The Mystery of Banshee Towers — Enid Blyton

Enid Blyton - Mystery 15 - The Mystery of Banshee Towers


1 - OFF TO MEET OLD FATTY
"I do wish old Fatty would buck up and come back from wherever he's staying,"
said Bets. "We've had almost a week of the holidays without him already - such
a waste!"
"He's coming back today," said Pip, passing a postcard across the
breakfast-table to his young sister. "Here's a card from him. Three cheers!"
Bets read the card out loud. "Back tomorrow by bus from Warling. Meet me at
bus stop if you can. What about a nice juicy mystery? I feel just about ready
for one. Fatty."
"A nice juicy _what_?" said her mother, puzzled.
"_Mystery_," said Bets, her eyes shining. "You know how something always seems
to happen when Fatty's about, Mother - there was the mystery of the Pantomime
Cat - and the mystery of the Vanished Prince - and..."
Her father groaned. "Look, Bets - I'm tired of all these adventures and
strange happenings that seem to pop up whenever your friend Frederick is
about. Just try and steer clear of any trouble these holidays. I was hoping
that Frederick was staying away for a nice long time."
"I wish you wouldn't call him Frederick, Daddy," said Bets. "It does sound so
silly."
"I should have thought that Frederick was a much better name for a boy in his
teens, than the absurd name of Fatty," said her father. "I wonder Frederick
allows people to call him by that old nickname now."
"But Fatty _is_ fat, and the name suits him," said Pip. "Anyway I don't think
_my_ nickname is very suitable for me now that I'm a bit older. Why can't I be
called by my proper name of Philip, instead of Pip?"
"Simply because you're a bit of pip-squeak still...