"Blyton, Enid - Famous Five 13 - Five Go to Mystery Moor" - читать интересную книгу автора (Blyton Enid)

Chapter One

AT THE STABLES

СWeТve been here a week and IТve been bored every single minute!Т said George.
СYou havenТt,Т said Anne. СYouТve enjoyed all the rides weТve had, and you know youТve enjoyed messing about the stables when we havenТt been out riding.Т
СI tell you, IТve been bored every single minute,Т said George, quite fiercely. СI ought to know, oughtnТt I? That awful girl Henrietta too. Why do we have to put up with her?Т
СOh - Henry!Т said Anne, with a laugh. СI should have thought youТd find a lot in common with another girl like yourself, who would rather be a boy, and tries to act like one!Т
The two girls were lying by a haystack eating sandwiches. Round them in a field were many horses, most of which the girls either rode or looked after. Some way off was an old rambling building, and by the front entrance was a great board,

Captain JohnsonТs Riding School

Anne and George had been staying there for a week, while Julian and Dick had gone to camp with other boys from their school. It had been AnneТs idea. She was fond of horses, and had heard so much from her friends at school what fun it was to spend day after day at the stables, that she had made up her mind to go herself.
George hadnТt wanted to come. She was sulky because the two boys had gone off somewhere without her and Anne, for a change. Gone to camp! George would have liked that, but girls were not allowed to go camping with the boys from JulianТs school, of course. It was a camp just for the boys alone.
СYouТre silly to keep feeling cross because you couldnТt go camping too,Т said Anne. СThe boys donТt want us girls round them all the time. We couldnТt do the things they do.Т
George thought differently. СI can do anything that Dick and Julian do,Т she said. СI can climb, and bike for miles, can walk as far as they can, I can swim, I can beat a whole lot of boys at most things.Т
СThatТs what Henry says!Т said Anne, with a laugh. СLook, there she is, striding about as usual, hands in her jodhpur pockets, whistling like the stable boy!Т
George scowled. Anne had been very much amused to see how Henrietta and George hated one another at sight - and yet both had so very much the same ideas. GeorgeТs real name was Georgina, but she would only answer to George. HenryТs real name was Henrietta, but she would only answer to Henry, or Harry to her very best friends!
She was about as old as George, and her hair was short too, but it wasnТt curly. СItТs a pity yours is curly,Т she said to George, pityingly. СIt looks so girlish, doesnТt it?Т
СDonТt be an ass,Т George said, curtly. СPlenty of boys have curly hair.Т
The maddening part was that Henrietta was a wonderful rider, and had won all kinds of cups. George hadnТt enjoyed herself a bit during that week at the stables, because for once in a way another girl had outshone her. She couldnТt bear to see Henrietta striding about, whistling, doing everything so competently and quickly.
Anne had had many a quiet laugh to herself, especially when the two girls had each made up their minds not to call one another Henry and George, but to use their full names, Henrietta and Georgina! This meant that neither of them would answer the other when called, and Captain Johnson, the big burly owner of the riding-stables, got very tired of both of them.
СWhat are you behaving like this for?Т he demanded one morning, seeing their sulky looks at one another at breakfast-time. СBehaving like a couple of idiotic schoolgirls!Т
That made Anne laugh! A couple of idiotic schoolgirls. My goodness, how annoyed both girls were with Captain Johnson. Anne was a bit scared of him. He was hot-tempered, out-spoken, and stood no nonsense at all, but he was a wonder with the horses, and loved a good, hearty laugh. He and his wife took either boys or girls for the holidays, and worked them hard, but the children always enjoyed their stay immensely.
СIf it hadnТt been for Henry, youТd have been perfectly happy this week,Т said Anne, leaning back against the haystack. СWeТve had heavenly April weather, the horses are lovely, and I like Captain and Mrs Johnson very much.Т
