Five Face Up to a Challenge - new FF story

[Dick Kirrin]

Daniel turned and went for the police station. "Do you have all you need for the meal, Anne? Or should we do some shopping first? We could all help you carry it over?" asked Dick.
Anne thought for a few moments as they walked slowly along. Just as they passed the coffee shop, the old owner called to them: "Well done, you youngsters! I've seen the races and they were a great event. the best we had in years."
The children thanked him and the man went on: "Would you like some tea and freshly-baked fruit cake? We are so sold out that my wife and I had to bake new cakes and tarts. In about an hour, it'll all be ready and we'd be pleased to see you as our guests."

[Daisy]

Anne and Dick looked at each other. Anne had already been planning the menu for a celebration meal in her head and wasn't sure if eating new cakes and buns would be a good idea only an hour or so before, but Dick had no such scruples!
"Sounds great." he thanked the café owner warmly. "It's very kind of you. We'll tell the others and see you in about an hour."
"You might have asked me what I thought first," Anne said as they walked on. "Now I don't quite know what to buy."
Dick only grinned. "Don't worry little sister," he said and put an arm round her shoulder. "Just you carry on with what you were planning, you know we'll manage to eat it all!"
Anne couldn't help laughing. "All right," she said, "Let's go and buy some supplies. In fact if Tinker and I do that, you can go back and meet the others on the beach and tell them to go to the coffee shop."
"What about Daniel?" asked Dick. "Do you want me to nip along to the police station too?"
"Good idea," said Anne. "That'll fill in your time nicely with two errands to run!"
"Cheeky girl!" said Dick as he trotted off towards the police station and after delivering his message to Daniel he turned back towards the beach where he met the others on their return.

[Dick Kirrin]

Dick told them of the invitation and they grinned as they saw how happy Dick was about the chance of having some more cakes and scones.
"Well, a piece of fresh fruit cake would be a lovely idea," conceded George as they turned and went back to the village and the coffee shop.

[Daisy]

After a while, when they had all assembled in the coffee shop, and Daniel had returned from the police station, George said "Has anything more happened Daniel, you seem quite cheerful?"
Daniel shook his head and grinned round at them all. "All's well," he said. "As far as we can tell everyone's been accounted for and the case is more or less closed. I have one piece of news for you however..." and he paused teasingly.
"Go on then!" said Jo, "What is it?"
"Do you remember how our poor assaulted friend whom you helped a few days ago wanted to reward you for your help?"
"Wasn't it his boss who wanted to do that?" asked George.
"Well, yes, but that's not the point," said Daniel. "What I'm trying to tell you is that they would like to contribute something to your gift from Mr Perton, and I said in the circumstances you would probably accept."
"How nice!" exclaimed Anne, but George and Julian both frowned. Seeing their faces Dick said "Sometimes accepting a gift is the kind thing to do. I think we should say thank you and help them feel that they have thanked us properly."
"You're right Dick," said Daniel. "That's why I accepted on your behalf. I thought you would come to that conclusion after some slight resistance from some quarters!" and he grinned teasingly at Julian who smiled back. "You're right Daniel," he said. "I wonder how we can choose what they should give us!"
"Perhaps one of them will come up to the boatyard tomorrow and you can talk it over." Daniel replied. "Come on, tuck into these delicious cakes and buns and then we must go back to the lighthouse and relax after your strenuous day."

[Dick Kirrin]

"Relax? With all this delicious food I feel more than relaxed," grinned Dick. The others laughed.
"Why did I expect you to say that?" replied Daniel, laughing.
"Come on, Danny. You'll appreciate a bite or two as well, won't you?" said Dick.
Daniel nodded and took a cherry bun.
"You mean the sales representative who got knocked out, don't you?" asked TInker.
"Yes, that's the man," replied Daniel. "Any specific reason you're asking?"
"No, but wasn't he missing for a while and weren't we suspicious that he might be involved?"
"Yes to both questions, but both have been answered in the meantime and quite satisfactorily," replied Daniel. "We are convinced that he has just been used, or rather his things have. As for him being missing, well, please keep it to yourselves and don't let it show tomorrow. A nasty blow to the head can have some effects that don't show immediately. And he simply left the hospital a bit too early, so when he was at Jeremiah Boogle's place he had the smart idea to take a walk to the place where he was attacked. There it got too much for him and he fainted. Some lorry driver found him and brought him to hospital again and the doctors kept him in bed for a few days. That's all there is to that. But of course he wouldn't want word of it to get round. He's a little ashamed of himself to be frank."
The children fell silent after that piece of news. Then, Anne decided to change the subject.
"I think we could wait a little with our meal at the light-house, if you don't mind," said Anne. "I vote we rather have supper instead of dinner."
"Good idea," said George, before Dick could make a comment. "So how about us going over, having a little rest, and then supper?"
"Well, there's just one thing you forgot," said Jo. "We asked Jake over for later, and I don't think he'd mind sharing our meal, but he's coming to help us with the equipment. So we should be prepared for him."
"We could do both, couldn't we?" replied George. "I can see myself streched out and reading through some of these brochures with some biscuits beside me."

