The Romanov Prophecy Page 0,69

lay the groundwork for an escape. There were generals in the tsar's former command who took their oath to the Crown seriously. There'd been rumors for months that the fate of the imperial family was sealed. But only in the last day had Maks learned what that meant.

His gaze drifted to the body pile under the tarp. He'd laid the boy and his sister on top, just under their mother. He wondered if the tsarevich recognized his face. Perhaps that was what had kept him quiet.

The truck passed the racetrack on the outskirts of town. It rolled past swamps, pits, and abandoned mines. Beyond the Upper Isetsk factory and across the railroad tracks the route entered dense forest. A couple more miles and another set of railroad tracks interfered. The only structures anywhere were the booths manned by railway watchmen, who were all asleep at this hour.

Maks could feel the roadway turn to mud. The truck slid as tires grabbed slippery earth. The rear wheels bogged in a quagmire, spinning freely, and the driver tried in vain to free the transport. Steam started billowing from the hood. The driver shut down the overheating engine and Yurovsky climbed from the cab, pointed to the darkened railway booth they'd just passed, and told the driver, "Go wake the attendant and get some water. " He turned toward the truck bed. "Find some lumber to help the tires get out of this shit. I am going to walk ahead and look for Ermakov and his crew. "

Two of the men had already passed out drunk. Two more jumped from the bed and disappeared into the darkness. Maks feigned drunkenness and remained still in the bed. He watched as the driver trudged back to the railway booth and banged on the door. A lamp flickered inside and the door opened. Maks could hear the driver telling the watchman they needed water. There was more arguing and Maks heard the guardsmen, who'd moved off into the night, call out that they had located lumber.

It would have to be now.

He crawled toward the tarp and slowly peeled it back. A coppery stench turned his stomach. He rolled the tsarina's sheeted body over and grasped the bundle with the tsarevich.

"It is I, Little One. Be still and quiet. "

The boy murmured something Maks could not understand.

He carried the bundle from the bed and deposited it in the woods a few meters off the road.

"Do not move, " he whispered.

He quickly scampered back and cupped the bundle holding Anastasia. He gently laid her on the ground and replaced the tarp. He cradled her in his arms and deposited her in the woods beside her brother. He loosened the wrap around each child and checked the girl's pulse. Faint, but there.

Alexie looked at him.

"I know this is horrible. But you must stay here. Watch over your sister. Do not move. I will come back. When, I don't know. Understand?"

The boy nodded.

"You remember me, don't you?"

Alexie nodded again.

"Then trust me, Little One. "

The boy hugged him with a desperate grasp that tugged at his heart.

"Sleep, for now. I will return. "

Maks hustled back to the truck and climbed into the bed, taking up his prone position beside the other two men still passed out. He heard footsteps approaching through the darkness. He moaned and started to sit up.

"Get up, Kolya. We need your help, " one of the men said as they approached. "We found lumber at the watch station. "

He jumped down and helped the other two as they started laying boards across the muddy road. The driver returned with a pail of water for the engine.

Yurovsky appeared a few minutes later. "Ermakov's people are just ahead. "

The truck recranked with some effort and the boards provided the traction needed. Less than half a mile later they encountered a group of men waiting with torches. From their shouts it was obvious most were drunk. Maks recognized Peter Ermakov standing in the headlight beam. Yurovsky had only been ordered to carry out the sentence. The body disposal was Comrade Ermakov's responsibility. He was a worker at the Upper Isetsk plant who loved to kill so much that everyone called him Comrade Mauser.

Somebody yelled, "Why didn't you bring them to us alive?"

Maks knew what Ermakov had probably promised the men.Be good Soviets and do as you are told and I will let you have your way with the women while Papa Tsar watches.The possibility of carnal lust on four virgins was