Check gauge: tank-strike possible.

The slipstream rushed, back-pressure flowing through the smashed, rear glass, the frozen air from the side window setting up turbulence. The dead street lamps hung above us.

Foster was leaning against me and I gave him a nudge but he didn't sit up straight,

A few kilometres out of the city I passed through the humped shades of tanks harboured in line at the roadside. Their engines were silent and the troops standing about looked idle, some of them smoking a cigarette. A lamp flashed but that was all: they weren't interested in normal traffic.

I dropped him off soon afterwards. It was only a ditch where the wind had scooped a shallow in the lee of thorn, but better, from his point of view, than London.

On my way back to the car I saw a jewel lying on the snows southward, blue-green and as brilliant in the winter night as Sirius above me. From here it had lost the look of a city, of anywhere I'd ever been, but when later my lights rushed north the fragments of memory came and went, like a far lamp winking out: a curl of hair, a shadowed mouth, who are you please.

The Hamilton had steam up but I wasn't overdue: my signal had allowed for ice conditions and I'd avoided towns, taking my time so as to reach Danzig by dark. I ran the Mercedes into the truck park on Quay 4 and walked to the crane at the end. I wasn't there long: it was in sight of the starboard look-out and a boat came slopping through the flotsam and took me on.

There was ice on the deck and I nearly did a pratfall but they grabbed me and I shook them off, small thanks: I was fed up because one arm wouldn't work any more and with the two windows smashed the cold had been paralysing.

'I've sent for the ship's doctor,' first thing he said.

'Oh Christ, what are you doing here?' I wasn't in the mood to talk and he'd want me to do that.

'We were worried about you.'

I couldn't get him into focus, things looked dim here, touch of snow-blindness all that way behind the shifting lights. He said: 'I thought I'd come along.'

'Well it won't do your chilblains any good.'

'Is he all right?' someone asked, gold braid, I supposed this was his cabin.

'I'm bloody tired, don't you ever get tired?' They were trying to pull the glove off but it was stuck. 'Listen, what happened?' The only stations I could find on the car thing had been jammed.

'We're waiting.for news ourselves. It's all rather confused still, but we know the tanks didn't go in.'

'Well they couldn't, could they? Whole idea, wasn't it?' Someone said we'll have to cut it away, I could smell ether, sleeve as well they said, very dim in here, lying on something now. 'Back, right?'

'I didn't quite catch that,' leaning over me.

Effort, come on, I want to know.

'Did Merrick get back all right?'

'Ah, yes indeed, we met the plane. You looked after him splendidly, I'm really most grateful. Most grateful.'