Читать книгу The Dark River онлайн

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"Damn it, Alan. You've forgotten your dark glasses. You know what the orders were."

"It doesn't matter."

"You know better! I'll take care of them after this. You can't be counted on, that's plain."

"What is it you see?"

"A small island offshore. It must be the one Fara told us about, at the entrance to Vaihiva Valley. You see it, surely?"

"Looks like a point to me."

"No, there's clear water between it and the mainland."

Half an hour later they were abreast of the islet. Leaving it on the left, they now had in view the valley with its two great terraces, foreshortened from their vantage point. All the upper part was canopied with cloud, but the lower reaches lay in full sunlight.

"Alan, I'm beginning to remember it now," McLeod said. "Our house stood on that point across the river. That'll be Mauri's house on this side, and the little pier by those trees is where my father used to take me swimming. It must have been my father."

"You're dreaming," Hardie said. "You weren't five years old when you left here. I doubt if you remember where your house stood."