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Chapter eight

The boy in the red shirt

‘The boys from the school in Maidbridge are having a paper-chase today,’ said Bobbie, the next morning. ‘Perks thinks they’ll go along beside the railway line. We could go and watch.’

There were men working on the railway line, and the children began by watching them. They almost forgot the paper-chase, and were surprised when a voice said, ‘Let me pass, please.’ It was the first boy from the school.

‘He’s the “hare”,’ explained Bobbie. ‘All the other boys are the “hounds” and they have to chase after him.’

There was a bag under the hare’s arm. It was full of pieces of paper, which he dropped behind him for the other boys to follow. They watched as he ran into the black mouth of the tunnel.

The workmen watched him, too.

‘He shouldn’t go in there,’ said one.

‘It’s only a game,’ said another.

‘Passengers shouldn’t cross the line.’

‘He’s not a passenger.’

Then came the “hounds”, following the pieces of white paper. They came down the steps at the side of the tunnel and disappeared into the darkness. The last boy was wearing a red shirt.

‘Will they take long to get through the tunnel,’ asked Peter.

‘An hour or more,’ guessed one of the men.

‘Let’s go across the top of the hill and see them come out the other end of the tunnel,’ Peter said to his sisters.

The tunnel was cut through a hill. They climbed over stones and through narrow openings between trees, and at last they reached the very top of the hill.

‘It’s lovely up here,’ said Bobbie, as she looked across the fields. ‘It was worth the climb.’

‘The paper-chase is worth the climb,’ said Phyllis. ‘But hurry, or we’ll miss it.’

But there was plenty of time, and they had to wait at the other end of the tunnel.

‘Look, here he comes,’ shouted Peter at last.

The hare came very slowly out of the shadows of the tunnel. Soon after, came the hounds. They were going slowly, too, and looked very tired.

‘What shall we do now,’ said Bobbie.

‘That’s not the last,’ said Peter. ‘The hound in the red shirt isn’t out yet.’ They waited and waited, but the boy did not appear.

The children began to worry, and they climbed down to the mouth of the tunnel. But they couldn’t see a boy in a red shirt.

‘Perhaps he’s had an accident,’ said Peter. ‘Let’s go and look.’

The tunnel was dark after the sunshine outside, and they walked beside the line.

‘If a train comes, stand flat against the wall,’ said Peter. His voice sounded very different inside the tunnel walls.

‘I don’t like it,’ said Phyllis.

There was a low noise on the railway line.

‘What’s that,’ said Peter.

‘It’s a train,’ said Bobbie.

‘Let me go back,’ cried Phyllis.

‘It’s quite safe,’ said Bobbie. ‘Stand back.’

The train came towards them, and the noise got louder and louder. Then it was screaming past, and they could feel the hot air and smell the smoke. They pushed themselves flat against the tunnel wall.

‘Oh,’ said the children, after it was gone.

Peter took the end of a candle from his pocket, and his hand was shaking when he lit it with a match. ‘C - come on,’ he said. And the three of them went deeper into the darkness of the tunnel.

The boy in the red shirt was on the ground, beside the line. His eyes were closed and he did not move when they reached him.

‘Is– is he dead,’ asked Phyllis.

‘Dead? No,’ said Peter.

And slowly, the boy opened his eyes. ‘I– I think I’ve broken my leg,’ he said. ‘How did you get here?’

‘We saw you all go into the tunnel, and then we went across the hill to see you all come out,’ explained Peter. ‘The others came out, but you didn’t. So we came to look for you.’

‘You’re very brave,’ said the boy.

‘Can you walk, if we help you,’ said Bobbie.

‘I can try,’ said the boy. He did try, but he could only stand on one foot. ‘Oh, I must sit down. The pain is awful.’ He sat down again and closed his eyes. The others looked at each other.

‘You must go and get help,’ said Bobbie quickly. ‘I’ll stay with him. You take the longest bit of candle, but be quick.’

Peter looked worried. ‘Let me stay, and you and Phyllis go.’

‘No,’ said Bobbie. ‘You two go - and lend me your knife. I’ll try and cut his boot off before he wakes up again. Just be quick!’

