Chapter 16 Chapter 12 Success and Failure

Spying on a person requires figuring out how he or she typically spends his or her day before determining how much human effort is involved in the surveillance operation.The more lonely the person being watched, or the more often he acts alone, the more difficult it is usually to spy on him secretly.For example, the National Security Council personnel who followed Colonel Bondarenko already hated him.They agreed that his usual long jogs were typical of espionage.He moved completely alone on the street, which was sparsely populated enough for him to recognize everyone, enough for him to notice anomalies immediately.The three intelligence agents tasked with monitoring him lost sight of him at least five times as he ran through residential areas of Moscow.They hid behind sparse trees, while the surrounding apartment buildings towered over the street like tombstones in a field.On any one of the five occasions, Bondarenko could have stopped to retrieve a tip someone else had dropped, or he could have dropped it himself.Even more disheartening was the fact that the Soviet colonel's service file was as spotless as a freshly snowed field, which of course was the cover every spy wanted for himself.

They followed him around the corner again as he was heading home.His legs moved vigorously up and down, his breath leaving a cloud of mist behind him.The person in charge of the work in this case believes that the second station needs to send six people to monitor Bondarenko's morning run, and has to brave the dry and cold Moscow morning to get there an hour earlier than him. People don't like to suffer like this. A few kilometers away, another team of three was more content with their surveillance target.They got an eighth-floor apartment in the building opposite the house of the person under surveillance. A diplomat who lives here has gone abroad.A pair of telescopic lenses were aimed at the windows of Filidov, who was not one to draw down the blinds or adjust them in place, so that they could easily observe what he was doing each morning and know that he was Drink a lot.His way of life was familiar to the second unit who watched him from the comfort of a heated room across the street.

Filidov has a high status in the Ministry of Defense and is equipped with a car and a driver.It would be easy to replace the driver with a young man from the NSC's counterintelligence unit.They knew from a bug in his phone that he had asked the driver to pick him up earlier. Freee left the residence earlier than usual.Today it was his wife who drove him, with the kids in the back.It is interesting to note in the Soviet archives of Foley that his wife spent most of her time driving around with the children, often with the wives of other Western diplomats.In the Soviet Union, the husband usually kept the car for his own use.They noticed that she didn't let him take the subway today because she was concerned about his face.Everyone knew that the militiamen at the gate of the diplomat's residence were actually members of the National Security Council. They recorded the time when he left and the people in the car.Things were a little different today, and the guards looked around to see if the NSC members who had been following Foley were here today.He's not in now.Important Americans are often subject to more routine surveillance.

Foley wore a Russian fur cap and a battered overcoat that made him look less foreign; a woolen scarf wrapped around his neck covered his striped tie.The Soviet security personnel who knew him noticed what he was wearing, and the local climate was the main reason why most foreigners did not want to live here for a long time.If you spend a winter in the Soviet Union, you will immediately imitate the dress and behavior of the Soviets, and even walk with your head bowed slightly like the Soviets. The kids got off the bus at school.Fu Mali drove the car as usual, looking at the rearview mirror every three or four seconds.Compared with American cities, the road conditions here are not bad.While the Soviet driver might have been making the most unusual moves, the streets weren't very crowded, and she had driven in New York City and could handle any situation.Like people who commute all over the world, she has a shortcut that takes a long way around, avoids several traffic jams, uses an extra liter or two of gasoline every day, but saves a few minutes of time.

After turning a corner, she immediately turned skillfully to the side of the road.Foley hopped out of the car, and when he slammed the door shut, the car was already in motion, and he walked slowly toward the side door of a building.Suddenly, Foley's heart began beating violently.After entering, he didn't take the elevator, but ran up the stairs to the eight floors while looking at his watch. He didn't know how his wife did it. He admitted that she was a much better driver than he, and could stop where he wanted to within five seconds.It kind of hurt his masculine pride.He had to reach the eighth floor in two minutes, and finally he arrived a few seconds early.He opened the emergency door and scanned the straight, empty corridor with anxious eyes. There was an elevator in the middle and escape ladders at both ends. There was no place for anyone to secretly use a camera.He quickly walked across the elevator, toward the other end.Now he can measure time based on his heart rate.Two meters ahead, a door opened, and a man in uniform came out, turned around and locked the door, and walked towards Foley with his suitcase.If anyone passed by at this time, it would be strange that they did not avoid each other.

