The Mystery of Smugglers Cove (The Mystery Series, Book 1)

by Paul Moxham

  The girls hugged him and Joe patted him on the back. He waved and opened the window. After glancing both ways to make sure that there were no men about, he climbed over the ledge.

  After taking a deep breath, he started to climb down the ivy. He had to be careful and take it slowly. It was a long way to the bottom and he couldn’t risk falling.

  He also had to be quiet. If he made the slightest noise, the guard dogs might hear. They would investigate and he wouldn’t stand a chance against the animals if they saw him.

  All was going well when, a quarter of the way down, Will decided to rest for a moment. He grasped a bunch of ivy and, too late, realised his mistake. It was dead and couldn’t hold him. It came away in his fingers and he fell.

  Chapter 16: The Dawn Raid

  Will reached out with his hands in an effort to grab the rest of the ivy. He was six feet from the ground when he succeeded in grabbing a vine.

  Looking up, he saw the others peering down anxiously. Giving a wave to show that he was all right, he started to climb down the remaining distance.

  He stopped and listened once his feet touched solid ground. There was no barking, which meant that the dogs hadn’t yet noticed him.

  Praying that the wind wasn’t blowing his scent towards them, he made his way towards the wall. He got there without a hitch. Everything was going like clockwork. But now the hardest part remained. How was he going to get over the wall?

  While Will had been waiting for the darkness to come, he had gone over this question in his head many times. The only solution he could think of was to climb a tree and edge along one of the branches until he reached the wall.

  He had attempted it before when they were up the trees and the dogs were chasing them, but he hadn’t dared to risk it because it was a dangerous task. But as it was now the only way, he had to take the risk, despite the danger.

  He selected the tree closest to the wall and started to climb up. This he achieved with no problem. It was the bit ahead that would be tricky. He chose the best branch and gingerly edged along it. At the end, he manoeuvred himself until he was hanging by his arms like a monkey. After swinging out, he landed safely on the wall.

  Will sat down on the cold stone and paused for a few moments to regain his breath. Ready to continue, he jumped down on the other side, tumbling in the thick grass. Unhurt, he got to his feet and hurried along the road.

  He knew it would be too dark to use the path through the trees that he knew, so he stayed on the road.

  It took a bit longer this way, but at least there wasn’t any chance of him getting lost or tripping over something.

  Reaching his house a short while later, he ran down and the garden path and banged on the front door.

  A few seconds passed before his father peered through the curtain. A moment later, the door opened. “What are you doing here? I thought you—”

  “You need to get the police,” Will blurted. “The others are being held prisoner at Chandler Manor!”

  “What in heaven’s name have you been up to? You had better come and sit down and tell me exactly what’s going on.”

  Will hurried inside and quickly told him everything that he and the others had done in the last few days. When he’d finished speaking, he looked over at his father. “Are you going to tell the police everything that I’ve told you?”

  “It’s a bit more difficult than you realise, son,” his father replied.

  “What do you mean?” Will said, frowning.

  “I’m going to have to tell you something that I wasn’t supposed to tell anyone, not even you. As you know, I used to be a police officer. I was very successful and put a good many men behind bars.”

  “What has that got to do with this?” Will asked.

  “For the past few months I’ve been working with Inspector Price—”

  “Inspector Price?”

  “Yes, he lives in Edgeworth and is in charge of this district. A while ago he told me that he believed a counterfeiting ring was operating somewhere close. He didn’t have any concrete evidence, but he was suspicious. Not wanting to attract the usual publicity that a police officer gets, he asked me if I could keep my eyes open.”

  “Gosh! So we’ve stumbled on the crooks that the police have been trying to catch for months,” Will exclaimed.

  “Yes, it certainly looks like it.”

  “Can we tell the local constable?”

  “No.”

  “Why not?”

  “For the past six months, despite there being roughly the same number of crimes committed in Smugglers Cove compared to other neighbouring towns, hardly anyone was being caught.”

  “Was someone tipping the crooks off?”

  “Probably. That was the second problem that the inspector told me about.”

  “So what are you going to do then?”

  “Contact the inspector. Knowing him, he will want to come himself, so we should expect him and his men around dawn tomorrow.”

  “But the others are waiting for me to return with the police,” Will said. He looked down, disappointment in his eyes.

  “They’ll just have to wait,” his father replied. “If someone tips the criminals off and we find nothing, I’ll have blown my cover for nothing. Besides, there’s no way that Constable Howard can capture the crooks all by himself. So we will have to wait till dawn.”

  ~

  As dawn broke over Smugglers Cove, Mr Spencer paced back and forth along the pavement near the police station. He then walked back to his car where his son was sitting in the front passenger seat.

  “What’s taking them so long?” Will asked.

  “I don’t know,” replied his father, “but they were due five minutes ago, so they should be here soon.”

  “And then what?” Will said.

  “Well, after the inspector has talked to Constable Howard, we’ll drive to Chandler Manor.”

  “What if they’ve already been tipped off?” Will asked, worried.

  Mr Spencer shook his head. “That isn’t possible. Like I said last night, the informer is someone who has access to the police station. It could be the cleaner, a friend of the constable—”

  “So almost anyone.”

