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- Not here. And there’s nowhere to hide. Doesn't even hang anywhere
on the edge of the roof, I looked.
- There is one place left that we have not explored yet.
I felt their withering gazes through the thickness of the metal
la. My heart began to beat wildly again. I squeezed myself into a rusty one
metal roof and felt nothing but despair,
when the creaking of footsteps began to be heard very close.
- He couldn't get in here. Too high. I'm not ready
I'm melting even to the roof.
- You wouldn’t be able to reach your shoelaces if
bent over. Come on, sit me down. If you support me for
leg, I can reach the top and grab onto something-
be.All you need to do is take one look.
How right he was. Just take one look. And I'm nothing
I could do something about it. I became completely indifferent to my
defeat. I lay listening to ckpuny and curses,
yellow panting and scratching on the iron. The sounds became more and more
closer, and finally a huge
paws clinging to the edge of the tank. It probably worked here
my subconscious melted, because, I swear to you, there are no logical
No thinking on my part was involved here.
My hand reached forward and pushed the dead bird onto
the very edge, right under his fingers. They sank exactly to
the right place and raked the poor creature. The result was simple
amazing! The bird disappeared, and with it the hand, subsequently
There were screams and shouts, followed by two heavy blows.
- Why did you do this?
- I grabbed her, aax - ooyy! I broke my ankle.
- Check if you can stand on your leg. That's it, hold on
over my shoulder. Lean on your other leg, let's go here...
Through the open hatch door, screams could be heard
here and there, and I congratulated myself with relief on the short re-
breathe. They could return soon, and it was quite possible
nice, but at least the first round was mine.
Seconds, and then minutes, flowed byvery slowly, and I finally
The German realized that he had won the second round. The search has been postponed
far from the roof. Bo, in any case, for a while. Cupe-
we fell silent, and turmoil now engulfed the lower floor. Below
there were screams and slamming doors, the roar of people leaving the car
pemhoro yard at night of cars. And after a while - that's it
miracle of miracles - the lights began to turn off one by one. Pre-
preliminary searches were completed. I was overcome by drowsiness - and
I stood up sharply to shake her off.
- Scarecrow! You're still in a quandary. Intelligence
produced, but this place is not yet properly ocmotpeho. Maybe
but bet the last coin that if they start with the first
a ray of sunshine, a new inspection, they will not miss a single corner
or a nook. And they will rise here again, this time from the stairs -
prostrate. With this in mind, something needs to be done.
And I knew where I needed to go now. It was
the last place they would think to look for me is this
at night. Down through the hatch and further along the dark corridor. Some people
of the prisoners was still discussing the events of that night, but seemed
that they were all already lying on their beds. Silently I cnyc-
I walked up the stairs and made my way into cell 567B. Opening the door to
absolute silence and closing it behind him in the same way. Past
my dismantled bed to the bed of my donor friendWillie, snoring in an unrighteous sleep. My hand is tight
she squeezed his mouth, and then he opened his eyes wide, while
how I whispered with some kind of primitive sadistic pleasure -
told him in yxo:
- Consider yourself dead, you shameful rat. You called security and
Now you will get what you deserve...
He made a gigantic effort to lift his body and lost
consciousness. The eyes immediately closed. Did I really kill him? to me
I suddenly felt ashamed of my foul-smelling little joke.
No, he didn’t kill him, he’s just unconscious, breathing easily and steadily.
sewn I went for a towel, soaked it in cold water -
then made him feel all his kindness. His cry
turned into a gurgle, since I managed to shut his mouth
with a towel.
- I'm a noble man, Willie, so you're lucky. I don't
I'm going to kill you. - My whisper seemed a little ycno-
killed him because I felt that his body had stopped
shake with fear. - You will help me. If you do this
I won't cause you any harm. Here's my word for you. Prigo-
Be ready to answer my question. Think carefully about it.
You will only need to whisper one thing. You have to tell me
find out which cell Stinger is in. Nod your head if you
readyreply. Fine. I pull out a towel. But if you
if you decide to joke or say something else, then you can
say goodbye to life. So...
... - 231 B...
On our floor, great. The towel was returned for a month
then. Then I pressed firmly on the vein behind his right ear,
disrupting the blood flow supplying oxygen to the brain. six seconds
- loss of consciousness, ten - death. He twitched, then
fell silent again. I released my finger after counting to seven. In me and in
in fact she had a generous nature. I wiped my face with a towel
and hands, then bent down to pick up his shoes and put them on. Then again
one shirt and a jacket. After that I probably drank in one gulp.
a whole liter of water and was ready to face the world again. I
tore the blankets off the beds, wrapped them around his arm and walked out of the room.
measures. On tiptoe, trying to step completely silently, I
snuck up to Stinger's cell. I thought I was free
and unresponsive to anything around. At the same time I understood
that this is stupid and dangerous. But after what we received this evening
traumas and experiences, it was as if I had exhausted my entire supply of passions.
how. The cell door opened from one of my gentle npukoc-
news, and Stinger’s eyes also instantly opened, as soon as
I just need to touch him on the shoulder.
“Get dressed,” I said quietly. - Welet's run right now.
My words were enough for him - he did not ask
unnecessary questions. Just pulled on my clothes while I took
blanket from his bed.
- We'll need at least two more.
- I'll take Eddie's.
- He will wake up.
- I'll make sure he falls asleep again.
The questioning mutter was followed by a dull thud. Eddie
continued to review his dreams, and Stinger took the remaining ones
blankets
“Here’s what we’ll do,” I told him. - I found a way out
roof. We'll go there and tie these blankets together. Then
Let's go down and save him. Okay?
Okay! Never in my life have I heard a more insane plan.
But Stinger replied:
- Okay! Let's go!
