The Chinese, meanwhile, have secretly reverse-engineered the Xing Hua and sent their own expedition to Epsilon Eridani, little realizing what awaits them.
But the real surprise is in the biological samples the Heinlein brought back, then smuggled out of the Lunar Quarantine Facility by a biopharmaceutical company looking for any advantage it could get. Ironically, that may be the lever Drake needs to go and rescue the rest of his crew. That is, if they're still alive, and if they want to be rescued.