"Resnick, Mike - Oracle 2 - Oracle" - читать интересную книгу автора (Resnick Mike)

He stared at her, unable to totally conceal his interest. "How do you know?"
"When you are willing to be open and frank with me, I will respond in kind," she replied. "For the moment, you will have to take my word that I know where she is."
He paused for a long moment. "All right," he said at last. "You know where she is."
She nodded. "And I want her back."
"And you want her back," he repeated. "Why have you come to me? Why don't you just go to wherever she is and take her home?"
"It's not that simple," she said. "She may not recognize me -- and even if she does, she's been with aliens for most of her life. She may not want to come back with me."
"She's an adult by now," said the Iceman. "That's her choice to make."
"I'm willing to let her make it," said Bettina Bailey. "But away from the influence of the aliens."
"There's only one alien that I know about."
She shook her head. "She's on an alien planet."
"Which one?"
"I'll tell you when we have an agreement."
"What kind of agreement?" asked the Iceman.
"I want you to bring her back to me."
"If you don't think she'll go with you, why do you think she'll come with me?"
"I told you -- I've studied you. You've had experience dealing with aliens and operating on the Inner Frontier. If you need help, you'll know what kind to get and where to get it."
The Iceman stared at her thoughtfully. "It could be very expensive, Mrs. Bailey."
"How expensive?"
"A million Maria Theresa dollars now, another million when the job is done."
"Maria Theresa dollars?" she repeated, frowning. "I thought they were only in use in the Corvus system. What's wrong with credits?"
"We don't have much faith in the longevity of the Democracy out here, Mrs. Bailey," answered the Iceman. "We have even less faith in its currency. Credits are unacceptable. If you can't get the Maria Theresa dollars, I'll take double the amount in New Stalin rubles."
"I'll get the dollars," she replied.
"How soon?"
"I can have them transferred here in three days' time."
"Then I'll set the wheels in motion three days from now," said the Iceman.
"What do you mean: set the wheels in motion?"
"I'll select who I want to find your daughter."
"But I thought you would be going."
He shook his head. "She knows me, Mrs. Bailey -- and I don't think she'd be too happy to see me again."
"But I chose you precisely because she does know you!"
"That's not necessarily an advantage with your daughter," he said dryly. "Now, where is she?"
Bettina Bailey was silent for a moment. Then she shrugged. "She's on Alpha Crepello III."
'Never heard of it.''
"It's in the Quinellus Cluster."
"And what makes you so sure she's there?"
She leaned forward intently. "We both know that my daughter has a rare talent."
"Go on."
"Word has gotten back to Deluros VIII that there is a human female on Alpha Crepello III. The public isn't supposed to know about her, but I've bribed sources within the govemment. No one seems to know if this female is in the employ of the aliens who inhabit Alpha Crepello III, or if she is their prisoner, but she is known as the Oracle." She paused. "If I were to choose a name for Penelope, I couldn't choose a more accurate one than that."
"And that' s the sum total of your knowledge?" asked the Iceman. "No description? No communication with her or anyone who's dealt with her?"
"Just that," answered Bettina Bailey. "The Alpha Crepello system isn't part of the Democracy and has almost no commerce with it. It took me two years to ascertain that the Oracle was a human, and another two to determine that she was a female."
The Iceman stared at her. "Do you know the odds against this being your daughter, Mrs. Bailey?"
"I've spent sixteen years piecing together these bits of information," she replied. "I could die of old age before I came up with concrete proof." She paused. "Do we have a deal?"
For just an instant the interest he had tried so hard to conceal flashed across his face. Then, just as quickly, the impassive mask was back in place.
"We have a deal," said the Iceman.


2

The star charts called it Boyson III. Locally it was known as The Frenchman's World.
In the beginning it had been a wild, untamed jungle planet, covered with dense vegetation and a plethora of exotic animals. Then Man had moved in, had killed rnost of the animals and plowed under the jungle, and had turned it into an agricultural world, supplying food for all the nearby mining planets. But within twenty years alien viruses destroyed the imported meat animals, the imported corn and wheat, and even the hybrid animals and crops. After that the colonists all went elsewhere, and Boyson III slowly reverted back into a jungle world over the next six centuries.