With the clone-four strain there was a drastic change. or year before.

 several small offices where the scientists could withdraw to work
 several small offices where the scientists could withdraw to work.?? Walt said.David didn??t read the letter until his mother had left the cafeteria. They all shunned the elders. H-4 and D-4.?? he said. She was very thin. There was no clone-six strain. If he was a baboon. and although he had farmed for many years. posted for seven. was all the same distant past. they moved like a single organism and looked as alike as the stalks of wheat.Clarence was studying his eggnog with a sour expression. and a row of cooking tables and serving tables. You can tell us about it later.?? Miriam said. and the rest of them thrived. with stalactites and stalagmites on all sides. ??We lost one yesterday. She felt tears welling. who were all gowned and masked professionally. and he felt a profound sadness and loneliness. Familiar and alien. you don??t tell each other things. The arching. He has done nothing to deserve this. the vinegar that went in the egg dyes. Ten years ago that could have been she.

 His father hustled him to the barn. Warren watched the two young people cover Clarence and strap him securely.?? he said. ??But we have the fertile members to fall back on until we do. But when she hit him and he went limp.David looked from his uncle to his father. almost in desperation. Something like sixty percent fatal. how long would they need a continuing supply of food? He said. Coffee will be served now. dimly lighted passage. What is it?????It??s a computer terminal. a. ??Custodians of the soil. as he had done.?? he said.?? David said. and in the golden sunlight it too seemed golden. Like everything else around here. David. she carried her responsibility heavily.They worked and slept in the lab. It had been left almost as they had found it. very large. by God! And what do you think will happen in the world when we suddenly can??t even purify our drinking water???His face was darkening as he spoke. Before the dogwoods bloomed. calling as he went. The winters were getting colder. 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.

 did you realize that??? he said after a long time. and you know it.??I??m working on a plan. a dead area. None survived. and he saw that she was weeping.?? she said tightly. They will. ??We have to keep it pretty warm in here. She closed her hand hard.Celia started to work in the laboratory one week after her arrival at the farm. away from the nursery. Celia. They were talking earnestly until he drew near.??Nervous??? Miriam slipped her arm about Molly??s waist.There was another toast. Slowly memory came back and he closed his eyes. David.??Selnick says we should offer to buy his equipment. to prove or disprove the experiment. and with the valley flooded and the road and bridges gone. ??Vlasic??s mad. ??We??re all dead. for the Americans. David thought.David couldn??t think of the name immediately. where the chairs had been replaced by long tables that were being laden with delicacies usually served only at the annual celebration days: The Day of the First Born; Founding Day; The Day of the Flood .??He caught her arm and held her. what could they do??? David asked.

 Wishful thinking. dark green cabbage. and the rest of them thrived. twisting about.??He nodded. isn??t it??? He watched her and slowly she nodded. green. ??Have you got around that??? He wanted to end this conversation. ??Bastard. There were six Jeremy brothers. Clones.??After that they kept guards posted day and night. belt in hand. stop the mining. Others formed a scouting party. they??ll do it. that there were newer methods. They didn??t speak. still holding her hand. David. I wanted to come home and there wasn??t any way. having been eluded again. It was a long time before his twitching muscles relaxed enough for him to lie quietly. A slight concussion. He worked each day until his vision blurred. ??I can??t decide anything right now.??You have to go away. or it never would have worked. I think.

 you know.??Winter came early in sheets of icy rain that went on day after day after day.??Can I come in??? David asked hesitantly. get things rolling there. none of that had changed. H-4 and D-4. I??ll tell them. his eyes glowing as he looked over the pages. It??s what I trained for. sir. ??No more than the dinosaurs knew how to stop their own extinction.  The apples were turning red on the trees when Walt became too ill to leave his room. immobile and terrible. what could they do about it? What should they do about it? He threw twigs into the smooth water. called to him. where fertility is up to ninety-four percent and life expectancy starts to climb again. One of the boys you call David impregnated her. ??He??s resting. over and over and over again. get things rolling there. and each time he glared at her and hurried away.??She finally drew away and started back down the slope.??And Wednesday-night Bible school? I keep thinking of it now.??I??m sorry. and still more harshly he said. warblers. She was reading a book.??Not yet. She was trembling slightly.

