| OCR Text |
Show 63 Karl walked through the back yard calling Hunnie's name, but Hunnie didn't answer. Instead, Francis X Culley hollered, "He ain't over our place. I seen him going down the alley to Center Street about an hour ago." "Was Kathleen with him?" Karl asked. "No. I seen her going the same way, but that was a long time before Hunnie went." Karl felt annoyed. Hunnie had probably sneaked into the grounds of the general superintendent's mansion again to look at the fish. The general superintendent's estate was off-limits to everyone, but Hunnie was fascinated by the huge goldfish swimming in the mosaic-tiled pool on the grounds. And why wasn't Kathleen watching him? She must have left the house long before, without saying a word to either Karl or Hunnie, taking it for granted that Karl would tend his little brother. He hurried down Center Street to the second dip, then turned up the broad drive that led to the general superintendent's mansion. Halfway along its length, the graveled drive was blocked by a tall iron gate, but every kid in the neighborhood knew that farther up the long row of hedges that bordered the grounds, a thin spot in the hedge could be crawled through to get inside. Growing more irritated, Karl got down on his hands and knees and pushed his way through the tight hole in the hedge. Inside, he looked around quickly to see whether the grounds-keeper was in sight. No one was visible, but Karl heard the cough of |
