Part 7 (1/2)
”Captains Dawson and Farmer?” he asked with a smile
”Yes, sir” Dave replied with a salute ”I'm Dawson And you are Major Parker, Yank coht,” the senior officer replied ”Welco a survey flight along our South A so badly here at San Fernando Here, this cao It's addressed to you both Needless to say, we didn't try to decode it I don't believe we have that code in the base book, anyway”
The major held out a small yellow envelope Dawson took it, ripped it open, and withdrew a single sheet of paper His heart did a loop in his chest when he saw that the coded nature Colonel Welsh used whenever he contacted the boys in secret The major had been quite correct, too The code used by Colonel Welsh was not to be found in the regular base code book, because it was a special one that the colonel had made up himself This code was not known byDawson and Farmer The value of such a code was that it was sowheel, was not needed Once you knew the code, you could read es from the memory of what the various letters and numbers and symbols ether, while Major Parker politely stared off across the base field The true e became instantly apparent to theht San Fernando Arriving by air ency developed Maintain constant alert Destroy evidence if necessary Ie three tiers through his hair, and glanced sidewise at Freddy Farmer
”And that is strictly that,” he said ”But I wonder what?”
”I don't know,” the English-born air ace replied with a shrug of his shoulders ”Frankly, though, I don't think I'lad Much rather see hiet to Natal”
Dawson grinned faintly, and nodded
”Yeah, I get what you mean,” he murmured ”Maybe there's a connection between this and what happened a while ago, eh?”
”If not, I'll be very much surprised,” Freddy Farmer said slowly ”And yet I may be a bit balmy to say that How could there possibly be any connection?”
Dawson shrugged, but e into his pocket, and turned to where Major Parker was inspecting the Vultee
”Thanks for giving us the rin, ”It sort of looks as though we've been fired, you ht Would it be all right for us to eat in the Officers' Club and sort of kill tiets here?”
”Certainly, Dawson,” the major replied at once ”The place is yours
Help yourself to anything you like So your survey flight is called off, eh?”
”Well, temporarily, anyway,” Dave replied ”But don't ask me why, because I wouldn't know, Major”
”Okay, I won't,” the other smiled ”I'll ask you this, instead What kind of trouble did you run into on the way down here?”
”Trouble, Major?” Dawson echoed, and stared at him hard
”These holes,” the senior officer replied, and pointed to a cluster of four bullet holes six inches in fro a pencil through the wing skin, eh?”
”No; nazi slugs,” Dawson told hihty hted us, but it threw up a few slugs in the h We radioed Puerto Rico patrol base and gave them the U-boat's position Have you heard any report that she was caught and nailed?”
”None,” the et that sort of thing, anyway This is a British-owned base, you know
That we're here is a sort of lend-lease in reverse, you ht say And radio stuff such as your call would be picked up by theh, you didn't have a couple of depth charges aboard”
”You're telling ivenso much as I hate the U-boats”
”You're not alone in that pet hate,” the ot to lick, and lick fast, if we hope to win this war