Mystery of Tally-Ho Cottage (3 page)

‘That’s a wig,’ muttered Daisy to Bets. ‘Poor thing, I expect she’s bald.’

The woman was not a very attractive sight, for, besides the wig, she wore dark glasses. She coughed now and again, and pulled a thick green scarf round her throat and chin. Then she sniffed loudly.

‘Bob Larkin! You come on in. I’m not going to make my cold worse coming out here and yelling for you. You come on in!’

The man suddenly saw the little dog hiding in the bushes. He pounced on her and gripped her. She whined in sudden fear. The man shook her angrily.

‘I’ll teach you to slip out like this! I’ll give you a real good lamming!’

‘Here, hold on,’ said Fatty, at once. ‘She’s only a little thing.’

The man swung round and peered short-sightedly at the watching children. He hadn’t noticed them before. Buster gave a sudden growl.

The man looked hard at the little Scottie, then at the children again. ‘Why - you’re the kids whose dog caused all that rumpus yesterday!’ he said. ‘Mr. Goon’s been round to see me about that. That dog of yours is going to get into trouble, see? Now you get off that gate and go away - and don’t you start telling me what I’m to do! I’m in charge here, and I’ll complain to that bobby if you make any trouble!’

This wasn’t pleasant hearing. Bets felt frightened, and took hold of Buster’s collar. Buster’s nose was still sticking through the bars of the gate, and he growled when Bob Larkin took hold of Poppet’s collar very roughly and dragged her up the garden.

‘Yes - you’d like to go to Poppet’s help as much as we would, Buster, old fellow,’ said Fatty, frowning after the man. ‘But you’ve got into enough trouble for the time being. I’m sorry that fellow recognized us.’

‘I suppose he and Goon have cooked up a whole lot of complaints between them,’ said Larry. ‘Well, at least you know that Goon’s been to see this Bob Larkin, and you won’t be surprised when he tells you tomorrow!’

‘What an unpleasant pair,’ said Fatty, as they walked on. They suddenly heard dismal howls coming from the cottage and looked miserably at one another. Poppet must be getting her ‘lamming’. Horrid old man!

Buster growled and ran back to the gate, pawing at it. ‘Good old Buster!’ said Pip. ‘Sorry we can’t let you do a bit of rescue work!’

They went back feeling rather subdued. An interview with Goon tomorrow - and an upset over a dear little dog like Poppet. Things didn’t look too good! Even Fatty couldn’t think of any jokes, and they parted with hardly a smile.

‘Tomorrow at Goon’s, at ten o’clock,’ said Fatty, when they said goodbye.

‘Right,’ said the others, and went off looking extremely gloomy!

Fatty’s mother had already inquired why Mr. Goon had wanted him on the telephone. When he told her she looked vexed.

‘How unfortunate! Who is this woman that Buster tripped up?’

‘I don’t know,’ said Fatty. ‘She and her husband appeared to be going off on some trip or other, and four or five of their friends came to see them off. They were pretty noisy. I think they live at that house called Tally-Ho down by the river - next to the Daniels. I don’t know what their name is.’

‘Oh - those people!’ said his mother.

‘You sound as if you know them, but don’t want to!’ said Fatty, amused.

‘I know which people you mean, but I certainly don’t have anything to do with them,’ said Mrs. Trotteville. ‘They have behaved very badly since they took Mrs. Peters’ house while she went to America - giving silly parties, going out in boats at all hours of the night - and, so I hear, not paying their bills! Let me see - what is their name? Oh yes - Lorenzo, I think!’

‘Well, it was they who complained to Goon about Buster,’ said Fatty.

‘I see,’ said his mother. ‘I heard they were rather fourth-rate film-actors, both the man and the woman - but haven’t had any film-work to do for some time. Anyway, my dear boy, if they have gone away, Goon can’t make much of a complaint. He’s just being unpleasant, I expect.’

‘Well, I’m going now, Mother,’ said Fatty. ‘I hope I come home all in one piece - and I hope Buster leaves Goon all in one piece, too!’

‘You do exaggerate so, Frederick!’ said Mrs. Trotteville. ‘Just be firm with that tiresome policeman, and don’t take too much notice of what he says!’

‘I won’t,’ said Fatty, feeling suddenly quite cheerful. ‘Goodbye, Mother - I’ll tell you what happens as soon as I get back.’

He set off on his bicycle, Buster in the basket. The others were already waiting for him outside Goon’s house. Bets looked rather pale and Fatty squeezed her arm.

‘Cheer up! We’re going to have some fun. I’ve got a lot saved up to say to Goon!’

