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“Two reasons. Cooper is an accepted adjunct to the group and he will vouch for him.
Secondly, the Russians brag. They can’t help themselves.” Mrs. Kirby took off her glasses,
immediately stripping a decade from her appearance, and once again looked at Davy. “All you have
to do, my young friend, is claim that your fellows back in England are cowardly and slow to action,
nothing at all like the true revolutionaries of St. Petersburg, and then sit back and let the Russians tell
you everything they know. The whole nation falls to flattery, especially if you contrast them favorably
with the rest of Europe.”
“But how am I to pass a university student?” Davy protested. “I barely made it through my
primaries.”
“I assure you that is not a problem,” Mrs. Kirby said. “Cooper reports that his Russian students
speak English quite well, but certainly not well enough to notice any nuances or errors in grammar
that might betray your class.”
It was a slap, but Davy took it without flinching. “Nonetheless,” he said with dignity, “it seems
that Tom would be better suited for this assignment.”
The same thought had occurred to Tom. “We had no idea we were expected to infiltrate a
revolutionary group,” he said to Mrs. Kirby, with the sort of smile which generally won him ground
with women of any age or temperament back in London. “It seems a lot to put solely onto Davy’s
shoulders. Perhaps your spy, this Cooper chap, could claim to know two students –“
“Elliott Cooper most certainly is not a spy,” Mrs. Kirby snapped. “The word implies an
ongoing conflict between two nations and Russia and Great Britain are of course friends and allies.
Cooper is…an observer. He listens and takes notes and reports to the Crown what he learns.” She
frowned and replaced her glasses. “’Spy’ is a crude word, and one that no proud Englishman is
willing to claim. And as for your duties,” she added, with a swift look to Tom, “you are the medical
student posturing yourself as a doctor, are you not?”
“I suppose I am,” Tom said coolly.
“Then I have a quite different sort of challenge for you,” she said. “One involving such a
personal and delicate matter that I trust you all will forgive me for not sharing it with the rest of the
group. Shall you and I meet privately tomorrow to discuss the particulars?”
“I most eagerly anticipate the event,” Tom said, turning to consider the clock on the mantle and
trying to figure the difference in time between St. Petersburg and London. It was not yet a civilized
hour to pour a cocktail in either city, but surely under the circumstances he could be forgiven for