consequences. Very grave consequences."
Bet your ass there'll be consequences, Yuri thought. Be¬cause the next time I do it, I'm going to smoke out Mino Industries' whole game plan. There'll be consequences like you never dreamed of, you smooth-talking, scheming son of a bitch.
Tuesday 8:46 P.M.
"What does it tell you?" Yuri shaded his eyes from the glare of the hangar fluorescents and pointed, directing his father's gaze toward the dark gray of the fuselage above them. The old man squinted and looked up. "Can you see it? The underside is darker, and it's honeycombed. The air scoops, even the engine housings, everywhere. Very faint, but it's there."
Andrei Androv stared a moment before he spoke. "In¬teresting. Odd I hadn't noticed it before. But I assume that's just part of the skin undersupport."
"Wrong. Just beneath the titanium-composite exterior is some kind of carbon-ferrite material, deliberately ex¬truded into honeycombing. But you almost can't see it in direct light." He placed his hand on his father's shoulder. "Now come on and let me show you something else."
He led the elder Androv toward the truck-mounted stair, gleaming steel, that led up into the open hatch just aft of the wide wings.
"Let's go up into the aft cargo bay. That's where it's exposed."
The Japanese technicians and mechanics were scurrying about, paying them virtually no heed as they mounted the steel steps and then disappeared into the cavernous under¬belly of the Daedalus. The interior of the bay was lighted along the perimeter with high-voltage sodium lamps.
"Have you ever been inside here?" Yuri's voice echoed slightly as he asked the question, then waited. He already suspected the answer.
"Of course. The propulsion staff all had a quick tour, several months ago.