operative who did freelance work for the CIA. While on a mission in Nigeria, he received a burn notice from CIA superiors. After managing to embark on an airplane in Nigeria, Michael is deserted in Miami, with Fiona Glenanne, his ex-girlfriend. Per the conditions of Michael's burn notice, his assets are frozen, his line of credit is destroyed, and he has no career history with which to seek employment. He is free to travel within Miami, but any attempts to leave the city will result in immediate arrest. Michael now has to find work that suits his unusual skillset and knowledge. He counts on longtime friends like Sam Axe, who informed on him to the FBI until midway through the first season, and Fiona to help him perform such tasks while arguing with his mother, and trying to find out who burned him and why. Michael lives in a decrepit loft situated over a nightclub, with a bed, workbench, some barbells, a punching bag, an oven, a few chairs, a mid-1990s-era computer, and a refrigerator filled with yogurt and beer. Despite the Miami climate, there is no air conditioning. He obtained the loft in the pilot episode when he assisted his Russian landlord and club owner by ridding a drug dealer (Raymond, nicknamed "Sugar") who also lived on the premises. He also spends time at hotels in Miami, as well as at his mother's house. Though annoyed by his mother at times, Michael has shown love for her. Michael even cries when his mother risks her own life to save him and his nephew. Upon returning to Miami, Michael was watched by the FBI. It was revealed that he was burned to be recruited by a mysterious organization and is contacted by a woman named Carla. After Carla was fatally shot by Fiona, Michael received an offer to replace her from a man referred to as the organization's "Management." He refused to take the job and lost the security detail and personal restrictions he had been under to protect him from the countless enemies he made as a CIA operative, choosing to be free from the organization's hold. It is later discovered that the organization was also protecting him from the rest of the world who were hunting the name Michael Westen. Michael continued to work toward removing his burn notice and being reinstated in the CIA. Michael then approached