Ivan slowed the boat and subdued their wake across the crystal blue water as they entered
the harbor. Anatoly had already packed all of their belongings and had them topside. The Don
River was a major thoroughfare for commerce. Barges and ships traverse the waterway heavily.
Ivan timed their arrival to be early in the morning to coincide with the heaviest traffic on the
water. Ivan's stolen boat would draw no attention this morning as it navigated the harbor. They
docked inconspicuously at a far pier.
Once Toly tied off the foredeck and aft of the boat, he joined his dad in sanitizing the
vessel. They wiped clean prints and removed any traces of themselves from the boat. When
Ivan felt the job was complete, he ordered Toly to grab the bags and follow him. Stepping off
the boat, the dock was damp with morning dew. They both paused and inhaled the cool air,
knowing the safety and solitude of their boat was gone as they walked away. Ivan knew the city
of Rostov.
Now though, much had changed in the port city since Ivan was last here working as a
KGB operative. "Keep up son" he barked at Toly. "The secret to going unnoticed is to walk like
you belong here. If you continue to stop and gawk at these magnificent buildings and vehicles
we will most likely be stopped and questioned."
Anatoly knew any unwelcome questions from strangers would most likely lead to
violence from his dad so he caught up and stayed with him.
Ivan had found enough money in his stolen goods to get them transportation to his
intended destination. He hoped that in the city of Volgograd he could somehow connect with
old accomplices and arrange transportation to Moscow. As for setting up a meeting with Rasputin,
he was still working that out.
Outside the harbor, it didn't take long to find a Vandalia Bus station. Ivan and Anatoly
purchased two one-way vouchers for transport to Volgograd. It would be fifty minutes until their
bus would leave. Ivan knew the bus was the least efficient way to travel due to the many stops
along the way but they had little choice. Air travel was out of the question without assistance, so
they would have to be patient. They grabbed a meal at the old diner inside the bus terminal.
Toly looked across the table at his dad, "I am surprised to find the food here is actually
worse than what we suffered with on Mars."
Ivan chuckled as he chewed on his overcooked steak. As they finished the tasteless meal,
Ivan's instincts alerted him they had an observer. He raised the check for their server as a cover
so that he could scan the room. Nothing looked odd. Once the server took the bill, they both
stood and gathered their bags. Ivan also used this opportunity to look at everyone in the room.
They walked over to the gate where their bus was waiting. He whispered to his son, "Toly, these
YOU ARE READING
Space & Time
AdventureWritten in 2014 the storyline involves an almost crystal ball view of Putin's growing aggression towards Ukraine. Mikhailya Groschev was born in the year 1952 in the Soviet Union controlled Ukraine. Her father is an Astrophysicist and a Cosmonaut...