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Andrew Tillet, Sara Wiggins & Inspector Wyatt #6
The Case of the Frightened Friend
Andrew Tillet and Inspector Wyatt help a friend whose father has mysteriously died, whose grandfather is a complete invalid, and who has reason to suspect others in the family of wrongdoing.
"The properly frightened friend, in this latest outing with the Baker Street Irregulars, is Andrew Tillett's schoolmate Benedict Cortland III—whose father has recently drowned, whose grandfather has just had a stroke. ""If I don't come back at the end of the holiday,"" he says to Andrew, ""will you look into it?"" Cortland knows of Andrew's link to Inspector Peter Wyatt of Scotland Yard; and Inspector Wyatt soon hears of Cortland. Less immediately involved is Third Irregular Sara, about to appear in a play with Andrew's actress mother—but lots of intriguing on-stage and off-stage action will ensue. At Cortland's, his stepmother is chilly, his paralyzed grandfather obviously troubled, eager to answer Andrew's one-blink/two-blink questions. A specialist, who bluffs his way in at Wyatt's bidding, doubts that he's had a stroke; through a fire ruse, another Wyatt emissary manages his removal to a hospital. Meanwhile, Andrew and Wyatt have been stopping in at the Admiralty: Benedict Cortland II had been a naval aide in Germany at his sudden death; Benedict Cortland I, aware that his son was onto something, had just returned from investigating the death. . . . It all winds up, dramatically enough, on stage. And, along with lots of atmospheric old-London detail, there's a little leftover business involving big-time Picadilly pickpockets. Stylish and deft, as usual." —Kirkus Reviews, March 9, 1984
"The properly frightened friend, in this latest outing with the Baker Street Irregulars, is Andrew Tillett's schoolmate Benedict Cortland III—whose father has recently drowned, whose grandfather has just had a stroke. ""If I don't come back at the end of the holiday,"" he says to Andrew, ""will you look into it?"" Cortland knows of Andrew's link to Inspector Peter Wyatt of Scotland Yard; and Inspector Wyatt soon hears of Cortland. Less immediately involved is Third Irregular Sara, about to appear in a play with Andrew's actress mother—but lots of intriguing on-stage and off-stage action will ensue. At Cortland's, his stepmother is chilly, his paralyzed grandfather obviously troubled, eager to answer Andrew's one-blink/two-blink questions. A specialist, who bluffs his way in at Wyatt's bidding, doubts that he's had a stroke; through a fire ruse, another Wyatt emissary manages his removal to a hospital. Meanwhile, Andrew and Wyatt have been stopping in at the Admiralty: Benedict Cortland II had been a naval aide in Germany at his sudden death; Benedict Cortland I, aware that his son was onto something, had just returned from investigating the death. . . . It all winds up, dramatically enough, on stage. And, along with lots of atmospheric old-London detail, there's a little leftover business involving big-time Picadilly pickpockets. Stylish and deft, as usual." —Kirkus Reviews, March 9, 1984
- GenresMystery
168 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 1984
1 person is currently reading
40 people want to read
About the author
Robert Newman
37 books12 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Mr. Newman, who was born in Manhattan, began his career as a writer for radio shows. In 1944, he was in charge of the radio portion of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's re-election campaign. He also wrote ''Search for Tomorrow'' and ''Peyton Place'' episodes for television.
From 1973 to 1988, he wrote books for young people, including ''The Case of the Baker Street Irregular,'' published by Atheneum in 1978, and many novels.
Mr. Newman, who was born in Manhattan, began his career as a writer for radio shows. In 1944, he was in charge of the radio portion of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's re-election campaign. He also wrote ''Search for Tomorrow'' and ''Peyton Place'' episodes for television.
From 1973 to 1988, he wrote books for young people, including ''The Case of the Baker Street Irregular,'' published by Atheneum in 1978, and many novels.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 13, 2016
1.5
There was no date in the summary to indicate what time period this was. There were mentions of hansom cabs, and another conveyance called four-wheelers, which I’d never heard that expression, so I assumed it was set in the 1800s.
His friend Chadwick brought up Andrew’s friendship with Peter Wyatt of Scotland Yard, and Andrew always finds the topic embarrassing. Why would he be embarrassed?
