Tracking Strategic Materials Stolen from the Former Soviet-Bloc - My Next Job

In the early 90's, against the backdrop of the former Soviet-Union continuing its implosion in an almost anarchic world of corrupt former communists, rich opportunists, and millions of disillusioned citizens, the US government realized that former Soviet strategic materials and nuclear weaponry were all at risk of being lost to outright theft or sale.  Unpaid and hungry (drunk) soldiers posted at secure installations all over the former Soviet-Bloc, Russian military facilities that were not being financed to maintain their weapons nor protect them from outsiders,  and strategic materials produced and housed at hundreds of facilities all over the former Bloc represented an unimaginable security risk to the entire world.

The CIA was well aware of the situation.

I was asked to help monitor and track the materials, identify the individuals that had stolen them and were trying to sell them, and lead CIA officers to transaction locations.

No one at the CIA desk at the US Embassy in Warsaw expected me to continue taking assignments.  I was made aware that accepting a role in any operation did not guarantee payment anymore. Funding had somehow changed and, because a lot of bad guys were doing what I would be doing, there had to be concrete results from my activity.  I learned to plant tracking devices on people, their clothes, and their bags. Other "concrete results" included photos of people and places and providing readings from sensors that I could produce of the materials that I was tracking. (I got very good at calibrating my geiger counter.)

Sound Bites from Eastern Europe

“The Black Market did more to keep the Soviet-Bloc economy afloat than any other official policy implemented by the Communist Regime.”

“Martial law, imposed by General Wojciech Jaruzelski on December 13^th 1981, may have been the better of evils when compared with the potential for Soviet invasion.”

“The Western intelligence community relied heavily on students and the ex-pat business community to get a lot of its work done.”

“Soviet troops stationed in Poland faced incredible hardships as they were hated by the Poles and abandoned by a bankrupt communist regime unable to feed or clothe its troops in the Bloc outposts.”

“The Polish Secret Police were well trained by the East German Stasi.  Who better to ally ourselves than the Poles as we watch the continued antics of the post-communist Russia and Putin?”

“Western multinationals, almost all, engaged in some pretty serious corruption during the early days of setting up in the region. Not doing so would have precluded you from making money and exposed you to physical risk by the Russian and Polish Mafia.”

“They should do a reality show featuring the lives of the prostitutes in the Moscow luxury hotels. Big money, murder, espionage, and corruption abounds while a whole generation of young girls aspire to be part of the show.”

“Money, funneled into the country by the CIA couriers , was delivered to Solidarity’s leaders in a lot of creative ways. During one meeting , a Catholic priest and brother to a former U.S. Secretary of State, pulled up his gown and personally handed Lech Walesa a package of cash that he himself had smuggled into the country.”

“American corporations, bound by the Anti-Corruption Act, were at a severe disadvantage during the early 90’s in Poland. German, French, and Italian firms would come in and quickly engage in backhanded  deals and offer kickbacks as ‘business as usual’."

“When asked why one black marketeer had chosen his criminal activity over his profession as a lawyer, he replied, ‘I can’t afford to work officially under communism.’”

Tenth Part of Excerpt from Trading Dangerously - Import/Export and a Little Thievery

Natalya slowly paced the room looking at the curtains and furnishings and sometimes talking to herself quietly, “Nice drapes”, “Real silver”, “Fucking good olives” (that was the only thing she ate from the snack trays). If I hadn’t known that she was searching for the envelope, I would have assumed she was doing her best to keep herself busy so she wouldn’t have to see what was happening in the sitting room where we were now quite involved with each other.  When we finished, I excused myself to the bathroom and reached into the glass cabinet to demonstrably touch the envelope without looking at Natalya. I knew she had seen me do it and when I returned from the bathroom, it was already gone. Ela, the girl that had been mostly responsible for finishing the job on me was also gone when I came out of the bathroom with a towel and a small bottle of water. Natalya was talking to Danuta in Russian and, I guessed, giving her instructions. Natalya seemed more relaxed than before but turned away again at the bar as Danuta began talking to me about my business. She asked if I knew other American businessmen very well that were in Moscow and if I was very active in the American Chamber of Commerce. She opened up my mini-bar and poured a small amount of orange juice into my champagne glass. “Drink up, Bill.” 

I talked about the AMCHAM guys and knew that this was bait for KGB efforts to get news on anything interesting going on in the way of American investment in Russia or elsewhere. Oil and Gas investments or permit applications were probably the most interesting for them but any large investment that might provide an opportunity for a large bribe to them directly or regional senior officials was also of great interest. Knowing that my package, now in their possession, had something to do with aviation or avionics, I mentioned that the American systems integrators are all excited about former Soviet bloc countries getting a chance to buy F-16’s and other Western defense weapons. Danuta asked, “Which ones?” I just said, “The usual.”

