The Mystery of the Missing Money Read online

  The Mystery of the Missing Money

  The Mystery Series – Short Story No. 1

  By Paul Moxham

  Contact Author:

  Website: www.paulmoxham.com

  Twitter: Check Out My Twitter Page

  Email: [email protected]

  This version updated as of: 9th February 2013

  All rights reserved, without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means without the prior written permission of the copyright owner of this book. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  THE MYSTERY SERIES

  This adventure series set in 1950’s Britain will delight children of all ages.

  ~*~*~

  Full Length Novels:

  The Mystery of Smugglers Cove – Available Now

  The Mystery of Adventure Island – Available Now

  The Mystery of Hidden Valley – Available Summer 2013

  Short Stories:

  The Mystery of the Missing Money – Available Now

  The Mystery of the Missing Gnomes – Available Now

  The Mystery of the Mysterious Man – Available 24th February 2013

  PRAISE FOR THE MYSTERY SERIES

  "I was drawn in by the fast-paced plot. I enjoyed reading the book and couldn't wait to see how things turned out." --- Smashwords Reviewer

  "Paul Moxham takes the reader on a whirlwind of chase scenarios that up the ante with each narrow escape." --- Amazon USA Reviewer

  "I love this book, could not put it down and I felt as if I was standing beside the characters." --- Shelfari Reviewer

  "This is an entertaining adventure story that would make pleasurable holiday reading for 7 to 10 year olds." --- Amazon UK Reviewer

  "It's packed with adventure and courage, reminiscent of The Goonies." --- LibraryThing Reviewer

  NOTE:

  This short can be read as a stand alone story, but if you want to have full knowledge of the characters, I suggest that you read The Mystery of Smugglers Cove, the first book in The Mystery Series.

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  This story is set in 1950’s Britain and is written in British English - not American English - so bear this in mind regarding the spelling of some words.

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  This story is set after the events in The Mystery of Smugglers Cove.

  Let the Adventure Begin…

  It was a perfect summer’s day, just right for a picnic. Not too cold, but not too hot. As twelve year old Joe gazed out to sea, he thought back to the day that they had arrived in Smugglers Cove.

  When his parents had announced that they going to rent a cottage in a sleepy seaside village for the summer holidays, he had imagined that it would be very dull. But he had been so wrong. The events of the past two weeks had been far more exciting than anything that he had known back in London.

  He glanced down at his younger sisters who were lying on the grassy slope in front of the castle. He waved to them before heading down the steps of the tower.

  Reaching the bottom, he passed the courtyard of the crumbling stone fortress that was slowly being weathered away by the wind and the rain.

  He caught sight of several mice as they scampered across the stone floor and smiled. People might not live here any longer, but at least it was a home for animals.

  Whistling a cheerful tune, Joe hurried back to the girls. Nobody would guess that they were sisters. Amy, who was the eldest, had long brown hair and blue eyes, while Sarah had short blonde hair and green eyes.

  “What lazy bones you two are,” Joe said as he sat down beside his sisters.

  “No, we’re not,” Sarah said. “We’re playing a game.”

  “What game?” Joe enquired, brushing his brown hair out of his eyes.

  “The cloud game,” Amy replied. “Can you see a dog?”

  Joe lay down and tried to see if he could spot the shape of a dog in the clouds. He saw it and looked away and tried to find another shape. He couldn’t see anything at first, but the clouds were always moving, so it didn’t take long for one to form. “I see a plane.”

  “I see it,” Amy said, a few moments later. “What about a fish?” She waited for the others to spot the animal, which Sarah did a few moments later.

  They played this game back and forth for the next five minutes or so and then, as Joe felt hungry, he sat up and started eating one of the sandwiches their mother had made for them.

  The girls also sat up and began eating. Joe glanced towards them. “What do you say we have a dip in the water afterwards?”

  “We ought to wait for Will,” Sarah said.

  Amy nodded as she swept her long, brown hair behind her shoulders. Will was a local boy, and he’d helped them when they had been caught up in a thrilling adventure just last week that involved crooks, tunnels, an old manor, and even a boat trip to France.

  She grimly smiled. It had been scary at times but, in the end, it had been worth it. After all, they had captured a bunch of crooks that would now be behind bars for a long time. She stood up. “He should be here any moment. After all, he did say to meet him here at noon.” She walked to the crest of the hill that was nearby. Looking towards the small seaside village of Smugglers Cove, she caught sight of a lone bicycle rider pedalling up the steep hill. Grinning, she waved and headed back to re-join the others.

  Within a matter of minutes, a boy with flaming red hair appeared at the top of the hill.

  “Over here, Will!” Joe shouted.

  Will pedalled towards them. He climbed off his bicycle as he reached them. “Been here long?”

  “Long enough for Joe to explore the castle by himself.” Sarah grinned.

  Joe smiled. “I didn’t really explore it, just took a quick look around.”

  “You climbed up the tower,” Amy said.

  “Yes, but I didn’t explore the dungeons,” Joe replied.

