16 AND NOW MKX

CHAPTER SIXTEEN AND NOW MKX EVERY MEMBER of the Secret Seven felt excited when they heard the latest news. They thought that Janet had been very clever in realising that the red pillow was a mistake for red pillar-box. Barbara thought for a moment and then said that she wondered if the man watching behind the grating might be waiting to signal to someone when the postman came to empty the box. 'Someone might be waiting to steal the letters from him,' she said. 'That's an idea,' said Peter. 'But there isn't

much point in stealing ordinary letters. They're not worth anything!' 'That's true,' said Jack. 'It's sacks of registered parcels and letters that are usually stolen. They're worth something. But not ordinary letters. I don't somehow think the watcher is watching the pillar-box, he's probably watching for someone waiting there, or passing it.' 'Is it worth telling Daddy all this, Janet, do you suppose?' said Peter, after the Seven had discussed everything thoroughly. 'After all– it's tomorrow something has been planned to happen. We haven't much time left.' 'Well– we might tell him this evening,' said Janet. 'Let's wait till then. We might think of something else important. I don't think Daddy will change his mind about things just because we've discovered that a red pillar-box can be watched through a grating in Ember Lane.' 'It does sound rather silly put like that,' said

Peter. 'Well– we'll wait till this evening. Goodbye till then.' But before they could tell their father of their latest ideas, Pam came dashing into the garden to find Peter and Janet. Barbara was just behind. They found Peter and Janet watering their gardens. Pam flung herself on them. 'Peter! Janet! What do you think? We've seen MKX!' Janet dropped her watering-can, startled. Peter stared in excitement. 'Who is he? Where did you see him?' 'It isn't a he. It's a van!' said Barbara. 'Pam and I were going home together, when we saw a post-office van standing near a pillar-box– you know, a mail-van, painted red.' 'And its letters were MKX!' cried Pam. 'MKX 102. What do you think of that? We couldn't believe our eyes when we saw it was MKX. I'm sure that's what Jeff meant– the

mail-van, MKX.' 'But– but there must be plenty of cars with the letters MKX,' said Peter. 'Plenty.' 'Not in one place,' said Pam. 'I don't ever remember seeing MKX in our town before. I notice car numbers, because I want to see if I can spot a Z something someday. I haven't yet. Peter! That van must be the MKX those men spoke about when Jeff was half-asleep.' Peter sat down on a garden-seat. 'I think you're right,' he said. 'Yes– I think you must be right. It's all beginning to fit in. Wait now, let's work it out.' He sat up and thought, frowning hard. 'Yes, perhaps a mail van goes into Ember Lane, with a few sacks of registered parcels inside. The postman gets out of his van to go across to the red pillar-box to collect the letters.' 'Yes! YES!' cried Pam. 'And someone is watching through the grating to see when he is unlocking the pillar-box, with his back to the

van, and signals to the others who are waiting out of sight somewhere…' 'And at once they see the signal, rush to the van, and drive it off before the postman can get back to it!' cried Janet, taking the words out of Pam's mouth. They all sat and looked at one another, their eyes shining. They felt breathless. Had they solved everything, or was it just too clever to be true? 'Well, I shall certainly tell Daddy now,' said Peter, thrilled. 'What a bit of luck you noticed the letters on that mail-van, Pam and Barbara. Good work! We're a really great Secret Society, I think. Successes every time!' 'And we thought this one was a failure!' said Janet. 'Look, there's Daddy. Come and tell him now.' So Peter's father was soon surrounded by four excited children, determined to make him believe that what they had discovered REALLY

MATTERED! He listened carefully. He pursed up his mouth and gave his head a little scratch, looking with twinkling eyes at the children. 'Well, well, this is rather a different tale this time. Most ingenious! Yes, I'll do something about it.' He went inside and rang up the Inspector of Police, and asked him to come along. 'I've a curious tale to tell you,' he said. 'You may or may not believe it, but I think you ought to hear it.' And before ten minutes had passed the kind-faced Inspector was sitting in the garden, listening solemnly to the children's tale. He glanced at Peter's father when they had finished. 'This is important,' he said. 'There have been too many mail-van robberies lately. We'll catch the ringleaders this time, thanks to the valiant Secret Seven!'