"Brian Plante - The Astronaut" - читать интересную книгу автора (Plante Brian)

crowd. The press briefly picked up on the story that one of the astronaut’s wives
was eight months pregnant, but she refused all interviews. The press identified her as
Rosemary Horton Keyes.
I never saw her again.
A few weeks later, an army of house movers came and packed everything up,
and then a huge van took it all away. A “For Sale” sign went up in front of the house
the next day.
A professional lawn care company took over, mowing the lawn once a week,
regular as clockwork. I checked the mailbox, but the mail was already being
forwarded somewhere else. I let myself into the house one last time with the key. The
movers had done a thorough job. There was nothing left—no sign that anyone had
ever lived there. In the bedroom, only a few dim marks in the freshly vacuumed
carpet showed where the furniture had been. There was nothing I could take, no
memento, no souvenir of my friendship with the astronaut’s wife.
I left the key in a kitchen drawer and pulled the back door locked behind me
on the way out.
Much to my parents’ relief, I asked if I could repaint the ceiling in my
bedroom white again. It took me four coats to cover the black background. I didn’t
care much about planets and stars anymore.
Three more months went by, my most boring summer ever. Instead of the
Mars Channel, I had started watching baseball. I hate baseball. Some days I didn’t
get out of bed until noon. I was seventeen, and about to start senior year at Seguin
High, although I had no idea what I wanted to be when I grew up.
And then I received her letter. It was postmarked from Minneapolis.
****
DEAR DAVY,
I’M BACK IN MINNESOTA WITH FAMILY NOW, AND LOOKING
FORWARD TO A REAL WINTER AGAIN. SORRY I DIDN’T GET A
CHANCE TO SAY GOODBYE, BUT I GUESS YOU KNOW WHY. WHEN DID
YOU FIRST KNOW MY RICHARD WAS ON THE Romulus? YOU’RE SUCH
A SMART BOY, I’M SURE YOU FIGURED IT OUT LONG AGO. AFTER THE
ACCIDENT, I JUST COULDN’T GO BACK TO THAT HOUSE. THAT WAS
OUR HOUSE, AND BESIDES, I ALWAYS HATED TEXAS.
HERE’S A CHECK FOR THOSE LAST FEW WEEKS YOU WERE
TAKING CARE OF THE HOUSE. I DIDN’T MEAN TO RUN OFF OWING
YOU MONEY. I’VE ALSO ENCLOSED A LITTLE SOMETHING FROM
RICHARD’S THINGS I THOUGHT YOU MIGHT LIKE TO HAVE. AND A
PICTURE OF THE BABY. THE BABY IS BEAUTIFUL, AND HEALTHY. HIS
NAME IS RICHARD DAVID KEYES.
LOVE,
ROSEMARY
****
I never cashed that check. It wasn’t for a very large amount, but I figured
Mrs. Horton needed the money more than I did, what with little Richard David to
support. It would feel like taking advantage if I cashed it.
The photograph showed mother and baby. The baby was small and pink, but
perfect. Mrs. Horton smiled, but sadness spoke through her eyes.
The final item in the envelope was a round embroidered mission patch from
the Romulus. It showed the ship in silhouette against the red Martian globe.
I looked in the mirror, and held the patch up to my shoulder. It looked right.