Part 12: Benedictus
Jack and Sydney came out of the bedroom to see the three sisters at the table, each holding a mug of tea, their heads together in conversation. They looked up at them when they entered, and Jack couldn't help but think of the three witches in Macbeth, who manipulated things to their own secretive ends. He pushed that idea to the back of his mind. He'd talked to Sydney about her mother and her aunts; she didn't know Katya very well, but she seemed to like Elena very much, and her relationship with her mother appeared to be similar to what it had been when Irina was Laura. He wasn't prepared to trust these women, of course, but he decided that he should at least hear out whatever their plan was with an open mind.
"Would either of you like some tea?" Elena asked when she saw them, getting up.
"Yes, please," Sydney said, going over to the stove. Jack nodded at Elena, then took the vacant seat at the table across from Irina. He looked at her searchingly for a moment. Her eyes were a bit red and puffy, and he suspected she'd been crying, but she seemed composed now. She looked back at him steadily; their gazes remained locked until Elena set a mug of tea down in front of Jack.
"Thank you," Jack said absently. Elena nodded and retook her own seat.
Sydney looked around at the adults sitting in uncomfortable silence. "Can we play a game?" she asked.
The three sisters glanced at each other. Katya spoke. "Elena said she's been teaching you to play chess. Would you like to play a game with me?"
"All right," Sydney said, seeming pleased. Jack was surprised. Laura had never shown the slightest interest in chess; she said it was "boring". "Aunt Elena, will you help me?"
"Of course, Sydney," Elena answered.
As Katya produced a chessboard from somewhere and she and Sydney began to set it up, Irina stood with a glance at Jack and headed toward the couch. He followed and sat down beside her, necessarily close so they could talk without Sydney overhearing. "I suppose I should thank you, for getting me out of prison."
Irina shook her head. "Don't thank me. They didn't even tell me that you were alive, much less what they were planning." Her voice was soft, but Jack heard an undertone of anger—whether at her sisters or at him, he wasn't sure.
"If you had known..."
"Of course I would have wanted to get you out," she said brusquely. Her expression was carefully neutral.
Jack didn't want to ask her why, afraid he wouldn't like the answer. Instead, he turned to watch Sydney. "She seems happy," he said after a moment. He couldn't help being a bit annoyed by that fact, and guilty for feeling that way.
"Children are adaptable." He could feel Irina's eyes on him, but didn't look at her. "She did miss you."
Jack wondered how true that was; he hadn't exactly been the world's best father in the months after his wife died. And now he wondered if there was any way for him to get a second chance. He sighed. "What are we going to do?"
"We had an idea," Irina said. "First step is to get you out of Russia. Elena's going to help with that."
"Alone?" He didn't expect that she'd allow him to take Sydney, of course, but he did have a nebulous hope that perhaps all three of them could go somewhere together. He could stand to live with Irina, he thought, if it meant making Sydney happy.
"For now," Irina said, surprising him. He turned toward her. "We'll follow you in a few weeks. All four of us."
"You're all leaving the KGB?"
Irina nodded. "The only way to avoid anyone being imprisoned is for all of us to leave at once."
"Why are you doing this?" Jack asked. "Why not just send me on my way?"
Irina looked away from him. "Sydney would miss you."
"What about you? Would you miss me? Did you mourn when you thought I was dead?" Jack kept his voice soft, but let the feeling come through all the same. If they really were going to be together in some capacity, he needed to find out if Elena's assertion was true.
Irina stared at him, looking stricken for a moment. "I..." She fell silent and looked at her clasped hands. He watched as she swallowed hard, then looked up, her face an impenetrable mask. "I don't want Sydney to live her life without a father," she said impassively. "Once we meet up again in a few weeks and settle somewhere, I'm sure we can work out some arrangement. You get her one week, I get her the next—that sort of thing."
