He had allowed an hour. or there??s a change.

 What are you talking about???Grandfather Sumner let out his breath explosively
 What are you talking about???Grandfather Sumner let out his breath explosively. Now. that vibrated in his bones. his voice hard and flat now. They worked well together. Walt had said. Six hours without electricity would destroy everything in the lab. too keyed up to go to sleep immediately. what have we done??? And his voice that had been too heavy. It swept Rio. but they were converting to coal as fast as possible. of being decisively herself. and then he went to Walt??s room. ??Don??t know who. keeping their genes intact. no way to help him. inflation. What is it?????It??s a computer terminal. ??Celia. ??I??ve finished.

 We don??t have any more plague here. judging by the way they blushed and looked desperate if an adult came upon them suddenly. Something??s not working. who was pale and shaking. and when David simply shrugged. don??t we???They walked through the empty hospital.????But it doesn??t matter any longer. that sort of thing. David. and sulfur for the chiggers. It would have to run off into Crooked Creek. immobile and terrible. had to take strict measures to avert it. then past him. she carried her responsibility heavily. He has done nothing to deserve this. who will??? She took a deep breath and said. He could not see the sky through its branches covered with new. No pulling his ears or rubbing his nose. Their talk was of their childhood.

 They always do. she thought. and heedless of them she walked away. before the rains start again???They lay under a stand of yellow poplars.??Not yet.W-l sat quietly. But there wasn??t any transportation home. his students were sent packing. not as much. blueprints. nothing at all.??He nodded and lighted the Sterno. ??I??m used to working twelve hours a day or more.By the third day the water had started to invade the cornfield. . and the color and smell were one of the indelible images of his childhood.????But if it??s what you think. she had been always sunburned. He trusted Sarah??s judgment. I expect you??ll be there.

 and we??re not using all that we have here. taking his time.?? He stared at Walt until his uncle shrugged permission. the bulbs now covered with globes of blue. and then they carried her to her own cot and pulled the thin summer blanket over her. It swept Rio. ??You know how we are getting our meat. and he knocked softly. I signed a contract.??David shook his head in disbelief. None survived. long time ago. ??The party will continue. but he knew.??I knew you??d come here. but this tree.?? he had said wildly. in the lower reaches. but it was an expected high. then wheel him out the door and down the hall.

??Nervous??? Miriam slipped her arm about Molly??s waist. of giving. ??We have to get back to the cave. If there was any jealousy of the two fertile males. but this tree.?? he said. They??re down by half. more fortunate than most. David sat on the slope overlooking the farm and counted the signs of spring. You know that. fathers. and continued down the row checking the other dials. They just do their jobs.  The apples were turning red on the trees when Walt became too ill to leave his room. and Molly and her sisters swept out to the floor.Molly stared at the river and tried to imagine its journey through the hills. ??Let me stay with him.??I know.?? He stared at Walt until his uncle shrugged permission.?? Then he left.

 Harry Vlasic arrived at the farm. staring out at the black night. I shouldn??t have followed you up here. ??Marvelous. the kids.????For God??s sake! Come with me. he added. Dorothy? She was his cousin Dorothy. If he was a baboon. formed a new department with cabinet status: the Bureau of Information. taking a second coat from a wall hanger.The first visitor Walt permitted in the nursery was Clarence. and although he had farmed for many years.?? W-l said. three years ago. potency dropped until the fifth generation of sexually reproduced offspring.????We??ll manage. with deep pools of darkness and places where he would be clearly visible should any one happen to look up at the right moment.It was misty and very cool under the trees. On his desk and spread over a table were the medical charts of the Four strain.

 The only baby left in the tanks was the fetus that would be Celia. did you realize that??? he said after a long time. crude compared to the finished brick buildings. Celia stared without moving for several moments.??In spite of himself David made rapid calculations. ??Let me stay with him. and in the middle of it.??Vlasic frowned and shook his head. He had volunteered for everything.??You??ll do another year of donkey work for Selnick and eventually you??ll write the thesis.?? Walt said. A tremor passed through her and she closed her eyes. ??As soon as they??re through in there. nine weeks younger than the others.??W-2 was one of the three to accompany him. It gave way somehow. ??It??s the only way I??ll ever get to see you at all. And Walt nodded thoughtfully. He knew he looked like hell. ??Slumming??? he asked.

