They met a lone U. S. scout plane from another carrier and dipped a wing in salute.

They had covered more than half the way to the task force when, coming from behind a very small cloud, Jack let out a howl:

“Torpedo planes in formation, dead ahead!”

“Enemy planes?” Stew rubbed his eyes.

“Easy. They slipped out of the harbor during our stratosphere battles.” Jack gave his ship the rein.

The situation was clear. For many weeks Jap task forces in harbors had been refusing to fight. It had been assumed that they would once again attempt flight. But at least one carrier had sent out its torpedo planes to do battle.

“Get on the radio! Quick!” Jack exclaimed. “Not a second to lose!”
235

Almost the next breath Stew was droning into his mike: “Twelve enemy torpedo planes approaching task force at top speed. Should strike soon.”

His report exploded on the Black Bee like a bombshell. Having received his earlier report, all carriers had dispatched their dive bombers and torpedo planes, with fighter escort, to the enemy harbor, where they hoped to wreak havoc on the fleet before it could escape.

On the Black Bee there remained only a small fighter squadron under Kentucky’s command. Half the fighters were on patrol duty, the rest were on the flight deck.

“If those torpedo planes hit us it’s just going to be too bad!” Ted exclaimed as he and Kentucky raced for their planes.

In the meantime Jack and Stew were shadowing the enemy squadron.

“It’s no use taking them on alone,” Jack said.

“I should say not! They’ve got a dozen Zeros protecting them,” Stew agreed.

“But if they go after the Black Bee,” Jack added, “we’re bound to step in and do our bit.”

“And the Black Bee it is!” Stew added a moment later when the powerful planes, as if drawn by a magnet, headed straight for the master prize, the Black Bee, largest ship in the convoy.

“You’ve got to hand it to ’em!” Stew exclaimed. “They’ve got plenty of nerve!”
236

“Lot of good it will do them!” Jack growled. “I’ll wreck this jet plane in a suicide dive before I’ll see the old Black Bee sunk!”

Silently Stew offered up a prayer for the Black Bee, and for Jack as well.

“Here comes Kentucky and his gang!” he exclaimed exultantly.

“Too few and too late,” Jack growled. “Curse the Japs!” Meanwhile Jack was edging in closer to the approaching Japs. Stew was holding his breath, for he knew well that if the Zeros turned to go after him, Jack would not run for the stratosphere this time, but would stay and fight.

Kentucky, with his small band of fighters, came zooming on in formation. The Zeros dashed ahead to engage them. At once there was a whirling battle, as hard to watch as a three-ring circus. Three fighters, Kentucky, Ted, and Red, remained in formation. When a Zero went after them it was like hitting a stone wall. Three Zeros went down in smoke. But the deadly torpedo planes roared on.

Now, shaking themselves free from the Zeros, Kentucky’s three zoomed aloft to come in behind the torpedo planes. Striking the last of these a slanting blow, they sent it whirling and rolling toward the sea. Two others followed in quick succession.
237

By this time the torpedo planes were nearing the Black Bee. Ack-acks and pom-poms began pouring bursting shells at them. Two were downed before they dropped their tin fish. But the third, seeming to bear a charmed life, came straight on. It dropped its fish, then zoomed aloft.

With sinking heart Jack saw its torpedo tear a gaping hole in the Black Bee’s side.

“Got to get into this!” he growled. Screaming aloft he raced at tremendous speed past the enemy planes, then whirling, came at the next torpedo plane in line.

Just as he prepared to brave his own ship’s fire, the enemy plane blew up. A shell from the ship had gotten her.

“Good work!” he exclaimed, once again roaring aloft.

Other torpedo planes were coming in. Kentucky’s trio was strafing them, but still they came.

“Only one hit so far. They’re thinning!” Jack exclaimed. “If my—”

“There! That’s the one! We’ve got to get that one!”

Once again the Jap came whirling in. This time nothing stopped the enemy, that is, nothing but the fire from Jack’s twin guns. The big plane nosed down into the sea.
238

“That’s got them!” Jack breathed deeply as he passed out of range of the Black Bee’s fire.

“Ted crashed!” Stew declared. “I saw him go down. Not a bad crash, but his ship’s gone.”

“Where?” Jack demanded.

“Over there to the right.”

The jet plane banked, then sped away.

“There he is!” Stew exclaimed.

A moment more and Jack’s plane was taxiing in close to Ted’s wrecked fighter.

Ted sat astride the fuselage, which was all but covered with water.

“Are you hurt?” Jack asked.

“Not—not so bad,” Ted replied, hesitatingly. “Sort of got a bump or two.”

“Climb over and help him onto our plane,” Jack said. Stew was on the sinking plane in an instant. A moment more and they were rising from the water.

Nearing the Black Bee, Jack signaled that he had a wounded man and was coming aboard. He got the all-clear at once.

The first person to reach the plane was Mary. She had seen it all. There was a look on her face that Jack had never seen there before as she called, “Ted! Is he badly injured?”
239

“He’ll pull through,” Jack admitted. “But why only Ted? Can’t you give another fellow a smile?”

“Jack, I could kiss you for saving Ted,” she exclaimed. And that was just what she did.

In landing on the sea, and again on the deck of the Black Bee, Jack had experienced unusual difficulty in controlling the jet plane, but was at the time too excited to think much about it. When at last he had time to look the plane over, he found that it had, at some time during the fight, been seriously damaged.

“You pi............