by Paul Moxham
The moon provided quite a bit of light, so Joe didn’t switch on the torch until they reached the woods. Navigating their way up to where they had seen the light took some time as they had to go slowly due to the uneven terrain. They didn’t want to trip over in the darkness and hurt themselves. However, as they neared their destination and caught sight of the light through the trees up ahead, Joe switched off his torch. There was no point giving advance notice to the person up ahead that they were nearby in case there was something strange going on.
Joe and Will cautiously walked towards the light, not making a sound as they did so. Once they were near enough, they stopped beside a tree and stared at the man sitting by the roaring fire. He was sitting on a log and, beside him, was a rucksack.
Joe frowned. The man seemed familiar looking, and it didn’t take long for him to realize why. He whispered to Will. “I think that’s the man we saw earlier today, the one who met Leo!”
Will nodded. “Yes, it could be, especially since that rucksack looks like the one that the lion tamer was carrying.”
Suddenly, the man glanced in their direction. Fortunately, he turned away a few moments later, apparently satisfied that no one was nearby. He then reached for the rucksack and, opening it up, removed something from it.
As the boys caught sight of a sparkling necklace, they could hardly believe their eyes. It was part of the missing crown jewels!
As much as Joe had hoped that they were on the right track, it had all been guesswork with no firm evidence until now. As the man removed the crown from the rucksack, Joe whispered to Will. “Let’s talk for a moment.”
The boys hurried back the same way they had come. Once Joe was satisfied that they were out of hearing range, he turned to his friend. “Now we know what’s going on, we need to tell the police.”
Will nodded. “Yes, this is too big for us to handle. One of us needs to go back to the farmhouse and tell Christo. He should know the telephone number of the nearest police station.”
“And the other person needs to keep an eye on the man in case something happens in the meantime,” Joe stated. “Which do you want to do?”
“I’ll run to the farmhouse,” Will offered.
Joe handed his friend the torch. “Take this then. You’ll be able to go faster with the extra light.”
“But what if the man leaves and you need to follow him?” Will questioned. “What then?”
“Let’s hope that doesn’t happen,” Joe said. “Just be as quick as you can.” He waited for a moment as Will hurried away down the hill and then, as he was swallowed up the darkness, he walked back to the camp fire.
Joe settled down in the same place as before and waited. As the minutes passed and the man made no sign of moving, he hoped that enough time would pass for Will to return with the police in tow.
After a while, he walked down the hill a little way until he reached an outcrop which was free from trees and allowed a view down to the field below. He saw the lights of the farmhouse but that was all.
Wondering how long he would have to wait, he was just about to turn back when he caught sight of two bobbing lights leaving the farmhouse.
Delighted that help would soon be at hand, Joe hurried back to the man. However, upon arriving, he was in for a mighty shock.
Chapter 5: Trapped!
The camp fire was now a mass of smouldering embers and the man had the rucksack on his back. As he switched on a torch, Joe realised he was getting ready to leave.
As the man walked away, Joe decided he had no choice but to follow him. However, as he needed to wait a while to avoid being heard, Joe spent the time arranging a number of sticks in the direction in which the man had gone.
Then, satisfied that he had done all he could to help the others, he followed the man. He had to hurry at first since the distance was quite sizeable. Luckily, there was a trail that meandered through the woods and, since this was what the man stayed on, it was relatively easy.
Every now and then, Joe looked back to see if he could see any sign of Will or Christo, but he couldn’t. All he could hope was that they were following him.
Ten minutes later, the wood came to an end and, after continuing walking down a path for another five minutes, the man climbed over a fence and headed towards a farmhouse.
All was dark, and then Joe caught sight of a dim light coming from the outside of one of the barns. Joe realized this was where the man was meeting his contact and that the man must have been waiting by the fire until the time was right to head for the farmhouse.
Joe hurried to the fence and climbed over. Wanting to be as close as possible in order to hear what was going on, he slowly made his way towards the large structure. As he approached, a man holding a lamp came out of the barn and greeted the newcomer. The man Joe had been following then followed the other man into the barn.
Joe stealthily crept towards the barn and, once he was near the open door, he stood as close as he dared in the hope of hearing what was being discussed. However, he was disappointed. The men were talking in low voices, too low for him to hear a single word.
So, taking a chance, he found a small rock and threw it as hard as he could towards the farmhouse. As it clunked onto the path, the two men stopped talking and hurried outside.
Joe pressed himself against the side of the barn as they hurried past and then, as soon as they had done so, he slipped inside. He took a quick look around and realized there was only one place he could hide, which was the loft.
He ran over to the ladder and climbed up. He then sat down near the wall and waited for the men to return. They soon did, but this time they stood quite close to the barn door, which meant that either they were waiting for someone else or they were keeping a close eye on the outside.
Annoyed that he still couldn’t hear them, he crept towards the edge of the loft, hoping that this would be enable him to hear what was being discussed. However, just as he reached the railing, the wood groaned and the plank split in two.
