“It’s almost a kilometer away. Can I help you with the suitcase?” “Absolutely”, Olga replied, and passed the suitcase to him, keeping her expression as frozen as the frigid weather surrounding them.
They reached the brownstone facade of the hotel, and within minutes Olga had already checked in and was walking to the elevators. Several minutes later, Dimitri did the same.
He was surprised to see Olga was still waiting for an elevator. It doesn’t make sense, he thought, that the elevator was taking so long. Could it be that Olga was waiting for him?
It seemed as if the few minutes in the well-heated hotel lobby had thawed out the ice from Olga’s face, as she gave a beaming smile when she saw Dimitri.
“So, what do we do now? It could take an hour, or a day or two”, she asked Dimitri.
Dimitri looked at her with surprise. It was the first time he had seen her acting naturally, without the mask she had worn since he had first met her. It was also the first time that he heard her speak in Russian. A “new Olga” was unfolding before him.
“Let’s pass the time together, drink something, shower, and wait for a call from the airport. I don’t trust the Aeroflot people. I think we need to call them every two hours, just in case”, he suggested.
“You’re right”, agreed Olga. “If it takes longer, maybe we should sleep in shifts. You know, like in the army.”
Dimitri smiled.
“Soldiers would love to serve in these conditions”, he suggested. Olga let out a sweet smile. She leaned over to his ear and whispered.
“All right, we’ll spend the time together, in my room, but on one condition. You don’t ask me anything about my work, or anything personal, and vice versa. Agreed?”
“Agreed”, replied Dimitri and pressed the elevator button to Olga’s floor.
Once in the room, Olga headed straight to the bathroom. She opened all the soap and cream bottles and tested them. “Would you like some tea?” she heard Dimitri ask her from the bedroom.
“I’ll have a hot bath first. Then I’d love some tea.”
Olga shut the bathroom door and turned on the tap, filling the tub with steaming hot water. Dimitri changed into a pair of gym shorts and sank into an armchair. Within seconds, he was dozing off. He had had almost no rest in the past 24 hours, four cities and four airports ago.
He awakened suddenly and reached for his watch to see how long he had been asleep, when he noticed Olga standing by a mirror in the corner. She stood naked, facing the large mirror, wearing only a tiny pair of underpants. To avoid embarrassment, he closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep.
“We haven’t even planned the shifts and you’re already asleep”, Olga called out from the mirror. “You can open your eyes now. It’s OK. I think something was said about a cup of tea.”
Dimitri opened his eyes. Olga was standing exactly where she had been a few minutes earlier. She was rubbing her face with cream, seemingly devoted to this task. Dimitri could not take his eyes off of her. He then noticed a long scar on her back, right under her right shoulder.
“You haven’t answered me”, she said. “Is your tongue still working??”
Dimitri was trying to answer when Olga turned away from the mirror and faced him, revealing the length of her naked body and the splendor of her breasts. Dimitri turned his eyes away, but she walked to the king- sized bed, pulled the bed cover to the floor, and snuggled between the sheets, all the while looking at Dimitri, who had no idea how to respond.
“Are you going to stay there, Brigadier General?” she challenged him.
He was surprised to hear her reciting his military rank, as he had not revealed it to her or her companions back in Siegen. He recalled the woman who had followed him out of Moscow, through Zurich and on to Cologne. Is that what this is? That woman completed her mission in Cologne, and now my new follower is Olga. He had no doubt.
Olga saw that he was thinking, and spoke again.
“I will not be insulted if you tell me that you don’t like me”, she assured him.
Dimitri quickly returned to his senses. Military rank, surveillance, whatever it may be, was a small price to pay for this opportunity. Or maybe not. Olga was almost impossible to resist. He smiled broadly at her.
“I do like you. I think you are — how to say it — perfect!” he proclaimed.
“I must say that I enjoyed watching you while you were napping. You seem to like sports.”
She pulled out the edge of the sheet, and motioned for him to join her. Dimitri came nearer, but Olga suddenly broke into laughter.
“We are not in gymnastics class. Can you remove those ridiculous shorts before joining me in bed?”
He pulled down his shorts and entered the bed. He pulled her to him and embraced her tightly.
“I see you want to smother me, but maybe we should make love first”, she suggested.
Dimitri was not totally at ease. He smiled briefly and loosened his embrace. He kissed her on the lips and she held him longer and closer. He caressed her long body, and touched the scar under her shoulder. Olga stopped her giggling.
“It looks like an operational accident, and whoever treated you was not a doctor. Maybe a car mechanic”, Dimitri observed.
Olga smiled.
“This question belongs in the realm of subjects that we do not discuss. Remember?”
“Yes, indeed”, Dimitri assented, and kissed her on the lips.
Then he got up, pulled the curtains shut, and returned to the bed. They both needed to unwind, which they did.
The telephone rang loudly. Dimitri jumped out of bed and held the receiver to his ear. “Thank you”, he said and hung up.
Olga watched him. “Any news?”
“Yes”, said Dimitri. “Our neighbors have complained to the reception desk that we are too noisy.”
“Really, Brigadier General? Was it from Aeroflot?”
“Yes. The truth is that I want to stay here forever with you, but Moscow is calling. They said that Domodedovo airport will probably open soon. We have to be at the airport within two hours. Let’s get up now, and shower, my dear.”
Olga stood just behind Dimitri in the long line for the Aeroflot desk at Vienna Airport. Dimitri felt that she was playing games with him, taking advantage of the crowded conditions to rub against him frequently.
She came close to him, bit his earlobe lightly and whispered in his ear.
“You remember the rules. I will sit two to three rows behind you in the cabin.”
It was snowing in Moscow. Dimitri walked to the curb outside the grand arrival terminal of Domodedovo airport. He immediately noticed a young man who had been part of the team of soldiers guarding the secret think tank at the base outside Moscow. Dimitri motioned to the soldier, who came to him and took his overnight bag. He then turned to Olga to say goodbye, but she had changed again; she was now icy. He reached out to her for a handshake.
“Thank you for your service. I hope we meet again someday”, he said. She did not shake his hand.
“Don’t count on it”, she snapped, spinning on her heels and striding away.
Chapter 4
The black Lada car drove through the gates of the secret army base. In the car, Brigadier General Dimitri was deep in thoughts that gave him no respite. He felt sorry for the disappointment that would soon be felt by his fellow teammates, who had had such high hopes for his trip to Germany. I can only hope that one of them has somehow been able to come up with a creative idea, he said to himself — an idea that will spare us from the claws of that hungry and impatient bear, Marshal Budarenko.
When he arrived at the conference room, it looked almost the same as when he had left it. His five colleagues were leaning over their desks, but this time, documents and maps were scattered all over in disarray. The moment he entered, his colleagues stopped whatever they were doing and greeted him.