Chapter 33: Riker – March 2158 – Sol
Final count, fifteen million people. The entire human species, represented in a two-page list. That was definitely a downer, and Arthur was not letting the opportunity pass him by.
“We’re not going to be able to get them all off-planet, you know.” Arthur shook his head, eyes downcast.
I wondered if he was really sad, or reveling in the irony. I sat back, put an arm over the back of my chair, and gazed at him in silence until he stopped.
“Arthur…”
“Yes?”
“Please shut the hell up.”
Arthur gave me a half-grin and a shrug by way of response. “You know I’m right.”
“Yes, and you were right the last twenty-five times you said it. Are you keeping score?”
Arthur shrugged and, without another word, popped up the latest Construction Status report. Ah, blessed silence, at last.