Hutch stood beneath the alien heptahedron that hung from an engine crane. Only the bottom was not smooth: seven randomly arranged spheres peaked out.

“You don’t see it?” asked Hutch.

Ellie and Luiz waited.

“Damn! Look at the wheels.”

Ellie moved next to him and peered up. “What?”

Hutch gawped.

Luiz said, “We give up. Tell us.”

“You asked me to crack one of these damn things open, right? I figured out how. If those wheels come in and out, that means there’s space, right?”

Ellie stared at Hutch. “You’re going to pump it full of nitro.”

“You’re damn right.”

Chapter 32

Chapter 34