BIGGLES AND THE PENITENT THIEF

by Captain W. E. Johns

12. BIGGLES FACES THE MUSIC (Pages 104 – 110)

“On Bertie’s departure from the cabin, closing the door softly behind him, Biggles and Ginger had sat silent, tense, expectant, prepared for the gunshot that would announce Raulstein’s threat had not been an idle one, and that someone had been left on guard. No shot came. No sound at all. When the silence had lasted for perhaps two minutes Ginger relaxed. “He’s done it,” he said softly. “He’s got clear”. Biggles nodded. “So it seems. He was right”. Time passes. Ginger looks at the fog out of the door and says that he thought it was beginning to lift. Biggles says they will have to wait until Bertie comes back. They can’t leave a message as Raulstein might return and see it. Ginger had been thinking about what Bertie had said about going to the landing ground. He tells Biggles he could warn Fraser about Raulstein being there should he be able to fly over. It will be dark in a few hours and Ginger could return then because Fraser won’t fly over in the dark. Biggles agrees but tells him not to get lost in the fog and to keep well clear of Raulstein. “If you bumped into him alone you wouldn’t have a hope”. Ginger leaves and Biggles is left alone. “He was not happy about the way the case had developed. In fact he was depressed, feeling that he had handled things badly, chiefly by failing to make allowances for the possible return of Raulstein to the island. That was not entirely unexpected; what was outside his calculations was that he might turn up supported by two armed thugs, professional gunmen, for that obviously was what the Americans were”. Night begins to fall and suddenly the door is burst open and Raulstein, gun in hand, followed by the two Americans crash into the room. Biggles asks evenly “Are you looking for somebody?”. “We want that daft-looking Limey with a window in his face,” rapped out one of the Americans, the one who wore the yachting cap. Biggles asks what has he done and he is told “Done! He’s set fire to my boat, blast his eyes”. Biggles says he didn’t know they had a boat becasuse he is not clairvoyant and he points out the fact that Bertie isn’t there. “I’d have thought you could have seen that for yourself. There isn’t much room for anyone to hide, is there?”. “The three men looked at each other, nonplussed, possibly taken about by Biggles’ attitude of unconcern”. Biggles asks about Tommy and is told that he is all right. Biggles tells the men that the island is private and they have no right to be there. Biggles advises them to leave whilst the going is good and adds “Apart from that I don’t like you, and I find this conversation tiresome”. “It must be admitted that Biggles was only talking to gain time, to give himself an opportunity to think; apart from which he could see no way out of the present contretemps. He was afraid it could only end in violence in which he would be at a disadvantage”. The question uppermost in his mind was what would happen if Bertie walked in; for this might happen at any moment. “The balloon would almost certainly go up with a bang”. Raulstein says they intend to stay in the cabin. Biggles says he won’t pretend they are welcome and he can’t offer them any hospitality as someone has emptied the larder. Raulstein says it wasn’t them as they had plenty of grub on their boat. Biggles is genuinely surprised by this as if it wasn’t them, who was it? Biggles sees the door behind the men open very slightly. “He watched, nerves tingling. The door opened another inch. Who was it? Bertie or Ginger? Or possibly Tommy? Breathless, he waited”.