Bagels and Cream Cheese

By Richard Bartlett

Charles is a 54-year-old businessman with offices in Saint Petersburg, Russia and New York. He's the CEO and Owner of Clean Power, inc., a company that drills for and installs Geothermal energy systems. An internal theft of confidential information nearly causes the failure of his company. He is broken emotionally after losing his biological family, and combined with the theft, he's on the verge of a nervous breakdown and suicide.

A 32-year-old driven and successful entrepreneur, Marina, owns Marina's Fashions in chic downtown Saint Petersburg, Russia, next door to Clean Power, Inc. She meets Charles at an office party at Marina's Fashions. They are attracted to each other but after several failed attempts to meet for intimacy, they finally have sex on their third date.

Charles travels to different countries, proposing Geothermal power to private and governmental entities. He meets Marina at romantic getaways as he travels for business. They visit exciting places like the Chichen Itza pyramids in the Yucatan, the Amazon Rainforest, the Caribbean, Egypt, and more. They eat exotic foods indigenous to the cultures they're visiting. He introduces her to Churrasco in the Amazon Rainforest, Mayan food in Chichen Itza, they swim nude in a Cenote. They learn of the medicinal qualities of plants native to the Amazon Rainforest.

Natalia is a beautiful 28-year-old woman who studied to be a nun but decided she wanted to enjoy sex for the first time and to have a family. So she drops her studies to be a nun and goes to nursing school instead.

She is assigned to a remote village in the Urals where CP, Inc. is drilling to install a Geothermal unit. She travels to Saint Petersburg, Russia for a meeting with one of her sponsors and meets Charles in a thunderstorm. They are attracted to each other, and Natalia eventually gives Charles her virginity.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Release date: Nov 14, 2023
• ISBN: 9781665744263

Richard Bartlett

Richard Bartlett, DC, ND, holds a degree in chiropractic and a degree in naturopathy from Bastyr University. After discovering his own extraordinary healing capabilities, Bartlett created Matrix Energetics as a system for helping others access their untapped potential. He is the author of Matrix Energetics and The Matrix Energetics Experience, and has helped thousands of people transform their lives through his national workshops and seminars.

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BAGELS

and

CREAM

CHEESE

RICHARD BARTLETT

Copyright © 2023 Richard Bartlett.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission. First edition This book was professionally typeset by Archway.

Archway Publishing

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Bloomington, IN 47403

www.archwaypublishing.com

844-669-3957

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-6657-4425-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6657-4426-3 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2023909128

Archway Publishing rev. date: 10/09/2023

CONTENTS

Introduction

The Boardroom

Ben

Natalia

Erik

Marina

Charles Meets Natalia

Charles and Marina

Margot

Marina and Charles at Lunch

Charles and Rachel

Resolute—Part 1

Resolute—Part 2

Egypt

Threesome and Hike

Natalia on the Train to Kachkanar

Falls Apart

Irene, Marina, and Erik

Yucatan

Charles and Marina Meet in St. Petersburg

Charles Goes to the Drill Site with New Drills Heads

The Amazon

Charles and Natalia

Caught

Rescue from Afghanistan

The Party (Conclusion)

Authors Notes

About the Author

INTRODUCTION

Charles, the owner and CEO of, Clean Power, Inc., a company that installs geothermal systems, is a fifty-four-year-old businessman with offices in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and New York. He goes six months of the year to Russia to support international clients and stays six months in New York to oversee the local operations. Ben, his good friend and General Manager, covers for Charles when he’s not in the United States.

The internal theft of confidential information nearly bankrupts his business. The loss of immediate family members and the sudden theft caused him to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown and suicide.

Marina, a thirty-two-year-old driven and successful entrepreneur, owns a fashion design firm in chic downtown Saint Petersburg, Russia. She meets Charles at an office party. They’re attracted to each other, but after several failed attempts to meet for intimacy, they finally have sex.

Charles travels to different countries, proposing geothermal power to private and governmental entities. Marina joins him at romantic getaways in some of these exciting countries. They visit the Chichén Itza pyramids in the Yucatan, stay in a tree hotel on the Amazon River, and stay the night with a group of indigenous people in the Amazon rain forest. They eat exotic foods in the Amazon heavily laden with powerful aphrodisiacs indigenous to the cultures they’re visiting.

He introduces her to churrasco in the Amazonia and Mayan food in Yucatan. They learn of the medicinal qualities of plants native to the rainforest.

They also visit the Caribbean, Egypt, and more.

