Flying finish / Бурный финиш. Книга для чтения на английском языке

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He lit a dark cigar with slow care. I watched him, taking him in[24 - taking him in – (разг.) приглядываясь; рассматривая его]. I hadn’t met him before, and as he came from a different mould from the top men at Anglia I found that I didn’t instinctively know how his mind worked. After years of being employed by people of my own sort of background, where much that was understood never needed to be stated, Yardman was a foreign country[25 - was a foreign country – (разг.

) был для меня загадкой].

He was being heavily paternal, which somehow came oddly from a thin man. He wore black-rimmed spectacles on a strong beaky nose. His cheeks were hollowed, and his mouth in consequence seemed to have to stretch to cover his teeth and gums. His lips curved downwards strongly at the corners, giving him at times a disagreeable and at times a sad expression. He was bald on the crown of his head, which was not noticeable at first sight, and his skin looked unhealthy.

But his voice and his fingers were strong, and as I grew to acknowledge, his will and character also.

He puffed slowly at the cigar, a slim fierce-looking thing with an aroma to match. From behind the glasses his eyes considered me without haste. I hadn’t a clue as to what he was thinking.

�All right,’ he said at last. �I’ll take you on as an assistant to Searle, and we’ll see how it goes.’

�Well. thank you,’ I answered.

�But what I really came to ask for was Peters’s job.’

�Peters’s…’ His mouth literally fell open, revealing a bottom row of regular false teeth. He shut it with a snap. �Don’t be silly, my boy. You can’t have Peters’s job.’

�Searle says he has left.’

�I dare say, but that’s not the point[26 - but that’s not the point – (зд.) но дело ведь не в этом], is it?’

I said calmly, �I’ve been in the Transport Section of Anglia for more than five years, so I know all the technical side of it, and I’ve ridden horses all my life, so I know how to look after them.

I agree that I haven’t any practical experience, but I could learn very quickly.’

�Lord Grey,’ he said, shaking his head. �I don’t think you realise just what Peters’s job was.’

�Of course I do,’ I said. �He travelled on the planes with the horses and saw they arrived safely and well.