The Boy Allies in Great Peril Part 6

"Sit down," commanded the general.

The lads obeyed, and the general took a seat at a huge desk at the far end of the room and immediately plunged into a ma.s.s of correspondence.

For half an hour he was busy with his letters and paid no attention to the boys. The latter also sat silently.

An orderly entered the room and announced:

"Colonel Fuesco, sir."

"Show him in," said the general.

A moment later and the colonel came bl.u.s.tering in. He gazed angrily at the two lads and spoke to General Ferrari in a whisper. Then both turned upon the lads.

"Have you the paper?" demanded the general.

"No, sir," replied Hal. "We never had it in the first place. Will you allow me to explain, sir?"

"Proceed," said the general.

"First," said Hal, "I would inform your excellency that we are officers in the British army, having recently come from France."

He then went ahead with the story of how they had seen Colonel Fuesco relieved of his papers before the palace a short time ago. At the conclusion of the story the colonel sniffed audibly.

"A likely tale," he sneered.

"Silence, colonel," said the general sharply. "I shall go at this matter in my own way. Can you prove your ident.i.ty?" he asked of Hal.

"With time, yes," was the reply.

At this moment the orderly again entered the room.

"The officer you were expecting, sir," he said to General Ferrari.

"Have him enter," said the general, and the orderly saluted and disappeared.

"There can be no doubt that these are spies, sir," said Colonel Fuesco.

Chester became suddenly angry.

"That's a lie," he said flatly.

"What!" exclaimed the doughty colonel. "You call me a liar?"

Before General Ferrari or Hal could move to stay him, he stepped close to Chester and struck him in the face.

Hal, knowing Chester's quick temper, became alarmed and cried out sharply:

"Don't hit him, Chester."

But he spoke too late. The blow aroused Chester's fighting blood and he took no thought of consequences. His right fist shot out sharply, and struck squarely upon the nose, the colonel reeled back and fell to the floor.

He was up in a moment, however, and in spite of his commander's sharp order, closed with Chester. The two rocked back and forth, as Hal and General Ferrari sought to separate them.

And at this moment a newcomer entered the room. He was a young man, thin and tall, and his face showed the marks of hard service. He was attired in the uniform of a French major. He, too, took a hand in attempting to separate the combatants.

As the five struggled about, Hal caught a glimpse of the newcomer's face, and he gave a cry of wonder, uttering a name that caused Chester to release his hold upon the Italian officer and step back in surprise and pleasure.

"Major Derevaux!" exclaimed Hal.

CHAPTER V.

A NEW RECRUIT.

The French officer also stepped back in surprise, for until that moment he had not had time to glance at the two lads. He, too, gave vent to an exclamation of pleasure and held out both hands.

"Hal! Chester!" he cried.

Each lad seized upon a hand and wrung it heartily. General Ferrari and Colonel Fuesco stood back and eyed them curiously. Finally the general spoke to the Frenchman.

"You know these boys?" he asked.

"Know them!" repeated Major Derevaux. "Well, I should say I do. They are Lieutenants Paine and Crawford, of His British majesty's service, sir."

"Then they are not German or Austrian spies?"

"What! These lads German spies! If you but knew of what invaluable service they have been to the cause of the Allies, you would be proud to shake hands with them. Why, let me tell you," and forgetting all other matters for the moment, Major Derevaux plunged into an account of the boys' triumphs since joining the allied forces.

At the conclusion of this recital, General Ferrari extended a hand to each of the boys.

"I am indeed glad to know two such gallant lads," he said. "I felt sure when I first saw you that there must be some mistake in your cases."

"But they stole my paper!" cried Colonel Fuesco.

"That is not true," said Major Derevaux. "I can vouch for their loyalty."

"But who can vouch for you?" demanded the colonel. "How is General Ferrari to know that you, too, are not a spy, coming to him with false credentials?"

"I can answer that question," replied the general. "As it happens, I have known Major Derevaux for years. He has often visited at my home, he and his parents. You owe these lads an apology, colonel."

"He knocked me down," replied the colonel, pointing to Chester.

"So he did," said the general, "and you deserved it."

Chester now approached the colonel and extended a hand.

"I bear you no ill will," he said.