EnidBlyton

LookOut,SecretSeven

One

Holidaysatlast

‘HOLIDAYSatlast!’saidPeter,cominginatthebackdoor,andflinginghisschoolsatchelrightacrossthekitchen.Itstruckthechairthatthecatwaslyingin,andshegaveayowloffrightanddisappearedattopspeedthroughtheopenwindow.

‘NowwhatdidyouwanttofrightenoldPussfor?’demandedCookie,rollingout pastry fiercely. ‘Sleeping there peacefully after catchingmice all night inyourfather’sbarn!’

‘Ididn’tknowshewasthere,’saidPeter.‘HonestlyIdidn’t.MayIhaveadigintothatjampot,Cookie?’

‘Youmaynot,’saidCookie.‘Where’syoursister?Ohmy,ohmy—holidaysagain,andyoutwopokingroundmykitchenallthetime.Whatalife!’

‘Cookie dear, you’ll have two people to run your errands, and scrape outdishes, and tell you that your apple-pie is the best in the world,’ said Peter.‘And...’

‘Yes—andtwopeopletakingbunsoutofmytin,andwantingraisinstoeatatalltimes,andaskingforhomemadelemonade,and...’

Janet,Peter’ssister,camerunningin,flungherarmsroundCookieandgaveherasmackingkiss.

‘What’sfordinner?’shesaid.

‘You two don’t think of anything but food,’ grumbled Cookie, giving herpastryagoodroll.‘You’dbettergointothesitting-roomtoyourmother.Yourgodmother’swithher—andifIknowanythingabouther,she’llhavebroughtyouapresent—sweetsorsomething.’

PeterandJanetwentatoncetothesitting-room.Theywereveryfondoftheirgodmother,AuntieLou.They each gave her a hug, and informed her that theholidayshadhowbegun.

‘Sowecancomeoverandseeyou,ifyoulike,’saidPeter.

‘Wait till you are asked, Peter,’ said hismother. ‘Andwhathave you beendoingtoyourknees?Icannotthinkhowyougetthemsoblack.Anyonewouldsupposeyouwalkedbackfromschoolonthemoverallthemudyoucouldfind.’

‘I’llgoandwashthem,’saidPeter,lookingdownattheminhorror.‘Mother,Ihonestlydon’tknowhowthey...’

‘Well, just letmegiveyoumylittleholidaypresent,’saidhisgodmother. ‘Ican’twaitwhileyouwashyourknees,Ihavetocatchthebus.Iimagineyoustilllikechocolates?’

And she handed over to him a large tin box, so large that Peter and Janetcouldn’tbelieve itcontained justchocolates. ‘Iknowyouhaveaclubofsomesort,’shesaid. ‘Sevenoreightofyou,aren’t there?Well, I thoughtyou’d likethistinofchocolatebiscuitsforyournextmeeting.’

Petertookoffthelid—andstaredindelight.

‘Janet, look—dozens and dozens of chocolate biscuits of all kinds!Gosh!Mother,Ishallcallameetingatonce.Oh,AuntieLou,youaregenerous!Aretheyreallyallforus?’

‘Foryouandyourfriends,’saidhisgodmother,gettingup.‘NowIreallymustcatchmybus.Comeandseemeoff.’

Sooff theyallwent toseeAuntieLousafely into thebus.Thenback to thesitting-room—andthetinofbiscuits.

‘Let’s not eat a single one ourselves till we call a meeting of the SecretSeven,’saidPeter.‘We’llofferthemtoMotherandCookie,butwewon’ttakeanyourselves.It’sagessincewehadagoodmeeting—andthesewillmakeameetinggolikeanything.’

‘We’ll call one tomorrow,’ said Janet, happily. ‘Oh, to think it’s holidaysagain—withmeetingsdownintheshed—andpasswordsandbadges,and...’

‘Passwords—passwords—nowwhat in theworldwasour lastone?’ saidPeter.

‘That’s easy,’ said Janet. ‘We chose “Holidays” because we knew the holswouldbeherewhenwehadthenextmeeting.Ibeteveryoneremembersit.Let’sgoroundtoall thememberstonight—ortelephone—andtell themthere’sameetingtomorrow—at,say,fiveo’clock.’

‘Butthat’steatime,’saidPeter.

‘Of course, silly — and those chocolate biscuits will be just right forthen,’saidJanet.

‘Yes—theywill,’saidPeter. ‘Couldn’tyouwritenotes to tell theothersofthemeeting,Janet?It’s—well,it’sabitmoreofficial.’

‘Youwritethemthen,’saidJanet.‘You’remoreofficialthanIam.You’retheheadoftheclub.’

‘Well—perhapsitwouldbequickertotelephone,’saidPeter.‘Ha—itwillbe grand to have the Secret Seven going again. I do hope something excitingturnsup.’

‘Itusuallydoes,’saidJanet.‘EspeciallyifthatawfulSusieisabout.’

‘Jack saysSusie’sbeenworse thanever lately,’ saidPeter. ‘If Ihada sisterlike Susie I’d sit on her all the time, and ‘Then you’d have a mightyuncomfortableseat!’saidJanet.‘Nobody’severgotthebetterofSusieyet.Ibetshe’llcometothemeetingtomorrow,ifshecan.’

‘Well,shewon’tgetin,ifshedoescome,’saidPeter.‘Ah,Scamper—thereyouare.WHYweren’tyouheretowelcomeusbackfortheholidays?’

Scamperwastheirlovelygoldenspaniel.HehadbeenwithMatttheshepherduponthehills,playingwithShadow,Matt’sfaithfuloldsheep-dog.Thenhehadsuddenly remembered that Peter had told him the holidays began today.HOLIDAYS!Scamperknew thatwordwell— itmeantdaysanddaysofPeter’sandJanet’scompany,itmeantwalks,andgames,andtitbitsofallkinds.

SoScamperhadgivenShadowasuddenapologeticbark,and,tothecollie’ssurprise,hadraceddownthehillasfastasahare,hislongearsflappingupanddown.HOLIDAYS!

Soon he was barking in delight round the two children — and then hesuddenlysniffedchocolates.Ha,chocolates—betterstill!

‘You shallhave thevery firstone,’ said Janet, takingabiscuit from the toplayer.‘Catch!’

Snap!ItwasinScamper’smouth—onecrunch,anditwasgone!

‘Biscuitsarereallywastedonyou,Scamper,’saidJanet.‘Idon’tbelieveyoueventastethem.We’recallingameetingoftheSecretSeventomorrow—you’dliketocome,wouldn’tyou?’

‘WOOF!’saidScamper, joyfully,hisstumpofa tailwagging likeclockwork.Meetings!Biscuits!Holidays!Woof,woof—lifewasgoingtobeFUN!

Two

AshockfortheSecretSeven

IN the evening Peter and Janet telephoned to the othermembers of the SecretSeven, and told them about the meeting, and the enormous tin of chocolatebiscuits.

‘If you like to bring something to drink — orangeade or lemonade, forinstance,we’llprovidethemugs,’saidPeter.

SoonallthemembersknewofthemeetingandPeterputdownthetelephoneforthelasttime.‘Phew—Idohatetelephoning,’hesaid.‘Everyonewantstobesochatty!’

‘Well, you sounded pretty chatty yourself when you spoke to George andColin,’ said Janet. ‘And what a pity Susie came to the telephone when youwanted tospeak toJack!Nowsheknows there’sameetingshe’ll tryandplayoneofherusualsillytricks—Ibetshewon’tgiveJackyourmessage.’

‘She said she was going to a fancy-dress party tomorrow,’ said Peter. ‘Sowe’llbesafefromherforonce.’

‘Ohyes—I remembernow,’ saidJanet. ‘Hercousin’sgivinga fancy-dressaffairtomorrowafternoon.IwonderwhatSusie’sgoingas.Thatawfulfriendofhers,Binkie,isgoingtoo.’

‘SusiesaidtheyweregoingasJackandJill,’saidPeter.‘ButIbettheywon’tbother to takeapailofwaterwith them. I’d like toemptyapailofvery,verycoldwateroverSusie’shead.’

‘You’dnevergetthechance,’saidJanet,withagiggleatthethoughtofPeterthrowingwateroverthatmonkeyofaSusie.‘She’dsouseyoubeforeyoucouldstopher.’

‘Don’tbesilly,’saidPeter.‘I’dneverletagirldoathinglikethat.Nowlisten—we’ll have to be pretty busy tomorrow ifwe’re going tomeet in the shed.

You’llhavetofindthosegreenletters,S.S.,andpinthemontothedoor—wetook themoffbecause theyweregettingwetwithall that rain,you remember.Andforgoodness’sakefindourbadges.’

‘Iputthemawaysafelyinmyjewel-case,’saidJanet.‘Soyouneedn’tworry.’

‘Well,Ihopeyou’llfindthemthere,’saidPeter.‘LasttimeIsawyourjewel-case it had sweets in it, and a new rubber, and a bit of sealing-wax, a brokenbrooch,a...’

‘You’dnorighttolookintomyjewel-case,’saidJanet,‘andIshall...’

‘All right, all right,’ said Peter, hastily. ‘Let’s not quarrel when there’s somuchtodo.IhopeGardenerhasn’ttakenawaytheboxesweusedtositonintheshed.AndScamper, Ihopeyou’vebeenkeepingdown themiceandrats thereforus.Ishouldfeelveryashamedofyoutomorroweveningifafewratscametojoinus.’

‘Ugh!Whatahorrible thought!’saidJanet.Scampergavea loudbarkat thesametime,asiftotellherthatalltheratsandmicehadbeensafelydealtwith.Hedecided togodown to the shed the first thingnextmorning tomakequitesuretherewasn’tevenasniffofthem.

Itwasverypleasant next day to turnout the old shed andmake it tidy andclean.Gardenerpoppedhishead inat thedoor,gruntedandwentawayagain,noddinghisheadinapprovalofallthetidyingupgoingon.

‘’Bouttimetoo,’theyheardhimmutterashewentupthepath.Janetlookedround thecleanshed,pleasedwith theirwork.Boxes tositon—mugson thelittleshelf, readyforanydrinks thatwerebrought—seven littleplasticplatesforthebiscuits,oneforeachmember—thetinitselfstandingproudlyonalittleboxofitsown—andanold,ratherraggedyrugontheearthfloor.

‘Nice!’saidJanet.‘Theshedsmellsabitofapples,doesn’tit,Peter—thereweresomestoredhereinthewinter,youknow.I’veputtheS.S.onthedoor.It’sapitytheshedhassuchasmallwindow,itmakesitratherdarkinhere.Butit’snotdarkenoughforcandles,isit?’

‘No,’saidPeter.‘Anyway,Mothergetsscaredifwehavecandlesdownhere—saysScamper is sure to knockoneover and thenupwouldgo the shed in

flames,and...’

‘And the fire-enginewouldcome, andwe’dhave themost excitingmeetingwe’veeverhad,’saidJanet.

Themeetingwastobeginatfiveo’clock,andatfivetofivePeter,Janet,andScamper were sitting in the shed, waiting. Scamper eyed the tin of biscuitslongingly,andgavepatheticlittlewhines,asiftosayhewassohungrythathecouldn’twaitanothersecondforameal.

Thenhesuddenlywhinedexcitedly.Hehadheardfootsteps!‘Theothersarecoming,’saidPeter,pleased.‘Niceandpunctual,too.’

Bang-bang.Thatwassomeoneknockingonthesheddoor.

‘Password,please!’calledPeter,andPam’sandBarbara’svoicesansweredatonce.

‘Holidays!’

Peteropenedthedoor,grinning.‘Right!’hesaid.‘Comein.Hallo,herecomessomeoneelse.Password,please!’

‘Holidays!’saidColin’svoice.Nosoonerwasheintheshedthantherecameanotherknock—thistimeitwasGeorge.

‘Password!’shoutedPeter.

‘Peter, is it“Holidays”?’askedGeorge. ‘Thankgoodness it is! Isay, isn’t itnicetobetheSecretSevenagain?Areweallhere?It’sabitdarkintheshedthisevening.’

‘OnlyJacktocome,’saidPeter.‘IthinkIcanhearhimnow.Yes,hereheis.Password,Jack!’

‘Holidays’, came theanswer, and then thedoorwas shuton theSeven.Themeetingwasabouttobegin!

And then, very surprisingly, Scamper suddenly began to growl!He sat in adark corner of the shed and growled and growledwithout stopping. Everyone

staredathiminwonder.

‘What’s up, Scamper?’ asked Peter, but the only answerwas another fiercegrowl.Itreallywasverypuzzling.

‘Scamper seems to be growling at JACK!’ saidPam. ‘Look at him staring athim.He’sevenshowinghisteeth!’

‘He’sneverdonethatbeforetoanyofus,’saidJanet.‘Stopit,Scamper.Jack,takeoffyourcap,perhapsthat’swhyScamper’sgrowling.Youforgottotakeitoffwhenyoucamein.’

‘Er—IthinkI’dbetterkeepiton,’saidJack.‘I’ve—er—abitofacoldinmyhead.’

Georgesuddenlywhippedoff thecap—andeveryonestared inamazementandanger.Hairtumbledoutfromunderthecap—butnotshorthair!

‘It’s SUSIE! Susie, not Jack!Susie, howDARE you dress up in Jack’s clothesandcometoameeting?’shoutedPeter.

‘Well—BinkieandIwereonourwayhomefromafancy-dressparty,andwethoughtwe’dlookinonourwaypast,’grinnedSusie.‘WewentasJackandJill,yousee.I’mJack—andBinkie,who’shidingoutside,isJill.Jacklentmehisclothes,sothatIcouldbeaboyattheparty—andmyvoiceandhisarealike,soitwaseasytogetintoyourmeeting.Haha—Iheardyourpasswordbeingsaid—youreallyarealotofsimpletons,youknow—andhereIam!’

‘And Scamper was the only sensible one among us!’ groaned George. ‘Heknewitwasn’toldJacksittingherewithus!Getout,Susie.GETOUT!’

‘Withpleasure,’saidSusie,andstoodup,stillwithamostinfuriatinggrinonherface.‘Jackwillbealongheresoon.Itoldhimthemeetingwasathalfpastfive,insteadoffive,soit’snothisfaulthe’slate.AmIcleverenoughtobeoneoftheSecretSeven?’

ButthatwastoomuchforPeter.HegaveSusieapushtosendheroutoftheshed,butshewouldn’tgo,and,instead,begantoyell.

‘Binkie!Help,Binkie!’

