"How did Miss Harmer find out that Dark Queen was gone?" asked Fatty, who was taking a very close interest in all that Luke said.
"Well, she came back, and Tupping met her and said he thought one of the cats wasn't very well," said Luke. "So, under my very eyes, he went into the cage, whilst Miss Harmer was coming along, and got the cat he said wasn't well, and then Miss Harmer joined him, and almost at once squealed out that Dark Queen was gone."
"Could Tupping have let her loose just in that moment?" asked Larry.
"No," said Luke. "I couldn't see Tupping in the cage, but I could see the door quite well, and nothing came out In fact, it was shut tight."
Everyone was silent. It did seem a most extraordinary thing that Dark Queen should have gone again, under Luke's very nose.
"Was it your own idea to roll the paths near the cat-house?" asked Fatty.
"Oh no," said Luke. "I don't do things on my own. Tupping gives me his orders every day. And he told me to spend the afternoon rolling the paths there."
"Last time you were on the spot all the time," said Pip. "And this time you were too. And last time Miss Harmer was out for the day. And this time she was too. And last time it was Tupping who went into the cage with the cats, and this time it was too — when it was found that Dark Queen had disappeared, I mean. Last time he went in with Goon — this time he went in with Miss Harmer. There are a lot of things exactly the same. It's all very, very odd."
"Well, I didn't take the cat last time, and I didn't this time either," said Luke. "I know I didn't."
"This is more of a mystery than ever," said Fatty, and he got up. "I'm off over the wall to snoop round a bit Do you remember what we found in the cage last time? One of Luke's whistles. Well, as everything seems to be more or less the same this time, I bet there'll be one of Luke's whistles there again!"