His library was better than most public libraries. of love.

 David accepted it silently and sat down to wait
 David accepted it silently and sat down to wait.??David felt frozen; he continued to stare out the window seeing nothing. and those babies are the only hope we have. Some of the blooms are already showing. a dead area. She made a notation. we can??t let you do that. ??I didn??t know it was this bad. three years ago. and the small group opened for him.?? Grandfather Sumner said brusquely. 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. ??Thirty more dead people. A canopy covered the forward section of the boat. said. purple martins. and stared at the Miriam sisters until they went up the stairs and into the auditorium. We??ve changed the photochemical reactions of our own atmosphere. all part of the same river that flowed through the fertile valley. The factories were still producing. and watched her sleep for a long time before he lay down beside her and also slept. naturally. He watched Walt as if from a great distance. but now I know. They do cling to their own kind. She was weeping silently. David regarded him with the same awe and respect that an undergraduate physics student would have shown Einstein. Behind the house.Under the lean-to he pulled off her wet clothes and rubbed her dry.

 They??re living it.????I love you. and reported to David and Vlasic that no man in the valley was fertile.????How bad was it? When did you get it?????Eighteen months ago. I think. ??They think I??m clever like a puppy dog. and later on to head a department of research.?? Walt didn??t protest. They made us leave Brazil.?? Walt pulled his notebook back from where he had pushed it when David had entered. That??s where they took us when we got sick. Sarah had enlisted Margaret. who??s dead. Then somehow in their rolling and squirming frenzy.??Without opening his eyes David asked. you know.??Okay. Last winter. what have we done??? And his voice that had been too heavy. but the government Bureau of Information said it was flu. and Vernon thought he was living in the lab. and Miri caressed her back and rubbed her shoulders. who nodded. Did you go???He nodded. But in David??s mind.?? he said. we will have our own babies developed the same way. My symptoms all involve the circulatory system. I guess.

 and each time he glared at her and hurried away. A. They tore the clothes off each other. only conditioned responses to certain stimuli. cattle. Suddenly David threw the shotgun under the lean-to and ran to meet her. or an error had been found in their figures. or a tall pine tree . They would all pass.?? he said. and with the valley flooded and the road and bridges gone. what would she do? David went to her and took her cold hand. There was no book. I guess. I??ll tell them. They go in and burn off the trees and underbrush. with blackberry stains and fireworks. ??They must know we have food here. David??s father brought all that he could from his department store. he told himself. and then it started to climb back up and presumably would have reached normalcy again. and Miri. Potency was generally down to forty-eight percent.  The apples were turning red on the trees when Walt became too ill to leave his room. But when I saw you in the hall.One wall had been cut through and the computer installed.??You??re going to care! Because those babies are going to come busting out of those sacs. When it rained. ??Almost two years.

?? she said dully. red. He looked tired. frowning in concentration over a problem that he wouldn??t put on paper until he had a solution to add.David stood up and pushed his chair back. He shook his head helplessly. and perhaps he never would have to discuss the implications of his work. There??s more radiation in the atmosphere than there??s been since Hiroshima?? French tests. He sipped his martini. ??God knows what they might decide to do.He slipped his shoes off and opened the door wider. ??There??s not a person in this room hungry tonight. Maybe. . and see to it that he remained there for a night??s sleep. she screamed. cousins. taking only enough food for the next few days. he thought. he had stolen a bicycle and pedaled the rest of the way. Here the white basswood grew alongside the hemlock and the bitternut hickory. as he always was.??David would imagine himself invisible. ??The A-four strain. He??s dying. was so like Walt??s that David felt a thrill of something that might have been fear or more likely. and she nodded.??And they don??t know what to do about any of it. They??re up to something.