Sherushedoutofthesheddoorwithalltheothersfollowingherinarealrage—and then,quitesuddenly, somethingverycoldandwetdescendedon them,soakingtheirheadsandshoulders!

‘Oh—sorry— thatwas thepailofwaterwe tookas Jackand Jill!’ calledSusie,withasquealoflaughter.‘Goodshot,Binkie!Goodnight,all—hopeyouhaveaverypleasantmeeting!’

Andoffwent the twowickedgirls,verypleased indeedwith theirevening’swork.TobeOneUpontheSecretSevenwaswonderful.Ohwhatataletotelltheirgigglingfriends!

Three

Averygoodmeeting

THEsixleftintheshedweretooangryforwords.Petershookhisfistafterthetworunninggirls,andyelledinfury.

‘We’resoaked!HowDAREyou!Youwaittillweseeyouagain!’

But all the answer they had was the sound of running feet— and distantsqueals of laughter. That Susie!How could she even have THOUGHT of such atrick?PoorJack—fancyhavingasisterlikethat!

‘Borrowinghisclothes too, tobeJack in thenursery rhyme,’groanedPeter,moppinghisshoulderwithanoldsack,‘ANDhavingapailofwatertoo!I’mwetthrough!’

‘And fancy telling Jack themeetingwasn’t till half past five—nowonderhe’slate!’saidJanet.‘I’llfetchanoldtowelfromthehouse,Peter.You’rethewettestbecauseyouwerenearest.’

‘No,don’t.You’llonlyhaveMotheraskingwhat’shappened.Oh,thatawfulSusie!I’lltellJackexactlywhatIthinkofherwhenhecomes!’

But Jackdidn’t come.Poor Jack!Hewas just about to start offwhenSusieandBinkie came rollingwith laughter up the drive, the pail clanking betweenthem.When they toldhimwhathadhappened,he satdownon the front stepsandgroaned.

‘SUSIE!HowCOULDyougotothemeetingandpretendtobeme?HowCOULDyou tell me the wrong time? I can’t possibly go to the meeting. I’ll have totelephoneandapologizeforyourbehaviour—andprobablyI’llbechuckedoutoftheclub!’

‘Wedon’tmindwritingandapologizing,’saidSusie.‘Idon’tmindwritingadozen apologies — it was worth a dozen to crash in on the meeting, andbamboozleeveryone—andBinkiewasSUCHagoodshotwiththewater!’

‘Didn’tanyonespotthatyouweren’tme?’saidJackinwonder.

‘OnlyScamper.Hegrowledlikeanything,’saidSusie.‘Oh,I’mgoingtostartlaughing again — oh Binkie, did you think our pail of water would be souseful?’

Jackwentoffindisgustanddisappointment.Hehadbeenlookingforwardtothemeetingsomuch.Nowhecouldn’tpossiblygo.HewenttothetelephonetoapologizeforSusie’sbehaviour—butjustashewasabouttolift thereceiver,thebellrang.ItwasJanetonthephone.

‘Jack? Jack, it really is you, not Susie, isn’t it?’ said Janet’s anxious voice.‘Thisisjusttosaythatthemeetingisofffortonight—we’reallratherwet!IexpectSusiehastoldyouallaboutit.No,don’tapologizeforher,Jack—youweren’t to blame. But Peter wants me to say the meeting is postponed tilltomorrow.Willyoucomethen?’

‘Yes.Yes,I’dloveto,’saidJack,muchrelieved.‘Thanksawfully.ActuallyIwasjustcomingalongnow,soI’mgladyourang.No—no,ofcourseIwon’ttellSusieaboutthenextmeeting.Butwhydon’tyougoonwithtonight’s?’

‘We’re too wet and cross,’ said Janet. ‘We’ll see you tomorrow, then.Goodbye!’

So,thenextnight,theSecretSevenmetoncemore,andthistimetherewasnogrowlingfromScamper,foritreallywasJackthere,notSusie!Everyonemadequitea fussof Jack, forhe felt soashamedand, forlorn to think thathis sisterhadspoiltameeting.

‘Cheerup,Jack—ithaditsfunnyside,’saidPam,kindly.

‘Hadit?Well,Ican’tsayInoticedit,’saidPeter.‘However,let’sgetonwiththismeeting.Scamper,pleasekeepyourearscockedforanysoundoutside.’

Scamperatoncewenttothedoor,andputhisheadononeside.Nownoonecouldevencreepnear!Scampercouldhearthesmallestsound—eventhefeetofanight-beetlerunningbyonthepathoutside!

Themeetingwentquitewell.Thetinofchocolatebiscuitswasagreatsuccess.Thereweresomanybiscuitsinitthateveryonewasabletohaveatleastsix—and Scamper had a generous share! He ate his biscuits over by the door,determinednottoletanyonecomeinunlessherecognizedvoiceandfootsteps!

‘Now,’saidPeter,whenbiscuitshadbeeneatenandorangeadeandlemonadedrunk,‘now—ifthisclubisgoingtocontinueproperly,we’llhavetodecideondoingsomethingtogether.’

‘Like helping somebody?’ askedPam. ‘Mother saysweought to help somecharityifwecan’tthinkofanythingtodo.Shesaysit’ssillytohaveaclubthatjustmeetsandeatsandtalks.’

‘Well, I like that! We’ve done heaps of things in this club!’ said Janet,indignantly. ‘Helpedpeople—solvedmysteries—and thevery last thingwedidwas to find that dog-stealer.The onewho stole the shepherd’s sheep-dog,Shadow—andstoleScamperaswell,and...’

‘Allright,allright,’saidPam.‘Iknowallthat.I’monlytellingyouwhatmymothersays.’

‘Well,it’sfuntohavesomeaim,someinterest,’saidBarbara.‘Youknow—somethingtothinkaboutandpuzzleabout.Justthinkoftheexcitingthingsthathavehappenedtous—andnowherewesit,justeatingmoreandmorebiscuits,thesameaslasttime.Wedon’tseemtohaveabrainbetweenus.’

Peterlistened,andfrowned.‘Youknow—Barbara’sright,’hesaid.‘WeMUST

thinkofsomethingtodo.We’veplentyofbrainsbetweenus—weknowthat.Now—whohasanyideas?Speakup,please.’

Therewasaverylong,frowningsilence.‘InevercanthinkofanygoodideaswhenI’morderedto,’complainedJanet.‘Thebestideasaren’tonesIthinkout—they’retheonesthatcomeinaflash!’

‘Isn’ttheresomemysterywecantrytosolve?’askedGeorge,‘orsomeonewecanhelpinsomeway?’

‘Well—there’sonlyonemysteryIknowabout—andthat’stofindoutwhotiedourheadmaster’schairhalfwayuptheflag-poleintheschoolgrounds,’saidColin,with a spurt of laughter. ‘You can’t think howdaft it looked there lastWednesday,whenwewenttoschool.’

‘Itwouldbeawasteoftimetosolvesuchasillylittlemystery,’saidPam.‘Infact,Iwouldn’tbeabitsurprisedifitdidn’tturnouttobethatawfulSusiewhomanagedtoputitthere—withherfriendBinkie’shelp!’

That made everyone laugh, even Jack. There was a short silence, and thenColinspokeup.

‘Er—I’vejustthoughtofanidea—notaverygoodone,I’mafraid.WhatabouttryingtogetoldGeneralBranksome’smedalsbackforhim?They’vebeenstolen,youknow.’

Everyone stared atColin in surprise. ‘But how on earth couldwe do that?’askedGeorge.‘Eventhepolicedon’tknowwhotookthemorwheretheyare.’

‘Theoldfellowlivesnextdoortome,’saidColin.‘And—well—he’sveryold,youknow,andhismedalsmeantalottohim.And—er—yesterdayIsawhimtellingsomebodyaboutthem,inhisgarden—it’snexttoours—anditwasawful,becausetearsrandownhischecksallthetime.’

Therewasashockedsilence.Grown-upshardlyevercried;andsoldiersnever.Andyettheoldgeneralhadhadtearsrunningdownhischecks.Howunhappyhemustbe!

Nobodyknewquitewhat tosay.Thesilencewenton,brokenbyamournfulwhine from Scamper, who couldn’t imagine why everyone was suddenly soquiet.

‘It’s all right, Scamper. We’re just considering something important,’ saidJanet,strokinghissilkyhead.‘We’retalkingaboutcrying,andthat’ssomethingdogsdon’tunderstand.Animalscan’tcry.’

Scamperwhimperedagain,asifhequitedisagreedwithwhatJanetsaid.ThenGeorgeaskedaquestion.

‘Can’ttheGeneralhavehismedalsreplacedbytheGovernment?’

‘Ofcoursenot,’saidColin.‘Anyway,someofthemweremedalsawardedtohimby foreigncountries.Hewasavery,verybraveman,youknow. I simplycouldn’tbear toseehimcryinglike that. Isuppose the thiefstolenotonly themedals,butallhismemories—ifyouknowwhatImean.Anyway,that’swhatmyfathersaid,andhehasoneortwomedalsofhisown,soheoughttoknowwhathe’stalkingabout.Hewasbravetoo,inthelastwar.IwishwecouldgetbacktheGeneral’smedals!’

Pamand theother twogirlswereverymuch touchedbyColin’ssuggestion.Noneofthemcouldbeartothinkofsooldandsoverybraveamanweepingforhislostmedals.

‘Ivotewetrytofindthemedals,’saidPam.‘Idon’tknowhowwe’regoingtosetaboutit,butIvotewetry.’

‘Well—Ithinkit’sratheranimpossibletask,’saidPeter.‘Idoreally.Ivotethatwesetourselvessomeotherjobaswell.SurelytheSecretSevencantackletwothings!’

‘What’sthesecondtasktobe,then?’askedJack.

‘I vote we keep an eye on nesting birds in Bramley Woods,’ said Peter.‘There’sapparentlyaganggoingaboutthere,pullingneststopieces,andkillingtheyoungbirds—andtakinganyeggsaswell.Well—therearesevenofus—whataboutdoingsomethingaboutit?Scamperwouldhelptoo!’

‘WUFF!’ saidScamper, at the topof his voice.So itwas settled.TheSecretSevenhadtwotasks—onetolookintothematterofthemissingmedals—andtwo,towatchfornest-destroyersinBramleyWoods.

‘It’s a funny mixture, really,’ said George, rather doubtfully. They don’texactlygotogether,thosetwothings,dothey?’

‘Notreally,’saidJanet.‘Butyouneverknow,George,youneverknow!’

Four

Colindoeshisbit

THERE was no time to make any further plans, because there came a suddenclangingofabellfromPeter’shouseawayupthegarden.

‘Goodness—that’sMotherringingourbell,’saidPeter,lookingathiswatch.‘Wemustgo,Janet.Myword,Ididn’tknowitwassolate.That’stheworstofourmeetings—thetimesimplyfliesby!’

‘Yes,butwait aminute,Peter,’ saidGeorge. ‘What exactlydowedonext?Hadn’t someone better go to see the General, and find out a little about themedals—whentheywerestolen,andhow,andallthat?’

‘Yes.Yes, of course,’ said Peter. ‘Well, I thinkColin should do that as helivesnextdoortotheGeneral,andknowshim.Willyou,Colin?’

‘Er—yes.Isupposeithadbetterbeme,’saidColin,frowning.‘Gosh,Ihopehewon’tmindmyaskinghimquestions.Hemightthinkmejollyinquisitive.’

‘Well,afterall,hedoesknowyou,’saidPam.‘Youcanbeverysympathetic,youknow—you’regoodatthat—andanywayyouareverysorryforhim.Hemightnotlikestrangersprobingintothedisappearanceofhispreciousmedals,butsurelyhewouldn’tmindyoubeinginterested.’

‘AndasfortheotherthingtheSecretSevenmeantodo,we’dbetterarrangewith one another to go walking through the woods and look out for anyonedisturbing or destroying nests,’ said Peter. ‘I suggest you allwear our badgeswhenyougo—thenyoucansay thatyouareunderorders fromyourclub toprotectbirds’nests.’

‘Dowetakepeople’snames,orwhat?’askedBarbara,lookingratherscared.

‘Well— you can ask for names and addresses,’ said Peter. ‘You probablywon’tgetthem,butit’llupsetsillykidsiftheythinkpeopleareonthewatchfornest-destroyers.Afterall,there’sbeenalotaboutthisinthepapers,youknow,and children have been asked to do everything they can to try to stop anycruelty.’

‘We’llgoaboutintwosorthrees,’saidJack.‘We’llfeelbraverthen!’

‘Right,’ said Peter. ‘Well,make your own plans please, team upwith eachother,anddowhatyoucan.Reportbackattheclubinfourdays’time—andifyouwanttocallameetingbeforethen,foranyreason,leaveanotedownintheshed.JanetorIwillseeit,forwecomedowneachday.’

‘Right,’ said Jack. ‘Golly, there’s your bell ringing again, Peter. You’ll getintotrouble,youandJanet.’

Theyallsaidgoodbye.PeterandJanetshutthesheddoor,and,withScamperattheirheels,raceduptothehouse.

‘Justintime!’saidCookie,whowasstandingwiththebellatthekitchendoor.‘I’vetakeninsupper,butyourfather’sstillwashinghishands.Buckupnow,oryou’llgetintotrouble.’

Theothermembersoftheclubmadetheirwayshome.Colinthoughtdeeplyashewalkeddownhisroad.HedreadedthetaskoftalkingtotheoldGeneral.Supposetheoldmanthoughthiminquisitiveorimpertinent,andshoutedathimas Colin had heard him shouting at an impudent tradesman? Suppose hecomplainedtoColin’sparents?

‘Ohwell,’thoughtColin,‘I’vebeengiventhisjobtodobytheSecretSeven.Andafter all, I put up the idea.But, ohdear—how in theworld am I to setaboutit?’

Colin thought about it in bed that night.He decided that the nextmorning,whentheGeneraltookhiswalkdownthegardenandback,hewouldthrowhisballoverthewall.ThenI’llsitonthewall,andapologize,andaskifIcanslipdown into his garden and findmyball,’ thoughtColin. ‘Andmaybewe’ll getintoconversation,andIcanaskhimafewquestions.Yes—that’swhatI’lldo.’

So, next morning, Colin took his ball and sat at his bedroom window,watchingfortheGeneraltotakehiswalkdownthegarden.Ah—therehewas!

Colin ran downstairs and through the kitchen into the garden. He carefullythrewhisballoverthewall,aimingatsomethickbusheswellawayfromtheoldGeneral.Thenheshinnedupontothewall-top,andcalledcheerfullytotheoldman.

‘Goodmorning,sir.’

