East of the Sun

by Janet Rogers

  Immediately Amelia knew that she’d never seen the geologist before. She’d hoped that she’d recognise him and that he would provide a new connection to Robert, but to her disappointment his was not a face she’d seen before.

  From the man’s gait it looked like the final part of Nick’s plan – getting him tipsy if all else failed – was already half achieved. There was something loose and uncontrolled in the way he swung his arms and held his body slightly tilted forward.

  Nick stood up to introduce himself and the man shook his hand eagerly.

  ‘Zdrastvuitye,’ she heard Nick say in his best imitation of bad Russian, making the greeting sound like an alien object in his mouth.

  The man’s own greeting confirmed his state of semi-inebriation. ‘Zdrastvuitye, tovarish!’ Silently Amelia cheered. He’d called Nick ‘comrade’, an indication that he felt a sense of kinship with his fellow geologist, a feeling undoubtedly aided by whatever liquid magic he’d consumed before arriving.

  How exactly Nick had managed to track down the geologist only he knew, but she did know that he’d leaned heavily on old friends and colleagues to find and make contact with him. It was unclear if the geologist was actually in hiding, but Nick believed he was at least out of work and no longer involved with the project. His prospects of finding new employment would most likely be bleak. Of that Sibraz would have made sure.

  And that’s why Nick wanted to meet him here. To be seen in an upmarket hotel, living the good life again, would be invaluable to a man who’d lost his social standing. And if Nick pulled off his act of foreign geologist considering an offer from a major mining company in Russia, the geologist’s ego would be stroked even more if he was treated as a superior, someone from whom Nick was seeking advice. If, as they hoped, he sensed there might be future work in it for him, his tongue might become just that little looser.

  She sat back, forcing herself to look elsewhere and when, after several minutes, she glanced in their direction again, she saw a couple of beers and a bottle of vodka on the low table between their armchairs. They were clinking glasses and she was happy to see that they were already deep in conversation. She strained to hear, but could catch only snippets of Nick’s story. He mixed his English with amateurish Russian words and phrases, undoubtedly hoping to win the geologist’s approval by attempting to speak Russian, but not wanting to reveal his familiarity with both the language and its people.

  The geologist was nodding, relaxing and evidently liking what he was hearing. Maybe Nick was talking about the size of the fake project he was considering. For a while he kept bobbing his head enthusiastically, agreeing loudly with everything Nick said. Then, abruptly, he stopped, appearing to consider something Nick had said. His shook his head repeatedly and his expression became downcast, almost mournful.

  It took effort not to lean forward to try and hear his answer, but she’d been staring for too long already, so instead Amelia continued paging through her magazine while she tried to follow their conversation. Words reached her – project . . . difficult . . . joint ventures . . . hard work – but none of them told her much.

  After twenty restless minutes, she decided to go to the cloakroom so that she would be able to pass close by their chairs. She stood up, glanced in the direction of the women, who’d lost interest in the people in the room by now and were staring at their nails and shoes respectively, and decided it was safe to walk past the two men.

  When she came close to Nick and the geologist, she dropped her keys, making a show of cursing and bending to pick them up. She sensed rather than saw a slight pause in their conversation, but the geologist continued speaking, his voice filled with melancholy.

  ‘It is very difficult, you must be careful. You give them all your hard work, your life, your health and you think they will be loyal to you for this, but they are not. They never are.’

  Nick didn’t speak immediately, then said innocently. ‘Why do you say that? If you’re loyal and you work hard, you will always be treated well, won’t you?’

  ‘No!’ the man replied vehemently. ‘No, it is not always so here in Russia. I will tell you about a project I worked on where they treated me terribly. You will not believe it!’

  It was time for her to move on; she’d pretended to fuss with her keys for long enough. Now was the time to trust Nick. She started walking away and could only hear Nick’s last words.

  ‘Do you think you could tell me more? Please, I need all the advice you can give me. I don’t really know how things are done here.’

  In the cloakroom she powdered her nose and stared at herself in the ornate mirror for a full ten minutes. They were close to something, she could feel it. Just as important as it was to trust Nick now, it was crucial that she remained calm, kept her wits about her and didn’t give in to the impulse to walk over, shake the geologist’s neck and demand the truth.

  When she emerged, Nick was leaning forward, filling the geologist’s vodka glass another time. How many had the man had? More importantly, was it working yet? They didn’t want him too drunk, either. She stopped at the bar to order another glass of wine and was able to catch a few more words.

  ‘It is all a lie, I tell you. All a lie!’ The geologist sounded close to tears.

  As Amelia passed them again on the way to her hidden seat, she caught Nick’s eye. With a quick flick of his head, he pointed in the direction of the main entrance, widening his eyes, clearly hoping she would understand his message. She walked past, puzzled by his strange behaviour. Only when she’d reached the safety of her chair again and taken a sip of wine, did she look up.

  Nothing seemed out of place. What was Nick trying to say? Was he telling her to get out? Why? But what else could he have meant? Had her stunt with the keys been too suspicious? Was he trying to warn her to stop? She sipped her wine for another few minutes, wondering what she should do. There was no further clue from Nick. Besides, he had his back to her.

