Threshold

San Diego, California - The Hotel Del Coronado - Sunday Morning

I was briefed about the business concern Nikolai Agapov created and used to steal billions during the last twenty years. His take was impressive, but you should not be impressed when you add up the misery he created for so many people. Think about lonely widows in their 70s to 90s who watch stock tickers all day to see how their mutual funds, ETFs, dividend stocks, and annuities are doing. 

Most people live off the growth, interest, or dividends these investment vehicles throw off. The investments subsidize monthly social security payments, and the difference taken from them often keeps a person out of a "Heat or eat" situation each month.

Imagine the shock and dread you would feel if you woke up one morning, had a cup of coffee, checked your investment app on your phone, and saw nothing but zeros in the account that would help you the rest of your life.

This moment is what the Agapov Organization created for people every day. 

There were organizational thefts as well. 

Hospitals and city administrations were shut down by an Agapov Organisation in Voronezh. The negotiations team was in the Caribbean and Crypto payments were made in the Cayman Islands.

Scammers and other types of theft are created in lonely parts of our planet, but Agapov studied technology, human nature, and business organization. He created a concern with many divisions. deep in Russian cities. Each organization had specific duties.

A small group in Nizhny Novgorod did nothing but look at how credit cards were processed in each country. If there was a tech conference somewhere in the world with credit card processing, a member of the Nizhny Novgorod team was there taking notes, collecting sales literature from vendors, and schmoozing with the big shots.

A larger group tucked away in Ufa studied trends and practices of the populations in all Western Countries. The educated people reviewed online publications worldwide concerning current affairs, sales trends, and living habits. 

In South America, the Caribbean, the Philippines, and Mexico, call centers were staffed by Ex-Pats who left America for a lower cost of living and, in most cases, a better way of life.

The Agapov Organisation paid well for people who mastered American English, idioms, and cultural references. The organization's bread and butter was stealing from Americans.

Here is how they kept people employed while doing terrible things to their countrymen: They paid cash to their employees daily or weekly, and each person received a great salary. This kept valuable people coming back for more. After a while, each employee focused on the money they were making, not the misery they were causing.

Wallace Q Hughes, FBI, laid out ​what I need to accomplish

1) Get hired in Tijuana

2) Rise In The Ranks to a management level.

3) Gain the trust of the parent company.

He told me how Nikolai Agapov had just been executed and that the organization was now an arm of the State Of Russia.  He also added that I needed to keep my head on a swivel and know that the new organization was deadly.

Today, I will take a little tour of San Diego and look for a place to live. I might have a beer, a burger, and a laugh near MCRD San Diego, where they train "Hollywood Marines" IYKYK.

The Apartment Of Lisa Tanaka and Ben Mason - Cambridge, Massachusetts - Sunday Morning

The place still had that New Home Smell. Ben and Lisa saw the condo near Kendall Square and loved it. 3rd-floor city views of Boston and the Charles River and walking distance to supermarkets, bars, and restaurants. Lisa has a bit of a commute to Chelsea, but Ben can walk by the Cardinal and The Jack on his way to the office.

Ben and Lisa's relationship was out there now. They were Instagram official and were ​meeting each other's friends.  

They were lying in bed, passing a tablet back and forth with The Sunday Times Crossword puzzle. The automatic coffee brewer just clicked on, and the house began to smell like Eve's Best, one food item the two agreed on.

As their friends saw them together, they all noted that the two belonged together.  There were whispers that "Ben had met his intellectual match" and Lisa "was with someone who was as funny if not funnier than herself."

Today would include a light breakfast at The Cardinal, a few hours of coffee and the news, a stroll by the river, and a little planning about what the new week would bring. 

Lisa had a two-day trip to Washington, D.C., for work, and Ben would be gone for three days for a Developer Conference he was speaking at in Palo Alto, California. At the end of the week, Mr. and Mrs. Tanaka were arriving for a weekend visit.

Lisa had planned things and now was the time to bring it up with Ben.

"You and I are going to be bushed and happy to be home, and suddenly, my folks are coming in."

Ben thought about this ​and said, "You and I will get through it." "I may take next Monday off to catch up on my work, which I do on the weekend." "We will get through it."

He said, "Is there anything special your folks would enjoy?"

"Maybe a day trip to Salem?"

"Does your Dad like sports?"

"No." "He likes Science."

"Well, a trip through the University with an Insider like me might be nice."

"Does your Dad drink Beer?"

"No"

"We will get through it, I promise."

Lisa snuggled closer and said, "I love you, Ben."

The Cardinal And The Jack - Sunday Morning

Eve let Tango tag along with her today, and he was curled up in Eve's tiny office, eating burnt croissant remains. Normally, Eve has Sundays off, and it's Allston and Eve's time, but she gave Melinda a weekend off with him gone. 

Tango was loving this.

Eve was getting used to things. She got occasional texts from Allston but no solid phone calls. 

He had stressed before he left that he would have to be careful because he would be undercover and that the group he was getting in bed with was dangerous.

Lisa learned that Allston would put Tango in a boarding kennel before she came along. She just could not imagine that.

This Sunday, business was steady. The bakery added eggs to croissants, keeping things steady on Sundays. 

The mimosas were good as well.

Eve was leaning on the glass counter near the register when he walked in for the third time this week. He walked right up to her and handed her a bunch of flowers, "These are for you."

She thanked him and knew she would be dumping them as he walked out the door, but she would not be rude.

Her father had taught her that it was a high compliment if someone liked you even if you didn't like them, which was the case here.

Each time he approached, she mentioned, "She has a Man," but he kept returning to hear the same message.

She said, "My boyfriend is coming in later to help her clean the windows."

He dismissed himself at that line. He held the door open for Ben and Lisa as they came in.

"Who was that dork asked Ben."