Unanswered questions

Told that Reese would be there soon for a meeting, Carson is a bit surprised. He asks no questions though… answers would come soon enough.

Looking to Nate, he shakes his head, then looks back to the monitor. His eyes were tired and bloodshot, but he would barely blink, lest he miss something. “No… nothing new. The one guy has come in and out a few times – seems to be the top dog. Then there’s that fellow, Gage. Something is a bit odd about him… he almost seems hesitant to do anything to Katie, but with no sound, it’s hard to tell.”

Jason grits his teeth, barely able to watch. His heart screamed out to him. “Does she move at all?”

“Yeah. I think she drifts in and out of sleep. I’ve seen her move all her limbs, which is a good thing – I don’t think bones are broken at this point.”

Jason looks away again, folding his arms. “Where is Reese?” he grumbles.

“Easy,” Carson warns. “He’s coming.”

As promised, ten minutes later, Reese shows up. He stalks into TJY, his face showing how irritated he was. Lengthening his stride, he doesn't slow before reaching Katie's cubicle. "Alright, guys, listen up. Does anyone know where Simon Phinox went?"

Jason looks to Carson, then to Nate. No one seemed to know.

Reese reads the silence. "Does anyone know exactly where he came from?"

Carson keeps one eye on the monitor, the other on Reese. "I thought Brown sent him."

"Yeah, well apparently not."

"What do you mean?"

"I just spoke to Brown. He's never heard of Simon Phinox."

Jason frowns. "I thought you called Brown to confirm right after Phinox showed up."

"I did. I... can't explain that. But it wasn't Brown I talked to. Someone had a hold on the line."

"Now what?"

"I want to know where Phinox came from." Reese grits his teeth. He was in commander mode, not friend mode. "And I want to know soon."

Jason racks his brain. "You mean you don't assume he's from the Agency?"

"I don't want to assume anything. My first guess would be Agency, yes. He infiltrated us successfully, gained access to our databases, and passed on who knows how much information. But would I bet my life that he's Agency? No. He could be from a number of enemy organizations."

Carson stares at the computer screen for a moment, then looks back up to Nate for a moment. His eyes had something strange in them... Almost a thought that he didn't want to expose, but he knew he had to, and he was asking a friend's permission. Finally he speaks - but his words are aimed at Reese. "If he's from the Agency... I think I know who would be able to tell us."

Reese waits for a response, a bit impatiently. "Well? Who?"

"Scott."

Jason's eyes widen. "Scott? Why? He would have told us already if he knew Phinox."

"Not necessarily."

Reese throws up his arms. "Jason, quiet. Carson, explain."

"I think the Agency tried to assimilate Scott."

"And what does that mean?"

"Ninety-nine percent of Agency prisoners, they either kill off, or make into their own agents, by making them angry enough to join forces, or giving them reasons to retaliate against the law. They accept people... people like me." Carson swallows hard. "If the prisoner resists, they're the ones that are left to die, or killed on the spot."

Reese nods. "Go on."

Carson thinks for a moment. "The other one percent are those intelligent enough that the Agency wants them for more, and they have an assimilation program. It's a step-by-step process. First, they break the prisoner, physically and mentally, using brutality and near-starvation. Second, once the prisoner is down, they try to befriend the them by offering deals, medical help, that sort of thing. If resistance is still shown, then the third step is more torture."

"And you were at a level of the Agency privy to this information?"

"Yes." Carson pauses, his eyes shifting before returning to Reese. "I was involved in the first and third steps."

"I see. Go on."

"Once the Agency is convinced that the prisoner is totally broken, they begin to brainwash them."

"How do they know they're broken?"

Carson swallows hard. Scott had become a friend of his, and he hated putting him in this scenario. But it fit. "Usually it's when they start begging to be let go or to be killed. It's when they're at their weakest point."

Reese nods. "I see. Then what?"

"They execute brainwashing techniques using advanced technology. They want the prisoner to believe that they are on the right side and that the government and law are the enemies. At some point, they decide that the prisoner is ready for the final stage... They're convinced that the prisoner is on their side, ready to take orders." Carson pauses once more. "When they believe the prisoner is under their control and ready for the Agency cause, the final step is to feed them information from their computer database."

