"Eddings, David - Regina's Song V2.0" - читать интересную книгу автора (Eddings David)

around for it in her sleep. Then again, it might have
been me who'd been looking. It was sort of hard to say.
One of the orderlies brought our breakfast about
seven, and I tugged on Twink's hand a couple of times.
"Hey, sack-rat," I said, "rise and shine. It's daylight in
the swamp."
She woke up smiling, for God's sake! That's sick!
Nobody smiles that early in the morning!
"I need a hug," she said.
"Not 'til you get up."
"Grouch," she accused me, her face still radiant.
That first day was a little strange. Twink watched me
all the time, and she had a vapid look on her face every
minute. I tried to read, but it's awfully hard to
concentrate when you can feel somebody watching you.
There was also a fair amount of spontaneous hugging.
I checked in with Dr. Fallon late that afternoon, and he
suggested that I should probably let Twink know that I
wasn't going to be a permanent fixture. "Tell her that
you'll have to go back to work before too much longer.
Let her know that you'll visit her often, but you have to
earn a living."
"That's not entirely true, Doc," I told him. "I've got a
few bucks stashed away."
"You don't need to mention that, Mark. We don't want
her to become totally dependent on your presence here.
I think the best course might be to gradually wean her
away. Stay here for a few more days, and then find
some reason to run back to Everett for an afternoon.
We'll play it by ear and see how she reacts. Sooner or
later, she's going to have to learn how to stand alone."
"You're the expert, Doc. I won't do anything to hurt her,
though."
"I think she might surprise you, Mark."
There was another bout of hugging when I got back to
Twink's room. That seemed just a bit odd. There hadn't
been much physical contact between the twins and me
in the past, but now it seemed that every time I turned
around, she had her arms wrapped around me.
"Renata," I said finally, "you do know that we aren't
alone, don't you?" I pointed at the surveillance camera.
"These aren't those kinds of hugs, Markie." She
shrugged it off. "There are hugs and then there are
hugs. We don't do the other kinds of hugs, do we? And
I wish you wouldn't call me СRenata.' I don't like that
name."
"Oh?"
"I'm Twinkie, remember? Only people who don't know
me call me 'Renata.' I knew that I was Twinkie the
moment I saw you. It was such a relief to find out who I