Part 12 (1/2)

It was all too true Hitler's relentlessly advancing forces had s rubble, thus forcing the Belgian army to retreat to the south side of the Canal And now as Ger Panzer division were rushi+ng across pontoon bridges to strike ians, hundreds of Stuka dive bo death and destruction into the ranks of the eneht of it all made Dave's heart turn to ice in his chest

History, terrible History was being written down there by the Albert Canal, and his heart was on fire with an evenfor the cause of justice and civilization

But first he had another job to do, and he lifted his gaze and peered at the smoke and flame filled sky ahead Besides smoke and fla and darting around in all directions The air was practically filled with the froht up to the sun And insofar as he could tell at the distance not a single one of then They were all German

At that moment Freddy pounded on his shoulder for the third tiht and alarm

”More speed, Dave! Look behind us There's a plane, a Messerschht even try to shoot us down What'll we do, Dave?”

”What'll we do?” Dave echoed and glanced back at the sleek needle shaped plane with its lowThey et on the other side of the Canal, we'll be safe We'll go down and land”

But even as Dave spoke the words to give good cheer to Freddy his own heart was pounding with fear The other plane was drawing up on theht He could see now that it was a Messerschunner-observer in the rear pit shove back his bullet proof glass cockpit hatch and stand up and wave signals with both his aro down and land at once, but Dave pretended that he hadn't seen He raainst the already wide open throttle, as though if in so doing he et increased speed out of the plane

It was no esture, however In theside them Dave turned and looked across the air space that separated the two planes His heart zooainst his back teeth The Gernals to land, but not with his arun fixed to the swivelthat circled the riun at theround as he nodded his helh hypnotized The blood pounded in his temples, and his whole body was on fire one instant and icy cold the next There was death staring straight at him, and he could hardly force his brain to think He knew he couldn't just keep on flying He had to do so or the Ger inferno On the other hand, his fighting heart refused to surrender and go back and face the ugly wrath of that Colonel Stohl For this Messerschmitt had unquestionably been sent out after them at the Colonel's orders Who knew? Perhaps Colonel Stohl had been the German he had seen climb out of the observer's pit of this very Arado he was now trying to fly to safety behind the Belgian lines It would have been very easy for the German to phone the nearest air field and have a plane sent out after theues of flaun in the other plane The savage yaainst Dave's ears even as he saw the wavy trails of tracer smoke cut across in front of the nose of his plane The yaun snapped hi to the cowled nose of the Arado His heart seeuns On impulse he twisted his head around to Freddy's pit, but there, too, disappointment mocked him The plane was not armed! It was probably just a courier plane used far behind the lines on safe missions only

As he looked into Freddy's eyes he saw reflected there his own bitter thoughts They were co to ith theh they were in aerial co not to be able to put up soood try, Dave!” he heard Freddy call out ”But I guess it's no use, now The beggars have us on the spike for fair There's nothing we can do but go down and land, as they want us to”

As though the Gerlish youth's words, a second warning burst of shots rattled out to streak across in front of the Arado's nose Unconsciously Dave nodded his head, and reached out his hand to haul back the throttle His hand froze in round below and ahead What he saw made fierce, frenzied determination explode in his heart!

They were almost directly over the Albert Canal He could clearly see the Belgian troops digging in on the south side, wheeling guns into position, and throwing out rear guard action units Not a mile, not even a halfAton and Concord flaive in without a try He'd fool those Germans in the Messersch he ever did Let them try to shoot him down Just let them try! There were German planes all around, now And that fact alone was to his advantage The Messerschunner would have to take care not to hit one of his own

”Dave! He ot to turn back!”

He heard Freddy's voice as though it came frohtest bit of attention Didn't so much as shake his head His whole body was cold and numb with fear of what he was about to attereat overwhel determination of purpose

He whipped out his hand and eased back the throttle and let the nose drop At the sa to send the plane around and down in a gliding turn that would take them back east As the plane started to turn he shot a quick side glance at the Messerschmitt His heart was ready to explode with joy

The Geruessed its un and sank down on his seat

The instant Dave saw the Gerain and shoved the stick forward until the Arado was prop howling down in an almost vertical dive

”Hold fast!” he shouted at Freddy without turning his head ”They haven't got us yet, and they won't get us if I've got anything to say about it”

Bracing hi his mouth open so that his eardrums would not snap and perhaps break, he held himself hunched forward over the controls, and fixed both eyes on the flaround below The smoke and flames seemed to leap up toward hiht flash glih the air at terrific speed Then from up in back of hiuns

He didn't bother to look back to see if the Messerschmitt was on his tail That would be but a waste of effort Instead he ja crazily off to the side The guns above him continued to ha past his ears He could hear only the thunderous roar of his own BMW engine

Then suddenly the Prince Albert Canal flashed by under his nose and was gone froian troops! However, it was sier zone into another He cos Naturally, when the Belgian soldiers saw the Swastika painted plane streaking down at the they had