Original subtitles

Start from the middle.

ACADEMIA

Galina Sumina

Maxim Bityukov

Yelizaveta Lotova, Alexander Konstantinov, Vladimir Yumatov

Alexander Yatsko, Igor Yurtaev, Eric Yaralov

Director of Photography - Dmitriy Konchev. Production designer - David Dadunashvili.

Music by Igor Krestovskiy

Written by Arkadiy Vysotskiy, Vasiliy Abdrashitov.

Directed by Vyacheslav Lavrov, Alexander Sozonov.

Creative producer - Valeriy Kochkin. Executive producer - Oksana Furtseva.

Co-producers - Nelli Yaralova, Roman Atanesyan.

Produced by Alexey Moiseev, Oleg Piganov, Yulia Razumovskaya

ACADEMIA

Lesha, hi.

Well, now what is it?

Oh, damn!

Oh-oh.

Another dead junkie?

And who might you be?

Me? I’m the director of the park.

Artur Vardanyas, Investigation committee.

I’m going to ask you a few questions.

Are dead bodies common in your park? Is there any security?

As you can see, the territory is huge, and our funds are scarce.

How can one keep up?

Tell me, did any of your employees disappear a month ago?

No, they are all here.

Oh, hand on. A month, you say?

Remember something?

Well, no, nothing major. Our workers are all fine.

U-huh.

Well, you can check with HR if you want.

We will, we will.

May I?

- Yes, come in. - Thanks.

What is it?

You see what it is - a request for transfer.

Yuriy Kuzmich, sign it, please.

Right. Take a seat, will you.

Come on, sit, sit.

If you don’t mind me asking, what is it all about?

Loo, the Academy – it is your baby.

Well, I’m not asking to disband it.

Я просто прошу поставить на моё место другого человека.

I’ve made a grave mistake. I gave in to emotions, and a person was harmed.

Nastya.

You shouldn’t foot the bill for Yulia’s actions, you hear?

I know what you are saying, Yuriy Kuzmich.

But it is no relief.

Wait, wait, wait.

It all turned out well.

Right? Fomina survived. Right?

She testified against Kuzovlev, right?

Well, you solved the case.

Yes, I agree.

Kirill did well and gave Yulia a timely aid.

And…

It was all my fault.

Ok, stop. Belay self-flagellation.

Nastya, I don’t understand.

What good will it do if you quit the department?

The “Academicians” will just scatter away without you.

You were the one who brought them here, for that matter! Right?

Which means, you are responsible for your rose…

No way. Look, I’m not signing off on your transfer.

I am not. Period.

That’s it. I don’t want to hear another word. Get to work.

Go, go back to work.

I see.

Just fancy!…

Right. I’m taking the clothes.

It’s synthetic, and it preserves well.

What’s with Oksa?

She’s got the trial day assigned.

Well, find anything?

Yes. This is a fine specimen of Lubricus terrestis.

Will it help us determine the time of death?

My esteemed Lubricus and I think this man died 4 to 5 weeks ago.

Which has been verified by Dr. Lemke’s preliminary findings.

Can your friend be more specific?

That’s quite a scatter.

That’s it for now.

I see.

What have you got, Kirill?

Look.

This is shoulder epicondylitis.

Is it the cause of death?

Not really. It’s a professional condition.

It is caused by repetitive use of arms muscles.

It can only result in impaired movement, but not death.

How is it of any use to us?

I don’t know. You’re the investigator.

Right. Ok, Kirill.

I’ll take note of this epicondylitis. And the cause of death?

I’m working on it.

Damaged thyroid cartilage suggests strangulation.

His head and neck are heavily decomposed,

So I couldn’t see the constriction mark.

Judging by the nature of injuries, the murder weapon

was thin and strong. a wire, maybe.

It went deep into the throat damaging soft tissues.

Anastasia Vladimirovna, do you think,

Killers can work with silver garrotes?

What do you mean?

You see, I’ve found some odd piece of silver on the victim’s chain.

