Page:America Fallen!.djvu/114

102 before about that absurd demand for five billion dollars, and from the papers, also, he knew that the city had made a counter proposal of one billion. The morning extras had told him that no reply had come from the German Admiral, "who, doubtless, was awaiting instructions from Berlin." He picked up a pair of field glasses (an investment of his which had long ago paid for itself, and was now a steady source of income in tips from country visitors to the tower) and sought out the flagship. Yes, there she was at the head of the first line, with the Admiral's flag flying at the—but what was that flash, keen as the flash of a mirror in the sun! Could it be that—and there came a crash, louder than that of any thunderbolt from heaven, and he was clutching wildly at the railing, as the whole mass of the tower shuddered, and then swayed for a few seconds like a reed shaken by the wind.