20 philip tells a strange story
‘we’d better get on the bed, in case those awful men come back,’ said dinah. ‘what will you do ifthey do, philip?’
‘i shall hear the grating noise the stone makes when it moves, and i’ll hop out of the bed and getunderneath it,’ said philip. ‘i don’t really think the men will suspect there is anyone here but you –they’re not likely suddenly to make a search in the middle of the night!’
there was plenty of room for them all on the enormous old bed. there was an eiderdownmattress, which the three children sank into. philip was pleased. after the hardness of the suit ofarmour, it was pleasant to feel something so soft.
he sat up and told his story.
‘well, you remember when you went up the steps by yourselves and left me there?’ he said. ‘iwas awfully angry to think those men should talk to you like that, but i couldn’t do anything aboutit, of course. anyway, i just stayed put for ages, and after some time all three men came down,shut up the entrance hole, and sat round the table.’
‘could you understand their talk?’ asked lucy-ann.
‘no, more’s the pity, i couldn’t,’ said philip. ‘they had maps out, and were tracing things onthem, but i couldn’t see what. i almost over-balanced myself, trying to see.’
‘gracious! what a shock you’d have given those men if you had toppled over with a crash,’
said dinah, with a laugh. ‘good thing you didn’t though.’
‘well, they sat about for a long time, talking and poring over their maps,’ said philip, ‘and thenthey had a jolly good meal. they opened stacks of tins. it made my mouth water to see them.’
‘poor philip – have you had anything to eat?’ asked lucy-ann.
philip nodded. ‘don’t worry. the very next time the men disappeared up the stone steps andshut the hole, i clanked off my pedestal, and finished up most of what they had left. i had to hopethey wouldn’t notice it was gone. but i was so hungry and thirsty i didn’t care. it was funny to seeall the other suits of armour standing round, looking at me. i half expected them to walk up andjoin me in my meal!’
‘don’t say things like that!’ said poor lucy-ann, looking quite scared. she gazed with wideeyes at the suits of armour standing so silently on their pedestals, and imagined them suddenlywalking off them, with a clash and a clank.
philip laughed, and gave lucy-ann a pat. ‘it was awfully difficult to drink,’ he said. ‘i couldn’ttip my head back properly in that armour. i poured half of it down the inside of it, and i wasterrified i’d have puddles coming out of my feet, when i went back.’
the girls couldn’t help laughing. philip always told a story very well, making them see everydetail of it.
‘well, i got back to my pedestal, feeling a whole lot better, and hadn’t been there more thantwenty minutes or so when the men came back again. and then an extraordinary thing happened.’
‘what?’ said the girls together, holding their breath.
‘see the tapestry over there – the one with the dogs and the horses on?’ said philip, pointing.
‘exactly opposite where my suit of armour stands? well, behind there is a secret door!’
he paused and the girls gazed first at the tapestry and then at philip. ‘the men talked a bit, andthen one of them went to that piece of tapestry. he lifted it up and hung it back on that nail youcan see. i could see everything perfectly through my visor. well, at first i couldn’t make out whatthe man was doing, because the wall looked as if it was made of solid stone all along.’
‘and wasn’t it?’ said lucy-ann, in excitement.
‘no,’ said philip. ‘part of it is only a thin slab of stone, not immensely solid and thick like therest of the walls here, and that thin piece slides right back! then when it had moved back, the manstepped into the square hollow place left and felt about there. on one side of the hollow place wasa door of some kind, which he opened – and all three men disappeared through the door!’
‘gracious!’ said dinah. ‘where did they go?’
‘i don’t know,’ said philip. ‘but i’d dearly like to! there’s some secret here, some big mystery.
those men are up to some mischief. why should foreigners – because two of them are foreigners,you can tell that by their accent – why should foreigners come to a lonely place like this, and hideand have meetings, and use secret rooms and doors?’
‘shall we see where that door leads to?’ said dinah, overcome with curiosity.
‘no, don’t let’s,’ said lucy-ann, who had had enough excitement for one day.
‘you’re scared,’ said dinah scornfully.
‘no, she’s not, said philip. ‘anyway, i think it would be a mistake to mess about behind thattapestry just now. if the men happened to come back and saw that we had found their secret door,goodness knows what they’d do. we might never be heard of again!’
dinah was silent. she longed to explore behind that tapestry – but she knew philip was right.
they must wait and take their time. dinah began to tell philip about their day with jack in thecourtyard, and all that had happened. he was very glad that jack hadn’t been caught.
‘well, that’s two people those men have no idea are here,’ he said. ‘me and jack. that’s good.
as long as they think it’s only a couple of girls they’ve got to deal with, they won’t be so much ontheir guard.’
then dinah told him about sending button with a message to tassie. he listened thoughtfully,and then made a remark that sent their hearts down into their boots.