He had a silver chain, so maybe it is

chippings cut by the wire during the attack.

Yes. But the fragment’s composition does not match with the chain or the cross.

Normally they use fineness 925 in jewelry, but this

fragment’s composition is totally different.

So I wondered if it could be chippings from the murder weapon.

Frankly, I’ve never heard of silver garrotes.

OK, let’s have a sleep on it.

Tomorrow we’ll get his image, and maybe then all will be clearer.

Good morning.

- Good morning. - Good morning.

How are you doing?

We have good news – we’ve got the victim’s image.

Excellent.

But there’s bad news as well - I’ve run him through

all our databases – no matches with the missing person.

How accurate is the reconstruction?

Good enough to get a match in the key parameters.

So, no one is looking for him? How do we identify him?

Let’s try another tack.

Dr. Lemke found that the diseased had professional illnesses.

Conditions common for house painters,

bricklayers, fitters and a dozen more professions.

That said, the disease state clearly didn’t fit his age.

One can assume he’d been doing it since 10 or 12.

And what about the traces of wax and alabaster on his clothes?

It doesn’t really narrow the search.

He had a serious jaw injury.

Anastasia Vladimirovna, I told you I’ve found a strange object on the chain.

It dawned on me overnight that it was string winding chips!

Sasha, it sounds very far-fetched at this point.

Let’s better focus on identifying the body.

Yes, Kirill, I’m listening.

Nastya, my sources told me that one clinic admitted

a patient with a similar injury about six weeks ago.

Did they tell his name?

Ilya Valeryevich Scheglov, a sculptor.

Right.

Then it’s worth going to the Artists Union,

I think they should know something.

Reslly? I’m very happy for you.

Excuse me please. Hello. Are you looking for someone?

Yes.

Anastasia Zorina, investigative committee.

Do you know this man?

This is Scheglov! Right, Ilya!

Tell me, could someone want him dead?

Dead? No way. He did have enviers, that’s true.

What happened anyway?

He was murdered.

My God! That’s horrible!

I’m so sorry for him! He was so young…

Tell me, do you know where he worked?

In some gallery.

Do you remember the address, or at least the name?

We have their ad brochures. Just a moment.

Here, it’s all in here.

Thank you so much, you’ve been a great help! Bye.

Good bye.

A little more! Higher, higher!

Come on! Steady now. Careful, guys!

Can’t you see that the right corner is too high?! Jesus, higher!

Like that?

You have no eye measurement. Lower, lower, yes… Right, yes.

Good.

Excuse me, are you the gallery director?

Yes, I am the director.

Who let you through, lady? Can’t you see we’re preparing an exhibition?

Anastasia Vladimirovna Zorina, investigative committee.

Can I ask you a few questions?

Oh, excuse me, Anastasiya Vladimirovna.

What can I do for you?

Do you recognize this man?

Yes, I know him, it’s Ilya Scheglov.

A very nice young man. He no longer works here, though.

He has moved to Saint-Petersburg with Yeliseev, for a restoration project.

And what’s the matter?

I’m afraid you have a wrong information.

Ilya was murdered about a month ago, here in Moscow.

No way! Does Stepan know?

Who is Stepan?

Stepan Yeliseev, his close friend.

They studied together at the art school.

Ilya has been bringing him along all the way.

Do you have Yeliseev’s number? Is there a way I can contact him?

And are you sure that Yeliseev is alive and in Saint-Petersburg?

Oh, I’m not sure. I’ll call him.

Hello.

Stepan? Styopa, are you in St.Petersburg?

Yes. Do you mind if I call you back?

No, wait. Hang on a minute.

Thanks.

This is Anastasia Zorina, investigative committee. When did you last see Ilya Scheglov?

I don’t remember… Why? Is he in trouble?

His dead body was found yesterday morning, and he was killed about a month ago.

Are you sure it is Ilya?

Afraid so. Tell me, when are you going back to Moscow?

I’m arriving tomorrow.

Thank you. I need Scheglov’s residence address.

And, do you know if he had any close relatives?

