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Kurt held still, not flinching, not

He heard shouting in Arabic and distorted words froht came on, pointed down the well The beam danced around them almost hypnotically Kurt re more than another dead body at the bottom of the well

More words were exchanged The light snapped off and the faces disappeared

Aup echoed down the gullet of the well Kurt listened to the vehicles driving off until he could no longer hear them He and Joe had been left for dead At least for the et out of the well, it was just a matter of time

CHAPTER 26

GAMAY WALKED INTO THE MAKESHIFT LAB TO CHECK ON Marchetti She found him hunched over an experiment that involved a heat lamp, several temperature probes and a tall, narrow beaker full of water, the top layer of which looked murky

“Aht to assume there are microbots in that beaker?”

Marchetti sat straight up “Oh, Mrs Trout,” he said, holding his chest “You snuck up on me”

“Not really You’re just very into your work”

“Yes,” he said, tinkering with one of the probes and checking a display

“Care to tell me what it is?”

“I’ as if he’d rather not talk about it

She sat across from him and stared into his eyes “Why is it men don’t like to share their hunches?” she asked “Are you so afraid to be wrong?”

“I’ve been wrong a ht, actually”

“About what?”