"Wen Spencer - Endless Blue" - читать интересную книгу автора (Spencer Wen)

One thing was sureтАФthe misshapen rock was why his ship, theSvoboda , had been yanked off the front
lines and ordered by the United Colonies to jump halfway across human space. A New Washington
lieutenant, sergeant, and two Reds had escorted him through Plymouth Station security. They bristled
with resentment that the U.C. required them to let a Russki like him onboard and refused to answer any
of his questions. Since they were giving him the silent treatment, he was ignoring them while they all
waited for the U.C. officer. Said officer was taking his taking his time.

A tentative "Misha?" made Mikhail turnтАФsurprised that anyone would be calling him by his childhood
name.

The Minister of Defense, Andrew Heward, was immediately recognizable from his square frame and
solid, heavy jawed face. Like most people from his childhood, Heward was shorter than Mikhail
remembered, coming only to Mikhail's shoulder.

The Defense Minister cocked his head and looked uncertain of Mikhail's identity, even though he was
the only one in a Novaya Rus militia uniform in sight. Behind him, the Washingtonians seemed stunned
that the Minister was on a first name basis with himтАУ obviously they hadn't put much thought into
Mikhail's family name.

"Minister Heward, it's been a long time."

Heward grunted slightly. "You don't look like your . . .father."

Some people avoided the labels of "father" and "son" when discussing Mikhail and his father since they
were both clones of the same man, the legendary Tsar Viktor Pyotrvich Volkov. They made the mistake
of thinking Ivan and Mikhail were both figureheads that the loyalist party created. They somehow
discounted the fact that Tsar Ivan personally forced the Novaya Rus Empire into the United Colonies
before Mikhail was born. Heward, though, had dealt with Ivan enough to know that Ivan ruled everything
and everyone with an iron hand. That meant everything about Mikhail's lifeтАФincluding his inceptionтАФfell
under Ivan's control. Biologically Ivan was Mikhail's twin brother, but in every other manner, Ivanwas his
father. So why the hesitation? Had Heward originally meant that Mikhail didn't look like Viktor?
Possibly. Heward would also know that both Ivan and Mikhail disliked being compared to their famous
original.

Mikhail tapped his crooked nose. "It's the noseтАФI broke it in the AcademyтАФand I smile more than my
father. Crowsfeet. Laugh lines. Those kinds of things."

Heward eyed him. "I wouldn't have thought it would make that much difference, but I suppose it does.
Ivan always looks like he has a lemon shoved up his ass. Your hair is darker too."

"He spends more time in the sun."

"Ah." Heward gave slight grunt of understanding, adding a wave toward the black of space beyond the
drydock's great soap bubble shield. "No, not much sun up here."

Heward dismissed the Washingtonians. Their conversation was going to be privateтАФor at least, that was
how Heward wanted it to appear.

"You took heavy losses during your last intel run?" Heward led off with questions instead of explaining
where the drive came fromтАФmore proof that it was going to be tied somehow to Mikhail's future. "How