The two men entered silently through a steel vestibule. The interior was somewhat reminiscent of the inside of a submarine: space was cramped, machinery jammed in everywhere. Lane evidentiy knew where to go, however. He led Reid through a tiny door near the entrance. The two men found themselves in a somewhat more spacious chamber, where a keen-eyed man sat in a chair before what looked like a control panel. Opposite the panel, there were built-in seats. And into one of these, wide enough for two persons, Lane and Reid settled themselves. Behind them, from nearby, came the sound of the outer door wheezing shut. The impression was of powerful pressure valves now holding the door closed. As this noise subsided, the big truck began to move. It was soon rolling briskly along - somewhere. The direction was not obvious to people inside a machine that had no windows. The man in front of the panel spoke first. ‘Gentlemen,’ he said, ^permit me to introduce myself.
