Chapter twenty nine: Returning
The sun had risen over Manhattan. Natasha left her room and walked towards Claire, who was sitting at the table listening to a radio that was emitting a two-stage beep. Natasha's hair was light brown, and was so long that it hung down her back.
"How did you sleep?" Natasha asked.
"More or less good. JFK led the aircraft's way to often over Manhattan." Claire answered.
"It's quieter in the subway these nights."
Mike came out of the bedroom he shared with Claire. He was holding a few months old baby in his arms. Gretchen. Mike had a mustache that made him look like an engineer from the 1970s.
"Hmm Gretchen? The planes didn't bother you tonight?"
Gretchen looked at Mike and tried to grab his head.
"Wanna grab my face?"
"Gretchen is like a stone when she sleeps." Natasha said.
"She didn't get that from me." Claire said and looked at Mike.
"That's good. That way Gretchen can sleep while you are listening to the beeper."
"It's a number station." Natasha said.
"It sends numbers maybe once a week randomly and then you listen again to this beeping all the time. Maybe you need that beeping to sleep, right Gretchen?"
Gretchen giggled and clapped her hands.
"Yup. She needs a radio in future." Natasha said.
Natasha took a Red Bull out of the fridge and went to the balcony. She took a pack of cigarettes and started smoking. she heard the police sirens of the NYPD. But Natasha also heard the beeping from the radio, that fell silent a few seconds later. Natasha ran inside, and saw that Claire had a small book, a paper and a pen next to her. Everyone looked at the radio.
"Do you have the decryption book?" Natasha asked.
"Yes." Claire said.
They looked at the radio, and ten seconds later, the noise became quiet, and a male voice started speaking.
"Attention!
X-Ray, Papa, Golf, Lima.
28. 64. 82. 19.
Echo, Quebec, Lima, Hotel, Whiskey, Uniform, Alpha, October, Delta, Mike, Sierra.
55. 73. 05. 27. 42. 33. 93. 47. 83."
Claire started writing.
"I decode it."
The noise became a bit louder. Then the noise began to get quieter again, and the voice came again.
"Attention!
X-Ray, Papa, Golf, Lima.
28. 64. 82. 19.
Echo, Quebec, Lima, Hotel, Whiskey, Uniform, Alpha, October, Delta, Mike, Sierra.
55. 73. 05. 27. 42. 33. 93. 47. 83.
Over."
The peeping started again. Claire looked at what she decoded and started looking mad.
"It says, Pancake Canada zebra bus. And more nonsense."
"This message wasn't for us." Mike said.
Natasha groaned in annoyance.
"Every time I hope it's meant for us."
New Mexico, Desert:
Marie sat at a table in an air-conditioned house in the New Mexico desert. On the table in front of her was a radio with a two-stage beeping sound. Marie was wearing a beige coat and next to her was a brown cowboy hat. Her hair was tied back at shoulder level. Cynthia entered the room, wearing a cowboy hat and she was holding a bloody shovel.
"Those rattle snakes won't be a problem for today anymore."
"Perfect." Marie said.
"Come. Let's go for a walk. Take the radio with you."
Marie put on her cowboy hat and took the radio in the big pocket of her coat. They walked on a narrow path between dead bushes and cactuses. Only the two stage beeping of the radio accompanied them.
"When did you hear the last message?"
"Two days ago. At 8:45 pm. I wasn't able to decode it." Marie said.
"Yeah. At least the nonsense we decode is funny sometimes. Remember the Vodka Choo Choo Train?"
Marie giggled.
"That was funny."
They kept walking, climbed on a giant rock and looked over the desert.
"Are the other ones okay?" Marie asked.
"You ask me this question every month. I don't know. I don't even know where they could be."
A tumbleweed rolled past the rock.
"Tumbleweed!" Marie yelled.
"I saw it." Cynthia answered.
The peeping from the radio stopped.
"Get the radio!" Cynthia yelled.
Marie took the radio, a small book, a pen and a paper out. They put it on the rock, and kneeled down. A male voice started speaking.
"Attention!
X-Ray, Papa, Golf, Lima.
28. 64. 82. 19.
Echo, Quebec, Lima, Hotel, Whiskey, Uniform, Alpha, October, Delta, Mike, Sierra.
55. 73. 05. 27. 42. 33. 93. 47. 83."
