Free Mystery of the Secret Room by Enid Blyton

another? Do you know when the new people are moving in?”
    “No idea,” said Pimples. “Once a house is sold, my boss, Mr. Richards, doesn’t take any more interest in it. Don’t tell me your Aunt Alicia has fallen in love with that desolate old place!”
    “Well - it might be just what she’s looking for,” said Fatty. “I wonder now - perhaps the people who bought it don’t like it after all - and might sell it to my aunt. Do you know their name and address?”
    “Gosh! - you do seem keen on your aunt having that house,” said Pimples. “Wait a minute. I may be able to put my hand on the name. It’s in this book, I believe.”
    Fatty waited whilst Pimples ran a dirty thumb down lists of names. He was very anxious to know the name and address of the person who had bought the house. He felt he must get hold of something, or the other Find-Outers wouldn’t think him very clever.
    “Yes, here we are,” said Pimples at last. “Name of Crump. Miss Crump, Hillways, Little Minton - that’s quite near here, you know. Well, Miss Crump bought it, but why she didn’t live in it, goodness knows! She paid three thousand pounds for it.”
    “Oh!” said Fatty. “Well - thanks awfully. I’ll get my aunt to go and see Miss Crump. Perhaps if she doesn’t want Milton House herself, she’ll be willing to sell it to my aunt.”
    “So long!” said the boy, as Fatty got up to go. “Give my love to Aunt Alicia and tell her I wouldn’t mind a bit of her five thousand pounds.”
    Fatty went. He was puzzled. Miss Crump didn’t sound at all mysterious. He could almost imagine what she looked like - a prim little old lady with a bun of hair at the back, high collars to her dresses, and skirts that swept the ground. She would probably have a cat or two.
    Fatty took the road back to Milton House. Before he got there he met the other Find-Outers, looking rather woebegone.
    “Oh - there’s Fatty!” cried Bets. “Fatty, how did you get on? Oh, Fatty, Clear-Orf found us and turned us out!”
    “Golly! - did he really?” said Fatty, looking concerned. “That’s bad luck. We particularly didn’t want him snooping round about our mystery. If he really thinks we’re on to something, he’ll keep a watch on that house - and on us too now - and spoil things for us properly. Who was silly enough to get spotted by Clear-Orf?”
    “Well - it was Buster who gave the game away,” said Larry. “It wasn’t really such a clever idea of yours to put him on guard by the gate, Fatty, because as soon as Clear-Orf came by, Buster nearly barked his head off. And of course Clear-Orf looked at him, knew he was your dog, and came in to see what you were doing. He found us, not you!”
    “Blow!” said Fatty. “I never thought of Buster making Clear-Orf suspicious if he came by. I only thought of him warning you. Where is he?”
    “Still sitting on your pullover, and he’ll be guarding it till tomorrow morning if you don’t go and get him,” said Larry. “He’s only got one thought in his doggy head now - to guard that pullover of yours.”
    “I’ll go and get him,” said Fatty. “You walk on slowly and I’ll catch you up.”
    He ran on down the lane to Milton House. Buster burst into a hurricane of delighted barks as soon as he saw him. “Good dog,” said Fatty, patting him. “Off guard now, old fellow - off guard. Let me get my pullover.”
    Buster allowed Fatty to get his pullover and put it on. Fatty, who had not been thoroughly round the house as the others had, thought he would just take a quick look round. Maybe he might see something they had missed. So he trotted round the house and began to look carefully in at every window.
    He jumped terribly when a stern voice came across the garden. “Now then! What you a-doing of? Didn’t I send you all off a few minutes ago?”
    “Clear-Orf - back again,” thought Fatty, annoyed with himself for being found there. “Blow!”
    Clear-Orf wheeled his bicycle over to him. “Now you tell me what you’re doing here,” he demanded.
    Fatty looked all round as