璇玑之心刃·冷血悍将-第114部分

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someone　had　noted　that　if　a　Firebee　drone　was　hard　for　our　people　to　hit；　the　same　might　be　true　of　others　who　fired　at　aircraft　for　more　serious　purposes　than　the　annual　William　Tell　petition。　It　was　also　a　hell　of　a　lot　easier　on　the　crews　of　low…level　reconnaissance　aircraft。
Cody…193‘s　engine　was　turning　at　full　power；　hanging　from　its　pylon　and　actually　giving　the　mother　aircraft　a　few　knots　of　free　airspeed。　The　sergeant　gave　it　a　final　look　before　turning　back　to　his　instruments。　Sixty…one　small　parachute　symbols　were　painted　on　the　left　side　just　forward　of　the　wing；　and　with　luck；　in　a　few　days　he　would　paint　a　sixty…second。　Though　he　was　not　clear　on　the　precise　nature　of　this　mission；　merely　beating　the　petition　was　reason　enough　to　take　the　utmost　care　in　preparing　his　personal　toy　for　the　current　game。
‘Be　careful；　baby；‘　the　sergeant　breathed　as　it　dropped　free。　Cody…193　was　on　its　own。
Sarah　had　a　light　dinner　cooking。　Kelly　smelled　it　even　before　opening　the　door。　Kelly　came　inside　to　see　Rosen　sitting　in　the　living　room。
‘Where‘s　Pam？‘
‘We　gave　her　some　medication；‘　Sam　answered。　‘She　ought　to　be　sleeping　now。‘
‘She　is；‘　Sarah　confirmed；　passing　through　the　room　on　the　way　to　the　kitchen。　‘I　just　checked。　Poor　thing；　she‘s　exhausted；　she‘s　been　doing　without　sleep　for　some　time。　It‘s　catching　up　with　her。‘
‘But　if　she‘s　been　taking　sleeping　pills　…‘
‘John；　your　body　reacts　strangely　to　the　things；‘　Sam　explained。　‘It　fights　them　off；　or　tries　to；　at　the　same　time　it　bees　dependent　on　them。　Sleep　will　be　her　big　problem　for　a　while。‘
‘There‘s　something　else；‘　Sarah　reported。　‘She‘s　very　frightened　of　something；　but　she　wouldn‘t　say　what　it　was。‘　She　paused；　then　decided　that　Kelly　ought　to　know。　‘She‘s　been　abused；　John。　I　didn‘t　ask　about　it　…　one　thing　at　a　time　…　but　somebody‘s　given　her　a　rough　time。‘
‘Oh？‘　Kelly　looked　up　from　the　sofa。　‘What　do　you　mean？‘
‘I　mean　she‘s　been　sexually　assaulted；‘　Sarah　said　in　a　calm；　professional　voice　that　belied　her　personal　feelings。
‘You　mean　raped？‘　Kelly　asked　in　a　low　voice　while　the　muscles　of　his　arms　tensed。
Sarah　nodded；　unable　now　to　hide　her　distaste。　‘Almost　certainly。　Probably　more　than　once。　There　is　also　evidence　of　physical　abuse　on　her　back　and　buttocks。‘
‘I　didn‘t　notice。‘
‘You‘re　not　a　doctor；‘　Sarah　pointed　out。　‘How　did　you　meet？‘
Kelly　told　her；　remembering　the　look　in　Pam‘s　eyes　and　knowing　now　what　it　must　have　been　from。　Why　hadn‘t　he　noticed　it？　Why　hadn‘t　he　noticed　a　lot　of　things？　Kelly　raged。
‘So　she　was　trying　to　escape　。。。　I　wonder　if　the　same　man　got　her　on　the　barbiturates？‘　Sarah　asked。　‘Nice　guy；　whoever　it　was。‘
‘You　mean　that　somebody‘s　been　working　her　over；　and　got　her　on　drugs？‘　Kelly　said。　‘But　why？‘
‘Kelly；　please　don‘t　take　this　wrong　。。。　but　she　might　have　been　a　prostitute。　Pimps　control　girls　that　way。‘　Sarah　Rosen　hated　herself　for　saying　that；　but　this　was　business　and　Kelly　had　to　know。　‘She‘s　young；　pretty；　a　runaway　from　a　dysfunctional　family。　The　physical　abuse；　the　undernourishment；　it　all　fits　the　pattern。‘
