"Robert F. Young - L'Arc de Jeanne" - читать интересную книгу автора (Young Robert F)

with the dossiers of all the men in the fleetтАФa task of no mean magnitude, I can assure you, your
Magnificence, but well worth the trouble. Naturally I couldn't narrow my choice down to one man on the
data aloneтАФthe human animal simply isn't that varied. But on the basis of other qualifications, I was able
to pinpoint the one who was most likely to succeed in carrying out the abduction. In my judgment he has
an optimum chance of inspiring affection in this girl; then love, then trust. And once he has accomplished
this, it will be child's play for him to obtain possession of her bow, and even possible for him to talk her
into accompanying him voluntarily back to the Ambassadress. And if he is unable to talk her into
accompanying him voluntarily, he can always resort to force."
Smith-Kolgoz paused. He made D'Arcy think of a puppy that had just retrieved a stick thrown by his
master and expected to be patted on the head for his prowess. But O'Riordan remained unmoved. "And
just who is this irresistible member of the male species?" he asked coldly, eyeing D'Arcy with open
contempt.
"D'Arcy, stand up," Smith-Kolgoz said.
Diffidently, D'Arcy did so.
"Raymond D'Arcy, Decoder 2nd class, GGS Watchdog, your Magnificence," Smith-Kolgoz went
on. "Not only does he possess the essential qualities I mentioned before, but he is the descendant of Ciel
Bleu immigrants and has an excellent idiomatic command of the language. If we provide him with a
believable story, give him the necessary directions to find the cave, and night-sled him into Le Bois
Ferique, I am certain that in two weeks' time, he'll be able to deliver both Jeanne Marie Valcouris and
her bow and arrows into our hands."
O'Riordan shook his head. "Oh, no, Smith-KolgozтАФthe girl, yes; but not the weapon. The weapon,
we don't want. Because you see, Smith-Kolgoz, this whole caper may have been designed for no other
reason than to trick us into taking the bow and arrows on board the Ambassadress, and either or both
could be a force that, once it was set in motion, could reduce us to a state of paralysis or turn us into a
bunch of mindless puppets. Surely you've heard of the Trojan Horse, Smith-Kolgoz, and surely I don't
need to point out to you that while the Ambassadress isn't Troy, its 'fall' would mean the end of the
Galaxi-Government, for the simple reason that to all intents and purposes, it is the Galaxi-Government."
Smith-Kolgoz's sharp-featured face had reddened. "The тАФthe analogy failed to occur to me, your
Magnificence," he said lamely. And then, "But what should we do with the bow and arrows, sir?"
"Bury them where they won't be found. After Ciel Bleu surrenders, I'll have them dug up and
analyzed."
All this while O'Riordan hadn't once taken his eyes from D'Arcy's face. Now he said, "Doesn't it
strike you, Smith-Kolgoz, that you're sending a boy on a man's mission?"
Smith-Kolgoz smiled ingratiatingly. "I must confess, your Magnificence, that at first it gave me pause.
And then I realized that it wasn't a man's mission after all, but a boy's, and that essentially I was dealing
with a new variation of an age-old love-story plot. Boy meets girl; boy makes girl; boy takes girl."
D'Arcy was a black-belt karate champion. He could clean and jerk over twice his own weight. He
could chin himself ten times in succession with either hand. He had been decorated three times with the
Barred Spiral for bravery above and beyond the call of duty. The margins of his palms were as hard as
boards, and he could deliver a judo chop with the force of a sixteen-pound sledge. He felt his face grow
hot, but he said nothing.
At length, O'Riordan said, "Do you think you can bring her back, boy?"
D'Arcy nodded. He did not trust himself to speak.
O'Riordan's eyes traversed the two rows of faces. "I think we should put the plan in operation.
Anyone disagree?"
Heads shook in ludicrous unison. There was a chorus of sycophantic "No, sirs!" O'Riordan grunted
and stood up. "All rise!" the council co-ordinator cried. All did.
To Smith-Kolgoz, O'Riordan said, "I want him in those woods before the passage of the next dawn
belt." To D'Arcy, he said, "I'll give you ten days. If you haven't radioed to be picked up by then, I'll come
down and do the job myself." He turned his back on the council table. "We'll see about those voices of