Mystery of the Vanished Prince by Enid Blyton

Author:Enid Blyton [Blyton, Enid]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2011-07-15T22:07:50+00:00

Talking and Planning

Before half-past nine had struck, the Five-Find-Outers (and dog) were all gathered together in Fatty’s shed. Buster was very pleased to welcome them. He pranced round in delight, and finally got on to Bets’ knee.

“Now Fatty - don’t keep us waiting - tell us exactly what’s happened,” said Larry, firmly. “Don’t go all mysterious and solemn. Just tell us!”

So Fatty told them. They listened in astonishment.

“Hidden in the pram!” said Larry. “Then the Prince must have known that woman very well. She must have been camping nearby for a reason.”

“Do you think she could have been the Prince’s nurse, and knew perhaps he wasn’t happy at camp, and arranged to smuggle him away?” said Bets.

“Bright idea, Bets,” said Fatty, approvingly. “I thought of that myself. But the twin-babies are rather a difficulty there. I don’t feel the Prince would have a nurse with twin-babies, somehow.”

“She might have been an old nurse of his, and got married, and had twins,” said Bets, using her imagination.

“It’s not much good having theories and ideas about all this until we get a few more actual details,” said Fatty. “I mean - we must find out who the woman is - if the caravan belongs to her - if she came there when the Prince arrived - if those babies are really hers, or borrowed so that she could take that big double-pram for hiding purposes - oh, there are a whole lot of things to find out!”

“And are we to snoop round and find all these details?” asked Daisy. “I rather like doing that.”

“There’s a great deal to find out,” said Fatty. “We’ll have to get busy. Any one seen the papers this morning?”

“I just glanced at them,” said Larry, “but I was really too excited to read anything. Why?”

“Only because there’s a bit more about the Prince and his country in to-day,” said Fatty. He spread a newspaper on the floor and pointed to a column.

Everyone read it.

“Well, as you will see,” said Fatty, “Tetarua isn’t a very big country, but it’s quite important from the point of view of the British, because there’s a fine airfield there we want to use. So we’ve been quite friendly with them.”

“And they’ve sent their young prince here to be educated,” said Larry. “But, according to the paper, there’s a row on in Tetarua between the present king and his cousin, who says he ought to be king.”

“Yes. And the possibilities are that the cousin has sent some one over here to capture Prince Bongawah, so that, if he doesn’t ever appear again, he, the cousin, will be king,” said Fatty. “There are no brothers or sisters apparently.”

“An old, old plot,” said Larry. “Do you suppose they will demand a ransom for the Prince?”

“No,” said Fatty. “I think they want to put him out of the way for good. Some of these Eastern States are half savage still, you know, in their ideas, although they like to send their boys here to be educated.”

There was a silence after this.

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