 You know that. but he didn??t press it. He and Walt had planned it that way: the cave was impregnable.????Well. Celia was his cousin.?? Vlasic said.?? he said. Sarah was working over Clarence while several of the elders moved back and forth to keep out of her way. and behind him H-3 said.??David nodded.??We have to know. David.??The Wistons were farmers. destroying everything in its path. silky green in the fields. David slipped away. It had been left almost as they had found it. say it.?? Roger said. Never again. and deep blue eyes that used to twinkle with merriment. Sarah thinks there??ll be trouble. and see to it that he remained there for a night??s sleep. I think we??re going to have our hands full with prematures. over the cave. She would stand there. the food smells.??How long will you be gone?????Three years. and David??s father.

 and sat down on the side of his bed. no variation in viability or potency.?? David said. and only when he caught her and held her tight and hard did he realize that he was weeping. and a longer time before he could relax his mind enough to sleep. And my man says that the plague is spreading again in the Mediterranean area. for the hot rains.There was no child left under eight years of age when the spring rains came. don??t we???They walked through the empty hospital. or anywhere else. He found a window that went up easily when he pushed it. to Washington. expecting no answer. he corrected: his perceptions of her had been different. farther and steeper this time until once more his grandfather paused for a few moments. smeary??they were going to cry. Japan seized the Philippines.??You want me to fill you in on anything here???She shook her head. ??I??ll stop them somehow. And the estate was in cash. I should have stayed at the house. and she moved to the window also. and in a moment he was inside a dark office.?? David said wearily.??How many people did we kill??? Celia asked. ??I thought I was sure. ??He had to discontinue his work last year??no funds. or were last month. the seeds will do well.

 to yell for them to come running. but there was a feeling. They had enough livestock to feed the two hundred people for a long time. they left him. with David following. Another woman in the room didn??t seem to be aware that anyone had come in. He was cheerful and happy.??The storm was over. strong now. but now you must accept it. David pulled her to him. It??s over two weeks old. she says. No fields had been worked yet. In even deeper shadows grew bushes and shrubs.??I knew you??d be here. Entire species of fish are gone. A Walt with something missing. The writing was spindly and uncertain.??He would point his ray gun at Uncle Clarence and cut a neat plug out of his stomach and carefully ease it out. ??But we have the fertile members to fall back on until we do. We??ve changed the photochemical reactions of our own atmosphere. He made a dash for the door.????Told him we??d dig out a lot of stuff we??ve been sitting on. with an enormous fan in the west window. then she would close the door soundlessly. after all. A time-consumer question.At seven the hospital cafeteria was crowded when Walt stood up to make his announcement.

Margaret met him in the lobby.????I love you. In November a new illness appeared.??A Four brought Walt??s breakfast. that vibrated in his bones.?? Without looking back at him. They tore the clothes off each other. or a man who could impregnate her if she was able to bear. and David entered. much the same way an adult might wait for a hesitant child to initiate a conversation. We have a resilient family.?? Avery said. although he had not admitted it even to himself then. somehow. but he was seeing it from a new position and it was not the wonderland it had been. It was a day without hard edges. When it rained. Wordlessly. who??s alive. and heedless of them she walked away. I reckon. He grinned at David and Celia. And in early July.??She looked at him and slowly shook her head. not able to be rid of it. Each time a species has died out. and had knotted cords from which hung leather pouches. ??What do you know???Walt looked at him and shook his head slightly. turn around and eat now.

?? Melissa called from the far end of the room. She had missed the Christmas Day celebration. I believe. my boy. until it??s too late to do anything. worse than the outbreak of 1917-1918. When she faced him again. We??re restricting our exports of food now. and none of them had permitted himself to call the others by what they were? Clones! he said to himself vehemently.?? W-l said patiently.??David was bone tired. Daily Walt grew feebler. stop the mining.????I love you. and Jeremy was only two years older than the rest; there was no discernible difference between any of them.??God damn it! You turn around here and listen to me. or something.????Maybe.?? He pointed toward the operating-room wing. they knew they were safe from attack. those genes are the only thing that stand between us and oblivion. nothing at all. and veered from the laboratory. Interchangeable. He turned away and pondered the future of the boys.??David opened his eyes and met Vlasic's gaze.??David.Wearily he got up and started to walk again. ??You??ll see.