  “Ah, the dungeons,” Will said as he sat down. He glanced towards the others. “I don’t suppose you’ve heard of the Dobson twins?”

  Joe frowned. “No. Why?”

  Will unwrapped his sandwich as he spoke. “Two years ago, Oswald and Danny Dobson made Smugglers Cove famous.”

  “How?” Sarah asked.

  “The twins broke into a bank and stole a ton of money.”

  “What has that got to do with Smugglers Cove?” Amy questioned.

  “They were caught here a week later. On the 16th of January, 1948 to be exact.”

  “How on earth can you remember the exact date?” Joe asked.

  “Because it happened on my ninth birthday,” Will replied. “I was having a birthday party at Darby’s when there was a commotion out on the main street. Peering out of the window to see what was going on, I saw the crooks being bundled into the back of a police car.”

  “Did they find the money?” Joe said.

  “No, and that’s where things get interesting. A lot of people searched, but they couldn’t find anything. Not even a single note. Some people think that the twins spent it, others reckon that they hid it in the woods, or even at Chandler Manor. But some people, like me, think that they hid the money here at Bracknesh Castle.”

  “What happened to the twins?” Amy said.

  “They were locked up and, as far as I recall, are still in prison.”

  Joe looked across at the castle. “Did the dungeons get searched?”

  “Yes, and nothing was found,” Will replied. “But with such a large area to search, the police only sear
ched it once.”

  As Amy sipped her lemonade, Joe stood up. “Let’s go.”

  “But I haven’t—” Amy said.

  “The lemonade can wait. You can stay here, but I’m going now.” Joe set off towards the castle.

  Amy put her drink aside. “We’d better get going before he tears the place apart. Knowing him, we’ll still be searching for the money three hours from now.”

  The three of them hurried after Joe. Upon reaching the castle entrance, they decided to leave the dungeons until last, so they searched the towers and courtyard, as well as the rooms that were still standing.

  But they didn’t find anything. At least, nothing to do with the missing money. They spotted a fox scampering along the wall. Plus, the nest of a robin was nearly destroyed by Joe as he searched for hidden holes in the walls.

  As they opened up the big door and walked down the steps into the dungeons, it went dark. Joe realised that he hadn’t brought a torch. Luckily, Will had brought one, and the darkness was swept away as he switched it on.

  The children stayed together as they went from one cell to the next. The dungeons were quite large, with over twenty cells, though many had fallen in. The passageway twisted and turned quite a bit, so, if you weren’t careful, you could get lost.

  Sarah stayed close to the others as they continued the search, but, after thirty minutes of looking into every crevice that they could find, they walked back up the steps and emerged into the bright sunshine.

  Amy rubbed her hands. “It was pretty cold down there.”

  Will nodded. “Yes, especially since we’re only wearing summer clothing.”

  Joe kicked a stone along the ground. “I wish we’d found the money.”

  “The money probably isn’t even in there. After all, it wasn’t as though they were captured here,” Sarah said.

  “So, what are we going to do now?” Amy asked.

  “Let’s go down to the beach and make a sandcastle,” Joe suggested. “Then, once we have warmed up, we can play in the water.”

  The others thought that this was a good suggestion, so they headed back to the big oak tree and, after collecting their bicycles, rode down the hill.

  They made their way along the cliff until they came to a path that took them down to the beach. After leaving their bicycles at the edge of the sand, they raced along the beach until they reached the water.

  After dipping their feet into the water, they started building a sandcastle. They didn’t have any buckets or spades, but they didn’t need any. With everyone helping, they were able to make a magnificent castle that had four walls, towers, and even a moat.

  “It’s a beauty,” Sarah said, smiling at the sandcastle after they had finished.

  Will leaned back and lay down in the sand. “Now we just have to wait for the tide to come in.”

  Joe looked towards their bicycles. “I’ll grab the rest of the food while we wait.” He rushed off and, a few minutes later, was back with the backpack. He took out a sandwich and started eating it.

  Amy grabbed the backpack and searched through it. She found some grapes and started eating them. She passed the backpack to Sarah. “There’s an apple in there if you want it.”

  Sarah took the pack and took out the apple. She then reached deeper and pulled out the binoculars. She munched on her apple while she peered through the binoculars.

  She glanced out to sea to see if there were any boats sailing past. But she couldn’t see any.

  The cliffs blocked her view of Smugglers Cove, so she turned around and peered towards Bracknesh Castle. Looking through the binoculars, the castle seemed so close. She could make out almost everything. She even spotted a blackbird on one of the towers.

  Then, as she watched, the bird suddenly flew away. A moment later, a person came into view and glanced around. She watched as the man slowly turned from side to side as he searched the surrounding area. She then saw him look in her direction before suddenly disappearing.

  Sarah kept watch for the next few minutes, but the man didn’t reappear. She glanced across at the others who were lying down in the sand. “There’s a man at the castle.”

  Will opened his eyes. “So what?”

