Konrad and Alexandra (PDF) - Rolf Gross

flew off cawing.Claudia grabbed Alexandra’s arm. Alexandra smiled sadly. "He is my soul bird. He talked to me during the night, but nowI cannot understand him any longer."They washed their eyes and faces in a basin of cold water and searched for Gocha. She had vanished. They found notraces of her, they were alone in the house.They never saw Gocha again. She did not appear at the clinic and nobody had seen her. Alexandra finally took to writingslips of paper with the remedies for the patients to pick up at Gocha’s in Adishi. No more limping arthritic patientsappeared to test her healing powers.They descended from Svaneti across Latpari Pass down into the Tsenitskhali river valley. In Lentekhi they heard thenews for the first time. Ilia Chavchavadze, the leader of Georgian Renewal for forty years, had been assassinated by twoBolshevik thugs hired by the Okhrana.George Dadiani had the Benz waiting for them. Alexandra raced to Tiflis in one day and night.Tiflis was draped in black flags. Deda, all in black, received them with red eyes. Finally they heard the details of Ilia'smurder.Ilia had secretly returned to Tiflis a week before the Duma was to be sworn in. To avoid problems with Vorontsev he hadquietly sat it out in Zaguramo.On the fateful day Ilia, Olga and Leist had visited friends in Tiflis. On their way back Ilia stopped their phaeton at theTsitsamuri Ravine to take a bottle of water home from the spring. Half a verst further two men jumped the carriage andshot Ilia at close range. Olga was wounded but not fatally, Leist escaped in shock.Alexandra and Niko wanted to see Ilia one last time. Konrad and Claudia joined them. She drove them to Zaguramo thatnight.Ilia was lying nearly buried by flowers on a bier in the living room where they had celebrated so many memorable nights.A large photo stood on an easel between candles near his head. His face was quiet and peaceful. The presence of thedead man and the smell of wilting flowers filled the house.Konrad and Niko took Claudia on a walk through the house and left Alexandra alone with the hero of her childhood. Shewas finally able to cry. She retrieved a neatly folded piece of paper from her décolleté and put it into the breast pocket ofthe suit they had dressed him in. It was a poem she had written the night before. "Farewell my friend, I loved you asmuch as Mother did!" He seemed to smile ironically. She looked around. The others were upstairs. In a sudden impulseshe slipped off her underpants and hastily stuffed them into his pocket. She smiled and briefly put a kiss on his lips withher finger.United across all political differences, thousands followed the hearse that carried Ilia from Zaguramo to Tiflis. Jordaniaand Vorontsev walked next to Olga, Leist, Alexandra’s parents, and the Tsinandali Chavchavadzes. Tamunia-Deda criedcopiously, more than Olga whose head was still bandaged.Ilia’s death marked the end of the old Georgia.They buried him in the graveyard behind the monastery on Mtatsminda Giorgi. Akaki Tseriteli delivered a rousing oratoryinvoking the spirit of the poet and the freedom of his beloved Georgia.It had become mid-September. After an emotional farewell Niko and Claudia left for Batumi. Claudia kissed Alexandramost affectionately, reminding her of their night at Gocha’s in Adishi.On the day of departure of the Petersburgers Tamara Dadeshkeliani appeared unannounced in Tiflis. She hadpersuaded her father to let her spend the winter with Alexandra in St. Petersburg and gain entrance to the university. Sheconfided to Konrad that she had made up her mind to study law and to follow Vladimir. Her father could be asked for hisblessing at a later date.49.Playing games, St. Petersburg1907- 1910"Konrad, where are your two women?"Vladimir stood unannounced in the door of their apartment. He held the latest issue of the journal Apollo in his hand, atattered book under his arm."Alexandra is out shopping with Otto and Tamara left early this morning. I have no idea where she is, either she is153