mother. ‘Has the Secret Seven broken up?’‘Oh no, Mother!’ said Peter and Janet together, quite shocked. Mother laughed.‘Well, a week of your Easter holidays has already gone, and you haven’t asked me for cakes and lemonade for one of your mysterious meetings yet,’ she said. ‘And I bought quite a big tin of biscuits, thinking I’d have to supply you Seven with something to nibble at your meetings!’‘Nothing’s happened yet for us to call a meeting about,’ said Janet. ‘But we’ve still got two weeks’ holiday left.’‘Woof!’ said Scamper, agreeing heartily, and wagging his tail.‘Your life is all holiday, Scamper!’ said Peter. ‘You don’t do a single stroke of work — and it’s no good your trying to tell me that you helped us with the digging this morning! All you were doing was digging up a bone you’d hidden!’At five o’clock quite a crowd of children arrived on bicycles at the...