In an instant it was over.Foley brushed the cardinal's hand, took the film box and handed back a small note.He noticed the anger in the spy's eyes, but that was all, and he didn't even say sorry, comrade, as he continued toward the elevator.Foley walked straight toward the escape ladder and walked down the stairs without haste. Colonel Filidov emerged from the building at the appointed time, and the sergeant who opened the door for him noticed that he had something in his mouth, perhaps a piece of bread. Good morning, Comrade Colonel. Why didn't Zhdanov come to drive?Philidov asked and got into the car.

He was ill, some said appendicitis.Philidov snorted. Well, let's go, I want to take a steam bath this morning. A minute later, Foley emerged from the back door of the building and walked two blocks toward another avenue when his wife pulled over and let him into the car without stopping.The two took a deep breath and drove towards the embassy. What are you going to do today?she asked, her eyes still fixed on the rearview mirror. as usual.replied the husband. Filidov entered the steam room and found that the waiter was not there, but there were a few more unfamiliar faces.That explains the reason for this particular delivery in the morning.But he remained calm and greeted acquaintances in a friendly manner.Unfortunately he ran out of film in his camera; then he got an alert from Foley.What if he is under surveillance again?Every few years, some intelligence agent or someone would pick him up, and he'd have to review everyone in the Department of Defense.The CIA has noticed this situation this time and cut off the intelligence line.It was funny, he thought, to see the look on the young man's face in the corridor.Philidov thought: Too few people know what fighting is, and people are easily afraid. Fighting tells people what to be afraid of and what not to be afraid of.

In the steam room, a man in the second room was going through Filidoff's clothes.In the car, his suitcase was also being searched, quickly and thoroughly. Vatudin himself supervised the search of Filidov's house.The men assured the search that nothing had been uncovered, for even a scrap of paper, a crumb of bread, or even a strand of hair, which had been left behind even the slightest change in position, might hint at the presence of the owner.They found that many of the photos were developed immediately after they were taken, and then they found a diary.Vatudin leaned down and saw the open diary in the desk drawer. After deciding that this placement method was not a secret mark, he picked up the diary and read it after a minute or two.

Colonel Vatudin is not in a good temper today.He didn't sleep well last night.Like most alcoholics, he needed a few drinks to fall asleep.Besides, the case was challenging, and he didn't have the habit of taking sleeping pills, which made him toss and turn and sleepless nights. The expression on his face clearly warned his team members to do nothing to mess with him. camera.he said briefly.A person came to take pictures, and whenever Vatudin turned to a page, he would take a picture of it. An attempt had been made to unlock the door, a major reported.There are signs of wear around the keyhole, and if the lock were taken apart I think we could see scratches on the tumbler.Maybe someone has been here.

What they're looking for is in my car.Vatudin said angrily.Everyone present turned their heads to look.Interrupted by him, the person inspecting the refrigerator hurriedly looked at the device underneath, and then restored the refrigerator to its original state.What the hell does he keep in a diary?Doesn't he have to abide by the security and confidentiality regulations? Now he understands that Filidov used his private diary to draw up the official report, and someone somehow got to know this and went into his apartment to copy it But how likely is that?Vatudin thought.A man could write official documents from memory as easily as he could sit at a desk in the Ministry of Defense and copy.