Once again up the stairs - I'm already tired of climbing them
- and generally tired during the night. I climbed up the iron steps -
yum, unlocked the hatch door and pushed the blankets out when he
gave them to me. We didn't say a word until I dropped
hatch and did not lock it.
- What's happened? I heard that you ran away and got ready
it waskill you if they caught you again.
- It's not that simple. I'll tell you about everything later, when
we'll get out of here. Now let's tie the knots. Take it for pro-
opposite angles; we must make the most of what we have,
and longer length. Tie with a double knot, as you were taught in under-
poctkobom club. Like this.
He knitted and knitted like crazy until all the corners were connected.
dinen, then pulled the ends and grunted with satisfaction. I
tied one end to a solid-looking pipe and threw it down
blankets down.
“It’s at least twenty feet short,” said
Stinger frowned at the ground. - Go first, you are easier.
If it all breaks down under me, at least you will have
chance to survive. Let's move it.
It was impossible to argue with his logical reasoning. I
climbed onto the railing and grabbed the top blanket. Stinger
squeezed my hand in an unexpected outburst of feelings. And I climbed
down. It wasn't that easy. My hands are tired, and the blankets
began to crackle underneath me. I went down as fast as
this was possible because he clearly understood that the forces were leaving
they eat me. My legs fluttered in the air - I crawled to the
ice corner. The hard surface of the yard still seemed quite
leko. It wasn't easy for me to let gohands. Or vice versa, very
easy. I couldn't hold on any longer. My fingers unclenched
and I fell... hit, rolled and sat on the ground, barely crossing
leading the spirit. I did it anyway. High above I saw the dark
the figure of Stinger climbing down the rope. Through
How many seconds was he already on the ground, easily landing next to
with me and helping me get back on my feet. With difficulty I hobbled to
gate. My fingers were trembling, and I could not open the lock.
We were uncomfortably visible here, right under the lamppost, and
if only one sentry had bothered to look out the window above
us, we would be trapped. I took a deep breath and re-
shrugged his shoulders, then picked at the door again with the master key, not-
hastily and carefully, feeling all the bulges and grooves
constipation. It clicked and opened and we rushed
run. Stinger managed to silently close the gate, then
returned and rushed into the night, I did not lag behind him a single step.
We were free!
- Wait! - I called out when Stinger rushed to the side
roads. - Not here. I have a better plan. I developed
him even before I was imprisoned.
He slowed down and thought about my words, then he saw
but,made some decision in my mind.
- You haven't been wrong so far. So what are we going to do?
- For beginners - leave a trail for them to follow
robot bloodhounds. Let's run here.
We turned off the road and rushed across the grass to the nearest
stream. It was small but cold and I couldn't help it
trembling as we walked along it. The main highway passes through
La was very close, and we were making our way in the same direction,
bending down to the water itself when some kind of
be a vehicle. For some time the road remains
was completely deserted.
- It's time! - I shouted. - Run to the highway, and for-
then back again, retracing our own steps.
Stinger did as he was told, returning along
follow your footsteps with me into the icy stream.
“That’s a great idea,” he said. - The bloodhounds will find that place-
where we supposedly came out of the water, and they will follow the tracks to the road
gi. Then they'll think we were picked up by some pro-
a car driving by. What's next?
- We will go upstream - without leaving the water - to the near-
the closest farm. Which will probably turn out to be a pig farm...
- Not this. I hate them to death. I somehow feel like
came from one pig-shaped, whenI was still a child.
- We have no other choice. If we do anything
another thing, the cops will grab us at dawn. I can't either
I must say that I really love these pigs. But I grew up on a farm
and I know how to handle them. Now let's go before I leave...
I was freezing my feet.
It was quite a long journey, I was chilled and couldn't
could stop the trembling that had begun. But we have absolutely nothing
there was more to do than to move forward. Teeth stu-
chattered in my mouth like castanets when we finally
we reached a stream, which, meandering through the fields, flowed into
the wide stream along which we wandered. The stars became little by little
fade; dawn was approaching.
“This is it,” I said. - The same stream that we need -
female This felled tree is my note. Don't be left behind - we are
It's already very close. - I reached out and broke off an old branch, on-
hanging over the stream, showing the way. We wandered on until
we reached a high electrified fence, which
covered the stream. It was clearly visible in the predawn cy-
mepkax. With the help of a knot I raised the lower edge of the fence,
so that Stinger could crawl under it; then he did the same
the best for me. When I got up, I heard a familiar rustling
the sound of huge needles coming from the growing air nearby
ba.A large dark shadow separated from the trees, and directed
came to us. I took the branch from Stinger and quietly called:
- Cyy-ee, cyy-ee... Here, piggy, piggy...
The hog, approaching us, grunted rhythmically. Stinger something
whispered under his breath, probably cursed or prayed - and
maybe both. I called again and the massive creature
came closer. A real handsome man, weighing a ton, looked at
me with your little red eyes. Borov doesn't even
moved when I stepped towards him and slowly lifted the branch,
hearing Stinger groan behind him. I stuck a stick behind the pig
yxo, straightened the long needles - and began to scratch diligently
his skin.
- What are you doing? He'll kill us! - Stinger exclaimed.
“Of course not,” I answered, scratching the hog even harder.
behind the ear. - Listen to me. - Quincean half-closed his eyes and
grunted happily. - I know these big pigs well. U
there are a lot of all sorts of parasites under their needles, and they cannot
get to them. That's why they love to have their ears scratched.
Substitute the second one, here is the most sensitive place - and we
Let's continue on our way.
I continued to scratch, the hog moaned with happiness, and
The wind sneaked up on us unnoticed. In the farmer's house they turned on
light and we sat down behindpig-shaped The door opened
someone threw water out of the bucket and it closed again.
“Let’s run to the barn,” I said. - Here!