Andrew and Sara sounded so old, like adults instead of children. He says he doesn’t mind his mother showing him affection, unlike other boys at school, because their feelings for each other are deep and genuine but with discretion. So they love each other but they don’t show it to others? He said his behavior towards Sara was necessarily different, and she’s closer to his own age, but I didn’t know what that meant and it wasn’t explained. And of course it would be different. Your relationship with a girl your age you’re not related to would never be the same as it is with your mom.
I liked the part where he says “Good evening, Miss Wiggins” with exaggerated formality and he notices she has on a new dress and looks very pretty. And she says “good evening, Andrew” and does a curtsy then ruins the effect by grinning impishly.
Sara wasn’t the most likable, though. When Andrew said how jealous she was of the other girl that had gotten the role in London. I didn’t like that, or when Andrew says that the play is much more important than the business with his friend, and she says it is to me. That was rude. I did like that she felt bad that she was going to miss the action and wanted to know everything that happened with Cortland’s grandpa.
Andrew talks to Wyatt about what Cortland said, that if he doesn’t return to school after the holidays then look into it. He doesn’t answer when Andrew asks him what he’s talking about. Andrew keeps thinking about it and goes to Cortland’s house, where the butler tells him Cortland is at school. Andrew tells him he isn’t at school, he’d just dropped him off at his house last night. His step-mom comes to the door and says the butler didn’t mean he was at school, he meant he was out and wasn’t home. Andrew tells Wyatt this and Wyatt tells him to try again, to see if he can see Cortland. The second time he goes to his house he’s let in and Cortland is there. They go to the zoo the next day and Cortland tells him that his dad is dead and he doesn’t think his grandpa needs a doctor, he needs help and his step-mom doesn’t like him. His grandpa had come to visit him 2 months ago and said he’d be around to take care of him but Cortland had the feeling something was wrong. His grandpa didn’t want to talk about it then, he had to take care of something and when he got back he might tell him what it was. He didn’t get a chance to tell him because he’s paralyzed and can’t move or talk. Andrew tells him what the butler said and Cortland said he was home, this was the first time he’d left the house. They go back and see his grandpa and Andrew is blinking in Morse Code, telling him to blink once for yes and twice for no. He asks if he was trying to tell them a message, he says yes. He also says he needs help and that he wants them to get him away from there.
I loved the part where Wyatt and Andrew send in a man pretending to know the grandfather, so he can get a look at him. He goes to the door after Mrs. Cortland has left, the butler, Hodge, says he’s had a stroke, a severe one. And he’s like what? All the more reason why I must see him! And he pushes the door open. The butler says she’s out and if he comes back when she’s there and he interrupts and says “I don’t want to see her. I want to see him. And I’m not a visitor. I’m a friend.” And he pushes past Hodge and goes upstairs. When he gets back to the carriage he tells them Dr. Thurlow’s a very good man but he doesn’t think it’s a stroke. And he said there wasn’t a nurse and that was strange.
They have Sir Arthur at the Admiralty look into Captain Cortland’s, Cortland’s dad, files and they know he was suspicious of someone in the Admiralty that was an enemy spy. When he went sailing on a holiday with his wife, the Danish countess, Cortland’s step-mother, he died but there were no signs of foul play. The grandpa had gone to Germany and conducted his own investigation and had found something, sent telegrams to Mrs. Cortland and them saying he’d tell them when he got home.
Wyatt wrote a note for Andrew to give to Beasly, and it’s written in Latin. Quid licet Jovis, non licet bovis which means that which is permitted to Jove, is not permitted to an ox. So Jove can do things the ox can’t. And on the other side it said quid licet bovis, non licet Jovis which means the exact opposite. Andrew asks who gave it to him and he says “Who do you think? His blinkin’ nibs, Wyatt. Because I’m the ox.”
I thought that was cool, because he was seeking help for Andrew’s sake and even though he couldn’t do any more, because he had rules to follow and higher authorities he had to listen to, he got someone that could.
Wyatt is working on another case and Andrew can tell because he’s busy. Sara tells him about the pick pockets, that they’re having trouble catching them. So they hatch the idea to have Sara dress like a ruffian while he runs after her yelling thief, to pretend that she stole from him in the hopes the real pick pockets will ask her to join them or tell her it’s their turf. Wyatt hears about it and catches them as they’re coming back from the theater and Sara has changed. He’s mad and asks “And how exactly was that supposed to help?” She says “We thought if anyone from the gang was around and saw me, one of two things would happen. Either they’d ask me to join the, work with them, or they’d get mad and tell me this was their pitch and to clear out or they’d bash me.”
