CHAPTER X
THE FOILED RAID
BEFORE Tressidar could recover himself the second German gripped himby the throat, at the same time shouting to his prostrate comrade tobestir himself and find the pistol.
Although his opponent was a heavy, muscular man the British officer,taken at a disadvantage, did not hesitate to attempt to equalisematters. In spite of the pressure of the Hun's fingers on hiswindpipe, he raised his knees and lashing out literally hurled theGerman from him.
Agilely turning over, Tressidar sought to regain his feet, but as hedid so the fellow he had previously felled leapt upon his back,striking him over and over again with his clenched fists; while theother man, in spite of being temporarily winded, came again to theattack.
In the midst of the desperate struggle Tressidar was most agreeablysurprised to hear a voice shouting, "Come on, men. Collar thosefellows."
The impending assistance caused the two Germans to take to theirheels. Without waiting to ascertain the numbers and strength of therescue party, they made off, leaving the car and various instrumentsbehind.
Tressidar regained his feet. He could discern the heavy tread ofapproaching footsteps. He hastened to meet his rescuers, until sheerastonishment brought him up "all standing." The rescue partyconsisted of one person--Doris Greenwood.
"Are you hurt, Ronald?" she asked in an anxious whisper.
"No, I don't think so," replied Tressidar. "But why----? I thought Itold you to sheer off."
"It's not insubordination," said the girl. "You are not my superiorofficer, you know. I heard the firing and the sound of men scuffling,so I did my level best to imitate a man's voice, and at the same timeI stamped hard upon the ground. Have they gone?"
"Yes; but if they find out that you're only a girl--a jolly pluckyone, I must say--they may take it into their thick heads to renew theattack. I'll find that pistol and be on the safe side."
While the sub. was searching for the lost weapon, Doris listenedintently.
"I cannot hear anything of them," she reported.
"That's rather a pity," said Tressidar, as he groped in the pricklyfurze. "They may still be hanging round, waiting to stalk us.Hurrah! I've found it."
His hand had come in contact with the barrel of the pistol. Hewithdrew the firearm, to find that it was a powerful weapon of theautomatic type. Examination of the magazine revealed the fact thatthere were seven unexpended cartridges.
"Where's your great-coat?" asked Doris.
"I left it down there," replied Tressidar, indicating the dimoutlines of the gorse-bushes on the other side of the road.
"You'll get a fearful cold without it. Go and get it," continued thegirl authoritatively. "We have no sympathy with patients at AuldhaigSick Quarters who get pneumonia through their own carelessness."
Tressidar laughed.
"I feel inclined to take the risk," he retorted. "But I suppose I'dbetter obey your orders, even if you won't obey mine."
Holding the pistol in readiness for a surprise attack, the sub. stolecautiously to the place where he had left his great-coat. Withoutinterruption he regained his property and rejoined his companion,then he listened intently. Not a sound broke the stillness of thenight.
"Well, we've had to abandon a motor-cycle and side-car and we have agorgeous motor-car in exchange," said Tressidar. "I say, I hope youare not in a great hurry?"
"Of course not," replied Doris with surprise at the question."Nursing sisters are not required to be back before nine."
"It may be long after nine," said the sub. seriously. "Stand by whileI shift this car. I'll tell you why presently."
The motor-car being on a slight gradient was fairly easy to move evenwithout starting the engine.
"Why, you haven't moved it half a yard," exclaimed Doris
"Precisely. That is all that is necessary just at present. Now let meexplain. These fellows were expecting a Zeppelin. It's on its way, Ibelieve, but there's little or no danger for us, I may say.Somewhere--in what direction or how far away I don't know--is anothercar, showing, I presume, a string of red lights like this beauty.Viewed from an airship, there will be two lines of red lightsvisible. These, if continued indefinitely, will intersect at acertain spot. There the Zepp. is to drop her bombs; and the desiredplace is Sauchieblair Munition Factory. Unfortunately I cannot alterboth bearings, but by clewing this car round a few feet the point ofintersection will be altered at least a couple of hundred yards. Ihope it will be four or five hundred, but it won't do to alter thebearing too much in case it doesn't cross the other one."
"And then?"
"We must wait until the Zepp. has come and gone. If we abandon ourpost our Germans may return and readjust the position of the car.Hulloa! what's that? There's some one coming. Just get into the car,Doris. It's a pretty substantial affair, unless I'm much mistaken."
Doris obeyed without demur. Tressidar, with his pistol ready forinstant action, crouched behind the body of the car.
Evidently some harmless individual was approaching. They could hearfootsteps crunching on the hard gravel road, but still, the sub.could afford to take no risks of a treacherous onslaught.
