"Douglas Smith - Spirit Dance" - читать интересную книгу автора (Smith Douglas)

Dance, spirits, dance.
Estelle and I had been an item for quite a while, back when I ran security
in the northeast. For centuries, the Herok'a were nothing more than
creatures of legend. Security had mostly amounted to making sure things
stayed that way. Then came the Tainchel, a covert operation of the federal
intelligence agency CSIS, formed as we later learned, with the single goal
of tracking down and capturing the Herok'a. For scientific purposes.
Tainchel. Old Scottish term. Tainchel: Armed men advancing in a line
through a forest to flush out and kill wolves.
We lost quite a few before we caught on. They'd developed specialized
scanners from tests on early victims. Subtle differences in alpha wave
patterns, infrared readings, and metabolic rates gave us away, even in
crowded cities.
Then they got careless and we became aware. I leaked word about a meeting
that the Circle of the Herok'a planned for an isolated spot. At the next
full moon, of course. I figured they'd expect that.
Twenty of the Tainchel walked into the ambush, armed mostly with
tranquilizer rifles. They didn't walk out. They'd encountered the Herok'a
before, but never predators. Wolves, bears, the big cats, birds of prey.
We didn't take prisoners.
After, we contacted Justice and CSIS. I sent a list of the remaining
Tainchel agents, present locations, recent activities, and a note saying,
"We know who you are. We know where you are. We will kill to protect
ourselves. Back off."
They backed off. CSIS disbanded the Tainchel, and an uneasy truce began.
The truce lasted. Estelle and I didn't. She argued against the ambush, the
killings. I argued that we fought for our existence. In the end, we just
argued.
Robert and I had been friends for years, and through me he came to know
Estelle. After I exited the scene, the two of them became more than
friends. About then, I resigned from the Circle. Robbie replaced me there
too.
Dance, spirits. Dance with the beasts of the night.
Growling, Gelert turned toward a dim rustle in the forest. I gave the dog
a mental command to lie down again. Stealth was not my intruder's aim. I
stood as Leiddia stepped out of the trees, stopping at the edge of the
firelight.
She smiled. "Hello again."
"Hi yourself."
"You don't seem surprised."
"I had the feeling you wanted to tell me something."
"Yep," she said, "You're a wolf."
I tried to remain expressionless. "Excuse me?"
She walked to the opposite side of the fire and sat on the ground,
grinning. "Blaidd. I looked it up. It's Welsh for wolf."
"Oh, right. I forgot I told you."
I sat again, as Gelert came over to nuzzle her. She took his huge head in
both hands, rubbing him behind the ears. "And what's your name?"
I told her and she made a face. "Gelert was the legendary hound of Prince
Llewellyn of Wales," I explained.