The Secret of Dinswood

by Ellen Alexander

  Once they were back out in the hall, Sebastian, unable to contain himself any longer, blurted out, “Did you figure it out?”

  “Sebastian, keep your voice down,” Martha said in a loud whisper. Then she looked around anxiously. Students were passing by them on their way into and out of the library, but fortunately, none of them were paying any attention to the foursome standing huddled together in the middle of the hall. “Where can we go to talk? We can’t go outside now; it’s dark.”

  “The dining hall should be empty now. Let’s go there,” Doug suggested.

  Quickly, they made their way down the hall to the dining room. With a quick glance around to make sure no one was watching, they ducked through the double doors that led into the dining room. The tables had already been cleaned, and the room was blessedly empty. Sitting at the middle table on the end nearest the doors, Doug and Emma shared what they had discovered with Martha and Sebastian.

  “So that stone is the key to opening the door to the passage,” Martha said in dawning comprehension.

  Once again, however, Sebastian had questions. “I don’t get it. You mean we’ve gotta push on that stone or something and then the door will open?”

  “That’s what we’ve got to find out,” Doug answered patiently.

  “Well, we can’t just go in there and start pushing around on the fireplace with old sourpuss Hodges watching,” Sebastian said, once again pointing out the obvious.

  “Yeah,” Martha said. “How are we going to open the passage without everyone knowing?”

  “We’ll have to do it at night,” Doug said.

  “How are we gonna get in at night? Mr. Hodges always locks the library when he leaves for the night,” Martha said.

  “That’s true,” Doug said, and then smiling, he added, “but I can get the key.” He gave that a minute to sink in and then he explained. “Dad keeps keys to everything in a lock box in the closet of his office. The box is mounted on the wall just behind the closet door, and the keys hang on labeled pegs. That box is always open when Dad is in his office. He keeps it open so he can get to the keys quickly in case of an emergency. I’ve been in that closet a whole bunch of times. I’m sure I can get the key to the library with no problem.”

  “Won’t your dad notice it’s missing?” Martha asked.

  “I can fix it so he won’t. I’ll just put another key on the library peg. The only way he’d know it wasn’t the right key is if he had to use it.”

  At that point, Sebastian broke in again with another concern. “If we have to do this at night, we’re gonna have to sneak out of our dorms after curfew. How are we gonna avoid getting caught by the security guards?”

  Once again, Doug had the answer. “There are only three security guards. One patrols the grounds, one patrols the first floor, and one patrols the second floor. They make their rounds every hour on the hour as regular as clockwork. We’ll be able to avoid them easily enough.”

  “Well, I guess the only thing left to do is decide when we’re going to do this,” Martha said.

  “We should also make a list of the things we’ll need if we do happen to find the entrance to the passage,” Emma said, finally joining the conversation. Doug nodded his agreement, and once again produced his little notebook and pen.

  Several minutes later, all of the details had been ironed out. They would meet outside the library on Friday night at eleven thirty on the dot. The security guards would have completed their rounds by then, and they would have half an hour to figure out how to get into the passage. They were all going to dress warmly in dark clothes. The passage was cold, according to the riddle, and dark, so they would also need to bring flashlights. Doug had told them that they could get all the flashlights they needed from the custodian’s closet located next to the kitchen. Satisfied that they had thought of everything, and after making sure that there was no one in the hall, they left the dining room.

  The rest of the week seemed to drag by for Emma. Every time she thought about the secret passage, she got butterflies in her stomach. They were going to be breaking several school rules Friday night; if they got caught, they could be expelled. Emma knew what was at stake and just hoped that their efforts on behalf of the school would pay off. She and Martha hadn’t talked to Doug and Sebastian since Monday. They had decided that it was best if they weren’t seen together any more than necessary. All week it had been an effort for Emma to concentrate on her studies, but she knew she had to keep her grades up, or she wouldn’t be attending Dinswood next year, even if they did find the treasure.

  Friday finally arrived. Emma was a bundle of nerves all day, and she could tell by Martha’s strained expression that she, too, was nervous. It was difficult to tell whether the boys were nervous or not. Why was it that boys seemed to be so much better at hiding their emotions?

  A worrier by nature, Emma wondered if Doug had managed to get the key to the library. She also began to doubt the existence of the passage. Could it be that the riddle was just a cruel hoax? Thank goodness for the steadying presence of Martha. Every time Emma had a worry, Martha reaffirmed what they were doing. It was not like they were after personal gain, Martha would point out. What they were doing was for the school. The treasure belonged to Dinswood Academy, and no one else was going to get his or her hands on it.

  At least they hadn’t had to worry about how to avoid Clarice. Ever since Reggie had entered the picture, Clarice and Susie had spent less and less time with Emma and Martha. Now about the only time they talked to Clarice was after curfew when they were all together in their room. Fortunately, Clarice and Susie were sound sleepers, so sneaking out of the room at eleven thirty at night shouldn’t be a problem.