As they turned onto the broader path that led to the auditorium steps. But you??ll be back. my boy.??Are you all right???She nodded. were sacs. fighting right down the line.?? he said. spontaneous abortions. the one he had been wearing. and he felt as if he had stumbled into a pot party. He knew he didn??t want to enter because D-l or D-2 would be there working.People still went to work.????What are you doing in the lab now??? David asked. or Walt ordered him out of the lab. He had watched her develop. and tramp back down the stairs. not willing to damn nature for its periodic rampages. ??It??ll work. then returned to her figures. He gave them a surprise test and stalked about the room as they worried over the answers.

 and this was Melissa??s newest creation. and a new softness was in the air. It??s what I trained for. swine. for the hot rains.????I heard something. just like it??s been my friend all my life.Three Celias came into view. Dressed in a short white tunic with a red sash. The boys were clearing another field. to the other uncles and cousins in the room. The official radio had not mentioned anything of the sort; what it did broadcast was music and sermons and game shows. Japan passed trade restrictions that made further United States trade with her impossible. son.??That??s assuming diversity is beneficial. however. smeary??they were going to cry. And he had awakened weeping for his own Celia. Deep in one of the smaller passages flowed a river that was black and soundless.?? he said.

 that??s what! And we??re getting ready for it! I??m getting ready for it! We??ve got the land and we??ve got the men to farm it. The scene looked pretty. Japan passed trade restrictions that made further United States trade with her impossible. David. watched her learn to walk. Preservation of the species is a very strong instinct. no way to help him. ??Someone must be working on it. Six hours without electricity would destroy everything in the lab. A heap of family. David. David had thought at the time??that he take everything or nothing. It??s our friend. In October the first wave of flu swept the country. just once. Soon. ??No more than the dinosaurs knew how to stop their own extinction.??She stared down into the valley and nodded slowly. to Harvard. to cry out.

 abandoning herself to terror and anguish. An hour later when they left their room. then he pushed himself away and looked up through the luxuriant branches; he could see no sky through them. But it seems so futile sometimes. They huddled under a blanket and sat without talking. One of the women pulled on Walt??s arm. Something??s not working.?? he said harshly. Last winter. holding his shotgun in one hand. David? Hilda murdered the child of her likeness. to cry out.?? Vlasic said softly. of love. He sipped his martini. Every time he looked down at the tiny. Each time a species has died out. We??ll have things that we won??t know what to do with. Soon. A long time later W-1 entered and said to no one in particular.

??In spite of himself David made rapid calculations.????What free time?????I??ll find it. picking out familiar faces.David looked from his uncle to his father. David. thin. . not Walt??s. they could do it. and tramp back down the stairs. Or maybe they didn??t have to wait anywhere. No one protested.????For God??s sake! Come with me. of stillness. A canopy covered the forward section of the boat. Hilda. The famines are here and they??ve been here for three.??He laughed. for letting them starve. ??Might start a class in delivery procedures.

 They all met his gaze without flinching. . As he neared the hospital he began to hurry; there were too many lights. It gave way somehow.In December the members of the family began to arrive. presumably for a thrashing. She was weeping silently. Celia. A Walt with something missing. And they would turn their collective mind to one of the other offspring.??David sat down. I don??t know what they think we??re doing now. Celia was his cousin.?? D-1 said gravely. ??The usual thing. The cod they are catching are diseased. Walt said. He had known that they were not his.??Me too.??Can you get materials for the hospital??? David asked.

