This one's slightly shorter. Sorry it's going so slowly, I promise that something exciting and mysterious will happen very soon! :)
Mr. Goon glanced up from his weekly report and frowned. Ern was standing in the hallway again! The policeman had taken to leaving his study door open in order to observe Ern, who had been hovering in the hallway all day. Every time Goon confronted his nephew however, Ern would deny that he was hovering at all.
"Gah!" thought Mr. Goon, suspiciously. The boy was definitely hovering for some reason or other! And he, Goon, was going to find out why!
Suddenly struck with what he considered a rather clever idea, Mr. Goon strode into the hallway. Ern started as his uncle appeared. He was sitting on the stairs, thoroughly bored with waiting for this mysterious visitor that Fatty had promised!
"Ern!" barked Mr. Goon, in a brisk manner.
"Yes, Uncle?" Ern replied, rather cautiously. He knew that his loitering around the front door was making Mr. Goon suspicious, but he didn't see what else he could do. He was so desperate for Fatty to see his notes that very instant! He had hoped his uncle might go out at some point, but he didn't seem to be showing any signs of going anywhere.
"I want you to do something for me," Mr. Goon continued. "See this report, here?" He held up a large square envelope.
"Yes, Uncle," nodded Ern, with a horrible feeling he knew what was coming next.
"I want you to go down to the police station and hand it in," said Mr. Goon.
Ern's heart sank. Leaving his post in the hallway would mean he might miss Fatty's visitor!
"Wouldn't it be better coming from you, Uncle?" Ern asked, trying to sound casual. "You usually deliver all of your reports yourself."
"Yes, well... I've got other important things to be getting on with," said Mr. Goon, annoyed that Ern was so reluctant to leave. What on earth was the boy up to? Goon suddenly remembered that he had snuck out to the Trottevilles' yesterday afternoon. Could that mean they'd sniffed out another one of their mysteries?
Seeing that he had no other choice, Ern sighed and took the report from Mr. Goon. Once he was out of the front door, he began sprinting down the high street as fast as his legs would carry him. He wanted to be back as soon as possible so as not to miss anything!
Mr. Goon meanwhile, convinced that Ern and the Find-Outers had caught wind of something mysterious, paid a visit to the coat closet. Ern's jacket was hanging on a peg. He quickly went through the pockets, looking for clues. Finding nothing but a packet of rather sticky boiled sweets and a blunt pencil, however, he was forced to withdraw.
"Blow!" thought Mr. Goon, returning to his study. He wondered where to look next. Casting his eyes around the room absent-mindedly, his gaze fell on the little notebook still lying on the desk.
"Of course!" said Goon out loud, as he reached for the notebook. He had completely forgotten about the confiscated item of yesterday! This was bound to be the key to the whole mystery! And indeed it was. Mr. Goon found the note that Ern had copied, and carefully jotted it down onto a pad beside him. Then he made a copy of the descriptions Ern had written down at the train station. Goon didn't know quite what it all meant, but he was sure it was important!
He was just about to study the note when he heard a noise from the kitchen. Hastily stuffing his own pad into a drawer and picking up Ern's notebook, Mr. Goon went out into the hallway. He instantly collided with Ern, who had snuck in the back way in case Fatty's visitor had arrived and was at that moment conversing with Mr. Goon.
"Sorry, Uncle," said Ern, again attempting to sound casual. He hoped Mr. Goon hadn't noticed he'd snuck in quietly. He was also trying not to seem out of breath, having ran all the way to the police station and back again. "I delivered the report, Uncle."
"Well done, Ern!" replied Mr. Goon. "In return, you may have this back." He handed the notebook to Ern, who took it rather suspiciously. He guessed that no visitor had called in his absence because there hadn't been enough time; he had been gone a matter of minutes! So why had Mr. Goon wanted him out of the way? To read the notebook, of course! Ern's heart sank.
At that moment, the doorbell rang. Before Ern could do anything, Mr. Goon was at the door. Ern rushed to the foot of the stairs at once, trying to get a glimpse of the visitor over his uncle's shoulder. Ern felt rather disappointed. Why, it was only a butcher's boy! He wondered how long it would be before Fatty's visitor came along.
Mr. Goon, however, was more suspicious. He knew Mrs. Cockles had already answered the door to the butcher's boy that morning. He instantly took in the boy's appearance, wondering if he was Fatty in disguise. After all, there had been countless occasions where that fat boy had fooled him whilst dressed similarly! He saw, however, that this boy was rather skinny and at once felt satisfied that he had come straight from the butcher's. After all, Frederick Trotteville could make himself up to be as big as he liked, but he couldn't disguise himself by being thinner!
"Sorry to bother you again, sir," Dick said, politely. "I'm afraid there was a bit of a mix up with the meat this morning. I delivered beef shank by mistake, but I have the lamb in my basket. Would you mind if I exchanged them, sir?"
Mr. Goon was so glad that this butcher's boy wasn't Fatty and that he was polite and well-mannered instead, that he went off to fetch the meat without a moment's hesitation. As soon as his back was turned, Dick whispered to Ern, who was still waiting patiently at the foot of the stairs.
"Psst! Ern! It's me, Dick!"
Ern blinked in surprise. Then his mouth fell open as he looked at the butcher's boy more closely. "Dick, it is you! Love-a-duck, Fatty's disguised you marvellously!"
Dick grinned. "Listen, I don't have much time! Give me the notebook and I'll take it back to Fatty and the others. We'll have a look over it this afternoon, and meet you at Fatty's tomorrow at the usual time."
Ern handed the notebook to Dick, still taken aback at his disguise. Really, the things Fatty could do were simply wonderful!
Dick placed the notebook inside the basket and hopped back onto Larry's bike. He had just begun to cycle off when Ern called after him.
"Dick! Uncle's seen the notebook!"
Dick raised a hand in acknowledgement and had cycled off at top speed a second later. Hearing Mr. Goon's heavy footsteps coming back down the hallway, Ern shot off upstairs with surprising agility. The last thing he wanted was to be questioned by his Uncle about the identity of the butcher's boy! He didn't trust himself to speak in case he gave the game away!
Mr. Goon returned to the front door, carrying the parcel of beef. He was astonished to find the door wide open as he had left it, but no butcher's boy on the threshold. Goon peered down the road but there wasn't a single boy in sight! He even parted the bushes in the garden to see if the boy had left his bicycle, but he seemed to have vanished into thin air! Mr. Goon wondered briefly if he'd imagined the whole thing. Suddenly remembering that Ern had witnessed the butcher's boy too, Mr. Goon turned to where his nephew had been standing. But there was no one else in the hallway.
"Gah!" said Goon. He slammed the front door and returned to his study, still clutching the beef shank.
