Bomb Grade

chapter 9

‘H e’s sure?’

‘Of course he’s not sure! How can he be?’

Natalia wished Aleksai hadn’t been so brusque. ‘Give me some idea!’ she demanded, matching his impatience.

‘He’s sure it isn’t a confidence trick,’ allowed Popov. ‘Oskin’s had enough of those to recognize each and every sign. This time the approach has been made to the security head of a nuclear site about five kilometres outside Kirov: the nearest township of any size is Kirs. It’s one of the installations we already know kept inaccurate records, to inflate their production norms.’

‘What isn’t he sure of?’

‘Carrying out a proper investigation. There’s still too much we don’t know: too much that could go wrong.’

‘Tell me about Oskin! How reliable is he?’ Natalia’s concentration had switched almost entirely from her deputy’s meeting with Charlie, although he remained a peripheral part of what she and Popov were now discussing. On the surface, Russia’s acceptance of yet another foreign investigator was the outward proof to the West of Moscow’s enforcement commitment. Hidden beneath the surface from everyone except herself was what Natalia interpreted it as a very clear and personal warning. If there was not soon some visible success to be trumpeted abroad, Natalia guessed the next political move – equally for foreign consumption – would be her very public replacement. Natalia’s primary concern was not for herself. It would be impossible for her ever to get another privileged government job, probably any worthwhile job at all. Which endangered Sasha. Although she knew it was premature and unprofessional, Natalia felt the excitement surge through her at even the vaguest possibility of mounting an operation: of doing something at last! And it wasn’t just excitement. There was a lot of relief mixed with it, which was equally premature and unprofessional.

‘Nikolai Ivanovich Oskin is totally reliable,’ assured Popov. ‘He worked here at headquarters, as a regional supervisor before I appointed him the actual regional commander. And I did that because I was sure I could trust him.’

‘You talked of false alarms before?’

‘ Scams, before,’ qualified Popov. He got up from the chair in Natalia’s office to move to his favourite spot, near the window overlooking the Ulitza Zhitnaya. Only half turned to Natalia, the man went on, ‘Which goes even further to show his reliability. He waits, until he’s sure. That’s why he’d held back from alerting us to situations in the past that have turned out to have been deception, between crooks. He doesn’t, he won’t, cry wolf.’

Natalia felt a further stir of excitement. ‘How much do we know about this new affair?’

‘Oskin doubts the security in his office,’ said Popov. ‘So he moves around, making spot visits, a lot of them unannounced. He’s established informants in the plants he’s responsible for. At the Kirs site it’s the head of security himself. He’s a former Militia lieutenant: name’s Lvov. Two weeks ago Oskin made one of his surprise visits. Lvov almost burst into tears with relief. He’d been approached by the Mafia. And told that if he doesn’t cooperate, his wife and daughters will be killed. If he does what they want he gets $50,000 in cash…’

‘Which Family?’ demanded Natalia.

‘No names, not yet,’ said Popov. ‘Lvov had been too nervous even to try to get a message through to Oskin: that’s why he was so relieved when Oskin turned up. Lvov says his depot office is Mafia infiltrated and that any phone call or message would be intercepted. And his family would die…’ Popov turned back in the office. ‘… That’s why Oskin came down personally, rather than telephone or write to me. Lvov also told him our Kirov regional offices leak like sieves.’

‘Does Oskin really believe that?’ Natalia had no illusions about the extent of organized crime in Russia but she was genuinely shocked at the thought that the very departments formed to combat it might be so dominated.

‘He’s taking precautions. You saw those photographs, from Germany. Like all the others we’ve seen, from too many other places. He doesn’t have any less doubt than Lvov that the people who’ve made this approach would kill the man’s family. Probably in some obscene way like all the other killings.’

‘If Lvov is this frightened, why did he tell Oskin? Why didn’t he take the $50,000? That’s surely what anybody would have done, frightened or otherwise!’