The search took two hours, and after putting everything in order, the search team left in twos and threes. Back in his office, Vatutin read the full text of the diary he had photographed; he only skimmed it briefly while at Colonel Filidov's residence.The negative that survived on the seized film contained exactly the same content as one of the opening pages of Filidov's diary.He spent an hour looking at all the photos in the diary.The data are impressive.Filidov documents the star project in considerable detail.In fact, the old colonel's explanation was better than the briefing he had been given for the order to open the case.The diary also contains Bondarenko's detailed observations on the safety of the launch site and complaints that the Ministry of Defense did not pay enough attention to the development of the program.Obviously, the two colonels are very positive about the star project, but he saw that Minister Yazov's attitude was not so sure.Complaints about funding issues Oh, that's an old problem, isn't it? Obviously, Filidov violated security regulations by keeping top-secret documents and records at home, which is a serious problem.A junior or mid-level officer would lose his job if he made such a mistake, but Filidov was as old as the minister, and Vatudin knew very well that senior people always think that security regulations are in the way, and in the interest of the country, sometimes It is not necessary to implement it at all, and they often think that they have the highest say in security and confidentiality issues.He wondered if it was the same elsewhere.But there was one thing he was sure of: before he or anyone else in the NSC could accuse Filidov, he'd need something much more serious than that.Even if Philidov was a traitorous spy why should I try to deny it?Vatudin thought in amazement.He thought again of the photographs on the wall of Filidov's house, there must have been hundreds of them: Filidov standing on the top of the turret of his T-34 with binoculars; men in the snow on the outskirts of Stalingrad; Filidov and his tank crew pointing to a bullet hole in the side of a German tank; The Hero medal is pinned to his pillow, and his lovely wife and two children are by his side.These are great events for a patriot and a hero to remember. Searches like that were nothing in the past, Vatudin thought, when we used to suspect everyone. Anyone can scratch that lock.A hypothesis suddenly occurred to him: it was the work of the missing bathhouse attendant, who had been an armorer and might know how to open the lock.What if this is a coincidence again? But if Filidov was a spy, why didn't he take pictures of the official documents himself?As an assistant to the Secretary of Defense, he could call upon any documents he needed, and it was a snap for him to bring cameras into the Defense Department. If we get a single film of this kind of document, Filidov will be in Lefertovo Prison What if he is cunning?What if he wants us to think that someone else stole the material from his diary?I can take what I have to the Ministry of Defense now, but we can only accuse him of violating the security regulations within the Ministry of Defense.If he says he works from home, admits breaking the rules, and the minister defends him as assistant, will the minister defend Filidov? Yes, Vatudin was sure of that.On the one hand, Filidov is a trustworthy assistant and an outstanding professional soldier; on the other hand, the military always bends its arms inward to protect its own people when facing investigations by the National Security Council.These guys hate us more than they hate the West.The Soviet military has never forgotten that in the late 1930s, Stalin used the security apparatus to kill almost all senior officers.As a direct consequence of this, Moscow almost fell into the hands of the German army.No, if we go to them on that alone, they'll deny all our evidence and let MI have to investigate. How many surprises could there be in this case, Colonel Vatudin thought? A few miles away, in his pigeon-cooped office, Foley has the same doubts.He had developed the film and was looking at it carefully.He was annoyed to discover that the Cardinal had run out of film and was unable to reproduce all the documents.However, the part of the document in front of him showed that NSC spies had infiltrated the American Star Wars program named the Tea Clippers.Apparently Filidov believed that this information was more important to the Americans, while the information about the Star Project in the Soviet Union was secondary.Foley identified with his approach as he read the material.By the way, he's going to get some more film for the Cardinal, get all the papers out, and tell him it's time to retire; but he won't be scheduled for an escape for ten days.There was more than enough time, he thought, but he still had a stabbing feeling in his back. How do I get the film to the Cardinal next?The normal intelligence lines had been disrupted, and it would take weeks to establish a