chapter 17 to gringo's fair

at half past seven next morning joan came running upstairs to julian's bedroom, a piece of paper inher hand. she knocked on the door.

'master julian! a dirty little note was on the front door mat when i got down this morning. it's foldedover with your name on the outside.'

julian was out of bed in a trice. a note from the kidnappers perhaps? no - it couldn't be. theywouldn't write to him!

it was from jo! she had scribbled it so badly that julian could hardly read it.

'julian, i saw spiky, he's coming to the beech at levven i took dick's bike to go home on i will bringit back at levven, don't be too cross. jo.'

'i suppose 'beech' doesn't mean a tree, it means the beach, the sands,' said dick. 'and 'levven'

means eleven o'clock. little scallywag - i hope she hasn't damaged my bike in any way.'

jo hadn't. she had actually managed to find time to clean it before she left home, and arrived with itso bright and gleaming that dick hadn't the heart to scold her!

she was early so she came to the house instead of the beach. she rode through the gate and up thefront path and timmy ran to greet her with a volley of delighted barks. he liked jo - in fact he reallyloved the little gypsy girl. she certainly had a way with animals! sally followed, dancing on hertiptoes as usual, ready to welcome as a friend anyone that timmy liked.

dick hailed jo from the front door as she came up. 'hallo, bicycle-stealer! my word, what's happenedto my bike - have you spring-cleaned it?'

jo grinned, looking at dick warily. 'yes. i'm sorry i took it, dick.'

'you're not a bit sorry - but i'll forgive you,' said dick, grinning too. 'so you got to the fair safelyafter all?'

'oh yes - and i woke up spiky - he wasn't half surprised,' said jo. 'but his pa was sleeping in the samecaravan as he was, so i couldn't say much. i just told him to be on kirrin beach at eleven.

then i rode back home. i ought to have left your bike on the way back, but i was a bit tired, so i rodehome, instead of walking.

'you can't have had much sleep last night,' said julian, looking at the sunburnt girl with her untidycurly hair. 'hallo - who's that?'

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a short, plump boy was hurrying past the gate. he had a mop of black hair which stuck up intocurious spikes of hair at the crown.

'oh - that's spiky!' said jo. 'he's on time, isn't he? he's called spiky because of his hair. you won'tbelieve it, but he spends a fortune on hair-oil, trying to make those spiky bits go flat. but they won't.'

she called loudly.

'spiky! hey, spiky!'

spiky turned at once. he had a pleasant, rather lopsided face, and eyes as black as currants. he stoodstaring at jo and the boys. 'i'm just off to the beach,' he said.

'right. we're coming too,' said jo, and she and the boys went to join. they met the ice-cream man onthe way and julian bought an ice-cream for each of them.

'coo - thanks,' said spiky, pleased. he was rather shy of dick and julian, and wondered very muchwhy he had been asked to come.

they sat down on the beach. 'i wasn't half scared when you came tapping at the window last night,'

he said to jo, licking his ice-cream with a very pink tongue. 'what's it all about?'

'well,' said julian, cautiously, 'we're interested in somebody called gringo.'

'old gringo?' said spiky. 'a lot of people's interested in gringo. do you know what we say at thefair? we say gringo ought to put up a notice. 'all dirty work done here!' he's a bad lot, gringo is -but he pays us well, even if he makes us work like slaves.'

'he owns the fair, doesn't he?' said julian, and spiky nodded. 'i expect he uses it as a cover for all hisother, bigger jobs,' julian said to dick. he looked at the plump, black-eyed boy, wondering how farhe could trust him. jo saw the look and knew what it meant.

'he's all right,' she said, nodding towards spiky. 'you can say what you like. he's an oyster, he is.

ain't you, spiky?'

spiky grinned his lop-sided grin. julian decided to trust him, and speaking in a low voice that reallythrilled spiky, he told him about the kidnapping of george. spiky's eyes nearly fell out of his head.

'coo!' he said. 'i bet old gringo's at the bottom of that. last week he went off up to london - he toldmy pa he was on to a big job - an american job, he said it was.'

'yes - it sounds as if it all fits,' said julian. 'spiky, this kidnapping happened the night before last.

did anything unusual occur in the fair camp, do you know? it must have happened in the middle ofthe night.'

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spiky considered. he shook his head. 'no - i don't think so. gringo's big double-caravan is still there- so he can't have gone. he had it moved right away from the camp yesterday morning -said there was too much noise for his old ma, who lives in his posh caravan and looks after him.

we was all glad it was moved - now he can't spy on us so easily!'

'i suppose you...' began julian, and then stopped as dick gave an exclamation.

