frozen within time

Moscow, August 2009

'The question is, should I care about a promise made fifty two years ago by nikita khrushchev?' Said the Russian president. from the wall of his vast marble office, khrushchev, leader of the Soviet union in 1957, stared down at them all, along with bulganin, brezhnev, and gorbachev, Ivan and Gregory said nothing. they were still in shock from what they had found in the bunker.

'Do we have all his work? All his notes?'
Gregory nodded.

'So then, perhaps we can work on without the man himself. But this . . . .' The president flipped his computer monitor around and looked at the grainy faces in its screen. Four children, clustered round a desk, somewhere in England.

'This makes it all so much harder to decide. I think we need to negotiate a new deal. I want to meet these children first.'

Gregory nodded to Ivan. 'Tell Tara to go ahead,' He said. 'With care . . . . But quickly. We don't want to alert the British for as long as possible . . . . In case they don't know already.'

'Do you think the British government has any idea?' Asked the president.

'Tara says she can't be sure,' said Gregory. 'There has been . . . . Activity . . . . In the town. a retired policeman has been looking up his old notes on the case. John wilkinson----who is the uncle of the fair haired children----was seen in London, but our man lost him in the tube. He may be back home by now. it's worrying. the British have been jumpy and curious ever since Tarrant crawled back to them last year. if we'd got that letter on time we would have known to stop him. We're sending three operatives to assist Tara. She'll make her move before the British work anything out.'

'Good. good. Tell your agent, good work.' The president stood up and smiled. 'I will make time for a children's tea party for, shall we say, Wednesday?'