Roy J. Snell

“ Norma told how she had rented a hotel room and had put up all her pictures. In her eagerness and excitement she came very nearly going right on, telling of her mysterious and startling experience following Lena and being trapped in a repair shop at night. Just in time she caught herself.
“These things are important,” the Lieutenant replied in a quiet tone. “Don’t let those feelings escape you. When you realize to the full what home and loved ones mean to you and when you contrast America and France as it is today, it makes you want to fight!” ”

“ Betty stared.
“I thought they might be spies.”
“Spies? Nonsense! But then—” Betty paused for thought. “I did see Lena down by the gate once. She was talking to that Spanish hairdresser and a strange man, who said, ‘Du must!’ There have been whisperings about that hairdresser. Three days before we left the Fort she disappeared.”
“Betty!” Norma exclaimed softly. “You’re no help at all. You just make matters worse.”
“How? What do you mean?”
“I was hoping you’d rid me of my spy complex—just laugh it off, and here you are, taking the thing seriously. What’s more, I haven’t told you a thing yet.” ”

“ Norma said when at last they were back at Indian Point, headed for Harbor Bells and a good dinner, “I never dreamed you could fly a plane.”
“Fly a plane,” Rosa threw back her plump shoulders and laughed. “My father is a flier; he is also a guide. In summer he takes hunting and fishing parties deep into the wilds of Canada. Ah! That is the life, to come dropping from the skies like a wild duck and to light on a perfect spot of blue water where almost no one has ever been. ”

“ Yet she could not hate Lena for that. It is not easy to hate any person who in the past twenty-four hours has saved your life. Lena, she was sure, had done just that. Neither she nor Betty could have brought the boat safely home through that storm.
And yet, when she had seen Lena in the big living room the night before, after dinner, and had tried to thank her, Lena had shrugged, mumbling something about, “All in a day’s work,” and “Handled a boat before,” then had walked away.
“You’d think she was a man,” Norma had said to Betty later. “That’s the way men talk.” ”

“ Norma told her. In a dramatic manner she described the entire battle.
“That’s bad!” the Lieutenant exclaimed. “So they cut the wires to the spotter’s shed!”
“They must have.”
“The war comes closer to us every day. I must put Mr. Sperry, the FBI agent, on the tracks of these people at once—”
“But Lena?” The words slipped out unbidden.
“Lena must look out for herself.” Rita Warren’s words were spoken in tones cold as ice. “We are in a war. If Lena has been associating with spies, if she’s been doing wrong things she must suffer for them.” ”

“ Lieutenant Warren agreed.
As they parted for the night, the clock on the mantel struck slowly twelve times.
“Midnight,” Norma whispered, slipping out on the porch.
The stars were shining bright. The moon was just rising back of Black Knob. All the planes had gone home. The night seemed very still.
Had she been able to look in at windows at Black Knob, as the good Gremlins do, she might have seen the grandfather and child fast asleep while on the spotter tower a gray-haired woman walked slowly back and forth. ”

“ It was he whom she had seen at the gate of Harbor Bells, he who had growled at her because she threw her light upon him.
“Good grief!” she whispered to Betty. “I hope he doesn’t recognize me!”
“Recognize you?” Betty murmured in surprise.
“Shish!” Norma warned. She had never told Betty of that other encounter.
In her hand she held the films she wished developed. “Will you do these for me?” she asked.
“Amateur work!” he exclaimed. “Bah! What do amateurs know about pictures, especially young women? No! I cannot waste my time and money.” ”

“ In twenty-five open booths twenty-five interviewers sat smilingly asking questions in low tones of twenty-five new recruits, and carefully writing down the answers. In her row as she sat waiting her turn Norma saw Lena, the tall, strong girl who whispered strangely in the night, Rosa, who had flashed a light, Betty, Millie, and a few others. ”

“ Norma asked half jokingly.
“Well, now, you never can tell.” Tom did not laugh. “There seems to be a difference of opinion. Some think America may be invaded, at least by the air.”
“And others think it won’t,” said Norma.
“That’s right,” Tom agreed. “Me? I’m keeping my fingers crossed.”
“Oh, Tom!” Rosa broke in. “Take us to the fort. I’d just love to see it.”
“You’re on your way right now,” Tom assured her. “At least you’ll see the target practice at a distance. And that’s really something! But the fort, that’s different. Too many secrets in there. It takes a terrific pull to get in.” ”