Popov smiled, but sadly. ‘That was the first question Oskin asked him. Lvov said he would have done – wanted to – but he didn’t believe he’d get the money: it’s too much to believe, anyway. Like the amount they want is too much to believe.’

Natalia waited, irritated Popov didn’t continue. Finally she said, ‘I don’t understand.’

‘They’ve said they want two hundred and fifty kilos. The fact that they know there is at least that much convinced Lvov of the extent of their access inside the plant. He’s also convinced they’ll kill anyone peripherally involved who might talk under investigation. Which would mean him. The only way the poor bastard thinks he’s got a chance is to run to us.’

Now it was Natalia’s turn to get up, needing to move around. As she passed Popov she automatically trailed her hand along the back of his shoulders. ‘Two hundred and fifty kilos of what?’

‘I don’t know, exactly. Enriched plutonium? Cassium? Uranium?’

‘Sufficient for an entire bomb!’ It was difficult for Natalia to contemplate.

‘Probably several,’ agreed Popov, far less awed. ‘We’ll need advice on that.’

Natalia was silent for several moments. ‘That’s incredible. Horrifying.’ She was conscious of the inadequacy of the words. ‘If it is being planned, and we don’t stop it, we’ll be the first victims, before anyone’s killed by any bomb.’

From Popov’s window Natalia gazed down at the traffic-clogged street, wondering how many of the status-symbol Mercedes and BMWs she could see were Mafia owned: most of them, she guessed. Now, finally, it looked as if she would be confronting them. She turned positively back into the room. ‘When are you seeing Oskin again?’

Popov shook his head. ‘He told me all there was to tell: there was no point in a further meeting.’

‘ You hadn’t told me.’

Popov frowned at the rebuke. Then he smiled. ‘To have abruptly changed his arrangements would have ruined the security.’

‘I could as easily have met him outside the building, like you did!’

‘Are you totally sure of the security within this building?’ challenged Popov. ‘I’m not, not totally. Neither is Oskin. But I’m sorry: I should have made an arrangement to speak to him again, after talking to you.’

It was probably the first time their personal intimacy had led to his taking her for granted, thought Natalia, uncomfortably. ‘What arrangements did you make?’

‘That I would go up to him, at once.’

Now Natalia frowned. ‘Where’s the security in that?’

‘Not officially. And I’m certainly not going anywhere near the regional office. He certainly couldn’t risk another trip to Moscow without arousing suspicion. I’ll set myself up at an hotel, for as much contact as possible Hopefully even go with him to Kirs…’ The man smiled again. ‘And I’ll keep in daily touch with you.’

Natalia didn’t smile back. ‘I insist upon that. I want to know every development and every plan. I’ll even come up there myself, if necessary.’ She crossed hurriedly to Popov, reaching out to clutch at him, needing the physical security of his arms around her. Into his shoulder she said, ‘For God’s sake, be careful!’

‘I won’t say don’t worry.’

‘No, don’t say it,’ she implored.

The supervisor at the creche thought Sasha’s cough had worsened. Natalia had to wait only fifteen minutes for an appointment with the paediatrician who was reassuring it was a very minor infection easily treated with the mildest of antibiotic, which was dispensed at the adjoining pharmacy. The entire episode took less than an hour and as she left the Ministry clinic Natalia confronted the reality of her privileged existence. In office, at Natalia’s rank, Sasha was totally protected; dismissed from office, without any rank, Sasha was totally unprotected. No mother without the influence that Natalia took as a matter of course would have even bothered to try to get a doctor to treat something as inconsequential as a minor chest ailment. So she couldn’t lose office. Rather, she had to do everything not only to retain it but to strengthen it.

