The table seemed to sway. Sandy raised his arms again, wondering if he would have the strength for another blow. He was thoroughly sick, now—nauseated by that sickening, grease-laden smoke. The effort of his first mighty stroke had all but sapped his strength. Yet, he could not falter now! He had to do it! One more stroke would slice through the remaining wood. Calling upon all his reserves, Sandy Steele rocked backward on his heels, rose on his toes and brought the ax down upon the wood.
It was a blow that rang out even above the roar of the flames! Even the weary men gathered in the passageway could hear it.
And it severed the table from the thick bolt that had held it to the bulkhead.
Sandy Steele jumped back just in time.
With a loud crash and a flashing of sparks and a shooting of flames, the table fell toward him.
The momentum of Sandy’s jump sent him staggering backward, off balance. That was how he emerged from the cloud of smoke that separated the excited, yelling crewmen from the fire inside the galley.
Behind Sandy, running low and gasping, but still clutching his fire extinguisher, came Jerry James.
If someone had not caught Sandy, he would have gone sprawling. As it was, he was having difficulty keeping his legs under him. They seemed to have gone all rubbery from his ordeal. But he clenched his teeth and stayed erect, watching as the crewmen began to drag the blazing table from the galley into the direct play of massed hoses and extinguishers. It sizzled and smoked and sent off clouds of steam as though it were a small volcano, but the fire was at last put out.
Then, one by one, all of the other burning articles within the galley were separated from the main body of the fire and doused. The hoses sent streams of lake water splashing against the now-smoldering and smoking bulkheads. The bucket brigade was disbanded, for it was no longer needed.
And then, as Sandy Steele felt the youthful vigor of his body swiftly returning, his eyes fell on an object that he dearly wished to preserve for the eyes of Captain West.