While he waited his turn, Jack couldn’t help overhearing the conversation that Miss Hewitt’s maidservant was attempting in her rudimentary Russian. However, Elizabeth captured most of his attention. She was wearing a red leather coat with fingerless gloves, along with an ushanka, the famous Russian hat with earflaps, which made her even more attractive. Jack tried to go unseen, but the young woman noticed his presence. His pulse quickened. Between glances, he daydreamed about what her interests might be. Perhaps she rode or played tennis, spoke French, or played a musical instrument.
As he moved forward in the line, Jack concentrated on counting the money that some fifty passengers had given him. If his calculations were correct, even after giving them a discount of 5 percent, he would make a decent profit, since the offer for large groups was for 25 percent off the standard ticket price. When it was his turn, he bought the tickets, checked the change, and stealthily hid the profit in the secret pocket he’d sewn into his pants to avoid being robbed. He was turning around, his hand still down the front of his trousers, when he found himself face-to-face with Elizabeth Hewitt.
“Ah!” exclaimed the young woman with feigned astonishment. “Handling machinery again, Mr. Beilis?”
Jack’s hand shot out from his pants as if it had been seared with a hot iron.
“Miss Hewitt! What . . . what a pleasant surprise! I was just . . . I was . . .” To hide his embarrassment, he showed her some rubles that he had received as change.
“Oh! A novel way to mint money! But he can spare us the details, can’t he, Gertrud?” she said.
“Miss Elizabeth! I should remind you that Mr. Hewitt doesn’t want you to speak to strangers. Not to mention”—she gave a grimace of distaste—“strangers who go around . . . touching themselves in those parts!”
The young woman gave her maidservant a smile, revealing teeth radiant as mother-of-pearl.
“Don’t be alarmed, Gertrud. Jack’s an old acquaintance, and as far as I know, he’s very much to my uncle’s liking.”
“I’m glad you think that, Miss Hewitt,” Jack said, still flushed but trying to put his best foot forward.
“Well, Jack, that you’re to my uncle’s liking doesn’t mean you are to mine.” Her intense gaze unsettled him, because her eyes seemed to contradict her words.
Jack managed to regain his composure. He smoothed his jacket down with his hands and tried to relax. He didn’t want to waste an opportunity that might not present itself again.
“I understand you’re staying in Helsinki for a few days,” he said.
“I see that news travels fast even on this side of the world. That’s right. We’ll stay until the doctors decide how bad my uncle’s injury is. And if all’s well, we’ll move on to Moscow, where he has some business to take care of. So it would appear that this is where you and I go our separate ways.”
“Maybe not. We’re taking the next train to Leningrad, but then we’re traveling on to Moscow, to hand in some documents. Who knows? We might meet again there.”
“Oh, I don’t think so. Moscow’s a big city. We’re about as likely to bump into each other there as a polar bear and a Pygmy. Farewell, Jack,” she said, and moved to walk away.
“In that case, which would I be? The bear or the Pygmy?” He took the liberty of holding her back by the arm, offering her his best smile.
Elizabeth returned it, making him think for the first time that she might eventually succumb to his charms.
“The bear, I suppose.”
“And could that bear dance with you next Friday at your party at the Hotel Metropol in Moscow?” he said.
“How do you know—?” She was left speechless.
“I’m sorry. I couldn’t help hearing your conversation with your maidservant. The party, it’s for your birthday, right?”
“Oh! I see . . . All right, Jack, let’s get a couple of things clear.” She gently freed herself from his grip. “Maybe there’s been a moment or two when I’ve thought you seem like a fun guy. Sure. You’re gutsy. Sharp. Good-looking, even. But look at you.” She surveyed him from top to bottom, as if adding together the price of each garment he wore. “I can promise you that you’re not even close to the kind of guy that a Hewitt would introduce to her friends.”
Jack watched Elizabeth Hewitt disappear into the crowd. When she was out of sight, he stood motionless, entranced by her image. He remained there for some time, until the station clock’s bell reminded him he had to get back to his friends. But he didn’t rush. He checked that their train tickets were in a safe place, and then strolled to where his compatriots were waiting for him to finish the transaction. As he walked, he forgot about his profits for a moment, turning his thoughts back to the industrialist’s niece. Perhaps he wasn’t the kind of man that a wealthy woman like her would step out with. Not at the moment. But Elizabeth Hewitt didn’t know he was prepared to do whatever it took to become that man.
9
The gigantic boiler of the October Revolution Locomotive Works steam engine, proudly displaying the five-pointed red star on its side, snorted furiously and spewed out an immense column of steam that filled the station platform. The train shuddered, and, shaking and screeching, slowly began to pull its cars, while the last passengers leapt on, hurried by the trainmen’s whistles. Jack was glad he’d been able to get on early, as it had enabled him to strike a deal with the controller to accommodate the Millers and Danielses in a compartment next to the one he’d obtained for himself and his friends. It was third class, but at least they would travel in relative comfort, away from the Finnish farmers, who were loaded down like mules. Walter reclined to rest his back, while Sue made herself comfortable on his lap. However, as they set off, a family of Soviet villagers carrying a consignment of chickens saw the free seats, and greeting them loudly, helped themselves.
Once he’d gotten over his surprise, Jack observed the newcomers. The woman looked like an enormous rag doll that someone had stuffed with wool until its seams had split. As for her husband and sons, they obviously enjoyed the same diet. Fortunately, they were as friendly as they were obese, and not long after leaving Helsinki, they offered around some boiled corncobs and cardamom cake, which, to Sue, Walter, and Jack, tasted like heaven itself.
The villagers had proved to be open and talkative. Between mouthfuls, Konstantin, as the head of the family said he was called, asked about the customs of the United States, and was amazed to hear that Americans could travel from state to state freely without authorization. Then, between bellows of laughter that revealed gums dotted with gold, he bragged that he knew all about the Americans from the documentaries they showed in certain Soviet cinemas. He summarized his wisdom in two clear sentences: baseball was a ridiculous game consisting of whacking a ball with a stick, and the cowboys conquered the Wild West because the Indians always attacked them by running around and around in circles so they could be more easily shot down. Jack listened obligingly, astonished at the speed by which Konstantin emptied the bottle of vodka down his throat. Meanwhile, his wife, Olga, who seemed to be paying particular attention to Sue’s clothes and shoes, asked the younger woman about the most fashionable Hollywood stars.