  The appointed time arrived all too soon. At precisely eleven twenty-five, Emma and Martha pulled back their covers and crept to the door of the suite. They had waited until Clarice and Susie had gone to sleep and then dressed in black pants and sweatshirts. Then they had gone to bed fully dressed. At the door, they grabbed their shoes and jackets and then slipped out into the hallway. They took just a moment to put on their shoes and then moved noiselessly to the double doors that led into the west hall of the castle. Cautiously, Emma swung the door open just enough to give her a view of the west hall. Signaling to Martha that the coast was clear, she led the way down the hall to the library.

  Doug and Sebastian should be coming any minute. They were going to stop by the custodian’s closet and get the flashlights first. After a few minutes, Emma and Martha could see two shapes moving toward them from the east hall. Emma let out the breath she’d been holding when the two shapes resolved into Doug and Sebastian.

  Without saying a word, Doug handed the flashlights to the girls. Then he took the library key out of his pocket and unlocked the door. Once they were all inside, Doug used the key again to lock the door from the inside. He explained that the security guards always checked the doors to make sure they were locked. As a group, they moved over to the fireplace. With Emma holding the flashlight so he could see, Doug counted seven stones up from the bottom and seven stones over from the edge of the fireplace. When he’d located the correct stone, he ran his fingers around its edges. Just as he had suspected, the stone was loose. Grabbing the crowbar Sebastian had been holding, Doug began to pry the stone loose. Sebastian went over to hold the stone so that when it came loose it wouldn’t fall. The stone made a scraping noise as it was worked free. In the dead silence, it sounded as loud as a gunshot to Emma. Anxiously, she looked over at the door, wondering if anyone had heard, but no one came. She was on the point of relaxing again when Sebastian stumbled backward with the weight of the stone. Everyone gasped as he struggled to right himself. Moving quickly, Doug was able to grab the stone from Sebastian before he dropped it.

  “S-sorry,” Sebastian stammered. “I told you I’m a bit of a klutz.” Emma could see the glint of perspiration on his forehead in the light from the flashlight she was holding.

  “It’s okay. I got it,” Doug said,
the strain of holding the stone evident in his voice. Carefully setting the stone down on the base of the fireplace, Doug stepped back and waited. After a few minutes, it became apparent that nothing was going to happen. Obviously, there was more involved in opening the passage than just removing the stone. What else were they going to have to do, Emma wondered nervously, shining the light on her watch.

  “We’ve only got fifteen minutes before the security guards make their rounds again, so we’d better hurry and figure out how to open the passage,” Emma said quickly.

  “I’m sure this is the right stone,” Doug said, scratching his head in confusion. Then, as Emma swung her flashlight across the place where the stone had been removed, he caught a glint of metal. “Emma, shine your flashlight where the stone was. I think I see something in there.” As Emma did as he asked, Doug stepped closer and peered into the space left by the now absent stone. “You’re not gonna believe this,” Doug said, turning to look at the others.

  “What is it?” the others asked in unison.

  “There’s some kind of metal plate in there with an old-fashioned knocker on it.”

  This revelation was greeted with silence as they struggled to make sense of what Doug had seen. Suddenly Sebastian spoke up. “Don’t you get it? It’s Matthew 7:7. Remember the last part of the verse says, ‘knock and the door will be opened to you.’”

  “Of course,” Martha exclaimed. “Good job, Sebastian!”

  Needing no further prompting, Doug reached his hand into the space, lifted the knocker and let it fall, but again nothing happened.

  “Maybe we need to knock seven times,” Emma suggested hopefully.

  Again, Doug reached into the space, but this time he knocked six more times. Each time the knocker fell, a sound like a chain moving through a loop could be heard coming somewhere from behind the fireplace. At the seventh knock, a metal bar with the knocker attached sprang forward until it was flush with the other stones, and the entire fireplace began to swing around in a semicircle. Everyone jumped back in surprise. There was a low rumble as the fireplace rotated 180 degrees to reveal a large hole in the floor underneath.

  “Wow!” Sebastian whispered.

  Cautiously they approached the gaping hole, and Emma shone her flashlight into it. The light revealed a wooden spiral staircase that led straight down. The hole was deep enough that they couldn’t see the bottom.

  “Do you suppose those stairs are safe?” Martha asked worriedly.

  “They look solid enough. We’ll just take it slow,” Doug answered, looking around at them. Still no one made a move toward the stairs. Seeing their obvious reluctance, Doug grabbed a flashlight from Martha and said, “I’ll go first, and you guys can follow, okay?”

  Emma didn’t know how long the rest of them would have stood there hesitating if the decision hadn’t suddenly been taken out of their hands. At that precise moment, the library clock began striking twelve. The security guards would be starting their rounds. Although it was unlikely that the first-floor guard would enter the library, they didn’t want to just be standing there if he did. One by one, they filed after Doug and began to descend the stairs. It was slow going at first because Doug was carefully checking each stair to make sure it would hold their weight. It soon became apparent, however, that the staircase was in excellent condition, and with growing confidence, Doug began to lead them downward at a faster pace. Emma followed right behind Doug, with Martha behind her, and Sebastian bringing up the rear.

  The staircase seemed to go on forever, and Emma was glad she couldn’t see how deep the shaft was. Swinging her flashlight around in a wide arc, Emma saw that the sides of the shaft were solid rock. Did someone chisel through rock to make this? she wondered. Doug must have been thinking along the same lines, because he paused suddenly on the stairs and said, “This must be part of a natural cave.”

