We collected our visiting numbers at the main door and then, escorted by a prison wardress of Olympic shot-putting proportions, we made our way, one at a time, through the arrangement of locked doors and turnstiles until we reached the interview-room. Beside this was a concrete isolation cell that was the size and proportions of a safe in a large bank. The wardress selected a key from the bunch on her enormous leather belt, opened the isolation cell's massive steel door and barked an order at the man who was seated inside.
Pyotr Mogilnikov rose unsteadily to his feet and then followed us into the interview-room, which was itself not much bigger than a sauna bath.
The wardress left the three of us alone and we sat down on opposite sides of a table that had been screwed very firmly to the floor. Grushko tossed his cigarettes across the table and sniffed the air suspiciously.
What is that smell?' he said.
Mogilnikov grimaced. One of the guys in the cell,' he explained unhappily; his pet cat pissed on me.'
Is that what persuaded you to talk to us?' Grushko chuckled.
Funny,' snarled Mogilnikov and lit a cigarette. You knew, didn't you? You knew they'd try and nail me in here.'
You mean someone's tried already.'
Not as such, no.' Mogilnikov trembled as he spoke. But when I walked into my cell there was this guy, see? Razumikhin. They call him the Undertaker. He knew my name, like he'd been expecting me. And I knew, I just knew, that someone had got me into that particular cell so that Razumikhin could kill me. It didn't matter that I hadn't talked. They still want me dead.'
They're more organised than I thought,' said Grushko. They certainly didn't waste any time. Those Georgians must want you out of the way badly. Lucky for you that we were keeping an eye on you.'
Mogilnikov frowned. Who said anything about the Georgians?' He took a deep, agitated drag at his cigarette.
Maybe you've forgotten the other night,' I said.
This isn't the Georgians,' he said. Not this time.'
Who then: the Chechens?'
Mogilnikov snorted with contempt.
You really don't know much do you?' He shook his head with pity. Look, Grushko, I want a deal.'
There are no loans for the naked. Not in my book.' Grushko was beginning to look impatient. His fists were clenched so tight that his fingers were turning white and his mouth was a narrow, angry slit.
Come on Grushko. I'm good for it.'
You won't be good for propping up a fence if you're dead,' said Grushko.
Mogilnikov sighed and lit another cigarette.
I'm not an informer,' he said. But if they think I've pinched them then'
Grushko leaned swiftly across the table and caught Mogilnikov by his shirt collar. He twisted it hard and then yanked the man's head down sharply against the table top with a loud bang. He did it again for good measure.
You're just what I say you are and nothing more, you little shitbag,' he growled. If I tell you to write me an essay on your mother's sex life, you'll do it and enjoy it, or I'll toss you back on the bunk where you belong. Understand?'
All right, all right.' Mogilnikov pulled Grushko's hand away from his collar and then rubbed his head unhappily. Take it easy, will you?
Grushko sat back on his chair and tugged the sleeve of his jacket down over his shirt-cuff. He picked up his cigarettes and lit one. Smoking it he seemed to recover some of his composure.
If what I hear sounds useful,' he said, then maybe just maybe we can do a deal. My word on it. And most of the zeks in here will tell you you can't cut my word with an axe. All right?'
Mogilnikov nodded sullenly and retrieved his own cigarette from where it had fallen on the floor.
Let's start with the burglary, shall we?' said Grushko. Who handed you the apple?'
It was some Ukrainians.'
Grushko shot me a look of surprise.
I don't know their names. But from what they said, they'd spent some time in the zone. Maybe if I were to look at some photographs.'
Not so fast,' said Grushko. Before we get to look at pictures we need to hear some more story.'
It was a job to order, just like you said. I was in the bar at the Leningradskaya Hotel and these two foreheads just came up and started talking. They bought some vodka and said they'd heard of me and wanted me to do a little job for them. All I had to do was wash some keys out of a guy's pocket and then keep an eye while they turned his flat over. They told me there was a thing in it for me. Five hundred then and 500 when the job was done.
So the next day we waited in their car outside this address on Griboyedev.'
What kind of a car?' said Grushko.
An old Seagull,' said Mogilnikov. You know, one of those Buick copies.'
Grushko nodded. He liked to tie up all the loose ends.
Go on,' he said.
Well first, we saw this old couple who shared the flat leave, and then this younger couple. They had a chat for a minute and then went their separate ways. I let him get a bit up the street and then bumped into him, accidental like. While I was helping him to his feet, I dipped his pocket. Simple as that.'
The thief allowed himself a small smile of professional satisfaction.
He didn't even know they were gone,' he said. It was a neat bit of work even though I say so myself.'
Then what happened?'
We went upstairs to the flat and they turned it over like they said. But carefully, you know? They weren't hooligans. They seemed to know exactly what they were looking for. Just some papers, they said. That worried me a bit, I don't mind telling you. You see, I had the idea that these must have been important papers the sort you might want to hide, because when I stuck my head round the door to see how they were getting on they were even looking in the fridge.' He shrugged. Well, what sort of papers do you keep in the fridge? Except the ones that maybe you're not supposed to have anyway.'
How long were they in there?'
About twenty minutes. They found what they were looking for all right. They were very pleased with themselves. And then we were off.'
Grushko regarded his nicotine-stained thumbnail thoughtfully for a moment and then bit it. Pointing it at Mogilnikov he said: So where does Vaja Ordzhonikidze fit into this?'
Look, I wanted nothing to do with that, right? I want to get that straight right from the start. They threatened me. They said they'd break my legs if I didn't help them.'
When was this?'
A couple of days after we broke into the flat. They said that they'd heard Vaja liked fancy watches and they knew I had the one I'd washed off some Japanese tourist's arm. The Rolex. All they wanted me to do was ring him up and offer the watch for sale. So I did. I rang him up and arranged a meet in front of the Admiralty building. Vaja came straight down in his car, just like these two Cossacks said he would. He pulled up and I went over with the watch. When he saw it the poor bastard looked like he thought it was Christmas.
He was so busy looking at it that he didn't even notice one of the Cossacks come up on the other side of the car. The Cossack got into the passenger seat and stuck a gun in the Georgian's ribs. He was pretty sick about it I can tell you. Anyway the Cossack told him to drive somewhere and the other followed them in his car. That was the last I saw of them, and of Vaja.'
But I still don't understand why they wanted him dead,' said Grushko.
Mogilnikov paused for a moment as if he was wondering what to say. When he spoke again the explanation offered more than either Grushko or I could ever have imagined.
It was Mikhail Milyukin they most wanted dead, right? Even though they'd had those papers off him they still figured he knew too much about what they'd been up to. Whatever that was. But they thought that if they killed Vaja at the same time and in the way that they did you know, a couple of olives in the bread hole your lot would think that it was the Georgians silencing an informer. While at the same time the Georgians would naturally think that it was their old enemies the Chechens. And when a gang war broke out between them.'
