"Nancy Kress - Stinger" - читать интересную книгу автора (Kress Nancy)

And I thought the FBI might be the right people to
tell. I mean, I told my charge nurse, but she said it
wasnтАЩt statistically significant. But I think
different!тАЭ A note of quavering defiance.
Cavanaugh kept his face set in lines of
professional concern, even though heтАЩd already
decided this was another paranoid call. They came
in two varieties: the nuts who called to report UFOs
landing in the salt marshes, and the easily
frightened conformists who saw conspiracy to
overthrow the government in every pierced nose,
shaved head, or odd noise on their phone line. A
smoke bomb in the high school lavatory made them
expect Waco. But Judy sat across the room, purple
knitting on her lap and fiery light in her eyes, and
Cavanaugh was prepared to listen indefinitely to
Nurse Pafford.
тАЬTell me the events youтАЩre concerned about,
maтАЩam. From the beginning, please.тАЭ
тАЬWell, we kept having stroke victims come into
the hospital. I mean, we always do, but not as many
as this. I worked the weekend night shift. We had
five strokes Saturday night and three Sunday night.
And most of them were people who wouldnтАЩt
ordinarily be in the risk populationтАФ young adults,
even kids. But the thing isтАЭтАФher voice
droppedтАФтАЬtheyтАЩre all black.тАЭ
тАЬEvery one? Not even one white patient?тАЭ
тАЬWell, no, of course we had that, too. But only
one. The blacksтАж there are just too many of them to
be normal.тАЭ
тАЬEhhrrrmmm.тАЭ
тАЬSo I looked up the admission records. The
unusual number of strokes started three weeks ago,
in the first part of May. I made a graph. The
number has just mounted steadily. And all but two
are black.тАЭ The uncertain young voice took on a
sudden dignity. тАЬI do know how this sounds, Agent
Cavanaugh. But IтАЩm not just being weird.тАЭ
тАЬNo. IтАЩm sure your reasons are of the highest.
Look, suppose I come over the hospital and
interview you about this. Are you on duty?тАЭ
тАЬYou meanтАж now? No, IтАЩm at home in Port
Tobacco; I didnтАЩt want to call from DellridgeтАжтАЭ
тАЬFine, give me your address please,тАЭ Cavanaugh
said briskly. He wrote it down on one of the
pen-and-memo pad sets Judy kept all over the
house, color-coordinated with the curtains. тАЬIтАЩll be
there in twenty minutes.тАЭ
тАЬOh, thank you!тАЭ