The New Kid on the Block~chapter 8

[mrua7.livejournal.com]

link to chapter 7: http://section7mfu.livejournal.com/173632.html
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Illya Kuryakin arrived at the field office of the F.B.I. in downtown Las Vegas. They maintained a permanent presence there because of the suspected mafia involvement in so many of the casinos. They also kept an eye on the red-light districts where the legal brothels operated in both Reno and Las Vegas. Too many elected officials had been set up for blackmail after paying an indiscreet visit to these so-called 'ranches.'

Illya signed in at the reception desk after producing his U.N.C.L.E. identification, and half expected to be asked to surrender his side arm, and back up pistol, but surprisingly he was not.

"You're expected Mr. Kuryakin," he was told, as someone arrived to escort him.

He was taken to a small conference room where his liaisons with both the F.B.I and Treasury Department awaited him. Both men stood to greet him as he walked in and the door quietly closed behind him.

"Welcome Mr. Kury-aykin," a man with a drawl spoke first, murdering the pronunciation of the Russian's name in the process, and prompting Illya to make a correction,

"It is pronounced Kuryakin sir, and you are?"

"Oh sorry, I'm Mickey Judge, out of Texas. I'm stationed here in Vegas and oversee the shenanigans of the syndicate and this here fella is Ronnie Petrov of …

"Yes I know, of the United States Treasury," Illya finished the sentence for him. He felt uncomfortable in this meeting, knowing that behind the seemingly friendly façade, these men were most likely suspicious of him and surely resented the fact he, a Soviet, would be working with them, treading on American territory so to speak.

"So, you're the Russian," Petrov spoke up.

"Yes, is there a problem with that fact?" Illya replied, instantly annoyed with himself for going on the defensive. He did not need to alienate these men before they even got started.

"Nyet, kak na samom dele eto ne tak. Ya rasschityvayu na sotrudnichestvo s vami_no as a matter of fact there isn't. I've been looking forward to working with you." Petrov spoke in impeccable Russian.

"Petrov ... to yestʹ, vozmozhno, naiboleye rasprostranennym russkim imenem sushchestvuyet," Illya responded in but then translated for the benefit of Mickey Judge. "Petrov...that is a possibly one of the most common Russian names in existence." Illya smiled

"Why's that?" Mickey asked.

"Because it literally means 'whose are you?' Illya said blandly.

You're right. I did some research on that," Petrov laughed," seems Russian people received their last names years ago during the first population census in 1897. Till that time the last name was widespread in villages as nicknames. Then during the population census last names were given after father's names. So my family is named after Peter ... Petrov that is, as you said is an answer to the question "whose you are?" That's why it's the one of the most widespread of Russian surnames... along with Ivanov, Tarasov, Titov, Fedoseev, Fedorov, Sidorov, Alekseev, Egorov, Demidov, Mihailov, Andreev, Alexandrov..."

"Hmmm, you have done your research. Where did you learn your Russian? Your accent has a touch of Smolensk, yes?" Illya asked, now curious about the man.

"I learned from my grandparents, they were from Krasny. And you Mr. Kuryakin, I hear a slight mixture of Ukrainian and Russian in your accent... Kyiv and Moskva perhaps?"

"Ah, very good." Illya smiled."There are few who ever pick up on that." He remained silent about the fact that he was born in Ukraine of Russian parentage, but was raised in an orphanage in Moscow.

The hostility Kuryakin first thought he perceived from Ronnie Petrov was gone now, and that made him feel much less of an interloper in the American's territory.

"Well enough chit-chat," Mickey interrupted, " Ya'll make yourselves comfortable so we can get down to brass tacks."

"Brass tacks?" Illya asked, just a little confused.

"Etopogovorka, kotoraya oznachayet , kak pristupitʹ k delu_It's a saying that means getting down to business." Ronnie translated.

