Raider

by Griff Hosker

  We headed down to the harbour. There was a substantial wall which made it a calm anchorage. I saw the MLs, MTBs, and MGBs moored in neat lines. The MLs looked naked compared with the other two types of vessels which bristled with weaponry. All of them were protected by barrage balloons and I saw anti aircraft guns ringing the harbour. We walked down the harbour wall until we came to a fishing boat which had just tied up.

  "Here is a likely candidate. We'll just hang around."

  "They'll not give us fish, Corp. They'll wanna sell it."

  "You never know." We lounged against the wall and watched. They were sorting the fish out into those they would sell and those they would throw back. When one of them picked up the box with small fish ready to throw them back I said, "Instead of throwing them out could we have them?"

  "There's bugger all on them laddie."

  "Aye I know but…"

  He shook his head and gave me the box. "You lads must be bloody hungry if you'll eat a bit of skin and bone."

  "You'd be surprised."

  I watched as he took the heads off the large fish. This time I didn't say anything. "I am guessing you want these too?"

  "Got it in one." He added them to our box. I gave him a quick salute, "Thank you kindly captain!"

  The crew laughed. Gordy said, "I agree with him. This won't feed the lads."

  "Oh ye of little faith. Back to that green grocer we saw." When we reached the green grocer I managed to cadge the outer leaves from some cauliflowers, a few potatoes which were starting to shoot, and some old onions, also growing old and furry. The greatest treasure I found was a bulb of garlic. For some reason the British had never cottoned on to that member of the allium family. I got it for nothing. I pointed to his shelf. There was a rusting tin of tomatoes. "How much for the tomatoes?"

  "Tuppence."

  I handed over the money and we took it back to the empty building. There had been a kitchen and there was a large pot. I set to work. Everyone gathered around and wrinkled their noses. "I'm not eating that Corp!"

  "Listen Bert when I have finished you will be asking for more."

  I chopped the onion and the garlic. We had no oil and so I used a little water to cook and soften them. Finally I added the chopped cauliflower leaves and potatoes and the tomatoes. "Gordy see if you can find another pan and something to strain the water."

  By now everyone was so interested that Gordy had company for his hunt. When he returned I chopped up all the small fish and fish heads and cooked them in the water. He had found an old colander, which was perfect. After twenty minutes I strained the fish through the colander and then used my hand to press the bits through as well. It got rid of any bones. The fish soup could have done with herbs and a little bread but it would have to do.

  "Right lads, grub up. Fish stew."

  Bert sniffed, "Smells better than it did when you started."

  Sergeant Grant shook his head, "Just get it down your gob. Tom's given us all a good lesson in how to forage. Well done Corporal." They all ate heartily and that pleased me. "Where did you learn to cook like this?"

  "We had a cottage in France and mum watched the locals make this. I used to help her make it." I pointed a spoon at Bert. "If we are in France and Belgium they have different food. You can't be squeamish. You eat what is available." I grinned, "Wait till you try snails in garlic."

  Even Daddy was shocked, "You are joking!"

  Shaking my head I said, "No. They are delicious."

  The food filled a hole and, I think, taught a lesson. We couldn't expect to eat and live the same way as we had done at home. We then spent an hour learning foreign words until it was time to board the ML.

  The building was bursting at the seams when we left. We were assigned to ML 22. I recognised one of the sailors. We had sailed with him before. "Afternoon Reg."

  "You are Bill's mate aren't you? Already for the Skylark?"

  The Lieutenant said, "Get a move on lads. Stow your gear below decks."

  We stowed the camouflage net and our Bergens in the cabin and then went back on deck. The Lieutenant said, "All ready, Sergeant?"

  "Yes sir."

  "Then we'll push off. Hold on chaps!"

  When the launch was clear of the jetty he gunned the motors and the launch leapt like a greyhound towards the narrow entrance. The sailor I recognised, Reg, said, "He's a mad bugger this one. Thinks he is driving a bloody racing car!"

