Mystery of the Invisible Thief Read Online Free PDF

very much, as far as I can make out.”
    “Did anyone else come that afternoon - to Norton House, I mean?” asked Fatty.
    “The postman, a woman delivering election leaflets and a man selling logs, according to Jinny,” said Tonks. “We’ve seen them all - they didn’t notice anything out of the way, not even the ladder. Anyway, they came a good time before the thief.”
    “Where was the gardener?” asked Fatty.
    “He’d gone off to take some tackle down to the gymkhana for Miss Hilary,” said Tonks. “He came back just as all the excitement was over. The baker sent him off to tell me about the robbery, so down he went to Petter’s Field again.”
    Fatty fell silent. This was a strange kind of thief - big, clumsy, easy to see - and yet apparently invisible! Not a soul had noticed him.
    “Did you find any other clues?” asked Fatty. Tonks looked at him doubtfully. He had already said rather a lot to this polite and quite helpful boy. But ought he to tell him everything?
    “You needn’t worry about what you tell me,” said Fatty, seeing at once that Tonks had something else to say and wasn’t sure about it. “I’m a friend of the Inspector’s - you know that. All I do is help if I can.”
    “Yes, I know that,” said Tonks. “The Inspector said, ‘Well, well - if we can’t find the thief, Tonks, Frederick Trotterville certainly will!’ ”
    “Well, there you are,” said Fatty, grinning. “You haven’t found him yet - so give me a chance, Tonks.”
    The policeman produced two dirty bits of paper. He handed them to Fatty, who looked at them with much interest. One had scribbled on it:
    2 Frinton
    The other was even shorter. It simply said,
    1 Rods.
    “What do they mean?” asked Fatty, studying the dirty little scraps of paper.
    “Don’t know any more than you do,” said Tonks, taking them back. “Number 2, Frinton. Number 1, Rods. Looks like addresses of some sort. But I’m not going off to Frinton or Rods, wherever they are, to hunt for the thief! We found these bits of paper near the bush where the stolen goods had been thrown.”
    “Funny,” said Fatty. “Do you think they’ve really anything to do with this case? They look like scraps of paper tom up by someone and thrown away.”
    “That’s what I said,” agreed Tonks. “Anyway, I’ll have to keep them, in case they’re important.”
    Fatty could see there was nothing else to find out from Tonks. He got up. “Well - I wish you luck in finding the thief,” he said. “It seems to me the only way to spot him will be to snoop round everywhere till we see a man wearing size twelve shoes and size nine gloves!”
    Tonks gave a sudden grin. “Well - if Mr Goon likes to do that, he’s welcome. He’s taking over the case when he comes back. Nice for him to have something to do in this dead-and-alive hole. I’m used to a big town - I don’t like these quiet country places where the only thing that happens is a dog that chases sheep, or a man that doesn’t buy his wireless licence.”
    Fatty could have told Tonks how wrong he was. He could have told him of all the extraordinary and exciting mysteries that had happened in Peterswood - but he didn’t, because of Tonks’ unexpected piece of news about Goon.
    “Did you say Mr Goon was coming back?” he asked. “When?”
    “You sound pleased,” said Tonks. “I did hear you didn’t like one another! He’s coming back this afternoon. I hand over then. I shan’t be having any more to do with this case. Anyway Goon ought to put his hands on the thief soon enough - he can’t be far away.”
    Fatty glanced at the clock on the mantelpiece. He must go, or he would keep the others waiting. He had found out all he wanted to know - though it wasn’t much help really. And Goon was coming back! Old Goon. Clear-Orf, with his bombastic ways and his immense dislike of all the Five Find-Outers and their doings - to say nothing of Buster.
    Fatty shook hands solemnly with Tonks, assured him that it had been a great pleasure to meet him, and went off on his bicycle, with