"I just spoke with Doktor Androv, and he believes the American will cooperate," Grishkov nodded. "He will bring him here as soon as he has been briefed."
"I still wonder if I shouldn't just handle it myself."
"It would be too dangerous for you, Yuri Andreevich. He knows about explosives. Besides, you have to be ready to fly the other plane, Daedalus II, right after the explosion. Nobody else can take it up."
He laughed. "Steal it, you mean."
"Yuri Andreevich, we have made sure it's fueled and we will get you into the cockpit. After that, we will know nothing about—"
"One other thing," he interjected, "I want it fueled with liquid hydrogen."
"Impossible." Grishkov's expression darkened, his bushy eyebrows lifting. "I categorically refuse."
"I don't care. I want it."
"Absolutely out of the question. The engines on Daedalus II haven't been certified in the scramjet mode. You can't attempt to take it hypersonic. It would be too risky." He stopped, then smiled. "Don't worry. You can still outrun any chase plane on earth with those twelve engines in ramjet mode."
"I tell you I want to go to scramjet geometry," Yuri Andreevich insisted, his eyes determined.