Sir Biggles, Order of the Camel: Chapter 2.

By Sopwith

Disclaimer: I do not own, or claim to own, any of the Biggles series characters used in this work. This fan fiction was written for entertainment purposes only and should not be considered part of the official storyline. 

It was about a week later that Biggles was rudely awakened by the insistent ringing of the telephone that stood on the table by his bed. Muttering to himself,, Biggles dragged himself forward in the manner of a crocodile and reached out a hand for it. “Sergeant Biggleworth.”

“Ah, Bigglesworth,” said Air Commodore Raymond. “Sorry to wake you, but this is a matter of some urgency.”

“Why, what’s happened?”

“I can’t say too much over the phone. Could you come down to my office as soon as possible?”

“Well, all right. Should I bring the others?”

“You might as well.” A slightly ironic tone had crept into the Air Commodore’s voice. “It looks like you’re going to South America, after all.”

&&&

The Air Commodore took out his cigarette case and offered it to the four airmen. “Help yourselves,” he invited. He paused briefly, waiting until they had made themselves comfortable before continuing, “It’s like this. After you refused the PM’s request when I last spoke to you, I happened to run into an old friend of yours: Group Captain Wilkinson. You remember him, don’t you, Bigglesworth? He told me that he had been running his own airline, but had decided to turn it over to one of his younger pilots. He said he was looking for a spot of ‘real flying’—his words, not mine—I couldn’t see any harm in it, so I told him about the PM’s proposal.”

“And I suppose he jumped at the opportunity?” asked Biggles, a hint of bitterness creeping into his voice. “That’s old Wilks for you.”

“He did. He spent a day or so purchasing aircraft and equipment, and he took one of his friends with him. Three days ago I received a telephone call from him, telling me that he and his second pilot—a lad named Robbs—had landed safely in South America and would be making their way to the island in question in due time. That was the last time I heard from them. This morning a call was put through to me from the South American authorities. They had found the wreckage of a plane, a few hundred miles off the Brazilian coast. The markings matched those of Wilkinson’s plane, and I am afraid—I am very much afraid—that something has happened to them.”

“And you would like us to go after him, sir?”

The Air Commodore spread his hands. “I can’t order you to do so, of course. This whole operation is strictly unofficial. The press, for one, would have a field day with it if word ever got out. But I imagine now that it’s become something of a personal matter, you’re going to involve yourself in any case.”

“Put like that, how can I possibly refuse?” murmured Biggles sardonically.

Raymond shifted awkwardly in his seat. “I’ll let you have as much assistance as possible, of course. I don’t expect you’ll be in need of financial aid, but I can provide you with the necessary papers and documents. I will also inform the various governments of your arrival, and ask them to cooperate with you in any way they can.”

“Thanks,” replied Biggles briefly. “I’ll make out a list of things I might want and let you have it sometime tonight. We should be ready to leave by tomorrow afternoon, at the latest. And now, if you don’t mind, I would like to take my boys to lunch so that we can talk the position over.”

&&&

“Getting Wilks out of trouble seems to be all we ever do," complained Algy, as soon as their meal had been served.

Biggles smiled. "It certainly looks that way, doesn't it?" he murmured. "Well, there's not much we can do about it now, and we certainly can't leave him there. I must confess I'm rather surprised that he agreed to do the job for Raymond. Wilks may be a lot of things, but he isn't a fool."

"I expect he was hoping to get one up on you," suggested Algy, grinning. "Raymond probably told him that he'd already told you about the proposition."

"That's as may be," said BIggles softly. "But he's old enough to know better than that. Shooting down balloons during the war when we were all young and carefree is one thing, but it's ridiculous to go on doing it now. Anyway, let's get down to brass tacks. Wilks set out for this place in South America, but he was stopped along the way. Or
his plane was, anyway."

"It may have been a genuine accident," put in Ginger.

"I don't think so," said BIggles thoughtfully. "Wilks would hardly go beetling off to the other side of the world without checking his equipment properly, so I think we can rule out the possibility of that. It seems to me that he must have been shot down, either on purpose or by accident."

"But I say, old boy," broke in Bertie. "If someone had shot him down by accident, wouldn't they have reported it? To the jolly old air force or whatever they have over there?"

"Not necessarily," rejoined Biggles. "They might hush it up for fear of getting in trouble with our people, or something along those lines. But I agree, it’s not very likely."

"So you think he was shot down on purpose, then?" queried Algy.

"It seems to be the only reasonable explanation. We know what he was going out there for, maybe somebody else knew as well...the question is, why would whoever it is want to stop him? To get the diamond for themselves, or to stop him from getting to the diamond?"

"Why would anyone want to stop Wilks from getting to the diamond?" demanded Ginger, incredulously.

"Because it may not be there anymore," replied Biggles. "Or perhaps because it was never there in the first place. But those are wild guesses at best. We'll drift along presently and ask Raymond to provide us with some maps or aerial photos of the place. Maybe that will give us some idea as to why Wilks went down. I'll also ask Raymond to get the people in charge of the plane wreckage to let us have a dekko at it. We might see things that they haven't--bullet holes, or some trouble with the engine, for example. After that, we'd better get home and pack. I want to be
in the air as soon as dawn breaks. We've got no time to lose."

Go to Chapter 3. 

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