BORROWED GOODS
AGAIN did Jack pluck at the sleeve of his companion. Remembering his
recently given promise, however, he waited to have Tom say the first
word before breaking the silence.
"What is it?" asked Tom softly.
"Just made a discovery."
"Let's hear it."
"The old chateau is inhabited, all right," came Jack's assertion. "Tell
you how I know. If you take a peep from here, between these trees,
you'll notice that one wing is all lighted up."
"It certainly looks that way for a fact, Jack. The general must be
having company, I should say."
"Maybe other officers have come back here to consult with Von Berthold
about how to hold the Americans tight," chuckled Jack, as if according
to his way of thinking they would have all their trouble for their
pains, as there was nothing that the Hun army could attempt capable of
effecting that end.
"Just as like as not," his chum assented. "And as it's a serious
subject, they're staying late to-night."
"Good reason," chortled the other; "because in three more days old Von
will have to be vacating his comfy quarters here, and moving back in the
direction of Sedan. Pershing wants this ridge, and means to take it in
double-quick time, once we're out of the Argonne Forest. But do you
think the fact that there's company around will upset our plans, Tom?"
"I'd rather believe it will help us in one way," replied his chum.
"How?"
"In the first place, it's apt to keep the general busy, and we'll know
just where he is. That'll be worth something to us. Then again, we've
got to consider how these generals got over here from the fighting
front."
"Oh, they happen to have motor cars they can use," said Jack quickly.
Any shortage of gasoline doesn't stop German officers from speeding
across country, especially when on war business.
"Exactly," Tom said drily. "And it's some of their precious petrol that
we're wanting so badly right now, and to get which you're carrying that
little bucket."
At that the other chuckled as if highly amused.
"Well, what a gump I was not to think of that myself," he observed.
"Why of course we may find a chance to borrow a gallon or two from the
reservoir of their car, if only the soldier chauffeur happens to stray
away to get a cold snack in the kitchen of the general's headquarters,
or something like that. Tom, it's a peach of a scheme, and so simple!"
"All right, well go ahead then. And close up again, please, unless you
hit on another important discovery, when I give you leave to whisper it
in my ear."
The advance was resumed. The air service boys now started to climb quite
an incline, proving that the road which they had been following latterly
must pass close to the chateau.
Now and then they caught fresh glimpses of the building that stood out
in bold relief against the heavens. They also noted that the lights
still continued to shine in the right wing of the building. This must be
the uninjured part, Jack imagined, if indeed the chateau had been partly
wrecked by the Germans before the general took it as his headquarters.
In this fashion they gradually cut down the space separating them from
the object of their concern. Tom it was this time who made a discovery.
He came to a stop, and putting his head close to that of his chum
whispered in his ear:
"We're in great luck, Jack. I can make out two cars standing in the
road before the chateau. The general must be holding a regular council
of war up here, to settle some big matters."
"He'll settle them, all right, believe me," muttered Jack. "But it'll
have to be a scuttle policy. Those Huns are licked, yes, licked good and
hard. They're just beginning to know it, too. We're proving too much for
their backbone to stand. Well, two cars means we're going to have a
double chance to get our little bucket filled with the juice, Tom."
"Seems like it," was all the other allowed to pass his lips, as he once
more commenced to advance.
They kept to the side of the road. Here trees were growing, and while
the leaves were coming down fast after a frost, at the same time plenty
still remained capable of affording shade in the daytime and making
shadows at night.
Under the trees they could glide along without much danger of detection
in case a sentry had been posted in front of the chateau. Both boys
looked sharply again, striving to find out whether either of the
military cars had an occupant.
So far as they could see, this did not happen to be the case, although
cautious Tom would not wholly believe it until he had looked further.
Wearied by the long wait, the drivers might have gone to sleep inside
the closed cars.
Like a couple of creeping ghosts the air service boys now advanced. The
cars stood close together, facing the same way, which Jack considered a
lucky thing for their designs.