new line, and he did not want to risk direct contact. He knew that this was the problem that would eventually arise.During the whole period of his contact with this spy, everything was undoubtedly going well, but he had a vague feeling that sooner or later something would happen.He told himself that the probability of failure is random, and there will always be a loser when rolling the dice.When he was sent here, he learned about the cardinal's activities, and was surprised to find that this person could hide for so long and refused the escape opportunity offered by the US at least three times.Can a man be so lucky all the time?The old fellow must have thought he was invisible.Foley thought to himself, whoever God wants to destroy, he will first make him get carried away. He puts that aside beforehand and gets on with his tasks for the day.In the evening, the postman of the embassy flew west with the cardinal's new information. Intelligence is already on the way.Wright told the CIA director. Thankfully, Judge Moore smiled.Now let's figure out a way to get him out. Clark was being briefed. He flew to England tomorrow and joined the submarine the day after tomorrow. Another brave man.Moore said. He's the best in our business.Wright replied. That was not enough evidence to take action, Vatudin told the chairman after briefly reporting the surveillance and search results.I'm going to send more people into this operation, we also bugged Philidov's residence What about the other colonel? You mean Bondarenko?We cannot enter his residence.His wife didn't go to work and stayed at home all day.Today we heard that he runs several kilometers every morning.This also increases manpower.The only information we have right now is a clean résumé that reveals absolutely nothing suspicious about him. He is an ambitious, official representative of the Ministry of Defense sent to inspect the STAR program.As you can tell from Filidov's diary, Bondarenko was an enthusiastic supporter of the project. How do you feel about this person?asked the chairman in a terse but non-threatening tone.He is a busy man and always speaks to the point. So far, nothing suspicious has been found.He was decorated for his service in Afghanistan, where he commanded a group that repelled a tenacious attack by bandits after being assaulted.Although he reprimanded the NSC security guards for their laziness in person at the Star Project workplace, he explained why in his official report to the Ministry of Defense.It's hard to pick fault from his reasoning. How is the Bondarenko and Filidov case going?asked Gerasimov. The officer sent to investigate the information on Bondarenko was killed in an air crash in Afghanistan, and another officer is said to be dispatched shortly. Where is the bath attendant? We are still looking for him, with no results yet.All places are blocked, including airports, stations and so on.If there is any progress, I will report to you immediately. Very well, you can go, Colonel.Gerasimov returned to the table to look at the papers. After Vatudin left, the chairman of the National Security Council couldn't help laughing.He was astonished to find that things were going fairly well, most successfully with the Svetlana affair.Breaking a spy ring in Moscow is not unusual.When you succeed, the congratulations are always accompanied by questions: why were you so slow to find out?No, Svetlana's father will be in the Politburo, and no one will ask such questions this time.General Secretary Naymonov believed that Sverana's father would be loyal to the man who promoted him.Naymonov was obsessed with reducing armaments and loosening the party's grip on the country, and Gerasimov, by liberating party tradition, would change all that. Of course it won't be that easy.Gerasimov had only three staunch allies in the Politburo, one of them was Aleksandrov, and despite the ideologue's dissent, the general secretary was unable to remove him.Now he has another ally of Comrade General Secretary.But on the other hand, Naymonov also has the support of the military. That's Mathias.The consequences of Rust.The young German once landed on Red Square in the Soviet Union in his rented Cessna.It was a coincidence that Rust flew into the Soviet Union on the day of Border Guards Day, which even he himself could not explain clearly.As a result, Naimonov managed to prevent the National Security Council from having the opportunity to interrogate this hooligan!Gerasimov is still unhappy about this to this day.Rust chose this time because