Page 38 of The Unseen
“Whatever for?”
“To hide valuables.”
“Why do I need a valise and a gown with a secret pocket?”
“Valya, there might come a time when you’ll have to flee. There’ll be no time to think clearly or make preparations.”
“That will never happen.” Valentina shook her head stubbornly as if she could chase away the terrifying thought.
“It’s better to be ready and have no need of your supplies than to need your supplies and not be ready should the worst come to pass.”
“You’re frightening me, Alyosha.”
“I’m only trying to impress the seriousness of the situation upon you. Should you need to leave, go to my aunt in Paris. Her name is Elizaveta Petrova and she lives at seventeen Rue Lafayette. I will meet you there as soon as I’m able. Will you remember the address?”
“Yes. Seventeen Rue Lafayette. Elizaveta Petrova.”
“Good girl.”
“We’d best get going, Alexei Vladimirovich,” Petr said. He was waiting by the gate, sitting on the bench of the simple trap he’d use to deliver Alexei back to the city.
“Of course, Petr. I’m coming.” Alexei kissed Valentina and looked deep into her eyes. “Do as I ask. Please.”
She nodded and watched miserably as he climbed into the cart.
After Alexei left, everyone seemed listless and melancholy, but none as much as Valentina. Perhaps she should have agreed to his plan, she thought, as she moped about the house and garden. Perhaps he was right and the situation was a lot more desperate than she allowed herself to believe. She decided that if nothing changed by Christmas, she’d agree to his plan.
TWENTY
OCTOBER 1917
Petrograd, Russia
Once they returned to the city in the first week of September, life settled into an uneasy routine. Tanya and Kolya resumed their studies with Olga Alexandrovna, while Elena and Ivan Kalinin spent most of their time at home but occasionally went out to call on their friends and had some close associates come for tea or supper. The gatherings were small and much more modest than they’d been in pre-revolutionary days, but they could hardly stop living altogether. Valentina spent most of her days reading or pacing the back garden. She was too frightened to go far, but the lack of fresh air and exercise was driving her mad. Olga Alexandrovna invited her to sit in on the lessons if she was bored, but she had no desire to return to the schoolroom. She wanted to live her life, and to be trapped in a state of constant fear and uncertainty was unbearable.
She saw Alexei only once in September. He managed to stop in for a few minutes to reassure her that he was well, although he didn’t look it, and to see how she was getting on.
“Did you pack the valise, like I asked you?” he said as soon as they were alone.
“No,” she admitted. She’d considered doing it, but once they’d returned to the city, the idea of preparing for flight had put her off so much that she’d pushed her promise to Alexei to the back of her mind, to be dealt with later, like after Christmas.
“Valya, please, just do it, and ask everyone in the household to do the same.”
“They’ll never do it, especially Papa.”
“He might. My parents have begun to prepare. My mother has sewn her most valuable jewels into the hem of her winter coat. And she’s done the same for Svetlana.”
“Really?” Valentina gasped. She’d never expected Vera Konstantinovna to take such drastic measures, but the fact that she had made Valentina question her own stubbornness.
“Yes. Valya, please. You might never have need of these precautions, but it’s best to be prepared, just in case.”
“All right. I’ll do it.”
“Do you remember my aunt’s name and address?”
“I do.”
Alexei pulled her into an embrace and held her tight. The wool of his coat felt scratchy against her face, but the karakul fur of the collar was soft and curly against her forehead. Such contrast, such inconsistency. “I love you, Valya,” he said softly.
