"Mercedes Lackey - EM 3 - The Serpents Shadow" - читать интересную книгу автора (Lackey Mercedes)

trifling troubles that might concern you, perhaps we can see if we
shall suit each other." Maya took out a sheet of foolscap and dipped
a pen in the inkwell, labeled it as "Miss Smith," and looked up
attentively.
At the end of an hour, Maya had a reasonable history, along with some
cautious advice for the "trifling troubles" the lady confessed to.
The best advice she did not bother to give. There was no point in
telling her new patient not to stay up until dawn, not to starve
herself for days only to overindulge at a party or dinner engagement,
and not to drink so much champagne.
I would like her to make some small changes in her diet. But not yet;
I had better coat the bitter pill with sweetness. "Miss Smith, you
need a rest, but I know you cannot afford to take one, at least, not
until the theater season is at an end," she advised briskly. "Failing
a little excursion to a sunnier clime, you should take fresh fruit at
every meal. Especially citrus or hothouse fruits."
Miss Smith looked surprised, then calculating, and nodded. Maya had
expected as much. The young woman had not gotten where she was now
without being clever as well as beautiful, and it probably occurred
to her that not only would the request for fruits instead of
chocolates or wine cause her admirers just as much effort, and would
be quite as expensive a way to show their interest, it would indicate
a certain delicacy of body and mind on her part. That might, in turn,
increase the attentions of those with better-lined pockets, who
preferred that their mistresses be above the common touch.
"On the other hand, don't starve yourself on thin consomme and
broth," Maya continued. "Small portions will do you more good than
starving; leave off the sauces and butter, and vegetables will serve
you better than breads. There is no harm at all in having very lean
meat, but do avoid fat. Fat is very hard for a delicate appetite.
Fish, on the other hand is excellent."
"Lobster?" Miss Smith ventured, hopefully. "Oysters?"
To accompany all that champagne? "All very well, but avoid rich
sauces. They are often used to mask shellfish that are no longer
wholesome, and can you afford a month of wretchedness for the sake of
a lobster bisque?" Maya asked shrewdly. "A case of food poisoning
would keep you off the stage for at least that long. Miss Smith, this
is advice unsolicited, but it pays one to know precisely what
transpires in one's kitchen. There are much worse things that could
come from that domain than merely being cheated by the cook."
This time Miss Smith nodded knowingly. "My cook lives in terror of
me," she replied with a real smile this time. "What of the shortness
of breath?"
Don't lace your corsets so tightly and exercise, my dear.
"As you are in the theater, I venture to guess you might find a
Shakespearean coach who would give you fencing lessons; loosen your
corsets or do without altogether for that hour, and put the same
effort into it that he does. You might be surprised at how flexible
fencing lessons can make one," Maya told her instantly. "You might
also consider dancing lessons every day; good, brisk ones, perhaps