Song By Unreality

Chapter 12

"What was the most memorable performance for you?"

"Concert in Tivastopol."

(from Rina's interview with 'Kaleidoscope' magazine)

The day turned out to be strange and at the same time intense. Yura didn't have time to move away from the shock caused by the blocking of the channel, as he received a surprise in the form of a greyhound suffering from enuresis. The 'surprise' for him, of course, was arranged by his beloved sister. Yura swore profusely. At the same moment, Manya looked out of the kitchen and grumbled that if he screamed like that, he would bring the dog to a heart attack. Then she picked up the shaking greyhound in her arms, carried her into the room and went to get a bucket and a mop. Calmly wiping the puddle, the sister said that her new acquaintance, Gennadiy Sergeevich, needed to leave urgently and he asked to shelter the dog for a while.

"What do I have to do with it?" Yura was surprised and checked whether the nervous dog was already spoiling the computer keyboard.

"And besides, dear brother, the debt payment is dangerous. I have to go away on business, and I can't leave Shusha with Pencil! Therefore, Shusha will stay with you for a while, and I'll be back for him by four," Manya promised, kissed her brother on the cheek and flew away.

Canned meat and a bag of dry food were found in the kitchen, there were bowls near the radiator, and there was a soft litter near the refrigerator and a plush mouse on it. Looking at the dog's 'dowry', Yura thought with longing that Manya seemed to have brought him a greyhound not for a while, but for good. Hearing the shrill barking, he rushed into the room and found Shusha on the verge of a breakdown. The dog squatted on its hind legs, shook its skinny body and bared its sharp teeth. Greyhound was brought into such nervous excitement by a pencil glass in the form of a grinning demonic muzzle. Yura hastily picked up Shusha in his arms and at the same moment felt a moist warmth on his palms.

"Oh, damn you!" he cursed and hurriedly carried the dog to the bathroom. "The trouble is with you! Shit..."

Contrary to fears, the day flowed on calmly. Shusha ate a lot of pate, lay down on the mat, clutched a battered plush toy in his front paws and finally calmed down. Yura brought his laptop to the kitchen, intending to fight to the death with the technical support of the blocked channel, poured himself tea, but he was distracted by a phone call. An unknown girl said that her boss was interested in an article about an amusement park and asked Yura to come to the office for a conversation.

"Are you from the editorial office?" Yura asked.

"No," she answered after some hesitation.

"Is it by any chance from Dimitri Lebedev's office?"

"Of course not. What makes you think that?" the girl was surprised.

"Well, I was fired from my job because of an article about him. And the channel was blocked.

"Wow!" there was an answer with poorly concealed respect.

Yura agreed to come by five in the evening, deciding that by that time Manya would definitely pick up Shusha. Putting down his phone and pulling his laptop towards him, he began to unravel the 'rebus', for which he paid a large sum.

Yura hoped that the informant would share with him versions of Rina's disappearance or details of her breakup with Dimitri Lebedev, but he heard a story about the missing businessman. Some time ago, Vladimir Serov and two of his partners mysteriously disappeared right from the restaurant where they celebrated a successfully concluded deal. The owner of the restaurant was one of Serov's friends, a well-known restaurateur and investor Mikhail Svetakov.