  “As soon as he saw me, he disappeared,” Sarah said.

  “He probably just went down the steps,” Amy piped up.

  Sarah resumed her watch but, after another five minutes had passed and no one could be seen, she put the binoculars away. “I did see someone, I really did.”

  “I’m sure you did,” Joe replied, “but it was probably just a tourist having a look around at the castle, just like we were doing earlier on.”

  “I guess so.” Sarah sat back down and, as she did so, cried out. “Oh, no!”

  “What’s wrong?” Amy asked.

  “My bracelet’s gone!” Sarah frantically searched, but couldn’t find it.

  “Didn’t you tell me that it broke while we were in the dungeons?” Amy said.

  “Of course, silly me.” Sarah reached into both pockets of her pink shorts but felt nothing. Frowning, she felt around and then cried out again. “Look, there’s a hole in this one.”

  Joe nodded. “The bracelet must still be in the dungeons.”

  Sarah looked at Joe. “I’d better go and get it now. Can you come with me?”

  “But what about the sandcastle?” Joe said. “The bracelet will still be there later on.”

  “I guess so,” Sarah said. “But what about that man?”

  “Why would someone take your bracelet?” Amy asked. “I’m sure we’ll find it, but why the hurry? I promise you that as soon as the sandcastle is destroyed, I’ll go and look for it.”

  “Count me in,” Will piped up.

  “Me too,” Joe said.

  “Okay, I guess it can wait.” Sarah sat down on the sand and the four of them waited for the water to reach the castle.

  It wasn’t long before Joe yelled out, “Hey, the tide’s breaking down the walls.” He rushed over and started making the castle walls thicker.

  The others joined in. They were able to contain the water at first, but then the water filled the moat and attacked the sandcastle on all four sides. They tried their best, but within a matter of minutes, one of the outer walls fell and water gushed in.

  “Concentrate on the inner walls!” Will yelled out. “It’s our only hope.” He stepped into the centre of the castle and waited as Amy grabbed some dry sand and passed it to him.

  As the water circled around, it began to get higher and higher. However, due to the hard work of everyone, the walls also got higher.

  As each wave swept into the moat and through the outer walls, the level of water got higher and higher. Soon, the sand inside the inner walls started to get damp.

  “I need more sand!” Will yelled.

  The others helped gather more sand, but, suddenly, a stream of water entered the main part of the sandcastle through a hole that had appeared in the wall. Will lumped dry sand onto the hole and covered it up but, a moment later, another hole appeared. And then another.

  Sarah was doing her part by throwing piles of sand onto the walls, but her aim wasn’t that good and half of the sand was actually landing on Will instead.

  As water began to stream in through the inner walls, Will yelled out and abandoned his post. He leapt over the water and hurried over to where the others were standing.

  They watched in silence as the walls collapsed and water poured in. Within a matter of moments, the castle was all but gone.

  Sarah stood up. “Let’s find my bracelet now.”

  “Okay,” Amy replied. She, along with the boys, followed Sarah to their bicycles.

  They were soon at the entrance of the castle. Dropping their bicycles on the grass, they made their way into the courtyard. Joe glanced around to see if the man that Sarah had seen earlier was nearby, but there was no sign of him or anyone else.

  “I told you he was just a tourist,” Joe said as he headed down the steps of the dung
eons.

  Will switched on his torch and paused at the bottom of the steps. “Where shall we search first?”

  “Um, over here.” Sarah led the way as Will shined the torch on the ground.

  The hunt for the missing bracelet lasted for a number of painstaking minutes until, finally, Sarah saw something glinting on the ground. She rushed over and reached down. She saw that it was her bracelet. “Yes!”

  Sarah picked it up as Joe smiled. “Good spotting. Now, let’s head back. I think it was this way.” They hurried back the way they had come but paused as they came to an intersection.

  Amy frowned. A light was coming from the right. “What’s that?”

  “It looks like someone else is down here,” Joe said.

  “Who?” Sarah asked.

  “Maybe your mystery man,” Will said. He glanced at the others. “Do you want to see who it is?”

  “Yes, let’s,” Amy said.

  The group hurried towards the source of the mystery light. As they walked closer, they began to hear voices. The light also got brighter and Will, who was at the front, suddenly paused as they got within hearing range.

  “What—” Joe began.

  “Quiet!” Will whispered.

  Everyone paused and listened as they heard two male voices having an argument.

  Staying close to the walls, Will inched himself closer, so he could hear every single word that was being said. A minute later, he hurried back to the others. His face was one of amazement. He pushed the others into a nearby cell before he spoke up. “You won’t guess who’s in there.”

  “Who?” the others cried out.

  “Danny and Oswald,” Will said.

  Joe gaped. “The twins?”

  Will nodded. “Yes, they must have escaped and come to get their money.”

  “We need to tell the police,” Sarah whispered.

  “But what about the money?” Amy said. “What if they find it before the police arrive?”

  “We can place some rocks in front of the door so they can’t escape,” Will said.