It was most enjoyable talking over Fatty’s plans for the night. All the Find-Outers and Buster gathered round the fire in Pip’s playroom, and talked.
“My mother and father will be away for two days,” said Fatty. “That’s lucky. They won’t know if I’m there tonight or not. I shall go down to the summer-house in the grounds of Milton House and make myself comfortable there with a couple of rugs. If I don’t hear anything by midnight, I shall get in at the coal-hole.”
“Fatty - suppose you’re caught?” said Pip.
“Yes - I’d thought of it,” said Fatty, considering. “If I’m caught, one of you had better know. I’ll tell you what - if I’m caught, I shall throw a note out of the window of whatever room I am locked up in - I imagine if I’m caught I shall be locked in somewhere - and one of you must scout round the grounds tomorrow morning and look out for the note. See? It will be in invisible writing, of course.”
This sounded terribly exciting. Bets looked solemn. “Don’t be caught, Fatty. I don’t want you to be caught.”
“Don’t worry. I’m pretty smart,” said Fatty. “People would have to be pretty clever to catch me!”
“Well - that’s settled, then,” said Larry. “You are going down to Milton House tonight in disguise, and you’re going to wait till midnight to see if any one comes. If nobody comes, you’re going to get down the coal-hole and explore the secret room, to see if you can get any information about the mysterious John Henry Smith. By the way - I do wonder why that window was barred if there were no children in that house.”
“Don’t know,” said Fatty. “But I expect I shall find out.”
“If you don’t get caught, you’ll come back home, go to bed, and meet us in the morning with whatever news you’ve got,” said Larry. “But if you don’t turn up, one of us will snoop round the grounds and wait for a letter written in invisible ink. Don’t forget to take an orange with you, Fatty, in case you have to write that note.”
“Of course I shan’t forget,” said Fatty. “But as I shan’t be caught, you needn’t worry - there won’t be any letter floating out of a window!”