18 June/1 July 1914

Alexei was the first to sight the Polar Star, Grandmother’s yacht. Our two yachts dropped anchor side by side, and Grandmother was brought from hers to ours in a small boat and then lifted onboard with a special chair.

We had tea on the deck – the sun was hot, but the white canvas shades were up, so no one got scorched – and then OTMA presented the little skit called The Bear. I’ve been working on it for days. Alexei played the part of the bear, carried on the shoulders of Derevenko. We found a great brown rug to drape over both of them, so the bear looked quite fearsome. Tatiana and Olga were maidens in need of rescue, and I was the hunter who almost shot the bear.

Before she went back to the Polar Star, Grandmother asked Papa what he had heard about the archduke’s murder, and he told her what he knew: that the assassin was a Serbian, and that Cousin Willy blames it all on the Serbian government. “Watch out for Kaiser Wilhelm,” Grandmother said. “He’s such a bully, you know.”

I don’t think she said a word about the awful thing that happened to Father Grigory, because she doesn’t like him at all. I can tell by the way she twists her mouth whenever he’s mentioned. This is another reason why Mama and Grandmother aren’t fond of each other.