"McCammon, Robert R. - The Wolf's Hour" - читать интересную книгу автора (McCammon Robert R)

УYou see?Ф Franco said to Renati. УHe agrees with me!Ф
УI agree with the law of logic,Ф Wiktor corrected. УWhich, unfortunately, you donТt always obey.Ф He paused for a moment, listening to the high wail of the storm through the broken windows on the level above. УI think the berserker lives in one of those caves we found,Ф he went on. УNikitaТs right: the berserker wonТt go out in this storm. But we could.Ф
УYou canТt see your hand in front of your face out there!Ф Renati said. УListen to that wind!Ф
УI hear it.Ф Wiktor circled the fire, rubbing his hands together. УWhen the storm breaks, the berserker will go out on the hunt again. We donТt know his patterns, and once he smells us in his cave heТll find another den. ButЕ what if we found his cave, and him in it, while the stormТs still blowing?Ф
УIt canТt be done!Ф Nikita shook his head. УYou saw that chasm. WeТd kill ourselves trying to get down in there.Ф
УThe berserker can do it. If he can, so can we.Ф Wiktor paused to let that point sink in. УThe greatest problem would be finding his cave. If I were he, I wouldТve marked every one of them with my scent. But maybe he hasnТt; maybe, once we get down into that chasm, we can pick up his scent and follow it right to him. He might be sleeping; thatТs what IТd do, if I had a full belly and I thought I was safe.Ф
УYes, thatТs it!Ф Franco said excitedly. УKill the bastard in his sleep!Ф
УNo. The berserkerТs big and very strong, and none of us would do so well against it claw to claw. First we find the berserkerТs cave, and then we seal him in with rocks. We make it good and tight, so he canТt dig himself out. If weТre fast, we can get the cave sealed before he knows whatТs happening.Ф
УAnd provided he doesnТt have a back way out,Ф Renati said.
УI didnТt say the plan was foolproof. No plan ever is. But the berserkerТs insane; he doesnТt think like an ordinary wolf. Why should he worry about running when he thinks he can destroy anything on four legs or two? IТd say heТs found a nice warm cave with no back door, where he can curl up, chew on bones, and brood about how to kill the next one of us. I believe itТs worth the risk.Ф
УI donТt,Ф Renati told him. Her brow furrowed. УThe stormТs too strong. It would be hard enough getting from here to there, much less finding the right cave. No. The risk is too high.Ф
УAnd whatТs the alternative, then?Ф Wiktor asked. УWalt for the storm to pass and the berserker to hunt us again? We should take advantage of the fact that heТs just had a feast; heТll be sluggish, with all that meat in his belly. I say we go now, or we risk the destruction of the pack.Ф
УYes!Ф Franco agreed. УHunt him now, while he thinks heТs safe!Ф
УIТve decided. IТm going.Ф Wiktor looked around at the others. His gaze lingered for a few seconds on Mikhail, then moved away. УFranco, will you go with me?Ф
УMe?Ф His eyes had widened. УYes. Of course I will.Ф His voice was unsteady. УI just hope IЕ donТt hold you up.Ф
УHold me up? How?Ф
УWellЕ I didnТt mention it before. ItТs nothing, of course, butЕ I have a stone bruise on my foot. You see?Ф He slipped off his deerskin sandal and showed the blue bruise. УMy ankleТs a little swollen, too. IТm not sure when it happened, exactly.Ф He pressed the bruise, and winced a fraction too much. УBut I can still go,Ф he said. УI wonТt be as fast as usual, but you can count on me.Ф
УTo be an utter ass,Ф Renati finished for him. УForget Franco and his poor feet. IТll go with you.Ф
УI need you to stay here. To take care of Mikhail and Alekza.Ф
УThey can take care of themselves!Ф
Wiktor had already dismissed her. He looked at Nikita. УAny stone bruises on your feet?Ф
УDozens,Ф Nikita said, and stood up. УWhen do we go?Ф
УItТs my ankle thatТs giving me the trouble!Ф Franco protested. УSee? ItТs swollen! I mustТve stepped down wrong when we wereЧФ
УI understand,Ф Wiktor told him, and Franco was silent. УNikita and I will go. You can stay here, if thatТs what you want.Ф Franco started to speak again, but he thought better of it and closed his mouth. УThe sooner we go, the sooner we can get back,Ф Wiktor said to Nikita. УIТm ready now.Ф Nikita nodded, and Wiktor turned his attention to Renati. УIf weТre able to find the berserkerТs cave, and seal him in, weТll want to stay long enough to make certain he doesnТt dig out. WeТll try to be back within forty-eight hours. If the storm gets too bad, weТll find a place to sleep. YouТll take care of everything, yes?Ф
УYes,Ф Renati said glumly.
УAnd you and Franco will stay away from each otherТs throats.Ф It was a command. Wiktor looked at Mikhail. УYouТll keep them from killing each other, wonТt you?Ф
УYes, sir,Ф Mikhail answered, though what he could do if Renati and Franco clashed he didnТt know.
УWhen I get back, I want you to have finished the lesson we started yesterday.Ф It was a reading about the destruction of the Roman Empire. УIТll ask you questions about it.Ф
Mikhail nodded. Wiktor stripped off his robe and removed his sandals, and Nikita did the same. The two men stood naked, their breath coming out in misty plumes. Nikita began to change first, the black hair twining over his flesh like strange vines. WiktorТs eyes glinted in the low light as he stared at Renati. УListen to me,Ф he said. УIf for any reasonЕ we donТt come back after three days, youТll be in charge of the pack.Ф
УA woman?Ф Franco yelped. УIn charge of me?Ф
УIn charge of the pack,Ф Wiktor repeated. A gray tide of wolf hair was sliding over his shoulders and streaking down his arms. His flesh looked slick and oily, and sweat glistened on his forehead as his eyebrows merged. Steam wafted around his body. УDo you have any objection to that?Ф His voice was getting hoarse, and his facial bones were shifting. Fangs pushed out between his lips.
УNo,Ф Franco answered quickly. УNo objection.Ф
УWish us luck.Ф The voice was a guttural rasp. WiktorТs flesh shivered, growing its thick, gray-haired hide. Most of NikitaТs head and face had already changed, the snout spewing a blast of steam as it lengthened with popping sounds that Mikhail had once thought hideous. Now the sounds of transformation were as beautiful as music played on exotic instruments. The two bodies contorted, flesh giving way to wolf hair, fingers and toes to claws, teeth to fangs, noses to long black muzzles; all accompanied by the music of bones, sinews, and muscles changing shape, rearranging themselves into canine form, and an occasional grunt from either Wiktor or Nikita. And then Wiktor gave a harsh whuff and he loped out of the chamber toward the stairway, with Nikita a few strides behind. Within seconds, the two wolves were gone.
УMy ankle is swollen!Ф Franco showed Renati again. УSee? I couldnТt get very far on it, could I?Ф
She ignored him. УWeТll need some fresh water, I think.Ф She picked up a clay bowl that had been left by the monks the water, filmed with dirty ice, was almost gone. УMikhail will you and Alekza get us some more snow, please?Ф She handed the bowl to Mikhail. All they would have to do was climb the stairs and scoop up snow that was blowing in the windows. УFranco, will you take the first watch, or shall I?Ф
УYouТre in charge,Ф he said. УDo as you please.Ф
УAll right. You take the first watch. IТll relieve you when itТs time.Ф Renati sat down before the fire, newly regal.
Franco muttered a curse under his breath; it wouldnТt be pleasant to go up into the tower, with all those glassless windows and the cold whirling in, but keeping watch was an important duty that everyone shared. He stalked away. Mikhail and Alekza went to scoop up a bowlful of snow, and Renati rested her chin on her hand to worry about the man she loved.