  “Yes. But at the moment only two people in Smugglers Cove know about this plan and that happens to be you and me. So, since the informer obviously can’t know at the moment, he can’t tip them off. You see…” Mr Spencer paused as four police cars tore down the street and braked to a stop just behind their car.

  He left Will and made his way over to the lead car just as a cheerful looking fellow with a moustache and a bald head, climbed out of the car. “Inspector Price?”

  “Yes. Are you Mr Spencer?” Inspector Price asked.

  Will’s father nodded. “We need to get moving straight away if we are going to catch the crooks sleeping.”

  The inspector flicked his hand at the police station. “What have you told Constable Howard?”

  “Nothing. Just for him to be here. I suggest that you deploy him and three of your officers to the beach. Our sources indicate that there’s a tunnel which goes from Chandler Manor to the beach.”

  “That sounds like a sound plan,” the inspector replied. He headed inside the police station with one of his men to talk to the constable. Mr Spencer paced back and forth as he waited anxiously.

  A few minutes later, the inspector and the constable exited the building. “Let’s get going,” Inspector Price said.

  Mr Spencer nodded and leapt into his car. He followed the group of police cars as they made their way through town, past the woods, and finally to Chandler Manor.

  The cars braked as they came in sight of the building. Will climbed out and watched as several police officers placed a ladder against the wall.

  Inspector Price made his way over to Will. “I need someone to help me navigate the way to the study. I understand there’s a machine there that will open the gate. Are you up for the challenge?”

  “Yes.
I’ll do anything to help rescue my friends.”

  “I understand. But no heroics, okay? You stay behind me at all times.”

  “Yes, sir,” Will replied.

  Inspector Price called to one of his men and then the three of them climbed up the ladder.

  ~

  As the morning light penetrated the small room in Chandler Manor, the children were awoken by a commotion somewhere below them.

  “The crooks must be moving stuff,” Joe muttered as he sat up.

  “Maybe they’re planning a getaway,” Amy suggested. “They must realise that sooner or later someone will come here and ask questions. And if the police did search of this place, they would find the printing presses.”

  “You may be right,” Joe said. He opened the window. He stiffened as he saw something. “Hey, I just thought I saw someone move behind those bushes up near the gate. But now I can’t see anything.”

  “Maybe it’s someone coming to rescue us,” Sarah piped up as she peered through the window. “If Will managed to get out, he could be here with the police.”

  “Let’s hope it’s the police,” Amy replied. “I don’t fancy another night sleeping in this bed. It’s as hard as a rock.”

  They resumed scanning the garden in the hope that they would see some sign that a rescue was in progress.

  ~

  Will breathed a sigh of relief as they reached the manor without hearing the sound of the dogs. He had mentioned to the inspector that they had climbed out of a side window that had been broken, and the inspector had requested that he lead him to the spot.

  Will hoped desperately that the window would be in the same state as they had left it, but it wasn’t. The crooks had boarded it up.

  “Is there another way in?” Inspector Price asked.

  Will paused while he thought. At last, he looked towards the inspector. “I’m afraid not. The only other way we discovered was via the front door, and it’s unlikely that it would be unlocked.”

  “Well, there’s no harm in trying,” Inspector Price replied. “We’ll just have to try our luck.”

  They crept towards the front entrance, keeping close to the bushes that hugged the wall. Without warning, the front door burst open and Jake rushed out. He took one quick look around before heading down the driveway.

  Chapter 17: On The Run

  “Looks as though they are keeping watch,” the police officer said.

  “I agree,” Inspector Price said. “I wonder if our plan has somehow been leaked to the crooks.”

  “This could work in our favour,” Will said brightly, as he looked towards the door.

  “What do you mean?” Inspector Price asked.

  “The man has left the door open,” Will replied. “He probably did that so he could retreat quickly if he heard anyone nearby. But that means that we can slip inside the manor that way.”

  “Okay, let’s try to get inside.” Inspector Price stood up from the cover of the bushes and, as quietly as he could, made his way to the door. The officer and Will followed behind him.

  Once they were inside, they paused. They could hear voices, but they were faint. Will told the two police officers that the men were probably in the basement.

  Quickly, they headed to the study where Will showed the police officers the gate opening mechanism. After taking a deep breath, Inspector Price took hold of the lever and pushed down.

  He glanced through the window and smiled with satisfaction as he saw the gates slowly opening. He turned to the police officer. “Head outside and meet the others. I’ll be here, waiting.”

  “Yes, sir.” The police officer left the room.

  Will looked towards the inspector. “When are we going to rescue my friends?”

  “Soon. But we have to catch the crooks first.”

  Suddenly, gunshots rang out and they rushed to the window. They saw that the police cars, which were halfway down the driveway, had skidded to a stop. This was due to a hail of bullets that were being fired upon them from the garage.

  The inspector looked at Will. “Stay here.”

  “But I—” Will said.

  “Stay. I have to help out.” Inspector Price took out his pistol, opened the study door, and, closing it behind him, made his way down the hallway.

