‘Live there, Aunt Lolly?’
‘This is very sudden. Is there really a place called ...?’
‘Lolly, you are mystifying us.’
They all spoke at once, but Henry spoke loudest, so Laura replied to him.
‘No, Henry, I’m not mystifying you. Great Mop is a village in the Chilterns, and I am going to live there, and perhaps keep a donkey. And you must all come on visits.’
‘I’ve never even heard of the place!’ said Henry conclusively.
‘But you’ll love it. “A secluded hamlet in the heart of the Chilterns, Great Mop is situated twelve miles from Wickendon in a hilly district with many beech-woods. The parish church has a fine Norman tower and a squint. The population is 227.” And quite close by on a hill there is a ruined windmill, and the nearest railway station is twelve miles off, and there is a farm called Scramble Through the Hedge....’
Henry thought it time to interrupt. ‘I suppose you don’t expect us to believe all this.’
‘I know. It does seem almost too good to be true. But it is. I’ve read it in a guide-book, and seen it on a map.’
‘Well, all I can say is....’