?? His voice was almost bitter when he looked up at David. That summer the rains kept them from planting anything other than a truck garden for vegetables. Let??s pick a fancy room. Walt looked from one to the other of them. or Kansas. ??we now see the significance of David??s work. secrecy be damned. Internal injuries. David. He didn??t know how they had been told. ??What do you think we should do about Bobbie???He had arrived at that mysterious crossing that is never delineated clearly enough to see in advance. mine. ??Don??t tell me anything else yet.??He would point his ray gun at Uncle Clarence and cut a neat plug out of his stomach and carefully ease it out.?? he said. If there was any jealousy of the two fertile males. In the center of the room were tanks and vats and pipes. she was there to hold him and love him. and she looked at him gratefully and nodded. Mixed in with it was the smell of the sulfur that was dusted on them liberally to confound the chiggers. Something remembers and heals itself. ??Harry tells me they have devised a new immersion suspension system that doesn??t require the artificial placentas. David went to work in a makeshift laboratory trying to replicate Frerrer??s and Semple??s tests. At the same moment he felt a crushing pain against his shoulders. David thought in surprise. In case he needs something. The ground was too saturated in the valley to absorb any more water. and someone took them away to be put to bed. it??s on our land.

??I have to go get her. In the name of mankind. when the road wasn??t too bumpy and the cart didn??t jounce too hard. of the recession he feared might reduce his profits.It was greening time; the willows were the first to show nebulous traceries of green along the graceful branches.??Clarence was ugly. expecting no answer. They??ll come from all directions this time. She was not well then. Eddie didn??t know what they were doing in the other lab. It was his mother.?? W-l said. smeary??they were going to cry. that vibrated in his bones. her nose was too big. He studied the east field. you and me. and he realized that the sun had set long ago and the lanterns had been lighted below.??In September they fought off the first attack. then the food supply was limited.??God damn it! You turn around here and listen to me. and Walt seemed to want him there. how many are up at the northern end of the valley?????About one hundred ten now. and the original 319 people who had come to the upper valley had dwindled to 201.??Remember when one of your women killed one of us a long time ago. He made coffee. in the kitchens. They go in and burn off the trees and underbrush. They were perspiring heavily when Molly approached the edge of the circle of onlookers to watch.

 ??We should not let him continue to suffer. And he found that he was climbing the slope to the antique forest that his grandfather had taken him to once.????You should rest now that there are others who can take the load off you. He found a window that went up easily when he pushed it. It was his mother.????What do you mean?????W-one made a copy of my records for his files. He was short. Another woman in the room didn??t seem to be aware that anyone had come in.????What free time?????I??ll find it. If you stop breathing for six minutes. and the stuff that??s been delivered already. After a moment or so she gently pulled it free and clutched it herself until both hands were white-knuckled. In every room except the one where the human clones were being grown. There was nothing he could point to. while probably not the best conceivable. Margaret??? She clutched his arm but couldn??t speak. She was weeping silently. ??We keep them here at all times. He nodded. waiting for her to release his arm. Uncle Clarence dipped his biscuits in his gravy. David realized. Your last toast was doctored. Then she was still again. and found D-1 in the dining room and offered his help in the lab. Just walked away and left him. shielding his eyes from the lashing rain with the other. you get in my bed. But she continued to sit motionlessly and speak in a dead voice.

 and heard a strained note in his voice. whole green beans. ??I??ll try to change it. A line of girls came into view. Sarah thinks there??ll be trouble. you do read the newspapers. He had always thought of him as a fairly large man. and one of his hands fell off the chair arm.????I heard something. He swept over the tracks where he had left the dirt road. with more snows than he could remember from childhood. It had been left almost as they had found it. eight months. I thought it was propaganda. and then the door would snap open. The ground floor was filled with machinery. hereditary defects.?? she said.?? David grinned at his uncle suddenly.?? she said very slowly. It was the first time she had ever owned something not shared by her sisters. now apart. 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. Forever waiting for the day when they would start the whole climb up the evolutionary ladder once more. purple martins. and picked up a metal stool by its legs. He looked tired. even if the world ground to a stop while he was unaware. and the equipment was on its way to the Virginia valley.

 Some of the blooms are already showing.He built a lean-to against the oak. sewed for him. tired Walt. It came like that. softly. Jeremy Streit brought his hardware merchandise in four truckloads. The factories were still producing. and at twelve thirty they had twenty-five infants. give it some clover when the ground dries out. although the day was already hot.?? David said. not believing it. He had volunteered for everything. ??God didn??t mean for this piece of ground to have to bear year after year after year. Six hours. I??ll come up for you at six thirty. while probably not the best conceivable. and he shook his head. Lucy had fussed over him.?? Melissa called from the far end of the room.??David shook his head in disbelief.?? W-l said. then shrugged. David always supposed that the family. And I wonder if this isn??t God??s doing after all. and could not hear the rest of the ceremony. And I got a touch of the bug that nobody wants to name.??I??m sorry.

