The Air Patrol Part 33

As he watched it, Bob became aware that the afternoon was drawing towards evening. In an hour the valley would be gloomy, in two hours it would be shrouded in darkness. For the present, while daylight lasted, there was little fear of the enemy attacking. They would not face their own gun backed by the machine gun of the garrison. But he felt that with the fall of night the circ.u.mstances would be changed. His feeble searchlight scarcely illuminated the s.p.a.ce between the bridge and the bend; beyond the bend it gave no light whatever. In the darkness the enemy might creep up to within a short distance of their captured breastwork and carry it with a determined rush, in spite of the gun. It was true that the narrowness of the track would allow the approach of only a few men abreast; but they could be supported by a constant succession of reinforcements, coming up like waves of the sea until the defenders were worn out. It seemed to Bob the prudent course to withdraw his men and the gun to the mine, and place the latter in position beside the machine gun. However, it was bad tactics to abandon a defensive position before retirement was absolutely necessary, so he decided to remain where he was for a little while longer, in the hope that Lawrence would land and, joining him, explain the actual condition of affairs down stream.

About a quarter of an hour after the aeroplane had pa.s.sed, Bob saw Lawrence running down the track towards him.

"That's what I hoped you would do," were Lawrence's first words as they met. "Capture the guns, I mean."

"Yes, we've got one: the other's ruined and in the river. But we've had a narrow escape from being battered to pieces. Why didn't you begin bombing before?"

"I'll tell you. We were pretty well peppered, as you saw, when we flew past here down stream. It may have been because that bothered us, and Fazl was. .h.i.t--I didn't know it at the time--that we didn't see the guns they had dragged up. Or perhaps it was because they are so like the rocks in colour--and we didn't expect they'd be here already. Anyway, we didn't see them, and it makes me mad to think what a squeak you've had. I _ought_ to have seen them."

"That's bos.h.!.+ it's precious difficult to see anything at that speed.

But go on."

"We saw the men, of course, but we were soon out of range. The planes are simply riddled."

"Fazl not much hurt, I hope?"

"No: the bullet went through the fleshy part of his arm, and he didn't say a word about it till we landed just now. On our way down we saw several teams of ponies at different parts of the track, bringing grub up, no doubt; and several bodies of mounted troops on the march; but never a sign of the guns. I flew on till we came to the place where the Major and I saw them: then thinking I must have missed them, I turned back. You may imagine how I felt when, about two miles away, I suppose, I heard the first shot. It's so different from the sound of the machine gun that I couldn't mistake it. I told Fazl to get ready to drop a bomb as soon as we came up to the guns. He did so, but I didn't hear an explosion. He yelled out that it had fallen into the river, but of course we were past before there was time to shy another. I came back as quickly as I could, and my heart was in my mouth when I saw smoke in the compound. Luckily Fazl's next shots were better, and jolly glad I am that we managed to stampede the fellows and give you a chance."

"You were just in time, old man. They did more damage to the cliff than to us, though."

"Yes: the path is simply heaped with rubbish. Coming back it was like scrambling over s.h.i.+ngle. But a few hours' work will clear the lot away.

Now what's the next thing?"

"As it's getting dusk I propose to withdraw the gun to the mine. But we must hold this breastwork as long as we can, and it occurs to me that if we alter its angle a little we can enfilade it from our own breastwork when it becomes necessary to fall back on that. It will still protect us from attack down stream, owing to the bend."

"Isn't it worth while to block up the track again?"

"It would use up too much dynamite. Our stock is getting appallingly low. We may want it all for bombs. Besides, if we block up the track farther down we shan't see our enemy."

"But I can always scout in the aeroplane."

"You forget that our petrol isn't unlimited. I had a look in the shed this morning, and there isn't much left. The paraffin you brought only replaced what you lost from the leaky cans. We shall have to economize now, and use the aeroplane only when we must."

"Very well then. If you see about altering the breastwork I'll get the gun dragged in. And there are these poor wounded wretches. Their moans are horrible. What can we do for them?"

"We mustn't take them into our compound. We haven't food enough to support prisoners. I have it! We'll send off the Kalmuck prisoners we've got, and tell them that they can bring up a dozen of their friends under flag of truce to carry off their wounded. That'll relieve us of all responsibility. And now let's get to business. We haven't too much time."

These arrangements were duly carried out. While Lawrence escorted the gun to the mine, Bob set the men to pull down the breastwork, and re-construct it so that it stood almost perpendicular to his own entrenchment a hundred yards up stream. In its new position it would be of very little use to the enemy should they re-capture it, for on whichever side of it they happened to be, they would be swept by the fire of the men posted at the other.

By the time the work was completed darkness had fallen. Then Lawrence dismissed the Kalmuck prisoners as he had suggested, and followed them to the breastwork to have a final consultation with his brother.

"I'll hold on here until midnight," said Bob. "I had a good sleep during the day. Tell Ganda Singh to train the captured gun on the bend; if there's an attack he and Gur Buksh can play on the track and cover our retirement."

"I'm not sure whether it wouldn't be better to bring it out again and place it behind our entrenchments."

"No, that would never do. The searchlight isn't powerful enough to be of much good; and the position might be rushed before the gun could come into play. It's too valuable for us to risk that. It would be a very different matter if we had enough men to hold the breastwork and really dispute the advance of the enemy. We can't do that. If they seriously push their attack we shall have to evacuate the position and bolt for the mine, and the gun would only be a hindrance. Now you get back.

Send over some food for us, and then go to bed."

"I shan't take my clothes off. Don't hold on too long, Bob, if they do come up."

