“Trying to kid me, eh?” jeered Peur Jarnais. “But I’m the original kid that can’t be kidded.”
Toward late afternoon, seeing that a storm was approaching, the two took counsel and decided that it might be better to retrace their steps.
“I prefer my shower baths taken in the regular way,” remarked Bobby. “By the looks of it, I should say the weather is going from bad to worse.”
“And we’ll have to move quickly if we expect to escape it,” commented the other.
During the entire trip George had many times felt twinges of anxiety in regard to his chum Don Hale, which he found quite impossible to cast aside. Acting as an escort over a hostile territory was a very dangerous thing for a new pilot to undertake. He could recall many men who had failed to return from such journeys, some of whom were probably languishing in a German detention camp.
Quite a number of the Lafayette Escadrille were at the villa when the boys arrived. But George Glenn found that he was unable to join in the general fun and jollity.
The storm was very severe indeed; and during its height George, unable to bear the suspense any longer, went to the telephone and called up the bureau on the aviation grounds.
“Hello! Is Don Hale there?” he asked.
A pang shot through him as the answer came back:
“No; neither he nor Albert returned with the rest of the escort.”