The Stainless Steel Rat Goes to Hell by Harry Harrison Read Free Book Online Page A

can’t be detected?” she asked, touching the tiny diamond brooch pinned at her throat.
    â€œOnly under a microscope—and you would have to know what to look for,” I said. “The center diamond is the lens. I usually wear it as a shirt dress stud. I’ve added the jeweled setting to make it into a more exotic piece of jewelry so that you can wear it. The diamond lens focuses the image onto a series of nanoformed recording molecules that are carried beneath the lens by Brownian movement, which is energized by body heat so there is no detectable power source. Don’t worry about the light level since, like the human eye, it can perceive as little as one photon of light energy. What you see, it will see—and record.”
    â€œI’ve never heard of anything like it before.”
    â€œNor has your boss, Inskipp,” James said proudly. “It’s one of Dad’s inventions.”
    â€œHowever all this turns out you can keep it,” I said. “I’ll give you the developing and printing module later.”
    â€œIt’s the only one in existence,” Bolivar said.
    â€œI—I don’t quite know how to thank you.” The emotion in her voice was not faked, that was certain. She left quickly.
    Moments later we saw her stroll across the street and walk through the door of the church.

CHAPTER 4
    A HEAVY TROPICAL RAIN WAS falling, lit by sudden flashes of lightning; thunder rumbled. The Church of the Seekers of the Way was blurred, its outline barely visible through the wet glass. The image from the camera was clear enough, but standing at the window I could see little or nothing. Sybil had been inside the building with Slakey for over an hour. The room was closing in on me.
    â€œI’m going out,” I said, pulling on a billed cap with the logo Cocaine-Cola spelled out on the front.
    â€œYou’ll get soaked,” Bolivar said.
    â€œIt’ll look suspicious if you lurk about near the church,” James added. I twisted my lip in a sneer.
    â€œThanks for the solicitude—but your old Dad is not quite senile yet. This cap hot only advertises a repulsive drink, it also contains a hydro-repeller field—and I was lurking unseen near churches before you were born.”
    When they didn’t even smile at my strained witticism I knew that they were as uptight as I was. I needed the air.
    The hotel lobby was empty—of human life that is. The man-agerbot bowed and dry-wiped its gloved hands for me. The
doormanbot pulled open the door as I approached and drops of rain blew in dotting its metal features.
    â€œA filthy night, sir,” it smarmed. “But it will be a sunny day for sure tomorrow, begorra.”
    â€œIs that what you are programmed to say whenever it rains?” I snarled.
    â€œYes, sir, a filthy night, sir, but it will be a sunny day for sure tomorrow, begorra.”
    My nerves must be going if I was trying to have a conversation with a mindless robot. I went out, bone-dry of course as the electrostatic field repelled the raindrops.
    Angelina … .
    The pain in my chest, my throat, was real. I had been putting all thought of her out of mind—or I wouldn’t have been able to function. But she was there at the edge of my consciousness all of the time. I let her in for the moment, relished the memory. Remembering how many times she had saved my life; keeping weapons tucked in with the twins in their baby carriage had been most important more than once. With what joy we had held up banks, relished the excitement—not to mention the money. And the way we saved the universe together, defeating all of those slimy monsters! Memories, memories. We had had our low moments, but at this moment I wanted to be like the inscription on the sundial. And record only the sunny hours. And the fun … .
    I cut off this train of thought. Feeling sorry would not help—only action could get her back. That was why I was