"Harry Harrison - SSR 06 - A Stainless Steel Rat is Born" - читать интересную книгу автора (Harrison Harry)

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CHAPTE.R ONE

As I approached the front door of The First Bank of Bit 0' Heaven, it sensed my presence and
swung open with an automatic welcome. I stepped briskly throughтАФand stopped. But I was just far
enough inside so that the door was unable to close behind me. While it was sliding shut I took the
arc pen from my bagтАФthen spun about just as it had closed completely. I had stopwatched its
mechanical reflex time on other trips to the bank, so I knew that I had just 1.67 seconds to do
the necessary. Time enough.
The are buzzed and flared and welded the door securely to its frame. After this all the door
could do was buzz helplessly, immobile, until something in the mechanism shorted out and it
produced some crackling sparks, then died.
"Destruction of bank property is a crime. You are under arrest."
As it was speaking, the robot bank guard reached out its large padded hands to seize and hold me
until the police arrived.
"Not this time, you jangling junkpile," I snarled, and pushed it in the chest with the porcuswme
prod. The two metal points produced 300 volts and plenty ofamps. Enough to draw the attention of a
one ton porcuswine. Enough to short the robot completely. Smoke spurted from all its joints and it
hit the floor with a very satisfactory crash.
Behind me. For I had already leapt forward, shouldering aside the old lady who stood at the
teller's window. I pulled the large handgun from my bag and pointed it at the teller and growled
out my command.

2 A STAINLESS STEEL RAT IS BORN

"Your money or your life, sister. Fill this bag with bucks."
Very impressive, though my voice did break a bit so the last words came out in a squeak. The
teller smiled at this and tried to brazen it out.
"Go home, sonny. This is not . . ."
I pulled the trigger and the .75 recoilless boomed next to her ear; the cloud of smoke blinded
her. She wasn't hit but she might just as well have been. Her eyes rolled up in her head and she
slid slowly from sight behind the till.
You don't foil Jimmy diGriz that easily! With a single bound I was over the counte+ and waving
the gun at the rest of the wide-eyed employees.
"Step backтАФall of you! Quick! I want no little pinkies pressing the silent alarm buttons. That's
it. You, butterballтАФ" I waved over the fat teller who had always ignored

me in the past. He was all attention now. "Fill this bag with bucks, large denominations, and do
it now." He did it, fumbling and sweating yet working as fast as he could. The customers and staff
all stood around in odd

poses, apparently paralyzed with fear. The door to the managers office stayed closed, which meant
that he probably wasn't there. Chubby had the bag filled with bills and

was holding it out to me. The police had not appeared. There was a good chance I was getting away
with it.
I muttered what I hoped was a foul curse under my breath and pointed to one of the sacks that
were filled with rolls of coins.
"Dump out the change and fill that too," I ordered, sneering and growling at the same time.