Mystery of the Pantomime Cat by Enid Blyton Read Free Book Online Page A

before
the court. I'll..."
    Buster growled so  fiercely  that Goon stopped.
    "Look here," said Fatty, "if you're going to do all
that, I think I'll put Buster down and let him have a real good go at you,
Goon. He may as well be hanged for a sheep as for a lamb. He hasn't bitten you,
as you very well know—but if you're going to say he has, well then, he jolly
well can."
    And Fatty made as if he was going to put the barking, struggling
Buster down on the floor!
    Goon calmed down at once, and tried to get back control of himself.
He turned in a dignified way to Pippin. "I'll tell you what to put down.
Come on now, stir yourself—standing there like a ninny!"
    "I'm not going to put down anything but the truth," said
Pippin, most surprisingly. "You hit that dog a nasty whack with the
poker—might have injured him for life. I don't hold with behaviour of that
sort, no, not even from a police officer. I like dogs—they never go for me. I
wouldn't have that dog destroyed for anything. And all the boy did was to take
the poker from you to stop you hitting his dog again! A good thing he did too.
You might have killed the dog with your next whack—and then where would you be?
In a very awkward position, Mr. Goon, that's where!”
    There was a dead silence after this unexpected and remarkable speech.
Even Buster was quiet. Every one was most surprised to hear this speech from
the quiet Pippin, and perhaps Pippin himself was most surprised of all. Goon
couldn't believe his ears. He stared at Pippin with his mouth wide open, and
his eyes bulged more than ever. Fatty was thrilled. Good old Pippin!
    Goon found his tongue at last. His face was now a familiar purple.
He advanced to Pippin and shook a fat and rather dirty finger under his nose.
    "You'll hear more of this, see? I'm back again and I'm in charge
of Peterswood now. I’ll take charge of
    this new case—and you'll have nothing to do with it whatever.
Nothing. If you thought you'd get a good mark for it from the Inspector you can
think again. I'll make a bad report out on you and your behaviour—thinking
you'd manage it by yourself and get all the praise—not letting me know
anything. Gah!"
    Pippin said nothing, but looked thoroughly miserable. Fatty was
very sorry for him. Goon was enjoying ticking off Pippin in front of Fatty. It
gave him a sense of power, and he loved that.
    "You hand me over all them clues," said Goon.
"Every one of them. Aha! Master Frederick Trotteville would very much like
to know what they are—wouldn't you? But you won't know! You'll never
know!"
    Pippin handed over to Mr. Goon all the false clues that Fatty had
put on the verandah! They were in envelopes or paper so Fatty could not see
them—but he knew very well what they were! In fact he could have given Goon
quite a lot of information about them. He grinned to himself. Right! Let Goon
have them and work on them. Much good would they do him! Served him right for
being so beastly to Pippin.
    "See what happens to people who work against me, instead of
with me?" said Goon to Fatty, spitefully. "I shan't let him have
anything to do with this new case—and you kids won't neither! I'll manage it
myself. Pippin, you can do my routine work the next two weeks, and keep your
nose out of anything else. I don't want your help—not that a turnip-head like
you could help a fellow like me. Don't you come mewling to me with any of your
silly ideas—I just don't want to hear them."
    He put away all the clues in a box and locked it. "Now I'm
going along to interview the manager of the Little Theatre," he said.
"Ho yes, I know you've
    interviewed him already Mister Clever—but I don't care tuppence
for what you've got out of him—it won't be anything worth while. Well, you get
down to that writing I ticked you off about—and just remember this—I shan't
forget your insubordination this morning over that there pestiferous dog. Yes,
real, right-down insubordination—refusal to perform your rightful duties