“I see. I gather you think you’re a little smarter than anyone on the Metropolitan Police force.”
“Not really.”
“No? Then perhaps you’re willing to admit that we’ve thought of everything you can think of to collar them and perhaps a few things you haven’t?”
Andrew asks if Alf and Liza are working with them, if that’s how he knew about what they did. They’re the couple that was dancing. He says stop asking questions that are none of your business. And then asks how they’re getting home. He says they’ll take a bus and he says no, you won’t and hails a hansom, puts them in it, gives the cabby their address and drops money to pay for it into Sara’s lap despite Andrew’s protests and stands there while the hansom drops them off. I liked that even though he was mad at them for doing something dangerous and interfering with his job he still cared about their safety and took care of them.
Beasley sends Andrew a telegram “If still interested in matter you saw me about, urge your presence at Sherburne Square at nine tonight.” It was signed “The Ox” which was cute and referenced the note Wyatt had given him. He asks Sara if she wants to come and she looks at him and says if he hadn’t shown her the telegram she would’ve thrown the teapot at him. And if he hadn’t asked her to come she would’ve thrown the teapot and the milk jug. She is so not likable. I don’t like her personality at all.
They get to the square in front of Cortland’s house and there’s smoke coming from the basement window and under the front steps. Beasley is dressed like a butler and he ran up the steps and kept ringing the bell until Hodge—the butler—opened it. He says “are you all asleep in there? Don’t you know what’s going on?” He points to the fire and says “And a bad one, I suspect.” He’s already sent for the fire brigade and tells him to get everyone out. “It could be a matter of life or death!” He leans into the open door and shouts for everyone to get out of the house. Then he goes down the steps, his back to the kids, and asks “Where is he?” under his breath. Andrew says “To the right at the top of the stairs.” Beasley tells the firemen when they get there that there’s a sick old man upstairs.
Two of them carry him down the steps and Cortland is saying “But what are we doing to do with him? He can’t stay out here in the street, and . . .” And Beasley says “Of course not. And here’s the ambulance.” It was just a perfect setup, he had everything thought out and it was genius how it all came together on time and the timing was perfect.
Once the grandpa is loaded into the ambulance and taken to the hospital Beasley says “Well that’s that. Smartly done.” The door of the four-wheeler that had come with the ambulance opens and Beasley’s assistant, Sean, steps out. He’s gone to the hospital and called for an ambulance while Beasley called the fire brigade.
They all get in the cab and ride to the hospital. Sara asks if he thinks it’s a bad fire. He says “I shouldn’t think so. You know the old saying?” She answers “Where there’s smoke, there’s fire?” And he says “Like many of the old things they say, it’s not always true.” She says “I see” smiling. Cortland asks if they all know each other and he says “Now that’s a question. Can any man truly say he knows another? You’re a bit of a scholar, Sean. What do you think?” He answers “Much too deep and difficult a question for me, Beasley. I wouldn’t dream of trying to answer.” Cortland says “Oh” with a gleam in his eyes. He says the next thing he was going to ask was how Andrew and Sara happened to be there but perhaps he better not. Beasley says “It’s always better not to. The fewer questions you ask, the fewer lies you’ll be told. Sara asks “You don’t think very much of people, do you?”
“You run a shop like mine for a while, and see what you think of them. Shoful, almost everyone—meaning no good, fake. Buying or selling, they’ll cheat you out of your eyeteeth if they can. True, Sean?”
“I’ve never seen anyone get the better of you, Mr. B, either buying or selling.”
I liked the character. Beasley was really interesting. It was such a creative, believable way to get the grandpa out of the house.
Beasley and Sean drop them off at the hospital and they see Dr. Reeves, the man that barged into Cortland’s house pretending to be a friend of the grandpas just so he could check him out, and who wanted to get him to St. Marys to examine him, coming out of the room. Mrs. Cortland and Dr. Thurlow, the old man’s doctor, come and want him released then but Dr. Reeves says he can’t do that. She’s mad and says she intends to have him out tomorrow then.
