"Mack Reynolds - Planetary Agent X" - читать интересную книгу автора (Reynolds Mack)

Higher Power and if It ever wants to get in touch with you, It
will?тАЭ
тАЬUm-m-m. In Its own good time. Sort of a donтАЩt call Me thing,
IтАЩll call you.тАЭ
The personnel officer said, тАЬThere have been a few revealed
religions, you know.тАЭ
тАЬSo they said, so they said. None of them have made much
sense to me. If a Super-Power wanted to contact man, it seems
unlikely to me that itтАЩd be all wrapped up in a lot of complicated
gobbledegook. It would all be very clear indeed.тАЭ
The personnel officer sighed. He marked the card, stuck it
back into the slot in his order box and it disappeared.
He looked up at Ronny Bronston. тАЬAll right, thatтАЩs all.тАЭ
Ronny came to his feet. тАЬWell, what happened?тАЭ
The other grinned at him sourly. тАЬDarned if I know,тАЭ he said.
тАЬBy the time you get to the outer office, youтАЩll probably find out.тАЭ
He scratched the end of his nose and said, тАЬI sometimes wonder
what IтАЩm doing here.тАЭ
Ronny thanked him, told him goodbye, and left.


In the outer office a girl looked up from a card sheтАЩd just
pulled from her own order box. тАЬRonald Bronston?тАЭ
тАЬThatтАЩs right.тАЭ
She handed the card to him. тАЬYouтАЩre to go to the office of
Ross Metaxa in the Octagon, Commissariat of Interplanetary
Affairs, Department of Justice, Bureau of Investigation, Section
G.тАЭ
In a lifetime spent in first preparing for United Planets
employment and then working for the organization, Ronny
Bronston had never been in the Octagon Building. HeтАЩd seen
photographs, Tri-D broadcasts and heтАЩd heard several thousand
jokes on various levels from pun to obscenity about getting around
in the building, but heтАЩd never been there. For that matter, heтАЩd
never been in Greater Washington before, other than a long ago
tourist trip. Population Statistics, his department, had its main
offices in New Copenhagen.
His card was evidently all that he needed for entry.
At the sixth gate he dismissed his car and let it shoot back
into the traffic mess. He went up to one of the guard-guides and
presented the card.
The guide inspected it. тАЬSection G of the Bureau of
Investigation,тАЭ he muttered. тАЬEvery day, something new. I never
heard of it.тАЭ
тАЬItтАЩs probably some outfit in charge of cleaning the heads on
space liners,тАЭ Ronny said unhappily. HeтАЩd never heard of it either.
тАЬWell, itтАЩs no problem,тАЭ the guard-guide said. He summoned
a three-wheel scooter, fed the co├╢rdinates into it from RonnyтАЩs
card, handed the card back and flipped an easy salute. тАЬYouтАЩll soon
know.тАЭ