Heads You Win

The boy looked puzzled, but took him through to his bedroom, opened the wardrobe, and stood aside. Alex selected a loose tracksuit top that stank of marijuana, and rejected a New York Yankees baseball cap. There was no mirror to check how he looked, but it had to be better than a Brooks Brothers suit.

“Now listen carefully,” said Alex, taking a hundred-dollar bill from his wallet. The boy couldn’t take his eyes off the money. “No more jobs tonight. Once I’ve gone, you lock your door and wait here until I come back, when you’ll get another of these.” He waved the bill in front of him. “Do you understand?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Just be sure you’re here when I get back.”

“I will be, I will be.”

Alex handed over the money and without another word left the boy standing in his underpants, looking as if he’d won the lottery. He waited until he heard the key turn in the lock before making his way cautiously back down the steps and out onto the street, mingling with the locals entering the crowded station. But when he was only yards away from the entrance, Alex spotted a policeman, eyes searching in every direction. It wasn’t difficult for Alex to work out who he was looking for. He turned back and walked slowly toward the main road. The policeman wasn’t interested in anyone leaving the station.

He spotted a taxi in the distance heading toward him, and raised a hand, quite forgetting what had happened at the airport when he’d first arrived in Leningrad. The taxi, three other cars, and an ambulance immediately pulled over, all wanting to give him a lift. Alex decided the ambulance would be his safest bet. He opened the passenger door and joined the driver on the front seat.

“Where are you heading?” asked the young man in Russian.

“The airport.”

“That’s going to cost you.”

Alex produced another hundred-dollar bill.

“That should do it,” said the driver, who pushed the gear lever into first, swept around in a semicircle, ignoring the cacophony of protesting horns, and sped off in the opposite direction.

Alex considered his next problem. Surely the airport would be just as risky as the station, but his thoughts were interrupted when he spotted a police car parked at a roadblock up ahead, and two officers checking licenses.

“Stop!” shouted Alex.

“What’s the problem?” said the young man, drawing into the curb.

“You don’t want to know. Better I just disappear.”

The driver didn’t comment, but when Alex jumped out, he found the back door of the ambulance open and an outstretched arm beckoning him. He climbed inside and joined a second man who was wearing a green paramedic’s uniform, his left hand held out. Alex knew that look, and produced another hundred-dollar bill.

“Who’s after you?”

“The KGB,” said Alex, knowing that there was a fifty-fifty chance the man either detested them or worked for them.

“Lie down,” said the paramedic, pointing to a stretcher. Alex obeyed him and was quickly covered with a blanket. The man turned to the driver and said, “Put the siren on, Leonid, and don’t slow down. Just go for it.”

The driver obeyed his colleague’s command and was relieved when one of the police officers not only removed the barrier but waved them through. Had they stopped the ambulance, they would have found the patient lying on a stretcher, his head wrapped in bandages, only one eye staring up at them.

“When we reach the airport,” said the paramedic, “where are you hoping to go?”

Alex hadn’t thought about that, but the man answered his own question. “Helsinki will be your best bet,” he said. “They’re more likely to be checking flights heading west. Your Russian is good, but my guess is it’s a long time since you were last in Leningrad.”

“Then Helsinki it is,” said Alex as the ambulance sped on toward the airport. “But how will I get a ticket?”

“Leave that to me,” said the paramedic. The open palm appeared once again, as did another hundred dollars. “Do you have any rubles?” he asked. “Wouldn’t want to draw attention to myself.”

Alex smiled and emptied his wallet of all the rubles Miss Robbins had supplied, which elicited an even wider smile. Not another word was said until they reached the airport, when the ambulance drew into the curb, but the driver left the engine running.

“I’ll be as quick as I can,” said the paramedic, before opening the back door and leaping out. It felt like an hour to Alex, although it was no more than a few minutes before the door was opened again. “I’ve got you on a flight to Helsinki,” he said, waving the ticket in triumph. “I even know which gate the plane’s departing from.” He turned to Leonid and said, “Head for the emergency entrance, and keep your lights flashing.”

The ambulance shot off again, but Alex had no way of knowing where they were going. It was only a couple of minutes before they stopped when the back door was opened by a guard in a shiny gray uniform. He peered inside, nodded, then closed the door. Another guard raised the barrier, allowing the ambulance to proceed.