He didn’t see evidence of the car until he came right up to the container wall. First he smelled the exhaust, and then he saw the floating puffs of smoke. Iain froze when he heard voices. He moved forward and knelt beside the container. A man and woman were arguing in Russian. Iain hid in the shadows between the lights from the ice hockey hall windows and a street lamp on the edge of the car park. He heard a car door slam, then the muffled sound of steps on the snowy car park. He crawled between the wall of the hall and the container. From here he had a clear view of the headlights of the car. Iain heard the steps go past the container, then recede. If Kovtun was going to go back to the changing rooms, he’d catch sight of Iain crouching in the snow as he descended the steps. Iain crawled towards the headlights of the car. He got back on his feet and, staying close to the wall, made his way towards the second container, trying to walk normally. As he passed the car, he caught sight of a frightened woman’s face inside the passenger seat. She was alone in the car, her face turned away from him. Iain turned the corner out of sight and stood for a while, catching his breath. His feet felt weak and his hands were trembling. He now had a clear view of the main car park at the front of the hall. The Russian bus with its covered windows had started its engine.
Iain tried to think. If Kovtun was about to use Pia, how would he get her? Was he mad enough to think it would work? He had to get back to Pia. He started running towards the front of the sports hall. He slipped in the poorly sanded back car park and landed on his hands. It stung. He heard steps behind him.
As Iain tried to scramble to his feet, a hand grabbed his collar and pushed him back onto the ground. His mouth filled with snow and ice. He tried to kick but the weight of the man was on his back. He tried to lift himself up and turn around, push away whoever was on top of him, but his back was punched. Iain tried to shout out, but a gloved hand grabbed his jaw.
‘Silent, or I will kill you.’
Kovtun, Iain thought as the Russian pulled him up and started walking towards the girls’ changing rooms. He felt the gun against the back of his neck. Iain’s blood was rushing in his ears. He tried to keep calm as Kovtun pushed him into an empty changing room. Iain stumbled, nearly losing his balance, but managed to turn around. He tried to punch Kovtun’s face but instead saw the raised hand with the butt of the gun pointing towards him before he fell down.
Pia was grabbed so quickly she didn’t even have time to scream. When she tried, no sound came out of her mouth. It was as if her throat had dried up. She’d seen surprise in Miss Joutila’s face and then she was grabbed. Next she was dragged along the corridor. She’d seen Kovtun’s dark eyes staring at her briefly before he’d pushed her face against the rough brick wall, pulling her left arm high up to her back. It hurt and she let out a whine. The rough wall was scraping her cheek. There was a burning sensation on her face. The Russian pulled Pia’s other arm to join the left and pushed her whole body harder against the wall. Pia managed to scream. Now the Russian’s lips were behind Pia, close to her, whispering in her ear, ‘Quiet now, little Miss.’ He smelled of vodka just as he had done at the Linnonmaas’ flat. Pia tried to kick him from behind but the Russian was strong. He pushed his leg up against Pia’s knees to stop her from moving, and stuffed something damp into her mouth. She tried to bite the hand, but couldn’t through the foul-smelling cloth. It was wet and tasted sweet. The rope against her wrists was hurting, but at least her face was released from the rough wall. Now the Russian got hold of her waist and hoisted her up, while holding the cloth up to her mouth. She had a heavy feeling in her head. The brick walls of the corridor whisked by. She tried to struggle, but Kovtun pulled tighter on her wrists and pushed the cloth deeper into her mouth. Pia thought she was going to suffocate. She tried to kick again, but her legs felt heavy, as if she had weights around her ankles. The Russian eased his grip on her mouth and Pia saw her chance to scream, but when she tried she could not summon the energy. She managed to keep her eyes open, but couldn’t make out anything. It was dark and cold. She felt like crying. Now there was cold air on her sore cheeks and she realised they were outside. She tried another shout but couldn’t find the energy to open her mouth. Then she realised it was already open but had something in it. Pia bit into the strange-tasting cloth. She saw a bright light and they were moving towards it. Next, she was propped up inside a warm place. She tried to focus, but all she could make out were vague shapes. People? Who? She felt a sensation that they were moving, that she was no longer being held in the Russian’s grip. Then everything went black.
Leena ushered the girls into the changing rooms and shut the door. She was out of breath, and panting hard.
‘What’s happened, where’s Pia?’ one of the girls asked.
She glanced over her shoulder at the four girls huddled in a corner of the changing room. Leena turned around and smoothed her skirt over her boots. She said, ‘Girls, it’s time to get dressed!’ Leena tried to keep her voice steady. The girls looked up but didn’t move. ‘It’s OK, she’s just gone to see her mother.’
Leena felt a lump in her throat. She should protect these children against the monster she had befriended and…loved?
‘You must wait here!’ Leena told the girls. She grabbed her long coat.
The corridor was very dark. Only a faint light was filtering through from the arena upstairs. Leena could hear the Soviet anthem playing. She paused.
The Russians had won.
Of course, it had always been a lost cause.
Leena started running towards the end of the corridor.
As she passed the Russian girls’ changing rooms, she paused for a moment. It was quiet. They must be upstairs collecting the trophy, Leena thought. Would the Lyceum team be missed? It would cause alarm, Leena hoped.
There was the door at the end of the long corridor.
Leena pushed the door open. A cold gust of wind made her wrap her arms tight around her long coat. The sky was pitch black above Leena. The lights from the hall reflected onto the snow beyond the small car park. Leena could just about see the shapes of two bins. There was something behind them. Leena walked over and saw from between the two bins the shape of a car. Suddenly she heard the car door open and shut. Leena took a quick intake of breath. Her heart started racing as she heard heavy footsteps scraping against the compacted snow. A tall figure in a long coat came into her view from the far side of the other bin.
‘I think I’m owed an explanation!’ Leena shouted.
The figure stopped. When he turned, Leena could see he was carrying a bundle. Pia! Leena ran towards the man, but he was quick. He went back to where he’d come from and pushed the bundle inside the car. He shut the door and turned to look at Leena. She was now standing so close to Vadi she could smell the vodka on his breath. His blond hair was tussled, and he had a hurried look about his eyes.
‘What?’
‘Bastard!’
Vadi didn’t expect the blow, Leena could see that. She surprised herself with the force she was able to put into it. She’d never punched anyone in the face before. Her knuckles hurt a bit, but she didn’t care. He deserved every bit of it!
The car door opened on the other side and the woman Leena had seen at the InterContinental Hotel last night stepped out. She screamed when she saw Vadi on the ground.
Vadi had lost his balance and was holding onto his face. Leena ignored the woman’s screams and took advantage of Vadi’s momentary lack of concentration and kicked him between the legs. She aimed her heel where she knew it would hurt the most. The effort of the kick was so great she too fell to the ground. When she looked up, she saw Vadi was doubled over, on the floor next to the front wheel of the car. The woman was holding onto him. Leena stood up quickly and went to open the passenger side door.