"Michael McCollum - Gibraltar earth" - читать интересную книгу автора (McCollum Michael)

тАЬI understand your pain, but there is really nothing constructive you can do in orbit. Captain Landon will
not be able to meet with you, anyway. First, there is the mandatory quarantine period and he will be very
busy preparing the ship to go out again. I will tell you what. We will forward a copy of the captainтАЩs log
entry as soon as we receive it. Will that be acceptable?тАЭ

Mark gazed at the pretty blonde opposite him. Her expression reminded him of the professional
lamentation of a mortician. Perhaps it was his lack of sleep or the fact that his senses had been stretched
taut. Something about her manner told him that she was not telling him the truth, at least not the whole
truth. He frowned, and then nodded. тАЬI suppose it will have to do.тАЭ

They talked for another ten minutes, after which Mark found himself deftly herded back to the transport
station. He climbed into a bullet car headed south and watched Amalthea Palan as she stood on the
platform until his car had left the building.

Mark mulled over his next move. If the survey thought that he would go back to California and give up,
they were in for a surprise. Someone was to blame for his sisterтАЩs death and he was not going to rest until
he found out whom that someone was!


CHAPTER 3


Nadine Halstrom, World Coordinator, and arguably, the most powerful single human being alive, sat in
the dark and watched the images shimmer in the depths of the holocube. Beside her sat Anton Bartok,
director of the Stellar Survey. Beyond the darkened office, a late afternoon storm sent booming thunder
across the Toronto cityscape while rain pelted the side of the hundred-story office building that housed
the bureaucracy serving the World Parliament.

The record ofMagellan тАЩs fight with the alien starship and its aftermath ended in a flicker of static as the
lights came on in the coordinatorтАЩs office. Nadine Halstrom blinked rapidly in the sudden brilliance.

тАЬMy God, Anton. So itтАЩs true!тАЭ

тАЬYes, Madame Coordinator. Captain Landon squirted that recording and his report to me via secure
comm link as soon asMagellan dropped sublight.тАЭ

тАЬWhere isMagellan now?тАЭ

тАЬJust crossing the orbit of Mars, inbound. She should be here in about a week.тАЭ

тАЬI have to admit to some skepticism when I received your initial message, Mr. Director. After seeing this,
I must say that you understated your case. Have you considered the implications?тАЭ

Bartok nodded. тАЬIтАЩve thought of nothing else for the last day and a half, Madame Coordinator.тАЭ

Nadine Halstrom sighed. She, too, had thought of little else. тАЬI think we have a major problem here.тАЭ
тАЬI agree.тАЭ

тАЬHave we any idea at all where these aliens come from or their military potential?тАЭ