Major Vitaly Mirov, senior militsiya officer for the region around Volokolamsk, had received an urgent order to stop and search the late afternoon Riga-bound train for a young “extremely dangerous” female terrorist who had been responsible for an “incident” at the Redkino station early that morning. The photograph was that of a gaunt and somewhat blank young woman with closely cropped hair and tattoos, not the sort of person that would blend into a crowd.

The train was thoroughly searched, inside and out, but of the terrorist there was no sign. But there had been something… strange.

Mirov had personally led the search of the first class car, which oddly had only one occupied compartment. The family in that compartment had been cooperative and pleasant enough, but something hadn’t been quite right. Every time he tried to identify what it was, it just seemed to skitter away. He was left with a vague uneasiness, and absolutely nothing specific to hang it on.

Major Vitaly Mirov allowed the train to depart.