by Roy J. Snell
CHAPTER TWENTY
A GLEAM FROM THE SEA
As she lay there in her berth, still too tired and dreamy to do morethan think, all the events of the past few months seemed to pass inreview before her mind's eye.
She saw herself a normal young lady in a normal, slightly humdrum world,going her regular daily rounds, work at the shop during the day, dinnerwith her father at night, and after that an easy chair and a book,varied now and then by a party or a ride in the moonlight.
"Some life!" she whispered. Had it been? She did not really know. Shefound herself longing for it now in a dreamy sort of way. But would shebe happy there now? She doubted that.
And then again she saw herself at the great airport, directing hugebombers and other planes to their places on the field. With Silent Stormas her guide, instructor, and friend, she had lived a happy life. Thework she had been doing had been important, very important. One falsemove, one misdirected training bomber and a dozen fine young men fromColorado, Vermont, Illinois--might have gone crashing to earth.
"Silent Storm," she whispered. "A grand friend. Barbara, a good, staunchpal. I am going back to them." The speedy aircraft carrier seemed tofairly leap along, carrying her home to America.
"Shall I stay there always?" she asked herself.
To this question she found no certain answer. Probably she would not bethe one to answer that question. This trip, made by a dozen WAVES, hadbeen an experiment. Had it been successful? Would it be repeated? Shecould not tell.
She found herself hoping it might be, for the good of others as well asherself. The Captain had told her that on this trip his men had beenhappier, steadier, more contented than ever before.
"Ladies add a touch to every organization that can be had in no otherway." That was his way of putting it.
On shore in the harbor city many fine American boys were located. Shehad talked to some of them. One boy had said:
"You don't know what it means to meet an honest-to-goodness Americangirl over here."
"Why not?" she asked herself now, almost fiercely. "If the boys can diefor their country, why not the girls as well? Thousands of good Englishwomen died in the terrible bombings, but the others never faltered."
Yes, she was sure that she wanted to stay with the ship, to sail thesea, to do her bit, to fight and die if need be for her beloved land.But would they let her? Only time could tell.
After listening in vain for any sound of enemy subs, she drew on slacks,slippers, and a heavy bathrobe, and went out on the deck. As she passedalong toward the ladder leading to the flight deck above, she sawgunners standing like wax statues by their guns.
"There won't be any subs tonight," she paused to whisper. "I have had myradio on for half an hour. Not a sound."
"Perhaps not," was the low response. "But the Skipper isn't taking anychances."
"Boy! We gave them subs plenty, comin' over," came from another statue."I'll bet we got twenty of them."
"Not that many, Old Kentuck," said another statue. "But plenty. And theysay it's on account of one of them WAVES having some queer sort ofradio. Great little dame, I'd say."
"Sure brought us a lot of luck!" said the first shadow.
"They haven't recognized me!" Sally thought, feeling all sort of goodinside. "And I won't tell them. That would spoil it. I've always thoughtit would be fun to be famous, if nobody ever found it out." Wrapping herrobe a little more tightly about her, she climbed the ladder to theflight deck where she could get a better view of the sea.
The view was worth the climb. Riding high, the moon had painted a pathof gold across the sea. They were heading into the wind. They cut acrosslong lines of low waves. All this made the boat seem to race like madover the sea.
"It won't be long now," she whispered. Then her heart sank. "Threedays," the Old Man had said. "Three days and we'll be near the spotwhere Danny was last seen."
"Oh, Danny Boy!" she sang softly. "Oh, Danny Boy!"
Something stirred. She turned about. Danny's mother stood beside her.
"I--I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't know you were there or I wouldn'thave sung it."
"It was lovely," the white-haired woman's voice was low. "Out here whereyou can catch the full sweep of the sea, he seems very near tonight. Iwish you would sing it all."
So again, softly, Sally began to sing: "Oh, Danny Boy."
"He is in God's hands tonight, and God's hands are good hands," said themother. "No matter whether Danny comes back or not, I want to stay withDanny's ship--at least until the ship goes down to be with Danny."
For some time after that they stood there in silence, looking away atthe sea and at the path of gold that seemed to lead to Danny.
From that night on, to Sally, every throb of the great ship's enginesseemed to be the beating of a mighty heart, a throbbing that each hourbrought them nearer to a spot where they might have a tryst with life ordeath.
On the second night, as she stood alone on the upper deck, now watchingthe dark waters swirl by, and now lifting her face to the sky where amillion stars shone, she was joined by the Skipper.
"Captain," she said after a few moments of talk, "where's your ladyyeoman? I haven't seen her since we left port. Is she ill?"
"No-oo," he rumbled. "Miss Stone isn't with us anymore. I traded her toan admiral for a young man and two very fine old French etchings. I likethe etchings. They just hang on the wall and don't say a thing." Helaughed in a dry sort of way.
"But Miss Stone must have been a good yeoman. She gave up a very fineposition to join the WAVES," Sally suggested.
"Yes, that's true, she did. But in this man's war, in fact any war, it'snot the wonderful things you have done in the past; it's what you can donow that counts.
"'Not to the strong is the battle,'" he quoted. "'Not to the swift isthe race, but to the true and the faithful.'
"The faithful, always the faithful, Sally," he repeated. "Most of thegirls we took on trial have been very fine. You, Sally, and your pal,Nancy, may stay on my ship as long as she flies the Stars and Stripesand sails the seas. I'll even offer you the honor of going over her sidewith me when the subs get her and she prepares to sink beneath thewaves."
"They'll never get her," Sally declared stoutly, "but, Captain, I wishto thank you from deep in my heart. Those are the finest words I've everheard spoken."
"They were spoken from the heart, Sally."