  I laughed, "How is Bill Leslie these days? I haven't seen him in a while."

  "Oh he's the Killick now on an MGB. They are giving us cover tomorrow night."

  "Able Seaman Thompson, when you have quite finished lollygagging go and make a dixie of cocoa eh?"

  "Righto Lieutenant Williams."

  It was a choppy night and we bounced over the waves. It was not a pleasant voyage and I was glad when the young lieutenant slowed the launch down as we reached the river where we would lay up for the day.

  "Right lads, get the netting rigged." We took out the nets and began to cover the deck. It would disguise our profile. We could still see through it. Dad had told me that he had taken part in its trials. From the air it made it almost impossible to see what it hid.

  Lieutenant Williams yawned, "Sergeant, have your chaps keep watch. Two men and a four hour shift should do it."

  "Right sir." He turned to me. "Organise that, Tom."

  I knew from Dad that the worst watches were the ones in the middle no matter what time of day you were doing it. I gave them to myself and to Daddy. It was only right. It also meant that only six of us would actually need to watch and the rest would get more sleep.

  I had been in the army long enough to be able to fall asleep anywhere and anytime. The fact that we slept under camouflage netting helped. It made the deck of the boat darker. I woke equally quickly when my shoulder was shaken and joined Gordy on the river bank. It was a pleasant enough day. Then we heard the drone of engines and saw the German bombers heading back east. They had finished their bombing raid on the south east and were going home. One or two were smoking and the formation looked irregular.

  "I wonder if London copped it again."

  "I reckon, Gordy, that the RAF will be happy if they do leave the fields alone and concentrate on London. I know that our people are suffering but if the air force can't fly from our airfields then we are done for. The Spitfires and Hurricanes are all that will stop the Germans. The Navy wouldn't be able to stop them if they ruled the air. They not only have bombers they have paratroopers. If they could drop a few hundred paratroopers they could control the ports and their barges sail in without losing a man."

  H nodded as he took that in. "How come you didn't become a pilot like your dad, Corp?"

  "I am not really certain but I am glad I chose the Commandos. I like the life."

  "But you could have been up there; one of the Brylcreem Boys. Every girl would have been after you then." Gordy was obsessed with attracting women.

  I laughed, "I don't think so." I stretched, "Come on I'll teach you a few more words while we watch." It was easy to keep watch while Gordy learned a little more French. I knew, from my own experience, that it was listening to French and becoming accustomed to the sound which helped you to speak it. Gordy was getting better. He was a quick learner.

  We woke Daddy after our four hour stint. I was not sleepy and so I stripped my Thompson and my Colt and cleaned them. I took every bullet from the magazines and replaced them. It took time but I knew I wouldn't get a jam. I had nothing better to do. Then I went over the maps again. It looked likely that we would be exploring the land around the River Aa and Gravelines. Daddy had been wrong. I didn't know this area. It was further south that I knew better.

  Lieutenant Williams began to prepare for sea as dusk fell. We had discovered that although each launch would make its own way across there would be four Motor Gun Boats ready to intercept any E-Boats which intervened. We would be sailing in a narrow corridor which the MGBs could protect. We might not see the o
ther launches but they would be close to us.

  Daddy yawned, "Right, Tom. Have the lads check their weapons. When we have to move there won't be a lot of time."

  "Will do Sarge. You heard the Sergeant; the last thing you want over there is a jammed gun." I made sure that I oversaw the men. A second pair of eyes could often spot something.

  It would take a couple of hours to make the crossing, perhaps more if the weather was against us. Every Commando had his Bergen and his gun ready to hand. The journey across might be more dangerous than the actual landing. We just didn't know. This time we were going into the unknown. Before we crossed the Channel we blacked up our faces and hands. We had to be invisible when we landed.

