Julia Gousseva - Gray Shadows - Russian Historical Thriller

“But what about my stuff?” she said as they walked down the steps.

“It’s packed and in the car.”

“You went through my stuff?”

“Nothing there I hadn’t seen before.”

“But that was my personal stuff!” Natalya said, pausing in front of the door that led outside.

“It still is.” Nikolai held the door open for her and walked her to Oleg’s Lada. “I didn’t take anything, and I didn’t particularly enjoy packing it all, but I had no choice. We have to leave. Now. Get in, please.” Nikolai opened the car door for Natalya. Reluctantly, she climbed in. At the gate, just as they were about to leave the compound, Oleg slowed down. Vanya was running up to the car, waving and shouting for them to wait.

“What is it?” Nikolai lowered his window. “We’re leaving.”

“It’s Pyotr Alekseevich.” Vanya was out of breath. So much for fit and strong security guys. “He just got back and he needs to talk to you. Right now. Please. It sounds important.”

“All right, but it’d better be quick,” Nikolai said.

Oleg turned his Lada around and drove back to the office building.

“Please keep Natalya company while I’m gone,” Nikolai said to Oleg and walked inside the building.

Pyotr Alekseevich motioned to the chair across from him. “Thank you for coming back, Nikolai. Please sit down.” Pyotr Alekseevich’s expression was serious, his face looked more lined and more tired than usual.

“I only have a few minutes,” Nikolai said. “Natalya and I need to leave. What did you want to talk to me about?”

“I need your help. I understand that you know as much as Vanya about security and the situation here. Maybe more. Things are getting serious, and I don’t think that Vanya and my guys can handle it all. I need somebody better trained and more professional.” Pyotr Alekseevich paused and looked straight at Nikolai. “I want to hire you as my bodyguard, just until the board meeting is done and everything is signed. This company and this town are important to me.” Pyotr Alekseevich looked straight at Nikolai.

“I am sorry but I can’t do it. I’m already working for Natalya, and I can only have one client at a time. It’s in my contract.” Nikolai got up. “I wish I could help you more.”

When Oleg’s Lada finally left the compound, with Natalya pouting and Oleg pretending not to notice and making attempts at small talk, Nikolai felt a sense of relief. This had been a strange assignment and a strange client, and he looked forward to getting rid of Natalya, leaving this desolate town, the affairs of which he did not quite understand, and getting back to the familiar environment of the big city. His leg was mainly healed, and he was ready for a real assignment, working with Vasily Petrovich again. And it was time to talk to Olga instead of hiding from her and their problems behind his job and his clients. She deserved better than being strung along just because Nikolai could not admit certain things to her or could not deal with the changes in their relationship and in each of their own lives and careers.

The car turned the corner, leaving Upper Luzinsk behind, and entered the main road leading to the airport. Nikolai’s phone rang. It was Anatoly, and he had a change of plans in mind. Nikolai listened attentively.

“Any questions?” Anatoly said when he finished his explanation.

“No, no questions.” Nikolai clicked off and addressed Oleg. “Please turn back to the compound. We are not going to the airport.”

“What’s going on?” Natalya said. “We’re staying? My life is no longer in danger or you no longer care?”

“Neither. You will have a new bodyguard tomorrow, and I will be working for Pyotr Alekseevich. So you will be protected, don’t worry.”

“I hope my new bodyguard is as cute as you are,” Natalya said and turned to the window. “And single.”

When they returned to the compound, Natalya asked Oleg to take her to the hotel before going back to the office. Nikolai headed straight to Pyotr Alekseevich’s building.

Pyotr Alekseevich was not alone in the office. A slender woman, her long dark hair in a ponytail, sat in a chair usually occupied by Natalya. They were talking in hushed tones.

When Pyotr Alekseevich saw Nikolai, he stood up to shake his hand. “Thank you for staying. Nikolai, this is Svetlana.”

The woman smiled. “You can blame me for your return. I convinced Pyotr that he needed to start taking all these threats more seriously. I’ve been very worried.”

“Nikolai,” Pyotr Alekseevich said, “Svetlana is my wife. Ex-wife, to be exact, but we’ve been working to change that.” He smiled at Svetlana, then turned back to Nikolai. “I know you and Anatoly work closely together, and I appreciate that you agreed to help us.”

“I have to do what my boss tells me. It’s a job.”

“I’ll let you two talk,” Svetlana said. “Nice meeting you, Nikolai. I’ll see you next week, Pyotr.” She looked at her watch. “I have to get to the airport, and the driver is waiting.”

She left.

“Your boss runs quite an agency,” Pyotr Alekseevich said. “I must say I misunderstood what bodyguards do. Like most people, I thought it was all about guns and muscles. I didn’t realize that you have to do a lot of investigations.”

“Yes. This job is as much about detective work and psychology as it is about guns and muscles, probably more so. Like Anatoly likes to say, we are not paid to take a flying bullet in the head but use our head to keep that bullet from flying.”

Pyotr Alekseevich nodded. “I understand it now, after discussing things with Anatoly at length, and that’s exactly what I need. I hope you can help us over the days of the board meeting. I’m worried that other board members may be also targeted. The tax repayment plan that the government is offering needs to be signed by me and the two board members from our company. The condition of the plan is that if one of us is not willing or not able to sign by the last day of the board meeting, the whole deal is off, and the company has to be sold.”

“I see,” Nikolai said. “I apologize for being so blunt, but I have to ask you about Svetlana. Anyone close to my client is my business, and she is definitely close to you. And that’s the first time I met her, so I need to know a little more.”

“I understand,” Pyotr Alekseevich said.

“How long ago did you get a divorce?”

“It’s been fifteen years since the divorce, and we were only married for five years.”

“What was the reason for the divorce? Any financial problems between the two of you?”

“No, no financial problems.” Pyotr Alekseevich chuckled. “At least, nothing like people have now. Like most people fifteen years ago, we were both employed but pretty poor, at least by today’s standards. I made some mistakes early in our marriage, youthful indiscretions sorts of things that I still regret. Mainly, I wasn’t ready to be a dad then, and that’s what started all the problems. Svetlana is a wonderful woman, but I wasn’t so wonderful to her. We’ve been talking more lately, and we’ve been seeing each other more, too.”

“Does she live here?”

“No, she lives in Moscow, but she visits quite often. She has a few close friends here, and lately she’s been coming more often. We’re working on getting back together.”

“You said you weren’t ready to be a dad then. Did she want kids?”

“She certainly did.” Pyotr Alekseevich said. For a moment, he hesitated, looked away, then back at Nikolai. “This is hard for me to share with you, but I realize I need to. Svetlana and I had a son. He was about four when I left. I haven’t seen him since the divorce.”

“You haven’t seen him in fifteen years?”