Andrew goes to Cortland’s house the next morning right as Mrs. Cortland and him are about to go to the hospital so he goes with them. The sister at the desk says he might be a little better this morning. Mrs. Cortland says she’s come to take him home. The sister says that’s impossible, Dr. Reeves left no instructions that he was supposed to be released. She counters are you saying you intend to keep him here against his will? She says since he’s unable to speak, we don’t know what his will is in this matter and must rely on Dr. Reeves’ opinion of what is best for him. She demands to see the superior and goes off to do that. A door behind the sister opens and Wyatt steps out, says “Well done, sister.”
They go to the hospital for the third time and they get to see Mr. Cortland for the first time. They ask him about the dispatch box that Cortland heard his step-mom and the doctor talking about, whatever that is. He gets agitated because he can’t answer and they have to leave, but the doctor thinks he was poisoned with Indian poison which when used in a low dosage as medicine can cause paralysis and the inability to speak. It wears off quickly so has to be administered often.
It was annoying how Cortland says he saw someone outside in the garden and Sara says they’re all nervy, he could have imagined it. And Andrew goes outside and does an Indian stalk, it takes almost a full page for him to get around to the side of the house, he sees the 2 people, asks himself why he saw 2 people in the rhododendron bush rather than the rose bush, “because roses have thorns, idiot” and if they were going to hide they’d do it in a bush that has thorns. He closes his eyes and opens them to see if he really saw two people. They’re still there and they seem to have moved. What does it matter where intruders are standing? They’re there, that’s all you need to know, not dissecting which bush they’re standing by and why they chose that bush. Ridiculous.
He thinks about getting closer to see if they really are there, or if he can tell who they are. If he goes around to the street side of the house he can see them silhouetted against the light in the living room, where Andrew told Sara and Cortland to play another game of Parcheesi. It felt just way overdone. Why would he need to see their silhouettes? He goes back around the other side of the house and on the way sees a third man, and is only now convinced he saw the first two. Come on, it’s not that hard to believe.
On pg. 132 Sara called Benedict Cortland Bendict. Typos, especially in a character’s name, should never happen!
They’re supposed to go the theater as Wyatt told them to do if anyone came to the house, and they’re supposed to be followed because he has a plan. Sara tells Andrew to go to Fred to bring the carriage around. These kids are just too knowledgeable and bossy. They act like adults rather than children. He hesitates and she says “What’s wrong? Benedict hardly knows me, and he trusts me. Why are you acting as if you don’t?” He says “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. It’s just . . . All right. I’m going.”
It kind of rankled because he’s always telling people what to do and making decisions but the one time Sara calls the shots he’s hesitant to go along with them and making her think he doesn’t trust her.
Andrew tells Fred to go around front, and “Sara will tell you where to go?” I’m sure this was a typo, but I can’t stand when people put question marks on things that aren’t questions.
Andrew goes off to see Dixon, I guess like he was supposed to, so they go off to the theater together. I just found it really ridiculous right at the moment that Dixon was listening so intently to Andrew’s account of what happened, and he’s immediately setting off to handle it. It’s a kid. It’s just ludicrous and so unrealistic to imagine all of these adults running off to do the bidding of a child with what by all accounts is a tall tale. The guard isn’t there and the place is dark, and Cortland and Sara are there. Dixon tells Andrew he’ll take care of his friends and for him to go home. He asked Andrew if he does as he’s told and he says “of course” but he doesn’t really leave. He shuts the door and then hides, and sees Dixon bar the door. That was a complete wrench, because I never saw this coming that he was a bad guy. I liked when Andrew said “Dixon might be with the Admiralty, but he wasn’t Wyatt. And though Andrew meant it when he said he could be relied on to do what he was told, it depended on who did the telling.”
Mrs. Cortland and Dr. Thurlow are already there, he’s mad at them because they ruined his plan and he can’t stay here anymore. So he just stabs them both, Mrs. Cortland is dead but it turns out the doctor is still alive. Dixon tells Sara and Cortland to come out. Wyatt is there, don’t know how he knew all this was going on, and Dixon wants passage to Germany on a ship and is going to take the children as hostages. Burke is there cutting at a rope. Andrew motions for Sara and Cortland to move away and Burke drops the curtain which snaps Dixon’s arm like a twig. It’s a heavy curtain but I don’t think it’s capable of breaking someone’s arm. That seems like a stretch.