"Halt!" shouted Tressidar as the man came within ten paces. "Who areyou? What are you doing here?"
The stranger, a big, hulking fellow, halted promptly enough, and inbroad Scotch declared that he was only a shepherd on his way home.
"And I'm a naval officer," announced the sub. "I call upon you in theKing's name to render assistance. Is your sight good? Can you hearwell?"
Receiving a disjointed affirmative reply from the almost dumfoundedshepherd, Tressidar continued:
"That's capital. Now, I want you to stand here and keep a brightlook-out. There are two suspicious characters knocking about. Theyare not armed--at least, with firearms, for I've taken the onlypistol they possessed. Directly you spot them--that is, if they makeup their minds to come back--let me know as quietly as possible. Eh,what's that? You hope they do? Good man! You are a tough customer totackle with that heavy stick of yours."
The Scotsman, a brawny specimen in spite of his years, for he wasnearly sixty, nodded his head with a confidence that assured the sub.of a reliable and energetic ally. Leaving him at his post, Tressidarreturned to the car.
"I fancy I heard firing," he remarked.
"Yes," agreed Doris. "I saw flashes. See, there they are again."
She pointed away to the south-east. The crests of the distant hillswere silhouetted against a succession of pale flashes and the glareof half a dozen searchlights, while the low rumble of a series ofexplosions could just be distinguished.
Then the flashes ceased, although the giant beams still searched thesky--and searched in vain. The huge target presented by the Zeppelinhad been lost to sight.
"There's something overhead," declared Tressidar. "It's an aerialpropeller, but for a Zepp. it's very subdued. You're not nervous,Doris?"
The girl smiled.
"Being nervous wouldn't be of any use, so I must be brave," shereplied. "As a matter of fact I am rather enjoying the experience. Doyou think----"
A lurid flash and terrific crash, the sound appearing to emanate froma spot within a hundred yards from where they waited, interrupted herwords. The flash was followed by two others in quick succession, andthen a perfect hail of high-explosive bombs. The Zepp. was hurlingdown missiles as fast as she could from a height of less than twothousand feet upon what her commander took to be the SauchieblairMunition Works. In point of actual fact the bombs were dropping,thanks to Tressidar's resourcefulness in altering the position of theleading lights, on the grassland full a mile from the Huns'particular objective.
For nearly twenty minutes the futile operation of bomb-droppingcontinued. Once or twice the sub. turned to look at the shepherd. Theman was gazing stolidly into the darkness with his back turned uponthe German firework display. He had been set a particular task andwhole-heartedly he was carrying it out.
At length, as if suspecting that they we
re being tricked, the crew ofthe Zeppelin ceased hurling explosives. They switched on two powerfulsearchlights, which, playing in an almost vertically downwarddirection, swept the ground in order to discover the magazinebuildings. To do so the airship had dropped to less than a thousandfeet.
"They'll find the place, I'm afraid," thought Tressidar. "If only ourpeople had even a couple of anti-aircraft guns----"
The shepherd touched his arm and pointed down the road in thedirection of Auldhaig. Approaching at a furious rate, their presenceonly apparent by the noise they made, were several motor-cars armedwith quick-firers on vertical mountings. Others, with travellingsearchlight projectors, accompanied them. The lights were temporarilyscreened, since the position of the hostile airship could be fixed bythe fact that she was playing her searchlights upon the ground.
The mobile quick-firers made no attempt to get into action until thecars were almost abreast of the spot where Tressidar and hiscompanions were. Had they done so, the chances were that the fallingshrapnel bullets would do considerable damage to the lightly builtroofs of the munition works.
Suddenly six anti-aircraft guns opened fire simultaneously. The airwas torn with the shriek of the high-velocity projectiles and thesharp reports of the weapons. The explosion of the shells threw ablaze of light upon the silvery envelope of the giganticnight-raider. It seemed as if it would be impossible for her toescape the wide effect of the bursting projectiles.
Doris clasped her hands and waited, fully expecting that the hugefloating fabric would either burst into flame or drop, a crumpledmass of metal, upon the ground.
The Zeppelin lurched. Her bow part tilted sharply downwards. Hersearchlights were switched off. At the same time the Britishsearchlights threw their concentrated beams upon their quarry. Smokewas pouring from the hard-pressed airship, until her outlines werehidden by the pall of vapour.
Then, to an accompaniment of a perfect tornado of exploding bombs forthe airship had hurriedly thrown out her remaining supply ofmissiles, the Zeppelin shot vertically upwards with almost incrediblevelocity. Growing smaller and smaller to the sightseers, it graduallygrew more and more indistinct, until the searchlight men were unableto locate its position. The last seen of her was that she wastravelling slowly in a south-easterly direction.
