Читать книгу The Russians Are Comming! 14 Months in the Life of the Town - Lily Alex - Страница 6

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Jeff Menard parked his police cruiser near an apartment building and checked the address. He got out and knocked. The door was opened immediately, and he went in.

He saw two young women and recalled that they were Russian. Then he looked around the apartment with curiosity. One woman started to talk, but he only understood the word «cat». Another woman was painting, and she put down the brush with visible displeasure.

Jeff’s eyes involuntarily stopped at her braid. It impressed the young policeman. He had never seen a white woman with hair so thick. The long chestnut braid went all the way down to her waist. Like some fantastic snake, it stirred with any movement of her body, emphasizing every curve.

The woman turned toward him, and her braid fell onto her chest, between her breasts. Jeff was afraid she would misunderstand his gaze and lifted his eyes. Her paleness and strange, severe beauty struck him like a gangster’s bullet. Jeff just stared at her face, barely realizing that the first woman was trying to explain something to him.

«We catch a cat!» she said.

«Found,» the woman with the braid corrected her. «Nina, you should say, „We found a cat.“»

Her tender voice sounded very soft and a little tired. Jeff forced himself to look at the other woman.

«We found a cat,» Nina Lapina repeated obediently. She pointed to the couch, and the policeman saw the fluffy white cat.

«Are you sure it’s not one of your neighbors cats?» Jeff took out his notebook.

«I’m sure.» The woman nodded. «I already know all the cats around here.» She got worried that she had violated some law, and looked at her friend for support.

«Yes, officer.» Vera addressed Jeff. «We found this poor animal when it was struggling out of the river.» She smiled. «I’m almost finished this picture. Wanna look?»

Jeff stepped closer and gazed at her work. It was a sketch, showing two women rescuing a cat from the water, and an impressed Jeff only shook his head. He saw her signature on the paper. Vera Grach, and he was surprised; as he knew an African-American girl with the same name.

«My God!» Vera glanced at her watch. «Sorry, officer, I’ve gotta run. Nina will explain everything.» She took the picture, closed the box with her painting paraphernalia, and, waving her hand, she left.

Jeff stood still, trying to understand what he felt in his soul. But his sense of duty compelled him to go back to business, and he addressed Nina Lapina. «Okay, ma’am, could you tell me exactly where you found the cat?»