‘Oh—goodmorning,Colin,’ said theGeneral, blinkingup at him. ‘Not atschool?’

‘No,sir.It’sholidaysnow,’saidColin.‘Sir,I’msosorry,butI’mafraidmyballflewintoyourgarden.MayIgetit?Ipromisenottotreadonthebeds.’

‘Yes,yes,ofcourse,myboy,’saidGeneralBranksome,leaningonhisstick.‘Inever mind good-mannered boys coming into my garden. Come along down.Andwhataboutaglassoflemonadewithme?’

Colinwasdelighted.Thatmeantanice little talk!He leaptdown, foundhisball,andrejoinedtheGeneral,whowasnowwalkingbacktothehouse.Theoldmanshoutedforhiscookinaloudvoice.

‘Emma!EMMA! I have company.Two lemonadesplease, and somebiscuits.EMMA!’

Emma duly appeared, smiling at Colin, and soon he and the oldmanweresitting together in the tiny little sitting-room, whose walls were covered withphotographsof theGeneral andhis soldier friends, andof excitingpictures ofoldbattles.Butonespace,overthemantelpiece,wasbare.

Colin knew why. That was where the General had displayed his medals,glitteringthereintheirvelvet-linedcase,setwithcolouredribbons.TheGeneralsawhim looking at thebare space, and sighedheavily.Theoldmanbegan totalktoColininhisslowvoice.

‘I expect you heard about someone stealing my medals. To think of acowardly thief owning them! Boy, those medals were won by bravery anddaring,bywoundsandpain.TheywereallIhadlefttoshowthatIwasonceafinesoldier. I’manoldmannow,andnobody thinksmuchofme—butoncepeoplesee thosemedals,ha—theychangetheirminds.Theylookatmewithdifferent eyes.Theydon’t see thepoor lameold fellow I amnow— they seesomeonewhohadDONEthings!Andnowmymedalsaregone,andIfeelold,old,old!IcouldstillfeelyoungwhenIhadthemtolookat...’

ToColin’sintensedismaytheoldmanburstintotears,andtheboywishedhehadneverthrownhisballoverthewall.Hehadnorighttostiruptheoldman’s

grief.

‘Sir! I’ll find them for you!’ Colin heard himself saying, touching the oldman’scoat-sleeve. ‘I’ll find them,Ipromiseyou.Don’tyoufret,sir,youshallhavethemback.SIR,LISTENTOME.I’LLFINDTHEM!’

TheoldGeneralwasasastonishedtohearColinsayingthis,asColinhimselfwas.Heshooktheboybythehandwithanastonishinglyfirmgrip.

‘Ibelieveyou,boy!Ibelieveyou’llfindthem!Ah,you’reaboyaftermyownheart!You’llbewinningmedalsyourselfsomeday,youwill!Ah,here’sEmma.Emma,whatdoyouwant?Can’tyouseeI’veavisitor?’

‘Yes, sir. And I can see you’ve been upsetting yourself about themmedalsagain,’saidEmma,pattingtheoldman’sback.‘Now,youlet theboygobackhome,andyouhaveanicesleep,sir.Youdidn’thaveagoodnight,youknow,worritingyourself.Youjusthaveanicelie-down.’

Colinfelt in theway.Heslidoff throughthedoor,andfoundhimself in thekitchen.He stoodwaiting for Emma to come back. She came in, shaking herhead.

‘Therenow—he’shavingarest.Youshouldn’thavetalkedaboutthemedals.Hethinksofthemnightandday.’

‘Dothepoliceknowwhostolethemyet?’askedColin.

‘No.Allweknowisthatsomebodygotinonenightandtookthelot—leftnofinger-printseither.Butwedoknowthathe—orshemaybe—musthavehadamighty small hand, for he had to put his fist carefully through that little holethere— in that broken pane, see— in order to undo the catch and open thewindowfromtheinside.Idoubtifyoucouldputyourhandthroughthatbrokenpane.’

‘I’ll try,’ said Colin. But no, he couldn’t wriggle it through the sharp holewithout cuttinghis hand. ‘I shouldhave thought that only agirl couldget herhand through, and reach up to that catch,’ he said, puzzled. ‘But surely a girlwouldn’tthinkofstealingasoldier’smedals!’

‘It’samystery,’saidEmma.‘Thepooroldgentlemanwasalmostoffhishead

with shock. He’s offering a good reward, you know— fifty pounds!Maybesomeonewillfindthemedalshiddenawaysomewhere,andclaimthereward.’

‘Fiftypounds!’saidColin,amazed.‘Goodgracious—whatalotofmoney!IwishIcouldfindthem.ButIwouldn’ttaketherewardfromtheoldGeneral.’

‘You’re a nice boy,’ said Emma, approvingly. ‘You come and look in mylarder and see if there’s anything you fancy. I’ve some fine homemademeringuesthere!’

‘Ohno, thankyoueverymuch,’ saidColin.ButkindoldEmma forced twolargemeringuesonhim—andtheywerevery,VERYgood!

Well—hecertainlyhadsomethingtoreportatthenextmeeting.Butitdidn’treallylookasifhehadanyrealcluestothemystery,exceptthatitwasprobablysomeonewithaverysmallhandwhohad forced thatwindow.AndColinwasquite certain that every Suspect that came along would have extremely largehands! Things always went contrariwise when you were trying to puzzle outsomething.ColinwentredasherememberedhowhehadpromisedtheGeneralthathewouldgetbackhismedalsforhim—whateverhadmadehimsaysuchathing!Hemusthavebeenmad!TheSecretSevenwouldbesuretodisapproveofsuchsillytalk—andquiterighttoo.

‘What’s the time?’ he thought, and looked at hiswatch. ‘Quite early still. IthinkI’llhareoff toBramleyWoodsandjoin theothers there—ifonlyIcanfindthem.Ireallymusttellthemwhat’shappened.We’llhavetogetbackthosemedalssomehow!’

He rannextdoor tohisownhomeandpopped into thekitchen.Hismotherwasthere,verybusy.

‘Mother— could I make myself some sandwiches and go off to BramleyWoodstojoinJackandtheothers?’hebegged.

‘Well,look—therearesomerollsoverfrombreakfast.Butterthose,andtakesometomatoes,’saidhismother.‘Spreadtherollswithshrimppasteifyoulike.And thereareplentyofmacaroons in the tin,andyoucanhavesomebiscuits,and...’

‘Oooh, thanks,Mother—wonderful!’saidColin,gratefully.Infiveminutes

hehadhislunchinaplasticbagandwasoffandaway.Nowtofindtheothers!

Five

Bird-nesters—andarescue

AT thesametimethatColinwastalkingtotheoldGeneral, threeothersoftheSecret Sevenwere on theirway toBramleyWoods.Theywere Jack,BarbaraandGeorge. They had decided to picnic there, and, at the same time, keep awatchonwould-beegg-hunters.

‘We’llbedoingourdutyandhavingfunaswell,’saidJack.

‘I rather hope we don’t spot anyone looking for nests,’ said Barbara. ‘Ihonestlyshouldbescaredtogoupandtacklethem.’

‘Weboyswilldo that,’ saidGeorge. ‘Youcan just standbyandagreewitheverythingwesay.Hark—there’sthecuckoo!’

‘Perhapsweoughttogoandfindhimandtickhimoff!’saidBarbara.

‘Whatonearthfor?’askedJack,astonished.

‘Well,youknowjollywellthatcuckoosgotootherbirds’nestsandthrowouttheireggstosmashontheground,’saidBarbara.‘Thenthehencuckooquietlylays her own there instead — and the bird who owns the nest sits on thecuckoo’seggandhatchesitout,neverthinkingthatitisn’toneofherown.’

‘Well— I never knew that!’ said Jack. ‘How in theworld did the cuckoothinkofsuchalabour-savingidea?’

‘Cuckoo!’calledthedistantbird.‘Cuckoo!Cuckoo!’

‘Youcanplayhide-and-seekbyyourself!’shoutedJack.‘AndifIfindoneofyoureggsinanotherbird’snest,Ishalltakeitout!’

‘Cuckoo!’shoutedthebird,almostasifitwerecallingJacknames.‘Cuckoo!’

There seemed to be no one about in the woods that morning. Barbara felt

ratherrelieved.Itreallywastoolovelyamorningtopickaquarrelwithanyoneaboutbird-nesting.Theywanderedaboutamongthetrees,andBarbarapickedagreatbunchofprimroses.

‘Well,evenifwe’renotdoingajobfortheSecretSeven,we’rehavinganicetime,’ saidBarbara. ‘What about sitting down and having an apple each?ThebirdsaresingingsomadlyI’dliketokeepquietandlistentothem.’

Astheyweresittingontheprimrosyground,theyheardvoicesnotfaroff,andsoona littlegroupof threecame intosight—allboysaboutJack’sage.Theywandered along, and then Jack and the others sawoneboypointingup into atree.

‘Blow — he’s probably found a nest,’ said George. Sure enough the boybegantoscrambleupthetree,andsoonheyelleddown.

‘Blackbird’snest—fourlovelyeggsinit!ShallItakethemall?’

‘Takethree—oneforeachofus!’shoutedbackanotherboy.

‘Thisiswherewebuttin,’saidJack,gettingtohisfeet.‘Comeon.’

Theyallwentovertothetree,andJackspokefirmly,butpolitely.

‘Iexpectyouknowwe’veallbeenaskednottorobbirds’neststhisspring—there was so much of it last year that the birds have been deserting thisneighbourhoodandthey...’

‘Harkathim!’saidoneboy,withaloudlaugh.‘Littlepreacher,isn’the?Givehimanegg,Larry!’

Theboyupthetreetookaneggfromtheblackbird’snestandthrewitstraightatpoorJack.Itbrokeandrandownhisface.

‘I’ll pull you down, I’ll pull you down!’ yelled Jack, in a rage, wiping theyellowyolkoffhischeek,andtryingtograbtheboy’sfootatthesametime.Butthatwas no good at all. The other boy barged into Jack and down theywent,landinginthemiddleofathickbush.Abirdimmediatelyflewoutinfright.

‘Ha—theremustbeanesttheretoo,’saidthethirdboy.‘Let’slook!’

Barbara suddenly felt desperate. She simply could not stand by and see asecond bird’s nest robbed and probably destroyed. She called out in a rathertremblyvoice:‘Webelongtoaclubthathasbeengiveninstructionstostopthissortofthing.Ishallreportyou!Look—we’rewearingbadges.Youclearoffatonce!’

Theboyup the tree,and theboysbelowstaredatBarbara in surprise.Thenthey laughed. ‘Look at her silly little badge— it’s got S.S. on. I suppose thelettersstandforSillySnoopers!Ha—SillySnoopers—justaboutright!Givemeyourbadge—I’llputitintoabird’snestandseewhatithatchesinto!’

He snatched atBarbara’s badge, but Jack at once stepped in front.Theboylunged out and Jack suddenly found himself lying on his back in the grass.Barbara gave a scream. The boy up the tree dropped down on top of poorGeorge,andhetoofoundhimselfontheground.

‘Run,Barbara,run!’yelledJack,surethattheboyswouldattackBarbaranext.She ran in fright, calling forhelp, and tohergreat relief she sawaman lyingdownreading,underatree.Heleapttohisfeetwhenhesawtherunninggirl.

‘What’sthematter?’heshouted,andBarbarastoppedatonce.

‘Ohwill you come and help?We tried to stop someboyswhowere takingbirds’eggs,andthey’vegotmytwofriendsdownand...’

‘Right,’ said theman, and raced off in the direction of loud shouts comingfrom Jack and George. Both boys were most relieved to see a grown-upsuddenlyarriving.

Themanyelledat the twoboyswhowerenowsittingfirmlyon topofJackandGeorge.‘Getup!Youknowbird-nestingisstrictlyforbiddeninthiswood.I’lltakeallyournames.Here,you—what’syourname?’

HecaughtholdofoneoftheboyssittingontopofJack,andyankedhimtohisfeet.Butnowthethreebird-nesterswereterrified,andwithoneaccordtheyranoffattopspeed,leavingJackandGeorgetoscrambletotheirfeet.

‘Isay—thanks!’saidJack,gratefully.‘Thanksawfully.Wewerejusttryingtostopthosewretchedboysfromrobbingnests.’

‘Areyouaclubofnature-lovers?’askedtheman,seeingtheS.S.badgesthatthethreechildrenwerewearing.

‘Well—wearenature-lovers—butourbadgesmeanthatweallbelongtotheSecretSevenClub,’saidGeorge.‘Andoneofthethingswe’vebeentoldtodoistopreventnest-robbing.’

‘Andaverygoodthingtoo,’saidtheman.‘I’mlikeyou—Ilovebirdsandtheir nests. My word, there are a lot in this wood. I’ve found about fortyalready.’

‘Butyoudon’ttaketheireggs,doyou?’saidBarbara.

‘Goodgraciousno!’saidtheman.‘ActuallyImeantowriteabookaboutthenestsIhavefoundduringthelastfewyears.’

‘Er—wouldyoucaretoshareapicnicwithus?’askedJack,thinkingthatthisman might be very interesting. ‘We’ve brought food and drink with us, andwe’veplentytospare.’

‘Well,that’sverykindofyou,’saidtheman.Hefeltinhispocket,andpulledoutalargepaperpacket.‘I’vebroughtsandwiches,too.YouhavesomeofmineandI’llhavesomeofyours.Let’ssitdownoverthere,onthatnicemossyspot—andyoucantellmeaboutyourclub!’

Sodowntheyallsatonsoftmoss,andopenedtheirpackages.Itwasn’treallytimetohavetheirpicnic—butsomehowtheyallfeltsuddenlyhungry.

‘Thisisfun!’saidBarbara,andtheotherthreenoddedastheymunchedhamsandwiches,anddranklemonadefromsmallbottles.

‘Goodthingyouwerenear,’saidGeorge, tothemanwhohadcometotheirhelp.‘Averygoodthing!Why,thosethreemighthavetakenourbadgesaway.Wouldyouliketohearaboutourclub?Right—I’lltellyou!’

AndtheregoesGeorge,explainingallabouttheSecretSeven.Howproudheis—andhowwellthestrangerlistens!

Six

TomSmithisrathersurprising

‘WELL,ImustsaythatIlikethesoundofyourclub,’saidtheman.‘Goodbadgestoo—didyoumakethemyourselves?’

Thegirlsmade them,’ saidGeorge. ‘Weallmeet ina shedwithS.S.on thedoor—andwehavegreatfun.’

