Nobody moved.
A noise like the roar of a swift freight train rushed into the
room, rattling the windows. The walls shook, the floor trembled, the
slide-rule slid off the pile of books and clattered to the floor.
They jumped to their feet and Avery ran to the window, clutching at the
bars.
"Not yet," said Rothman calmly. "The cactus plant will still be there,
casting its little shadow. You might as well sit down and finish the
game. That was only the shock wave. Have you forgotten that it is
transmitted through the Earth faster than the wave of disintegration?
We still have a few minutes left. Isn't anybody going to see my bet?"
Avery lurched to the desk, grabbed a remnant of torn paper and
scribbled on it
"I'll see you," he yelled, "and raise you a hundred and twenty-five
billion blues!"