As far as I know, his parents are dead, and he has no brothers or sisters.

Yeliseev is his only close friend.

You can have his address at the Accountant’s.

This way, Anastasia Vladimirovna.

As witnesses to the search, your presence is required to attest the fact

of the investigation, as well as scope, process and results thereof.

Do you understand?

Arkadiy,do you think this is Scheglov’s painting?

I gather he was a sculptor.

So what? One doesn’t exclude the other.

Michelangelo was also a sculptor. And a good painter as well.

Yes. Look, you’re right. It is by Scheglov.

It’s called “Muse”.

You know, I think he never planned to exhibit these.

Looks like he painted them for himself, for pleasure…

It is personal.

It seems this woman played a special role in his life.

Or his death. Look.

A violin. And we assume that Scheglov may have been strangled by a string.

We need to search the place and and find as much as we can

Something that could help identify this muse.

We will take the pictures with us.

And, you, Arkadiy, walk around the apartment and

Try to build the owner’s psychological profile.

Ok.

Thanks.

Well now…

Maybe it’s not a real woman, but a generalized image?

See here. One of the Paintings says “Muse”.

I don’t thinks so.

The portraits are amateur. I don’t think he made her up.

Besides, it’s one and the same face.

Yes.

This woman is most likely real.

Which means that the violin is quite real as well.

I think we should look for it as well as the violinist.

When we find the instrument, we’ll find the muse.

Dr. Lemke and I have checked Shurik’s theory.

We should admit that the injury suggests a string.

I’d say, it was a bass string.

My childhood friend works with violins, restores them.

I’ll go see him, he’ll tell me all about them.

Now we know for sure it was a string.

I think we should go to the crime scene again

and search it thoroughly.

The perp could have dumped the string somewhere nearby.

Ed, take Arthur and go to the scene.

We need to check another sector.

If we don’t find anything, we’ll have to request backup.

Found it!

It’s a bass.

There’s blood on it. And there’s more!

The winding lacks a link.

My friend said this is most likely a Guarneri.

He could tell by the color.

Guarneri violins, he said, differ from Amati’s and Stradivari’s by color.

This is dark-cherry. The others are lighter, and these are dark.

And you friend could tell by the color?

Yes. He said it has a distinctive Guarneri del Gesù color.

He determined it by the color, and by the shape of f-holes.

See these f-shaped apertures?

U-huh.

Guarneri del Gesù, he said. For sure.

Besides, he has seen this violin.

Who does it belong to?

To the conservatory. No one.

Hello.

My name is Rotkin. It was me who called.

Hello.

Hello. Anastasia Zorina, investigative committee.

Pleasure. What can I do for you?

What can you tell us about this violin? Do you recognize it?

Yes, its ours.

I’m not sure how come the police be interested in our violin?

I’m not exactly interested with the instrument itself,

but with those who have had access to it.

This violin is a rarity, and only distinguished violinists use it!

Have you ever seen this lady?

Do you recognize her?

I believe you are looking for Inga Lemisheva.

She works here at the conservatory.

Does she have access to this instrument?

Yes, we gave it to her several times for her concerts.

Have the strings ever been replaced on it?

Have they ever gotten lost?

What do you mean, lost? The violin is a rarity!

Strings undergo replacement only under our strict oversight.

Where can we find Lemesheva?

She is around, but she’s at an important rehearsal.

I can ask her to call you when she’s done.

No, we need to talk to her right away.

Would you kindly call her? Or we will look for her ourselves.

All right. Wait here, I will call her.

Oh and, Inga recently asked to replace the bass string on her rehearsal violin.

It is a thick string, it almost never bursts.

I bet thus guy is secretly in love with the violinist.

Shut up!

Laugh all you want. Such romantic stories sometimes happen amongst colleagues.

Yes. Blaze of passion, mutual affection.

Sometimes they are hard to keep at bay.

Yes.

But if someone is fully absorbed by work,

Then such blazes may be a hindrance.

You are right. Absolutely. As always, Nastya.

