“He was, sir. But I fear he was mortally wounded. Think he had a spatter of lead in his stomach—must have got it when they killed our co-pilot.”
Though Vernon’s voice was very weak Nancy saw that talking was less effort than it had been earlier.
“Can you give us an idea of the location of that island?” the major asked.
“Not too accurate, I fear,” Vernon admitted. “I’ve been through such horrible things since. I’d say it’s not more than a day’s journey by water from here.”
At this information Nancy’s heart leaped up once more with hope.
“You took that fatal flight, you know, long before we started cleaning up this area,” Major Reed reminded him.
“So the nurse was just telling me. I’ve sort of lost track of time.”
“Was it a large island?” asked Nancy.
“Big enough for a man to get lost in its jungles—entirely surrounded by reefs. No large boat could get in close to its shores.”
“Plenty like that in this region,” said Major Reed.