Michael Beres - Chernobyl Murders

Nikolai stepped off the stone path to the front door as the group marched past. The only one who looked at him was Captain Brovko, who raised his eyebrows slightly with a puzzled expression. Major Komarov did not acknowledge Nikolai’s presence.

Nikolai imagined how crowded it must be in the small farmhouse with the family and eight more men inside. But soon five young recruits marched out, shouldered their AKMs, and took up positions around the house with the other four. The men spread out in all directions, the farthest being a hundred meters away, where he stooped down and disappeared into the weeds.

In a little while, Captain Brovko came out, told Nikolai to maintain his post on the front path and not to stray because of the other men. Then Brovko went back into the house. Nikolai did not stray, afraid to move after dark for fear one of the new men would empty an AKM in him. But finally, tired of standing in the path with no support, Nikolai walked backward slowly to the house. Once there, he leaned against the wall, feeling somewhat relieved. If Detective Horvath came now, there would be many others for him to confront besides Nikolai Nikolskaia.

At ten o’clock, after the muffled sounds of voices had ceased coming from the house, it was quieter than previous nights because the night bugs, disturbed by men in the weeds, were silent. Nikolai leaned against the front wall of the farmhouse, trying to imagine how men out in the weeds must seem to bug-sized brains. To bug brains, life was simpler. One was either alive or dead, either well-fed or on the verge of starvation, either free to move about or about to be eaten. Perhaps the world of men was not much different.

At eleven o’clock, the front door of the house opened. Captain Brovko came out and motioned for Nikolai to follow. They sat in the captain’s Volga parked at the front of the other Volgas. The captain’s clothing smelled smoky, and Nikolai remembered Komarov was a heavy smoker.

“What do you think of all this?” asked Brovko.

“I was wondering what the local militia thinks,” said Nikolai. “I haven’t seen a militiaman since we’ve been here.”

“Ordinarily one would assume the local militia would supply manpower for an operation like this. Major Komarov has a special interest in the case, as well as connections in Moscow. It’s become embarrassing.”

“Embarrassing?”

“Yes, Nikolai. For several hours, I watched Major Komarov question these poor people. The adults have taken it well. They are frightened, but not for themselves. They are frightened for the children. I detest situations like this.”

“I thought you were trained as an interrogator.”

“I am accustomed to questioning those who have either done something wrong or who are hiding facts about those who have done something wrong.”

“Are you saying Detective Horvath did nothing wrong?” asked Nikolai.

“What do you think?”

“I’m sorry, Captain. This is the way our conversation began.”

“Very well, Nikolai. I understand your hesitation to speak openly. I’m not asking you to condemn Major Komarov. And I’m not using interrogation techniques to trick you.”

Nikolai looked out at the dim light coming through the curtains at the windows of the house. Beyond the house he saw the shadow of one of the men move behind the house. The man had been outlined for a moment against the light from the village of Kisbor. In the hotel in the village was a bed he wished he were in right now.

But Captain Brovko was waiting for his reply, seemingly anxious to criticize the actions of Major Komarov.

“One month ago,” said Nikolai, “I was a PK officer in the town of Pripyat. My partner, Pavel, and I spent our days in the back room of the Pripyat post office reading incoming and outgoing mail. Mostly it was dull-how the weather was, how crops were doing. Patience was part of our training. Pavel and I were good at our work. He knew Hungarian, and I knew Ukrainian.

“Then the reactor at Chernobyl exploded and everything was in turmoil. Instead of doing what we were trained to do, Pavel and I were told to keep an eye on workers from the Chernobyl plant. It was obvious the smart ones like Juli Popovics were getting the hell out of there. Instead of staying around to keep watch on not-so-smart workers, Pavel and I followed Juli Popovics out of Pripyat. Two birds with one stone, as they say. Follow Juli Popovics, who is under ‘official observation,’ and get the hell away from the radiation.

“What we did not expect was to be given pistols and a Volga and told to act like agents trained to do something other than read mail. We were not trained for the confrontation with Detective Horvath. If I could live it again, I would have taken the pistol away from Pavel.”

“A man should never aim a pistol at another unless he is ready to use it,” said Brovko. “Everything would have turned out differently if your partner had pulled the trigger first.”

“He would have missed,” said Nikolai. “He was a poor shot.”

“Did Major Komarov know this?”

“He had our files, our training records. Not only was Pavel a poor shot, anyone who studied his record would have concluded he wasn’t the best person to put in a dangerous situation. Pavel was my friend, Captain. I knew him better than anyone except, perhaps, his wife. But there were things even his wife didn’t know. There were incidents from KGB school, incidents documented in Pavel’s training record…”

“Did Komarov tell Pavel Detective Horvath was dangerous?”

“I’ve thought about this endlessly since Pavel’s death. I’ve come to the conclusion Pavel had been indoctrinated. He was in a state of tension after meeting with Major Komarov. The major did not simply tell Pavel Detective Horvath was dangerous. He wanted something to happen. What he did not want was a clean capture or an escape without incident. Putting Detective Horvath in deeper trouble was the goal. It didn’t matter whether Detective Horvath or Pavel died… or me.”

“I appreciate your honesty with me, Nikolai.”

“Will you arrest me for insubordination now?”

Captain Brovko laughed. “No. If I did, you could deny it, or repeat what I said earlier about Major Komarov’s interrogation of the family in there. He even quizzed the little girls, repeatedly asking them about Uncle Lazlo. No, Nikolai, your secret is safe with me.”

Captain Brovko turned in his seat, spoke more quietly. “I should tell you two of my men located Juli Popovics’ roommate and her boyfriend, who drove her to Kiev. From what they said, Juli Popovics does not sound like the type who would be involved in sabotage. And from my discussions with Kiev militia personnel, Detective Horvath does not seem the type who would murder past associates.”

“Did Detective Horvath kill someone besides Pavel?”

“A man and woman who had contact with Detective Horvath were recently murdered in Kiev. A female friend of Horvath named Tamara Petrov and a male informant. Major Komarov insists Horvath committed the murders while on the run. Both were killed with a knife, the man’s throat slit and the woman stabbed viciously in the abdomen. Does any of this sound familiar, Nikolai?”

“I knew nothing about it. If Detective Horvath murdered these people, everything I said is wrong.”

“You change your opinion easily, Nikolai. I didn’t say anything about it being proven that Detective Horvath committed the murders.”

“I thought you were trying to trick me.”

“The only trick here is getting to the truth while carrying out my orders. I’m concerned about all these young men with AKMs and Stechkin machine pistols. I’m concerned that you and I were both sent here when it seemed we had disappointed Major Komarov.”