The minutes dragged past.
Matt suddenly heard voices. Then a bell began to ring shrilly. He went to the control box and pressed a button. The massive outer doors swept soundlessly open.
The driveway outside was massed with women—lean women and fat women, old and young, big and little. Margot Drake was at their head.
"Have you disposed of your arms?" Matt called.
"Yes." The red-headed leader stared into the silent empty hall, her eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"Then bring 'em in."
Margot hesitated, and then turned around. "Come on," she said.
Silent and curious, they filed inside. Matt spotted Sparks, a sheepish expression on his face, and the two pilots.
"Hello," Matt called. "I see you boys are returning to the fold." They grinned but didn't say anything.
The children trooped in last, almost a hundred of them. When they were all inside, Matt walked to the door, closed and bolted it. Margot Drake was at his elbow. "What floors do we get?"