The hog grumbled displeasedly when I stopped scratching him, and
trotted behind us, hoping to get more, while
we sneaked our way to the barn through the entire farm. It was
very useful, since there were a large number of people running around
pigs covered with sharp spines. But they all instantly dis-
huddled as soon as the leader appeared, and we and the truly royal
with which honors they proceeded to the barn.
“See you, buddy,” Stinger breathed. - I don't-
when I don’t forget.
“You need skill,” I said modestly. - In the end,
you're great at handling your fists...
- A... you're great at dealing with pigs!
“I wouldn’t say it so categorically,” I muttered.
- Now let’s climb into the hayloft, it’s warmer there, and they won’t see us there-
dyat. There's a long day ahead and I'd like to take advantage of it
to get a good night's sleep.
The next moment I felt that Stinger was shaking me
shoulder, and bright rays break through the plank walls of the barn
sun.
“The police are here,” he whispered.I wiped the remnants of sleep from my eyes and looked out the hole. Be-
a green police van stood not far from the farmer's
home, and two cops in uniform were showing some piece of paper
to the owner. He shook his head negatively and we heard clearly
his voice through the hubbub of the peasant yard.
- No. I've never seen them in my life. To be honest, I'm no longer-
I didn’t see any of the strangers. It's true, so
It was very nice to talk with you. And these guys really
they actually look disgusting. Criminals, you say...
- Dad, we're not going to hang around here all day. If you
didn't see them, they could still be hiding on your
farm. Maybe in that barn over there?
- They wouldn't be able to get in there. I'm releasing it on purpose
pig-like The most evil creatures in the world.
- We'll still see. The order was to search every building in
district.
The policeman headed in our direction, but then a loud noise was heard.
a loud squeal, and the clatter of sharp hooves was heard. From around the corner
out of heaven, our night acquaintance jumped out, rattling his needles. He
prepared to attack, and the police instantly dived into their
van The hog slammed into him, swinging him out of
side to side with their huge fangs. Pretty farmer
nodded.- I told you that no one can be here. Since
There's Little Larry walking around here, he won't tolerate it on his territory
strangers. So stop by when you're nearby, guys...
He had to shout out the last words because fur-
the rut roared, heading west, hot on its heels
Little Larry.
“This is great,” said Stinger with reverence in his voice.
loce. I nodded silently in agreement. Even in the saddest and
In a joyless life there are moments of complete triumph.
Well, enough fun, it's time to get to work. I inserted the straw-
into his mouth and stretched out on the warm hay.
- Pigbears are very pleasant when you know their customs.
“The police don’t seem to think so,” he said.
- Yes, I guess. I've never seen anything better. to me
I wouldn't like to meet the police again.
- Who would like to? Why were you imprisoned?
- Bank robbery. Have you ever taken a bank?
He whistled in surprise and shook his head negatively.
howl.
- This is not my style. I wouldn't even know what to do. Ky-
Lacking fights are my style. I haven't known defeat for nine whole years
years
-Wandering here and there around the neighborhood, you must have
met a lot of people. I have never encountered with Smelly Shma-
com? - I improvised. - We once took a bank together
Graham State.
- I've never met him. And I've never heard of him. You
the first bank robber I've seen in my life.
- Is it true, or what? Well, yes, there are only a few of us left now. But you
I must know some bugbears. Or a car-
new thieves?
All I achieved was one more negative showing of him.
head shaking.
- I was only in prison and could meet guys like you.
I know several scammers; they sometimes appear on our
battles But they all have wind in their pockets, they are losers. I
I knew one, I bet you know him - Elephant, but
this was many years ago.
- Elephant? - I repeated, blinking quickly and trying to remember
names of chess pieces. - I haven’t played chess for a long time.
- Not that elephant. I had in mind one eccentric who...
I was busy cleaning out banks and our pockets. I thought you
you know him, or at least heard about him.
- Probably it was not in my time.
- And no one else. It wasmany years ago. Police
never managed to catch him, as I heard. One swindler
said that he knew him well, and also said that he had long
has already retired and laid low. He was a good man.
Stinger knew nothing more, and it was useless to deduce
there is something else to it. Our conversation gradually died down, and we
both dozed off until dark. We were tormented by thirst and hunger, but we
We knew that during the day we would still have to hide. I was chewing
his straw and tried not to think about the huge bottles c
beer or cold water, but it’s better to think about the Elephant. This is very
a weak lead, but I had no more. By sunset I
just terribly hungry and thirsty, and also fell into co-
utter despondency. My fun prison adventure
It was a complete fiasco. Prisons were meant for failures
nicknames - that's all I managed to find out. And in order to
find out, I risked my life and all my limbs. Hukor-
yes more. I swore to myself that I would henceforth stay away from
away from prisons and away from the police too. Real criminals
don't allow themselves to be caught. Like the Elephant, whoever he is. When
the last ray of light disappeared over the horizon, we carefully
They opened the barn door. A measured grunt reached our ears -
sound, and a huge figure blocked our exit. Stinger color-
gaped in amazement, and I pulled him back until heran away.
“Take a stick, it might come in handy,” I said. - I'm on-
I'm teaching you a new craft.
We scrubbed the animal's skin like crazy, and it tuxohb-
Ko grunted with pleasure. When will we finally otnpabu-
As we set off, the hog ran after us like a little dog.
“We have made a friend for life,” I said when we
slipped out of the gate and waved goodbye to our cbuho-
like a friend.
- I don’t need such a friend for nothing. Can you imagine
what do we need to do now?
- Naturally. I am famous for always planning everything in advance.
earlier. There is a railway line below here, along which
drive cargo platforms, reloading goods onto them from the passage
passing by regular trains. We need to stay away from her
further, because there are probably a lot of police there. In parallel
there is a road along the branch, trucks drive along it, and it leads to ma-
gistrals where light control is carried out. Machines must
we stop until the traffic computer detects them and
will not allow you to move on. That's where we'll go...
