-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
June, 1960, Mozambique Channel
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anna Politkovskaya was lying in the darkness of her cabin aboard the Rhodesian flagged cruise ship
African Dream, an aptly named ship for the journey they were undertaking. Nine days ago she and her companions had climbed aboard the vessel with nothing but the clothes on their backs, a single suitcase for the four of them, and hope in their hearts. Hope for a better future.
Twelve days ago she had been standing in the line outside the temporary Rhodesian Consulate building by the docks wondering if she would even be able to make her way inside the line was so long. She estimated that there must have been a thousand people standing in the rain as Ukrainian Police shouted at them to keep the streets clear and the locals cursed them for taking away their food, water, jobs, the sunshine, whatever they could blame on the unfortunate refugees.
Anna, her brother Alex, and her two best friends in the world, Elena and Natalya, had all fled from the fighting in the north. They had brought much more with them but by the time they had paid bribes to everyone who blocked their route to safety, very little was left.
So there they had stood, in the pouring rain, until a black Rhodesian wearing a long raincoat and strange brimmed hat began walking down the line. He spoke atrocious Russian and most of the line shied away from him, black people were pretty thin on the ground around here.
"Doctor? Pilot? Engineer?" He kept repeating a small list of such skilled trades over and over again as he walked down the line. No one was replying and she could see he couldn't have cared less one way or the other but as he drew closer she stepped out of line and spoke to him in flawless English.
"I am a Doctor. My friends are Nurses. My brother was the hospital technician." The last one was a bald faced lie but she couldn't leave her little brother behind.
The man looked her over, glanced at the small group and their single bag then gestured for them to follow. She didn't waste a second, grabbing the bag and hurrying after him, the others trailing quickly in their wake. A few people in the line grumbled but most kept their silence when the Rhodesian glanced their way.
They were escorted straight into the building where Anna was stunned to see huge lines waiting to talk to an efficient group of clerks behind desks set up at the rear of the building. She expected to be led to one of the lines but instead the Rhodesian pointed them to a table behind which sat a white man in a well tailored suit and tie. He was backed by another clerk who sat next to him and two standing sentinels who could only be soldiers for how straight they stood, their eyes never stopping as they scanned the crowd.
Anna stepped up to the table, there was nothing else for it, and stuck out her hand to the man in the suit who looked up at her in surprise.
"Anna Politkovskaya."
He stood, towering over her slim five feet seven inches and shook her hand. He acknowledged her strong grip with a small smile and then looked behind her at the other three.
"My brother, Alexander Politkovskaya, and my friends Elena Milshina and Natalya Esterniova. We all worked at the hospital in Tsaritsyn. Before the fighting that is." She added hurriedly before realizing the man obviously knew why so many refugee's were present in Odessa.
"I am Mr. Smith." He replied, his accent soft compared to the British she had met in the past. "I am the Chief Consular official here in Odessa, and in charge of screening all of our skilled applicants. As you were escorted straight here, I assume you have some skill you think we might find valuable."
He sat again. They were not offered chairs. Anna felt stumped for a moment as Smith looked up her expectantly. He obviously talked to many people and some, she was certain, had lied.
"I was, am, a Podiatrist," She said quickly and saw interest flash in his eyes. That was good. She could feel her heart hammering in her ribs as he wrote quickly on a sheet in front of him. He had misspelled her last name but she was hardly going to correct him. "I speak Russian, English, and some German."
"This is good." A smile spread across his face for a moment. "Where did you study?"
She began to tell him of her career, studying in Moscow, eventually in Berlin before moving to Tsaritsyn. She told him of procedures she had done, using technical terms that only a real Doctor might know. Some of it was beyond Smith's own knowledge but he politely let her finish before nodding slowly and reaching into a box on the desk in front of him. He drew out a stamp, wetted it on red ink and then stamped her paper.
APPROVED Shouted big and bold up at her. The second word he stamped she could not read. It must have been in Afrikaans.
Next went Natalya, and then Elena. Both had worked in the trauma unit at the hospital in Tsaritsyn. Anna had been surprised when one of the soldiers behind Smith was asked what he thought of the two and the big man, almost as wide in the shoulders as your average doorway, had nodded to Smith who had added the
APPROVED stamp to their papers and handed them over.
"He is a medic." Smith offered at the look that went between the three women. "I suspect he has saved more lives in a less sterile environment than you ladies." It was not an accusation, just a simple fact and Anna found she appreciated the bluntness of the Rhodesian speech.
