by Harold Avery
CHAPTER XVIII.
A SECRET SOCIETY.
It was a clear, starlight night. Diggory was one of the first to leavethe dining-hall, and, passing swiftly out of the quadrangle, was soonhurrying across the junior playing field. On reaching the pavilion, allwas quiet and deserted, and he stood for a moment considering whatshould be his next step.
The thin hedge dividing the two playgrounds was by this time bare ofleaves, and afforded no hiding-place; the only chance of concealment wasto take shelter inside the den itself--a place which has already beendescribed. This, however, seemed rather like venturing into the lion'smouth. What was going to happen? Would anything take place, or was itonly a wild-goose chase after all?
"Here goes!" muttered Diggory to himself. He opened the door, pullingit to again after him as he crept inside; then taking a step forward inthe pitchy darkness, promptly fell over a bucket with an appallingcrash. Scrambling once more to his feet, he felt in his waistcoatpocket, and finding there a fusee which he remembered to have taken froma box owned by "Rats," he struck it, and by the aid of its feeble glarecrept behind the heap of benches which lay piled up close to theopposite wall.
Hardly had he done so when there were a sound of footsteps and a murmurof conversation; the door was opened, and some one crept into the den.No sooner had the new-comer crossed the threshold than he stopped,sniffed audibly, and exclaimed,--
"Hullo! what a stink of fusees! Who's been here, I wonder?"
Diggory instantly recognized the voice as belonging to Noaks, and thesound of it brought a momentary recollection of the time when he andJack Vance had lain concealed behind the hedge opposite to HoraceHouse. His heart beat fast, and he vainly wished that he had hadsufficient forethought to come provided with some ordinary matches.Several more boys entered, and one of them struck a light. Diggory,peering through an aperture in the pile of forms, saw at a glance whothey were--Fletcher senior, Thurston, Noaks, and Hawley.
"There don't seem to be any one about," continued Noaks, peering intothe corners; "yet it's rum there should be such a smell of fusees."
"I expect it was the man," said Thurston, producing a candle-end, andsticking it in an empty ginger-beer bottle which lay on the ground."He was in here this afternoon after some of those old boxes, and Iexpect he lit his pipe. The smell is sure to hang about when the door'sshut."
The four boys sat down on two upturned buckets and a couple of oldhampers, with the candle in their midst, and Diggory gave vent to aninward sigh of relief.
"Well," began Thurston, "one reason we meet here to-night is because Iwanted to explain to you fellows that we can't have any more of thosepleasant little parties in my study--at all events, for the present.Until this row about Browse has blown over, every one'll be watching uslike cats watching a mouse. We ought not to be seen speaking together,and that's where that cipher business that old Fletcher invented willcome in jolly useful. We can say anything we want to without appearingto meet."
"By-the-bye," interrupted Noaks, "what became of that last note? Moulertold me about it, or I shouldn't have come. Some one had taken it awaybefore I went to look."
"Perhaps it was Gull," answered Thurston. "Where is he?"
"He's got some turned work to do," answered Hawley.
"Mouler's outside keeping _cave_" added Noaks. "We thought it would bewell for some one to keep a look-out in case anybody came."
"Well, what I was going to say," continued Thurston, "is, that for thepresent we'd better lie low, and not be seen going about together.It was a good thing Gull and I managed to turn the tables on Oaksat that inquiry; it would have been jolly awkward for the rest of you tohave proved an _alibi_. Of course it was agreed that I should keep outof it, as it was a dead certainty they'd pounce down on me first; so Iwent and sat all the evening with old Smeaton. Ha, ha! the fool quitethought I meant it when I asked him to help me about my work. But Isay, how did it come off? I haven't heard the particulars."
"Oh, simply enough," answered Hawley. "Noaks and Mouler and Gull and Idid the trick; young Grundy's was the voice that told Browse to go downto the 'lab.' Grundy hung about at the top of the stairs, and as soonas he saw Browse come back and make for Allingford's study, he let usknow the coast was clear, so we unlocked the door and skedaddled.Gull went straight away to the matron's room, and asked her to sew thetwo buttons on his waistcoat; he'd pulled them off on purpose. He is acunning beggar, that Gull. Fancy his staying behind to light thereading-room gas, and telling Lucas he'd only just come! Why, he didmore of the wrecking than any two of us put together."
"D'you think young Grundy's to be trusted?" asked Noaks.
"Oh yes," answered Hawley; "he's been on our side all along. He had afight with young what's-his-name not long ago, about that skit on theTown match. Besides, I've told him that if it gets out that he had ahand in that Browse business, he'll be expelled. So he'll keep hismouth shut right enough."
"Oh, by-the-bye," cried Thurston, turning to his particular chum, "haveyou heard anything more about that poem of yours?"
Fletcher senior, who had been sitting all this time scowling in silenceat the candle, answered shortly, "No."
