"David G. Hartwell - Year's Best SF 8" - читать интересную книгу автора (Hartwell David G)

They shoved past him and headed at once for the bedroom.
тАЬWho are those guys? TheyтАЩre not American.тАЭ
тАЬTheyтАЩre Iranian allies. The Iranians were totally nuts for a while, and then they were sort of okay,
and then they became our new friends, and then the enemies of our friends became our friendsтАж. Do
you ever watch TV news, Mr. Hernandez? Secular uprisings, people seizing embassies? Ground war in
the holy city of Qom, that kind of thing?тАЭ
тАЬItтАЩs hard to miss,тАЭ Felix admitted.
тАЬThere are a billion Moslems. If they want to turn the whole planet into Israel, we donтАЩt get a choice
about that. You know something? I used to be an accountant!тАЭ Portillo sighed theatrically. тАЬ тАШHomeland
Security.тАЩ WhyтАЩd they have to stick me with that chicken outfit? Hombre, weтАЩre twenty years old, and
we donтАЩt even have our own budget yet. Did you see those gorillas IтАЩve got on my hands? You think
these guys ever listen to sense? Geneva Convention? U.S. Constitution? Come on.тАЭ
тАЬTheyтАЩre not gonna find any terrorists in here.тАЭ
Portillo sighed again. тАЬLook, Mr. Hernandez. YouтАЩre a young man with a clean record, so I want to
do you a favor.тАЭ He adjusted his handheld and it showed a new screen. тАЬThese are cell phone records.
Thirty, forty calls a day, to and from your number. Then look at this screen, this is the good part. Check
out her call records. That would be her aunt in Yerevan, and her little sister in Teheran, and five or six of
her teenage girlfriends, still living back in purdahтАж. Who do you think is gonna pay that phone bill? Did
that ever cross your mind?тАЭ
Felix said nothing.
тАЬI can understand this, Mr. Hernandez. You lucked out. YouтАЩre a young, red-blooded guy and that is
a very pretty girl. But sheтАЩs a minor, and an illegal alien. Her fatherтАЩs family has got political connections
like nobodyтАЩs business, and I would mean nobody, and I would also mean business.тАЭ
тАЬNot my business,тАЭ Felix said.
тАЬYouтАЩre being a sap, Mr. Hernandez. You may not be interested in war, but war is plenty interested
in you.тАЭ There were loud crashing, sacking and looting noises coming from his bedroom.
тАЬYou are sunk, hermano. There is video at the Lebanese grocery store. There is video hidden in the
traffic lights. YouтАЩre a free American citizen, sir. YouтАЩre free to go anywhere you want, and weтАЩre free to
watch all the backup tapes. That would be the big story IтАЩm relating here. Would we be catching on
yet?тАЭ
тАЬThatтАЩs some kind of story,тАЭ Felix said.
тАЬYou donтАЩt know the half of it. You donтАЩt know the tenth.тАЭ
The two goons reappeared. There was a brief exchange of notes. They had to use their computers.
тАЬMy friends here are disappointed,тАЭ said Agent Portillo, тАЬbecause there is no girl in your residence,
even though there is an extensive selection of makeup and perfume. They want me to arrest you for
abduction, and obstruction of justice, and probably ten or twelve other things. But I would be asking
myself: why? Why should this young taxpayer with a steady job want to have his life ruined? What IтАЩm
thinking is: there must be another story. A better story. The flighty girl ran off, and she spent the last two
weeks in a convent. It was just an impulse thing for her. She got frightened and upset by America, and
then she came back to her people. Everything diplomatic.тАЭ
тАЬThatтАЩs diplomacy?тАЭ
тАЬDiplomacy is the art of avoiding extensive unpleasantness for all the parties concerned. The united
coalition, as it were.тАЭ
 тАЬTheyтАЩll chop her hands off and beat her like a dog!тАЭ
тАЬWell, that would depend, Mr. Hernandez. That would depend entirely on whether the girl herself
tells that story. Somebody would have to get her up to speed on all that. A trusted friend. You see?тАЭ

After the departure of the three security men, Felix thought through his situation. He realized there
was nothing whatsoever in it for him but shame, humiliation, impotence, and a crushing and lasting
unhappiness. He then fetched up the reposado tequila from beneath his sink.