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Eddie turned Papa Ito’s wheelchair upright and hoisted him into the seat.
“I’m okay, Eddie,” Papa Ito said.
Eddie felt Papa Ito’s legs and arms and tested for breaks.
“They just flipped me over, that’s all,” Papa Ito said. “They’ve been gone a long time. About thirty or forty minutes.”
“Which way?” Eddie asked.
“Hard to tell. They used the auto-exit. Shot right out of the atmosphere. What the hell did you do?”
“I messed up,” Eddie said. “I really messed up, Papa Ito.”
Papa Ito sighed. “Well, you’ve got to go after them.”
“The letter said not to. I don’t know what to—”
He couldn’t leave Papa Ito. He wouldn’t be able to take care of himself. He would barely be able to make it to the pod by himself.
“Don’t worry about me,” Papa Ito said. “I’ll call your cousin Rafi. I can get so
