Who is Mr. Bond from Dreams of My Russian Summers and what is their importance?

Mr. Bond is the Russian businessman the narrator hires after living in France for twenty years, to find out whether or not Charlotte is still alive. During his initial visit to Russia, Mr. Bond hears that Charlotte is still alive, but when he returns months later, Charlotte is dead. It is Mr. Bond who contacts the narrator to tell him the news of Charlotte's death and to deliver the narrator's inheritance.