"Twenty or thirty's a decent enough start," she said, as she let her mind process the rest of what he'd said from context. "Gives enough leeway to dig basments and lay plumbing or ground wire without having to worry about hitting water or anything that'd get in the way. Still damn helpful."

She had a feeling his idea of 'glove box' was far more complicated than the one in her Mustang back home, and just sort of let that drift, filing it away to ask for clarification. She was just about to, when he made the comment about construction paper and pipe cleaners, and bristled.

"Excuse me, Dr. Riley," she said sharply, "but how many people on this expedition have you actually spoken to in depth since you arrived?"