Natalya had up to now been reading from one of my old FEDEX brochures that I had on the counter and suddenly turned to us and said she needed to make a call. I pointed to the phone in the bedroom and told her to help herself. As Natalya was talking quietly in my bedroom, Danuta as skillfully as before, had my shorts off and all of me in her mouth in two minutes. She hadn’t said a word and had me worked up to a follow up explosion when Natalya stepped in wearing only her underwear and said “Goodbye Danuta! Could you please leave me with Bill now?” Danuta kissed me full on the mouth and said “do widzenia”. ("Good-bye" in Polish)

Knowing that I had been as near to coming again as I could get without going over the edge, I was hoping that Natalya had come in to finish the job. She slipped off her black panties, stepped up to me, kissed me very tenderly…as in the lobby bar...then turned around and slowly mounted me with her full weight coming down into my lap. She sat for a moment then rose and came down again twice. That was all it took. Wanting to keep her for the rest of the night but knowing that she was now planning her next business visit, I paid her what she had asked for and asked her if all was ok. “Quite nice” she said.

“Next time, just let Alyona know if you want to see me again.”

Ninth Part of Excerpt from Trading Dangerously - Import/Export and a Little Thievery

Introducing Danuta and Ela, both smiling broadly, Natalya strode to the table in the room and reached out for one of the champagne bottles. I had uncorked one a few minutes before and she asked if she could pour. “Please do!” I offered. “Bill, Ela, and Danuta must drink bruderschafts” she playfully suggested and put the three glasses in front of us. Natalya stepped away slightly and scanned the room quickly as we three began the “get to know you” ritual. I couldn’t tell if she had seen the envelope sitting inside the glass cabinet. I had hoped that I could dictate when they saw the treasure and began their maneuvering to take it. Ela, a sandy blonde, and Danuta, a redhead, were quite beautiful and similarly dressed in tight fitting gray and yellow dresses. Very slim but well built, I would have said that three Russian gymnasts had just joined me. Ela and Danuta pulled me to the sofa and sat down on either side of me. Natalya stayed at the bar and sipped both a water and a champagne. The threesome put snacks on their small plates but did not eat. In fact, they were chewing mints constantly as if to fend off a nicotine fit. I remembered that I told Natalya during our lobby bar meeting that I did not smoke and preferred if they did not. Danuta and Ela slowly began working my clothes off and keeping my attention focused on their mouths and hands that were fast at work on my body.

Eighth Part of Excerpt from Trading Dangerously - Import/Export and a Little Thievery

As 11 o’clock neared, I called room service for water and a couple of snack trays. The snack trays wound up being caviar, blini, lox, nuts and olives. At $125, I almost asked the room service attendant to take it back, but decided to keep the expensive snack. I decided it might serve some purpose…if not to stop my stomach from growling loudly as it had been doing since meeting Natalya.

Midnight arrived and they were no-shows. I knew that it really didn’t matter if they showed up late except that I worried I would rush the whole process of staging their heist. If things got going early, I might have more of a role in choreographing their taking the envelope. I wanted to know at what moment they grabbed the docs, who actually took it, and how much longer they stayed. If the package went quickly and the girls stayed, I worried that having the girls in the room might expose myself to greater risk from pimps or other “agents” outside the door.  More than once while doing this kind of work I had had a woman open the door and invite an unwelcome stranger (read : Thug) into my room. Once the job was done, I wanted the women out as fast as possible. Choreographing three women, this time, seemed hard to plan. I didn’t try. They made it pretty easy it turned out.

Shortly after midnight the room bell rang and I let Natalya and her two friends in the room. They all had furs with Natalya’s being the longest. She apologized for being late and took her coat off first. I immediately saw that she had changed into a small, sleeveless, tight fitting, black dress. Low cut but still very classy style and conservative silver earrings and small diamond studded silver necklace

.

Seventh Part of Excerpt from Trading Dangerously - Import/Export and a Little Thievery

Natalya’s English was very good and she asked how long I had been in Poland. I told her that it was nearing 10 years. She smiled and asked, “Why didn’t you greet me then with the traditional Polish three-kisses?” My answer was somewhat in keeping with the tradition as I said, “I was waiting for our first bruderschaft. Isn’t that the rule?” Somehow Alyona showed up at that moment with two Belvedere vodka’s and Natalya proposed a bruderschaft at the table: “Natalya” she said, turning to me holding the drink in her right hand and crossing hers slowly around my right arm. “Bill” I returned. We drank the small shots in one gulp, as is the rule, and kissed cheeks left-right-left. She brought her face back in front of mine and hesitated with our noses barely touching. She kissed me on the mouth very lightly to finish our bruderschaft introduction properly. Natalya’s perfume, probably Chanel, was not the sweet and syrupy fog that filled the lounge. It lingered lightly around us as we talked about Moscow and my trip from Poland. She put her hand on top of mine several times during the first five minutes we chatted. Natalya was interrupted half a dozen times in the first few minutes by men and women that seemed a part of the fashion show crowd. Most had said they were sorry they hadn’t seen her at the event. She replied every time, (twice in Russian and once in English) “I had an important date” and then looked at me with a smile.