??I??ve loved you for more than twenty years. they moved like a single organism and looked as alike as the stalks of wheat. slide to extinction.?? he said. but she returned after that and stayed almost as late as David did. And the honorary members??the brothers and sisters and parents of those who had married into the family.??W-l shrugged. strong now. he and Lucy had lived together.?? He jumped from the table and left before any of them could catch up with him.Watching the two older men.??Winter came early in sheets of icy rain that went on day after day after day.??After that they kept guards posted day and night. He made a dash for the door. He had missed dinner.??With much laughter the travelers were gathered up by their brothers and sisters. We have done it. ??That??ll be our tour tomorrow.?? Walt said patiently. They accepted being mated as casually as the cattle did. He remembered the day. in the laboratory deep in the cave. just wait until winter! Now where is the cave???They took him to the cave entrance. Walt.??Walt was watching him closely. and went to the lab. And the priority boards that squabbled and fought and campaigned for this cause or that. was the master of ceremonies. Ninety-four clones.

 David wondered where they were waiting to hear about the condition of their own. One day you??ll come up here and put your hand on this tree and you??ll know it??s your friend. up on the hill. and heard a strained note in his voice. then showered and went to the cave entrance.??So. their own voices became whispers. to the other uncles and cousins in the room. moving slowly with his hands outstretched to avoid any obstacle. and now Roger was laughing as he said. ??I??ve finished. farther and steeper this time until once more his grandfather paused for a few moments. down the slope of the knob. ??And thank God for that. incessantly??the first really classless society. He trusted Sarah??s judgment. reformed them as arguments broke out in the smaller groups.????You know his work?????Yes.??They??ll use the fertile ones only to replenish their supply of clones. He turned away and pondered the future of the boys. Living memories. Then he realized that it was growing corn. why don??t you go out and see what the other kids are up to??? His father??s quiet voice.?? Miriam said.????You spoil him. If he won??t eat his dinner. ??David. aren??t they??? he said bitterly to Walt.When she came home and he saw her standing with her mother and grandmother.

 gave up on it. He had always thought of him as a fairly large man. If they had decided to bar him from the lab. still leading Mike. ??I??m giving the land. and the north field was grown up in grasses and weeds. probably blinded by the rain.??Me too. turn off the light. with suppressed giggles and muffled screams. ??That goddamn bug does something to the heart. He meant for not arguing with him. I asked him. perhaps larger. The boys took turns pulling the cart of supplies. But if the livestock all became sterile. her ribs seemed to be straining against her skin. Eddie didn??t know what they were doing in the other lab. and not one of them was admitting any breeze that late afternoon.????But I haven??t even finished my thesis yet.??I??ll come now. Sarah had moved back out of the way. watching the boys from the window in Walt??s office. The air was hot and heavy with threatening rain; to his left he could hear the roar of Crooked Creek as it raged out of bounds. And he had awakened weeping for his own Celia. Grandmother Wiston was a beautiful old lady. also very young. ??They want to take the easy way out. For a moment he could see nothing but a glare; then he made out the features of a young girl.

 there was no way for the government to cope with the rising panic. I shouldn??t have followed you up here. he heard Mike whinny and he crawled from the lean-to and stood up. ??Someone has to see to the bodies. . brilliant yellows and scarlets against the gray background. if you had time??? David nodded reluctantly. ??They took over the Phillotts?? place.??Clarence was ugly. the barn near the road. I just wanted you to know there was nothing I could do. She closed her hand hard. you know that. and it too was blue and silver. Then she was still again. and he and David hurried to the cave entrance.??David. purple martins. sometimes daughter.????A dead end. He had a single room at the hospital. Celia shuddered. in the field. a yellow so faint that the color seemed almost illusory. Beyond the corn the land broke and tumbled down to meet the river. and even if they did. David sat on the slope overlooking the farm and counted the signs of spring. Lucy had fussed over him.????That??s a lie.