‘We sometimes help people who are in trouble,’ said Barbara, ‘and wesometimessolvemysteries,and...’

‘Goodgracious!Andwhatmysteryareyousolvingatthemoment?’askedtheman.‘Bytheway,mynameisSmith—TomSmith.CallmeTom,ifyoulike.’

‘Well—we’llcallyouTom,ifyoureallydon’tmind,’saidJack.

‘Right,’saidTomSmith.‘Now—istheclubdoinganythingbesidesstoppingbird-nesters?Anygreatmysterybeingsolved,or...’

‘Well,oneoftheSecretSeven—Colin—istryingtosolveamysteryaboutarobbery,’saidJack, importantly. ‘Wegavehimthat jobbecausehehappens tolivenextdoortothemanwhowasrobbed.’

‘Thisisallveryinteresting,’saidTomSmith,takingacurrantbun.‘Who’sthemanwhowasrobbed—anddoesheknowyou’rehelpinghim?’

‘Well—heprobablyknowsbynow,’saidJack.‘Colinhadtostartonthejobwhilewecameheretodoourbitinpreventingbird-nesterstakingeggs.Idon’tsupposeyou’veheardofGeneralBranksome,haveyou—andhismedals?’

TomSmithlookedmostastonished.‘Youmeanthemanwhohadhismedalsstolen?’heasked.‘Youdon’tmeanyou’retryingtofindthemedals!’

‘Well,that’sColin’sjob—butassoonashe’sontoanycluewe’llallhelp,ofcourse,’saidGeorge.

‘Whatanextraordinarylotyouare,’saidTomSmith.‘Doyouhonestlythink

youcanfindthosemedals?’

‘Well—Ihopeverymuchwecan,somehow,’saidGeorge. ‘Forone thing,we’ve heard that there’s a reward of fifty pounds! The postman told us thismorning,onourwayhere.’

‘Is there?’ said Tom, sitting up, looking very surprised. ‘What will you dowiththatenormoussum,ifyoudofindthemedals?’

‘GiveitbacktotheGeneral,’saidBarbaraatonce.‘He’snotatallwell-off,youknow.Andhe’ssoterriblyupsetatlosinghisverypreciousmedals.’

Atthatverymoment,aloudyellcametotheirears.

‘JACK!GEORGE!COOOOOO-EEEEE!’

‘Gosh—thatsoundslikeoldColin!’saidGeorge,insurprise.‘HemusthaveseentheGeneral,andthenracedofftojoinus.Pitythere’snotmuchfoodleft.Hey,COLIN!COOOOO-EEEEEE!WE’REHERE!’

And in half aminute therewasColin, clutching his bag of food, red in theface,withahugegrinofpleasureatfindinghisfriends.Hewassurprisedtoseeastrangerwiththem.

‘Hallo!’ he said, beaming round. ‘So you haven’t finished your picnic. I’vebroughtmyownfood,butIforgottobringanythingtodrink.’

‘Plenty of lemonade left,’ said George, handing over a bottle. ‘What asurprise,Colin!DidyoudoyourSecretSevenjob?’

‘Yes,’saidColin.HeglancedatTomSmithandthenatGeorge.‘Who’syourfriend?’heasked.

‘TomSmith,’ saidGeorge. ‘He came to our rescuewhen some bird-nestersturnedonus,andwedecidedtopicnictogether.SoyousawtheoldGeneral?’

ColinlookedatTomSmithagainandhesitated.

‘It’s all right,’ said George. ‘We’ve just been telling him what the SecretSevendo—andhowwehopetohelptheoldGeneral.’

Colinopenedhisplasticbagandtookoutarollandtomato.Hebegantoeatandtalkatthesametime.

‘Yes.IsawGeneralBranksome,’hesaid.‘Itwasprettyawfulreally.Yousee,hewassoveryupsetandmiserable.Ihatedeveryminuteofit.AndIsaidasillything—amadthing—tohim.Ican’tthinkwhy.’

‘Whatdidyousay?’askedJack,curiously.

‘Well—Iwassoawfullysorryforhim, thatI foundmyselfsayingI’dfindthemedalsandgivethembacktohim!’saidColin.‘Imean—Iactuallygavehimapromise!Ican’tthinkwhy!’

‘Well,youwereamutt!’saidBarbara,shocked.‘Fancygivingapromiseyoucan’tPOSSIBLYkeep!Anyway,I’msurehedidn’tbelieveyou.’

‘Well, that’s the awful part—hedid believeme,’ saidColin. ‘He tookmyhandandshookitveryhard,andsaid“Ibelieveyou,boy!”Ohdear—IfeelsobadaboutitnowIrememberit,thatIdon’tthinkIcaneatanythingafterall.’

‘Don’tbeanidiot,’saidJack.

‘Themedalswereinalongcase,’aboutthissize,’saidColin,measuringwithhis hands. ‘I know because I saw the size by the empty space on the wall.Nobodyhas aclue to the thief—except that hemust havevery small hands,becausehehadtoputahandthroughatinyholeinawindowtogetatthecatchinside.’

‘AndthatistheONLYclue,yousay?’saidTomSmith,suddenly.

‘Absolutelytheonlyclue,’saidColin,beginningtoeathisrollandtomatoatlast. ‘Gosh, I never felt so unhappy in my life as when the old General wastelling me how he loved his medals. He’s offered fifty pounds reward asprobablyyouknow—buthe’sgothardlyanymoney,pooroldfellow.’

‘I wish we knew where those medals were,’ said Barbara, looking upset.‘Wherecantheybehidden?Whotookthem?IfONLYweknew!’

‘Doyouknow,’ saidTomSmith, suddenly, ‘doyouknow— Imayhave acluetotheirwhereabouts!I’mnotsure—butImayhave!’

Thefourchildrenstaredathiminamazement.ThenColin reachedoverandpulledathissleeve.

‘Tell us, then,’ he said. TELL US! Or tell the police. This is very, veryimportant.’

‘Well—theremaybenothinginmytale,’saidTomSmith,rubbinghischinandfrowning.‘Nothingatall.Still,I’lltellyou,forwhatit’sworth.’

‘Goon!’saidColin,excited.

‘Well,asI toldyourfriendshere,I lovebirdsandamgoingtowriteabookaboutthem,’saidTomSmith.‘Andoneofmyfavouritebirdsistheowl.NowinBramleyWoodstherearemanyowls—theynestintheoldtreeshere.AndtheothernightIwashere,listeningtothehootsofthisowlandthat,lyingunderatree,watchingthestarsshiningthroughthebranches—andsuddenly...’

‘Suddenlywhat?’askedColin,impatiently.‘Don’tkeepstopping!’

‘Suddenly I saw aman creep byme and go to a tree,’ said Tom. ‘Hewascarrying something.He didn’t seemewatching, but I could seewhat he wasdoing,becausehehadatorch.’

‘Andwhatdidhedo?’askedGeorge,almostholdinghisbreath.

‘Heliftedupalongslimbox—aleatherboxitlookedlike—Isawitbythelight of his torch. And he slid it into a hole in the tree-trunk — maybe awoodpecker’shole.Thenhemadeoff!’

‘Whatdidyoudo?Didn’tyoucallafterhim?Whatwashelike?Surelyyoudidsomething?’saidColin.

‘Wasit—wasittheboxofmedals?’askedBarbara.

‘Idon’tknow.Itwasaleatherboxofsomesort,andaboutthesizethatholdsmedalsfordisplay,’saidTom.

‘Didyougoand look in the treewhen the fellowhadgone?’askedGeorge.‘Whatdidyoufind?’

‘Iwentovertothetreeandfoundtheholeallright,’saidTomSmith.‘Ohyes,Ididthat.Butmyhandwasfartoobigtoputdownthehole.SoIdon’tactuallyknow what the fellow slipped into that tree. Maybe it was those medals —maybeitwassomethingelsehehadstolen.’

‘Butifit’sthemedalstheycouldbetakenbackstraightawaytotheGeneral!’criedColin.‘Showusthetree!Barbaraherehassmallhands—shecouldfeeldowntheholeandseewhatisthere.Weknowthethiefhadsmallhands—andhowcleverofhimtoslipthestolengoodsintoasmallholethatalarge-handedpersoncan’texplore.Whereisthistree?’

‘WhyshouldIshowyou?’demandedTomSmithinasuddenlyroughvoice.‘Whataboutthatreward?’

‘The fifty pounds! But — surely you wouldn’t take that!’ said Barbara,horrified.‘YouknowtheGeneralisverypoor.’

‘I’ll share the rewardwithyou,’ saidTom. ‘Fortypounds tome—and tenpounds to you!Go on— that thiefmight come back at any time and get themedalshehid—he’dsellthem,andthey’dbemelteddown—andthatwouldbethelastofthem.’

‘You’lljollywellshowusthetreeandletusgetthemedals!’saidColin,inafury.‘Whereisit?’

‘Oh,not far fromhere!’ saidTomSmith,withagrin. ‘But that’sall I’ll tellyou!Well,whataboutsharingthereward?’

‘Nothing doing,’ said Colin, who seemed to have taken charge of theproceedings.‘Nothingdoingatall!Forallweknow,youmaybeinleaguewithsomethiefwhohideshisgoodsinholesintrees—somesmall-handedthief—butwe’renotinleaguewithyou.Wedon’tintendtoaskforanyreward—we’llfindthemedalsourselves.Youcan’t,yourhandsaretoobig—andmaybethat’swhythethiefchoosessmallholesintreestohidehisgoods—sothatYOUcan’trobhimofthethingshe’sstolen.Whatapairyoumustbe!’

‘Nowlookhere!’shoutedTomSmith,gettingupsuddenly,andlookingveryvillainous.‘LOOKHERE!I’llshowyouwho’sboss!I’llmakeyouseesense!’

AndhesuddenlycaughtholdofColin’scoat-sleeve,andpulledhimroughly

towardshim.Buttheboyslippedfreeandran,shoutingtotheothers.

‘GETAWAY,allofyou!He’sdangerous.RUN!’

Seven

Averyexcitingplan

BARBARAwasveryfrightenedindeed,buttheboysweremoreangrythanscared.Theyallracedoffbetweenthetrees,anddidn’tstopuntil theywereoutof thewoods.

Then they threw themselves down on the grass that bordered the trees, andpantedforbreath.

‘Thatman—won’t—comeafter—us—willhe?’pantedBarbara.

‘No.Toomanypassers-byhere,’pantedJack.‘Myword—whowouldhavethoughthe’dturnsuddenlyintoasucharogue!’

‘Doyousupposehereallyknowswherethemedalsare?’askedGeorge.

‘Yes.Yes,Ithinkhedoesknow,’saidJack.‘AndIalsothinkhecan’tgettheleathercase,becauseofthereasonhegave.Hereallyhadenormoushands—nogoodforslippingintonesting-holes.’

‘I’msurethatheandthethiefareinleaguetogether,’saidColin.‘TomSmith,or whoever he is, probably does the planning of robberies or burglaries, andkeepsalookout,andtheotherfellowhassmallhandsandfindsiteasytodothestealing and the hiding—and is cute enough to hide the stuff in a place thatTomSmithcan’tgetat.Doesn’ttrusthim!’

‘Whatdowedonow?’askedBarbara.‘Istillfeelscared.Iwanttogohome.’

‘Well,wesimplyMUSThaveaSecretSevenmeetingatonceaboutthis,’saidGeorge.‘TheotherswillhavetoknoweverythingandwemustALLdecidewhattodo.Let’sgotoPeter’s.Comeon.’

Soawaytheytrekked,backtothevillage,andwenttoPeter’shouse.Theyrandownthegardentothemeetingshed,andwereluckyenoughtofindJanetthere,tidyingup.

‘Janet!We’vegotnews—bignews!’saidColin.‘Wemusthaveameetingas

soonaspossible.Where’sPeter?’

‘Ohdear—hewon’tbeback till threeo’clock,’ said Janet. ‘He’sgoneoutwithDaddysomewhere.Isitreally important?Ifso,I’lltellhimassoonashegetsback,andhe’lltelephoneyou.

‘No. Tell him we’ll all be here at just after three, unless we hear to thecontrary,’saidColin.‘Thatwillsavealotoftelephoning.Janet,we’vebeentoldwheretheGeneral’smedalsare!’

Janet’seyesalmostfelloutofherhead.‘Wherearethey?’shewhispered.Butjust at thatmomenthermother appeared, andnobody saidawordmoreaboutmedalsorthievesoranything,butjust‘Well,seeyouaboutthreeo’clockthen!’

Theywavedgoodbyeandwentupthegardenagaintothefrontgate.

‘IDOhopePeterwillbebackbythree.Thisnextmeetingwillbemostawfullyimportant,’ saidColin. ‘Well, seeyouall later, Ihope.Gosh, I feelquite tiredafterallthemorning’sexcitement!’

‘I’llcallinandtellPamonmywayback,’saidBarbara.‘She’llbeexcitedtoknowthere’samostimportantmeetingon.’

Peterdidnottelephone,soeveryoneknewthatitwasallrighttoarriveatthreeo’clockattheshed.Scamperwastheretogreetthem,rushingaboutoutside.Hedidsolovetheirmeetings!

‘Hallo!’saidPeter,welcomingthemembers.‘I’mlongingtoknowthenews.Itmustbesomethingjollyimportant.’

‘It is,’ saidColin. ‘More important thanyoucanpossibly imagine.Gosh—I’veforgottenmybadge!’

‘Well — as it’s such an important meeting, never mind,’ said Peter,generously. Fortunately everyone had remembered the password, so therewasnomore trouble.Soontheywereallsolemnlyseatedon theboxes in theshed,andPeterturnedtoGeorge.

‘Well now—what happened to you and Barbara and Jack and Colin thismorning?’heasked. ‘Youall looksoexcited.DoyouREALLYknowwhere the

medalsare?Janetsaidyoudid.’

‘Yes. That’s if a fellowwemet in the woods this morning was telling thetruth.AndIratherthinkhewas,’saidGeorge.‘Hesaidthatheknewthatamanwith small hands stole the medals, because he actually watched this fellowslippingalong,slimleathercaseintoabird’snesting-holeinatree—aholetoosmall for this first fellow to get his fist into. He said it was probably awoodpecker’shole.’

‘Soonly the small-handed fellowcanget them,’ saidPeter. ‘Well— this isnews.Didheshowyouthetree?’

‘No—hewouldn’t,’saidColin.‘Theonlycluewegotfromhimwasthatthetreewasn’tveryfarfromwherewewerepicnicking.’