Kelly　was　looking　down　at　the　floor。　‘But　she‘s　not　like　that。　I　don‘t　understand。‘　But　in　some　ways　he　did；　he　told　himself；　thinking　back。　The　ways　in　which　she‘d　clung　to　him　and　drawn　him　to　her。　How　much　was　simply　skill；　and　how　much　real　human　feelings？　It　was　a　question　he　had　no　desire　to　face。　What　was　the　right　thing　to　do？　Follow　your　mind？　Follow　your　heart？　And　where　might　they　lead？
‘She‘s　fighting　back；　John。　She‘s　got　guts。‘　Sarah　sat　across　from　Kelly。　‘She‘s　been　on　the　road　for　over　four　years；　doing　God　knows　what；　but　something　in　her　won‘t　quit。　But　she　can‘t　do　it　alone。　She　needs　you。　Now　I　have　a　question。‘　Sarah　looked　hard　at　him。　‘Will　you　be　there　to　help　her？‘
Kelly　looked　up；　his　blue　eyes　the　color　of　ice　as　he　searched　for　what　he　really　felt。　‘You　guys　are　really　worked　up　about　this；　aren‘t　you？‘
Sarah　sipped　from　a　drink　she‘d　made　for　herself。　She　was　rather　a　dumpy　woman；　short　and　overweight。　Her　black　hair　hadn‘t　seen　a　stylist　in　months。　All　in　all　she　looked　like　the　sort　of　woman　who；　behind　the　wheel　of　a　car；　attracts　the　hatred　of　male　drivers。　But　she　spoke　with　focused　passion；　and　her　intelligence　was　already　very　clear　to　her　host。　‘Do　you　have　any　idea　how　bad　it‘s　getting？　Ten　years　ago；　drug　abuse　was　so　rare　that　I　hardly　had　to　bother　with　it。　Oh；　sure；　I　knew　about　it；　read　the　articles　from　Lexington；　and　every　so　often　we‘d　get　a　heroin　case。　Not　very　many。　Just　a　black　problem；　people　thought。　Nobody　really　gave　much　of　a　damn。　We‘re　paying　for　that　mistake　now。　In　case　you　didn‘t　notice；　that‘s　all　changed　…　and　it　happened　practically　overnight。　Except　for　the　project　I‘m　working　on；　I‘m　nearly　full…time　on　kids　with　drug　problems。　I　wasn‘t　trained　for　this。　I‘m　a　scientist；　an　expert　on　adverse　interactions；　chemical　structures；　how　we　can　design　new　drugs　to　do　special　things　…　but　now　I　have　to　spend　nearly　all　of　my　time　in　clinical　work；　trying　to　keep　children　alive　who　should　be　just　learning　how　to　drink　a　beer　but　instead　have　their　systems　full　of　chemical　shit　that　never　should　have　made　it　outside　a　god…damned　laboratory！‘
‘And　it‘s　going　to　get　worse；‘　Sam　noted　gloomily。
Sarah　nodded。　‘Oh　yeah；　the　next　big　one　is　cocaine。　She　needs　you；　John；‘　Sarah　said　again；　leaning　forward。　It　was　as　though　she　had　surrounded　herself　with　her　own　storm　cloud　of　electrical　energy。　‘You‘d　damned　well　better　be　there　for　her；　boy。　You　be　there　for　her！　Somebody　dealt　her　a　really　shitty　hand；　but　she‘s　fighting。　There‘s　a　person　in　there。‘
‘Yes；　ma‘am；‘　Kelly　said　humbly。　He　looked　up　and　smiled；　no　longer　confused。　‘In　case　you　were　worried；　I　decided　that　a　while　back。‘
‘Good。‘　Sarah　nodded　curtly。
‘What　do　I　do　first？‘
‘More　than　anything　else；　she　needs　rest；　she　needs　good　food；　and　she　needs　time　to　flush　the　barbiturates　out　of　her　system。　We‘ll　support　her　with　phenobarb；　just　in　case　we　have　withdrawal　problems…　I　don‘t　expect　that。　I　examined　her　while　you　two　were　gone。　Her　physical　problem　is　not　so　much　addiction　as　exhaustion　and　undernourishment。　She　ought　to　be　ten　pounds　heavier　than　she　is。　She　ought　to　tolerate　withdrawal　rather　well　if　we　support　her　in　other　ways。‘
