"Michael Swanwick - Shezro with Tyrannosaur" - читать интересную книгу автора (Swanwick Michael)"Triceratops blood. WeтАЩre hoping to call in a predatorтАФmaybe even the king of predators, Tyrannosaurus rex file:///G|/Program%20Files/eMule/Incoming/Mic...wanwick%20-%20Shezro%20with%20Tyrannosaur.htm (3 of 11) [12/30/2004 8:08:26 PM] "Shezro with Tyrannosaur" by Michael Swanwick himself." There was an appreciative murmur from the diners. Everybody here had heard of T. rex. He had real star power. I switched easily into lecture mode. "If you dissect a tyrannosaur, youтАЩll see that it has an extremely large olfactory lobeтАФlarger in proportion to the rest of its brain than that of any other animal except the turkey vulture. Rex can sniff his prey"тАФcarrion, usually, but I didnтАЩt say thatтАФ"from miles away. Watch." The lure went off with a pop and a puff of pink mist. I glanced over at the de Cherville table, and saw Melusine slip one foot out of her pump and run it up HawkinsтАЩ trouser leg. He colored. Her father didnтАЩt notice. Her motherтАФher step-mother, more likelyтАФdid, but didnтАЩt care. To her, this was simply what women did. I couldnтАЩt help but notice what good legs Melusine had. "This will take a few minutes. While weтАЩre waiting, I direct your attention to Chef RupertтАЩs excellent pastries." I faded back to polite applause, and began the round of table hopping. A joke here, a word of praise there. ItтАЩs banana oil makes the world go round. "Sir!" He shot to his feet. "A word with you." He almost dragged me away from the table. When we were in private, he was so upset he was stuttering. "Th-that young woman, w-wants me t-to . . ." "I know what she wants," I said coolly. "SheтАЩs of legal ageтАФmake your own decision." "You donтАЩt understand! I canтАЩt possibly go back to that table." Hawkins was genuinely anguished. I thought at first that heтАЩd been hearing rumors, dark hints about his future career. Somehow, though, that didnтАЩt smell right. There was something else going on here. "All right," I said. "Slip out now. But I donтАЩt like secrets. Record a full explanation and leave it in my office. No evasions, understand?" "Yes, sir." A look of relief spread itself across his handsome young face. "Thank you, sir." He started to leave. "Oh, and one more thing," I said casually, hating myself. "DonтАЩt go anywhere near your tent until the fund raiserтАЩs broken up." The de Chervilles werenтАЩt exactly thrilled when I told them that Hawkins had taken ill, and IтАЩd be taking his |
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