Hello.

- Good afternoon. - Are you looking for me?

Yes.

I can’t imagine why law enforcement bodies would be interested in me.

Do you know artist Ilya Scheglov?

No, not in person.

We found several portraits of you in his apartment.

So? The artist could see me at my concerts.

This does not mean anything.

And what happened to the bass string on your rehearsal violin?

It burst. It happens sometimes.

I asked for a replacement. Why?

Do I have to report about my strings to the police?

Of course not. It is not about strings.

Too bad you weren’t acquainted with Scheglov.

You see, we are currently investigating into circumstances of his death.

I’m sorry, I have to get back to my rehearsal.

We will have a hard time proving that the string we’ve found

in the park is from Inga’s instrument.

Wow! Now that’s interesting.

What is it?

Hang on.

There is blood of two persons on the murder weapon, not one!

Judging by the blood-group specificity, one of them is Scheglov.

There are also some chips on the other edge of the winding.

Look.

Hey, I’ve found Inga’s profile.

Right. She’s married. Has a son, one-and-a-half-year-old.

Wait, go back.

This one?

Who is it? Inga’s husband?

Yes. Oleg Lemeshev.

Interesting. Oleg has Mongoloid features.

Most probably he has Tartars in the family.

So?

So,

The boy would’ve had the distinctive eyes and cheek bones, but he doesn’t.

Maybe, every second generation inherits these features?

Inga’s son has the same lower jaw and nose shape as Scheglov.

Right.

I’ll call her and ask her to come.

If the father is Scheglov, and nor her husband, I’ll try to get her talking.

Anthropological studies are an interesting thing.

Facial structure can tell much about the person, do you know that?

In particular, who the person’s biological father is.

Dr. Lemke knows such things.

If you refuse to tell us the truth, we will get

a warrant for your son’s DNA test.

You know that we are investigating a felonious homicide, right?

By lying, you not only hinder our work, but also put yourself under suspicion.

I didn’t kill him!

Yes, we had an affair.

And yes, Artyom is Ilya’s son, and not my husband’s. What else do you want to know?

Tell us about your relationship with Ilya.

Please, I implore you! Do not tell my husband!

Of course, he doesn’t know about it. He is sure Artyom is his son.

Please, I beg of you! Do not ruin our family!

Thank you.

I’ll tell you everything.

My husband Oleg is a good person, reliable, but ordinary.

And Ilya – he is a genius! I wanted my son to have his talents.

I also understood that he was edgy and quick-tempered,

and my son would be better off with Oleg as the father.

You’ve worked it all out so neatly.

What can you tell us about Stepan Yeliseev?

I don’t know what to say about him. I’ve seen him once or twice for a moment.

How long did your relationship with Scheglov last?

Almost three years.

We broke up several months ago.

You know, right after that it was like the second honeymoon for me and my husband.

Please, I beg you, do not tell him about me and Ilya!

For the sake of my son. The boy needs a whole family.

I can’t imagine what will happen to us if Oleg leaves us!

And what really happened to your string?

Ilya asked it.

For what? What was he going to do with it?

He said that my string would bring him luck.

You won’t tell my husband, will you?

I think we need to talk to Yeliseev.

He returned from St. Petersburg today. I’ve checked.

I’d like to know if he has an alibi on the day of the murder.

Unfortunately, I can’t, because we

Still don’t have the exact date of death.

Hang on.

There are some plant seeds left on Scheglov’s clothes.

Their respective ripening times overlap within three days!

So, Scheglov died within this time span.

The three-day accuracy is better than a week, but still worse than one day.

- Hello. - Hello.

- Stepan? - Stepan.

Anastasia Zorina, investigative committee.

I’d like to talk to you about Ilya Scheglov.

Nice to meet you. Come in.

Thank you…

Where to?

That way. Come in. Watch the stairs.

U-huh.

Have a seat.

Thanks.

So, I’m listening.

When did you last see Ilya?

About a month ago.

We were supposed to go to work together on April 26,

to St. Petersburg, but he never showed up at the station.

