Maid of Baikal: A Novel of the Russian Civil War

“Only our willingness to lead by example,” the Maid replied. “Forgive me for saying so, Igor Ivanovich, but too many Siberian officers treat common folk like cattle and give the impression that their primary aim is only to benefit themselves. When forced to serve under such officers, even our veteran troops often desert to the Reds, where they do our side serious harm. But General Tolstov and I are teaching our officers to behave differently, and I think the men can sense it.”

“I don’t disagree,” Ivashov noted, sitting up now to knock the dead ash from his pipe. “Some men fight from habit or training, and others to support their comrades and leaders. And doubtless some will follow you out of personal devotion. But, in my view, none of these is the main thing.”

“What is, then?” the Maid asked.

“The cause one fights for,” Ivashov replied, sitting up and scraping the charred residue from inside the walls of his pipe. “In this war, the idea is what counts. The side that wins is the one that knows what it is fighting for and believes in its cause.”

At this, Ned could not restrain a gentle laugh.

“Sometimes you baffle me, Igor Ivanovich,” he told the Russian. “On the one hand, you work for Lebedev’s Stavka and you serve here with the Cossacks, both of them past champions of the ancien regime. And on the other, you revere the common man and seem to be somewhat of a Bolshevik yourself. You seem to have one foot firmly planted in each of two worlds.”

“Perhaps I do,” Ivashov answered, lowering his eyes to focus on re-lighting his pipe. “Perhaps had you come to Russia a year earlier, you would understand. But that is not an experience I would wish upon you or anyone.”

Chapter 13: Battle of Uralsk

“The enemy’s center of gravity is the point which all our energies should be directed. Only by daring all to win all will one really defeat the enemy.”

—Carl von Clausewitz

Musical Theme: Symphony No. 5 in D Minor, Op. 47, IV. Allegro Non Troppo, by Dmitri Shostakovich

MID-MAY, 1919, OUTSKIRTS OF URALSK

Despite Ned’s and Ivashov’s intentions to return promptly to Omsk, within a week of their arrival at Tolstov’s camp, the Red counteroffensive had gained such momentum that a Red incursion into the Southern Urals had become a serious threat. As a result, the two men were obliged to cancel their planned departure when each received orders from his respective superiors to remain with the Maid until Uralsk was taken. As it turned out, AEF Intelligence had no other reliable source of information in the south and tasked Ned with submitting regular dispatches until the situation there was resolved.

When Ned informed Zhanna that he and Ivashov would be staying on longer than expected, she cocked her head and regarded him with a knowing smile before speaking.

“You didn’t really think you could be free of me so easily, did you? God has a mission for each of us, and clearly yours and mine are somehow tied together.”

“At least for the next week or two, it seems,” Ned answered in a cautious voice. “Then duty will require my return to Omsk.”

“Perhaps. We’ll see,” the Maid replied with the same knowing smile.

Relations between General Tolstov and the Maid had got off to an excellent start and remained cordial so long as Zhanna’s role was limited to motivation and training. After a while, however, a dispute between them arose over a rumor that Vasily Chapayev and the Twenty-Fifth Rifle Regiment were on their way back to Uralsk to break the Cossack siege. This news was reported in a special evening war council from which Zhanna, Ned, and Ivashov had been excluded, likely because of her extreme zeal to wage battle against the Reds.

As soon as Zhanna learned of the secret council, she stormed into the command tent with Ivashov and Ned behind her and accosted Tolstov before he could utter a word.

“General, general, how you disappoint me!” she railed at him. “In the name of God, why didn’t you inform me of Chapayev’s latest movement? Though I don’t believe the reports are true, there will be hell to pay if he approaches us without my hearing of it.”

“I never intended to conceal it from you, Zhanna Stepanovna,” Tolstov replied in a conciliatory tone. “I simply wanted to verify Chapayev’s location before raising the alarm. The latest word is that he moved east from Samara to Buguruslan.”

“Aye, I believe that is correct,” she agreed. “But the risk remains high that the Red command might spare some troops from their counteroffensive to strike at us so as to protect their right flank. That is why I urge we break camp without delay, advance to Uralsk and capture the place before the Reds have a mind to send in reinforcements.”