Повелитель мух
The Sound of the Shell
"Thechoirbelongstoyou,ofcourse."
"Theycouldbethearmy—"
"Orhunters—"
"Theycouldbe—"
ThesuffusiondrainedawayfromJack’sface.Ralphwavedagainforsilence.
"Jack’sinchargeofthechoir.Theycanbe—whatdoyouwantthemtobe?"
"Hunters."
JackandRalphsmiledateachotherwithshyliking.Therestbegantotalkeagerly.
Jackstoodup.
"Allright,choir.Takeoffyourtogs."
Asifreleasedfromclass,thechoirboysstoodup,chattered,piledtheirblackcloaksonthegrass.JacklaidhisonthetrunkbyRalph.Hisgreyshortswerestickingtohimwithsweat.Ralphglancedatthemadmiringly,andwhenJacksawhisglanceheexplained.
"Itriedtogetoverthathilltoseeiftherewaswaterallround.Butyourshellcalledus."
Ralphsmiledandhelduptheconchforsilence.
"Listen,everybody.I’vegottohavetimetothinkthingsout.Ican’tdecidewhattodostraightoff.
