Ring O'Bells Mystery | Teen Ink

Ring O'Bells Mystery

September 9, 2012
By Chad. SILVER, Saratoga, California
Chad. SILVER, Saratoga, California
8 articles 2 photos 0 comments

Favorite Quote:
Work hard, work well.


"I thought those three children were going off to school today," said Mr. Lynton. "Don't they plan on eating breakfast before they leave? As a doctor, I will not let them go without a healthy start."

"Oh Richard, Snubby and Roger are not feeling well," sighed Mrs. Lynton. "They have both got a temperature. As for Diana-"

"Goodness no, honey! We cannot let Diana go to school in case the boys have something infectious. The school will not take her," declared Mr. Lynton.

"Well, Richard, we can't help it if they are ill," said his wife. "Snubby really must be feeling bad-he cannot even eat a sausage for his breakfast, and you know how fond he is of them!"

"It won't hurt him to starve for a week. He eats more than the horse on my father's farm!" laughed Mr. Lynton. After saying this, Mr. Lynton grabbed his white lab coat and his doctor's bag and went to catch the subway. Before he even left his patio, he was greeted by policeman running toward his front door. They flew by him and ran into his house leaving a red-faced, bewildered looking Mr. Lynton standing outside.

"I'll leave you a message on your mobile and work phone that will give you the information you need," yelled Mrs. Lynton out the kitchen window. Mr. Lynton yelled back in agreement. He sighed and started running towards the subway station. After all, he should be used to the commotion at his house. Ever since his kids had discovered the secret passageway that snaked underground and connected all of the city's counties, the police had used his kids to guide them around town to catch criminals. Not long after he reached the subway, he heard a siren wail behind him and his kids shouting hi and bye to him. The police van was headed in the direction of Ring O'Bells village.

Inside the van, there was quite a commotion. The police inspectors Joe and Alfred debriefed the children on the state of Inspector Rawlings. "Ahem-yes-well-you see, Rawlings was captured by these mobsters. He is tied and gagged in a dark, dirty cave somewhere near the well. We officers can hear the poor man cough through the passageway that starts deep in the dry well. However, we are too large to fit into the tunnel. We need you children to free Rawlings. My men will go around and ambush the mobsters." Inspector Joe then handed each of the children a map with detailed instructions along with a parcel.

"What is in the parcel?" asked Diana.

"Oh just some supper for you all and medicine for Rawlings. Now, I want all of you children to sleep. You'll need your energy." The children did not need to be told twice. Even if
they were told twice, they wouldn't have heard it the second time.

In the morning, the children were dropped off at the well. The van sped off leaving the children on their own. Roger took control of his siblings and led the way to Inspector Rawlings. Once all three children were in the tunnel, they made their way to Inspector Rawlings. Then, the children saw a man bound and gagged. However, he did not look sick at all. Snubby took a closer look of the man. All of a sudden, the man pounced on the children. He used Roger's pocket knife to cut himself free and then cut the rope and gag into three different pieces. Soon, the children and the man had traded spots. Roger thought to himself, "That man did not look like Inspector Rawlings at all." Little did he know that his brother and sister were thinking the exact same thing! The children drifted off to sleep from the mental and physical exhaustion. When they woke up, they were lying unbound and at the feet of a man. Roger could not see who it was and lashed his foot out, breaking the man's shin. Diana immediately realized who her brother had just crippled, Inspector Rawlings! Roger noticed a split second later. They immediately started giving Inspector Rawlings his medicine and painkillers. "My you children are alert, you should join the police force!" exclaimed Inspector Rawlings before the morphine took him back under.

"We kind of already are, Sir," laughed Snubby under his breath. The crackle of radio static broke the silence. It was the Chief Inspector wondering why it is taking so long. Diana debriefed him while the boys hoisted Inspector Rawlings' trim body up the well. Soon, all three children were outside in the fresh, sun-saturated air. It felt nice to have the warm beams of sunshine fall on their faces after spending some time in that dark cave. Inspector Rawlings was escorted to the hospital while the children went with the rest of the police force to apprehend the criminals. After the strange man had tied them all up, Roger burned with fury and was more determined than ever to bring these criminals to justice. Before he knew it, they were at the entrance of the tunnel. They could hear excited voices.

"Tonight's the night!"

"…stupid kids…took care of them brats so…"

Inspector Alfred had to hold on to Roger so he wouldn't jump in and claw out the eyes of his previous captor. Inspector Joe sent down fume cartridges to smoke out the mobsters like foxes. Before they knew it, red-eyed men were coughing and popping out of the tunnel. Every time someone would come out, the medic would inject them with a tranquilizer. They soon had a heap of about six men. The children were taken to a hotel for the Hero's Gala and were greeted by their parents. The parents had heard about what had happened to the children. Mr. Lynton swore that never again will his children be used in a potentially dangerous situation. Roger hopped onto a table and proposed a toast. "Well," said Roger, reaching for his glass of lemonade, "here's to our next adventure!"


The author's comments:
This piece is an alternate ending to the novel The Ring O'Bells Mystery, written by Enid Blyton.

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