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a clutter. We've been reluctant to lead the world because it's hard, dangerous work. But if we don't take hold of our victory soon'' He shrugged and shook his head. |
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Just then, Amalie Hebert asked Kellner a question, and he turned to answer her. Anna sat quietly, thinking of what he had said. The idea of another upheaval in Russia was horrifying. |
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"A penny, Anna," Avery Peters, who was seated at her other hand, said. "What's got you so down, today of all days?" |
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"Oh, I don't know, Avery. Partly the letdown from the high we were carried on during that time, I suppose. Partly the realization that life goes on, and we can't shove decisions under the rug any longer." She looked over at Morgan, talking animatedly to Evan Harris, drawing patterns in the tablecloth with his fork. Which battle was he refighting this time? |
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"I told you it wouldn't work," Ave said quietly. "You come from opposite ends of the spectrum, girl. Your view is from way up there, chasing those rainbows, with hardly a thought for those whose feet are down on the ground. You've led a privileged life, one of the elite who has always been able to stay in the womb. You're an icon of sorts now. I saw an article about you in the local paper the other day. The lady who wrote itpardon me, the woman who wrote itsaid you were 'a shining beacon of environmental feminism, one who didn't need a man to define her as a person.'" |
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"That sounds pretty damn pompous to me," Anna said. "Shining beacon, indeed. As for the rainbows, someone has to look for the gold, dream those dreams of peace. And I beg to differ about the womb. I've never had a very happy life. My father blamed me for being a female, not the son he always wanted. And everyone seems to know that Jake Neville and I had a lousy marriage." |
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"That wasn't the womb I was talking about. Personal relationships can be the pits for the best of uslook at Jesus and his buddies. Hope I'm not offending you by sounding |
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