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Updated: May 28, 2025
"Well, I can't say no," said Mrs Vallance, smiling at Jackie's heated face; "but I'm not very fond of Maskells, there are so many dangerous places in it." "Oh, you mean the forbidden rooms," said Jackie; "we don't go into those now. There are three of them, where the floor's given way, you know, with great holes in them.
This walled garden had a very strong door of its own opening on to the lane between the church and the house. "But there are only three ways out, really," said Mr. Buxton, "for the garden walls are high and strong. There is the way of the walled garden; the iron-gates across the drive; and through the stable-yard on to the field-path to East Maskells.
During her stay they all had an adventure together at East Maskells. They had been out a long expedition into the woods one clear frosty day and rode in just at sunset for an early supper with Mr. Rowe and his aunt.
She now saw Bennie slide nimbly to the ground, cast one quick glance round, and snatch the money from under the stone; then stooping low, he ran swiftly along under the hedge in the direction of Maskells, like some active wild animal, and disappeared. Left alone, Mary also crept out of her hiding-place and took her way back to the vicarage as fast as she could.
Listen carefully. There is but one guard at the back here, in the lane. Mary has leave to come and go now as she pleases they are afraid of her; she will leave the house in a few minutes now to ride to East Maskells, with two grooms and a maid behind one of them. She will ride her own horse.
A mysterious expression, which might mean anything, and was more than enough to clothe it with all the terrors which belong to the unknown. When dusk came on, and the owls and bats flapped their wings in shadowy corners, it was desirable to cling closely together and feel afraid in company a tremor was excusable in the boldest. Patrick, indeed, always declared he had once seen a ghost in Maskells.
"Don't let's pretend anything else," Jennie would say, who had a practical mind; "let's have a game of hide-and-seek." And certainly no place could have been better fitted than Maskells for the purpose. Mary did not fail to start in good time for the White House on the morning after Jackie's invitation, and reached the gates leading into the stable-yard just as the clock was striking nine.
"We ought to begin to pick up wood," said the careful Agatha, "or the fire won't be ready for tea-time." "Well, we'll just have one game of hide-and-seek first," said Jackie; and so it was agreed. Agatha hid first, but she was soon found, for she was not fond of venturing far into the dark corners round Maskells; then it was Jackie's turn, and then it came to Mary.
Mary liked to imagine things about Maskells; it would do for the Tower of London with dungeons in it, or for Lochleven with Mary Queen of Scots escaping by night, or for a besieged castle, and hundreds of other fancies. She invented games founded on those scenes which were popular at first, but as she always took the leading parts herself, the other children soon tired of them.
Farther and farther behind them sounded the hoofs; then they were swaying and rocking again down the slope that led to the long flat piece of road that ended in the slope up to East Maskells.
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