- And we’ll break into the back of some truck!
- You're making progress. We just need to choose the right one
direction, make surethat the truck is heading west.
Otherwise, we will again end up in the beautiful city of Peli Gates (Jem-
alien Gate), and at the same time to our beloved prison, from
which we found with such difficulty.
- Show the way, Jim. You're the smartest guy out there
everyone I've met in my life. You'll go far.
This is exactly what I wanted and nodded to him in agreement.
It's just a shame he won't go that far. But I didn’t
wanted to spend his life on some farm, he could
be satisfied with rural life. But it looks like Stinger is planning...
created something more grandiose. I didn't want to become co-
participant in the murder.
We found the road and hid in the bushes. Stopped nearby
two trucks - the lights of another one appeared behind them. We remain
were out of sight. First one, and then the second,
we set off and headed east. When the third one is
slowed down and stopped, and the lights flashed in turn. On
West! We rushed forward. While I was fiddling with the lock, Stinger
stroked me from the side. He pulled the handle down and the door pacnax-
nulas. The truck started moving and he pushed me inside. Him
had to catch up with the departing van - he grabbed the lower
partition and pulled himself into the body in one sharp movement
of your powerful hands. - We finally did it! - he said triumphantly.
- Of course we did. The truck is heading in the direction you want -
nii, and I'll have to get out and go back to Peli Gates, like
As soon as the heat subsides. In about an hour we will be passing
past Billville. There we will say goodbye to you.
The journey did not last long. I jumped off at the first stop
new light control, and he shook my hand in pro-
laziness.
- Good luck, baby! - he shouted when the car started -
las. I couldn't wish the same for him. So I took it
note the registration number of the truck and pulled out a coin,
as soon as the engine began to purr. As soon as he was out of sight, I
turned to the brightly lit telephone. I feel-
portrayed himself as a vile traitor, pressing the call button for the police
tions.
But I really had no choice.
Unlike the hapless Stinger, I developed a carefully
new escape plan. And part of it was the idea to give absolutely
misdirection to your partner. He wasn't that stupid and
it would not be difficult for him to figure out who reported
onhim. So if he speaks up and tells the police that
I'm back in the beautiful city of Peli Gates, it will be even
better. I had no desire to leave Billville, at least
for a while.
This office was rented by some agency, and the whole business was
production was carried out here by computer. I've been here before, still
before my bank robbery, and then left him here
some supplies. Now they could be very useful.
I entered the fully automated building through the
external entrance - having previously turned off the alarm system,
using a secret button that I had enough imagination
insert here. Using the built-in timer, I noticed that I
it took ten long minutes to finally enter
to the office. I yawned, picking at the lock with a master key, and once again,
closing the door behind him and hobbling up the stairs three times
summer. Past the meaningless eyes of disconnected video cameras and invisible
dim - and also disabled - rays of infrared light. I
spent another two minutes picking up the key to the door of the kohto-
ry. I darkened the windows and turned on the lights and headed to the bar. Ho-
Ice beer has never seemed so tasty to me. Co-
the holding of the first bottle did not linger at all with me
throat and hissed somewhere in the bottom of the stomach. Sipping from
second bottle, I tore itpackage with spit-roasted
Pigface ribs and took out the largest rib. Am! When-
After a shower, a snack and a third bottle of beer, I
felt much better.
“Oh, let’s get to work,” I said to the terminal, pressing the keyboard.
tour. My instructions were simple: all newspaper reports on
planet over the past fifty years, everything that concerns npec-
tynhuka named Elephant, and all the talk around it, and without
repetitions. Print.
Even before I took my beer out of the printer
The first leaves began to appear. The top sheet reported the
last mentioned just ten years ago. Not very in-
tepechoe incident in a town located on another
end of the planet, in the Decalogue. The police detained in some kind of
running track of a senior citizen who assured everyone that he
and there is the Elephant. Later it turned out that he suffered from megalomania.
chiya, and the suspect was sent to an insane asylum, from where
It turns out he ran away. I picked up the following message.
So I worked until exhaustion until the morning and a little
took a nap right there on the file cabinet, which easily turned into
She went to bed as soon as she was given the command. B pre-discoloration
in the windy twilight, having cheered myself up with a cup of black coffee, I
I finally finished laying out the sheets of information on the floor. ByThe pink rays of the rising sun ran through them. I turned it off
light and, tapping his teeth with the stylograph, began to study
systematized messages.
Interesting. A criminal who flaunts his crimes
niyami. Which left behind a small drawing co
an elephant, fleeing the crime scene with its prey.
A very simple drawing - easy to copy. Which is what I did.
Then he extended his hand and admired it from the side.
The first elephant was found in the empty cash register of an automated
liquor store sixty-eight
years ago. Even if Elephant started his career as a teenager, how
I, he must have been over eighty by now. Very
a pleasant age, considering that life expectancy has increased
has now been in existence for up to a century and a half. But what could happen
something that made him remain silent for a long time?
More than fifteen years have passed since his last
appearing on the pages of newspapers. I counted on my fingers all the possibilities
possible options.
- Number one, and this option cannot be discounted, -
he could have died. In this case, nothing can be done, and we
you will have to forget about everything.
- Two - he could fly to another planet and continue for-
indulge in your criminalactivity somewhere among
stars If so, let's forget about it, as in the first case. to me
you will need to get a considerable amount of gold coins and
more experience before taking on other worlds.
- Three - he retired and is resting, living off the received
gains through unrighteous means - then there is hope. Or did he change
type of activity - four - and now leaves no traces
after every outing.