Tom pressed him back as if to bid him wait, pail in hand, while he took
upon himself the task of learning what they might expect. Making his way
to the nearest car he peeped in. To his satisfaction there was no
occupant. Repeating his action he ascertained that the second car also
was empty.
So he gave a low chirp. Jack recognized an old signal, often used
between them in days past. It meant he could come on without fear of
trouble. And Jack, eager, as he was, to secure some of the petrol, did
not linger a second longer than was absolutely necessary.
"Let's get busy, Jack," his chum told him, as he came up behind the
nearest car. "I'll keep watch, and you try your hand at cribbing some of
their gas juice."
While Jack did not claim to be an expert at the business of transferring
petrol from one tank to another, or into a gaping vessel, he believed he
would be able to manage. They must get what they needed, if not one way,
then through other means. Necessity knows no law, and their very lives,
certainly their liberty, was placed in peril by this impotence on the
part of their plane.
Jack kept mumbling softly to himself as he worked. He seemed at first to
meet with considerable difficulty, judging from the tone of his
muttering. In fact, Tom had even turned to offer his assistance when he
plainly caught the gurgle of running fluid and immediately sniffed the
air strongly impregnated with the odor of petrol.
That told the story. While Jack continued to grumble he was actually
acquitting himself with credit. So Tom chose not to interfere, but
allowed his comrade to finish the work.
Once he thought he heard a gruff voice from somewhere over the wall of
the chateau. He even feared they would be interrupted by the coming of
the chauffeurs, who may have received word from their masters that a
start was about to be made.
This, however, greatly to Tom's relief, proved to be a false alarm, for
no one appeared. But there was Jack muttering again.
"Got every drop of juice this tank holds, Tom, and still not as much as
I'd like to carry back. Shall I tackle the other car? I'd like to clean
both of 'em out while about it, even if I have to waste some. Might save
us heaps of trouble later on, if they were stalled here."
"Please yourself, but hurry above all things," Tom begged him.
"Just getting the hang of things now, and the second one will go a lot
better than the first," Jack assured him.
Finally the work was accomplished. Jack seemed proud of his ability to
purloin the badly needed stock of petrol. He chuckled as he turned to
Tom to announce that he was through.
"Oh, me! Oh, my! But won't there be a hopping mad crowd around here when
they find out that their gas tanks are both empty? By then I hope we'll
be merrily on our way to camp, able to snap our fingers at the raging
Boche, and with a little passenger aboard our plane. Back to the graves
for us it is, Tom. Time for all spooks to climb into their holes again
and disappear."
"Keep quiet, can't you, Jack!" whispered Tom. "You'll queer the whole
business yet if you don't watch out. Come on, and don't leave a trail of
gasoline to help them follow us."
The air service boys turned their backs on the chateau, but Jack hoped
it would be only a temporary absence for them. He was already beginning
to worry about something else, and of course could not keep his troubles
to himself very long. Consequently when they were about half way back he
again broke out.
"Just happened to think of a thing that's going to bother us some, I'm
afraid, Tom," he suggested.
"What now?" demanded the other.
"If we chuck this stuff into our gas tank, why, out she's bound to pour
through those two holes the bullet made, and that's a fact, Tom."
"Is that all?" asked the other indifferently. "I've got everything handy
to repair those holes in almost two shakes of a lamb's tail. You leave
it to me, Jack."
"You better believe I will, and mighty glad of the chance. Why, do you
know, just the idea scared me stiff. But I do remember now that you
always make it a point to carry along several wooden plugs and some wax
calculated to make an air-tight joint. With that outfit you can soon
have the tank plugged so it won't leak a drop. Bully for you, Tom!"
"I should have looked after that before we left the plane," admitted
Tom. "But the fact was I wanted to take a turn around first; and then
when we struck the road it sort of led us on and on. But it's all right,
Jack."