"Blyton, Enid - The Five Find-Outers 15 - The Mystery of Banshee Towers 1.1" - читать интересную книгу автора (Blyton Enid)

"Fatty, I promise you I'm telling the truth," said Ern. "I promise you! Now look - see that rock there - and the sea swirling up to it - and that wave coming up behind? Well, Fatty, _yesterday there was a little red boat_ painted on that wave, with two tiny sailors in it. I noticed it particularly, and I thought to meself, well, the artist put in that boat just so's people looking at his picture would realize how enormous the cliffs were, and how grand the sea was, swirling round the rocks. See? If the artist hadn't put a boat there, I wouldn't have known how steep and high the cliffs were, so - so..."

"So the picture would have lost some of its grandeur, you mean," said Fatty, with much interest. "Ern, this is, as you say, very queer. In fact, most peculiar. _Why_ did someone paint out that boat? It must have been the Frenchman who did it, of course."

"Perhaps he doesn't like boats," said Ern. "Maybe he gets seasick. But Fatty, you can't see any marks where he might have washed the boat off the picture, or painted it out with greens or blues! That's what beats me!"

"It certainly is very strange," said Fatty, extremely puzzled. "You really _are_ quite sure, Ern, that the boat was there yesterday?"

"Well, Bets was with me when we looked carefully at the picture." said Ern. "She liked the painting too. I expect she'd remember the boat all right. We'll ask her."

"Ern, listen - don't mention this to anyone - not to anyone at all." said Fatty. "I can't at the moment think why anyone should remove - or wash out - a boat from a sea-picture, but I'd like to think about it before we tell anyone. See?"

"Right," said Ern. "Now I'll go and look at some of the others. Maybe _all_ the boats have been removed!" But no - those pictures that had boats in them, still had their boats - and their clouds - and their waves. Ern could see nothing missing in them. Nor could Fatty.

"Look - there's the Frenchman who was copying the picture yesterday," said Ern suddenly. "He's copying that small one over there now. Let's go and ask him if _he_ removed that little boat from the big picture."

But before they could get to him, Mr Engler, the Austrian, had gone over to him, and was in close conversation. Then the two men arose and went into the Armour Room, finally disappearing into a small room beyond.

"No banshee wailing today, Fatty," said Ern, with a grin, as they walked round the show of sea-pictures.

"Not the right day!" said Fatty, and immediately fell into such deep thought that he didn't hear a word of what Ern was saying to him. _"Not the right day?"_ Why was one special day of the week the "right" day? Fatty didn't believe in the Banshee, even although he had felt very scared when it had wailed the day before.

"Ern, I have a feeling I'd like to go and have a look down that trap-door hole again," he said, suddenly. "You keep watch for me, see, and give a whistle if you see anyone coming. All the artists are gone except that Frenchman, and as far as I can see he's having a good heart-to-heart talk with Mr Engler - goodness knows what about. I wish I did!"

He and Ern went into the Armour Room, and Ern stationed himself in the middle, so that he could watch all doors, and hear anyone approaching from any direction. Fatty went quietly to the great fireplace. He managed to move the cauldron to one side, and saw the trap-door underneath as before. He turned to Ern. "Everything safe?" he said, and Ern nodded. Not a footstep was to be heard anywhere, coming across the stone floors, not a voice echoed.

Fatty pulled up the trap-door lid, and peered down. Yes - there were steps leading downwards. To what? To the banshee - and maybe her machinery? Where was the _lower_ entrance to this passage through the hill - the one the dogs must have found and taken to get up to Banshee Towers, and scrabble about under the trap-door? It must be a very well-hidden one, somewhere on the deserted hillside!

Fatty wished he dared to go down the steps and see what he could find. But he might be a long time gone, and he couldn't leave Ern behind. Nor did he want to take Ern with him. Neither of them had torches, and it would be dangerous.

He heard a sudden hiss from Ern, and stood up at once. There was just time to shut the trap-door and replace the great iron cauldron, so that the trap-door lid could not be seen!

Just in time! Footsteps sounded in the little room beyond, and voices. Mr Engler and the artist were coming back! Fatty beckoned to Ern and the two fled into the hall and then through the turnstiles. The turnstile man was not there and to Fatty's surprise he suddenly saw him walking out of the hall-entrance with Mr Engler and the artist!

"So they are all three buddies," thought Fatty. "Well, I don't know what it means, but it means _some_thing! I've got to work all this out, somehow. It's certainly adding up to a mystery of some sort - but I can't for the life of me see what or why or how!"

He and Ern went to get the two dogs, who, tired of being in the shed, were whining and pawing at the gate. They barked frantically and joyfully when the two boys came up. They hopped into their boxes on the rear mudguards and Fatty and Ern were soon sailing dangerously fast down the steep Banshee Hill.

"I think I'll call a Meeting tomorrow," Fatty said to Ern. "Something's going on up there that I can't make head or tail of. If we get the others to hear what we have to say and we all talk about it, we might see daylight. Good thing we went up, Ern, or you wouldn't have spotted the missing boat. I'm sure that's a clue to the mystery, whatever it is - but it's just about the most puzzling clue we've ever had! We don't even know what the mystery _is_, or if the clue really belongs to it. Whew!"



12 - AN INTERESTING TALK - AND A GOOD IDEA!


Fatty telephoned Larry and Daisy that night, and also Pip and Bets. He would not tell them why the Meeting was being called, and they all felt rather excited. "Is it a Mystery, Fatty? Oh, do say it's another Mystery!" said Bets. "Have you any clues yet?"

"One," said Fatty. "And I don't even know what it's a clue _to_ - or if it _is_ a clue! Tell you all about it tomorrow. Be here at ten, please. Actually, it's a clue Ern found - I didn't even notice it!"