"Garry Kilworth - The Sculptor" - читать интересную книгу автора (Kilworth Garry)

"Stretch marks," said NiccolЄ. "In giving birth to me, she was left with
stretch marks on her abdomen. He destroyed her because she was imperfect,
blemished by a natural act of which he himself was the author. He killed
someone he loved because of his madness for perfection. Now he will
destroy himself - he's caught in the web of his own vanity. He has to have
the circle of angels, for they immortalise his youth and beauty, yet he
cannot have them, because one of them is a mockery. He will rage, he will
consume himself with frustration and fury. He will destroy himself . . ."
"You are a genius," she said.
"I am . . . subtle."
They stood, watching the water sliding beneath the craft, as darkness
fell. When it became cooler, once the sun had finally gone, she put her
arm around him.

й Garry Kilworth 1992, 1997
'The Sculptor' first appeared in Interzone # 60 (June 1992), later winning
that year's readers' poll for Story of the Year.