"Andrew J. Offutt - Spaceways 08 - Under Twin Suns" - читать интересную книгу автора (Offutt Andrew J)

of the umbilical. Also ready, and covering. Very cautious people. Then what, Jahl?"
"Then here come the next one. The tall skinny woman. Hair like copper or prass. Eyes like rocks or pieces of
mahogny. Almost black. Thin, I mean, that one. Even her mouth. All angles, that woman. Pale purple tights on her legs,
making 'em look longer and thinner. Black boots and a black military-like tunic that just made her look thinner. But .
. . there was a look about her. Mean, I think. She looked like trouble, you know?"
"I do know, Jahl. A stopper, of course."
"Right. A stopper on her hip. The right hip-I spot-ted that because it looked so different from the others.
18
She checked her, uh, guards?-and looked back up the ramp toward the ship. Called out something, I think. And here
come the Jarp."
Jahl paused, got nothing from ole basilisk eyes, and went on. "A Jarp. Bright orange with hair like the red on a kid's
toy, big round eyes."
"I know what Jarp looks like, Jahl," the inspector said. The voice was pleasant but the lips were firm and the
eyes-unchanged.
"Sorry, Inspector. Jarps do look pretty much all just about alike, don't they."
"They say that about us Galactics, but go ahead."
"The Jarp was carrying the two satchels. Go-bags. They looked stuffed. It wore knee-boots, red, and red trunks,
and a white halter that looked just obscene. I mean, you know Inspector-Jarps. Bulges above and below."
"Two breasts," the inspector intoned in a bored voice, "and a penis. And a vagina, not to mention one each ovary
and testicle. Just so. A Jarp, from Jarpi. Cinnabar, a.k.a. 'Raunchy,' former slave of course, wanted for nothing except
being on that ship. Captain Hellfire's ship."
"The skinny one. That woman captains that ship!"
"You're a marvelously perceptive person, Jahl," the inspector said, in a voice dry as the Great Sekhari Desert. "Fifth
off the ship: a Jarp, carrying two go-bags. Stuffed. And . . . "
"Heavy looking bags, from the way it carried 'em. It stood there while the skinny one-excuse me, the captain-went
to talk with the black one. Facing out and looking all around, both of 'em. Watching. Then the black one went back up
the ramp and into the ship. Onto the ship, I mean."
"It's a celldye job and she ordered it herself. She's a master ship handler named Quindaridi."
"Quinda-all right. Master ship handler, huh?"
19
 "Believe it. Then wh-"
"Can't go by appearances, can yer!" Jahl shook a rakishly capped head. The cap was the same orangey-tan as the
stevedore's coverall. "I mean, you don't look like what I always thought a TGO inspector looked like, even."
"You probably don't look like a stevedore either, Jahl. But come on, you didn't even know TGO had inspectors, I'll
bet! Then what happened?"
The inspector checked a large, squared-off wristchron on a smallish wrist. It was a not-so-subtle reminder.
TransGalactic Order was big and busy. They'd been at this inquiry for twenty minutes and so far Jahleh Ord of planet
Jorinne had said precious little.
Only assaulted my ears and linguistic sensibilities, the inspector thought. This Joser has all the brain power and
education of a gravel road. All the imagina-tion of an undershirt.
Which of course made this Joser perfect for the job Jahl held. Cargo-handler on space station Soljer
syn-chronously orbiting planet Jorinne, which in turn or-bited stars Payne and Humason, or tried to orbit them.
The Jorinner-Joser-was good for this kind of in-terview, too. Just the facts. Facts and a few amusing opinions,
without speculations or embellishments. This exercise and the recording would be used in TGO's training, sure. An
inspector got a bonus for that.
This wasn't really difficult for the inspector, who was also a Joser-or had been born such. And who knew that all
men, women, persons, creatures, things were not born equal-and that even if they were, some over-came that debility.
Most don't. Good! Stevedores are necessary. Are we TGO inspectors?
"I seen-saw that Outie start toward the skinn-the captain, and it was right then that the two others come into my
view. Out of spoke-tunnel H, heading for their