  The young lieutenant sent the launch speeding across the waves. I saw the leading seaman, Reg Thompson, shake his head. A few knots less would not hurt our time and the noise of the engines was louder at high speed. The Lieutenant seemed oblivious to danger. If we had had an officer I am certain he would have advised a slower speed. However he had to take no such advice from a lowly Sergeant and Corporal. I expected the sound of German cannon fire at any moment. The engines sounded so loud that the Germans would have had to be deaf not to hear them. Amazingly we made it to the French coast without attracting undue attention. With his engine barely idling we edged in towards the beach. I could see the white of the river surf as we closed with the shore. My time studying the maps had not been wasted. I now knew exactly where we were.

  We slipped silently into the sea holding our guns and our Bergens above our heads. We waded ashore. We had no need for words. The ML would return at the same time the next night. By the time we were on the sand we heard the powerful engines disappearing into the distance. Inwardly I cursed. The lieutenant might have brought us in silently but his roaring engine would wake any sentries.

  My fears were realised when a powerful searchlight illuminated the beach to our right and began to move along the sand. Daddy and I waved our men forward and we ran as fast as we could for the sand dunes where, I hoped, we could find shelter. I reached them first and I turned and saw the beam of light reaching for us like a finger. As the rest of the section hurtled beyond me I saw, to my horror, the light stop at the footprints in the sand. They would send men to investigate and they would know that someone had landed. We had only just reached France and already we were in more danger than we needed to be. The Lieutenant might have doomed the mission before it had even started.

  Chapter 2

  I tapped Daddy on the shoulder and pointed to the top of the dunes. He nodded. We were Commandos and we didn't cry over spilled milk. The mission might be jeopardised already but we would still try to complete it. He led the section off and I knelt and brushed the sand where we had hidden as smooth as I could. The prints we would make from now on would not last long for they were in dunes. We had to delay the pursuit until we could hide. The dunes soon gave way to a low turf ridge which was covered with sand. As we reached the top I saw, to our right, the German anti-aircraft position and the searchlight. Already the Germans were summoning men to search the beach. Making a mental note of the emplacement I pushed Norm Ford in the back to hurry him up. The Germans were looking down at the beach and we had moved so quickly and quietly that we were beyond them.

  Half a mile later we found the road and halted. Sergeant Grant waved me forward and I sprinted into the middle of the road and looked up and down. The road led to Gravelines. I saw nothing coming and, with my gun cocked, I waved the section across the road. It was not before time for I heard the sound of an engine and saw two tiny spots of light coming from the south. I dived into the ditch with the rest of the section. The Kübelwagen chugged along the road. I heard it stop and risked a glance. It was about four hundred yards south of us. Two Germans got out and scanned the land and the dunes to the west. After a short inspection they returned to their vehicle and moved towards us. I ducked down again.

  To my dismay it stopped next to us. They got out again but thankfully must have looked to the west again. They spoke. Their accents and the Kübelwagen's engine made their words hard to hear clearly. I did hear the words 'English' and 'landing'. They had found our foot prints on the beach. Those, allied to the sound of the engines would mean only one thing, us! Then they mounted up and drove down the road. They stopped every four hundred yards or so. I guessed they were using binoculars and the light mounted on the Kübelwagen to search for these English raiders who had landed on their beach. We were lucky that the one place they did not shine their light was at the side of the road.

  Sergeant Grant tapped us on the shoulder and led us inland. When daylight came they would be able to examine, more closely, our prints in the sand, unless the tide had destroyed them and they would have an idea of numbers. Their cursory inspection would have shown them a landing had taken place. I had a feeling that we would have an interesting journey back to the beach and the pickup. The Germans would be waiting this time and we had no way of warning the crew of the ML that they were heading into danger.

  We headed north paralleling the road. It was a risk but we had to reconnoitre Gravelines whilst it was dark. During the day we would search the land to the south. There were houses and farms dotted along the road and we had to give them a wide berth. Farm dogs were always noisy. The Kübelwagen headed back along the road just when we were within sight of the outskirts of Gravelines. We ducked again and then breathed a sigh of relief as it returned to the emplacement.