And you didn't try to contact him for a whole month?

No, no, why, I did!

I called, but his phone was turned off.

By the way, it was common for him when he got carried away.

I’ve heard that Scheglov had a jaw injury soon before he died.

Is it so?

Yes, but I wouldn’t want to talk about it.

Actually, I’m investigating the death of your friend.

Or do you not care about him?

Well, OK, OK.

But, don’t get me wrong.

Not long before the trip to St.Petersburg, we had a quarrel.

He had one drink too many and started on me with fists.

I pushed him away, he fell and hit his head against the table at the shop.

What was it about?

Well, we were supposed to take part in an exhibition in Chicago.

A very prestigious event, and the money was good for the top three.

We needed to work, but Ilya was too preoccupied by his personal life.

His lover had just left him, and he wanted to get her back.

Right. Inga told me that. What happened next?

Well,

I told him if he wasn’t going to work,

than I would exhibit alone and represent only myself.

He was infuriated and decided to settle this with fists.

Stepan, what about that contest now?

Now that Ilya is dead, are you going to exhibit on your own behalf?

No, of course not. The sculpture is not ready.

Besides, I can’t revisit it now that Ilya is dead, and don’t want to.

The time is scarce, and I can’t make anything new for the event.

So, Chicago slipped away.

I get it. In fact, there is little that I get.

Thank you.

Watch the stair over there.

Inga couldn’t have done it.

Judging by the position of the string mark, she is too short for this.

The angle is not right.

What if it was Inga’s husband?

But he didn’t know about his wife’s affair.

We need to summon him.

Wait, if he really didn’t know anything,

and we will just ruin the family and leave the kid fatherless?

But what if Lemeshev found out and killed his wife’s lover?

I need to talk to him.

Hello, Inga. It’s Anastasia Zorina.

Inga, how can we find your husband?

What for? I told you he doesn’t know anything!

He’s in the hospital now and not in the state to answer questions.

What happened?

We first thought he has mumps, but he already had it as a child.

He was diagnosed with - sialadenitis.

When will we be able to see him?

Not any time soon, he has just had a surgical excision.

Please, be so kind and leave our family be.

I’m very sorry for Ilya, but neither myself, nor my husband have anything to do with it!

Inga!

So. We need to find out in which hospital Lemeshev is and talk to the doctor.

Mumps is likely to cause sterility in men.

If that is the case, then he knows the boy is not his son.

- Anastasia Vladimirovna! - Yes.

I am a wizard after all!

Did you find out the murderer’s name from the crystal ball?

Almost.

The development cycle of the amphimicrobians I’ve found on the body

suggests that he was killed exactly thirty two days ago.

Which means he was killed before the trip to St.Petersburg.

I’ve found the hospital where Lemeshev is and talked to the physician.

Inga’s husband is really sterile and he’s been hiding it from her.

So, he is our main suspect now.

We need to check his alibi on the day Scheglov died.

Oleg, you told the doctor you were sterile.

That means, you’ve always known that Artyom is not your son.

You know, we have reasons to suspect that you killed Ilya Scheglov.

So, he was killed after all?

I won’t pretend I’m upset about it.

And I’ll sue the doctor for disclosing my fertility problem.

Aren’t you worried about being suspect of having murdered your wife’s lover?

My wife… she’s an artistic personality.

Yes, she’s a bit reckless, of course, but I love her.

I knew about their affair.

I was afraid she would leave me.

But, nevertheless, she chose me. So why would I kill someone?

Do you remember what you were doing on April 25?

Hard to remember exactly.

Actually… my wife had a concert on 25th.

I even got on the stage to give her a bouquet!

And before that I was at work, an important meeting, which many people can confirm.

Hey, why so gloomy?

I’m thinking.

So, what’s with our Othello’s alibi?

I called his work and they confirmed that he was

at the office on the day of the murder.

Which means that either we took a wrong guess on the day of death…

Or something happened during the concert.

Or Lemeshev has nothing to do with it.

