tc.redrabbit-第81章

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　　　〃And　Rasputin　had　a　bad　chemical　imbalance；　too？〃　Jack　wondered　aloud。
　　　〃Maybe。　I　don't　know　much　about　that；　except　he　was　supposed　to　be　a　crazy　kinda　priest；　wasn't　he？〃
　　　〃Not　a　priest；　some　kinda　mystic　civilian。　I　suppose　today　he'd　be　a　TV　evangelist；　right？　Whatever　he　was；　he　brought　down　the　House　of　Romanov…but　they　were　pretty　useless　anyway。〃
　　　〃And　then　Stalin　took　over？〃
　　　〃Lenin　first；　then　Stalin。　Vladimir　Ilyich　checked　out　from　strokes。〃
　　　〃Hypertensive；　maybe；　or　just　cholesterol　buildup　and　he　clotted　in　the　brain　and　that　did　him。　And　Stalin　was　worse；　right？〃
　　　〃Lenin　was　no　day　at　the　beach；　but　Stalin　was　pretty　amazing…Tamerlane　e　back　to　the　twentieth　century；　or　maybe　one　of　the　Caesars。　When　the　Romans　reconquered　a　rebellious　city；　they　killed　everything　there　was；　right　down　to　the　dogs。〃
　　　〃Really？〃
　　　〃Yeah；　but　the　Brits　always　spared　the　dogs。　Too　sentimental　about　them；〃　Jack　added。
　　　〃Sally　misses　Ernie；〃　Cathy　reminded　him　in　female　fashion…almost；　but　not　totally　irrelevant　to　the　conversation。　Ernie　was　their　dog　back　home。
　　　〃So　do　I；　but　he's　going　to　have　a　lot　of　fun　this　fall…duck　season　soon。　He'll　get　to　retrieve　all　the　dead　birds　out　of　the　water。〃
　　　Cathy　shivered。　She'd　never　hunted　anything　more　alive　than　the　hamburger　at　the　local　supermarket…but　she　carved　up　human　beings　with　knives。　Like　that　makes　any　sense；　Ryan　thought　with　a　wry　smile。　But　the　world　had　no　rule　that　required　logic　on　its　surface…not　the　last　time　he'd　checked。
　　　〃Don't　worry；　babe。　Ernie　will　like　it。　Trust　me。〃
　　　〃Yeah；　sure。〃
　　　〃He　loves　to　go　swimming；〃　Jack　pointed　out；　extending　the　needle。　〃So；　what　interesting　eyeball　problems　at　the　hospital　next　week？〃
　　　〃Just　routine　stuff…checking　eyes　and　prescribing　glasses　all　week。〃
　　　〃No　fun　stuff；　like　cutting　some　poor　bastard's　left　eye　in　half　and　then　sewing　it　back　together？〃
　　　〃That's　not　a　procedure；〃　she　pointed　out。
　　　〃Babe；　I　could　never　cut　into　a　person's　eyeball　with　a　knife　without　tossing　my　cookies…or　maybe　fainting。〃　The　very　thought　of　it　made　him　shiver。
　　　〃Wimp〃　was　all　she　had　to　say　about　that　admission。　She　didn't　understand　that　this　was　a　skill　not　covered　in　the　Marine　Corps　Basic　School　at　Quantico；　Virginia。
　　　Mary　Pat　could　feel　that　her　husband　was　still　awake；　but　it　wasn't　a　time　to　talk；　even　with　their　personal　hand…jive　technique。　Instead　she　was　thinking　about　operations…how　to　get　the　package　out。　Moscow　would　be　too　hard。　Other　parts　of　the　Soviet　Union　were　no　easier；　because　Moscow　Station　didn't　have　all　that　many　assets　it　could　use　elsewhere　in　this　vast　country…intelligence　operations　tended　to　be　centered　in　national　capitals　because　that　was　where　you　could　place　〃diplomats〃　who　were　truly　wolves　in　sheep's　clothing。　The　obvious　counter　for　that　was　to　use　your　government　capital　just　for　strictly　government…related　administrative　services；　distanced　from　military　and　other　sensitive　affairs；　but　nobody　would　do　that；　for　the　simple　reason　that　government　big　shots　wanted　all　their　functionaries　within　arm's　length　so　that　they　…the　big　shots…could　enjoy　their　exercise　of　power。　And　that　was　what　they　all　lived　for；　whether　it　was　in　Moscow；　Hitler's　Berlin；　or　Washington；　D。C。
　　　So；　if　not　out　of　Moscow；　then　where？　There　were　only　so　many　places　the　Rabbit　was　free　to　go。　Nowhere　west　of　the　wire；　as　she　thought　of　the　Iron　Curtain　that　had　fallen　across　Europe　in　1945。　And　there　were　few　places　where　a　man　like　him　could　plausibly　want　to　go　that　were　convenient　to　CIA。　The　beaches　at　Sochi；　perhaps。　Theoretically；　the　Navy　could　get　a　submarine　there　and　make　the　snatch；　but　you　couldn't　just　whistle　up　a　submarine；　and　the　Navy　would　have　a　cow　over　that；　just　for　having　it　asked　of　them。
