Chapter 64 – Opening Night Looms Closer
Baryshnikov spent the week leading up to the Paris trip doing three things: enjoying his return to Saint Petersburg and the Russian ballet stage, learning the beauty of the Stravinsky music and playing with some choreography for it, and pissing Gergiev off as many times a day as possible. He knew that opening night for both productions was one month after the Paris trip. Well, what everyone else at the Mariinsky was thinking of as the Paris trip. Baryshnikov, of course, was thinking of it as his entry into the dark world of international kidnapping. No one other than Catherine Deneuve could have gotten him involved in this craziness. But for her….
Two days after Baryshnikov told the dancers they were going to Paris, Gergiev came to him and said, “You know how much this is going to cost the company? Flying forty-five people to Paris and back? A lot, that’s how much.” Gergiev had neglected to tell Baryshnikov that the company had a sugar daddy in the form of Stirg and his deep pockets. He was trying anything he could to get back at The B for pissing him off all the time. It was a guilt trip thing.
Baryshnikov had been waiting for this, and said, “Listen, I understand about the money. It’s not fair of me to spring this on you, but it has to be done. We have to go to Paris. And to make it more fair, I will fund the trip. The plane part of the trip, if Mariinsky picks up the hotel and everything else. I know someone who will do a charter for us. How’s that?”
Gergiev thought it was good, because that would be one less hit on Stirg’s cashier’s checks, which at some point Gergiev had to get around to hitting for himself. His retirement fund, so to speak. The B sent word to Catherine that Gergiev had taken the bait. The Saint Petersburg to Paris charter was on.
While The B was doing this, Henric abandoned his boat for a few days (actually, Helstof forbade him from going on it) and worked on the plane logistics. This reminded him of a year earlier when he had set up the logistics for smuggling the hoard of artifacts stolen from the Hermitage out of the country in shipping containers, which coincidentally also contained half the heist team. That was a challenge then, and this would be a challenge now. Quickly he realized Gwen’s idea of having the flight plan be Saint Petersburg to Charleston just wouldn’t work. The Russian aviation authority would want to know details about such a charter flight, like who was on it and what its purpose was. He had some thinking to do, so he called his big dog and hit the beach. The local kids screamed with delight when they saw the horse lopping down the sandy runway. Two hours later Henric had it figured out, and returned to the house. He had decided not to figure out how much it was going to cost him, which had become his method for this whole ballet thing. He didn’t want to know, and just didn’t ask. When the credit card statements arrived in the mail, they went into the desk drawer unopened. The desk still had the hole in its side because Henric and Helstof had decided not to have it repaired; they wanted the hole as a memento of the discovery of the lost ballet.
When he returned to the house he sat down with his wife and went over the new plan with her. Then they called Roger and Gwen and asked them to come over to the house. Sitting on the fourth floor ocean side porch, the borzoi at his feet, Henric explained the revised plan to the Junes. “We’re going to get to see Catherine again. Soon. She’s coming to Charleston in a few days.”
Gwen perked up, very excited. She and Catherine were close buds. “Are you flying her over in the Gulfstream? And why? Why’s she coming?”
Helstof said, “Gulfstream’s too small. She’s not coming alone. She’s bringing twenty-five of her closest friends. So we need a bigger plane.”
Henric said, “I’ve chartered a special 737 with long-range modifications so it can go intercontinental. Only holds about fifty people, so it’s very comfortable, better than first class. It’s bringing them from Paris to Charleston. We need you to act as host to them for a couple days. Show them the town.”
“Why? How do they fit in to the problem of getting the dancers here?”
“Same plane is going to fly them from Charleston to Saint Petersburg for another couple of days on the town there. As far as the authorities know, this is just a bunch of wealthy jet setters. Such people do exist, I understand.”
Roger saw Henric’s plan. No details, but he understood the basics, and smiled. A person with unlimited money could do weird and wonderful things.
Helstof provided the details, which blew Gwen’s mind. “We also have charted another plane, an identical 737, but a regular, short haul one. Nothing fancy. Both planes will be at the Saint Petersburg airport at exactly the same time. The flight plan for one will be to Charleston. The flight plan for the other will be to Paris, both departing same day, same time.” Helstof knew this information would be enough for Gwen, so she stopped talking.
Gwen looked out at the gray water for a minute, leaned over and patted the dog on its long narrow head, and then looked at her husband. She shook her head and smiled. Unbelievable. “You’re gonna pull a switch. At the airport. Jesus. The aviation authorities are going to think Catherine’s group of jet setters is going back where they came: Charleston. And they are going to think the Mariinsky group is going to Paris for two days. But Catherine’s group is going to get on the short-haul 737 Paris plane, and the dancers are going to get on the special 737 Charleston plane. Holy shit.”
“With one exception. Catherine will get back on the Charleston plane with the dancers and Baryshnikov. Then they have about seven hours to convince the dancers not to call the cops, the FBI, the Russian Embassy, and the Dept of Homeland Security when they arrive, claiming they were kidnapped. If they don’t convince them, Gwenny dear, as you said before, we’re screwed.”
Again Gwen looked out at the ocean, thinking. She looked back at them and said, “With two exceptions.”
The Lost Ballet Page 64
