"Ellison, Harlan - Objects Of Desire (txt)" - читать интересную книгу автора (Ellison Harlan)

fiercely than common decency would permit. It is probably toasty warm
inclinations of a similar sort that will forever block me from becoming one of
the Bosses. Oh, well, Lieutenant is a perfectly decent rank to die with.

"I wuz, er, uh..." I read embarrassment.

"Go ahead, Richard, just tell me. Don't be embarrassed."

"Wull, I wuz takin' a leak out back. Around the corner in the alley, but back
around the corner, y'know? Back behind where the dumpsters are. An' I wasn't
watchin' nothin' else but my own business, an' I heard these girls singing and
laughin', and I wuz 'fraid they might come over 'round the back comer an' see me
wit' my di...with my pants unzipped..."

"The green light, Richard? Remember: the green light?"

"Uh-huh, I wuz gettin' to that. I zipped up so fast I kinda wet myself, an' I
turned around to the back over there, an' all of a sudden there was this green
light, big green light, an' I heard the girls screamin' and there was some kinda
music, I guess it wuz, an' then allmigawd it was really loud, the girls'
screamin', an' I ducked outta there, and went around the dumpsters onna other
side, and went over to the fence an' crawled over and come back to the Mission,
b'cuz I din't want to get involved, cuz..."

He stopped talking. I had dropped my pencil. I bent to pick it up where it had
rolled, next to his right foot. I saw his shoes. When I straightened, I looked
him in the eye and said, "But you went out there afterward, didn't you,
Richard?"

"Nuh-uh!" He shook his head violently, but I was looking him right in the eye.

"Before the police came, you went out again, didn't you, Richard?"

His lower lip started to tremble. I felt sorry as hell for the poor slob. He was
somebody's son, somebody's brother, maybe even somebody's husband, once upon a
layoff; and he was soaked to the skin with cheap wine; and he was scared.

"C'mon, Richard...I know you went back, so you might as well tell me what else
you remember."

He murmured something so softly, and with such embarrassment, that I had to ask
him gently to repeat: "I found the big knife."

"And you took it?"

"Yes'm."

"When you took his shoes."

"Yes'm."