"That"s better," said Gerald, and he told his story. As he told it some of the white mystery and magic of the moonlit gardens got into his voice and his words, so that when he told of the statues that came alive, and the great beast that was alive through all its stone, Kathleen thrilled responsive, clutching his arm, and even Jimmy ceased to kick the wall with his boot heels, and listened open-mouthed.
Then came the thrilling tale of the burglars, and the warning letter flung into the peaceful company of Mabel, her aunt, and the bread-and-b.u.t.ter pudding. Gerald told the story with the greatest enjoyment and such fullness of detail that the church clock chimed half-past eleven as he said, "Having done all that human agency could do, and further help being despaired of, our gallant young detective Hullo, there"s Mabel!"
There was. The tail-board of a cart shed her almost at their feet.
"I couldn"t wait any longer," she explained, "when you didn"t come.
And I got a lift. Has anything more happened?" The burglars had gone when Bates got to the strong-room.
"You don"t mean to say all that wheeze is real?" Jimmy asked.
"Of course it"s real," said Kathleen. "Go on, Jerry. He"s just got to where he threw the stone into your bread-and-b.u.t.ter pudding, Mabel. Go on.
Mabel climbed on to the wall. "You"ve got visible again quicker than I did," she said.
Gerald nodded and resumed:
"Our story must be told in as few words as possible, owing to the fish-frying taking place at twelve, and it"s past the half-hour now.
Having left his missive to do its warning work, Gerald de Sherlock Holmes sped back, wrapped in invisibility, to the spot where by the light of their dark-lanterns the burglars were still still burgling with the utmost punctuality and despatch. I didn"t see any sense in running into danger, so I just waited outside the pa.s.sage where the steps are you know?"
Mabel nodded.
"Presently they came out, very cautiously, of course, and looked about them. They didn"t see me so deeming themselves un.o.bserved they pa.s.sed in silent Indian file along the pa.s.sage one of the sacks of silver grazed my front part and out into the night."
"But which way?"
"Through the little looking-gla.s.s room where you looked at yourself when you were invisible. The hero followed swiftly on his invisible tennis-shoes. The three miscreants instantly sought the shelter of the groves and pa.s.sed stealthily among the rhododendrons and across the park, and his voice dropped and he looked straight before him at the pinky convolvulus netting a heap of stones beyond the white dust of the road "the stone things that come alive, they kept looking out from between bushes and under trees and I saw them all right, but they didn"t see me. They saw the burglars though, right enough; but the burglars couldn"t see them.
Rum, wasn"t it?"
"The stone things?" Mabel had to have them explained to her.
"I never saw them come alive," she said, "and I"ve been in the gardens in the evening as often as often.
"I saw them," said Gerald stiffly.
"I know, I know," Mabel hastened to put herself right with him; "what I mean to say is I shouldn"t wonder if they re only visible when you"re invisible the liveness of them, I mean, not the stoniness."
Gerald understood, and I"m sure I hope you do.
"I shouldn"t wonder if you"re right," he said. "The castle garden"s enchanted right enough; but what I should like to know is how and why. I say, come on, I"ve got to catch Johnson before twelve. We"ll walk as far as the market and then we"ll have to run for it."
"But go on with the adventure," said Mabel. "You can talk as we go." "Oh, do it is so awfully thrilling!"
This pleased Gerald, of course.
"Well, I just followed, you know, like in a dream, and they got out the cavy way you know, where we got in and I jolly well thought I d lost them; I had to wait till they"d moved off down the road so that they shouldn"t hear me rattling the stones, and I had to tear to catch them up. I took my shoes off I expect my stockings are done for. And I followed and followed and followed and they went through the place where the poor people live, and right down to the river. And
I say, we must run for it."
So the story stopped and the running began.
They caught Johnson in his own back-yard washing at a bench against his own back-door.
"Look here, Johnson," Gerald said, "what"ll you give me if I put you up to winning that fifty pounds reward?"
"Halves," said Johnson promptly, "and a clout "long-side your head if you was coming any of your nonsense over me."
"It"s not nonsense," said Gerald very impressively. "If you"ll let us in I"ll tell you all about it. And when you"ve caught the burglars and got the swag back you just give me a quid for luck. I won"t ask for more."
"Come along in, then," said Johnson, "if the young ladies"ll excuse the towel. But I bet you do want something more off of me. Else why not claim the reward yourself?"
"Great is the wisdom of Johnson he speaks winged words." The children were all in the cottage now, and the door was shut. "I want you never to let on who told you. Let them think it was your own unaided pluck and far-sightedness."
"Sit you down," said Johnson, "and if you"re kidding you"d best send the little gells home afore I begin on you."
"I am not kidding," replied Gerald loftily, "never less. And anyone but a policeman would see why I don"t want anyone to know it was me. I found it out at dead of night, in a place where I wasn"t supposed to be; and there"d be a beastly row if they found out at home about me being out nearly all night. Now do you see, my bright-eyed daisy?"
Johnson was now too interested, as Jimmy said afterwards, to mind what silly names he was called. He said he did see and asked to see more.
"Well, don"t you ask any questions, then. I"ll tell you all it"s good for you to know. Last night about eleven I was at Yalding Towers.
No it doesn"t matter how I got there or what I got there for and there was a window open and I got in, and there was a light. And it was in the strong-room, and there were three men, putting silver in a bag."
"Was it you give the warning, and they sent for the police?"
Johnson was leaning eagerly forward, a hand on each knee.
"Yes, that was me. You can let them think it was you, if you like.
You were off duty, weren"t you?"
"I was," said Johnson, "in the arms of Murphy "
"Well, the police didn"t come quick enough. But I was there a lonely detective. And I followed them."
"You did?"
"And I saw them hide the booty and I know the other stuff from Houghton"s Court"s in the same place, and I heard them arrange about when to take it away."
"Come and show me where," said Johnson, jumping up so quickly that his Windsor arm-chair fell over backwards, with a crack, on the red-brick floor.
"Not so," said Gerald calmly; "if you go near the spot before the appointed time you"ll find the silver, but you"ll never catch the thieves."
"You"re right there." The policeman picked up his chair and sat down in it again. "Well?"
"Well, there"s to be a motor to meet them in the lane beyond the boat-house by Sadler"s Rents at one o clock tonight. They"ll get the things out at half-past twelve and take them along in a boat. So now"s your chance to fill your pockets with c.h.i.n.k and cover yourself with honour and glory."
"So help me!" Johnson was pensive and doubtful still "So help me!
you couldn"t have made all this up out of your head."
"Oh yes, I could. But I didn"t. Now look here. It"s the chance of your lifetime, Johnson! A quid for me, and a still tongue for you, and the job"s done. Do you agree?"
"Oh, I agree right enough," said Johnson. "I agree. But if you"re coming any of your larks "