Natalya asked how well I knew Moscow and if I would have a chance to do any sightseeing or shopping while here. She then asked, “What have you been doing since FEDEX announced its retreat from Europe? I was talking to your former colleague, Brian, here in Moscow, and he said you had left the company when operations in Poland were suspended.” Not completely surprised about her knowing the FEDEX story, I smiled and said “not the ideal situation for me losing the FEDEX gig but the consulting office in Krakow is doing fine. This trip is the first of many to make sure I don’t lose contact with folks over here.” “Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help.” She offered. “I certainly hope this contact is secure” she said and looked at me with a smile. “You seem well connected. I’d be a fool to lose contact with you I am sure.”

Natalya pushed her coffee away slowly and asked “What time are you inviting us up to your room for a night-cap?” Her left hand had worked its way slowly up my thigh and very comfortably between my legs. “And do you require that I introduce my friends first…or do you trust me?” Her hand was now firmly resting as close as it could without touching my growing excitement. “That will not be necessary, Natalya. Just come up before midnight, please. I need to be up pretty early tomorrow.”  “I promise, we won’t keep you from your early morning Polish consulting business.” She laughed quietly and kissed me on the cheek as she stood and walked to a table out of sight from the bar in the lobby lounge. Alyona strode past my table and asked on the run if I wanted another or should she put our two drinks on the room. I asked for another and watched the lobby bar “show” another 30 minutes before I retired to my room. On the way out of the bar, I scanned the room for Natalya, assuming she was working on getting other evening jobs lined up or, if not around, doing someone at this moment in their room. I wondered if she always had two women colleagues with her…and what it was like to be with three women. I laughed embarrassingly to myself and guessed I would find out very soon, in fact.

Sixth Part of Excerpt from Trading Dangerously - Import/Export and a Little Thievery

I did not like being spotted first if I was to meet someone I did not know. Alyona had been helpful keeping my identity secret more than once and I really liked her. Even if she had fooled me into thinking that she was in my camp and working for me, I enjoyed spending time talking to her during my stays in Moscow. The added benefit with Alyona was that she could speak Polish very well and we could escape into Polish if we needed to from time to time to exchange information about people I was to meet or get details straight on other logistical items in the hotel (i.e., who to avoid, who was a good guy, ways to endear myself to staff, etc.). I was curious if Alyona was working for us. It would have been a supreme error and dangerous for us both to ask that question. I never knew if it was true. We also had never touched the subject of getting together secretly. I knew she was married and she knew I had a wife in Poland. That was all she knew about me…or at least what I had told her.

The striking brunette that Alyona pointed to was standing in front of me within seconds. I stood to greet her and she introduced herself, “Good evening! Mr. Bill from Poland?” She waited for a confirmation of that and seemed concerned when I hesitated. My delay was a response to my surprise that she did not look as I had imagined. She was, in fact, a dark brunette but she looked like a clean cut American girl out of a Cover Girl magazine or a pretty Harvard co-ed exchange student…beautifully dressed but somewhat conservatively if you looked at the other striking women knock-outs sporting a tidal wave of Slavic sultry sex made up and dressed to bring every lobby bar patron to their knees. Natalya was equally beautiful but different. I almost instinctually thought, “OMG…I’d marry this one.”

“Yes, Natalya?” I finally spit out.

“Hi! I am glad you are here. How was your trip from Poland? Did you get some rest after you arrived? May I join you?” she asked. Natalya was extremely smooth with a beautiful smile and round dark beautiful eyes that made her look more from the Middle East than from Russia. Her embroidered white peasant blouse, mid-length pleated grey skirt, and shoulder-length deep cinnamon tinted hair  were pleasantly out of place where extraordinary amounts of cleavage, slit dresses,  and bleached blonde Vidal Sassoon coiffures were the rule.

I pointed to the seat across from me and Natalya quickly asked if the seat next to me wouldn’t be better. I agreed and pulled the chair back for her to slide into the rather low table. Alyona had our drinks to us seconds after we had sat down. I think she saw us sharing a moment of silence…sizing each other up, I suppose.