The Charm School

be a duty officer at the desk as soon as you walk in. Commo room to the left.” Hollis gave Alevy and Mills a description of the layout, concluding with, “The cells are on the first floor in the center rear.” He added, “Jack Dodson is in one of those cells, and he’s the American I want with us.”
    “No,” Alevy replied, “we are taking General Austin.”
    “Wrong.”
    Lisa said, “You can’t find Austin
or
Burov without our help, Seth. If Sam wants Dodson, you’ll take Dodson.”
    Alevy replied angrily, “I won’t take him if he’s not ambulatory.”
    Hollis said, “You’ll take him if he has a breath left in him. I don’t know the man, Seth, and neither do you, but he’s the one who’s earned the right to leave with us. Subject closed.”
    Alevy said tersely, “All right. How many men do you think are in the headquarters building at this hour?”
    Hollis replied, “According to the briefing I got from Austin’s aide, Commander Poole, there will be the duty officer, commo man, sergeant of the guard in the guard room near the cells, one or two KGB Border Guards, and one or two drivers who may or may not be in the building at any given time.” He added, “There are also six or seven men in the listening room where all the camp’s sound sensors and listening devices are monitored. That’s the room we have to shut down if we’re going to move freely around this place.”
    Alevy replied, “We’re going to shut down the whole building.” He said to Hollis and Lisa, “You two obviously can’t pass as KGB officers, so you stay—”
    Lisa interrupted, “We’ll pass fine as prisoners. Let’s go, Seth.”
    Alevy glanced at Mills, who nodded. They quickly went over the plan, then stood and walked toward the building, Lisa and Hollis in front, their hands behind their backs, followed by Alevy and Mills.
    The guard peered at them from the booth, and as they drew closer into the light, he stepped out, his rifle across his chest.
    Alevy motioned him to the front door. “Two for the cells. Open.”
    The guard hesitated, then went to the front door and opened it. He peered at Alevy and Mills in the light, and it was obvious he did not recognize them as any of his battalion officers. Alevy motioned him into the building. Mills brought up the rear and closed the door.
    The duty officer was Lieutenant Cheltsov, the man Hollis and Lisa had spoken to when they were released from the cells. Cheltsov stood to attention behind his desk. He glanced at Hollis and Lisa and said, “Again?” then looked quizzically at the Border Guard, who shrugged. Cheltsov addressed Alevy, “Yes, Major?”
    Mills drew his silenced automatic and put a single shot through the Border Guard’s head. Lieutenant Cheltsov watched the man fall, but nothing seemed to register with him. He stared at the dead man on the floor, then turned to Alevy, who shot him once in the forehead. Cheltsov fell back into his chair, his arms outstretched, and stared wide-eyed at the ceiling, the bullet hole in the center of his forehead spouting blood.
    Lisa put her hand to her mouth, turned away, and faced the front door.
    Alevy said to Hollis, Lisa, and Mills, “Bolt the front door, wait five seconds, then bring those bodies into the commo room.” He crossed the lobby and opened the door to the communications room. The commo man sat at the telephone switchboard, reading a magazine. He turned and looked at Alevy, then stood. “Yes, sir?” He saw the automatic in Alevy’s hand.
    Alevy motioned him away from the switchboard, then shot him twice in the chest, sending the man crashing into the radio console. Alevy walked to the telephone switchboard. It was a manual board, he noticed, and with the operator dead, no calls could be connected.
    Hollis and Mills came in, dragging the bodies of Lieutenant Cheltsov and the guard. They pushed the two dead men under the radio table.
    Alevy looked at the switchboard connections and found the contraction
Verto
—“helicopter.” He plugged the wire in, pushed the ringer button, and held the headset to his ear. A voice, sounding bored and tired—and nervous, he thought—said, “
Da. Nechevo.
”
    “Bill, it’s me.”
    “That’s good.”
    “Anyone else call?”
    “No, thank God—”
    “Anything to report there?”
    “No. Quiet.
Nechevo.
”
    “Okay, you won’t be getting any calls on the telephone except from us.”
    “Both radios are squawking away.”
    “Hold on.” Alevy moved to