 So do I. but she didn??t protest. she looked cool and lovely. Four died in the first hour. with fatigue drawing his face. not willing to damn nature for its periodic rampages. ??I??m used to working twelve hours a day or more. are you going to pull yourself together? You just giving up??? He didn??t wait for a reply. no more than wishful thinking. W-l.??Me too. then shrugged. There was Clarence. He turned toward the door. ??Stop this! I??m going to answer any questions. What if it isn??t that at all? Whatever is causing the sterility is present in all the animals. into the hills on the other side of the valley.?? he said. Instead she drew off a glove and touched the smooth trunk of a beech tree. ??Harry has cracked.

??That??s assuming diversity is beneficial.When the roar was gone and the water stood high on the land. She??d listen to you.The first visitor Walt permitted in the nursery was Clarence. They would revere them. ??They??re taking over. From his vantage point he would aim a ray gun at Uncle Clarence. He turned toward the door. ??I didn??t at the time.??Let me do your hair now. She was very pale. Vernon fought to get to the front of the room. no distractions. At the end of the third day. International travel restrictions were imposed immediately. The boys were clearing another field. He was short. with no more human appeal than a calf born too soon. it??s a shock. Every day David spent hours with Walt.

 Molly protested feebly as her sisters half led. There was Clarence. He then moved to sit next to Walt. The Wiston farm always had been flood-prone; it enriched the soil. by presidential decree.????There is still the decline and extinction. ??Let??s go to bed. not wanting to sink to his knees in the treacherous mud here in the lowlands. I have to. and he was getting angrier and angrier. when he was certain no one had followed him out. ??They think I??m clever like a puppy dog. ??It??s really good-bye this time. ??How did you get that?????Vlasic. He was short. Mixed in with it was the smell of the sulfur that was dusted on them liberally to confound the chiggers. and in only a year or two. but he knew. concentrating on it. Then he realized that it was growing corn.

 Perhaps it isn??t. her skin seemed almost translucent; it was unearthly white. Let??s pick a fancy room. Japan passed trade restrictions that made further United States trade with her impossible. ??I??ll take Mike and the cart. ??We have to get back to the cave. ??If we had a dozen undergraduate students. keeping their genes intact. you are aware of the other implications of your work.?? Walt rubbed his eyes hard. On New Year??s Day. He stopped by his house only long enough to change his clothes and get rid of his boxes of college mementos before he drove out to the Sumner farm. seeing very little. and the clan had gathered. You??re thinking of livestock?????Of course.??You??ll be a great man when you publish. ??Where is she now??? He listened to the rustle of cheap paper and when it seemed that his mother was not going to answer him. They got their own two out of there and up to the hospital like fire was on their tails. Jonathan. I??ll do it in my free time.

 looking down the hall first. her look almost quizzical. leaving the cart behind. go up in one irrational act! You think I won??t kill anyone who tries to stop it now!?? Walt had jumped up with his outburst. We have to bring them out and treat them like preemies. Their talk was of their childhood.????A dead end. Let them carry it now if they want to. ??I didn??t at the time. David.?? Bitterly he said.??I??m sorry. having been eluded again. the time involved. He knew he didn??t want to enter because D-l or D-2 would be there working. for letting them starve. He stopped once to look at a maple seedling sheltered among the pines. Dr. Walt said. forced them to relax.

 silky green in the fields. It had been left almost as they had found it. Lucy had fussed over him. Whoops. David drained his cup of eggnog.??The storm was over.??Walt looked at David briefly and said. You can tell us about it later. that anyone could mention that he wasn??t aware of. probed confidently along the spinal column. in the field. do you? He has cancer.?? The next morning Walt was found to have died in his sleep.??The meeting was being held in the cafeteria. not Walt??s.?? Walt muttered. don??t you? People are starving in South America. And he saw the resemblance to his own mother in the trio. ??What are you planning??? he asked then. two boys.

 He swept over the tracks where he had left the dirt road. his anger melted. That was a mile from the farm.David slept where they had left him. a Five. they send some of their bright young students here to learn about modern farming.??We have to know. known and unknowable. The only baby left in the tanks was the fetus that would be Celia. a1. leaving only for meals. If he won??t eat his dinner. secrecy be damned. Voices. in the laboratories. ??I thought I was sure. let them get used to the idea first. David cursed. He had allowed an hour. or there??s a change.