Mystery of the Secret Room Read Free

we don’t know about.”
    “Well, ask him then,” said Pip impatiently, for he was trying to read, and Bets kept interrupting him. He didn’t really mean Bets to go and ask the policeman, of course. But she couldn’t help thinking it was rather a good idea.
    “Then we should know if there was going to be something for us to solve these hols,” thought the little girl. “I’m longing to hunt for clues again - and suspects - and track down things.”
    So the next time she met the policeman she went up to him. “Mr. Goon, have you got a mystery to solve these holidays?” she asked.
    The policeman frowned. He wondered if Bets and the others were on the track of something he didn’t know about - else why should Bets want to know if he was solving one?
    “Are you interfering in anything again?” he asked sternly. “If you are, you stop it. See? I won’t have you children messing about in jobs that properly belong to me. Interfering with the Law!”
    “We’re not interfering or messing about,” said Bets, rather alarmed.
    “Well, you clear orf,” said Mr. Goon. “You’ve put a spoke in my wheel before now, and I’m not having it again!”
    “What wheel?” said Bets, puzzled. Mr. Goon did one of his snorts and walked off. He couldn’t bear any children, but he particularly detested the Five Find-Outers and Dog. Bets stared after him.
    “Well, I didn’t get much out of him,” she thought. “What did he mean about wheels?”
    It was lovely when Fatty came back again. He brought Buster with him, of course, and the little Scottie went mad with joy when he saw all his friends.
    “He didn’t have too good a time at my grandmother’s.” said Fatty. “There was an enormous ginger cat there that would keep chasing him, and my grandmother insisted on his having a bath every single day. He was awfully miserable really. He would have chased the cat, of course; but he was too much of a gentleman to go after a cat belonging to his hostess.”
    “Have you bought any disguises yet?” asked Bets excitedly.
    “Just waiting for my birthday,” said Fatty. “It’s tomorrow, as you know. Then, when I’ve got enough money, I’m going up to London to do a spot of shopping.”
    “By yourself?” said Larry.
    “You bet,” said Fatty. “What grown-up would let me spend my money on disguises? Although we’ve solved two frightfully difficult mysteries, no grown-up would think it was necessary to buy wigs and eyebrows - now would they? Even though at any moment we might have to solve a third mystery.”
    Put like that, it seemed a really urgent matter to buy disguises of all sorts. Fatty was so very serious about it. Bets felt that the third mystery might be just round the corner.
    “Fatty, can we try out the disguises when you buy them?” she said.
    “Of course,” said Fatty. “We’ll have to practise wearing them. It will be fun.”
    “Have you brought the invisible ink with you this afternoon?” asked Pip. “That’s what I want to see!”
    “Can you see invisible ink?” asked Bets. “I shouldn’t have thought you could.”
    The others laughed. “Silly! The ink isn’t invisible - it’s only the writing you do with it that is.”
    “I’ve got a bottle,” said Fatty. “It’s very expensive.”
    He took a bottle from his pocket. It was quite small, and contained a colourless liquid which, to Bets, looked like water.
    Fatty took out his notebook and a pen with a clean new nib. He put the bottle on the table, and undid the screw-top.
    “Now I’ll write a secret letter,” he said, “and my writing will be invisible.”
    Bets leaned over him to see. She lost her balance and jerked hard against the table. The bottle of invisible ink was jolted over, rolled to the edge of the table, and neatly emptied its contents on the floor in a small round puddle, near Buster.
    “Woof!” said Buster in surprise, and began to lick it up. But the taste was horrid. He stopped and looked up at the alarmed children, his pink tongue hanging out.
    “Oh, Buster! Buster, you’ve drunk invisible ink!” cried