‘Butas thereareDOZENSof treesaround that isn’tmuchhelp,’ saidBarbara.‘Allweknowforcertainisthatinoneofthetreesnearby,thereisaholemadebyabird—orusedbyabirdforitsnest—andintothatholethesmall-handedthiefhasslippedthecaseofmedals.Itmaybehalfwaydownthetree!’

‘Lookingforitwouldbelikehuntingforaneedleinahaystack,’saidColin,dolefully.‘We’dNEVERfindthehole.’

Therewasapause.Everyonelookedateveryoneelse.

‘Well,’saidPeter,atlast,‘hasanyoneanyideas?SurelytheSecretSevencanthinkofsomethingbetweenthem!’

Janetspokeup, lookingratherred.‘Well,Ididn’thearwhatthisTomSmithsaid, of course, but apparently he did say that although he knew the tree, hecouldn’tgetout themedalshidden therebecausehishandswere toobig togointothehole.Wellthen—whatishegoingtodo?Ibethe’sgoingtohideandwaittilltheotherfellowcomestogetthem—andthenhe’sgoingtogoforhimandsnatch themedals!Well—whyshouldn’toneofusgoandhide too,andwaittoseewhichtreeitis?Scampercouldgoaswell,and...’

‘Andmight scare themoff, so thatwecouldget at the tree!’ criedPeter, indelight.‘Janet,you’retoocleverforwords!’

‘Well—Iwasgoingtosuggestthatweshouldaskthepolicetogoandwatch

aswell,’saidJanet.

‘Oh—Isee.No—Ithinkthey’dsaytherewardwouldhavetobepaidout,’said Peter. ‘And it might go to a police charity or something. Not that I’magainstthat—butweknowtheoldGeneralispoor,andcan’taffordtopayoutfiftypounds.Ifwefindthemedalsourselves,andactuallytakethemoutofthetree, the reward is safe. We can say “No thank you, sir, we don’t want anyreward”—andthat’sthat.’

‘Anyway, the police are so BIG,’ said Barbara. ‘They’d be sure to be seen.We’resmall.Wecouldshinupatreeandhideintheleaveslikebirds!’

‘Andwe’dbequitesafewithScamper,’saidPam.‘Wouldn’twe,Scamper?’

‘WUFF,’ said Scamper at once, very loudly.Hewagged his tail, and lookedveryproud.Sohewastobeinthisadventuretoo!Ha—whatataletotellthedognextdoor!

Everyonesuddenlybecameveryexcited.‘Ishallgo,’saidColin.‘Afterall,Iwasgiventhejobofsolvingthemedalsrobbery.’

‘AndIshallgobecauseIthoughtoftheidea,’saidJanet.

‘AndIshallgobecauseI’mheadoftheSecretSeven,’saidPeter.

‘Look—don’tbesilly—wecan’tallgo!’saidGeorge.‘Thethiefwouldspotus—orhearus—assoonashecamenearus.’

‘Howdoweknowhe’dcomenearus?’askedJanet.‘Thetreemightbequitefarawayfromanyone.’

‘Weknow it’snotfarfromwherewepicnicked,’saidColin.‘Look—don’tlet’sbesilly.Weshallmessthingsupifweallgo.AndI’mnotreallysureaboutScamper—hemightbarktoosoonandscareoffthethiefbeforehecametotherighttree.’

‘There’ssomethinginthat,Colin,’saidPeter.‘IthinkifwetakeScamper,heshould be some way away, held on the lead by one of us — and not untilsomebodyblewawhistle—me,forinstance—wouldScamperbeallowedtoraceupandjointhefun!’

So they talked— and talked— and planned— and grewmore andmoreexcited.At last everythingwasarrangedandsettled.Peter repeated theirplansforthelasttime.

‘We tellnooneatall about this.Wemeetherewhen it’sdark.Bringwarmscarves in case it’s cold— and torches— and PLEASE check to see that yourbatteryisgood.Youdon’twanttobeleftsuddenlyinthedark.’

‘Itwillbemoonlight,don’tforget,’saidPam.

‘Iknow,’saidPeter.‘Butcloudsmaydarkenthemoon—andinanycaseitwillbedarkinthewood.Now—whenwegettothewoods,wekeepabsolutesilence,unlessweareabletowhisperrightintosomebody’sear.Understood?’

‘Yes,’whisperedeveryone,imaginingthemselvestobealreadyinthewoods.

‘Eachofushides—eitherupatree—orinabush—andkeepswatchonallthetreesaround,’wentonPeter.‘Colinwillpointoutwherethepicnicwasheld,and thenwe shall each spread around, and hide in different places, so that ifanyone comes that way, one or other of us will see him. There will be nogiggling,nonoiseofanysortthatyoucanhelp.Understood?’

‘Yes,’saideveryoneagain,and thegirls felta littleshivergoingdown theirbacks.Thisreallywastooexcitingforwords!

‘Wewatchtoseewhattreethethiefgoesto,togetthemedalsfrom,’wentonPeter.‘ThenI’llletlooseoldScamper,whowillgoforhimandscarehimaway—andWEwillexaminethetreeandremovethemedalsourselves!’

‘I reallydo think this is about themostexcitingadventurewe’veeverhad,’saidBarbara,withacatchinhervoice.‘It’squitedangerous!’

‘Not if you do as you’re told,’ said Peter. ‘Andmind— if any one of youbegins to feel scared, keep still in your hiding-place — don’t come out, forgoodness’ sake— youmight spoil everything!Well— that’s all.We’ll nowclosethismeeting.Remembertobeherepunctuallyassoonasit’sdarkenough.Weshan’twaitforanyonewhoislate.’

Everyoneatoncedeterminedtobeontheearlyside.Itwouldbedreadfultobeleftoutofthismostexcitingandthrillingadventure!

‘Ifonlywecan find thosemedals!’ saidColin tohimself, ashewenthome.‘AndIcantakethembacktotheoldGeneralandseehisface.IhonestlythinkIwantthatmorethananythinginthisworld!’

Well, keep your fingers crossed, Colin. This isn’t an easy adventure —anythingmayhappen,sokeeponyourguard—andgoodlucktoalltheSecretSeven!

Eight

Holdyourbreath,SecretSeven

SUSIE, Jack’s irritating sister, was very curious that night, when she saw Jackfittinganewbatteryintohistorch.

‘Areyougoingouttonight?’shedemanded.‘Whereareyougoing?’

‘Where I go is nothing to dowith you,’ said Jack crossly. ‘Always pokingyournoseinwhereyou’renotwanted.’

‘You’regoingsomewherewiththeSecretSeven,Iknowyouare,’saidSusie.‘Tellme.Goon—youmighttellme!’

‘CertainlyNOT!’saidJack,exasperated.

‘Oh—thenyouaregoingsomewhere,’saidSusie.

‘I justwish you were a boy,’ said Jack. ‘I’d give you such a punch. Stopquestioningme.’

‘Well—Ishallfollowyou,’saidtheannoyingSusie.‘AndIshallgetBinkietocomewithme.’

‘You’lldonothingof the sort!’ said Jack,horrified.This is amatter for theSecretSevenandnooneelse.Keepoutofit!’

‘Well,tellmewhatitis,then,’saidSusie.

Jackstampedawayandshuthimselfintohisroom.BlowSusie!ShehadarealnoseforanythinginthewayofaSecretSevenadventure.Wouldshefollowhim—with thatwretched, twitchy-nosedBinkie friendofhers?Well—he’dstartprettyearly,thenhewouldhavetimetoshakethemoff.

All the Secret Seven were busy examining their torches that afternoon andgoing over Peter’s instructions in theirminds. Scamper couldn’t imaginewhy

PeterandJanetweresorestless.Thetimewentsoslowlyforthem—itseemedasiftheeveningwouldnevercome!

‘NowScamper,you’llhavetobecarefultodoEXACTLYwhatyou’retold,’saidPetertotheeagerspaniel.‘You’llprobablyhavetoleapatamanandholdhim—but don’t bite, you understand.And please do be careful not tomake anynoiseuntilIgivetheword.Understood?’

‘Wuff,’saidScamper,happily.Ofcourseheunderstood!

It seemed a long time to all the Seven before the evening came. Darknessseemedtobelaterthanever!Butthengreatcloudsblewupandthedarknightdescendedquitesuddenly.PeterandJanet fidgetedover theirsupper,and theirmotherwonderedwhatwasthematter.

‘Doyoufeelquitewell?’sheasked.

‘Goodgracious,yes!’saidPeterinalarm.‘Er—theSecretSevenarehavingalatishmeetingtonight,Mother,so,asyou’regoingoutwithDaddy,we’dbettersaygoodnighttoyounow.Seeyouinthemorning.’

‘Well,dear,don’tletthemeetinggoontoolate,’saidhismother.‘DaddyandIwill be in just beforemidnight, I hope—you’ll be fast asleep hours beforethat.’

Peterwasmostrelievedtothinkthathisparentsweregoingout.HeandJanetwere all ready— torches in order, sweets to suckwhile theywerewaiting intheirhiding-placesandwarmscarvesincasethenightprovedcold.

TheSevenallcametogetherquietlyassoonasitwasdark.Torchesshoneoutinthegardenasthememberswentdowntotheshed.

‘Allhere?’askedPeter.‘Yes.Good.Alltorchesalight?Good.Warmscarves?Good!’

Theysetofftogether,ScamperatPeter’sheels.Themooncameoutassoonasitgrewdarker,buttheylostitsfriendlylightwhentheycametothewoods,anditseemedveryshadowyamongthetrees.

‘IsthatfootstepsIhearsomewherebehindus?’saidPeter,suddenlystopping.

‘I thought I heard a crack as if someone someway behind had stepped on atwig.’

Jack frowned. Gosh— surely it wasn’t Susie and Binkie. No— he reallydidn’t thinkSusiehadseenhimslipoutof thehouse.AsPeterheardnomoresuspicioussoundstheyallwentonagain,veryquietlyindeed.

BarbaratookPam’sarm.Shewasn’tscared,butshejustthoughtshe’dliketofeelsomeonereallyclosetoher.Pamwaspleasedtoo!Thisreallywasaproperadventure!

Scampersniffedhereandthereashewentalong.HewasdelightedtogooutforawalkwithalltheSeveninthedarkofnight!TheycametoBramleyWoods,andweresoonattheplacewheretheyhadpicnicked.

‘Now—weknowthatthetreewherethemedalsarehiddenissomewherenotfaroff,’whisperedPeter.‘We’dallbettergetintoourhiding-places.Anywhereyoulike,solongasyou’rehidden.Spreadoutabit,sothatoureyescancoveragoodmanytreesaroundhere.’

Gradually theSevendisappeared,Scamper too.Peter climbeda tree, and sodidJack.Janetfoundafairlycomfortablebush,throughwhoseleavesshecouldeasilypeep.Pamlaydowninsomehighferns,hopingnobodywouldwalkoverher.Barbara squeezed into the verymiddle of a bush,where shewas sowellhiddenthatnotonesingleS.S.memberknewwhereshewas.

‘Icouldalmostgotosleephere,’shethought.But,ofcourse,shewasmuchtooexcitedeventoshuthereyes!

Colin andGeorge climbed on to a great branch of an old oak-tree, and layalong it,whispering toone another.Scamper lay in some ‘ferns at the foot ofPeter’s tree, his ears pricked for the slightest whisper from hismaster on thebranchabove.

Nobodycouldseeanybodyelse.Thatwasgood,thoughtPeter.Verygood.Itmeantthatnointruderwouldseethemeither.

AnowlsuddenlyhootedfromatreenearbyandalltheSecretSevenjumpedviolently.Scampergrowledatonce,andPeterhissedathim.Scamper stoppedgrowling and lay down again, his ears pricked. What did that bird mean by

hootingathimlikethat?

A rabbit came from a hole and lolloped lazily across the grass. Everyonewatcheditindelight.Thenitwasjoinedbyanother,andthetwodancedaround,runninghereand there, jumpingandplaying.Themoonshonedownon them,andScampershuthiseyesindespair.Rabbitssoclose—andhedarednotrunatthem!Itwastoomuch!

ThenasquirrelcameboundingalongthebranchwhereColinandGeorgelay,andstopped inalarmtosee theboys there.Neitherof themmoved,and in theend the squirrel decided theywere part of the tree, and ran lightly over them,sniffingattheirfacesinquisitively.

‘Oooh — don’t tickle!’ whispered Colin, and the squirrel leapt away insurprise.

PoorJacksuddenlyfeltasneezecoming.Hisnosetickledandheswallowedviolentlytokeepthesneezeback.Itswelledandswelled—andatlastexplodedintoagreatbigWHOOSHOO!, sending the rabbitsdown theirholes in fright,andmaking theotherSecretSevenmembers jumpalmostoutof their skins.Peter,notfarfromJack,almostfelloutofhistree!

‘Idiot!’hesaid,inaloudwhisper.‘Don’tdothatagainforgoodness’sake.Inearlyfelltotheground.’

‘Icouldn’thelpit,’whisperedbackJack,inanaggrievedvoice.‘Inearlyfelldownmyself.Isay—isn’tthemoonbright!’

‘SHHH!’ said Peter, fiercely, afraid that everyone would soon join in theconversation.

Therewasdeadsilenceoncemore.Thenthewindbegantoblowalittle,andsmallsh-sh-shnoiseswereeverywhere.TheowldescendednearPam’sfernsandhooted suddenly again. Pam leapt upwith a shriek,making everyone jump inalarm.

‘Pam! You’d better go home!’ said Peter, in a fierce whisper. ‘Go on. Gohome!’

Pamsubsidedintoherfernsagain,almostintears.ShewasNOTgoinghome.

Blowthatowl!Whydidithavetohootalmostinherear?

Peace descended once again. The owl had gone. The rabbits had shot backintotheirholes,frightenedbythehoot.Nobodysneezed.Nobodycoughed.Butsomebodygavealittleyawn!

‘SHHH!’hissedPeter.‘Ithinkthere’ssomebodycoming.’

Thatmadeeveryonelieasstillascouldbe.Heartsbegantobeatfast,andPamcouldn’thelphopingthatherswasn’treallyasloudasitsounded.Bump-bump-bump,itwentagainstherchest.

Yes.Somebodywascoming!AlltheSeven—andScampertoo—couldhearthesoundofsoftfootstepspaddingthroughthewood.Littletwigscrackednowandagain,andthenewcomerclearedhisthroatonceortwice.Whowasit?Thethiefwhohadhiddenthemedals?TomSmith?Orjustanight-walker?