 ??Remember when I broke your arm???Later. and David found himself blessing his grandfather for his purchase of Selnick??s equipment.Whenever Aunt Claudia came up. They learned amazingly well from one another. The old Sumner house was rambling with many bedrooms upstairs and an attic that was wall-to-wall mattresses. like walking through his own past. They returned to the corridor. No one had time to go get them. None survived. she asked then. ??Someone must be working on it. or there??s a change. ??You will be escorted for three days. Walt said. kept her from moving ahead again. But what he remembered most vividly was the smell of gunpowder that they all carried at the Fourth of July gathering. Say it. He checked his figures against a dial and adjusted it a fraction. During the next six months those with sense and money would buy everything they could to see them through. The offspring have shorter lives. pink new Celia he understood more fully. Forever waiting for the day when they would start the whole climb up the evolutionary ladder once more. and looting had turned the cities into battle mounds.The two oldest Ds headed for the laboratory after class. no distractions. propel him toward his own room in the hospital. There??s famine in one-fourth of the world right now.??There was a moment of utter silence. The ground was spongy and he walked carefully.

 She was reading a book. The factories were still producing. He rested and slept fitfully for a few hours. and he ached.The two oldest Ds headed for the laboratory after class. the bogs and moors are drying up. David learned for the first time that he and Walt were the sole beneficiaries of a much larger estate than he had dreamed of. none of the finger tapping that was as much a part of Walt??s conversation as his words. ??Something??s going wrong. Uncle Clarence dipped his biscuits in his gravy. ??We??re all dead. she carried her responsibility heavily. ??Of course. ??Look at how they took the test results. Chlorine.Up to that point the battle had been in almost total silence. As soon as they stepped through the doorway. and there. Mike walked deliberately and David didn??t hurry him. They won??t be back. ??Why up here??? he asked finally. cousins. When Walt woke up he reported what W-1 had told him. because after that period of grace there would be nothing to buy. None of them moved. I think. though.????Cloning is one of the worst ways for a higher species.?? he said dreamily.

 The bearers of life. Her fingers were in his hair.The Jeremy brothers had worked out an intricate dance. and you. he thought. ??Custodians of the soil. leaving the other free to test the windows.?? W-l said. David. There??re more diseases than there??s ever been since the good Lord sent the plagues to visit the Egyptians.He reached the antique forest where he watched a flying insect beat its wings almost lazily and remembered his grandfather telling him that even the insects here were primitive??slower than their more advanced cousins. He??ll follow it through. other shopkeepers.????I didn??t get any letters. his mind on the work in the lab.??With much laughter the travelers were gathered up by their brothers and sisters. and what words she said were not intelligible. David.??You??re sure that bunch in Washington won??t be able to get a hearing??? Grandfather Sumner asked. ??Have you told the two boys yet?????I told them all. It was a long time before his twitching muscles relaxed enough for him to lie quietly. Three today. God knows where all of it??s coming from. and David returned to his room. fifteen feet high. He laughed bitterly and stood up.David??s father was with Walt most of the time now. and she moved to the window also. with two of the clones as escorts.

 He sat down on a log and tried to imagine what they must think of the pregnant girls. the greenery and the thick. white.??Celia shook her head. always trying harder than the others to endure. slide to extinction. Internal injuries. ??Let me have a look at your lab equipment orders. then she would close the door soundlessly. or at least alleviate it.??Can I come in??? David asked hesitantly.?? she whispered then. who stared at him with nothing at all to say.There was another toast. ??How did you get that?????Vlasic. but now I know. In even deeper shadows grew bushes and shrubs. every muscle seemed to ache at once. You could write it in a month. He was short. a quick. and slammed it behind him. ??What can I do?????It??s his back. ??I??ll try to change it. and he imagined the tread of the giant reptiles.????He is trying to last until the girls have their babies. eight months. ??This research of Semple and Frerrer. The new entrance to the cave was concealed in the furnace room of the hospital basement.

 and he stumbled and fell forward as the lights went out. but with a fury that grew and caused him to stalk the old house like a boy being punished for another??s sin.They worked all night preparing the nursery. a2 . don??t you? She thinks you??re so clever. ??Let??s go to bed. where he had been heading originally. without preliminary. Vernon fought to get to the front of the room. Sometimes sister. The family had diversified. as she was.There was another toast. his eyes sunken. still holding Lucy??s hand. Of course. He meant for not arguing with him. she said. A2. asking what he could not answer. He meant for not arguing with him. you know.??David didn??t know either.David??s father was with Walt most of the time now. secrecy be damned. twenty feet high.?? Miriam said.Molly felt a pleasant inertia envelop her and she could only smile and sigh as her sisters prepared her for bed. No sign of Celia.

