Sophie and Lil exchanged glances. ‘Could someone have intercepted them on their way to London, before they reached the Bureau?’ asked Lil.
‘By opening a secure diplomatic bag? I don’t really see how, not without it being noticed,’ said Carruthers. ‘Which can only mean that they’ve been taken at the Bureau itself.’ He shook his head, as if he could scarcely believe such a thing could be possible.
‘So, there’s someone at the Bureau we can’t trust,’ said Sophie, the very thought of it sent a cold shiver running down her spine. ‘Someone on the inside is working for the Fraternitas. We’ve got a double agent of our own.’
‘That’s the first thing we need to get to work on when we’re back home,’ said Lil, with a decisive nod.
‘And until then, we must remember that we can’t trust anyone,’ said Sophie. ‘Except each other, of course.’
Carruthers’ face broke into a crooked smile. ‘Oh, so you do trust me now, then, do you? You don’t think I’m the double agent any more?’
Lil’s face turned red. ‘Of course not. I knew I was wrong the second you helped me with Viktor. I’m awfully sorry I accused you like that. But you know, you can’t really blame me. Not when you think about that spy hole of yours – and the way you wanted to go haring off with the spyglass.’
‘Maybe not,’ said Carruthers with a shrug, then a little sigh. ‘Look – there’s something I should probably tell you. I’ve been keeping it a secret, but it might help to explain why I would never do anything to betray the Chief, or the Bureau – and maybe why I have sometimes seemed a little . . . well . . . wound up about this assignment.’ He paused for a moment. ‘The Chief – well, he’s not just a Chief to me. He’s also my grandfather.’
For a moment there was a surprised silence, and then Sophie gave a delighted laugh. ‘Of course! C for Carruthers. We guessed so many different things that C might stand for but we never once thought of that!’
‘He has a tendency to think of me as simply his grandson,’ Carruthers went on, looking a little shame-faced. ‘As though I’m still just a schoolboy in short trousers. He can be rather protective and he likes to keep me out of harm’s way. I’ve been asking to be sent on a field assignment for months, and with this mission, I wanted to show him I could be trusted just like all the other agents. I’m afraid it made me rather particular about getting everything right.’
‘So that was what you meant last night when you said time to make the old man proud,’ said Lil. ‘Gosh – and he would have been proud, you know. I don’t think he could have done it better himself! And just think of all the other things you’ve done – stowing away on a train, going undercover in the circus, not to mention stopping Mitya and the others from being arrested. I’d say you’ve proved yourself, all right!’
‘We couldn’t have done it without you,’ Sophie agreed.
‘I mean, Sophie and I are pretty good at some things. You know, for innocent, defenceless young ladies,’ said Lil with a wink. ‘I mean, flying across Europe in aeroplanes, and tailing wanted men, and getting hold of top-secret notebooks for one thing,’ she added, grinning at Sophie.
‘Not to mention performing in the circus, and organising diversions with snakes, and taking down unpleasant chaps with guns,’ said Sophie, grinning back.
‘But do you know, when it came to telling off that Okhrana fellow in such a marvellously pompous way – I don’t think either of us could have done that.’
Carruthers made a noise that was somewhere between an indignant snort and a laugh. ‘I’m happy to have been of service.’ He paused. ‘Well . . . I suppose I’d better say goodbye here, if I’m to head to the railway station.’
They’d agreed that Carruthers would catch the train to Virballen, and from there to Hamburg, where he would collect the report from the Bureau’s agent. Meanwhile, Sophie and Lil would travel directly home to London, to deliver the notebook and spyglass to the Chief as soon as possible. They’d worked out that it would be quicker for them to travel home by sea, taking the steamer across the Baltic.
‘Take care,’ said Lil. ‘Remember, the double agent could be anyone. Be on your guard, won’t you?’
Carruthers tipped his hat to them. ‘I’ll see you back at the Bureau. Good luck with the journey back to London.’
‘And good luck with Hamburg,’ said Sophie.
‘After everything you’ve done here, collecting a report is going to be a breeze,’ Lil added.
