CHAPTERX
How long Bert Bobbsey lay unconscious in the basement of the church he did not know. It seemed a very long time to him, but it was probably not more than an hour—perhaps not that long.
The last thing he remembered was seeing a lot of what appeared to be brightly dancing stars in front of his eyes. And he saw them even though it was very dark in the basement. This was caused when his head struck something. And Bert also remembered, as among the last things that sounded in his ears, the footsteps of Danny Rugg as he hurried out of the church.
And now, as Bert recovered consciousness, or “came to,” as it is sometimes called, he heard some one moving about near him inthe basement. He also saw a light glinting about.
At first the lad thought this was Danny Rugg, and Bert felt so ill and helpless that he would have been glad of help even from Danny.
“Hey! Hey!” Bert faintly called.
Then a voice answered—a voice which wasn’t that of Danny—it was the voice of the church sexton, Mr. Shull. Bert remembered this voice very well.
“Good gracious!” exclaimed Mr. Shull. “What’s that? Is any one here in the basement?” he asked.
Bert saw the light coming nearer and then he knew the sexton was moving about with one of those small electric flashlights.
“Is anybody here?” asked the sexton again.
“Yes, I am,” answered Bert, but his voice was so weak that the man, as well as he knew Bert, did not recognize the tones.
“Who are you?” called Mr. Shull, coming nearer with the light.
“Bert Bobbsey,” was the answer.
“Good gracious! how did you get here?Why, you’re hurt!” the man cried, as he flashed the light on Bert. “How did it happen?”
He saw Bert lying huddled on a pile of bags and old pieces of carpet just beneath the open trapdoor. But for the moment the sexton did not think of the opening in the floor above. So Bert said:
“I came in here——” He was going to tell why he entered, then he happened to think perhaps this would not be wise. He did not want to mention Danny Rugg. “I saw the door open and I came in,” went on Bert. “It was dark, and I walked across the vestibule, and then I fell down the trapdoor. I guess I’ve been here a long while.”
“You poor boy!” exclaimed Mr. Shull, laying his flashlight down on a box and leaving it still glowing as he raised Bert up. “I’m so sorry! I opened the trapdoor to throw down some old bags and pieces of carpet. Then I had to fix the furnace and I forgot about the trap being open.
“But you haven’t been here so very long, Bert, for I only opened the church about twohours ago. It’s only a little after ten o’clock now, maybe not quite that.”
“Then I’ve been here about two hours,” decided Bert, for he remembered it was about half past eight when he followed Danny into the church.
“Well, you don’t seem to be hurt much,” the sexton went on, as he saw that Bert could stand up. Mr. Shull flashed the light over the boy from head to foot. No bones were broken, though Bert’s clothes were a bit dusty and covered with cobwebs. The boy put his hand to his head.
“Is that where it hurts you?” asked Mr. Shull.
“Yes, sir. I hit my head on something when I fell.”
“It was this box,” and the sexton focused his light on one that rested on the floor just below the opening of the trapdoor. “Let me see, Bert.”
Very gently, while he held the light in one hand, so it was shining on Bert’s head, the sexton passed his fingers over the lad’s scalp.
“It isn’t even cut,” he said. “You’re allright. The blow made you unconscious for a time, but that’s all. I’m very sorry it happened. I’ll help you upstairs and get you a drink of water. That will make you feel better.”
Bert did feel decidedly better after drinking some water, and then the sexton turned on an electric light in the vestibule and made Bert sit down in a chair.
“The first thing I’ll do is to close that trapdoor,” said Mr. Shull. “I don’t want any one else falling down there.”
Bert wondered how it was that Danny Rugg hadn’t fallen down, but he decided the other boy must have passed to one side of the opening.
“There!” exclaimed Mr. Shull, as he slammed the trapdoor shut. “I shouldn’t have left that open but I didn’t expect anybody to come in the church at this time of day. And it’s mighty lucky for you, Bert, that I had tossed those old bags and carpets down right under the trap. Falling on them probably saved you from having broken bones.”
“Yes, I guess so,” Bert said. He was glad the sexton did not think to ask him why he had come into the church. To tell that would mean to mention Danny Rugg. And, somehow or other, Bert wanted to keep this a secret. He had an idea that Danny had a secret reason for going into the church.
“And maybe I can find out why,” thought Bert to himself.
He was feeling much better now, and when the sexton gave him another drink and then got a whisk broom and flicked the dust and cobwebs off Bert’s clothes, the Bobbsey boy was almost himself again.
There was a lump on his head where it had struck against the edge of the box, and his head felt sore, while one of his shoulders ached. But Bert had been hurt worse than this playing football, and he was not going to mind now.
“Do you want me to take you home Bert?” asked the sexton.
“Oh, no! I have to go to school!” the boy exclaimed.
“I guess they’ll excuse you from schoolwhen they hear what’s happened,” said Mr. Shull. “But do you feel able to go back to your class?”
