Chudleigh Hold
Synopsis
Steeped in history, standing high on the cliffs at Chudleigh Point, Chudleigh Hold could tell many a tale of days gone by when smugglers walked its passages; nowadays its towers ring with the merry sounds of the present Sir Godfrey Chudleigh and his brothers and sisters.
Merle's twenty first birthday brings the first hint of a new mystery when a picnic in the sheltered cove between Chudleigh Point and Corpses Bluff is disturbed by two small incidents. Charles, lame from the accident which killed their father two years before, has an encounter on the beach with a foreigner, to whom Tim, the family dog, takes an unaccountable dislike, and Godfrey, Hawk and Ven, swimming into the Cavern, a vast cave into which the water rushes with a fierceness that, during a storm, can be heard in the Hold itself, make an odd discovery.
The birthday also brings a surprise for the family, a letter from a hitherto unheard of cousin. The children's uncle was thrown out of the family home following a great scandal some twenty years previously and now his only daughter wants to come from Switzerland for a visit. The second Tuesday in August sees the advent of this visit although the welcome is almost marred by the youngest of the family, who tired of being teased about his angelic looks, takes matters into his own hands.
There is something new for the family to think about soon, however, when Godfrey announces that he must go to the Argentine on estate business. Merle is anxious about taking over the household and insists that her brother take the remaining jewels and some of the other valuables to the bank before he leaves. Bad news for Merrill at the same time means that Merle reluctantly agrees to her stay being extended.
Godfrey is barely gone when a letter arrives from eccentric Auntie M - another Merrill Chudleigh - announcing that she will be moving to the Hold for a little while and requesting certain rooms to be made ready for her. Merrill, meanwhile, has her own reasons for being dismayed that she will have to move rooms to accommodate her aunt. Auntie M - arriving in a van with the furniture - has her reservations about the new Merrill Chudleigh.
Crumpet, meanwhile, has worries of her own. Why is the new cousin prowling the house at night? And who is signalling in Morse Code from the cliffs? The little girl dismisses each of her family then present as a possible confidante, being afraid of laughter and disbelief or over-reaction, but considers telling her great aunt if anything more should happen. Crumpet's dilemma is solved due to the unexpected return of Hawk from school - she confides in him and is relieved to be believed. Crumpet refuses to be left out of his plans, however, and the two of them and Auntie M have a hair raising adventure that thankfully, ends happily for the family. Godfrey returns from South America in the middle of the night to find his family gathered in the drawing room with Hawk and his great aunt in an unusual position.
contributed by Nicky Wade, England __ working from a hardback edition
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