Natalia is a breathtaking twenty-eight-year-old woman. She began her studies to become a nun but decided she did not want a life of celibacy. Instead, she wants to enjoy sex for the first time and to have a family.

Natalia drops her studies to be a sister and goes to nursing school instead. Upon graduation, the nursing school had her assigned to a remote village in the Urals, near where Charles’s company is drilling to install a geothermal unit.

She travels to Saint Petersburg for a meeting with one of her sponsors and meets Charles in a thunderstorm. They are attracted to each other, and Natalia eventually gives him her virginity.

A few months after meeting, Charles, Marina, and Natalia engage in erotic threesome sex in his hotel room. Charles eventually falls in love with both ladies. They also fall in love with him, and a fierce jealous feud erupts between the two ladies.

THE BOARDROOM

C harles walks into his conference room and throws his Montblanc pen on the table. The pen flies off and falls to the floor of the elaborate executive boardroom. A board member starts to pick it up, but Charles barks, Leav e it!

He leans down with his palms on the table and glares at the group, his voice now dangerously calm. He glares into Margot’s eyes, then turns to Ben, his second in command.

Margot becomes uncomfortable. Oh, fuck. I shouldn’t be here. I’m not a board member. I’m a temporary HR manager. He scares the shit out of me. I know he’s kind, so I shouldn’t have anything to fear. Oh, damn.

What the hell happened to our security? he asks in a slow, threatening voice.

The room is stunned into silence. Most of the members didn’t know of the incursion. What happened? a member asks.

Charles turns to face Ben, a short, stocky man with brown and gray hair. His appearance as a pudgy executive is misleading. MIT had taught him to be an excellent manager, and combined with his sharp mind, it makes him a formidable general manager.

Ben inhales then exhales and wipes the perspiration from his forehead. Some prick penetrated our defenses and downloaded information critical to our operations.

Then in an angry and loud voice, Ben yells at Jason, the lead programmer, Why the fuck did you lower the security protocols?

Damn it. Stop shouting. Charles’s firm, parental voice carries over the ruckus of angry cries and accusations of the executive team and board members at CP Inc. The room goes silent fast. Charles walks to the wall of windows overlooking Central Park in New York City. He has wavy brown hair tinged with gray. He is 172 pounds, five foot eight, and well built. He quietly takes in the view, then turns to face the board members, his quiet demeanor gone. Ben is normally composed and not prone to shouting.

In a strong and clear voice, he says, We don’t know how we got hacked yet, but we’ll find out.

If Jason hadn’t lowered the fuckin’ security in our database, we wouldn’t be in this mess. Silence follows Ben’s outrage as the room waits to see how or if Charles will reply.

Charles shakes his head and runs his hand through his hair. We don’t need this crap now. We have too many projects running and don’t need these headaches.

Exasperated, Jason replies, The new security protocol prevents files or the database from loading. So we lowered the encryption level.

The board of directors and executive staff continue speaking to one another in loud, angry voices. Charles, the information stolen can be critical to our company. How badly are we exposed? an executive team member asks.

We don’t know the extent of the infiltration yet. So I’m going to an outside agency for help. Trust me when I say we’ll get the thief and put him or her in jail.

We trust you until we lose money, another board member quips. A few members chuckle. The mood in the room improves.

I’m glad they laughed. There was too much anger in this room, Charles thinks as he runs his hand through his hair and sits at the head of the table. Damn this nervous habit of running my hand through my hair.

Charles raises his voice. OK, people, it is what it is, and we can’t turn back the clock. We must deal with today’s issues now. He commands the room’s attention. Everyone goes silent. We have a lot of work ahead of us. The drilling team for Afghanistan is ready to leave. We’ve already shipped millions of dollars’ worth of equipment and sent an advance team to the Middle East. We need to tighten our security, take good care of our customers, and move on, he states firmly.

Charles walks to the other side of the conference table. He bends and picks up his Montblanc pen. Then he turns toward Ben. I understand you have a great deal on your plate as general manager. Your strength is security, however. So I need you and Jason to work together and find that damn leak.

If you want me to provide security, he must cooperate with me. He should never have lowered the protocols without talking to me first, Ben barks at the CEO, his fists on his waist.

Jason says, annoyed and angry, I know you’re the GM in charge of the entire company. But—damn it—I’m the lead programmer. I can—

Stop this bickering, Charles says in a parental voice. Let’s be civil here. Ben, how can we recover from his breach?

