"Patrick Tilley - Mission" - читать интересную книгу автора (Tilley Patrick)

He was dead. Believe me. Don't ask me to explain things. Alit
I
can tell you is he's alive now.' She plugged the bole in his side and bandaged his wrists and
feet. When she'd finished, she looked at me with this odd kind of expression. 'This is going to
sound a little crazy but since you haven't remarked upon it, I have to ask - doesn't lie remind
you of somebody?'
The question made me smile. 'Is that why you sent Lazzarotti to
fetch that equipment?' -
'This is serious, Leo,' said Miriam. 'Answer the question.'
I cast my eyes dutifully over the bandaged body. 'Well, I know who
you mean, but it's only because of what's happened to him.'
'Take a look at his teeth. . .' Miriam opened up the man's mouth
and showed me. 'No fillings, or signs of any other dental work. He's
also never worn shoes.'
I shrugged. 'So he's a barefoot freak who doesn't eat candy. That's not so unusual. Especially if
he came from somewhere like Spmalia, or the middle of Saudi Arabia. And in any case, the party you
have in mind had his big moment two thousand years ago.'
'I know. But just suppose. . .' Miriam let it hang there. I could see
that she thought that what she had been about to say was as outrageous as! did.
'I'm way ahead of you. It's a great idea but - 'I shook my head.
'Forget it. Things like that just don't happen.'
The phone rang in the morgue at~endant'~ office. He leant backwards and stuck his head around
thedoor without moving his butt off
the chair. 'Lazzarotti
Miriam went across to take the call.
I turned back towards the body on the slab and found him looking
at me. A chill shock-wave rippled up my spine and I was still quivering when I reached the
attendant's office.
Miriam lowered the phone. 'What's thc matter?'
I gestured wor&essly towards the body. But when we looked
round, the cover sheet was lying flat on the top of the slab. The body
had gone. My back had been turned for ten, maybe fifteen seconds.
Miriam eyed me, took a deep breath and spoke into the phone.
'Paul, uhh - hold those units. I'll see you back up in Emergency.'
Miriam and I went back to the slab, lifted up the cover sheet and
looked at each other. 'This is crazy,' I said. 'His eyes were open.
What happened?'
She shrugged. 'You tell me.'
'Well, at least the blood's still here.' I went down on one knee and
reached Out a finger.
'Don't touch it,' said Miriam. 'I want to put that on a slide.' She folded the cover sheet over
the foot of the table. There were smears on the slab where the lacerations on his back had started
to bleed. She shook her head. I knew how she felt.
'There has to be a rational explanation,' I insisted. 'Just don't ask me what it is. But even if
one buys the idea of the whole event, it doesn't add up. I mean, ifthe body disappeared, why
didn't the blood go with it?'
Miriam gave me a look that spelled bad news. 'That wasn't the only thing he left behind.' She took
her hand out of her coat pocket and offered it to me, palm upwards. 'I found these stuck in his
scalp when I looked him over upstairs.'
She was holding three dark inch-long spikes. I thought at first that they were nails. Then I