[Daisy]

After everyone had eaten what they wanted, they thanked the café owner for his kindness and made their way over to the lighthouse.
Some time later they were comfortably seated in the living room with the catalogues and leaflets spread around between them. Anne was pouring over the furnishing section in one booklet and George was frowning hard as she tried to decide what colour she would like the boat to be.
A loud knocking on the door interrupted them. Timmy flew down the stairs and barked a loud welcome as Jake popped his head in and shouted to everyone. He entered the room with Timmy doing his best to trip him up. "Down Tim!" called George. "Poor Jake, he doesn't need you to greet him like that. Come and sit here Jake," she continued as she patted the vacant seat beside her. "You're just in time to help me decide on the colour we should have the boat."
"What colour is it now?" asked Daniel. "Will it need another coat of paint?"
"Well as it was a patrol boat it will be a rather boring grey I imagine." said Jake. "What do you fancy George?"
"Why should George be the one to decide?" asked Dick. "She already has a boat and the last time she had it painted it was bright red. I'm not sure if we should let her have too much say about this one!"
The others laughed as they tried to picture their new boat painted in bright red. Julian shook his head. "I think a rather quieter colour is better." he said. "There may be occasions when we won't want to be too conspicuous."
"What ever do you mean Ju?" asked Anne. "Surely you aren't thinking of another adventure already!"
Julian grinned at his sister. "Who knows?" he asked teasingly.

[Dick Kirrin]

The others laughed.
"You are thinking a long way ahead, Julian. I have to go back to Joan's cousin and to school and so have you, so there won't be much time for adventures for a while," said Jo with some disappointment.
"Well, it'll take a bit till the boat's ready to embark upon new adventures anyway," replied Jake dryly. "But Dick and Julian are right about a quieter colour being better. It needn't be navy grey, however."
"How about painting the hull dark blue and the superstructure in a lighter blue?" suggested Julian.
"I think a tone between green and blue would be nice," said Anne. "But the idea of having the upper part in a lighter and the lower one in a darker shade sounds lovely."
"I tell you what. When I get home tonight, I'll look for some colour sheets in blue and green. We have those for our customers who sometimes find it hard to decide, too. Then we hold them against the boat when it comes tomorrow and you'll get an idea," offered Jake.
"Sounds good," said Dick. The others nodded and Anne put a saucepan of milk on the stove. "I take it you'd like to join us for a cocoa," she asked Jake.
"Oh yes, thank you," replied the boy. "As you mention it, have you made any decision about your galley yet? I mean as far as fuel for cooking and the like goes?"
"No, not yet. Is that so important?" asked Julian.
"Yes, definitely. You see, there is gas, paraffin and white spirit. All these three have their advantages and likewise their disadvantages. Gas is the most comfortable option, but it is rather expensive to install and needs some maintenance. The pipes have to be checked every year that they are not leaking somewhere. Paraffin is less dangerous unless you spill and light it, which as it smells is rather unlikely, but it's not as efficient as gas, so that your food takes longer to be ready. White spirit is easy and cheap to get, but it's even less efficient than paraffin. You should also remember that you have to think of lighting, heating and hot water. This boat has a galley, a mess and three cabins, even four if you count the very small one which could also be used as a store room or cupboard. Then, there's the rather tiny bridge or wheelhouse. So it is bigger than any other boat you have had so far. So it is fit to go a real long way in it and if I were you, I'd keep the small shower they have there. Very convenient on longer trips. But that means you'll have to find a new way to heat water, as the steam engine will have to go."
"Is it really that big?" asked Julian. "So it'll be rather dear, won't it? Can we really ask that much of Mr Perton?"
Jake laughed: "In fact it's the cheapest option. Sometimes, the army and navy want to get rid of their stuff so badly they'd give it to you for free if you only ask them nicely. Not always, though, but in the case of your boat, it is one of those occasions, don't worry."
Julian looked relieved. "Well, you are our expert. What's your suggestion?"
Jake smiled pleasedly at the word expert: "If I were you, I'd turn the coal store into one for oil and have a diesel engine installed. I'd rather go for a powerful one as you could have that running at low speed just to power a generator for light and a big boiler for hot water even if you use the sails. The other option is to have paraffin lamps for light, but that can be risky so I'd have some handy for emergencies and cosy evenings but rely on electricity as main source of light. A gas boiler for hot water means you have to take bottled gas on board which is only sensible if you want it for cooking, too. I wouldn't go for gas but get one of these paraffin stoves instead. You'll need stores of paraffin anyway and these stoves are easy to use and safe."
"Oh we really have a lot to think about," said George.

