Air Service Boys Over The Rhine; Or, Fighting Above The Clouds

by E. J. Craine

  CHAPTER XIV

  WITH COMRADES AGAIN

  "Hold on! Wait a minute!" exclaimed Tom, as he caught hold of his chum."Where are you going?"

  "Out to give warning to a policeman or to some army officer about thatspy!" exclaimed Jack. "We know him to be such, and now, with Bessie'sword that he was with Potzfeldt, it's enough to cause his arrest."

  "Yes, maybe it is," agreed Tom, who was a bit more cautious than hisimpetuous chum. "But if we do that we may spoil the plans of Major deTrouville. Better let matters take their course, Jack. That spy may notknow we are here, and again, he may. But if he doesn't, rushing out nowwould be sure to give the secret away. As it is, there is a chance wemay keep it."

  Jack, caught midway in his impetuous rush from the room, stoodreflectively. What Tom had said to him appeared to make an impression.Then Bessie added her words of advice.

  "Yes, Jack," she said, "I think it would be rather rash to go out nowand confront that man, or start a chase after him. I know I'm not asexperienced as you two famous birdmen," she went on with a smile, "butI've been through some terrible experiences, as almost every girl has inthis war zone, and I can do more thinking than I used to. Don't youthink it would be wise to wait, Mother?"

  "Yes, Bessie," answered Mrs. Gleason, "I do. Our good friends in themilitary service who told us to come here, must have had some object.Perhaps it was connected with this same man who was so unkind to us inthe chateau, and who was certainly a tool of that man I trusted once,but never will again--Carl Potzfeldt!" and she shuddered as she thoughtof what she had gone through.

  "Let him go," she said to Jack. "Perhaps it is just a coincidence thathe is passing just as we arrive. Our departure from our last lodgingswas made secretly."

  "So was ours," said Tom. "And yet I don't see how that spy found us sosoon."

  "It is that which makes me think it is accidental," observed Mrs.Gleason. "It would be very unwise now to go out, I think."

  "All right, then I'll stay in," said Jack with a smile. "Especially as Ihave such good company. Tell me," he went on, "are you and your mothergoing to board here?" he asked Bessie.

  "Yes," answered Mrs. Gleason. "And though we were told we would meetfriends here we could not guess it would be you brave boys."

  "Spare my blushes!" laughed Tom.

  "Same here," added Jack.

  "But what brings you to Paris?" asked Bessie. "I thought you boys wereengaging in combats above the clouds."

  "We have been fighting, though not during the last two weeks," said Tom."I had word that my father had come over here, but he never communicatedwith us, and we came to Paris to look him up. So far we haven'tsucceeded in finding him," and he gave the details of the visit ofhimself and his chum to the capital, telling of their first experienceduring the firing of the big gun.

  Bessie and Jack, who seemed to have much to say to one another, peeredfrom behind the curtains out of the window now and then, and Jack atlast reported that the spy had passed on, after stopping, apparently, topurchase some fruit at a stand on the street.

  "I don't believe he knew we were here," said Bessie.

  "Well, it won't do to take any chances," observed Tom. "However, we werenot told to remain under cover, so I suppose we can go out when welike."

  "Better wait until we get some word from the major," suggested Jack, whowas getting some of his chum's caution.

  All decided this was best, and the boys spent the rest of the afternoonin getting their room to rights, Mrs. Gleason and Bessie doing the samein their apartment. Mrs. Gleason had temporarily been relieved from RedCross work to recuperate, she said, as she had been under a greatstrain.

  Toward evening Major de Trouville, or "Trouville," as he democraticallyliked to be called, arrived, and when told of the sight in the street ofthe spy, who turned out to be the same man who was one of the captors ofBessie and her mother, the officer said:

  "I am not surprised. In fact I rather looked for that, and it is onereason why I wanted to get you four together so you could see the man atthe same time.

  "There is now no doubt as to his intentions, and the fact that he washere so soon after you arrived proves that there is a 'leak' somewhere.We suspected as much, and I think I know where it is. It is goodinformation to have. Well, boys, did I surprise you?" he asked, smiling.

  "You did, indeed, but it was a pleasant surprise," said Jack.

  "But when are we going to be allowed to do something to silence thatmonster cannon?" asked Tom. "It's pleasant to be here, but we are notforgetting there is work to do."