Wyatt had known Dixon was the bad guy because Dixon had sent him a letter claiming Sir Arthur at the Admiralty wanted to know how the grandpa was doing. When Wyatt had had Andrew go with him to see Sir Arthur, Sir Arthur had been surprised to learn that the grandpa was in the hospital, so he clearly didn't know anything about Mr. Cortland had changed, and therefore wouldn't have known to ask how he was doing, so that gave Dixon away. Mrs. Cortland and Dr. Thurlow were Germans working for their country, and she married Mr. Cortland, Cortland's dad, to keep an eye on him because they were suspicious of Mr. Cortland getting close to the truth of the spy. Mr. Cortland was killed because of it.
They all leave the theater and Wyatt is frowning at the band of Samaritans that are always at the square. And I’m not kidding, I literally knew they were the pick pockets from the first moment they entered the story. It was so apparent, Idk if I would have guessed it when I was kid, probably not, but at 23 they were the obvious suspects. The only thing I was wrong about was that Alf and Liza, the dancers in the square, weren’t a part of it. They aided them in capturing the thieves. Liza tripped one of them. Wyatt knew something was off because the drummer was just beating the drum with no rhythm and then sometimes he would stop for no reason—that’s when the others were handing him money and jewelry and things to hide in his pockets. I couldn’t believe the book just stopped there with no warning. I expected Cortland to be able to talk to his grandpa.
I didn’t like the style of writing at all. I didn’t enjoy it because it was too intellectual and I didn’t understand a lot of the references because I’m not English. The writing required a lot of concentration to understand. It wasn’t an easy read by any means. I think it’s pretty mature for young teenagers. It’s a very intellectual way of writing, like a school textbook that was written by a scholar. There were too many characters to keep track of. I really had to stop and think to keep the names straight and some people I never could keep up with. I couldn’t picture one person clearly. There were no descriptions of hair or eye color, height, build, features, expressions, clothing. There was no information given to ensure we could picture the characters. I absolutely cannot fathom that. I have no idea what year this was in, because there wasn’t one reference to a year or month I think. This is definitely an old book that was written in a style that books just aren’t written nowadays.
There was no date in the summary to indicate what time period this was. There were mentions of hansom cabs, and another conveyance called four-wheelers, which I’d never heard that expression, so I assumed it was set in the 1800s.
His friend Chadwick brought up Andrew’s friendship with Peter Wyatt of Scotland Yard, and Andrew always finds the topic embarrassing. Why would he be embarrassed?
Andrew and Sara sounded so old, like adults instead of children. He says he doesn’t mind his mother showing him affection, unlike other boys at school, because their feelings for each other are deep and genuine but with discretion. So they love each other but they don’t show it to others? He said his behavior towards Sara was necessarily different, and she’s closer to his own age, but I didn’t know what that meant and it wasn’t explained. And of course it would be different. Your relationship with a girl your age you’re not related to would never be the same as it is with your mom.
I liked the part where he says “Good evening, Miss Wiggins” with exaggerated formality and he notices she has on a new dress and looks very pretty. And she says “good evening, Andrew” and does a curtsy then ruins the effect by grinning impishly.
Sara wasn’t the most likable, though. When Andrew said how jealous she was of the other girl that had gotten the role in London. I didn’t like that, or when Andrew says that the play is much more important than the business with his friend, and she says it is to me. That was rude. I did like that she felt bad that she was going to miss the action and wanted to know everything that happened with Cortland’s grandpa.
Andrew talks to Wyatt about what Cortland said, that if he doesn’t return to school after the holidays then look into it. He doesn’t answer when Andrew asks him what he’s talking about. Andrew keeps thinking about it and goes to Cortland’s house, where the butler tells him Cortland is at school. Andrew tells him he isn’t at school, he’d just dropped him off at his house last night. His step-mom comes to the door and says the butler didn’t mean he was at school, he meant he was out and wasn’t home. Andrew tells Wyatt this and Wyatt tells him to try again, to see if he can see Cortland. The second time he goes to his house he’s let in and Cortland is there. They go to the zoo the next day and Cortland tells him that his dad is dead and he doesn’t think his grandpa needs a doctor, he needs help and his step-mom doesn’t like him. His grandpa had come to visit him 2 months ago and said he’d be around to take care of him but Cortland had the feeling something was wrong. His grandpa didn’t want to talk about it then, he had to take care of something and when he got back he might tell him what it was. He didn’t get a chance to tell him because he’s paralyzed and can’t move or talk. Andrew tells him what the butler said and Cortland said he was home, this was the first time he’d left the house. They go back and see his grandpa and Andrew is blinking in Morse Code, telling him to blink once for yes and twice for no. He asks if he was trying to tell them a message, he says yes. He also says he needs help and that he wants them to get him away from there.