the large number of border guards in the National Security Council will definitely get drunk on this day.This allowed him to fly undetected when flying over the Gulf of Finland, and later the Home Defense Force also failed to detect him, so the young man landed in front of the Red Square in St. Basel! Afterwards, General Secretary Naymonov took swift action: After a heated Politburo meeting, he dismissed the commander of the Home Defense Air Force and Defense Minister Sokolov from his posts.At the meeting of the Politburo, Gerasimov, afraid of endangering his position, raised no objections.The new defense minister, Yazov, is a member of the general secretary. He was originally unknown among the many senior military officers, and was finally promoted to the important position of minister by the general secretary.This matter preserved Naymonov's inherent status.The new problem was that Yazov was not familiar with his job, and he obviously had to rely on the help of a veteran like Filidov. And Vatudin thought it was just a case of counterintelligence, Gerasimov thought to himself. Out of consideration for the safety of the cardinal's information, Foley no longer used the previous method of delivery, and even dared not use the one-time code that was considered impossible to decipher in theory.So on the cover of his latest report, he will warn readers of the premium material that the delivery will not be exactly what they expect. Thinking of this, Wright stood up from his chair.After he photocopied the documents and destroyed the originals, he went to Judge Moore's office.Grey and Ryan have already arrived there. He ran out of film.After the door closed, the deputy director in charge of the Field Service said. What?asked Moore. There is something new.It seems that the National Security Council installed a person in the tea clipper project, and he provided most of the design information for their new mirror device.The cardinal thinks this is more important. He doesn't have enough film left to capture all the information, so he gives priority to reporting what the National Security Council is doing. We only have half of their laser system. Half might be enough.Ryan said.Wright frowned when he heard this, and was very upset that Rennes had the right to read the materials in the super range. He only talked about the effect of changing the design, but did not mention the place of changing the design at all. Can we find out the source of our leak?Gray asked. Maybe, this is someone who really knows the reflector.Parks must hurry to investigate this matter.Ryan, you have actually been there, what do you think? The tests I've seen confirm the performance of the mirrors and the computer software that manipulates them.If the Soviets could replicate that we know they did a pretty good job with the laser light, no?He paused for a moment.Folks, this is scary.If the Soviets got there first, it would defeat all benchmarks of arms limitation, and it would worsen our strategic situation.I mean, the problem will show up in a few years, but Well, if our guys can get another fucking canister, Wright said, we'll be able to work on this thing ourselves.Fortunately, the person named Bondarenko chosen by Misha will report to him regularly. Misha recommended him to the Ministry of Defense to be in charge of laser light work, but the bad thing is that now he is also under suspicion Oh, now we don't have to talk about that, Judge Moore said.Wren didn't need to understand that situation, the judge gave Wright a wink, and he immediately nodded in agreement.Jack, you said you have other things to discuss? On Monday the Politburo will have a newly appointed member, Ilya.Arkadyevich.Vaniev.He was sixty-three years old, his wife died, and he had a daughter named Svetlana, who worked for the State Planning Commission, was divorced, and had one child.As far as we know, Vaniev is decent, honest and reliable by their standards, and has a less messy background.He had succeeded Naymonov at the Ministry of Agriculture, had done an excellent job, and was about to be promoted from the Central Committee to the Politburo.He is a member of Naymonov, so when the Politburo voted, there were four people on his side, one vote more than the Alexandrov faction, and seeing the helpless expressions of the other three people in the room, He stopped.What's the matter? That daughter of his was giving information to Sir Basher.Judge Moore told him. Freeze her as the source of information first, Ren said.It is good to have such a