СI wish the boys were here,Т said George. СThey would soon put that silly Henrietta in her place. I wish IТd stayed at home now.Т
СWell, you had the choice,Т said Anne, rather cross. СYou could have stayed at Kirrin Cottage with your father and mother, but you chose to come here with me, till the boys came back from camp. You shouldnТt make such a fuss if things arenТt exactly to your liking. It spoils things for me.Т
СSorry,Т said George. СIТm being a pig, I know, but I do miss the boys. We can only be with them in the hols and it seems funny without them. ThereТs just one thing that pleases me here youТll be glad to know...Т
СYou neednТt tell me, I know what it is!Т said Anne, with a laugh. СYouТre glad that Timmy wonТt have anything to do with Henry!Т
СWith Henrietta,Т corrected George. She grinned suddenly. СYes, old TimmyТs got some sense. He just canТt stick her. Here, Timmy boy, leave those rabbit-holes alone and come and lie down for a bit. YouТve run for miles this morning when we took the horses out, and youТve snuffled down about a hundred rabbit-holes. Come and be peaceful.Т
Timmy left his latest rabbit-hole reluctantly and came to flop down beside Anne and George. He gave George a hearty lick and she patted him.
СWeТre just saying, Timmy, how sensible you are not to make friends with that awful Henrietta,Т said George. She stopped suddenly at a sharp nudge from Anne. A shadow fell across them as someone came round the haystack.
It was Henrietta. By the annoyed look on her face it was clear that she had heard GeorgeТs remark. She held out an orange envelope to George.
СA telegram for you, Georgina,Т she said, stiffly. СI thought IТd better bring it in case it was important.Т
СOh, thanks, Henrietta,Т said George, and took the telegram. She tore it open, read it and groaned.
СLook at that!Т she said to Anne and passed it to her. СItТs from Mother.Т
Anne took the telegram and read it. СPlease stay another week. Your father is not well. Love from Mother.Т
СWhat bad luck!Т said George, a familiar scowl on her face. СJust when I thought weТd be going home in a day or two, and the boys would join us at Kirrin. Now weТll be stuck here by ourselves for ages! WhatТs the matter with Father? I bet heТs only got a headache or something, and doesnТt want us stamping about in and out of the house and making a noise.Т
СWe could go to my home,Т said Anne. СThatТs if you donТt mind its being a bit upside down because of the decorating weТre having done.Т
СNo. I know you want to stay here with the horses,Т said George. СAnyway your father and mother are abroad, weТd only be in the way. Blow, blow, blow! Now weТll have to do without the boys for another week. TheyТll stay on in camp, of course.Т
Captain Johnson said yes, certainly the two girls could stay on. It was possible that they might have to do a bit of camping out if one or two extra children came, but they wouldnТt mind that, would they?
СNot a bit,Т said George. СActually weТd rather like to be on our own, Anne and I. WeТve got Timmy, you see. So long as we could come in to meals and do a few jobs for you, weТd love to go off on our own.Т
Anne smiled to herself. What George really meant was that she wanted to see as little of Henrietta as possible! Still, it would be fun to camp out if the weather was fine. They could easily borrow a tent from Captain Johnson.
СBad luck, Georgina!Т said Henry, who was listening to all this. СVery bad luck! I know youТre terribly bored here. ItТs a pity you donТt really like horses. ItТs a pity that you-Т
СShut up,Т said George, rudely and went out of the room. Captain Johnson glared at Henrietta, who stood whistling at the window, hands in pockets.
СYou two girls!Т he said. СWhy donТt you behave yourselves? Always aping the boys, pretending youТre so mannish! Give me Anne here, any day! What you want is your ears boxing. Did you take that bale of straw to the stables?Т
СYes,Т said Henrietta, without turning.
СYes, sir,Т said Captain Johnson. СIf you want to act like a boy, be one, and say УsirФ when you speak to me, if you canТt bother to remember IТve got a name. ItТs...Т
He broke off as a small boy came running in. СSir, thereТs a gypsy kid outside with a horse, a skewbald, a mangy looking thing. He says can you help him - the horse has got something wrong with its leg.Т