  "Nor would I have you forget," said the major. "A number of persons werekilled to-day by fire from the long-range gun. We believe, now, thatthere are two or three of them, as the shots come at closer intervals.It is imperative that something be done, and so I have brought youorders."

  "Good!" cried Jack.

  "That sounds like business!" commented Tom.

  "In regard to your father," went on the major, addressing Jack's chum,"we will be on the watch for him, or any news of him, and, no matterwhere you are, unless you are captured by the Germans, you shall beinformed as soon as possible."

  "Is there any chance of being made prisoners?" asked Jack, and it mightbe noted that he did not use the word "danger."

  "There is always that chance for an airman," replied the major. "Butwhen I add that it may be possible that one or both of you will take aflight over the Rhine, you can judge, with the hold Germany has onFrench possessions, what the danger is."

  "Over the Rhine!" exclaimed Tom. "Why, that's a flight of two or threehundred miles from Paris."

  "Yes, but with the new type of Italian plane which you may use, it isnot impossible in a single flight," said the major. "However, we willtalk of that later. Just now I have come to tell you that you are torejoin your comrades at the Lafayette Escadrille for a time. Therearrangements will be made for the perilous venture I spoke of--thesilencing of the big guns that are bombarding Paris. I wish you allsuccess, young gentlemen."

  "Thanks," murmured Jack.

  "We consider it an honor to be picked for such duty," added Tom. "Areany others going to be in the game?"

  "Oh, yes. We shall need a picked corps of the best airmen we have,French and Americans, and it will be no easy matter then. The Germanshave probably been planning this for a long time, and they, no doubt,have taken every possible precaution against surprise or failure. Butwith the help of you brave Americans we shall win!"

  "That's right!" chimed in Bessie. "Oh, how I wish I were a man!" and shelooked enviously at Jack and Tom.

  The major gave Bessie and her mother some instructions in regard totheir actions should the spy come back, and then told Tom and Jack toprepare to leave Paris the next night.

  "Report to your former camp," he said, "and there you will find furtherinstructions waiting for you."

  "Well, then as we have to-night, our last one free, let's go to someentertainment," suggested Tom to Bessie and her mother. "We can havesupper afterward--not much of a celebration, for these are war times andit won't do to rejoice too much. But we ought to commemorate thismeeting somehow."

  "That's right!" agreed Jack.

  So they went to a little play and had supper afterward in a quietrestaurant. That is, it was quiet until a sudden explosion a few blocksaway announced the arrival of another German shell from the big gun, andthen there was excitement enough.

  Fortunately, however, the shots did little beyond material damage, noone being killed. At the same time, however, there appeared some Germanplanes over Paris, doubtless to observe the effect of the dropping ofthe long-distance shells, and naturally the French airmen went up togive them combat.

  The great searchlights began to play, picking out the hostile craft, andmaking them targets for the machine guns of the intrepid Frenchmen, andmore than one Boche never got back over his lines again, while severalFrenchmen found heroes' graves on the soil they had died to defend.

  "Oh, if we were only up there helpin
g," said Tom, as he and his friendswatched.

  "We shall be there very soon," murmured Jack. "And it can't be any toosoon for me."

  The tide of battle turned in favor of the French, the Hun planeswithdrawing as the fire got too hot for them. And soon after that thelong-range gun ceased firing.

  It was rather a "pull" for Tom and Jack to say good-bye to Bessie andher mother in Paris, but they knew they had to do their duty. Nor wouldMrs. Gleason and her daughter have kept the boys back for the world.They realized that the Air Service boys were helping to make the worldsafe for democracy, as they themselves were doing in their way.

  And so Tom and Jack, their mission to Paris, which was the discovery ofMr. Raymond, having failed, went back to the hangars, there to bewelcomed by their comrades in arms.

  They arrived one morning, just after some planes from a bombingexpedition over the German lines returned.

  "What luck?" asked Tom of a pilot with whom he had often flown.

  "The best, as regards the damage we did," was the answer. "We blew upseveral ammunition dumps, and put one railroad center out of businessfor a time. But Louis didn't come back," and the man turned aside for amoment.

  "You mean your brother?" asked Jack, softly.

  "Yes."

  "Perhaps he is only captured," suggested Tom.

  "No, his machine caught fire. They got his petrol tank. It's all up withhim and La Garde. But we had our revenge. We sprayed the machine thatgot them until there was nothing left of it. And I'm going out againto-day in a Nieuport. They'll pay a price for Louis!"