[Daisy]

"It might be a good idea to write down some of the points we've agreed on." said Julian. "I'm not sure I shall remember all this in the morning."
"Good idea," said Daniel. "Start with the colour of paint you want!"
"Well, we're going to look at charts in the morning aren't we?" asked Jo, "so there's no point in saying now what we want."
"You need to write down your ideas though," replied Daniel. "if there's a list, then anyone can refer to it and mistakes are less likely to happen. Write down 'consult paint charts' Julian.
"Right," said Julian and he pulled a notebook from his pocket and began to write.
The list grew quickly. Looking at the various leaflets and catalogues they decided on several items such as the colour of the furnishings and the kitchen implements they thought they would need.
"This is fun!" said Anne as she pointed to an illustration of a cosy looking cabin. "I like the look of that. Did you say there were two or three cabins Jake? What are we going to do with all the rooms?"
"Well two can be for sleeping in," said Dick, "and then we could have a dining room I suppose."
"Let's see the actual boat before we go into too much detail like that," said Julian, "but if you like to tell me the sort of things we might like I'll make a note of it."
"I'll have to go soon," said Jake after a while. "The tide is well enough down for me to get across if I go now. I'll see you tomorrow then."
After Jake had gone the children had a last look at the papers in front of them then Anne cleared everything away and they got ready for the night.

[Dick Kirrin]

After saying good night, the children all went to bed and even though George had stated she wouldn't be able to get a single second of sleep, so excited was she, she fell asleep some five minutes after she had laid down.
The boys talked quietly for about a quarter of an hour, then their eyes went very heavy, too.
The next morning was rather fair though there were a lot of clouds hanging low.
Breakfast was the usual happy affair, especially when George tried to spread butter on her toast after she had put the jam on it.
"That's just like Uncle Quentin," giggled Anne. George shot her a look, then she had to laugh, too.
Clearing up went sfiftly and not much past nine, the children were on their way to the boatyard.

[Daisy]

As they reached the boatyard, Jake came out of the boat shed and waved a greeting. "You're nice and early!" he said with a smile. "Come into the shed and you can show Mr Perton what you've decided on last night."
They went in and were surprised to see someone else sitting beside Mr Perton. Anne was the first to recognise him. "Mr Richards!" she exclaimed and the others then realised it was in fact Simon Richards who they had helped several days earlier.
Julian went forward to shake his hand. "I hope you are fully recovered now." he said. "It's nice to see you again."
"Thank you, yes, I've made a good recovery from my ordeal." Simon Richards smiled at them all. "And now I'm here to see what I can do to contribute to your new acquisition."
Julian smiled. "Mr Perton has been letting cats out of bags I think!" he said. "Daniel told us last night that you and your boss were determined to reward us for helping you. All we can say now is 'thank you very much'."
"By the way" said Jake "Where is Daniel this morning?"
"He went off to see PC Sharp when we all set out." said Jo. "He said he wasn't needed here, but he'd come along later hoping to see our new boat when it arrives."
"Right!" Mr Perton spoke for the first time. "Come and show me some of your ideas."
The next hour flew by as the children showed their interested audience some of their choices. Julian had to keep referring to his list to keep the others from straying away from the decisions they had made the previous evening. At last they had a new list which Mr Perton and Simon Richards looked at carefully.
The door suddenly shot open and Jake, who had gone off to do some jobs, came running in. "Come on, quickly, come and see what's just coming into the yard!" he shouted.
"Our boat!" shrieked George and she and Timmy led the rush outside.

[Dick Kirrin]

Outside at the small quay, the group of children halted for a moment to watch the old vessel pulling in, followed by a thick cloud of smoke.
"Now you see why steam engines are no longer that popular," grinned Jake as he saw the looks on their faces.
Nobody of the others listened to him as they all took in the sight of the boat, the boat that was to be theirs.