Jack frowned. He thought she might be hiding something, so deep inside that even she wasn't sure it was there—but he had lost confidence in his ability to read this woman two years ago. He knew quite well, though, that now that she'd closed herself off like this there would be no drawing her out for a while. "I imagine we can arrange something that's mutually agreeable," he said neutrally.
He looked up then as Sydney got up from her chess game and came over. "Daddy, do you know how to play chess?" she asked politely and a bit nervously.
"Yes, I do, Sydney. Would you like to play a game?" She nodded; with a brief glance at Irina, Jack got up and followed his daughter to the table.
Irina knelt by the couch, which with the aid of a pillow and blankets had been turned into a bed for Sydney, and kissed her daughter's forehead. "Good night, Sydney."
"Mama, will you and Daddy still be here in the morning?"
"Of course, sweetheart. Sleep well." She smiled at Sydney, then got up and moved to the kitchen area while Jack said goodnight. She grabbed a cloth and began drying the supper dishes that Elena and Katya were washing.
"Is he all right with the plan?" Elena asked.
"He seems to be," Irina answered.
"I'll need to take him to Leningrad tomorrow. My contacts there will get him out of Russia," Elena said.
"So soon?" Irina said without thinking. "I...I was hoping we'd have more time to work out the details."
"There aren't any more details for him, Irina; he just needs to know to meet us all in six weeks at Bastille Square in Paris. And I've got to take him soon, because Katya's got to leave for Italy in three days, and we really should all go back to Moscow together."
Irina nodded. "Of course."
Jack finished saying good night to Sydney and came over. "I think she's afraid that one or both of us is going to vanish overnight," he said, then yawned.
"You'd best get to bed," Katya said. "That drug will drag you down for a few days."
"And you and I are leaving for Leningrad tomorrow. The train leaves at noon," Elena said.
Jack nodded. "Where am I sleeping?"
"The bedroom, Jack," Irina said. "I'll be in in a bit."
Jack frowned and didn't appear too pleased, but he didn't say anything; it had obviously occurred to him that this was the only logical sleeping arrangement. Without another word, he headed for the bedroom.
Jack and Sydney came out of the bedroom to see the three sisters at the table, each holding a mug of tea, their heads together in conversation. They looked up at them when they entered, and Jack couldn't help but think of the three witches in Macbeth, who manipulated things to their own secretive ends. He pushed that idea to the back of his mind. He'd talked to Sydney about her mother and her aunts; she didn't know Katya very well, but she seemed to like Elena very much, and her relationship with her mother appeared to be similar to what it had been when Irina was Laura. He wasn't prepared to trust these women, of course, but he decided that he should at least hear out whatever their plan was with an open mind.
"Would either of you like some tea?" Elena asked when she saw them, getting up.
"Yes, please," Sydney said, going over to the stove. Jack nodded at Elena, then took the vacant seat at the table across from Irina. He looked at her searchingly for a moment. Her eyes were a bit red and puffy, and he suspected she'd been crying, but she seemed composed now. She looked back at him steadily; their gazes remained locked until Elena set a mug of tea down in front of Jack.
"Thank you," Jack said absently. Elena nodded and retook her own seat.
Sydney looked around at the adults sitting in uncomfortable silence. "Can we play a game?" she asked.
The three sisters glanced at each other. Katya spoke. "Elena said she's been teaching you to play chess. Would you like to play a game with me?"
"All right," Sydney said, seeming pleased. Jack was surprised. Laura had never shown the slightest interest in chess; she said it was "boring". "Aunt Elena, will you help me?"
"Of course, Sydney," Elena answered.
As Katya produced a chessboard from somewhere and she and Sydney began to set it up, Irina stood with a glance at Jack and headed toward the couch. He followed and sat down beside her, necessarily close so they could talk without Sydney overhearing. "I suppose I should thank you, for getting me out of prison."
Irina shook her head. "Don't thank me. They didn't even tell me that you were alive, much less what they were planning." Her voice was soft, but Jack heard an undertone of anger—whether at her sisters or at him, he wasn't sure.