Marie wrote everything on the paper, and started decoding. The voice spoke again.
"Attention!
X-Ray, Papa, Golf, Lima.
28. 64. 82. 19.
Echo, Quebec, Lima, Hotel, Whiskey, Uniform, Alpha, October, Delta, Mike, Sierra.
55. 73. 05. 27. 42. 33. 93. 47. 83.
Over."
The peeping came back. Cynthia and Marie looked on the paper. And they started tearing up.
"XPGL
C and M. You are allowed to come back. Please go to the Royal Hotel in Royal woods, and enter room 17. Please wait for instructions.
END."
Cynthia and Marie cheered, and gave each other a high five.
"We can go home!" Cynthia yelled.
"Mom! I'm happy!" Marie said happily.
"That's right! I'm happy too!"
Cynthia took a Revolver out of her pocket and shot in the air.
"Yeeehawww!"
Lorraine played with the grass. Pleasant winds were blowing through Lori's hair. She took a long grass and showed it to Lorraine.
"Grass. This is Grass."
Lorraine took the grass and shook it.
"Lorraine the Shaker." Lori said.
Lorraine giggled and shook the grass even more.
"You like that, right girl?"
Slobodan walked up the hill. He had his Zastava M70 with him. He held something in his hands.
"Здрaвo Лори. You and Lorraine seem to be doing well." Slobodan said.
"Yes. Lorraine has fun with the grass."
"I made something for Lorraine."
He gave Lori a necklace that was a string, with three empty rifle cartridges hanging on it.
"It's beautiful. Thank you."
Lori put the necklace on Lorraine. Lorraine started playing with the rifle cartridges.
"Aww she has fun. Good Lorraine. You can play with the empty ones."
"Did she get to the live ammo?" Slobodan asked.
"She yesterday got her hands on a box of GP11. Mommy was angry. But Lorraine shouldn't touch rifle ammo."
"Rifle ammo is not a baby toy."
"Oh that reminds me. How was the bear hunting last night?"
"Not good. Wasn't around."
"Oh man. This bear woke up Lorraine two nights ago. Stupid thing has to roar around. I slept next to Lorraine last night with my STGW 57, prepared to pump lead in him with full auto."
"Oh. I'm sorry. I try to hunt the bear again this night."
"Thank you."
Slobodan set off into the mountain forest. That evening, Lori put Lorraine to bed. She put Lorraine into bed, and as Lori turned out the light, she heard a volley from Slobodan's M70, and he shouted joyfully that he had gotten the bear. Lori smiled and got into bed. After ten minutes she was half asleep when the special telephone started ringing. Lori went to the phone that was in the living room. She looked at the screen. The call was labeled as "Satellite channel 9". Lori pressed the green phone button and held her ear to the phone. An automatic female voice spoke.
"Jane Schroeder. Please leave your place, and Return to Royal Woods, Hotel Royal. Room 18. Repeat: Jane Schroeder. Please leave your place, and Return to Royal Woods, Hotel Royal. Room 18."
The phone call ends. Lori slowly closed her eyes.
"I finally can go home. Finally."
Something came in her mind.
"I don't even have a family anymore, except Lorraine. I need fresh air."
Lori went outside into the darkness. Slobodan walked downhill. He had one. bag with you.
"Hey. I don't know how to say… but I'm allowed to go home."
Slobodan turned to her.
"Really? Home?"
"Yes. I'll probably leave tomorrow."
"Okay. Can I come with you?"
"Yeah. You're Lorraine's uncle, and kinda my uncle."
"I helped to get Lorraine on this world."
"I wasn't conscious then. But yeah."
"We leave tomorrow." Lori said.
"Okay. Then good night."
"Good night."
Lori went back into her hat. Lorraine was snoring quietly, and it sounded like a purring kitty. She laid down. Lori hugged her little daughter.
"You are my heart Lorraine."
Slobodan nailed the door and windows of his hut shut. He had everything he needed in a large jute sack. When he was finished, he took the bag and his Zastava M70 and ran down the valley and back up to Lori's hut. An hour ago he had disconnected the telephone line. Lori closed the barn. The Mercedes was parked in front of the barn with the trailer closed, and Lorraine was sitting in a baby seat made of wood and rabbit fur. Lori looked through the window at Lorraine. Lorraine giggled at Lori.
"There's no life without you anymore." Lori said smiling.
