They went along the passage, and then came to a stop. “What’s up, George? Why have you stopped?” asked Jack.
“Because the passage has fallen in here,” said George. “We’ll have to get spades and dig it free again. The roof has fallen in, and we can’t get any farther. We’ll come back and dig it out. I reckon the passage goes on to the tower of the Old House, and then we’ll find an iron ladder going up inside the walls just as we found at Peep-Hole.”
The children squeezed back through the passage and went up the iron ladder to the chimney. Dimmy had got down again and was waiting for them in the girls’ room, having washed herself clean.
They told her excitedly what they had found. Jack ran down to the shed to get spades, and to find some biscuits for himself, for he had had no dinner.
“We shall be able to rescue Mike and Paul very soon now,” said Peggy hopefully.
“Better clear the passage now and try to get to the boys to-night,” said George thoughtfully. “You see, if we can rescue them at night there’s not so much fear of us being heard, and we can get a good few hours’ start of the folk at the Old House.”
“Right, George,” said Dimmy, who was just as excited as the children.
George and Jack went to clear the passage ready for the night’s adventure. The girls went to wash themselves, and to pore once more over the exciting diary that had told them just what they wanted to know.
In an hour’s time Jack and George came back, hot, dusty, sooty, and thirsty. Dimmy made them have a bath, and put on clean clothes - though George looked very comical in Mike’s shorts and jersey! Then they all sat down to a good tea, which they really felt they had earned.
“This is getting more and more exciting!” said Peggy, spreading her bread and butter with Dimmy’s homemade shrimp paste. “I feel as if I’m bursting with excitement. If only old Mike knew what we were doing!”