“Not a chance.” Emanuel pounded the table with his fist. “Have you lost your mind? I can’t—I won’t lose you.”

Overton shook his head and stood, sheathing his knife. “I’m not a scientist or a doctor. Hell, I don’t even have a college degree. But one thing I’m good at is reading people. From everything you’ve told me about this Dr. Hoffman, I bet he had a few tricks up his sleeve. Luke’s RVM was one. And I’m guessing another one was that ship.”

“Sergeant Overton is right,” said Sophie. “I believe Dr. Hoffman knew exactly what was coming, and he also knew there would be no stopping it, regardless of how powerful some super-magnet was. I have no doubt Dr. Hoffman had a contingency plan, and I believe that plan was probably Secundo Casu.”

“So who’s to say Dr. Hoffman isn’t already sipping fine-ass whiskey in first class on his way to Mars?” Bouma asked. He cracked a grin that suggested he knew he had said something clever.

“The video feed of Dr. Hoffman proves they were caught off guard as much as anyone,” Sophie said.

“So where does that leave us?” Holly asked. “Even if you and Sergeant Overton manage to make it to the ship, even if it’s operational, what about us?”

Sophie sighed. It was a legitimate question and one she didn’t know how to answer.

Think, Sophie.

An image of the RVM they had stolen from Luke popped into her mind and she smiled, snapping her fingers.

“There’s got to be a way to re-create or duplicate the technology in the RVM. A way we can leave it here to protect the Biosphere and, at the same time, shield ourselves on our trip to the ship.”

Emanuel ran a hand through his hair. “That’s a thought. It could work, theoretically.”

“Alexia, do you think you can figure it out?”

A blue hologram shot out of the console in the corner of the room and Alexia’s hazy figure appeared. “Of course, Dr. Winston. I will get started now.”

“You forgot about one key piece to all of this,” Bouma said.

Sophie eyed the Marine suspiciously. “What’s that, Bouma?”

“Transportation. What will you be using to get there?”

“Ever heard of the electric train beneath the ruins of the Denver Airport?” she asked.

Bouma shook his head.

“Good. That’s a promising sign. Most people didn’t know about it. There was a secret bunker built under the airport when it was constructed over sixty years ago. The government built something else there—a high-speed electric train that can top three hundred miles per hour. The tunnel extends seven hundred miles to the White Sands Missile Range near Alamogordo, New Mexico. Which, as Timothy already pointed out, is the location of the spaceport and more than likely the location of Secundo Casu.”