“Just came to get a chemical for Biome 1,” Emanuel said.

Bouma nodded and returned to the blue glow of his device.

A few hours later Overton was in possession of a hunk of metal that looked like a greasy turtle shell. The veins in his forearms bulged as he dropped it on one of the tables in the mess hall where the team had gathered.

Sophie followed him, a wide smile on her face. “It’s done,” she said. “Alexia has already confirmed it works. The only thing we need now is a power source to keep it running on the trip to the Denver Airport.”

“That’s not the only thing, Dr. Winston,” Overton said, stretching his sore arms. Pain raced down his shoulder, which still hadn’t healed completely.

“Transportation to the airport?” Sophie asked, beaming. “Don’t worry, I’m already ahead of you on that.”

“What’s your plan, Doc?”

Sophie strolled over to the table, staring at the device. She knew they needed something with an energy source powerful enough to sustain it for the duration of the trip. There was one Humvee left on the tarmac, but unless they could find a way to hook it up to the engine without draining juice from the rest of the vehicle, it probably wouldn’t work.

Ideas raced through her head. Even with a cloudless sky, solar power wouldn’t be potent enough. It would also fail as soon as they entered the tunnels under the airport.

She frowned and glanced over at the console where Alexia’s hologram was glowing brightly. “Alexia, what’s the most powerful energy source in the Biosphere?”

“That would be my fuel source, Dr. Winston.”

“Really? Is it portable?”

“Protocol is to stay with the facility, but I was designed to travel in cases of emergency.”

“I’d consider this an emergency,” Overton chuckled.

A grin streaked across Sophie’s face. “How would you feel about a road trip?”

“That would be acceptable,” said Alexia.

“Corporal Bouma, you’ll be in charge of security, and Emanuel will assist with all Biosphere operations while we’re gone. Holly, look after the children, and . . .” Sophie paused. “Look after Timothy, too.”

The man scowled from his wheelchair, holding an ice pack tightly to his jaw. “Good luck,” he mumbled.

Sophie decided to assume he was being sincere for once and thanked him. She turned back to Alexia’s hologram. “We’ll leave as soon as it gets dark. In the meantime, I’m going to need your assistance with removing your fuel cell and hooking it up to the device.”

Alexia smiled for the first time in her existence. It was something she had been saving for the right time, a human reaction she had studied for years. She considered the moment a perfect time to test her hypothesis.