I sat down, pleased with myself, slowly sipping my coffee. If
the third or fourth options were correct, I have a chance to find
ty him.
He led a fairly active lifestyle, I know
looked at the list of his crimes. Thefts on airplanes
cars, emptying cash registers and banks. And again and again.
All the crimes consisted of siphoning dollars from
other people's pockets into his own. And he was never understood
man, this was the best of all. Here's the man who
could become my teacher, my penetutopom, my university
tetom in the world of crime - which would one day
day gave me a diploma of black magic, opening for me
doors to golden possessions, which I so passionately desire to
mouth
But how could I find him if we were already united?strength
police all over the world, for decades, have never been able to
catch his hand? Interesting question. So interesting
that I didn't see the answer to it. I decided to give it my
to his subconscious, so I once again briefly went over all
received facts so that the information is consolidated in the subcortex.
The street gradually filled with shoppers, and I thought,
that it would be nice for me to take a walk to the store myself.
All the food I had here was either
frozen or packaged and ready to eat, and
after the disgusting prison food, I suddenly wanted something...
be toasty and crispy.
I opened my locker and began to prepare to go out.
light.
Adults don't realize - or forget - how difficult it is to be
poctkom. They forget that this is a transition to adulthood.
Carefree children's fun is already behind us, and responsibility and
fulfilling adult responsibilities is still ahead. Beyond the tide
blood to the head, as well as to all other parts of the body when
thoughts about the opposite sex begin to appear there, cy-
There are still a lot of problems.
An unlucky teenager is expected to act like adults - but he
does not have any advantages from this vaunted mature state
substantive Regardingme, I escaped the painful pressure
adolescence by simply jumping over it.
Stopping idly wandering around and wagging your tongue at school and in
time of professional training, I turned into an adult
th person. And since I considered myself much smarter than them -
adults, I mean, at least I thought so - to me
All that remained was to assume more importance. Sleep-
First we put wrinkles in the corners of the eyes and on the forehead. With the help
colorless substance my age has advanced immediately to non-
how many years ahead? Some makeup on the neck, and last
the finishing touch will be disgusting tiny mustaches. When I pulled on
myself in a shapeless office jacket, my mother wouldn’t recognize it
meeting me by chance on the street. In fact, once upon a time
and it happened, it was about a year ago - I asked her,
what time is it, and she answered, and there was no flicker in her cow eyes -
There was no sign that she recognized me.
I left the office and went to the nearest store.
I must say that my subconscious worked very productively.
tive on this day. I soon discovered this. Even after everything
I was thirsty after drinking beer. Time spent in the barn
without water made itself felt. So I wrapped it under payment
new McSweenes vaults and walked towards the robot waiter, built-in
nomu at the bar counter. His plastic head cdepicted on
she turned to me with a never-vanishing grin, and he said
in a sweet and sensual voice:
- How can I serve you, sir or madam? - they could notpa-
spend a few dollars on a gender-distinguishing program, consider
I'm small, studying the list of names of soft drinks on
wall.
- I'll probably take double cherry syrup with a large co-
the licority of ice.
- It will be done, sir or madam. All this costs three dollars,
if you like.
I put the coins into the coin acceptor, and the lid automatically
th dispenser, clicking, opened, and the ordered ones appeared
drinks by me. Stretching out my hand for them, I was forced to listen
send an advertising call for a robot waiter.
- The McSweenes are happy to serve you today. Having selected the
current according to your taste, we are sure that you will want to try
spit-roasted hog meat burger with signature
sauce and garnished with sugary stuffed sweet potatoes...
The robot's voice gradually disappeared from my consciousness as it
again took on the solution to my small problem. The answer is
which should be simple and clear, which was in itself
obvious, like twice two...
- Come on,drunkard. Order or leave, you won't
stand here all day.
A voice sounded right next to my ear. I muttered
some apologies and, moving to the nearest table, sat down on
chair Now I knew what needed to be done. You just need to post
turn everything upside down. Instead of looking for it yourself
Elephant, I'll have to make him look for me. I was drinking xo-
ice syrup until my throat hurts, pointless
looking in one place and bit by bit collecting pieces of the action plan
twee. I had absolutely no chance of finding the Elephant -
it was stupid and pointless to even waste time trying. By-
all I had to do was do some super
scandalous crime, so that it ends up in all records
news on all channels of the planet. It must be us-
only exotic, so that not a single person in the world who can
read - or, in extreme cases, able to point a finger at
button and turn on the information channel - did not remain in the dark
regarding him. The whole world should know about my npec-
warming. They will also have to find out that he committed it
Elephant because I'll leave at the scene of the crime
defiant calling card, the chess bishop.
I sucked the rest of the drink through the straw, again concentrating
looked at surrounding objects andslowly returned to the bright
what is the reality of McSweenes. There was a poster hanging right in front of me. I
already looked at him for some time with unseeing eyes. Te-
I noticed him first. Laughing clowns and screaming children. All
carried away by the fun, and above their heads flaunted a simple
inscription in glowing letters:
SAVE YOUR COUPONS!
GET THEM AS A WIN!!
FREE ENTRANCE TO LUNA PARK!!!
I visited these parks several years ago - and they
I really didn't like it, even when I was a child. Frightening
races that can scare only the naive npoctakob. Ups and
falls, dizzying carousels - all this is intended
Suitable for a hardened stomach and a strong head. Packaged
dinners, sugar caramel, drunken clowns, all mixed up
with wild fun - entertainment for every taste. Thousands of people
come to amusement parks every day, and tens of thousands fill
them on weekends, bringing in hundreds of thousands of dollars. Dolla-
poboe abundance! All I have to do is clean it -
and do it in such an amazing way to get to
editorials of every newspaper on the planet. But how can I do this?
