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DAVE DAWSON AT CASABLANCA
BOOKS BY R. SIDNEY BOWEN
DAVE DAWSON AT DUNKIRK
DAVE DAWSON WITH THE R. A. F.
DAVE DAWSON IN LIBYA
DAVE DAWSON ON CONVOY PATROL
DAVE DAWSON AT SINGAPORE
DAVE DAWSON WITH THE PACIFIC FLEET
DAVE DAWSON WITH THE AIR CORPS
DAVE DAWSON ON THE RUSSIAN FRONT
DAVE DAWSON FLIGHT LIEUTENANT
DAVE DAWSON WITH THE COMMANDOS
DAVE DAWSON WITH THE FLYING TIGERS
DAVE DAWSON ON GUADALCANAL
DAVE DAWSON AT CASABLANCA
_by_ R. SIDNEY BOWEN
THE WAR ADVENTURE SERIES
CROWN PUBLISHERS NEW YORK
COPYRIGHT, 1943, BY CROWN PUBLISHERS PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
FOR DICK BOWEN
CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE
I CANCELED ORDERS 13
II ACES DON'T MISS 22
III FLIGHT TO NOWHERE 36
IV ACTION BOUND 47
V INSTRUCTIONS FOR EAGLES 59
VI BLIND EYES 71
VII DISCOVERED? 83
VIII EAGLE'S EYES 95
IX FATE IS FICKLE 103
X STEEL SHARKS 115
XI GIVE AND TAKE 128
XII HELPLESS HEROES 141
XIII HAYWIRE NERVES 155
XIV DEVIL EYES 167
XV MISSING IN ACTION 181
XVI LUCK OF THE DOOMED 190
XVII SATAN LAUGHS 200
XVIII DEAD WINGS 213
XIX FLIGHT'S END 229
CHAPTER ONE
_Canceled Orders_
Stretching out as comfortably as the gear-packed bomb compartment of theFlying Fortress would permit, Dave Dawson lazily unwrapped a bar ofsemi-sweet chocolate, and bit off a man-sized hunk.
"Ub glub dish blub ice," he grunted, and winked at Freddy Farmer, whowas sitting on a packing case of spare parts a few feet from him."Deferenally jice!"
The English-born air ace gave him a cold stare and a scowl.
"Don't talk with your mouth full, little boy!" he said. "In fact, don'ttalk at all."
"And that from a guy I've often seen eat peas off a knife," Dawsonchuckled after he had swallowed. "But, as I was saying, this is my ideaof something nice. Definitely nice."
"You think so?" Freddy snorted, and glanced out the port at the broadexpanse of sun-flooded Indian Ocean beneath the wings of the B-17."What's nice about it, I'd like to know? Nothing but water down there.And more water!"
"So what are you kicking about, Pal?" Dave shot at him. "You're onlyseeing the top of it, you know. But I meant it's nice to be airchauffeured around once in a while. Just sit back and relax and enjoyyourself, while some other guy does all the work."
"I always suspected that you were born lazy," Freddy said. "And everyday in every way I'm becoming more and more convinced. I wouldn't relaxtoo much, old thing, if I were you. In case you don't remember, there isstill a world war going on. And particularly in this part of the world.Just over there a couple of hundred miles or so are some islands calledthe Dutch East Indies. Right now a mess of slant-eyed devils are incontrol. And they have quite a few airplanes, too, for another thing."
"Meaning?" Dawson grunted and frowned.
"Meaning that we're expected to do something in return for this hitchhike hop from India to Australia," the English youth explained. "Inother words, we are expected, like everybody else aboard, to keep aneye out for possible approaching enemy planes."
"Do tell, do tell!" Dawson murmured, and pushed himself up to a halfsitting position.
Turning his head slightly, he took a long look out the port nearest him.Then presently he shook his head, relaxed and slumped back to hisoriginal position.
"Nope," he grinned at Freddy. "No enemy planes approaching, sir. Nowwhat?"
Freddy made sounds in his throat and stabbed a finger at the bomb baydoors.
"You could step down through there, and neglect to take your parachutealong!" he snapped. "You know something, Dave? I'm just a little worriedabout you."
"Good!" Dawson chuckled, and bit off another hunk of chocolate."Worrying about me will keep you out of trouble, and that will be fine.But, seriously, what's on your mind, my good fellow? You do have a mind,don't you?"
"I have a _mind_ to toss you overboard, and not even mention it to theothers!" Freddy came right back. "But seriously speaking, too, I reallyam worried about you. You've lost your pep and you're going stale.And--"
"Hey, what gives?" Dawson cried, and sat up straight. "Just stick a JapZero out there, sweetheart, and I'll show you who's going stale. Wheredo you get that stuff, anyway?"
"Oh, I don't mean that," Freddy said with a faint gesture. "I imagineyou could shoot down a Zero--if the pilot would keep it still longenough. No, I mean about your pep, your--well, your disinterest, Dave.Once you used to be all keyed up about what was going to happen next.But now...? Well, you just seem to slide along from day to day. Sort oftake things as they come."
"So?" Dawson mumbled, and munched on his chocolate.
"See what I mean?" Freddy cried angrily. "No interest at all in what'sgoing to happen next. Take this flight we're making right now. A coupleof weeks ago we were pulled out of China to India. And now we're on ourway to Australia. And, from there to where, or what? You haven't said aword about that. Yet once you used to comb your brain for the answers.Nowadays, though, you don't appear to give such things so much as athought. Are you getting war weary, Dave, or just naturally slipping."
