The Secret of Dinswood

by Ellen Alexander

  Although everything in her screamed for haste, she willed herself to go slowly so no sound would give her presence away. Keeping the doorknob turned so that it wouldn’t click when the door was completely closed, she listened for footsteps. The door had a twelve-inch square window in it. Not hearing anyone coming, she risked a look out the window. The lights of the elevator illuminated the hallway enough that she could see a dark figure coming her way. Then the elevator doors closed, and darkness descended once again. Emma could no longer see where the figure was, and not wanting to risk being seen, she ducked out of sight.

  After what seemed like hours, but in reality could have been only seconds, Emma took another peek. The figure had turned on a small flashlight and was directly across from her facing the lockers. From the general height and build, she judged the figure to be that of a man. He had the flashlight pointed at the locker in front of him. Emma looked at the locker number. It was hers! She nearly gasped out loud. Emma felt certain that this was the man who had ransacked Doug’s room. Whoever he was, he must know that they had information as to the whereabouts of the treasure. Emma kept a careful watch, hoping that he would turn his head enough for her to see his face. He was just beginning to work on the combination lock when it happened. The doorknob slipped in her sweaty grip and the bolt snapped into place with a click. In the relative silence, it sounded as loud as a gunshot.

  Emma ducked again, but not before she saw the man whirl around. He’d heard the sound and was coming to investigate. A terror she’d never before experienced seized Emma. Praying that she hadn’t been seen, she began to look for a place to hide.

  The moonlight shining in through the windows made it a little easier for her to find her way around. The front of the classroom was filled with desks, but not the kind a person could hide under. There were several tall, wooden cabinets at the far end of the room, but when Emma got to them, she found they were all padlocked. Then she spied the teacher’s desk. It was a large, old-fashioned, wooden desk, and more importantly, it had a cubbyhole she could hide in. Pulling the teacher’s chair back so she could get under the desk, she quickly scooted into the opening. She was just pulling the chair back into position, thankful that it moved on well-oiled, and therefore silent, rollers, when she heard the door she’d been standing at just moments ago being opened.

  If the man suspected someone was hiding, Emma reasoned, then the teacher’s desk was the only logical choice, and it would only be a matter of time until she was found. Belatedly, Emma realized that if he came around to the front of the desk, she would be trapped. Suppressing the urge to scream, Emma held her breath and strained to hear over the furious pounding of her heart. The intruder must have been wearing soft-soled shoes, because his approach was nearly soundless. A slight rustle indicated that he was getting nearer to her hiding place. Closer and closer he came until he was directly in front of the desk. All Emma could do was wait and hope for a miracle. She had just decided that her discovery was inevitable when she heard him moving away quickly in the direction of the door. He wasn’t trying to be quiet now, so his movements were easier to follow. Then she heard the door open and close. Emma remained where she was for several moments, too afraid to move. Gradually, she became aware that her name was being called. At first, she thought the intruder was toying with her, then she recognized the urgent tones. It was Doug!

  Relief flooded through her and she burst from her hiding place. Moving as if the intruder was chasing her, she flung the classroom door open and raced down the hall. Her eyes had adjusted to the relative darkness, and she could see Doug’s shape moving toward her. When she got to Doug, she threw her arms around him, nearly knocking him down in the process. Shaking and sobbing, she tried to tell him about the evil man who’d been after her, all the while squeezing him so hard he had to gasp for breath.

  Still struggling for air, Doug put his arms around Emma and tried to make sense of what she was saying. When she’d loosened her grip enough for him to speak, he began talking in soothing tones in an effort to calm her down. “It’s okay, Emma. Whoever was after you is gone, and you’re safe now.” Awkwardly, he began to pat her on the back. “Please stop crying, Emma. You need to settle down now so you can tell me exactly what happened. You aren’t hurt, are you?”

  “No,” Emma managed between sobs. “I’ve never been so scared in my life!”

