The Secret Garden Read Free

Mrs Craven's favorite garden, and she and Mr Craven used to take care of it themselves. They spent hours there, reading and talking. Very happy, they were. They used the branch of an old tree as a seat. But one day when she was sitting on the branch, it broke, and she fell. She was very badly hurt and the next day she died. That's why he hates the garden so much, and won't let anyone go in there.'
    'How sad!' said Mary. 'Poor Mr Craven!' It was the first time that she had ever felt sorry for anyone.
    Just then, as she was listening to the wind outside, she heard another noise, in the house.
    'Can you hear a child crying?' she asked Martha. Martha looked confused. 'Er - no,' she replied. 'No, I think ... it must be the wind.'
    But at that moment the wind blew open their door and they heard the crying very clearly. 'I told you!' cried Mary.
    At once Martha shut the door. 'It was the wind,' she repeated. But she did not speak in her usual natural way, and Mary did not believe her.
    The next day it was very rainy, so Mary did not go out. Instead she decided to wander round the house, looking into some of the hundred rooms that Mrs Medlock had told her about. She spent all morning going in and out of dark, silent rooms, which were full of heavy furniture and old pictures She saw no servants at all, and was on her way back to her room for lunch, when she heard a cry. It's a bit like the cry that I heard last night!? she thought. Just then the housekeeper, Mrs Medlock, appeared, with her keys in her hand.
    Just then Mrs Medlock appeared.
    'What are you doing here?' she asked crossly.
    'I didn't know which way to go, and I heard someone crying,' answered Mary.
    'You didn't hear anything! Go back to your room now. And if you don't stay there, I'll lock you in!'
    Mary hated Mrs Medlock for this. 'There was someone crying, I know there was!' she said to herself. 'But I'll discover who it is soon!? She was almost beginning to enjoy herself in Yorkshire.

 
    CHAPTER THREE
    Finding the secret garden
     
    When Mary woke up two days later, the wind and rain had all disappeared, and the sky was a beautiful blue.
    'Spring will be here soon,' said Martha happily. 'You'll love the moor then, when it's full of flowers and birds.'
    'Could I get to the moor?' asked Mary.
    'You've never done much walking, have you? I don't think you could walk the five miles to our cottage!'
    'But I'd like to meet your family,' Mary said.
    Martha looked at the little girl for a moment. She remembered how disagreeable Mary had been when she first arrived. But now, Mary looked interested and friendly.
    'I'll ask Mother,' said Martha. 'She can always think of a good plan. She's sensible and hardworking and kind - I know you'll like her.'
    'I like Dickon, although I've never seen him.'
    'I wonder what Dickon will think of you?'
    'He won't like me' said Mary, 'No one does.'
    'But do you like yourself? That's what Mother would ask.'
    'No, not really. I've never thought of that.'
    'Well, I must go now. It's my day off, so I'm going home to help Mother with the housework. Goodbye, miss. See you tomorrow.'
    Mary felt lonelier than ever when Martha had gone, so she went outside. The sunshine made the gardens look different. And the change in the weather had even made Ben Weatherstaff easier to talk to.
    'Can you smell spring in the air?' he asked her. Things are growing, deep down in the ground. Soon you'll see little green shoots coming up - young plants, they are. You watch them.'
    'I will' replied Mary. 'Oh, there's the robin!'
    The little bird hopped on to Ben's spade, 'Are things growing in the garden where he lives?'
    'What garden?' said Ben, in his bad-tempered voice.
    'You know, the secret garden. Are the flowers dead there?' She really wanted to know the answer.
    'Ask the robin,' said Ben crossly. 'He's the only one who's been in there for the last ten years.'
    Ten years was a long time, Mary thought. She had been born ten years ago. She walked away, thinking. She