For a time after that they were silent, then Sally spoke in a deepvoice:
"Captain, do you really think we'll find Danny?"
"Only time will tell. We have taken account of wind and tide, doneeverything we could. When we think we have located the approximate spot,we'll heave to and send out a full complement of planes to search forhim."
"But the storm?" she whispered hoarsely. "It seems impossible."
"From reports I have received, I am led to believe that the storm maynot have passed over Danny's part of the ocean. It was a tropical storm,violent in intensity, but narrow in scope."
"Oh!" she breathed. "If that is only true. If it is--"
"It won't be long now, Sally. Tonight we'll say a prayer for Danny."
"Let's do," she whispered.
"Captain," she spoke again, "when the planes go out on the search, mayDanny's pal, Fred, fly a two-seater and may I ride in the second seat?"
"Yes, Sally, you just tell Fred I said he must take you for luck."
A few moments later she was back in her quarters, saying her prayer forDanny.
The hour came at last when, on a wide open sea, the big ship came to ahalt, turned half about to give the planes the advantage of the wind,then stood by while, one by one, they roared away.
"This is the beginning of the end," Sally thought as she strapped on herparachute. Would it be a sad or a happy ending? She dared not hazard aguess. She did not dare to hope.
Their plane was slower in its upward climb than any that had gonebefore.
"Our pl
ane seems tired," she said to Fred.
"That's because I'm carrying an extra gas tank lashed to the fuselage,"he explained. "We may not find Danny, but we'll be the last ones backfrom the search."
After sailing aloft, they began to circle, while with powerfulbinoculars Sally searched the sea for some sign, a speck of white, adark, drifting object, just anything that spoke of life.
As the moments passed, their circle grew ever wider. Slowly, the bigship faded into the distance.
From time to time, with eager eyes, Sally lifted her glasses to scan thesky and count the planes slowly soaring there. She hoped against hopethat one of these might show some sign of an all important discovery,but still they circled on.
At last she saw them, one by one, start winging their way back towardthe carrier.
"Their gas is about gone," said Fred.
"Will they refuel and come back?" Sally asked. There was a choke in hervoice and an ache in her heart.
"I don't know," was the solemn reply. "That's up to the big chief."
"Danny's out here somewhere," she insisted. "He just must be." Stillthey circled on.
Suddenly Sally cried: "Look! Fred! Way off there to the left! There's abright gleam on the water!"
"A sun spot," was the quiet response. "We often see them on the water.You don't think Danny would set fire to his raft, do you?"
"No, but Fred!" She gripped his arm in her excitement. "I read about itin a magazine."
"Read what?"
"About some chemical. I can't remember the name. When you pour it on thewater it throws back the light of the sun, makes the water shine."
"Never heard of it."
"Oh! Yes, Fred! It's true! At first the chemical didn't work so well. Itdisappeared too soon, but they mixed it with other chemicals, then itlasted for a long time. They were going to put small bottles of it onthe rubber rafts. It just must be true!" She pounded him on the back.
"We'll soon know." He headed the plane toward that gleaming spot.
For a time the light gleamed brightly, then it began to fade.
"Oh, it can't fail us!" Sally whispered. "It just can't! It's our lastchance."
And it did not fail them, for, as Sally watched through her binoculars,a dark spot appeared at the center of the fading light.
"It's Danny!" she cried. "It just has to be!"
And it was. The small bottle of chemicals was not a dream but a blessedreality. Danny had discovered it and had used it at just the right time.
As they circled low, he stood up and waved excitedly.
Fred got off a message to the boat. They promised to send a fast powerboat to the spot at once. After that there was nothing left to do butcircle over the spot and wait.
As Sally's eye caught the gray spot that was the rescue boat, a suddenimpulse seized her.
"Fred, I'm going to jump," she said.
"What? Take to the parachute? Why? We've got plenty of gas for gettingback to the ship."
"All the same I'm going to jump. I want to be with Danny when the boatarrives. Nothing will happen to me. I've done it before." Sally pulledoff her shoes.
"All right," he agreed. "But wait until the boat is almost here."
Impatiently Sally waited. At last she said, "Now! Here I go!"
Over the side she went. She pulled the ripcord. The parachute opened,then she went drifting down. Her aim had been good. She hit the waternot a hundred yards from Danny's raft.
After releasing herself from her parachute she went into the Australiancrawl and soon was there at the raft's side.
Danny would have welcomed anyone after his long days on the sea, but tohave Sally drop from the sky seemed too good to be true. Danny's pet seaparrot, however, was not so friendly. He had become very fond of Danny,particularly fond of his dried fish. He didn't propose to have anyonecome between him and Danny, so, with his vice-like beak, he had taken afirm grip on one of Sally's pink toes.
By the time Danny had settled the quarrel between Sally and his pet, theboat was at their side.
"Danny, are you all right?" his mother cried from the boat.
"Oh, sure! Fit as a fiddle, and I have lots more brain cells. I've beenliving on fish." He laughed gaily.
When the raft, the pet sea parrot, all Danny's dried fish and, ofcourse, Danny and Sally, had been taken aboard, the boat headed for thecarrier.
"Danny," Sally asked, "how did you ever ride out that storm?"
She Hit the Water Near Danny's Raft]
"That? Why that was easy," was his smiling reply. "You see, I didn'treally get the worst of it, just the aftermath, big rolling waves, highas a church, just rolling and rolling. I went to the top of one, sliddown its side, then started up another. Talk about your roller coaster.Say! That's tame!"
Needless to say, both Sally and Danny ate at the Captain's table thatnight. When Danny had told of his glorious fishing expedition, whenSally had added the story of the rescue, and the sea parrot had screamedhis approval, the applause that followed made the bulkheads ring.