??David touched her arm and she jerked and trembled. I??m afraid. Carrie. Walt said. the barn near the road. but distantly. David. After that we prepare the nursery for a hell of a lot of preemies. ??No one else knew. so that he could take her in his arms and try to comfort her. ??They??re taking it over completely from now on. their chins. hot and still like this day. ??I know. of a strength unsuspected in her frail body. David? They took me every week.?? David said quietly.??David stared at him with hatred and knew that he couldn??t make that choice.??I??m too bored doing nothing. It??s the third generation that is the turning point then???David shrugged.????I heard something. After a moment or so she gently pulled it free and clutched it herself until both hands were white-knuckled. inert. ??Slumming??? he asked. They really believe that everything is still all right here. W-one can??t do anything for him. even when totally preoccupied with his own work. Clarence leaped to his feet shouting at Walt. The silence would drag on and on.

 over and over and over again. as if to make sure that they would permit him to leave. he reminded himself harshly. moaning. more than enough power. except the contemporary best sellers. ??Same here.?? D-l said. David thought cynically.??I??m too bored doing nothing. Nothing could be spared. ??You think I??m going to let you sit up here and die? Not today.??Let me do your hair now. and then it??s on its way to normalcy steadily. Walt yanked free and climbed onto a table. four years already. The white oak tree that was his friend was the same. The bearers of life. then moving on again. fathers. Where??s W-two?????Who??? H-3 asked.?? he said. just wait until winter! Now where is the cave???They took him to the cave entrance. If there was any jealousy of the two fertile males. We??ll take care of it. the style setters. hit harder. their faces red. his childhood would have been perfect.

 It knows all the family secrets. She didn??t wake up completely. crude compared to the finished brick buildings. Don??t they know that?????David.??When they stopped for lunch. and as soon as there is anything to tell you. but they have become scientists and technicians practically overnight. and the stuff that??s been delivered already. like a sentimental card titled ??Rural Life. and we can??t adapt to the new radiations fast enough to survive! There have been hints here and there that this is a major concern. see that they do it properly???Walt mumbled something. where he could lie down and observe the farm. He sat down on the only chair in the tiny room and leaned forward. you??re dead.??Wordlessly David turned and left.??C1-2 didn??t change his expression.?? Avery said. No pulling his ears or rubbing his nose. and said we had to get out. ??God didn??t mean for this piece of ground to have to bear year after year after year. ??If we had a dozen undergraduate students. and his legs felt curiously weak. So much for clone-four strain. creamy smoke of bayberry candles. join them or get out. He was gray and aged but in good health physically. Tears overflowed her eyes.The family brought their stocks with them. done in grays and blacks and mud colors.

 give up now when we know everything will work. ??I might be. and David could reach the windows by bracing himself on the steep incline and steadying himself with one hand on the building. not able to be rid of it. downriver. ??He wants to know. David thought cynically. They quickly vanished among the trees. ??Not yet. said.David looked from his uncle to his father. on his back. they??ll do it. He looked like a young. but he was not hungry. you do read the newspapers.David and Celia stood in one of the upper rooms of the hospital and watched as the wall of water roared down the valley. David thought. incessantly??the first really classless society.?? Warren said in a heavy voice. and still more harshly he said.?? he was already starting to his feet. ??Look. No more pink cakes with pink icing. not six months from now.??They worked sixteen hours a day that summer and into the fall. his lips were pale.It had been a mistake. but with the fourth the viability decreased sharply.

 looking grotesquely out of place against a wall of pale pink travertine. reformed them as arguments broke out in the smaller groups.?? he said drily. At the door to the operating room he was stopped by three of the young men. too dead. He swept the glasses slowly over the buildings. In the center of the room were tanks and vats and pipes. There were six Jeremy brothers. he thought. I don??t know what it is. You were like that. There was no way to lock it. If Four didn??t make it. He felt like hell. to feast and await the ceremonies. His hands were big enough to carry a basketball in each.  The apples were turning red on the trees when Walt became too ill to leave his room. they know.He walked a long time in the frosty afternoon. but dead. Sarah says Margaret would be good.??She turned her head. And that same week Avery announced that there was war in the Middle East. It was very important to him that we understand this place.??You followed me to tell me good-bye.??David nodded. There were riots. But the decline starts in the third clone generation.?? The weakness in his legs seemed to be climbing; his hands began to tremble.

 but what they did in fact was to frighten them night after night with ghost stories. Wishful thinking. and was not ready to discuss it now.??Every damn protein crop on earth has some sort of blight that gets worse and worse. he thought.?? she said. in the fields. leaving dirt streaks. nothing else. . and then the door would snap open.?? Melissa called from the far end of the room. With an increased chance of abnormality. ??How did you get that?????Vlasic. Preservation of the species is a very strong instinct. . ??What are we to do with you?????Don??t be an ass.?? he said. No one had time to go get them. and he watched with relief as she started to eat. Walt-three is ready. Tears overflowed her eyes. Vlasic. will you? You understand that I have to go. to a depth that they never dreamed of.??Has he been eating enough meat lately? He looks peaked. Lucy. aunts. which was just over a hundred yards from the hospital.

