Tatiana and Alexander: A Novel(109)

"General Vlasov is not here, but his men continue to fight on the German side. He had over a hundred thousand of them. And some of them are in those woods."

The fire died down for a minute and, as clear as skylight, they heard in Russian,"Zarezhai! Zarezhai!"

Alexander exchanged a look with Ouspensky, raised his eyebrows and said, "I hate it when I'm f*cking right."

"Now what? We have no ammo."

"That's not true," Alexander said cheerfully. "I've got four magazines left and half of one drum. And reinforcements will be here soon." That was a lie. He suspected the telephone wire had been torn again, and now there was an added problem--the wire stringer was dead.

"There are at least thirty of them in the woods."

"I better not miss then, had I?"

"You're lying about the reinforcements. We already had our reinforcements. Konev brought you three hundred men with rifles and ammo two weeks ago. They're all dead."

"Stop your yapping, Lieutenant. Order your men to get ready to open fire."

Ten minutes later, Alexander had nothing left in his drum. The fire from his men subsided.

"How far is the German border?" Ouspensky asked. Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html

"About a hundred thousand German troops away, Lieutenant."

Ouspensky sighed. "Now what?"

"Take out your knife. Soon it will be hand to hand in the woods."

"You're f*cking nuts." Ouspensky spoke quietly, so no one else could hear him.

"You have other suggestions?"

"If I had other suggestions, I wouldn't be a lieutenant. I'd be a captain and you'd be taking orders from me." Ouspensky paused. "Have you ever taken orders from anybody, sir?"

Alexander laughed lightly. "Lieutenant, in case you haven't noticed, I do have superior officers of my own."

"Well, where are they now? They need to order you to retreat."

"We cannot retreat. You know that. There are two dozen NKGB troops behind us to make sure of that. They'll shoot us."

Alexander was very quiet and very thoughtful.

The two men paused, sitting side by side on the mossy ground, their backs against a tree. Ouspensky said, "Did you say the NKGB will shoot us if we retreat?"

"Instantly." Alexander wasn't looking at Ouspensky.

"Did you sayshoot us ?"

Now Alexander looked at Ouspensky. "What are you suggesting, Lieutenant?" he said slowly.

"Nothing, sir. But you are implying, aren't you, that they have something to shoot at us with?"

Alexander was silent for a few minutes and then said, "Bring me Corporal Yermenko."

A few minutes later, Ouspensky returned with Yermenko, who was wiping blood off his arm.

"Corporal, how is your ammo holding up?"

"I've got three eight-round boxes, three grenades and a few mortar shells."

"Very good. Let me tell you the situation. We're low on ammo and there are at least a dozen Germans in the woods."

"I think, sir, more than a dozen. And they are armed."

"Corporal, how good a marksman are you? Will your two dozen rounds last you against a dozen men?"

"No, sir, they won't. I don't have a sniper rifle." Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html

"Have you any ideas?"

"Are you asking me, sir?"

"I'm asking you, Corporal."

Yermenko paused, moving his mouth in a thoughtful manner, while he adjusted his helmet. He was standing at attention and his arm continued to bleed. Alexander motioned for Ouspensky to get the first aid kit. Yermenko was still thinking. Alexander motioned for him to crouch and took a look at the corporal's wound. It was a superficial grazing of the triceps, but it was bleeding steadily. Alexander applied pressure with a dressing, and while sitting next to Yermenko, said, "Tell me what you think, Corporal."

Lowering his voice, Yermenko said, "I think maybe we should ask the...back troops for some of their ammo, sir." He motioned behind him into the woods.

"I think you're right. But what if they refuse?"

"I think we should ask them in such a way as to make that impossible."

Alexander patted Yermenko on the back.

Lowering his voice further, Yermenko said, "I know they have dozens of semi-automatic rifles, at least three or four sub-machine guns, and they have not expended their rounds. They have grenades, they have mortar shells, and they have water and food."

Alexander and Ouspensky exchanged glances. "You're right, of course," Alexander said, wrapping the bandage over Yermenko's arm and tying the ends in a knot. "But I don't know if they're going to part with their ammo. Are you up to this assignment?"

"Yes, sir. I will need one man to distract them."

Alexander got up. "That will be me."

"Sir!" Ouspensky exclaimed. "No. You will sendme ."

"You can come with us. But whatever you do, don't tell them you have only one lung, Lieutenant." Alexander handed Yermenko the wooden club he had made. Small pieces of sharp shell fragments were wedged deep into the carved-out wooden head. At the other end, the handle was attached to a rope Alexander had made out of tree bark so it would be easy to swing. Yermenko took it, gave Ouspensky rounds for his Tokarev pistol, they loaded their weapons, Alexander loaded a fresh 35-round magazine into his Shpagin, and the three of them walked silently through the woods to the NKGB encampment. Alexander could see a dozen men sitting in a social circle around a welcoming fire, chatting, laughing.