5

Sometime during the night, the storm snapped. It passed on leaving the forest covered with drifts eight feet high, the trees bent under arctic ice. A bone-throbbing cold followed the blizzard, and the day dawned white, the sun hidden behind clouds the color of wet cotton.
It was breakfast time. УGod, itТs cold!Ф Franco said as he and Mikhail struggled across a white desert where green thicket used to be. Mikhail didnТt answer; it used up too much energy to speak, and his jaws felt frozen. He glanced back, about fifty yards, at the white palace; it was almost invisible against the blankness. УI curse this place!Ф Franco said. УDamn the whole country! Damn Wiktor, and damn Nikita, damn Alekza, and damn that damned Renati. Who does she think she is, ordering me around like a servant boy?Ф
УWeТll never find anything,Ф Mikhail told him quietly, Уif you make all that noise.Ф
УHell, thereТs nothing alive out here! How are we supposed to find food? Create it? IТm not God, thatТs for sure!Ф He stopped, sniffing the air; his nose stung with cold, and his ability to smell was hampered. УIf RenatiТs in charge, why doesnТt she find us food? Answer me that!Ф
There was no need to answer. They had drawn lotsЧthe shortest twigs from the fireЧfor the task of finding breakfast. Actually Mikhail had drawn the shortest twig, and Franco the next shortest. УAnything alive out here,Ф Franco went on, Уis buried in its hole, keeping warm. Like we ought to be doing. Smell the air. You see? Nothing.Ф
As if to prove Franco wrong, a hare with gray-tipped fur suddenly shot across the snow in front of them, heading for a stand of half-buried trees. УThere!Ф Mikhail said. УLook!Ф
УMy eyes are freezing.Ф
Mikhail stopped and turned toward Franco. УArenТt you going to change? You can catch it if you change.Ф