"What's La Warmington doing now?

"
"Right, now she,s dozing, thank god That women's got a nerve-she was treating me
like a lady's maid last night and got
annoyed because I wouldn't take orders Then in the middle of the night she got
weepy and nearly drove me out of my
mind I had to fill her full of Luminot in the end"
"Is she asleep now?"
"she's just woken up, but she's so dopey she dosen't know what's going on"
"Perhaps it's just as well," said Causton, cocking his head as he listened to the
guns "it might be just as well to keep her
doped until we got out of here I hope to God Rawsthorne can make it in time" He
looked at Julie "You don't look to good
yourself"
"I'm beat," she confessed "I didn't sleep as well myself I was awake half the night
with Mrs Warmington I got her off to
sleep and then found I couldn't sleep myself- -I was thinking about Dave and Mr
Dawson when I finally got to sleep I was
woken up almost immediately by those damned guns" She folded her arms about herself
and winced at a particularly loud
explosion "I'm scared-I don't mind admitting, it"
"I'm not feeling to good myself," said Causton drily "How about you, Eumenides?"
The Greek shrugged eloquently, gave a feroious grin and passed his fingers across
his throat Causton laughed "That about
describes it"
Julie said, "Do you think it's any good trying to get Dave out of that gaot again?"
Causton resisted an impulse to swear As a man who earned his living by the writing
of the English language, he had
always maintained that swearing and the use of foul language was the prop of an
ignorant mind unable to utilize the full
and noble resources of English invective But the previous night he had been forced
to use the dirtiest language he knew
when he came up against the impenetraby closed mind of sons-inspector Roseau He had
quite shocked Rawsthorne, if
not Roseau
He said, "There's not much hope, I'm afraid The walls of the Local prison may be
thick, but the copper's heads are thicker
May be Favel may be able to get him out if he hurries up"
He put his foot up on the bed tp lace his shoe "I had a talk with Rawsthorne last
night, be was telling me something about
Wyatt's hurricane According to Rawsthorne, it's not at all certain there'll be a
hurricanr here at all What do you know
about that"
"I know that Dave was very disturbed about it," she said "Especially after he saw
the old man"
"What old man?"
So Julie told of the old man who had been tying his roof down and Causton scratched
his head He said mildly, "For a
meteorologist, Wyatt has very unscientific ways of going about his job"
"Don't you believe him" asked Julie
"That's the devil of it--I do," said Causton "I'll tell you something, Julie I
always depend on my intuition and it rarely lets
me down That's why I'm here on this island right now My editor told me I was
talikng nonsense--I had no real evidence
things were going to blow up here--so that's why I'm here unofficial Yes, I believe
in 'wyatt's windm and well have to do
something about it bloody quickly"
"What can we do about a hurricane?"
"I mean we must look after ourself," said Causton "Look, Julie Wyatt's immediate
boss didn't believe him; Commodore
Brooks didn't believe him, and serrurier didn't believe him He did all he can and I
don't think we can do any better And
if you think I'm going to walk about in the middle of a civil war bearing a placard
inscribed' Prepare to Meet Thy Doom'
you're mistaken?"
Julie shook her head "I know," she said "But there are sixty thousand defenceless
people in St Pierre--it's terrible"
"So is civil war," said Causton gravely "But there's still nothing we can do apart
from saving ourselves--and that's going to
be dicely" He took his map from the pocket of his jacket and spread it on the bed
"I wish Rawsthorne had been ready to
Leave Last night, but he said he had to go back to the consulate I suppose even a
Lowly consul hass to burn the codebooks or
whatever it is they do when you see smoke coming from the Embassy chimney on the
eve of crisis What time is it?"
"Nearly 'alf pas' seven" said Eumenides
"He said held be here by eight, but he'll probably be late Neither of us expected
Favel to be so quick--I don't suppose
Serrurier expected it, either Rawsthorne might be held up, even in a car with
diplomatic plates Dawn that bloody fool
Dawson," he said feelingly "If he hadn't messed things up we'd have been away in
Wyatt's car hours ago,"
He looked at the map "Wyatt said we should find a place above the hundred-foot mark
and facing north This damned
map has no contour lines Eumenides, can you help me here?"
The Geeek looked over Causton's shoulder "There he said , and laid his finger on
the map
"I dare say it is a nice place," agreed Causton "But we'd have to go through two
armies to get there No, well have to go along
the coast in one direction or another and then strike inland to get height" His
finger moved along the coast road "I don't
think there's any point in going west towards Cap Sarrat There are unity of the
Government army strong along there, and
anyway, it's pretty flat as I remember it The civil airfield is there and Favel
will probably strike for it, so altogether it'll be
a pretty unhealthy place so it'll have to be the other way What's it like this
road, Eumenides? "It fall from road to sea"
"There are cliffs on the seaward side--this side?" asked Causton, and the Greek
nodded "Just what we're looking for," said
Causton with satisfaction "What's the country like inland--say, here?"
Eumenides waved his hang up and down expressively "Ills"
"Then that's it," said Causton "But you'd better discuss it further with Rawsthorne
when he comes"
"What about you?" asked Julie "Where are you going?"
"Someone has to do a reconnaissance," said Causton "We have to find if it's a
practicable proposition to go that way I,m
going to scout around the east end of town it's safe enough for one man"
He rose from his knees and went to the window "There are plenty of civilions out
and about now, the police haven't been
able to bottle them all up in their houses I should be able to get away with it"
"With a white skin?"
"Um," said Causton "That's a thought" He went over to his bag and unzipped it "A
very little of this ought to do the trick"
He looked with distaste at the tin of brown boot-polish in his hand "will you apply
it, Julie? Just the veriest touch--there
are plenty of light-coloured Negroes here and I don't want to look like a nigger
minstrel"