"Simon R. Green - Nightside 1 - Drinking Midnight Wine" - читать интересную книгу автора (Green Simon R)
all ranks and station. Things are possible here that are only dreamed of in the great cities of
the world. And that's why I stay here. Why travel, when all the wisdom and wonders of the world
will come to me?'
'If these lines are invisible,' Toby said cunningly, 'how can you be sure they're really there at
all?'
Gayle turned to him, her face suddenly cold and expressionless. 'Do you want to see them?'
'No!' Carys said urgently. 'You mustn't do this! He isn't ready! He's only human, damn you!'
'He wants to see them,' said Gayle. 'He needs to know what he's getting into. Take your first step
into a larger world, Toby.'
Her left hand slammed down on top of Toby's right, where it rested on the table, and before he
even had a chance to enjoy the contact, a sudden force tore through him, swift and merciless. His
back straightened with a snap, his head jerked up and his breath caught in his chest between
inhale and exhale. A horrid relentless pressure built behind his eyes, as though trying to force
them forward out of their sockets. Toby cried out in shock and hurt, but couldn't even hear his
own voice. He tried to pull his hand away, but Gayle, implacable, held it in place. His whole body
was rigid now, his muscles stretched so tight they screamed. He felt a sudden helpless horror, of
something huge and unendurable bearing down on him. His teeth were chattering, his mouth stretched
in a mirthless grin, and still the pressure built behind his eyes, until finally it swept forward,
through his eyes, and Toby saw what had been hidden from him.
The lines of light were everywhere, great beams of shimmering blue-white, blasting through
buildings and furniture and people, unseen and unnoticed, burning with so much naked energy they
were almost impossible to look at directly. Never beginning, never-ending, criss-crossing in a
file:///G|/Program%20Files/eMule/Incoming/Simon%20R.%20Green%20-%20Nightside%201%20-%20Drinking%20Midnight%20Wine.txt
lattice of unworldly energies, it was like looking at the building blocks of the world, the lines
on God's architectural plans. Beautiful and terrifying and utterly alien, the light was so bright
Toby could almost hear it, the lines so powerfully present he could almost feel them. It was light
to make the stars seem dim, beautiful enough to make the rainbow nothing more than a gaudy smudge.
And they burned him, inside and out, like a moth held in a flame.
Ley lines.
Gayle took her hand away, and the lines were gone. The everyday world crashed back in upon Toby,
and he slumped in his chair, shuddering all over. He slowly turned his head and looked at Gayle.
Sweat ran down his face and dripped from his chin.
'How could you do that to me?' he said, his voice rough with shock and pain. 'You didn't have to
do that to me.'
'Yes I did,' said Gayle, meeting his gaze unflinchingly. 'You only think you know what you're
getting into; what just being around me can cost you.'
'I won't leave,' said Toby. 'No matter how much you hurt me.'
'Wonderful,' said Gayle. 'You know, if I'd wanted a stalker, I'd have advertised. Toby; I collect
stray cats, not puppy dogs. I'm sorry you were hurt, but I'll hurt you again if you stay. It's
inevitable. I'm just trying to spare you further suffering.'
'I've been alone most of my life,' said Toby. 'You don't know a damn thing about suffering. Don't
you care about my feelings at all?'
'No,' said Gayle. 'I told you; I hate it when they get all clingy.'
She looked back at Carys, whose scowl had deepened. 'You are cruel,' said the Waking Beauty.
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