As the entire front of the loft collapsed, he leapt backwards. He just made it, but the three hay bales that had been stored up in the loft tumbled down onto the barn floor.
As the men yelled out to one another, Joe crouched up against the back of the loft, wondering how long it would take the men to climb up the ladder and see him.
But, as the men approached, one of them suddenly stopped and yelled out. “Fire!”
Joe frowned, wondering if they were trying to trick him and then, as he saw the smoke a moment later, he realised this was no trick.
He didn’t dare move in case he was seen, but even though he couldn’t see the actual flames at this point in time, he could see the smoke and hear the commotion as the men attempted to put it out.
Within seconds, the fire grew tremendously and, as the smoke and flames started to spread, he heard one of the men yell out. “Let’s get out of here before someone comes!”
As the two men fled the scene, Joe relaxed. He had no idea what would have happened if they had seen him, and thus he thought it was lucky that the fire had started. However, as he walked over to the ladder to climb down, he was shocked to find the fire burning right below.
Dismayed, he walked as close as he could to the front of the loft and glanced around. His heart sank as he saw that the fire had almost reached every corner of the structure. No wonder the men had left.
He had to get down from the loft and out of the barn as soon as possible. But now that the ladder was no longer an option, he would have to jump. However, he was concerned that if he hit the floor from this height, he might injure himself.
As he was trying to decide on the best plan of action, he heard someone yelling out. He frowned. Why would the men yell out? It wouldn’t make any sense.
A ray of hope shot through him. Maybe it wasn’t the men. Maybe it was Will and Christo. Maybe they had followed the trail that he had indicated and had seen the flames when they had emerged from the wood.
Joe yelled
out. “I’m in here! Help me!”
He listened, but there was no response. As the fire began to get out of control, Joe realized he would have to leap down. And so, after spotting a bale of hay that was as yet untouched by the flames, he leapt down on top of it. This softened his landing and, even though he rolled onto the ground after he hit the hay, it wasn’t as bad as hitting the ground immediately.
Joe quickly got to his feet and glanced around. He was shocked to realize that there didn’t appear to be any way to escape. He had waited too long. The flames were engulfing all four walls of the barn. There was no way he could escape from either the windows or the door.
However, not wanting to give up, he made his way to the nearest window. But he couldn’t get close. The flames were too hot.
Joe wasn’t one to get frightened easily, but he knew that the situation in which he now found himself was bad, really bad. For once, he didn’t have any idea how he was going to escape, no idea whatsoever. He was in a dangerous situation and he knew it.
As the seconds ticked by, the situation became worse. The flames grew bigger and the smoke increased. Joe desperately headed in every direction, trying to find a way out. But he was stopped by the massive fire every single time. As sweat ran down his face, Joe realised that the situation had gone from bad to impossible.
There was no way out.
Suddenly, there was a noise of an engine, and before Joe could comprehend what was happening, the barn door smashed open and a tractor burst through. It rolled past the flames and came to a halt. Peering through the smoke and the flames, Joe caught sight of Christo at the wheel. As the two made eye contact, Christo yelled out. “Get in!”
Joe raced over and grabbed the outstretched hand of Christo. Once he was safely on the vehicle, Christo reversed.
Joe glanced up as he heard a loud creaking noise and was horrified to see that the flames had reached the beams that criss-crossed along the top of the roof. Realising it wouldn’t take long before the entire structure collapsed, he was thankful that he was safe.
But only just. As the tractor came to a stop beside the farmhouse, Joe’s prediction came true as the burning barn collapsed onto itself.
Joe hugged Christo. “Thanks. You were almost too late.”
Christo nodded. “I want to hear everything that you and Will have been up to, but not now. First we have to make sure the fire doesn’t spread.”
Chapter 6: Chang Returns
The children were in the middle of eating lunch when the telephone rang. Christo spent five minutes listening intently and then he said goodbye and walked back to the table.
“Was that the police?” Joe asked.
Christo nodded. “Yes, just updating me on events from last night.”
“What has happened?” Will questioned.
“Well, not much,” Christo admitted. “They haven’t been able to locate the man who lives at the farmhouse, a neighbour thinks he’s on holiday, and they’ve also failed to arrest the lion tamer. When officers showed up at the circus this morning, the man ran off into the woods. He hasn’t been seen since.”
“What about the two men who fled the burning barn?” Amy asked. “Any news of them?”
“No, which means that the crown jewels could be anywhere by now. If I were to take a guess, I’d say they’re already out of the country. You children did a good job. It’s just a shame that nothing is going to come out of it.” Christo reached into his pocket and pulled out a number of notes. “Here, take these and buy yourselves a chocolate cake as a reward.”
“But the crown jewels haven’t been returned to the king yet,” Will stated.
“Well, no,” Christo admitted, “but you have done everything you can. So just enjoy yourselves for a bit.”
The children took the money and climbed onto their bicycles. They were soon eating a scrumptious chocolate cake. They had just finished eating it and were feeling very full when Sarah caught sight of a man walking past the bakery window. She froze in fear. “That’s Chang!”
