“I forgot, Mom, sorry.”
“Like always; whatever I ask, he does nothing! Can’t buy a piece of bread for his own mother.”
“Calm down, Mom. Do you have any idea what’s happening in the city?”
“Ten reminders, and he still forgets! What kind of life is that?”
“Mom, we’ll have to do without today. Let me come in. The girl’s hurt.”
Yekaterina Fedorovna stood in the middle of the hallway, blocking the narrow passage. She moved her stare to the girl, as if she just noticed her. Her eyebrows shifted toward each other; the lines on her forehead deepened.
“Who’s she? You didn’t say anything about her.”
“Mom, I’ll explain later. We have to help her out.”
“I haven’t seen her before. What’s her name?”
Andrei looked at the girl, perplexed; he still hadn’t asked her name. The girl looked up and whispered, “Aiza”.
“What a name has God given you. You’re not Russian, are you?”
Andrei gently pushed Yekaterina Fedorovna aside.
“Mom, questions can wait. Let us through.”
“Where did we get such wonder?”
“Mom, later!” Andrei said firmly.
He led Aiza into a small room, sat her down on a couch, and closed the door to block his mother’s curious stare.
“Sit still. I’ll figure something out. Name’s Andrei, by the way.”
“I am sick,” the girl whispered, her eyes closed. “Very sick.”
“What’s wrong with you? Can I get you a medication?”
“Pill.”
“What?”
“Get me a pill,” the girl whispered.
From the hallway, Yekaterina Fedorovna’s deliberately loud grumbling was head.
“Forgot his mother altogether! Only thinks of himself. Brings home who knows whom, God forgive me. Where did he find this tramp? In the farmer’s market?”
Andrei made a calming gesture for Aiza.
“Don’t pay attention, okay? She doesn’t mean it… I’ll get you water and find some meds.” He stepped out of the room and face his mother, gradually displacing her into the kitchen. “Where do we keep the meds?”
Yekaterina Fedorovna retreated, but continued to grumble, “I can’t even get bread from my own son.”
“I’ll get you bread, okay? I will!” Andrei lost it. “Borrow from the neighbor! Just be quiet.”
“What am I being punished for? Others have normal kids, and mine… He even yells. Yells at his mother!”
Andrei decided to ignore his mother’s nagging. It was completely impossible to win a verbal confrontation with her. He found the meds and came back into the room with a glass of water. The girl, curled up into a ball, shivered in the armchair.
“Here. I found aspirin and dimedrol. You’re probably stressed out. Nerves. A couple of tablets should help. Take them.”
The girl obediently picked up the pills.
“Can you do it yourself? Here’s water. I’ll be right back.”
Andrei stepped outside the apartment and rang the doorbell of the apartment next door. The door was answered by a chubby disheveled guy wearing a faded T-shirt and rumpled gym pants.
“Hey, Andryukha!” he barked, blowing a heavy dose of vodka vapors into his neighbor’s face.
“Hi, Vityok,” Vlasov cringed and took half a step back. “Can I borrow some rye bread?”
“Andryukha! Have you heard what kind of shit’s going on?” Viktor Chervyakov waved his hand over his shoulder. Inside his apartment, a TV was blaring. “The Chechens blew up another bomb. Near Rizhskaya. Dropped a whole bunch of people. You know what I would do to those bastards?”
“Why do you think it’s the Chechens?”
“Who else?”
“Maybe bandits’ turf war?”
“By blowing up bombs near metro stations? Nah, those guys are no more. The TV says, a female suicide bomber.”
“Maybe so. Can I have some bread?”
“Good thing I don’t ride the metro. My truck is my other home.”
“Have you got bread?”
“Come in. We’ll throw back some vodka. Vodka is liquid bread!”
“I can’t right now. Give me some bread; Mom’s getting to me with her endless nagging.”
“We won’t be long. We’ll talk a little, watch some TV.”
“I can’t. I’m not alone.”
“Ha, good deal! Who’re you with?”
“Will you give me some bread?”
“Okay, okay, right away.”
Viktor disappeared into a dark hallway. He came back shortly. One hand was clutching a quarter-loaf of bread, the other, a bottle of vodka.
“Thanks.”
Andrei took the bread, but the neighbor started tailing him.
“The damned Shahid blew up near the metro,” he muttered from behind. “The TV says it’s confirmed. Lots of casualties. She wanted to blow it up on a train, but – » he stopped when he noticed Aiza curled up in the armchair through the slightly opened door. “Who is it you got there?”
Andrei walked on to the kitchen.
“Mom, I’ve got bread!”
The door squeaked. Yekaterina Fedorovna stuck her head out of her room and threw a dirty look to Viktor and Andrei.
“I don’t need anything!” she shouted and slammed the door.
“Hello!” the neighbor said as the door was being slammed. “And goodbye. What’s got into her?”
“Nah,” Vlasov waved him off. “Just ignore it.”
From behind the wall came a new wave of irritated grumbling. The tension on the neighbor’s face disappeared; he definitely liked the fact that Andrei’s mother locked herself in her bedroom.
He looked at the girl curiously, quickly figured out her highland origin, and frowned. His fist clutching a bottle of vodka pushed open the room’s incompletely closed door.
Chapter 14
August 31, 9:55 PM
Offices of Federal Security Service
Only the uninitiated think that today’s FSS is but a pale shadow of the former KGB. In the early 90s, when everything old was crumbling, it might have been the case, but now, with the new president at the helm, the power of the all-powerful agency was restored, and in some respects even expanded.
The secretive organization once again operated like clockwork. Officers didn’t need to worry about reporters’ attacks, so common in the past. Moreover, the internal security service protected the officers and could easily put a muzzle on a scribbler running wild. Once again, young capable people started joining up, and they didn’t want money as much as they wanted to belong to an elite caste of the chosen. They, like their likes in other developed countries, were attracted to the mystery of the special services. Thank you Hollywood; the filmmakers