“Oh, yes, I think so,” Bert said. His head was clearer now and did not ache so badly. “I’ll be late, though, I suppose,” he added.
“Just a little,” chuckled the church sexton. “But I’ll tell Principal Tarton about it, and he’ll excuse you, I’m sure.”
Making certain that Bert’s clothes were now well brushed, Mr. Shull started for the side door of the church, keeping near the boy in case he felt “tottery on his pins,” as the sexton spoke of it afterward, meaning that Bert might be weak in his legs. But he wasn’t, and when he got out in the fresh, cold air he felt quite himself again.
Mr. Shull walked with Bert as far as the schoolyard gate, and there saw Henry Kling, the school janitor.
“Hello, Bert!” exclaimed Mr. Kling. “What’s the matter? Your sister just came in. She’s been back home looking for you.”
“Nan has been looking for me!” cried Bert.
“Yes. You didn’t come to school and shewas worried. Mr. Tarton let her go home, thinking maybe you’d been sent on an errand some place. But Nan just came back. She was ’most crying and I asked her what the matter was. So she told me. Where in the world have you been?”
“Down in the church basement,” Bert answered, with a smile.
“Not playing hookey? Don’t tell me you tried to play hookey!” cried the janitor, who liked Bert.
“No, I fell through a trapdoor,” the boy said, and he briefly explained what had happened.
“Well, you’d better hurry right into Mr. Tarton’s office and tell him about it,” advised Mr. Kling. “The whole school will be looking for you if you don’t.”
You can imagine how glad Nan was to learn that Bert had been found.
She went back to tell Mr. Tarton that her brother had not gone on any home errand. Then, by telephoning to the lumber office, they learned that none of the men there knew any reason why Bert should not be at school.The principal did not know what to think. And then Bert came in, much to the surprise, but also to the joy, of his sister.
“Well, the lost boy is found!” exclaimed the principal. He smiled at Bert, for he could see that it was not the boy’s fault that he was late for school.
Bert explained matters and again he was glad that no one asked him why he had gone into the church.
“I think you may be excused for the remainder of the morning, Bert,” said the head of the school. “And you needn’t come back this afternoon unless you feel quite well.”
“Oh, I feel all right!” Bert was quick to say. “I’d rather stay now than go home. If I go home, Mrs. Pry will think I’m sick, and she might make me take some medicine.”
“Oh, I see!” chuckled Mr. Tarton. “Well, suit yourself. Here is a note to Miss Skell, telling her not to mark you tardy,” and he hastily wrote a few lines on a piece of paper.
“Thank you,” said Bert.
Then he and Nan went to their room, where their entrance created no little excitement.All the other boys and girls wondered why Nan had gone out and why Bert came in late.
They found out at noon time, for Bert told his story. But still he did not say anything about having followed Danny Rugg into the church.
Of course Danny heard the story of Bert’s tumble, and Danny must have known that it was the sound of Bert’s fall that had caused the noise which frightened him away.
But Danny said nothing to Bert on the subject, nor did Bert mention it to Danny. In fact, he and Danny did not play together any more. They were not exactly “bad friends,” but they were not on good terms, and hardly did more than nod or say “hello!” when meeting.
“I’m just as well satisfied,” Bert said to Nan when they were on their way home to lunch that noon. “I don’t like Danny any more.”
“Why did he go into the church, do you think?” asked Nan, for of course Bert told his twin about following the other lad inside.
“I don’t know why he went in,” Bert answered. “It was queer. I wanted to find out. That’s why I went in after him. But I didn’t think there’d be a hole for me to fall into.”
Nothing was said at home about Bert’s fall, for he did not want Dinah or Mrs. Pry to worry needlessly. And he felt all right again, especially after a good lunch.
“Did any letter come from mother or daddy?” asked Nan.
“No, my dear,” answered Mrs. Pry. “Perhaps one will come to-morrow. Don’t worry—your folks are all right.”
But that afternoon when it began to snow again, though Bert and the boys greeted the swirling flakes with shouts of joy, Nan felt much worried.
As the storm seemed likely to be a heavy one, as soon as she was out of school Nan hurried home with Flossie and Freddie. The younger twins had not heard the talk about Bert’s fall, and so would not mention it to either Mrs. Pry or Dinah.
Bert did not go home with Nan and thesmaller children. He stayed to have some fun in the snow with Charlie Mason and John Marsh. And he had so much fun and felt so much better, after his fall, to be out in the air that it was not until it was almost dark that he ran home.
“Oh, Bert!” cried Nan, meeting him at the door. “Something has happened!”
“Uncle Rossiter!” cried Bert. “Is he——”
“No, it isn’t about Uncle Rossiter,” answered Nan. “Oh, I’ve been waiting and waiting for you to come home to tell you! Dinah has gone away!”
“Dinah gone away!” cried Bert blankly. “What for?”
It seemed as if the bottom had dropped out of everything with the faithful colored cook away from the house and with Sam also gone.
“What happened?” asked Bert.