On their way back to Leninskaya, the normally chattering Sasha fell asleep and had to be carried drowsily into the apartment. She was irritable, pawing off Natalia’s efforts to undress her, and Natalia decided not to bath her. Natalia sat in the bedroom chair, holding Sasha’s hot hand as the child went at once into a heavy, breath-congested sleep. Had she been justified, feeling – and showing – the resentment against Popov for his not keeping Nikolai Oskin in Moscow for them to meet? She was the head of the division specifically entrusted to combat nuclear smuggling, so it was her right if not her duty to have met the man. But Aleksai was the operational director, the man officially appointed to mastermind investigations at steet level. While the overall responsibility was ultimately hers, it was overall, going beyond street and back alley practicalities. There would be time – she’d make time – to meet Oskin and Lvov, if necessary or feasible, and take part in every detail of every plan that was discussed. But in the meantime it was right the situation should be divided between them, Aleskai performing his function and she performing hers. Which, Natalia recognized, was political. Which in turn brought the reflection back to Charlie Muffin. But not, for the first time, to include any personal contemplation.

Natalia’s sole consideration was the diplomatic reason and cause of his being in Moscow, as it was of the diplomatic reason and cause for James Kestler being accepted. Which made her job doubly or maybe trebly difficult, compared to what Aleksai Popov was setting off probably at this moment to achieve. He had successfully to stop a staggering nuclear theft. The full accountability for which, if he failed, became hers. But she additionally had to satisfy two Western governments that every step of the investigation was carried out, successfully or otherwise, in accordance with the agreements that had been reached with London and Washington. As well as keeping that investigation very firmly under Russian control, which completed the circle to bring the eventual responsibility back to her.

Natalia abruptly remembered there’d been discussion between Aleksai and Charlie of his, and by implication that of the American, participation in the concluding stages of any seemingly worthwhile investigation. Was that something seriously to examine? To allow it would certainly meet any Western criticism of either Moscow’s commitment or intention to co-operate. But at the same time open the door to the interpretation that Russia was unable to police its own most serious crime, which was inherent anyway in the fact that the two men had been posted to Moscow in the first place. So she was damned, whichever choice she made.

Sasha stirred, snuffling half-coughs and pushing away the covers, flushed by her fever. Natalia separated the blankets, just pulling the light sheet higher around the child. Which course was personally the safer? Neither, totally. If whatever happened ended in disaster, as much blame as possible could be apportioned to foreign interference. But if it succeeded, there would still remain the inevitable impression that it could not have been achieved without foreign involvement.

Natalia’s mind moved on, to what had shocked her almost as much as the size and potential capability of the nuclear theft. Was it really conceivable that Interior Ministry departments could be as corrupt as Aleksai had almost glibly declared? Natalia knew well enough it existed at street level: that very evening, driving home with Sasha fitfully asleep in her rear-mounted seat, Natalia had seen a foot patrol Militia man extracting a bribe from a motorist preferring to pay the man off than later to waste an entire day in a traffic violation court. And it was unquestioned common knowledge that an enormous number of displaced KGB personnel had moved into organized crime. But for a district command to feel operations in his own regional headquarters were so insecure he had to work by personally visiting trusted informers and disguise the true reason for a trip to Moscow was incredible. As incredible as the ease with which Aleksai had questioned the security of their very ministry in Moscow. The potential robbery from the Kirs depot was more than sufficient to occupy her for the moment. And would be, until whatever its conclusion. But Natalia made a mental note that after its conclusion she would have Aleksai conduct the most stringent internal security check in Moscow and then extend it throughout their district establishments.

Natalia was asleep when Popov telephoned, apologizing at once for awakening her. ‘I thought you’d want to know where to reach me.’

‘Of course,’ accepted Natalia, fumbling for the light. It was just after one-thirty. ‘Where are you?’

‘The National. Room 334.’

‘I’m glad you called’.

‘How’s Sasha?’

‘She’s got a chest infection.’

‘How bad?’ The concern was obvious in the man’s voice.

‘I’ve got medicine and it should be cleared up in a few days.’

‘Take good care of her.’

Natalia smiled. ‘Of course I will.’

‘I love you,’ he said.

‘I love you too,’ she said, meaning it.