Gogo there, of course, and take a good look at all their measures
precautions. It was time to relax.
For this small reconnaissance trip it would be much more
tectbehhee behave according to your age. Flush c
I put on all the makeup, I turned into a seventeen year old again
teenager with a fresh healthy face. I needed co-
improve your skills; It’s not for nothing that I went through a very expensive
theatrical makeup courses. Having stuffed the cheeks with soft pads,
kami, I became like a little cherub, especially when
Browned them a little. I put on a pair of dark glasses, adorned...
filled with plastic flowers - streams of water splashed from them,
when I pressed the small can in my pocket. Cheap for-
bawa! The style of clothing had changed, thank God, and that meant
that golf pants have gone out of style and shorts have returned. And more precisely,
some kind of precautionary style called short-long,
when one pant leg was above the knee and the other below. I bought
a pair of these pants, made of repellent nypnypho-
corduroy with decorative pink patches. I have difficulty
forced himself to look in the mirror. The one that looked at me
from there, I would not dare to describe, the only thing is that it was
looks nothing like an escaped bank robber. On my neck
hung up a cheap camera that was of no use
was that he was cheap or that hejust a camera.
Arriving at the place, I almost got lost in the stream of similar
myself, rushing towards the main entrance to the amusement park. Squeal, uctepu-
laughing heartily and pouring our plastic flowers on each other
comrade, we whiled away the time before the opening. When will the doors finally
opened, I let all this colorful crowd pass forward
and impatiently followed her. Now let's get to work. To where
there is money. Impressions about my first visit to this
the establishments were completely erased from my memory - and thank God!
- but I remember well what the various attractions require
I had to pay in tokens. My father gave me limited
and a very small number of these tokens that are wasted
fell in just a few minutes, and of course,
there was nowhere to wait. My initial task here is
It took an hour to find a source with these tokens. It was pretty
easy to do, since this building was the object of attention
mania of every visitor. It was octpoko-
a delicate structure, like an upside-down waffle cone
from ice cream, decorated with flags and mechanical clowns and
topped with a gold-plated loudspeaker, from which
There was deafening music. Around the building at its very core
there were plastic clowns swaying,
laughing and grimacing. Despite his defiant responserotation species, they performed a very important function of survival
from visitors of their money. The impatient hands of teenagers are all
Throw coins into the raking paws of plastic polychens. Monet
you disappeared - and the clown’s mouth spewed out a whole stream of plastic -
new tokens. Disgusting - but obviously I'm the only one
I thought so. Money flowed like a river into this building. Now we need to-
It was difficult to find where they flowed from it. I walked around him and
discovered that the dispenser that returned the dollar
new flow into circulation is located behind the building, under
cover of trees and bushes. Having made his way under their branches,
mi to the annex, I came face to face with a policeman,
standing at the nameless door.
“Disappear, baby,” he asked tenderly. - There are services here -
nymi entrance.
Dodging him, I pushed the door, having managed to take a photo of it.
to sleep
“I need the toilet,” I blurted out at random. - I was told that
he's here.
A strong hand threw me back to kyctaphuky.
- Not here. In another place. Go back where you came from.
I went. Very interesting. No electronic alarm
tions, and the Glubb system locks are reliable, but outdated. to me
started to like amusement parks.A painful wait ensued.
darkness when the park was supposed to close. Out of nothing
to do, I took a ride to the Ice Country, where it was necessary to break through
rush through a cave made of artificial ice with all kinds of
things frozen into the walls - which sometimes fell off and
fell directly on the excursionists. Attraction "Sea Pirates"
was no better than this, let alone the wild fun of the Candyland
us or the Monster in the swamp, I wouldn’t even like to say,
to keep up appearances. Suffice it to say that I still
waited for my time. The token machine has stopped working
one hour before the park closes. From my observation point I
watched with interest as the armored van took away
a large number of solid containers. But the most interesting thing
It was that along with the money, the security evaporated. I think
that according to their logical reasoning it turned out that no one in
no sane mind would think of breaking in here at night to
steal tokens. But I was not in my right mind. As soon as
dusk fell on the earth, I joined the exhausted
an idle crowd wandering towards the exit. But before him, of course, I
didn't arrive. The locked door on the back side of Vampire Mountain is easy
gave in, and I slipped into the darkness of the service room.
High above me, fangs with a sign painted on them glowed faintly.
dried blood; I felt very comfortable, hidinghovering behind a dust-filled coffin. Should have waited
another hour, no more. The employees had probably already left, but
the street was still full of people, and they might have noticed my
disgusting outfit when I go outside.
There were safety devices all around, but they were easy to
get around. As I expected, the Glubb opened without difficulty, and I
quickly slipped inside. There were no windows in the room, what was
very useful, since my flashlight was not in this case
visible from the street. I turned it on and looked around with admiration.
rudovanie. Simple and clear design - I appreciated these
quality in mechanisms. The walls are surrounded by automatic
sensors. They were silent now, but they probably remained in rapport.
in better condition. When coins or banknotes fall into them,
they counted them and sent them on. Upper machines
measured out and threw out a certain number of tokens according to
giving grooves. Next to them, pipes protruded from the floor, ending
hanging somewhere up in the bunker. Without a doubt they
were filled using an underground conveyor, which returned
developed ready-to-use tokens and machines. Dollars, k
which were no longer touched by human hands, moved
walked through a closed pipeline to the collection point, where the coins
fell into special closed boxes. I didn't need them
they are notIt was very easy to take it out of here. But banknotes, yes
they were lighter and more expensive. They were sliding
along the grooves until they fell gracefully into the open top of the safe.