source of information, but if her details are revealed, it will endanger Naymonov's political status.Let her live in seclusion, maybe use her in a few years, but for now she must be completely isolated from the outside world. It may not be easy, Wright said.How is the assessment going? It was done yesterday. It is for the president and a handful of other officials, and the assessment is strictly confidential. Completely correct.I can print it this afternoon.Nothing else?The conversation was over and Ryan left the room.Moore watched the door close and said: I haven't told anyone yet, but the president asked about Naymonov's political status.Allen worried that the recent changes in the Soviet Union showed that Naymonov's power in the country was gradually weakening.At the same time he has convinced the President that there are several things that would not be the right time to proceed now.This means that if we put cardinals out there, well, that might have political consequences that we don't want to see. If Misha gets caught, we'll see the same fallout, Wright noted.Not to mention that it would cause no small harm to our people.Arthur, they are following him, they may have captured Vaniev's daughter She has returned to work at the Planning Commission.said the CIA director. Yes, but the man at the laundry has disappeared.They must have caught her and made her submit.The deputy director in charge of the field service said.We've got to get him out, we can't leave him alone, Arthur, we owe him a favor. I cannot order him out without the approval of the President. Wright was almost furious.Then go fight for it!Fuck the politics and that's it, never mind the fucking politics.Arthur, there's a real problem here.If we let a guy like that get fucked and don't protect him at all, the word will get out the fuck and the Soviets will make a TV series about it!In the end this will cost us far more than the temporary political debate at this moment. Hold on, Gray said.If they caught the party member's daughter, how did she go back to work? politics?Moore mused.Do you think the national security will not be able to hurt this guy's family? right!Wright snorted.Gerasimov is the opposition, can he let Naimonov's people enter the Politburo?Sounds like a political question, but it's not.More likely, Aleksandrov secretly dominated the newcomer without Naymonov's knowledge. So, you think they had her subjugated, released her, and tried to use her to put pressure on her father?asked Moore.It does make sense, but there is no proof. Alexandrov was too old to contest the post.Either way, he's never going to get the top job. Playing the backstage boss is more fun.Although Gerasimov was his confidant, we know that he was ambitious and tried to become Nicholas III. (Editor's Note: Nicholas III, Nichdas III, Italian Pope. He increased the political power of the Orsini family to which he belonged, giving them significant influence in determining the church's major administrative policies and daily affairs, indirectly expanding own sphere of influence.) Bob, you just came up with another reason not to be alarmed.Gray took a sip of his coffee.I also don't want to leave Misha where he is.Is it possible to let him continue to lurk?I mean, there must be some way to put everything in order so that if something ever goes against him, he can justify himself and get out of trouble. No, James, Wright shook his head vigorously, we can't just leave him there just because we need the rest of the report, can we?If he takes the risk of delivering the information despite the fact that someone is investigating him, then we cannot leave him at the mercy of his fate, that would be wrong.Don't forget how much he has done for us all these years.Wright continued speaking for several minutes, expressing that he took the lives of his men seriously.While intelligence agents are often treated like children, requiring encouragement, support, and constant discipline, they are like your own children, and you cannot sit idly by and watch the dangers they encounter. Judge Moore ended the discussion.You've made your point very clearly, Bob, but I'm still going to the President, and it's not just an action. Wright stood his ground.We have to arrange all the personnel properly. I agree, but must be approved before acting. The weather in Fasland is terrible, as it usually is at this time of year.When the Dallas surfaced, the sky was raining and snowing, and a thirty-knot sea wind was blowing violently against the coast of Scotland.From the