[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
Gomez remained silent, waiting.
"If you're so antsy about me signing your damn .. . Awk!"
A large shaggy man had thrust his head out into the corridor to look
around for the social director and the basket of fruit and cheese. The
second Gomez saw him, he fired his stun gun
The beam hit the big man square in the left temple. It rendered him
unconscious and he fell to his knees with a considerable thunk.
Then he toppled forward, sprawling half into the corridor. Gomez
stayed where he was, gun ready.
A full minute passed, then another. No one else came out of the
compartment.
Taking a deep breath, Gomez risked a look inside.
Slumped across the seat, hands bound behind her and a towel stuffed
into her mouth, was the redhaired Natalie Dent.
Tucking away his gun, Gomez bent and dragged the big man back inside
the room. "Fate is a funny thing, cara," he remarked to the Newz
reporter. "It keeps throwing us together."
The dark green Customs robot blinked, made a faint whistling noise and
pressed Jake's plas passport card to the scanner in its forehead once
again. "Ah," it said.
"Something?" asked Jake.
"Ah," repeated the emerald robot as it rose up from behind its crimson
desk.
"So you said." Jake was alone in this Customs cubicle. Beth and
Agent MacQuarrie were being processed in other cubicles in a long
string of tiny offices.
"You're Jake Cardigan." The robot tapped its index finger on the
passport card.
"I am, yeah. Is there some problem?"
"If you'll wait here a moment, Mr. Cardigan." Leaving its red desk,
the green robot walked out of the small Kyoto airport office.
It took Jake's passport with it.
Jake, reminded of his interview with the assistant clean of Dan's
school a few days ago, wondered if the Japanese authorities also
thought he was a Tek dealer.
A slender Japanese in a white suit stepped into the office and coughed
once. He was now holding Jake's passport card. "Pleased to meet you,
Mr. Cardigan." Moving behind the robot's desk, he sat down.
"I don't know if I'm pleased to meet you or not," admitted Jake.
VT hat going on?"
"I'm Inspector Hachimitsu."
"Kyoto Police?"
The inspector nodded. "With the Murder Division." Jake straightened
up in his chair. "You're working on a case?" "I am," answered
Hachimitsu. "Do you know Norman Itoko?" "Know his name. He's the
operative with the Senuku Detective Agency who's going to... But he
isn't going to be meeting me, is he?"
"No, Norman was killed a little over an hour ago."
"How?"
"Two assassins using lazguns killed him outside his home," said the
inspector. "For good measure, they killed his wife as well when she
came running out of the house."
"You knew him?"
"We were acquaintances. I was aware he was to contact you this
morning."
"It's a Tek killing. Itoko must've found out something."
didn't confide in me." Inspector Hachimitsu held he did,
he
William $ ha't net out Jake's passport. "I'd hate to see you killed as
well, Mr. Cardigan. Especially in Kyoto. For your own protection,
there lore I'm seeing to it that you will be denied entry into our
country and sent home to America at once."
omez had made a quick, thorough search of Natalie's train compartment"
before he untied her. "Tell me what happened, chiquita, he
requested.
The angry reporter tugged the towel out of her mouth, spit lint and
scowled up at him. "Don't think I'm not appreciative of your
assistance, since I truly am," she said. "You might, however, in any
future situations along this line, release me from bondage first and
then do your snooping around my--"
"Nat, I wanted to make certain you weren't harboring any other louts."
Kneeling beside the big man he'd stun gunned he started searching him.
"As suspected, no trace of an ID packet. Any notion who this clunk
is?"
"A safe assumption is that he's in the employ of one or more of the Tek
cartels." She rubbed at her wrists. "He didn't, though, bother to
introduce himself to me. He simply came barging in, slapped a hand
over my mouth and started to truss me up. I managed to utter a faint
cry for help, which I imagine you must have heard while lurking around
outside and possibly contemplating some sort of electronic
eavesdropping or--"
"I didn't even know you were aboard," he assured her as he extracted a
lazgun from the unconscious hoodlum's shoulder holster. "For
generations, however, the Gomez clan has been noted for
William S h at n e r rushing to the rescue of damsels in distress.
Hearing a plea for succor, I automatically sprang into action."
"Oh, I see. I suppose, correct me if I'm wrong, that had you realized
it was I who was being manhandled in here, you'd have continued on your
way, whistling one of those inane ditties you're so fond of--"
"Nat, I recognized your distinctive tones in a matter of scant
seconds." He located a stun rod in the thug's coat pocket, an
electro-knife strapped to his calf. "But so ingrained is my impulse to
help the helpless, that I popped into the fray, at great personal risk,
to help you, even though you and I haven't always been the best of--"
"Popped right in? Cood gravy, you dawdled out in that corridor
nattering away in the offensive impersonation of a pansy for an
inordinate length of time."
