As the group hurried away, Mac loitered until she was near the form of Blakeslee, who was bringing up the rear.
"Where are you, Kim?" she whispered urgently.
"I'll join up at the next corridor. Keep further ahead, and get ready to run when we do!"
As they passed that corridor a figure in gray leather, carrying an extremely heavy object, stepped out of it. Kinnison himself set his burden down, yanked a lever, and ran. And as he ran fountains of intolerable heat erupted and cascaded from the mechanism he had left upon the floor. Just ahead of him, but at some distance behind the others, ran Blakeslee and Mac.
"Gosh, I'm glad to see you, Kim!" she panted, as the Lensman caught up with them and all three slowed down. "What is that thing back there?"
"Nothing much—just a KJ4Z hot-shot. Won't do any real damage—just melt this tunnel down so that they can't interfere with our get-away."
"Then you were bluffing about the earthquake?" she asked, a shade of disappointment in her tone.
"Hardly," he reproved her. "That isn't due for two hours and a half yet, but it'll happen on schedule time."
"How?"