Bobbie watched their figures disappear, then put her little candle beside the boy’s foot. She used Peter’s knife to cut off the boot, then she looked at the broken leg. ‘It needs something soft under it,’ she thought, and then remembered her petticoat. She took it off and carefully put it under the boy’s leg.

He woke up a few minutes later.

‘What’s your name,’ asked Bobbie.

‘Jim,’ he said.

‘Mine is Bobbie,’ she said. ‘Peter and Phyllis have gone to get some help.’

‘Why didn’t you go with them,’ he said.

‘Someone had to stay with you,’ said Bobbie. ‘I must put out the candle or it will burn itself out.’

‘Are you afraid of the dark, Bobbie,’ asked Jim, when they were sitting in the darkness.

‘Not - not very afraid,’ said Bobbie. ‘But-‘

‘Let’s hold hands,’ said Jim. He put his large hand over her small one. Then they sat and waited.

Peter and Phyllis went to a farm to get help. When the two children got back to the tunnel with the men from the farm, they found Bobbie and Jim asleep.

The men carried Jim on a piece of flat wood.

‘Where does he live,’ asked one of them.

‘In Northumberland,’ answered Bobbie. ‘He told me while we were waiting.’

‘I’m at a school in Maidbridge,’ said Jim, ‘I suppose I must get back there.’

‘A doctor ought to see you first,’ said the man.

‘Bring him to our house,’ said Bobbie. ‘It’s not far along the road. I’m sure Mother will say it’s all right.’

Mother did say it was all right, although she was a little surprised at first. Then Bobbie explained.

‘I’m sorry to be so much trouble,’ Jim said to Mother as the men carried him in. His face was white with pain.

‘Don’t worry, you poor dear,’ said Mother. ‘You must go to bed, and I’ll send for Doctor Forrest.’

Mother also sent a message to Jim’s school, to tell them what had happened.

‘My grandfather lives near here,’ said Jim.

‘Then I’ll write and tell him, too,’ said Mother. ‘I’m sure he’ll want to know. What’s his name?’

After breakfast the next day, someone knocked at the front door.

‘That will be the doctor again,’ said Mother. She went out of the kitchen and closed the door.

But it wasn’t the doctor. The children listened as Mother and the visitor went upstairs. They heard them talking, and were sure that they knew the voice of the visitor. But who was it?

After a while, the bedroom door opened and they heard Mother and the visitor come down and go into the front room of the house. Then they heard Mother calling: ‘Bobbie!’

Mother was in the hall. ‘Jim’s grandfather has come,’ she said. ‘He wants to see you all.’

They followed Mother into the other room, and there sat - THEIR OWN OLD GENTLEMAN.

‘Oh, it’s you,’ cried Bobbie.

‘How wonderful,’ said Peter. ‘But you’re not going to take Jim away, are you? I was hoping he could stay.’

The old gentleman smiled. ‘No,’ he said. ‘Your mother is very kind. She has agreed to let Jim stay here. I thought of sending a nurse, but your mother was good enough to agree to be his nurse herself.’

‘But what about her writing,’ said Peter, before anyone could stop him. ‘There won’t be anything for him to eat if she doesn’t write.’

The old gentleman smiled kindly at Mother. ‘She has agreed to stop her writing for a while, and become Head Nurse of my hospital.’

‘Oh,’ said Phyllis. ‘Will we have to go away from the white house, and the railway and everything?’

‘No, no, darling,’ Mother said quickly. ‘The hospital is here, at this house.’

‘And my unlucky Jim is the only one needing a nurse,’ said the old gentleman. ‘But there will be a maid and someone to cook the meals until Jim is well.’

‘Then will Mother start writing again,’ asked Peter.

‘Perhaps something nice will happen, and she won’t have to,’ said the old gentleman. ‘Take care of your mother, my dears. She’s a woman in a million. Now, perhaps Bobbie can take me to the door?’

The two of them went outside, and the old gentleman said, ‘I got your letter, my child, but it wasn’t necessary. When I read about your father in the newspapers at the time, I began trying to find out things. I haven’t done much yet, but I have hopes, my dear - I have hopes.’

‘Oh,’ said Bobbie, crying a little.

‘But keep your secret a little longer,’ he said.

‘You don’t think Father did it, do you,’ said Bobbie. ‘Oh, say you don’t!’

‘I’m sure he didn’t,’ said the old gentleman.