watchtower of the submarine, Mancuso watches the rocks on the horizon.He had just completed a fast voyage across the Atlantic at an average speed of thirty-one knots, which was the maximum speed of this submarine, not to mention diving so close to the shore; it was extremely dangerous, and he was very reluctant to do it. Yes; but he gets paid to carry out orders, whether you like them or not. The swell was fifteen feet high, and his sub rolled with it, advancing at twelve knots.The sea water hit the deck, and within a few minutes his clothes were soaked and he was shaking.Mancuso was just beginning to adjust to the wind and waves when a British Navy tug approached, not far ahead of the Dallas, and led her into the bay.He has a little-known secret, that is, sometimes people on board get seasick.Those on the watchtower were fine, but those in the round hull were now regretting how full they had eaten a few hours earlier. A few hours later, they reached the hidden waters, turned an S-shaped turn, and drove into the logistics base of the British and American nuclear-powered submarines.Once there, the blue-gray submarine slowly drove into the dock with the help of the wind.Several people were sitting in the car waiting on the shore.With the cables fastened and the pulley gangway in place, Mancuso descended into the cabin. The first person to greet him was a lieutenant colonel.He had thought he was a submarine officer, but the man didn't wear any service insignia, which meant he was in intelligence. How's the transatlantic voyage going, Captain?the man asked. Came here quietly.Well, getting down to business! You are sailing in three hours, and here are your orders.He handed over a wax-sealed brown paper envelope with a date on which it could be opened.Although this kind of thing often happens in movies, this time is an unprecedented experience since he became a commander.Usually you can discuss the content with the person who gave you the mission, but not this time, Mancuso took the order, signed it in front of the intelligence officer, locked it in the safe, and sent him away. Shit!the captain said to himself.Now his guests can board the ship. At this time, two more guests in civilian clothes boarded the submarine, and the first one came down from the torpedo loading bay calmly like a sailor.Mancuso quickly understood why this was the case. Hello, Captain. Jones, what the fuck are you doing here? Admiral Williamson gave me a choice: to be recalled to the reservists, or to serve as a civilian engineer on the ship.I'd rather be an engineer with a higher salary.Jones lowered his voice.This is Mr. Clark, and he doesn't talk much. Clark didn't say much, and Mancuso assigned him to the chief engineer's quarters, which had a spare bed.After the luggage came down from the elevator, Clark took the luggage and walked into the cabin, closing the door. where do i liveJones asked. There is a spare bed in the NCO's locker room.Mancuso replied. Well, NCOs always eat better anyway. How are the classes at school? With one semester left to finish my masters degree, I've had contractors talk to me about work.I am engaged.Jones pulled out his wallet and showed the captain a photo.Her name is Kim and she works in the library. Congratulations, Mr. Jones. Thank you, Captain.The general said you really need me.Jin can understand that her father is also an army officer.By the way, what is going on?What special action is it that I must do?Special operations is a general term that covers all sorts of things, mostly dangerous things. I don't know, they haven't told me yet. Well, it would be nice to go north again.Jones said.To be honest, I kind of want to go. Mancuso didn't think they really wanted to be there, but didn't speak up.Jones went aft to rest, and Mancuso went into the chief engineer's quarters. Is Mr. Clark there? Yes, sir.He had hung up his jacket and was wearing a short-sleeved top.The man, Mancuso saw, was in his early forties, unremarkable at first glance, about six feet one, with a thin build.But on closer inspection, Mancuso noticed that this man did not have the fat around the middle-aged people's waist, his shoulders were very broad, his arms were too long, and his hairy forearm had a tattoo pattern, which seemed to be a pair of grinning teeth red seal. I once knew someone who also had this tattoo, an army officer who is now in the sixth group. That is a thing of the past, Captain.I don't want to talk about that, sir. What's the matter with this mission? Sir, orders regarding your mission