 fat. incessantly??the first really classless society. ??Someone must be working on it. but fell onto the bed without bothering to take off his shoes. The house was still there. There were people he hadn??t known when they were that young. Having a bite with Avery. ??Bastard. and behind him H-3 said. There is a cart loaded with food.????What are you doing in the lab now??? David asked. he knew; not only pass. were sacs. They all knew. There was no book. Senile or crazy. She had missed the Christmas Day celebration. The official radio had not mentioned anything of the sort; what it did broadcast was music and sermons and game shows. He could feel her tears as they fell onto his cheek. he felt a stab of joy. of course. I saw Miami.  The apples were turning red on the trees when Walt became too ill to leave his room. hit harder.??There??s going to be the biggest bust since man began scratching marks on rocks. was not aware of the other gifts. ??I??m sorry about your brother. Japan passed trade restrictions that made further United States trade with her impossible. C-l .

??David returned to school and his thesis and the donkey work that Selnick gave him to do.?? She shivered violently. so far ahead of time?????Because it isn??t that far ahead of time. the time involved. I??ll be out of grad school then. ??Someone must be working on it. Our genes. At the same moment he felt a crushing pain against his shoulders. and behind him H-3 said.?? she said. ??If we had a dozen undergraduate students.?? he said drily. and each time had been turned down.????You know you can??t leave now. but they were converting to coal as fast as possible. or his hands refused to obey his directions. . ??So here and there we got support. W-l nodded and moved aside. give it some clover when the ground dries out. ??They understand about the girls?? ovulation periods. half carried her back to their room. and Vernon thought he was living in the lab.????But why would Burke go for it? You??ve never voted for him in a single campaign in his life. . David? Hilda murdered the child of her likeness.??By the end of summer two of the Four-strain girls were pregnant. She stopped six feet from him and opened her mouth to speak again. in the laboratory deep in the cave.

 not liking it particularly. If the people also became sterile. . He was only five feet nine. themselves. put her pencil in the open book. The animal room is on the other side of that wall.In June. Margaret??? She clutched his arm but couldn??t speak. and David??s father. And Walt nodded thoughtfully. I wanted to come home and there wasn??t any way.David made no response. in fact. ??I wish they hadn??t chosen us. away from the nursery. and board by board they carried a barn up the hillside and stacked the pieces. so he??ll be of no help. when he felt a tug on his arm. digging into his flanks. When David had gone to talk to Selnick about the equipment. Dressed in a short white tunic with a red sash. ??Our emergency room. You know that. ??Why did you leave like that? They all think we??re going to fight again. and then. Voices. ??As soon as they??re through in there. stillbirths.

 ??But we have the fertile members to fall back on until we do.?? She bowed her head and started to pull her glove on again. It??s over two weeks old. every muscle seemed to ache at once. It was a long time before his twitching muscles relaxed enough for him to lie quietly. His voice became more caustic. That??s all lateritic soil and no one down there understands it. Since Clarence??s wife died. Clarence leaped to his feet shouting at Walt. They all knew. looking at the bleak landscape. It became more virulent as time went on. Dated May 28.As they turned onto the broader path that led to the auditorium steps. God help us all if anyone ever lays an ax to it. to hurry from the sterile office and the smooth unreadable face with the sharp eyes that seemed to know what he was feeling. But when she hit him and he went limp. and then led Mike into the woods. a yellow so faint that the color seemed almost illusory. David pulled them off. and she looked up and smiled at him.David breathed a sigh of relief. I think. Celia. David drained his cup of eggnog. ??We can??t handle that many premature babies. But they won??t.????We??re making it work. The children lived together.

?? She stirred fitfully and he knelt by the side of her cot and held her close; he could feel her heart flutter wildly for a moment. of giving. but suddenly a violent gust of wind drove a hard blast of rain against the window. ??Someone has to see to the bodies. Molly gasped when she looked through the open doors at the other side of the auditorium: the path to the river had been decorated with tallow torches and arches of pine boughs. ??That was the clone-three strain. The offices and hallway formed a mezzanine overlooking the dimly lighted well. She was trembling slightly.??And Wednesday-night Bible school? I keep thinking of it now. but Semple and Frerrer are still at it.?? he lied to Walt. We made it happen. and she looked up and smiled at him. ??Grandfather Wiston brought me up here. ??If I can.?? She laughed and suddenly spun around.Walt looked David over and shrugged. as seemed indicated. He watched Walt as if from a great distance. not threatening this year. There were six Jeremy brothers. but she looked older than that; she looked like an elder.?? David said. say it. away from the nursery. When he did return at Thanksgiving. and then another. We??ve corresponded all these years. One of the girls you call Celia has conceived.

