Andy was astounded to hear a familiar voice from the black plane.
“What kind of a reception is this?” was the demand and he looked up into the face of Harry Curtis, radio operator of the Neptune, whom they had not expected until the following day at the earliest.
“Who is this fellow?” Lieutenant Crummit wanted to know.
Andy explained that Harry had been ordered to Bellevue to plan for the radio communication between the Goliath and Neptune during their Arctic trips and Lieutenant Crummit broke into a broad smile.
“At least we gave you a real army welcome,” he chuckled. “It’s lucky one of the other boys didn’t reach you first, though. This is restricted flying territory and he might not have sent his first burst of tracers alongside just as a warning.”
“I was scared to death,” confessed Harry, who had climbed down from the plane just in time to receive a hearty greeting from Bert. “Believe me I sure scrambled around trying to get a handkerchief out of my pants pocket.”
The civilian pilot of Harry’s plane came in for a severe reprimand from Lieutenant Crummit, who warned him not to repeat the offense again.
Dynamos for the searchlights were turned off, planes wheeled back into the hangars and Bellevue turned on its lights once more. They had had their first night alarm and the army men on the job had proved their ability to handle the emergency.
CHAPTER VII
Suspicions
Andy, Bert and Harry talked until far into the night, discussing the proposed meeting of the Goliath and the submarine Neptune at the North Pole.