They went to Goon’s front door and knocked on it. Rat-a-tatta-tat-tat-TAT!

There came the sound of slippered feet and the door opened. It was the woman who came to clean the house for Mr. Goon. She stared at them in surprise.

‘We’ve come to see Mr. Goon,’ said Fatty. ‘He told us to be here at ten o’clock.’

‘Did he now?’ said the woman, looking as if she didn’t quite know what to do. ‘Well, he didn’t say anything to me about that. He went out in a hurry like, about half an hour ago - maybe he’ll be back soon.’

‘We’ll come in and wait, then,’ said Fatty firmly. ‘He said ten o’clock, and it’s exactly ten now.’

A clock in Goon’s office began to strike just as if it had heard what Fatty said. The woman motioned them into the hall.

‘I’d better not put you into Mr. Goon’s office,’ she said. ‘He’s got private things in there - important things. I don’t have to move so much as a sheet of paper if I dust in there.’

‘We’ll wait in the parlour then,’ said Fatty, and they all marched into a musty, fusty little room full of the smell of pipe-smoke. ‘Pooh - let’s leave the door open. What a smell!’

‘I’ll be out in the garden hanging up the washing,’ said the woman, ‘but I’ll hear Mr. Goon when he comes and tell him you’re here.’

‘Right,’ said Fatty, and the woman disappeared. They looked round the room. There was a large photograph on the mantelpiece of Goon’s mother and father and family. The five children went to look at it in delight.

‘Pa Goon looks as fat as Goon is now,’ said Larry. ‘And oh look - this podge of a boy with eyes sticking out of his head must he Goon!’

They all chuckled at the sight of Goon as a boy. ‘He’s very like Ern,’ said Bets, and, indeed, he was! Ern was one of Goon’s nephews, who had once been to stay with him and had a most unpleasant time!

‘I wonder what Ern’s doing,’ said Bets, remembering the admiration he had had for Fatty. ‘He came to see you just before Christmas, Fatty, to give you a Christmas present he’d made you - and he almost burst into tears when he heard you were in Switzerland.’

‘Poor Ern,’ said Fatty. ‘I’ve no doubt he’ll turn up again with whatever it is. Hallo - is that Goon?’

It was - and judging by the heavy tramp of feet in the hall, there were two others with him. Fatty debated what to do. Should he go and announce himself? But if Goon had visitors, he wouldn’t be too pleased to be interrupted.

‘We’d better wait a bit,’ he said to the others. ‘Perhaps that woman will hear him and go and tell him we are waiting.’

‘She’s busy talking to the woman next door,’ said Bets, looking out of the window. ‘How they can understand what the other is saying, I really don’t know - they’re both talking at once!’

Voices came from the office next to the room the children were sitting in. First they were fairly quiet, and then they became loud. The children heard various words, and at first took no notice.

Then a word came that made Fatty sit up. ‘Lorenzo!’ Now, where had he just recently heard that name? It certainly rang a bell!

‘They’ve got to be traced!’ said a voice that was not Goon’s. ‘These Lorenzos are the ones we want, I’m sure. Get hold of anyone who knows anything about them. Get hold of their best friends here and ask questions, and…”

The voice fell and the next words could not be heard. Fatty listened in wonder. He remembered now where he had heard the name Lorenzo - his mother had said it was the name of the people who owned Poppet the little poodle.

‘Funny!’ thought Fatty, ‘it sounds as if they’ve run into trouble. I hope they have - if so, old Goon won’t bother about Buster!’

There was the sound of movement in the little office, and then footsteps. The visitors must be going!

‘Well, goodbye, Goon,’ said a voice. ‘You’ll have to get going on this - it’s a big thing. Pity we’ve just missed those rascals! Find out what you can from the Larkins - they may be able to tell you something. If we can’t get our hands on the Lorenzos, we might at least be able to get hold of that picture. So long!’

There was the tramp of feet to the front gate. Fatty sat still, feeling startled. Why - what was this going on? Something had unexpectedly cropped up, that was certain. A sudden feeling of excitement surged up in him - it might be a Mystery! Something was Up! Something had to be Found Out! He’d tackle Goon about it and get the Five Find-Outers on the job at once!

Bets was surprised to see Fatty’s face suddenly go red with excitement. She thought he was feeling nervous at having to meet Goon and she slipped her hand through his arm. Fatty never even noticed it! He was thinking so very hard. What could the Lorenzos have done? What was this ‘picture’? He must find out, he must!

Goon came back from the front gate humming a tuneless song. He was evidently feeling pleased with life. He didn’t go back into the office but walked straight into the parlour, not knowing that anyone was in it.

