The Secret Island (6 page)

The hens clucked in the hen-yard. Daisy the cow mooed once or twice, feeling rather strange and lonely - but she seemed to be settling down very well.

“I hope she won’t moo too much,” thought Peggy, her needle flying in and out busily. “She might give us away with her mooing if anyone came up the lake in a boat. But thank goodness no one ever does’”

Everyone felt very fresh after their rest. They decided to have a walk round the island. Nora fed the hens and then they set off.

It was a fine little island. Trees grew thickly down to the waterside all round. The steep hill that rose in the middle was a warm, sunny place, covered with rabbit runs and burrows. The grassy piece beyond the hill was full of little wild flowers, and birds sang in the bushes around. The children peeped into the dark caves that ran into the hillside, but did not feel like exploring them just then, for they had no candles with them.

“I’ll take you to the place where wild raspberries grow,” said Jack. He led them round the hill to the west side, and there, in the blazing sun, the children saw scores of raspberry canes, tangled and thick.

“Jack! There are some getting ripe already!” cried Nora, in delight. She pointed to where spots of bright red dotted the canes. The children squeezed their way through and began to pick the raspberries. How sweet and juicy they were!

“We’ll have some of these with cream each day,” said Peggy. “I can skim the cream off the cow’s milk, and we will have raspberries and cream for suppers. Oooh!”

“Oooh!” said everyone, eating as fast as they could.

“Are there any wild strawberries on the island, too?” asked Nora.

“Yes,” said Jack, “but they don’t come till later. “We’ll look for those in August and September.”

“I do think this is a lovely island,” said Peggy happily. “We’ve a splendid house of our own - hens - a cow, wild fruit growing - fresh water each day!”

“It’s all right now it’s warm weather,” said Jack. “It won’t be quite so glorious when the cold winds begin to blow! But winter is a long way off yet.”

They climbed up the west side of the hill, which was very rocky. They came to a big rock right on the very top, and sat there. The rock was so warm that it almost burnt them. From far down below the blue spire of smoke rose up from their fire.

“Let’s play a game,” said Jack. “Let’s play…”

But what game Jack wanted the others never knew - for Jack suddenly stopped, sat up very straight, and stared fixedly down the blue, sparkling lake. The others sat up and stared, too. And what they saw gave them a dreadful shock!

“Some people in a boat!” said Jack. “Do you see them? Away down there!”

“Yes,” said Mike, going pale. “Are they after us, do you think?”

“No,” said Jack, after a while. “I think I can hear a gramophone - and if it was anyone after us they surely wouldn’t bring that! They are probably just trippers, from the village at the other end of the lake.”

“Do you think they’ll come to the island?” asked Peggy.

“I don’t know,” said Jack. “They may - but anyway it would only be for a little while. If we can hide all traces of our being here they won’t know a thing about us.”

“Come on, then,” said Mike, slipping off the rock. “We’d better hurry. It won’t be long before they’re here.”

The children hurried down to the beach. Jack and Mike stamped out the fire, and carried the charred wood to the bushes. They scattered clean sand over the place where they had the fire. They picked up all their belongings and hid them.

“I don’t think anyone would find Willow House,” said Jack. “The trees really are too thick all round it for any tripper to bother to squeeze through.”

“What about the hens?” said Peggy.

“We’ll catch them and pop them into a sack just for now,” said Jack. “The hen-yard will have to stay. I don’t think anyone will find it - it’s well hidden. But we certainly couldn’t have the hens clucking away there!”

“And Daisy the cow?” said Peggy, looking worried.

“We’ll watch and see which side of the island the trippers come,” said Jack. “As far as I know, there is only one landing-place, and that is our beach. As Daisy is right on the other side of the island, they are not likely to see her unless they go exploring. And let’s hope they don’t do that!”

“Where shall we hide?” said Nora.

“We’ll keep a look-out from the hill, hidden in the bracken,” said Jack. “If the trippers begin to wander about, we must just creep about in the bracken and trust to luck they won’t see us. There’s one thing - they won’t be looking for us, if they are trippers. They won’t guess there is anyone else here at all!”

“Will they find the things in the cave-larder?” asked Nora, helping to catch the squawking hens.

