"Joe Haldeman - Roadkill" - читать интересную книгу автора (Haldeman Joe)

***


Ron Spencer has fallen into a routine that is not unpleasant. He pedals
thirty to fifty miles a day, stopping in motels when he can, campgrounds
otherwise. He stays in touch with Kellerman by cellular phone, calling
every day at five. He doesn't dare forget to call: if Kellerman hasn't heard
from him by 5:30, he'll call the state and local police and FBI. There's a
signal generator under his bicycle seat that will lead them straight to him,
and presumably Hunter or some other foul player.

For the past several weeks, he hasn't been riding alone. He met an
attractive woman a few years his senior who was also biking
coast-to-coast, and they hit it off. When she asked whether they could ride
together for a while, he considered refusing, or saying yes and pretending
to be just another biker, but then after some awkwardness he explained to
her the odd and probably dangerous quest he was on. He doesn't want to
endanger her. She counters that she would be in a lot more danger alone.

In fact, she's the first sole female rider he's seen on the road, with all the
media play about Hunter. At first, he even suspects her of being the killer.

Their relationship is friendly but platonic. Linda's not looking for a
man, she says. That's okay with Ron, still hurting from his own betrayal.
He doesn't need a relationship, though he wouldn't turn down some
friendly sex; Linda implies that she's lesbian but deflects any direct
queries.

Linda's a good bicyclist, but Ron is a lot better. He pokes along with her
most of the time, but periodically says bye and sprints ahead for a mile or
two, getting some real exercise. It also gives them each a few minutes of
privacy for "using the bushes."


***
 This afternoon, Hunter is using a ploy that has worked in the past,
pretending to be fixing a tire. He's so huge and obviously helpless that
people will stop and offer aid.

Ron is cranking along, sprinting about a mile ahead of Linda, and
almost stops, but then decides to play it safe. He doesn't really want to
confront Hunter, and this guy looks like one of the two suspects. (The FBI
is looking for the Thin Man and the Fat Man, from two possible
eyewitnesses.) As he passes, though, Hunter jams a tire iron into his front
wheel spokes. Ron cartwheels and is knocked unconscious, his helmet
shattered.

Hunter finds the gun and P.I. license and gets suspicious. Instead of
killing him, he ties and gags him and throws him and his bike into the