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For the guidance of those who have not read the earlier books about “Worrals” of the W.A.A.F. it should be explained that it was not by her own deliberate intention, or that of the Intelligence Branch of the Air Ministry, that she became engaged in special duties which might be put into the broad category of espionage. It came about by accident—more or less; and it depended upon a number of circumstances which in turn were largely the result of special qualifications. Because her father had been in the Diplomatic Service, she had lived, and gone to school, in both France and Germany, at the age when learning is easy. Consequently she spoke both French and German fluently. Later, she had learned to fly at her own expense. It was natural therefore, that she should join the W.A.A.F., and this she did in the ordinary way.

It was only after she was in the service, and it was discovered that she was a qualified pilot, that she was transferred from ordinary routine to flying duties. The same with her friend, “Frecks” Lovell. Even then their work did not go beyond the delivery and ferrying of training types. It was force of circumstances, when pilots were at premium during the Battle of Britain, that caused them to be moved on to service types.

It may not be strictly true to say that it was by accident that Worrals became involved in the enemy spy adventure that brought her to the notice of the Higher Authority, because had she not possessed the special qualifications referred to above, and an astute brain that enabled her to employ them to the best advantage, her first personal clash with the enemy could not have happened. But it did happen, and her shrewd and fearless handling of the situation was not overlooked by the Air Council. The result was almost inevitable. In war, operatives with exceptional attainments are ever in demand, and once her name had been docketed in the Intelligence Branch of the R.A.F., it could only be a question of time before fresh employment was found for her in the field for which her accomplishments made her so well adapted. In any of the services, once this state of affairs comes about, it is—as the old soldiers say—just one thing after another.

One final point. The reader should understand that this exploit occurred before the Nazis’ occupation of Southern France.