The next morning, all nine children and two dogs were squeezed into Fatty's shed at the bottom of the Trotteville garden. Fatty had managed to rustle up some extra wooden boxes and begged some cushions to accommodate the extra guests and it made for rather a cosy atmosphere.

"Pass the buns, would you, Daisy?"

"More lemonade, anyone?"

"Timmy, no! Bad dog!"

It was quickly voted that the two dogs were really too much for the shed and they were firmly relocated to the garden.

"I vote we visit Emmaline and see how she's getting on," said Dick, thickly through a mouthful of bun.

"And hopefully old Goon won't be there sticking his nose in," muttered Larry, darkly.

"Well, it is rather his job, old thing," said Fatty. "Although that said, I do agree with you!"

"Whatever made him dislike you so?" asked George curiously. "I would think he'd be jolly pleased to have such help with Mysteries!"

"It's because we show him up in front of his Superintendent," said Pip.

"Well, he doesn't pay attention when we do try and help!" said Bets indignantly. "We have given him plenty of clues and he thinks we're just playing at silly games. Then when we do solve the case, he thinks we've been Withholding Information and goes all purple and puffy!" She opened her eyes wide and puffed her cheeks together in an imitation of the policeman which made the others roar with laughter.

"Gosh, Bets, I hope the wind doesn't change," said Daisy, dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief. "That was really frightful!"

They finished their buns and lemonade and walked down to Peterswood's High Street. When they got to the cake shop, the sign on the door read "CLOSED".

"Oh dear!" said Anne, anxiously peering through the door. "I do hope Emmaline is all right!"

"Shall we ring?" asked George, and without waiting for an answer, seized the rope of the bell and rang it briskly.

Presently, they made out Emmaline coming to the door. When she saw the children, she opened it.

"I hope you're not wanting macaroons today," she said. "We're closed."

"Oh no," said Julian. "We just wanted to see how you were. May we come in?"

"Erm - actually, I was just going out," said Emmaline. She stepped through the door and locked it behind her.

"We'll walk with you!" said Bets, slipping an arm through Emmaline's.

"No, really, children - I shouldn't like to be a bother . . ." Emmaline protested.

"Not at all," said Julian gallantly.

"Where are you going?" asked George.

"Erm - to see my brother," said Emmaline.

"Your brother lives here too?" asked Fatty curiously. "I thought you were new to the village and that's why you needed the job at the bakery - so you could have a place to stay?"

"Yes, well, my brother is staying at the Rose & Key," Emmaline said, looking flustered. "He's visiting me."

"Well, we know where that is!" said Dick jovially. "We'll walk you there."

Despite Emmaline's protests, the children did exactly that. A man was coming out of the door of the inn as they approached.

"Oh, here's my brother now," said Emmaline loudly. "Thank you for escorting me, children."

"Our pleasure," said Fatty. "Now, we have to go and meet someone. I say, Emmaline, do you have the time?"

Emmaline glanced at her wristwatch. Bets gasped and was quickly hushed by Daisy.

"It's just past 11 o'clock," she said.

"Thank you," replied Fatty. "Come on, everyone."

The group hurried away.

"Did you see?" asked Dick as soon as they were far enough away from Emmaline and her brother.

"A red watchstrap!" said George.

"Gosh! So the thief was wearing Emmaline's watch!" said Larry.

"More than that," said Julian. "I believe the thief was Emmaline's brother!"

Fatty nodded. "I believe they set it up between them. Perhaps they had arranged for her brother to come in and rob the place at a certain time. Emmaline would go upstairs, the thief would come in and presto! Then she wouldn't have to give a description to the police. However, they didn't count on the Famous Five and the Five Find Outers and Dog to be on the case!"

"But she seemed so nice," said Anne in dismay. "I just can't bear to think she would be a criminal."

"She may not have had a choice, Anne," said Julian solemnly. "Her brother may have forced her into staging the robbery because he was desperate for money."

"So what shall we do?" asked Pip. "Goon laughed when you told him about the watchstrap. I very much doubt he will listen to our reasons."

Fatty pondered the matter thoughtfully. "Emmaline seemed very highly-strung about the whole thing. I do believe we could get her to confess. Perhaps the Law will be more lenient if she confesses that she was an unwilling accomplice and her brother is responsible for planning the robbery."

"Shall we call Superintendent Jenks?" asked Bets.

Fatty was just about to answer when they heard shouting in the distance.

"It's Emmaline and her brother!" cried George and the children ran up the street to where the two were standing. Emmaline's brother had a hand on her arm and was shaking her.

"I say! Leave her alone!" said Julian angrily. Timmy and Buster barked angrily.

The brother sneered at Julian. "Clear out, kid. Nobody asked you."

Emmaline was in tears. "Please, children. Just . . ."

"No!" said Bets loudly. "We know what's happened, Emmaline!"

The brother shook Emmaline harder. "What have you told them? What do they know?"

