"Anatoly Rybakov. The dirk (Кортик, англ.)" - читать интересную книгу автораwithout cavalry. Nikitsky's gang is all mounted."
"Well, what about it!" Misha said with a contemptuous curl of his lip. "Polevoy'll catch that Nikitsky soon anyway." "That's not so simple," Genka contended, "they've been trying to get him a whole year now, and they can't." "They will," Misha said confidently. "Easy to say," Genka looked up, "but he's wrecking trains every day. Father's already afraid of driving his engine." "Never mind, they'll catch him." Misha yawned, dug deeper into the sand and shut his eyes. Genka was also dozing. They did not feel like arguing any longer in the heat. The silent steppe was lazily withdrawing into the horizon as though to escape the scorching sun. Chapters 3 AFFAIRS AND DREAMS Genka went home to dinner, but Misha went to the crowded, noisy Ukrainian market. He wandered about the market for a long time, looking at the carts piled high with green cucumbers, red tomatoes, and wicker-baskets of their great wings; the sluggish oxen endlessly chewing the cud, their sticky saliva dribbling to the ground. As he walked through the market Misha remembered the Moscow bread and the watery milk bartered for potato peel. He longed for Moscow, its tram-cars, and evening lights. He stopped before an invalid rolling three beads on a bench. Each was of a different colour-red, white, and black. The man covered one of them with a thimble and offered a prize to anyone guessing its colour. But the right colour was elusive. "Friends!" the invalid said, appealing to the losers. "If I start losing to everyone I'll have to sell my last leg. You've got to under stand that." While Misha was examining the beads, someone suddenly put a hand on his shoulder. Turning round he saw Grandmother standing behind him. "Where on earth have you been the whole day?" she asked sternly, clinging tenaciously to Misha's shoulder. "Swimming," Misha mumbled. "Swimming!" Grandmother repeated. "How do you like that? He was swimming-well, we'll speak about it at home." She gave him her basket of purchases and marched him off. Grandmother walked in silence. She smelled of onions, garlic and of something fried, something boiled, like all the smells in the kitchen. "What'll they do to me?" Misha thought as he walked beside Grandmother. He was in a bit of a jam, he could see that. Against him there were |
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