Ch. 20The roar of the hovercraft engines and the choking pungency of its exhaust fumes filled the cold, offshore air in the early morning gloom on the island of Herm. The M-10 hovercraft slewed onto the beach and slithered to a halt. As it gracefully shuddered to a standstill, with a “whoooossh” of an almost mournful sigh, the apron deflated. Almost as if tired from a long, arduous journey, the strange looking machine settled down on its haunches. It resembled an aged turtle burrowing its way into the seclusion and safety of the sand. Toto LeBlanc had arrived.
The Frenchman soon made apparent his eagerness for the task, and the plentiful means to get the men fed and refreshed. That completed, the decisive act of the saga would be played to its finality — when, as all hoped, Mainwaring and
