on seeing Harry, and when they told
me he was gone--"

She covered her face with her hands, and endeavored to repress her
emotion.

"You're not Harry's little sister, are you?" asked Jack, hoping to
change the current of talk into other and happier channels.

"No; that's Mabel--Mab he calls her. She's younger than I. Did he often
speak of her?"

"Oh, yes; and you too!" exclaimed Tom, so warmly that Nellie blushed,
and the damask tint in her hitherto pale cheeks was most becoming.

"We've seen your picture, and Mab's too," went on Tom. "Harry keeps them
just over his cot in the barracks. But I didn't recognize you when I saw
you a little while ago in the machine. Though I might have, if so many
things hadn't happened all at once, and made me sort of hazy," Tom
explained.

"Then are you and my brother good friends?" asked Nellie.

"The best ever!" exclaimed Tom, and Jack warmly assented. "Not so many
Americans are in this branch of the escadrille as are in others," Torn
went on; "so Harry and Jack and I are a sort of little trio all by
ourselves. He hardly ever goes up without us, but we are on a rest
billet; and to-day he went up with Du Boise."

"If he had only come back!" sighed Nellie. "But there! I mustn't
complain. Harry wouldn't let me if he were here. We both have to do our
duty. Now I'm going to see what I can do to help, and not be silly and
do any more fainting. I hope you'll pardon me," and she smiled at the
two boys.

"Of course!" exclaimed Tom, with great emphasis, and again Miss Leroy
blushed.

"Then, is to wait the only thing we can do?" she asked.

"That's all," assented Tom. "We may get a message from the clouds any
day."

"And, oh! I shall pray that it may be favorable!" murmured the girl.
"Perhaps I may question this Mr. Du Boise, and learn from him just what
happened?" she interrogated.

"Yes, we want to talk to him ourselves, as soon as he's able to sit up,"
said Jack. "We want to get a shot at the Boche who downed Harry."

"So you are as fond of Harry as all that! I am glad!" exclaimed his
sister. "Have you known him long?"

"We knew him slightly before we went to the flying school in
Virginia with him," said Tom. "But down there, when we started in at
'grass-cutting,' and worked our way up, we grew to know him better. Then
Jack and I got our chance to come over. But Harry had a smash, and he
had to wait a year."

"Yes, I know. It almost broke his heart," said Miss Leroy. "I w