"Bova, Ben - Orion 01 - Orion" - читать интересную книгу автора (Bova Ben)

It wasn't until I pushed through the revolving
door of St. Mercy's main entrance that I realized I
had no idea of the name of the woman I had come
to see. And as I stood there in the middle of the
frenetic, crowded, bustling lobby, I saw the foolish-
ness of asking any of the harried-looking reception-
ists for help. For a few moments I was at a loss;

then I spotted a uniformed policeman.

Step by step I went from one police officer to
another, asking for information about the people
brought in from the bombing earlier that day. I
told them I was from the restaurant's insurance
company. Only one of the policemen, a burly black
man with a handsome mustache, eyed me suspi-
ciously and asked for identification. I showed him
my group insurance card; he barely glanced at it,
but it looked official enough to satisfy him. Per-
haps my air of utter confidence also helped to
convince him.

In less than a half-hour I entered a ward that
contained sixteen beds, half of them empty. The
nurse in charge led me to the bed where the young
model lay, eyes closed, a flesh-toned plastic ban-
dage taped to her forehead.

"Only a few minutes," the nurse whispered to
me.

I nodded.

14

"Miss Promachos," the nurse called softly, lean-
ing over the bed. "You have a visitor."

The young woman's eyes opened. Those lustrous
gray eyes that seemed as deep as eternity.

"Only a few minutes," the nurse repeated. Then
she walked away, her soft-soled shoes squeaking
on the tiled floor.

"You . . . you're the one who saved me, in the
restaurant."

I could feel my heart throbbing wildly, and I