Sure, we can easily recover; all we need to do is break into the hacker’s facility and steal their hard drives. They’ve already downloaded our client list. Most of them are loyal to us, but I don’t have to tell you that if our competitors offer lower prices, loyalty goes out the window, he says.

Charles rubs the stubble on his cheek and chin. Did the hacker get our price list also?

Ben shuffles some papers on the table before him, pauses momentarily, then peers directly at him. I don’t know. We’re trying to determine the extent of the breach now.

The company’s chief financial officer, Lyudmila Petrova, is an attractive woman in her early sixties with a stinging personality. Mila has blonde and gray hair, braided in the back. The staff feels she’s distant from them but close to Charles. Her personality and brilliant mind command respect from the board members. She swivels in her chair and stares intently at Charles. The room grows silent. We need all our defenses up. Our rivals have already started contacting our customers, she reports in her Slavic-accented voice. We have a Russian proverb, ‘the devil lives in still waters.’ We need to protect the studies on lithium harvesting.

How do you know they are actively contacting our clients? Charles asks, squinting at Mila.

She peers at him over her reading glasses. I have a few friends working for these companies.

Ben returns to his seat and calls out from behind his laptop and scattered papers, We’ve got the VPN running again, and we found the back door they could use to hack our database.

Margot, the event planner and temporary human resources supervisor, sits in her seat, texting Brian, her boyfriend. She finishes her text, then sits upright to address the board. The new human resources director hasn’t begun yet, so I’m representing HR at this meeting. If anyone needs to contact me regarding this investigation, call me any time, day or night. Ben, I can also help to find the hacker if you need.

Thanks, but we need you in HR. I’ll keep your offer in mind.

Charles walks to and stands next to Margot. He menacingly puts both hands on the conference table, again near Margot, as he makes a bold statement. Ladies and gentlemen, I know many of you have money invested in this company. We’ll catch the son of a bitch and see him or her put away for years. Then we can get back to work making money.

The board applauds. That’s the confident Charles I know, Mila proudly thinks. I could marry that man. Margot sits upright. Oh, fuck! He scares me. Shit, I almost peed when he stood next to me.

I’ll try to do some damage control with our clients, starting with the Russian government, Charles says to the group. I leave for St. Petersburg this evening. You know how to reach me if you need me.

Charles then peers at Jason. Are you certain they can’t hack us again?

I beefed up the security to the highest level, so we should be better protected now. However, the database will be slow until we can upgrade the network servers with new and faster processors.

Any new business? he asks the board; some shake their head. I think we have all the business we can take. If there is nothing else to discuss, this meeting is over.

The board members stand and shuffle out of the room, talking.

Ladies and gentlemen, text or email me if you have questions.

I’ll be back. I need to get something from my desk, Ben says to no one as he leaves the boardroom to go to his office.

Mila stays until the members are gone. You started this company and grew it to where we are today. We’ve faced many challenges over the years. You are and have always been our rock. We’re looking to your leadership again to overcome this situation.

Mila knows the right thing to say when I need it. Thanks. The best trait I think I have is finding talented people like you. He runs his hand through his hair. This fiasco will give me more gray hair than I have now.

You look fine with salt-and-pepper hair. She holds his gaze, but Ben returns and breaks the spell.

Thank you for the compliment and for taking care of my bonsai tree when I travel. It’s very fragile, Charles says to Mila.

My pleasure, she replies.

Can we talk in private? Ben asks. Mila gives Charles the briefest smile and leaves the room.

Charles sighs. Sure, let’s go to my office. They take the elevator to the fifth floor, then walk past Charles’s secretary and into his corner office.

The room has a spectacular view of Central Park from a wall of windows facing the grounds. The credenza on the opposite wall holds an antique Japanese doll encased in a glass box. A genuine set of katana and Wakizashi Japanese swords hang on the wall above the doll. The room is off white with hardwood floors. A large, old Persian rug rests in front of his desk. There is a bamboo palm in the corner next to a hutch with awards, a second-place trophy for running the hundred-yard dash in college, and souvenirs from different countries. A juniper bonsai tree sits in the middle of the hutch. As they walk into Charles’s office, he says to Ben, I know you want to talk about the hack, but I need to ask you something. Do you remember telling me about a group of vets who work for Blackwater?

Yeah. A friend of mine is one of them. He was in Fallujah. He saw a great deal of action.

Do you think he’d be willing to go with our team to Afghanistan? They’ll need a friendly face who knows the country with them.

I’ll ask him. His answer will be a resounding yes. I’m sure he’ll ask to take some of the team he served with in Afghanistan.

