chapter five in the middle of the night

mrs. stick was in such a bad temper that evening that there was no supper at all. julian went toask about some, but he found the kitchen door locked.

he went back to the others with a gloomy face, for they were all hungry. "she's locked the door,"he said. "she really is a dreadful creature. i don't believe we'll get any supper tonight.""we'll have to wait till she goes to bed," said george. "we'll go down and hunt in the larder then, andsee what we can find."

they went to bed hungry. julian listened for mrs. stick and edgar to go to bed, too. when he heardthem going upstairs, and was sure their doors had shut, he slipped down into the kitchen. it was darkthere, and julian was just about to put on the light when he heard the sound of someone breathingheavily. he wondered who it could be. was it stinker? no - it couldn't be the dog. it sounded like ahuman being.

julian stood there, his hand over the light switch, puzzled and a little scared. it couldn't be a burglar,because burglars don't go to sleep in the house they have come to rob. it couldn't be mrs.

stick or edgar. then who was it?

he snapped on the light. the kitchen was flooded with radiance, and julian's eyes fastened on thefigure of a small man lying on the sofa. he was fast asleep, his mouth wide open.

he was not a very pleasant sight. he had not shaved for some days, and his cheeks and chin werebluish-black. he didn't seem to have washed for even longer than that, for his hands were black, andso were his finger-nails. he had untidy hair and a nose exactly like edgar's.

"must be dear edgar's father," thought julian to himself. "what a sight! well, poor edgar hadn'tmuch chance to be decent with a father and mother like his."the man snored. julian wondered what to do. he badly wanted to go to the larder, but on the otherhand he didn't particularly want to wake up the man and have a row. he didn't see how he could turnhim out - for all he knew his aunt and uncle might have agreed to mrs. stick's husband coming therenow and again, though he hardly thought so.

julian was very hungry. the thought of the good things in the larder made him snap off the lightagain and creep towards the larder door in the dark. he opened the door. he felt along the 21shelves. good! - that felt like a pie of some sort. he lifted it up and sniffed. it smelt of meat. a meat-pie - good!

he felt along the shelf again and came to a plate on which were what he thought must be jam-tarts,for they were round and flat, and had something sticky in the middle. well, a meat-pie and jam-tartsought to be all right for four hungry children!

julian picked up the meat-pie and the dish of tarts, and made his way carefully out of the larder.

he pushed the door to with his foot. then he turned to go out of the room.

but in the dark he went the wrong way, and by bad luck walked straight into the sofa! the dish oftarts got a sudden jerk and one of them fell off. it landed on the open mouth of the sleeping man, andwoke him up with a start.

"blow!" said julian to himself, and began to back away quietly, hoping that the man would turn overand go to sleep again. but the sticky jam-tart sliding down his chin had startled the man, and he satup with a jerk.

"who's there? that you, edgar? what are you doing down here?"julian said nothing but sidled towards what he hoped was the door. the man leapt up and lurchedover to where he thought the light switch was. he found it and switched it on. he stared in thegreatest astonishment at julian.

"what are you doing here?" he demanded.

"just what i was about to ask you? said julian, coolly. "what do you think you're doing here, sleepingin my uncle's kitchen?"

"i've a right to be here," said the man, in a rude voice. "my wife's cook here, isn't she? my ship's inand i'm on leave. your uncle arranged with my wife i could come here then, see?"julian had feared as much. how awful to have a mr. stick as well as a mrs. and master stick in thehouse! it would be quite unbearable.

"i can ask my uncle about it when he telephones in the morning," said julian. "now get out of myway, please. i want to go upstairs."

"ho!" said mr. stick, eyeing the meat-pie and jam-tarts that julian was carrying. "ho! stealing out ofthe larder, i see! nice goings-on i must say."julian was not going to argue with mr. stick, who evidently felt that he was top-dog. "get out of myway," he said. "i will talk to you in the morning after my uncle has telephoned."22

mr. stick didn't seem as if he was going to get out of the way at all. he stood there, a nasty little man,not much taller than julian, a sarcastic smile on his unshaven face.

julian pursed up his lips and whistled. there came a bump on the floor above. that was timothyjumping off george's bed! then there came the pattering of feet down the stairs, and up the kitchenpassage. timmy was coming!

he smelt mr. stick in the doorway, put up his hackles, bared his teeth and growled. mr. stick hastilyremoved himself from the doorway and then neatly banged the door in the dog's face. he grinned atjulian.

"now what are you going to do?" he said.

"shall i tell you?" said julian, his temper suddenly rising. "i'm going to hurl this nice juicy meat-piestraight into your grinning face!"

he raised his arm, and mr. stick ducked.