ItwasTom Smith! There hewas,walking in themoonlight, his arms,withtheirbighands,swingingbyhisside.Hadhecometohuntforthehiddenmedals—butno,hishandsweretoobigtoseekfortheminatree-hole.Hewouldhavetowait till theotherfellowcame, thesmall-handedmanwhostole themedals,andhidtheminaholeinsometree.

TomSmithwhistled softly as hewalked between the trees, passing so nearPaminthefernsthatshewashalfafraidhewouldtreadonher.Thenhestoppedandlookedaroundcarefully.HewasnotlookingfortheSecretSeven,ofcourse,thougheachofthemfeltthathewas,andcoweredmorecloselyintheirhiding-places.

‘He’scometowaitfor thethief,’ thoughtPeter,peeringdownfromhis tree.‘Myguess is thathe’llhidesomewhere,andwatch tosee if themangoes toacertaintree.Mygoodness—thisisexciting!’

Yes— itwas!Hold your breath a little longer, Seven. Lie quiet, Scamper.TomSmith is in hiding now—waiting,waiting—waiting— for somebodyelsetocome.

Nine

TheSevenareintrouble

TOMSMITHwenttoabroad-trunkedoak-tree,andhidhimselfbehindit.HedidnotknowthatColinandGeorgewereupinthesametree,justabovehishead.Theboyshardlydaredtobreathe.Scamperlaystillnotfaroff,crouchedontheground, as flat as he could make himself. Everyone was very still — yetinwardly tinglingwithexcitement—waiting toseewhatwasgoing tohappennext.

Therecameasuddenbark—butnotfromScamper!AlltheSevenprickeduptheir ears at once.Another dogwas coming—maybe the small-handed thiefwasbringinghim—forprotection!PerhapshefearedthatTomSmithmightbelyinginwaitforhim—asindeedhewas.

Therecamealow,softwhistling,andsomeonewalkedintothemoonlitpatchofgrassnotfarfromPam.Behindhimwasalargedog.

‘Phew — an Alsatian!’ thought Peter. ‘Let’s hope he doesn’t sniff outScamper—he’deathimupinnotime.Golly—Idon’tmuchlikethis!’

The Alsatian suddenly growled. Had he smelt Scamper— or some of theSeven?

‘Shutup,Nabber,’orderedthemanwithhim.‘There’snooneabout.Youcanhearrabbits,that’sall.’

Themanwentacrossthemoonlitpatchtowardsagroupofbigtrees,Nabberclose behind him, still growling deep down in his throat. Then the watchingchildrensawTomSmithcreepoutfromhishiding-place.TheAlsatianstopped,turnedhishead,andgrowledferociously.

TomSmithshoutedtotheotherman.‘I’mhere,Wily!Yougetthosemedalsandwe’lltalk.There’safinerewardoutforthemnow—we’llshare!’

‘No,wewon’t,’saidWily,andlaughed.‘Ha—Imighthavethoughtyou’dbeonthewatchforme.Youclearoff,elseI’llsetNabberonyou.’

‘Nabberwon’ttouchme,’shoutedTom.‘Heknowsme.Yougetthosethings—goon,now.’

‘Come and get them yourself!’ shouted backWily. ‘Here they are, see—downinthistree-hole.Comeandstickyourbigfistinandtakethemifyouwantthem!’

‘YouknowIcan’tgetmygreathandinthere,’saidTom,fiercely.‘Youweregoing to double-crossme,weren’t you—comehere in the dark and take thethingsoutof theirhiding-placewithoutmeknowing.Ohno,Wily—you justtakethemouthereandnow,andhandthemovertome.Goon!Youdon’twanttofightabigfellowlikeme,doyou?Myfistswouldmaketwelveofyourdaintylittlehands.’

Wilybegantowalkawayfromthetreehewasnear.Helaughed,anditwassuchamockingsoundthatTomSmithlosthistemper.Therecamethesoundofaloudsmack,andloandbehold,littleWilywasontheground!TheAlsatianatonceflewatTomSmith,anddownhewentontheground!

The children watched everything in fear and astonishment. The only oneamongthemwhowasenjoyingthisbattlewasScamper.HowhelongedtorushinandhelpthatbigAlsatian.

Hecouldn’tstophimselffrombarkingjoyfully.Wuff-wuff-wuff!

Atonce theAlsatian liftedhisheadandglancedround,amazed.TomSmithleaptup,andtheothermancalledtoNabber.

‘Get thatdog!’Nabber rushedatScamperandbowledhimcompletelyover.ButScamperthoughtitwasagame,leaptup,anddancedroundthebigAlsatian,givinghappylittlewhines.Hedidn’toftenhavethechanceofagamewithsuchabigdog!

Peterdroppeddownfromhis tree,andsodidJack,bothafraidthatScampermight get bitten. ‘Scamper! Heel! Come to heel!’ ordered Peter.‘SCAMPERRRRRR!’

Nabber theAlsatianwasamazed to see twoboys suddenlydropping fromatree—andasforTomSmithandWily, theystaredas if theycouldn’tbelievetheireyes.Firstaspaniel—andnowtwoboys!Whatonearthwashappeningin

thewoodstonight!

Scamper was still darting happily round the surprised Alsatian, who wasyoungenough toenjoyasillygamehimself.The twomencameover toPeterandJack,andTomshookPeterroughly.

‘Whatareyoudoinghere?Snooping?Thatdogmighthavebittenyoubadly—andserveyoujollywellright!’

‘Takeyourhandoffme!’saidPeter,fiercely.‘Yes,we’resnooping!Youtoldmyfriendsthismorningaboutthemedalsandhowyoursmall-handedfriendhadhidden them in ahole in a tree somewhere abouthere.Sowecame tohave alook round, thinking itwouldbe agood thing ifwe got them.Theywouldbehandedovertotheirrightfulownerthen!’

‘Andwhat’smorewe’regoingstraightbacktothepolice-station,’saidJack.‘I’venodoubtthatthepolicewillsooncatchyouboth.’

TomSmithsuddenlysnatchedatPeter’sarm,pulledtheboytowardshim,andlookedathis righthand. ‘Comeon!’hesaid. ‘You’regoing toget thatcaseofmedalsoutofthetreeforme!Yourhand’squitesmallenoughtogetrightdownintothathole.Comeon!’

He dragged Peter towards the trees where he andWily had stood arguing.Scamperflewathimandtriedtobitehimthroughhisthicktrousers.HekickedoutandScamperyelped.

‘Don’tyoudaretokickmydog!’saidPeter,furiously.Tomkickedoutagain,andoncemoreScamperyelped.Thatwas toomuch for Janet tobear, and shesuddenlyleaptoutofthenearbybushinwhichshewashiding,andracedovertothewhiningspaniel.

‘Scamper!DEARScamper!Areyouhurt?’

TomSmithandWilywereamazedtoseeagirlrushingup.‘Lookhere—howmanymore are there of you?’ said Tom, looking round. ‘What are you kidsdoingheresolateatnight?’

TherestoftheSevencouldn’tbeartobeinhidinganylonger,andtotheutterastonishmentofthetwomen,Pamjumpedupfromthefernsshelayin,Barbara

pressedout of her bush, andColin andGeorgedroppeddown from their oak-tree.

‘What is all this?’ saidWily, taken aback by the sudden appearance of somanychildren.

‘It’s the kids belonging to that silly club they toldme about thismorning,’groanedTomSmith.‘Look—besensible,Wily—getthatcaseoutofthetree,andwe’llbothbeoff.’

‘No.Idon’ttrustyou,’saidWily,sulkily.

‘Right. I’llmake this boyget it forme then,’ saidTomSmith, angrily, andpulledPetertoabig,veryoldtree.Therewasaholeagoodwayupthetrunk,andhetriedtothrustPeter’shandintoit,shiningatorchsothattheboycouldseewhathewasdoing.

‘Don’t!’ saidPeter, fiercely. ‘Myhand’s toobig.Stop it!You’regrazingalltheskinoff.Itellyou,itWON’TGOIN!’

‘Allright!’saidTom,andhegrabbedPam,whowaswatchinginhorror.‘Ha—here’sanicesmallhand.Goon,now—takeoutthecase,girl.Doasyou’retold.’

‘Standaway.You’rescaringher,’saidPeter,angrily.‘Look,she’strembling.She’llfinditmucheasierifyoustandrightaway.Won’tyou,Pam?’

HegavePamanudge.Shepretendedtocry,andsaid,inashakyvoice:‘Standbehind me, Peter. I’m frightened. Keep those men right away. My hand isshakingsomuchIcan’tevenputitintotheholewhilethey’renearme.’

‘Allright,allright,we’llstandaway,’saidTom.‘Nowgoon,Missie—stickinyourhand,feelaboutforthecase,andpullitoutverygently.’

PeterwhisperedinPam’sear.‘Getthecaseoutquickly,andgiveittome,butpretendyou’restillfeelingforit.’

Pamputherhandintothehole,feltthecaseatonceandsliditouteasily.Petertookitquietlyandopenedit.Heslidthemedalsintohispocket,talkingloudlytoPamallthetime,hopingthatthemen’sattentionwaselsewhere.

‘That’sright.Easynow.Gotit,Pam?Slideitbutcarefully,carefully!Thosemenaren’tnearyou.Don’tbeafraid!Goodgirl—herecomesthecase!’

AtthesewordsthemenwereimmediatelybesidePeter,whohandedTomtheemptycase,prayingthattheywouldn’topenit.Tom,afraidthatWilywouldtrytosnatchit,poppeditpromptlyintohispocket.Heturnedtogo,butWilycaughthisarm.

‘Wait!Whataboutthesekids?They’llracehomeandtellthepolice.Weneedagoodstart,Tom.Andletmetellyouthis—I’mgoingtokeepyoubymysideuntilyouhandmehalfthosemedals.’

‘Ohcomenow—wecan’ttiethekidsup,Wily,’saidTom.‘Norope,foronething.’

‘Well—we’ll leaveNabberonguard,’ saidWily. ‘He’llnipanychildwhotriestorun.He’llstayheretillmorning,ifItellhimto.’

‘Fine,fine,’saidTom,pleased.‘Tellhim,then.’

‘Stay, Nabber, stay. All night see, all night. Stay, Nabber!’ ordered Wily.‘Roundupthekidsforme.AndSTAY!’

‘Youcan’tdoathinglikethat!’criedPeter.ButthatwasexactlywhatWilydiddo!HeandTomSmithsetoffatasmartwalk,andleftNabberbehindwiththeSeven.Nabberwhined—buthewasabsolutelyobedient.

He rounded up the seven children, and Scamper, and lay down near them,watchingwarilyforanymovement.

‘Thisisabsolutelythelimit!’saidColin,angrily.‘Whatonearthwillallourparents thinkwhentheyfindwe’renothome?They’llbeworriedstiff. I’Mnotgoingtostayhereallnightlong,anyway.’

Anduphe jumpedandbegan towalkawaydownthepath.ButNabberwasafterhim ina jiffy.Hecaught theboybyhis coat-sleeveandheldon,pullinghimbackwardstotheothers.

‘It’snogood,Colin,’calledPeter.Tie’strainedtodothissortofthing.We’llonlybedraggedback,andmaybenippedifwetrytogetaway.’

‘Well,anywayPeter’sgotthegoldmedals,’suddenlysaidPam,andlaughed.‘Themenhaveonlygottheemptybox!Wasn’titcleverofPetertomakeoutIwassofrightened,andhowluckytheydidn’twatchwhatweweredoing?’

‘Whateverdoyoumean?’saidJanet,inwonder.

Peter took out one of the bigmedals from his pocket and held it up in themoonlight, laughing. ‘Good old Pam!She acted up like anything. Shewas soquickthatIwashabletoopentheboxandremovethemedals—thenshutit,andgiveittothemenquiteempty.’

And then theSevenbegan to laugh.How they laughed!TheyhadoutwittedtwothievesandabigAlsatian,andhadsentawaythemenwithanemptybox—andtherewasPeterwithallthemedalssafelyinhispocket!Welldoneindeed,Secret Seven! But oh dear, it’s NOT very funny to spend a night in the darkwoods,‘withanastycoldlittlewindroaminground.AndNabberissuretohaveyou,ifyoutrytoescape!

Ten

Along,coldwait

THESevenmadethemselvesascomfortableastheycouldintheferns.ScamperlaydownbesidePeterandJanet,andsoontheywerequitegladofthewarmthofhisbody,forthenight-windcamecreepinground,coldanddraughty.

‘I’m AWFULLY cold!’ complained Pam, after a while. ‘I really am. Oooh—howI’dloveahotwater-bottle.’

‘We’dbetterallgetclosetogether,’saidColin.‘Look—yougirlsgetinthemiddleandweboyswillsitroundyou.Thatwillkeepoffthewindalittle.’

‘Thanks,Colin,’saidthegirls,andweresoonsquashedcloselytogether,withtheboyssitting round them.PeterheldScamperonhis lap then,andhe reallydidfeelaswarmasahotwater-bottle.

‘I’llhavetolendyouround,Scamper,’saidPeter.‘You’resoniceandwarm.Youmustgoandwarmupeveryoneinturn.’

Nabber theAlsatian took very little notice of them.He sat nearbywith hisbacktothem,asifwatchingforWilyhismastertoreturn.ButattheleastsoundormovementfromtheSeven,hisearsshotback,andhelistenedforanysignofescape.Once,whenPetergotuptoshifthispositionalittle,andmakehimselfmore comfortable, the big dog ran to the group of children, growling andshowinghiswhiteteeth.Itwouldcertainlybenousetotryandescape.NobodywouldgetfarwithNabberafterhim.

‘Allright,Nabber.Wearen’tidioticenoughtotryandfoolyou,’saidColin.‘Youcangotosleepifyouwantto!’

ButNabberdidn’tgotosleep.No—ifhehadtoliethereallnightlong,hewouldn’tclosehiseyesforasingleminute.Scamperclosedhis,though.Hewastiredandanxious—somethingwaswrong,andhecouldn’tdoanythingaboutit.Hefoundhiseyesclosing,gavealittlesigh,andwenttosleep—butheopened

hiseyessoonenoughwhenadaringrabbithoppedoutofitsholeandsniffedatthesilentlittlecompany.

‘Thosemenwillhaveplentyoftimetogetaway,’groanedPeter.‘Bythetimemorningcomes,andthisAlsatianleavesus,thetwomenwillbemilesaway.’

‘Iwonderwhenthey’lldiscoverthatthemedalcaseisempty,’saidPam.‘I’dliketobetherethen.Itwouldbefunnytoseetheirfaces.’

