"Robert Tine - The Astronaut's Wife" - читать интересную книгу автора (Tine Robert)

anything?тАЭ
Reese shrugged and felt useless. тАЬIтАЩm sorry. I have not been authorized to sayтАФтАЭ
At that moment, as if on cue, the door to the conference room opened and a man walked in.
He was a distinguished-looking white-haired man whom Jillian recognized as the Director, a
man she had only met at official functionsтАФa quick handshake, sometimes followed by a
photograph, and then the great man passed on.
тАЬSir,тАЭ said Reese deferentially and motioned toward the two women like a headwaiter
showing a diner to his table, тАЬthese are Mrs. Streck and Mrs.-тАЭ
тАЬI know who they are, Sherman,тАЭ the Director said imperiously. тАЬMrs. Streck, Mrs. Armacost .


First, let me tell you that your husbands are alive.тАЭ
..


Both women felt as if great weights had been lifted from their shoulders.
тАЬOh, thank God,тАЭ breathed Natalie Streck.
тАЬTheyтАЩre back on the orbiter now,тАЭ the Director continued, тАЬand weтАЩre going to bring the
orbiter down just as soon as we get a window.тАЭ
тАЬCan we talk to them?тАЭ Jillian asked.
The Director shot a look at Reese and then looked back to the two women. He shook his head.
тАЬThat is not possible, Mrs. Armacost. I am afraid that both Captain Streck and Commander
Armacost are unconscious at this time. тАЬ


тАЬOh my God,тАЭ said Natalie Streck. тАЬAre they badly hurt? Are they in pain?тАЭ
The Director did not answer the questions directly. He slipped around the questions like a
boxer avoiding a punch. тАЬWe have an MD on this mission, maтАЩam, who has done his best to
make them comfortable. Furthermore, we- are monitoring all their vital signs from down here at
Mission Control. They are both stable but, at this time, they remain unconscious.
Vital signs, thought Jillian. That was NASA-speak for her husbandтАЩs life. .
тАЬWhat happened out there?тАЭ She heard her own voice ask a question, and was surprised to
hear it.
Once again the Director tried to avoid the question. тАЬAll the information we have at our
disposal at the moment is extremely sketchy, Mrs. Anna-costтАФunreliable to say the least. I
wouldnтАЩt want to venture an opinionтАФтАЭ
Jillian was in no mood for obfuscation. тАЬWhat happened out there?тАЭ she snapped, cutting the
Director off. The man looked at her with hard eyes for a moment. He was not a man who was
used to being interrupted by anyone, least of all an astronaut's wife. Still, there was something in
the look on JillianтАЩs face that told him that she would not
stand for any circumlocutions on his part.
тАЬYour husbands were outside the orbiter,тАЭ he said slowly. тАЬIt was a perfectly routine task.
They were engaged in repairs on a satellite. There was an explosion and The director looked
. . .тАЬ


over at Reese, then back at Natalie and Jillian. тАЬWe lost contact with both astronauts He shifted
. . .тАЬ