"David,.Peter.-.Fantastic.Four.the.Movie" - читать интересную книгу автора (David Peter)

Chapter 1
Ben Grimm looked with obvious concern at his best friend, who was leaning back in the taxicab seat and apparently doing everything he could not to fall asleep. "You okay, Reed?" he asked. "If you ask me, you been stretchin' yourself kinda thin lately."
Reed forced a wan smile. "I'm fine, Ben. I'm fine."
"Just fine?"
"That's not enough?" Reed said. Instead of looking over at Ben, he closed his eyes and rubbed his temples to ease the pounding within his head. "All right, Ben, you win. I'm more than fine. I'm superb. I'm fantastic. Will that do?"
"I guess it'll have to," Ben said sourly.
Ben's face was set in something of a permanent scowl. His face was round, his head shaved, his voice gruff and annoyed. He had an air of strength about him that derived from his steely gaze and impressive musculature. He was the sort of man who, when he strode down the street, women would give him appraising glances while men sensed that this was not someone with whom they'd want to pick a fight.
He could not have been more of a contrast to Reed Richards. Reed was thin, with the perpetually distracted attitude typical of the academic. His hair was black and straight, and he rarely looked anyone in the eye. It wasn't that he was being impolite so much as his mind tended to wander into realms that no one else could follow. A single word, a passing phrase, even an idly hummed tune could trigger his astounding imagination, and the next thing anyone knew, Reed was no longer looking outward, but inward, developing some new and elaborate scientific construct that might end up feeding millions of starving people...or have no practical application whatsoever. It was all much the same to Reed. The result was of little consequence; it was the conception and subsequent experimentation that held the true thrill.
There was nothing thrilling in his current situation, however. Crammed into the back of a slow-moving taxicab, balancing books, charts, and assorted presentation materials on his lap, Reed was trying to think what his next move would be should things not pan out at this next meeting. Nothing was readily coming to mind, and that alone was enough to concern him. Reed Richards was not the type to run out of ideas under any circumstance.
"It's just that I think you've been working yerself too hard," Ben said abruptly, clearly not taking Reed's dismissal of the notion at all seriously.
"I've been working myself exactly as hard as I need to. No more, no less." Reed pulled out a paper at random and started reading it. There was no reason for him to do so other than to try and shut down the conversation.
Unfortunately, Ben knew him all too well. "Reed, ya know everything that's on that sheet of paper. Every word."
"What makes you say that?"
"Because you wrote it, and you remember everything you've ever written. Seriously. You could quote word problems off your second grade math papers."
"You're exaggerating, Ben."
"Yeah?" He snatched the paper out of Reed's hand. "Fifth line, third word."
"'The,'" said Reed in exasperation. "Happy now?"
"Ecstatic," said Ben, flipping the paper back to Reed and chuckling. Then his face grew somber. "Reed, it's gonna be fine. It's all gonna be fine. I'm bettin' that this...whattaya call it? VDI?" Reed nodded and Ben continued, "That this VDI outfit is gonna come through. I got a feeling about it. A hunch. And you know about my hunches. They're always right."
"I certainly hope this is another one of those times."
Ben frowned, scratching under his chin. "Why's that sound familiar? 'VDI'? What is that, a phone company or something?"
"No, not exactly..."
"R&D?"
"Yes, very much into research and development," Reed assured him.
"Well, what's it stand for?"
"Stand for?"
Ben's eyes narrowed, an abrupt surge of suspicion rattling around in his brain. "Reed...ya think I don't know when yer hidin' something? You think you can pull somethin' over on me? Is that what'cha think? What are you hiding?"
"What in the world makes you think I'm hiding something."
"Your eyes spin counterclockwise."
"Ben, honestly, there's..." Then he stopped and let out a slow breath. "Look, at least let's get there before -- "
Ben Grimm might not have been -- definitely wasn't, in fact, no "might not have been" about it -- on Reed's level when it came to reasoning and intelligence. He did, however, have enough canniness and smarts to make intuitive jumps at the most inopportune moments, at least insofar as Reed was concerned. This was one of those moments, as Ben growled, "The 'V' in VDI wouldn't stand for 'Von' by any chance, would it?"
"See, I knew you wouldn't have the desired reaction to -- "
Ben leaned forward and thumped on the plastic. "Lemme out here."
"I can't," replied the cabbie.
"Yeah, y' can. Never mind, I'll get out myself..."
"Ben, you're overreacting," Reed said.
Ben Grimm wasn't hearing any of it. Instead he was pulling in frustration at the door handle. "Damned door's locked."
"Of course it is," the cabbie said. "I keep it locked from up here. What, you think I want fares jumping out before they can pay?"
"Look," and Ben leaned forward to see the cabbie's name on his hack license. "Look, Lockley...I'm the customer. I'm the one who's always right."
"And I'm the cab driver," replied Lockley, "and I'm the one who gets a huge fine and loses his license if I let somebody out in the middle of traffic. Besides, we're a block-and-a-half away. Let me get you where you're going, bring you to curbside, and then you can get out and stomp around and show your friend here, who you could probably break in half, what a tough guy you are."
Ben took this in, and then said, "You got no idea how much I wish I could rip this door off at the hinges right now."
"I'm getting the idea, yeah," said Lockley. "You know the old Chinese curse: Be careful what you wish for. You may get it."
"Not really seein' a downside."
"Ben," Reed started.
But Ben just shook his head in obvious disappointment and annoyance. "Yer hittin' up Von Doom for the money? Von Doom?"
"It's not as bad as all that..."
"His name's Von Doom! That alone -- "
"Now you're just being ridiculous."
"His name was Van Daam, y' know. He changed it to Von Doom just t' scare the crap outta people."
"You're not amusing, Ben. Not remotely."
"I think it's kind of funny," Lockley volunteered.