“Peggy, get some heather and bracken and stuff up the opening to the cave-larder,” said Jack. Peggy ran off at once. Jack put the hens gently into the sack one by one and ran up the hill with them. He went to the other side of the hill and came to one of the caves he knew. He called to Nora, who was just behind him.

“Nora! Sit at the little opening here and see that the hens don’t get out! I’m going to empty them out of the sack into the cave!”

With much squawking and scuffing and clucking the scared hens hopped out of the sack and ran into the little cave. Nora sat down at the entrance, hidden by the bracken that grew there. No hen could get out whilst she was there.

“The boat is going round the island,” whispered Jack as he parted the bracken at the top of the hill and looked down to the lake below. “They can’t find a place to land. They’re going round to our little beach! Well - Daisy the cow is safe, if they don’t go exploring! Hope she doesn’t moo!”

The Trippers Come to the Island

Nora sat crouched against the entrance of the little cave. She could hear the six hens inside, clucking softly as they scratched about. Jack knelt near her, peering through the bracken, trying to see what the boat was doing.

“Mike has rowed our own boat to where the brambles fall over the water, and has pushed it under them,” said Jack, in a low voice. “I don’t know where he is now. I can’t see him.”

“Where’s Peggy?” whispered Nora.

“Here I am,” said a low voice, and Peggy’s head popped above the bracken a little way down the hill. “I say - isn’t this horrid? I do wish those people would go away.”

The sound of voices came up the hillside from the lake below.

“Here’s a fine landing-place!” said one voice.

“They’ve found our beach,” whispered Jack.

“Pull the boat in,” said a woman’s voice. “We’ll have our supper here. It’s lovely!”

There was the sound of a boat being pulled a little way up the beach. Then the trippers got out.

“I’ll bring the gramophone,” said someone. “You bring the supper things, Eddie.”

“Do you suppose anyone has ever been on this little island before?” said a man’s voice.

“No!” said someone else. “The countryside round about is quite deserted - no one ever comes here, I should think.”

The three children crouched down in the bracken and listened. The trippers were setting out their supper. One of the hens in the cave began to cluck loudly. Nora thought it must have laid an egg.

“Do you hear that noise?” said one of the trippers. “Sounds like a hen to me!”

“Don’t be silly, Eddie,” said a woman’s voice scornfully. “How could a hen be on an island like this i That must have been a blackbird or something.”

Jack giggled. It seemed very funny to him that a hen’s cluck should be thought like a blackbird’s clear song.

“Pass the salt,” said someone. “Thanks. I say! Isn’t this a fine little island! Sort of secret and mysterious. What about exploring it after supper?”

“That’s a good idea,” said Eddie’s voice. “We will!”

The children looked at one another in dismay. Just the one thing they had hoped the trippers wouldn’t do!

“Where’s Mike, do you suppose?” said Peggy, in a low voice. “Do you think he’s hiding in our boat?”

“I expect so,” whispered Jack. “Don’t worry about him. He can look after himself all right.”

“Oh, my goodness! There’s Daisy beginning to moo!” groaned Peggy, as a dismal moo reached her ears. “She knows it is time she was milked.”

“And just wouldn’t I like a cup of milk!” said Jack, who was feeling very thirsty.

“Can you hear that cow mooing somewhere?” said one of the trippers, in surprise.

“I expect it’s a cow in a field on the mainland,” said another lazily. “You don’t suppose there is a cow wandering loose on this tiny island, do you, Eddie?”

“Well, I don’t know,” said Eddie, in a puzzled voice. “Look over there. Doesn’t that look like a footprint in the sand to you?”

The children held their breath. Could it be true that they had left a footprint on the sand?

“And see here,” went on the tripper, holding up something. “Here’s a piece of string I found on this beach. String doesn’t grow, you know.”

“You are making a great mystery about nothing,” said one of the women crossly. “Other trippers have been here, that’s all.”

“Perhaps you are right,” said Eddie. “But all the same, I’m going to explore the island after supper!”

“Oh, put on the gramophone, Eddie.” said someone. “I’m tired of hearing you talk so much.”

Soon the gramophone blared through the air, and the children were glad, for they knew it would drown any sound of Daisy’s mooing or the hens’ clucking. They sat in the bracken, looking scared and miserable. They did not like anyone else sharing their secret island. And what would happen if the trippers did explore the island and found the children?

