tc.redrabbit-第33章

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　　　More　often　he　processed　messages　about　defectors　or　suspected　would　be　defectors…or；　just　as　deadly；　suspicion　of　officers　and　agents　who'd　〃doubled；〃　gone　over　to　serve　the　enemy。　He'd　even　seen　such　evidence　passed　along　in　message　form；　calling　an　officer　home　for　〃consultations〃　from　which　they'd　rarely　returned　back　to　their　rezidenturas。　Exactly　what　happened　to　them…that　was　just　the　subject　of　gossip；　all　of　it　unpleasant。　One　officer　who'd　gone　bad；　the　story　went；　had　been　loaded　alive　into　a　crematorium；　the　way　the　German　SS　was　supposed　to　have　done。　He'd　heard　there　was　a　film　of　it；　and　he'd　talked　to　people　who　knew　people　who　knew　people　who'd　seen　it。　But　he　had　never　actually　seen　it　himself；　nor　met　anyone　who　had。　Some　things；　Oleg　Ivanovich　thought；　were　too　beyond　the　pale　even　for　the　KGB。　No；　most　of　the　stories　talked　of　firing　squads…which　often　fucked　up；　so　the　stories　went…or　a　single　pistol　round　in　the　head；　as　Lavrenti　Beriya　had　done　himself。　Those　stories；　everyone　believed。　He'd　seen　photos　of　Beria；　and　they　seemed　to　drip　with　blood。　And　Iron　Feliks　would　doubtless　have　done　it　between　bites　of　his　sandwich。　He　was　the　kind　of　man　to　give　ruthlessness　an　evil　name。
　　　But　it　was　generally　felt；　if　not　widely　spoken；　that　KGB　was　being　more　kulturniy　in　its　dealings　with　the　world。　More　cultured。　More　civilized。　Kinder　and　gentler。　Traitors；　of　course；　were　executed；　but　only　after　a　trial　in　which　they　were　at　least　given　a　pro　forma　chance　to　explain　their　actions　and；　if　they　were　innocent；　to　prove　it。　It　almost　never　happened；　but　only　because　the　State　only　prosecuted　the　truly　guilty。　The　investigators　in　the　Second　Chief　Directorate　were　among　the　most　feared　and　skilled　people　in　the　entire　country。　It　was　said　they　were　never　wrong　and　never　fooled；　like　some　kind　of　gods。
　　　Except　that　the　State　said　that　there　were　no　gods。
　　　Men；　then…and　women。　Everyone　knew　about　the　Sparrow　School；　about　which　the　men　often　spoke　with　twisty　grins　and　winking　eyes。　Ah；　to　be　an　instructor　or；　better　still；　a　quality…assurance　officer　there！　they　dreamed。　And　to　be　paid　for　it。　As　his　Irina　often　noted；　all　men　were　pigs。　But；　Zaitzev　mused；　it　could　be　fun　to　be　a　pig。
　　　Kill　the　Pope…why？　He　was　no　threat　to　this　country。　Stalin　himself　had　once　joked；　How　many　divisions　does　the　Pope　have？　So　why　kill　the　man？　Even　the　rezident　warned　against　it。　Goderenko　feared　the　political　repercussions。　Stalin　had　ordered　Trotsky　killed；　and　had　dispatched　a　KGB　officer　to　do　it；　knowing　that　he'd　suffer　long…term　imprisonment　for　the　task。　But　he'd　done　it；　faithful　to　the　Will　of　the　Party；　in　a　professional　gesture　that　they　talked　about　in　the　academy　training　classes…along　with　the　more　casual　advice　that　we　really　don't　do　that　sort　of　thing　anymore。　It　was　not；　the　instructors　didn't　add；　kulturniy。　And　so；　yes；　KGB　was　drifting　away　from　that　sort　of　behavior。
　　　Until　now。　Until　today。　And　even　our　senior　rezident　is　advising　against　it。　Why？　Because　he　doesn't　want　himself　and　his　agency…and　his　country！…to　be　so　nekulturniy？
　　　Or　because　to　do　so　would　be　worse　than　foolish？　It　would　be　wrong。。。？　〃Wrong〃　was　a　concept　foreign　to　citizens　in　the　Soviet　Union。　At　least；　what　people　perceived　as　things　that　were　morally　wrong。　Morality　in　his　country　had　been　replaced　by　what　was　politically　correct　or　incorrect。　Whatever　served　the　interests　of　his　country's　political　system　was　worthy　of　praise。　That　which　did　not　was　worthy　of。。。　death？
　　　And　who　decided　such　things？
　　　Men　did。
　　　Men　did　because　there　was　no　morality；　as　the　world　understood　the　term。　There　was　no　God　to　pronounce　what　was　good　and　what　was　evil。
　　　And　yet。。。
　　　And　yet；　in　the　heart　of　every　man　was　an　inborn　knowledge　of　right　and　wrong。　To　kill　another　man　was　wrong。　To　take　a　man's　life　you　had　to　have　a　just　cause。　But　it　was　also　men　who　decided　what　constituted　such　cause。　The　right　men　in　the　right　place　with　the　right　authority　had　the　ability　and　the　right　to　kill　because…why？
　　　Because　Marx　and　Lenin　said　so。
