"Jerry Pournelle & Roland Green - Janissaries 3 - Storms of Victory" - читать интересную книгу автора (Pournelle Jerry)

from outside. "Think we ought to look?"
"No, sir," Mason said. "Fact is, that's your biggest problem. Colonel, I grant
you we'd have been finished a dozen times without you, and not much gets
done except it's in your nameтАФbut that doesn't mean you got to do it all
yourself. Procedures. Make policy, approve procedures, and then let
somebody else do the work. You're going to wear yourself out if you keep on
the way you're going."
Rick sat at the massive table and fingered a stack of documents. An ornate
dagger served as a paperweight. "Think I wouldn't like to? Only how in hell
can I make policy on stuff we've never done before? None of us have any
experience handling primitives. And Romans. And barbarians. AndтАФ"
"Well, yes, sir, butтАФ"
"And not even the locals have any experience living with a rogue star coming.
Just legends." Rick tossed off his goblet of wine and poured another. "Policy!
Procedures! The whole goddam planet's going to hell, and all they've got is a
bunch of legends. Legends and us. And we don't know what we're doing."
Mason shrugged. "Colonel, for somebody who don't know what he's doing,
you've done damned well. You must be doing something right, even if I do
think you work too hard and drink too much."
"I'llтАФ"
There was a loud knock at the door.
"Yeah?" Mason called. He took out a .45 automatic and glanced at the loads
before returning it to its holster. "Who's there?"
The voice belonged to Rick's orderly. "The Star Lord Les wishes to speak
with the Marshal of Drantos."
Mason looked at Rick. Rick shrugged, then nodded. Mason went to the door,
looked through the peephole, then opened it.
The man who entered was shorter than Rick, about Mason's height. He didn't
look much different from the other two. A starman, Rick thought. A real one.
Not a cheap imitation like me. So how should a starman look? God knows his
bosses look weird enough.
"Hello, Les. Wine?" Rick offered.
"Hello. Yes, small glassтАФand, Major Mason, if you don't mindтАФ"
"Let him stay. He's my deputy," Rick protested.
"It's all right, Colonel. I better go check out that commotion in the courtyard.
I'll be back to walk you to your meeting."
"Don't bother. Jamiy and the Guards can do that."
Mason nodded. It wasn't hard to read his expression. Since Tylara's man
Caradoc had been killed in street riots, there weren't as many locals Rick
could trust to guard his back.
Come to that, a lot of other things had changed for the worse. "I'd rather you
found out what the problem is down there."
"Okay." Mason threw half a salute and left without waiting for Rick to return
it.
Rick poured wine and handed it to Les. They sat at the table and Rick lifted
his goblet. "Cheers."
"Cheers."
They sat in silence. Finally Les spoke. "I'll be leaving in a day or so."
"Back to Earth?"
"Yes."