  Never having dealt with a hysterical female, Doug was at a loss as to what to do. Just holding her must have been the right thing, because she gradually stopped shaking, and her sobs soon quieted to intermittent hiccups.

  Eventually, Emma realized she had a death grip on Doug. Embarrassed, she let go of him and backed away. “Sorry about that. I guess I went a little crazy there for a minute.” She took a few deep breaths and then continued, her voice quavering despite her best efforts. “If you hadn’t come when you did, I don’t know what would have happened. Another few seconds and he would have found me. He must have heard you coming.”

  “Did you get a look at his face?” Doug asked, glad that the old Emma was back.

  “No, it was too dark. Before I messed up and gave my presence away, he was about to break into my locker.”

  Out of his concern for Emma, Doug began to get angry. Not only was he angry that someone had threatened Emma, but he was angry with himself for letting it happen. In truth, he was also more than a little upset with Emma. “Emma, you should never have come up here by yourself. You should have waited for me. I came back as soon as I got away from Mrs. Perkins. Please promise me you won’t do anything like this again.”

  “I promise!” Emma said without hesitation. “You’re right. I should have waited for you to come back. It was too dark for me to see anything up here anyway.”

  “Speaking of which, we still need to get the riddle and book out of your locker.”

  “We’re going to have to get a flashlight first, so I can open the lock,” Emma said.

  If she could have seen Doug’s face, she would have seen that he was grinning. “I just happen to have a small flashlight on my key chain that ought to do the trick.”

  “How handy,” Emma teased. “I’ll bet you’ve also got one of those pocket knives that has all those handy little accessories.”

  “As a matter of fact, I don’t. But I’ve always wanted one.” Doug was keeping the conversation light to mask his concern. The intruder had been scared off by Doug’s timely arrival, but he could return at any moment.

  Emma was thinking the same thing. With the aid of Doug’s miniature flashlight, Emma hurriedly opened the lock. She had stuck the riddle inside the book, so all she had to do was grab the book, and they could be on their way. Emma breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the book was right where she’d left it. Grabbing it she said, “I’ve got it. Now let’s get out of here before that man comes back.” Then she closed the locker door and screamed. In the meager light cast by Doug’s flashlight, she could see the shadow of a man standing right behind Doug.

  Doug whirled around ready to do battle, dropping his flashlight in the process. He was in the act of swinging his arm for the first strike when he heard a familiar voice say, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you. You two aren’t supposed to be on this floor. What are you doing up here?” This last question was addressed to Doug.

  It was Dean Harwood. Emma nearly fainted in relief. In fact, she was so relieved that she forgot to be worried that they’d been caught breaking a rule.

  Doug halted in mid-swing and dropped his arm. It took a moment or two for him to regain his composure enough to reply. Even then, he found himself stuttering in a guilty manner. “Ah—ah, Emma—ah, needed to get a book.”

  Dean Harwood considered Doug for a moment and then said to Emma in kind tones, “Emma, it’s a holiday, you know. It’s okay to take a break from schoolwork every now and then.”

  Not trusting herself to speak, Emma merely smiled and nodded. Doug gathered himself together enough to ask his dad, “How did you kno
w we were up here?”

  “I was downstairs by the elevator when I saw that it had stopped on the second floor. I thought it was odd, so I came up to check it out. Now I know it was you two.”

  Doug and Emma exchanged a look, silently agreeing that it was best to let Doug’s dad think they had been the ones using the elevator. Neither of them spoke, and after a few moments, Dean Harwood said, “Well, you kids better get going before someone else catches you up here. I’ll see you upstairs.”

  “Yeah, okay,” Doug said. “Emma needs to get her things, and then we’ll be right up.”

  Dean Harwood went over to the elevator and punched the button with the up arrow. In just a few seconds, a pinging sound indicated the elevator had reached their floor. Emma experienced a moment of déjà vu and shivered. As soon as the elevator doors had closed with Doug’s dad inside, Emma blew out the breath she’d been holding and said, “Let’s get out of here before something else happens.”

