Consequences Unforeseen

Foros June 12th 1991 - 7am

Foros June 12th 1991 – 7am

The reconfigured Ilyushin-62M command plane, the Soviet equivalent of Air Force One sat in an unsecured area of the airport to the right of the main passenger terminal. It was surrounded by hustle and bustle of ground staff preparing the big bird for its journey and the dour grey coated security detachment standing bored and cold in the early morning moisture. Further up the concourse behind substantial metal fencing the more mundane local and inter Russia flights were lined up for early departures.

Steam drifted and rose in the air around the doorways of the Ilyushin and the lights inside seemed stark and bright against the pink tinted sky beyond, the forewarning of another glorious sun rise.

The plane dwarfed its only neighbor, a pale blue Lear jet distinguished by its Air China  identification markings. No one in the President's team was paying it the slightest amount of attention. They were too engrossed in warming their hands and sipping discretely at the aluminum flasks of vodka that passed between them with regularity. The Chinese diplomatic aircraft were not uncommon anyway, as they brought senior ministers and their girlfriendse her from Hong Kong regularly and most often with no 'official' flight plans required. A 'blind eye' policy had been in place for years.

Inside the Lear’s cockpit the pilot and copilot were deep into their own preparations to depart. They were well rested and eager to be on their way. Used to having this particular part of the airport apron to themselves, they were disturbed and surprised when they were given a rude awakening by the arrival of multiple vehicles a couple of hours before. Initially they had felt pangs of panic as adrenaline pumped through their bodies with the unfounded anxiety that their presence had indeed produced some curiosity. Chinese by parentage though they were, their loyalties were to thier mother country, the UK and to the man they were here to pick up, Bill Douglas.

Gorbachev’s arrival outside the perimeter fence illicited a slight reaction from the greycoat security team.. They stuffed the flasks inside their bulky cashmere coats and they tensed into some form of order waiting for him to exit his car.

The man himself was in a foul frame of mind, and his wife Raisa remained silent the entire trip from the dacha, only speaking now to point out that another car had pulled up to her right and getting out of the car was none other than Bill Douglas.

Hearing her words, the President actually smiled for the first time since dinner last night and said, “On my father’s soul Raisa, this Scotsman is following us. I was going to miss him and his anecdotes, and now here is the bastard turning up right here, right now. Fucking incredible coincidence is it not?”

Raisa laughed lightly and retorted, “Well there’s only one place he can be headed to from here, so why don’t you surprise the shit right out of him and offer him a lift with us.” She laughed again this time louder and with more mischief showing in her eyes.

He responded with a smile of his own. There was an upward slant to his mouth though and she knew this was a sign of an internal conversation he was having. He was plotting something, she thought to herself. He nodded his head finally and said, “You know, having him come along with us could be good therapy. It’ll certainly be amusing to see his face when I go over there and sneak up on him. The last people he’ll have expected to see so soon is you and me!”

The Douglas was engrossed on the contents of the trunk of the car. It looked to Gorbachev that he had never even glanced over the roadway at them, so he kind of tip toed over to the parked car in a parody of stealth. Raisa, always one for mischief, could not hold herself back and she shouted, “Mr. Douglas, watch out! The President of the Soviet Union is about to give you a surprise!”