The wind remained strong out of the south—dead foul for any invasion fleet. Since immediate combat seemed unlikely, Jesse had also decided to bring another pilot to Wismar and left word for Woody to get ready—they’d two hop it to Grantville the next day and get him. And capping all of those fateful decisions, when the son of the Wismar burgermeister suffered a severe head injury while playing near the American speedboats, Jesse had confidently agreed to bring modern medical assistance. He’d like to have that available anyway, in case of casualties.
In retrospect, with Hans involved, he should have counted on that medical aid being Sharon. Still, Jesse hadn’t worried overmuch, particularly when he saw the young pilot’s joyous face. And after all, what could happen on the flight to Wismar?
This could happen, Jesse thought grimly. The barometer had started falling while they were at Grantville, wispy mare’s tail clouds had begun to gather in the east while they were at Magdeburg, and the wind had started to shift westerly. A storm was approaching. Fast.
I should have seen it, damn it, Jesse told himself. Winds move counterclockwise around a low pressure area. And this must be one hell of a low.
They were still okay for the moment, of course. Flying in formation at ten thousand feet, they were in bright sunshine and smooth air. As the three young people enjoyed themselves, Jesse alone had noticed the low clouds closing in behind, then beneath, and now ahead of them. The undercast looked innocent enough, a white, smoothly undulating blanket at about six thousand feet. He wondered how thick it was, realizing it would inevitably get thicker. As he had done every minute for the past half hour, Jesse looked to the western sky and knew he saw death in the distance. Dark, bulky thunderstorm cells, their high tops obscured by flying scud, marched shoulder to shoulder across the western horizon. Any of those cells would be fatal to enter in these aircraft—probably in any aircraft. They had to get on the ground ahead of them. Magdeburg was out of the question. They were well past the equal time point, the point of no return, even with the wind shift.
“Ah-huh.” Jesse cleared his throat. “Lieutenant, if you’re finished amusing Lieutenant Richter, will you take the stick for a minute?”
“Certainly, sir,” Woody said, as he turned a bright pink. “Copilot’s aircraft.”
Jesse reached for the radio mike, considering how to tell the others. Hans will need confidence.
“Two, this is Lead.”
Hans answered promptly enough, “Lead, Two.”
“Ah, Two, I’m going to push up the power. Pull it in a bit and stay with me.”
“Roger, Lead.”
Jesse shook the stick. “Pilot’s aircraft.”
“Pilot’s aircraft,” came the standard acknowledgement. Jesse felt Woody staring at him. The young man was finally starting to realize that something was wrong.
Thank God, Hans is flying the Deuce, thought Jesse, as he pushed the throttle up. More than enough power to keep up. He’s gonna need it.
With the throttle near redline, Jesse watched the airspeed climb and settle at about 110 knots. Where the hell are we? At least, Hans is hanging in there.
“Woody?” Jesse looked over at his copilot.
“Yes, sir!”
“Take the stick for a minute, will you? Stay on this heading and keep your eyes peeled for Lake Schwerin, okay?”
Jesse picked up his whiz wheel and forced himself to concentrate, to not look out to the west. Assume the wind has blown us, what? Twenty miles east. At a 110 indicated, we must be going . . . Christ, Jesse, this is just guesswork.
Slowly, deliberately, Jesse reached up and carefully wound the clock on the instrument panel. He tapped the wheel against his teeth and stared at the white clouds below. Referring to the computer again, he made some calculations, checked them, and nodded to himself.
“Woody, turn ten degrees left to a heading of three-four-five degrees.”
“Roger, three-four-five.”
There was no talking now and Jesse realized that Woody was staring at the wall of clouds off to the left. Probably Hans and Sharon, too. A glance in the mirror told Jesse the storm had curled behind them.