Penny's eyes widened. It was a long time since she had been awakened with cold water and she was not feeling her best.

"For goodness' sake let's sit down and have breakfast and do the squabbling afterwards," Peter suggested. "Is Agnes very mad with us?"

"She was," Dickie said, "but I think we've fixed her. You've got to be thankful to us for that... Come on then - let's start."

In between mouthfuls of food, David told the twins of the night's adventures. He was often interrupted because they were determined to keep Agnes out of the dining-room if they could and the only way to do this was to keep running to the kitchen and waiting on themselves.

"... Then Penny had an adventure on her own and she'll tell you that when her mouth is empty. But you do see, twins, don't you, that we couldn't very well drag you in as well?"

"We don't see," Mary said tersely. "You didn't even ask us to the meeting and we're going to make a new rule which says a meeting isn't a meeting at all unless we're all there."

"If we don't get that rule in," Dickie added, "we're through... We'll bust it all up."

David looked helplessly at Peter who had so often saved such a situation.

"Listen, twins," she said, "I know you're mad with us and we all know why. But just think for a minute. It looks as if we're in for just about the biggest adventure we've ever had, and when I saw that van again last night I knew we'd got to do something quickly and quietly, but we've hardly done a thing yet. We didn't have a proper Club meeting last night or else you'd have been there, but it was you, Dickie, and your cleverness, that got us on to the track of Mr Cantor and there's lots more important things for you and Mary to do, aren't there, David?"

David nodded in silent admiration.

"The truth is," Peter went on before either of the twins could speak, "that we are all tired out this morning, and there wasn't any sense last night in tiring everybody. We've got to have some reserves you know. Every general who fights a battle has to have reserves, doesn't he, Jon?"

"He does," Jon agreed solemnly. "Definitely he does. And in this case the twins are our reserves."

"Jolly lucky we've got them," Penny murmured.

"No good without 'em," Tom put in.

"So you see, twins," Peter continued hurriedly, "that we can't do without you and that it's lucky for us that you're fresh and strong and cunning this morning... Now let's clear away these things and make ourselves look a bit respectable..."

Before the twins could reply to Peter there was an extraordinary interruption. Macbeth, from the hearth-rug, suddenly growled and Mary pointed dramatically to the window.

"Look!" she squealed. "A policeman."

Jon jumped up.