"now don't you do that," he said. "i'm only pulling your leg, see? don't you waste that nice meat-pie.

you can go upstairs if you want to."

he moved away to the sofa. julian opened the door and timothy bounded in growling. mr. stickeyed him uncomfortably.

"don't you let that nasty great dog come near me," he said. "i don't like dogs.""then i wonder you don't get rid of stinker," said julian. "come here, timmy! leave him alone.

he's not worth growling at."

julian went upstairs with timothy close at his heels. the others crowded round him, wondering whathad happened, for they had heard the voices downstairs. they laughed when julian told them how hehad nearly thrown the meat-pie at mr. stick.

"it would have served him right," said anne, "though it would have been a great pity, because weshouldn't have been able to eat it. well, mrs. stick may be simply horrible, but she can cook.

this pie is gorgeous."

the children finished all the pie and the tarts, too. julian told them all about mr. stick coming onleave from his ship.

"three sticks are a lot too much," said dick thoughtfully. "pity we can't get rid of them all andmanage for ourselves. george, can't you possibly persuade your father tomorrow to let us get rid ofthe sticks and look after ourselves?"

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"i'll try," said george. "but you know what he is like - awfully difficult to argue with. but i'll try.

golly, i'm sleepy now. come on, timmy, let's get to bed! lie on my feet. i'm hardly going to let youout of my sight now, in case those awful sticks poison you!"soon the four children, now no longer hungry, were sleeping peacefully. they did not fear the stickscoming up to their rooms, for they knew that timmy would wake and warn them at once.

timmy was the best guard they could have.

in the morning mrs. stick actually produced some sort of breakfast, which surprised the children verymuch. "guess she knows your father will telephone, george," said julian, "and she wants to keepherself in the right. when did he say he would "phone? nine o'clock, wasn't it? well, it's half-pasteight now. let's go for a quick run down to the beach and back."so off they went, the five of them, ignoring edgar, who stood in the back garden ready to make someof his silly faces at them. the children couldn't help thinking he must be a bit mad. he didn't behaveat all like a boy of julian's age.

when they came back it was about ten minutes to nine. "we'll sit in the sitting-room till the telephonerings," said julian. "we don't want mrs. stick to answer it first."but to their great dismay, as they reached the house, they heard mrs. stick using the telephone in thehall!

"yes, sir," they heard her say, "everything is quite all right. i can manage the children, sir, even ifthey do make things a bit difficult. yes, sir. of course, sir. well, sir, it's lucky my husband is home onleave from his ship, sir, because he can help me round, like, and it makes things easier.

don't you worry about anything, sir, and don't you bother to come back till you're ready. i'll manageeverything."

george flew into the hall like a wild thing, and snatched the receiver out of mrs. stick's hand.

"father! it's me, george! how's mother? tell me quick!""no worse, george," said her father's voice. "but we shan't know anything definite till tomorrowmorning. i'm glad to hear from mrs. stick that everything is all right. i'm very upset and worried, andi'm glad to feel i can tell your mother that you are all right, and everything is going smoothly atkirrin cottage."

"but it isn't," said george, wildly. "it isn't. it's all horrid. can't the sticks go and let us manage thingsby ourselves?"

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"good gracious me, of course not," said her father's voice, surprised and annoyed. "what can you bethinking of? i did hope, george, that you would be sensible and helpful. i must say...""you talk to him, julian," said george, helplessly, and thrust the receiver into julian's hand. the boyput it to his ear and spoke into the telephone in his clear voice.""good morning, sir. this is julian! i'm glad my aunt is no worse.""well, she will be if she thinks things are going wrong at kirrin cottage," said uncle quentin, in anexasperated voice. "can't you manage george and make her see reason? good gracious, can't she putup with the sticks for a week or two? i tell you frankly, julian, i am not going to sack the sticks inmy absence - i want the house ready for me to bring back your aunt. if you can't put up with them,you had better find out from your own parents if they can take you back for the rest of the holidays.

but george is not to go with you. she is to stay at kirrin cottage. that's my last word on thesubject."

"but, sir," began julian, wondering how in the world he could deal properly with his hot-tempereduncle, "i must tell you that . . ."

there was a click at the other end of the "phone. uncle quentin had put down his receiver and gone.

there was no more to be said. blow! julian pursed up his mouth and looked round at the others,frowning.

"he's gone!" he said. "cut me off just as i was trying to reason with him.""serves you right!" said mrs. stick's harsh voice from the end of the hall. "now you know where youstand. i'm here and i'm staying here, on your uncle's orders. and you're all going to behaveyourselves, or it'll be the worse for you."