I loved the part where Wyatt and Andrew send in a man pretending to know the grandfather, so he can get a look at him. He goes to the door after Mrs. Cortland has left, the butler, Hodge, says he’s had a stroke, a severe one. And he’s like what? All the more reason why I must see him! And he pushes the door open. The butler says she’s out and if he comes back when she’s there and he interrupts and says “I don’t want to see her. I want to see him. And I’m not a visitor. I’m a friend.” And he pushes past Hodge and goes upstairs. When he gets back to the carriage he tells them Dr. Thurlow’s a very good man but he doesn’t think it’s a stroke. And he said there wasn’t a nurse and that was strange.
They have Sir Arthur at the Admiralty look into Captain Cortland’s, Cortland’s dad, files and they know he was suspicious of someone in the Admiralty that was an enemy spy. When he went sailing on a holiday with his wife, the Danish countess, Cortland’s step-mother, he died but there were no signs of foul play. The grandpa had gone to Germany and conducted his own investigation and had found something, sent telegrams to Mrs. Cortland and them saying he’d tell them when he got home.
Wyatt wrote a note for Andrew to give to Beasly, and it’s written in Latin. Quid licet Jovis, non licet bovis which means that which is permitted to Jove, is not permitted to an ox. So Jove can do things the ox can’t. And on the other side it said quid licet bovis, non licet Jovis which means the exact opposite. Andrew asks who gave it to him and he says “Who do you think? His blinkin’ nibs, Wyatt. Because I’m the ox.”
I thought that was cool, because he was seeking help for Andrew’s sake and even though he couldn’t do any more, because he had rules to follow and higher authorities he had to listen to, he got someone that could.
Wyatt is working on another case and Andrew can tell because he’s busy. Sara tells him about the pick pockets, that they’re having trouble catching them. So they hatch the idea to have Sara dress like a ruffian while he runs after her yelling thief, to pretend that she stole from him in the hopes the real pick pockets will ask her to join them or tell her it’s their turf. Wyatt hears about it and catches them as they’re coming back from the theater and Sara has changed. He’s mad and asks “And how exactly was that supposed to help?” She says “We thought if anyone from the gang was around and saw me, one of two things would happen. Either they’d ask me to join the, work with them, or they’d get mad and tell me this was their pitch and to clear out or they’d bash me.”
“I see. I gather you think you’re a little smarter than anyone on the Metropolitan Police force.”
“Not really.”
“No? Then perhaps you’re willing to admit that we’ve thought of everything you can think of to collar them and perhaps a few things you haven’t?”
Andrew asks if Alf and Liza are working with them, if that’s how he knew about what they did. They’re the couple that was dancing. He says stop asking questions that are none of your business. And then asks how they’re getting home. He says they’ll take a bus and he says no, you won’t and hails a hansom, puts them in it, gives the cabby their address and drops money to pay for it into Sara’s lap despite Andrew’s protests and stands there while the hansom drops them off. I liked that even though he was mad at them for doing something dangerous and interfering with his job he still cared about their safety and took care of them.
Beasley sends Andrew a telegram “If still interested in matter you saw me about, urge your presence at Sherburne Square at nine tonight.” It was signed “The Ox” which was cute and referenced the note Wyatt had given him. He asks Sara if she wants to come and she looks at him and says if he hadn’t shown her the telegram she would’ve thrown the teapot at him. And if he hadn’t asked her to come she would’ve thrown the teapot and the milk jug. She is so not likable. I don’t like her personality at all.
They get to the square in front of Cortland’s house and there’s smoke coming from the basement window and under the front steps. Beasley is dressed like a butler and he ran up the steps and kept ringing the bell until Hodge—the butler—opened it. He says “are you all asleep in there? Don’t you know what’s going on?” He points to the fire and says “And a bad one, I suspect.” He’s already sent for the fire brigade and tells him to get everyone out. “It could be a matter of life or death!” He leans into the open door and shouts for everyone to get out of the house. Then he goes down the steps, his back to the kids, and asks “Where is he?” under his breath. Andrew says “To the right at the top of the stairs.” Beasley tells the firemen when they get there that there’s a sick old man upstairs.