“ Get in there, girl, and fight! Perhaps you’ll not be carrying a gun, but you’ll be taking a fighting man’s place. And I’m sure you’ll help show those fine boys how a girl can live like a soldier and die like one, if need be.”
“I’ll be back,” she had whispered, “when the war is won.”
That night Lena may have whispered in her sleep. She may even have gone out to talk with her hairdresser. If so, Norma knew nothing of it. She was too weary for that. She retired early. She did, however, remain awake long enough to twice catch the gleam of light from Rosa’s cot. ”

“ Rosa, who was right at his heels, called in a low, eager voice: “Tom, take me with you!”
“What, a lady? It can’t be done!”
“I’m a soldier. I’ll handle the spotlight.”
“And the machine gun, too, I suppose,” he grumbled.
“Yes, and that, too. Tom, please take me,” she pleaded.
When the Seagull rose from the dark sea, Rosa rode in the second seat. Tom had extracted from her a promise of absolute secrecy, that was all.
There was reason enough why Norma’s report of the plane and the sub had not come in. The phone at the Granite Head spotter shed was dead. Beyond a doubt the wires had been cut. ”

“ The examiner rose. Norma too stood. “We all have one great purpose. Each of us must do what she can wherever she is.”
“To bring this terrible war to an end,” Norma added.
“You’re right again,” the other smiled.
“Whew!” she exclaimed after looking Norma over from head to toe. “You certainly do look fit.”
“I should,” Norma grinned. “Our college has put us through some training, I can tell you. We marched five miles bare-legged in shorts, with the snow blowing across the field!” ”

“ Norma whispered. “Your grandfather doesn’t by any chance happen to be in Heaven?”
“Yes, he is.” Beth laughed. “His kind of Heaven. He’s over on Black Knob.”
“Black Knob? What’s that?”
“It’s an island ten miles off shore. Grandfather calls it his retreat. He’s a writer on technical subjects, and an inventor.”
“He has plenty of money,” put in Bess, “so he just writes and invents.”
“And by and by someone gives him money for an invention so he can invent some more,” Beth finished. ”

“ Norma protested. “I’m eager to start doing some real work.”
“Yes, and you’re just the one who is most likely to be kept here to enter officers’ training.” There was admiration in Betty’s voice, and a suggestion of envy. “Lucky girl, to have such a grand Dad.”
Then Norma made a strange remark. “I’m not sure that I want to be an officer—at least, not yet.”
“Don’t be silly!” Betty exploded. “Who wouldn’t like to be an officer? When you arrive at your Army camp you’re right up there with the rest of the officers.” ”

“ An officer goes with each group. So now you see how it is.” She smiled. “What do you say?”
“I—I’ll try it.” Norma agreed.
She undertook the task with fear and trembling. It was not so much that she distrusted her own ability. She had been well trained. But how would the other girls take it?
“Some of them are thirty years old. One is a grandmother,” she said to Betty, as she broke the news. “And I am barely old enough to vote.”
“It’s not age that counts,” Betty replied in a tone that carried conviction. “It’s ability and experience. Go in there, old pal, and win. This is war. ”

“ Climb in, you know. Touch something here, another there, and away they go. Children often do that with a car.”
“But Rosa’s not a child!”
“We’ll keep an eye on her,” Betty said after a moment’s thought. “We’ve got a real job to do. We can’t have things going wrong. But Lena,” she suggested. “She never did anything as bad as that, did she?”
“Perhaps yes, and perhaps no. Let me tell you. Then you be the judge.” Norma leaned close. “I followed Lena and the Spanish hairdresser into a place as dark as a stack of black cats.” ”

