"Kate Wilhelm - Julian" - читать интересную книгу автора (Wilhelm Kate)

"I'll buy them," Julian said quickly. "Ten dollars."

The old man smiled and shook his head.

"Twenty. It's all I have, Mr. Gunn. Please. I'm trying to find my mother. For
ten years I thought she was dead until this summer when I learned my father
had driven her away, and she went to your motel. I have to find her. She
might be sick, need help." Julian blinked back tears of frustration at this
senile old man and his complacent grin.

"Calm down, son. Just take it easy. Reckon them books ain't going to do me a
hell of a lot of good, now are they? Ten dollars, you say?" He went to the
bed and pulled out a storage drawer, drew out the books.

"I just need that one, for May," Julian said quickly.

"All or nothing," the old man said, as if driving a hard bargain. "Just keep
cluttering up the place with all that old junk. All or nothing."

Julian almost snatched the books away from him, and yanked the right one to
the top of the stack. There were watermarks on the cover, but inside the ink
was legible. He flipped pages and found May. There it was, it had to be! May
29, 30, 31. Stella Johnson. Stella! He almost laughed.

"Reckon you found what you're looking for," the old man said genially. He sat
down again, dismissing Julian. "Good luck, son. Ten years is a hell of a long
time to be without someone you care anything for."

....

"Hey, that's a pretty heavy foot you got there, kid." The man in the
passenger seat stirred and sat upright yawning. Julian was driving his car,
somewhere between Phoenix and Los Angeles.

"Sorry," Julian said. He slowed down to sixty. "She sure wants to run,
doesn't she? Great car."

The man nodded and started talking cars. This was Julian's third ride since
leaving Ohio, and this would take him home. Stella Johnson had given an
address in Los Angeles, had auto tags from California. His parents had moved
to Los Angeles three years ago; he could make that his base of operations,
search records again -- he was getting good at that -- and he would find her.

"You in training for the Indy or something?" the man beside him growled.
"Stop the car. I'd better drive awhile."

Julian had nudged it up to ninety again.

....