Dawson didn't say anything for a while. He finished his chocolate andlicked his fingers in frowning silence.
"Well, I'll tell you, pal," he finally spoke. "Maybe it's because I'mgetting old. And so are you, only you won't admit it. Yet maybe that'snot right, either. I think it's because I'm all washed up with guessing,and never guessing right. I mean about jobs for us to do. Think backover our war experiences, Freddy. Think back and just name one time whenwe got orders to report some place that we knew why, and what it was allabout. Go ahead. Think hard, and try and come up with one example. Justtry, brother; just try!"
Freddy Farmer concentrated hard for a moment or two, and then finallyshook his head.
"No, I'm afraid I can't think of a single time," he said. "But--"
"Nuts to the buts!" Dawson snapped. "That's the idea, see? Here today,and
some place else tomorrow. And nobody ever tells us. So why get allsteamed up wondering and guessing? I'm just tired of doing it, see? So Iskip the wondering and guessing, nowadays."
Freddy Farmer stared at him and then grunted and dragged down one cornerof his mouth.
"And if you'll pardon the Yank expression, my dear sir," he said, "youare what is known as a cockeyed liar. And you know it! You mean to tellme you're not wondering _why_ we've been ordered to Australia? Don't becoy, old thing! You're just trying to put off an act!"
"It's put _on_ an act, dummy!" Dave growled at him. "Okay, I havewondered a little. So what? At least I'm not filling the breeze with alot of questions out loud. I'll just take what comes, and let it go atthat. Only I hope it's some action. And I do mean real action!"
"And I've a fancy that's just what you're going to get!" theEnglish-born air ace spoke up. "I was talking with a chap in Calcutta,just before we left. He has a friend attached to Far East H.Q., and hehinted that the Japs have assembled a thundering big naval and air forcein the Southeastern Pacific. And an all out attack is to be made onAustralia 'most any day now."
"Nuts!" Dawson snorted. "After all these years, and you fall for thatkind of rumor stuff. You should know better, Freddy!"
"Oh, you think so?" the English youth flared up. "I suppose you've gotthe real inside information straight from General MacArthur?"
"No," Dawson replied with a straight face. "But I met a chap inCalcutta, too. A Yank infantry lieutenant. He has a girl who goes aroundwith a fellow who has an uncle who had dinner in Washington with theclose friend of a Senator. And what do you think that Senator said hadbeen decided?"
Freddy Farmer hesitated, but couldn't stop himself.
"What did he say?" he asked.
"That the U.S. has made a deal with Japan about the Pacific!" Dave cameback instantly. "We're going to take half, and the Japs are going totake half. We're--Hey! What's wrong, Freddy?"
The last was because the English youth had suddenly wrapped his armsabout his middle, and was swaying back and forth with an expression ofagonizing pain on his face. He suddenly stopped and gave a sad shake ofhis head.
"You!" he groaned. "Good grief! Why did it have to be you, my very bestfriend? And I swore by all that's holy that I'd do it, too!"
"Say, what is this?" Dawson demanded, and leaned forward. "What inthunder are you raving about, anyway? Swore you'd do what?"
"Swore I'd shoot the very next blighter who pulled that old, old oneabout the U.S. taking the top half of the Pacific, and the Japs thebottom half!" Freddy groaned. "So be a good chap, and hand me your gun,will you?"
"I'll hand you more than a gun!" Dave growled. "You bum! You had thepants scared off me there for a moment. I--"
Dave cut off the rest short as Captain Banks, of the Army Air TransportCommand, and pilot of the Flying Fortress, came through the door from upforward. He held a slip of paper in his hand, and he gave Dawson andFarmer a quizzical look.
"Big shots I've got aboard, huh?" he said with a grin. "Maybe personalfriends of MacArthur?"
"Not that I know of, anyway, Skipper," Dave replied with a grin. "Why?Is that thing in your hand news for us? If it's bad news, then we bailedout about ten minutes ago."
"Good or bad, I wouldn't know," the Flying Fortress' commander said witha shrug. "It's a radio from MacArthur's Headquarters. We're to land atBroome. There you two are to grab a plane and hike straight over to H.Q.in Sydney, and report."
"But I thought you were taking us to Darwin?" Freddy Farmer spoke up.
"We were, but orders are canceled," Banks replied. "The big boys seem towant you two to get to H.Q. in a hurry. You wouldn't have any idea, Isuppose, huh? Us Air Transport slaves don't get very close to thefighting very often. Kind of a lonely life, if you get what I mean?Take this ferry hop, for example. We're armed, of course, and there areJap air bases within range to give us some action. But will we run intoanything like that? No such luck. So we bear up the best we can, andmake a hobby of collecting gossip. So if you two know any--"
And that's as far as the Flying Fortress commander got. At that momentthere came the bank and snap of the aft turret guns. And a split secondlater the excited cry carried through the ship.
"Enemy aircraft off to port! A half dozen of them. Zeros!"
"My gosh, what do you know?" Captain Banks gasped, and stared wide-eyedat Dawson.
"You shouldn't have talked so loud, Skipper!" Dave laughed, and sprangto his feet. "Tojo heard you that time, and is obliging!"