"I'm ready to go." Slobodan said.
"Good. Put your stuff in the trailer."
Slobodan walked up the trailer and put his stuff in. Lori heard him closing the trailer.
"You have a cannon in this trailer."
"I know. It's a crazy story."
They both got into the Mercedes. Lori started the engine and drove off down the gravel path. Down the valley. An hour later they drove through the small village with the Stalin bartenders. Lori drove onto the country road, and after two hours got onto the highway.
"World has changed." Slobodan said.
"You saw nothing. Ever heard of a smartphone?"
"No. What's that?"
"I'll show you later."
Every three kilometers, Slobodan noticed antennas next to the highway. He didn't remember any road with that many antennas.
"Why are there so many antennas here? Is radio cool again?" Slobodan asked.
"Huh, what do you mean?" Lori asked.
"The antennas there."
Lori looked to the side. An antenna was again next to the highway.
"Oh that? That's for the smartphones I assume."
"What is a smartphone?"
"It's… it's actually hard to explain… it's a phone… but it's actually a computer."
"I don't get it."
"I'll show you later."
At some point they pulled up to a rest stop to get gas. Slobodan filled up while Lori took Lorraine to the bathrooms to change her diaper. Lori then went to the gas station cash register to buy a sandwich for herself, a special milk for Lorraine, and nuts for Slobodan, and to pay for the diesel. Lori walked to her car and sat in the back seat while Slobodan sat in the passenger seat. She began to feed Lorraine.
"Do you think it gets better at home?" Slobodan asked.
"To be honest, not at all. I don't have a family, and have a fake identity."
"Do you have a chance to fix that?"
"Maybe. If the FBI is looking to solve this problem, while looking to solve other problems, I might have another chance."
"FBI? Are you an agent?"
"Not at all. I'm just a stupid girl who made wrong decisions."
"My mistake was to join the Југословенска народна армија."
"The Yugoslav People's Army? You always said you were proud of it."
"I am proud of it. And it was a wrong decision."
"Explain to me. No Lorraine, drink it."
Lori had a bit of trouble with Lorraine.
"When Yugoslav army was Dissolved, I was in Republika Srpska. Was started in Bosnia."
"What happened?"
"We wanted a united Serbia. With Republika Srpska, Srpska Kraijna, Serbia, and Crna Gora. The last time I heard about Serbia was twenty years ago. Kosovo is now not under Serbian control. But there is no country of Kosovo. Kosovo is Serbia!"
Lori finished with Lorraine, got into the driver's seat, and handed Slobodan the special phone.
"What is this?" Slobodan asked.
"This is a smartphone." Lori said and pressed a button.
The phone screen turned on.
"Little TV?"
"No. It's a computer."
"This is a computer?"
Lori typed some stuff on the phone, and after opening the browser, she googled the term Serbia. Slobodan looked surprised at the phone.
"Срање." Slobodan said.
"Impressive, right?"
Slobodan looked flabbergasted at the screen.
"What can it do else? Can I call someone? Or can tell news?"
"All of this. You even can watch tv. Search it."
"How?"
"I show you. What's the Serbian tv channel called?"
"Radio-Televizija Srbije."
Lori nodded, and typed this term into google. Lori turned on a livestream of the Serbian tv channel. Slobodan looked with big eyes at the screen. Lori started the engine. The three drove on. In the evening they reached Minneapolis, Minnesota. Lori stopped at a motel and rented a room. Once they were in the room, Slobodan started drinking vodka. Lori shook her head. She put Lorraine in her bed and went to take a shower. Lori lay down next to Lorraine half an hour later.
"Goodnight Slobodan."
"Good night."
Lori fell asleep. But in the middle of the night, Lorraine cried. Lori checked whether she was hungry. But Lorraine didn't want to suck on Lori's breasts. And her diaper was empty too. Eventually she calmed down and stopped crying.
"You are already a good mother." Slobodan said.
"Thank you."
A knocking came from the door. Lori heard a young woman and an older man arguing. But the strange thing was, it was a Slavic language Lori understood. Lori stood up with Lorraine, and opened the door. A sixty year old man who was bald and looking angry was standing in front of her. Behind him was a young woman who had blonde hair, and tried to calm the old man down. Probably his daughter. He spoke angry to Lori with a hard Slavic accent.
"Goddammit I want to sleep! Make your baby sleep so I can sleep!"
