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Svetlana’s very thin fingers. And yet it was fairly heavy, and it cost twice as much as the others, sixty-two rubles. Short by a few rubles, Vladimir ran home to get some more money and came back to buy the ring. Svetlana has been wearing it ever since.
    The public records office in Vetrov’s neighborhood was undergoing remodeling. So, to get married, they went to the one in the Kuibyshevsky district, near the Krasnoselskaya subway station. Svetlana was so apprehensive that she hid behind a kiosk when Volodia stopped a passerby to ask for directions. They also did not know that you needed two witnesses to get married. Fortunately, two derelicts who were hanging around in the entrance hall agreed to sign the registry. The day was December 8, 1957.
    Now husband and wife, they exchanged a kiss and…went back home to their respective families. This was their routine for the next two months, seeing one another every day and going their separate ways every night, until they could not take it any longer. One day, Svetlana showed her father her domestic passport stamped by the registry office. This was a terrible shock for Barashkov. But Svetlana did not give up. She moved out to go live with the Vetrovs. Her father attempted several times to get his daughter back. The storm took almost six months to abate.

CHAPTER 3

Joys and Hopes of Ordinary Soviet Citizens

    Vladimir’s parents accepted the de facto situation of their son’s marriage much more easily. Of course, at first, Volodia’s mother was a bit jealous. Svetlana had a hard time calling her “Mother,” the common way to address your mother-in-law in a plain and simple family. She found it artificial, while “Maria Danilovna” sounded way too formal, like addressing an official. To them, Svetlana was a breed apart, but they soon considered her like their daughter and gave her as much affection as they gave Volodia.
    It was very easy to treat Svetlana as another child since she did not look like a married woman. Skinny and frail, she looked fifteen. Even at the salon next door the hairdresser asked Svetlana, “Why did you take your mother’s wedding ring? If she finds out, you’re in for trouble!” The neighbors too thought Volodia was going out with a kid.
    The four of them were living in a room of less than 130 square feet. The parents had their own bed. Every night, the newlyweds had to arrange four chairs together in the little space still available, place boards on top of the seats, then a mattress on the boards. They were happy, though, and did not complain about the situation.
    Svetlana was getting along just fine with her in-laws. She enjoyed teasing Ippolit Vasilevich. For instance, one time she tied his feet with a scarf while he was taking his nap on the couch. He woke up and was not able to get up to his feet. “Ah, girl!” he protested happily. “Just wait and I’ll catch you!”
    Ippolit Vasilevich worried because Svetlana did not have those full cheeks seen on the colorful nested wooden dolls called matrioshki . “Girl,” he used to say, looking at her with compassion, “why are you so skinny? I’ll go get you some fish.” And he would rush to the neighborhood grocery store to buy smoked sturgeon. Or he would order caviar from Saratov, shipped in one-liter glass jars, to feed her properly. In those days, everybody could afford those traditional food items.
    Outwardly, everything seemed to be for the better in Volodia’s life, except at work. At the plant, he worked on the assembly and maintenance of the first computers. Yet, this had nothing to do with innovation and creativity, and Vetrov was getting very bored. Moreover, prospects for promotion were bleak. The young engineer had started thinking hard about what else he could do when he received a totally unexpected offer. The KGB had launched a massive campaign to renew its ranks. The Stalinist old guard was sidelined and had to be replaced. In addition, the iron curtain was being