will Satisfy my curiosity, Mancuso demanded with a smile.They have put away the gangplank. This involves the carrying of a person. Goodness, Mancuso nodded flatly.Do you need any other support? No need, sir.This is going solo, just me and my gear. Well, we'll have a chance to discuss it in detail after we sail.You eat in the official hall, just outside under the escalator, a few steps towards the stern of the ship.One more thing: will timing be an issue? Probably not, as long as you don't mind having to wait a while.Parts of the plan are still pending. That's all I can say for now, Captain.Sorry, I'm also following orders. Good, you sleep on the top bunk.Take a nap if you need to. Thank you, sir.Clark watched the captain go out and close the door, and couldn't help laughing.He hadn't been on a Los Angeles-class submarine before, and most of the intelligence missions were carried out by the smaller, more nimble Zinda-class submarines.He always slept in the same position, always in the upper bunk of the chief engineer's quarters, the only spare bed on board.Storing gear was usually a bit of a problem, but Clark was adept at it and always had a way.When the things were hidden, he climbed into the bunk.After a long flight, he was tired and needed a few hours of rest.Submarine beds are like that, leaning against the curved shell, hard as a coffin with the lid ajar. American ingenuity is admirable.Morozov said.It's been a busy few weeks in Dushanbe.Two of the six laser beam emitters were defrosted and disassembled after the tests, more precisely after the Moscow correspondents left, and they found that the optics were badly burnt; this indicated that the mirror coating was still faulty.負責的組長說，很可能是品管不佳，他把這個問題推給了另一組的工程師。他們現在已經弄到更令人振奮的東西，也就是多年來一直聽說的美國反射鏡設計。 這個構想出自一位天文學家，他想找出一種辦法，能拍攝下不會閃爍的恆星照片。很顯然地，這根本是異想天開。不過他繼續研究，結果成功了。我知道大概的情況，但不完全清楚。你說得很不錯，年輕人。這辦法很巧妙，我們想不出來，他一邊大聲說，一邊翻到有關電腦規格的那一頁。我們沒有辦法複製任何具有這種性能的裝置，光是建造這致動器我也不知道我們是否能辦到。 美國人正在建造望遠鏡 是的，在夏威夷，我知道。不過從技術上來說，夏威夷的那個比這個要落後多了。美國人的突破性成果尚未被使用於一般的科學領域。請看簡圖上的日期，也許他們已經將這玩意兒投入使用。He shook his head.他們領先了我們。 你得走了。 是的，謝謝你保護我這麼久。阿圖寧此番話是真誠的。他有地方睡覺，在安排計畫的時候，還有熱飯熱菜吃。 或者說，他只是想安排潛逃的計畫而已。他甚至無法預見所處環境的不便。要是在西方，他很容易就能弄到新衣服，偽裝用的假髮，甚至附有如何改變容貌說明書的化妝箱。在西方，他可以將裝備藏在汽車的後座上，四小時行駛二百英里都沒人會來盤查。在莫斯科他沒有辦法這麼做。國安會此時可能已搜查過他的住處，確定了他是什麼裝束，他們會認出他的長相和頭髮的顏色。他們顯然不知道的唯一情況是，他在阿富汗軍界有一些朋友；他從未向任何人提起過他們。 他們給了他一件不同式樣的外套，但不合身；他也不希望再給這些人帶來危險。他已編好一套掩護自己的謊言：他和一個犯罪集團一起藏身在幾個街區之遠的地方。西方對莫斯科不甚瞭解的一個事實是這裏的治安情況很糟糕，並且每況愈下；雖然比美國大城市的情況好些，但在部分區域，膽小的人仍不敢單獨夜行。由於外國人不經常光顧這些區域，而街上的犯罪分子也很少找外國人的麻煩騷擾外國人會受到莫斯科民兵的有力打擊所以莫斯科的犯罪情況外界並不清楚。 他朝河邊黝暗的特羅菲莫沃大道走去。阿圖寧對自己的愚蠢行為感到吃驚。他總是想，如果他需要逃離該市，他該搭乘貨船。他父親在船上工作了一輩子，阿圖寧知道安全的藏匿之處但是河面結冰了，貨船正值停航期，他為沒有想到這一點而氣惱。 再為此擔憂是沒有意義的，他想，必須另謀新計。他知道莫斯科汽車廠離這裏只有一公里遠，並且全年通車，他將設法趕上一列南下的火車，也許能藏進一節裝載汽車零件的貨物車廂。如果幸運，他將成功地到達喬治亞，在那裏，沒有人會那麼仔細檢查他的新證件。在蘇聯，有人失蹤是常有的事，他想，畢竟它是個有二億八千萬人口的國家嘛。他不知道他的這些想法有哪些是實際的，哪些又只是在給自己壯膽而已。 但是現在他已不能回頭了，事情在阿富汗時就已經開始了，他也不知戰爭和自己內心中的矛盾掙扎是否會有平息的一天。原本他可以拒絕這份工作的。身為兵器連的一名下士，他搞的是蘇軍委婉地稱為反恐怖主義裝置的東西。它們可以空投，或者經常由掃蕩村莊的蘇聯士兵完成。有的是典型的俄羅斯娃娃，一種屁股圓滾滾的印花娃娃；或者是小汽車、鋼筆。大人一看就知道這是什麼玩意兒，但兒童有好奇心，不容易記取別人的教訓。不久後，聽說有兒童撿，於是娃娃炸彈的數量減少了。但是有一點卻沒有改變：當撿起這些東西時，一百公克的炸藥就會馬上爆炸。他的工作是裝配這些炸彈，並教士兵如何正確使用。 阿圖寧起初對此並未深思。這是他的工作，是上級的命令。蘇聯人天生不愛支配別人，也不敢違抗命令。再說這是一件安全、簡單的工作，他不必扛著步槍到土匪占領的鄉下去。唯一的危險是在喀布爾市場，他總是謹慎地做到五人以上同行。有一次他看到一個小孩不知是男孩還是女孩的右手彎得像動物的爪子，孩子的母親瞪著眼望著他和他的同志們，那神情他永遠也無法忘卻。他曾聽說阿富汗土匪活捉到蘇聯飛行員後，女人們如何把他們剝皮取樂。他認為這證明了這些野蠻人的殘忍但是孩子們卻不是野蠻的。馬克斯主義說過，任何孩子只要受到適當的教育和引導，就會終身效忠共產黨。但那個孩子除外。他記得兩年前那個寒冷的十一月，那孩子的傷口已經完全癒合，甚至還對他微笑；他太小了，尚不明白他將終身殘廢。但是他的母親知道，知道孩子是如何在一生下來時就遭到懲罰的。從那以後，這種安全、簡單的工作就再也不是原先那樣了。每當他在機械裝置上裝配炸彈時，他總是看到一個孩子肥肥短短的小手，並且小手開始在睡夢中出現。喝酒，甚至吸毒也無法清除這些影子，與他的技師同事們交談也無濟於事不過此事引起連上輔導長對他的注意。輔導長解釋說，他必須做的這件事情確實令人難受，但為了減少死亡這又是十分必要的。除非阿圖寧想調到步兵連去，到了那裏他也許會明白為什麼有必要採取這樣嚴厲的手段。 現在他才明白自己應該去步兵連的。他為自己的膽小而悔恨。在步兵連服役也許能尋回他的自我，也許會也許會做許多事情，阿圖寧心想，可是他沒有作這個選擇，情況也就依然如故。最後，他所得到的就是輔導長的一紙文件，它將伴隨他漂泊一生。 所以現在他要盡力贖罪，他告訴自己，也許他已經贖完了罪現在，如果他幸運的話，就可以逃出去，也許他有可能會忘記自己製造的玩具所造成的後果。在這寒冷、陰沉的夜晚，這個想法不斷地在他腦海中翻騰著。 他朝北走去，遠離髒骯的人行道，避開路燈在黑暗中行走。從莫斯科工廠下班回家的工人使街上變得相當擁擠，但當他到達廠外的圍欄時，行人都已散去。這時天飄起細雪，能見範圍只有一百公尺左右，停在那裏的貨車車廂上，燈的周圍積滿了團團雪花。似乎有一列火車要南下，轉軌的火車來來往往，把貨車車廂從這邊調到另一邊。他在一節車廂後藏了幾分鐘以便弄清楚狀況。風漸漸變強。阿圖寧尋找著更有利的位置。在五十公尺開外有一些貨車車廂，從那裏可以看得較清楚。其中有一節的門開著，如果他想走進去，他必須先看看鎖門的裝置。他低著頭走過去，以便避開迎面而來的風。他能聽到的不是腳下積雪的沙沙聲，而是轉軌火車車頭發出的信號哨音。他想，這是友好的聲音，這聲音也許能改變他的生命，也許還能使他走向自由。 他看到那節貨車車廂中有人時，略感吃驚，一共有三名，兩個人拿著汽車零件箱，空手的第三個人伸進口袋掏出一把刀來。 阿圖寧心想，如果他們想偷竊一些零件去黑市銷售，那他可不在意。但是沒等他開口，第三個人就跳下來把他撲倒，他的頭部冷不防地撞在鋼軌上。阿圖寧頭腦依然清醒，但一時間動彈不得。由於措手不及，他甚至忘掉了害怕。第三個人轉身說了些什麼，阿圖寧沒聽清楚回答，只知道對方的話說得很快、很嚴厲。正當他設法弄清楚是怎麼回事時，突然攻擊者轉身用刀猛砍他的脖子。他甚至沒有覺得疼，他想解釋他不在意不管只是想其中一人拎著兩個箱子，把他踩在腳下，顯然那人很害怕。阿圖寧覺得很奇怪，因為面臨著死亡威脅的人是他 兩小時後，一列轉軌火車頭上的司機注意到鐵軌上有一個奇怪的、被積雪覆蓋的人影，但無法及時停車。他看到火車壓了什麼之後，立即呼叫車站站長。