Nastya, it’s not that simple.

Yesterday, as soon as we started talking about

about the day Scheglov died, he changed, became nervous.

So, you’re implying that he eigher has a fake alibi,

for the time when he was at work, or at the concert?

He wouldn’t lie about the concert. His

presence or absence there is very easy to check.

- Stop. - U-huh.

How much time passed since the concert started?

Seventeen minutes.

- Keep going. - U-huh.

Yes. About ten minutes left till the end now.

He was away for about an hour and a halp.

That’s long enough for him to kill Scheglov and go back.

I don’t understand what you want from me.

Nastya, he is lying. Keep pushing on him, but stay calm.

Where were you on April 25, in the afternoon?

At the concert, in the conservatory.

He thinks we have nothing on him.

So, you claim that you didn’t leave the conservatory

for the entire duration of the concert, right?

Of course I didn’t.

Hm.

Then let me show you something.

Where did you go?

I was in the park.

Ilya sent me a text that morning, with the time and place to meet.

Why in the park specifically?

He worked there. Restoring some sculptures, I think.

What happened when you met?

Nothing. He didn’t show up.

So I returned to the concert.

Nastya, he is not the murderer.

Excuse me. I’ll be back in five minutes.

What do you mean he is not?

By all non-verbal indicators, he’s telling the truth.

We know that Ilya Scheglov was working in your park.

You didn’t mention this information.

When did you last see Scheglov?

Well, a bit more than a month ago.

Yes, right, it was my daughter’s birthday.

They were fighting all day long, chafing everyone’s mood, so I remember.

What were they fighting about?

Some kind of a contest. I didn’t quite grasp it.

But on that same day, in the evening...

U-huh.

Yeliseev quit. He got his pay and said he was going to St.Petersburg. Urgent business.

The next day, Scheglov didn’t come to work.

So, that’s what we have.

Yeliseev omitted to tell us that he worked with Scheglov in the park.

The park director said that not long before Scheglov died,

he and Yeliseev had a big falling out.

Besides, Stepan has no alibi.

We’ve probably found Scheglov’s murderer.

We only have indirect evidence. And his motive is unclear.

It is clear.

Creative jealousy. Like Mozart and Salieri, an old story.

Arkadiy. What would you say?

Could Yeliseev kill him or not?

To be honest, I find the story of this Yeliseev guy hard to take in.

He’s obviously calm, laid-back.

It seems he’s not prone to violence or aggression.

On the other hand, in a critical situation,

such people are capable of cruel and cold-blooded acts.

In this case, we need to search Yeliseev’ apartment and workshop.

Zorina, how many times to I have to tell you: you don’t have

a sufficient rationale to conduct the search.

All you have is guesswork, you see? I need specifics.

Although…

On second thought, your “academicians” have never failed.

Not once.

You’ll get your warrant.

- May I kiss you? - Go on, git.

Thank you!

Bye.

Nastya! Nastya Zorina!

Denis?

It’s been so long…

Five years, three months, two days and… two hours.

You were all in your thoughts.

But the smile really suits you.

Thank you.

Well… What do you do? Where do you work?

I finished the law school.

Now I give lectures in advocacy there.

And how have you been? Married?

Me? No, no. I work.

All work and work, and nothing but.

We’ve set up a new pilot department called Academy under the IC, and I’m the head.

That’s a long story.

Drop by and see for yourself.

Do you still have my number?

Sure! I had it tattooed when I was on the third year, if you remember.

I see. Well, call me. The number’s the same.

See you.

Yeah, now I know what a real creative clutter means.

That half of the workshop belonged to Ilya.

I guess that’s where he created his works of genius.

Well, I’m not quite sure about him being a genius.

Nastya. Nastya.

It’s no use. I’ve searched this place from top to bottom.

He is totally calm.

He seems to be sure we won’t find anything here.

Maybe we are wrong, and he’s innocent?

Or, maybe, he has already destroyed all evidence.

There’s ground on the shovel.

I wonder Scheglov’s grave was dug with this.

