The sun shone in at the window, and Viktor and Sonya sat at a breakfast of fried eggs and tea in the kitchen. Misha, moody since daybreak, refused, however much cajoled, to come and join them. Sonya kept casting eager looks at the alarm clock on the window ledge, as if willing the minute hand forward. At 9.40 the doorbell rang and she darted out, almost knocking her stool over. Nina had arrived. A happy exchange of greetings ensued, after which Nina, still in her coat, looked in to say hello. “Where are you off to today?” Viktor asked. “Syrets. Walk in the woods, then to Podol and to my place for lunch.” She gave a dutiful nod and a teeth-concealing half-smile. “So where’s your little jacket?” he heard her asking Sonya in the corridor. “And now your little boots.” Five minutes later she looked in again. “Just off,” she said, with another half-smile. The door banged. Silence descended, except for a faint stirring in the living room. The door creaked open, and Misha peeped out.
