Book 1: What We Had in the Beginning

Chapter 20: Escape

It looks like the sun is just about to rise, it can't be no later than 7. Nikolay quickly uncuffs us and we line up in front of Ivan. Only me and Yelena. My heart sinks.

“I'm not going to ask again, where is she?” Ivan takes a step towards us, stressing the last three words. Something then shifts in his eyes and he quickly turns around to face the officers. “6 of you were on watch last night, what the hell happened?”

“W-we don't know. 3 of us were keeping a look out on the 1st floor. No one came out of the basement.” A Red Room officer speaks up. Ivan stares at him for a few seconds, then looks to Anton and Sadovsky.

“Then how did she escape?” Ivan asks them slowly, as if he's talking to a bunch of children. I can tell his patience is running thin. At this point Ivan’s a ticking time bomb.

“From the looks of it, she may have slipped through the basement window. The last time we checked the room was sometime after 4 and she was still here.” Anton concludes, wiping his hands against his pants nervously. I glance over at the window and it's indeed open. It's small but big enough for someone our size to squeeze through. A breeze blows in through the window causing snow to trickle in. Ivan closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. Opening them, he steps away from us and closer to the door.

“Soldat!” Ivan calls out. The line of officers that are standing in front of the door quickly part and the Soldier enters the basement. He's dressed in his uniform and I can't help but notice how the light from the window reflects off of his left arm and onto the walls. He quickly scans the room, his eyes lingering on the small window. The Soldier stands in front of Ivan, waiting for his orders. “Find her. Bring her back, alive. If complications arise, kill her but I want her body.”

With that the Soldier nods and leaves the room. Ivan doesn't make a move to leave and just stands there, breathing heavily. Finally without a word he exits the basement, all the officers except Anton, Nikolay, Sadovsky, and Dominik following behind him. Me and Yelena quickly get dressed and follow the 4 officers to the washroom. Me and Yelena don't talk, there really isn't much to say. After we brush our teeth the officers take us to the dining room for breakfast. There's no one waiting for us much like yesterday and we eat in silence. The officers, who stand at the front of the room, don't talk. Yelena is sitting next to me but she really doesn't eat much. I don't have much of an appetite either but I know I need the energy.

“You think she'll make it?” Yelena leans over and whispers. She steals a glance at the officers and I do the same. 2 of them are inspecting the guns in their hands and the other 2 are just staring at the floor.

“I hope so,” I answer honestly. “but she won't.”

Yelena nods in understanding and goes back to picking at her food. She won't make it, especially with the Soldier after her. From what Anton said, Pouline must have left sometime after 4. Peering up at the clock hanging on the wall over the officer's head, I find the time to be 9 o'clock. Which means she's around 5 hours ahead of the Soldier give or take. The closest city to here is Moscow and to get there driving is an hour and 20 minutes. So on foot running, it should take her around 6 hours to reach the outskirts of Moscow. By the time the Soldier gets back it might already be dark. Pouline should've known better but she must've been desperate. After what happened yesterday she probably wasn't thinking clearly. The hardest thing I've had to do since the program started was kill someone, so I know how she feels but running away isn't how you deal with it. Maybe she knew she wasn't going to make it but still wanted to try, like Wendeliena wanted.

After we finish eating, the officers take us to Madam Oksana. When we enter the room at first she looks confused as to why there's only 2 of us. After a few seconds realization hits her and her face goes blank, she then tells us to get ready. We dance and dance for hours. I'm not sure how long, 3 maybe 4 but we don't stop. Every time the song repeats, the feeling in my chest gets heavier and heavier. Me and Yelena pour our hearts into the dance trying to accept but also forget what's happening. There's only 2 of us left, 2. This is almost over. This is what I wanted, but it's like it’s happening too fast. I can't keep up, I'm not ready to face what’s about to happen next. I want to be the Black Widow, to survive but I feel like I'm not ready. No I'm ready, I've worked hard and I'm more than ready to be the Black Widow. I guess I'm just afraid to be alone.