12

38. Under the Floor

Jessop's plan to have someone guard the library while school was in session went into effect as soon as he found some volunteers. His efforts saw three children return to class which seemed to please Miriam enough for the moment. The rest of the week was tense and by Saturday all who had taken part were relieved.

With dark clouds hanging heavy in the sky Heloise sought out Ottaline so they could put their own plan in motion. They met in the barn having volunteered to be the ones to move the animals in out of the potential storm. Heloise did most of the work as Ottaline was really only fond of the rabbits.

When the work was done they sat on the barn floor and Ottaline opened her bag. "This is my spy bag," she said. "It has everything we need for a stakeout." She reached in and pulled out her wears. "A magnifying glass, a note pad, a lantern and some matches. Oh and sandwiches in case we get hungry."

"It sounds like we have everything," Heloise said. "I'm ready."

"But you must remember, Heloise," Ottaline said as she packed the bag. "This isn't like one of your stories we have to be careful."

The barn door opened and Alifair entered with a bottle of milk. She looked curiously at Heloise and Ottaline who were still seated on the floor. "What are you doing?" she asked as she went over to check her hens.

Ottaline looked at Heloise. "Detective games," she said.

"Who are you after now?" Alifair asked as she went to Hydra's pen. "A jewel thief or a smuggler?"

"Uh, both!" Heloise said quickly. "And we had better get after them before they get too far. Come on, Ottaline." The two got up and headed to the door.

"You had better not go too far," Alifair called after them. "It's going to rain heavy."

"We'll be back before supper!" Heloise shouted as they ran out of the barn. They kept running until they got to the road then stopped to get their breath. "I felt terrible lying to Alifair."

"She would have just stopped us," Ottaline said. "Now we should hurry to the creek." They picked up the pace and cut across the field and into the woods to save time. They sky stayed dark but thus far there hadn't been any thunder our lightening and by the time they reached the creek Alifair's storm warning was well out of their minds.

They climbed into the rowboat and pushed off into the creek with Ottaline taking the oars while Heloise settled down. "The creek branches off at the old mangrove and the smaller course should take us toward the mill," Heloise said. "We can hide and the same corncrib that Providence and Miriam did."

"I just thought of something," Ottaline said. "We should have told someone else we were going out. At least we should have mentioned we were going to the creek. They won't know where to look for us if we get lost."

"We won't get lost," Heloise said. "The mill is just off the main road. At worst we'll have to walk back."

A shadow passed over them and they looked up. "It sure is getting dark fast," Ottaline said. "Maybe we should light the lantern before we can't find the matches."

"I'll light it," Heloise said so Ottaline could keep rowing. They lit the lantern and hooked it to the boat feeling like real adventures. They rounded the large mangrove and turned onto the smaller stream.

"I've never been this way before," Ottaline said looking up into the branches.

"Providence took me as far as the old mangrove at the bend," Heloise said. "We've never rowed as far as the old mill."