"Doranna Durgin - Heavy Metal Honey" - читать интересную книгу автора (Durgin Doranna)

"Bet that even makes sense in your head somewhere," Rio said, and just grinned
at her when she gave him a squinty eye.
"I was thinking," she said, "that there's no way to not stand out in this town.
Especially if you're you. Better keep that motorcycle helmet on."
"I don't think it matters if I stand out." Which he would, with that wheat-blond
hair and that height and that sculpted face. "If we spook our mule and her little
radioactive package, at least we'll have a dust trail to follow."
"Won't need it," Kimmer said, hefting the radiation survey meter in her hand. "If
she's anywhere aroundтАж"
They had personal dosimeters, as well, although they'd been reassured that any
short-lived contact would expose them to far less than the 15 rems considered to be
in the safe zone тАФ especially if they underwent decon.
Kimmer, however, was not inclined to believe the agency contacts who had
deceived them about their mission in the first place. But with the Hunter reputation
on the line, and the materials for a dirty bomb somewhere here on U.S. soil, she
wasn't inclined to walk away, either. Not even when the border patrol had agents
crawling through Bisbee, the FBI had taken up residence in Hotel La More, and there
was sure to be a Homeland Security rep here somewhere.
So they sat here outside the totally unexpected Chinese Country Antiques and
waited for a certain old blue panel van to cruise by Copper Queen Plaza. It was
driven by a known contact for illegal immigrants тАФ and while the missing mule might
once have expected a perfect set of papers, now she was on the run.
Kimmer just hoped she hadn't dumped the package, leaving them to track it down
in the desert before the terrorist boys got their hands on it.
 "Poor woman," Rio said, his voice a strange echo in her ear, both direct and via
her ear-mike. "She had no idea what she was getting into. I wish we could тАФ"
"Don't count on it," Kimmer said. She didn't need to hear the rest of that sentence
to know that Rio wanted to save the woman тАФ and that he'd already sensed Kimmer
was focused on their original target. More than focused on it, given the newly
revealed nature of the threat it posed. "She made a bad decision, and she's probably
going to pay for it. We can't compromise recovery of that package to save her. Or
try to save her, to judge by our little better-late-than-never briefing."
"She was used," Rio countered. "She didn't deserve this."
"No one deserves radiation poisoning." Kimmer held his gaze through the narrow
open area of their respective full-face helmets. "But there's nothing we can do about
it."
He looked away, but she knew better than to think he'd given up. Not until that
woman was dead would he give up.
Didn't seem like that would take long.
"There," Rio said, lifting his head тАФ proving he wasn't as distracted as he
seemed. A blue panel van tracked a casual path along Bisbee Ave. Rio pulled out
into the light traffic behind it with Kimmer right on his tail. They headed for the
complicated little traffic circle at routes 80 and 92 and then turned east to the тАФ
"Surely not," Kimmer murmured into her mike, drafting along behind Rio.
"Cemetery," Rio confirmed.
"Trite," Kimmer said. "Really trite. And it's not even a proper cemetery." Not to
her eyes, not without a green lawn and vast spreading crowns of maple trees
sheltering the graves. This cemetery had rough caliche ground and clumps of sparse
grama grass. The spear-shaped lombardy poplars that formed rows and boundaries
only served to create a spook factor. "Ugh. There's no rest in peace here."