NO REST FOR BIGGLES

by Captain W. E. Johns

XI. MOVE AND COUNTERMOVE (Pages 112 – 121)

“Biggles had taken it for granted that the wire ran all round the camp. It was a natural supposition. There had never been the slightest reason to think otherwise”. (Yes there had – if you look at the map at the beginning of the book there is a river that runs along the back of the prisoner compound and it has no rear wire fence so anyone in the compound would know – clearly that map is incorrect). Biggles sees ripples gleaming in the moonlight and a sudden turbulence in the water alerts him to crocodiles. “Christophe either as part of his defence system or to have an ample supply of water available, had backed his camp on a stream, or possibly the arm of a lake – it was impossible to see which. Anyway, it was quite narrow. Perhaps fifteen to twenty yards across. The barbed wire fence ran down into the water and there it ended. There was no need to continue it along the edge of the water because the crocodiles provided an even more efficacious barrier. That the crocodiles were there was in the natural order of things, for the creatures occur in all West African waters. Garbage thrown in from the camp would no doubt attract them in numbers to this particular spot”. It was now evident to Biggles he could do one of two things. Go back the way he came or cut the wire and walk along the back of the camp, skirting the river to the opposite side of the compound. The only difficulty with that was that Christophe’s men’s quarters were there. Biggles decides to cut his way into the camp. The soldiers had been called out to deal with the fire and the place was buzzing like a wasp’s nest. Biggles stumbles and nearly falls in a water-logged piece of ground but he makes his way safely across the camp and cuts his way out again. He then goes down the path to the main gate “having in his travels completely circumnavigated the camp”. At the gate, he hears voices raised in anger towards the guard who has lost his rifle. Christophe arrives and snatching a cane from his gold-braided lieutenant “he set about the miserable sentry in such a passion that Biggles, who rightly or wrongly, held himself responsible, found it hard to restrain himself from interference. But still, he consoled himself, the sentry had brought the trouble on his head by his slackness in the first place”. This distraction does allow Biggles to slip along the track unnoticed. “The rest was comparatively easy. Observing that Christophe’s plane was not where it had cracked up he paused for a minute to survey the airfield; but it was now the dark hour before sunrise. Reaching the spot where he left Bertie and Ginger, there is initially no sign of them. Bertie calls down to him from a tree. They are both up a tree to avoid the ants. Ginger has been able to have a good sleep before he was awoken by Bertie due to the ants. Bertie had thought Biggles got the hut as he saw the glow of the fire in the sky. Biggles asks about the aircraft which carried the secret weapon and Bertie tells him “A small army of blacks carried the machine, or pushed it on one wheel, to the hangar”. There hear the bellow of aircraft engines and realise that the aircraft being started up must be the Hastings that Tony bought the General in. “The big transport plane turned, and came on down the side of the forest towards the hangar”. The jeep arrives with Christophe and von Stalhein and they see the pilot, who must be Dessalines, getting down from the Hastings. Biggles realises that von Stalhein is going to be flown out. Biggles says “If von Stalhein leaves here it will only be because he’s got some scheme on. What makes me suspicious is his anxiety to go – assuming he is going. The Secret weapon is still here. He doesn’t leave a job in the middle, but obviously he can’t do anything single-handed”. “The pilot, a coloured man, had climbed back into his seat. Von Stalhein was standing at the door shaking hands with Christophe. He got in. The door was shut. The aircraft taxied out for its run. In three minutes it was in the air, climbing for height”. Biggles said softly “The business now hangs on how long the Hastings is going to be away. It might be an hour, it might be a day. We’d better not get too far away”. Biggles decides to split his team, telling Bertie he will need to go and meet with Algy, to stop him from “blundering into this, looking for us, if we’re not there to meet him”. “I’ll keep Ginger here with me because he’s got the radio. Let’s move off. We’ll settle the details presently”. In single file they set off through the forest.