"MacLean, Alistair - Night Without End" - читать интересную книгу автора (Maclean Alistair)

"How to win friends and influence people." He had a slow cultured drawl. "I fear you have offended our worthy friend."

"I fear I have." I smiled, passed by, then turned. These wide shoulders and large capable hands could be more than useful to us. "How are you feeling?"

"Recoverin' rapidly."

"You are indeed. You didn't look so good a minute ago."

"Just takin' a long count," he said easily. "Can I help?"

"That's why I asked," I nodded.

"Glad to oblige." He heaved himself to his feet, towering inches above me. The little man in the loud tie and the Glenurquhart jacket gave an anguished sound, like the yelp of an injured puppy.

"Careful, Johnny, careful!" The voice, the rich, nasal and rather grating twang, was pure Bowery. "We got our responsibilities, boy, big commitments. We might strain a ligament-"

"Relax, Solly." The big man patted him soothingly on his bald head. "Just takin' a little walk to clear my head."

"Not till you put this parka and pants on first." I'd no time to bother about the eccentricities of little men in loud jackets and louder ties. "You'll need them."

"Cold doesn't bother me, friend."

"This cold will. Outside that door it's 110 degrees below the temperature of this cabin."

I heard a murmur of astonishment from some of the passengers, and the large young man, suddenly thoughtful, took the clothes from Jackstraw. I didn't wait until he had put them on, but went out with Joss.

The stewardess was bent low over the injured wireless operator. I pulled her gently to her feet. She offered no resistance, just looked wordlessly at me, the deep brown eyes huge in a face dead-white and strained with shock. She was shivering violently. Her hands were like ice.

"You want to die of cold, Miss?" This was no time for soft and sympathetic words, and I knew these girls were trained how to behave in emergencies. "Haven't you got a hat, coat, boots, anything like that?"

"Yes." Her voice was dull, almost devoid of life. She was standing alone by the door now, and I could hear the violent rat-a-tat of her elbow as it shook uncontrollably and knocked against the door. Til go and get them."

Joss scrambled out through the windscreen to get the collapsible stretcher. While we were waiting I went to the exit door behind the flight deck and tried to open it, swinging at it with the back of my fire axe. But it was locked solid.

We had the stretcher up and were lashing the wireless operator inside as carefully as we could in these cramped conditions, when the stewardess reappeared. She was wearing her uniform heavy coat now, and high boots. I tossed her a pair of caribou trousers.

"Better, but not enough. Put these on." She hesitated, and I added roughly, "We won't look."

"I -1 must go and see the passengers."

"They're all right. Bit late in thinking about it, aren't you?"

"I know. I'm sorry. I couldn't leave him." She looked down at the young man at her feet. "Do you - I mean-" She broke off, then it came out with a rush. "Is he going to die?"

"Probably," I said, and she flinched away as if I had struck her across the face. I hadn't meant to be brutal, just clinical.

"We'll do what we can for him. It's not much, I'm afraid."

Finally we had him securely lashed to the stretcher, his head cushioned against the shock as best we could. When I got to my feet, the stewardess was just pulling her coat down over the caribou pants.