  No one was in sight. It looked as though the main group of crooks were outside. He headed towards the front door but, before he could reach it, the door was flung open and a man came rushing in.

  Jake came to a halt as he caught sight of Inspector Price pointing his gun at him. “Put the gun down on the floor, nice and slowly,” the inspector ordered as he spotted the pistol tucked into the man’s belt.

  Jake started to place the gun on the floor when he glanced over the inspector’s shoulders and smiled.

  Fearing a trap, Inspector Price was about to order the man again to drop his weapon, when he glanced in a mirror that was facing him and caught a glimpse of another man holding a gun.

  He turned and saw another criminal, Dan, behind him. The inspector turned back and saw that now Jake also had his weapon pointed at him.

  The inspector was not a man to give up easily, but he knew he was trapped. He laid his weapon down and raised his hands.

  Suddenly, three police officers burst through the open door. Quickly assessing the situation, two of them tackled Jake.

  Seeing that he was outnumbered, Dan turned and rushed down the hallway. But he was no match for the police officers who ran after him and he was soon caught.

  As he was led away, Will emerged from the study. “Is everything fine? I heard—”

  “Everything is going splendidly,” Inspector Price replied, smiling. “I think we’ve got the majority, if not all, of the crooks, so let’s see where your friends are being held.”

  “They should be on the top floor,” Will said.

  “Okay. Just let me talk to my second in charge.” He turned to Sergeant Wilmore, a tall, burly fellow with brown hair. “Search the ground floor and report back to me in five minutes. Okay?”

  The sergeant nodded and, along with a couple of police officers, headed down the hallway.

  Inspector Price climbed up the stairs and stopped as he reached the third floor. Will waited as two police officers quickly searched the hallway to make sure that none of the men were hiding nearby. Satisfied that it was safe, the inspector asked Will to show him the room.

  Will raced along the hallway until he reached the one that the others were held prisoner in. He tried opening the door, but it was locked. He banged on it and shouted. “Hey! Are you still there?”

  There was a moment of silence, and then Amy called out. “Yes! Let us out!”

  “Move aside,” the inspector said. Will obeyed as the inspector called out to the prisoners. “This is Inspector Price. Move right away from the door. I’m going to shoot the lock.”

  Waiting a moment, the inspector took his pistol and fired. The bullet split the lock in two and it fell away.

  Will rushed forward and entered the room. He was greeted by three smiling faces.

  “Great job!” Joe yelled.

  “Smashing!” Sarah shouted.

  “You’re the best,” Amy said and she reached forward and hugged the red haired boy.

  Will hugged back. “Thanks, but it wouldn’t have been possible without the police.”

  Inspector Price stepped into the room. “Are you all okay? I have an officer who used to be a medic—”

  “Thanks, but no thanks,” Joe replied. “The crooks didn’t harm us, thank goodness.”

  “Good to hear. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to see what’s happening with the search.”

  After leaving the children in the charge of a police officer, he headed downstairs. He spotted Sergeant Wilmore near the staircase. “Have you searched the entire premise?”

  “Yes,” Sergeant Wilmore replied with a thick cockney accent.

  “And?”

  “We found a few printing presses in the basement, but tha
t’s all.”

  “No money?”

  “No. And, without any documents or money, those printing presses will not be enough to convict those men.”

  “We still can convict them for kidnapping, but we still need to find where that money went. We can’t have so many counterfeit notes in circulation.” Inspector Price paced back and forth. “There must be something we are missing. Go out and get everyone in here. And get me Mr Spencer. I want to talk to him.”

  “Yes, sir.” Sergeant Wilmore hurried to the front door. He spotted a number of police officers gathered around a police van and hurried towards them.

  Reaching it, he paused as five crooks, handcuffed, were pushed inside the vehicle and locked in from the outside.

  “Listen up, men,” the sergeant said. “Inspector Price wants everyone inside on the double.”

  “What about the crooks?” a police officer asked.

  “Leave two men to guard the van, but get the rest to come inside. Oh, and has anyone seen Mr Spencer?”

  Everyone shook their heads.

  “Okay. Never mind.” Sergeant Wilmore left them and headed up the driveway.

  ~

  By the time the children had descended the staircase, they found the ground floor abuzz with police officers as they ransacked the rooms.

  Joe spotted the inspector as he exited the study. “What are you doing?”

  “Trying to find some solid evidence to put these crooks behind bars and track down the counterfeit notes,” Inspector Price replied.

  “But what about the printing press in the basement?” Will asked.

  “We found those, but nothing else.”

  “What about the study?” Amy said.

  “Nothing.”

  Will shook his head. “There must be something else. Does my dad have any ideas?”

  “I haven’t spoken to him yet.” Inspector Price glanced around. He spotted the sergeant. “I thought I told you I wanted to speak with Mr Spencer.”

  Sergeant Wilmore nodded. “I know, but I couldn’t find him outside, so I assumed that he was already inside.”

  Inspector Price nodded and yelled out to everyone. “Does anyone know where Mr Spencer is?” No one replied, so he tried a different question. “When was the last time anyone saw him?”