‘I only hope they don’t discover too soon that the case is empty, and comeracingbacktofindwhatwe’vedonewiththemedals,’saidJanet.

‘That’snotatallapleasant thought,’saidPeter,sittingupstraight.‘Ihadn’trealizedtheymightcomeback.Gosh—we’llhavetolookout.Scamper,keepyourearsprickedandgrowlifyouhearthosefellowsreturning.’

‘Wuff!’ said Scamper, at once, and sat up very straight.Nomore sleep forhim!

Halfanhourwentby,seemingliketwohours.TheSevenwerecolderstillandPamshiveredsomuchthattheotherscomplainedthatshemadethemshivertoo.

‘GoodthingPetertoldustobringwarmscarves,’saidBarbara.‘Atleastournecksarewarm.’

‘I’vewrappedmyscarfroundmyfeet,’saidJanet.Theyfeltlikeice.’

Nabber theAlsatian suddenly rose to his feet, his sharp ears pricked to theutmost.Hehadbeen lying someway from thechildren,noseonpaws,eyeingthemallincaseanyonemadeasuddenmovetoescape.Scampersuddenlysatuptoo.

‘Hallo—thedogshaveheardsomething,’saidColin. ‘See theirears?Minefeelasifthey’reprickinguptoo,butIcan’thearanythingyet.’

Nabber gave a low growl, but Scamper kept quiet. A sound came in thedistance,andNabbergrowledagain.

‘Sounded like abicyclebell!’ saidColin. ‘Funny.Whowouldbecycling toBramleyWoodsaslateasthis?’

Nabbergrowledagain,andlookedbackattheSevenasiftosay‘Nowthen—notasoundoramovement,see!’Scamperwhinedloudly,whichastonishedtheSeven.Whywhineinsteadofgrowling?

Thebellsoundcameagain—yes—itwasabicyclebell!TheSevencheeredupatonce!

‘Look—ifit’salate-nightcyclist,comingthisway,we’llallyellourheadsoff,’saidPeter.‘Thenmaybehe’llstopandwecantellhimwhat’shappened.’

‘ButhowcanhestopNabberguardingus?’askedPam.‘We’llhavetowarnhimabouttheAlsatian.ItwouldbeawfulifNabberwentforhim.’

‘Gosh,yes.Ididn’tthinkofthat,’saidPeter.‘Blow!Wecan’triskhisbeingbitten.’

Everyone’sheart sank.Theyall listened intently for sounds to comenearer.Ah—therewastheringingofthebellagain—twobells,surely?Somorethanonepersonwascoming?PerhapsPetercouldyelltostopthemcomingtoonear—andshouttothemtogethelpofsomesort,andexplainabouttheAlsatian.Ohdear—itwasallverydifficult.

Nowvoices couldbeheard—children’svoices,notgrown-ups’!Howodd!Whatchildrenwouldbecyclingatthistimeofnightinlonelyroadsthroughthewoods?

Jacksuddenlygaveashoutandleapttohisfeet.‘IcanhearSUSIE’Svoice!’heyelled.‘AndBinkie’swithher!I’msureit’sthem!’

‘What in theworld are they doing cycling here at this time of night?’ saidPeter,astounded.

‘Susie knew we had something exciting on tonight,’ said Jack. ‘You knowhowsnoopysheis.Allright,allright,Nabber,I’mnotgoingtorunaway,I’monly standing up.Go and lie down, there’s a good dog.OhPeter, I bet Susiewentand lookedatmynotebookandsawmynote there,aboutmeeting in thewoodsthisevening.Shethreatenedtofollowme!’

‘Well—foronceinawayIshallbeverygladtoseethatsisterofyours,andhersillyfriend,Binkie,’saidPeter.‘ItDOESsoundliketheirvoices.Let’sallyell

Susie’sname.’

Andso,echoing through the tall treesoverheadanddownall the littlepathsSusie’s namewent on, on andon in the night. ‘Soo-sy,Soooooo-sy,Soo-soo-soo-sy!’

Nabberwasamazedatallthesuddenshouting.Hesatandstaredattheyellingchildren, wondering what to do.Well— they weren’t running away— theywereonlyshouting.Nabber laydownagainandputhisheadonhispaws.ButScamperwentwildwithexcitement!

He had heard the girls’ voices too, and recognized them at once. He racedaway from the Seven, down the path, in the direction of the voices. Nabberlookedafterhim,butdidn’t stophim.Scamperwasn’toneof thechildren.Hedidn’thavetoguardhim!

ThevoiceswereSusie’sandBinkie’s!Howsurprising—andhowwonderful!Petersatandlistenedtothesoundofthevoicescomingnearer.Never,neverhadheeverguessedthathewouldbegladtohearthatexasperatingSusie’svoice!

The two girls had heard Susie’s name being called andwere now shoutingback. ‘We’re coming!Where are you? Is anythingwrongwith you?Why areyouheresolate?’

‘We’reHERE!HERE!’yelledbacktheothers.

‘Comeandmeetus!’shoutedSusie.‘Orflashyourtorches.It’ssodark.’

‘Susie,there’sanAlsatiandogguardingus.Becareful!’shoutedJack.‘Don’tcometoonear.’

Thelightsofthetwobicycleswerenowlikeeyes,comingnearerandnearer.Nabberstoodupandbegantogrowl,allhishacklesrisingonhisneck.Jackwasafraidforthetwogirls.

‘Don’t come any nearer!’ he yelled. ‘Susie, do you hear me! Get off yourbikesandstop.Thedogwillgoforyou,ifyoudon’t.’

‘WHATDOG?’yelledSusie.Butshedidasshewas told, stopped, jumpedoffherbicycle,andflashedatorchovertowardstheSeven.‘Golly—hereyouall

are,bunchedtogether—youmustbefrozen!’

Binkiejumpedoffherbicycletoo,andwheeledittowardstheSeven.AtonceNabbergrowledandranouttowardsher,showingasetofdazzlingwhiteteeth.Binkiewasterrified.

‘STANDSTILL!’shoutedPeter,andBinkiestoodasifshewasturnedintostone.

‘What’s up?’ called Susie. ‘Why is that great dog guarding you? What’shappened?’

‘Can’ttellyounow!’yelledbackJack.‘Butyoucanhelpusalot.Goandtellthe policewe’re here and can’t get away because of this Alsatian. Theymayknowofadog-handlerwhocancomealonganddealwithhim.Thankgoodnessyoucameafterus—firsttimeI’veeverbeengladyou’resuchnuisances!’

‘Now don’t you talk like that to us!’ began Binkie, wheeling her bicycle alittle closer.Nabbergave suchahorriblegrowl that she shrieked in fright andwentbackwardsveryquickly indeed.Scampergaveasmallpiteouswhine.Hewas very, very unhappy to think that he wasn’t big enough to fight thisdeterminedAlsatian,andsendhimrunning.

‘Jack!’calledSusie.‘We’lldoasyousay—andwe’llbeasquickaswecan.Goodbyefornow!’

‘Well — Susie can be sensible after all,’ said Colin, surprised. ‘I alwaysthoughtshewastheworld’sprizefat-head.’

‘She’sallrightreally,’saidJack.‘She’llgostraight tothepoliceandthey’llbehereinajiffy.Susiecanbejollysensiblewhenshewantsto.’

TheSevenlistenedtothesoundofthegirls’shrillvoicesgettingfartherandfartheraway.Thebicyclebells rangonceor twice,and thennomorecouldbeheard.Scampergaveasmallwhine,andthenfloppeddownonthegroundagain.

‘Cheerup,Scamper.Weshan’thavetobehereallnight,afterall,’saidPeter,strokingthesoftsilkyhead.‘IjusthopethatNabberhasthesensenottoflyatapoliceman. He’s the sort of dog I’d much rather have as a friend than as anenemy.’

Nabber laydownwhen the twogirlshadgoneandgavea sigh, as if to say‘Whatanuisancethesechildrenare!Fancyhavingtoguardthemforhours!’

‘Cheerup,Nabber!’saidColin.‘Allnightshavetocometoanend.Thisonemayendsoonerthanyouthink.’

Nabber lay full length and stared at Colin, listening. Then he gave a mostenormousyawn,turnedround,andsatwithhisbacktothemall.

‘Doesn’tthinkmuchofus,that’splain,’saidJanet.‘ButIlikehim.Let’ssing,tocheerourselvesup.’

Sotheyallsangatthetopsoftheirvoices,muchtoNabber’samazement.Helifted his head and joined in with the most enormous howls, which madeeveryonelaughsomuchthatthesingingcametoanend.

‘We’dbetterlistenforthepolicenow,’saidPeter.‘Theyshouldbehereatanymoment.Hark—what’sthat!It’sthesoundofacar—HURRAY!’

Eleven

Nabbermeetshismatch

YES—itwascertainlyacar,and it soundedapowerfulone. Ithadextremelygoodheadlightstoo,whichlightedupthewoodsinratheraweirdmanner.

Itcametoastopjustaboutwherethetwogirlshadstoodwiththeirbicycles.Thenastentorianvoiceshouted,‘Areyouchildrenthere?’

‘YES!’yelledbackPeter.‘Butwedaren’tmovebecauseof theAlsatiandog.He’sguardingus.Can’tyouhearhimbarking?’

Assoonasthepolicecarhadswitchedoffitsengine,thepoliceheardNabberbarking.Whatabark!Itechoedallthroughthewood!

Thensuddenlyadarkvancameupthewoodlandroad,anddrewtoahaltjustbehindthepolicecar.

‘That’sapolicevan!’saidJack,excited.‘Isay,whatathingtohappentotheSecretSeven!Policetotherescue.Gosh—what’sthat?’

Agreatclamourhadbrokenoutfromthevanbehindthecar,andimmediatelyNabber went quitemad. He galloped round and round the bunch of children,barking and growling in a most unpleasant way. For some reason Scamperjoinedhim,addinghiswuffstothenoise.

Thismust be adream, I think,’ saidBarbara, rubbing her eyes. ‘It can’t bereallyhappening!’

Butitwasallreal—andsowerethepolicementhatjumpedfromthefirstcar,andmadetheirwaytowardstheSeven.AtonceNabbergrowledferociously,andbaredhisteeth.

‘Lookout,forgoodness’sake—he’llcomeforyouifyouwalkanynearer!’yelledColin.‘He’ssupposedtobeguardingustilldaylight.’

The two policemen stopped at once, and one called back to the van. ‘BigAlsatianloosehere,Harris.He’llhavetoberoundedupbeforewedoanything

more.Getyourtwoout.’

‘Two!Have they brought twoAlsatians!’ saidGeorge, in delight. ‘Golly—we’regoingtoseesomefun!’

Aman stepped from the dark van, holding two enormous, excited, pantingAlsatiansonastronglead.Theystrainedatthegreatleatherstrap,barking.Thenone smelt the scent of theAlsatian near the children, and gave such a blood-curdlinggrowlthateveryone’sheartbegantobeatveryfastindeed.

‘Ohplease—theywon’tfightNabber,willthey?’shoutedJanet.‘He’snotabaddog,reallyheisn’t.Don’tlethimgethurt,willyou?’

‘Hewon’t get hurt,missie, if he behaves sensibly,’ called theman holdingbackthetwodogs.‘Andkeepthatspanielclosetoyou,willyou?Don’tlethimmove if you canhelp it.And all of youkeep absolutely silent, and absolutelystillwhilemydogsgettowork.’

JanetpromptlytookScamper,whowasquiveringwithexcitement,ontoherkneeandheldhimastightlyasshecould.Sheneedn’thaveworried—Scamperhadnointentionofgettingmixedupwithdogssomuchbiggerthanhewas!

Thesevenchildrenneverforgotwhathappenedinthenextfewminutes.Notoneofthemhadseenatraineddog-handleratwork—dogsandmanunderstoodoneanothersowell that itseemedas if thetwopolicedogsknewwhatwasintheirmaster’smindalmostbeforehehadgivenacommand.

‘I’mgoingtoletmydogsgonow,’shoutedthedog-handler.‘Don’tscreamorshout,youchildren.Theywon’tharmyouatall—theywon’teven’noticeyou.They’lljustroundupthatotherdog,andbringhimtome.’

Indeadsilence,thechildrenwatchedeverythinginthelightgivenbythecar-lamps. Janet held Scamper so tightly that he whined. The two police-dogspatteredslowlyuptowheretheywereallsitting,andfixedtheireyesonNabber,whonowcrouchedbehindabigtree,histonguehangingout,hiseyesgleaminginthecar-lights.Ashewatchedthetwodogs,hebegantogrowl.

‘Roundhimup!’shoutedthedog-handler.‘Gettowork,Sasha!Now!’

Andattheword‘NOW!’Sashagaveagreatleapforward,thensideways,and

wassuddenlyrightbehindthesurprisedNabber.

‘Now you, Vanya!’ yelled the man. And there was the second dog, facingNabber,readytoflyathim,whicheverwayheturned.Nabbertriedtododgethiswayandthat,showinghisteethallthetime—andthensuddenlyheleaptrightoverthedogfacinghim,anddisappearedintothewoods.

‘FETCHHIM!’ yelled the handler. Therewas the noise of a scrimmage in theferns someway away, and thenNabber came flyingback to the’ children.Heleaptrightoverthewholebunchofthemastheysatthere,alarmed—andthenupracedSashaandVanya,leaping‘overthemtoo.Thegirlswerescared,buttheboysenjoyedit.

‘Quite a circus!’ whispered Peter to Jack, as they watched the three dogstearing round, leaping, dodging, Sasha and Vanya snapping at Nabber,sometimesdisappearingthroughthetreesforafewseconds,butalwayscomingbacktothehandler,whostillshoutedinstructionstothemfromtimetotime.

QuitesuddenlySashaleaptonNabberfrombehind,andgothimbythescruffof his neck. Nabber howled and tried to get free. Then he began to whinepiteously.

‘Right.Drophim,Sasha!’said thehandler. ‘Bringhimtome.DROPHIM!Hewon’t run away anymore. Nabber— that’s your name, isn’t it? Come here,then.Gooddog,then,comehere.’

Andtothechildren’sintensesurprise,thefierceNabber,headhangingdown,limpingalittleononeleg,wentobedientlytothedog-handler.Oneachsideofhim came Sasha andVanya, their tails wagging victoriously. Theman pattedNabberonthehead,fondledhisears,andthen,asNabberrolledoverindelight,tickled his tummy.’Sasha and Vanya watched solemnly, and waited for theirownrewardofpatsandpraise.

‘WELL!’saidGeorge,watching‘inamazement.‘Wouldn’tIlovetobeabletohandledogslikethat?I’lljollywelltraintobeadog-handlerassoonasI’moldenough.’

