"E. E. Doc Smith - D' Alembert 9 - The Omicron Invasion" - читать интересную книгу автора (Smith E. E. Doc)

Aloud, he merely said, "I'm not empowered to accept your terms, merely to listen to them and
report to Her Majesty. I'm sure she'll find them of interest."

"Of course. You realize, though, the importance of speed in this matter. If you choose to accept
my help—at least as far as the investigative mission, for now—call the same answering machine number
and leave word: you'll be instructed later on meeting arrangements. If I don't hear from you within four
hours, I'll assume the answer is no and prepare plans of my own."

Out over the ocean, the Grand Duke could see the lights of the returning copter as it blotted out an
increasing number of stars: Lady A must have summoned it with a silent radio signal.

"Goodbye for now, Gospodin von Wilmenhorst," the woman said. "It's been pleasant doing
business with you—you're so much more civilized than your employees. I won't insult your intelligence,
though, with any nonsense about how we might have been friends if circumstances were different."

The Head nodded. "No, with our respective moral codes we'd be destined to be on opposite sides
of any conflict."

"Let's just hope we're on the same side in this one," Lady A said. "The fate of the Empire may
depend on it."

CHAPTER 4

Unwilling Allies

Life had changed significantly for the two best teams of agents in SOTE's arsenal since their last
major assignment. Jules and Yvonne d'Alembert now had a son, Maurice, one year old and in perfect
health. Pias and Yvette Bavol had a daughter barely six months younger: little Kari Bavol had been named
in honor of Pias's mother.

Child-rearing on a three-gee world like DesPlaines was a particularly demanding chore, and the
two women had been very much out of touch with their work for the Service. Their husbands had gone out
on a couple of minor assignments together, trying to pierce deeper behind the conspiracy's armor, but had
been largely unsuccessful. They'd broken some minor links in the chain, but the major structure remained
intact.

Fortunately the last eighteen months had been an unusually quiet time for the Empire. If the
agents hadn't known better, they might almost have thought the conspiracy had given up its plans of
conquest and turned to respectable outlets for its endeavors. They'd learned from the past, though, that the
longer a period of inactivity went by, the worse they'd have to pay for it later. They found themselves in
the ambiguous position of wishing something would happen and dreading what it would be.
 Jules and Yvette were getting a little itchy for other reasons as well. While they were in their
prime as agents right now, their biological clocks were working against them. Their younger cousins,
currently performing as star acrobats in the Circus of the Galaxy, were champing at the bit waiting to get
assignments of their own, and Jules and Yvette knew they'd soon be asked to step aside for the next
generation.

Not that they'd retire, of course. Retirement was almost unheard of in the d'Alembert clan, either
from the Circus or from serving the Empire in an underground capacity. Members of the family had been