"Hulloa! What the deuce have we got here?" inquired a deep, heartyvoice. "Car with a blaze of red lights, by Jove!"
Towards the Merc?d?s car strode a burly, great-coated figure in theuniform of a lieutenant in the R.N. Air Service. Following him wereseven or eight men from the crews of the motor batteries.
"You have here a car belonging to a couple of German spies," saidTressidar, advancing to meet the lieutenant.
"Nothing like being candid about the business," rejoined the latterdrily. "And who might you be?"
The sub. announced his name and rank.
"You have a lot to explain," said the Air Service officer. "Therehave been cases of Germans masquerading in British uniforms, youknow. You must consider yourself under arrest."
Tressidar raised no objection. It was useless to do so. He realisedthat, in the circumstances, the lieutenant was perfectly justified inwhat he did. He only wondered how Doris would take it.
Greatly to his surprise he heard the girl laugh merrily.
"Good evening, Mr. Waynsford," she exclaimed.
The young lieutenant, completely taken aback, did not immediatelyreply. Striding to the door of the car, he merely returned thecompliment and waited for Doris to continue.
"I can answer for Mr. Tressidar's loyalty," she continued. "You see,Mr. Waynsford, we are stranded on the hills. We had to abandon amotor-cycle and we found a motor-car. In fact, Mr. Tressidar capturedit. Now I think I'll let you continue the narrative, Ronald."
"By Jove!" ejaculated the lieutenant. "That was quite a 'cute move onthe part of the spies, Tressidar, and most smart on your part. Ibelieve we've winged that Zepp. Hulloa!"
A petty officer came up at the double. He was one of the men attachedto the portable wireless telegraphy car.
"The Zepp.'s reported flying low over Saltkirk, sir," he announced."She dropped one bomb on a cottage. Woman and four children blown tobits. The airship was last seen making slowly to the east'ard."
"Very good," commented Waynsford. "We can do no more. Can you pilotthe captured car into Auldhaig, Tressidar?"
"Don't think I'd better risk it," replied the sub. "I'm not used to aMerc?d?s. A British-built car is more my mark."
He had other reasons for declining to be his own prize-master. Itwould not be fair to Doris to let her risk her life in a strange carand on a rough, hilly road. On the other hand, he did not like theidea of letting Lieutenant Waynsford have the pleasure of the girl'scompany. Already he was a little jealous of the fellow, he decided.How did Doris get to make his acquaintance during her as yet briefstay at Auldhaig?
"All right, then," rejoined Waynsford. "I'll give you a lift in mycar, and get a couple of hands to run the Merc?d?s to Auldhaig.'Fraid you'll find rather cramped quarters," he added, as he heldopen the metal door in the armoured sides. "The shoulder-piece of thequick-firer is awfully in the way."
A moment later the cars were jolting and swaying at forty miles anhour along the road, barely slowing down as they tore through thecrowded streets of Auldhaig, for the Zepp. had brought men, women,and children from the houses, all eager to hear of the work done bythe anti-aircraft guns.
In this they were disappointed. The gunners, modest when it came torelating their own deeds, were not inclined to give particulars,especially as they were not definitely certain as to whether theZepp. was crippled.
Having escorted Doris to the gates of the hospital, Tressidar badeher a hasty farewell and hurried towards the harbour. He had alreadyoutstayed his leave, and although the extenuating circumstanceswarranted the breach of discipline, he was anxious to know what wasbeing done afloat. It was now close upon ten o'clock. At ten-thirtyhe was to go on duty in the guard-boat, which at Auldhaig was the"harbour service" torpedo-boat No. 445, an antiquated craft but quitegood enough for the work allotted to her.
Auldhaig Harbour was now comparatively empty. The armoured cruisershad left during the afternoon to rendezvous off the Isle of May; thedestroyers had gone to relieve the outer patrol in the Firth ofForth, and the "opposite numbers" had not yet returned to the base.The only vessels left were a couple of light cruisers undergoingrefit, four torpedo-boats, and a couple of large fleet auxiliaries.
By this time the steam pinnace had taken the sub. off to the hulk inwhich the ship's company of the ill-fated "Pompey" were quartered.Tressidar was only just able to snatch a hasty meal before thetorpedo-boat was ready to cast off.
Thanking his lucky stars that it was a fine night, although bitterlycold, Tressidar gained the deck of the waiting craft. As he did sothe officer of the watch came to the side of the hulk and leant over.
"Message just come through, Mr. Tressidar," he exclaimed. "Zeppelinreported down about fifteen miles south-east of Dunletter Head. Allavailable craft ordered to proceed and investigate. Good luck!"