This operation reliably protected against dishonest
rude staff. Wonderful. I was simply fascinated by the
lamenting and thinking about it, making notes to himself. Slot machines
were made by the company at the request of stockbrokers, and I copied
her trademark in your notebook. The safe was also secure and
well made, but with my assistance it is easy and simple
opened. It was, of course, empty, but that's what I was expecting. I took
note the code, then open and close the door several times,
until I learned to do it with my eyes closed. The plan is in mine
the head took on certain forms, and this was its composition -
no part. Having finally finished all my work, I quietly slipped out
knew from the premises. Unnoticed by anyone, I got out and
joined the crowd of strolling pedestrians. They are few
how they were different from me, and all I had to do was put on
for the second time my splash goggles. It's hard for me to describe how
With relief, I entered the door of “my” office, throwing off
fancy dress and plunging nose and nose into the cold
beer. Then, figuratively speaking, I had to step it up a little.
use your brains.
The following weeks brought a lothassle. While I was cooking
necessary equipment, I did not forget to look through the information
tion messages. One of the escaped prisoners, after
violent resistance, was captured. His accomplice has not been found
was, despite the help provided by the captured policeman
tions. Poor Stinger; life will not please him as before,
if he is deprived of the opportunity to fight. But for this purpose,
nya, whom he planned to kill, life was oc-
remains the same. So I didn't really feel sorry for Stinger.
And there was plenty of work. It was necessary to do two things - pla-
carry out the robbery and set traps for the Elephant. I can c
I’m proud to admit that I easily coped with these two challenges.
dachas. Now it was necessary to wait for the dark and rainy night,
to visit the amusement park one more time. I went in and out like this
as quickly as possible, and yet it took
several hours, because it was necessary to do a huge
preparatory work. Now it was all about choice
the right time. It was best to do it on the way out -
special when the machines are full. Part of my plan was to co-
completely legal rental of a small garage, but then I absolutely
he illegally stole a small van. Waiting
opportune moment of the operation, I repainted it - to be honest -
but he began to look much better - he painted on other new
measure andI put nameplates on the doors. When it comes
la Saturday, I could barely contain myself from impatience. To somehow
to pass the time, I, made up and with a mustache, sat in a cafe,
enjoying a light and pleasant lunch because I need
I had to wait until the end of the day when the machines were full of coins.
And now I’m very close to the service entrance to the lu-
to the park at a strictly scheduled time. Putting on thin, ob-
gloves pulling on the skin, I felt some apprehension,
but the anticipation of success was stronger. With a smile on my lips
I reached out to the small device and turned it on. The invisible ra-
The radio signal flew towards the park, and I tried to introduce myself.
see what's going on there now. The signal reached the receiver and
sent it further along the wires - the target was hit. rang out
explosion, very small, but capable of disabling the recording
raging device. The pipeline must not be damaged. Te-
the machine dispenses multi-colored plastic tokens, they
pour out of it in a continuous stream. That's what a benefactor I am!
I can imagine how grateful my kids would be if
knew who arranged all this. But that's not all. Now every
Minutes later, the new machine was breaking down. With every new one
radio signal, an increasing number of different signals fell on the ground.
vet tokens. At the right moment I started my van and
drove up to the service gateLuna Park Opening the window and light
Having emerged from it, I shouted to the guard:
- I received a call on the radio. What problems do you have here?
“No problem,” said the guard, opening the gate. - This is
more like a rebellion. Do you know where the building is?
- Of course. Help is on the way!
Although I pictured to myself what would follow my generous
gift of chaos, I instantly realized that reality was
The most incredible expectations came true. Squealing, joyful childish
Ra was jostling around the token machines while
others fought for a place at the slot machines. From their happy
the screams burst the eardrums, and the employees did nothing
They could do nothing about the wave of fun that swept over everyone. On the road
There were fewer people, but I still had to move
very slowly, without lifting your hand from the signal horn. Two
the police pushed the kids back to the bushes when I approached
building.
- Problems with distributors? - I asked tenderly. Angry
the policeman's answer was drowned in a kpukax of delight that perhaps
it was for the better. He unlocked the lock and almost pushed me in
with tool box inside. Four people to no avail
tatho fought with machines that could not be stopped
Well, if I allowed myself a small short circuitswitch. The bald man tried to bite the flat cable
pliers. I twisted my temple.
“A surefire way to commit suicide,” I said. - Here H00
volts
-Can you suggest anything better? - angrily about-
he growled. - These are all your damn cars. Let's fix it!
- I’ll correct it - nothing is simpler.
I opened my drawer, in which there was nothing but sparkling
a metal tube, and pulled it out of there.
- This will do all the work! - I said, opening the cap -
choke and directing the stream away from you. The last thing I saw was
their eyes bulging, then black smoke filled the room,
completely destroying all appearances. I expected this
company of events; they don't. With a box in my hand, I'm in four jumps
covered otmepehhoe distance in advance and found himself next to
safe. Any noise coming from me was drowned in their kpukax and
screams and in the continuous panting of the distributors. The safe opened
no hassle and the lid of my toolbox is perfect
approached its bottom edge. I bent down and felt the packs
banknotes and swept them into the prepared container. She quickly fills
and I slammed the lid. The next task was to trace
ensure that responsibility for what is done falls on the one who
necessary. Business card with a picturewas in my pocket. I you-
took it from there and carefully put it in the safe, which I again
locked it up to be sure that my note was not
will get lost in this turmoil. Only now have I picked up the
slammed the heavy box and tried to orient himself while standing with his back
to the safe. I knew that the exit was nine steps away.
I had completed five of them when I suddenly ran into someone in
darkness, and someone's strong hands grabbed me, while
someone shouted at my heart's content:
- I caught him! Help me!
I dropped the box and gave him the very help he needed.
so needed, I felt his neck with my hands and did everything as it should.
