Until Dawn

Chapter 3

Great, thought Dawn. It was only her second day here and she was already put in a position she didn’t like. She barely knew Roman. What she did know was that he had a bad temper and a fuse only an inch long to said temper.

“I wish I could speak to Ivan but we’re too far away from home,” grumbled Roman.

“Uh, simple solution, use your cell phone,” answered Dawn.

“We have no need for stupid devices like that!”

She pulled out her phone, waving it teasingly in front of his face. “Looks like you have use for one right now. Just don’t stay on the phone too long. My bill will be enormous.”

He frowned and stared at the phone for a while before finally grabbing it.

“You dial Russia’s country code, the phone number, and then hit the green button with a phone on it,” said Dawn.

His frown deepened as he followed her instructions. She could tell that admitting defeat and using her phone was killing Roman. Whatever he needed to say must’ve been very important for a big man like him to swallow his pride like that.

He quickly said something in Russian, listened for a brief second, then handed the phone back to Dawn. “I don’t know how to hang it up.”

“The red button with the phone on it,” she said, pressing the button.

There was an awkward silence before Roman cleared his throat, “We have computers and the internet but I heard that it is very slow.”

Dawn laughed despite the dread of going to the meeting. “You don’t have to justify why the people here don’t have cell phones. It’s a nuisance anyway. Sometimes I don’t want to be found but the government gave me a satellite phone. It can get reception even at the base of a volcano.”

“Can’t you turn it off?” asked Roman. He cocked his head to the side, looking at her quizzically.

The way he did that made him look ten years younger. It was cute and endearing, giving him a plus one in the looks department. Not that Dawn could complain though. She had seen him trying on jackets and was impressed with his body. It wasn’t overly muscular. More like solid; the type of body you would see on a farm boy.

“Dawn?” he asked, his deep voice piercing through her thoughts.

“Oh, what? Yes! I can turn it off but I have a job where I need to be found all the time. I would get in trouble and most likely fired if I couldn’t be tracked for a long period of time.”

“Like a collar for a lost dog. The United States must keep track of all their prized pets,” said Roman.

Dawn’s mouth dropped. She had never been talked to that way. It was the truth but no one was that blunt. It usually ended badly.