"If you had known..."
"Of course I would have wanted to get you out," she said brusquely. Her expression was carefully neutral.
Jack didn't want to ask her why, afraid he wouldn't like the answer. Instead, he turned to watch Sydney. "She seems happy," he said after a moment. He couldn't help being a bit annoyed by that fact, and guilty for feeling that way.
"Children are adaptable." He could feel Irina's eyes on him, but didn't look at her. "She did miss you."
Jack wondered how true that was; he hadn't exactly been the world's best father in the months after his wife died. And now he wondered if there was any way for him to get a second chance. He sighed. "What are we going to do?"
"We had an idea," Irina said. "First step is to get you out of Russia. Elena's going to help with that."
"Alone?" He didn't expect that she'd allow him to take Sydney, of course, but he did have a nebulous hope that perhaps all three of them could go somewhere together. He could stand to live with Irina, he thought, if it meant making Sydney happy.
"For now," Irina said, surprising him. He turned toward her. "We'll follow you in a few weeks. All four of us."
"You're all leaving the KGB?"
Irina nodded. "The only way to avoid anyone being imprisoned is for all of us to leave at once."
"Why are you doing this?" Jack asked. "Why not just send me on my way?"
Irina looked away from him. "Sydney would miss you."
"What about you? Would you miss me? Did you mourn when you thought I was dead?" Jack kept his voice soft, but let the feeling come through all the same. If they really were going to be together in some capacity, he needed to find out if Elena's assertion was true.
Irina stared at him, looking stricken for a moment. "I..." She fell silent and looked at her clasped hands. He watched as she swallowed hard, then looked up, her face an impenetrable mask. "I don't want Sydney to live her life without a father," she said impassively. "Once we meet up again in a few weeks and settle somewhere, I'm sure we can work out some arrangement. You get her one week, I get her the next—that sort of thing."
Jack frowned. He thought she might be hiding something, so deep inside that even she wasn't sure it was there—but he had lost confidence in his ability to read this woman two years ago. He knew quite well, though, that now that she'd closed herself off like this there would be no drawing her out for a while. "I imagine we can arrange something that's mutually agreeable," he said neutrally.
He looked up then as Sydney got up from her chess game and came over. "Daddy, do you know how to play chess?" she asked politely and a bit nervously.
"Yes, I do, Sydney. Would you like to play a game?" She nodded; with a brief glance at Irina, Jack got up and followed his daughter to the table.
Irina knelt by the couch, which with the aid of a pillow and blankets had been turned into a bed for Sydney, and kissed her daughter's forehead. "Good night, Sydney."
"Mama, will you and Daddy still be here in the morning?"
"Of course, sweetheart. Sleep well." She smiled at Sydney, then got up and moved to the kitchen area while Jack said goodnight. She grabbed a cloth and began drying the supper dishes that Elena and Katya were washing.
"Is he all right with the plan?" Elena asked.
"He seems to be," Irina answered.
"I'll need to take him to Leningrad tomorrow. My contacts there will get him out of Russia," Elena said.
"So soon?" Irina said without thinking. "I...I was hoping we'd have more time to work out the details."
"There aren't any more details for him, Irina; he just needs to know to meet us all in six weeks at Bastille Square in Paris. And I've got to take him soon, because Katya's got to leave for Italy in three days, and we really should all go back to Moscow together."
Irina nodded. "Of course."
Jack finished saying good night to Sydney and came over. "I think she's afraid that one or both of us is going to vanish overnight," he said, then yawned.
"You'd best get to bed," Katya said. "That drug will drag you down for a few days."
"And you and I are leaving for Leningrad tomorrow. The train leaves at noon," Elena said.
Jack nodded. "Where am I sleeping?"
"The bedroom, Jack," Irina said. "I'll be in in a bit."
Jack frowned and didn't appear too pleased, but he didn't say anything; it had obviously occurred to him that this was the only logical sleeping arrangement. Without another word, he headed for the bedroom.