Part 17 (2/2)

Biggles and Ginger went with him to the garage and sat with him on the front seat. Without speaking, but with a slightly dazed expression on his face, he drove to the Rue Mariniere. Two soldiers were standing at the end of the street, smoking. They straightened themselves and saluted the officers as the ambulance went past without stopping. A Monegasque policeman was sitting in a chair at the door of number six. He stood up.

'Tel him,' said Biggles to Mario, 'that we have orders to arrest the occupants of this house.'

The gendarme gendarme did not question this. Possibly he expected it. After al , the Italians had taken charge of the princ.i.p.ality. In fact, he looked relieved that responsibility was being taken off his shoulders. did not question this. Possibly he expected it. After al , the Italians had taken charge of the princ.i.p.ality. In fact, he looked relieved that responsibility was being taken off his shoulders.

Ginger knocked at the door. It was opened by Madame Ducoste. Ginger went in, fol owed by Biggles. As soon as they were inside he closed the door. Madame Ducoste clutched at her throat and uttered a little cry when, looking at Ginger's face, she suddenly recognized him.

'Where is Jeanette?' asked Ginger tersely.

'She is upstairs.'

'Fetch her, please. Time is short.'

Madame ran up the stairs and returned with Jeanette, looking not a little startled. Her eyes were red as though with weeping.

'Now listen careful y, madame madame,' went on Ginger.

'Al is wel . Don't be alarmed.'

'But we are in great trouble, monsieur monsieur,' broke in madame madame.

'Yes, we know al about it-that's why we are here.

Henri is safe. We have him with us in the mountains.'

'Thank G.o.d.'

'He is hurt, but not seriously. If he gives himself up he wil be shot. If he does not give himself up, you wil be shot. There is only one way of escape. Come with us and we wil take you to him. Afterwards we shal al go to England. But this you must understand. If you decide to come with us you must be prepared to abandon everything. We have no time for baggage.

Now, madame madame, the choice is yours. Shal Henri give himself up? Wil you submit to arrest, or wil you throw in your lot with us-and Henri?'

Jeanette's eyes were on her mother's face. 'Let us go,' she breathed. 'It is the only way.'

'We wil go with you, monsieur monsieur,' decided madame madame. 'I must be with my boy. If we are to die, then we wil die together.'

'Bravely spoken, madame madame,' put in Biggles. 'That is what we hoped you would say. Are you ready?'

'We are in your hands, under G.o.d, monsieur monsieur.'

'We are in your hands, under G.o.d, monsieur monsieur.'

Ginger opened the door. To his alarm a little crowd had col ected, but its sympathy, as was to be expected, was with the two women-their own folk.

'Say nothing, madame madame. Look as though you are resigned to being arrested,' said Biggles quietly as he opened the rear of the ambulance and helped them in.

There was some hissing and hooting. A stone was thrown.

Ginger got in with the two prisoners. Biggles slammed the door and went round to the front, to Mario, who sat like a graven image on his seat.

'Drive on, Mario,' ordered Biggles as he got in.

To a chorus of shouts and curses the car went down the narrow street with Mario sounding his horn to clear a path through the swiftly growing crowd before the anger of which the two Italian soldiers were beating a hasty retreat. For a moment or two it looked as though there was going to be a riot, which was something Biggles had not foreseen, and which was the last thing he wanted. However, the car got clear of the street and Mario sped on down the long ramp that leads to the Condamine. Straight through the Boulevard Albert behind the harbour he drove, and up the incline to Monte Carlo.

'Stop at the place where you dropped us this morning,' ordered Biggles. 'We have someone to pick up.'

A few seconds later the corner came into sight.

Bertie was waiting, making music to an admiring gathering of urchins.

'Get in the back,' cal ed Biggles.

Without a word Bertie got in. The door slammed.

The car went on.

After that, on the whole, progress was good, although there was one nasty moment in a traffic hold-up, when Biggles saw a Monegasque gendarme gendarme regarding the vehicle curiously. Mario noticed it, too. Instead of waiting, he turned out of the queue and took a turning to the right, to the lower road, at the end of which a left turn brought him back to the main thoroughfare. There was stil a certain amount of traffic coming from Italy, but it had thinned out considerably and Mario was able to maintain a good speed. regarding the vehicle curiously. Mario noticed it, too. Instead of waiting, he turned out of the queue and took a turning to the right, to the lower road, at the end of which a left turn brought him back to the main thoroughfare. There was stil a certain amount of traffic coming from Italy, but it had thinned out considerably and Mario was able to maintain a good speed.

On reaching Mentone there was another hold-up at the Sospel turning. The road, a sentry insisted, was closed. This came as no surprise. But as there was no other road within miles of Castil on, Mario had to take a chance. He did it wel .

'Fool!' he shouted. 'Can't you see that this is an ambulance? There has been trouble. We have orders to fetch a wounded man.'

The sentry apologized and waved them on.

On the long pul up the mountain road Biggles had a serious talk with Mario. He realized that the restaurant owner's only real interest in the affair was his attachment to the princess and his secret society. He probably hated fascism, anyway, on the principle that most Sicilians hate any form of government which must inevitably exercise restraint -as against complete freedom of action. Hence the numerous secret societies which exist on the island.

Biggles apologized for having got Mario involved in his affairs, pointing out frankly that he feared this latest escapade would make it difficult for him to return to Monaco.

Mario stated with equal frankness that he was quite sure of it. It would be known that his ambulance had been used for the rescue. The police in Monaco, to say nothing of half the people, had seen him. He had also been observed by the gendarme gendarme at the traffic hold-up. at the traffic hold-up.

'If you go back to Monaco you wil be arrested,'

predicted Biggles.

Mario answered-somewhat surprisingly, Biggles thought-that he had no intention of going back to Monaco. It was not outside the bounds of possibility that the secret police would discover that he had kil ed Zabani. He had always been suspected of being a Camorrista, and the paper on the dagger would tel them that the crime was an act of vengeance by the Camorra. In any case, he said, the little business he had spent years working up had been ruined by the war. 'How,' he asked plaintively, taking his hands off the wheel to lend expression to his words, 'How can a man run a restaurant when there is nothing to cook?'

Biggles admitted that as a problem the question did present difficulties.

'What does it matter?' rejoined Mario, with true Latin philosophy. 'I would rather serve the princess. If she wil have me, I wil stay with her and go where she goes. It may be that there wil be some more traitors to kil ,' he added hopeful y.

traitors to kil ,' he added hopeful y.

This decision simplified Biggles' immediate problem. 'We hope the princess wil go to England with us,' he announced. 'Would you fol ow her there?'

Mario drew a deep breath. 'Yes, I would fol ow her even to England. For her I wil suffer the rain and the fog,' he announced in a tone of voice which left Biggles in no doubt as to his opinion of the English climate.

'To-night we shal try to escape in an aeroplane,'

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