"Michael Swanwick - Radiant Doors" - читать интересную книгу автора (Swanwick Michael)

It was the creepiest thing I'd seen in a long time.

Gevorkian watched it coolly, without any particular interest or aversion. After a
while it was obvious to me that she was waiting for someone.

Finally that someone arrived. He was a lean man, tall, with keen, hatchet-like
features. None of the vics noticed. Their eyes were directed inward, toward the
pit. He nodded once to Gevorkian, then backed through the canvas again.

She followed him.

I followed her.

They went to a near-lightless area near the edge of the camp. There was nothing
there but trash, the backs of tents, the razor-wire fence, and a gate padlocked for
the night.

It was perfectly easy to trail them from a distance. The stranger held himself
proudly, chin up, eyes bright. He walked with a sure stride. He was nothing at all
like the vics.

It was obvious to me that he was an Owner.

Gevorkian too. When she was with him that inhuman arrogance glowed in her
face as well. It was as if a mask had been removed. The fire that burned in his
face was reflected in hers.

I crouched low to the ground, in the shadow of a tent, and listened as the stranger
said, "Why hasn't she turned it in?"

"She's unstable," Gevorkian said. "They all are."

"We don't dare prompt her. She has to turn it in herself."

"She will. Give her time."

file:///G|/Program%20Files/eMule/Incoming/Michael%20Swanwick%20-%20Radiant%20Doors.htm (15 of 21) [12/30/2004 8:07:58 PM]
 Radiant Doors by Michael Swanwick This story first appeared in Asimov's Science Fiction, September 1998



"Time," the man repeated. They both laughed in a way that sounded to me
distinctly unpleasant. Then, "She'd better. There's a lot went into this operation.
There's a lot riding on it."

"She will."

I stood watching as they shook hands and parted ways. Gevorkian turned and
disappeared back into the tent city. The stranger opened a radiant door and was