"Robert Reed - Decency" - читать интересную книгу автора (Reed Robert)

kind death, then a quick disposal of the body, all evidence of the tragedy
erased in case a second sail-creature came searching for its friend. But the
Earth was littered with wreckage; people couldn't hope to salvage every
incriminating fiber. That led others to argue that nothing should be done,
allowing Nature and God their relentless course. And should death come,
the body could be preserved in some honorable way, studied or not, and
should more aliens arrive in some distant age тАФunlikely as that
seemedтАФthey could see that people were decent, had done their best, and
no blame could possibly be fixed to them.

Anne Hilton despised all those options. She wanted to heal her patient,
but crash programs were clumsy and expensive, and she was a pragmatic
doctor who realized that human patients would suffer as a result, no
money left for their mortal ills. Besides, she doubted if there was time. The
fiery crash had plainly damaged the tissue-repairing systems. And worse,
there was no easy way to give the creature its simplest needs. Its oxygen
use was falling.

Nitrogen levels were building in the slow, clear blood. Teams of
biochemists had synthesized a few simple sugars, amino acids, and other
possible metabolites; yet the creature's success with each was uneven, the
intravenous feedings canceled for now.
 The truth told, Hilton's patient was collapsing at every level, and all
that remained for the doctor was some of the oldest, most venerable skills.

Patience.

Prayer.

And whatever happened: "Do no harm."


For the next days, months, and years, Dr. Anne Hilton would wrestle
with her memories, trying to decide why she had acted as she did that
morning. Why get coffee at that particular moment? Why offer to retrieve
the diamond shard? And why invite Caleb on that impromptu tour?

The last question had many answers. She had assumed that he wanted
a tour, that he was being stubborn about the shard for no other reason.
And because he was a Marine, he represented authority, order, and
ignorance. She'd already had several collisions with his sort, politicians
and other outsiders without enough mental activity to form a worthy
thought. Maybe she'd hoped that shocking him would help her mood.
She'd assumed that he was a big thoughtless lump of a man, the very
worst kindтАж! Imagine. Stationed here for three days, guarding something
wondrous, and precious, yet he didn't have the feeblest grasp of what was
happeningтАж !

The last scream done, Caleb asked, "Where's its brain?"