"Feed them? What do you mean?"

"They set the now-ally down, hook them up with some kind of electronic device that effects the brain."

Jason quirks an eyebrow, throwing a quick look at Nate then back to Carson. "Electronic device?"

"Yeah. The Agency is no idiot when it comes to technology. It's an actual computer feed and they basically transfer information from their database to the willing prisoner."

"Why would they want a man to carry the information instead of just leaving it in the computer system?"

"A couple reasons. One is a safety measure. They lose their energy source, have to pack up and leave, get raided - you name it - they have people who know that information. They also have access to files when computers are not accessible... say out in the field or on assignment. That chosen person has the information they need. They become the Agency's most valuable players, which can also guarantee their survival. Whether it's on a case for general use, or something more important, superiors can ask questions or release responses by visual triggers."

"But they can't extract the information the same way they put it in... only by verbal or visual triggers?"

"Actually... that's not true. They also have reverse technology. They can extract the information just like they put it in. But it doesn't erase it from the host - it only copies it back into the computer system."

Reese furrows his brow, setting his hands on his hips. "And you think that Scott is a host?"

"I do." Carson nods. "I've seen how triggers affect someone, an Scott's showing the signs. He says he doesn't remember, but I don't know why. That doesn't make sense."

"But if the process goes like you said... why was Scott still a prisoner?"

"I don't know." Carson purses his lips. "I've never seen the program fail. Scott should either be an Agency ally, or dead. But I still think he has information about the Agency that has yet to be unlocked."

"And you think one of the pieces is Phinox."

"It's a good possibility."

Reese heaves a deep sigh. He looks to Jason, then to Nate. At this point they really didn't have anything else to go on. "Where's Reiker?"

"Still in the interrogation room," Jason answers. "Ryder's back in there with him. Said it was a lost cause, but he didn't have anything else to do."

Reese tries to think quickly. "Okay... Carson, keep watch here on Katie just like you have been. Jason, I want you to coordinate with Jamie and Sapphire on finding out of any of our own files have been damaged or transfered out of here since Phinox arrived. Change the passwords into our systems. And Nate... you need to talk to Scott."

"It's getting late," Carson warns, "and we're all exhausted. Scott's in a vulnerable position..." He glances to Nate. "He's not going to want to talk - I don't know why, but he didn't want to talk to me earlier. But the only way to find out if he knows anything is if you put pressure on him. Now I don't know why he doesn't want to talk... there are too many reasons to speculate."

Reese hesitates. "Carson, are you sure? I don't want to pressure him for no reason. He's still not a hundred percent stable."

"I'd be willing to bet on it," Carson states flatly. "I already tried asking him about it once and I saw it in his eyes... he has information... any of it could lead us to Phinox, confirm his identity, or even help us with this case in general. I don't know why he's still alive or why he's not with the Agency now... but my gut says that's the case. The only other scenario would be that he really is with the Agency and they let him live and come back here as a mole."

"Don't even suggest that," Jason snarls.

"Jase," Reese warns. "Stand down. It's just a possibility that we're sure isn't true. But there are a lot of questions here. If its true that Scott has this information, then pieces aren't lining up - Carson is right. Scott should be an enemy or dead. If he was fed this information, the Agency wouldn't have let him live at all, let alone get back here. Something isn't right and we need to find out what."

He looks to Nate again. "You have your instructions. See if Scott knows about Phinox. If he doesn't, then drop it. We don't need to make things worse for him by interrogating him like..." His words suddenly trail off, his face paling.

Jason frowns. "What is it?"

"Um... um, nothing. I just... nothing." Reese shakes his head. "Nate, if Scott does give you information, then we know what Carson said is true. And if that's the case... then we need to figure out what really went on when Scott was with the Agency. He'll need to be isolated until we can question him thoroughly - we can't leak anything anywhere. Right now our priority is finding Katie. Scott's situation is second."