  She got up, gathered her things as slowly as she could and walked casually in the direction of the entrance, fiddling with her bag to appear uninterested in her surroundings. Only as she was about to exit the lounge area, she lifted her eyes and instantly saw the cause of Nick’s agitation: two men, one in a suit, one in more casual jeans and a leather jacket. They must have arrived while she was in the cloakroom, because she hadn’t noticed them there earlier.

  A quick glance at their faces sent her heart racing. She’d seen the suited man before. He was one of Popov’s sidekicks.

  Another look told her that they hadn’t noticed her yet. Their postures told the full story, however. Having seated themselves near the exit, one was leaning forward, his forearms resting on his knees while his colleague’s eyes were firmly, hungrily fixed on the spot behind her where Nick and the geologist were still deep in conversation.

  She didn’t dare look back. However difficult it was to leave Nick behind, she knew that her absence would give him a better chance of remaining undiscovered. And safe.

  She rushed down the street, away from the Hyatt. That morning they’d agreed that they’d act like two people who’d never met. Not only would they arrive separately, but they would leave in the same manner and meet back at his friend’s apartment later in the evening. But now she knew there was the additional responsibility of leading no one back to it. The possibility existed that Popov’s bodyguard had seen her leave. Returning to the apartment immediately was out of the question.

  After a few hundred metres, she blindly turned down a flight of steps, not planning her route, simply putting as much distance between herself and the hotel as quickly as possible. She hurried through a pedestrian underpass and when she emerged above ground again, she discovered that she was walking in the direction of Red Square. Still too scared to look around, she had no idea if anyone was following her.

  Halfway down Nikolsky Street, she saw what appeared to be a new top-end shopping development. Immediately she went up the marble steps and through the brand new glass slidi
ng doors. Inside the lights were bright and she could almost smell the newness of the place. A year before it hadn’t been here.

  Quickly she looked around. She needed to determine if anyone was watching her. She opted for a small boutique and casually started browsing, keeping an eye on passersby through the shop’s large glass windows. After ten long minutes she was confident that no one had followed her into the shopping complex. As she considered what route to take next, someone spoke her name.

  ‘Amelia?’

  She swung around, her heart pounding. ‘Patrick! What a surprise! What are you doing here?’ Amelia left the shop and walked to where he had stopped in the aisle in front of it.

  He gestured towards the upper floor of the mall. ‘I’m picking up something for Cathy. And you?’

  ‘Oh, just browsing. I had time to kill.’

  He nodded. ‘How are things?’ he asked, his face concerned. ‘We didn’t get a chance to speak properly at the embassy the other day. Do you need any more help? Are you managing to tie up loose ends? I realise things didn’t go all that well with Popov, but maybe I can help with something else?’

  Patrick apparently still felt bad about not sharing the information about the driver with her. She was touched that he was still trying to make up for it.

  She smiled. ‘I’m doing all right. I think I’m getting to that elusive thing people call “closure” at last.’ A necessary lie, she told herself at the twinge of guilt.

  Patrick nodded. ‘I can only imagine how hard it must be for you, but I’m really happy to hear that you feel better now.’

  ‘Thank you, you’re being very supportive.’

  ‘It’s the least I can do.’

  ‘Actually, Patrick, to be honest, there are still a few small things I don’t understand. Do you perhaps have time for a coffee? I’ve been meaning to talk to you about anything else you might remember about that night.’

  Patrick hesitated, glanced at his watch and then at the escalator leading to the stores on the second level. ‘Could you give me a few minutes? I’ll just pick up this present for Cathy and then I’ll join you for a quick one. Does that work?’

  ‘It sounds great. Thanks.’

  ‘No problem. I’ll see you in a few minutes.’

  Amelia watched as he walked towards the escalator, thinking of the memories she shared with people like Patrick and Cathy. She missed those good times when fun and a sense of excitement had been readily available and hadn’t seemed like such rare commodities. Would she ever be able to reclaim that sense of security she’d taken for granted before?

  She sighed and turned away to go find a table in the coffee shop that was located at the centre of the building’s lower level. Instinctively she chose one that offered the widest possible view of the shopping mall. She had to keep an eye out for the two men in the hotel. It didn’t look like they’d followed her, but she had to be very sure. At least Patrick’s presence offered her somewhat of a disguise and also some protection.

  When he joined her again, he had a package in his hand.

  ‘Lucky girl. As far as I remember her birthday is only in March.’

  ‘Yes, and no, it’s not for her birthday. It’s just something small to cheer her up. As you already know, things have been a little rough for her lately.’

  Amelia nodded, not sure if she wanted to get involved again. She already felt conflicted with both Patrick and Cathy confiding in her.

  ‘She does seem a little under the weather right now.’

  ‘She does, doesn’t she?’ Patrick said, his voice conveying his own unhappiness with whatever was going on between them. ‘More than ever before. And it doesn’t seem to be getting any better.’

  A waitress appeared and they quickly ordered two coffees before he continued.