Charles leans on his desk with his elbows and puts the tips of his fingers together, tapping them against each other. Now, what’s on your mind that you need to speak privately about?

Ben sits in the chair in front of his desk. Hate to bring this up, but … I think the hack could have been an inside job. I don’t see how people got through our security. It still should’ve protected us. I wanted to tell you earlier, but there’s too much going on and—

Charles interrupts, And you made up the back door story to deflect blame to expose the perp.

How did you know? Ben asks.

Mila told me about the breach yesterday. I contacted CyberGuard immediately. It’s one of the best cyber security firms in the country. The hacker went straight to the confidential files, as if he or she knew their location. An outsider would probably have done a data dump. Fortunately, they ruled you out, Ben. I tried to call you last night about the breach, but you didn’t answer, and I didn’t want to leave a message as important as this one.

I guess it pays to be ruled out occasionally. Do they have a suspect? Ben asked.

"Not yet. But CyberGuard is sure it came from someone who knows our protocols. We have twenty-seven employees working here in New York, but only seven people have direct access to confidential files. Margot and the data entry team were online when the stolen files were last accessed. Unfortunately, these people are now suspects in the investigation.

Ben, you need to apologize to Jason. The breach wasn’t his fault.

Jason and I put that distraction together. He suspects someone from within the company took our data. The distraction was his suggestion.

Charles squints his eyes and peers at Ben. Why does the event coordinator have access to our confidential files, and why was she in a board of directors’ meeting?

She’s a programmer, but we don’t have a full-time position for her yet. Jason’s training her to cover the programming staff for vacations until a slot opens. She’s covering the HR director’s job until the new one starts.

Charles crosses his arms, closes his eyes, leans back in his chair, and takes a deep breath. I could fall asleep in this new leather chair. He forces his eyes open. If they got more than the client list, we’re screwed.

Ben sits back on his seat, his hands on the armrests, and eyes him. Fortunately, they couldn’t get to the lithium study or the plans for the unit we’re building on the Salton Sea. I’m glad those plans and the study are on a dedicated server and not connected to the internet.

Charles gazes at his notes, then looks back to Ben. We can’t take anything for granted now. We must assume the plans for the geothermal unit on the Salton Sea are vulnerable. This leak can cause a great deal of harm to the company and our employees.

Yes, I know, but—

Charles interrupts him. I want a team of our best engineers and support staff on the Salton Sea. Our lithium harvesting setup needs to be completed as soon as possible. Make sure we’re covered by current nondisclosure agreements. If we can produce lithium easily and at a reasonable cost, it will be a windfall. Push them hard. We need the harvesting to get off the ground ASAP.

Ben jots a few notes onto a folded sheet of paper. You got it, boss.

I transferred $12.5 million to the account for the Salton Sea project. That won’t be nearly enough, but I’ll have Mila transfer more cash later. Her staff will monitor the spending.

Charles walks from his mahogany desk to the broad view of Central Park from his window. I want a strong team sent to the Salton Sea. This project is our highest priority.

Hi, guys. Can I join you? Jason asks through the cracked office door.

"Jason, come in. Ben told me about your little ruse. That was smart of you. Now we can try to locate the perp without him or her knowing that we know it was an inside job.

Ben, talk with CyberGuard about some armed security for that site. I don’t know if they provide armed guards, but that’s what we need on the site 24/7. Our competitors can create problems by trying to knock us out of the industry and/or sabotage us on site before we can extract any brine with lithium. We should have at least four guards to protect the installation and staff.

I’ll get right on it, but the Blackwater guys and gals trained for this kind of work.

Charles returns to his desk. Sure, let’s use Blackwater if we can.

I already ordered the trailers for the employees. The company we rented the trailers from will deliver and set them up for us. Much of the equipment is already there with a maintenance staff. We have good people—the best in the industry. But I’ll threaten head bashing if they fall behind schedule, Ben says.

Charles grins. Ben, there will be no bashing of heads. Debra has the contact information for CyberGuard and our rep’s direct line. She’s expecting your call after the board meeting. Oh, and, Ben, put a pause on the new security protocols and upgrades for a short time. We don’t want to tip the perp off.

Yes, I agree.

You’re the general manager. I’m confident to leave the company in your capable hands while I take care of our clients.

I turned down your offer to come in as a partner in the past because I didn’t want the headaches. Later, you wanted to promote me to the general manager position, but I turned it down for the same reason. You finally convinced me to take the GM offer, Ben says.