A police officer came up to the children. ‘Well, now the fun’s over, you’dbetter see ifyoucanall squash intoourcarandwe’ll runyouhome,’hesaid.Thosetwogirlswhocametotellusaboutthetroubleyouwerein,willbegladto

knowyou’resafe—andsowillyourparents,Ishouldthink.Butnow—howwas it you were here at night, with that dog on guard so that you were hisprisoners?Andwhosedogishe?’

And then, in thecar, thewhole talecameout,ofcourse—about thestolenmedals—themancalledTomSmithwhohadtoldthemtheywerehiddeninatree-holetoosmallforhisbighandtoslipinto—andhowthey,theSeven,hadhad the idea of coming to find the medals themselves — and had run intotrouble.

Bythistimetheywerealmostoutofthewoods,andinthelanethatledtothemain road. The police officer had listened carefully to the story, withoutinterrupting. ‘Doyouknow thenamesof thesemen—andcanyougiveusadescription?’heasked.‘I thinkthey’rethetwothatweareafterforaseriesofburglaries—andotherthings!’

‘Well—onesaidhisnamewasTomSmith—andhecalled theothermanWily,’beganPeter—andthenstoppedsuddenlyas theypassedbya little inncalledtheHareandHounds.Hecaughtatthepoliceman’sarm.

‘Sir—couldyoustopthecar?Iratherthinkthatwas.TomSmithrushingoutof the front door of that inn, withWily after him. I’m pretty sureWily wasshouting,too.Iexpectthey’vequarrelled—aboutthemedals!’

And then, to the policeman’s surprise, Peter began to laugh and laugh. Nowonder—forhehadthemedalssafelyinhisownpocket!Butthepolicedidn’tknow that— yet! Peterwas determined that the oldGeneral should have themedals delivered to him personally byColin— for that was what Colin hadpromisedtheoldman.

Thecarslowedandstoppedjustbythetwomen.TomwasfendingoffWily,andbothmenwereshoutingangrily.

Thepolicevaninfrontnoticedthatthesecondcarhadstopped,anditstoppedtoo,andreversed.Thepoliceofficerinthesecondcarjumpedoutandrantothedriverofthefirstone.

‘We’llpickupthesetwofellowsforquestioning,’hesaid.‘Buckup.Iratherthinkwe’vegot themenwe’vebeen looking for.ThatAlsatian inyourcar—Nabber—belongstooneofthem.’

Andthen, toTomSmith’ssurprise,andtoWily’shorror, thetwopolicemenboredownonthemandtookthemfirmlytothevan,wheretheywereputinwiththe three Alsatians. Nabber was too thrilled for words to see his master, andcovered himwith licks.Wilywas amazed to see his dog. ‘I’m dreaming!’ hesaid,strokingNabber.‘Yes,I’mdreaming!Nabber,Ileftyouwiththemkids—andhereyouarewiththepolice.Yes,I’mdreaming.Goodthingyou’reinmydream,too,Nabber—you’lllookafterme,won’tyou?’

‘I’mbeginningtofeelI’mdreamingtoo,’saidJanet,asthetwocarswentontheirwayagain,with sevenchildren, fourdogs, twopolicemen, adog-handlerand two prisoners. ‘Let’s hope we don’t have to pick up anyone or anythingelse!’

The twocars swept into thevillageand stoppedat a corner. ‘Nowyoukidstumbleout,’ said thepolice-officer.Timeyouwereall inbed!We’llbe roundtomorrowtoseeyou.Tellyourparentsthere’snothingtoworryabout—we’revery pleased with our night’s work. I only hope we’ll find the old General’smedalsinTomSmith’spocket.’

Youwon’t!They’restillinPeter’spocket!OnlyONEpersonisgoingtogivebackthemedalstoGeneralBranksome—andthat’sColin,ofcourse!

Twelve

Welldone,SecretSeven

ALL the children’s parents were extremely relieved to see them safely home.Theyeachsaidthesamething.

‘WHEREhaveyoubeenatthistimeofnight?AndWHAThaveyoubeendoing?YouareNOTtodothiskindofthing—wewereTERRIBLYworried!’

Susiehadalsobeenveryworried.ShewasverygladindeedtoseeherbrotherJack coming in at the front gate. She had been watching anxiously for him.Binkiewaswithher,alsowatching.

‘Therehe is!’ shoutedSusie, rushing to the frontdoor. ‘Inapolicecar, too.Thepolicemusthavebeenquickoffthemark,Binkie.’

‘Yes. But I was pretty scaredwhenwewent to the police-station, and toldthemabouttheSevenandthathorridAlsatiandogguardingthem,’saidBinkie.‘I’msurethatfirstpolicemanwesawdidn’tbelieveus.’

‘Jack!Didthepolicerescueyou?’shoutedSusie,andtoJack’sgreatsurprise,sherushedtohimandgavehimabear-hug.‘Iwassoworried!’shesaid.‘Whathappened?’

Jack told her how the police cars had come, and how the wonderful dog-handlerandhischargeshadtamedtheferociousNabber.‘IwishI’dseenhim!’saidBinkie‘YouSecretSevendohavemarvelloustimestogether.’

‘Well— this adventurewaspretty scary sometimes,’ said Jack. ‘Honestly Idon’t know what we’d have done if you and Binkie hadn’t come along —snoopers though you are! By theway, Susie, how did you knowwherewe’dgone?‘Didyoulookinmynotebook?IexpectImadeanotethereaboutwhereweweregoing.Youshouldn’treadpeople’sprivatewriting.’

‘I know,’ said Susie. ‘But I get so curiouswhen I’m sure that you and theothershavesomethingexcitingonhand—andwhenIfoundyournotebookon

thefloor,well—Ijustcouldn’thelpmyself.IpickeditupandreaditandthenItelephonedBinkie,andwetookoutourbikestofollowyou.Jollygoodthingwedid!’

‘Well—itwas,asithappened,’saidJack.‘Butitwasasnoopythingtodo,Susie.Onlygirlsdothatsortofthing.’

‘Aha!DoesJanetsnoopthen?AndBarbaraandPam?’criedBinkie.

‘No.Ofcoursenot,’saidJack,andhurriedlychangedthesubject.‘Anyway,itwas jollygoodofyouandSusie tohelpuswhenwewere insuchafix. Iwasscared stiffof thatAlsatian. I thinkhisname’saverygoodone,don’tyou—Nabber!I’mgladhedidn’tnabme!’

The nextmorningwas rather exciting.The police saw all theSecret Seven,and listened to theirstoryof the findingof thehiddenmedals in the tree. ‘Butwhatwe’dreallyliketoknow,’saidoneofthepoliceofficers,‘iswhereonearththemedals are!Theyweren’t in the pockets of either of the thieves, and theyseemed as puzzled as wewere to knowwhere they had disappeared to. TomSmithproducedthemedalcaseoutofhispocket—butwhenheopenedit,nomedalswerethere!Itwasempty!Wesearchedbothmen,butfoundnothing.’

‘Strange,’saidPeter,solemnly,andJanetnodded.

‘Verycurious,’saidBarbaraandPam,tryingnottogiggle.

‘Mostextraordinary!’saidGeorgeandJack.

‘Itwouldbeinterestingtoknowwherethemedalsare,’saidColin,frowning.

Theothersgrinnedbehindhisback,marvellingthatColincouldkeepsuchastraight face. They all knew that he had the glittering medals in his pocket,carefullywrappedintissuepaperthathehadtakenfromhismother’scupboard.Peterhadhandedthemtohimjustanhourago,andhadtoldhimthathe,andhealone,mustgivethemtotheoldGeneral,assoonashehadachance.

Colin had been a little uneasywhen Peter handed him themedals. ‘You’reSUREthatitdoesn’tmattermehandingthembacktotheGeneral,insteadofthepolice taking them tohim?’hesaid,anxiously.Theywon’tbeangrywithme,will they? It’s only because we don’t want him to have to hand out a large

rewardthathecan’tpossiblyafford.’

‘Look—yougo andgive them tohimas soon as youget a chance,’Petersaid. ‘Iknowweallhada share indiscovering them,Colin—but itwasyouwhopromisedtobringthemback.’

AndnowthetimehadcometotakethemedalstotheoldGeneral.Colinfeltdecidedlynervous.‘HowshallIexplainitall?’hethought.‘HowcanItellhimall aboutTomSmith andWily andNabber? I shall get into a terriblemuddle,andsowillhe.IthinkI’lljustpushthemintohishand.’

Hedidn’tgooverthegardenwallthistime,butknockedpolitelyatthefrontdoor.Emmaopenedit.‘Why,it’syou,MasterColin,’shesaid.‘Comeawayin.Thepolicearehere,butthey’llbegoneinaminute.’

‘The police? Oh, then I’ll come another time,’ began Colin, in fright, butEmmahustledhimalongthepassageandintothesitting-room.

TheoldGeneralwasthere,andsowerethepoliceofficerswhohaddriventhepolicecarsthenightbefore.

‘Theboyfromnextdoor toseeyou,’ saidEmma,pushingColinbeforeher.GeneralBranksomebeamedatColin.

‘Goodmorning,Colin.I’vesomethingtotellyou!Thepolicehavebroughtmebackthecasemymedalswerein,andtheyareratherhopefulofgettingbackthemedalstoo.Whatdoyouthinkofthat?’

‘Sir,wehaveNOideaatpresentwherethemedalsare,’saidonepoliceofficer,hurriedly.HeturnedtoColin.‘Perhapsyoucanmakethegentlemanunderstandthatwereallyhaven’tmuchhope,’hesaid.‘Wejustthoughthe’dlikethecaseback,medalsornomedals.’

‘Colinhere saidhe’dbringmebackmymedals,’ said theGeneral,beaminground.‘AndIbelievehim.He’sthatsortofboy—doeswhathesayshewilldo.Finetypeoflad.Livesnextdoortome.’

‘MayIhavethemedalcase,please?’askedColin,solemnly,andtheGeneralpickedup theemptyboxandgave it tohim.Colinopened it.Thenheputhishandinhispocket,andtookoutthelittlebundleofmedalswrappedcarefullyin

softtissuepaper.Heunwrappedthemonebyoneandputthemgentlybackintotheirplacesintheleathercase.

The two policemen couldn’t believe their eyes! They watched Colin, tooamazed to speak. The medals! Shining gold medals! Perhaps they weredreaming?

TheGeneralwatchedtoo,abeamingsmileonhiswrinkledoldface.‘Ha,whatdidItellyou?’hesaidtothetwosurprisedmen.‘Itoldyouthisboysaidhe’dget themback—Iknewhe’dkeephisword.He’s thatkindofboy.’HE shallhavethereward!FIFTYPOUNDS!’

‘No, thank you,’ saidColin, hurriedly. ‘NO, THANKYOUVERYMUCH, SIR.Wedon’twantthereward.That’swhyIwastoldtobringthembacktoyoumyself,sir—sothatyouwouldn’thavetopayoutsuchalargesumofmoney.We—er—weenjoyedgettingthembackverymuchindeed,sir.’

The twopoliceofficers staredatColin in silence.Theyhadbeenpleasedatleast tobringbacktheemptymedalcase—but thisboyhadbroughtbackthemedalsthemselves!

‘Er—we’llhave toaskyoua fewquestions,boy,’saidoneof theofficers.‘Thefirstthingis—wheredidyouandyourfriendsgetthese?We’vehuntedallovertheplaceforthem.’

‘Theywereinaholeinatree,sir,’saidColin,beginningtoenjoyhimself.

‘Indeed—anddidyouputthemtherebyanychance?’askedtheofficer.

‘Ohno.Wilyputthemthere,’saidColin,solemnly.‘Hehassuchsmallhands,sir.’

TheGeneralhadnowputallhismedalsbackintothecase,andhadhungitupinitsusualplaceoverthemantelpiece.Hewenttothedoorandshouted,lookingtenyearsyounger.

‘EMMA!Ihavecompany!Bringsomethingtoeatanddrink.EMMA,MYMEDALS

AREBACK!’

The two police officers couldn’t stay to dial and eat and drinkwith the old

man,so theysaidgoodbye,pattedColinon theback,andwent, lookingratherpuzzled.

‘Pitythatboydidn’tcomeandtellus,’saidthefirstofficer.

‘No.No, I think itwas right thathe should take themback to theGeneral,’saidthesecondofficer.‘Itdoesseemthathepromisedtofindthemforhim.’

‘Queer,that,’saidthefirstofficer.‘Hecan’tpossiblyhaveknownwheretheywere.’

‘Well—ifpeoplevery,verymuchwanttodosomethingforsomebodyelse,somehow they findaway,’ said the secondofficer. ‘Haven’tyouevernoticedthat?’

The old General was as happy as a boy all that day, and how he enjoyedhearing thewhole story fromColin!He told Emma about ‘that boy, Colin’ ascoreoftimes.‘IfonlyIcouldthinkofsomethingtogivehim—andsomethingforhisfriendstoo!’hesaid.‘Yousee,Emma,theywon’ttakethereward.Therearesevenof them—and twogirlshelpedbesides,calledBinkieandSusie—andIbelievethere’sadogcalledRun-Along,orsomethinglikethat.’

‘Oh, you mean Scamper!’ said Emma. ‘Now look, General, what do youyourselffeelmostproudof,whatdoyoumostlovelookingatandwearing?’

‘Well,mymedals,ofcourse,’saidtheGeneral.

‘Right.Thenwhydon’tyougivethosechildrenmedalstoo—justlittleones— with their names on one side — and with “FOR BRAVERY” the other side.Because,fromallI’veheard,theywerebrave!’

‘Emma,youdo thinkoffineideas,’saidtheGeneral,pleased.‘Ofcourse—justthething!Medals!AndI’llaskifIcangototheirnextmeetingandpinthemallon.Ha—whatafinetimeweshallhave!’

Sonextweekthereistobeanextraspecialmeetingdownintheshed,withtheGeneral presiding, and pinning on tenmedals—yes,Binkie andSusie are tohaveoneeachtoo.Petersaysthatisonlyfair.

Ten,didIsay?Letmesee—sevenfortheSecretSeven,oneeachforBinkie

andSusie.That’snine.

‘Wuff-wuff-wuff!’Oh,ofcourse,Scamper,thetenthoneisforyou.Youwereintheadventure,too.Howproudyouwillbewhenyouraceaboutwithamedalswingingfromthefrontofyourcollar!CongratulationstoyouandalltheSecretSeven—andmayyouhavemanymoreadventures!