The English Prisoner
Page 35
‘And thanks for watching my back and saving me from Chan. You’d make a hell of a bodyguard…’
‘I’d been waiting for that moment for years,’ he smiled, softening his harsh appearance. ‘The thanks is mine.’
‘I hope it all works out for you when you finally get out of here. If, God forbid, I end up here again in the meantime, you’ll be top of my shortlist for smelniks!’
We patted each other on the back and he disappeared from the room without a word. After changing into my civilian clothes, I made my bed in perfect prison fashion, folded up my prison uniform and left it in a neat pile at the foot of my bed. Abuzuike, the king masturbator, was off sick, lying in the neighbouring bunk, with his round black face poking out over his rough blanket. He was, no doubt, desperate for me to get a move on so he could knock out his first of the day.
‘I won’t shake your hand if you don’t mind, mate,’ I said, picking up my bag. ‘Keep plugging away, though, that world record can’t be far off now.’
I went outside and sparked up a cigarette under the shelter as a light flurry of snow began to fall. I’d only taken a few drags when Yuri emerged from the office building to escort me to the reception area at the entrance to the Zone. The yard gate buzzed open for a final time and together we walked in silence through the falling snow to the main gate. As we reached Sniper Alley, I stopped and turned round for one last look at the place that had been my home for so long. At the far end of the compound, I could see the Africans shovelling coal for the boilers from the vast heap, their bodies no more than hazy, dark outlines through the flurries of snow. Baska was unloading a milk churn for the kitchen from the back of his horse cart. I waved to him, and he raised a hand back and then carried on his work, as if I’d see him later.
When I turned back and began my walk down Sniper Alley, I stopped almost immediately. To my left, his face pressed against the mesh of the factory fence, was Molloi, the teenage Vietnamese boy from the office. He wore a grin as if it was him walking to freedom. ‘Go! English boy, go!’ he shouted. I smiled back at him and started walking, my chin high and my chest puffed out.
At the gate, Yuri put out his hand for me to shake. ‘Say hello to your father from me,’ he said, taking off his mirrored shades and giving me a wink as he turned to leave.
Zanpolit was waiting for me in the reception office, the gateway to the world beyond. A woman behind the glass counter gave two heavy stamps to my release documents, tore off one half and handed it to me without expression. Zanpolit opened the door on the other side of the room. ‘Davai adachi!’ he said (‘Off you go, good luck!’), and he gave me a gentle push in the back. The door clicked shut behind me. I took small steps through the fresh snow, breathing the air deep into my lungs. I felt light-headed, almost faint. I stopped, realizing I didn’t know where I was meant to be going, but I felt perfectly calm. All I could see was pine trees, a couple of wooden cabins and snow. I lit a cigarette, turned my head towards the sky and let the snowflakes fall upon my smiling face.
Afterword
Tig’s mother met him in Moscow and they flew back to London together in the spring of 2005. He is back working in the City as a broker, after his friend Steve, who visited him in Zone 22, helped find him an opening at a major firm. He and Lucy bought a house in London, which they share with their one-year-old daughter. Tig has remained in close contact with his many friends in Moscow.
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Niall Edworthy for helping me to tell my story. My gratitude also goes to Joel Beckett, for his friendship and invaluable advice and for helping to get the whole project together; to Jonathan Harris and Justin Paige for their in-depth knowledge and support; and to Rowland White, Natalie, Sarah and the whole team at Penguin, who have made us feel so at home and helped us every step of the way towards presenting the book in its best possible form.
I would like to express a massive thank you to our dear Alexei; a life-saver. You’ve shown a kindness and selflessness that makes me wonder how I can ever repay you; the way you put your life on hold to help me and my family is amazing and I am forever in your debt. Similarly to Alla, without whom we would have been lost in this nightmare, with no one to help us understand what was happening. I will never forget how you got us through the whole terrible experience with such bravery, yet always with a calm reassuring smile and a soft shoulder to cry on. Also to Pavel, Alex, Andrei, Dima and all of my other clients and friends in Russia, who tried many ways to help us, not least collecting money towards our costs.
Closer to home, Sheila, Doug, Michael and Nick deserve a particular mention for pulling strings and trying to organize a way out for me. You are true friends to me and my family. I owe a big part of my survival to the letters sent by all my friends, Lucy’s friends and our families. I received 50 per cent of them at best, and can only hope that some of my replies got through. Those letters and cards kept me focused on what was waiting for me at home; they provided some shafts of light on dark, lonely days and nights and helped me to keep strong. Thank you. And not forgetting those who helped and supported Lucy and Mum while I was away, enduring untold grief and heartache with them. I know that my girls wouldn’t have made it through without the support of a strong network of friends, true friends, who sprang to their help, or lent a listening ear, or gave a loving, supportive hug whenever it was needed. To John, for helping Lucy through harder times than I could even imagine; thanks for putting a smile on my face every day, bro. And to everybody else who has helped me get my life back on track since I came home and has helped replace some nasty memories with some real good ones. Thanks to Steve for keeping your promise and to Steph and Chris for giving me a chance.
I would be nothing without Lucy, my soulmate and my rock, who stuck with me through the thickest of thicks and the thinnest of thins; my heart is forever yours. To Rob, for never taking no for an answer and for always being there for me. To Mum and Dad, who must have thought they were in for an easy life once their last chick was about to fly the nest. I apologize again for the sleepless nights of worry and fear and I thank you for never giving up. And thank you to Isabella, my sunshine.