"William Tuning - Terro-Human - Fuzzy 04 - Fuzzy Bones" - читать интересную книгу автора (Tuning William)

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FUZZY REDUX

Chapter 1

"Tis a pity she's a whore," the Marine said.

"Don't bet your ass or your pension on it," the priest said.

The two of them were perched at the bar of the first-class passengers' lounge
on the City of Asgard, outbound for Zarathustra. They sipped their drinks and
chatted while the rest of the first-class passengers "ooohed" and "ahhhed" at
the ever-changing panoramas of space that were presented in the observation
screens around the edge of the lounge deck.

The Marine nodded toward the object of the conversation, a strawberry blonde
named-correction-calling herself Christiana Stone. "That might be your first
convert on Zarathustra," he said.

The Marine was Master Gunnery Sergeant of Fleet Marines Philip Helton. The
priest preferred to be called The Rev.

They had hit it off immediately. The Rev was dressed like a priest-collar and
all-but thought like a Marine-one who had been able to take the time to absorb
and appreciate some of the galaxy's variety of culture.

You can take the boy out of the Marines, Helton had thought when he met him,
but you can't take the Marine out of the boy. Retired, perhaps. Officer,
maybe. Tough, yes.

The Rev snorted derisively. "Do the old Magdalene caper? Not a chance."

"Why not?" Helton said. "Souls are where you find 'em."

"Several reasons," The Rev replied, as he chewed noisily on an ice cube from
his drink. "First, it's not my style. Round the souls up every spring, put The
Brand on them, and drive them to market? That's a mug's game. Second;
unnecessary. If that young thing is a pros tie, then I'm the Archbishop of
Nifflheim."

"You sound pretty sure of yourself," Helton said.

The Rev snorted again. "My lad, I daresay you've observed just about as many
whores in your profession as I have in mine. What the lady says she is and
what she is don't have to come to the same thing." He wagged his finger as
Helton started to interrupt. "She may, however, intend to become one when we
get to Zarathustra."