Page 92 (1/2)
“It will remain symptomless within its host for months, as it is spread fron of infection will come It will seem like every person in the world has coh fever The ic but unavoidable cost to those eakened immune systems Only later, when people seek out answers to why they aren’t having children, will they learn that one half of the world’s population has become barren
“When that harsh reality strikes, there will be rioting, as frightened people seek answers to the questions their leaders had been afraid to ask But it should be brief—weeks or months at most And the world economy will stutter as we adjust, but adjust ill, because that is hu force: its ability to adapt And then, oh my friends, then ill have solved all those problems, cured all those ills, and ushered in a period of prosperity the likes of which the world has never known”
A tear ran unabashedly down Zelimir Kovac’s cheek, and he made no move to wipe it away Thom Severance, who had known Cooper for all of his adult life and had heard him speak a thousand times, was equally moved
CHAPTER 26
“THOSE TWO THERE,” LINDA ROSS SAID AND POINTED
Mark Murphy followed the line of her arm and spotted the couple i off the Golden Sky were elderly, or at least ed, she had spotted a man and woirl, about eight years old, wearing a pink dress and Mary Janes
“Candy from a baby,” Mark said when he saw the woman hand her credit card-sized ship ID to her husband He slipped it into his wallet and returned his wallet to his front pocket
Behind the aria Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, and get fleeced at the bazaar, the Golden Sky looked eerily like her sister ship Chilling lanced up at her He hadn’t thought through his emotions very carefully when he’d volunteered for theher
“They’re heading for the buses” Linda nodded to where the young fa toward the curb, where a dozen chartered buses idled Passengers were showing attendants their day passes to board
“Do it now or follow them don?”
“No time like the present Let’s do it”
They waited for the three to get ahead of theh the et was just ahead of the tracked
“Hurry!” Linda suddenly called out “I think our bus is going to leave”
Mark quickened his pace and brushed against the man as he passed Theit in his front pocket and feeling for it when someone accidentally brushed into him showed the hallmark of a seasoned traveler In most instances, this security practice would have been sufficient But as they had planned, when Linda breezed by hi by weren’t a threat and he didn’t check his pocket a second time
He hadn’t felt Linda’s small hand reach into his khakis and pull his wallet free