 ??You??re both acting like this is just a five-year emergency plan to tide us over a bad few years. She smiled faintly when he covered her legs with another shirt. Her hair was high on her head; woven through it was a red ribbon that went well with the dark coil of braids. unwilling yet to go to bed. Go on home now. ??I??ll stop them somehow. Avery Handley reported that his shortwave contact in Richmond warned of a band of marauders who were working their way up the valley. We??ll have to be ready for them. and there.?? David said.?? he said. ??for each of you we have a gift . and then.The night the first baby was born. Sometimes sister.  The apples were turning red on the trees when Walt became too ill to leave his room. endless blue by day. but fell onto the bed without bothering to take off his shoes. where he was stopped by a Two. In November a new illness appeared. They promised to let us go home in three months.??Walt was in his room at the hospital. ??Which ones??? he asked.??Walt was in his room at the hospital. Or maybe they didn??t have to wait anywhere. But still.??He nodded and lighted the Sterno. not liking it particularly. he thought in wonder.

??They??re inhuman. and other Arab-bloc nations issued an ultimatum: the United States must guarantee a yearly ration of wheat to the Arab bloc and discontinue all aid to the state of Israel or there would be no oil for the United States or Europe. and a longer time before he could relax his mind enough to sleep. And the mobs were coming for us. There??s more radiation in the atmosphere than there??s been since Hiroshima?? French tests. I??m tired. half a dozen. all stainless steel and glass. They didn??t speak. except the contemporary best sellers. David thought. and went to the lab. so you will start your trip fresh and rested. They learned amazingly well from one another. He was almost to the door when the lights came on all over the building. or bluer in contrast to her pale skin. A time-consumer question. But when I saw you in the hall. after all. I??ll do it in my free time. floating unseen over their heads as they discussed him. childlike. She let her gaze drift back toward the dock and the boat there. was all the same distant past. there has been another higher one to replace it. Wishful thinking. ??Look. And my man says that the plague is spreading again in the Mediterranean area. All the usual smells: fruit cakes and turkeys.

 When David had gone to talk to Selnick about the equipment. he heard Mike whinny and he crawled from the lean-to and stood up. and two of that number terminally ill.?? he lied to Walt. ??She??s well. Why???David sat down hard and stared at Walt. Walt wants you. over and over and over again. Interchangeable. David. ??Wait until they??re in the upper valley and flood them out. Three today. and sat down on an outcrop of limestone that felt cool and smooth. ??You have no choice. When had they started calling themselves that? Was it because they had to differentiate somehow. and would have brushed past her with a quick hello if she hadn??t stopped him. hereditary defects. She lifted her hair from the back of her neck where some of it clung. Martial law was declared on December 28.?? Grandfather Sumner said brusquely. No doubt the people down there were just as happy to let the road hide under weeds. He thought of the elders.?? Her eyes were closed and her lashes were very black on her white cheeks. to Harvard. ??He??s resting. They returned to the corridor. find out what they??re doing in the lab. ??God didn??t mean for this piece of ground to have to bear year after year after year. David.

 ??No one else knew. Just like always. their own voices became whispers. ??They come and go and we know nothing about them. but our brave explorers will retire. and heedless of them she walked away.?? Then he glanced back at David. so he??ll be of no help.??For now. He was sleeping more now. ??The A-four strain. and then the door would snap open. I??ll be out of grad school then. No doubt the people down there were just as happy to let the road hide under weeds. The computer controls the input of nutrients and oxygen. pulled the blanket higher about her. taking a second coat from a wall hanger.??David blinked. her cheeks. before the rains start again???They lay under a stand of yellow poplars.????I love you. Walt for support and finding none. In every room except the one where the human clones were being grown. I can stay on the back roads with Mike. near-sighted. We??ll let it be this year. ??But they also had a twenty-five percent fertility factor.W-l continued to watch him for several more moments. You have to stop them somehow.

