ra gasoline tank. The ground crews gave
her a final once-over, waved to her crew, and backed off. Stan sat up
front in the copilot's seat to see that O'Malley was not teased into a
fight. Allison and the Bolero brothers manned the machine guns.

O'Malley was a bit skeptical about the powers of the De Havilland, in
spite of what Stan had told him. He gunned her and gave her her head.
When she snapped off the ground in a manner that would have done credit
to a Lightning, he began to grin and mumble to himself.

"Just don't get any wild ideas," Stan warned. They had sighted a flight
of Focke-Wulf 190 fighters and O'Malley was eying the Germans with a
dangerous gleam in his eye.

"If they run in on us, ye can't blame me," he said sourly.

The 190 fighters tried a run at the De Havilland, but she ran away from
them before they could begin to cut her off.

"She's so fast she keeps out of trouble," O'Malley said in disgust.

"That's just what she was built for. Every night her sisters keep Berlin
awake with bombing attacks, and every night they fly materials and
dispatches from England to Malta. This is something you've overlooked,
Irisher." Stan chided O'Malley.

"I may be after lookin' into her doings one o' these days. Spendin'
ivery other evenin' in London wouldn't be so bad," O'Malley decided.

Heading north they eased across the backbone of the peninsula which the
Germans had not taken the trouble to occupy in any numbers. They moved
along while darkness settled. Arno and Tony kept a close check on
landmarks. Finally Arno called up to Stan over the phone.

"We can head west again. I have located the ridge and the mountain we
will use as a marker."

O'Malley headed the Mosquito west, letting her ease down to low
altitude. Arno called in directions.

"We are coming to the divide. There we will follow the ridge north."

O'Malley followed instructions. As they swept up the ridge they saw
below them a great fire, with several smaller fires breaking out near
by.

"Colonel Benson's boys have hit the flying field," Stan observed to
O'Malley.

"Sure, an' I think they're over the Bolero place right now." O'Malley
jerked his head to the right. At that moment Tony's voice came in over
the intercom.

"The bombers are attacking the villa." He tried not to show his
feelings, but the boys knew how he felt. His home was being blasted.

"The whole German staff for this area ought to be down there at this
hour," Stan an