BIGGLES WORKS IT OUT

 

by Captain W. E. Johns

 

 

XIII.                         SMOKE IN THE SAHARA  (Pages 149 – 159)

 

Biggles and Ginger land at Insalah and are disappointed to learn that nothing has been seen of Algy or Bertie.  At noon, Marcel arrives, with news of the raid on the villa.  The results had been disappointing and the Count had not been there at the time.  Nothing incriminating had been found, nor anything to link the place to the Plaine de la Crau.  The van had been found at the villa but all it contained was bags of fertilizer, dirty black dust.  Joudrier will be coming to Insalah with many men in a big transport in order to capture El Asile.  Biggles says they should have some lunch.  “Eat when you can is a good plan on a job like this”.  The commandant at Insalah brings them news of a Douglas transport plane being down in the desert.  It had been seen by the pilot of a French airliner, although it looks like it has landed rather than crashed.  It was on a line from Ahagger to Insalah.  Biggles and Ginger fly off in their Mosquito with Marcel in his Morane.  The plan is for Marcel not to land, but to be able to witness if anything goes wrong and fetch help.  In due course, they find the Douglas on a flat area of sand in the desert.  Biggles lands, but neither Algy nor Bertie are with the machine.  Biggles searches the aircraft and notes the main tanks were holed by bullets.  Biggles tries to puzzle out where Algy and Bertie have gone but doesn’t understand why they didn’t at least leave a note.  Biggles decides to fly around and look for Algy and Bertie.  If he can’t find them, he will fly on to El Asile.  Firstly however, he gets Marcel to land, so he can be given a message to take back to Joudrier.  If Joudrier comes with his men and Biggles and Ginger are not here at the site of the Douglas in the desert, then Joudrier will find them at El Asile.  Marcel takes off and flies away.  “The more I see of Marcel, the more I like him,” remarked Biggles, as he turned to the Mosquito.  Ginger sees something in the distance and wonders if it is a cloud, but Biggles says it is smoke.  Smoke over the Ahagger.  “We’ll have a closer look at that presently.  Come on, we’re wasting daylight”.