Lorraine started crying again. The woman behind the man yelled at him. And Lori understood it pretty well.
"Jesi li poludio? Sada beba opet plače! Kako možeš vrištati na tako mladu majku i njezinu bebu?"
(Are you crazy? Now the baby is crying again! How can you scream at such a young mother and her baby?)
The man yelled back.
"Pričam kako želim!"
(I talk how I want!)
Slobodan came from behind and walked to the man. He spoke quietly, and Lori got goosebumps.
"Јеси ли ти Хрват?"
(Are you Croatian?)
The man looked angry at Slobodan.
"Ma, vi ste prokleti Srbi!"
(Oh! You're damn Serbs!)
"Усташки сероњо!"
(You Ustasha asshole!)
Slobodan punched the guy at his chin. They started fighting like they were in a war. They fought that hard that dust was coming from the ground. Lorraine started crying harder. The young woman held Lori and tried to comfort Lorraine. Lori looked at her.
"Зашто не раздвојиш то двоје?"
(Why don't you separate the two?)
The woman answered.
"Ni ne pokušavam. Neće prestati dok ne prestane."
(I'm not even try it. It won't stop until it stops.)
Slobodan and the other guy fell in the swimming pool. The continued fighting. Other people opened their doors, under them the rest of the Croatian family that was next to their room. Ten minutes later, they both were sitting on the ground. Both were bleeding from their noses and they had visible bruises. Lorraine stopped crying when they stopped, and was calming down. The Croatian Family took the man. The young woman was visibly angry at her father.
"Svaki put! Možete li ikada imati susret sa Srbima koji ne završi tučom?"
(Every time! Can you ever have an encounter with Serbs that doesn't end in a fight?)
"On je počeo!"
(He started!)
"Obojica ste krivi!"
(It's fault of you both!)
They went in their room and closed the door.
"Get up Slobodan!" Lori yelled angry.
Slobodan stood up and went in the room. He changed to dry clothes and went back to bed.
"I'm sorry for bringing you into trouble." Slobodan said.
"I understood everything you and this guy yelled! It was horrible stuff to listen to!"
"He is a Croat."
"Just go to bed!"
Lori laid back down to Lorraine. The night was quiet from then on. Lori woke up in the morning and took Lorraine into the bathroom. She bathed Lorraine and dressed her in a pink t-shirt and light blue shorts. When Lori left the bathroom with Lorraine, she saw that Slobodan was drinking vodka again.
"You drink again?!" Lori said upset.
"A problem?"
"Yes! You shouldn't drink in the morning!"
"This makes the car ride fun at least."
Lori thought. It was boring to drive all day. She let him.
"You kinda got a point." Lori said.
Lori took her things. Slobodan left the motel with her and Lorraine. The journey continued. Their journey went through Wisconsin and through Chicago. They reached Royal Woods at midnight.
"It's nice to be back after this long time."
"I believe that. Can we buy vodka before we go to the hotel you mentioned?" Slobodan asked.
"You really drank that one bottle in two days?"
"Да."
Lori shook her head. She drove through Royal Woods and pulled into the underground parking lot of the Hotel Royal. Lori parked the trailer in a large parking lot and you got out with your things and Lorraine.
"How long are we staying here?" Slobodan asked.
"I don't know. Long maybe."
"Oh. I'll make us a home."
Slobodan opened his sack and took out the portrait of Slobodan Milošević, the former president of Serbia.
"Did you also took your flags with you?"
"Да. I have Republika Srpska and Srbija."
Lori shook her head. They went in an elevator, and checked in. They went in their room. It was more a small apartment than a room. And it had everything they needed. Slobodan hung the Portrait of Miloševič and the Serbian flag on the wall of the little living room. Lori fed Lorraine.
"Are you okay, with living in hotel?" Slobodan asked.
"I guess. This is like an own apartment."
Slobodan looked around, and nodded.
"Is nice place."
"We should go to bed." Lori said.
"Agree. It is late."
Lori went with Lorraine in a room of the Hotel apartment. She put Lorraine in bed, and turned the lights off. Lori laid next to her, and gave her a kiss on her cheek.
"Little beauty."
Lori tried to sleep. She heard Slobodan entering the second room of the apartment. Lori focused on Lorraine who was in her arms and fell asleep ten minutes later. Lori now closed her eyes, and slept as well.
End of chapter