Perfect Flaw by Robin Blankenship Read Free Book Online Page B

soiled,” one man said at the top of his voice. “But can they do that now?”
    “If there are cockroaches all over the supplies, they must destroy everything,” a second man concluded. “But then what will people eat?”
    “What are we eating now?” a third man joined in, pointing at the food on his tray. “Can someone tell us what this is we’re getting?”
    “This is not the moment to complain about the food,” Ross argued. “What will the Council decide? Will we have something to eat at all? Will there be famine? How will the City survive?”
    The mess-hall administrator must have understood a heated discussion was being held, as he turned up the music’s volume, rendering all conversation impossible. The men ate, their thoughts concentrated on what they would find on their trays the following days – if there would be something at all. It was the first time Ross had seen his colleagues engaging in an argument over lunch. The entire City’s population must be on edge.
    After his last round of inspection, Ross had supper in the privacy of his small house. He nibbled his tablets, wondering if these were perhaps the last he would eat. A week’s supplies were usually handed out on the first day of the week, which was tomorrow. He assumed he was not the only one anxious to find out how the City Council would cope with the crisis.
    That evening he went to the Level D Pub, and found a surprisingly high number of people in attendance. The conversations dealt invariably with the hot topics of the last few days, the bad weather that had opened the gate for so many creatures and plants, and the food crisis. While some people were convinced that there was basically nothing to worry about, others claimed the Apocalypse was about to descend onto them. Both parties had strong arguments to back up their theory. Ross didn’t stay long. He had come here to get away from the pressures of work, not to be reminded of them.
    The next morning he did his first round of inspection, and was happy to note everything was as it should be. For the first time in many days, he would not have to call the Squad. A smile appeared on his face, and he was about to return home and have breakfast when he noted a flotilla of pollen sailing past on the breeze. Almost simultaneously, he heard the typical buzzing sound of an insect, but didn’t see it. Would this never end? He scanned the sky, patches of blue among the grey clouds, and to his horror he saw a bird, high up there. The situation was degrading rapidly. He called the Squad, informed them of the problem, and went back inside to have breakfast.
    He had almost finished as he got a call. It was the Food Administrator, who told him that the City Council had decided to ration the food supplies, but Inspectors and other key personnel would get slightly bigger rations, so as not to impair their capacity to work, considered vital for the City’s security. In order not to publicise this, he would not receive his week’s rations along with the rest of his area’s population, but during his lunch break. Ross acknowledged the message. Having a Level D job did have its advantages.
    He could only hope that the City Council would ensure the food production was speeded up, so that the population would not suffer overly much. Social unrest would only make matters worse. It was clear to him that the City was heading for its biggest crisis in recent times, and he shuddered to think what would happen when public dissatisfaction reached its boiling point.
    The rest of the day was unusual in various ways. The Squads came around, but there was little they could do apart from catching fluffs of pollen. The thought struck him that these uniformed men seemed to be playing a merry game, rather than safeguarding the survival of the City.
    “I hope this constant flow of pollen will stop soon,” the Squad Leader told him. “We must look like fools. We’re supposed to kill and exterminate, not to jump around