"Spacibo, ya po-prezhnemu ispytyvayut trudnosti s amerikanskimi razgovornymi vyrazheniyami_Thank you. I still have difficulty with American colloquialisms.

"Okay you two, quit yer Russian yammering and pay attention." Mickey interrupted them for the second time.

Mickey Judge set out at least a dozen twenty, fifty and hundred-dollar bills across the table. "This is just some of the counterfeit money that's been cropping up at all the major casinos, they're high quality workmanship, but with one giveaway."

Mickey paid a bill on an overhead projector, enlarging it for easier viewing. "Now just before you got here Illya, Ronnie and I discovered something on the reverse of the bills...if you hold 'em up to the light, there's a tiny mark in the shape of some sort of bird just behind the seal. Some counterfeiters like to leave a little trademark on their handy work, but I've never seen this one before.

Illya recognized the image instantly. "The bird is a Thrush," he interjected. "It is a symbol for a deadly organization of the same name whose goal is to take over the world... that is the reason I am here, as I am very familiar with them. Both your directors had their suspicions of this involvement and contacted my superior, Alexander Waverly.

Mickey took off his hat and scratched the top of his head. "I gotta tell you, the syndicate boys are really ticked about this counterfeit nonsense. I mean, there's always been some idiot dabbling in it out here, but this is on such a huge scale. I've never seen anything like it before. If the local mob ever they get their hands on these Thrush folks, there's going to be a whole lot of hurtin' going on that's for dang sure. We could end up with a little range war here."

"Now why would these Thrush people want to be spreading funny money in the gaming industry here in Nevada?" Ronnie asked. "That sort of operation doesn't exactly sound like a plan for world domination.

"I am unsure of their motivation of yet."Illya said."Thrush, in my experience, has come up with some bizarre schemes. Perhaps they are using this to fund some other operation that we do not know of." He paused for a moment, thinking of Napoleon's assignment. "I have a question, have these bills been found at any of the smaller casinos? Are there any that have had little or no trouble with counterfeit bills?"

"On the main drag where all the other affected casinos are, only two that we know of. .. Diamond Lily's but that just closed up and the other is Diamond Jim's Club. The other casinos across town from Freemont seem to be unaffected as of yet."

Illya nodded his head, confirming his suspicions about the casino Napoleon and April were investigating for THRUSH involvement. He said nothing about that, not wanting to compromise their mission. It was information these men did not need to know at the moment. "Then I suppose we should look further into this Diamond Jim's Club?"

"Well, then here is where it gets interesting, maybe for you, being Russian and all," Micky Judge smiled. "The fella that owns the club is from Russia, goes by the name of Oystacher."

"Actually Oystacher is a Ukrainian name, "Illya corrected him.

"Is it possible this guy has Russian mob ties?" Petrov asked.

"He's been linked to Meyer Lansky in New York...your neck of the woods Illya," Mickey answered.

"Lansky? Hmmm, there has been a growing number of Jewish-Russian run mob factions appearing in the Brooklyn area. Specifically in Brighton Beach. Depending upon where you are from, it is referred to as Little Russia, or Little Odessa as there are large immigrant populations from both Russia and Ukraine there. This makes sense, given Mr. Oystacher's Slavic ethnicity and his association with Meyer Lansky; he could be low-level Russian mob.

"Illya are you talking Vory v Zakone here in Vegas?" Petrov asked.

"No, these are American grown mobsters that Oystacher has linked himself with. The Vor are still operating more in Russia than here, but it is only a matter of time before they try to set up territory in the States."

He now decided it was the proper time to tell them of Napoleon and April.

"Gentleman, my partner Napoleon Solo and Agent April Dancer are embedding themselves in the world of Diamond Jim's Club, even as we speak. They are on a separate assignment from my organization, investigating THRUSH muscling their way into the casino industry. I think at this point it is safe to say that our assignment and my partners are now running along a parallel line and will eventually have to intersect."

Judge and Petrov nodded in agreement.