After leaving the jet car and climbing into the desolate hills surrounding Roald City, Tom, Roger, and Astro watched from the safety of a ridge the quick search Vidac and Winters had made to find them. When the two men had returned to the superhighway and blasted back toward the city, taking both jet cars, the three boys made their way slowly through the night down the opposite side of the hills and headed for the Logan farm. When the sun star rose over the satellite's horizon, the three boys were stretched out flat on their stomachs in a field, watching the morning activity of Jane, Billy, and Hyram Logan about the farm.
"Think we can get them to help us?" asked Roger.
"It's the only thing we can do," said Astro. "If they won't, we might as well give ourselves up. I'm so hungry I could eat a whole cow!"
"What kind of a cow?" asked Roger. "There aren't any on Roald, remember? We drink synthetic milk."
"I could even eat a synthetic cow!" was Astro's grim rejoinder.
"Come on, you two," said Tom. "We might as well try it. You think they're alone?"
"They don't act as though there's anyone around but themselves," said Roger. "But I don't know—"
"I thought I saw a curtain move at that window on the left a while ago," commented Astro, "and all three of them were outside."
"Probably a breeze," said Tom. "You cut over to the right, Astro. I'll go straight in, and you take the left, Roger. That way, if anything goes wrong, one or two of us might get away."