"And now you," Smith flipped back to his original scribbled notes. "Alexander Politkovskaya. Tell me your story."
Alexander stepped forward with a nervous swallow. Anna had introduced him as a hospital technician during her own narrative, which was as far from the truth as it could be. Alexander was a soldier, deserted from the Tsar's army just when they had fled the city. He had never fired a shot in anger, never killed a man at all. He had been a mechanic in the motor pool.
"I was technician in hospital." Alex began lamely, his English was terrible at best and Smith cut him off almost at once.
"Please Alexander, do not waste my time with lies. I could see my conversation with your friends and sister was well beyond your comprehension. I will give you one more chance to be honest with me."
Anna felt her heart sink as she saw the sweat break out on Alexander's bro. He snapped his heels together however and stood straight. He was a big man as well and the two soldiers across the table eyed him carefully.
"I was soldier, sir. A mechanic. I, ah, fix... fix..." He was desperately searching for the answer and Smith, to Anna's surprise, waited patiently. "Tractor... Caterpillar...?" Alexander was struggling.
"Tanks?" Smith asked helpfully and Alexander nodded and smiled.
"Da!" He spoke some more in Russian until he realized that Smith had no idea what he was saying and hurriedly switched back into his broken English. "Yes. Tanks."
Smith looked at him for the long moment and then drew a stamp from the box. Anna felt her breath catch in her throat as the stamp hovered over the paper. Then it slammed down.
APPROVED.Now, as she lay on the bed she had been sharing with her three travelling companions, she could not believe her good fortune. The rest of her time in Odessa had been a whirlwind of activity. As they were considered "special skills" they had been bumped to the first boat leaving, which was three days later. She had procured an English-Russian phrase book for Alexander and spent what little money she had left on some new clothes, bought at ridiculous prices, but she wanted to look the part when she arrived in Rhodesia.
To be honest, she didn't know much about the country, only that it was in the Southern part of Africa and had was ruled by a white minority government. It had taken her the better part of a day to locate a book that explained more about the country and she had devoured it when the
African Dream finally slipped from her mooring and began the journey south.
The four of them had been assigned a single cabin with one large bed. They took it in turns to sleep. The ship was crammed with other skilled trades. She had met another Doctor, several Engineers, many Nurses, plenty of teachers and more. She supposed she should be sleeping at the moment, she had eight hours, but she couldn't. They had been told they would be arriving either that evening or the following day.
As if reading her thoughts, the ships intercom system popped on with a slight buzz and an accented voice blasted its way into her thoughts.
"Ladies and Gentleman, if you would like to come on deck, Rhodesia is visible now on the starboard side." A pause. "The right side."
She didn't hesitate. She hurled the bed covers off and, dressed only in her underwear and a t-shirt, she hurried topside. Throngs of other passengers joined until the starboard rail was packed with people. Still more came, climbing onto the superstructure.
The air here was hot and humid, even as the sun was dipping toward the horizon. It was hotter than anything she had experienced before and she had a sunburn to show for the last few days above decks as she had watched the African coastline slide past. There had been a stop in Ethiopia for coal but no one had been allowed to leave the ship.
White sand beaches backed by thick green forests reached down from a slight hill. The beaches were mostly empty but she could see a small group of children flying kites and a few of them stopped to wave at the ship. Anna waved back.
"Beautiful isn't it." Natalya appeared at her side. Alexander and Elena had consummated a budding romance while on the ship and spent most of their time together. Anna could not blame them, it was an adventure with nothing left to lose and everything to gain.
Buildings were slowly coming into view now around the point of land Anna could see that it was a city built on the bank of a massive river that flowed from deep in the interior where she could see distant mountains peaks wreathed with clouds. There wasn't a flake of snow to be seen and Anna loved it. She had once told herself she would live somewhere that never got any snow.
The ships whistle sounded and the intercom buzzed, popped, and then blared across the packed decks again.
"Please return to your quarters. You will be receiving required relocation documents shortly."
