“I thought—”
Dr. Jellie looked at the Time magazine. “I’ve seen this issue. Is it the one Aggie took? Are you two the Americans who were searching for it?”
“We had no idea you were so close,” Eddie said. “But we couldn’t have come anyway because we didn’t have the magazine and we needed it. I really must insist that you look at it. I think that what’s in there is very important.”
“Oh poppycock!” he said. “They never mark anything that’s valuable as important. Those envelopes that say Top Secret on them? Seed catalogs. It’s the letters from my daughter that hold the secrets.”
“Your daughter works in London?” David asked.
“I don’t have a daughter.”
“Oh,” Eddie said.
In the next second, Dr. Jellie threw the magazine on the fire, and both David and Eddie jumped. “Only thing it’s good for,” he said. “I’m sure everyone in the village has seen it by now. You two caused quite a stir, what with missing the bridge and putting your car in the river.”
“We did not—” David began, but stopped as he stared at the magazine burning in the fire. “I’m afraid we’ve come here for nothing,” he said, but as the words came out, he gave a look at beautiful young Eddie that nearly set the house ablaze.
“Did Austin give either of you anything else?” Dr. Jellie asked.
“Nothing to me,” Eddie said. “He gave me a map which I don’t think was accurate, and a packet of money. I left them back at Hamish’s farm. Should I go get them?”
Just then a clap of thunder came, and Dr. Jellie said, “No, dear, I think it can wait.” He looked at David. “What about you? Did you receive any paper?”
“No. Austin had a steel brace put on my leg that was like a medieval torture and he—”
“But no paper?”
David shook his head. “Except for the invitation, there was nothing.”
“Let me see it,” Dr. Jellie said.
“What invitation?” Eddie asked David.
“To a dance where you wore an electric blue gown.”
“The Officers’ Ball,” Eddie said, “but that wouldn’t have anything to do with this. Those invitations go out to a lot of people directly from the printer.” She watched as David got his wallet out of his back pocket and removed the envelope. It didn’t appear to have even been wet, but she knew it must have been underwater.
“How in the world did you keep that dry?” she asked him.
“You take care of things that are important to you,” Dr. Jellie said as he looked at David, smiling.
“Yes, sir, you do.”
“Waxed cloth? Courier’s packet?”
“Yes,” David said, grinning back at him. “We fished our suitcases from out of the car in the river and that was inside mine and as dry as when I put it in there.”
“Good boy,” Dr. Jellie said, getting out of his chair. He took the invitation over to a table and opened a box that contained glass jars of what looked to be alcoholic beverages.
“I could use some of that,” David said, putting out his hand.
“Drink one of these and your tongue will dissolve in a very unpleasant fizz.”
David drew his hand back.
“Now let me see,” Dr. Jellie said, “which one should I try?”
David put his hand on Eddie’s arm and drew her toward the fire to give Dr. Jellie some privacy. A couple of awful smells came from his direction but at last he said, “There, now, I have it. I’m to go to London with you two and Austin is going to send me to the U.S.”