  Doug needed no further prompting. Retrieving his still-glowing flashlight from the floor, he lit the way to the stairs. Together, they descended to the landing and then stopped to peer around the corner. The coast was clear, so they hurried down to ground level and then along the west hall toward the girls’ dorm. Doug boldly pushed the double doors open as if he was accustomed to entering the girls’ dorm. Fortunately, there were no girls in the hall at the time. Doug was beyond the point of caring. There was no way he’d let Emma go to her room by herself.

  Quickly, Emma opened the door to her room, and she and Doug ducked inside. Relieved to see that nothing had been disturbed, Emma located her small suitcase and began packing what she’d need for the next couple of days. Doug waited just inside the door while she packed.

  When Emma had finished packing, Doug opened the door and checked the hall in both directions. While Emma had been getting her things, he’d had time to rethink the need for caution. They’d already been caught breaking one rule. Fortunately, it had been his dad that had found them, but they might not be so lucky next time. Although he’d heard voices in the hall just moments before, it was empty now. With Doug leading the way, they left the girls’ dorm and made their way to the elevator. Emma didn’t relax until the elevator doors had closed and they were on their way to the third floor.

  Emma awakened suddenly from a sound sleep. Still groggy and a little disoriented, she looked around the room in which she lay and tried to remember where she was. The curtains at the room’s only window were drawn with only a little moonlight filtering in around the edges. Slowly, memory returned, and she realized she was in the guest bedroom of Dean Harwood’s suite at the invitation of his son Doug. Having solved that little mystery, Emma next began to ponder what had caused her to awaken so suddenly. Emma lay perfectly still and listened for any unusual sounds, but all was quiet. Gradually, Emma began to relax, attributing her wakefulness to being in a strange place. She was just preparing to roll over and try to go back to sleep when she heard it—the rattle of the doorknob. Emma sat straight up in bed and trained her eyes on the door that led from the hallway outside into her room. She thought she could see the doorknob turning slowly. Someone was trying to get into her room. Desperately, Emma tried to remember if she had locked the door before going to bed. Then she remembered that there was no lock. The door began to swing inward on its hinges, and Emma opened her mouth to scream.

  Emma awakened with a start, her heart beating a furious rhythm in her chest. Quickly, she looked over at the bedroom door, but it was securely closed and there was no discernible movement of the doorknob. It had all just been a horrible dream. Emma took a deep breath and tried to calm herself.

  As a little girl, when she’d had a nightmare, Emma would run and climb in bed with her mother. Her mother would hold her close and whisper soothing words until Emma fell asleep again. After her mother had died, she’d had to learn to be more self-reliant. Whenever she’d had a particularly bad nightmare, she’d just had to huddle down in her blankets, shaking and scared, until her fright had passed. Emma thought she had become stronger as a result, but earlier tonight the incident on the second floor had shown her otherwise. She’d run stammering incoherently to Doug and blubbered all over the front of his shirt. Looking back on it she was embarrassed, but there was nothing she could do about it now. Doug had been very understanding and hadn’t made fun of her, for which she was grateful. Sighing, she relaxed back against her pillow and replayed the events of the evening in her mind.

  When they had arrived at Dean Harwood’s suite, Doug had shown her to her room, so she could put her suitcase away. The room was simple but elegant with a full-size bed and a chest of drawers. A round table with a hurricane lamp stood next to the bed. There was a small closet where Emma could hang her clothes if she desired, and the room had its own adjoining bathroom. The bathroom was small but modern with a pedestal sink and a glass enclosed shower stall.

  After unpacking her suitcase, she had returned to the living room to find Dean Harwood and Doug sitting on the couch in front of the fireplace. Upon seeing her, Dean Harwood had welcomed her and made her feel immediately at ease. They had spent the better part of the evening trying to teach Emma how to play chess. Doug had finished the chessboard he was making in his hobby class, but he hadn’t finished carving all the pieces yet, so they used an old board that Dean Harwood had. By the end of the evening, Emma was beginning to get the hang of it. She had learned all of the pieces and the moves they could make. She still wasn’t much of a strategist, but both Doug and his dad assured her that she would learn in time, and they complimented her on how fast she had picked up the basics of the game.