　　　That　left　the　fraternal　socialist　states　of　Eastern　Europe；　which　were　about　as　exciting　as　tourist　spots　as　central　Mississippi　in　the　summer：　a　good　place　to　go　if　you　got　off　on　cotton　plantations　and　blazing　heat；　but　otherwise　why　bother？　Poland　was　out。　Warsaw　had　been　rebuilt　after　the　Wehrmacht's　harsh　version　of　urban　renewal；　but　Poland　right　now　was　a　very　tight　place　due　to　its　internal　political　troubles；　and　the　easiest　exit　point；　Gdansk；　was　now　as　tightly　guarded　as　the　Russian…Polish　border。　It　hadn't　helped　that　the　Brits　had　arranged　for　the　purloining　of　a　new　Russian　T…72　main　battle　tank　there。　Mary　Pat　hoped　the　stolen　tank　was　useful　to　somebody；　but　some　idiot　in　London　had　bragged　about　it　to　the　newspapers　and　the　story　had　broken；　ending　Gdansk's　utility　as　a　port　of　exit　for　the　next　few　years。　The　DDR；　perhaps？　But　few　Russians　cared　a　rat's　ass　about　Germany；　and　there　was　little　there　for　them　to　want　to　see。　Czechoslovakia？　An　interesting　city　supposedly；　landmarked　with　imperial　architecture；　and　a　good　cultural　life。　Their　symphonies　and　ballet　were　almost　on　a　class　with　the　Russians'　own；　and　the　art　galleries　were　supposedly　excellent。　But　the　Czech…Austrian　border　was　also　very　tightly　guarded。
　　　That　left。。。　Hungary。
　　　Hungary；　she　thought。　Budapest　was　also　an　old　imperial　city；　once　ruled　sternly　by　the　Austrian　Hapsburg　dynasty；　conquered　by　the　Russians　in　1945　after　a　nasty；　prolonged　battle　with　the　German　SS；　probably　rebuilt　to　whatever　former　glory　it　had　enjoyed　a　hundred　years　before。　It　was　not　enthusiastically　munist；　as　they'd　demonstrated　in　1956；　before　being　harshly　put　down　by　the　Russians；　at　Khrushchev's　personal　orders；　and　then　under　Andropov's　stewardship　as　USSR　Ambassador　reestablished　as　a　happy　socialist　brotherhood；　though　one　more　loosely　governed　after　the　brief　and　bloody　rebellion。　The　head　rebels　had　all　been　hanged；　shot；　or　otherwise　disposed　of。　Forgiveness　had　never　been　a　Marxist…Leninist　virtue。
　　　But　a　lot　of　Russians　took　the　train　to　Budapest。　It　was　the　neighbor　of　Yugoslavia；　the　munist　San　Francisco；　a　place　where　Russians　could　not　go　without　permission；　but　Hungary　traded　freely　with　Yugoslavia；　and　so　Soviet　citizens　could　purchase　VCRs；　Reebok　running　shoes；　and　Fogal　pantyhose　there。　Typically；　Russians　went　there　with　one　suitcase　full　and　two　or　three　empty；　and　a　shopping　list　for　all　their　friends。
　　　Soviets　could　travel　there　with　reasonable　freedom；　because　they　had　econ　rubles；　which　all　socialist　countries　were　required　to　honor　by　the　socialist　Big　Brother　in　Moscow。　Budapest　was；　in　fact；　the　boutique　of　the　Eastern　Bloc。　You　could　even　get　X…rated　tapes　for　the　tape　machines　that　were　manufactured　there…rip…offs　of　Japanese　designs；　reverse…engineered　and　made　in　their　own　fraternal　socialist　factories。　The　tapes　were　smuggled　in　from　Yugoslavia　and　copied…everywhere；　everything　from　The　Sound　of　Music　to　Debbie　Does　Dallas。　Budapest　had　decent　art　galleries　and　historical　sites；　good　orchestras；　and　the　food　was　supposed　to　be　pretty　good。　An　entirely　plausible　place　for　the　Rabbit　to　go；　with　every　ostensible　intention　of　going　back　to　his　beloved　Rodina。
　　　That's　the　beginning　of　a　plan；　Mary　Pat　thought。　That　was　also　enough　lost　sleep　for　one　night。
　　　〃So；　what　happened？〃　the　Ambassador　asked。
　　　〃An　AVH　spook　was　having　coffee　one　table　away　from　where　my　agent　made　a　drop；〃　Szell　explained　in　the　Ambassador's　private　office。　It　was　located　on　the　top　floor；　in　the　corner…in　fact；　in　the　quarters　once　occupied　by　Jozsef　Cardinal　Mindszenty　during　his　lengthy　residency　at　the　U。S。　Embassy。　A　beloved　figure　both　in　the　eyes　of　the　American　staffers　and　the　Hungarian　people；　he'd　been　imprisoned　by　the　Nazis；　released　by　the　arriving　Red　Army；　and　promptly　returned　to　prison　for　not　being　enthusiastic　enough　over　the　advent　of　the　New　Faith　of　Russia；　though；　technically；　he'd　been　imprisoned　on　the　far…fetched　charges　of　being　a　raging　royalist　who　wished　to　return　the　House　of　Hapsburg　to　imperial　rule。　The　local　munists　hadn't　been　overly　strong　on　creative　writing。　Even　at　the　turn　of　the　twentieth　century；　the　Hapsburgs　had　been　about　as　popular　in　Budapest　as　a　bargeload　of　plague　rats。
　　　〃Why　were　you　doing　it；　Jim？〃　Ambassador　Peter　〃Spike〃　Ericsson　asked。　He'd　have　to　reply　to　the　venomous；　but　entirely　predictable；　munique　that　had　arrived　with　the