Both Peter's mother and Colin's were very angry when they arrived back so late for their dinner. Janet was so full of curiosity to know what had happened that she could hardly wait till Peter had finished. He kept frowning at her as he gobbled down his hot stew, afraid that she would ask some awkward questions.
He sent her round to collect the Secret Seven, and they all arrived in a very short time, though Colin was late because he had to finish his dinner.
Peter told them everything, and they listened, thrilled. Well, what a tale! To meet Zeb like that, and to have him telling them so much that they wanted to know!
" Little did he know why we asked him so many questions !" said Colin, with a grin. " I must say he was quite nice to us, though he's a mean-looking fellow with shifty eyes."
"This afternoon we will all go to the siding," said Peter. " We'll find out what days that goods train comes along, too."
So off they went. First they went to the station and found the porter again. He had nothing much to do and was pleased to talk to them. He told them tales of this, that and the other on the railway, and gradually Peter guided him to the subject of goods trains.
" Here comes one," said the porter. " It won't stop at the station, though no passengers to get on or off, you see. Want to count the trucks? It's not a very long train."
Most of the trucks were open ones, and they carried all kinds of things; coal, bricks, machinery, crates. The train rumbled by slowly, and the Seven counted thirty-two trucks.
" I'd rather like to see that goods train Zeb told us about," said Peter to the porter. " The one that comes from Petlington and beyond, the 6.2,1 think he said. It's sometimes a very long one, isn't it ? "
"Yes. Well, you'd have to come on Tuesday or Friday," said the porter. " But it's dark then, so you won't see much. Look, the guard of that last goods train is waving to you!"
They waved back. The goods train got smaller and smaller in the distance and at last disappeared.
"I wonder things aren't stolen out of those open trucks," said Peter, innocently.
" Oh, they are," said the porter. " There's been a whole lot of stealing lately, yes, even a car taken out of one truck, though you mightn't believe it! Some gang at work, they say. Beats me how they do it! Well, you kids, I must go and do a spot of work. So long! "
The Seven wandered off. They walked by the side of the track for about a mile until they came to where the points were that Zeb had explained that morning.
Peter pointed them out. "That's where they plan to switch the goods train off to a side-line," he said. " I wish we knew which evening. I think it must be soon, though, because that note George got said that everything was ready and going O.K."
They followed the side-line, walking by the side of the railway. The line meandered off all by itself and finally came into a little goods yard, which seemed to be completely deserted at that moment.
Big gates led into the goods yard. They were open to let in lorries that came to take the goods unloaded from trucks sent down the side-line. But only empty trucks stood on the little line now, and not a soul was about. It was plain that no goods train was expected for some time.
"This is a very lonely little place," said Colin. " If a goods train was diverted down here, nobody would hear it or see it, except those who would be waiting for it! I bet there will be a lorry creeping in here some evening, ready to take the lead sheets or pipes or whatever they are, from the truck whose tarpaulin is marked with white lines! "
" What about coming here on Tuesday evening, just in case that's the night they've arranged?" said Jack, suddenly. "Not the girls. Only us boys. Then, if we saw anything happening, we could telephone the police. And before Zeb and Larry and the other two could finish their unloading we could get the police here. I say, wouldn't that be a thrill?"
" I don't know. I think really we ought to get in touch with that big Inspector we like," said Peter. "We know quite enough now to be sure of what we say. The only thing we dont know is whether it's this Tuesday or if it's to be later on."
They stood together, arguing, and nobody saw a burly policeman sauntering in through the open gates. He stared when he saw the children, and stood watching them.
" I'd like to see those points," said Colin, getting tired of the argument. "Show me them, Peter. We'll look out for trains."
Peter forgot that children were not allowed to trespass on the railway lines. He set off up the side-line with the others, walking in the middle of the lines on his way to the points.
A loud voice hailed them. "Hey, you kids there! What do you think you're doing, trespassing like that? You come back here. I've got something to say to you."
" Let's run! " said Pam, in a panic. " Don't let him catch us."
"No. We can't run," said Peter. "I forgot we oughtn't to walk on the lines like this. Come back and explain, and if we say we're sorry, we'll be all right!"
So he led all the Seven back into the goods yard. The policeman came up to them, frowning.
" Now you look here," he said; " there's been too much nonsense from children on the railways lately. I've a good mind to take all your names and addresses and make a complaint to your parents about you."
"But we weren't doing a thing!" said Peter, indignantly. "We're sorry we trespassed, but honestly we weren't doing a scrap of harm."
" What are you doing in this here goods yard ? " said the policeman. " Up to some mischief, I'll be bound!"
"We're not," said Peter.
" Well, what did you come here for, then," said the policeman. "Go on, tell me. You didn't come here for nothing."
" Tell him," said Barbara, frightened and almost crying.
The policeman became very suspicious at once when he heard that there was something to tell. " Oho! So there was something you were after! " he said. " Now you just tell me, or I'll take your names and addresses!"
Peter wasn't going to tell this bad-tempered fellow anything. For one thing, he wouldn't believe the extraordinary tale that the Secret Seven had to tell, and for another, Peter wasn't going to give all his secrets away! No, if he was going to tell anyone, he would tell his father, or the Inspector they all liked so much!
It ended in the big policeman losing his temper thoroughly and taking down all their names and addresses, one by one. It was really maddening. To think they had come there to help to catch a gang of clever thieves, and had had their names taken for trespassing!
" I'll get a whipping from my father if he hears about it," said Colin, dolefully. " Oh, Peter, let's tell our nice Inspector everything, before that policeman goes round to our parents."
But Peter was angry and obstinate. " No!" he said. "We'll settle this affair ourselves, and the police can come in at the last moment, when we've done everything, yes, that horrid fellow, too, who took our names. Think of his face if he has to come along to this goods yard one night to catch thieves we've tracked down, instead of him! I'll feel jolly pleased to crow over him! "
"I'd like to come, too, on that night," said Janet.
"Well you won't," said Peter, very much the head of the Secret Seven at that moment. " No girls at all. Look at Barbara crying over a policeman taking her name and address! What use would she be on an evening with dangerous things going on ? No, we four boys will go, nobody else, and that's that!"