The Charm School

English.”
    “And the American instructors?” Hollis asked. “Do they speak Russian?”
    “They are not supposed to know Russian, but they pick up a little. You see, here the Russian students and American instructors may communicate in English only. The Border Guards may not speak to students or instructors unless absolutely necessary.”
    “Then how is it,” Lisa asked, “that you know about America?”
    Cheltsov smiled. “One picks up a bit here and there.”
    “And what if Burov knew you picked things up here and there?” she inquired as she put her finger to her head.
    The lieutenant went back to the paperwork on his desk. “Your Russian is excellent. Be careful how you use it.”
    They sat in silence awhile, then Hollis said to Lisa in English, “Did you give up smoking?”
    “I guess I did.” She added, “But there must be an easier way.”
    “You’ll live longer.”
    “Will I?” After a few minutes she said, “Sam… I know we’re in a bad situation here. But… I’m not going to… submit to them.”
    Hollis rubbed his thumb and forefinger together, the embassy signal to remind people of electronic eavesdropping.
    She touched her chin in acknowledgment and whispered in his ear, “It was an act, wasn’t it? I mean your… your…”
    “Submissiveness.”
    “Yes. That.”
    He said, “We’ll talk later.”
    They waited for nearly half an hour, and Hollis suspected that Burov intended this to be a period of psychological adjustment, a place to reflect on the relative freedom outside the doors and the hell at the rear of the building.
    Finally Burov appeared in his greatcoat, and Lieutenant Cheltsov jumped to attention. Burov said to the man, “Get them some parkas.” He addressed Hollis and Lisa and said, “I’d like you to do two things. First, when you walk out those doors, forget what happened to you in here. Secondly, remember what happened to you in here. Do I make myself clear?”
    Hollis replied, “We understand.”
    “Good.”
    The lieutenant handed them each a white parka, and they put them on. Burov said, “Follow me.”
    They went with him out of the headquarters building into the chill morning air. There was some thin sunlight, and Hollis noticed how pale Lisa looked in it. He drew a breath of pine-scented air.
    Burov too seemed to be enjoying the morning. He said, “It’s a pleasant day though a bit cold. I suppose you both feel it more without that little layer of fat you had.”
    Hollis replied, “Will you be having much difficulty not making inane allusions to what happened in the past?”
    Burov smiled thinly. “Thank you for reminding me. We start with a clean slate here. Here there is no past. That is the underlying philosophy of this institution. The instructors have no personal past, only a cultural past that they transmit to the students. The students have no personal or cultural past, only a political past that they cherish but never mention.”
    Hollis had the distinct impression that Burov had anticipated this moment and was looking forward to showing them his school, to see and hear their reactions. “Fascinating,” Hollis said.
    “Very,” Burov agreed. “And please, speak your mind. You have carte blanche to criticize, complain, even indulge your sarcastic wit. Come, let us walk.”
    They followed Burov around the headquarters building and entered a log-paved lane that led south toward what Hollis had determined was an athletic field. They broke out of the woods behind the bleacher stands that he’d seen, and Burov took them around to the open grass field. On the field Hollis saw two teams of young men playing touch football. The quarterback was calling signals, the ball was hiked, and the passer faded back. The offensive line blocked, but the defense got through easily. The quarterback spotted a free receiver in the right flat and threw. The ball was wide, and the receiver lunged for it but fell. Burov observed, “It’s a difficult game.”
    Hollis replied dryly, “They make it look more difficult than it is.”
    “Yes?”
    Hollis noticed two middle-aged men on the opposite sideline and two on the field.
    Burov said, “The coaches and two referees. I wish the students could play with their instructors as they did years ago. We used to have some good games. But in truth, the instructors are getting on in years.”
    “The Americans, you mean.”
    “The instructors and students are all Americans, so we don’t use that term to