Core it hardly kept not to say to it directly: «Murderer!»
It kept with it unnaturally and cold.
– A core – the terrible criminal! – Mari exclaimed, having remained alone with the head. – I will inform on it… I will shout of its crime, I will not calm down, I will not discredit this stolen glory yet, I will not cut out all his crimes. I will not spare myself.
– Silence!. Calm down – Douel persuaded. – I already said to you that in me there is no feeling of revenge. But if your moral sense is revolted and is eager for punishment, I will not dissuade you… only do not hurry. I ask you to wait until the end of our experiences. And I need the Core now, as well as it me. It without me cannot end work, but also and I without it. And all this that remained to me. Bigger to me not to create, but the begun works have to be ended.
In an office steps were heard.
Laurent quickly closed the crane and took seat with the book in a hand, still indignant. Douel’s head lowered eyelids as the person shipped in a somnolence.
Professor Kern entered.
He suspiciously looked at Laurent.
– What is the matter? you are upset with something? Everything is all right?
– There is… nothing… everything is all right… family troubles…
– Give your pulse…
Laurent reluctantly gave a hand.
– Fights it is speeded up… Nerves play pranks… For nervous, perhaps, it is hard work. But I am happy with you. I double to you remuneration.
– It is not necessary for me, I thank you.
– «It is not necessary for me». Who does not need money? You have a family.
Laurent answered nothing.
– Here that. It is necessary to make some preparations. We will place the head of professor Douel in the room behind laboratory… Temporarily, colleague, temporarily. You do not sleep? – he addressed the head. – And here tomorrow will bring two fresh corpses, and we will make of them pair of well talking heads and we will show them in scientific organization. It is time to publish our opening.
And the Core scanned Laurent again. Ahead of time not to find all force of the hostility, Laurent forced itself to take an indifferent form and hurried to ask a question, the first of come to its mind:
– Whose corpses will be brought?
– I do not know, and nobody knows it. Because now it is not corpses, and living and healthy people yet. Healthier us. I can tell it with confidence. I need the heads of absolutely healthy people. But tomorrow they are expected by death. And in an hour, not later, after that they will be here, on a prozektorsky table. I will take care of it.
Laurent which expected from professor Kern of everything, looked at him with such fearful glance that it for a moment mixed up, and then loudly burst out laughing.
– There is nothing more simply. I ordered couple of fresh corpses in a morgue. Business, you see that the city, this modern Moloch, demands the daily human victims. Every day with unalterability of laws of the nature in the city several people, apart from accidents at the plants, factories, constructions perish from traffic. Well and these fateful, cheerful, full of strength and health people will quietly fall asleep today, without knowing what expects them tomorrow. Tomorrow morning they will get up and, cheerfully singing, will put on to go as they will suspect, work, and actually – towards to the inevitable death. At the same time in other end of the city, also carefree singing, their involuntary executioner will put on: driver or motorman. Then the victim will leave the apartment, the executioner will leave the opposite end of the city from the garage or the tram park. Overcoming a traffic stream, they will persistently come nearer to each other, without knowing each other, to the most fatal point of intersection of their ways. Then for one short moment someone from them will stand gaping – and is ready. On the statistical accounts noting number of the victims of traffic one stone will increase. Thousands of accidents have to lead them to this fatal point of intersection. And nevertheless all this will steadily be made with an accuracy of the clockwork shifting for a moment in one plane two hour hands going with various speed.
Professor Kern was never so talkative with Laurent. And from where it has this unexpected generosity? «I double to you remuneration…»
«He wants to cajole, buy me – Laurent thought. – He, apparently, suspects that I guess or even I know about much. But he will not manage to buy me».
NEW INHABITANTS OF LABORATORY
Next morning on a prozektorsky table of laboratory of professor Kern two fresh corpses really lay.
Two new heads intended for public demonstration should not have known about existence of the head of professor Douel And therefore it was providently moved by professor Kern to the adjacent room.
The men’s corpse belonged to the worker of years of thirty who died in a traffic stream. His mighty body was crushed. In the half-open glazed-over eyes the fright stood.
Professor Kern, Laurent and John in white dressing gowns worked on corpses.
– There were some more corpses – professor Kern said. – One worker fell from the woods. Rejected. It could have an injury of a brain from concussion. I rejected and several suicides who got poisoned with poisons. This guy was suitable. Yes this still… night beauty.
He pointed by a nod of the head to the woman’s corpse with the beautiful, but faded person. On a face still traces of blush and a make-up pencil remained. The person was quiet. The eyebrows only raised and a half-open mouth expressed some children’s surprise.
– The canary from bar. It was killed on the spot with a stray bullet during the quarrel of drunk apaches. Right in the heart – you see? Purposely so you will not get.
Professor Kern worked quickly and surely. The heads were separated from a body, corpses are carried away.
Some more minutes – and the heads were placed on high little tables. In a throat, tubes are entered into veins and carotids.
Professor Kern was in the pleasant excited state. The moment of its celebration came. He did not doubt success.
Science stars were invited to the forthcoming demonstration and the report of professor Kern in scientific organization. The press run by a skillful hand placed preliminary articles in which extolled the scientific genius of professor Kern. Magazines placed his portraits. Celebrations of national science attached to Kern’s performance with his amazing experience of revival of the dead human heads significance.
Cheerfully whistling, professor Kern washed up hands, began to smoke a cigar and fatly looked at the heads facing him.
– He-he! On a dish the head not only Ioann, but also Salome got. Not bad there will be a meeting. It is necessary only to open the crane, and… the dead will recover. Well, mademoiselle? Recover. Open all three cranes. This big cylinder contains compressed air, but not poison, a he-ha…
For