"Hullo!" returned his friend, "what's the matter? You seem preciousglum to-night. What's up? Are you going to chuck this business andturn good?"
"You asked me whether I'd heard anything more about that rhyme I wrote,"answered the other, rousing himself, and speaking with a thrill of angerin his voice. "I say no, but I've _seen_ a jolly lot."
"How d'you mean?"
"Why, there's not a fellow in the Sixth but gives me the cold shoulder.Allingford sets the example, and there's hardly one of them will give mea civil word. They'd like to oust me from the prefects like they didyou, but they shan't, and, what's more, I'll get even chalks with someof them before I leave."
"Hear, hear!" exclaimed Thurston; "that's just what I say. And now thequestion is, what shall we do?"
"Nothing at present," answered the other. "We must wait until thisaffair's blown over. There's no need to run the risk of gettingexpelled; and, besides, we want some time to think of a plan."
The faint _clang, ter-ang_ of a bell sounded across the playing field.Noaks and Hawley rose to their feet.
"'Prep!'" exclaimed the latter. "We must be off." A new cause foranxiety now presented itself to Diggory's mind in the thought that hewould be late in taking his place in the big schoolroom. He knewthat Noaks and Hawley would have to be in time for the assembly; but thetwo Sixth Form boys were not amenable to the same rule, and might lingerbehind.
Thurston, however, rose to his feet, blew out the candle, and the fourconspirators groped their way in a body out through the low doorway.
Diggory waited until he thought they must have reached the schoolbuildings, and then prepared to follow. The bell had stopped ringingsome minutes, and without looking very carefully where he was going, heran as fast as he could out of the match-ground, and across the juniorfield. Suddenly, right in front of him, and within fifty yards of thepaved playground, a dark figure seemed all at once to rise out of theground. It was Noaks! The latter had dropped a pencil-case, and hadbeen left by his companions searching for it on his hands and knees.
"Hullo!" he exclaimed, catching the small boy by the arm. "Who are you?and where have you been?"
"What's that to you?" answered Diggory boldly; "let me go."
The remembrance of that mysterious smell of a fusee flashed acrossNoaks's mind.
"Look here!" he cried sharply. "You tell me this moment where you'vebeen."
"In the other field."
"What were you doing there?"
"Running."
There was a moment's silence. Noaks had a strong suspicion that theother knew something about the secret meeting; it was equally possible,however, that he did not. Young madcaps were often known to let offsteam by careering wildly round the field after dark, and if this hadreally been the case in the present instance, it would be
folly to sayanything that should awaken suspicion. The big fellow hesitated; then ahappy thought occurred to him: he dragged his captive across the pavedplayground, and stopping under the gas-lamp which lit up the archwayleading into the quadrangle, began a hasty examination of the contentsof the latter's pockets. There was no time to lose, and failing to findwhat he sought, Noaks gave the youngster a final shake, saying as hedid so: "Look here, have you forgotten that coin robbery? Because, ifyou have, I haven't. I've got that knife still. Don't you fall foul ofme, or you'll have reason to be sorry for it, d'you hear?"
The two boys ran quickly across to the big schoolroom, and entered justin time to take their seats before the master on duty called, "Silence!"
As might have been expected, none of the Triple Alliance put in anappearance at supper that evening; as a matter of fact, they werecongregated in a quiet corner of the box-room, listening to a graphicaccount of Diggory's adventures. Noaks's threat about the pocket-kniferevived all their former feelings of dread and uneasiness respectingtheir unfortunate expedition to The Hermitage, and there was a gravelook upon their faces as the narrative concluded.
"You see," said Diggory, as he brought his story to a close, "the thingwas this: he wasn't quite sure whether I knew anything or not, but hesaid that to frighten me in case I did."
"I don't see that we can do anything," began Mugford uneasily. "You saythey aren't going to kick up any other row just yet, and it would be anawful thing if Noaks found it out, and sent my knife to the police."
"No, I don't see very well what I can do," answered Diggory. "Somehowit seems rather mean to hide away and then go and tell what you'veoverheard. I think it's best to leave it, and keep a sharp look-outand see what happens next."
"Fancy Fletcher inventing that cipher," said Jack Vance, "and beingmixed up with that lot. He is a double-faced beast; it was just likehim making that underhanded attack on the football team."
"Yes," added Mugford; "and fancy Gull being in both those rows, andmaking every one believe he wasn't! They must be a deep lot."
"So they are," answered Diggory complacently; "but they aren't a matchfor the Triple Alliance."
"I say, what made Noaks search your pockets?" asked Jack, as the threefriends prepared to break up their "confab."
"Oh, for a long time I couldn't imagine, and then all of a sudden Ithought why it was. Don't you see, he wanted to find if I had any morefusees. My stars, I was glad 'Rats' had only given me one instead ofthe box!"
