CHAPTER XV
SPOTTERS IN THE NIGHT
“That’s spooky,” Norma whispered. “Your grandfather doesn’t by anychance happen to be in Heaven?”
“Yes, he is.” Beth laughed. “His kind of Heaven. He’s over on BlackKnob.”
“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 caninvent some more,” Beth finished.
“Sounds wonderful!” said Norma. “But what about this thing?” Shepointed to the square of light where that expressive hand was openingand closing, pointing and writhing again.
Beth was writing down letters rapidly, so it was Bess who replied in awhisper:
“It’s a great secret. Only Beth, grandfather, and I know about it.Shall I tell her?” She turned to her sister. Beth nodded.
“Cross your heart and hope to die,” Bess whispered impressively. “Youwon’t tell a soul?”
“Not a soul—cross my heart and hope to die.”
“Well then—it’s television,” Bess confided. “Only there’s no sound.Words without sound. It’s a perfectly secret way of communication, aslong as no one knows about it.”
“But I don’t see—” The hand was still going through its weird motions.
“It’s very simple,” said Bess. “Grandfather has two moving picturecameras trained on his hand over there on Black Knob.”
“I guessed that much.”
“The rest is deaf and dumb alphabet, that’s all. A is a clenched fistwith the thumb turned in, and C—”
“How stupid I am!” Norma exclaimed. “I should have guessed it at once!”
“Oh, no!” Bess laughed. “Strange things always stick us. We want aweird explanation, when it is something just as simple as that.”
“It’s quite wonderful,” Norma exclaimed. “I shouldn’t wonder ifsomething tremendously important would come out of it.” She was notwrong in this prediction.
“Black Knob is an important point,” said Bess. “It’s so far off shore.”
“It must be,” was the quick reply. “Particularly for enemy submarines.I’m going to tell Lieutenant Warren about it.”
“But not about television,” Bess warned. “At least, not withoutgrandfather’s consent.”
“Not about television,” Norma agreed.
Once again the hand had vanished from the square of light. This timeBeth pushed the apparatus into a corner and threw a cloth over it.
“He reports once each hour until midnight,” she explained. “If anythingreally startling comes up, he gives us a buzz on a short-wave radio andwe turn on television for a special report.”
“After midnight?” Norma asked.
“Two elderly ladies take over until morning. They use short waveentirely. During the day fishermen who live there keep a sharp watch.”
“It’s not much of a setup for so important a spot,” Bess said. “One oldman, two women and some fishermen. But it’s all there is there inwinter.”
“It might be improved upon,” Norma agreed.
“Well,” said Bess, drawing on a heavy coat, “I’ll get out on thelistening platform. It’s all ears from now till morning.”
“Unless they show a light,” Norma suggested.
“No enemy would show a light,” was the reply.
As Bess left her comfortable place by the fire Norma noticed thatoutside the wind was picking up and snow beginning to fall.
“Not going to be a nice night,” was her comment.
“Winter’s almost gone,” was Beth’s reply. “We’ve had some really badnights, I can tell you.”
“What’s the payoff?” Norma asked without thinking.
“This is our country!” Beth drew herself up proudly. “No enemy planeshave ever got past us—I mean all of us—not just Bess and me. And theynever will! There are hundreds of watchers all along the coast.”
“And if you hadn’t been here they would have tried?” Norma suggested.
“Absolutely!”
“It’s grand work! We’re going to help you all we can.”
“That’s not all there is to it.” Beth leaned forward. “We saved twolives. Fighting men they were, too. They gave us the credit, just Bess,grandfather, and me. See?” She held out a medal that read FOR VALIANTSERVICE.
“That’s wonderful!” Norma exclaimed. “I hope I can do as much.”
“Oh! You will! And a lot more. You’re a WAC—you are really in the Army.I wish I could be a WAC.” There was intense longing in the youngergirl’s voice.
“Perhaps they’ll lower the age limit.”
“Here’s hoping!”
“Want to tell me about this rescue?” Norma asked.
“Oh! Sure! It wasn’t much,” was the modest reply. “Just our good luck,that’s all.
“It was grandfather who spotted the plane first, just before midnight.He gave us the radio buzz, then started talking fast with hishands—television, you know. This plane had just passed over Black Knob.There was a fog. He heard it, that’s all. It was going north slowly. Wethought—”
Beth stopped short. Bess thrust her head in at the door.
“One single, going south fast, about five miles off shore,” sheannounced. Instantly Beth was on the phone saving in a clearcut voice:
“One single going south, fast. About five miles off shore. Granite Headspeaking.”
She kept a head-set over one ear, but went on with her story.
“Bess reported that plane over Black Knob at once. The Army, Navy, andCivil Air Patrol had no such plane out that they knew of.
“That made it exciting, I can tell you. Might have been an enemy planescouting. And there were too many lights burning in Portland thatnight.”
“What happened?” Norma demanded eagerly.
“Grandfather kept hearing them and reporting for half an hour. Then afighter plane went out, but couldn’t find them in the fog.
“They came in quite close to Black Knob. Then the motor went off.Grandfather was outside. He was sure they went into the sea—thought heheard a splash. They—”
Bess broke off suddenly to press the head-set to her ear. She listenedintently for a moment, then murmured into her speaker:
“Okay.”
Stepping to the door she said to her sister:
“Just another Navy plane off its course. Pilot called for directionsand got them.”
“See? That’s the way it is.” she said to Norma.
“I see,” said Norma. “Disappointing?”
“Yes. Every time but one out of a hundred, or a thousand, I guess, andthen—”
“Tell the rest,” Norma urged.
“Oh, about those two fliers? That was exciting, I can tell you.Grandfather gave us the word that the plane was down.
“Then he got the fishermen out of bed. Three boats went out.Grandfather’s boat spotted them, just in time. Their plane sank tenminutes later.
“They were Army fliers—a trainer and a student. Umm! That student washandsome!”
“And he would have drowned if it hadn’t been for you spotters,” Normasaid.
“Absolutely.”
“That,” said Norma, “was wonderful!”
As she stepped out of the comfortable room into the night, Norma saw awhite-robed figure—Bess, covered with snow.
“Spotters,” she whispered as she went down the stairs. “Spotters in thenight.”
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