　　　That　was　what　the　government　of　his　country　had　long　since　decided。
　　　Zaitzev　buttered　his　last　piece　of　bread　and　dipped　it　in　the　remaining　gravy　in　his　bowl　before　eating　it。　He　knew　he　was　thinking　overly　deep；　even　dangerous；　thoughts。　His　parent　society　did　not　encourage　or　even　permit　independent　thinking。　You　were　not　supposed　to　question　the　Party　and　its　wisdom。　Certainly　not　here。　In　the　KGB　cafeteria；　you　never；　ever；　not　even　once　heard　someone　wonder　aloud　if　the　Party　and　the　Motherland　it　served　and　protected　were　even　capable　of　doing　an　incorrect　act。　Oh；　maybe　once　in　a　while；　people　speculated　on　tactics；　but　even　then　the　talk　was　within　limits　that　were　taller　and　stronger　than　the　Kremlin's　own　brick　walls。
　　　His　country's　morality；　he　mused；　had　been　predetermined　by　a　German　Jew　living　in　London；　and　the　son　of　a　czarist　bureaucrat　who　simply　hadn't　liked　the　czar　much　and　whose　overly　adventurous　brother　had　been　executed　for　taking　direct　action。　That　man　had　found　shelter　in　that　most　capitalistic　of　nations；　Switzerland；　then　had　been　dispatched　back　to　Mother　Russia　by　the　Germans　in　the　hope　that　he　could　upset　the　czar's　government；　allowing　Germany　then　to　defeat　the　other　Western　nations　on　the　Western　Front　of　the　First　World　War。　All　in　all；　it　didn't　sound　like　something　ordained　by　any　deity　for　some　great　plan　for　human　advancement；　did　it？　Everything　Lenin　had　used　as　a　model　for　changing　his　country…and　through　it；　the　entire　world…had　e　from　a　book　written　by　Karl　Marx；　more　writings　by　Friedrich　Engels；　and　his　own　vision　for　being　the　chief　of　a　new　kind　of　country。
　　　The　only　thing　that　distinguished　Marxism…Leninism　from　a　religion　was　the　lack　of　a　godhead。　Both　systems　claimed　absolute　authority　over　the　affairs　of　men；　and　both　claimed　to　be　right　a　priori。　Except　that　his　country's　system　chose　to　assert　that　authority　by　exercising　the　power　of　life　and　death。
　　　His　country　said　it　worked　for　justice；　for　the　good　of　the　workers　and　peasants　all　around　the　world。　But　other　men；　higher　up　in　the　hierarchy；　decided　who　the　workers　and　peasant　were；　and　they　themselves　lived　in　ornate　dachas　and　multiroom　flats；　and　had　automobiles　and　drivers。。。　and　privileges。
　　　What　privileges　they　had！　Zaitzev　had　also　dispatched　messages　about　pantyhose　and　perfumes　that　the　men　in　this　building　wanted　for　their　women。　These　items　were　often　delivered　in　the　diplomatic　bag　from　embassies　in　the　West；　things　his　own　country　could　not　produce；　but　which　the　nomenklatura　craved；　along　with　their　West　German　refrigerators　and　stoves。　When　he　saw　the　big　shots　racing　down　the　center　of　Moscow's　streets　in　their　chauffeured　Zils；　then　Zaitzev　understood　how　Lenin　had　felt　about　the　czars。　The　czar　had　claimed　divine　right　as　his　personal　deed　to　power。　The　Party　chieftains　claimed　their　positions　by　the　will　of　the　people。
　　　Except　that　the　People　had　never　given　anything　to　them　by　public　acclamation。　The　Western　democracies　had　elections…Pravda　spat　upon　them　every　few　years…but　they　were　real　elections。　England　was　now　run　by　a　nasty…looking　woman；　and　America　by　an　aged　and　buffoonish　actor；　but　both　had　been　chosen　by　the　people　of　their　countries；　and　the　previous　rulers　had　been　removed　by　popular　choice。　Neither　leader　was　well…loved　in　the　Soviet　Union；　and　he'd　seen　many　official　messages　sent　out　to　ascertain　their　mental　state　and　deeply　held　political　beliefs；　the　concern　in　those　messages　had　been　manifest；　and　Zaitzev　himself　had　his　worries；　but　as　distasteful　and　unstable　as　these　leaders　might　be；　their　people　had　chosen　them。　The　Soviet　people　had　decidedly　not　selected　the　current　crop　of　princes　on　the　Politburo。
　　　And　now　the　new　munist　princes　were　thinking　about　murdering　a　Polish　priest　in　Rome。　But　how　did　he　threaten　the　Rodina？　This　Pope　fellow　had　no　military　formations　at　his　mand。　A　political　threat；　then？　But　how？　The　Vatican　was　supposed　to　have　diplomatic　identity；　but　nationhood　without　military　power　was…what？　If　there　was　no　God；　then　whatever　power　the　Pope　exercised　had　to　be　an　illusion；　of　no　more　substan