Two of them carry him down the steps and Cortland is saying “But what are we doing to do with him? He can’t stay out here in the street, and . . .” And Beasley says “Of course not. And here’s the ambulance.” It was just a perfect setup, he had everything thought out and it was genius how it all came together on time and the timing was perfect.
Once the grandpa is loaded into the ambulance and taken to the hospital Beasley says “Well that’s that. Smartly done.” The door of the four-wheeler that had come with the ambulance opens and Beasley’s assistant, Sean, steps out. He’s gone to the hospital and called for an ambulance while Beasley called the fire brigade.
They all get in the cab and ride to the hospital. Sara asks if he thinks it’s a bad fire. He says “I shouldn’t think so. You know the old saying?” She answers “Where there’s smoke, there’s fire?” And he says “Like many of the old things they say, it’s not always true.” She says “I see” smiling. Cortland asks if they all know each other and he says “Now that’s a question. Can any man truly say he knows another? You’re a bit of a scholar, Sean. What do you think?” He answers “Much too deep and difficult a question for me, Beasley. I wouldn’t dream of trying to answer.” Cortland says “Oh” with a gleam in his eyes. He says the next thing he was going to ask was how Andrew and Sara happened to be there but perhaps he better not. Beasley says “It’s always better not to. The fewer questions you ask, the fewer lies you’ll be told. Sara asks “You don’t think very much of people, do you?”
“You run a shop like mine for a while, and see what you think of them. Shoful, almost everyone—meaning no good, fake. Buying or selling, they’ll cheat you out of your eyeteeth if they can. True, Sean?”
“I’ve never seen anyone get the better of you, Mr. B, either buying or selling.”
I liked the character. Beasley was really interesting. It was such a creative, believable way to get the grandpa out of the house.
Beasley and Sean drop them off at the hospital and they see Dr. Reeves, the man that barged into Cortland’s house pretending to be a friend of the grandpas just so he could check him out, and who wanted to get him to St. Marys to examine him, coming out of the room. Mrs. Cortland and Dr. Thurlow, the old man’s doctor, come and want him released then but Dr. Reeves says he can’t do that. She’s mad and says she intends to have him out tomorrow then.
Andrew goes to Cortland’s house the next morning right as Mrs. Cortland and him are about to go to the hospital so he goes with them. The sister at the desk says he might be a little better this morning. Mrs. Cortland says she’s come to take him home. The sister says that’s impossible, Dr. Reeves left no instructions that he was supposed to be released. She counters are you saying you intend to keep him here against his will? She says since he’s unable to speak, we don’t know what his will is in this matter and must rely on Dr. Reeves’ opinion of what is best for him. She demands to see the superior and goes off to do that. A door behind the sister opens and Wyatt steps out, says “Well done, sister.”
They go to the hospital for the third time and they get to see Mr. Cortland for the first time. They ask him about the dispatch box that Cortland heard his step-mom and the doctor talking about, whatever that is. He gets agitated because he can’t answer and they have to leave, but the doctor thinks he was poisoned with Indian poison which when used in a low dosage as medicine can cause paralysis and the inability to speak. It wears off quickly so has to be administered often.
It was annoying how Cortland says he saw someone outside in the garden and Sara says they’re all nervy, he could have imagined it. And Andrew goes outside and does an Indian stalk, it takes almost a full page for him to get around to the side of the house, he sees the 2 people, asks himself why he saw 2 people in the rhododendron bush rather than the rose bush, “because roses have thorns, idiot” and if they were going to hide they’d do it in a bush that has thorns. He closes his eyes and opens them to see if he really saw two people. They’re still there and they seem to have moved. What does it matter where intruders are standing? They’re there, that’s all you need to know, not dissecting which bush they’re standing by and why they chose that bush. Ridiculous.
He thinks about getting closer to see if they really are there, or if he can tell who they are. If he goes around to the street side of the house he can see them silhouetted against the light in the living room, where Andrew told Sara and Cortland to play another game of Parcheesi. It felt just way overdone. Why would he need to see their silhouettes? He goes back around the other side of the house and on the way sees a third man, and is only now convinced he saw the first two. Come on, it’s not that hard to believe.
On pg. 132 Sara called Benedict Cortland Bendict. Typos, especially in a character’s name, should never happen!
