Chapter 1: The Signal Begins Page 1 The hum of fluorescent lights buzzed overhead as Mark Alan Pendergraft stood behind the counter at Costco, a 3rd Party Representative with a knack for connecting people. It was 2008, and San Antonio’s warm, sprawling energy still lingered in his bones, though he’d traded its wide skies for California’s bustling Bay Area. At 29, born November 20, 1978, Mark had a