Sky High by Captain W. E. Johns

Author:Captain W. E. Johns
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2017-01-05T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER VII

COUNCIL OF WAR

The matter was serious; it was no use pretending otherwise, and Steeley made no attempt to minimize the dangers of our position.

“I see it all now,” he said thoughtfully. “It was the coming and going of Norton’s machine that has thrown the spanner into the gears of my organization. He must have been careless. It was he who attracted Wilkins’s notice, and sent Wayne scurrying back here the other night. In fact, things must have been buzzing to a far greater extent than I was aware. How was I to know? I went about things quietly enough, yet there was poor Norton, fairly howling for trouble, and unwittingly throwing suspicion on me. Wayne is in a quandary now. He has gone, it’s true, but don’t imagine for one moment that he has put us out of his mind. No fear. We’ve cleared ourselves for the present, but he knows—by instinct, if nothing else—that something funny is going on here. He’ll watch us as a first soloist watches his air-speed indicator. I’ll bet he’s sitting somewhere at this moment, sucking that foul pipe of his, trying to work things out; trying to work out the connection between us and Norton in all probability. Whatever conclusions he arrives at, one thing is certain: he’ll keep his eye on us. And that being so, we’ll have to be very very careful. It’s a pity, and unfortunate for you, because up to the very moment that you arrived on the scene things went along swimmingly.” Steeley tossed his cigarette-end into the grate.

“Why did Wayne come here to-night?” he continued. “Why should he associate me—or us—with the monoplane that he was chasing? There is only one possible answer to these questions. He came because his suspicions had already been aroused, and there was an odd chance of finding something. Where else could he look? When he saw us land in what must have looked like the same machine, he must have been tickled to death. But he was wrong, and he realizes it now. It was a very lucky thing for us that we followed Norton’s machine down and saw it crash, so that we could tell him just where to find it, or we should have been in the cells by now. One thing I don’t understand is, why the green light was displayed. Perhaps Gubbins can explain it.” He pushed the bell, and the mechanic appeared in the doorway, looking rather worried.

“You rang, sir?” he said respectfully.

“Yes, Gubbins. Why did you show the green light when those fellows were about?”

“I didn’t see them, sir,” was the instant reply. “They didn’t come openly. I didn’t see a sign of anyone until after you landed, and then they apeared like magic. Their car must have crept up the lane with its lights off, and then, when they heard you coming, they crept on foot down the aerodrome boundary.”

“Ah! That was it, was it? I thought it must have been something like that,” murmured Steeley.

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