'i've got an idea!' he said. 'suppose that caravan was moved for another reason - suppose someonewas making a row inside the van - someone shouting for help, say! gringo would have to move itaway from the rest of the camp in case that someone was heard.'

there was a pause, and then spiky nodded. 'yes. it could be,' he said. 'i've never known gringo movehis caravan away from the camp before. shall i do a bit of snooping for you?'

'yes,' said julian, excited. 'my word - it would be a bit of luck if we could find george so quickly -and so near us too! a fair camp would be a fine place to hide her, of course. thank goodness wefound that bit of paper with 'gringo' written on it!'

'let's all go to the fair this afternoon,' said dick. 'timmy too. he'd smell out george at once.'

'hadn't we better tell the police first?' said julian. at once spiky and jo got up in alarm. spiky lookedas if he were going to run away immediately!

'don't you get the police, julian!' said jo urgently. 'you won't get anything more out of spiky, if youdo. not a thing.'

'i'm going,' said spiky, still looking terrified.

'no, you're not,' said dick, and caught hold of him. 'we shan't go to the police. they might frightenoff gringo and make him smuggle george away at once. i've no doubt he has plans to do so at anyminute. we shan't say a word, so sit down and be sensible.'

'you can believe him,' jo told spiky. 'he's straight, see?'

spiky sat down, still looking wary. 'if you're coming to the fair, come at four,' he said. 'it's half-dayclosing today for the towns around, and the place will be packed. if you want to do any snooping,you won't be noticed in that crowd.'

'right,' said julian. 'we'll be there. look out for us, spiky, in case you've got any news.'

spiky then left, and the boys couldn't help smiling at his back view - the spikes of hair at the top ofhis head were so very noticeable!

'you'd better stay to lunch with us, jo,' said dick, and the delighted girl beamed all over her face.

'will joan's cousin mind you not being back to dinner?' asked julian.

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'no. i said i wouldn't be back all day,' said jo. 'it's still school holidays, you see. anyway, i can'tstand that jane - she moons about all the time - and she's got some of my clothes on, too.'

jo sounded so indignant about berta that the boys had to laugh. they all went back to kirrin cottage,and found joan and anne hard at work in the house.

'well, you monkey!' said joan to jo. 'up to tricks as usual, i hear. throwing stones at people'swindows in the middle of the night. you just try that on my window and see what happens to you!

now, put on that apron, and help round a bit. how's miss jane?

joan was most excited to hear about the boys' latest ideas as to where george might be. julian gaveher a warning.

'but no ringing up the police behind our backs this time, joan,' he said. 'this is something best doneby dick and me.'

'can't i come with sally?' asked anne.

'we can't possibly take sally,' said dick, 'in case gringo's about and recognises her. so you'd betterstay and look after her, and we'll take timmy. he would be sure to smell where george is, if she'shidden anywhere in the camp. but i think she's probably in gringo's own caravan.'

timmy pricked up his ears every time he heard george's name mentioned. he was a very miserabledog indeed, and kept running to the front gate, hoping to see george coming along.

whenever they missed him, they knew where to find him - lying mournfully on george's empty bed -probably with an equally mournful sally beside him!

the boys and jo set off to the fair about half past three, on their bicycles. jo rode anne's this time,and timmy ran valiantly beside them. jo glanced at dick's bicycle from time to time, proud of itsbrilliant look - how well she had cleaned it that morning!

they came to the fair. 'you can put your bikes up against spiky's caravan,' said jo. 'they'll be safethere. will you pay, and then we'll get in straightaway? you needn't pay for me - i'm going throughthe gap in the hedge. i'm spiky's friend, so it's all right.'

she gave dick her bicycle and disappeared. julian paid and went in at the gate. they saw jo wavingwildly to them from the side of the big field and wheeled the three bicycles over to her, timmyfollowing closely at their heels.

'hallo!' said spiky, appearing suddenly. 'see you soon! i've got to go and 'tend to the roundabout.

i've got a bit of news, but not much. that's gringo's caravan over there, the double-one, big van infront, little van behind.'

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he nodded his head to where a most magnificent caravan stood, right away from the rest of the camp.

there were people milling about all round the other vans, but there was nobody at all by gringo's.

evidently no one dared to go too near.

'i vote we buy a ball at one of the stands, and then go and play near gringo's caravan,' said dick, in alow voice. 'then one of us will throw the ball too hard and it will go near the van - and we'llsomehow manage to get a peep inside. timmy can go sniffing round while we play. if george is therehe'll bark the place down.'

'jolly good idea!' said julian. 'come on, jo! and keep your eyes open all the time in case you've gotto warn us of danger.'