FIVE FALL INTO ADVENTURE by Enid Blyton

25 EVERYTHING OKAY

It was getting dark as George's boat came into Kirrin Bay. It had seemed a very long pull indeed, and everyone was tired out. The girls had helped in the rowing when the boys had almost collapsed from exhaustion, and Timmy had cheered everyone up by his sudden high spirits.

"Honestly, his tail hasn't stopped wagging since he got into the boat," said George. "He's so pleased to be himself again!"

A small figure was on the beach as they came in, half-lost in the darkness. It was Anne. She called out to them in a trembling voice.

"Is it really you? I've been watching for you all day long! Are you all right?"

"Rather! And we've got George and Timmy, too!" shouted back Dick, as the boat scraped on the shingle. "We're fine!"

They jumped out, Timmy too, and hauled the boat up the beach. Anne gave a hand, almost crying with joy to have them all again.

"It's bad enough being in the middle of an adventure," she said, "but it's much, much worse when you're left out. I'll never be left out again!"

"Woof," said Timmy, wagging his tail in full agreement. He never wanted to be left out of adventures either!

They all went home - rather slowly, because they were so tired. Joan was on the look-out for them, as she had been all day. She screamed for joy when she saw George. "George! You've got George at last! Oh, you bad children, you've been away all day and I didn't know where and I've been worried to death. George, are you all right?"

"Yes, thank you," said George, who felt as if she was about to fall asleep at any moment. "I just want something to eat before I fall absolutely sound asleep!"

"But where have you been all day? What have you been doing?" cried Joan, as she bustled off to get them a meal.

"I got so worked up I went to the police - and what a silly I felt - I couldn't tell them where you'd gone or anything. All I could say was you'd gone to find a man called Red, and had rowed away in George's boat!"

"The police have been up and down the coast in a motor-boat ever since." said Anne. "Trying to spot you, but they couldn't."

"No. Our boat was well hidden," said Dick. "And so were we! So well hidden that I began to think we'd stay hidden for the rest of our lives."

The telephone bell rang. Julian jumped. "Oh, good - you've had the telephone mended. I'll go and phone the police when you've answered this call, Joan."

But it was the police themselves on the telephone, very pleased to hear Joan saying excitedly that all the children were back safely. "We'll be up in ten minutes," they said.

In ten minutes' time the five children and Timmy were tucking into a good meal. "Don't stop," said the police sergeant, when he came into the room with the constable the children had seen before. "Just talk while you're eating."

So they talked. They told about every single thing. First George told a bit, then Jo, then Dick then Julian. At first the sergeant was bewildered, but then the bits of information began to piece themselves together in his mind like a jigsaw puzzle.

"Will my father go to prison?" asked Jo.

"I'm afraid so," said the sergeant.

"Bad luck, Jo," said Dick.

"I don't mind," said Jo. "I'm better off when he's away - I don't have to do things he tells me then."

"We'll see if we can't fix you up with a nice home," said the sergeant kindly. "You've run wild, Jo - you want looking after."