"Nothing!" cried Emmaline. The brother drew back his hand and slapped Emmaline across the face. Anne shrieked. Fatty and Julian immediately fell upon the brother and pushed him to the ground. Timmy and Buster began worrying at his ankles, while the boys restrained his arms.

"Get off me!" cried the brother, but the two boys were too big and strong for him to fight them off.

"Run for Goon," shouted Fatty to Dick and Larry. They turned and prepared to run but who should come sailing up on his bicycle? Goon!

"What's going on here?" he asked, dismounting rapidly.

"We've caught the man who robbed the bakery, sir!" explained Julian.

Goon's protuberant eyes narrowed. "And what proof do you have? You can't just go around attacking innocent people in the street, that's Harassment and it's Against The Law!"

"It's true!" cried Emmaline suddenly and Goon looked surprised. "He forced me to stage a robbery. He needed the money because he owed some bad people in the city. It's all true!"

"Well," huffed Goon and because he couldn't think of anything to say, he huffed again. "Well!"

"Would you like us to get him to his feet, sir?" offered Fatty politely. "We could hold him still while you handcuff him and lead him away?"

"Err, yes, very well," blustered Goon and clapped the handcuffs onto the wrists of Emmaline's brother. "I'm afraid you'll have to come down to the station too, Miss. You'll be wanted for further questioning and I'll have to call in the Superintendent."

"Oh, don't put her in handcuffs!" wailed Bets.

"No, no, no," said Goon gruffly. "I only have the one pair. You all will just have to come along. But mind those dogs don't nip at my ankles. You boy - " he pointed at Dick " - bring my bicycle along."

It was a large crowd that proceeded to the Peterswood police station and once inside Goon dismissed them without ceremony. The Five Find-Outers and Dog and the Famous Five returned to Fatty's shed at the bottom of the Trotteville garden where their morning had started.

"Well, I say! That was rather a quick end to proceedings!" said Fatty, once they had all squeezed inside, minus the excited dogs.

"Are all of your mysteries tied up so neatly?" asked George. "Gosh, we didn't even get trapped in a cave or locked in a room or anything!"

"It was rather a safe one," admitted Pip.

"I liked it," said Anne immediately.

"You would, old thing," said Dick fondly. "No danger and home by tea time, eh?"

Anne nodded. George snorted.

"Well, I was jolly ready to take on that brother!" she said, shaking her fist. "How dare he?"

"I was rather hoping to see Superintendent Jenks before Goon tossed us out," said Daisy. "It's been an absolute age since we saw him last. And I wonder how his niece is?"

They were in the middle of a game of cards when they were interrupted by a knock at the door. It was Cookie.

"Hello, Cookie. Not hiding biscuits in your pocket by any chance?" Fatty asked hopefully, seeing that her hands were empty although tantalisingly covered in flour.

"You're a caution, you are, Master Frederick!" laughed Cookie, dusting her hands on her apron. "Now, there just might be a little something in the kitchen, cooling on the sill . . ."

"Smashing!" said Dick hungrily.

". . . but you have a visitor," continued Cookie. "So you all will have to come up to the house and sit in the parlour to eat, if you don't mind?"

"Rather!" said all the children and followed Fatty out of the shed, trooping up the garden path and into the parlour of the Trotteville house.

"Superintendent Jenks!" exclaimed the Find-Outers.

The tall man rose to his feet and greeted each of them in turn.

"And who are your friends?" he asked, in his deep voice.

"I'm Julian Barnard, sir," said Julian, stepping forward. "This is my brother Dick, my sister Anne and our cousin Georgina Kirrin - George for short."

Superintendent Jenks shook their hands as well and then invited them all to sit down. The parlour was almost as crowded as in Fatty's shed!

"Mr Goon tells me you have once again had a hand in solving the latest mystery in Peterswood!" he said.

"Well, I suppose so, sir," said Fatty modestly. "It was rather a stroke of luck to be in the cake shop at the right time."

"Yes, time was certainly of the essence," nodded Superintendent Jenks. "They had co-ordinated the timing of the robbery, you know. Emmaline and her brother had decided that at a quarter past three, she would go upstairs and he would come in and clear out the till. Only he had lost his watch in a game of cards and had to borrow hers which, as you know, had rather a distinctive strap. I suppose they just didn't count on having not just one but nine very sharp-eyed witnesses! The Nine Find-Outers and Two Dogs, eh?"

"Oh no, sir," said Bets. "They already have a name, they are the Famous Five."

"We shall have to think of a brilliant new name for the lot of us!" said Pip.

Everyone looked at Dick who was thinking hard.

"I say!" he said, finally, "How about The Excellent Eleven?"

"To the Excellent Eleven!" said Superintendent Jenks, holding his glass of lemonade high. "May you help each other on many more mysteries!"

"The Excellent Eleven!" chorused the children.

"Wuff!" said Buster and Timmy.

END