‘Me；　you　mean？‘　Kelly　asked。
‘That‘s　a　lot　of　it。‘　She　looked　over　towards　the　open　bedroom　door　and　sighed；　the　tension　going　out　of　her。　‘Well；　given　her　underlying　condition；　that　phenobarb　will　probably　have　her　out　for　the　rest　of　the　night。　Tomorrow　we　start　feeding　her　and　exercising　her。　For　now；‘　Sarah　announced；　‘we　can　feed　ourselves。‘
Dinner　talk　focused　deliberately　on　other　subjects；　and　Kelly　found　himself　delivering　a　lengthy　discourse　on　the　bottom　contours　of　the　Chesapeake　Bay；　segueing　into　what　he　knew　about　good　fishing　spots。　It　was　soon　decided　that　his　visitors　would　stay　until　Monday　evening。　Time　over　the　dinner　table　lengthened；　and　it　was　nearly　ten　before　they　rose。　Kelly　cleaned　up；　then　quietly　entered　his　bedroom　to　hear　Pam‘s　quiet　breathing。
Only　thirteen　feet　long；　and　a　scant　three　thousand　sixty…five　pounds　of　mass　…　nearly　half　of　that　fuel　…　the　Buffalo　Hunter　angled　towards　the　ground　as　it　accelerated　to　an　initial　cruising　speed　of　over　five　hundred　knots。　Already　its　navigational　puter；　made　by　Lear…Siegler；　was　monitoring　time　and　altitude　in　a　very　limited　way。　The　drone　was　programmed　to　follow　a　specific　flight　path　and　altitude；　all　painstakingly　predetermined　for　systems　that　were　by　later　standards　absurdly　primitive。　For　all　that；　Cody…193　was　a　sporty…looking　beast。　Its　profile　was　remarkably　like　that　of　a　blue　shark　with　a　protruding　nose　and　underslung　air　intake　for　a　mouth　…　stateside　it　was　often　painted　with　aggressive　rows　of　teeth。　In　this　particular　case；　an　experimental　paint　scheme　…　flat　white　beneath　and　mottled　brown　and　green　atop　…　was　supposed　to　make　it　harder　to　spot　from　the　ground　…　and　the　air。　It　was　also　stealthy　…　a　term　not　yet　invented。　Blankets　of　RAM　…　radar…absorbing　material　…　were　integral　with　the　wing　surfaces；　and　the　air　intake　was　screened　to　attenuate　the　radar　return　off　the　whirling　engine　blades。
Cody…193　crossed　the　border　between　Laos　and　North　Vietnam　at　11：41：38　local　time。　Still　descending；　it　leveled　out　for　the　first　time　at　five　hundred　feet　above　ground　level；　turning　northeast；　somewhat　slower　now　in　the　thicker　air　this　close　to　the　ground。　The　low　altitude　and　small　size　of　the　speeding　drone　made　it　a　difficult　target；　but　by　no　means　an　impossible　one；　and　outlying　gun　positions　of　the　dense　and　sophisticated　North　Vietnamese　air…defense　work　spotted　it。　The　drone　flew　directly　towards　a　recently　sited　37mm　twin　gun　mount　whose　alert　crew　got　their　mount　slued　around　quickly　enough　to　loose　twenty　quick　rounds；　three　of　which　passed　within　feet　of　the　diminutive　shape　but　missed。　Cody…193　took　no　note　of　this；　and　neither　jinked　nor　evaded　the　fire。　Without　a　brain；　without　eyes；　it　continued　along　on　its　flight　path　rather　like　a　toy　train　around　a　Christmas　tree　while　its　new　owner　ate　breakfast　in　the　kit