"Kate Wilhelm - Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang" - читать интересную книгу автора (Wilhelm Kate)

тАЬI think so. Internal injuries.тАЭ
тАЬWhere the hell is W-one or W-two?тАЭ
тАЬWith their own. They have two injuries, I think.тАЭ She put his hand over the pad. тАЬHold it
tight a minute.тАЭ She pressed the stethoscope against ClarenceтАЩs chest, peered into his eyes, and
finally straightened and said, тАЬI canтАЩt do a thing for him.тАЭ
тАЬStitch him up. IтАЩm going to get W-one.тАЭ David strode down the hall, not seeing any of the
elders who moved out of his way. At the door to the operating room he was stopped by three of the


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young men. He saw an H-3 and said, тАЬWe have a man whoтАЩs probably dying. WhereтАЩs W-two?тАЭ
тАЬWho?тАЭ H-3 asked, almost innocently.
David couldnтАЩt think of the name immediately. He stared at the young face and felt his fist
tighten. тАЬYou know damn well who I mean. We need a doctor, and you have one or two in there. IтАЩm
going to bring one of them out.тАЭ
He became aware of movement behind him and turned to see four more of them approaching, two
girls, two boys. Interchangeable, he thought. It didnтАЩt matter which ones did what. тАЬTell him I
want him,тАЭ he said harshly. One of the newcomers was a C1-2, he realized, and still more harshly
he said, тАЬItтАЩs Clarence. Sarah thinks his back is broken.тАЭ
C1-2 didnтАЩt change his expression. They had moved very close. They encircled him, and behind
him H-3 said, тАЬAs soon as theyтАЩre through in there, IтАЩll tell them, David.тАЭ And David knew there
was nothing he could do, nothing at all.


Chapter 8


He stared at their smooth young faces; so familiar, living memories every one of them, like
walking through his own past, seeing his aged and aging cousins rejuvenated, but rejuvenated with
something missing. Familiar and alien, known and unknowable. Behind H-3 the swinging door opened
and W-1 came out, still in surgical gown and mask, now down about his throat.
тАЬIтАЩll come now,тАЭ he said, and the small group opened for him. He didnтАЩt look again at David
after dismissing him with one glance.
David followed him to the emergency room and watched his deft hands as he felt ClarenceтАЩs
body, tested for reflexes, probed confidently along the spinal column. тАЬIтАЩll operate,тАЭ he said,
and that same confidence came through with the words. He motioned for S-l and W-2 to bring
Clarence, and left once more.
At the arrival of W-l, Sarah had moved back out of the way, and now she slowly turned and
stripped off the gloves that she had put on in preparing to stitch up ClarenceтАЩs wound. Warren
watched the two young people cover Clarence and strap him securely, then wheel him out the door
and down the hall. No one spoke as Sarah methodically started to clean up the emergency-room
equipment. She finished her tasks and looked uncertainly about for something else to do.
тАЬWill you take Margaret home and put her to bed?тАЭ David asked, and she looked at him
gratefully and nodded. When she was gone David turned to Warren. тАЬSomeone has to see to the
bodies, clean them up, prepare them for burial.тАЭ
тАЬSure, David,тАЭ Warren said in a heavy voice. тАЬIтАЩll get Avery and Sam. WeтАЩll take care of it.
IтАЩll just go get them now and weтАЩll take care of it. IтАЩll . . . David, what have we done?тАЭ And his
voice that had been too heavy, too dead, became almost shrill. тАЬWhat are they?тАЭ