"I want to see the passage," Mr. Morton replied. "Nothing else really interests me because I've never been in a secret passage before! We've all got torches... May I suggest that Jon and Penny should lead and Mrs. Warrender go next because, after all, the Dolphin is hers. The Morton parents will guard the rear and the twins and David look after the centre. Agreed?"

The twins looked as if they wished to disagree very strongly, but an ugly look from David and a nudge from their mother silenced them just as Penny went down on her knees before the panel and cried:

"The trap threads! I'd forgotten them, Jon. I set these yesterday morning just to see if Slinky came up here... This one hasn't been broken, but I forgot to look at the other one on the landing although, of course, we shall all have broken it coming in."

So with Jon and Penny in the lead, and Mrs. Warrender close behind, they stepped into the passage. Their torches gave plenty of light and Jon led them down easily and quickly past the entrance to Slinky's room, where he had to admit that they had not yet discovered a way of opening the panel from this side.

"Are you going to take us as far as the passage goes, Jon?" Mr. Morton called, "or shall we search the walls and steps for a hiding-place as we go?"

"Let's do the passage first," Penny pleaded. "You'll all be very surprised to know where this comes out. When we've got to the end perhaps Mr. Morton will have an idea about the best way to search for some earthen vessels."

This was agreed, and Jon continued down and then into Trader's Passage proper. Penny had turned to explain to her aunt that they were now underneath the steps by the side of the Dolphin which led down to the river, when Jon stopped suddenly and she bumped into him.

"You clumsy idiot..." she began, and then saw where his torch was pointing.

"You were right about the roots of the tree, Penny," he was saying. "Look. Shine your torch. Half the roof and the side of the wall is down... Just a sec... There's something odd here... Come here, Newpenny."

Penny caught the excitement in his voice and squeezed up beside him. The twins in the rear set up a querulous duet that "they couldn't get on", but she heard none of this, for she was staring at the spot of light from Jon's torch which was focused on a pile of fallen earth and rubbish almost at his feet.

And so Penny found the treasure after all and Jon stepped quietly back so that the honour should be hers. In the dust of broken masonry and mortar something gleamed and sparkled in the light of the torch and she bent slowly and picked up a string of shimmering diamonds that trickled like fire through her trembling fingers.