He smiled at them both. ‘Good hunting,’ he said quietly, as he went on his way – for a moment sounding so much like the Chief that Lil wondered that she’d never made the connection before.
She slipped her arm through Sophie’s, and the two of them walked on together. But Sophie was frowning to herself. ‘Do you think we really should just hand over the notebook and the spyglass to the Chief?’ she asked, voicing the question that had been on her mind ever since her conversation with Nakamura. ‘I know those are our orders – but is it really the right thing to do? After all, we don’t know for sure what he’s planning to do with it. What if he’s going to find this weapon and hand it straight over to the Army, for them to use for goodness knows what.’
Lil shook her head at once. ‘Oh no. There’s absolutely no way we’re going to let him do a thing like that. We rescued the first two paintings and I’ve been tracking down more of them, while you’ve been here. You travelled all the way across Europe to get that notebook and spyglass, and nearly got yourself shot in the process. We’ve done the hard work – and I’ve had more than enough of the Chief keeping us in the dark. So when we get back to London, things are going to change. He can’t walk all over us any longer. We’re going to insist on knowing exactly what is going on. If we’re going to keep working for the Bureau, he can’t go on treating us like a couple of little girls who don’t matter. I’ve had quite enough of that.’
Two hours later they were standing side by side on the deck of the St Catherine steamer, chugging slowly out into the Gulf of Finland, watching St Petersburg slip away behind them across the water. Seagulls swooped overhead, and the sun caught the blue-grey waves and tipped them gold. Lil felt a joyful bubble rise up inside her, as the glittering spray flew upwards. She’d done exactly what she had intended – and Sophie was with her again, just as she was supposed to be, and now they were heading for home together.
Beside her, Sophie was gazing back at St Petersburg, watching the vanishing city, reflected in the water. The birthday-cake palaces were growing smaller and smaller, becoming merely doll’s houses. Bridges and towers retreated; the twinkling golden spires dwindled, until they seemed as small as a Rivière’s jewel, lying against the satin of the sky.
‘It’s awfully strange to think I’ll probably never see it again,’ she said, pushing back the strands of hair the wind was blowing across her face.
‘Never say never,’ said Lil. ‘After all, in our line of work, who knows where we might end up next? Perhaps we’ll come back to St Petersburg again some day.’
‘Perhaps we will,’ said Sophie. ‘It’s not a place I ever thought I’d visit – but I must say, I’m awfully glad I did.’
‘It’s all been rather unexpected, hasn’t it?’ Lil agreed. ‘I mean, who’d have thought I’d travel across Europe with Carruthers – or especially that we’d both end up joining the circus!’
Sophie laughed. ‘But now the adventure is over and we can go home.’
‘Oh, I’m not sure the adventure is ever really over,’ said Lil. ‘But yes – home. Just think of all the things we can do. Sleep in our own beds! Eat a jolly good dinner!’
‘Go to Lyons Corner House for tea and buns.’
‘Well, of course. That goes without saying.’
‘But first we’ll go to the Bureau. We’ve got work to do.’
‘We need to tell the Chief what’s what – and use the spyglass to examine those paintings – but what’s more, we need to find out the truth about the double agent at the Bureau, who’s wor
king for the Fraternitas.’
‘I’ll tell you what else,’ said Sophie. ‘I want to investigate Mr Gold. Do you really think there’s any way he could have a connection to Roberta Russell?’
But Lil didn’t answer. Watching the swirling water had suddenly reminded her of standing on the deck of the boat to Ostend – and what she’d been thinking about then – and her mouth curved into a smile. ‘Of course, before we go to the Bureau, we should go to Taylor & Rose and see the others,’ she added more slowly. ‘Everyone will be awfully glad to see you home safe, Sophie. And it will be so wonderful to see them too.’
Sophie looked at her sharply. Lil’s face had taken on an uncharacteristically dreamy look – and could that be a faint blush on her cheeks? ‘Anyone in particular that it will be so wonderful to see?’ she asked archly, raising her eyebrows.