They’re supposed to go the theater as Wyatt told them to do if anyone came to the house, and they’re supposed to be followed because he has a plan. Sara tells Andrew to go to Fred to bring the carriage around. These kids are just too knowledgeable and bossy. They act like adults rather than children. He hesitates and she says “What’s wrong? Benedict hardly knows me, and he trusts me. Why are you acting as if you don’t?” He says “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. It’s just . . . All right. I’m going.”
It kind of rankled because he’s always telling people what to do and making decisions but the one time Sara calls the shots he’s hesitant to go along with them and making her think he doesn’t trust her.
Andrew tells Fred to go around front, and “Sara will tell you where to go?” I’m sure this was a typo, but I can’t stand when people put question marks on things that aren’t questions.
Andrew goes off to see Dixon, I guess like he was supposed to, so they go off to the theater together. I just found it really ridiculous right at the moment that Dixon was listening so intently to Andrew’s account of what happened, and he’s immediately setting off to handle it. It’s a kid. It’s just ludicrous and so unrealistic to imagine all of these adults running off to do the bidding of a child with what by all accounts is a tall tale. The guard isn’t there and the place is dark, and Cortland and Sara are there. Dixon tells Andrew he’ll take care of his friends and for him to go home. He asked Andrew if he does as he’s told and he says “of course” but he doesn’t really leave. He shuts the door and then hides, and sees Dixon bar the door. That was a complete wrench, because I never saw this coming that he was a bad guy. I liked when Andrew said “Dixon might be with the Admiralty, but he wasn’t Wyatt. And though Andrew meant it when he said he could be relied on to do what he was told, it depended on who did the telling.”
Mrs. Cortland and Dr. Thurlow are already there, he’s mad at them because they ruined his plan and he can’t stay here anymore. So he just stabs them both, Mrs. Cortland is dead but it turns out the doctor is still alive. Dixon tells Sara and Cortland to come out. Wyatt is there, don’t know how he knew all this was going on, and Dixon wants passage to Germany on a ship and is going to take the children as hostages. Burke is there cutting at a rope. Andrew motions for Sara and Cortland to move away and Burke drops the curtain which snaps Dixon’s arm like a twig. It’s a heavy curtain but I don’t think it’s capable of breaking someone’s arm. That seems like a stretch.
Wyatt had known Dixon was the bad guy because Dixon had sent him a letter claiming Sir Arthur at the Admiralty wanted to know how the grandpa was doing. When Wyatt had had Andrew go with him to see Sir Arthur, Sir Arthur had been surprised to learn that the grandpa was in the hospital, so he clearly didn't know anything about Mr. Cortland had changed, and therefore wouldn't have known to ask how he was doing, so that gave Dixon away. Mrs. Cortland and Dr. Thurlow were Germans working for their country, and she married Mr. Cortland, Cortland's dad, to keep an eye on him because they were suspicious of Mr. Cortland getting close to the truth of the spy. Mr. Cortland was killed because of it.
They all leave the theater and Wyatt is frowning at the band of Samaritans that are always at the square. And I’m not kidding, I literally knew they were the pick pockets from the first moment they entered the story. It was so apparent, Idk if I would have guessed it when I was kid, probably not, but at 23 they were the obvious suspects. The only thing I was wrong about was that Alf and Liza, the dancers in the square, weren’t a part of it. They aided them in capturing the thieves. Liza tripped one of them. Wyatt knew something was off because the drummer was just beating the drum with no rhythm and then sometimes he would stop for no reason—that’s when the others were handing him money and jewelry and things to hide in his pockets. I couldn’t believe the book just stopped there with no warning. I expected Cortland to be able to talk to his grandpa.
I didn’t like the style of writing at all. I didn’t enjoy it because it was too intellectual and I didn’t understand a lot of the references because I’m not English. The writing required a lot of concentration to understand. It wasn’t an easy read by any means. I think it’s pretty mature for young teenagers. It’s a very intellectual way of writing, like a school textbook that was written by a scholar. There were too many characters to keep track of. I really had to stop and think to keep the names straight and some people I never could keep up with. I couldn’t picture one person clearly. There were no descriptions of hair or eye color, height, build, features, expressions, clothing. There was no information given to ensure we could picture the characters. I absolutely cannot fathom that. I have no idea what year this was in, because there wasn’t one reference to a year or month I think. This is definitely an old book that was written in a style that books just aren’t written nowadays.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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October 8, 2007Newman, Robert
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