| The Firecracker

'Shouldn't we at least be trying to get inside?' Jack sighed for at least the third time.

Jarvis shook his head patiently. 'When the wolves are concentrating on Maski's presentation… that is when we risk entry.'

'Cutting things fine, isn't it?' Amon muttered.

Jack sighed. He was about to get out of the car and stretch his legs when Lucy's cell phone bleeped noisily in his pocket.

'That's a point. We'd better set our phones to vibrate only,' Amon said, fiddling with his own cell. 'Then we can keep in touch if we have to separate.'

Jack nodded. 'Lucy?'

'I won't be much longer,' she cried.

'You can't afford to be,' he said. 'We're ready to go in.'

'This isn't exactly ninth-grade science I'm doing here,' complained Lucy. 'I'm going flat out.'

'We'll let you know if we get inside,' Jack told her.

'You'd better. This plan depends on us getting real close to Zubbe.'

'What exactly is your plan, anyway?'