[Daisy]

There was silence for a moment, then Anne said "Gosh, it's very big, isn't it!"
Julian looked at George and couldn't help grinning as he saw the look on her face. She looked excited, surprised and pleased all at once.
"Do you think you can manage that George?" teased Dick who was also rather taken aback at the size of their new possession.
Not so long ago George would have said "Of course!" but now she was a bit older and wiser so she said "Not on my own. It's a good thing there are plenty of us to share it!"
By this time the cruiser had come to a halt and Jake went forward to catch the rope thrown from the deck. He coiled it neatly round the mooring post then waited for the two men who had brought it to jump ashore.
Mr Perton and Simon Richards joined them at the quayside while Jake's father took the two men into his office to sign the papers they had brought with them.
"Well, what do you think?" asked Mr Perton, anxious to hear the children's opinions.
"It's wonderful!" said George.
"It will be when it's done up!" said Jo as she looked with distaste at the peeling grey paintwork.
The others just stood and stared.
"Well, that's the idea," said Mr Perton. "I want you to feel it's really yours and what better way than to choose how it will look?"
"How long will it take to be ready?" asked George as she absentmindedly scratched Timmy's head.
"Well, it depends on how soon all your fitments can be delivered and then how long Jake's father takes to do the refurbishing."
"And I'll be lending a hand with that too." said Jake. "You can trust me to carry out all your wishes."
"I wish we didn't have to go back to school." said George wistfully. "It'd be much more fun to stay here and see how it gets on!"
The others laughed. "Sorry that can't be arranged" said Simon Richards, who had been standing quietly watching the various reactions of the children. "But I would like to know what part of this wonderful gift you would like me to provide."
"I know!" said Anne suddenly, "How would you like to provide the complete furnishings for one of the cabins?"
"That sounds a nice idea," Simon smiled at the eager girl. "Do you mean the bedding and furniture - everything you might need in a cabin for two?"
The others looked at Anne with respect. What a clever idea Julian thought. This way Simon could give as much or as little as he felt he could without being tied down to any particular sum of money.
"We could call it the Simon room too." said Dick with a grin.
"Ooh, how lovely!" said Anne. "And we can think of names for the others when they're done."
"Let's go back and finalise the details then." said Mr Perton. "I shall be here all the time so between us Jake and I will see that all your wishes are carried out faithfully."

[Dick Kirrin]

"Just one second, Mr Perton," interrupted Dick in a voice a lot politer than his words may have sounded.
The man who had actually already turned to leave for the office, stopped.
"We would cousider it a personal favour as well as an honour if you spared us some minutes to come along on our first inspection of our new boat. That way, you'll also have an idea of what it looked like beforehand and so can act as our agent when it comes to arranging things our way. Jake will come along, too of course, but we'd like to welcome you both."
Mr Perton looked at them and he saw from their faces that Dick had spoken for them all. But he slowly shook his head. "Afraid this is a no can do, children. It will be your boat and you shall have the peace to explore it on your own. But if you feel like giving me the tour, as the new owners welcoming a guest so to speak, I'll be glad to be shown around."
Dick and the others looked disappointed but they saw that there was something to Mr Perton's words and so they climbed aboard on their own. Jake was with them of course and he carefully examined every detail.

[Daisy]

A group of excited children rejoined Mr Perton some while later as he waited in his office. The papers and lists the children had made were on the table in front of him. "Well?" he smiled as they approached him, "Is it OK for you? I'd like to start ordering as soon as possible, so now you've seen it, are there any changes you want to make to your list?"
"Where do we start?" sighed George , "My mind is in a whirl, there's so much to think about!"
Mr Perton smiled. "Try your best," he said. "I want this project underway as quickly as I can manage."
"Is there any great rush?" asked Dick. "We're going back to school next week, and I can't imagine it would be ready before then!"
"From that point of view, no Dick," Mr Perton replied, "but I would like to have Jake and his father on hand to do quite a bit of the work and they are free at the moment to get on with it. As the summer approaches, they will be busier with their usual business and may not have the time to do so much on your boat."
"Yes," added Jake. "It will be great to have some work to do now, but in a few weeks we will be hiring out our boats and will need to keep them all up to scratch. You can trust me to do exactly what you want."
"Thanks Jake." said George. "Let's sit down and make a complete list if we can."
Simon Richards sat down quietly beside Anne and watched as they all poured over the papers.

[Dick Kirrin]

"Oh, this is rather complicated," sighed Anne after a about half an hour. "We're sitting here, compiling lists and getting exactly nowhere."
"But it's got to be done," said Julian. "And as this is going to be our boat and we are supposed to have it for quite some time, we'd better do a decent job, shall we?"
"Hold on, Ju." interrupted Dick. "We all know that. But Anne is right, this is taking too much time with too much detail. We should make groups and have them work out several options and then we'll decide all together."
"Groups? What groups?" asked George.
"Well, as you are our expert on sailing, why don't you team up with someone else and compile a list of all the works necessary to get the sails ready for use again. If there are options note them down and be prepared to present them to us so that we can make a sensible decision. Another two of us have a look at the engines and maybe the other fittings like light, water and heating. Someone works out something for the cabins and so on," explained Dick.