He stopped dead when he saw the five children there, Buster safely on Fatty’s knee. Buster gave tongue at once and tried to leap off, but Fatty held on to his collar.

‘What’s all this?’ thundered Mr. Goon. ‘What are you here for?’

Fatty stood up. ‘Well, you said ten o’clock, and it’s now twenty past,’ he said. ‘Perhaps you’re too busy with the Lorenzo case to see us now?’

Mr. Goon looked extremely startled. ‘The - the Lorenzo case?’ he said. ‘What do you know about that?’

‘Not much,’ said Fatty honestly. ‘We couldn’t help overhearing a few things just now, that’s all.’

Mr. Goon lost his temper. ‘Oho! Listening with your ear to the keyhole, I suppose? Eavesdropping on the Law! There’s a penalty for that kind of thing, Mister Snoopy, let me tell you that! How dare you listen to private matters?’

‘I didn’t. I couldn’t help hearing,’ said Fatty. ‘We all heard a few things. Short of stopping up our ears we couldn’t help but hear. As for listening at the keyhole, that’s nonsense. Your door was wide open and you know it.’

‘Now, none of your cheek,’ said Goon, beginning to go purple. ‘I remember now - I told you to come about this here Pest of a Dog of course. Yes - a serious complaint has been made, very serious.’

He took out his notebook and looked through it, while the Five gazed at him. Larry, Daisy, Pip and Bets hadn’t the remotest idea what Fatty had been talking about, of course, because they didn’t know who or what these mysterious ‘Lorenzos’ were.

‘I know that the Lorenzos made a kind of complaint yesterday,’ said Fatty, ‘and I know that you’ve been to see the Larkins, who are in charge of Poppet… and…’

‘How do you know that?’ almost shouted Mr. Goon. ‘Snooping round - interfering - I can’t get rid of you. You’re a Toad of a Boy. I always said so! Now about this here dog of yours…’

‘If the Lorenzos have gone off and nobody knows where, any complaint they made is not likely to be of any use to you,’ said Fatty scornfully. ‘Hadn’t you better forget about Buster, and concentrate on finding the Lorenzos - or the picture, whatever it is, Mr. Goon?’

Mr. Goon knew when he was beaten. He shut his notebook and began to bluster. ‘Well, if there’s anybody else makes a single complaint about that dog - a single complaint, I say - he’ll soon learn what happens to dogs that are Out of Control. Time he did too. If ever there was a more aggravating dog - yes, and a more aggravating set of children, I’d like to hear of them.’

‘I’ll be sure to let you know if ever we do hear of any,’ said Fatty, in his most courteous voice, the one that always drove poor Goon to fury. ‘Well, I take it you don’t need us any more - unless you’d like to tell us a bit about this new case, so that we might help you!’

‘GAH!’ said Mr. Goon furiously, and drove the Five out before him, Buster barking madly. They all went out of the front gate and Mr. Goon bellowed over it, almost shaking his fist at them.

‘And if you try Interfering with the Law, and messing about in this case, and telling me Clues that aren’t Clues, I’ll come and tell your parents!’ he shouted.

‘Mr. Goon, Mr. Goon, you’ll be had up for a Breach of the Peace,’ said Fatty solemnly. ‘You’re making everyone look out of their windows.’

Mr. Goon retreated hurriedly into his house, muttering fiercely. The children got on their bicycles and rode off.

‘A slight victory to us, I think,’ said Fatty happily. ‘Buster, you can breathe again!’

NOT SO GOOD!

The chief topic of conversation that day was the five children’s interview with Goon. Larry, Pip, Daisy and Bets could hardly wait till they got to Fatty’s shed to ask him what he meant about the Lorenzos.

‘Who are they? How did you know about them?’ demanded Larry.

‘I didn’t. But my mother happened to mention this morning that the people who owned Poppet were called the Lorenzos,’ said Fatty. ‘So when I heard the name spoken by that other policeman - or perhaps he was a sergeant by his manner to Goon - well, it just rang a bell, and I knew they were all talking about the people who made a complaint about Buster!’

‘But what have they done - the Lorenzos, I mean?’ asked Bets.

‘I don’t know any more than you do,’ said Fatty. ‘Except that they seem to have gone away just when the police wanted them for something. And there’s something about a picture too. My mother told me that they didn’t pay their bills, so perhaps the trouble is about that!’

‘Is it going to be a mystery?’ asked Pip.

‘I hope so,’ said Fatty cheerfully. ‘And if it is, old Buster here led us to it - didn’t you, Buster? You’ve got a nose for mysteries now, haven’t you?’