  Dean Harwood had retired to his room early, giving Doug and Emma a chance to go over the riddle one more time. Emma had already been over the riddle so many times she had it memorized, but she was hoping Doug might be able to pick up on something she had missed. After thirty minutes, it was obvious that there was no new information to be gained from the riddle. Doug suggested that the next time they went to Windland they visit Cal Thrabek’s bookstore, since that’s where they had gotten the first clue. Maybe Cal would direct them to another book with a hidden riddle. It was a long shot, but, at the moment, it was all they had. With that decision made, they’d said goodnight and gone to their respective rooms. Exhausted, Emma had gone right to sleep and slept soundly until she’d been awakened by her nightmare. No doubt the incident with the dark figure on the second floor earlier that evening had triggered the dream she’d had. Now that she’d had time to calm down, Emma was beginning to feel sleepy again. She looked at the clock on the table next to her bed and saw that it was two o’clock in the morning. It’s already Thanksgiving Day, Emma thought as she drifted back to sleep.

  Emma was awakened in the morning by a knock on her bedroom door. “Emma, are you awake?” Doug asked from the other side of the door.

  Emma rolled over and looked at the clock by her bed. It was eight o’clock. She’d have to get ready in a hurry if they were going to make it down to the dining hall in time for breakfast. She hadn’t intended to sleep so late. Fortunately, because it was a holiday, breakfast was being served a little later than usual—from seven to nine instead of seven to eight. “I’ll be ready in a few minutes,” Emma answered as she hastily got out of bed. Emma dressed, brushed her teeth, and ran a comb through her hair, getting ready in record time. When she entered the living room a few minutes later, she saw Doug sitting alone in the living room. Seeing Emma’s questioning look, Doug explained that his dad had already gone downstairs to take care of a few things before breakfast.

  “I’m sorry I slept so late,” Emma said, looking at the clock on the fireplace mantle.

  “No problem,” Doug assured her. “I just got up a half hour ago myself. Well, shall we go get some breakfast?”

  “Sounds good to me,” Emma agreed.

  After breakfast, Doug and Emma decided to go outside for a while. Although the air was chilly, the sun was shining brightly in a cloudles
s sky, and there was little wind. It felt good just to be outdoors. Emma and Doug walked in a westerly direction, passing around the girls’ dorm and circling back until they came to the greenhouse behind the castle on the south side. Poinsettias, growing in green and red pots, could be seen through the glass windows of the greenhouse. These would be used for decorating the castle at Christmas time, Doug explained to Emma. The Christmas trees that would grace the halls of Dinswood Academy would be chosen carefully and cut from Fangorley Forest. There would be a large tree placed in the main entrance of the castle as well as a smaller tree in the lounge and one in the library. Student volunteers were enlisted to help decorate the castle for Christmas. This was usually done after school on the first day of December and was supervised by the entire staff of Dinswood Academy, including the dean. The decorating would take the place of hobby class for that day and was always a very festive occasion complete with hot chocolate and cookies provided by the cooking class. Emma found herself looking forward to her first Christmas at Dinswood.

  Thinking about Christmas made Emma realize that she needed to make a list of the gifts she needed to purchase the next time they went to Windland. She would give the afghan she was making to her dad and stepmother, but she would need to get something for Tyler and Taylor, her twin brothers. Also, she wanted to get gifts for Martha, Sebastian, and Doug. It was a good thing her parents had sent her money for her birthday.

  Turning to Doug, Emma asked, “When will the seventh grade be going down to Windland again? With winter coming, I don’t imagine the trips will continue much longer.”

  “Dad said that the last trip to Windland will be the first Saturday in December as long as we don’t get a big snowstorm between now and then. Since it’s the last trip to town until spring, anyone can go. All of the buses will drive down, and most all of the teachers will go with us.”