Life And Fate (Orange Inheritance)
63
The duty-officer had just given a report to the general in command of the 8th Air Army on the sorties made by their fighter squadrons during the day.
The general looked through the papers spread out in front of him.
‘Zakabluka’s having a hard time. Yesterday he lost his commissar and today he’s lost two pilots.’
‘I’ve just phoned his HQ, comrade General,’ said the duty-officer. ‘Comrade Berman’s going to be buried tomorrow. The Member of the Military Soviet has promised to fly in and give a speech.’
‘He does like giving speeches,’ said the general with a smile.
‘As for the pilots, comrade General, Lieutenant Korol was shot down over the area held by the 38th division. And Senior Lieutenant Viktorov was set on fire over a German airfield. He couldn’t get back to our lines – he came down on a hill in no man’s land. The infantry tried to get him out, but the Germans stopped them.’
‘Yes, yes . . .,’ said the general, scratching his nose with a pencil. ‘I know what: you phone Front Headquarters and remind them that Zakharov promised us a new jeep. Soon we won’t be able to get about at all.’
The dead pilot lay there all night on a hill covered with snow; it was a cold night and the stars were quite brilliant. At dawn the hill turned pink – the pilot now lay on a pink hill. Then the wind got up and the snow covered his body.