Lil blushed harder. ‘Oh no,’ she said, with a little laugh. ‘You know, just everyone.’
‘Everyone. Ah yes, I see,’ said Sophie, with a smile.
The two friends stood in silence after that, feeling the wind against their cheeks. Here, the water was as smooth as glass, mirroring the sky arching overhead. It was hard to tell where the water ended and where the sky began, thought Sophie, staring out across the pale blue, back towards the city which was now little more than a shimmer of pink and turquoise and gold on the horizon. Together, they stood and watched as St Petersburg vanished away from them, twinkling in the mist like something from an already half-forgotten dream.
Whilst this story and its characters are fictional, like the others in the Sinclair’s Mysteries and Taylor & Rose Secret Agents series, this book takes some inspiration from real-life history.
For example, although the attack at the circus which appears in the story is fictional, the assassination of Russian politician Pytor Stolypin in a Kiev theatre at the start of the book was a real historical event. You may also spot some real historical figures in this story – from daring French pilot Elise Deroche, to British ambassador Sir George Buchanan – and of course Tsar Nicholas II and his family who, just six years after this book is set, met a sad end during the Russian Revolution.
Riviere’s, the elegant jewellers, is inspired by the real-life Fabergé, founded by master jeweller Peter Carl Fabergé and best known for its famous Fabergé eggs. Today St Petersburg is home to the Fabergé Museum where you can see many of the wonderful treasures that Fabergé’s jewellers made for the Tsar and the Imperial Court.
Although there was no real-life Circus of Marvels, circuses were popular entertainment in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Large circuses such as the Barnum & Bailey Circus really did go all over the world on their ‘grand tours’, very often travelling by train. It was common for circuses to feature performing wild animals at this time, when attitudes to animal welfare were very different to ours today. At the time of writing, the use of wild animals in travelling circuses is banned in many countries, though not yet in the UK.
The Secret Service Bureau which appears in this story is (very) loosely inspired by the real Secret Service Bureau, which was set up by the British government in 1909. Initially very small, it soon grew and was divided into two divisions – one to deal with counter-espionage at home in Britain, and another focused on gathering intelligence abroad. Today we know these as ‘MI5’ and ‘MI6’.
Huge thanks to brilliant Ali Dougal and the fantastic team at Egmont for all their support and enthusiasm for Sophie and Lil’s latest exploits. In particular, special thanks to Sarah Levison and Sara Marchington, and to the absolute dream team of illustrator Karl James Mountford and designer Laura Bird for the stunning design.
Researching this book was quite a task, and although there are far too many to name here, I would like to acknowledge my debt to the writers and historians who have written about pre-revolutionary Russia. Thank you also to all those who kindly shared their stories and advice on visiting St Petersburg with me – in particular Katherine Rundell, Hazel Wigginton and Donald Lamont.
As always, enormous thanks go to my parents for all their support, and to my friends – especially Nina Douglas, who patiently helped me unravel a sticky problem involving crates and cellar windows. Thank you also to my husband Duncan, who for this book put up with a lot of long conversations about the intricacies of early 20th century Russian politics.
Spies in St Petersburg is dedicated to my wonderful agent and friend Louise Lamont, who went above and beyond the call of duty for this book, joining me on a research trip to Russia. As well as boldly leading the way around St Petersburg, walking over 60 miles in six days, and selflessly helping me taste all the Russian delicacies we could find, she even taught herself Russian for the occasion. Without her this book would certainly not be what it is (and I would quite possibly still be wandering St Petersburg in confusion, failing to decipher Cyrillic street signs and unsuccessfully trying to order cakes). Luckily I did managed to learn one very appropriate Russian word: Cпасибо – thank you.
Finally, a very special thanks to all the booksellers, librarians, teachers and readers (of all ages) who have so enthusiastically embraced Taylor & Rose Secret Agents and this new phase of Sophie and Lil’s adventures.
Also by Katherine Woodfine
Peril in Paris
The Clockwork Sparrow
The Jewelled Moth
The Painted Dragon
The Midnight Peacock
Spies in St. Petersburg Page 21
