Напряжение / Voltage: Глава 17

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It was late afternoon when the claws of my most faithful friend scratched the roof almost inaudibly. Over the years, Mashл had become accustomed to and even approved of my habit of climbing to heights, sitting down next to me each time and taking a long look at the world with me - from the courtyard, with its bustle, all the way to the horizon.

Camrad_RIP 01.04.23 в 20:01

The cat has changed over the past three years. He has become more luxurious, more graceful, and in some ways, more leisurely. Even on the roof, he climbed gracefully and without fuss, finding a comfortable path between the downpipes and decorative curbs. His fur was glossy and well-groomed. His fluffy tail could be wrapped no worse than a scarf, but inside, he still was an eternally hungry kitty. And since he had appeared in the evening, it must be after nine o'clock - the time when any decent cat should be fed and put to bed.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:39

Mashk rubbed his leg, ran the tip of his tail along his chin and rested comfortably on his knees, peering at the toothy silhouette of the distant village buildings in the setting sun. At once it warmed up, and all the huge plans lined up again in a clear, very uncomplicated chain.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:41

"Thank you, furry one," I stroked him between the ears.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:41

There was a grateful purr under my arms, filling the chilly night with comfort. One last night in this place.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:42

"We can go now," Vadik emerged with the silence he'd grown accustomed to over the past three years, "Everyone's been sent to their beds."

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:43

"Have there been many?"

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:46

"Like ten. Five each from Sneezer and Sailor."

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:47

"Pfft," I snorted dismissively, carefully moving the languishing cat from my lap to my arms.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:48

I wasn't good enough to fight fair alone against ten guys. But it wasn't a fair fight, either, so I was a little sneaky, wrapping in my power from other people's blows, occasionally burning a panting rival with my punches. It usually takes a couple of minutes for the smartest ones to scatter and the stupid ones to think they've been betrayed. So ten was nothing.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:52

"I saw an awl and half scissors in their hands," Vadik added dryly.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:53

"Good: that means they'll go to the end," I nodded in reply, pushing my way through the attic door. "Put a stopper on the door to keep them out of the way at night."

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:56

"There will be a babysitter on duty at the door all night. For a hundred, she promised not to sleep a wink," he said modestly but clearly expecting approval.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:57

He received a pat on the shoulder along with assurances of his cleverness. Although the price was a bit steep, the night should go by without prying eyes or ears.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:58

A couple of steps up to my room, I put Mashk in my friend's arms, adjusted my clothes, got ready for business, and stepped inside with a radiant smile and great optimism in my eyes. For some time now, I was not living alone again - the boarding school needed a watchman, after all. And I needed another source of income.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 04:59

"How are we doing?" I turned to the man who was hurriedly sitting down on the bed.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:02

"Great," the exaggeratedly cheerful reply came back to me. "I can feel the progress!"

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:03

"Can Mr. Hare be pleased with you?" I pointed my eyes at the toy, vigilantly surveying the room from around the corner with its always open black eyes.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:03

"Absolutely!" He nodded vigorously. "Mr. Hare can be proud of me! I'm ready to join society as a new, full-fledged, healthy person!"

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:04

"Let's have a look at the bracelet," I suggested along with a polite gesture and was pleased to note the full charge strip on the military specimen beacon bracelet.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:05

It's a good thing - it shocks when the target moves away from the tethering point or tries to remove it. It doesn't work on me, of course, but it's already helped cure four complicated patients.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:10

"Well done, Mr. Sidorov!" I patted him on the palm of his hand encouragingly. "Mr. Hare and I are proud of you!"

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:11

"You mean... I'm... cured?" He said in disbelief but with sincere hope, even weeping with joy.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:12

"I dare say yes, Mr. Sidorov. You can go home to your family today."

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:13

"Thank you, sir! Thank you, Mr. Hare!" he slid off the bed, trying to catch my hand to kiss it.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:13

"You shouldn't. It's our job, after all. Be a man, Mr. Sidorov. Pull yourself together."

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:16

After all, the sight of a big man sobbing is quite a bizarre spectacle. Especially when you remember how gleeful he was when he was forcibly brought here by his binge-weary relatives.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:22

"But don't forget, Mr. Sidorov," I said in a stern voice, "one drop and Mr. Hare will come after you."

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:23

"Never! No way!" A heartfelt cry shook the room.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:23

"Easy, easy, no need to worry. Get up and get ready. I'll call you a taxi."

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 07:56

When a warning honked outside the fence and the man was already standing ready to take off into town, it was time for a farewell gesture.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 07:57

"Allow me your hand, Mr. Sidorov."