Stepan, you will have to come along with us.

We will take this shovel to the laboratory.

Wait, hang on! You don’t understand!

Why are you so nervous?

You will come along with us and tell us everything. Please!

I’ve compared the fingerprints on the shovel with Yeliseev’s.

No match.

But they match some of the prints we’ve found on Inga’s portrait.

Most likely, they are Scheglovs!

Alex said, the soil analysis showed the grave was dug with this shovel.

So, he made his friend dig a grave for himself?

I’ll go see if I can make him talk before his lawyer arrives.

Stepan, we know that you killed Scheglov with this

string, and made him dig his own grave before killing him.

I’m sure that we’ll find your DNA on the murder weapon.

So if you confess now, it will taken into account as an honest confession.

All right. But your conclusions are not quite accurate.

Scheglov did dig the grave. But it was for me, not him.

Go on.

I heard every day: Scheglov is a genius! Scheglov created a new masterpiece!

While no one paid attention to me.

Ilya knew ways to win over people.

He boasted on every corner about our achievements,

and took all the credit.

So that’s why you decided to kill him?

No. I just wanted to do what I love.

Preferably away from Ilya.

So, what happened anyway? How did Scheglov die?

I told you we were supposed to take part in a large

international exhibition in the U.S.

And you decided to get rid of the co-author and exhibit the sculpture as your own?

Yes. I mean, no. I just told him I would go to the U.S. alone.

Ilya got mad.

Maybe he was scared of debunking.

He decided to get rid of me and then go to

the contest with this sculpture and present it as his own.

Is it so? But we’ve found Scheglov’s body, not yours.

When he put this string around my neck and started choking me,

I managed to break free and turn the tide.

I didn’t want to kill him! I just wanted him to calm down.

And he… he kept pushing on and then…

When I let go of him it was too late.

I decided that the best way would be to bury him

in that grave he dug for me.

And the shovel? Why didn’t you dump it?

I didn’t know about the shovel. He must have dug the grave a day or two prior.

Why did Scheglov pick this particular string as a weapon?

I don’t know. He attached some kind of handles to it.

He used it all the time for cutting wax or clay.

He was convinced that this string had some kind

of a special potent energy that would bring him luck.

Stepan. Do you understand how implausible it sounds?

This is the only thing left in memory of the best friend.

Kirill, I think we need to talk.

You were right, and I wasn’t.

I should have considered your opinion.

I would never forgive myself if Yulia died.

I’m glad you can admit your mistakes.

I understand you didn’t mean for it to happen like that.

But still, you need to trust the people who you’re working with.

I understand this.

I’m just not good at working in a team.

I’m not fit for it. I’m used to counting on myself all the time.

Peace?

Peace.

Thank you.

So it was indeed Yeliseev’s blood on the string after all.

Yes. Maybe, the rest of the story proves to be true as well.

I was thinking, what if Ed decides to kill me out of envy?

Well, it was my idea about the string and the winding!

He’ll do away with me and take our both salaries at the Academy. Right, Ed?

Don’t dish on him, Alex.

Anastasia Vladimirovna here is a different story.

A purposeful and strong-willed person.

If she makes a decision, she’ll follow through.

Hello. May I?

Hi, Denis!

Colleagues, meet Denis.

We used to study together and we were friends.

Hi.

Friends, I will steal Nastya form you, if you indulge me? What do you say?

Sure, I’ll gladly make you company.

Leaving already? How about a tea?

Excuse us.

A pleasure to meet you.

Who is this guy?

I hope he won’t be working with us?

No, I think our team is all set, we need nobody else.

Do I hear jealousy, colleague?

By the way, my professional intuition tells me that Nastya and that

looker share something more than old friendship.

Hard to believe that Anastasia Vladimirovna

Could have an affair with this “looker”.

I think she doesn’t worry about anything but work!

I think you’re the one who’s too obsessed by work...

if you fail to see obvious things.

Did I miss something?

All right, folks. Case closed, time to go home.

No, really, what did I miss?

Good job.