Another thump. Were any of the rest of her family alive? At least she knew Tatiana was safe and prayed she would arrive soon with Dmitri Malama to rescue them. Someone must have heard the firing. The noise had been ear-splitting. The whole town must have heard.

There were men’s voices around her. It sounded as if there were lots of them, and among the words she could hear the unmistakable sound of vomiting. More than one of the men was throwing up. It must be a grisly sight. The image of her mother’s brains flashed into her mind and she swallowed hard.

Someone grabbed at the amulet around her neck and yanked it off, breaking the chain. Another tugged at her gold bracelet, forcing it over her hand.

An engine started and she could feel vibrations beneath her. A cover was thrown over them, then they started to move. Where were they going? She could smell gas fumes; they were making her woozy. And then she drifted into unconsciousness once more.

* * *

Maria wakened to a rough jolting. It took a few moments before she remembered where she was and a stab of terror took her breath away. The vehicle appeared to be on a track of some kind, because she was being bumped around. She reached out and felt an arm. Whose was it? She couldn’t tell, but it was not moving. On the other side she felt a woman’s hair, but could detect no sign that anyone else was breathing. There was pain in every part of her but she couldn’t think about it, not now.

The vehicle stopped and she heard voices. Men’s voices with rough accents. Someone pulled back the tarpaulin over them and she held her breath, rigid with fear.

“We were promised the girls would be alive,” a voice complained close by.

“You don’t fancy a spot of necrophilia? Personally, it’s not my thing.”

“They were pretty, but look at all that blood. Fair turns your stomach.”

The men had intended to molest them, Maria realized. What would happen if they found she was alive? It would be a fate worse than death. She wished she had died back at the Ipatiev House rather than face this.

“Breakfast is ready,” a voice called from some distance away.

“We’ll strip them after,” one man said. “Bet they’ve got jewels hidden on them.”

“Yeah, I can’t wait to see their jewels,” another said in a coarse tone, and there was general laughter.

Maria listened as the voices grew fainter. She had to get away before they returned and discovered she was alive. She strained her ears, listening hard for the sound of breathing or footsteps that would indicate there was anyone nearby, but the voices were distant now. Above her she could hear leaves rustling faintly in the breeze. She opened her eyelids just a fraction and saw starry sky through dark branches.