As the steward backed out, Kseniya reached into her pocket and gave him a handful of money. If that was the tip, then how much had the food cost? The math was boggling. My eyes must have revealed my amazement, for she smiled at me and said, “That was a trifle- merely a bit of spending money on our little vacation. You could be in our position one day, if you choose. With your abilities, you have the choice to be rich. Powerful. Feared. In control. Anything you desire.”

Her words echoed the dreams I had when I was stuck back at the camp. It was a list of everything I had ever wanted.

The man’s voice broke in. “But first you have to show us that you can follow directions. Sometimes you’ll have the luxury of asking questions, other times you won’t. Guess which time this is?” His voice grew hard as he drew a gun from inside his coat.

“What if I told you the Polkovnik was still alive? That we had brought him with us? It’s up to you to finish what you started. That’s rule number two: Tie up your loose ends.”