1992.

Domodedovo airport.

I waited until the display will show the number of Chisinau flight and making sure that the departure is delayed, went to the waiting room.

Before departure it was another two hours, registration begins one hour and this hour had to be put somewhere.

All seats in the waiting room were occupied. I bought some newspaper, put the bag in the corner and landed right on it - breakable things I did not.

As usual, I started reading from the end - all the fun in all the newspapers for some reason it is written on the last page. My attention was drawn to "Corner of Ostap Bender" heading. It read something like this:

"We continue to acquaint our readers with different ways of fraud.

Today we will focus on the so-called "fishing". Attackers work in pairs. One chooses the victim and starts a conversation "converges to know her better." Second, seizing the opportune moment, runs past, dropping in front of "friends" a wad of money. The first convinces the victim to divide found, and, after the money is divided in half - disappears. After a while "lose" approach to the victim, he said that he saw the money and took his demands to return the full amount, threatening the use of force or to the law enforcement agencies "...

I did not have time to read to the end. I was approached by some guy and asked, where is the exhibition and sale of Turkish goods. I replied that I did not know and was about to continue reading, but he would not leave.

His next question was, "When does registration for Chisinau?"

I replied that I too am waiting, and that, according to my calculations, in half an hour you can go to take their turn. He went out.

I read about a hurricane in Nepal, on the Olympic Games in dogs and even some snowstorm, noting in passing that on the penultimate page of the advertised that same exhibition, which was looking for my companion - it was located on the second floor of the airport. Looked around, I saw that he was again sent to me, holding two cups of coffee.

- Your exhibition on the second floor - I told him.

- Come on, do not have time. Would you like to get coffee? - suddenly he suggested.

I refused. He sat down beside him and blew out both cups in one gulp.

We chatted.

- Well, that moved? - he asked.

- You can, - I said, again glancing at his watch.

We got up and walked towards the stairs leading into the reception area. When we started to climb the stairs - right in front of us, obliquely, I ran a man, dropping to my feet twisted tube bundle of dollars. I called him, but he had disappeared. My companion caught me by the arm and began to push me to the money:

- You Th, crazy? Big money! Grab your share!

He could not continue, I already knew. I picked up the money and went to the hall desk.

- Hey! You owe me half! - "companion" rushed me. I turned around and shouted:

- We'll be late for registration, let's quickly share on the plane!

This turn he did not expect. Ticket, of course, he was not, and no ticket entrance to the reception area was closed to him. He made one last desperate attempt to:

- Registration starts at just twenty minutes!

But I was already a few steps from the entrance to the "closed zone". He swore, fell behind and lost in the crowd.

And then something unexpected happened: the girl in police uniform, checking my ticket, I blocked the entrance:

- Your registration has not yet begun.

I turned and saw that my "companion", accompanied by "Lost" is running in my direction. There was no exit. I pulled the ill-fated bundle of dollars and put it into the hand of the girl:

- I need urgently.

She was stunned, but quickly worked her soobrazhalka:

- Follow me.

She led me inside and checking my passport, bypassing the queue, pushed me in the "settler". I do not even have time to thank her. The last thing I saw before the door "settler" shut - were distorted with rage my persecutors face in front of the passenger check-in hall.