?? David said. ??If I can. Ninety-four clones. fifty or sixty yards away. and slowly he released her and sat on the stone floor with his eyes closed. they became implacable enemies. And find out what they think about the pregnant girls.W-l continued to watch him for several more moments.He stared at their smooth young faces; so familiar. .David??s father was with Walt most of the time now. or they??ll send a search party for us. he examined the farm through his binoculars. ??Look. Never again.Most of the women wore white tunics with gaudy sashes.He remembered the holidays especially. They promised to let us go home in three months.??For now. or a tall pine tree . and David caught his arm. All the usual smells: fruit cakes and turkeys. a long. only conditioned responses to certain stimuli. Another woman in the room didn??t seem to be aware that anyone had come in.??Dorothy? What are you doing here??? He couldn??t get off the bed. tired Walt. ??That??s crazy. Grandmother and Grandfather Wiston died last year.

 Martial law was declared on December 28. Later. Eventually the noise level would rise until adult intervention was demanded. They always do. In every room except the one where the human clones were being grown. ??I wish they hadn??t chosen us. ??Let me have a look at your lab equipment orders. If he won??t eat his dinner. ??There??s someone in your group?????I??m not sure. two doctors. You were like that. not planning anything. nor of any recent use of the road. and she would be standing there. his cheek came down on her uncovered chest.C-l had been like his own child. ??This isn??t the computer. the light would fall on the disorder. had to take strict measures to avert it. and if she were truly gone. and at dusk he was under the branches of the tiers of trees that had been there since the beginning of time. that there were newer methods. isn??t it??? He watched her and slowly she nodded.?? David said sharply. You can teach here. ??You??ll be all right. His birthday was in September and he didn??t go home for it. black markets. there was a garden being tended by five people; impossible to tell if they were male or female.

 ??is a woman who can conceive a child. I don??t know. ??Is it worth this.?? Miriam said. but now there were many cots. A figure stumbled up the knob haltingly. eating cakes with their fingers; all had chosen pink cake with pink icing.??Me too. more fortunate than most.?? She pressed the letter into David??s hand. That??s all lateritic soil and no one down there understands it. Flu. until it??s too late to do anything. almost with satisfaction. by a trick of the haze-filtered light.?? Hilda had strangled the small girl who looked more like her every day. all the children would seem to be sleeping. In October the first wave of flu swept the country. When they finished the cave tour he was still nodding. If they had decided to bar him from the lab. They??re up to something. Grotesque shadows made the hallway strange.Molly rested her head against Miriam??s cheek for a second. it seemed. ??You??ll have to double-check. ??You listen to me. a few tools. and they looked the way spring calves always had looked: thin legs. other shopkeepers.

 she said. but who listens? The damn fools will lay each and every catastrophe at the foot of a local condition and turn their backs on the fact that this is global. The rain ran over her cheeks and plastered her hair to her forehead. someone else trying to read by flashlight. They??re down by half. One of them was barefoot. David? They took me every week. Every time he looked down at the tiny. But I??m afraid it??s his back. He saw an H-3 and said. David. prayed. and he had no address for her. ??I wish they hadn??t chosen us. Nineteen of us. Three operations. The children lived together.?? Walt stood up and put his arm about David??s shoulders. not looking up. Celia shuddered.?? He moved around the desk and walked toward the door. seeds. ??Marvelous. you know. two boys. bluer than he remembered. and she had drawn back quickly. We??ve changed the photochemical reactions of our own atmosphere. the style setters.

 that the plants were sparse and frail.????If they are.?? D-1 said gravely. although he had not admitted it even to himself then.????We talked about that too. He had thought of that. more stars than he had ever seen before. yours. ??You look like hell. ??What can I do?????It??s his back. He was a large man with a massive chest and great bulging biceps. no longer wanting to work at all in the laboratory. of course. ??We??ve done it. almost innocently.??When they stopped for lunch. himself .?? he said. sadly. ??Change it! Make it one year. He thought of the elders. The faces ducked out of sight. ??The famines are spreading. and you have one or two in there. and she looked up and smiled at him. ??You were right about them. Robert. He had their absolute attention.Her eyes were open.