Don’t worry. We’ve wanted to be in business together since we were kids. The partner position is still open to my good friend.

Thank you, Charles. But let’s focus on catching that son of a bitch and see how many confidential files the thief stole.

A Bengal cat strolls into the office as if it is the CEO. It jumps on Charles’s lap, and he absentmindedly strokes the short fur coat. I’m glad you let Debra bring her cat to work. She takes good care of Princess, Charles says while petting the cat.

Charles, you’re an old softy, Ben says.

Is there any news from our St. Petersburg staff on the Urals contract? Charles asks as he continues petting Princess while she purrs on his lap.

Not yet. They need you to hold their hands. I tried to reach Jethro yesterday, but they were preparing a shipment to the drill site. I spoke to Oksana. There’s no news on the contract. All is on hold until you arrive.

His office door opens to the smells of aromatherapy from the diffuser on the shelves behind Debra’s desk. Charles, have you seen Princess? Debra asks as she walks into his office.

Yes. She’s okay with me.

Okay, but take care of my cat. Debra turns and walks away.

Ben, call me if you need anything or when there are fresh developments. I told the rep from CyberGuard you’d be our primary contact.

Will do, boss.

Jason, we need to probe our system and see how far the data transfer went. I know the perp used a fake Canadian IP address, but maybe CyberGuard can find the details we need to catch him or her.

Ben takes a handkerchief from his pocket and blows his nose into it. What about Afghanistan? Is Jethro a part of it? he asks as he returns the handkerchief to his pocket.

Charles puts on his reading glasses and takes a file out of his desk. Jethro oversees the project from the drill site in the Urals until he finds a good head of operations. He flew to Afghanistan, scouted the drill sites, and hired a local as the point man until we install a director of operations in the country. A man named Aziz will serve as temporary manager. He worked as a wildcatter in North Dakota after he earned his degree in logistics. He also worked as a wildcatter in Texas before returning to Afghanistan. Aziz will hire local workers. Our team will accept and inspect the shipments as they arrive in the country. Here’s his résumé.

Yes, you told me about him the other day. Do you feel he can manage the project until we find a manager? Ben asks as he peruses Aziz’s résumé.

It’s a big responsibility, but I think Aziz is up to the task.

Jason steps up to Charles’s desk, looks at Ben, and says, I’d like to help you probe the database for the intrusion.

Sure, you can help, but let’s talk to Dr. Williams so we’re all on the same page.

Ben returns Aziz’s résumé to Charles’s desk.

Oh, Charles, before I forget, there’s one other item before I call CyberGuard. Oksana also said the company next door is planning an office party, and you’re invited. It’s their version of a grand opening, I suppose.

Is our staff invited to this party as well?

I believe they are. The company opened its doors a few months ago. It’s a new fashion design firm. The owner is a young lady named Marina. They say she’s smart and driven to succeed. You’ll probably meet her in St. Petersburg.

Maybe. I’m not up to going to parties these days, Charles says.

The state assigned a new nurse for the villagers and the drill team in the Urals. She arrived in the village a few days ago. Jethro told me she’s a doll. I agreed to cover part of her salary, as she will treat our employees also.

Jason feels a buzz in his pocket. Gentlemen, I have a call I need to take. I’ll be right back.

We’re done, Jason. Take your call and let’s talk after Charles leave for Russia.

Charles tidies up his desk. Princess jumps off his lap. A doll, you say, Ben?

Yes, she’s not a celestial body like Uma Thurman, but she is nice to the eyes, according to Jethro. So no poking fun at the new nurse, Ben says and winks. Charles needs to get laid badly.

I haven’t poked fun at anyone since Rachel, and I’m not interested in getting close to another woman now. The room grows quiet. Ben feels awkward as Charles grows solemn and looks down.

We were all sorry to lose Rachel. She brought a good deal of life to this company.

Thanks, Ben. I have work to catch up on, and I need to call this agent.

Have a good trip, boss.

Charles locks his door and sits back down at his desk. He unlocks the bottom right drawer, takes out a handmade walnut box containing his loaded colt .45 and a box of shells. He removes the pistol, holds it in both hands, and stares at it. I can put an end to all of this—

No, I still have Mom. Her dementia is progressively getting worse, but I can’t do this to her.

He returns the gun to the box and places it back in the bottom drawer.

Charles dozes in his seat as the plane speeds up and lifts off the runway. His thoughts turn to Rachel as he rests. He wakes while the aircraft enters the cumulus clouds. This seat in first class is comfortable. I’ll try to get some shut-eye if I can take my mind off Rachel and the company’s problems.