Anna waited while the others began to file below as the city grew in the distance. It was small and uninspired, nothing compared to the ancient cities of Russia she had grown up in but she did not care. It was also not on fire and no smoke clouded the horizon. As she watched a large launch put out from the city coastline and she felt the engines below her die off to a slow rumble. The vessel raced toward them at high speed and then cut around the bow to make a circle of the
African Dream. A Rhodesian flag streamed from the stern and she saw two small machine gun mounts on either side of the craft, and one large gun on the stern, but all were neatly covered with what she assumed was canvas. Several sailors were looking up at the ship and she waved to them, they waved back enthusiastically. It occurred to her as the boat passed out of sight it might have been because her long legs were bare for them to see and she felt a blush quickly rise in her face. She turned and hurried below.
Her cabin was a whirl of excited voices when she burst in. The other barely noticed her lack of clothes and she quickly threw off her shirt before pulling out the lovely ankle length green dress she had purchased in Odessa. It took her a moment to manage the zipper on the back and then she stepped up to share the mirror with Natalya and Elena, combing at her hair as she tried to get it into some semblance of order. Then the intercom popped again.
"When your name is called, please make your way to the smoking lounge to receive your travel documents."
The frantic activity slowed as they realized they might be there for a while. To their surprise, Elena was called almost immediately. She stepped out into the passage and hurried toward the smoking lounge. It had been called that from years ago but it seemed the Rhodesians no longer allowed smoking on the vessel so they had been content with a faint lingering smell of it. A few minutes passed and then, surprisingly, Alexander's name was called. He gave them an uncertain smile and then made his way forward.
It seemed like hours before they returned, though not more than ten minutes might have passed, and names had continued to be called. Both were all smiles and shoved their travel documents into Anna's face as soon as they returned.
"We are both to go to some place called Maputo! It is on the Ocean!" Alexander bubbled with excitement. "I am to work for the military repairing automobiles and Elena is going to work in a medical clinic."
Anna hugged them both, she was happy for them but deep in her gut she knew that they would be separated. When they had signed their paperwork in Odessa she had noted the line
I, the undersigned, agree to be relocated anywhere considered suitable by the Rhodesian Government. The meant she could easily be placed anywhere in the country and while Rhodesia was certainly much smaller than Russia, it could be some time before she could expect to see her brother again.
"Anna Politkovskaya and Natalya Esterniova." The intercom screamed those two names and Anna took heart that at least she would have someone to make the walk with. She suddenly found herself tremendously nervous. More nervous even than when she had first met Smith. This was it, the moment where she would discover what her life would look like. There had also been the line on her documents that stated
...agree to occupy the position assigned to me for a minimum of seven years. Upon completion of my assignment by the Rhodesian Government I will be permitted to relocate, at my own expense, to find new employment if I so wish.The two women, hand in hand, walked up the long carpeted hallway, many curious faces peering out from doorways to watch them pass. They climbed the central stairs and approached the smoking lounge. The big double doors were flanked by two soldiers, one black, one white, who asked for their travel documents. The names matched and they were ushered into the room. The furniture had been somewhat rearranged and yet more clerks awaited them behind more tables, flanked by more men in Khaki Uniforms with blue trimmings and
POLICE on their hat bands.
"Anna Politkovskaya." Called out one clerk. She nodded and stepped forward as Natalya was called to a different table. The clerk who she stopped in front of looked up at her and she realized with a start that he was smiling at her. She glanced up at her reflection in the mirror behind the bar and saw why. She was blonde, with bright blue eyes, strong chin and a slim figure. The green dress she had purchased was revealing without being distasteful. It had been so long since she felt pretty that she smiled back involuntarily.
"Ah yes, our podiatrist!" The clerk said as she drew her form in front of him, checking it against the document that she handed over. "Good, very good. Lucky you, off to Salisbury!"
Salisbury. The Capital of Rhodesia. She felt relief flood through her so that she almost missed what he said next as he handed her a large manila envelope.
"Your basic Rhodesian identity card is in there. It will allow you to access public transit for one week free of charge. A train ticket to Salisbury is included, you leave on the first train in the morning. You will be met at the train station by a driver from the hospital. Included in that envelope is one hundred Rhodesian pounds. It will serve to feed you and help you find a place to live, it is more than enough for one month. I highly recommend that you put it away somewhere it cannot be stolen." He shrugged at her expression. "Alas, even in Rhodesia we have pick pockets though the Police will certainly grab any thief if you point them out."
She nodded. "This is all very organized." She meant it. From the moment Smith had stamped her papers she had been moved quickly from one point to another, it was like being in a machine.
"Not our first time Anna." The clerk held out his hand. "Welcome to Rhodesia."
