"Stephen Goldin - Herds" - читать интересную книгу автора (Goldin Stephen)

where she'd been hit. She raised her hand to the spot, more out
of self-consciousness than pain.

Stoneham's nostrils flared, and his stare was svipercold. Stella
averted her eyes, but stubbornly stood her ground. There was ice
on her husband's words as he asked, "Have you been having an
affair with that overaged hippie?"

It took a moment for her to realize who he meant. About a
mile from the cabin, in Totido Canyon, a group of young people
had moved into an abandoned summer camp and formed what
they proudly called the "Totido Commune." Because of their
unconventional behavior and dress, they were thought of by the
surrounding residents as hippies and condemned accordingly.
Their leader was an older man, at least in his late thirties, and he
seemed to keep his group in order just this'side of the law.

"Are you talking about Carl Polaski?" Stella -asked
incredulously.

"I don't mean Santa Claus."

Despite her nervousness, Stella laughed. "That's preposterous.
And besides, he's not a hippie; he's a psychology professor doing
research on the drop-out phenomenon."

"People tell me he's been hanging around this cabin a lot,
Stell. I don't like that."

"There's nothing immoral about it. He runs some errands for
me and does a few odd jobs. I pay him back by letting him use
the cabin for writing. He types over here, because he can't get
enough privacy to say what he really thinks at the commune.
Sometimes we've talked. He's a very interesting man, Wes. But
no, I haven't had any affairs with him, nor am I likely to."

"Then what's eating you? Why do you want a divorce?" He
went to the sofa and sat down, never taking his eyes from her for
an instant.

Stella paced back and forth in front of him a few times. She
folded and unfolded her hands, and finally let them hang at her
sides. "I want to be able to have some self-respect," she said at
last.

"You have that now. You can hold your head up to anyone in
the country."

"That's not what I meant. I'd like, just once, to be able to sign
my name 'Stella Stoneham' instead of 'Mrs. Wesley Stoneham.'