"Androids can't be pansies. It was only a couple of minutes." He
stood, bent and caught hold of the lout by the armpits. "It was a
pretty clever diversion, since it allowed me to deck this goon without
any bloodshed whatsoever."
"I suppose, all things considered, you did do a fairly competent job of
saving me from this bruiser."
Gomez opened the closet, worried the heavy unconscious man inside and
managed to shove the door shut on him.
"You've dumped him right in on top of my suitcase," complained
Natalie.
"He won't feel a thing, since he's out for at least twelve hours and
by--"
"I really do hate to carp at every single thing, but I don't like the
idea of that heavy hooligan crushing my dainty suitcase from here all
the way to Tokyo, Gomez."
Sighing, muttering in Spanish, he reopened the closet, tugged out the
small tan suitcase from beneath the slumbering thug, pushed him and
prodded and got him shut in once again.
"I happen to speak Spanish very well, Gomez."
"Muy bien." He dropped into the seat opposite her, smiling.
"I point that out now, since I would prefer that you don't continue to
call me a streetwalker and a goat and other insulting names under your
breath every time you get raffled over nothing at all."
His smile became more beatific. "Another thing that's genetically
built into me is the ability to keep on being sweet and cordial to
ladies even when they fail to pass along even so much as a small,
pitiful thank you."
"I already thanked you."
"I missed it."
"If you'd do less whistling and talking to yourself, in my opinion,
you might hear more of what's going on around you, especially in the
area of gratitude." She brushed at her red hair. "Has anyone made an
attempt on you since you boarded the train?"
"Not so far."
"Perhaps you were next on his list."
"We'll keep alert, in case he was traveling as part of a team," said
Gomez. "Why would he want to do you any harm?" "Somehow they've found
out why I'm going to Tokyo." "And why are you going to Tokyo, Nat?"
"Really now, you don't have to keep playing these silly games, the way
you tried to do when our paths crossed enroute to The Casino." She
gave a disappointed shake of her head. "Give me credit, since you know [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl akte20.pev.pl
Gomez remained silent, waiting.
"If you're so antsy about me signing your damn .. . Awk!"
A large shaggy man had thrust his head out into the corridor to look
around for the social director and the basket of fruit and cheese. The
second Gomez saw him, he fired his stun gun
The beam hit the big man square in the left temple. It rendered him
unconscious and he fell to his knees with a considerable thunk.
Then he toppled forward, sprawling half into the corridor. Gomez
stayed where he was, gun ready.
A full minute passed, then another. No one else came out of the
compartment.
Taking a deep breath, Gomez risked a look inside.
Slumped across the seat, hands bound behind her and a towel stuffed
into her mouth, was the redhaired Natalie Dent.
Tucking away his gun, Gomez bent and dragged the big man back inside
the room. "Fate is a funny thing, cara," he remarked to the Newz
reporter. "It keeps throwing us together."
The dark green Customs robot blinked, made a faint whistling noise and
pressed Jake's plas passport card to the scanner in its forehead once
again. "Ah," it said.
"Something?" asked Jake.
"Ah," repeated the emerald robot as it rose up from behind its crimson
desk.
"So you said." Jake was alone in this Customs cubicle. Beth and
Agent MacQuarrie were being processed in other cubicles in a long
string of tiny offices.
"You're Jake Cardigan." The robot tapped its index finger on the
passport card.
"I am, yeah. Is there some problem?"
"If you'll wait here a moment, Mr. Cardigan." Leaving its red desk,
the green robot walked out of the small Kyoto airport office.
It took Jake's passport with it.
Jake, reminded of his interview with the assistant clean of Dan's
school a few days ago, wondered if the Japanese authorities also
thought he was a Tek dealer.
A slender Japanese in a white suit stepped into the office and coughed
once. He was now holding Jake's passport card. "Pleased to meet you,
Mr. Cardigan." Moving behind the robot's desk, he sat down.
"I don't know if I'm pleased to meet you or not," admitted Jake.
VT hat going on?"
"I'm Inspector Hachimitsu."
"Kyoto Police?"
The inspector nodded. "With the Murder Division." Jake straightened
up in his chair. "You're working on a case?" "I am," answered
Hachimitsu. "Do you know Norman Itoko?" "Know his name. He's the
operative with the Senuku Detective Agency who's going to... But he
isn't going to be meeting me, is he?"