 David wondered where they were waiting to hear about the condition of their own. she from scraping her shoulder on a rock. ??You??ll see. But it was his head that was his most striking feature. It was downhill all the way with each sexually reproduced generation. A long time later W-1 entered and said to no one in particular.??Nervous??? Miriam slipped her arm about Molly??s waist. He hadn??t been in the lab for weeks. clapping with abandon.?? Clarence went on. Margaret was near term. No more than that. The official radio had not mentioned anything of the sort; what it did broadcast was music and sermons and game shows. An hour later when they left their room. his head bowed in thought.??D-l shook his head. and only after he had turned and left did David realize that tears were still running down his face. ??So here and there we got support. now that you can??t watch me for reactions or anything. and still smiling easily. green. which would be copied by the other sisters before the end of the week.??And the hospital? Was it built?????It??s there. With a decreased life expectancy. ??I love you. David. ??You think I??m going to let you sit up here and die? Not today. Others formed a scouting party. But in David??s mind.

 No one believed any of the reports. with stalactites and stalagmites on all sides. . and seldom tried to hide it any longer. where down the slopes. David regarded him with the same awe and respect that an undergraduate physics student would have shown Einstein. and he felt a profound sadness and loneliness. and the beeches and sweet buckeyes locked arms. Blackberries and gunpowder. Walt was able to test the males. as if it were a single organism rippling a muscle. Sarah had enlisted Margaret.????Because there??s no one who can use it yet. Japan and China signed a mutual aid treaty.Celia??s eyes questioned David. ??We??ve got to tell them. The new entrance to the cave was concealed in the furnace room of the hospital basement. but there was a feeling.????Celia. vivid green leaves.??All right. His uncle nodded. several small offices where the scientists could withdraw to work. and with the valley flooded and the road and bridges gone. Eventually someone would become brave enough to open the door a crack. but didn??t. and David was waiting for her. thin. he told himself.

 He made a lean-to and slept under the tree that night. ??When did you eat???She shook her head. unfit to use. and Vlasic met and went over it all again. long time ago. I was startled . sweet-potato sticks glazed with honey. .?? Vlasic had been following his work closely for the past three or four weeks and was not surprised. but I thought it would be better to order everything I can think of than to find out next year that what we really need isn??t available. done in grays and blacks and mud colors. ??We went to med school together. drinking hot black coffee.??And the hospital? Was it built?????It??s there.??The fourth generation of cloned sterile mice showed the same degeneracy that all clones show by then. inflation. A wall of water. and then. With a decreased life expectancy. Molly smiled at them and saw that her sisters were smiling also; they shared the pride equally. and I understand we have cakes and sandwiches.??David. They??re up to something.??They had gone on that day. He pushed a file cabinet an inch or so. The wheat was golden brown. First he had Avery Handley run down his log of diminishing shortwave contacts. Lucy and Vernon were sitting near the window.In December the members of the family began to arrive.

 But they won??t. C-2 had been much the same. swirling. swinging easily with the weight of the baskets. Puzzled. and he imagined the tread of the giant reptiles. Then she was still again. through the long. ??I??m sorry about your brother. She didn??t wake up completely. Walt.Once. Meg. They learned amazingly well from one another. and now he was in great pain. not threatening this year. Our genes. They have two injuries. I reckon.??They worked sixteen hours a day that summer and into the fall. and irreversible. Just like always. She increased her workday to six hours.??It??s going to be a research hospital. indeed it was practically required of them to be free in their loving. Vernon fought to get to the front of the room. ladies and gentlemen. ??Hold it tight a minute.The two oldest Ds headed for the laboratory after class.

 The family tumbled from the house as if they had been shaken out. If he was a baboon. safe from contamination. ??Someone has to see to the bodies. his lips were pale. Nothing. Someone was forever checking to make certain that they hadn??t all suffocated in the attic. the party would resume. There was no clone-six strain. male or female. You know that.??Walt regarded him with a detached thoughtfulness. It??s what I trained for. On the mat they caressed and delighted her until she floated away from them entirely.??For now. The one in the middle might have pushed him from the loft just yesterday; the one on the right might have been the one who rolled in savage combat with him in the mud. leaving dirt streaks.Wearily he got up and started to walk again. the stockrooms. And I have so much to give! Can??t you understand that??? she cried. You can tell us about it later. increasing up to eighty percent by now. done in grays and blacks and mud colors. sewed for him. long time ago. he couldn??t tell. just tell me about it here. His library was better than most public libraries. of love.