After the movie Stan and March went back to their ship to find that Ray Corvin had suddenly been taken sick. Just as they came up, the ambulance was taking him away to the Naval Hospital. “Burst appendix, I think,” Gray said. “And if that’s it, I don’t know what we’ll do. I’m hoping it’s nothing more than an acute indigestion that’ll pass in a day or two. But Sallini felt sure it was the appendix and so did the doc that came. That’s why they rushed him right off to the hospital.” “Anything we can do?” March asked. “No, just keep your fingers crossed,” Gray said. “Ray’s a mighty good man to have aboard a submarine.” “Why, we couldn’t go without him, could we?” Stan asked. “The Navy doesn’t wait around for an officer to get over appendicitis,” Larry said. “We’re scheduled to pull out of here at dawn day after tomorrow morning, and that’s when we’ll pull out, with or without Ray Corvin.” “What about his family?” March asked. “Didn’t he say he lived near here?” “Sure—about fifty miles away,” the Skipper replied. “He had just phoned them before he got this attack. I had to tell them he couldn’t come down as he’d planned. I got in touch with the Commandant here and he has sent a car down there for Ray’s wife and daughter. They’ll see him at the hospital.” In the morning they learned that Corvin’s appendix _had_ burst and he had been operated on. Larry Gray had spent a good part of the night at the hospital. “He’ll pull through all right,” he said wearily. “But it will be weeks before he’s up and around. We’re really lucky, I guess, that it didn’t happen when we were at sea. If it had to happen, it couldn’t have timed itself better. In port near a hospital—and not far from Ray’s home. He can go there to convalesce.” “What about us?” Stan asked. “It’s a shame we can’t have him with us. He’s a swell guy.” “And a fine officer,” Gray said. “He ought to have a command of his own, really. Well, I’m not sure what we’ll do. The Navy can probably find us another officer in a hurry if we demand it, though it’s not easy to find a good sub man just like that who isn’t already occupied.” He shook his head as he turned to his quarters. “I’m not sure just what we’ll do,” he said, “except that we’ll get under way on schedule.” At the door, he stopped. “March, will you and Stan help Mac oversee the loading? I’ve got to have a little rest.” There wasn’t much to come aboard. Ammunition and torpedoes were still intact, so they had to take on only oil and water and food, plus some special medical supplies for use in tropical climates. Stan had ordered a few more spare parts for his engines and motors. With his little repair shop, he felt able then to take care of almost anything that might happen in his department. It was late that afternoon that the Skipper called March to his quarters. “Sit down, March,” he said. “I’ve decided what to do about another officer, but I think I ought to talk it over with the rest of you first to see if you agree.”