Nora began to cry softly. Tears ran down her cheeks and fell on her hands. Jack looked at her and then crept silently up. He slipped his arm round her.

“Don’t cry, Nora,” he said. “Perhaps they won’t have time to explore. It is getting a bit dark now. Do you see that big black cloud coming up? It will make the night come quickly, and perhaps the trippers will think there’s a storm coming and row off.”

Nora dried her eyes and looked up. There certainly was a big black cloud.

“It looks like a thunderstorm,” said Peggy, creeping up to join them.

“Oooh!” said Nora suddenly, almost squealing out loud. “Look! Someone’s coming up the hill! I can see the bracken moving! It must be one of the trippers creeping up to find us!”

The children went pale. They looked to where Nora pointed - and sure enough they could see first one frond of bracken moving, and then another and another. Someone was certainly creeping up the hill hidden under the fronds.

Nora clutched hold of Jack. “Don’t make a sound,” he whispered. “No one can possibly know we’re here. Keep quiet, Nora. We’ll slip inside the cave if he comes much nearer.”

They sat silently watching the swaying of the tall bracken as the newcomer crept through it. It was a horrid moment. Was someone going to spring out on them?

“Get inside the cave, you two girls,” whispered Jack. “I think you’ll be safe there. I’m going to slip round the hill and come up behind this person, whoever he is.”

The girls crept just inside the cave and parted the bracken that grew around it to see what Jack was going to do. He was just slipping away when the person creeping up the hillside stopped his crawling. The bracken kept still. This was worse than seeing it move! Oh dear!

Then a head popped out of the bracken, and Nora gave a loud squeal.

“Mike!” she said. “Mike!”

“Sh, you silly chump!” hissed Peggy, shaking her. “You’ll be heard by the trippers!”

Fortunately the gramophone was going loudly, so Nora’s squeal was not heard. The three children stared in delight at Mike. It was he who had been creeping up through the bracken after all! What a relief! He grinned at them and put his head down again. Once more the bracken fronds began to move slightly as Mike made his way through them up to the cave.

“Oh, Mike,” said Nora, when he came up to them. “You did give us such a fright. We thought you were a tripper coming after us!”

“I got a good view of them,” said Mike, sitting down beside the others. “There are three men and two women. They are tucking into an enormous supper.”

“Do you think they’ll explore the island as they said?” asked Peggy anxiously.

“Perhaps this thunderstorm will put them off,” said Mike, looking up at the black sky. “My word, it’s brought the bats out early! Look at them!”

Certainly the little black bats were out in their hundreds. The hot, thundery evening had brought out thousands of insects, and the bats were having a great feast, catching the flies and beetles that flew through the air.

It was the bats that sent the trippers away. One of the women caught sight of two or three bats darting round under the trees, and she gave a shriek.

“Ooh! Bats! Ooh! I can’t bear bats! I’m frightened of them. Let’s pack up and go quickly!”

“I can’t bear bats either!” squealed the other woman. “Horrid little creatures!”

“They won’t hurt you,” said a man’s voice. “Don’t be silly.”

“I can’t help it; I’m frightened of them,” said a woman. “I’m going!”

“But I wanted to explore the island,” said Eddie.

“Well, you’ll have to explore it another day,” said the woman. “Just look at the sky, too - there’s going to be a dreadful storm.”

“All right, all right,” said Eddie, in a sulky voice. “We’ll go. Fancy being frightened of a few bats!”

The children on the hillside stared at one another in delight. The trippers were really going. And no one had discovered them. Goody, goody!

“Good old bats!” whispered Jack. “Would you think anyone would be scared of those little flitter-mice, Nora?”

“Aunt Harriet was,” said Nora. “I don’t know why. I think they are dear little creatures, with their funny black wings. Anyway, I shall always feel friendly towards them now. They have saved us from being found!”

Daisy the cow mooed loudly. Jack frowned. “If only we had milked Daisy before the trippers came!” he said.

“Did you hear that?” said one of the trippers. “That was thunder in the distance!”

The four children giggled. Nora rolled over and stuffed her hands into her mouth to stop laughing loudly.