canvas bag, which allows the weapon to breathe, and then hidden in some
dry location outside. It was to just such a hiding place that Markov had
gone. Trush, trained to fix events as firmly as possible in time and space,
checked his watch.
Trush and Gorborukov had been through this before, and, with the
clock running, they occupied their time by searching the premises.
Technically speaking, the nearly windowless wooden box Markov
occupied wasn’t a cabin at all but a portable caravan—a sort of no-frills
Gypsy wagon that is commonly found on remote worksites around Russia
and its former satellites. This one had been taken off its wheels, and a
rough, open shed had been built onto the east side. Both caravan and shed
were covered with sheets of corrugated asbestos. No formal inventory
was taken, but the shed was filled with a random assortment of things,
most of which were related to beekeeping: metal tubs and tanks; beehive
parts; a large, manually operated spinner for separating the honey from
the comb; and a small sledge for hauling water, wood, and supplies.
Inside the caravan, on the rude table jammed between plank beds and a
barrel stove, was a kerosene lamp and a jar filled with the saved butt ends
of cigarettes, some of which were rolled from newspaper. Beyond this,
Trush didn’t find much beyond the typical signs of a man living very
close to the bone. There was, however, one detail that struck Trush as
somewhat out of character for the average poacher; it was the way
Markov handled a cigarette: “He smoked,” said Trush, “very suave and
stylish—very chic.” It was an odd conceit given the reality of his day-to-
day existence, but it was in keeping with his nickname, which was Markiz
—the Russian equivalent of “Duke.” According to friends, Markov also
fancied himself something of a gourmet, and several of them remarked
on his ability to liven up the most basic meals with wild herbs and
mushrooms. Without these, there wasn’t much to choose from: in
Markov’s world, rice, tea, potatoes, and meat were the key ingredients for
basic survival, though vodka, sugar, tobacco, and pine nuts would have
been high on the list as well.
Along with more easily identifiable equipment, a typical tayozhnik’s
(forest dweller’s) cabin will have a couple of steel trays, roughly the size
ron
(Ron)
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