"No, Norman was killed a little over an hour ago."
"How?"
"Two assassins using lazguns killed him outside his home," said the
inspector. "For good measure, they killed his wife as well when she
came running out of the house."
"You knew him?"
"We were acquaintances. I was aware he was to contact you this
morning."
"It's a Tek killing. Itoko must've found out something."
didn't confide in me." Inspector Hachimitsu held he did,
he
William $ ha't net out Jake's passport. "I'd hate to see you killed as
well, Mr. Cardigan. Especially in Kyoto. For your own protection,
there lore I'm seeing to it that you will be denied entry into our
country and sent home to America at once."
omez had made a quick, thorough search of Natalie's train compartment"
before he untied her. "Tell me what happened, chiquita, he
requested.
The angry reporter tugged the towel out of her mouth, spit lint and
scowled up at him. "Don't think I'm not appreciative of your
assistance, since I truly am," she said. "You might, however, in any
future situations along this line, release me from bondage first and
then do your snooping around my--"
"Nat, I wanted to make certain you weren't harboring any other louts."
Kneeling beside the big man he'd stun gunned he started searching him.
"As suspected, no trace of an ID packet. Any notion who this clunk
is?"
"A safe assumption is that he's in the employ of one or more of the Tek
cartels." She rubbed at her wrists. "He didn't, though, bother to
introduce himself to me. He simply came barging in, slapped a hand
over my mouth and started to truss me up. I managed to utter a faint
cry for help, which I imagine you must have heard while lurking around
outside and possibly contemplating some sort of electronic
eavesdropping or--"
"I didn't even know you were aboard," he assured her as he extracted a
lazgun from the unconscious hoodlum's shoulder holster. "For
generations, however, the Gomez clan has been noted for
William S h at n e r rushing to the rescue of damsels in distress.
Hearing a plea for succor, I automatically sprang into action."
"Oh, I see. I suppose, correct me if I'm wrong, that had you realized
it was I who was being manhandled in here, you'd have continued on your
way, whistling one of those inane ditties you're so fond of--"
"Nat, I recognized your distinctive tones in a matter of scant
seconds." He located a stun rod in the thug's coat pocket, an
electro-knife strapped to his calf. "But so ingrained is my impulse to
help the helpless, that I popped into the fray, at great personal risk,
to help you, even though you and I haven't always been the best of--"
"Popped right in? Cood gravy, you dawdled out in that corridor
nattering away in the offensive impersonation of a pansy for an
inordinate length of time."
"Androids can't be pansies. It was only a couple of minutes." He
stood, bent and caught hold of the lout by the armpits. "It was a
pretty clever diversion, since it allowed me to deck this goon without
any bloodshed whatsoever."
"I suppose, all things considered, you did do a fairly competent job of
saving me from this bruiser."
Gomez opened the closet, worried the heavy unconscious man inside and
managed to shove the door shut on him.
"You've dumped him right in on top of my suitcase," complained
Natalie.
"He won't feel a thing, since he's out for at least twelve hours and
by--"
"I really do hate to carp at every single thing, but I don't like the
idea of that heavy hooligan crushing my dainty suitcase from here all
the way to Tokyo, Gomez."
Sighing, muttering in Spanish, he reopened the closet, tugged out the
small tan suitcase from beneath the slumbering thug, pushed him and
prodded and got him shut in once again.
"I happen to speak Spanish very well, Gomez."
"Muy bien." He dropped into the seat opposite her, smiling.
"I point that out now, since I would prefer that you don't continue to
call me a streetwalker and a goat and other insulting names under your
breath every time you get raffled over nothing at all."
His smile became more beatific. "Another thing that's genetically
built into me is the ability to keep on being sweet and cordial to
ladies even when they fail to pass along even so much as a small,
pitiful thank you."
"I already thanked you."
"I missed it."
"If you'd do less whistling and talking to yourself, in my opinion,
you might hear more of what's going on around you, especially in the
area of gratitude." She brushed at her red hair. "Has anyone made an
attempt on you since you boarded the train?"
"Not so far."
"Perhaps you were next on his list."
"We'll keep alert, in case he was traveling as part of a team," said
Gomez. "Why would he want to do you any harm?" "Somehow they've found
out why I'm going to Tokyo." "And why are you going to Tokyo, Nat?"
"Really now, you don't have to keep playing these silly games, the way
you tried to do when our paths crossed enroute to The Casino." She
gave a disappointed shake of her head. "Give me credit, since you know [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]