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lelinda’ Bhe’s on the verge of Kown? We must do , spend a we ** dacha in the country. “We had new collapse of my relationship with He was lost to me in a haze _Indeed, the whole of He did,’ she said, Jago. I had a sudden awareness of ‘until a while “hostility. But at this stage I was far * from formulating my suspicions in words. 1 experienced only a tiny ms | Bagging doubt. In the early spring, with all of us feeling depressed and on edge, Melinda suggested that we might nd unwinding at her skis that year which we were keen to try out on the forest paths. The country round Moscow is very flat but we enjoyed the mild exercise of pushing ourselves along ‘on skis over the powdery snow through the tower- ing birch trees. It was a St Patrick’s Day weekend and, to celebrate the occasion, I had made a bottle of vodka citronnée: * Thad put the coiled peel of a lemon into a full bottle of vodka and allowed it to chill overnight. This is an old Turkish speciality, especially good with a raw-type vodka. I also took with us a casserole of my special jellied soup. The three of us arrived in the early afternoon and, after Kim had waxed .- our skis, ventured unsteadily into the garden. We made bets as to who would fall first. “Lhe path we were heading for had been cleared of snow, which was banked steeply at the bottom of the garden. Lurching away from us, Kim went first over the top and I followed to find him picking himself up from the snow- drift. He was rubbing his wrist. ‘ It’s nothing at all,” he said casually, and he pushed on down the road, with Melinda and myself following. Cosy reading I had my sketch-pad with me and seeing an old-style, gabled dacha, said I would like to sketch it, and t rooms 5 ‘cunning and spirit of fending her young.’ A: Melinda began to look tearful and helpless. Sh on her brave little wor could see that Kim heavily for it. We went There was one doub two single bedrooms i Melinda had settled in Kim-and I t room each, It was the fi our marriage that Kir slept under the same ro rooms. When I woke in to Kim's usual gree! ing,” I discovered ¢ Melinda had been uy hours, drinking tea in th apparently discussing | problems. At least | account of how they pa Kim's wrist was no’ swollen, and it was « would be no more skiin: instead for a brief wall a couple of bottles of € from the local store. Melinda retired to her 1 reading -‘ Burgess an which Kim did not wa: home knowing that Dc and might become ex: pleasant. si Kim’s pr Feeling restless, Kin out again, but it was 1 soon turned back. ° into the village, returr the same time the c: drive us home to Mose have had a few drinks and again it was clear had done it deliberately suspicion that his injur: notvhave been an acci -have been self-inflicted of nihilism and self-p’ st the sitiation aest