"Don't be nervous, young 'un. We've had uncommon good luck so far, and I'm inclined to think the enemy won't be in a hurry to tackle us. Those bombs must have been a horrid surprise to them. We may congratulate ourselves on a good day for the first, anyhow."

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-FOURTH

A CHECK

The night pa.s.sed undisturbed. Bob was almost sorry. As the slow hours crept towards midnight, when Lawrence would relieve him, he would have welcomed an opportunity for action. It was bitter cold. He dared not kindle a watch-fire, and so enlighten the enemy about his arrangements.

Remembering Lawrence's similar vigil forty miles down, he said to himself: "The kid's a good plucked one. He'd have made a first-rate soldier, or political officer, or anything. Pity we're both so hard up!"

Suddenly he bethought himself of the ma.s.s of ore which had been tumbled into the cavity in the bank just above the Pathan miners' compound. It must weigh many tons, and according to Mr. Appleton's calculations, sixty per cent. of it was pure silver. Bob did not know the market price of the metal, but the quant.i.ty that had been mined must represent a considerable sum of money. The exciting incidents of the last few days had kept his thoughts engrossed with strategy and tactics; and the notion that the mine was itself a valuable property, worth defending for its own sake, came almost with a shock of surprise.

"Who is the owner now?" he thought. "Did Uncle leave a will? I suppose we are his heirs, but what's the law of inheritance in these parts?"

And then the recollection of his uncle's recent death caused a revulsion of feeling. It was quite unreasonable to shrink from the thought of benefiting by Mr. Appleton's decease; but affection and high-minded instinct sometimes get the better of reason, and he dismissed the subject, still with a vague hope that his uncle would even yet return to his own.

At midnight Lawrence came with a squad of men to relieve him.

"All's well then?" he said.

"Yes; I haven't heard a murmur."

"Well, cut off and get a sleep. I'm good for a spell till daylight.

Shan Tai has given me a splendid feed. We're lucky in our men, Bob. As I was eating I overheard Shan Tai talking with Chunda Beg. 'What you tinkee?' says Shan Tai. They'd evidently been discussing the situation.

'I say not one of the dogs will ever poke his nose within our walls,'

said the khansaman. 'When the huzur told me that two boys were coming to live here I was sick in mind. Some of the Feringhi boys call us n.i.g.g.e.rs, and speak to us as if we were mud. Our sahibs are not so.

They do not sniff and curse and use us as if we were beasts and not men.

What say you, cook man?' 'Say what you say allo lighto,' says Shan Tai.

'Likee young ma.s.sa plenty muchee. Big lot fightee men come all-same.

No can fightee big lot long time.' 'Wah!' says Chunda. 'The two sahibs are worth thousands of those dogs of Kalmucks, and if Allah keeps them alive we shall smite and smite until the Sirkar sends help. Only give them good food, cook man.' 'Makee chow-chow first-chop,' says Shan Tai, and the old chap gave a chuckle. He's a jolly good sort."

Lawrence had said that they were lucky in their men; it did not occur to him that the fragment of conversation he reported showed rather that the men thought themselves lucky in their masters.

The day broke, and still the enemy had made no movement. As soon as it was light Bob had the field gun dragged over the bridge to the breastwork. Lawrence reported that the enemy had begun to erect a new rampart some distance down the track.

"They surely don't imagine that we're going to take the offensive," he said.

"No. It probably means that they'll snipe at us from behind it. Go and get your breakfast and come back as soon as you can."

Bob considered whether to interfere with the enemy's work, but decided that he had better husband his ammunition. Some two hours later, after Lawrence's return, the enemy began firing across their new breastwork.

At the same time a number of them were seen skirmis.h.i.+ng along the track, making short rushes from rock to rock. The track itself was only thirty or forty feet wide, straight and comparatively smooth. But the cliff face was very rugged, affording a certain amount of cover. Skirmis.h.i.+ng from point to point, where the cliff jutted out or receded, or where single fragments of rock had fallen to the side of the track, the enemy advanced under cover of the fire from their breastwork until they had come about halfway to the position of the defenders. Some scrambled up the cliff here and there for a few yards so as to obtain a better view of the men sheltered by the entrenchment. Bob refused to allow his men to make a general reply to their fire. He knew that they could not approach beyond a certain point, the track being open and the amount of cover diminis.h.i.+ng as they drew nearer. Now and then, when one of them advanced too far ahead of his fellows, he permitted the best marksman to try his skill, and two or three of the enemy were hit. One of his own men also, incautiously exposing himself, fell back with a gash in his arm. Except for this, the day pa.s.sed without casualties, and the relative positions of the two parties were the same.

The garrison were greatly delighted that the end of the second day found the situation unaltered. Only five days of the critical week remained, and some of them already saw themselves at the end of their probation.

Bob hinted that they were not yet out of the wood, but he was glad enough to see how high-spirited and confident they were. For his own part, he relaxed nothing of his care and vigilance. He was still on his guard against a night attack, and as an extra precaution, he sent two of the Sikhs to creep in the darkness along the track between the enemy's breastwork and his own, to give instant warning if they should see or hear any signs of movement.

But the peace of the night remained unbroken. During the early part of the next day, even, there was no sniping or skirmis.h.i.+ng as before. Bob augured ill of this inactivity. He would have been more at ease if the enemy had pursued their ineffective tactics, and would indeed have welcomed a rush, which he felt himself able to repel. He could not but believe that they were gathering their strength, perhaps waiting for the support of more artillery, and he had an instinctive dread that the next a.s.sault would be a much more formidable affair.