Notes

Good evening elders

"Good evening elders,

I will be returning later tonight due to events occurring in the village this evening. I have taken Elders Price and Cunningham with me. Please follow all regulation rules and be in bed at the appropriate time. (Elder Thomas; So as not to cause disturbances, and to confer with the other Elders currently with me about this situation, I will not be returning to my own room tonight.) This problem may take some considerable time to solve, so would you be so kind as to rise and prepare yourself for the day at the correct time the following morning. If you do not mind, and purely out of the hours of sleep required by rule 35, the three of us will rise slightly later than usual, so please do not disturb or enter Elder Price and Cunningham's room until everyone from said room is awake and present.

Yours kindly,
C.McKinley~"

The seven elders left at district nine gathered round the note they had found on the table. Elder Neeley, having adopted a sort of leadership role in the absence of their district leader, had read out the letter.

"Wow, Elder McKinley sure is organised, writing this all out for us!" Elder Thomas piped up after he was finished.

"Yeah," Elder Church agreed. "He never usually leaves such long, formal notes."

"And why didn't we know about this whole problem in the village? Surely it's our responsibility," Elder Schrader spoke. Several of the other elders nodded in agreement.

"I'm sure if it was a really big issue, Elder McKinley would have told us." Elder Zelder finally said, in an attempt to reassure them.

"Well I don't get why he won't come back to his own room even when he does get back," Elder Thomas chipped in sadly. "He's not always there at night and it's lonely." Elder Church put an arm around the other missionary.

Elder Michaels sighed. "I mean, we all know that Elder Cunningham usually sneaks out to stay the night with Nabalungi." Some of the Elders chuckled.

"He's not exactly subtle, is he?" Elder Schrader asked, remembering all the noises of creaking floorboards, followed by the occasional stumble, as well as the banging of the front door shutting as the missionary made a sprint for the hut in the dark.

"I've seen Elder McKinley coming out of Elder Price's room after lights out," elder Davis said. "Last time I asked, he said he was just checking, 'cause he thought he heard a noise or something."

"I always see them staring at each other,"

"They do seem awfully close..."

"Elder McKinley is always muttering about someone in his sleep..." Elder Thomas added. "...Someone called Kevin." He felt his face flush a little, deliberately not specifying the kind of things the district leader often said. "I don't think there's anyone here called Kevin... It's none of you guys is it?"

The elders shook their heads and after a while longer, went back to their evening tasks.