Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-06-28
CHAPTER XIV.

IN the next instant the plane was
clear Of the ground and gaining aIti.
tude. He was safely off. But he
knew he had broken a tail.skid. To.
morrow morning. landing would be a
precarious job. But now. he was safe
again and headed toward Moscow
Let the morning take care of itself
Jimmy circled once; and then, using
the lights of the Ford on the field
below as his point of departure, set
his course due West for Moscow.
Six hundred miles distant
1t was early dawn when Voronoff
Jimmy Brandon's relief pilot, tapped
him on the arm and pointed toward
the west. Nosing his plane down
slightly, the American saw in the dis
lance, through a rift in the mists of
early dawn. the ancient spires and
roofs of Moscow limned by the first
golden light of the sun.
His heart gave a little leap of ex.
element. Despite his tense muscles,
he felt freed in an instant from the
nervous strain of the past 5.hours'
fight through the Stygian darkness
over Russia's plains. There had been
times when neither he nor his com
panion had been able to distinguish
even a ground light. Only the finely
developed sense of balance of the two
men had enabled them TO keep the
ship on an even keel.
They had relieved each other at the
stick at intervals. without CONVERSE
ton. Jimmy would give the control
slight shake and his compa Mon. sit.
ting beside him, would grip the wheel
while he relaxed.
The night had been bitterly cold,
and while off duty, the men had mas
saged aching muscles and attempted
to determine how near they were fol.
lowing their course. Only an occa-
sional star cleaned through the black.
ness.
And all during these wearing night
hours. Jimmy's mind had been OBJ
sessed with the cause of his predica :
ment. The problem was battling. He
no longer doubted that it had been
Rogers who had caused his arrest
and detention as a spy.
But who had secured his release ?
Who had communicated with his
friends in Moscow and gained for
him the Intervention of the Narko-
mindel-the Soviet foreign office?
The lady narcissus noir! That
| was what he called her now, in his
own mind. But how had she done it,
and why? 1t had been her face
that glimpse of pallid, concerned
features, that he had seen as the
Moscow train pulled out of Mimi
Novgorod. Why had she helped him
again?
He had given scant thought to the
fact that he and Noronoff We're rae
ing through space in an expensive
airplane. the safety OF which had
been imperiled by the accident at the
take-off. A broken tailsE1d might
mean utter ruin to- pilots and plane.
Should he crack up the ship in max
ing his landing at Moscow, every dol
lar he possessed must go to repair 1t.
danger; if he made his landing safely.
he'd be in time to catch the Longs
berg plane, and for the present that
was all that mattered.
Barring a rail accident. Of course,
Rogers would also catch the plane.
That would PVT them neck and neck
again.
Three weeks-exactly 81 days. since
he and his rival had shaken hands on
the steps of their club on Fifth ave
nue.. Jimmy felt ages older. Another
week-eight days at most, and it
would be over. He meant to win
And winning meant international re
nown, money-and the hand OF
Frances.
Jimmy even mentioned her name
aloud, in a little whisper, as he had
been wont to do of old. Yet his
pulses failed to give the customary re.
Spouse. Had he tired? Was he un'
worthy? Or was it only that that deli
cate odor of narcissus noir confused
his thoughts?
He shook his head abruptly. There
| was work to be done. The sum came
full over the horizon to the eastward
and, rising to glance over his shoulder
Jimmy thrilled to the beauty of the
scene. His eyes turned slowly in con
temptation of the city of Moscow
vivid. unchanging tapestry of the
Orient placed in the West. He picked
out the Kremlin and held to his
course.
A few more minutes
For days flyers about Moscow spoke
of the magnificent landing made by
| 1.-THE mad American" that memorable
June morning.
Jimmy surveyed his landing field
for a full five minutes, pointing his
| nose into the wind and allowing the
Jurker to settle slowly in a long
graceful glide. it's propeller barely
| revolving. Judging distance and bal
ance with hairbreadth precision. he
| placed the wheels Of his undercarriage
on the ground as gently as a bird
| lands.
Silently he rolled across his field
his features set Voronoff sat forward
intently. Field mechanics. catching
sight of his damaged tail skid, ran for
ward to help. The great ship tee
tered backward and forward pre-
cariously; but Jimmy kept the tail of
! the ground.