  We found a small copse close to what looked like a derelict farm. We knew which pair we would be working in and had been briefed on what to look for. They were Commandos and could operate without orders. "Right lads, you have an hour to recce the town. Take no chances. We meet back here."

  I tapped Gordy and he followed me. We had divided the search area up before we had left England. I had the job of looking at the old fort defences at the mouth of the River Aa. The riskiest part was crossing the road. It was after midnight and there should not have been too many people about but any that were out were likely to be German. I smelled smoke as we approached the walls of the old town and we both dived to the ground. To our left, on the opposite side from the old town, two German sentries were having a cigarette just ten feet from where we were hiding. They had been obscured by a low wall. I heard them talking and knew from their words that they were looking out to sea. They were speaking of the invasion of England and one was saying how much he was looking forward to paying back the British for his crippled father who had been hurt in the Great War. The other was not certain that they would invade. Annoyingly they spoke for some minutes and enjoyed their illicit cigarettes before continuing their patrol.

  When their voices receded I risked rising. We hurried to the low wall and peered over. I hoped my blacked out face would make us hard to see. I saw that they had many gun emplacements inside the old defences. They had sandbagged the 88s which could either fire in the air or, equally dangerously, be depressed to fire at Motor Launches! I could see helmets and knew that each gun was crewed even at this time of night. The machine guns which interspersed them were not. That intrigued me. Were they expecting a raid by the RAF? I was aware of the passage of time and I was about to leave when I saw a sign which sent chills up my spine. The land before the gun emplacements had been mined. I saw the skull and crossbones. I would have to note its position when we returned to the others.

  I expected to be the last pair back but I was not. Smith and Griffiths were late. I looked at my watch. They had just five minutes to make it. There was a sudden noise from the town and what sounded like an alarm. Sergeant Grant looked at me and shook his head, "Looks like they've been caught. Tom, you have an eye for this sort of thing. Find us a way out of here!" Even as we went I heard firing and recognised the distinctive bark of a Colt. It confirmed my fears; Smith and Griffiths had been found!

  I began running towards the far corner of the field. It was south west of us. North was Gravelines and trouble and the west was the coast wher
e we had already woken them up. I prayed there was a gate or a gap in the hedge there. I ran hard. I knew that the rest of the men were all fit enough to keep up. There was a gap and we burst through. The next field was even larger. I kept to the same course. I did not glance around. The Sergeant would be at the back to chivvy up those who were slow. My job was to pull them along as quickly as I could.

  This field had a gate and there was tarmac ahead. I held my hand up and peered down the road. There was no sign of anyone and I crossed it. I waved the rest across and waited while they all did so. We listened for any sounds of pursuit. There were noises to the north but they appeared to be some way away. Then I smelled fuel. It was aeroplane fuel. I saw, briefly, the shadow of a windsock. There was an airfield somewhere close by. I vaguely remembered from the map I had studied that there was a village nearby called Oye-Plage. It must have been there.

  Norm said, "That was a bit of a cock up Sarge."

  Daddy shook his head, "It is a lesson. Any of us can get caught."

  Gordy asked, "You reckon they will spill the beans?"

  Norm was one of Bert's mates, "Never!"

  I caught Daddy's eye. We both knew that it was likely that they would say something which might put the Germans on to us. Daddy said, "We just keep on and do our job. We have the rest of the day and early morning to find out as much as we can. Then we make our way back to the coast."

  Johnny Connor said, "In daylight? This place will be crawling with Germans."

  "Then we have to hide."

  It was too dark to read a map. I pointed south west. "As far as I can remember there is a main road over yonder. If we find a good place to hide we can watch the road. That will give us an idea of who is in the area." Pointing the other way I said, "I reckon there is an airfield up there."

  "Do you think we will be able to recce it?"

  I shook my head, "We would be heading towards anybody searching for us. I am ninety percent certain there is a field there and we can mark it on the map. If the others hadn't been caught then we would be able to have a good look. Let's not push our luck eh Sarge? Let's just get away from here eh, Sarge?"