"B. Dune - House Harkonnen" - читать интересную книгу автора (Herbert Brian & Frank)

Then the door burst open and Bheth ran in, her flaxen hair loose, her face flushed. "Patrol coming! We saw the suspensor lights. They've got a prisoner transport and a dozen guards."

The men sat up with a jolt. Two ran for the doors, but the others remained frozen in place, already looking caught and defeated.

Gurney strummed a soothing note on his baliset. "Be calm, my friends. Are we doing anything illegal? 'The guilty both know and show their crimes.' We are merely enjoying fellowship. The Harkonnens can't arrest us for that. In fact, we're demonstrating how much we like our conditions, how happy we are to work for the Baron and his minions. Right, mates?"

A somber grumbling was all the agreement he managed to elicit. Gurney set aside his baliset and went to the trapezoidal window of the communal hall just as a prisoner transport pulled up in the center of the village. Several human forms could be seen in shadow behind the transport's plaz windows, evidence that the Harkonnens had been busy arresting people -- all women, it appeared. Though he patted his sister's hand and maintained his good humor for the benefit of the others, Gurney knew the troopers needed few excuses to take more captives.

Brilliant spotlights targeted the village. Dark armored forms rushed up the packed-dirt streets, pounding on houses. Then the door to the communal building was shouldered open with a loud crash.

Six men strode inside. Gurney recognized Captain Kryubi of the baronial guard, the man in charge of House Harkonnen security. "Stand still for inspection," Kryubi ordered. A shard of mustache bristled on his lip. His face was narrow and his cheeks looked sunken, as if he clenched his jaw too often.

Gurney remained by the window. "We've done nothing wrong here, Captain. We follow Harkonnen rules. We do our work."

Kryubi looked over at him. "And who appointed you the leader of this village?"

Gurney did not think fast enough to keep his sarcasm in check. "And who gave you orders to harass innocent villagers? You'll make us incapable of doing our tasks tomorrow."

His companions in the tavern were horrified at his impudence. Bheth clutched Gurney's hand, trying to keep her brother quiet. The Harkonnen guards made threatening gestures with their weapons.

Gurney jerked his chin to indicate the prisoner escort vehicle outside the window. "What did those people do? What crimes worthy of arrest?"

"No crimes are necessary," Kryubi said, coolly unafraid of the truth.

Gurney took a step forward, but three guards grasped his arms and threw him heavily to the floor. He knew the Baron often recruited guards from the farming villages. The new thugs -- rescued from bleak lives and given new uniforms, weapons, lodgings, and women -- often became scornful of their previous lives and proved crueler than off-world professionals. Gurney hoped he would recognize a man from a neighboring village, so he could spit in his eye. His head struck the hard floor, but he sprang back to his feet.

Bheth moved quickly to her brother's side. "Don't provoke them anymore."

It was the worst thing she could have done. Kryubi pointed at her. "All right, take that one, too."

Bheth's narrow face paled when two of the three guards grabbed her by her thin arms. She struggled as they hauled her to the still-open door. Gurney cast his baliset aside and lunged forward, but the remaining guard produced his weapon and brought the butt down hard across the young man's forehead and nose.

Gurney staggered, then threw himself forward again, swinging balled fists like mallets. "Leave her alone!" He knocked one of the guards down and tore the second one away from his sister. She screamed as the three converged upon Gurney, pummeling him, slamming their weapons so brutally into him that his ribs cracked; his nose was already bloodied.

"Help me!" Gurney shouted to the saucer-eyed villagers. "We outnumber the bastards."

No one came to his aid.

He flailed and punched, but went down in a flurry of kicking boots and pounding weapons. Struggling to lift his head, he saw Kryubi watching as his men pulled Bheth toward the door. Gurney pushed, trying to throw off the heavy men who held him down.

Between the gauntleted arms and padded legs, he saw the villagers frozen in their seats, like sheep. They watched him with stricken expressions, but remained as motionless as stones in a castle keep. "Help me, damn you!"

One guard punched him in the solar plexus, making him gasp and retch. Gurney's voice was gone, his breath fading. Black spots danced in front of his eyes. Finally, the guards withdrew.

He propped himself on an elbow just in time to see Bheth's despairing face as the Harkonnen men dragged her into the night.

Enraged and frustrated, he swayed back to his feet, fighting to remain conscious. He heard the prison transport power up in the square outside. Haloed by a glow of illumination against the windows of the tavern, it roared off toward another village to pick up more captives.

Gurney blinked at the other men through swollen eyes. Strangers. He coughed and spat blood, then wiped it from his lips. Finally, when he could wheeze, he said, "You bastards just sat there. You didn't lift a finger to help." Brushing himself off, he glared at the villagers. "How can you let them do this to us? They took my sister!"