Maid of Baikal: A Novel of the Russian Civil War

Zhanna usually took pains to avoid giving direct orders to the men and, when she did give them, they were often imprecise rather than detailed. Instead, she urged junior officers and sub officers to take the initiative in solving problems without waiting for instructions from higher-ups, and to seek pre-approval or added resources only when absolutely essential. Though she trusted subordinates to follow instructions during training exercises, she always inspected the results afterward and often recommended improvements. Her practice was to encourage the men with a word of praise here and a suggestion there. And when a man failed at his task, she would ask the reasons why and offer an opportunity for redemption, so long as the man showed good intent.

But to those who failed consistently, or behaved badly after being treated well, or did not share her goals, Zhanna would say, “You are a capable soldier and a good Russian, but you and I are not pulling in the same direction. Your place is not here. Let us free you to find your place in another unit. You may report to Ufa, or to Omsk, as you wish.”

One night, Paladin was posted to sentry duty and Zhanna went out on rounds with a night patrol, as she frequently did. Her method was to restrain the patrols from showing excessive zeal in catching any sentry too weary to remain alert. Instead, she trained the patrols to announce their approach from a distance by speaking in a loud voice so that, if the man on duty dozed off, he could recover in time to respond. And if it became necessary to rebuke a guard for inattention, she would often single out someone of higher rank to set an example. On this night, however, Paladin not only failed to awake promptly, but he would not admit his lapse until confronted with it. So, despite his pleas for leniency, the Maid would not let it pass.

“You must take responsibility when you do the act, not when you are caught,” she told him, and ordered him to perform menial duty for three days. And beyond that, she told his immediate supervisor to watch him closely, as his was not the kind of character suited for higher leadership.

Sadly for Paladin, this judgment was confirmed more than once as the young man’s training went on. During one target practice, Ned watched the instructor throw up his hands in disgust and bellow at young Boris, “Stop abusing that weapon and hand it over to me this instant before someone is hurt!”

Another time, a Cossack captain declared to Zhanna that Paladin was wholly unfit to be a soldier, and that the only suitable place for him in the army was “at the rear, to kill the wounded and violate the dead!” And another said of him, “This man is depriving a village somewhere of its idiot.” Yet, Zhanna remained loyal to Paladin, and steadfastly reaffirmed that he would remain her standard-bearer so long as he wished to. And every night, she went to bed in her tent with Paladin sleeping a few steps outside the door.

As Zhanna’s first ten days at camp came to an end, Ned marveled at her transformation from a demure schoolgirl into an outspoken young woman, and a highly capable one, at that. Far from being an angel, however, she sometimes showed her temper, particularly when men disregarded her orders, and did it because she was a female. When so provoked, she tended to give curt, sarcastic retorts and made her displeasure abundantly clear.

One day, Colonel Denisov excluded Zhanna from a long training march on the assumption that it would be too strenuous for a woman. But when the troops assembled before dawn, Zhanna appeared at the head of the column, carrying a pack just as heavy as those issued to the men. When Denisov attempted to relieve her of the burden, she shook herself free and glared at him in silence before turning her back on him. Ned noted that Zhanna always seemed to gain the upper hand in such situations, though she sometimes fumed over it later.

On another occasion, a coarse-looking veteran called out within her hearing, “Say, is that the Maid over there? By God, if I had her alone for a night, she would be no maid in the morning!”

Zhanna approached the man and gave him a hard stare.

“Do you think it pleases the King of Heaven for you to take his name in vain when you are so near death?” she asked.

“I have been near death many times and he has not objected yet,” the man answered boldly, wiping the blade of his saber clean with a green twig.