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 07:57

In a kind of absent-mindedness, he thoughtlessly gave me the palm of his hand, forgetting what usually happens on such occasions.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 07:58

"A little reminder," I smiled dryly and pulled the bracelet from his body.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 07:58

"No, don't!" He managed to speak a second before his body cramped from the impact of the bracelet and the corner of his mouth frothy with saliva.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:00

"All right," I rubbed his shoulder reassuringly, helped him up, and led him to the taxi door.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:10

"He'll wake up soon and tell you the address. I've got your number," I slipped half a hundred into the driver's window.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:10

"Will do, chief," the taxi driver said, watching indifferently as I put the passenger in the back seat and fastened his seatbelt.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:11

"Good luck," I slapped the roof of the car, which immediately drove off towards town.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:12

Another case is completed.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 05:24

As soon as the car disappeared from view, and with it the sound of the engine, the unpleasant sound of the bracelet was heard, displeased at the absence of the victim and the distance from the territory. I had to clasp it on my hand and quickly return to the room - to wind a couple of dozen coils of copper wire on my little finger without unnecessary glances, to touch the pad of my finger to the non-standard connector under the battery and to apply some of my power to the skin. Half an hour and the indicator light glowed green again. In the morning, the babysitter would make sure that no one had attempted to remove the bracelet, let alone thought of escaping.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:16

Uncle Sergei brought me, my first client, for "cure" - something went wrong with his insurance, so he decided to make some money on the "room with a housekeeper" by employing a slightly wrinkled man as a watchman. Uncle Andrew looked quite harmless and even a bit like a teacher, with his grey hair and a network of wrinkles near his intelligent eyes. He was not a bad man in general. He built houses, but he had to drink a lot because of his work. Then, outside of work, he started drinking so much that it became a serious problem for the family and the business. I did not interrogate him - he told me everything himself, embarrassedly put two lumps of sugar on a saucer and put it in the corner of the room. Then we got to talking, of course, and then the price came up.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:20

After finding out how much a "visit to the housekeeper" costs, I transparently hinted to Uncle Sergei on his next visit that the housekeeper only accepts a hundred notes now and that he can keep the sugar for himself. Uncle Sergei feigned incomprehension. The housekeeper did not come once during the week.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:21

It seems that Uncle Sergei was badly beaten and forced to pay back all the money, at least, that is what Uncle Andrei shouted into the phone to his assistants. He did not feel very well. Anyway, I never saw him again.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:22

I arranged for the second client to see the housekeeper on my own via the internet. It didn't turn out too well, I even got in trouble a couple of times, and the patient managed to steal perfume from the babysitter and drink all of it. The disembodied spirit wasn't much of an obstacle to that - I wasn't around. And the "sick man" had no intention of doing his watchman duties - at least not for the first week. Then the belief in the housekeeper strengthened enough. But I was still dissatisfied. That's when Mr. Hare showed up instead.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:41

I found the stolen toy in the back of the building. It was torn and crumpled. I don't know why my friend, who had never done anything bad to anyone, would have to be treated like that. I took all the pieces and stitched them back together neatly - as best I could. And I was no good at it, so instead of the once beautiful and clever hare was now a monster with rough seams and frayed paint on its eye. Instead of an elegant jacket, it was an awkward piece of fabric, crooked after washing and ironing, with small spots where my tears had fallen. I didn't wash them, afraid I might ruin them even more.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:43

The first client was frightened by the hare, thinking it was a housekeeper. I didn't try to dissuade the second client. So there was a monster in the corner of the room, never sleeping, who was feared for his appearance, not knowing that, in fact, there was no creature kinder than him. He continued to sing that song even after everything that had been done to him.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:45

The third patient tried to escape but got stuck in a crevice under the fence - I found him by his screaming for help. He could have got through, but it was Laika who took the jerking and kicking as an invitation to play.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:46

But with the fourth client, everything was already brought to perfection. I was paid money. I was given the watchman's salary and an open-dated letter of resignation (client number two really wanted to stay. I could barely get him out), then the patient's arm was immediately adorned with my bracelet. There was no desire to drag someone's body out from under the fence again. My own watchman proved incredibly handy when we start ferrying whole boxes and crates of produce to the outside world. The whole night, until morning, was completely under my control.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 08:55

And tonight would also pass without any alarming shouting. We were not going to steal anything - at least not more than what Oleg or I had already crossed out of one ledger and put in our ledger. It was just that manufacture was moving - not all of it, but its most expensive parts. Most valuable machinery, without which we could not work in the new place. The staff will be added later - a list of good and hard-working guys has been prepared. So after boarding school, they will get an offer much better than working in a cardboard factory.

Camrad_RIP 02.04.23 в 09:12