Dave Dawson at Truk

by Robert Sidney Bowen

"Well, look at it," Dave argued, and gestured with one hand. "That Nazi was all set as a fighter pilot aboard a Yank carrier. For him to jump ship, and not sail, would make him a marked man for sure. You don't miss your ship, and just walk into the Naval District commandant, and laugh it off. You catch plenty. And in his case, if he jumped ship he certainly wouldn't report to the Naval commandant. He'd make tracks in the opposite direction. And his place as a spy in our forces would be gone forever. No, I think he took the chance and sailed with her."

"There's one way we could find out," Freddy said. "Let's phone Vice-Admiral Carter. He can certainly find out in a minute if either of the carriers sailed with a fighter pilot missing. Or if one took a replacement aboard at the last minute."

"Hey, nix!" Dawson cried in alarm. "Call him and find out that a carrier did sail with one fighter pilot less? And that there was no sense for us to fly to Pearl? And get recalled to Dago to go on instructing Navy pilots? Are you nuts, Freddy? It may only be Pearl Harbor, but that's twenty-four hundred miles nearer the war than we are right now! Do you want to go back and...?"

"No, certainly not, Dave," young Farmer interrupted quietly. "But it doesn't happen to be a matter of where we want to go. It's what we can do to help. If that Nazi didn't sail, then perhaps the vice-admiral would want us to stick around to maybe identify a suspect that was picked up later. After all ..."

"Okay, okay, you win!" Dawson groaned. "We better put it up to the vice-admiral, and find out what he has to say about it. We can phone from the Administration Building over there. But if he didn't sail, and we hoof it back to Dago, just don't bother speaking to me for the next twenty years, will you?"

"And will you listen to the chap who just a couple of days ago was quite content to wait patiently for his next good break in this war!" Freddy Farmer jeered as he dropped into step.

"Yeah, but that was a couple of days ago!" Dave growled. "I'm just hoping that the chance hasn't come and gone on account of your bright little suggestion."

"Well, I still think we should call him," Freddy said doggedly. "And so do you, and you know it!"

"Oh, go walk a wing!" Dave mumbled. "Sure I do. And that's what burns me up!"

Forty-five minutes later Dawson and Freddy Farmer were back on the flying field, grinning from ear to ear, and walking over toward the Operations Office.