"Ken Rand - The Henry and the Martha" - читать интересную книгу автора (Rand Ken)

“To central med. Our equipment,” he pointed over his shoulder with his
thumbs, “isn’t adequate for, well—you wouldn’t understand.”

“Try me,” A-nan said, but they ignored her.

We were told to report to the Director’s office. Such a summons, we’d long
ago learned, often preceded disposal. We had attended the mourning ceremonies.

A-nan and I linked thumbs, our scales slick with nervous sweat, as we walked
through the cold, damp underground access tunnel to the Directorate wing.

On the way, we passed a security observation port, where we could look out
over those lined up to see the human exhibit. The line stretched far away, thousands
of patrons, many families.

I noticed one father and mother with a female cub. The cub clutched a Henry
doll to her chest and her pouch rose and fell in great silent sobs. The mother knelt
before the cub and the father hovered near, distress discoloring his pouch. We
couldn’t hear but the gestures were obvious. Here stood a family that could ill afford
to travel to Earth, who had likely spent their life savings to come, and now the cub
was being told it might not get to see the humans after all.

“Poor little cub,” A-nan said.

Don’t pity the cub. Pity us.

We arrived at the Director’s office soon and saw two security guards, the
ones who, after the Director disclaimed us, would take us away. Forever.

But first, the monitor.

Security had monitors in the exhibit, cameras independent of outside power
except for linkage to the remote monitor station. The cameras continued recording
inside when the power failed outside, but we couldn’t replay from the security
station. The security people had to retrieve those tapes from the exhibit. They’d
done so while we walked to the Directorate, and one tape, the view of the human
bedroom, now ran in the Director’s office.

The office smelled of pouch polish and nervous sweat, again more nervous
sweat.

“What’s wrong with the sound?” the Director snapped.

One of the security people muttered something about a software problem but
he stopped when the Director dismissed him with an irritated thumb-wave.

Then we saw it on the monitor. The soundlessness made it the more macabre.
At first, it wasn’t clear what was happening on the humans’ bed. Was the Henry
climbing atop the Martha to copulate, as they sometimes did at night? No. We
watched the Henry choke the Martha. To death.