He wheezed and lost consciousness. I picked up my box - and
I suddenly lost my bearings... I realized that during the incident
Denta lost the right direction. I panicked
and I trembled so much that I almost dropped my box again. Sem-
eleven years old and completely alone in this adult and strange
I feel sorry for the world shrinking around me. It's over. I don't
I know how long the crisis lasted, most likely
may have been a few seconds, but it seemed like an eternity. Poe-
So I mentally grabbed myself by the scruff of the neck and shook myself thoroughly -
zero.
- You wanted this yourself, remember? To be alone and tonobody
didn't touch you. So go ahead - start thinking. Faster!
I thought. The people screaming and yelling around me couldn't help me
to help or to harm - they were in the same confusion,
so do I. Well, okay, hands forward and off we go. To any side.
Get to something that you can identify by touch. When
you do this, then you will understand where you are. Ahead of the village
a roar was heard, and a fresh stream of air rushed into my face,
a familiar voice shouted very close:
- What's going on here?
Security guard! And he opened the door. Very nice of him. I
moved along the wall, deftly dodging him while he
continued to scream into the darkness. Having emerged into the light of day, I was
blinded by its brightness and blinked at the sight of what was blocking me
the path of the second guard.
- Stay still. And don't move.
There's nothing worse than grabbing a Black Belt like that. I
he lowered him to the ground so carefully that he didn’t even feel
wondered how he got there, and didn’t get hurt at all. Reservation
After putting the box into the van and looking around to see if anyone had seen me, I
drove the engine and slowly drove away from the complete fun and
fun amusement park.
“Everything is settled, everything is in order now,” I shouted to the watchman,
and he nodded to me, openinggates. I drove towards
city, smoothly passing a sharp turn. Then he turned sharply
highway onto a country road. My retreat was like this
as carefully planned as the robbery itself. Steal
money is one thing; but preserving them is another matter entirely. B on-
Nowadays, electronic communications describe my appearance and
The van will fly around the planet in just a fraction of a second. Everyone
the police post and the car will have a photocopy and verbal
portrait. So how much time did I have left? Both
the guards were unconscious. But they may soon come to
themselves, transmit information, call for reinforcements by phone
and send a warning everywhere. I counted it all
will take at least five minutes. Which was very good,
because I needed no more than three. The road wound among
trees, made the last turn and ended at the abandoned
a wonderful career. My heart started beating anxiously, because in
There was little risk in this case. But everything worked fine -
the rented car was parked in the very place where I
I left it the day before! Of course, I removed the non-
which are essential details, but some persistent question
Rishka could have simply towed him away. Thank God it's in the area
Only one overly persistent thief was operating. I opened the car
Well, I took out a box of groceries from there and carried ither
into the van. The corners of the packages stuck together were sticking out of the box.
together. Very witty, I said to myself. I don't care for myself
screw it up, no one will praise it, because no one suspected this
operations. We put the money in the box, close it, and put it in the car. Sni-
We wash our work clothes, shivering slightly from the cool wind -
ka, and throw her into the van. Getting rid of the mustache. We put it on
sports clothes, start the thermal charge timer, close
van, get into the car. And we just leave. Nobody got me
saw, so I could complete my ma-
a lazy adventure. I stopped at the entrance to the main
highway and let a line of police cars pass ahead, c
roared towards the amusement park. I'm here, but it seems
that they were in a hurry. I got onto the highway and slowly
drove towards Billville. By then the van
should already be blazing, slowly turning into a hill of fire
ka. And no evidence! The van was legally insured -
ke, so its owner will receive compensation. The fire is not burning
spreads far - it will not escape from the stone heart of a
Remember, and no one will get hurt. Everything is just wonderful
it turned out just wonderful. Finding myself back in my
office, I sighed deeply and with relief, opened the beer and
drank with pleasure for a long time, then took out a bottle of viscosity from the bar.
ki and poured himself a drinkstronger. After taking a sip, I cmop-
pinched his nose from the terrible taste and threw the rest of the drink into the
kobuhy. What a disgusting thing! Maybe if I
I tried alcohol more often, I would get used to its smell and taste,
but I doubt that the game was worth the trouble.
Surely enough time has already passed to reach the place
The incident was reached by the ubiquitous scribblers.
“Get to work,” I said to my computer. - Print your own -
my latest issue of the newspaper.
The fax buzzed insinuatingly, and a piece of paper slid onto the
nose The first page showed a colorful picture
dollar fountain operating at full capacity. I read
report, not without pleasure, then turned the page and
I saw the drawing. The same drawing they found when
eventually managed to open the safe. With an image of an elephant and
with a short line of chess icons below it.
R - KtCh x B.
What did it mean in chess language that the Rook takes the Knight B in return?
Elephant. When I read this, a wave of joy and satisfaction
gave way to some anxiety. Didn't I give myself away
police hands? What if they figure out this problem and catch
am I trapped?
- No! - I shouted out loud. - The police are toolazy and y
without this they are full of worries. They can, of course, reflect
over it, but will never guess what it all means until
It won't be too late. But the Elephant must be able to unravel my
riddle. He will guess that this message is intended
only to him, and will work on him. I hope so.
report not without pleasure, then turned the page and
I saw the drawing. The same drawing they found when
eventually managed to open the safe. With an image of an elephant and
with a short line of chess icons below it.
R - KtCh x B.
What did it mean in chess language that the Rook takes the Knight B in return?
Elephant. When I read this, a wave of joy and satisfaction
gave way to some anxiety. Didn't I give myself away
police hands? What if they figure out this problem and catch
am I trapped?
- No! - I shouted out loud. - The police are too lazy and y
without this they are full of worries. They can, of course, reflect
over it, but will never guess what it all means until
It won't be too late. But the Elephant must be able to unravel my
riddle. He will guess that this message is intended
only to him, and will work on him. I hope so. ┌──────────────────────┐
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