  ‘I can’t figure out what’s going on. She says things have changed between us, but she can’t tell me how.’ For a moment he was silent.

  ‘What did she tell you? It would help me understand better. Or is that weird? I mean, for you to tell me what she said? I don’t want to put you in a difficult position.’

  Amelia shrugged. ‘If I were you, I’d just talk to her about what it is that’s bothering her. And be gentle. I got the impression that she feels you’re a little distant at the moment, perhaps focused on something that excludes her and the girls.’

  ‘But that’s ridiculous!’ Patrick exclaimed, irritation unmistakable in his voice.

  The arrival of their coffees interrupted whatever else he was going to say. Were things worse than she thought?

  ‘She might just be over-analysing, you know. Once she understands what you’re going through, the pressure of work and so on, I’m sure she’ll relax,’ she said in an effort to reassure him.

  It was time to change the subject.

  ‘Listen, I know you don’t have much time now, but can you tell me what you remember about the night at the Marriott? Do you remember anything? I know you’ve made a statement, like everyone else, but it would be good to hear it firsthand. Last year was such a mess that I never heard it from you directly.’

  Patrick studied her for a moment, his face softening. ‘Of course. I’m sure reading the reports aren’t the same as hearing them.’ He leaned back in his chair, looking up at the mall’s vaulted ceilings. ‘Robert seemed well. He was obviously tired after having dealt with the endless Prism-Sibraz thing for months, but he seemed to be having a good time that night.’

  ‘So he didn’t seem different, stressed or anxious?’

  ‘Nothing out of the ordinary, no. People were always eager to talk to Robert at these functions. He did have charisma, didn’t he?’

  She smiled at his effort to be kind.

  ‘And what about on the way to your place? It must have been important if he took you all the way out of the city when he knew he would have to drive back again?’

  Patrick was thoughtful. ‘I’ve gone over it a million times too. I wish I could tell you something meaningful, but we discussed nothing out of the ordinary. Just some small details that we hadn’t had time for that day. And late at night it actually doesn’t take terribly long to drive out to Pokrovsky Hills.’

  Amelia nodded, but she was disappointed that Patrick couldn’t give her more information. ‘Can you think of anyone else who could have some information? Apart from Popov and the Sibraz lawyers, I seem to recall that there was a consultant or dealmaker of sorts involved. A supposedly independent person.’

  Patrick frowned. ‘I only know about Popov. Maybe it was someone who helped out before I became involved?’ He sighed and glanced at his watch again. ‘There’s not much more to tell you, I’m afraid. I wish there were.’

  She waved his words away and watched as he drained his coffee and stood up. ‘I would love to stay and talk, but I have a late meeting in half an hour. Sadly, duty calls.’

  ‘Of course, thank you for the chat.’

  He kissed her on the cheek and started walking away. She watched him for a moment. Just before he exited through the glass sliding doors, he turned around again and walked a few paces back towards her. ‘This is no good. We should catch up properly, and soon!’ he called, a smile on his face.

  She nodded and waved her agreement. Frustrated at the lack of information, she sat for a while longer, scanning the mall again for the two men she’d seen in the Hyatt’s lounge. When she was sure she was surrounded by regular shoppers only, she picked up her bag and headed for the exit.

  She needed to find Nick.

  The apartment block had been quiet for hours. She’d listened as people had arrived home, initially from work and errands and later from dinner and other outings. Tonight the apartment felt too small for her. Obsessively she went through the events of the day. She’d learnt nothing. She could only hope that Nick had. And that he was safe.

  It was very late when she heard a key in the lock. Amelia jumped up when he came through the door, relief flooding through her to see him unscathed.

  ‘You�
�re okay!’

  ‘I’m okay,’ he replied with an exhausted smile. His face looked drawn and she wondered how many circuitous routes he’d taken to ensure he wasn’t followed. But apart from fatigue, there was something else in his face too. A hint of elation. She watched him as he took off his coat and hung it on the peg near the front door. He turned to her.

  ‘What is it?’ she asked, unable to fathom his expression.

  ‘We were right.’

  ‘We were?’

  ‘That diamond deposit is worth considerably less than the market thinks.’

  ‘Are you sure?’

  Nick nodded. ‘It’s a fact. And the Canadians knew.’

  ‘What? When?’

  ‘Last year.’

  ‘When?’

  ‘In the weeks before Robert disappeared.’

  22

  Around them the night and the building was quiet, but Amelia knew there would be no sleeping for at least several hours. Relief that they’d both come away from the meeting with the geologist undetected and unharmed was only matched by her impatience to find out what happened after she’d left the Hyatt.

  When Nick started to speak, she was scarcely able to believe his account of what he’d learnt:

  ‘At the time of the original surveys and tests, the results had indicated a very rich deposit, but subsequent tests, well after the formation of the joint venture between Sibraz and Prism, revealed that that wasn’t the case after all. He didn’t spell it out, but my guess is that the geologist would have considered his options very carefully when he saw the new results. He was the chief geologist, he’s Russian and he was hired by Sibraz. It would have been natural for him to approach them with the information, because this was where one would have expected his loyalties to lie.’