“Are you sure?” Will asked.
Sarah nodded. “I’m pretty sure. Besides, how many Chinese people would live in Monrovia?”
“Not many,” Joe said. “Come on, let’s see if you’re right.”
The four children quickly hurried out of the bakery and glanced around. Amy suddenly pointed to a man who was wearing a blue cap and had a rucksack on his back. “There he is!”
The four children quickly followed the man. However, they didn’t catch up to him until he reached the local railway station so it was only then that they were able to confirm that he was in fact Chang, one of the main members of the Golden Dragons. It had been he and two others who had kidnapped the girls last summer and taken them to Monrovia.
Due to the heroics of the children, the plans of the Golden Dragons had been foiled and quite a few members of the group had been imprisoned, including Chang. But now he was out and about walking the streets like everyone else. It didn’t make sense.
Joe motioned to the others to come to a halt as the Chinese man walked down the platform. “We need to find a policeman so he can arrest Chang. He must have escaped from prison and—”
“But what if he was let out of prison early due to good behaviour?” Amy interrupted.
“I can’t imagine that would be the case,” Joe replied.
“Hey, see that rucksack he has on his back?” Will exclaimed. “What if that’s the rucksack that has the crown jewels in it? What if he was the man who was waiting at the barn last night?”
Joe nodded. “That’s possible. I wasn’t able to get a good look at the man, though now that I think about it, he was wearing a cap.”
“But why would he be involved in stealing the crown jewels if he had just escaped from prison?” Sarah piped up.
“Well, maybe he didn’t just escape. Either way the sooner we find a policeman the better.” Joe glanced around the station platform and was disappointed to find that there wasn’t a police officer in sight. “Did any of you see the police station as we rode into the village?”
Amy nodded. “I think I saw a sign for it. It was just as we entered the village.”
“Well, that’s quite a distance away, so…” Joe suddenly paused as he heard a train approaching. As he glanced around, he spotted a train steaming towards them. He then looked across at Chang, who had walked down to the far end of the platform and was standing still. “Chang must be waiting for the train. There’s no time to notify the police. The only way we’ll be able to stop him is if we go on the train ourselves and then find a policeman at the other end.”
“But what if Chang recognizes us?” Amy said. “All he has to do is look towards us and he’ll realise who we are.”
“Well, I don’t see a way around that problem, it’s just a chance we’ll have to take.” Joe quickly walked over to the counter and asked for four tickets.
Joe had no idea where Chang was going to get off, and so he got tickets that would take them to the end of the line. He didn’t think the man would be travelling to the furthest station, but it was good to be prepared.
A few moments later, Joe handed out the tickets to the others. They then hurried towards the train that had just come to a stop at the station. They waited until Chang had climbed into a carriage and then they climbed into the same one. They then entered the first compartment that was empty and sat down.
Joe peered down the corridor and, after seeing which compartment Chang had entered, he turned to the others. “All we have to do now is to peer up the passageway whenever we come to a station. And, if we see Chang get off, then we’ll do likewise. Otherwise, we stay put.”
Will nodded. “Sounds like a good plan.”
A minute later, the steam train whistled and chugged out of the station. Just then, Amy caught sight of a policeman walking up the steps to the platform. She waved, hoping that the man would notice her, which he did, but he just waved back, thinking she was simply being friendly. Annoyed, but realizing
there was nothing she could do about it, Amy leaned back in her seat.
Time passed very slowly. At every station, one of the children peered out of their compartment and watched for any sign of Chang. It soon became apparent to Joe that the man was going a fair distance since they had been travelling for over an hour and Chang had yet to step foot out of his compartment.
As they reached the second last station, Joe wondered if this was Chang’s destination for they had now been travelling for more than two hours.
However, once again, there was no sign of him. As the train chugged out of the station, Joe turned to the others. “It’s a good thing we bought our tickets for the furthest stop since that must be the one that Chang is going to be getting off at.”
Sarah frowned. “I wonder where he’s going.”
“Well, if he did just recently escape, his wanted poster is probably in all of the police stations,” Will pointed out, “so the sooner he gets out of Monrovia, the better it will be for him. And this train would be one of the quickest ways to reach the border.”
Joe nodded. “When I was buying the train tickets, I glanced at the map and I recall seeing that the furthest station was right next to the border.”
“Once he gets across the border, he’ll be free to do whatever he wants,” Sarah said. “And once that happens, we’ll never see the crown jewels again.”
“Well, we don’t know for certain that he does have the jewels,” Will stated. “It seems likely, but—”
“It doesn’t matter if he has the jewels or not,” Joe interrupted. “He’s still a wanted prisoner. That much we know.”
“I wonder how he’s going to get across the border,” Amy said.
“Probably by walking,” Will said. “After all, if he doesn’t want to be seen, it’s not as though he’ll want to pass through the border patrol when leaving Monrovia.”