Nikolai Sergeivich Kaladze is Jeremy's grandfather. He was sent to the United States from Russian to study the bobbles as they began to appear in North America. While in America, Nikolai becomes a Tinker, creating the gadgets that enable the groups to keep in touch with each other and safe from the Authority's intervention. Nikolai's group values their women, likely from having seen so many die in their early days in America.
The Peace War