“ Norma exclaimed in a low, tense voice. “He’s a pig and in spite of the fact that he flatters me, I hate him. But Lena and Rosa—that’s different.” Her voice dropped. “Rosa’s been a good sport and a regular pal. And Lena—well, she practically saved our lives in that storm.”
“You forget that she was, at the same time, saving her own life.”
“Yes—oh—yes, of course, but, Lieutenant Warren!” Norma’s voice rose. “There is still more to be told about Carl Langer!”
“Let’s hear it!”
“He keeps black pigeons. They roost on his studio roof. And today,” she caught her breath. ”

“ Norma replied in a low voice. “But with me it would be a step up too soon.”
“We are in a war. A step up or down does not matter. All that matters is that we should be prepared for that step. You are well prepared. You won’t refuse?”
“I won’t refuse,” the girl answered solemnly.
“Lieutenant,” Norma said in a low tone a moment later, “when I had my interview they asked me what I’d do if I suspected someone of being a spy. Why did they ask me that?”
“The psychologist was taking your measure. That was a problem question. The answer would give her a slant on your general character.” ”

“ Spies were being landed all along the coast from subs.
“I heard,” said a fisherman, “that one of them lady soldiers, a WAAC do they call them, was beat to death on the road from Granite Head.” As Norma listened in on this bit of conversation, she smiled. She, beyond doubt, was that “lady soldier.” It all went to show how stories grew as they traveled.
“Or does it?” she asked with a start. “Perhaps someone is starting these wild tales to frighten us. If that’s it,” she squared her shoulders, “they’ve got a long way to go.” ”

“ Norma exclaimed. “My chum, Betty, and I piloted the boat. It’s neither fast nor large. We don’t know much about boats so we wouldn’t like to get caught in a storm.”
“Oh, we’ll get back before they are through talking,” was the quick reply. “We’ll hurry. You just must see Black Head, Gray Head, and Bald Head.”
“Oh, We’ll Get Back Before They Are Through Talking.”
“Who are they? People?”
“No, they’re huge rocks that slant away into the sea. When there’s a bad storm it’s just terrible to see the way the waves come roaring in. ”

“ But Norma stole a look at Lena’s face.
Then, as if afraid she might leave a picture too terrible for all these young minds, Lieutenant Warren went back to the days before the defeat of France. She painted pictures of friendly villages in France. The grocer, the baker, the aged shoemaker, and all the little farmers—they were all there.
“These,” she went on quietly, “are the people we are fighting for—the good, kindly, simple common people. In France, Belgium, the Netherlands, in Poland—all over Europe they are starving slaves today. ”

“ Betty was more puzzled than ever.
“That is a big sub. These large subs carry small seaplanes that can be catapulted from their deck. If their plane was out landing spies on our shores or spying out the land itself, they may have had a beacon out to guide it back.”
“That,” Betty laughed, “is good enough for a night cap. I’m going to retire. Goodnight!” She was gone.
When, at dawn, Lena and Joe Tratt arrived at the harbor the big girl appeared ready to drop. And yet, as soon as the plane was safely grounded on the sandy beach, she hired a fisherman to take her ashore. ”

“ It was Betty who spoke.
“Then you will not be very beautiful in these pictures.” He laughed again.
“They are for identification cards.” Norma said—a suggestion of irritation creeping into her voice. “Beauty doesn’t count. They must look like us, that’s all. They are to keep spies from pretending they belong to our group.”
“Spies? Ah! Is that so!” he said seriously. “Then they shall be very real indeed, these pictures.”
He began his work at once. Since she did not particularly like the man and wished to get her part over with, Norma posed first. ”

“ Always a lover of horses, she tried to picture the parade ground in those old days when a thousand, perhaps two thousand men, all mounted on glorious cavalry horses, came riding down that stretch of green. ”

“ Tom said, when their jeep drew up to the fisherman’s dock, off which the Seagull lay at anchor, “the plane is yours, if you can fly her.”
“You don’t mean that!” Norma said in a low tone, as Tom bent over to untie his skiff.
“Sure I do!” he replied promptly. “Give everyone a chance to show what he can do, that’s my motto. Climb in. The back seat is wide enough for you and me. We’ll have Rosa for our sky pilot.”
Norma hung back. “Come on,” he urged. “I’ll guarantee that no harm will come of it.”
Ten minutes later Norma found herself beside Tom in the rear seat. ”