Beaver Towers by Nigel Hinton

Author:Nigel Hinton
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780141929330
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Published: 1960-11-05T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Baby B and Nick crept along the forest path.

The moon shone through the trees, casting scary shadows on the ground. Every few seconds the two young animals froze, their ears pricked and their eyes wide open to check for danger.

Suddenly, a wind blew across the forest, rattling branches and making the leaves whisper and flap. Baby B and Nick peered anxiously up at the trees. Perhaps Retsnom was up there somewhere, ready to swoop down and grab them with his sharp raven’s claws.

The wind passed and silence fell. Now it was so quiet that they felt as if the noise from every step they took was echoing round the forest, telling their enemy where they were.

Hardly daring to breathe, they tiptoed onwards through the heart of the forest. They moved so slowly that it took ages and ages before they came out of the trees and stood on the edge of the open fields.

The moonlight was so bright that if Retsnom was flying above the island he would see them at once. They hid under a clump of ferns and waited and waited until finally some big clouds rolled across the sky and covered up the moon.

‘Come on, Nick,’ Baby B whispered. ‘If we do millions fast running we can get to the Manor before the moon comes out again.’

‘Why is we going there?’

‘Because I know a millions good place for hiding. Quick!’

Under cover of the darkness they sped across the fields and through the orchards that led to the Manor. Just as they reached the front door, the moon came out from behind the clouds and flooded everywhere with its cold light. They pushed open the door and darted inside.

The rambling old house belonged to Mr Edgar but Baby B and his parents had lived there for a while until they had moved into Beaver Towers. Now Mr Edgar used it as a place to stay when he wanted a bit of peace and quiet. Since he’d been away, nobody had been there and it smelled dusty and unlived in.

Baby B led the way along the corridor, down some twisting stone steps, along another corridor, and down some even twistier steps. He opened a door into a small room and ran straight across to the huge fireplace. Carved into the stone on the back wall of the fireplace was the figure of a beaver. Baby B reached up and pressed the flat tail of the figure, and the stone swung open to reveal a doorway.

‘Where does it go?’ Nick asked, peering down the steps inside.

‘It’s the cellar where Grandpa Edgar keeps the logs,’ Baby B said. ‘Nobody will ever finding us here. Come on.’

It was very dark in the cellar but they lit a small oil lamp and made themselves comfortable on a pile of logs. Although Mr Edgar was a long way away, it was good to be in his house. They could imagine him sitting in his favourite chair in front of the fire and they could almost hear his voice telling them not to worry.

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