Athena - Liaisons in Kremlin

Chapter 3 Hamlet

Before 1945 Frączków was part of Germany. This hamlet derives its name from Franciszek meaning Frenchman, also called Francis. Szymond Francis is quite the prince. An ominous horizon marked by grim clouds awaited our arrival, the ground is concealed in white, and lifeless trees accompany us throughout the journey. A heady whiff of oak enters inside as I lower the window. The hamlet is sparsely inhabited with a single market opposite to the train station. People are lined up in front of a smoke-puffing old bakery, there's a small drug store right next to the vegetable shop and a church beside the railway station. An eerie silence engulfs us as we leave the market. The palace stands in the southwest part of the village surrounded by a woods on three sides and a pond with a fountain at the entrance. It is the last residential building and beyond it lays a thick cover of oak. It's not overwhelming to look at but rather demands your attention. Involuntarily I ponder over the small details carved in the monument. The pale mint coloured roof which under the darkening sky looks slimy, the porch is lit up by the warm light of the foyer chandelier, the dormer window overlooks the grounds, Emily Bronte would have create a similar place for Catherine to wait for Heathcliff. The palatial grounds are a perfect setting for a gothic Victorian romance.

Range Rover come to a halt and the driver opens my door, he has an exceptional built for a driver. Dmitri takes my hand and we walk towards the main entrance. A blond woman has her eyes on Dmirti, she must be the insider.

"Mr. and Mrs. Nikoli, we were waiting for you. My name is Rose and I'm Mrs. Francis's assistant. Mrs. Francis wanted to come herself but something urgent came up. She asked me to give you her best." She gives Dmitri a warm smile. She must be happy to see a familiar face.

"Do you like it?" Dmitri is looking at me.

""I have not broken your heart - you have broken it; and in breaking it, you have broken mine." I speak ever so softly. Now he is staring. "Wuthering heights, It's a beautiful property Alex." He kisses the back of my hand.

"Shall we Mrs. Nikoli?"

We are staying in one of the two suites available in the palace. The lift halts on the second floor of the right wing. Underneath the chandelier is a table with a vase full of white stemmed roses  in the entrance hall, I leave my handbag on it and further explore the suite. There is a master bedroom, a guest bedroom, two bathrooms, a kitchen, dining table, a mini bar, a breakfast bar, and balcony that overlooks the woods.

"Amaira I have some work in the market, I'll be back in a while. You can do some cleaning till then." He smiles at me and for a moment I notice a flicker of nervousness in her eyes.

"Sure." I eye him realising he wants me to sweep the place and find traces of any surveillance device.

This for sure will be a challenge. For starters I can't just tear the place down. I slowly slip out of my boots, Prada boots totally worth every penny. I move towards the bathroom, slip on the hotel robe, leaving my jeans and white silk blouse on the heated tiled floor. I take out a hair stick from my make-up bag and tie my locks into a bun. Something is missing.... I notice an array of scented candles on the coffee table, perfect!

The room is slowly engulfed into an erotic vanilla fragrance and I proceed towards my task.

As always technology first. I turn off the television and check the AC duct. Meticulously I unscrew the intercom using the pen knife and it's clean. All the bulbs and fixtures are clean as well. After 4 hours of carefully turning the place upside down and putting it back together I couldn't find a single bug or surveillance device, Dmitri is simply paranoid. What sort of hotel would want to lose its permit by watching its customers? Maybe I should talk to Dmitri again and remind him what is at stake here; hopefully he'll put his head in the right place.