"Williamson, Michael Z - Freehold 01 - Freehold" - читать интересную книгу автора (Michael Z. Williamson - Freehold (BAEN) (v5) [htm jpg])

Ramadan was not friendly to unescorted women, Novaja Rossia demanded strict
qualifications and background checks, Caledonia was a UN nation . . .

Counting the cash in her bag, she found a thousand marks in three money cards and
cash and a note scrawled, "All I can spare. Hate to see you get driven like this. I disabled
your override circuit, so don't use auto. If you can, lie low for a few months, they may
sort this out. Still care about you." It was unsigned. She cried while driving and tried to
think of a solution.

Her mind was whirling too hard for thought, but she knew she'd need cash before


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they locked her work and insurance number. Stopping at a rest area, she picked a remote
parking slot and changed, hunched in the front seat. Wearing her uniform off base would
not only be distinctive, it was also an invitation to be mugged and raped, especially for
women. Once done, she pulled back onto the highway and found a suburban exit. She
pulled into a plaza and used a bank terminal, then found another one a few blocks away.
Six different transactions yielded every penny she had in the world, in small enough
chunks that no single one would show up at UNRS immediately. As she made the last
withdrawal, an idea occurred to her. It was insane, but there was no logical reason why it
was impossible. The odds were such that no bookie would take the bet, but better than
nothing, which was what she had now.

The Grainne colony had been independent for ten years now and had not only
refused to join the UN, but had refused to go along with most of the common standards of
ship registry, public health, public standards or even reciprocity of laws. That was the
crucial bit. If she could make it there, they wouldn't extradite her. It was quite the rogue
as nations went. It also reportedly had an excellent standard of living. As with many
frontier worlds, there were not enough people for all jobs. A frontier colony was not the
nicest environment for an urbanite like herself, but it would be safe until this resolved.

She gave one last searching thought to whether or not she should do it. The millions
of marks at stake made her believe that scapegoats, bribes and various irregularities
would be the end result of this. She was sophisticated enough to realize that being
innocent would not protect her and being poor and of low rank would make her a
doormat. This was a chance to wait things out. She reached for her phone, hesitated, then
sought a public phone and looked up the address.

* * *

In a suburb south of where Kendra had made her decision was the embassy of the
Freehold of Grainne. It was an old twenty-third-century windowless block, surrounded by
a wall and other, less blatant, security measures. In a spacious office on the top floor, an
old discussion was being rehashed yet again.

Assistant for Policy Gunter Marx entered the office and informed Citizen
Ambassador Janine Maartens of the Freehold of Grainne, "The UN is protesting our
declaration of withdrawal again."