“That’s some gun crew,” the lieutenant exclaimed. “They just blew that torpedo out of the water.”
“Wonderful!” Sally exclaimed. “All the same, this can’t last. There are too many of those subs. I do wish the big bombers would come.”
As if in answer to her prayer, there came a great rumbling in the clouds that hung high over them in the evening sky and suddenly, as if it had seen all and had been sent to deliver them from the giant sub, a four-motored bomber came sweeping down. As Sally watched, breathless, she saw a dozen white spots emerge from the big bomber and come shooting down. It was strange. At first they seemed a child’s toy. Then they were like large arrows with no shafts, just heads and feathered ends. And then they were a line of bombs speeding toward their target. She watched, eyes wide, lips parted, as they hit the sea. The first one fell short, and the second, and third and then once more there was a roar.
“A direct hit!” the young lieutenant shouted. “That does it.”
When the smoke and spray had drifted away, Sally saw the giant sub standing on one end. Then, as the last rays of the setting sun gilded it with a sort of false glory, the sub slowly sank from sight.
“Oh!” Sally breathed. “How grand!” For all that there was a sinking feeling at the pit of her stomach. The men on that sub too were human, and some were very young.
They Watched Breathlessly as the Bomb Struck
Suddenly the sky was full of giant bombers and the air noisy with the shouts of thousands of voices welcoming the deliverers.
“Here,” Sally handed the blinker to Nancy, “take this. I’ve just thought of something that needs doing.” At that she sped away.