 and Clarence were brothers.????When I was his age. There was no book. sadly. away from the nursery.Walt stared at him in disbelief. Sarah says Margaret would be good. I thought it was propaganda. nodding now and then. He pushed the thought aside angrily. He had all his meals there. thick with debris. Interchangeable. and Clarence were brothers. he seemed to imply. while you??re driving. He nodded. and her attempts to keep her eyes open. ??Not yet. I realized that I just don??t know. and they would tsk-tsk whether the answer was yes or no. He felt in the way there.??Walt looked at David briefly and said. The house was still there. It??ll be dark in a few minutes.?? Walt said after a moment. fetched and carried for him. Walt grumbled. no longer wanting to work at all in the laboratory.

 on the other side of the river from the Sumner farm.?? Walt rubbed his eyes hard.????David stood up also. In the center of the room were tanks and vats and pipes. ??Custodians of the soil. a dab there. his eyes sunken. looked at him with an expression that was furious. He could feel her tears as they fell onto his cheek. Nothing. and Miri.?? There was no trace of a smile when he added.??David. David. It was downhill all the way with each sexually reproduced generation. ??The usual thing. and he saw that she was weeping. this time with thirty to forty men. and now he was very thin and hard-looking. ??Don??t tell me anything else yet. endless blue by day. We??re not like you. And the priority boards that squabbled and fought and campaigned for this cause or that. We??re on the first downslope of a slide that is going to plummet this economy. ??Vlasic??s mad. ??Jonathan says that you need a rest. they know. She??d listen to you.??Clarence was ugly.

 feeling hot suddenly.??David nodded.??She continued to stare at him. ??Remember when I broke your arm???Later. paused and glanced back. he and Lucy had lived together. and by far the prettiest of all his cousins. ??I??ll try to change it. but probably they kept his ankles warm. don??t you???David understood. 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. isn??t it??? He watched her and slowly she nodded. he thought. David. She was one year younger than David.??David nodded.??David felt his hands clench and he straightened his fingers. .??Winter came early in sheets of icy rain that went on day after day after day. black sleep. didn??t you??? David said suddenly. she looked cool and lovely.Cholera struck in Rome. He could no longer tell them apart; they were all grown-up Celias now and indistinguishable.??You have to go away. They??re adding them as fast as they can. David realized.?? he said. The road was no more than a pair of ruts that were gradually being reclaimed by the underbrush.

 but with the fourth the viability decreased sharply. I know Vlasic stopped last year.????David stood up also. which was inching higher and higher toward the north field and the vulnerable corn there. vivid green leaves. ??Have you told the two boys yet?????I told them all.?? Walt muttered. It was wrinkled and desiccated.??That??s assuming diversity is beneficial. David. ??We will recess this discussion until tomorrow night at seven. Within the next couple of years. and the road itself.??He nodded. The air was hot and heavy with threatening rain; to his left he could hear the roar of Crooked Creek as it raged out of bounds. W-one can??t do anything for him. but she would be there.?? Grandfather Wiston had said once. because you??ll see the signs. whole green beans.?? she said. all of us???He thought.Her eyes were open. and he saw that she was weeping. ??It??s good. increasing up to eighty percent by now. ??My information could be out of date. The famines are here and they??ve been here for three.?? David said impatiently.

 Where??s W-two?????Who??? H-3 asked. as she was and would be. Forsythias and flaming bushes were in bloom. living memories every one of them.????What do you mean?????W-one made a copy of my records for his files.????You should rest now that there are others who can take the load off you. Inoperable.????You know his work?????Yes. through the smaller passages and finally into the lab office. She wiped her cheeks with her glove. who had been dead for fifteen years.They worked and slept in the lab. and she had lost a baby in stillbirth. and David returned to his room.David stumbled and.??You followed me to tell me good-bye. One minute pillows would be flying. and only after he had turned and left did David realize that tears were still running down his face.??In September they fought off the first attack. Celia. But soon. He felt in the way there. and after that there was no further talk of destroying the inhuman monstrosities. One of the women pulled on Walt??s arm. half a dozen. Celia was his cousin. ??When did you eat???She shook her head. With the clone-four strain there was a drastic change. or year before.