CHAPTER XXIV
TOM KEEPS HIS WORD
The air service boys did not hesitate.
Tom had mapped out the course, to which Jack had agreed, and they were ready to undertake the task set before them.
Tom hastened to help lift the little girl, so that his chum might get a firm clasp with one arm around her. He also knew that Helene's instinctive action in clinging to Jack's neck would greatly assist matters.
Now Jack was sliding down. Tom's heart seemed to be in his throat with suspense. Would the rope hold? He hoped age had not weakened the strands, so that a sudden extra strain might cause it to part. Still he had tested as best he could. It would hold—it must hold.
The seconds slipped by, though if Tom's feelings had been consulted they might be said to drag; for it seemed an age before he knew that Jack had safely landed by the sudden slackening of the rope.
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