Page 21 (1/2)

"They’ve usually got s," Zane said "And some of these machines put out a ton of heat" He pointed at the two sides of the shed that were open to the night "But the ventilation means no shter around her, reaching into one pocket to turn up its heater

Fausto pointed out a e press "Hey, I rely school, for industrial design class," Fausto said "Weon the snow"

"That’s why I brought you along," Zane said, leading Tally and Fausto across the concrete floor

The bottom part of the machine was a metal table, which seemed to be etched with a million tiny dots Parallel with the table was suspended an identical expanse of metal

"What? You want to use a crusher?" Fausto raised his eyebrows Zane still hadn’t told them what he was up to, but Tally didn’t like the look of the massive machine

Or its nane bucket he’d brought, sloshing ice water onto the floor He pulled a memory card from one pocket and shoved it into the crusher’s reader slot The e and the floor ru powerfully under Tally’s feet

A ripple see across the surface as if the metal had suddenly become liquid and alive

When the movement subsided, Tally took a closer look at the crusher’s surface The tiny etched-looking dots were in fact the tips of thin rods, which could be raised up and down to ers across the table, but the rods were so thin and perfectly aligned, it felt like s out stuff," Zane said He pushed a button, and the table sprang to life again, a tiny, sy up in its center Tally noticed that identically shaped cavities had appeared in the upper surface of the crusher

"Hey, that’s ot? Those things were aweso," Zane said happily

He pulled a sheet of es to the table’s

"Yeah I alondered why they never ," Zane said "But I bet sooing to shoot it"

The other two each took a healthy step back

Zane grasped two handles at the edge of the table, squeezing both at the sa noise for a fraction of a second, then leaped suddenly intodown onto the loith an earsplitting clang The sound echoed through the shed, and Tally’s ears were still ringing as the crusher’s jaws slowly parted to reveal the sheet of metal

"Sweet, isn’t it?" Zane said He picked up the sheet, whose contours had been reshaped by the impact It looked like a lunch tray noith little sections to divide ait over in his hands, Zane ran a finger down the grooves that ood, powdery snow you could go a thousand klicks an hour on these babies"

Fausto’s face had turned pale "It won’t work, Zane"

"Why not?"

"Too et one of us to - "

"Are you kidding, Zane?" Tally cried "You are not sticking your hand in there That thing’ll take it off!"

Zane just smiled "No, it won’t Like Fausto said: too many safeties" He pulled the memory card out of the crushers reader slot and stuck another in The table rippled again, leaving a set of sharp ridges at its edge, like a row of teeth He placed his left wrist alongside the love on, but see where it’ll snip the cuff?"

"But what if it ht to keep her voice down Their cuffs were bound as usual, but she didn’t want the middle pretty at the other end of the shed to hear them

"It doesn’t s"

"It won’t work at all," Fausto proclaimed He stuck his own hand under the crusher "Shoot it"

"I know, I know," Zane said, grasping the handles and squeezing

"What?" Tally cried in horror, but the hts flashed around its edge, and a tinny industrial voice said, "Clear, please"

"It detects humans," Fausto said "Body heat"

Tally sed, her heart pounding in her chest as Fausto took his hand out from under the crusher "Don’t do that!"

"And even if you trick it, what’s the point?" Fausto continued "It’ll only crush the cuff, which will squish your hand"

"Not at fifty meters per second Look here" Zane leaned over the table, running one finger along the fore will cut it, or at least sh to kill whatever’s inside Our cuffs will just be hunks of deadhits them"

Fausto leaned in to look closer, and Tally turned away froht of them with their heads between the lassblower at the other end of the shed

Unaware of their insane conversation, the wolass inside a s it slowly over the flame