The Russian Affair - By Michael Wallner Page 0,117
for reading. Even though the ensuing examination confirmed Anna’s optimism as far as Petya was concerned, she was still disappointed to discover that the person to whom she attributed “the miracle” wasn’t interested in anything outside of his specialized field. The doctor scrutinized the boy’s eyes, fingernails, and back and was far from stingy with the candy rewards. And yet, Anna couldn’t rid herself of the impression that the physician’s interest was flagging; Petya, no longer a gasping, sickly child but a normal boy who was already participating in school sports again, had become for Doctor Shchedrin one patient out of many. He completed the examination quickly, lowered the dosage of Petya’s medications, and dismissed Anna with the words “All’s well that ends well.”
She and the boy stepped out into the sunny April day. The trees in front of the Lenin Library were not only covered with green fuzz, they had also put out their first leaves, which quivered in the breeze. Petya’s interest was attracted by the washed and polished limousines on the Kropotkin Quay; the beginning of spring seemed to dip even the automobiles in brighter colors. A man in a dark green suit came walking toward them. Anna was about to cross the street, but something in the man’s gait brought her to a stop. He raised his head, and his eyeglasses sparkled. Anna got a better grip on Petya’s hand.
“Comrade Nechayevna?” Kamarovsky acted surprised, but Anna didn’t believe for a second that this was a chance meeting. “Is this your little Petya?” the Colonel asked with a smile.
She encouraged Petya to give the stranger his hand, which the boy did without shyness.
“We should have another talk soon,” Kamarovsky said. “Would tomorrow after work be all right with you?”
In that case, Anna thought, I’ll have to fix dinner ahead of time. She nodded in assent.
“Good, then.” The Colonel wished them a good day and walked on in the direction of the Lenin Library.
“Who was that?” Petya asked.
Anna made up a lie and set out for home, depressed. Her anxiety continued into the evening, while she sat silently on the sofa and watched the chess game between grandfather and grandson. It took her a long time to fall asleep. After the Colonel’s announcement that the Bulyagkov dossier would soon be closed, and especially after her discussion with Alexey, she’d hoped that she was entering a final, calm stage, which would last until the men took up their inscrutable game again, but without her. In the darkness of the sleeping alcove, she thought about her meeting with her case officer, scheduled for the following day: For the first time, she would be reporting to Kamarovsky in the knowledge that Alexey, the man under observation, had turned the tables on the Colonel from the beginning. Even though the past two years had taught Anna to lie routinely and keep her camouflage in place at all times, she was afraid she might not be able to deceive Kamarovsky’s searching eyes. She cast about for excuses not to go to the building on the quay, yet at the same time, she knew that such a move would only arouse the Colonel’s mistrust. With a sigh, Anna put an arm around her sleeping child.
“For the mission I have in mind this time, I’m counting on your special intuition.” In contrast to the other occasions when Anna had been in this apartment, for this visit the samovar was singing. Kamarovsky, who’d never offered her anything to drink before, busied himself with dishes, apologized for having only four sugar cubes in the house, and served her a glass of tea. Not immediately accepting his invitation to sit on the couch, she stepped over to the window and took a few sips. The room was flooded with light; for the first time since Anna had been making reports here, the curtains were completely open. The magnificent bridge soared over the black river, which was swollen by snowmelt and flowing with a mighty surge through the steel arches. The windows of the Comecon building reflected the sun in a rainbow of colors; the Hotel Ukraina was a gleaming silver tower.
“We need information about the Bulyagkov couple’s divorce.” The Colonel was standing behind her. His words penetrated Anna’s consciousness so gradually that she held her breath for a moment. Kamarovsky stared at her attentively. He wasn’t mistaken; Anna was surprised by the news. “So you didn’t know?” he asked.