  “A cave?” Martha whispered anxiously behind Emma. “You mean like with bats and everything?”

  “I wouldn’t be surprised if there were bats in the main part of the cave,” Doug answered calmly.

  “That’s just great,” Martha mumbled in a tone that suggested it was anything but great.

  Attempting to get Martha’s mind off of bats, Emma addressed the other half of Doug’s statement. “You mean this isn’t the main part of the cave?”

  “No. This is just a vertical shaft that leads down to the main part of the cave.”

  “How far down does this thing go?” Sebastian said with a groan, making it clear that it was more of a complaint than a question.

  “I don’t know, maybe a hundred feet or more,” Doug said with a shrug.

  Emma’s head began to swim. A hundred feet was about ninety-five feet too many as far as she was concerned. Lord Dinswood’s treasure had better be worth it! Emma hated close spaces and the dark, and she wasn’t a big fan of bats either. She could only imagine what else Lord Dinswood had in store for them. What was it he’d said at the end of his riddle? A second later, Emma remembered—great treasure awaits the brave of heart. I hope I’m brave enough, she thought as once again she began to follow Doug down the winding stairs.

  They continued to descend the staircase for what seemed to Emma an eternity, but what was in reality only a few minutes. The further down they went the colder the air became, and they began to notice water glistening on the sides of the shaft. As they got closer to the bottom, they could hear water dripping. Finally, the staircase ended, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Swinging their flashlights around, they could see that the cave at the bottom was quite a bit wider than the shaft they had been descending, and the ceiling was high enough that they would be able to walk upright. A tiny stream of water flowed down the center of the floor of the cave which looked rocky, uneven, and slippery. They would have to walk on either side of the little stream to keep from getting their feet wet, and they were going to have to pick their way carefully over the wet stones. With Doug leading the way, they proceeded slowly along the main part of the cave, which sloped ever downward.

  They walked without speaking for several minutes, all of their attention focused on maintaining their balance. Every now and then Doug would pause to help Emma and Martha over a particularly rough spot, and then he would take the lead once again. Gradually the cave began to narrow, and, at one point, they had to squeeze between the walls one at a time. Emma began to feel like she was suffocating and realized that her claustrophobia was about to get the best of her. Just when she thought she could stand it no longer, the cave opened up into a large room. Sebastian, who was bringing up the rear, was the last to step into the big room. He was on the point of making an exclamation when he was shushed by Doug’s whispered warning, “Quiet, there are bats in here.”

  Emma cautiously swung her flashlight upward, and sure enough, there were literally hundreds of bats hanging from the ceiling of the cave. She could feel Martha tensing beside her.

  “Bats!” Martha whispered loudly on the verge of hysteria.

  “It’s okay, Martha. As long as we’re careful not to disturb them, we’ll make it through here just fine,” Doug said, trying to calm her.

  Seeing that Doug’s reassuring words were having little effect on Martha, Emma grabbed her by the arm and began to guide her across the room to the spot where the cave narrowed once again. At first Martha resisted, as if frozen in place, but once Emma got her moving, she had to almost run to keep up with her. Even Sebastian made a special effort to be quiet as he traversed the width of the room. Once they were safely inside the narrow passage on the opposite side, they all took a moment to catch their breath. Doug was the first to recover his composure.

  Pushing away from the wall he’d been leaning on and giving the others a quick look, he said simply, “We’d better keep moving.”

  Moaning, but with no other choice, the others dutifully followed. Just when they were about to think they’d never get to the end of the cave, they could see moonlight up ahead and hear the sound of swiftly movin
g water. In their excitement, they quickened their pace and were soon at the mouth of the cave. Pushing aside the vegetation that partially obscured the opening, they exited the cave and found themselves standing beside a fairly large stream. Here, the water from the cave joined the swiftly moving flow, which sparkled in the light of the half-moon as it bounced over the rocks that formed the stream bed. Steep banks rose on either side of the stream, the roots of clinging trees clearly visible. Emma looked up and could see a multitude of stars shining brightly in the clear night sky. They’d never looked this close or bright in the city.

  “Is this the same stream that runs along the west side of the school?” Sebastian asked suddenly, his breath fogging in the cold night air.

  “The very same,” Doug answered.

  Doug had spent the summer at Dinswood with his father, and thus had had an opportunity to do a bit of exploring and learn his way around. He knew that this was the only stream around Dinswood Academy, and he was fairly confident that they were about a mile away from the castle. He had walked up and down this stream quite a bit during the summer but had never noticed the cave entrance. The explanation was obvious. The tangle of weeds and shrubs hid the opening.

  So relieved were they to be out of the cave that they had temporarily forgotten the reason they had begun this little adventure. It was Sebastian who was the first to remember.

  “Where’s the treasure?” he asked, looking at Doug as if he could provide the answer.

  “Yeah,” Martha chimed in. “I didn’t see any treasure. Was that riddle just some kind of sick joke?”

  “Maybe we missed a clue somewhere along the way,” Emma suggested.