Two Men With A Mission

   Billy was impressed by the surreptitious manner in which Leo moved among the tombstones. The two agents were also aided by the fact that twilight had begun to fall. Despite their focus on the the Russian agent, neither Billy nor Leo failed to notice the beauty of the desert sunset. No painter's palette had ever contained colors quite like those now gracing the New Mexico sky. The two of them stopped behind a stone about ninety feet from the professor's grave.

    "What do you think he's waiting for?" Billy whispered.

    "I don't know," Leo answered in the same manner.

    After remaining behind the tombstone until nightfall they still did not have an answer. Billy was about to crawl over to the knoll to verify that the Russian was still there. He changed his mind when Jerry Albright and Glenn Wright arrived. The teenagers approached the professor's grave with shovels and lanterns in hand.

    "What if we get caught?" Jerry asked his companion while nervously looking around.

     "I've been thinking about that too," Glenn replied. "But that guy is going to pay us ten thousand dollars. We could be in Los Angeles next week. It will be worth the risk."

     "Or we'll be in jail tomorrow," Jerry pointed out. "Screw it. Let's just get it done."

    The two agents looked at each other. In their minds "the guy" must be Nicolas Yashin. Yet what task would justify paying a 10,000-dollar fee to these kids was beyond their comprehension. They watched with anticipation as the teenagers began to dig up Professor's Solomon's grave. Glenn removed the first shovel of dirt, then Jerry nervously joined in. Thye did not work for long before stopping.

    "What are we looking for anyway?" Jerry asked his friend as the two of them took a break.

    "Some kind of envelope. This guy was supposed to be buried with some really important papers."

    They resumed their digging. After what seemed like an eternity to the grave robbers one of their shovels hit a solid object. Thye cleared the dirt and exposed the professor's coffin.

    "There it is," Jerry said in an uneasy tone. "Do you want to open it?"

    "You said you would," Glenn protested.

     "I know. But now that I'm really gonna do it, it's starting to freak me out. Oh, what the hell."

     Jerry picked up a crowbar. Just as he began to pry open the coffin a figure emerged from the grassy knoll. Leo tapped Billy on the shoulder and pointed to the Russian agent. The almost full moon provided enough light for Leo to see that Yashin was carrying something in his hand.  

    "I think he has a gun," he whispered. "He might shoot those kids."

    "Why?"

    "Because he doesn't want witnesses."

    "It's a shame you don't have your dolly with you. You could sneak up behind him and hit him over the head with it."

    Leo ignored his remark and thought for a moment. There was certainly enough evidence to charge Yashin with inducing the boys to dig up the grave. This could be enough to hold him for a while. Still, if he made bail, the Russian agent would be back in Moscow in short order. That would be unacceptable, for Leo was determined to see justice doen for Tom Allen. He also knew that if they tried to arrest Yashin now, a gunfight would ensue. This could mean the loss of two young lives.

    I wish I were a better shot. I could end this thing right now. But the bastard is too far away. And even if he was closer, there's not enough light for me to see him clearly anyway, Leo thought. He then said aloud, "Give me your keys."

    "What?" Billy reposnded.

    "Give me your keys."

     BIlly reached into his pocket and obliged. Leo pushed the button on the key chain to activate the car alarm. The sudden noise piercing the desert silence startled Yashin. The flashing headlights also distracted the Russian. He stopped in his tracks, and then turned quickly. Yashin fired blindly at the source of the commotion.  

     Billy cringed as heard the bullet hit his car. "My car!" he exclaimed. "The cold war is over, you idiot!"

     Nicolas Yashin ran off. The wiz kids did the same. Billy pursued the Russian briefly, but Yashin reached his own car and drove off. The FBI agents watched him disappear into the night. Billy then walked over to examine his car.

    "He put a hole in the radiator," he said in a dejected tone of voice.

    It's a shame he didn't hit the stereo, Leo thought. He said to Billy, "I'll call for help. I don't think we'll make it into town before the car overheats. I guess it's time to introduce ourselves to the local police."

    The two agents sat down near the grave while they waited for help to arrive. Leo occasionally glanced over his shoulder at the exposed, but still sealed, coffin. Even a person's eternal resting place was not immune from the wants and desires of their fellow man. He found that to be a depressing realization. Leo wondered if there was truly any dignity to be found at any stage of human existence.