“I can’t think of anything else irreverent to say. We’ve been through quite an adventure, haven’t we?”
She walked in slowly, checking out his temporary apartment. “This is nice, Francis. Are you sure you won’t want to stay?”
“Oh yeah. Quite sure.”
“I thought so.” She walked over and kissed him softly on his forehead. “That didn’t hurt, did it?”
“No. Not at all. It felt wonderful, as a matter of fact.”
“Really?” Her eyes lit on the big screen television on the wall. “Don’t tell me. You have cable down here?”
“Yeah, baby. Nothing but the best. Want to watch a movie with me? I might even consider something romantic if you want.”
“It is nice of you to make such a major concession.”
“I missed you. I’m really happy you’re here.”
“You don’t say. It’s nice to know I’m having a positive impact.”
Another chuckle. “You’re getting progressively more sarcastic as you go.”
“Hmm. We are very similar people, you and I. I haven’t worked out if that is a good thing or not. Say, are you cleared for sex by the medical professionals here?”
“Oh man. You have no idea how great that idea sounds to me. But I suspect I’d probably split my head open from all the heart pounding exertion. So, sorry, not this time.”
“Too bad.” She sat on the sofa beside him.
“I hear you’re leaving in a couple weeks. Me too, by the way. Back to America and all she has to offer.”
“You must be happy.”
“Yes. I am.”
They both looked at the screen momentarily as some inane talk show discussed the merits of recreational marijuana use. The droning covered up the silence.
“Lena, can I ask you something?”
“Of course. Anything.”
“A little while back, before I really knew you as well as I do now, we had a conversation. We were sort of joking around, but basically we talked about you coming back with me to America. Now I’m wondering—and before it’s too late to ask—would you?”
“Would I?”
“Yes. Come back with me.”
“To do what?”
“To live. And love. With me.”
She smiled. “Francis, you are so sweet. What about my parents back in Russia? What about my military career? Would I be looked at as a defector? A traitor? Would I ever be allowed to go back to my homeland again? They would think I sold the virus to your government, you see.”
“Well, there is that, I suppose.”
“I would have no job, no way to support myself; I would know no one but you and I would be completely at the mercy of your immigration department. What if I tried this and they rejected my request? Then I return to Russia to what? Prison time? Or worse? After what I just went through?”
“You really are casting a negative light on this.”
“Francis, can I talk? Can I tell you some things?”
“Yes.”
“Very well. When you first came to the station, I already had it in my head that I was going to seduce you. I felt it would give me leverage, build trust, and make it easier to talk about sensitive things if they happened to come up.”
“Such as the research I was doing on the virus?”
“Yes.” She said it firmly, without hesitation. There was no deceit in her manner.
“All right. I figured that.”
“Soon afterwards, it became clear to me that I really was starting to like you. You are smart, and sensitive; you’re a decent lover…
“Decent?”
“Let me finish. You are honest, and good, and funny. That means a lot to me. You make me laugh. You make me feel good about myself and even life in general. You’re fun to be around. I can’t wait to hear what words come out of your mouth next. No other man has ever been able to make me feel that way about them before.”
“I was hoping that you would mention something about my love-making prowess, even in passing.”
“There, you see? That’s what I am talking about. Francis, at the end of it all, it occurs to me that I have a problem. And I just don’t know what to do about it.”
“That’s funny, because you’re usually very decisive. What’s the problem? Maybe I can help?”
She sighed. “Not likely, Francis. For you see, you are the problem.” She leaned in close to his face with hers, careful not to bump it. To his shock, he saw tears forming in her blue eyes.
“What is it?”
“I love you,” she whispered, and then her head was on his shoulder as she started to cry softly.
He put his arm around her shoulder and hugged. He knew what he had to say, and it was the pure, unadulterated truth.
“I love you too,” he whispered softly, keeping with the moment.
“What are we going to do?” she sobbed into his sweatshirt.
“I wish I knew.”
They clung to each other for a while, until she seemed ready to disengage from their embrace.
“We have two weeks,” she said.
To Hamlin, that seemed a ridiculously short amount of time. But he couldn’t bring himself to rain on her overly optimistic parade.
“That we do.”
“Listen, I suddenly have an idea. I’m going to go now, but I’ll be back soon. Let me cook supper for you. I will make a traditional Russian dish. You will love it. I need to get some supplies. So, relax and think good thoughts. Wish me well on my quest.”
“Okay. Happy grocery shopping. Good luck. And don’t be too long.”
She almost ran out of the apartment. “I won’t be long.”
He frowned ever so slightly. “That was weird.”
The base commander of McMurdo Station was willing to speak to Lena on short notice. Although there was always a steady schedule of work and issues to deal with, winter was much quieter than the busy summer months.
“Close the door, please.”
Lena was good at reading people and already had a decent idea what this man was all about from the initial questioning that had happened when they showed up in the hovercraft. He seemed fair enough, but also gave the impression that he had no time or interest in peripheral issues. He was very businesslike.
“Have a seat, please. What can I do for your?”
“I hope we can do something for each other.”
He didn’t give any sort of response beyond verbal. “And what would that be?”
“I would like to go to America.”
He processed her statement quickly and quietly. “For a visit?”
“To live. Permanently.”
“I see. Have you done any of the standard procedures necessary yet?”
“I would like to bypass the procedures.”
“The procedures are there for a very good reason. There is an expectation between our two countries that they will be followed.”
“I will be persecuted if I return to Russia.”
She received a hard look after that statement.
“That doesn’t make any sense to me. Your initial statement places you as a trusted member of the research team and a decorated officer in the military. Why would you be persecuted?”
“They might find out what I did.”
“And what did you do?”
“I gave you a sample of the virus.”
She had to give him credit. His facial expression never flinched. She wondered what was going on inside.
“I’m sorry, but I’m not following you. Please explain about the virus.”
“I can get you a sample.”
“From Vostok?”
“Originally, of course. But not now.”
“Where is it now?”
“Here.”
Now his expression changed. He squirmed in his seat.
“It’s here? At this station?”
“It’s very close. I did not bring it in to the station itself.”
“Damn it. Of all people, you should know how profoundly dangerous that could be.” He had heard all the details of what happened at Vostok.