"Timothy Zahn - The Green and the Gray" - читать интересную книгу автора (Zahn Timothy)

up. She was also quick to praise the simple macaroni-cheese-tomato casserole he and Caroline had
thrown together.
Neither of which meant she might not murder them in their sleep, of course. As they loaded the
plates into the dishwasher, he made a mental note to move the sharp knives into their bedroom
before they turned in for the night.
Once the table was clear and they moved into the living room, things picked up a little. Caroline
produced a deck of cards, and Melantha quickly joined into the games with an eagerness that for the
first time made her seem like a genuine twelve-year-old.
But her strangeness continued to peek through. She used odd terms for some of the card
combinations, and occasionally would make an exclamation in a foreign language Roger couldn't
identify. Even more telling, after they had run through Caroline's repertoire of hearts, Crazy Eights,
Go Fish, and Kings-in-the-Corner, Melantha taught them a new game, one neither he nor Caroline
had ever heard of before.
Exuberant card player or not, though, she was clearly still running at half speed. At nine o'clock, as
they watched her eyelids drooping, Caroline called a halt.


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The Green and the Gray

"Time for bed, Melantha," she said, collecting the cards and putting them back into their box. "We
have to get up early for work, and you look like you could use a good night's sleep, too."
"Yes." Melantha hesitated. "IтАФmaybe I'd betterтАФI should probably go now."
"You'll do no such thing," Caroline said firmly, standing up and collecting the throw pillows from
the couch. "Let me go get a sheet, some blankets, and a pillow and we'll set you up right here."
"Unless you'd rather we take you someplace," Roger suggested. "Do you have any family you could
go to?"
Melantha lowered her eyes; and suddenly the relaxed, card-playing twelve-year-old was gone. "No,"
she said. "Not... no."
"Then it's settled," Caroline said cheerfully, as if she hadn't even noticed the awkward transition.
"Let me get that bedding and find you a toothbrush."
Fifteen minutes later, they had her settled in on the couch. Roger confirmed that the balcony door
was locked and that the broomstick was in its groove and drew the curtains. "All safe and sound," he
announced as Caroline turned out the lights. "Sleep well."
" 'Night," Melantha said, her voice already fading.
Caroline headed to the bedroom. Roger double-checked the locks on the front door, then followed.
"What do you think?" he asked as he closed the bedroom door behind them.
"She's scared, and she's on the run," Caroline said, pulling her nightshirt from beneath her pillow.
"And I still think it has something to do with her family."
"I think you're right," Roger agreed as he unbuttoned his shirt. "I'm not sure I buy the abuse angle,
though. Aside from those bruises on her throat, she seems healthy and well cared-for."
"I suppose," Caroline said, sitting down on the edge of the bed and starting to pull off her shoes. She
was tired, Roger could tell, far more tired than she should have been for nine-thirty on a Thursday
night. This business with Melantha must really be getting to her. "Speaking of bruises," she added,
"did you notice they're almost gone?"
"Yeah, I did," Roger said. "Fast healer?"
"I don't know," Caroline sighed, pulling on her nightshirt. "So what do we do now?"
"You got me," he admitted. "All I can suggest is that we try the police again in the morning."
"She didn't want to see them last night," Caroline pointed out, making a face as she climbed under
the comforter and blankets and hit the chilly sheets. "I doubt she'll want to see them tomorrow,