"Excuse me, sir. I'm very sorry. I don't mean to be rude. It's just that you bear a stunning resemblance to our former Tsar Nicholas who was slaughtered along with his family ten years ago," Ilya stammered.

The Romanovs looked at one another in confusion. "What year is this?" Nicholas finally asked.

"Why, it's nineteen twenty-eight," Ilya said with surprise.

The Romanovs looked at one another again. "I'm not sure exactly what happened, but I know that Rasputin must be behind it somehow," Nicholas muttered.

"Rasputin." Ilya spat the name out in disgust. "He was an evil, evil man. He used the royal family to meet his own needs and ultimately caused their downfall. Over the past ten years, our greatest fear has been that he may resurface and wreak more havoc."

"It's just like the story of Sleeping Beauty, Mama," Maria said. "Rasputin must have cast a spell on us that made us fall asleep for ten years and then we woke up in the forest."

"But what would have awakened us?" asked Tatiana.

"I guess something must have happened to break the spell," Olga said. "But what would that have been?"

"I don't think that's exactly what happened, girls," Alexandra told her daughters. "But never mind. The important thing is to find Anastasia and then get back home."

"But I don't think we even have a home anymore, Mama," Alexei said bleakly.

"What's happened to the leadership of the country for the past ten years?" Nicholas wanted to know.

"It's terrible, Your Grace," said Ilya. "The Bolsheviks have assumed control under their leaders Lenin and Stalin. They have placed the entire population of Russia under the oppressive yoke of Communism. All freedoms and human rights are gone, replaced by a cruel dictatorship that monitors their every move and punishes them severely for even the slightest of infractions."

Nicholas wept bitterly. Alexandra did her best to console her husband. "It's not your fault, Nicky," she told him. "You did the best you could. They were just too strong for you, and with Rasputin and his evil magic, we didn't stand a chance."

"But I must do everything I can to free my people from the bondage they are under, Sunny," Nicholas told his wife.

"It isn't your responsibility anymore, darling," Alexandra replied. "You abdicated, remember? The only thing we have to worry about now is keeping our family together, finding Anastasia, and making a new life for ourselves, somehow."

"I do hope we find her really soon," said Alexei. "I miss her so much I can hardly bear it."

"So do I," said Maria.

"We all do," said Tatiana.

"Where is she?" asked Valya.

"My son believes she's in Paris, and he's usually right about such matters," said Nicholas.

"It's very difficult to get outside Russia now," Ilya told them. "You have to have an exit Visa, and to get one, you have to know the right person."

"There used to be this fellow, Dimitri..." Valya began.

"He's been gone for a while now. Nobody knows what happened to him," said Ilya.

"But his partner, Vlad, is still there, I believe." Valya became excited. "I'm sure Vlad can help you!"

"We'll go to him first thing tomorrow," Nicholas said.

Ilya and Valya's cabin was small but snug and warm. The Romanovs were so tired that they all fell asleep almost immediately, huddled together with their arms around each other for security. The next morning Valya fed them all a nutritious and filling breakfast. It was the first true meal they had eaten in ten years. They thanked her profusely and then set out in search of Vlad.