‘it was a fine idea,’ he said, ‘but it won’t be a bit of good, i’m afraid. you’ve forgotten thattassie can’t read or write!’
the two girls stared at one another in the greatest dismay. they had forgotten that. of course –tassie wouldn’t be able to make head or tail of the note. what a blow! lucy-ann looked verywoebegone to think that her good idea shouldn’t have been so very good after all.
philip put his arm round her and gave her a friendly hug. ‘never mind. perhaps tassie will havethe common sense to show the note to somebody who can read! cheer up.’
this exchange of news took a long time. the girls began to feel sleepy. lucy-ann lay down onthe soft bed and shut her eyes. dinah and philip talked a little longer and then lay down too. philipwas tired with his long day in the suit of armour, and fell sound asleep almost at once.
dinah was awakened suddenly, two or three hours later, by the sound of the entrance hole beingopened. at first she did not recognise the noise – then, very suddenly, she knew what it was. in arush it all came back to her.
philip and lucy-ann did not awake. dinah shook the boy desperately. ‘philip!’ she whisperedurgently. ‘wake up! quick, get under the bed! they’re here!’
half asleep, philip rolled off the bed, and underneath it, just as the first man came down thesteps. dinah lay still as if she was asleep. lucy-ann did not stir.
the man, hearing the noise of philip falling off the bed, stared suspiciously over into the cornerwhere the four-poster bed stood. he turned up the wick of the oil lamp, which had burned down,and went over to the bed.
his toe almost touched philip, who was crouching underneath. the man pulled back the heavycurtains around the old bed and looked down at the girls. dinah felt sure he knew she was awake.
he stared down at the two of them for a few seconds and then pulled the curtains back again.
apparently he was satisfied that the girls were really asleep. he did not dream that a third childwas there, hidden safely under the bed!
dinah, looking between her eyelashes, saw that there were five men there, two that she had notseen before. they spoke in a language she could not understand. one of the men she knewunlocked a big drawer in a chest, and took out a roll of maps, which he threw on the table.
then, one after another, the maps were spread out and apparently discussed. finally they wereput back again, and the drawer locked. then, to dinah’s excited delight, the shaggy-brown manthrew back a piece of tapestry from the wall, and exposed the place where the secret door washidden.
one of the men laid his hand on his arm, saying something in a low voice, and nodding towardsthe bed in the further corner.
then he walked swiftly across the bed and drew the thick curtains so closely round it that dinahcould see nothing more. how annoying! she did not dare to peep, because she knew if she did, shewould probably be seen.
after that she could only lie and listen, wondering what was happening. she heard a slidingnoise, a click, a little thud, and the sound of a key turning in a lock. then she heard voices again.
after that she heard men going up the stone stair, and peeped quickly to see who they were. theywere the three she knew. evidently the others had gone through the secret door, to wherever thatled to. it was all most mysterious.
there came the familiar grating noise – and then silence. dinah peeped out. there was no onein the room. the tapestry was replaced, and hung down over the wall again.
she called softly to philip, and he came out from under the bed. ‘don’t wake lucy-ann, or shewon’t go to sleep again,’ said philip in a low voice. ‘did you see much, dinah?’
‘lots,’ said dinah, and told him everything. philip listened intently.
‘five men now,’ he said. ‘i do wonder what they’re all up to. you see, dinah, it was much thebest thing not to go messing about trying to find that secret door tonight. we’d have been properlycaught if we had!’
‘yes, we should,’ said dinah. ‘philip, what are these men up to?’
‘i don’t know,’ said philip. ‘if we went through that hidden door, and found out where it led to,we might learn their secret. but we must wait and take our chance, not just rush in withoutthinking.’
‘i shouldn’t think they’ll come back again, would you?’ said dinah, lying down. ‘do you thinkyou’d better sleep under the bed, in case? you made an awful noise rolling off.’
‘perhaps i’d better,’ said philip. he took one of the blankets off the bed and went underneath it,arranging himself as comfortably as he could.
‘are you going to stand in that suit of armour again tomorrow?’ asked dinah suddenly.
‘no, rather not! i’ll hide under the bed. i’m sure the men won’t dream of looking for someonethey don’t know is there!’ said philip. ‘i feel as if i never want to see a suit of armour again in mylife! beastly, uncomfortable things!’
they fell asleep again, and this time nothing disturbed them till the morning. it was impossibleto tell whether it was morning or not in the hidden room, but dinah’s watch showed her that it washalf-past seven.
the shaggy man came down into the room. ‘you can clear out for the day,’ he said. ‘but keepwithin sight and call as i told you – or most unpleasant things might happen!’