Can I get you anything? Oh, sorry, sir, I didn’t see you were sleeping, the flight attendant says.

I wasn’t asleep yet. I don’t drink often, but today I could use a whiskey, neat.

Okay, one whiskey coming up, she says as she reaches up to help another man stow his baggage in the overhead compartment. I’ll be right back with your drink, sir.

These long flights are not fun anymore, Charles thinks as he sips the last of his whiskey. And I have a meeting as soon as I deplane. I better get some shut-eye.

The restless leg syndrome throbs as Charles settles into his seat. Shit! I hate this restless leg syndrome! Charles spends the next hour walking up and down the aisles, trying to stave off the throbbing in his legs. Finally, the RLS is gone. Now I can get to sleep.

BEN

I hate this fuckin’ rain, Ben thinks as he runs through the downpour, holding his coat over his head. I hate having to eat all that healthy crap my wife feeds me. Okay, I need to shed a few pounds. But seventy -f ive pounds isn’t that much to lose. Hell, some people— The wind hits Ben hard, almost knocking him over.

He reaches the corner. Then suddenly, the rain turns into a deluge.

He stands in the pouring rain, holding his jacket over his head, waiting for the light to change, when a car drives through a large puddle of water and soaks him. Ben jumps back. Damn it. That fucker drove through that puddle on purpose. I guess a little water won’t cause me to melt.

He doesn’t see the woman approach him from behind. Ben, you’re soaked, Debra says, grabbing his arm and holding her umbrella over them both.

Debra, hi. You’re early.

No, I arrive at work this time every day.

Thank you. You’re a lifesaver.

I’m your administrative assistant, and where is your umbrella? They move to an overhang to get out of the rain.

Ben notices Debra favors her left leg as they move to the overhang. You have a slight limp. Are you okay?

"It’s old age and arthritis. You’ll see for yourself soon enough. It hurts more when it rains. I’ll be fine after I take some aspirin.

I’ll take Princess, he says, taking the pet carrier with the cat inside.

The light turns green. They arrive at the building that houses CP Inc.

I need to grab a sandwich from the café for lunch. I’ll see you upstairs.

You need to go home and change your clothes. You’re waterlogged.

I’ll ask my wife to bring me dry clothes. She can drive the car, and I’ll meet her outside.

You better be quick. I don’t want you tracking mud on the office floors.

Okay. You’re right. I’ll call her now. Shit, I thought I was her boss, not the other way around.

Debra limps to the elevator.

Ben stands at the glass door of the lobby, waiting for his wife to bring him dry clothes. Thanks for bringing me these, honey.

Ben, you’re soaked. I’m glad you called. I don’t want you to get sick.

I’m fine. It’s just water.

Honey, the kids are coming over for dinner—don’t forget.

Okay, okay. I’ll be on time.

Two hours later, Ben looks out his fifth-floor window to watch the black clouds of the thunderstorm approach with a coffee in hand. He returns to his desk and begins work with his computer. He looks at his watch. I can’t believe the time passed so fast.

Debra knocks, opens the door, and walks inside. Dr. Latisha Williams is on the phone. She says you have a five o’clock Skype meeting scheduled. Don’t let her wait too long.

Thanks. I’ll turn my Skype on now.

Jason walks into Ben’s office as Debra tries to stop him.

Let him in.

Ben, hi. Charles told me about CyberGuard and—

Ben interrupts Jason. I have a Skype meeting with Dr. Williams from CyberGuard. Is it urgent? Ben hits the key to connect with Dr. Williams on Skype.

It’s not urgent. Is that the Dr. Williams with a sexy body? Jason asks.

Yes, she’s one of the founders and owners of CyberGuard. She’s a radiant woman. I heard her speak at a conference. She’s brilliant and has a great rack.

That she does, Jason says as he leaves.

Ben turns red when he sees the audio component of Skype turned on. Oh, shit. Dr. Williams, it’s nice to meet you on Skype, he says as he opens the video.

Same here, Ben. We met at a conference once. We were advertising our products.

Yes, I remember. That was a fun conference. Wow, what a babe! She looks like she’s in her midthirties, petite, brilliant, and ravishing. Her dark African American skin makes her look exotic and sexy.

Benjamin. Dr. Williams startles him from his daydream. "Charles brought me up to date on the situation. First, we must survey your security protocols and examine the employees accessing the stolen data. Please send me a list of all employees and highlight those with access. Including family members and close friends. I’ll need their full names, contact information, and any photos you